Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of banning of petrol and diesel car sales after 2030 on the attractiveness of the UK as a destination for investment.

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

In 2024, the UK exported 77% of the cars it produced, and non zero emissions cars can continue to be sold internationally beyond 2030.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps he is taking to ensure that imported electrical products meet British safety standards.

Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

UK product safety regulations require that all consumer products placed on the market must be safe. The Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations 2016 place responsibilities on importers of electrical products to ensure their safety and compliance with the law. The Office for Product Safety and Standards and Local Authority Trading Standards enforce these laws and can require the removal of non-compliant or unsafe products from supply. While standards can be designated by Government as a voluntary route for businesses to demonstrate compliance with the law, businesses remain responsible for ensuring products comply with the full regulatory requirements.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what data her Department holds on the number of asylum seekers who have voluntarily visited their country of origin while their asylum claim is being processed.

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

Requests to leave the UK whilst continuing to pursue an asylum claim will only be accepted in the most exceptional circumstances such as the serious illness or death of a close family member or access to medical treatment abroad as it is unavailable in the UK.

If the claimant does not seek permission to travel before leaving the UK, or the request is not responded to by the Home Office, before the claimant has left the UK, all circumstances will be taken into account before proceeding to withdrawal action.

Under paragraph 333C(b)(ii) of the Immigration Rules, an application may be treated as implicitly withdrawn if the applicant leaves the United Kingdom (without authorisation) at any time before the conclusion of their application for asylum.

In the Immigration System Statistics data tables, published quarterly, withdrawals are categorised into implicit (non- substantiated) and other withdrawals (including explicit). However, we do not report on withdrawals in greater detail than that, for example, according to whether someone has returned to their country of origin as it is not held in a reportable format.

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 illegal migration on risks to the public.

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

The Border Security Command (BSC) whose work is imperative not only to stop criminals from entering the UK via small boats in the first place but to stop anyone from making these dangerous journeys. This is why the BSC is working with partners internationally to tackle and disrupt organised immigration crime gangs.

All individuals arriving in the UK via small boats undergo a comprehensive screening process. This is designed to gather key information about each person, including any indicators of criminality.

As part of this process, the Home Office collects biometric data—such as facial images and fingerprints—to verify identity. These biometrics are checked against Home Office systems and other law enforcement databases, including Interpol’s wanted list. This enables us to identify individuals, assess whether they pose a risk to public safety, and determine any breaches of immigration law. These checks are essential to maintaining a secure, fair, and effective immigration system.

In line with the Refugee Convention, refugee status will be denied to those who have committed serious crimes, pose a danger to the community, or present a threat to national security.

For further details on security checks during the asylum screening process, please refer to Gov.UK.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment she has made of the scale of illegal migration to the UK.

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

The Home Office publishes statistics on detected arrivals via illegal routes to the UK in the ‘Immigration System Statistics Quarterly Release’. Data on detected arrivals by illegal routes is published in table Irr_D01 of the ‘Irregular migration to the UK detailed datasets’, with the latest data up to the end of September 2025.

The Government has taken significant steps to address illegal migration and its Plan for Change sets out our ambition to secure borders and control immigration. We are committed to tackling illegal migration and the criminal networks which facilitate it. Since July 2024, nearly 50,000 individuals without lawful status have been returned from the UK. Our agreement with France means that those arriving by small boats can be detained and returned to France.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to improve lessons about (a) financial responsibility and (b) budgeting in schools.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)

The government is committed to strengthening pupils’ foundational understanding of financial education in mathematics and citizenship, with digital resources to support teaching, following publication of the Curriculum and Assessment Review final report in November 2025.

The department will be engaging with sector experts and young people in how best to reflect this in the updated curriculum. There will be public consultation on the updated curriculum Programmes of Study in 2026, to seek views on the content before they are finalised.

Oak National Academy, an independent Arm’s Length Body, is providing high quality curriculum materials to support financial literacy.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made about the adequacy of teaching in schools on (a) financial responsibility and (b) budgeting.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)

The government is committed to strengthening pupils’ foundational understanding of financial education in mathematics and citizenship, with digital resources to support teaching, following publication of the Curriculum and Assessment Review final report in November 2025.

