Helen Whately MP: written questions
465 published records · newest first.
Written questions
Anti-social Behaviour and Crime: Rural AreasHome OfficeTabled 4 Mar 2025AnsweredUIN 35344More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to help tackle (a) organised crime, (b) theft and (c) antisocial behaviour in rural areas.
Answer: Rural crime can have devastating consequences for countryside communities. The Government is joint with the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) to deliver a new Rural and Wildlife Crime Strategy, ensuring our Safer Streets Mission benefits every commun...
Answered 12 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordCrime: Rural AreasHome OfficeTabled 4 Mar 2025AnsweredUIN 35343More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to tackle rural crime; what progress she made on a rural crime strategy; and when she plans to launch that strategy.
Answer: Rural crime can have devastating consequences for countryside communities. The Government is joint with the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) to deliver a new Rural and Wildlife Crime Strategy, ensuring our Safer Streets Mission benefits every commun...
Answered 12 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordPersonal Independence Payment: Mental IllnessDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 3 Mar 2025AnsweredUIN 34913More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of young people claiming Personal Independence Payments for mental health conditions receive enhanced support for (a) daily living and (b) mobility.
Answer: Data on Personal Independence Payment (PIP) can be found on Stat Xplore. The requested data can be found in the ‘PIP Cases with Entitlement from 2019’ dataset, by filtering for age using the ‘Age (bands and single year)’ category and ICD Summary Code’ fil...
Answered 10 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordPersonal Independence Payment: Mental IllnessDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 3 Mar 2025AnsweredUIN 34912More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of Personal Independence Payment (a) claims are and (b) spending is for mental health-related conditions.
Answer: Data on Personal Independence Payment (PIP) can be found on Stat Xplore. You can log in or access Stat-Xplore as a guest user and, if needed, you can access guidance on how to extract the information required. a) In September 2024, 38% of the PIP caseload...
Answered 10 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordPersonal Independence Payment: Mental IllnessDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 3 Mar 2025AnsweredUIN 34911More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of Personal Independence Payment claims for mental health conditions are required to undergo reassessment.
Answer: Once someone has been awarded Personal Independence Payment (PIP), which can be paid at one of eight rates, that award will be either be reviewed or the claimant will be required to submit a new claim. Award rates and their durations are set on an individ...
Answered 10 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordPersonal Independence Payment: Mental IllnessDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 3 Mar 2025AnsweredUIN 34910More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate her Department has made of the number of Personal Independence Payment claims for mental health conditions over the next three years.
Answer: The Department does not forecast benefit claims by health condition, though it is implicitly assumed that the mix of conditions follows recent trends.
Answered 10 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordPersonal Independence Payment: Mental IllnessDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 3 Mar 2025AnsweredUIN 34909More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people aged between 18 and 24 were in receipt of Personal Independence Payments for mental health conditions (a) this year and (b) in each of the last five years.
Answer: Data on Personal Independence Payment (PIP) can be found on Stat Xplore. The requested data can be found in ‘PIP Cases with Entitlement from 2019’, by filtering for age using the ‘Age (bands and single year)’ filter, and the ‘ICD Summary Code’ filter to s...
Answered 10 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordPersonal Independence Payment: Mental IllnessDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 3 Mar 2025AnsweredUIN 34908More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the annual expenditure on Personal Independence Payments for mental health conditions was in the most recent financial year for which data is available.
Answer: Data on Personal Independence Payment (PIP) can be found on Stat Xplore. You can log in or access Stat-Xplore as a guest user and, if needed, you can access guidance on how to extract the information required. An estimate for the annual PIP expenditure in...
Answered 10 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordAgriculture: SubsidiesDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32021More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 28 November 2024 to Question 15504 on Agriculture: Subsidies, what issues were discussed with growers.
Answer: We recognise the specific needs of the horticulture sector. Defra ministers and officials meet regularly with a variety of growers (including a number of Producer Organisation members) from across the sector to discuss a wide range of issues. This allows ...
Answered 3 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordFarmersDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32020More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many meetings (a) he and (b) Minsters from his Department have had with (i) growers and (ii) fruit growers in the last 12 months; and when did those meetings take place.
Answer: We recognise the specific needs of the horticulture sector. Defra ministers and officials meet regularly with a variety of growers (including a number of Producer Organisation members) from across the sector to discuss a wide range of issues. This allows ...
Answered 3 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordFarmersDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32019More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 28 November 2024 to Question 15461 on Agriculture: Subsidies, when officials from his Department met with growers in the last 12 months; and what type of grow
Answer: We recognise the specific needs of the horticulture sector. Defra ministers and officials meet regularly with a variety of growers (including a number of Producer Organisation members) from across the sector to discuss a wide range of issues. This allows ...
Answered 3 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordDeath CertificatesDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 12 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 31062More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to review the (a) capacity and (b) efficiency of the medical examiner system in the new death certification process.
Answer: The Government is monitoring the impact of the death certification reforms, which came into legal effect on 9 September 2024. Early data indicates the median time taken to register a death appears to have risen by one day, from seven days to eight days. T...
