Written Answers
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Cabinet Office
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of workplace disability adjustments for visually impaired employees.
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Department for Business and Trade
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of further restricting the (a) use and (b) sale of fireworks on animal welfare and wildlife.
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Department for Education
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that the National Curriculum adequately covers a) practical skills related to basic food preparation and nutrition and b) education on the origins of food and agricultural production.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of auto-enrolling eligible children on to free school meals in Stoke-on-Trent South constituency.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many children are covered by the transitional protections for eligibility for free school meals; and what assessment she has made of the potential impact of ending those protections in March 2025 on the children currently protected.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to improve support for care leavers in Stoke-on-Trent South constituency.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to improve support for children with (a) autism and (b) SEND in mainstream settings in Stoke-on-Trent South.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what support her Department plans to give parents of children with SEN to access transport to school in Stoke-on-Trent South constituency.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what support her Department (a) provides and (b) plans to provide for apprentices who are required to purchase equipment to fulfil their apprenticeship.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department (a) is taking and (b) plans to take to support apprentices who cannot afford public transport to reach their apprenticeship.
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Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her department is taking to support British farming profitability.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the (a) adequacy of the performance of Severn Trent Water and (b) potential impact of water pollution on the environment.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if his Department will publish a breakdown of how extended producer responsibility fees will be allocated, in the context of transparency in funding for local authority waste management services.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of implementing a phased introduction of extended producer responsibility fees.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he plans to take to ensure that the opinions of people on (a) low and (b) middle incomes are adequately heard in the development of the food strategy.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of the Water Restoration Fund on river quality in Staffordshire.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department plans to ban the (a) sale and (b) use of shock collars for dogs.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to end badger culling.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what progress his Department has made on preparing legislation to ban trail hunting.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when he plans to introduce legislation to ban trail hunting.
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Department for Science, Innovation and Technology
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that content relating to women’s health is not inappropriately restricted or shadow-banned on social media platforms; and whether her Department has issued to platforms on…
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To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps he is taking with social media platforms to help tackle the spread of extremism online.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps his Department is taking to increase levels of innovation in Stoke-on-Trent.
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Department for Transport
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking to expand bus service provision in rural (a) villages and (b) other areas.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking to improve the accessibility of bus services for disabled people in Stoke-on-Trent.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking to improve safety on rural roads.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking to help improve road safety outside schools.
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Department for Work and Pensions
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether she has made an assessment of the potential impact of changes to (a) PIP eligibility and (b) the Daily Living component on claimants in Stoke-on-Trent South constituency.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department is taking to support people with a criminal record to find employment.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions,what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the Universal Credit reimbursement processes on claimants having to pay childcare fees upfront in a lump sum.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether her Department is taking steps to simplify the application process for Pension Credit.
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Department of Health and Social Care
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans his department has to increase the uptake of annual diabetes health checks.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his department is taking to improve access to finger-prick blood glucose testing for Type 1 Diabetes when symptoms first appear.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure the psychological impacts of chronic urinary tract infections are recognised.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his department is taking to improve awareness and understanding of Type 1 Diabetes across the Health and Social Care system.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of phage medicines on tackling (a) recurrent and chronic urinary tract infections and (b) associated antimicrobial resistance.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his department is taking to help ensure the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) recommended diabetes care guidelines are adhered to.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department is taking steps with the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence to introduce a definition for chronic urinary tract infections.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of medical (a) gender inequality and (b) misogyny on the (i) diagnostics and (ii) treatment of urinary tract infections.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to support research on vaccinations against recurrent and chronic urinary tract infections.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of using uropathogen infection testing for diagnosing urinary tract infections.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent progress has been made on incorporating menopause screening into NHS Health Checks.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the introduction of HPV self-sampling planned for January 2026, a) what information and awareness-raising programmes are being developed to inform under-screened women of the advantages and disadvantages of the available…
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To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what factors are considered when allocating investment for research in the less survivable cancers; and what steps he is taking to combat underfunding for less survivable cancers.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure that cancer patients receive radiotherapy treatment within the 62 day standard wait time in Stoke-on-Trent South constituency.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the inclusivity of the NHS app for disabled users.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the accessibility of the NHS app for visually impaired users.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a statutory duty on local authorities to provide meals to local authority funded clients of adult social care.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many families are receiving support from Healthy Start in (a) Stoke-on-Trent and (b) Stafford.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what progress his Department has made on tackling the shortage of Pancreatic Enzyme Replacement Therapy drugs.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to end the difference between the treatment of military and civil compensation payments in means tests for disabled facilities grants.