Written Statements

Monday 13th October 2025 Written Statements

Monday 13 October 2025

Bus and Lorry Tyres

Monday 13th October 2025 Written Statements

[The Minister of State, Department for Business and Trade (Chris Bryant)]

Following EU exit, the UK transitioned over 43 trade remedy measures. These measures were originally applied on behalf of all 28 member states, including the UK, by the European Commission. Two of these 43 measures were anti-dumping and anti-subsidy measures on imports of certain bus and lorry tyres of Chinese-origin.

The UK committed to conduct transition reviews of all 43 measures to ascertain whether the measures are appropriate for the UK market, including whether they should be extended or terminated. As the UK’s independent trade remedies investigatory body, the Trade Remedies Authority is responsible for the conduct of transition reviews. The TRA makes evidence-based recommendations to the Secretary of State. The Secretary of State carefully considers their conclusions, the evidentiary basis and relevant matters in the public interest before deciding whether to extend or terminate existing UK measures, such as those 43 the UK transitioned from the EU.

In 2022, the European Commission lost a legal challenge brought by Chinese industry, challenging the anti-dumping and anti-subsidy measures that the EU had in place on bus and lorry tyres of Chinese-origin. The methodology underpinning the EU’s measures on behalf of the 28 member states was found to be flawed. The European Commission reopened both investigations and in 2023 recalculated the duties, backdating the effect to remedy the issue. The new duties applied only on behalf of the 27 member states as the UK had already exited EU.

The UK was unable to take comparable action without a review of the measures. On 3 May 2023, the TRA initiated the transition reviews of our anti-dumping and anti-subsidy measures on imports of bus and lorry tyres of Chinese-origin. Through the transition review, the TRA received compelling evidence supporting a recalculation of the anti-dumping and anti-subsidy duties inherited from the EU.

Following a consideration of the evidence provided to it by domestic and foreign interested parties, the TRA recommended to the Secretary of State that both measures be extended for a further five years. The TRA also recommended that certain duties be increased, whereas others should be decreased. Domestic legislation limited the TRA to being able only to recommend that these new duties be applied from the original date of expiry of both measures—23 October 2023 for the anti-dumping measure, and 13 November 2023 for the anti-subsidy measure.

While the Secretary of State accepted the basis of the TRA’s recommendation to extend both measures and amend the duties, the Secretary of State believed that the amended duties should be applied from different dates. The Secretary of State believed that it is in the public interest and the reasoning was as follows:

For those duties the TRA recommended be increased, the Secretary of State decided to apply these prospectively from the day after the public notice was published—1 August 2025. This is because applying the increased duties prospectively is in accordance with World Trade Organisation rules on prospectivity and represented a fair outcome for the affected UK importers. The Secretary of State also does not anticipate the TRA finding itself in this situation again—the issue was driven by the original EU duties being found to be flawed. The TRA has almost completed all transition reviews of those 43 measures the UK originally inherited.

For those duties the TRA recommended be decreased, the Secretary of State decided to apply these from 1 January 2021. This was to remedy the fact that the UK inherited duties from the EU that were subject to a successful legal challenge by Chinese industry in 2022. This again represented a fair outcome for UK importers.

The Government published a public notice on 31 July 2025 to give effect to the Secretary of State’s decision from 1 August 2025.

[HCWS934]

UK-Greenland Partnership, Trade and Co-operation Agreement

Monday 13th October 2025 Written Statements

[The Minister of State, Department for Business and Trade (Chris Bryant)]

The UK and Greenland agreed to resume negotiations on the UK-Greenland Partnership, Trade and Co-operation Agreement at the European Political Community summit in Copenhagen on Thursday 2 October.

This partnership provides a strong commitment to enhance our bilateral trade relationship with Greenland and develop a deeper relationship with all parts of the Kingdom of Denmark to deliver a more prosperous and secure Arctic.

Greenland has historically been an important exporter of seafood to the UK, exporting approximately £211 million of seafood to it between 2022 and 2024. The deal could also support the UK’s seafood processing industry, which employed nearly 16,000 people in 2024.

It will also lead to tariff savings on seafood and fish imports tariffs of up to 20% from Greenland for UK processors, supermarkets, catering businesses and restaurants, which could be passed on to consumers.

Once negotiated, this will be Greenland’s first bilateral free trade agreement. There is a strong case for resuming talks and concluding the deal to consolidate and deepen the UK’s economic and geostrategic relationship with Greenland, including working more closely on critical and rare earth minerals co-operation.

The Government will continue to update and engage with stakeholders while we look to conclude negotiations with Greenland.

[HCWS936]

UK-US Trade

Monday 13th October 2025 Written Statements

[The Minister of State, Department for Business and Trade (Chris Bryant)]

The UK and US have met to continue talks on the UK-US economic prosperity deal in London, Washington DC and virtually during August and September 2025.

The UK has continued to engage across the range of issues outlined in the general terms for the UK-US economic prosperity deal agreed in May. This has included discussions on digital and technology, tariff and non-tariff barriers, as well as on the US tariffs levied on products subject to section 232 investigations.

During the state visit of the President of the United States, the UK and US announced the technology prosperity deal that builds on the EPD. The first ever UK-US tech agreement is focused on developing the fastest growing technologies like AI, quantum, and nuclear. The deal will bring new healthcare breakthroughs, clean home-grown energy, and more investment into local communities and businesses in Britain and the United States.

Last month, the United States confirmed that the UK will not face an increase in steel and aluminium tariffs to 50% and will remain the only country in the world to benefit from a preferential 25% rate on steel, aluminium and derivative exports to the US, thanks to the EPD. This provides the certainty that UK industry has long been calling for. We continue to work closely with our US counterparts to reduce tariffs further and secure the best possible outcomes for UK manufacturers.

Also as a result of the EPD, the UK has received preferential treatment for lumber products, with the lowest tariff rate of any country in the world at 10%. Other countries face tariffs of up to 50%.

Intensive discussions are continuing on other sectors under section 232 investigation, including pharmaceuticals and semiconductors, towards the significantly preferential outcome provided for under the general terms.

The US is the UK’s largest single country trading partner with a trading relationship worth some £315 billion last year. UK firms employ some 1.2 million US workers while 1.4 million people work here in the UK for American companies. We have £1.2 trillion invested in each other’s economies. The EPD will continue to deliver on saving thousands of jobs, protecting key British industries, and helping to drive economic growth.

[HCWS935]

Turkey Enhanced Free Trade Agreement: Round 2 Negotiations

Monday 13th October 2025 Written Statements

[The Minister of State, Department for Business and Trade (Chris Bryant)]

The second round of negotiations on an enhanced free trade agreement with Turkey took place in London during the week commencing 15 September 2025.

Economic growth is our first mission in Government and FTAs have an important role to play in achieving this. A stronger trade relationship with Turkey will contribute to jobs and prosperity in the UK, with total trade between the UK and Turkey standing at around £28 billion in 2024.

Negotiations were productive, with positive progress being made in a number of areas:

Trade in services

Constructive discussions were held on a range of key technical areas, including digital trade, financial and professional business services, as well as investment. The UK continues to seek commitments that will support opening new opportunities for services trade, which is not covered by the existing UK-Turkey FTA.

Trade in goods

Turkey is a significant trading partner for the UK—our 16th largest trading partner in 2024. In that period, UK goods exports to Turkey were worth more than £6.1 billion. During the second round of negotiations both sides discussed priorities for building on this baseline, and potential areas of growth. Talks focused on text proposals, as well as discussion of goods trade data covering recent years.

Sustainability and collaboration

The round included further talks on environment, labour, and anti-corruption provisions, building on initial conversations held in Ankara during the first round of negotiations. Both sides continued to assess scope for areas of co-operation, including reaffirming relevant international commitments and building on identified shared priorities.

Additional areas

Positive talks were also held on dispute settlement, intellectual property, Government procurement, customs, and consumer protection; productive initial discussions on trade remedies and good regulatory practice also helped build a shared understanding of both countries’ initial positions.

The UK will only ever sign a trade agreement which aligns with the UK’s national interests, upholding our high standards across a range of sectors, including protections for the national health service.

The third round of negotiations is expected to take place in late autumn of 2025. Ministers will update Parliament on the progress of discussions with Turkey as they continue to progress.

[HCWS933]

Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry Report: Government Response to Volume 1 Recommendations

Monday 13th October 2025 Written Statements

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business and Trade (Blair McDougall)]

On 8 July, the Department welcomed the publication of the first volume of the Post Office Horizon IT inquiry report. The inquiry has provided a platform for postmasters to share their experiences of the horrendous injustice, enabling Parliament, the Government, the Post Office and the wider public to gain a true perspective of the life-changing impacts on those affected.