The department will be engaging with sector experts and young people in how best to reflect this in the updated curriculum. There will be public consultation on the updated curriculum Programmes of Study in 2026, to seek views on the content before they are finalised.

Oak National Academy, an independent Arm’s Length Body, is providing high quality curriculum materials to support financial literacy.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many illegal migrants received (a) dental and (b) healthcare in the each of the last three years.

Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Department of Health and Social Care and NHS England do not hold the information requested. The overall management of people seeking asylum is a matter for the Home Office.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much money is allocated to providing illegal migrants with (a) dental and (b) health care.

Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Department of Health and Social Care and NHS England do not hold the information requested. The overall management of people seeking asylum is a matter for the Home Office.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the readiness of the NHS to respond to co-ordinated cyber attacks.

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

In the past year, we have invested £37.6 million across health and social care, building on the £338 million invested since 2017. Through our ambitious Cyber Improvement Programme, we are tackling the changing cyber risk head-on, expanding protection and services to better protect the health and care system.

NHS England’s Cyber Operations team provides 24/7 monitoring and expert support to National Health Service organisations who have been impacted by cyber-attacks. This includes specialist, on the ground, certified incident response services free of charge to NHS organisations who have been severely impacted by cyber incidents as well as technical and operational support to contain, investigate, and remediate incidents. Furthermore, we have developed guidance for leaders involved in cyber incidents to ensure there is a clear policy and process for how to respond across all elements of incidents.

We have a process in place to identify lessons and implement improvements following cyber incidents. Following the Synnovis cyber-attack in 2024, the Department and NHS England have made improvements to critical communications processes, additional measures to improve resilience in the supply chain, and setting out clearer roles and responsibilities in incident management.

In 2023, a Health and Care Cyber Security Strategy was launched. Pillar 5 of the strategy focuses on exemplary response and recovery, and as set out in the strategy, health and care organisations should run annual cyber exercises to ensure there is a well-practiced and rapid response when incidents do occur.

Question to the Northern Ireland Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how much their Department has spent on (a) advertising and (b) marketing in each of the last three years.

Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland

The Northern Ireland Office’s expenditure on (a) advertising and (b) marketing for the last three complete financial years, and the current financial year to date, is set out below:

* Please note that the figures for NIO Core include expenditure related to public inquiries within the NIO group, including the Omagh Bombing Public Inquiry.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to improve the (a) prevention (b) diagnosis and (c) treatment of Ocular Melanoma.

Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The forthcoming National Cancer Plan will include further details on how we will improve outcomes for patients with cancer, as well as speeding up diagnosis and treatment, ensuring patients have access to the latest treatments and technology, and ultimately driving up this country’s cancer survival rates. This will benefit all cancer patients, including ocular melanoma patients.

Early diagnosis of cancers, including ocular melanoma, is a key focus of the National Cancer Plan. We are committed to transforming diagnostic services and will support the National Health Service to increase diagnostic capacity to meet the demand for diagnostic services through investment in new capacity.

The Department is committed to ensuring that all patients, including those with rare cancers, have access to cutting-edge clinical trials and innovative, lifesaving treatments.

The Government supports Scott Arthur’s Private Members Bill on rare cancers which will make it easier for clinical trials into rare cancers, to take place in England by ensuring the patient population can be easily contacted by researchers. This will ensure that the NHS will remain at the forefront of medical innovation and is able to provide patients with the newest, most effective treatment options, and ultimately boost survival rates.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to strengthen the resilience of the military from potential cyber attack.

Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)

Defence prioritises cyber security of its systems and implements a range of measures, including security and monitoring tools, to support cyber resilience and protect as far as possible from attack. Details of the measures are not shared publicly for security reasons.

In autumn 2025 we established Defence Cyber & Electromagnetic Force (DCEMF) to unify and advance previously fragmented and nascent capabilities, while empowering leadership to deliver operational advantage across the domain. This is in recognition of the critical importance of Cyber and Electromagnetic operations and capabilities in an increasingly complex and uncertain geopolitical environment. The DCEMF plays a central role in ensuring the UK remains competitive against peer adversaries in cyberspace and electromagnetic operations, driving the development of a technologically advanced Integrated Force capable of outthinking, outmanoeuvring, and outpacing its opponents.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to reduce medicine wastage in the NHS.

