Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with NHS England on reducing long-stay hospital delays caused by social care capacity.

Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Department works closely with NHS England on reducing long-stay hospital delays including those caused by social care capacity. Though the Better Care Fund (BCF) the Government provides over £9 billion to be used jointly by the National Health Service and local authorities towards achieving agreed goals for reducing discharge delays.

Local systems have been asked to place a particular focus on reducing bed occupancy and improving patient flow. We have asked National Health Service trusts to work with local authorities on eliminating the longest days, including those caused by waiting for care packages. Areas facing the most significant pressures are receiving targeted support to improve discharge performance.

Updated BCF guidance published in February sets out arrangements to further support timely discharge from hospital including focussing on services that help people regain independence. The updated BCF guidance is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/better-care-fund-framework-2026-to-2027/better-care-fund-framework-2026-to-2027

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to improve transparency in reporting patient harm occurring in accident and emergency departments.

Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Government is committed to transparency in reporting patient harm in the National Health Service. The Learn from Patient Safety Events (LFPSE) service allows frontline workers in NHS providers to record and analyse their own patient safety incidents in order to identify trends. At the national level, NHS England reviews hundreds of incidents each week via LFPSE, looking for risks that can be acted on, including by issuing National Patient Safety Alerts and collaborating with partners to address issues identified.

We recognise that urgent and emergency care performance has not consistently met expectations in recent years and are committed to restoring the waiting standards set out in the NHS Constitution by the end of this Parliament, as outlined in the Medium-Term Planning Framework, which is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/medium-term-planning-framework-delivering-change-together-2026-27-to-2028-29/

NHS England has also published guidance on the Model Emergency Department, setting out core principles and pathways for high-performing emergency departments, which is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/the-model-emergency-department-high-performing-urgent-and-emergency-care-pathways/

We are also taking action to tackle corridor care by introducing new reporting arrangements and committing to publishing data on its prevalence for the first time, improving transparency and driving operational improvement. Where corridor care cannot be avoided, updated guidance has been published to support trusts to deliver it safely, while maintaining patient dignity and privacy. The updated guidance is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/principles-for-providing-patient-care-in-corridors/

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of child criminal exploitation on the number of missing children cases; and what steps her Department is taking to improve early intervention.

Answered by Jess Phillips - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

This Government is committed to ensuring a robust multiagency response to missing people, including children, and safeguarding them from harm. We recognise that missing episodes, however brief, can often be a red flag for a number of harms including child sexual exploitation and criminal exploitation.

We are determined to work together across government, including with the police and other safeguarding partners, to improve the whole system response to missing individuals and their families. We are introducing a new offence of child criminal exploitation in the Crime and Policing Bill to go after the gangs who are luring young people into violence and crime.

As part of this legislation, we are also delivering new civil preventative orders which will disrupt and prevent child criminal exploitation from occurring or re-occurring. We are also funding the Children’s Society to deliver the Prevention Programme to work with professionals within the private, statutory and third sectors, as well as the general public, to raise awareness and upskills staff to better respond to, disrupt and prevent multiple forms of child exploitation

Each missing child case represents both a vulnerable young person at risk and a family in crisis, often with complex underlying causes that need to be understood and addressed. We are working to support the NPCC and its rollout of its ‘Children who go Missing from Care’ Framework as another vital tool when tackling head-on the underlying vulnerabilities in children that often lead to missing episodes and further strengthening frontline response

The Home Office does not hold information on the average length of time taken is for police forces to find children reported as missing, given the complexities and care different cases require. Where there is a case of a child going missing internationally, the police are able to work with international partners to investigate, including where cases are raised under the Hague Convention.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what arrangements are in place between UK police forces and international partners to assist in locating missing children who may have been taken abroad.

Answered by Jess Phillips - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

This Government is committed to ensuring a robust multiagency response to missing people, including children, and safeguarding them from harm. We recognise that missing episodes, however brief, can often be a red flag for a number of harms including child sexual exploitation and criminal exploitation.

We are determined to work together across government, including with the police and other safeguarding partners, to improve the whole system response to missing individuals and their families. We are introducing a new offence of child criminal exploitation in the Crime and Policing Bill to go after the gangs who are luring young people into violence and crime.

As part of this legislation, we are also delivering new civil preventative orders which will disrupt and prevent child criminal exploitation from occurring or re-occurring. We are also funding the Children’s Society to deliver the Prevention Programme to work with professionals within the private, statutory and third sectors, as well as the general public, to raise awareness and upskills staff to better respond to, disrupt and prevent multiple forms of child exploitation

Each missing child case represents both a vulnerable young person at risk and a family in crisis, often with complex underlying causes that need to be understood and addressed. We are working to support the NPCC and its rollout of its ‘Children who go Missing from Care’ Framework as another vital tool when tackling head-on the underlying vulnerabilities in children that often lead to missing episodes and further strengthening frontline response

The Home Office does not hold information on the average length of time taken is for police forces to find children reported as missing, given the complexities and care different cases require. Where there is a case of a child going missing internationally, the police are able to work with international partners to investigate, including where cases are raised under the Hague Convention.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the average length of time taken is for police forces to find children reported as missing.

Answered by Jess Phillips - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

This Government is committed to ensuring a robust multiagency response to missing people, including children, and safeguarding them from harm. We recognise that missing episodes, however brief, can often be a red flag for a number of harms including child sexual exploitation and criminal exploitation.

We are determined to work together across government, including with the police and other safeguarding partners, to improve the whole system response to missing individuals and their families. We are introducing a new offence of child criminal exploitation in the Crime and Policing Bill to go after the gangs who are luring young people into violence and crime.

As part of this legislation, we are also delivering new civil preventative orders which will disrupt and prevent child criminal exploitation from occurring or re-occurring. We are also funding the Children’s Society to deliver the Prevention Programme to work with professionals within the private, statutory and third sectors, as well as the general public, to raise awareness and upskills staff to better respond to, disrupt and prevent multiple forms of child exploitation

Each missing child case represents both a vulnerable young person at risk and a family in crisis, often with complex underlying causes that need to be understood and addressed. We are working to support the NPCC and its rollout of its ‘Children who go Missing from Care’ Framework as another vital tool when tackling head-on the underlying vulnerabilities in children that often lead to missing episodes and further strengthening frontline response

The Home Office does not hold information on the average length of time taken is for police forces to find children reported as missing, given the complexities and care different cases require. Where there is a case of a child going missing internationally, the police are able to work with international partners to investigate, including where cases are raised under the Hague Convention.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of regional variations in access to (a) nursing and (b) residential home spaces for patients waiting to be discharged.

Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

Local authorities are best placed to understand and plan for the needs of their population. That is why, under the Care Act 2014, local authorities are tasked with the duty to shape their care market and to commission a range of high-quality, sustainable, and person-centred care and support services to meet the diverse needs of all local people.

In performing that duty, a local authority must have regard to current and likely future demand for such services and consider how providers might meet that demand. This includes ensuring sufficient rehabilitation and recovery capacity to support timely and safe discharge for people with more complex needs, including those who may require a new nursing or residential home placement where appropriate.

The Government is making over £4.6 billion of additional funding available for adult social care in 2028/29 compared to 2025/26, to support the sector in making improvements. Additionally, through the Better Care Fund, over £9 billion is provided for 2025/26 for the National Health Service and local authorities to work jointly towards agreed goals on reducing discharge delays.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to help increase the number of (a) nursing and (b) residential home placements.

Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

Local authorities are best placed to understand and plan for the needs of their population. That is why, under the Care Act 2014, local authorities are tasked with the duty to shape their care market and to commission a range of high-quality, sustainable, and person-centred care and support services to meet the diverse needs of all local people.

In performing that duty, a local authority must have regard to current and likely future demand for such services and consider how providers might meet that demand. This includes ensuring sufficient rehabilitation and recovery capacity to support timely and safe discharge for people with more complex needs, including those who may require a new nursing or residential home placement where appropriate.

The Government is making over £4.6 billion of additional funding available for adult social care in 2028/29 compared to 2025/26, to support the sector in making improvements. Additionally, through the Better Care Fund, over £9 billion is provided for 2025/26 for the National Health Service and local authorities to work jointly towards agreed goals on reducing discharge delays.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to increase levels of enforcement action against individuals responsible for fly-tipping.

Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Local authorities have powers to take enforcement action against offenders. Anyone caught fly-tipping may be prosecuted which can lead to a significant fine, a community sentence or even imprisonment.

We encourage and support councils to make good use of their enforcement powers. For example, we are seeking powers in the Crime and Policing Bill to provide statutory fly-tipping enforcement guidance to support councils to consistently, appropriately and effectively exercise these existing powers.

Following a review of council powers to seize and crush vehicles of suspected fly-tippers, we have issued best practice guidance on the website on the National Fly-Tipping Prevention Group. This will support councils to make better use of their power to seize vehicles of suspected fly-tippers and action that could lead to selling or destroying the vehicle.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of trends in levels of in fly-tipping incidents over the last five years.

Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Defra publish fly-tipping statistics for England annually. A detailed breakdown of the latest incidents reported by local authorities is available at: Fly-tipping statistics for England, 2024 to 2025 - GOV.UK

This statistical notice provides statistics on fly-tipping incidents recorded by local authorities in England, for April 2024 to March 2025. It covers trends in the number of fly-tipping incidents, including over the last five years, with a breakdown by land type, waste type and size. It also covers enforcement and prosecution actions undertaken for fly-tipping incidents. It excludes the large-scale incidents dealt with by the Environment Agency and the majority of private-land incidents.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the maximum penalties available for fly-tipping offences.

Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The Secretary of State has not made a recent assessment.

Local authorities have powers to take enforcement action against offenders. Anyone caught fly-tipping may be prosecuted which can lead to a significant fine, a community sentence or even imprisonment.

Instead of prosecuting, local authorities can choose to issue a fixed penalty notice (on-the-spot fine) of up to £1,000 to fly-tippers and £600 to householders who pass their waste to an unlicensed waste carrier.

Sentencing is a matter for the independent courts. When deciding what sentence to impose, the court will take into account the circumstances of the offence in line with the guidelines issued by the independent Sentencing Council.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the Procurement Act 2023 on the (a) number and (b) total value of public procurement contracts awarded to small and medium-sized enterprises.

Answered by Chris Ward - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

This Government is determined to ensure the £400 billion of public money spent on public procurement annually delivers economic growth and supports British businesses, especially SMEs.

We are starting to see more opportunities for SMEs and VCSEs as the Procurement Act 2023 is implemented and embedded across the public sector. Initial trends show that the proportion of PA23 tender lots with a planning, tender, transparency or dynamic markets notice tagged as suitable for SMEs has increased to around two thirds of all requirements.

To continue to build on this positive trend, this Government has also published a new, more ambitious, National Procurement Policy Statement (NPPS), which requires contracting authorities to consider ways to increase procurement spend with SMEs and Voluntary, Community, and Social Enterprises (VCSEs).

We have also introduced changes allowing local councils to reserve over one billion pounds worth of lower value contracts to suppliers based locally or within the UK which has recently become law, a step strongly supported by SMEs.

We will set out further reforms, including the response to the recent public procurement consultation, in due course. These reforms will further support British SMEs to bid for contracts.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to his Department’s press release entitled Patients to benefit from improved access to dental appointments, published on 21 February 2026, how many additional urgent appointments will be available in (a) Basildon and (b) Thurrock as a result of the broadening of the scope of the target.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Government is committed to ensuring people can access urgent dental care when they need it. Over the past year, integrated care boards (ICBs) have been commissioning additional urgent dental appointments and there is now an urgent care safety net available in all areas of the country.

We are broadening the scope of the commitment to deliver additional appointments so that they can be used for more patients, not just those who meet the clinical criteria for “urgent” care. This will allow ICBs to use the extra commissioned capacity more flexibly and deliver more appointments, ensuring resources reach those who genuinely need treatment. Each ICB is responsible for commissioning dental services in their area from local providers.

We will ensure a continued urgent care safety net by requiring, from April 2026, high street dentists to deliver 8.2% of their total contract value as urgent or unscheduled care.

The Mid and South Essex ICB, which includes the South Basildon and East Thurrock constituency, delivered 53,376 additional courses of treatment in the first seven months of this financial year, from April to October 2025, compared to the corresponding months of the year before the general election.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to his Department’s press release entitled Patients to benefit from improved access to dental appointments, published on 21 February 2026, how many additional urgent appointments each high street dentist will be required to provide.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Government is committed to ensuring people can access urgent dental care when they need it. Over the past year, integrated care boards (ICBs) have been commissioning additional urgent dental appointments and there is now an urgent care safety net available in all areas of the country.