Sir Wyn Williams’ report commented on the redress schemes delivered by this and the preceding Government, with carefully considered conclusions. I pay tribute to Sir Wyn and his inquiry team for their work, alongside the many hon. Members and peers who have campaigned about the scandal.

Sir Wyn’s report set out 19 recommendations, which provide helpful guidance about how we should improve the existing redress schemes. I wholly share Sir Wyn’s view that his recommendations should be addressed promptly. In July, my hon. Friend, the previous Minister for Services, Small Business and Exports, committed that the Government would respond to them by 10 October, as Sir Wyn requested. I am pleased to announce that we did this on 9 October.

Response to r ecommendations

The full response to all recommendations has been shared with Sir Wyn, placed in the Libraries of both Houses and published on www.gov.uk. We have accepted all but one of his 18 recommendations relating to Horizon redress.

The only Horizon-related recommendation that we have not accepted was closing the Horizon shortfall scheme dispute resolution process, as we believe that to do so would unfairly restrict postmasters’ choices.

Sir Wyn’s 19th recommendation—for an independent body to deliver redress for future scandals—is welcome, but we will need to do more work on its feasibility before we can adopt it. This work is under way, and we will update the House when appropriate.

The Government informed the House on 8 July that we had accepted two of Sir Wyn’s recommendations already, including the principle of establishing a redress scheme for members of postmasters’ families, and the recommendation that claimants should be able to bank the best offer that they get from the group litigation order process. Today, I can confirm that we have also published the definition of what we mean by “full and fair redress”, to make this clearer for claimants and their representatives. We have already implemented a number of the other recommendations.

With Post Office and Fujitsu, we have commenced work on a restorative justice project for postmasters and their families, expertly facilitated by the Restorative Justice Council.

This work on restorative justice is separate from the contribution which Fujitsu has already agreed in principle that it should make towards the costs of the scandal. We are discussing that with it, but do not expect a conclusion until we have received the final part of Sir Wyn’s report.

Sir Wyn recommended that the Horizon shortfall scheme should close on 27 November 2025. We agree with Sir Wyn that there does need to be finality. However, having consulted the Horizon Compensation Advisory Board, we have decided to provide more time for vulnerable claimants to consider applying to the scheme. To help with this, as recommended by the Public Accounts Committee, we will ensure that postmasters are sent letters informing them that the scheme will soon be closing. The Post Office, with the Government’s blessing, has decided to close the scheme to new applications on 31 January 2026. They will also close the suspension remuneration review scheme to new applications on the same date.

We have also accepted Sir Wyn’s recommendation that people should be able to seek permission from an independent person to appeal against a fixed sum offer in the Horizon shortfall scheme. The Government will share further detail on this appeal process before the end of this year.

Sir Wyn has also recommended that we should provide legal support to those in the Horizon shortfall scheme in deciding whether to accept the fixed sum offer. As his report says, this probably makes “up front” legal advice unnecessary. We will implement his recommendation by funding legal advice for people who seek permission to appeal against the fixed sum offer. This means that such advice will be available to people who have previously settled for the fixed sum, not just to future applicants. We have consulted the advisory board, who agree that this is the right approach. In addition, a suitably qualified senior lawyer has been appointed to oversee the Horizon shortfall scheme to ensure first offers to claimants are full and fair. We are pleased to confirm that Sir Gary Hickinbottom will commence the role shortly.

Furthermore, from 9 October, claimants who have chosen to have their claims fully assessed in the Horizon shortfall scheme and the Horizon convictions redress scheme will be allowed to revert to a fixed sum offer within three months of receiving their first fully assessed offer.

It is absolutely crucial that redress is delivered with compassion, fairness and pace to enable those who have suffered greatly to begin to heal. I hope that by accepting the vast majority of Sir Wyn’s recommendations, this Government are showing their willingness to listen and make improvements where necessary.

Evaluation

To that end, I can announce that the Department is funding an independent evaluation programme to assess the effectiveness and impact of the redress schemes, delivered by external research partner Ipsos. The evaluation will explore how these schemes have been designed and implemented, what has worked well, and where improvements can be made now and into the future. It will collect and draw on a wide range of evidence, including interviews, focus groups, and analysis of scheme documentation and data. Findings will help inform future policy-making and ensure that lessons are learned for future redress scheme delivery.

[HCWS937]

Correction to Parliamentary Question HL8160: Anti-money Laundering Supervision Reform

Monday 13th October 2025 Written Statements

[The Minister without Portfolio (Anna Turley)]

It has been brought to my attention by officials that the Cabinet Office’s written answer to Lord Booth’s parliamentary question [HL6032] was inaccurate. Through this statement, I would like to apologise for the inaccuracy on behalf of the Department. The Department takes its responsibility to provide accurate information in response to parliamentary questions seriously.

On 5 June 2025, Lord Booth asked His Majesty’s Government the following question: “further to the written answer by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent on 10 April [HL6032]: what estimate they have made of the annual cost of the Anti-Money Laundering Supervision Reform Body.”

On 19 June 2025, the Lords spokesperson for the Cabinet Office, Baroness Anderson, answered: “HM Treasury is responsible for assessing the potential cost of the Anti-Money Laundering Supervision Reform Body as part of their business case development. The Cabinet Office does not centrally estimate costs for departments’ proposals. The Government has conducted a full line-by-line Spending Review which covered the proposed costs of the Anti-Money Laundering Supervision Reform Body to ensure value for money is being delivered for the taxpayer.”

I now wish to correct the record by providing the following response:

“HM Treasury ran a public consultation on potential reforms to the UK’s anti-money laundering/counter-terrorist financing supervision system in 2023, which included the potential establishment of a new public Supervision Reform Body. A decision on the policy to pursue has not yet been made, meaning that no such new anti-money laundering/counter-terrorist financing Supervision Reform Body was included in the recent spending review. The Government remain committed to anti-money laundering/counter-terrorist financing supervision reform and will announce a policy in due course.”

[HCWS947]

Public Service: Ethics and Integrity

Monday 13th October 2025 Written Statements

[The Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office (Nick Thomas-Symonds)]

On 21 July 2025 the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster laid out the Government’s plans to put ethics and integrity at the heart of the Government’s approach to public service. Today, we are delivering on those plans.

Ethics and Integrity Commission

The Ethics and Integrity Commission has been launched today. The Prime Minister has written to the EIC’s independent chair, Doug Chalmers CB DSO OBE, to issue the commission’s terms of reference. A copy of the terms of reference have also been deposited in the Library of the House.

The commission will play a leading role in supporting public bodies as they implement the planned forthcoming obligation in the Public Office (Accountability) Bill for all public bodies to have a code of ethical conduct. The Prime Minister has commissioned the EIC to report on how public bodies can develop, distribute and enforce codes so that they effect meaningful cultural change, ensuring public officials act with honesty, integrity and candour at all times. On the publication of its report, and on the Hillsborough law receiving Royal Assent, the EIC will act as a centre of excellence on public sector codes of conduct, providing guidance and best practice to help all public bodies put ethics and integrity at the heart of public service delivery.

As previously announced, the commission will have a responsibility to engage and inform the wider public on the values, rules and oversight mechanisms that govern standards in public life, and to convene the leaders of ethics and standards bodies in central Government and Parliament to identify and address areas of common concern. The commission will also report annually to the Prime Minister on the overall health of our standards system. The commission will not have the ability to launch investigations or field complaints.

The Government are launching today a recruitment campaign for three new independent members to join the commission, to ensure a strong independent majority. The commission otherwise takes on the existing members and governance structure of the Committee on Standards in Public Life. The commission also inherits CSPL’s mandate to be the custodians of the seven principles of public life, and to report to Government on how arrangements to uphold standards in public life can be strengthened in specific areas.

An updated ministerial code and terms of reference for the Independent Adviser

The Prime Minister has today reissued the ministerial code to implement reforms in relation to ministerial severance payments and changes to the operation of the business appointment rules.

The ministerial code makes it clear that Ministers will be expected to forgo their severance if they leave office having served less than six months, or if they leave office following a serious breach of the ministerial code. Similarly, the new code states that if a former Minister is reappointed to a ministerial office within three months of leaving, they will be expected to waive their salary for the period that overlaps with their severance payment.

The updated code and terms of reference for the independent adviser on ministerial standards also reflect changes to the operation of the business appointment rules for former Ministers. From today, advice under the rules will be provided by the independent adviser, and the Prime Minister may ask former Ministers to repay their severance payment if they are found to have seriously breached the business appointment rules.