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

The Government recognises the importance of a coordinated approach to reduce medicine wastage, improve efficiencies, and lower costs for taxpayers.

NHS England leads a medicine optimisation programme to enhance patient outcomes, ensure medication is taken as intended, avoid unnecessary medicines, and reduce wastage. For example, community pharmacies offer the New Medicines Service for newly prescribed patients and the Discharge Medicines Service for those recently discharged from hospital to support adherence.

The 2021 national overprescribing review highlighted necessary practical and cultural changes to ensure appropriate patient treatment and value for money. General practices offer Structured Medicine Reviews, with pharmacists in multi-disciplinary teams optimising patient medication and preventing wastage. Additionally, electronic Repeat Dispensing allows prescribers to send repeat prescriptions as a batch to allow better management, ensuring patients only collect what they need.

Waste reduction schemes are commissioned locally, and therefore the Department does not hold data centrally on the cost of medicines waste.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what data his Department holds on the cost to the NHS of wasted medicines.

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

The Government recognises the importance of a coordinated approach to reduce medicine wastage, improve efficiencies, and lower costs for taxpayers.

NHS England leads a medicine optimisation programme to enhance patient outcomes, ensure medication is taken as intended, avoid unnecessary medicines, and reduce wastage. For example, community pharmacies offer the New Medicines Service for newly prescribed patients and the Discharge Medicines Service for those recently discharged from hospital to support adherence.

The 2021 national overprescribing review highlighted necessary practical and cultural changes to ensure appropriate patient treatment and value for money. General practices offer Structured Medicine Reviews, with pharmacists in multi-disciplinary teams optimising patient medication and preventing wastage. Additionally, electronic Repeat Dispensing allows prescribers to send repeat prescriptions as a batch to allow better management, ensuring patients only collect what they need.

Waste reduction schemes are commissioned locally, and therefore the Department does not hold data centrally on the cost of medicines waste.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent estimate his Department has made of levels of medicine wastage in the NHS.

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

The Government recognises the importance of a coordinated approach to reduce medicine wastage, improve efficiencies, and lower costs for taxpayers.

NHS England leads a medicine optimisation programme to enhance patient outcomes, ensure medication is taken as intended, avoid unnecessary medicines, and reduce wastage. For example, community pharmacies offer the New Medicines Service for newly prescribed patients and the Discharge Medicines Service for those recently discharged from hospital to support adherence.

The 2021 national overprescribing review highlighted necessary practical and cultural changes to ensure appropriate patient treatment and value for money. General practices offer Structured Medicine Reviews, with pharmacists in multi-disciplinary teams optimising patient medication and preventing wastage. Additionally, electronic Repeat Dispensing allows prescribers to send repeat prescriptions as a batch to allow better management, ensuring patients only collect what they need.

Waste reduction schemes are commissioned locally, and therefore the Department does not hold data centrally on the cost of medicines waste.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking to improve public transport provision in rural areas.

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

The Government knows how important affordable and reliable public transport services are in keeping communities connected.

We introduced the Bus Services Act 2025 to put power over local bus services back into the hands of local leaders, including in rural areas. In addition, the Government has confirmed over £3 billion from 2026/27 to support local leaders and bus operators to improve bus services over the spending review period. This includes multi-year allocations for local authorities under the Local Authority Bus Grant (LABG) totalling nearly £700 million per year. East Midlands Combined Authority will be allocated £65.5 million under the LABG from 2026/27 to 2028/29, in addition to the £21.7 million they are already receiving this year.

On 1 January 2025, the Government introduced a new £3 cap on single bus fares in England outside London, and in the Spending Review announced that this would be extended until March 2027. The £3 cap replaced the £2 cap, and without action, the cap would have ended and fares would have returned to their previous levels. Local authorities can also use their LABG funding to introduce local fares initiatives to further reduce travel costs

Rail services in East Midlands Combined Authority are supported by requirements on train operators to plan services and design timetables to meet both current and future passenger demand, while also ensuring value for money for the taxpayer. The government commitment to public ownership through Great British Railways will also help to deliver a unified system that focuses on reliable, affordable, high-quality and efficient transport services, whilst also ensuring safety and accessibility. Under public ownership, passenger services can be operated in the interests of passengers, not shareholders.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking to help make public transport more affordable.

