Steve Darling

The government has been clear that it will not look to make additional deregulatory changes to the adult gaming sector until further improvements are made on customer protections. Government officials meet regularly with the Gambling Commission and representatives from the sector and will continue to support operators with making progress in this area.

The government has been clear that it will not look to make additional deregulatory changes to the adult gaming sector until further improvements are made on customer protections. Government officials meet regularly with the Gambling Commission and representatives from the sector and will continue to support operators with making progress in this area.

The government has been clear that it will not look to make additional deregulatory changes to the adult gaming sector until further improvements are made on customer protections. Government officials meet regularly with the Gambling Commission and representatives from the sector and will continue to support operators with making progress in this area.

The government has been clear that it will not look to make additional deregulatory changes to the adult gaming sector until further improvements are made on customer protections. Government officials meet regularly with the Gambling Commission and representatives from the sector and will continue to support operators with making progress in this area.

The National Church Institutions recognise the importance of maintaining England’s historic church buildings across England such as the Grade I listed All Saints, Babbacombe and St John the Baptist, Paignton. Parish Churches are not only places of worship but also important community assets supporting heritage, culture and local wellbeing. Significant investment has been allocated by the Archbishops Council and Church Commissioners to support parishes, such as the Buildings for Mission programme. For this programme, the Church Commissioners invested £11million between 2023 and 2025 to provide grants to help churches undertake repairs, improve facilities and remain sustainable centres of worship and community activity

The programme funds 36 Church Buildings Support Officer posts across England, based in dioceses and partner organisations, providing practical advice on repairs, maintenance, fundraising and community engagement to help churches remain sustainable and mission-focused. The Church Commissioners run a Conservation Grants Programme, supported by the National Lottery Heritage Fund, and others, for the conservation of historic furnishings in Church of England churches. This funding helps to conserve nationally significant historic features such as stained glass, monuments and wall paintings

Other grant-based programmes complement the Buildings for Mission project with the aim to make the buildings more sustainable, efficient and easy to operate in the long term. The Net Zero Carbon Programme is one such programme, operating 2026-2028 the fund has a total of £40million to give grants to parishes alongside opportunities for match funding and larger grants for capital projects such as replacement heating schemes. The Net Zero Carbon Programme operates a Quick Wins Fund, which helps churches improve energy efficiency and reduce running costs. Where churches can no longer remain in parish use, the Church of England works closely with the Churches Conservation Trust to safeguard them for future generations

The Church Commissioners continue to work closely with other funding bodies at national and local levels, such as Historic England and local building support charities to support the ongoing repair and maintenance of church buildings and are in conversation with the Government about long-term strategic support.

UK nationals who wish to work in the EU are subject to the immigration requirements of the relevant Member States. This Government is committed to ensuring opportunities for British citizens to live, work, study, and travel across the European Union. That is why at the 2025 UK-EU Summit, we agreed to negotiate a balanced youth experience scheme with the EU. We have agreed that any scheme will be capped, subject to a visa requirement, as well as time-limited. We have been clear that the scheme should be in line with the UK’s existing schemes, such as with Australia and New Zealand. The exact parameters of the scheme are subject of ongoing negotiations.

We are negotiating an ambitious youth experience scheme with the EU. This will provide a valuable form of cultural exchange for young Brits to travel, experience other cultures and learn languages, as well as work and study abroad in Member States.

We have agreed that any scheme will be capped, subject to a visa requirement, as well as time-limited. We have been clear that the scheme should be in line with the UK’s existing schemes, such as with Australia and New Zealand, but the exact parameters are subject to ongoing negotiation.

We are negotiating an ambitious youth experience scheme with the EU. This will provide a valuable form of cultural exchange for young Brits to travel, experience other cultures and learn languages, as well as work and study abroad in Member States.

We have agreed that any scheme will be capped, subject to a visa requirement, as well as time-limited. We have been clear that the scheme should be in line with the UK’s existing schemes, such as with Australia and New Zealand, but the exact parameters are subject to ongoing negotiation.

We are negotiating an ambitious youth experience scheme with the EU. This will provide a valuable form of cultural exchange for young Brits to travel, experience other cultures and learn languages, as well as work and study abroad in Member States.

We have agreed that any scheme will be capped, subject to a visa requirement, as well as time-limited. We have been clear that the scheme should be in line with the UK’s existing schemes, such as with Australia and New Zealand, but the exact parameters are subject to ongoing negotiation.

The Government believes the filtering process MPs facilitate continues to provide an effective way to empower backbenchers to hold the executive to account and emphasises the Ombudsman’s position as a servant of Parliament.

We have no plans to amend the Parliamentary Commissioner Act 1967 at this time.

The Government’s Parental Leave and Pay Review will conclude in early 2027 with a set of findings which outline next steps for implementing any reforms.

In addition to considering all current parental leave and pay entitlements, the Review is considering the needs of working families who do not qualify for existing leave and pay entitlements, such as kinship carers.

The Government is also supporting kinship carers through other mechanisms and has recently launched a kinship pilot to support up to 5,000 children by paying eligible carers an allowance equivalent to the Fostering National Minimum Allowance.

The Government’s Parental Leave and Pay Review will conclude in early 2027 with a set of findings which outline next steps for implementing any reforms.