One further change to the ministerial code is that the Cabinet Office will advise the Prime Minister before any decision to establish a public inquiry is taken, and before the terms of reference are agreed. This is to ensure decisions are well judged and proportionate, and that inquiries focus on finding the right answers and help effect change.

The closure of the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments

The Advisory Committee on Business Appointments has now closed. From today, its function to provide independent advice on the application of the business appointment rules in respect of the most senior civil servants and special advisers is transferred to the Civil Service Commission. Similarly, ACOBA’s function to provide independent advice in respect of former Ministers is from today transferred to the Prime Minister’s independent adviser on ministerial standards, Sir Laurie Magnus, who already provides independent advice to the Prime Minister on adherence to the ministerial code, and to individual Ministers on the appropriate management of their private interests while in office.

This structural change is accompanied by wider reforms to strengthen and streamline the system and enhance compliance. As set out above, in the event of a serious breach of the business appointment rules, Ministers will now be expected to repay any severance payment they have received. To improve the consistency of the application of the rules in Departments, the Civil Service Commission, which already audits Departments for compliance with the civil service recruitment principles, will undertake regular audits of departmental decisions on business appointment applications for grades below the level currently administered by ACOBA. This enhanced sanction and oversight will be underpinned by a more efficient and responsive system, focused on ensuring applicants understand their obligations under the rules. New guidance on the system has been published on www.gov.uk today to reflect these changes.

[HCWS939]

Football Governance Act: Statutory Instrument on Specified Competitions

Monday 13th October 2025 Written Statements

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (Stephanie Peacock)]

I am updating the House on the introduction of the Football Governance Act 2025 (Specified Competitions) Regulations 2025, which were laid before Parliament today and will be debated in due course. These regulations are subject to the draft affirmative procedure for secondary legislation.

They are made under powers provided to the Government by the Football Governance Act 2025. As was discussed in detail during the Act’s passage through both Houses, it will be important to set the scope for this regulator as soon as possible through its delegated power. This eliminates any uncertainty for clubs, and to allow the independent football regulator to proceed with its set-up, including its “State of the Game” report, that requires its scope to be set before publishing the report.

The statutory instrument laid today proposes that the scope of the regime will be the top five professional leagues in English football. This will include the premier league, the championship, leagues one and two, and the national league.

This was the proposal in the fan-led review in 2021, the previous Government’s White Paper in 2023, and has been discussed and consulted on by all relevant stakeholders at great length. The rationale for these leagues are that the issues that the regulator is concerned with most typically and markedly arise in the top five leagues of the men’s game, where the financialisation of clubs is greater and where the right balance between benefits versus costs of regulation is achieved.

We do not believe extending the scope beyond the top five tiers would be proportionate to the burden on the smaller clubs below the national league, where the issues the IFR is aiming to resolve are less prevalent.

On the women’s game, Karen Carney led an independent review of domestic women’s football, which was published in July 2023 and recommended that the women’s game should be given the opportunity to self-regulate rather than moving immediately to independent statutory regulation. Given the rapid growth and opportunity in the women’s game, the Government support this recommendation, so women’s football will not be in scope of the IFR.

By continuing the set-up of the independent football regulator, this Government continue to deliver on their election promises, to combat the poor governance and financial mismanagement of football clubs in this country, and to put fans back at the heart of English Football.

[HCWS945]

Public Service Broadcasting Quotas System: Regulations

Monday 13th October 2025 Written Statements

[The Minister for Creative Industries, Media and Arts (Ian Murray)]

I am pleased to update the House that, following their publication in draft on 6 May 2025 on www.gov.uk, I can now confirm the following statutory instruments have today been laid in draft:

The Broadcasting (Regional Programme-making and Original Productions) (Amendment) Regulations 2025; and

The Broadcasting (Independent Productions) Regulations 2025

As set out in a statement made by DCMS Minister Stephanie Peacock to the House published on 6 May 2025, these draft instruments make the necessary updates to the PSB quotas system introduced by the Media Act 2024, which includes permitting the delivery of relevant quotas across a wider set of services—including PSB on-demand services. To make this operable, the regulations —once commenced—will replace certain percentage quotas with a requirement to make a minimum number of hours of content available.

While the power to set the level of the original and regional productions quota is delegated to Ofcom, the DCMS Secretary of State (Lisa Nandy) sets the minimum level for the independent productions quota—which is included in the Schedule of the Broadcasting (Independent Productions) Regulations.

Both these draft instruments will be subject to the draft affirmative procedure, requiring debate and approval in both Houses before they can be made.

[HCWS940]

Energy Infrastructure Planning Projects

Monday 13th October 2025 Written Statements

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero (Martin McCluskey)]

This statement concerns two applications for development consent made under the Planning Act 2008: one by GT R4 Limited, trading as Outer Dowsing Offshore Wind for the construction and operation of an offshore generating station comprised of up to 100 wind turbine generators, with a capacity of up to 1.5 GW, off the Lincolnshire coast in the southern North Sea; and the other by Morecambe Offshore Wind Farm Limited for the construction and operation of an offshore generating station comprising up to 35 wind turbine generators, located in the eastern Irish Sea.

Under section 107(1) of the Planning Act 2008, the Secretary of State (Ed Miliband) must make a decision on an application within three months of the receipt of the examining authority’s report unless exercising the power under section 107(3) of the Act to set a new deadline. Where a new deadline is set, the Secretary of State must make a statement to Parliament to announce it.

The statutory deadline for the decision on the Outer Dowsing Offshore Wind Farm Project was 10 October 2025. I have decided to allow an extension and to set a new deadline of 10 February 2026. This is to allow time to request further information that was not provided for consideration during the examination period and to give all interested parties the opportunity to review and comment on such information.

The statutory deadline for the decision on the Morecambe Offshore Wind Farm Generation Assets proposed development is 23 October 2025. I have decided to set a new statutory deadline of 18 December 2025. This is to allow time to request further information that was not available for consideration during the examination period and to give all interested parties the opportunity to review and comment on such information.

While it is not my preference to extend, I am clear that applications for consent for energy projects submitted under the Planning Act 2008 must meet the necessary standards.

The decision to set the new deadline for these applications is without prejudice to the decision on whether to grant or refuse development consent.

[HCWS942]

Retrofit Measures: ECO4 and GBIS

Monday 13th October 2025 Written Statements

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero (Martin McCluskey)]

On 17 July the Government updated the House on widespread, systemic issues in the delivery of solid wall insulation under the energy company obligation 4 scheme and the Great British insulation scheme. These schemes place obligations on large and medium-sized energy suppliers to install energy efficiency and other improvements to homes, typically delivered through contractors. ECO4 commenced in 2022, and GBIS in 2023. Around 65,000 households have received solid wall insulation installed under those schemes.

The issues identified were the result of unacceptably poor standards of work from a number of contractors, enabled by a flawed oversight and protection system established by the previous Government. In the most severe cases, this has led to damage to homes, including serious problems with mould and damp. People placed their trust in the system to deliver safe, long-lasting home upgrades that would reduce their energy bills, but they have been severely let down.

This statement presents the results of our independent audit programme, published on gov.uk, and outlines the comprehensive actions that this Government are taking to help those people whose homes are affected and to ensure that this never happens again.

In October 2024, routine audits conducted by TrustMark—the independent body that oversees the quality of retrofit work done by tradespeople working in homes–identified significant levels of poor-quality solid wall insulation that had been installed under ECO4 and GBIS. TrustMark began to suspend installers, and the Department commissioned a much fuller audit.

In November, the Department asked Ofgem to oversee an expanded programme of checks, working with TrustMark, certification bodies and others to understand the scale of the issues. When it became clear that this was likely to be a widespread problem, the Department informed the House of its initial findings and committed to publishing the results in the autumn of an independent audit of the installation of solid wall insulation.

The statistically representative audit programme, launched in the spring, has now completed and I have now published the results on gov.uk. Results show that 92% of external wall insulation installations and 27% of internal wall insulation installations of those audited under these schemes were found to have at least one major technical non-compliance. A major non-compliance indicates an issue that will compromise the effectiveness of the insulation rather than pose a direct risk to safety.

Additionally, a small percentage of installations audited—6% of EWI and 3% of IWI—were categorised as posing potential risks to health or safety. Wherever these kinds of risks are identified, installers are required to make them safe within 24 hours.

Installers are responsible for putting right any issues found with their work; we have been clear that no household should be asked to pay any money to put things right. This is an unacceptable level of non-compliance that points to serious failings in oversight of these schemes, set up under the previous Government.