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

The Government knows how important affordable and reliable public transport services are in keeping communities connected.

We introduced the Bus Services Act 2025 to put power over local bus services back into the hands of local leaders, including in rural areas. In addition, the Government has confirmed over £3 billion from 2026/27 to support local leaders and bus operators to improve bus services over the spending review period. This includes multi-year allocations for local authorities under the Local Authority Bus Grant (LABG) totalling nearly £700 million per year. East Midlands Combined Authority will be allocated £65.5 million under the LABG from 2026/27 to 2028/29, in addition to the £21.7 million they are already receiving this year.

On 1 January 2025, the Government introduced a new £3 cap on single bus fares in England outside London, and in the Spending Review announced that this would be extended until March 2027. The £3 cap replaced the £2 cap, and without action, the cap would have ended and fares would have returned to their previous levels. Local authorities can also use their LABG funding to introduce local fares initiatives to further reduce travel costs

Rail services in East Midlands Combined Authority are supported by requirements on train operators to plan services and design timetables to meet both current and future passenger demand, while also ensuring value for money for the taxpayer. The government commitment to public ownership through Great British Railways will also help to deliver a unified system that focuses on reliable, affordable, high-quality and efficient transport services, whilst also ensuring safety and accessibility. Under public ownership, passenger services can be operated in the interests of passengers, not shareholders.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made about the potential merits of making all Ofsted inspections unannounced.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)

Ofsted typically gives a short period of notice of its inspections. This supports the effective conduct of the inspection visit. Ofsted also has the ability to inspect without notice where it has concerns about a provider.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps the UK is taking to combat international drug trafficking networks.

Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)

Drugs have a devastating impact on the health of individuals and communities.

The Home Office and UK Law Enforcement, particularly Border Force and the National Crime Agency, delivers a significant amount of operational activity to detect and seize illicit drugs being trafficked to the UK and to secure our border. Our strategy focuses on working closely with law enforcement partners upstream to stop drug trafficking at source and across the supply chain, targeting the gangs responsible, and bringing them to justice.

In the year ending March 2025, Border Force seized over 150 tonnes of illegal drugs from overseas; the highest amount on record and a 40% increase on the amount seized in the year ending March 2024.

Serious criminals are constantly developing their approaches to traffic drugs into the UK in response to our efforts at the border and we recognise that we must continue to adapt our approach.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how much their Department has spent on (a) advertising and (b) marketing in each of the last three years.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The requested information is not centrally collated by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost. All spending is subject to standard value for money assessments.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking to support regional airports.

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

Regional airports connect all regions of the UK to national and international opportunities. They serve our local communities by supporting thousands of jobs while maintaining social and family ties and strengthening the bonds between the four nations.

The UK aviation market operates predominantly in the private sector. Airports invest in their infrastructure to attract passengers and airlines, while airlines are well placed to deliver services to their customers by responding to demand for different routes.

Ministers and officials at the Department meet regularly with regional airports to discuss issues such as regional air connectivity.

Government supports connectivity through our joint funding of three Public Service Obligation (PSO) routes into London from Newquay, Dundee and Derry/Londonderry.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, how much their Department has spent on (a) advertising and (b) marketing in each of the last three years.

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

The advertising and marketing spend will be as follows, ‘24-25 £3m (Core & Agencies), 23-24 restated figures £6m (Core & Agencies) & 22-23 restated figures £1m (Core & Agencies).’ All figures can be found in the annual reports.

Core and Agencies* - The core department, Building Digital UK, and UK Space Agency.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what recent assessment he has made of the potential impact of the banning of petrol and diesel car sales after 2030 on the British automobile manufacturing industry.

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

The Government remains committed to the transition to Zero Emission Vehicles, and to making sure the transition works for industry. That is why we introduced significant changes to the ZEV Mandate last year, allowing for greater flexibility in meeting the targets. We have also committed £4 billion in funding for DRIVE35, which is the biggest government investment in our automotive sector in decades. In addition, we are investing an additional £1.3 billion in the Electric Car Grant.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to reduce homelessness in (a) Ashfield constituency and (b) Nottinghamshire.