We are broadening the scope of the commitment to deliver additional appointments so that they can be used for more patients, not just those who meet the clinical criteria for “urgent” care. This will allow ICBs to use the extra commissioned capacity more flexibly and deliver more appointments, ensuring resources reach those who genuinely need treatment. Each ICB is responsible for commissioning dental services in their area from local providers.

We will ensure a continued urgent care safety net by requiring, from April 2026, high street dentists to deliver 8.2% of their total contract value as urgent or unscheduled care.

The Mid and South Essex ICB, which includes the South Basildon and East Thurrock constituency, delivered 53,376 additional courses of treatment in the first seven months of this financial year, from April to October 2025, compared to the corresponding months of the year before the general election.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to Homes England’s press release entitled Homes England opens bidding for ten year Social and Affordable Homes Programme, published on 24 February 2026, what steps he is taking to ensure that small and medium-sized housing providers are able to access funding under the Social and Affordable Homes Programme 2026–2036.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

I refer the hon. Member to the answers given to Questions UIN 115205 on 3 March 2026, UIN 96282 on 10 December 2025, UIN 89351 on 21 November 2025 and UIN 60128 on 4 July 2025.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to Homes England’s press release entitled Homes England opens bidding for ten year Social and Affordable Homes Programme, published on 24 February 2026, whether there will be a cap per-home on the sum of financial support offered by the Social and Affordable Homes Programme.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

I refer the hon. Member to the policy statement published by my Department on 7 November 2025 which can be found on gov.uk here.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to Homes England’s press release entitled Homes England opens bidding for ten year Social and Affordable Homes Programme, published on 24 February 2026, what proportion of new homes utilising the £27 billion fund will be council-owned housing.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

I refer the hon. Member to the answers given to Question UIN 89351 on 21 November 2025 and UIN 96282 on 10 December 2025.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to Homes England’s press release entitled Homes England opens bidding for ten year Social and Affordable Homes Programme, published on 24 February 2026, how many additional homes will be completed as a result of that programme by 2036.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

I refer the hon. Member to the answers given to Question UIN 89351 on 21 November 2025 and UIN 96282 on 10 December 2025.

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to her Department’s press release entitled New requirements for UK’s biggest video-on-demand services, published on 24 February 2026, whether YouTube will be included in the additional video services to be regulated.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Government will shortly lay the On-demand Programme Services (Tier 1 Services) Regulations 2026. These regulations will designate video-on-demand services with more than 500,000 average monthly users in the UK as Tier 1 services, bringing them under enhanced regulation by Ofcom. Under the Media Act 2024, YouTube channels that commercial public service broadcasters use to fulfil their public service remit will also be Tier 1 services. Other channels hosted on video-sharing platforms, such as YouTube, are exempt from the regulations. However, these channels may still have other legal obligations, for example under the Online Safety Act 2023. Further information, including a draft of the regulations, can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/statement-on-designation-of-tier-1-video-on-demand-vod-services.

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to her Department’s press release entitled New requirements for UK’s biggest video-on-demand services, published on 24 February 2026, what discussions she has had with video streaming companies on the new accessibility proposals.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport engaged extensively with video-on-demand services and disability advocacy groups throughout the passage of the Media Act 2024 and its implementation. This included organisations such as the Royal National Institute for Deaf People (RNID) and the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB). The Act sets minimum requirements for accessibility features, including that Tier 1 services must ensure that 80% of their total catalogue is subtitled, 10% is audio-described, and 5% is signed. These requirements mirror the existing access service requirements in place for commercial broadcasters and will be kept under review. The Government is also clear that these are minimum requirements, and fully expect services to go beyond this where feasible.

Ofcom will shortly consult on and draft a new accessibility code, which will be an opportunity for the public and providers to share their views on the new rules. Once implemented, where Tier 1 services do not meet the requirements set out in the new accessibility code, Ofcom has powers to issue statutory sanctions, including financial penalties, where appropriate. These sanctions can be applied to both UK and non-UK Tier 1 services. Further information, including a draft of the regulations, can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/statement-on-designation-of-tier-1-video-on-demand-vod-services.

Ofcom reports annually on the access services provided by UK-regulated video-on-demand services. The most recent report covers 2024, and is available here: https://www.ofcom.org.uk/tv-radio-and-on-demand/accessibility/television-and-on-demand-programme-services-access-services-report--january-to-december-2024.

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to her Department’s press release entitled New requirements for UK’s biggest video-on-demand services, published on 24 February 2026, whether her Department plans to review the minimum thresholds for (a) subtitling, (b) audio description and (c) signing after the initial four-year implementation period.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport engaged extensively with video-on-demand services and disability advocacy groups throughout the passage of the Media Act 2024 and its implementation. This included organisations such as the Royal National Institute for Deaf People (RNID) and the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB). The Act sets minimum requirements for accessibility features, including that Tier 1 services must ensure that 80% of their total catalogue is subtitled, 10% is audio-described, and 5% is signed. These requirements mirror the existing access service requirements in place for commercial broadcasters and will be kept under review. The Government is also clear that these are minimum requirements, and fully expect services to go beyond this where feasible.

Ofcom will shortly consult on and draft a new accessibility code, which will be an opportunity for the public and providers to share their views on the new rules. Once implemented, where Tier 1 services do not meet the requirements set out in the new accessibility code, Ofcom has powers to issue statutory sanctions, including financial penalties, where appropriate. These sanctions can be applied to both UK and non-UK Tier 1 services. Further information, including a draft of the regulations, can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/statement-on-designation-of-tier-1-video-on-demand-vod-services.

Ofcom reports annually on the access services provided by UK-regulated video-on-demand services. The most recent report covers 2024, and is available here: https://www.ofcom.org.uk/tv-radio-and-on-demand/accessibility/television-and-on-demand-programme-services-access-services-report--january-to-december-2024.

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to her Department’s press release entitled New requirements for UK’s biggest video-on-demand services, published on 24 February 2026, what information her Department holds on the proportion of content by major video streaming services which does not have accessibility support meeting the new criteria.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport engaged extensively with video-on-demand services and disability advocacy groups throughout the passage of the Media Act 2024 and its implementation. This included organisations such as the Royal National Institute for Deaf People (RNID) and the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB). The Act sets minimum requirements for accessibility features, including that Tier 1 services must ensure that 80% of their total catalogue is subtitled, 10% is audio-described, and 5% is signed. These requirements mirror the existing access service requirements in place for commercial broadcasters and will be kept under review. The Government is also clear that these are minimum requirements, and fully expect services to go beyond this where feasible.

Ofcom will shortly consult on and draft a new accessibility code, which will be an opportunity for the public and providers to share their views on the new rules. Once implemented, where Tier 1 services do not meet the requirements set out in the new accessibility code, Ofcom has powers to issue statutory sanctions, including financial penalties, where appropriate. These sanctions can be applied to both UK and non-UK Tier 1 services. Further information, including a draft of the regulations, can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/statement-on-designation-of-tier-1-video-on-demand-vod-services.

Ofcom reports annually on the access services provided by UK-regulated video-on-demand services. The most recent report covers 2024, and is available here: https://www.ofcom.org.uk/tv-radio-and-on-demand/accessibility/television-and-on-demand-programme-services-access-services-report--january-to-december-2024.

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to her Department’s press release entitled New requirements for UK’s biggest video-on-demand services, published on 24 February 2026, what steps she is taking to ensure that non-UK based video streaming services comply with the updated accessibility standards for UK consumers.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport engaged extensively with video-on-demand services and disability advocacy groups throughout the passage of the Media Act 2024 and its implementation. This included organisations such as the Royal National Institute for Deaf People (RNID) and the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB). The Act sets minimum requirements for accessibility features, including that Tier 1 services must ensure that 80% of their total catalogue is subtitled, 10% is audio-described, and 5% is signed. These requirements mirror the existing access service requirements in place for commercial broadcasters and will be kept under review. The Government is also clear that these are minimum requirements, and fully expect services to go beyond this where feasible.

Ofcom will shortly consult on and draft a new accessibility code, which will be an opportunity for the public and providers to share their views on the new rules. Once implemented, where Tier 1 services do not meet the requirements set out in the new accessibility code, Ofcom has powers to issue statutory sanctions, including financial penalties, where appropriate. These sanctions can be applied to both UK and non-UK Tier 1 services. Further information, including a draft of the regulations, can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/statement-on-designation-of-tier-1-video-on-demand-vod-services.

Ofcom reports annually on the access services provided by UK-regulated video-on-demand services. The most recent report covers 2024, and is available here: https://www.ofcom.org.uk/tv-radio-and-on-demand/accessibility/television-and-on-demand-programme-services-access-services-report--january-to-december-2024.

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to her Department’s press release entitled New requirements for UK’s biggest video-on-demand services, published on 24 February 2026, what discussions she has had with disability campaign groups on the accessibility proposals for video streaming services.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport engaged extensively with video-on-demand services and disability advocacy groups throughout the passage of the Media Act 2024 and its implementation. This included organisations such as the Royal National Institute for Deaf People (RNID) and the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB). The Act sets minimum requirements for accessibility features, including that Tier 1 services must ensure that 80% of their total catalogue is subtitled, 10% is audio-described, and 5% is signed. These requirements mirror the existing access service requirements in place for commercial broadcasters and will be kept under review. The Government is also clear that these are minimum requirements, and fully expect services to go beyond this where feasible.

Ofcom will shortly consult on and draft a new accessibility code, which will be an opportunity for the public and providers to share their views on the new rules. Once implemented, where Tier 1 services do not meet the requirements set out in the new accessibility code, Ofcom has powers to issue statutory sanctions, including financial penalties, where appropriate. These sanctions can be applied to both UK and non-UK Tier 1 services. Further information, including a draft of the regulations, can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/statement-on-designation-of-tier-1-video-on-demand-vod-services.

Ofcom reports annually on the access services provided by UK-regulated video-on-demand services. The most recent report covers 2024, and is available here: https://www.ofcom.org.uk/tv-radio-and-on-demand/accessibility/television-and-on-demand-programme-services-access-services-report--january-to-december-2024.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to Homes England’s press release entitled Homes England opens bidding for ten year Social and Affordable Homes Programme, published on 24 February 2026, what steps he is taking to encourage applicants to provide more than the 60% minimum requirement for social rented housing.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

I refer the hon. Member to the answers given to Questions UIN 115205 on 3 March 2026, UIN 96282 on 10 December 2025, UIN 89351 on 21 November 2025 and UIN 60128 on 4 July 2025.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to Homes England’s press release entitled Homes England opens bidding for ten year Social and Affordable Homes Programme, published on 24 February 2026, how much of the £27 billion allocated to the Social and Affordable Homes Programme will be spent in each financial year of the programme.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

I refer the hon. Member to the answers given to Questions UIN 115205 on 3 March 2026, UIN 96282 on 10 December 2025, UIN 89351 on 21 November 2025 and UIN 60128 on 4 July 2025.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to Homes England’s press release entitled Homes England opens bidding for ten year Social and Affordable Homes Programme, published on 24 February 2026, what proportion of homes delivered under the Social and Affordable Homes Programme 2026–2036 will be (a) social rent, (b) affordable rent and (c) shared ownership.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

I refer the hon. Member to the answers given to Question UIN 89351 on 21 November 2025 and UIN 96282 on 10 December 2025.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what proportion of staff in his Department have (a) office-based, (b) hybrid and (c) remote-working contracts.

Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The department had 3925 payroll active staff on 31^st January 26, of these 145 had home working contracts, the remaining 3780 will have office-based contracts. Staff with office-based contracts can work some of the time from home, consistent with the Departments Office Attendance policy and business need. The department remains committed to flexible working and the business benefits that it offers, including supporting the Civil Service priority of ensuring continued, effective and productive delivery of the work carried out by civil servants across our full range of services.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what targets his Department has set for the creation of new natural habitats along rivers and coastlines.

Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

We have a statutory habitat target which include rivers and coastal habitats, but no sub-targets for habitat types.

The revised Environmental Improvement Plan includes prioritised actions to deliver our goals and the ambitious Environment Act targets. It included a commitment to increase saltmarsh by 15% compared to 2009 levels by 2043.

The Environment Agency (EA) has a national target for Hectares of habitat created or restored delivering Environmental Net Gain Goals of 680 Ha for 2025/26. The target for 2026/27 is currently being agreed.

In addition, the EA initiative Restoring Meadows Marsh and Reef will deliver the Environment Improvement Plan 2025 commitment by 2043 to increase saltmarsh by 15% compared to 2009 levels, seagrass by 15% compared to 2024 levels and create functional oyster reef habitat.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of enforcement powers available to the Environment Agency regarding sewage discharges by water companies.

Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The Government keeps the Environment Agency’s (EA) powers to address sewage discharges under regular review. We introduced the Water (Special Measures) Act to increase accountability, strengthen sanctions, and make pollution coverups a criminal offence.