The Department also commissioned audits of our Government-funded schemes supporting energy efficiency: the social housing decarbonisation fund, the home upgrade grant and the local authority delivery schemes. Fortunately, these show that there is no widespread problem with those schemes, in part as they are subject to more oversight and scrutiny. We will take the lessons from those programmes into any future work carried out on behalf of energy suppliers.

Over the last several months it has become clear that this Government inherited a system that was not fit for purpose and that had multiple points of failure. These included: a system of oversight that had too many gaps, and which allowed issues to go unidentified for far too long; a lack of safeguards and incentives for installers and the certification bodies to carry out and ensure high-quality work; and a failure of the previous Government to grip properly the confusing and fragmented oversight system that it had allowed to develop.

All these failures must be addressed, so that the scale and nature of these problems can never be repeated. We are taking action. First, we have taken immediate steps to strengthen the safeguards in the system and ensure accountability. This includes:

Suspension of 38 installers and a rigorous process for reinstatement following remediation of all issues in identified properties;

Energy suppliers carrying out enhanced checks and increased oversight of their contractors;

Greater oversight by my Department of TrustMark’s operations;

New restrictions preventing installers from evading accountability by operating through multiple certification bodies;

Updated standards to require site visits from retrofit co-ordinators, giving an additional layer of on-site assurance, and requiring higher standards of qualification for retrofit designers.

Secondly, we want to go further. The Government are offering comprehensive on-site audits to every household with external wall insulation installed under the two schemes, at no cost to the consumer. We are committed to helping households, who through no fault of their own have not received the standard of service they deserve. Every affected household will be initially contacted by Ofgem, which is supporting the Government response, and Ofgem’s contact centre is available for any household with concerns. Details for this are: [e-mail], a webform on our gov.uk pages, and freephone number 0808 169 4447, Monday to Friday, excluding bank holidays, from 9.30 am to 4.30 pm.

We strongly urge all individuals who are contacted for an audit to take up the offer, even if they have no current concerns with their external wall insulation. I am aware of examples of households who have refused access to installers seeking to fix issues found. I encourage anyone who has had an audit carried out to allow access to the qualified professionals to put the work right. Even where the original installer is no longer trading, all works carried out under ECO4 and GBIS must be covered by guarantees, and householders can contact their guarantee provider for assistance.

These are important short-term improvements, but we are clear that we must now go much further. This episode reveals systemic failures with ECO4 and GBIS that were set up under the previous Government, which is why we are conducting a sweeping overhaul of consumer protection for retrofit measures. High-quality and safe installations with strong consumer protections are essential to building trust in the retrofit market.

The system we inherited was fragmented, privatised, and has weak oversight—leading to unacceptably poor outcomes for consumers. Too many organisations, often with overlapping roles and responsibilities, make it more difficult for consumers to obtain redress when work is defective. Compounding this, the lack of a clear line of accountability to a strong oversight body has allowed poorly performing installers to carry out substandard work without proper accountability. This is unacceptable and does not give the consumers the outcomes they deserve.

We will change all of this: Instead of a multitude of organisations with overlapping responsibilities, we will have clear centralised oversight. Rather than private companies in the driving seat, the Government will be at the fore, instituting tight controls and tough sanctions. We will do this by bringing in a single system of oversight for retrofit work with consistent standards and processes for installers, delivering stronger, formal Government assurance and driving up quality.

Further detail will be provided in the warm homes plan, with reforms to deliver on three key objectives:

Work should be right first time: despite the unacceptable failures uncovered in ECO4 and GBIS, in most cases work on Government schemes is safe and carried out to a high standard. Consumers must be able to trust that work will be done right the first time in all but the rarest circumstances.

Simplicity: people should not be expected to navigate a variety of organisations when they want to make changes to improve their homes. The installation process for low carbon heating and energy efficient home upgrades will be clear and straightforward.

Swift remediation and a straightforward process for redress: in those rare cases where things do go wrong, there must be clear lines of accountability, so that consumers are guaranteed to get any problems fixed quickly.

The Government retrofit system reform advisory panel will continue to support us to develop these proposals, and we are working closely with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, the building safety regulator and others. The Department will consult on proposals early next year.

Home upgrades are one of the best ways to get bills down for families, to cut bills and to deliver warmer homes, so it is vital that we address these issues in a way that ensures we retain public confidence in home upgrades.

This Government are acting—prioritising help for those households who might be affected while ensuring that we learn the lessons from these failures, and that as we drive for reform, we take the opportunity to make lasting change. That is why we are bringing forward comprehensive reforms to the retrofit consumer protection system—to make it stronger, more transparent, and more accountable, so that this cannot happen again.

[HCWS953]

Convention on Supplementary Compensation for Nuclear Damage: UK Accession

Monday 13th October 2025 Written Statements

[The Minister for Energy (Michael Shanks)]

I am writing to inform the House of the UK’s accession to a further international nuclear third-party liability (NTPL) treaty, the convention on supplementary compensation for nuclear damage (CSC). On 3 October 2025, the UK deposited its instrument of accession with the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency. Under the provisions of the convention, the CSC will enter into force 90 days following the deposit of the instrument, on 1 January 2026.

The domestic implementing legislation for the CSC is set out in the Energy Act 2023, which amends the Nuclear Installations Act 1965. Minor technical changes were made by the Nuclear Installations (Compensation for Nuclear Damage) (Amendment) Regulations 2025. The CSC was laid before Parliament on 30 June 2025, under cover of Miscellaneous Series No. 4 (2025), and completed scrutiny on 10 September 2025.

Nuclear power is a reliable and low-carbon source of electricity. It is an essential part of this Government’s mission to protect family finances and replace the UK’s dependency on fossil fuel markets with home-grown power that we control. NTPL treaties bring benefits to the nuclear sector and potential victims as they establish minimum compensation thresholds which operators have financial security to cover, assign liability exclusively to the operator of the nuclear installation, and channel claims to the jurisdiction where the incident occurs.

The UK will remain party to the Paris convention on third-party liability in the field of nuclear energy and the Brussels convention supplementary to the Paris convention on third-party liability in the field of nuclear energy—or the Brussels supplementary convention. Accession to the CSC will enhance the UK’s NTPL regime by establishing NTPL treaty relations with the 11 contracting parties to the CSC, thus further removing potential barriers to investment and supporting UK exports.

The CSC establishes a shared international fund of supplementary compensation for victims of a nuclear incident, which is made up of contributions from contracting parties to the convention based on their installed nuclear capacity and UN rate of assessment. At present, assuming UK membership of the convention, the shared international fund would be valued at approximately £120 million, with the UK’s contribution at approximately £6.6 million. This would create a contingent liability on HM Government that could crystallise in the event of a nuclear incident in a contracting party to the convention. In the unlikely event of an incident in another contracting party, said contracting party could call on the UK to make its contribution of £6.6 million to the shared international fund once that party’s national minimum compensation amount has been exhausted.

Additionally, should an incident occur in the UK, HM Government may be required to compensate victims up to the value of the shared international fund of approximately £120 million. However, in the event of a civil incident, the UK would be able to call on the shared international fund for the contributions from the other contracting parties to the convention, thus significantly offsetting the value of the contingent liability to the value of the UK’s contribution to the shared international fund—i.e. approximately £6.6 million. To date, there have been no calls on this fund. Further details are available in the departmental minute also submitted to the house.

This contingent liability will be incurred on the day the treaty enters into force in the UK, which will be 1 January 2026.

[HCWS946]

British Virgin Islands: Governance

Monday 13th October 2025 Written Statements

[The Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (Stephen Doughty)]

In 2022, Sir Gary Hickinbottom’s commission of inquiry identified gross failures of governance in the British Virgin Islands, a British overseas territory. The inquiry found that, with limited exceptions, the people of BVI had been badly served in terms of governance.

In the aftermath of these findings, and the arrest and subsequent conviction of the former Premier in the United States of America, the United Kingdom Government agreed an implementation framework with the new Premier, Natalio Wheatley, to drive the delivery of vital reforms to address the serious deficiencies identified by the commission of inquiry.

An Order in Council that would allow for an interim Administration was also drafted for use in extremis, should the BVI Government have failed to complete their stated programme of reforms.

In November 2024, during a visit to BVI, I announced that I would review progress, taking into account public consultations held by the Governor and the BVI Government, a final report from the Governor, reviews by FCDO officials, and a self-assessment by the BVI Government.

I can inform the House that the new BVI Government, working closely with the Governor and BVI public servants, have made important progress and engaged constructively.