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

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 99477 on 19 December 2025.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of guidance on political neutrality in schools.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)

School leaders and staff have a responsibility to ensure that they act in accordance with their duties on political impartiality. When political issues are discussed, schools must offer pupils a balanced presentation of opposing views and should not present materials in a politically biased or one-sided way.

The department has published clear and comprehensive guidance to help those working with and in schools to understand their legal duties on political impartiality and how to meet them, both in teaching about political issues and beyond the classroom. The guidance can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/political-impartiality-in-schools/political-impartiality-in-schools.

The guidance includes advice on how schools can deal with complaints about political impartiality through appropriate local processes. Where parents and carers remain dissatisfied, they can raise a formal complaint in line with school complaints procedures.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what guidelines the Government provides for schools when they are responding to alleged cases of political bias in the classroom.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)

School leaders and staff have a responsibility to ensure that they act in accordance with their duties on political impartiality. When political issues are discussed, schools must offer pupils a balanced presentation of opposing views and should not present materials in a politically biased or one-sided way.

The department has published clear and comprehensive guidance to help those working with and in schools to understand their legal duties on political impartiality and how to meet them, both in teaching about political issues and beyond the classroom. The guidance can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/political-impartiality-in-schools/political-impartiality-in-schools.

The guidance includes advice on how schools can deal with complaints about political impartiality through appropriate local processes. Where parents and carers remain dissatisfied, they can raise a formal complaint in line with school complaints procedures.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to monitor schools to ensure they are remaining politically neutral.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)

School leaders and staff have a responsibility to ensure that they act in accordance with their duties on political impartiality. When political issues are discussed, schools must offer pupils a balanced presentation of opposing views and should not present materials in a politically biased or one-sided way.

The department has published clear and comprehensive guidance to help those working with and in schools to understand their legal duties on political impartiality and how to meet them, both in teaching about political issues and beyond the classroom. The guidance can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/political-impartiality-in-schools/political-impartiality-in-schools.

The guidance includes advice on how schools can deal with complaints about political impartiality through appropriate local processes. Where parents and carers remain dissatisfied, they can raise a formal complaint in line with school complaints procedures.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure schools adequately respond to accusations of political bias.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)

School leaders and staff have a responsibility to ensure that they act in accordance with their duties on political impartiality. When political issues are discussed, schools must offer pupils a balanced presentation of opposing views and should not present materials in a politically biased or one-sided way.

The department has published clear and comprehensive guidance to help those working with and in schools to understand their legal duties on political impartiality and how to meet them, both in teaching about political issues and beyond the classroom. The guidance can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/political-impartiality-in-schools/political-impartiality-in-schools.

The guidance includes advice on how schools can deal with complaints about political impartiality through appropriate local processes. Where parents and carers remain dissatisfied, they can raise a formal complaint in line with school complaints procedures.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent steps his Department is taking to improve research into (a) Ocular Melanoma and (b) other rare cancers.

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

The Department invests over £1.6 billion each year on research through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) and in 2024/25 spent £141.6 million on cancer research, signalling its high priority.

One example of a recent investment into rare cancers is the NIHR’s investment of £13.7 million in December 2025 to support ground-breaking research to develop novel brain tumour treatments in the United Kingdom, with significant further funding announcements expected shortly. Research specifically on Ocular Melanoma includes a study completed in 2022 to develop AI Techniques to Predict Eye Cancer Using Big Longitudinal Data. The NIHR is committed to ensuring that all patients, including those with rare cancers, have access to cutting-edge clinical trials and innovative, lifesaving treatments, by working to fast-track clinical trials to drive global investment into life sciences, improve health outcomes, and accelerate the development of medicines and therapies of the future, including for rare cancers

The Government also supports the Rare Cancers Private Members Bill. The bill will make it easier for clinical trials on rare cancers to take place in England, by ensuring the patient population can be more easily contacted by researchers

The NIHR continues to welcome funding applications for research into less common cancers, including ocular cancer. These applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money, and scientific quality.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the national curriculum in teaching British values.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)

All schools are expected to actively promote fundamental British values of democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty, and mutual respect and tolerance for those of different faiths and beliefs.