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to improve provision of post-natal mental health care in Stoke-on-Trent.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to increase recruitment of (a) healthcare and (b) dentistry professionals in rural areas.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to increase the number of trainee GPs who undertake specialist training in mental health.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he has taken to improve mental health provision for young people in Stoke-on-Trent South constituency.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to his Department's press release entitled New reforms and independent commission to transform social care, published on 3 January 2025, how these reforms will improve service provision in Stoke-on-Trent South constituency.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to reduce ambulance waiting times in Stoke-on-Trent South constituency.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to (a) reduce waiting lists and (b) expand provision for pain management services in Stoke-on-Trent.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to (a) provide support for and (b) increase capacity of drug and alcohol recovery services in Stoke-on-Trent.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to improve outcomes for patients with a pancreatic cancer diagnosis in Stoke-on-Trent.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to fund improved provisions for addiction support services in Stoke-on-Trent South.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking through the implementation of an alcohol strategy to tackle problem drinking.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department plans to improve access to adrenaline pens (a) for first aid organisations and (b) in schools.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what progress his Department has made on the creation of a National Care Service.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to increase the provision of ADHD services across North Staffordshire.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what progress his Department has made on reviewing the funding of research to improve (a) treatment and (b) outcomes for people diagnosed with lobular breast cancer.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department plans to widen bariatric patient access to (a) Wegovy, (b) Mounjaro and (c) other weight management drugs.
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Home Office
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of expanding drug testing on arrest powers to synthetic cathinones.
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To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of updating the Home Office Approved Field Testing guidance in relation to synthetic cathinones.
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To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs' recommendations on synthetic cathinones in its report entitled Synthetic Cathinones: an Updated Harms Assessment report.
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To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an assessment of the potential implications for her policies of trends in the level of importation of synthetic cathinones through mail; and what progress her Department has made in tackling the importation of illicit…
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To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the reduction in the post-decision move on period on levels of homelessness.
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To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to increase recruitment of firefighters in Stoke-on-Trent South.
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To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to (a) monitor and (b) help tackle far right extremism.
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To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to tackle anti-social behaviour in Stoke-on-Trent South constituency.
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To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to help tackle car thefts in (a) Stoke-on-Trent South constituency and (b) other constituencies.
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To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what progress the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs have made on the review into synthetic cathinones.
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Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of private parking firms using payment by app only on users who cannot use a mobile phone.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of implementing an expanded national programme of Housing First to tackle homelessness.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to help support local planning authorities to improve the (a) capacity and (b) resourcing of their planning enforcement teams in North Staffordshire.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to help tackle the use of retrospective planning applications to regularise unauthorised development; and whether she plans to close loopholes that may undermine the effectiveness of…
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To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to improve enforcement of agreements under section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the press release entitled Vulnerable people given greater access to social housing, published on 19 June 2025, whether the new regulations will apply to victims of (a) child abuse and (b) parent-on-child…
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To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of ensuring that new build estates include adequate provision of (a) bungalows, (b) ramp access and (c) other accessible housing needs.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of consulting on regulating the property management sector.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to support local councils to tackle antisocial behaviour within council homes.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to provide support for veterans who are homeless and rough sleeping in Stoke-on-Trent South constituency.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to help reduce the number of (a) adults and (b) children living in temporary accommodation in Stoke-on-Trent South constituency.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she has taken to help support the regeneration of town centres in Stoke-on-Trent South constituency.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to tackle rough sleeping in (a) Stoke-on-Trent South constituency and (b) the rest of England.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, when her Department plans to present secondary legislation amending the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether the Leasehold and Commonhold Reform Bill will ban leasehold houses.
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Ministry of Justice
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of the proposed change to standard recall length, from the current 28 days to 56 days, on pregnant women and mothers of dependent children.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps her Department is taking as part of its role within the Interministerial Group on Homelessness and Rough Sleeping to reduce and prevent homelessness.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps her Department is taking to help reduce levels of reoffending among people released on licence.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment she has made of the appropriacy of custodial sentences for pregnant women.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps her Department is taking to help ensure that people carrying out jury duty do not experience financial hardship.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps her Department is taking to improve support for people being released from prison.
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To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps she is taking to support those with criminal records to reintegrate back into appropriate work.
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Northern Ireland Office
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what discussions his Department has had with businesses on investment in technology in Northern Ireland.
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Treasury
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of removing VAT from veterinary care.
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Women and Equalities
To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what progress her Department has made on (a) preventing discrimination in (i) agencies and (ii) small recruiters when hiring disabled applicants and (b) monitoring employers' compliance with the Equal Opportunities Act.
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