While progress has been slower than initially envisaged, a number of significant pieces of legislation have been passed and the agreed framework actioned. Given the progress made, an interim Administration is not required or justified, and thus the draft Order in Council is now being revoked.

However, the hard work of ensuring continued implementation of these changes now begins. In discussions with Premier Wheatley, I have re-emphasised the importance of building on these strong foundations, to secure good governance that is sustainable in the long term and delivers for the people of BVI. To that end, I have also instructed the Governor to establish a monitoring mechanism, with twice yearly public reports. I have been clear that we reserve the right to take any appropriate actions necessary in future, in line with our responsibilities to the security and good governance of BVI and the interests of both BVI and the United Kingdom.

We will continue to support BVI in a spirit of partnership, and we have set clear expectations that there must be no repeat of the failings in governance that lead to the commission of inquiry.

Separately, we continue our work with BVI to deliver improvements in financial transparency in line with commitments made at the last Joint Ministerial Council, most recently discussed during the recent visit of Baroness Margaret Hodge at my direction and in my conversations with Premier Wheatley, as well as our work on sanctions enforcement and on areas of common focus such as environmental protection. I want to thank Departments across HM Government for their support in this work and the Governor, the Premier and their teams.

I nevertheless remain deeply concerned about the findings of a review of law enforcement agencies in BVI by His Majesty’s inspectorate of constabulary and fire rescue services, which identified a number of serious issues. We are working to support immediate improvements to law enforcement capability, including the critical implementation of vetting processes. It is vital that these and other changes are made with urgency and appropriate funding provided, to keep the people of the British Virgin Islands safe and to combat the serious and organised crime that impacts BVI, and on the United Kingdom, the region and our partners. I will not hesitate to act if urgent improvements are not made.

[HCWS943]

Iran Sanctions

Monday 13th October 2025 Written Statements

[The Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs (Yvette Cooper)]

We have long held concerns about Iran’s nuclear programme. It is for that reason that the UK was at the forefront of diplomatic efforts culminating in the joint comprehensive plan of action in 2015.

The JCPoA was designed to provide the international community with assurances around the exclusively peaceful nature of Iran’s nuclear programme. However, since 2019 Iran has escalated its programme far beyond JCPoA limits, with no credible civilian justification. The IAEA’s latest report from June details that Iran has over 440 kg of 60% enriched uranium.

That is why on 28 August, the UK, France and Germany —the E3—triggered the snapback mechanism at the UN Security Council. This started a 30-day process before the eventual reapplication of UN sanctions.

This step came after the UK, France and Germany had offered Iran an extension to the snapback mechanism in July. The requirements we set for an extension—including the resumption of negotiations, Iran’s compliance with its IAEA obligations, and steps to address our concerns regarding the high enriched uranium stockpile—were not met by Iran. These measures were fair and achievable.

Our snapback extension offer remained on the table during the 30-day snapback process. We continued intensive diplomacy with Iran to find a solution, including during United Nations High-Level Week where I twice met Iranian Foreign Minister Araghchi. Regrettably, Iran did not take the necessary actions to address our concerns, nor to meet our asks on extension.

The UN Security Council sent a clear message that Iran must be held accountable for its nuclear escalation by voting down two resolutions that would have extended sanctions-lifting on Iran. Following the conclusion of the 30-day UN process on 28 September, six previously terminated UN Security Council resolutions were reinstated.

On 1 October, the Government updated domestic legislation to reapply the designations and measures contained in these resolutions. This will ensure that the UK meets its international obligations as a UN member state. We would stress to other UN member states the importance of complying with the reinstated UN obligations.

The key UN obligations include: an embargo on the transfer of conventional arms to and from Iran; a ban on all enrichment, reprocessing and heavy water-related activities; financial and trade restrictions targeting Iran’s nuclear and missile programmes; and asset freezes and travel bans on 121 UN designations targeting individuals and entities involved in Iran’s proliferation activities.

The Government have gone further by designating 71 individuals and entities in sectors which have links to Iran’s nuclear programme. This includes Iranian financial institutions and energy companies as well as individuals and entities involved in facilitating Iran’s nuclear programme.

The Government have also announced that they intend to bring in legislation to impose further sectoral measures on Iran. In line with our EU partners, this will target finance, energy, trade, shipping, software, and other significant industries that are contributing to Iranian nuclear escalation.

These sanctions demonstrate our commitment to the international non-proliferation architecture and to the goal of preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon. Alongside our international partners, we will continue to pursue diplomatic routes and negotiations.

[HCWS954]

Armenia and Azerbaijan: Upgrading of UK Bilateral Relationships and Lifting the UK Arms Embargo

Monday 13th October 2025 Written Statements

[The Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (Stephen Doughty)]

This statement supersedes the written ministerial statement of Wednesday 1 July 2025 on Armenia and Azerbaijan: Arms Embargo [HCWS760].

I wish to inform the House of the significant developments in the South Caucasus and the United Kingdom’s response to the historic progress made in the Armenia-Azerbaijan peace process.

On 8 August, a trilateral peace summit hosted by President Trump in Washington D. C. brought together President Aliyev of Azerbaijan and Prime Minister Pashinyan of Armenia. The summit resulted in the initialling of a peace agreement between Armenia and Azerbaijan, as well as the signing of a joint declaration. This declaration included a joint appeal to dissolve the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe Minsk Group and a commitment to secure unimpeded connectivity between Azerbaijan and its Nakhchivan exclave, while respecting Armenia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. The UK warmly welcomes the progress made by Armenia and Azerbaijan towards peace. These developments mark a pivotal moment in efforts to secure lasting peace and stability in the region.

In recognition of Armenia’s and Azerbaijan’s progress, and to support continued momentum towards peace, the UK Government have decided to upgrade their bilateral relationships with both Armenia and Azerbaijan to strategic partnerships. These partnerships will formalise co-operation in areas including trade, security, and defence, and will be underpinned by annual ministerial-level meetings to review progress. I visited Armenia and Azerbaijan from 24 to 26 August to reaffirm UK support and discussed with the leaders of both countries how the UK could take practical measures to reinforce the prospects for long-term peace in the South Caucasus.

We have taken immediate steps to welcome and support Armenia and Azerbaijan on their pathway to peace by supporting the closure of the OSCE Minsk Group, in line with their request. The UK welcomes the consensus reached on 1 September to formally dissolve the OSCE Minsk Group structures.

Given the significant progress made in advancing peace, and the historic outcomes of the recent summit in Washington hosted by President Trump, the UK considers that the rationale underpinning the OSCE’s 1992 recommended arms embargo on

“all deliveries of weapons and munitions to forces engaged in combat in the Nagorno-Karabakh area”

has fallen away. The UK will therefore fully lift its arms embargo on Armenia and Azerbaijan. This decision will enable the UK’s security and defence partnerships with both Armenia and Azerbaijan to evolve in a rapidly changing context, and will allow the UK to support efforts to safeguard their sovereignty and territorial integrity, including in response to conventional and hybrid threats from other states and non-state actors.

Export and trade licence applications for Armenia and Azerbaijan will of course continue to be assessed on a case-by-case basis against the robust UK Strategic Export Licensing Criteria, and the Government will not issue any licence where to do so would be inconsistent with any of the criteria. We will keep the regional and internal security situation of both Azerbaijan and Armenia under close review.

We sincerely hope this is a moment of opportunity for peace, security and prosperity in the South Caucasus.

The UK stands ready to work with both countries, the United States, the European Union and other partners to play a constructive and proactive role in supporting this transformation, and the security and stability of the wider region.

[HCWS944]

Health and Social Care Update

Monday 13th October 2025 Written Statements

[The Minister for Secondary Care (Karin Smyth)]

I would like to inform the House of several updates from the Department of Health and Social Care over the conference recess.

National Commission on the Regulation of Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare

This Government have established the national commission into the regulation of AI in healthcare. This marks a major step forward in the Government’s mission to make the NHS the most AI-enabled healthcare system in the world.

This is a bold new initiative to lead the UK’s efforts in shaping safe, effective, and trusted AI regulation. The national commission will advise the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, our globally renowned healthcare product regulatory body, on the development of a new regulatory framework for AI and software as medical devices, to be published in 2026. This framework will ensure the UK is the fastest and safest place to bring AI-driven health technologies to market, supporting both NHS transformation and building public trust, while positioning the UK as a global hub for health tech investment and providing valuable insights for our international partners.

The national commission will consist of a diverse panel of experts, including clinicians, patient representatives, international experts, innovators, and regulators. The national commission will be chaired by Professor Alastair Denniston (Head of the UK’s Centre of Excellence in Regulatory Science in AI and Digital Health), with Dr Henrietta Hughes (Patient Safety Commissioner) as deputy chair.