In addition to considering all current parental leave and pay entitlements, the Review is considering the needs of working families who do not qualify for existing leave and pay entitlements, such as kinship carers.

The Government is also supporting kinship carers through other mechanisms and has recently launched a kinship pilot to support up to 5,000 children by paying eligible carers an allowance equivalent to the Fostering National Minimum Allowance.

The government is committed to addressing skills shortages in small and medium sized enterprises. To support employers to take on apprentices, the government provides a range of financial support. We are introducing a new hiring grant of £2,000 for non-levy paying employers, typically SMEs, that take on 16–24-year-old apprentices as new employees. Additionally, from August 2026 we will fully fund apprenticeship training for non-levy paying employers for eligible people aged 16-24.

The new Business Growth Service is already promoting and signposting the government’s skills offer to SMEs.

The Government recognises that local breweries and pubs make an important contribution to the UK's economy and communities, supporting jobs, innovation and diversity within the pub sector.

I am currently considering the findings of this review alongside hearing evidence directly from industry stakeholders and representative bodies with whom I am meeting over the next month. This includes meeting with small brewery owners and representatives from the Society of Independent Brewers.

The Employment Rights Act 2025 will address the misuse of non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) by employers who want to silence workers about harassment and discrimination in the workplace.

The Government will consult on the conditions under which NDAs can still be validly made (known in the legislation as ‘excepted agreement’). We will also consult on the individuals that a worker with an excepted agreement can speak to (e.g. the police, or medical professionals).

We will bring forward the consultation shortly. The consultation will inform the policy detail in order to draft the regulations and commence this measure in due course.

Recent analysis at global level, including by the International Energy Agency, has highlighted the extensive potential for AI applications in energy to cut costs and lower consumer bills.

Government will publish an AI Strategy for Energy in Autumn this year, which will set out the actions it is taking to apply AI to the Clean Energy Superpower mission. The AI for Clean Energy Champion is also preparing a review of AI deployment in electricity networks, for publication in the summer.

Neither the Secretary of State nor I will be commenting on the specifics of individual projects such as Rosebank and Jackdaw in order to avoid potentially prejudicing any future regulatory decisions the Secretary of State is required to make in relation to these projects.

There is a robust framework governing the fire safety of lithium-ion battery storage.

The Health and Safety Executive regulates commercial batteries within a framework which requires industry to act at all stages of the battery’s deployment to ensure safety. Of particular relevance, the Dangerous Substances and Explosive Atmospheres Regulations (2002) set out requirements to protect workers and others from fire risks.

Domestic-scale batteries for consumers are covered under the General Product Safety Regulations 2005, making producers responsible for ensuring product safety. The Office for Product Safety and Standards and Local Authority Trading Standards have powers to remove unsafe batteries from sale.

Impacts of proposed offshore wind developments on affected stakeholders, including fishers, is considered during the development consent process. The Government encourages offshore wind developers and the fishing industry to discuss potential impacts at an early stage.

In cases where there have been monetary settlements for disruption or displacement, these have been agreed on an individual project basis between the offshore wind developer and the affected fishers.

The Government recognises the importance of social media to UK businesses. Under the Online Safety Act, regulated services must operate accessible and effective complaints procedures, enabling users, including businesses, to challenge account suspensions or bans where they have been mistakenly associated with illegal content or content harmful to children.

Services must also take appropriate action in response to complaints. These duties are designed to increase transparency and accountability in platform decision-making. Ofcom has powers to take enforcement action where providers fail to comply with their statutory duties.

Consent or pay models are used by some websites to gather consent for the use “storage and access technologies”, the most common of which is cookies. The rules around consent for such technology are governed by the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR). The relevant regulator overseeing PECR is the Information Commissioner's Office, who last year published guidance on how websites can deploy consent or pay legally: https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/uk-gdpr-guidance-and-resources/online-tracking/consent-or-pay/

The Government is taking a coordinated approach to address the environmental impact of data centres as it seeks to promote sustainable sectoral growth. Through the AI Energy Council, we are working with industry, regulators and the energy system to improve efficiency and reduce carbon intensity. UK Data and AI infrastructure is subject to the UK’s environmental and planning frameworks, which require assessment of impacts such as energy use, water consumption, land use, and local environmental factors. Larger data centres, which will be able to apply through the recently introduced Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project route, will also be subject to these requirements.

AI is already regulated in the UK. A range of existing rules already apply to AI systems, such as data protection, competition, equality legislation and other forms of sector regulation. The Government will act where these laws are not enough to ensure safe use. We are exploring whether additional protections are needed. The Technology Secretary confirmed in Parliament last week that the Government will look at what more can be done to manage the emergent risks of AI chatbots.

The government is committed to support the development and adoption of metamaterials, as part of our wider ambition to strengthen the UK’s advanced materials ecosystem. In June 2025, the UK’s Modern Industrial Strategy prioritised advanced materials as a frontier industry and committed an initial £50 million to a National Materials Innovation Programme. The first feasibility call went live in November and specifically highlights metamaterials and metasurfaces as a strategic opportunity area.

This builds on existing government support for metamaterials, including the £19.6 million MetaHub public-private partnership with the University of Exeter, to advance 3D nanoscale metamaterials, and the Metamaterials Network Plus.