Our 'New Vision for Water' White Paper, published earlier this year, sets out further reforms, including tighter discharge limits, enhanced monitoring requirements, and the creation of a new single water regulator with stronger, more proactive enforcement tools to ensure water companies are held fully to account for sewage pollution.

The Government is also bringing forward measures to strengthen the EA’s ability to act swiftly and proportionately on minor to moderate environmental offences, including those related to sewage discharges. Through forthcoming secondary legislation, we intend to introduce new civil-standard variable monetary penalties and automatic penalties.

These tools will enable quicker, more targeted enforcement for minor and moderate breaches, complementing existing powers such as prosecution and criminal-standard penalties, and ensuring water companies face clear and immediate consequences for noncompliance.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what mechanisms exist for local communities to be involved in decision-making about water quality and river restoration in their areas; and whether he plans to expand those mechanisms.

Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The Government’s Water White Paper committed to strengthening regional water planning to enable a more holistic, coordinated approach to water environment and supply planning. Enhanced regional planning will support delivery of national and local priorities and unlock better collaboration across sectors.

Regional planning will draw on the work of catchment partnerships to ensure that plans are based on local insight and tailored to local needs. The Catchment Based Approach enables community involvement through over 100 catchment partnerships supporting local water quality management and river restoration projects. For example, these partnerships work with the Environment Agency on measures for statutory river basin management plans. The government has doubled funding for catchment partnerships to strengthen local capacity to deliver effective catchment planning.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what proportion of doctors completing general practice speciality training remained practising in NHS general practices three years after qualification, in each of the last five years.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

This data is not held by the Department or NHS England.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with local authorities including (a) Thurrock, (b) Basildon, and (c) Essex councils on bringing wildlife restoration projects into suburban and rural communities.

Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Essex has a wealth of wildlife and holds a wide variety of nature-rich habitats, including some that are unique to this part of England.

As one of 48 Responsible Authorities appointed by the Secretary of State, Essex County Council published its Local Nature Recovery Strategy in July 2025. These strategies propose actions to improve, expand and connect nature, in both rural and urban areas. Natural England has a statutory role, providing bespoke advice and quality assurance to each LNRS, and continues to support Essex County Council as this strategy now moves into a planning and delivery phase.

The proposed actions and priorities for improving and connecting nature and greenspace in urban areas, both for the benefit of wildlife and for communities, are set out in chapters 6 and 9 of the Essex Local Nature Recovery Strategy.

The development of Essex’s Local Nature Recovery Strategy has been supported by 14 Borough and District Councils which have contributed local data and expertise, including local wildlife site data and species records. These Supporting Authorities include Thurrock Council, Basildon Borough Council, Southend-on-Sea, Chelmsford and Colchester.

In the Thurrock area Natural England has been advising and engaging with a number of stakeholders including Thurrock Council, major infrastructure projects and other developers on how to secure long-term thriving nature alongside economic growth opportunities.

Natural England’s Sustainable Development leads are advising 14 local authorities across Essex on nature and green space through the Local Plan process, including both Basildon and Thurrock. Essex County Council has developed a Green Infrastructure Strategy which provides guidance for Planning Authorities within the county. Colchester and Southend-on-Sea are both prioritising Green Infrastructure within their Local Plans. Green Infrastructure is the term for multi-functional green spaces such as parks, gardens, wildlife areas, waterways and drainage systems which can deliver benefits for nature, for people and economic prosperity.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much funding has been allocated in the current spending period for river and coastal habitat restoration.

Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The “current spending period” is taken to mean the 2025/26 financial year.

The Environment Agency (EA) was allocated several funds in 2025/26 that directly contribute to the restoration of river and coastal habitats:

• £10.9 million Water Environment Improvement Fund (WEIF)
• £3.3 million Flood Investment programme: Habitat Compensation and Restoration Programme (HCRP)*
• £8.6m Flood Investment programme: Environmental Statutory Allowance (ESA) scheme

£12.6m was also allocated to the Mining Remediation Authority and the Environment Agency for the Water and Abandoned Metal Mines (WAMM) Programme.

*Note: the figure is only as per the 25/26 FCERM consented programme and is not yet audited by finance, therefore subject to change.

The EA is working with partners to achieve the Restoring Meadow, Marsh and Reef (ReMeMaRe) programme mission and Environmental Improvement Plan Commitment to restore 15% of saltmarsh, seagrass and native oyster reef in England by 2043. Defra has boosted the capacity of ReMeMaRe by providing £130,000 this financial year towards a programme office which is supporting a pipeline of practical restoration projects for those habitats.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what information his Department holds on the average length of time it takes for a court case to be processed and concluded in (a) Basildon, (b) Essex, and (c) England.

Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

The Ministry of Justice publishes data on the time taken ‘at court’ in the magistrates’ courts and Crown Court for Essex in the ‘Magistrates’ courts timeliness tool’ and the ‘End-to-end timeliness tool’ (Crown Court).

Magistrates ‘at court’ time refers to the number of days from first listing to completion at the magistrates’ court and for the Crown Court it refers to the time from first listing at the magistrates’ court to completion at the Crown Court.

Data for the Essex Local Criminal Justice Board (LCJB) can be found using the ‘geographic area’ filter - Criminal court statistics - GOV.UK

LCJB is the lowest geographic level of our published Accredited Official Statistics for timeliness. Our published timeliness metrics are produced at a sufficiently 'high' level to reduce the volatility and fluctuations associated with low volumes of cases i.e. using court level data. As a result, we are unable to provide timeliness data for individual courts in Basildon.

The publication provides data for ‘England and Wales’ but does not contain a breakdown for England alone. When looking at data for England, the median time spent ‘at court’ across magistrates’ courts was 0 days for the year ending September 2025. This is due to the high proportion of Single Justice Procedure cases which commence and conclude on the same day. For the Crown Court, the median time spent ‘at court’ was 172 days for the same period.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what information his Department holds on the current number of court cases awaiting hearings in (a) Essex and (b) Basildon.

Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

The Ministry of Justice publishes information on the number of open criminal cases at the Crown Court for Essex in the ‘Crown Court receipts, disposals and open cases tool’ and for the magistrates’ courts in the ‘Magistrates’ courts receipts, disposals and open cases tool’. Essex can be selected under Local Criminal Justice Board (LCJB).

Data is published for Basildon Crown Court in the Crown Court tool under the Crown Court filter - Criminal court statistics - GOV.UK

Data is not published at court level for the magistrates’ courts. The open caseload for the Basildon magistrates’ court was 1,700 as of the end of September 2025.

The open caseload reflects the workload in the courts at a given time. It will never be zero, as it reflects the volume of cases that are active in the courts at a particular point, including those recently received, those close to being disposed, those which are complex and take time to complete, and those that may be awaiting further hearings.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of Ofwat in preventing water companies from prioritising shareholder returns over environmental protection.

Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

A stable and effective regulatory framework is crucial in attracting sustained investment to the sector.  The Government supports Ofwat imposing tougher rules on water company dividends and bonuses, so that consumer bills never reward pollution. Ofwat want to see improved transparency of environmental outcomes, enabling customers and stakeholders to understand progress and challenge companies on performance.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to Homes England’s press release entitled Homes England opens bidding for ten year Social and Affordable Homes Programme, published on 24 February 2026, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the Social and Affordable Homes Programme 2026–2036 on waiting lists for social housing in (a) Basildon, (b) Thurrock and (c) Essex.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

I refer the hon. Member to the answers given to Questions UIN 115205 on 3 March 2026, UIN 96282 on 10 December 2025, UIN 89351 on 21 November 2025 and UIN 60128 on 4 July 2025.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to Homes England’s press release entitled Homes England opens bidding for ten year Social and Affordable Homes Programme, published on 24 February 2026, what proportion of new homes delivered through the Social and Affordable Homes programme will be in (a) Essex and (b) South Basildon and East Thurrock constituency.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

I refer the hon. Member to the answers given to Questions UIN 115205 on 3 March 2026, UIN 96282 on 10 December 2025, UIN 89351 on 21 November 2025 and UIN 60128 on 4 July 2025.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to Homes England’s press release entitled Homes England opens bidding for ten year Social and Affordable Homes Programme, published on 24 February 2026, what criteria were used to determine the 60% figure for the number of homes to be delivered under the Social and Affordable Homes Programme 2026–2036 for social rent.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

I refer the hon. Member to the answers given to Questions UIN 115205 on 3 March 2026, UIN 96282 on 10 December 2025, UIN 89351 on 21 November 2025 and UIN 60128 on 4 July 2025.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to Homes England’s press release entitled Homes England opens bidding for ten year Social and Affordable Homes Programme, published on 24 February 2026, what steps he is taking to monitor and enforce compliance with the 60% social rent requirement under the Social and Affordable Homes Programme 2026–2036.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

I refer the hon. Member to the answers given to Questions UIN 115205 on 3 March 2026, UIN 96282 on 10 December 2025, UIN 89351 on 21 November 2025 and UIN 60128 on 4 July 2025.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to her Department's press release entitled Grant boost to cover almost half the cost of installing EV chargers for households and businesses, published on 25 February 2026, how many grants were given in 2025 for home EV charging point installations; and what estimate she has made of the number of additional applications for the grant following that announcement.

Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

Between January and October 2025, the Government’s Electric Vehicle Charge Point Grant (EVCG) supported the installation of 7,981 residential charge point sockets across the UK. This figure includes installations delivered across all eligible residential categories under the scheme, based on the latest data published up to 1 October 2025 at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/electric-vehicle-charging-device-grant-scheme-statistics-october-2025.

The total grant expenditure associated with these installations over the same period was £3,706,049, according to the published administrative records. As with all EV grant statistics, the figures remain provisional due to processing times and potential undercounting of the most recent months.

We expect the uplift in amounts for applicable residential properties and the increasing number of electric vehicles on the road to increase applications to the grant.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to her Department's press release entitled Grant boost to cover almost half the cost of installing EV chargers for households and businesses, published on 25 February 2026, whether the increased funding for home EV charge point installation is part of the £25 million scheme announced last year.

Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The grant boost announced on the 25 February is not part of the £25 million EV Pavement Channel Grant announced in 2025.

The EV Pavement Channel Grant is providing funding to local authorities in England for the installation of pavement channels during 2025/26.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to his Department's press release entitled Health service to save millions with boost to electrify NHS fleet, published on 27 February 2026, by what date the additional hundreds of EV charging sockets funded by the £4 million boost will be installed across NHS sites in England; and how many of those are in Essex.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

This £4 million in capital funding will be provided via a budget transfer from the Department for Transport to the Department of Health and Social Care in the financial year 2026/27, and capital will only be available for projects in that year. Projects have not yet been selected, and NHS England is leading the selection process, working in collaboration with the Department of Health and Social Care and the Office for Zero Emission Vehicles.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to his Department's press release entitled Health service to save millions with boost to electrify NHS fleet, by what date he anticipates the electrification of the NHS fleet of ambulances will complete.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The 10-Year Health Plan committed to support the National Health Service’s Net Zero ambitions. This includes NHS England’s Net Zero travel and transport strategy, published in 2023, which set a target date of 2040 for full decarbonisation of the NHS fleet, including ambulances.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what proportion of NHS 111 calls resulted in an ambulance dispatch in the East of England in each of the past three years.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Government is committed to continuing to improve NHS 111 to ensure patients can access the right care first time, in a timely manner, thereby only visiting accident and emergency when necessary.

The data is not published in the requested format. However, in the East of England in 2022/23, 10.9% of 111 calls were referred to the ambulance service. In 2023/24, 11.9% of 111 calls were referred to the ambulance service. Finally, in 2024/25, 12.7% of 111 calls were referred to the ambulance service.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to his Department’s press release entitled Deputy Prime Minister sets out vision for the justice system, published on 24 February 2026, what steps he is taking to ensure that blitz courts do not lead to prolonged waits for trials for other types of cases.

Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

The Government is committed to reducing outstanding caseloads in the Crown Court while maintaining progress across all case types.

Targeted initiatives, sometimes referred to as “blitz” courts, are carefully planned and time-limited exercises designed to make best use of available courtrooms, judicial capacity and sitting days. They are intended to increase overall throughput rather than divert resources from other cases. The plan is for London to use two courts at the Central Criminal Court specifically to accommodate the blitz courts.

Listing decisions in the Crown Court are a matter for the independent judiciary. HMCTS works closely with the judiciary to monitor waiting times and operational pressures across the system to ensure that targeted activity in one area does not lead to unintended delays elsewhere.

We continue to fund increased Crown Court sitting days and for 2026/27 we have removed the financial limits on how many days Crown Courts can sit in order to improve timeliness for all court users.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to his Department’s press release entitled Deputy Prime Minister sets out vision for the justice system, published on 24 February 2026, which additional local authorities plan to adopt the scheme allowing prisoner transport vans to use bus lanes.

Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

We agree with Sir Brian’s Leveson’s recommendation in the Independent Review of the Criminal Courts that Prisoner Escort and Custody Services (PECS) should be enabled to use bus lanes when transporting prisoners. However, these decisions are ultimately for local authorities.

PECS vehicles already use bus lanes in Manchester, Bristol, Salford and Nottingham. We are currently engaging with local authorities across the country to expand this, and will work with the Department for Transport to ensure that local authorities are aware of the role they can play in reducing prisoner delays. For example, in London we are working closely with Transport for London to pilot a scheme that retimes traffic signals to prioritise PECS vans on three routes in the capital. Around 300 traffic lights will be adjusted so that PECS vehicles are more likely to receive green lights on their journey to court.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to his Department’s press release entitled Deputy Prime Minister sets out vision for the justice system, published on 24 February 2026, how many blitz court sittings are planned from April 2026; and what offences will be prioritised after assaults on emergency workers.

Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

Blitz courts in London will initially focus on assault on emergency workers and will be listed at Central Criminal Court from April. A total of 500 days have been allocated for this first blitz initiative. After prioritising assaults on emergency workers, we will consider other case types including sentencing cases, breaches and trials with no civilian witnesses.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to his Department’s press release entitled Deputy Prime Minister sets out vision for the justice system, published on 24 February 2026, whether blitz courts will be delivered through new additional capacity.

Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

Blitz courts have been trialled previously and have shown positive results in reducing case backlog. The announcement of uncapped sitting days in the Crown Court in 2026/27 will enable more blitz initiatives to take place. The two court rooms which will be used are part of the existing London Crown Court Cluster.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to his Department’s press release entitled Deputy Prime Minister sets out vision for the justice system, published on 24 February 2026, what estimate he has made of the cost of rolling out the proposed AI courts assistant across HMCTS.

Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

HM Courts & Tribunals Service (HMCTS) is progressing work to expand the use of AI to support court and tribunal operations across a range of use cases. The Department has not published a single estimate of the cost of rolling out AI across HMCTS, as costs and benefits depend on the specific use case, scope and implementation approach. Any decision to deploy AI-enabled tools more widely would be subject to appropriate evaluation and the development of approved business cases, including affordability and value for money in accordance with HMCTS governance and standards.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to his Department’s press release entitled Deputy Prime Minister sets out vision for the justice system, published on 24 February 2026, what criteria will be used to evaluate the success of the AI-assisted listing pilot within HMCTS.

Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

HMCTS will evaluate the pilot of AI-enabled support for listing against criteria that will include expected:

• reductions in administrative effort associated with listing;

• improved timeliness and consistency of listing activity;

• the impact on listing accuracy and associated rework; and

• the effect on effective use of court capacity.

This will be considered alongside feedback from operational users and the judiciary on usability and confidence. Findings from this stage of the evaluation will inform decisions on any wider deployment. If we proceed, we will design an evaluation approach in line with Government Social Research standards that we would expect to publish as part of the programme of work.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to his Department’s press release entitled Deputy Prime Minister sets out vision for the justice system, published on 24 February 2026, whether any blitz courts are planned to be opened in Essex.

Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

At this current time there are no plans to operate blitz courts in Essex.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to help reduce avoidable demand on Accident and Emergency departments.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Government recognises that urgent and emergency care performance has fallen short in recent years. We are committed to restoring accident and emergency waiting times to the NHS Constitutional standard and reducing accident and emergency demand.

Our Urgent and Emergency Care Plan for 2025/26 sets out clear actions to deliver improvements this winter and beyond. We are aiming for 78% of patients to be seen in four hours this year, meaning over 800,000 people will receive more timely care.

We are investing £250 million into expanding same day and urgent care services, helping avoid unnecessary admissions to hospital and supporting faster diagnosis, treatment, and discharge for patients.

In the longer-term, our 10-Year Health Plan will increase the urgent care capacity outside hospital through new neighbourhood health services, reducing demand pressures on accident and emergency.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to his Department’s press release entitled Deputy Prime Minister sets out vision for the justice system, published on 24 February 2026, whether he has conducted an equality impact assessment on the expanded use of AI within courts and tribunals.

Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

The Department and HMCTS have due regard to their obligations under the Public Sector Equality Duty when developing and implementing policy and operational changes. Equality considerations are taken into account as part of the design and evaluation of service changes, and appropriate equality analysis has informed, and will continue to inform, decisions on the adoption and scaling of AI-enabled tools and services within courts and tribunals. This is undertaken on a use-case-by-use-case basis, rather than through a single blanket assessment.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to Homes England’s press release entitled Homes England opens bidding for ten year Social and Affordable Homes Programme, published on 24 February 2026, what steps he is taking to ensure that the £27 billion in funding does not lead to excessive profits for private developers.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

All applicants to Homes England’s bidding process for the Social and Affordable Homes programme are subject to the conditions laid out in its associated guidance, including in relation to value for money. The guidance in question can be found on gov.uk here.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to his Department’s press release entitled Deputy Prime Minister sets out vision for the justice system, published on 24 February 2026, what steps he is taking to ensure that AI court assistance does not lead to listing errors.

Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

HMCTS is developing and piloting AI-enabled support for operational activity such as listing in a way that retains appropriate human oversight and accountability for decisions. In line with HMCTS Responsible AI principles, any work to scale AI-enabled tools will include robust processes for how issues and errors will be identified, challenged and corrected. Lessons learned from pilots in courts such as Preston and Isleworth, and subsequent evaluation will inform what safeguards are required for any future wider deployment. All of these have been subject to human oversight and are there to assist decision making in accordance with a new national listing framework to be introduced.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to his Department’s press release entitled Deputy Prime Minister sets out vision for the justice system, published on 24 February 2026, what estimate he has made of the time savings from the use of AI to transcribe hearings across the court system.

Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

HMCTS is progressing work to expand AI-enabled transcription to support courts and tribunals. The Department has not published an estimate of time savings from the use of AI to transcribe hearings across the court system. It is worth noting that transcription of hearings is one of several use cases for AI assisted transcription. The main driver for hearing transcription is to make justice more open and transparent.

In line with HMCTS Responsible AI principles, decisions on scaling AI-enabled transcription will be informed by evaluation, including impacts on efficiency, quality and user experience, and will include robust processes for how errors will be identified, challenged and corrected.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many and what proportion of staff in his Department have (a) office-based, (b) hybrid and (c) remote-working contracts.

Answered by Satvir Kaur - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

The Cabinet Office remains committed to flexible working and the business benefits that it offers. We expect that most of our staff will be able to work both from home and in the workplace as part of an informal, non-contractual hybrid working arrangement. This is agreed and arranged with staff members individually.

The department does have a small number of homeworking contracts where this is appropriate- as at 31 Dec 2025 we had 126.1 FTE homeworkers out of 5211.0 FTE total, giving a proportion of 2.4%.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of a) enhanced lighting and b) CCTV at lorry parks on levels of freight crime.

Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Department has not assessed the impact of secure lorry parking or enhanced lighting and CCTV at lorry parks on levels of freight crime.

The 2022 survey of HGV parking in England identified a lack of security measures and secure parking as a priority for drivers. This informed the design of the Lorry Parking and Driver Welfare Match Funding Grant Scheme which included funding for security measures such as enhanced lighting and CCTV. A new National Lorry Parking Survey is currently underway to provide up to date evidence on the availability, security and quality of lorry parking in England and by region.

Transport Focus published a survey of HGV drivers in December 2025 which found that visible security measures are a priority for drivers and support both vehicle security and driver welfare.

Crime recording is a matter for the Home Office. Police‑recorded crime data does not separately identify freight crime or its location, therefore no assessment can be done on the number of incidents at secure lorry parks or analysis of trends over time. However, a Home Office pilot of a flag to improve the identification of freight‑related offences is underway with a small number of police forces.

The National Vehicle Crime Intelligence Service (NaVCIS), publish data on HGV and cargo related crime notifications received from police forces and members as follows:

DfT officials have worked with NaVCIS to identify areas of high HGV and cargo related crimes. This unpublished analysis is supporting future policy development.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what proportion of freight crimes reported in the last 12 months occurred at secure lorry parks.

Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Department has not assessed the impact of secure lorry parking or enhanced lighting and CCTV at lorry parks on levels of freight crime.

The 2022 survey of HGV parking in England identified a lack of security measures and secure parking as a priority for drivers. This informed the design of the Lorry Parking and Driver Welfare Match Funding Grant Scheme which included funding for security measures such as enhanced lighting and CCTV. A new National Lorry Parking Survey is currently underway to provide up to date evidence on the availability, security and quality of lorry parking in England and by region.

Transport Focus published a survey of HGV drivers in December 2025 which found that visible security measures are a priority for drivers and support both vehicle security and driver welfare.

Crime recording is a matter for the Home Office. Police‑recorded crime data does not separately identify freight crime or its location, therefore no assessment can be done on the number of incidents at secure lorry parks or analysis of trends over time. However, a Home Office pilot of a flag to improve the identification of freight‑related offences is underway with a small number of police forces.

The National Vehicle Crime Intelligence Service (NaVCIS), publish data on HGV and cargo related crime notifications received from police forces and members as follows:

DfT officials have worked with NaVCIS to identify areas of high HGV and cargo related crimes. This unpublished analysis is supporting future policy development.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the availability of secure lorry parks on freight crime levels.

Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Department has not assessed the impact of secure lorry parking or enhanced lighting and CCTV at lorry parks on levels of freight crime.

The 2022 survey of HGV parking in England identified a lack of security measures and secure parking as a priority for drivers. This informed the design of the Lorry Parking and Driver Welfare Match Funding Grant Scheme which included funding for security measures such as enhanced lighting and CCTV. A new National Lorry Parking Survey is currently underway to provide up to date evidence on the availability, security and quality of lorry parking in England and by region.

Transport Focus published a survey of HGV drivers in December 2025 which found that visible security measures are a priority for drivers and support both vehicle security and driver welfare.

Crime recording is a matter for the Home Office. Police‑recorded crime data does not separately identify freight crime or its location, therefore no assessment can be done on the number of incidents at secure lorry parks or analysis of trends over time. However, a Home Office pilot of a flag to improve the identification of freight‑related offences is underway with a small number of police forces.

The National Vehicle Crime Intelligence Service (NaVCIS), publish data on HGV and cargo related crime notifications received from police forces and members as follows:

DfT officials have worked with NaVCIS to identify areas of high HGV and cargo related crimes. This unpublished analysis is supporting future policy development.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of trends in the level of freight crime over the last five years.

Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Department has not assessed the impact of secure lorry parking or enhanced lighting and CCTV at lorry parks on levels of freight crime.

The 2022 survey of HGV parking in England identified a lack of security measures and secure parking as a priority for drivers. This informed the design of the Lorry Parking and Driver Welfare Match Funding Grant Scheme which included funding for security measures such as enhanced lighting and CCTV. A new National Lorry Parking Survey is currently underway to provide up to date evidence on the availability, security and quality of lorry parking in England and by region.

Transport Focus published a survey of HGV drivers in December 2025 which found that visible security measures are a priority for drivers and support both vehicle security and driver welfare.

Crime recording is a matter for the Home Office. Police‑recorded crime data does not separately identify freight crime or its location, therefore no assessment can be done on the number of incidents at secure lorry parks or analysis of trends over time. However, a Home Office pilot of a flag to improve the identification of freight‑related offences is underway with a small number of police forces.

The National Vehicle Crime Intelligence Service (NaVCIS), publish data on HGV and cargo related crime notifications received from police forces and members as follows:

DfT officials have worked with NaVCIS to identify areas of high HGV and cargo related crimes. This unpublished analysis is supporting future policy development.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to Answer of 26 February 2026 to Question 115137, how many new secure HGV parking spaces have been delivered in each region of England since 2022.

Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Department has not assessed the impact of secure lorry parking or enhanced lighting and CCTV at lorry parks on levels of freight crime.

The 2022 survey of HGV parking in England identified a lack of security measures and secure parking as a priority for drivers. This informed the design of the Lorry Parking and Driver Welfare Match Funding Grant Scheme which included funding for security measures such as enhanced lighting and CCTV. A new National Lorry Parking Survey is currently underway to provide up to date evidence on the availability, security and quality of lorry parking in England and by region.

Transport Focus published a survey of HGV drivers in December 2025 which found that visible security measures are a priority for drivers and support both vehicle security and driver welfare.

Crime recording is a matter for the Home Office. Police‑recorded crime data does not separately identify freight crime or its location, therefore no assessment can be done on the number of incidents at secure lorry parks or analysis of trends over time. However, a Home Office pilot of a flag to improve the identification of freight‑related offences is underway with a small number of police forces.