Cloud Based AI tool

The Department of Health and Social Care, through the National Institute for Health and Care Research, is partnering with NHS England to create the AI research screening platform, a single, secure national infrastructure where AI tools can be installed, tested, and integrated with local screening services for research across all NHS trusts.

AI could transform NHS screening by improving early detection, speeding up diagnosis, and easing pressure on staff. Yet progress is limited: many promising tools remain stuck in pilots because there is no reusable, scalable digital infrastructure to evaluate them. Each study currently requires bespoke IT systems that are costly, slow, and unsustainable.

AIR-SP will enable large-scale, rigorous evaluation by comparing AI analysis of screening images with standard clinical pathways. The platform will support multiple NHS, academic, and industry-led research studies, accelerating safe AI deployment.

Building on the NHS digital screening programme, the initial focus will be on mammograms, retinal images, and lung CT scans, with future expansion to other imaging data. As part of the life sciences sector plan, AIR-SP will strengthen the UK’s position as a global leader in health AI, delivering faster diagnoses and better outcomes for patients.

Fair Pay Agreement

The Government intend to introduce the first-ever fair pay agreement for adult social care in 2028, backed by £500 million in funding to improve pay and terms and conditions for adult social care workers. This will complement the wider programme of workforce reforms under way to reform adult social care by improving recruitment and retention and giving staff better recognition for their vital work.

The funding is part of the £4 billion available for adult social care in 2028-29 and will be given to local authorities to support providers in improving pay and terms and conditions.

A public consultation on the design of the fair pay agreement process is now open until 16 January 2026. The consultation will inform the development of regulations, intended to be laid in 2026, establishing the adult social care negotiating body composed of employer and employee representatives. Negotiations are expected to begin in 2027, with implementation of the first FPA expected in 2028.

Over this Parliament, alongside our changes to the minimum wage and new measures in the Employment Rights Bill, care workers will receive one of the biggest upgrades in their pay, rights and conditions in a generation.

NHS Online

On 30 September, the Government announced they will be setting up an “online hospital”, NHS Online—a significant reform to the way healthcare is delivered.

This innovative new model of care will not have a physical site; instead, it will digitally connect patients to expert clinicians anywhere in England. It will give people on certain pathways the choice of getting the specialist care they need at home, having chosen to be referred to NHS Online by their GP. The first patients will be able to use the service from 2027.

NHS Online is part of achieving the Governments ambitions outlined in the 10-year health plan, which holds a radical and sustainable vision for how we think about elective care, with digital being the default and hospital attendances the exception.

NHS Online will help to reduce patient waiting times, delivering the equivalent of up to 8.5 million appointments and assessments in its first three years, four times more than an average trust.

Patient choice remains central to care. In-person care will always be available for those who prefer and for those whose care needs require it. NHS Online will free up capacity for face-to-face appointments.

[HCWS955]

New Generation of New Towns

Monday 13th October 2025 Written Statements

[The Minister for Housing and Planning (Matthew Pennycook)]

One of the first actions this Government took upon assuming office was to establish an independent expert advisory panel, the New Towns Taskforce, to support the delivery of our manifesto commitment to build a new generation of new towns.

A key purpose of this new generation of new towns is to create new and expanded places and thereby boost economic growth and the supply of new homes—spreading opportunity and supporting strong communities. With that ambition in mind, the taskforce was commissioned to make recommendations to Ministers on the location and delivery of new towns.

The Government made it clear that the taskforce should consider not only large-scale, stand-alone new communities, but also urban extensions and urban regeneration schemes that would work with the grain of development in any given area. We specified that each of the new settlements should contain at least 10,000 homes, but made it clear that we expected a number to be far larger in size. We also commissioned the taskforce with ensuring that any proposals would deliver well-connected, well-designed, sustainable and attractive places where people want to live, with the infrastructure, amenities and services necessary to sustain thriving communities.

On 28 September, the Government published the taskforce’s final report as well as an initial response to it. In its report, the taskforce recommended 12 potential new town locations to the Government. In line with its remit, the taskforce has identified sites across a range of typologies that share core characteristics and reflect the Government’s ambition for new towns to unlock economic growth and deliver housing at scale. Collectively, they have the potential to deliver up to 300,000 homes over the coming decades.

In our initial response, we welcomed all 12 of the recommended locations. Prima facie, each has the clear potential to deliver on the Government’s objectives, with Tempsford, Crews Hill and Leeds South Bank looking particularly promising as sites that might make significant contributions to unlocking economic growth and accelerating housing delivery.

We also made clear that we support the placemaking approach recommended by the taskforce and are encouraged by the aims of its recommended placemaking principles. These include links to high-quality public transport, access to nature, and infrastructure like schools and hospitals, support for business growth and job creation, and the aim to achieve 40% affordable housing, with half of this social rent. The final selection of placemaking principles will be subject to environmental assessment and consultation.

The Government agree with the taskforce that the preference for new town delivery should be through the development corporation model, while recognising the need for flexibility depending on the circumstances of each site. We intend to assess the delivery vehicle options for each place, including consideration of central, mayoral and local development corporations, and the potential for public-private partnerships.

The initial response also states that planning decisions in all 12 recommended locations should consider potential impacts of other developments on the delivery of the new towns, in line with recommendations by the taskforce. We also note wider recommendations by the taskforce on ensuring that the planning system is set up to support new towns and that the legislative framework facilitates the role of development corporations in their delivery, and will carefully consider these recommendations ahead of our fuller response in the spring. In advance of this, we want to reassure local leaders that a consistent and fair approach will be taken to how local housing need targets interact with the future delivery of new towns, to support our overall aim of increasing housing supply, and we will set out more detail in due course.

The Government have commenced a strategic environmental assessment to understand the environmental implications of the development of new towns. This will support final decisions on precisely which locations we take forward as well as the final approach to placemaking and delivery. No final decisions on locations will be made until that SEA concludes, and preferred locations could change as a result of the process.

Ministers and officials will now begin work with local partners to develop detailed proposals and enhance our understanding of how different locations might meet the Government’s expectations of what a future new towns programme can deliver, with all promising sites and reasonable alternatives assessed and considered through the SEA process. Appropriate assessment under the habitats regulations will also be undertaken when required.

The Government will publish draft proposals and a final SEA for consultation early next year, before confirming the locations that will be progressed as new towns later in the spring alongside a full response to the report of the New Towns Taskforce.

In our initial response, we set out the Government’s intended approach to land. This includes the fact that the ‘no-scheme principle’ of compensation for compulsory purchase will apply, so compensation will not include any land value generated by the new town scheme. Any value associated with the potential for planning permission that arises as a result of the relevant new town scheme, including from potential created from the planning framework for the new town scheme, will also be disregarded in accordance with this principle.

Delivering the next generation of new towns will be a cross-Government effort and central to the Government’s agenda, not just in terms of building homes but in order to drive economic growth and spread economic opportunity across the country. It will be a priority across all Government Departments to ensure that new towns are built with the infrastructure and amenities required to create successful new places, with the long-term certainty of funding. We are determined to get spades in the ground on at least three new towns during this Parliament, and the Government are prepared to progress work on a far larger range of locations if it proves possible.

Finally, I would like to thank Sir Michael Lyons, Dame Kate Barker and all members of the New Towns Taskforce for their diligent work over the last year in producing such a considered and comprehensive set of final recommendations.

[HCWS948]

Homelessness and Rough Sleeping: Additional Funding 2025-26

Monday 13th October 2025 Written Statements

[The Minister for Local Government and Homelessness (Alison McGovern)]

I am pleased to announce that the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has allocated £84 million in additional funding across four homelessness and rough sleeping grants for 2025-26:

£69.9 million uplift to the rough sleeping prevention and recovery grant, bringing the total funding for this grant to £255.5 million. Up to £12.8 million of this funding uplift is being awarded to councils specifically to deliver and add value to partnerships and services with voluntary, community and faith sector organisations. This additional funding has been made available to 62 local authorities experiencing the greatest rough sleeping pressures, alongside 12 strategic authorities and five London sub-regions. The funding will support a range of services, including for those experiencing long-term rough sleeping, and will enable strategic authorities to put greater emphasis on integrated efforts to end rough sleeping across their regions. It will also support interventions to prevent rough sleeping for those transitioning from the asylum estate.

£10.9 million on supporting children experiencing homelessness. This will be delivered as an uplift to the homelessness prevention grant, bringing total funding for this grant to £644.14 million. This funding has been awarded to 61 local authorities with the highest numbers of children in temporary accommodation, to increase access to support and services for families and make a tangible impact on their quality of life while they remain in need. This will deliver positive benefits for education and health outcomes by funding interventions such as school travel, uniform and equipment, and the provision of specialist support roles.