Schools are free to include a full range of issues, ideas, and materials in their curriculum.

Following the Curriculum and Assessment Review, the government will make citizenship statutory at key stages 1 and 2. Content at primary and secondary will include media literacy, law and rights, democracy and government, to enable children to be informed and active participants in society. Covering these issues in citizenship will ensure we continue to focus on schools’ role in developing fundamental British values, including mutual tolerance and respect.

Proposals will be consulted on from 2026 and we are working towards a first teaching of the new curriculum from September 2028.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the national safeguarding guidelines for (a) primary and (b) secondary schools.

Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

Schools and colleges have a critical role to play in protecting children and keeping them safe. The department publishes statutory safeguarding guidance Keeping children safe in education (KCSIE) which all schools and colleges must have regard to when carrying out their duties to safeguard and promote the welfare of children.

KCSIE is subject to regular review to ensure it is kept up to date and relevant. We are proposing to make changes to KCSIE 2026 and plan to launch a public consultation very soon.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps her Department are taking to ensure rural communities can access in person banking services.

Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)

Banking is changing, with many customers benefitting from the convenience and flexibility of managing their finances remotely. However, Government understands the importance of face-to-face banking to communities and is committed to supporting sufficient access for customers in rural areas and across the country.

Through the Financial Services and Markets Act 2023, the Government gave the Financial Conduct Authority regulatory responsibility for access to cash. Its rules ensure cash continues to be a viable method of payment for the millions of people who depend on it by providing reasonable access to cash withdrawal and deposit facilities for individuals and businesses, including free services for personal accounts.

In addition to traditional bank branches, the financial services industry is committed to rolling out 350 banking hubs across the UK by the end of this Parliament. Over 240 hubs have been announced so far, and more than 200 are already open. Government is working closely with industry on this commitment, including through regular ministerial engagement. Most recently, on 8 January, I chaired a roundtable with banks, Cash Access UK and UK Finance to discuss banking hubs.

Banking hubs are allocated based on independent assessments by LINK, which consider factors such as branch closures, cash reliance and community vulnerability. The criteria also differentiate between rural and urban areas. For example, LINK applies a wider three-mile catchment area in rural locations to recognise that villages often rely on nearby market towns.

Customers can also access everyday banking services at a nearby Post Office. The Post Office Banking Framework allows personal and business customers of participating banks to withdraw and deposit cash, check their balance, pay bills and cash cheques at over 10,000 Post Office branches across the UK. The Government protects the Post Office network by setting minimum access criteria. These include ensuring that 99% of the UK population lives within three miles of a Post Office and 90% of the population within one mile.

Beyond bank branches, banking hubs and Post Office banking services, some banks also provide points of access through initiatives such as pop-up services in libraries and community centres, or mobile banking vans serving remote areas. The Government supports initiatives which give customers access to in-person banking, as well as digital access.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what recent assessment he has made of the impact of immigration on housing availability.

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

I refer the hon. Member to the answers given to Question UIN 62663 on 22 July 2025 and to Question UIN 51990 on 19 May 2025.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps his Department is taking to reduce reoffending rates.

Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip

Reoffending in England and Wales costs taxpayers £22.7 billion per year (adjusted to 24/25 prices). Tackling reoffending is crucial to reducing crime, reducing demand on prison and probation services and protecting the public.

Working across Government, we are taking steps to tackle the root causes of reoffending by investing in a range of interventions which address offenders’ underlying criminogenic needs and support their rehabilitation journey. This includes, but is not limited to, education, employment, accommodation and substance misuse treatment services.

We have launched regional Employment Councils, which for the first time bring businesses together with prisons, probation, and the Department for Work and Pensions to support prison leavers. We are expanding our community accommodation service to support prison leavers at risk of homelessness by providing up to 12 weeks of temporary accommodation for those under probation supervision. And we have funded Incentivised Substance-Free Living units (ISFLs) in 85 prisons, where prisoners sign a behaviour compact, agree to be regularly drug tested and can access enhanced opportunities compared to a standard wing.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps she is taking to support independent museums.