The National Vehicle Crime Intelligence Service (NaVCIS), publish data on HGV and cargo related crime notifications received from police forces and members as follows:

DfT officials have worked with NaVCIS to identify areas of high HGV and cargo related crimes. This unpublished analysis is supporting future policy development.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent data her Department holds on levels of freight crime affecting HGV drivers.

Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Department has not assessed the impact of secure lorry parking or enhanced lighting and CCTV at lorry parks on levels of freight crime.

The 2022 survey of HGV parking in England identified a lack of security measures and secure parking as a priority for drivers. This informed the design of the Lorry Parking and Driver Welfare Match Funding Grant Scheme which included funding for security measures such as enhanced lighting and CCTV. A new National Lorry Parking Survey is currently underway to provide up to date evidence on the availability, security and quality of lorry parking in England and by region.

Transport Focus published a survey of HGV drivers in December 2025 which found that visible security measures are a priority for drivers and support both vehicle security and driver welfare.

Crime recording is a matter for the Home Office. Police‑recorded crime data does not separately identify freight crime or its location, therefore no assessment can be done on the number of incidents at secure lorry parks or analysis of trends over time. However, a Home Office pilot of a flag to improve the identification of freight‑related offences is underway with a small number of police forces.

The National Vehicle Crime Intelligence Service (NaVCIS), publish data on HGV and cargo related crime notifications received from police forces and members as follows:

DfT officials have worked with NaVCIS to identify areas of high HGV and cargo related crimes. This unpublished analysis is supporting future policy development.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the answer of 2 March 2026 to question 115145 on Local Government: Elections, whether regularly scheduled elections for a third of Basildon borough councillors and shadow council elections to the new authority due to be established in 2028 will take place in Basildon in 2027.

Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 115145 on 2 March 2026. The timetable set out there applies to Basildon.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of food imports from countries with lower hygiene, production, animal welfare and environmental standards on the sale of UK farmers' produce.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

As the Secretary of State set out at the NFU Conference, the first meeting of the new Farming and Food Partnership Board will take place in March. This represents a reset of the relationship between government and the farming and food sectors, and will develop sector plans, which target growth.

All agri-food products must comply with the UK’s sanitary and phytosanitary standards and wider import requirements in order to be placed on the UK market. Products produced to different environmental and animal welfare standards can be placed on the UK market if they comply with these requirements. This has always been the case and includes products from the EU and other longstanding trading partners.

As set out in the UK’s Trade Strategy, this Government will not lower food standards and will uphold high animal welfare standards. The Government recognises concerns about methods of production which are not permitted in the UK. While production methods vary in line with different climates, diseases and other contextual reasons, the Government will always consider whether overseas produce has an unfair advantage and any impact that may have. Where necessary, this Government will be prepared to use the full range of powers at the Government’s disposal to protect the UK’s most sensitive sectors.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to ensure imported food complies with UK production, hygiene and welfare standards.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

As the Secretary of State set out at the NFU Conference, the first meeting of the new Farming and Food Partnership Board will take place in March. This represents a reset of the relationship between government and the farming and food sectors, and will develop sector plans, which target growth.

All agri-food products must comply with the UK’s sanitary and phytosanitary standards and wider import requirements in order to be placed on the UK market. Products produced to different environmental and animal welfare standards can be placed on the UK market if they comply with these requirements. This has always been the case and includes products from the EU and other longstanding trading partners.

As set out in the UK’s Trade Strategy, this Government will not lower food standards and will uphold high animal welfare standards. The Government recognises concerns about methods of production which are not permitted in the UK. While production methods vary in line with different climates, diseases and other contextual reasons, the Government will always consider whether overseas produce has an unfair advantage and any impact that may have. Where necessary, this Government will be prepared to use the full range of powers at the Government’s disposal to protect the UK’s most sensitive sectors.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to her Department’s press release entitled Refugee protection to be reviewed every 30 months, published on 2 March 2026, what estimate she has made of the proportionate reduction in asylum applications that would arise from these changes.

Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)

Any adult or accompanied child who claims asylum on or after 2 March 2026 and is granted refugee status or humanitarian protection will be given ‘Core Protection’, for a period of 30 months. This change is intended to reduce the pull factors behind high numbers of asylum claims, by moving towards a more temporary refugee status with regular reviews.

Importantly, the core protection model encourages refugees to switch into a new, bespoke work and study route to access family reunion and settlement rights with new fees and conditions in accordance with the rules of that route. This will enable them to earn down their length of time before they can settle in the UK from 20 years. It also allows the Government to exert more control over those entering the UK.

While the Government has not set any formal target for a reduction in asylum claims, experience in other countries, including Denmark, suggests that less generous and less permanent protection can reduce application numbers over time. Our focus remains on making the system fairer, providing protection only for as long as it is needed, and encouraging people to use safe and legal routes.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to her Department’s press release entitled Refugee protection to be reviewed every 30 months, published on 2 March 2026, what estimate she has made of the number of people applying for asylum under the new safe and legal routes announced in that press release.

Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)

We will work with the UN Refugee Agency, community groups and other partners to identify refugees and displaced people who can either study, work or are supported by a community group in the UK. As set out in the Restoring Order and Control statement, these routes will be capped. The number of individuals that will arrive under each capped route is subject to further policy development. Work is underway to operationalise these new routes and further details will be provided in due course.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to her Department’s press release entitled Refugee protection to be reviewed every 30 months, published on 2 March 2026, whether unaccompanied children’s five year settlement will apply to all children, or just those who will still be under 18 before the five year settlement expires.

Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Home Secretary’s announcement on 2 March marks a significant change in direction away from an assumption of offering permanent protection, and is the first step towards the introduction of the “core protection” model announced last November.

The change to reduce refugee permission to stay to 30 months will apply to adults and families, including accompanied asylum-seeking children who claim asylum or make further submissions on or after 2 March 2026. There will be transitional provisions for people who submitted an asylum claim before 2 March 2026, so that existing rules continue to apply. We will not seek to revoke or amend existing leave that has already been granted.

Unaccompanied asylum-seeking children (UASC) who claim asylum or make further submissions on or after 2 March 2026 are not in scope of this Rules change. UASC granted protection status will receive 5 years’ leave, including former UASC who have turned age 18 before being granted protection status. This position on UASC who claim asylum or make further submissions on or after 2 March 2026 will remain whilst the Government considers the appropriate long-term policy for this group.

On Core Protection, a refugee will have no automatic right to bring family to the UK. Refugees will be able to switch into a new, bespoke work and study route to access family reunion and settlement rights with new fees and conditions in accordance with the rules of that route.

Not everyone who has been granted protection will undergo a review of their protection needs when renewing their status. Only those who remain on Core Protection, and do not switch into the Protection Work and Study route, will be subject to this review. People who do integrate will be able to obtain greater certainty about their future in the UK.

This Government has never operated a policy of automatic settlement for refugees granted limited permission. Settlement in the UK is a privilege, not a right. The need for protection is not always permanent, and therefore it is right that we re-assess whether individuals still require protection before granting them further permission to stay or settlement in the UK. It has been a long-standing position that safe return reviews must be conducted when considering settlement protection applications.

Every case will be considered on its own merits, taking into account evidence that a person provided as part of their claim, and the latest objective country information. Where it is concluded that the person is no longer at risk on return, their protection status may be revoked and they may be removed.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to her Department’s press release entitled Refugee protection to be reviewed every 30 months, published on 2 March 2026, whether she plans to review the five-year settlements granted to previous refugee applicants.

Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Home Secretary’s announcement on 2 March marks a significant change in direction away from an assumption of offering permanent protection, and is the first step towards the introduction of the “core protection” model announced last November.

The change to reduce refugee permission to stay to 30 months will apply to adults and families, including accompanied asylum-seeking children who claim asylum or make further submissions on or after 2 March 2026. There will be transitional provisions for people who submitted an asylum claim before 2 March 2026, so that existing rules continue to apply. We will not seek to revoke or amend existing leave that has already been granted.

Unaccompanied asylum-seeking children (UASC) who claim asylum or make further submissions on or after 2 March 2026 are not in scope of this Rules change. UASC granted protection status will receive 5 years’ leave, including former UASC who have turned age 18 before being granted protection status. This position on UASC who claim asylum or make further submissions on or after 2 March 2026 will remain whilst the Government considers the appropriate long-term policy for this group.

On Core Protection, a refugee will have no automatic right to bring family to the UK. Refugees will be able to switch into a new, bespoke work and study route to access family reunion and settlement rights with new fees and conditions in accordance with the rules of that route.

Not everyone who has been granted protection will undergo a review of their protection needs when renewing their status. Only those who remain on Core Protection, and do not switch into the Protection Work and Study route, will be subject to this review. People who do integrate will be able to obtain greater certainty about their future in the UK.

This Government has never operated a policy of automatic settlement for refugees granted limited permission. Settlement in the UK is a privilege, not a right. The need for protection is not always permanent, and therefore it is right that we re-assess whether individuals still require protection before granting them further permission to stay or settlement in the UK. It has been a long-standing position that safe return reviews must be conducted when considering settlement protection applications.

Every case will be considered on its own merits, taking into account evidence that a person provided as part of their claim, and the latest objective country information. Where it is concluded that the person is no longer at risk on return, their protection status may be revoked and they may be removed.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to her Department’s press release entitled Refugee protection to be reviewed every 30 months, published on 2 March 2026, whether asylum claimants granted a 30 month settlement will be able to bring dependents from their home country.

Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Home Secretary’s announcement on 2 March marks a significant change in direction away from an assumption of offering permanent protection, and is the first step towards the introduction of the “core protection” model announced last November.

The change to reduce refugee permission to stay to 30 months will apply to adults and families, including accompanied asylum-seeking children who claim asylum or make further submissions on or after 2 March 2026. There will be transitional provisions for people who submitted an asylum claim before 2 March 2026, so that existing rules continue to apply. We will not seek to revoke or amend existing leave that has already been granted.

Unaccompanied asylum-seeking children (UASC) who claim asylum or make further submissions on or after 2 March 2026 are not in scope of this Rules change. UASC granted protection status will receive 5 years’ leave, including former UASC who have turned age 18 before being granted protection status. This position on UASC who claim asylum or make further submissions on or after 2 March 2026 will remain whilst the Government considers the appropriate long-term policy for this group.

On Core Protection, a refugee will have no automatic right to bring family to the UK. Refugees will be able to switch into a new, bespoke work and study route to access family reunion and settlement rights with new fees and conditions in accordance with the rules of that route.

Not everyone who has been granted protection will undergo a review of their protection needs when renewing their status. Only those who remain on Core Protection, and do not switch into the Protection Work and Study route, will be subject to this review. People who do integrate will be able to obtain greater certainty about their future in the UK.

This Government has never operated a policy of automatic settlement for refugees granted limited permission. Settlement in the UK is a privilege, not a right. The need for protection is not always permanent, and therefore it is right that we re-assess whether individuals still require protection before granting them further permission to stay or settlement in the UK. It has been a long-standing position that safe return reviews must be conducted when considering settlement protection applications.

Every case will be considered on its own merits, taking into account evidence that a person provided as part of their claim, and the latest objective country information. Where it is concluded that the person is no longer at risk on return, their protection status may be revoked and they may be removed.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to reduce the long-term reliance of asylum seekers on local authority social care services.

Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Home Office provides funding to local authorities, to assist with eligible expenditure costs of supporting asylum seekers in asylum accommodation in their areas, through the asylum dispersal grant. Expenditure for the funding may include, but not be limited to, social care costs. However, individual local authorities are free to determine how best to utilise the funding provided as long as they can demonstrate it has been used to support asylum seekers in their areas.

Full details of the grant can be found here - Asylum Dispersal Grant: funding instruction - GOV.UK.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions she has had with farming representatives on protecting UK producers from lower-standard imports.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Ministers and officials meet regularly with representatives of the farming sector. As the Secretary of State set out at the NFU Conference, the first meeting of the new Farming and Food Partnership Board will take place in March. This represents a reset of the relationship between government and the farming and food sectors, and will develop sector plans, which target growth.

As set out in the UK’s Trade Strategy, this Government will not lower food standards and will uphold high animal welfare standards. The Government recognises concerns about methods of production which are not permitted in the UK. The Government will always consider whether overseas produce has an unfair advantage and any impact that may have. Where necessary, this Government will be prepared to use the full range of powers at the Government’s disposal to protect the UK’s most sensitive sectors.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what safeguards are currently in place to prevent agri-food imports produced to lower environmental and animal welfare standards from undercutting UK farmers; and what plans does she have to strengthen such safeguards.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

As the Secretary of State set out at the NFU Conference, the first meeting of the new Farming and Food Partnership Board will take place in March. This represents a reset of the relationship between government and the farming and food sectors, and will develop sector plans, which target growth.