£3 million uplift for the rough sleeping drug and alcohol treatment programme, bringing the total funding for this grant to £61.7 million. We are allocating additional funding to the rough sleeping drug and alcohol treatment component of the drug and alcohol treatment and recovery improvement grant, known as DATRIG, to provide evidence-based drug and alcohol treatment and wraparound support for people sleeping rough or at risk of sleeping rough, including those with co-occurring mental health needs. This will allow continued service delivery in 83 local authorities.

£200,000 uplift for the voluntary, community and frontline sector grant, bringing total funding for this grant to £3.7 million. This additional funding will support work to develop innovative initiatives within the faith and non-commissioned sector to support those in need.

The Government are committed to getting us back on track to ending homelessness. The additional funding allocated across these grants will enable councils, strategic authorities and the wider sector to support those who are most vulnerable in society, and, ultimately, will help to save lives.

[HCWS950]

Home Buying and Selling Consultations

Monday 13th October 2025 Written Statements

[The Minister for Housing and Planning (Matthew Pennycook)]

My noble Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Baroness Taylor of Stevenage) has today made the following statement:

The Government are determined to modernise the home buying and selling process. A well-functioning system allows people to move into the right homes at the right time, enables households to put down roots in a community and supports labour mobility by making it easier to relocate for jobs. Its impact also extends beyond housing into sectors such as removals, construction, retail, and commercial property. Ensuring the process is swift, seamless, and reliable, therefore matters not just for individuals, but for the economy as a whole.

However, the current home buying and selling process is long, complicated and frustrating. It takes an average of 120 days to complete once the buyer’s offer has been accepted, and transaction times have increased by 60% since 2007. Around one in three transactions fail, costing buyers and sellers around £400 million per year in wasted costs. Older people often face particular challenges when looking to move or downsize with lengthy and uncertain processes deterring them from selling homes that no longer meet their needs.

These inefficiencies have consequences for the housing market and broader economy. Slow transactions reduce the demand for and the supply of homes, contributing to housing shortages and affordability pressures. Bottlenecks restrict the jobs market by making it harder for individuals to relocate to advance their careers. Sellers, especially older people or those looking to trade down, are often deterred by the hassle and uncertainty of the process, which in turn means fewer homes are listed.

Other countries show that the system can be better. In Norway, transactions complete in four weeks or less, with digitisation driving estimated savings of up to £1 billion over 10 years. Even within the UK, in Scotland up-front information and more binding contracts are already resulting in fewer fall throughs. There are clear lessons to be learned as we seek to ensure our system is more streamlined, less stressful, and fit for the future.

With a view to delivering a faster, more reliable system, driven by informed consumers, innovative technology and high-standard professional services, we have launched two consultations on reform proposals to transform home buying and selling.

These proposals will make transactions faster, fairer and more transparent, cutting weeks from the process and reducing the number of failed transactions. They will also support the wider Government agenda to unlock housing supply, improve affordability, and support the delivery of 1.5 million homes over this Parliament.

Our home buying and selling reform consultation proposes requiring sellers to provide comprehensive up-front property information before listing a property, including information from searches and a property condition assessment. This will help buyers make informed decisions and reduce the risk of late-stage surprises that derail transactions.

We are also proposing to professionalise property agents by introducing a code of practice for estate, letting and managing agents, and consulting on mandatory qualifications to raise standards and improve trust in the sector. We want digital property logbooks and packs to become a standard feature of transactions, reducing duplication and speeding up the process, and will consider legislating to require their use.

We are exploring greater use of binding conditional contracts to reduce the number of failed transactions, bringing our system closer to international best practice. We will work to streamline conveyancing and anti-money laundering checks, simplify processes and reduce duplication, including through the use of trusted digital identity services and we will accelerate digitalisation by supporting the implementation of common data standards, trialling a data trust framework to guarantee data provenance, and continuing to work with industry to drive adoption of digital technology across the sector.

These reforms will deliver real benefits for households. The buying process could become around four weeks faster, and the proportion of failed transactions could fall from one in three to one in seven. First-time buyers could save an average of £710 through these proposed new rules—a total of more than £180 million a year overall back in people’s pockets. Home movers could save around £400 per transaction.

Professionals will also benefit from a more efficient and competitive system. These sectors currently lose out on £1 billion per year as a result of failed transactions and our proposals will reduce the likelihood of this happening. Digitisation will reduce duplication and speed up processes, while also supporting innovation in the property technology sector, creating opportunities for growth and investment.

Alongside this, we are consulting on material information in property listings. This consultation seeks views on the information that should be included in property listings to support the transition to a system where buyers have the key details they need from the outset. Providing this information up front will help consumers make informed decisions and reduce the risk of transactions falling through.

The consultations will run for 12 weeks, until 29 December 2025. Subject to the outcome of this consultation, we will publish a road map this winter setting out how we will implement changes over the course of this Parliament. We recognise that these proposals represent a significant change for the sector, which is why we are consulting widely to ensure reforms are practical, enforceable and built to last. We know that this Government cannot do this alone. That is why we will continue to work closely with industry to deliver these reforms.

Our vision is for a housing market that works for everyone—faster, fairer and fit for the future; one that delivers the dream of home ownership.

[HCWS951]

Local Government Pension Scheme in England and Wales: Scheme Improvements

Monday 13th October 2025 Written Statements

[The Minister for Local Government and Homelessness (Alison McGovern)]

I am today launching a consultation on proposed improvements to the Local Government Pension Scheme in England and Wales.

With 6.7 million members and £400 billion of assets under management, this Government see the vital importance of our role as steward of the Local Government Pension Scheme. We know the impact that changes to the scheme have, not only on individual members but on the country as a whole. Investing in the members that make up the scheme—those who collect waste, serve school lunches, manage libraries, and tend to parks and green spaces—rightly rewards the hard work that they put in to making our communities thrive.

As a first step, in May 2025 we launched a consultation on enhancing member benefits, with a focus on:

Equalising the entitlement to survivor benefits of all eligible survivors of Local Government Pension Scheme members, remedying historical discrimination in the scheme;

taking concrete steps to addressing the gender pension gap;

mandating reporting on opting out from the scheme; and

closing loopholes on current pension forfeiture rules.

This work sat alongside important reforms to investment and pooling, which unlock the investment might of the scheme, due to reach £1 trillion by 2030. These reforms will harness the potential of the scheme as a catalyst of growth while ensuring that it delivers on its primary duty to provide a retirement income for members.

Building on these, the consultation we are launching today covers four areas:

We are proposing to update the normal minimum pension age in the LGPS age to 57, following the Finance Act 2022, and confirm that we will protect members who had scheme membership before 4 November 2021. This gives clarity to millions of members who want to know when they can retire.

We are proposing to recognise the geographical spread of our schools across multi-academy trusts, and simplify the process of applying for a direction to bring together staff into a single Local Government Pension Scheme fund. We are also proposing that the criteria applications are assessed against is put into legislation to provide transparency to employers.

We are proposing to implement long-awaited Fair Deal protections for workers outsourced from local government, ensuring that they have seamless and continued access to the Local Government Pension Scheme. This will in part be achieved by removing the use of “broadly comparable” schemes, which see workers receiving downgraded pensions when they are outsourced.

Finally, we are proposing to restore access to the scheme for councillors in England and extend it to mayors, bringing England into alignment with the schemes in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales. As reorganisation and devolution continue to reshape local government, the responsibilities placed on mayors and councillors are expanding significantly, and access to the pension scheme is key to encouraging talented individuals into those roles.

For 14 years, the Conservatives decimated local government, and working people paid the price. The last Government’s “Westminster knows best” attitude saw power centralised in Whitehall, with local budgets cut to the bone. Communities lost their sense of pride and control. Neighbourhoods changed beyond recognition and local champions were locked out of Government. This Government are putting power back in the hands of communities and their local champions. We are rebuilding and streamlining local government so that working people can once again rely on the regular, high-quality local services they deserve.

Efficient and reliable local services are built on a foundation of hard-working, professional and talented local councillors. While the Tories saw councillors as a volunteer, part-time role, Labour will treat councillors with the respect they deserve as dedicated public servants, handing them the rights at work that they deserve. The result will be a streamlined, efficient and more effective local government, with fewer more empowered local councillors. These councillors will be given the proper terms and conditions they deserve—the certainty of financial stability in older age should be a minimum.