Answered 28 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordDeath CertificatesDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 12 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 31061More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure that the new death certification process does not cause further distress for grieving families.
Answer: The Government is monitoring the impact of the death certification reforms, which came into legal effect on 9 September 2024. Early data indicates the median time taken to register a death appears to have risen by one day, from seven days to eight days. T...
Answered 27 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordDeath Certificates: South EastDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 12 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 31060More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to reduce backlogs in the death certification process in the South East.
Answer: The Government is monitoring the impact of the death certification reforms, which came into legal effect on 9 September 2024. Early data indicates the median time taken to register a death appears to have risen by one day, from seven days to eight days. T...
Answered 27 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordDeath CertificatesDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 12 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 31059More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the (a) average and (b) longest recorded wait time is for the issuance of death certificates since September 2024.
Answer: The Government is monitoring the impact of the death certification reforms, which came into legal effect on 9 September 2024. Early data indicates the median time taken to register a death appears to have risen by one day, from seven days to eight days. T...
Answered 27 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordDepartment for Work and Pensions: Artificial IntelligenceDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 12 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 31024More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what her Department's policy is on the use of articificial intelligence.
Answer: DWP is collaborating with other Government Departments to maximise AI’s potential to drive growth and deliver real benefits to people across the UK, as set out in the recent AI Opportunities Action Plan. DWP has a clear vision to safely leverage AI to sup...
Answered 24 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordRoads: KentDepartment for TransportTabled 11 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 30673More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 3 September 2025 to Question 2435 on Roads: Kent, what the outcome was of her Department’s capital roads portfolio review.
Answer: In July 2024, the Chancellor announced that the Transport Secretary would be undertaking an internal review of Department for Transport’s capital portfolio, informed by external experts. The review is ongoing and it will help inform the Secretary of State...
Answered 14 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordA229: Repairs and MaintenanceDepartment for TransportTabled 10 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 30125More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when work will begin on the capital roads project Blue Bell Hill.
Answer: The A229 Blue Bell Hill Improvements scheme is being promoted and managed by Kent County Council. The Council plans to submit an Outline Business Case to the Department in summer 2026. If this is approved, under current arrangements the Department’s maxim...
Answered 14 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordA229: Repairs and MaintenanceDepartment for TransportTabled 10 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 30124More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what funding her Department plans to provide for road improvements at the capital roads project Blue Bell Hill.
Answer: The A229 Blue Bell Hill Improvements scheme is being promoted and managed by Kent County Council. The Council plans to submit an Outline Business Case to the Department in summer 2026. If this is approved, under current arrangements the Department’s maxim...
Answered 14 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordMedical Certificates: Public ConsultationDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 7 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 29912More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 27 January 2025 50 Question 22715 on Medical Certificates: Public Consultation, whether she plans to launch the fit note trailblazers.
Answer: In 2024, the previous government announced that fit note trailblazers would be included in some of the 15 WorkWell pilot areas across Integrated Care Boards (ICBs) in England. Due to the timings of the General Election, they were not launched. As part of ...
Answered 13 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordHousing: Older PeopleMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 5 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 28990More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, when she plans to respond to the independent report entitled Our Future Homes: Housing that promotes wellbeing and community for an ageing population, published on 26 November 20
Answer: The government is giving careful consideration to the recommendations in the final report of the Older People’s Housing Taskforce.We are committed to enhancing provision and choice for older people in the housing market and we will continue to consider th...
Answered 18 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordDepartment for Work and Pensions: Artificial IntelligenceDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 5 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 28989More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what artificial intelligence technologies are used by her Department; and for what purpose each technology is used.
Answer: DWP is working with a range of artificial intelligence technologies, such as Large Language Models (LLMs) and generative AI (gen AI) which will help DWP improve its ability to respond to customers’ needs in a more personalised and seamless way. Some of th...
Answered 11 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordDepartment for Work and Pensions: Artificial IntelligenceDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 5 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 28988More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the white mail artificial intelligence programme used by her Department.
Answer: Whitemail scanning complements existing systems. The AI tool flags correspondence for review by operational agents to determine customer vulnerability and appropriate actions. During solution development, digital teams collaborated closely with operationa...
Answered 11 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordOlder People: HousingDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 5 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 28987More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether she has had recent discussions with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on the recommendations of the independent report entitled Our Future Homes: Housing that promotes wellbeing
Answer: DWP works closely with the Ministry of Housing, Community and Local Government to ensure housing needs of those on low incomes, including pensioners, are considered as part of the Government’s Strategy. The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions has not...
Answered 14 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordOlder People: HousingDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 5 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 28986More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether she has had recent discussions with the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government on the recommendations of the independent report entitled Our Future Homes: Housing that
Answer: DWP works closely with the Ministry of Housing, Community and Local Government to ensure housing needs of those on low incomes, including pensioners, are considered as part of the Government’s Strategy. The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions has not...
Answered 14 Feb 2025
Original Parliament record
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