All agri-food products must comply with the UK’s sanitary and phytosanitary standards and wider import requirements in order to be placed on the UK market. Products produced to different environmental and animal welfare standards can be placed on the UK market if they comply with these requirements. This has always been the case and includes products from the EU and other longstanding trading partners.

As set out in the UK’s Trade Strategy, this Government will not lower food standards and will uphold high animal welfare standards. The Government recognises concerns about methods of production which are not permitted in the UK. While production methods vary in line with different climates, diseases and other contextual reasons, the Government will always consider whether overseas produce has an unfair advantage and any impact that may have. Where necessary, this Government will be prepared to use the full range of powers at the Government’s disposal to protect the UK’s most sensitive sectors.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent steps she has taken to prevent agri-food imports produced to lower animal welfare standards than those required in the UK from entering the domestic market.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

As the Secretary of State set out at the NFU Conference, the first meeting of the new Farming and Food Partnership Board will take place in March. This represents a reset of the relationship between government and the farming and food sectors, and will develop sector plans, which target growth.

All agri-food products must comply with the UK’s sanitary and phytosanitary standards and wider import requirements in order to be placed on the UK market. Products produced to different environmental and animal welfare standards can be placed on the UK market if they comply with these requirements. This has always been the case and includes products from the EU and other longstanding trading partners.

As set out in the UK’s Trade Strategy, this Government will not lower food standards and will uphold high animal welfare standards. The Government recognises concerns about methods of production which are not permitted in the UK. While production methods vary in line with different climates, diseases and other contextual reasons, the Government will always consider whether overseas produce has an unfair advantage and any impact that may have. Where necessary, this Government will be prepared to use the full range of powers at the Government’s disposal to protect the UK’s most sensitive sectors.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to her Department’s press release entitled Refugee protection to be reviewed every 30 months, published on 2 March 2026, what criteria will be used to determine whether a refugee’s home country is deemed safe at the 30-month review point; and how often such determinations will be publicly reported.

Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Home Secretary’s announcement on 2 March marks a significant change in direction away from an assumption of offering permanent protection, and is the first step towards the introduction of the “core protection” model announced last November.

The change to reduce refugee permission to stay to 30 months will apply to adults and families, including accompanied asylum-seeking children who claim asylum or make further submissions on or after 2 March 2026. There will be transitional provisions for people who submitted an asylum claim before 2 March 2026, so that existing rules continue to apply. We will not seek to revoke or amend existing leave that has already been granted.

Unaccompanied asylum-seeking children (UASC) who claim asylum or make further submissions on or after 2 March 2026 are not in scope of this Rules change. UASC granted protection status will receive 5 years’ leave, including former UASC who have turned age 18 before being granted protection status. This position on UASC who claim asylum or make further submissions on or after 2 March 2026 will remain whilst the Government considers the appropriate long-term policy for this group.

On Core Protection, a refugee will have no automatic right to bring family to the UK. Refugees will be able to switch into a new, bespoke work and study route to access family reunion and settlement rights with new fees and conditions in accordance with the rules of that route.

Not everyone who has been granted protection will undergo a review of their protection needs when renewing their status. Only those who remain on Core Protection, and do not switch into the Protection Work and Study route, will be subject to this review. People who do integrate will be able to obtain greater certainty about their future in the UK.

This Government has never operated a policy of automatic settlement for refugees granted limited permission. Settlement in the UK is a privilege, not a right. The need for protection is not always permanent, and therefore it is right that we re-assess whether individuals still require protection before granting them further permission to stay or settlement in the UK. It has been a long-standing position that safe return reviews must be conducted when considering settlement protection applications.

Every case will be considered on its own merits, taking into account evidence that a person provided as part of their claim, and the latest objective country information. Where it is concluded that the person is no longer at risk on return, their protection status may be revoked and they may be removed.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to her Department’s press release entitled Refugee protection to be reviewed every 30 months, published on 2 March 2026, whether she plans to review the permanent settlement granted to previous refugee applicants.

Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Home Secretary’s announcement on 2 March marks a significant change in direction away from an assumption of offering permanent protection, and is the first step towards the introduction of the “core protection” model announced last November.

The change to reduce refugee permission to stay to 30 months will apply to adults and families, including accompanied asylum-seeking children who claim asylum or make further submissions on or after 2 March 2026. There will be transitional provisions for people who submitted an asylum claim before 2 March 2026, so that existing rules continue to apply. We will not seek to revoke or amend existing leave that has already been granted.

Unaccompanied asylum-seeking children (UASC) who claim asylum or make further submissions on or after 2 March 2026 are not in scope of this Rules change. UASC granted protection status will receive 5 years’ leave, including former UASC who have turned age 18 before being granted protection status. This position on UASC who claim asylum or make further submissions on or after 2 March 2026 will remain whilst the Government considers the appropriate long-term policy for this group.

On Core Protection, a refugee will have no automatic right to bring family to the UK. Refugees will be able to switch into a new, bespoke work and study route to access family reunion and settlement rights with new fees and conditions in accordance with the rules of that route.

Not everyone who has been granted protection will undergo a review of their protection needs when renewing their status. Only those who remain on Core Protection, and do not switch into the Protection Work and Study route, will be subject to this review. People who do integrate will be able to obtain greater certainty about their future in the UK.

This Government has never operated a policy of automatic settlement for refugees granted limited permission. Settlement in the UK is a privilege, not a right. The need for protection is not always permanent, and therefore it is right that we re-assess whether individuals still require protection before granting them further permission to stay or settlement in the UK. It has been a long-standing position that safe return reviews must be conducted when considering settlement protection applications.

Every case will be considered on its own merits, taking into account evidence that a person provided as part of their claim, and the latest objective country information. Where it is concluded that the person is no longer at risk on return, their protection status may be revoked and they may be removed.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to her Department’s press release entitled Refugee protection to be reviewed every 30 months, published on 2 March 2026, whether she plans to expand the 30-month review period to adults who claimed asylum before 2 March 2026.

Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Home Secretary’s announcement on 2 March marks a significant change in direction away from an assumption of offering permanent protection, and is the first step towards the introduction of the “core protection” model announced last November.

The change to reduce refugee permission to stay to 30 months will apply to adults and families, including accompanied asylum-seeking children who claim asylum or make further submissions on or after 2 March 2026. There will be transitional provisions for people who submitted an asylum claim before 2 March 2026, so that existing rules continue to apply. We will not seek to revoke or amend existing leave that has already been granted.

Unaccompanied asylum-seeking children (UASC) who claim asylum or make further submissions on or after 2 March 2026 are not in scope of this Rules change. UASC granted protection status will receive 5 years’ leave, including former UASC who have turned age 18 before being granted protection status. This position on UASC who claim asylum or make further submissions on or after 2 March 2026 will remain whilst the Government considers the appropriate long-term policy for this group.

On Core Protection, a refugee will have no automatic right to bring family to the UK. Refugees will be able to switch into a new, bespoke work and study route to access family reunion and settlement rights with new fees and conditions in accordance with the rules of that route.

Not everyone who has been granted protection will undergo a review of their protection needs when renewing their status. Only those who remain on Core Protection, and do not switch into the Protection Work and Study route, will be subject to this review. People who do integrate will be able to obtain greater certainty about their future in the UK.

This Government has never operated a policy of automatic settlement for refugees granted limited permission. Settlement in the UK is a privilege, not a right. The need for protection is not always permanent, and therefore it is right that we re-assess whether individuals still require protection before granting them further permission to stay or settlement in the UK. It has been a long-standing position that safe return reviews must be conducted when considering settlement protection applications.

Every case will be considered on its own merits, taking into account evidence that a person provided as part of their claim, and the latest objective country information. Where it is concluded that the person is no longer at risk on return, their protection status may be revoked and they may be removed.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to her Department’s press release entitled Refugee protection to be reviewed every 30 months, published on 2 March 2026, for what reason the review is every 30 months.

Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Home Secretary’s announcement on 2 March marks a significant change in direction away from an assumption of offering permanent protection, and is the first step towards the introduction of the “core protection” model announced last November.

The change to reduce refugee permission to stay to 30 months will apply to adults and families, including accompanied asylum-seeking children who claim asylum or make further submissions on or after 2 March 2026. There will be transitional provisions for people who submitted an asylum claim before 2 March 2026, so that existing rules continue to apply. We will not seek to revoke or amend existing leave that has already been granted.

Unaccompanied asylum-seeking children (UASC) who claim asylum or make further submissions on or after 2 March 2026 are not in scope of this Rules change. UASC granted protection status will receive 5 years’ leave, including former UASC who have turned age 18 before being granted protection status. This position on UASC who claim asylum or make further submissions on or after 2 March 2026 will remain whilst the Government considers the appropriate long-term policy for this group.

On Core Protection, a refugee will have no automatic right to bring family to the UK. Refugees will be able to switch into a new, bespoke work and study route to access family reunion and settlement rights with new fees and conditions in accordance with the rules of that route.

Not everyone who has been granted protection will undergo a review of their protection needs when renewing their status. Only those who remain on Core Protection, and do not switch into the Protection Work and Study route, will be subject to this review. People who do integrate will be able to obtain greater certainty about their future in the UK.

This Government has never operated a policy of automatic settlement for refugees granted limited permission. Settlement in the UK is a privilege, not a right. The need for protection is not always permanent, and therefore it is right that we re-assess whether individuals still require protection before granting them further permission to stay or settlement in the UK. It has been a long-standing position that safe return reviews must be conducted when considering settlement protection applications.

Every case will be considered on its own merits, taking into account evidence that a person provided as part of their claim, and the latest objective country information. Where it is concluded that the person is no longer at risk on return, their protection status may be revoked and they may be removed.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department plans to fully reimburse local authorities for the costs of providing social care to asylum seekers.

Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Home Office provides funding to local authorities, to assist with eligible expenditure costs of supporting asylum seekers in asylum accommodation in their areas, through the asylum dispersal grant. Expenditure for the funding may include, but not be limited to, social care costs. However, individual local authorities are free to determine how best to utilise the funding provided as long as they can demonstrate it has been used to support asylum seekers in their areas.

Full details of the grant can be found here - Asylum Dispersal Grant: funding instruction - GOV.UK.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to her Department’s press release entitled UK beef hits US shelves tariff-free for the first time – cutting costs for UK businesses, published on 2 March 2026, what assessment her Department has made of the hygiene standards applied to the beef imports from the United States included in the 13,000 tonne quota referenced in the press release.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Through the UK-US Economic Prosperity Deal (EPD) negotiations, the UK has agreed preferential trading terms with the US in a range of sectors. This includes an exclusive reciprocal 13,000 tonne quota for beef. The quota is now open and worth up to £70 million a year if fully utilised. Hormone treated beef remains banned and is not permitted to enter the UK.

All agri-food products must comply with the UK’s high sanitary and phytosanitary standards and wider import requirements in order to be placed on the UK market. Products produced to different environmental and animal welfare standards can be placed on the UK market if they comply with these requirements. This has always been the case and includes products from the EU and other longstanding trading partners.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to her Department’s press release entitled UK beef hits US shelves tariff-free for the first time – cutting costs for UK businesses, published on 2 March 2026, what assessment her Department has made of the environmental standards applied to the beef imports from the United States included in the 13,000 tonne quota referenced in the press release.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Through the UK-US Economic Prosperity Deal (EPD) negotiations, the UK has agreed preferential trading terms with the US in a range of sectors. This includes an exclusive reciprocal 13,000 tonne quota for beef. The quota is now open and worth up to £70 million a year if fully utilised. Hormone treated beef remains banned and is not permitted to enter the UK.

All agri-food products must comply with the UK’s high sanitary and phytosanitary standards and wider import requirements in order to be placed on the UK market. Products produced to different environmental and animal welfare standards can be placed on the UK market if they comply with these requirements. This has always been the case and includes products from the EU and other longstanding trading partners.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to her Department’s press release entitled UK beef hits US shelves tariff-free for the first time – cutting costs for UK businesses, published on 2 March 2026, what assessment her Department has made of the animal welfare standards applied to the beef imports from the United States included in the 13,000 tonne quota referenced in the press release.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Through the UK-US Economic Prosperity Deal (EPD) negotiations, the UK has agreed preferential trading terms with the US in a range of sectors. This includes an exclusive reciprocal 13,000 tonne quota for beef. The quota is now open and worth up to £70 million a year if fully utilised. Hormone treated beef remains banned and is not permitted to enter the UK.

All agri-food products must comply with the UK’s high sanitary and phytosanitary standards and wider import requirements in order to be placed on the UK market. Products produced to different environmental and animal welfare standards can be placed on the UK market if they comply with these requirements. This has always been the case and includes products from the EU and other longstanding trading partners.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he plans to review the (a) maximum fines and (b) custodial penalties for fly-tipping offences.

Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The Government is taking action to clamp down on rogue waste operators by moving the regulation of waste management and transport from a light-touch registration system into environmental permitting. This will introduce tougher background checks for operators and tougher penalties for those who break the law.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to his Department’s press release entitled UK beef hits US shelves tariff-free for the first time – cutting costs for UK businesses, published on 2 March 2026, whether any of the reciprocal 13,000 tonne quota for beef from the United States is subject to equivalent animal welfare standards as British farmers.

Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)

Yes, all beef imported under the reciprocal 13,000‑tonne quota from the United States must meet the UK’s food safety and hygiene standards in precisely the same way as is required of British farmers. It also has to meet wider import requirements, including equivalent welfare standards at slaughter. This deal, which secures UK access to the US market for the first time, does not change the UK’s high environmental standards.

Our approach to trade agreements has ensured, and will continue to ensure, that imported agrifood products meet the UK’s high food standards. We will always maintain UK levels of statutory protection in relation to human, animal or plant life or health, animal welfare, and the environment.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to his Department’s press release entitled UK beef hits US shelves tariff-free for the first time – cutting costs for UK businesses, published on 2 March 2026, whether any of the reciprocal 13,000 tonne quota for beef from the United States is subject to equivalent environmental standards as British farmers.

Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)

Yes, all beef imported under the reciprocal 13,000‑tonne quota from the United States must meet the UK’s food safety and hygiene standards in precisely the same way as is required of British farmers. It also has to meet wider import requirements, including equivalent welfare standards at slaughter. This deal, which secures UK access to the US market for the first time, does not change the UK’s high environmental standards.

Our approach to trade agreements has ensured, and will continue to ensure, that imported agrifood products meet the UK’s high food standards. We will always maintain UK levels of statutory protection in relation to human, animal or plant life or health, animal welfare, and the environment.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to his Department’s press release entitled UK beef hits US shelves tariff-free for the first time – cutting costs for UK businesses, published on 2 March 2026, whether any of the reciprocal 13,000 tonne quota for beef from the United States is subject to equivalent hygiene standards as British farmers.

Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)

Yes, all beef imported under the reciprocal 13,000‑tonne quota from the United States must meet the UK’s food safety and hygiene standards in precisely the same way as is required of British farmers. It also has to meet wider import requirements, including equivalent welfare standards at slaughter. This deal, which secures UK access to the US market for the first time, does not change the UK’s high environmental standards.

Our approach to trade agreements has ensured, and will continue to ensure, that imported agrifood products meet the UK’s high food standards. We will always maintain UK levels of statutory protection in relation to human, animal or plant life or health, animal welfare, and the environment.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, pursuant to his Department’s press release entitled Top UK music acts awarded £1.4 million funding to raise profile, published on 2 March 2026, what steps he is taking to ensure that funding granted is exclusively used to promote the act and not for other purposes.

Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)

All businesses awarded MEGS funding were required to submit an application prior to approval which detailed the proposed activity to be delivered if the application was approved - that proposed activity was then assessed to ensure it satisfied the scheme eligibility criteria, specifically that the activity promoted the act outside of the UK.

All successful businesses are issued a Grant Agreement to confirm the activity that the MEGS funds can be spent on. Once the business signs that Agreement, MEGS funding is then available but can only be claimed by the business after the activity has taken place and evidence is provided to demonstrate that the activity has taken place and been paid for in full.

Both the British Phongraphic Industry and the Department for Business and Trade complete checks on the evidence supplied to confirm that the activity has been completed in line with the Grant Agreement and not for other purposes before any funds are paid to the business.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to his Department’s press release entitled UK beef hits US shelves tariff-free for the first time – cutting costs for UK businesses, published on 2 March 2026, whether he has had discussions with his European counterparts on the potential impact of the reciprocal beef quota with the US on UK-EU trade relations.

Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)

We are delighted that as of January 1, 2026, UK farmers can, for the first time, make use of an exclusive 13,000 tonne quota for export to the United States. What the government has agreed with the US does not impact on our ability to negotiate trade agreements with other trading partners.

Choosing between the US and Europe is a false choice. The UK can and must do both - improve our trading relationship with Europe while agreeing deals with the US and other nations.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of the number of court delays in (a) Basildon, (b) Essex and (c) England attributable to late prisoner transport in each of the last three years.

Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

The number of contractual delays caused by late prisoner transport to court attributable to the Prisoner Escort and Custody Service (PECS) suppliers for Basildon, Essex and England between 2023 and 2025 are shown in the table below.

PECS performance remains consistently over 99%, and while even small numbers of delays can have visible impacts in busy courts, we are improving reporting through digital development of a new application, this will further enable PECS to ensure performance data is transparent and accurately reflects what is happening across the system. We value feedback from all stakeholders which enable PECS to ensure performance data is transparent and accurately reflects what is happening across the system.

We recognise the problems we inherited in prisoner transfer with delays occurring at prisons, en route between prison and court and at courts themselves in bringing prisoners to the dock. The Minister of State for Prisons, Probation and Reducing Reoffending and I will chair an oversight body established to review prisoner transfer from end to end. This will monitor and drive performance improvements in prisoner transfer across the country.

We are working with the Department for Transport to issue guidance on PECS’ use of bus lanes to all local authorities. And in London, where traffic regularly causes delays, we are working closely with Transport for London (TfL) to reduce avoidable delays and keep the justice system moving.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to his Department’s press release entitled UK beef hits US shelves tariff-free for the first time – cutting costs for UK businesses, published on 2 March 2026, what steps he is taking to help encourage trade relations between UK beef exporters and US customers.

Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)

The Department is supporting UK meat producers to take advantage of the opportunities offered by the US-UK Economic Prosperity Deal. This week, the first agri food trade mission visited the United States, accompanied by the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs; it provided UK meat producers with direct engagement with a wide range of businesses and opportunities across the US meat sector. The Department will continue to support further market engagement throughout the year, working closely with partners including the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB) and the National Farmers' Union (NFU).

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to his Department’s press release entitled UK beef hits US shelves tariff-free for the first time – cutting costs for UK businesses, published on 2 March 2026, what steps he is taking to support small and medium-sized farmers to access the quota for beef exports to the US.

Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)

The Department is supporting UK meat producers to take advantage of the opportunities offered by the US-UK Economic Prosperity Deal. This week, the first agri‑food trade mission visited the United States, accompanied by the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs; it provided UK meat producers with direct engagement with a wide range of businesses and opportunities across the US meat sector. The Department will continue to support further market engagement throughout the year, working closely with partners including the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB) and the National Farmers' Union (NFU).

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to his Department’s press release entitled UK beef hits US shelves tariff-free for the first time – cutting costs for UK businesses, published on 2 March 2026, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the reciprocal quota to the average price of (a) British and (b) American beef.

Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)

Through EPD negotiations, the UK has agreed preferential trading terms with the US in a range of sectors. This includes an exclusive 13,000 tonne quota for beef export to the United States. With the quota now open, UK beef producers are positioned to seize new opportunities in the US market.

Discussions on the UK-US Economic Prosperity Deal continue, covering tariff and non-tariff barriers, including digital and services trade.

We will keep the House fully informed on these developments along with the expected economic outcomes of the final deal.

Impact assessments are completed at the conclusion of a trade agreement.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to his Department’s press release entitled UK beef hits US shelves tariff-free for the first time – cutting costs for UK businesses, published on 2 March 2026, what mechanisms are in place to assess the potential long-term impact of the beef quota on British (a) producers and (b) consumers.

Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)

Through EPD negotiations, the UK has agreed preferential trading terms with the US in a range of sectors. This includes an exclusive 13,000 tonne quota for beef export to the United States. With the quota now open, UK beef producers are positioned to seize new opportunities in the US market.

Discussions on the UK-US Economic Prosperity Deal continue, covering tariff and non-tariff barriers, including digital and services trade.

We will keep the House fully informed on these developments along with the expected economic outcomes of the final deal.

Impact assessments are completed at the conclusion of a trade agreement.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the press release entitled Funding boost for young people’s mental health services, published on 13 February 2026, how many additional appointments in (a) Essex and (b) South Basildon and East Thurrock constituency this increased funding will result in.

Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Government recently confirmed a £7 million funding boost for 24 early support hubs across England so they can continue to provide open-access, drop-in mental health and wellbeing support for young people aged 11 to 25 years old. These hubs offer open access, early intervention support for a wide range of issues, helping to prevent escalation to more severe mental illness without the need for a referral or a doctor’s appointment. This additional investment is expected to deliver approximately 10,000 extra interventions in the community for young people facing mental health challenges.

While none of the 24 Government‑funded Early Support Hubs are located in Essex or in the South Basildon and East Thurrock constituency, there are approximately 65 Early Support Hubs operating across England through local funding. Because hubs are delivered by voluntary, community or social enterprise sector collaborations and are designed around local service footprints, they do not map neatly onto constituency boundaries.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the press release entitled Funding boost for young people’s mental health services, published on 13 February 2026, how much of the increased funding for early support hubs will be allocated to (a) Essex and (b) South Basildon and East Thurrock constituency.

Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Government recently confirmed a £7 million funding boost for 24 early support hubs across England so they can continue to provide open-access, drop-in mental health and wellbeing support for young people aged 11 to 25 years old. These hubs offer open access, early intervention support for a wide range of issues, helping to prevent escalation to more severe mental illness without the need for a referral or a doctor’s appointment. This additional investment is expected to deliver approximately 10,000 extra interventions in the community for young people facing mental health challenges.

While none of the 24 Government‑funded Early Support Hubs are located in Essex or in the South Basildon and East Thurrock constituency, there are approximately 65 Early Support Hubs operating across England through local funding. Because hubs are delivered by voluntary, community or social enterprise sector collaborations and are designed around local service footprints, they do not map neatly onto constituency boundaries.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, pursuant to his Department’s press release entitled Top UK music acts awarded £1.4 million funding to raise profile, published on 2 March 2026, what independent analysis his Department has commissioned of the calculation that there is a £14 return for each £1 granted through MEGS.

Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)

The figure referenced in the press release was supplied by the BPI and is based on analysis of commercial outcomes reported by MEGS recipients in previous funding rounds. This is an industry estimate produced by the BPI and reflects their assessment of the scheme's impact on participating businesses. The estimate is based on industry held commercial data and is not used as an official Government economic metric.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of drainage maintenance practices by local highway authorities.

Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

Local highway authorities have a duty under Section 41 of the Highways Act 1980 to maintain the highways network in their area. It is for each individual local highway authority to assess which parts of its network need repair and what standards should be applied, based upon their local knowledge and circumstances.

Although the Government does not currently assess the adequacy of drainage maintenance practice in each authority, it does encourage authorities to maintain their drainage assets through guidance.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to the Written Statement of 26 February 2026 by the Minister for Industry on British Steel, what contingency provision has been made within existing Departmental budgets to help ensure domestic steel production can be maintained should financial support requirements exceed current forecasts.

Answered by Chris McDonald - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

HMG is working closely with EY, who are providing onsite management support, to review British Steel’s forecasts and ensure that any funding requests are robust. HMG and EY work closely with British Steel management on scenario planning to ensure that the company can respond effectively to unexpected financial pressures. Contingency provisions have been built into forecasts throughout the intervention to address potential risks, including lower sales receipts, fluctuations in production levels, and urgent capital investment needs. At present, the intervention is funded from existing budgets which are considered sufficient to manage any such pressures.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, pursuant to his Department’s press release entitled Top UK music acts awarded £1.4 million funding to raise profile, published on 2 March 2026, if he will publish a list of each act who has been granted MEGS funding; and how much each act has received.

Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)

The list of acts that received grant awards in the latest funding round of the Music Export Growth Scheme announced on 2 March 2026, were as follows:

Amber Run, anaiis, And Also The Trees, Andrew Cushin, Antony Szmierek, As It Is, Asta Hiroki, Aurora Orchestra, bar italia, Bear's Den, Beth McCarthy, BIG SPECIAL, Black Country, New Road, Black Josh & Lee Scott, Cage Fight, Canned Pineapple, Cassyette, Chalk, Chartreuse, Chloe Slater, Common Saints, DANIEL AVERY, Dark Tropics, Daytime TV, Dry Cleaning, Eleni Drake, Elles Bailey, Erotic Secrets of Pompeii, Essosa, EYNKA, Finn Forster, Gaynor O'Flynn, Girl In The Year Above, Halina Rice, Hana Lili, Harriet, Jalen Ngonda, King Jammy, LASTELLE, Leifur James, Maiah Wynne, Matilda Mann, MEGA, Mica Millar, Modern Woman, Naomi Scott, Nightbus, Nina Nesbitt, NOVELIST, Panic Shack, PUBLIC SERVICE BROADCASTING, PVA, Qendresa, Samm Henshaw, Seb Lowe, SOTA, Stornoway, Summer Pearl and Zola Marcelle, The Cinelli Brothers, The Molotovs, The New Eves, The Snuts, The Wellermen, Tropic Gold, Ulrika Spacek, Wes Nelson, Will Samson, Witch Fever

For commercial reasons, we do not disclose individual MEGS grant awards. In this funding round, individual grant awards ranged from £5,000 to £50,000.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, pursuant to his Department’s press release entitled Top UK music acts awarded £1.4 million funding to raise profile, published on 2 March 2026, what discussions his Department has had with representatives of the UK music industry on the future priorities of export support programmes; and how these discussions are shaping future policy design.

Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)

The UK Government's Creative Industries Sector Plan, published in June 2025, set out creative industries trade and investment priorities for the period up to 2035 and announced an up to £30 million Music Growth Package which will include export support. My department continues to hold discussions with the UK music sector about targeted export support that will best enable UK music businesses to grow internationally.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether she plans to introduce minimum national standards for highway drainage maintenance.

Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

Local highway authorities have a duty under Section 41 of the Highways Act 1980 to maintain the highways network in their area. It is for each individual local highway authority to assess which parts of its network need repair and what standards should be applied, based upon their local knowledge and circumstances.

Although the Government does not currently assess the adequacy of drainage maintenance practice in each authority, it does encourage authorities to maintain their drainage assets through guidance.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, pursuant to his Department’s press release entitled Top UK music acts awarded £1.4 million funding to raise profile, published on 2 March 2026, how many of the 68 acts awarded funding are based in Essex.

Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)

In the latest round of Music Export Growth Scheme awards announced on 2 March, one Essex-based act, 'Essosa', received grant funding.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, pursuant to his Department’s press release entitled Top UK music acts awarded £1.4 million funding to raise profile, published on 2 March 2026, what steps are being taken to ensure recipients from across the entirety of the UK are aware of, and able to access, funding through the Music Export Growth Scheme.

Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)

UK-based music small and medium-sized enterprises can apply for Music Export Growth Scheme (MEGS) funding. Information on MEGS is available on the 'Find a Grant' service on Gov/UK. My department's MEGS delivery partner the BPI has a dedicated section on its website and shares details of MEGS funding rounds on its social media channels. When MEGS funding rounds open, my department shares information on how to apply for the scheme with its regional teams across England and Department for Business and Trade offices in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. The BPI shares information on new MEGS funding rounds with UK music trade bodies, arts organisations, with the music press and direct to some music companies.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps is he taking to help prevent household waste fly-tipping.

Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The Government is taking action to prevent household waste being fly-tipped by supporting local authorities to make good use of their enforcement powers.

Local authorities have powers to take enforcement action against offenders. Anyone caught fly-tipping may be prosecuted which can lead to a significant fine, a community sentence or even imprisonment.

Instead of prosecuting, local authorities can choose to issue a fixed penalty notice (on-the-spot fine) of up to £1,000 to fly-tippers and £600 to householders who pass their waste to an unlicensed waste carrier.

Following a review of local authorities’ powers to seize and crush vehicles of suspected fly-tippers, we have recently published best practice guidance and case studies on the website of the National Fly-Tipping Prevention Group. This will support councils to make better use of their power to seize vehicles of suspected fly-tippers. An action that could lead to the local authority selling or crushing the vehicle.

We are seeking powers in the Crime and Policing Bill to provide statutory fly-tipping enforcement guidance to support councils to consistently, appropriately and effectively exercise these existing powers.

Defra chairs the National Fly-Tipping Prevention Group (NFTPG), through which we work with a wide range of interested parties such as local councils, the Environment Agency, National Farmers Union and National Police Chiefs Council, to promote and disseminate good practice with regards to preventing fly-tipping.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many and what proportion of staff in her Department have (a) office-based, (b) hybrid and (c) remote-working contracts.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

As of 31 January 2026, a total of 825 out of 6,346 Defra payroll employees are recorded as “Home Based”, equating to 13%. Contractual homeworking is generally granted only in exceptional circumstances, such as where it is required for the role or as a reasonable adjustment, and each case is considered individually.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of trends in the level of repeat fly-tipping hotspots.

Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Local authorities in England are required to report fly-tipping incidents and enforcement action, such as prosecutions, to Defra, which the department have published annually since 2012, at https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/fly-tipping-in-england. Defra does not hold data that allows for trends in more localised fly-tipping hotspots to be monitored.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of trends in the level of personal debt among financially vulnerable households in South Basildon and East Thurrock constituency.

Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)

The Government regularly engages with the Bank of England, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), and the Money and Pensions Service (MaPS) to monitor personal finances and debt levels.

Household debt levels have been falling since the beginning of 2022, with the household debt-to-income ratio in 2025 at its lowest level since 2002. The Financial Policy Committee at the Bank of England expects households to remain resilient in aggregate. However, the Government also recognises that some households face difficulties managing debt.

The Government is committed to ensuring that those in problem debt can access the specialist support they need to get their finances back on track. That is why we fund free, impartial debt advice services through MaPS to meet the needs and concerns of individuals in debt, including national and community-based services offering free-to-client debt advice. MaPS regularly measures the need for debt advice in the UK. Its 2025 MoneyView Report notes that c.12% of adults in South Basildon and East Thurrock constituency need debt advice (compared to 14% of all UK adults).

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what proportion of fly-tipping incidents in South Basildon and East Thurrock led to formal enforcement action over the past five years.

Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Local authorities in England are required to report fly-tipping incidents and enforcement action, such as prosecutions, to Defra, which the department has published annually since 2012, at https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/fly-tipping-in-england.

The data covers trends in the number of fly-tipping incidents, with a breakdown by land type, waste type and size as well as enforcement and prosecution actions undertaken for fly-tipping incidents. However, it does not include a breakdown of enforcement action taken by a constituency or district.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of asylum-related social care costs on (a) council tax levels and (b) core service provision.

Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government is committed to ensuring that funding is targeted effectively at the places and services that need it most. This includes committing to multi-year allocations for each council through the 2026-27 Local Government Finance Settlement and moving to a more up-to-date assessment of each council’s needs and resources. The final 2026-27 Local Government Finance Settlement will make available £78 billion in Core Spending Power for local authorities in England in 2026-27, a 6.1% increase compared to 2025-26. The majority of funding in the Local Government Finance Settlement is unringfenced recognising that local leaders are best placed to identify local priorities.

Local authorities report revenue expenditure and financing through the following data collection, which is publicly available and includes data from each financial year since 2019-20: Local authority revenue expenditure and financing - GOV.UK.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how much and what proportion of local authority spending on asylum-related social care was reimbursed by central government in each financial year since 2019-20.

Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government is committed to ensuring that funding is targeted effectively at the places and services that need it most. This includes committing to multi-year allocations for each council through the 2026-27 Local Government Finance Settlement and moving to a more up-to-date assessment of each council’s needs and resources. The final 2026-27 Local Government Finance Settlement will make available £78 billion in Core Spending Power for local authorities in England in 2026-27, a 6.1% increase compared to 2025-26. The majority of funding in the Local Government Finance Settlement is unringfenced recognising that local leaders are best placed to identify local priorities.

Local authorities report revenue expenditure and financing through the following data collection, which is publicly available and includes data from each financial year since 2019-20: Local authority revenue expenditure and financing - GOV.UK.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of Universal Credit claimants are assessed as having a) negligible and b) negative disposal income after housing and energy costs.

Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

We do not hold information on the disposable income of households after essential expenditure including energy costs.

Working-age benefits covered by the Secretary of State’s statutory review will be increased by 3.8% from April, in line with the increase in the consumer prices index in the year to September 2025.

The Universal Credit Act 2025 means that the Universal Credit standard allowance will be up-rated by 3.8%, followed by a further 2.3% from April.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the number of households with less than £50 per month in disposable income after essential expenditure.

Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

We do not hold information on the disposable income of households after essential expenditure including energy costs.

Working-age benefits covered by the Secretary of State’s statutory review will be increased by 3.8% from April, in line with the increase in the consumer prices index in the year to September 2025.

The Universal Credit Act 2025 means that the Universal Credit standard allowance will be up-rated by 3.8%, followed by a further 2.3% from April.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of trends in the level of variation between NHS trusts in the a) operation and b) resourcing of Patient Advice and Liaison Services.

Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

No assessment has been made of the operation and level of resourcing of Patient Advice and Liaison Services (PALS) across National Health Service trusts. PALS is a free, confidential and independent service providing advice and support to resolve issues affecting NHS patients informally and, in some areas, formally through the NHS complaints process. It is for NHS trusts to determine the provision of PALS within their hospitals.

The 10-Year Health Plan committed the Department and NHS England to improving the handling of patient complaints, including to update of complaint regulations. It is intended that this will also consider related matters, such as the introduction of new forms of feedback and the role of PALS. This will be within the portfolio of the new National Director for Patient Experience, for which recruitment will soon be underway.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to introduce national service standards for Patient Advice and Liaison Services.

Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

No assessment has been made of the operation and level of resourcing of Patient Advice and Liaison Services (PALS) across National Health Service trusts. PALS is a free, confidential and independent service providing advice and support to resolve issues affecting NHS patients informally and, in some areas, formally through the NHS complaints process. It is for NHS trusts to determine the provision of PALS within their hospitals.

The 10-Year Health Plan committed the Department and NHS England to improving the handling of patient complaints, including to update of complaint regulations. It is intended that this will also consider related matters, such as the introduction of new forms of feedback and the role of PALS. This will be within the portfolio of the new National Director for Patient Experience, for which recruitment will soon be underway.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what information his Department holds on the number of (a) elections staff, (b) candidates, (c) activists, and (d) other people that were involved in elections who have been subjected to intimidation, harassment, assault, and other criminal behaviours in each of the last ten years.

Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

We are clear that intimidation and abuse of those participating in public life has no place in our society and cannot be tolerated.

MHCLG does not engage directly with candidates or collect wider information about those involved in elections' experience of harassment and intimidation. MHCLG’s role is to provides all candidates and returning officers with security guidance ahead of elections periods.

MHCLG works closely with the Defending Democracy Taskforce, which leads on the cross-government response to harassment and intimidation, including work to evaluate its nature and scale, as well as with the police, Electoral Commission and Local Government Association, who also collect relevant information.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether he plans to pause (a) Parliamentary constituency and (b) local election boundary reviews until every area covered by the respective authority has concluded its automatic registration process.

Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Everyone who is eligible to register to vote should be able, supported and encouraged to do so. The sole aim of moving towards automated registration is to increase the completeness and accuracy of the electoral register.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government will test automated registration in a range of different locations and settings, with different characteristics and challenges, to ensure anything we implement permanently works for everyone. We will be guided throughout by principles of fairness and open engagement. We are consulting a range of stakeholders to develop this programme, including the Electoral Commission, the Association of Electoral Administrators, local authorities and civil society organisations. We will also continue to offer engagement with political parties.

The Parliamentary and Local Government Boundary Commission for England are independent of Government. The timings of Parliamentary Boundary Reviews are set by legislation, and the Government

has no plans to bring forward legislation to amend these. The timings of local electoral reviews in England are decided by the Local Boundary Commission for England, who will continue to make these decisions independently of Government.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to his statement to the House of Commons on 2 March 2026 on the Representation of the People Bill, col 627, how many people in the figure that he provided of 7 or 8 million people being eligible to vote but are not currently registered are (a) British citizens, (b) Irish citizens, and (c) Commonwealth citizens.

Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Research published in 2023 by the Electoral Commission (EC) estimated that between seven and eight million eligible people are either incorrectly registered or not registered to vote at all. As part of this research, the EC considered how the completeness of the register varied by a range of demographic characteristics, including age, gender, nationality and disability. Full data sets were published with the report which is available online on the EC’s Website. It is titled, 2023 report: Electoral Registers in the UK’.

The government believes that everyone who is entitled to vote should be able, supported and encouraged to do so. To meet the manifesto commitment to improve voter registration we will be making changes in legislation and testing ways to move towards a more automated voter registration system.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what information his Department holds on the (a) number and (b) proportion of people who have tried and failed to register to vote in each of the last ten years.

Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government does not collect nor hold data on the outcomes of electoral registration applications.

Electoral registration is administered locally by Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) who are statutorily responsible for the maintenance of the Parliamentary and Local registers for the area for which they act. The duty of determining applications to register to vote therefore falls to them.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what information his Department on the number of people who have attempted to vote but were prevented from doing so due to not being registered in each of the last ten years.

Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government does not collect or hold data on the number of individuals who attempt to vote but are unable to do so because they are not registered to vote.

Elections are administered locally by independent Returning Officers and their staff, who are statutorily responsible for the operation of polling stations during elections.

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