I am grateful to the Local Government Association, the Local Government Pension Scheme Advisory Board, the Government Actuary’s Department, and many others for their support.

The next phase in this continued effort to improve the scheme will include the publication, later this year, of the full Government response to the May 2025 consultation.

[HCWS952]

Legacy of the Troubles: UK and Ireland Joint Framework

Monday 13th October 2025 Written Statements

[The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (Hilary Benn)]

My noble Friend Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent made the following statement on Friday 19 September:

I wish to report to the House on the Government’s approach to dealing with the legacy of the troubles and today’s publication of a joint framework agreed between the UK Government and the Government of Ireland. The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland will provide an update to the House of Commons at the earliest opportunity when it returns.

The UK’s commitments under the framework will fulfil the Government’s King’s Speech commitment to repeal and replace the Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Act 2023, acknowledge and address the suffering of victims and survivors and take forward one of the unfinished aims of the Good Friday agreement.

The framework sets out the commitment of the UK and Irish Governments to work in partnership to deliver effective legacy mechanisms that comply with our legal obligations, can command public confidence, and draw on the principles of the Stormont House agreement.

In place of the Legacy Act 2023, the framework confirms that the Government will legislate to introduce:

a new Legacy Commission, with statutory oversight arrangements to provide accountability and—learning from Operation Kenova—a statutory advisory group to ensure that the voices of victims and survivors, including those from a service background, are heard as part of the Commission’s work;

strengthened governance, including two new co-directors of investigations, new statutory conflict of interest provisions, and appointments made to a new oversight board following advice from an independent appointments panel;

enhanced investigative and fact finding powers and a fairer disclosure regime, ensuring that the Commission has all it needs to find answers for families, and that the maximum possible information can be made public, subject to proportionate safeguards;

removal of the previous Government’s failed and undeliverable immunity scheme for terrorists, which would have allowed those who perpetrated the most appalling terrorist crimes to seek immunity from prosecution;

an approach to inquests that fulfils the commitments we have made to restore those that were halted by the Act, while recognising the primary role that the reformed Legacy Commission will play in providing answers for families, particularly in cases containing sensitive information. All other outstanding inquests will be referred to the Solicitor General to independently consider whether, in each case, they are most appropriately dealt with by the Legacy Commission or in the coronial system;

a new process within the commission to be used for cases that transfer in from the coronial system. This will have provision for public hearings, the ability to consider sensitive information in closed hearings, and provide effective next of kin participation, including through legal representation;

the establishment of an independent commission on information retrieval, jointly with the Irish Government, and consistent with the Stormont House agreement. This will, initially on a pilot basis, provide families with an additional means of retrieving information.

These measures will be implemented in legislation, which the Government will introduce in the near future.

The framework also contains specific commitments by the Irish Government, recognising that addressing the legacy of the troubles is the responsibility of both the UK and Irish Governments. The Irish Government is committed to:

facilitating the fullest possible co-operation of the Irish authorities with the reformed commission, including through legislation. This will be the first time that information held by the Garda and the Irish authorities will be made available in this comprehensive way;

establishing a dedicated unit within An Garda Síochána—the Irish police—to deal with troubles-related cases, and;

making a financial contribution of €25 million to support families in the legacy process.

These commitments by the Irish Government are very significant, and will help more families—including families of service personnel killed during the troubles—to finally seek answers about what happened.

The Government have also separately announced a range of effective protections that respond to the concerns expressed by veterans who served in Northern Ireland. These will ensure that any veteran who is asked to give information to the Legacy Commission or an inquest is treated fairly. We owe a huge debt to those who served with honour to bring about peace in Northern Ireland in some of the most extreme and challenging circumstances.

The measures announced will provide:

protection from repeated investigations—the Commission will be under a requirement to not duplicate the work of any previous investigations unless there are compelling reasons to do so;

protection from cold calling—veterans will be protected from cold calling through a new protocol, ensuring they are only ever contacted with the support of the MOD;

protection in old age—measures which require the commission and coroners to consider the health and wellbeing of potential witnesses at all times—including whether it would be inappropriate for them to give evidence at all;

a right to stay at home—changing the law to ensure that no Northern Ireland veteran is forced to travel to Northern Ireland to give evidence to the commission or to an inquest;

a right to anonymity—ensuring veterans can seek anonymity when giving evidence and removing the need for veterans to give unnecessary evidence on historical context and general operational details, so that veterans are not forced to recount established facts; and

a right for veterans’ voices to be heard—there will be a statutory advisory group that will provide an opportunity for the voices of victims and survivors of the troubles to be heard, including those from a service background, and the commission will be required to take account of wider circumstances surrounding incidents being investigated.

The framework agreed with the Irish Government and this Government’s separate protections for Operation Banner veterans reflect the significant engagement that the Government have undertaken with political parties, victims and survivors organisations, human rights groups, veterans and their representatives, and many others.

This is the closest we have been in many years to putting in place mechanisms that can help families find answers—that unrealised ambition of the Good Friday agreement—and so help Northern Ireland to look to the future.

Given the significant range of views held by so many stakeholders, a perfect outcome is not attainable. However, the Government firmly believe that this framework represents the best possible way forward, and hopes that it will be given a fair chance to succeed.

[HCWS941]

Building Digital UK: Integration into Department

Monday 13th October 2025 Written Statements

[The Minister for Digital Government and Data (Ian Murray)]

Today I am announcing that Building Digital UK will be integrated into the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology from 1 November 2025. BDUK is currently an executive agency of the Department and will become a directorate within the Digital Technologies and Infrastructure group.

This move comes following the Cabinet Office’s review into arm’s length bodies, launched in April. The decision continues DSIT’s growth into the UK Government’s Department of digital delivery, helping to accelerate innovation and drive economic growth across the country. It builds on the integration of other digital delivery bodies, including the Government Digital Service and the Central Digital and Data Office, into DSIT.

BDUK will continue to lead the delivery of the Government’s vital digital infrastructure programmes, Project Gigabit and the shared rural network. These programmes remain central to the Government’s plan for change and 10-year infrastructure strategy, supported by £1.9 billion of funding announced in the spending review.

Thanks to BDUK’s work, we have already achieved 85% gigabit broadband coverage across the UK, and 95% 4G coverage, meeting both these targets a year ahead of schedule.

Integrating BDUK into DSIT will ensure that its operational expertise is embedded at the heart of Government, enabling more effective delivery of digital infrastructure and supporting our wider ambition to accelerate innovation and drive economic growth across the UK.

We will work closely with staff, unions and stakeholders to manage the integration over the coming months.

[HCWS938]

Greater Anglia: Transfer of Services into Public Ownership

Monday 13th October 2025 Written Statements

[The Secretary of State for Transport (Heidi Alexander)]

I can confirm to the House that yesterday, Sunday 12 October, Greater Anglia’s services became the third to successfully transfer into public ownership under the Passenger Railway Services (Public Ownership) Act 2024. Operations are now run by a new public sector operator —GA Trains Ltd—a subsidiary of public corporation DfT Operator Ltd.

This means that seven of the 14 train operators that my Department is responsible for, and which will form the backbone of passenger services under Great British Railways, are now in public ownership. West Midlands Trains services will be next to transfer on 1 February 2026, followed by Govia Thameslink Railway on 31 May 2026. The intention is for Chiltern Railways and Great Western Railway services to follow. Expiry notices will be issued to confirm the dates of transfer, once a final decision has been taken in regard to each operator.

Public ownership is putting passengers at the heart of the railway, but public ownership alone is not a silver bullet. To truly fix the structural issues that have long plagued our railways, we need systemic reform. Legislation to establish GBR will be introduced later in this session, marking the next phase of the Government’s bold rail reforms.

GBR will build a simpler, more unified railway that delivers reliable and safe journeys to passengers and value for money to the taxpayer. It will take responsibility for the day-to-day operational delivery of the railways: from delivering services to setting timetables, managing access to the network and operating, maintaining and renewing infrastructure.

Ahead of the establishment of GBR, integrated leadership teams are being set up across publicly owned train operators and Network Rail routes to increase collaboration and accountability, in turn delivering improvements for passengers and freight users. Integrated leadership creates a “system-wide” view of the railway, meaning better, faster decision making, and is another step towards GBR. Jamie Buries has been named Integrated Managing Director (Designate) for Anglia and will drive this change across the region, working closely with leaders across Greater Anglia, c2c and Network Rail Anglia.

The Government are delivering on the plan for change, with investment and reform driving growth, putting more money in people’s pockets and rebuilding Britain. Reforming our railways is central to this and will drive improved performance, bringing more people back to rail, generating greater revenue and reducing costs.

[HCWS949]