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

This Government supports independent museums around the country through funding delivered via Arts Council England (ACE), with ACE investing over £80 million in museums in 2025/26 across its programmes. This funding includes £25 million to support museums across England with urgent infrastructure and maintenance backlogs through the Museum Estate and Development Fund, and a brand new £20 million Museum Renewal Fund, both announced last February, in addition to core programming funding for the over 200 museum sites forming part of the National Portfolio. As the National Development Agency for Museums, ACE also funds the Museum Development Network, providing expert advice to smaller museums across the country, and delivers Cultural Property functions that support museums with everything from insurance, to new acquisitions.

Most recently, eligible independent museums could apply to the latest round of the £4 million DCMS/Wolfson Museums and Galleries Improvement Fund, launched in September 2025 to support local and regional museums to improve displays, enhance collections care and make exhibitions more accessible to wider audiences. Independent museums are also supported through government schemes including the VAT Refund Scheme for museums and galleries, and the Museums and Galleries Exhibitions Tax Relief.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much their Department has spent on (a) advertising and (b) marketing in each of the last three years.

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

Significant payments to companies, £25,000 and over, are published by month as part of the Department’s transparency data. This provides the most up to date data, including the companies used to deliver advertising and marketing. They are available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/spending-over-25-000--2

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much their Department has spent on (a) advertising and (b) marketing in each of the last three years.

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

Total spend with our media buying and planning agencies for the last three financial years is as follows:

Financial years under the previous government

Financial years under the previous and current government

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, how much their Department has spent on (a) advertising and (b) marketing in each of the last three years.

Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

Government marketing supports the effective communication of operational and policy objectives by effectively understanding and meeting the needs of citizens and businesses, changing behaviours for personal, societal and economic benefit.

Total advertising and marketing spend with the Department for Business and Trade’s media buying agency for the last three financial years is as follows:

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 her Department has made of the potential impact of increasing water bills on households.

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

It is important that customers get value for money from their water bills and that support is available for those who need it. I meet water companies frequently to discuss a range of issues, including customer bills.

As the independent economic regulator, it is Ofwat’s responsibility to scrutinise water company business plans and ensure the prices water companies charge their customers are fair and proportionate. It does this through its Price Review, every five years. Ofwat published the results of the 2024 Price Review in December 2024, this sets out company expenditure and customer bills for the next five years, up to 2030. These price controls came into effect on 01 April 2025.

Price Review 2024 will deliver substantial improvements for customers and the environment through a £104 billion upgrade for the water sector - the highest level of investment in the water sector since privatisation. The average annual bill rise over the next 5 years will be £31 (or 36%). This will vary across households depending on their circumstances. Information on bills for each water company is available on Ofwat’s website.

All water companies have measures in place for customers who struggle to pay for their water and wastewater services, such as WaterSure, social tariffs, payment breaks and holidays, and debt management support. Moreover, Government expects industry to keep the current support schemes under review to ensure that vulnerable customers are supported.

The Government has committed to reforming the WaterSure support scheme which supports low-income households with high essential water use due to having a medical condition or three or more children living at home and has consulted on extending the list of qualifying benefits to include non-means tested disability benefits. This proposal is designed to provide better support for low-income households where a medical condition leads to high essential water use.

The proposed reforms would also increase support for existing households and update the regulations to reflect best practice adopted across the water sector. The department will publish the response to the consultation in the coming months.

Bill increases are necessary to make up for years of under-investment and make sure water companies can deliver a good service to customers and protect the environment.

The Government is also bringing forward root and branch reform to secure better outcomes for billpayers and restore trust and accountability. This includes the creation of a powerful new consolidated regulator, which will work to ensure water company bills are fair and affordable for customers. These reforms are detailed in the Government’s Water White Paper.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to support people with the cost of water bills.

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

It is important that customers get value for money from their water bills and that support is available for those who need it. I meet water companies frequently to discuss a range of issues, including customer bills.

As the independent economic regulator, it is Ofwat’s responsibility to scrutinise water company business plans and ensure the prices water companies charge their customers are fair and proportionate. It does this through its Price Review, every five years. Ofwat published the results of the 2024 Price Review in December 2024, this sets out company expenditure and customer bills for the next five years, up to 2030. These price controls came into effect on 01 April 2025.

Price Review 2024 will deliver substantial improvements for customers and the environment through a £104 billion upgrade for the water sector - the highest level of investment in the water sector since privatisation. The average annual bill rise over the next 5 years will be £31 (or 36%). This will vary across households depending on their circumstances. Information on bills for each water company is available on Ofwat’s website.

All water companies have measures in place for customers who struggle to pay for their water and wastewater services, such as WaterSure, social tariffs, payment breaks and holidays, and debt management support. Moreover, Government expects industry to keep the current support schemes under review to ensure that vulnerable customers are supported.

The Government has committed to reforming the WaterSure support scheme which supports low-income households with high essential water use due to having a medical condition or three or more children living at home and has consulted on extending the list of qualifying benefits to include non-means tested disability benefits. This proposal is designed to provide better support for low-income households where a medical condition leads to high essential water use.

The proposed reforms would also increase support for existing households and update the regulations to reflect best practice adopted across the water sector. The department will publish the response to the consultation in the coming months.

Bill increases are necessary to make up for years of under-investment and make sure water companies can deliver a good service to customers and protect the environment.

The Government is also bringing forward root and branch reform to secure better outcomes for billpayers and restore trust and accountability. This includes the creation of a powerful new consolidated regulator, which will work to ensure water company bills are fair and affordable for customers. These reforms are detailed in the Government’s Water White Paper.

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 water companies on the cost of water bills to customers.

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

It is important that customers get value for money from their water bills and that support is available for those who need it. I meet water companies frequently to discuss a range of issues, including customer bills.

As the independent economic regulator, it is Ofwat’s responsibility to scrutinise water company business plans and ensure the prices water companies charge their customers are fair and proportionate. It does this through its Price Review, every five years. Ofwat published the results of the 2024 Price Review in December 2024, this sets out company expenditure and customer bills for the next five years, up to 2030. These price controls came into effect on 01 April 2025.

Price Review 2024 will deliver substantial improvements for customers and the environment through a £104 billion upgrade for the water sector - the highest level of investment in the water sector since privatisation. The average annual bill rise over the next 5 years will be £31 (or 36%). This will vary across households depending on their circumstances. Information on bills for each water company is available on Ofwat’s website.

All water companies have measures in place for customers who struggle to pay for their water and wastewater services, such as WaterSure, social tariffs, payment breaks and holidays, and debt management support. Moreover, Government expects industry to keep the current support schemes under review to ensure that vulnerable customers are supported.

The Government has committed to reforming the WaterSure support scheme which supports low-income households with high essential water use due to having a medical condition or three or more children living at home and has consulted on extending the list of qualifying benefits to include non-means tested disability benefits. This proposal is designed to provide better support for low-income households where a medical condition leads to high essential water use.

The proposed reforms would also increase support for existing households and update the regulations to reflect best practice adopted across the water sector. The department will publish the response to the consultation in the coming months.

Bill increases are necessary to make up for years of under-investment and make sure water companies can deliver a good service to customers and protect the environment.

The Government is also bringing forward root and branch reform to secure better outcomes for billpayers and restore trust and accountability. This includes the creation of a powerful new consolidated regulator, which will work to ensure water company bills are fair and affordable for customers. These reforms are detailed in the Government’s Water White Paper.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether she plans to review the suitability of Turkey as a recipient of foreign aid.

Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

Decisions on allocations of Official Development Assistance for the next three years are currently under consideration, and will be announced in the usual way.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will make it his policy to reopen local magistrate courts that have been closed to help clear the court case backlog.

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

50% of magistrates’ courts were closed under previous Governments between 2010 and 2020.

Estate capacity is not a limiting factor to sitting the funded days in the magistrates courts. In other words, we are investing in more court staff, legal aid and judge time so that magistrates can hear more cases - up to £450 million in additional courts funding per year. There is therefore a difference between system capacity and physical capacity of courtrooms. Running courtrooms requires not just available courtrooms, but judicial time, and sufficient numbers of legal professionals.

We continue to keep the court estate under review to ensure it meets operational priorities. Projects to boost court capacity across the country include a new Magistrate’s Court in Blackpool and an additional 18 court rooms in the City of London.