Written questions by Rosindell.

Whether the North Sea Transition Authority plans to award new licences for the (a) production and (b) extraction of oil and gas.

The Government will consult later this year on the implementation of our manifesto position not to issue new oil and gas licences to explore new fields.The North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA) has independently paused issuing any invitations to apply for new licences (including out-of-rounds invitations) pending the finalisation of the process related to delivery of the manifesto commitment and the plans for new environmental guidance for oil and gas firms.

What plans her Department has to increase the number of daily sitting hours by Crown Court judges.

There are no current plans to extend the standard sitting hours of the Crown Court.The Lord Chancellor has a statutory duty to ensure there is an effective and efficient system to support the carrying on of the businesses of the courts, and that appropriate services are provided for those courts.Alongside this, the way in which an individual sitting day is used with regards to the scheduling and sequencing of cases at the Crown Court is at the discretion of the independent judiciary. In addition to time spent hearing cases in the court room, at either end of the day judges will spend time on other judicial business including reading case files in preparation for the hearing and other aspects of case management. As a result, the hours of a given sitting day can vary from day to day.We recognise that the Crown Court outstanding caseload remains one of the biggest challenges facing the Criminal Justice System and we are committed to reducing the caseload and bringing waiting times down.This Government has increased the number of Crown Court sitting days to 106,500, more than in six out of the last seven years. And we will soon extend magistrates’ sentencing powers from 6 to 12 months, freeing up 2,000 days in the Crown Courts to handle the most serious cases.Alongside this, we invest consistently in the recruitment of c.1,000 judges and tribunal members across all jurisdictions annually. Crown Court recruitment has been a particular priority and we have successfully increased the number of Circuit judges and Recorders in recent years.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of the decision not to issue North Sea oil and gas licences on employment in Scotland.

We are transitioning towards a clean energy future, but oil and gas production in the North Sea will be a key part of the UK energy landscape for many years to come. Scotland has the heritage, expertise and world-class workforce to help win this global race for high-quality green energy jobs. This Government is working closely with industry, including to introduce a new skills passport for oil and gas workers, to ensure we take the opportunities that this transition provides.

What steps she is taking to tackle the backlog of cases awaiting Crown Court hearings.

The Crown Court outstanding caseload remains one of the biggest challenges facing the Criminal Justice System and we are committed to reducing the caseload and bringing waiting times down.We want to make sure every victim has the swift access to justice they deserve - however, we recognise that some cases currently take longer to conclude. This is particularly true for rape victims, who on average wait over a year for their case to go to trial. That is why we have committed to fast-tracking rape cases through the courts, ensuring timely and effective justice for victims of these abhorrent offences.More widely, as part of our efforts to hear more cases, we have increased funding so that 106,500 sitting days can be sat at the Crown Court this year - more than six out of the last seven years - and 500 days more than the 106,000 agreed by the previous government in June.Alongside this, we invest consistently in the recruitment of c.1,000 judges and tribunal members across all jurisdictions annually. Crown Court recruitment has been a particular priority and we have successfully increased the number of Circuit judges and Recorders in recent years. We also continue to use 18 Nightingale courtrooms across eight venues to hear more cases.Most recently, we have announced plans to allow magistrates’ courts to hand down custodial sentences of up to 12 months for a single triable either way offence – doubling their current powers – from mid-November.Allowing magistrates to deal with more cases will save up to 2,000 sitting days in the Crown Court, so that time can be reserved for the more serious and complex cases, helping address the Crown Court outstanding caseload.To go further, the Government is considering what can be learned from the Lord Justice Auld’s 2001 Review, including looking again at ideas to help increase capacity in the Crown Court.

What steps she is taking to improve the condition of (a) court buildings and (b) other physical infrastructure in the courts system.

It is important that the infrastructure of our courts does not prevent hearings from taking place.HMCTS has a facilities management contract with Equans for undertaking routine court maintenance which has delivered over 30,000 routine maintenance jobs across the court and tribunal estate since 1 April 2024.Capital maintenance funding is prioritised to sites that need it most to ensure that buildings are safe, secure, meet statutory requirements and able to ensure the continuity of court and tribunal business for the longer term.HMCTS has a range of capital estate projects planned for financial year 2024/25, including 31 roof, 16 lift and 15 boiler replacements.As a result of this action, less than 0.1% of available sitting days across all jurisdictions are lost due to planned and unplanned maintenance. When conducting estate maintenance works, every effort is made to minimise operational impacts as far as possible.

If she will hold discussions with the Crown Prosecution Service on reducing the number of pre-charge cases awaiting decision.

Public confidence in the criminal justice is underpinned by access to swift justice. It is critical that cases progress through the system as quickly as possible, both before and after a charge is made. Improving timeliness and reducing the backlogs of outstanding cases are a priority for me and for this Government.I will of course be holding discussions about these issues with the Crown Prosecution Service, with a view to making systemic improvements as quickly as possible.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with the St Helena Government on levels of police resources on St Helena.

The UK Government provide funding to support the delivery of public services in St Helena, including policing. In addition, the UK Government has a long-term programme to increase capacity and capability in the Royal St Helena Police Service. During recent discussions I [Minister for the Overseas Territories] and Home Office Minister Lord Hanson discussed public services resources with the Chief Minister.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will publish the agreement with St Helena on future migrants arriving on the British Indian Ocean Territory.

The new Memorandum of Understanding with the St Helena Government has been deposited in the library of both Houses, as communicated by the Minister for the Overseas Territories in a recent letter to the Hon Gentleman. The St Helena Government has also published the Memorandum of Understanding on their website.The St Helena Government are responsible for any local consultation. FCDO and Home Office Ministers worked closely with St Helena's Chief Minister and her team to conclude this agreement, which was welcomed by the St Helena Government in a public statement after the signing of the agreement.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions his Department has had with residents of St Helena on the housing of illegal migrants from the Chagos Islands archipelago.

The new Memorandum of Understanding with the St Helena Government has been deposited in the library of both Houses, as communicated by the Minister for the Overseas Territories in a recent letter to the Hon Gentleman. The St Helena Government has also published the Memorandum of Understanding on their website.The St Helena Government are responsible for any local consultation. FCDO and Home Office Ministers worked closely with St Helena's Chief Minister and her team to conclude this agreement, which was welcomed by the St Helena Government in a public statement after the signing of the agreement.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what consultation his Department has conducted with the resident community on St Helena on the housing of illegal migrants from the Chagos Islands archipelago.

The new Memorandum of Understanding with the St Helena Government has been deposited in the library of both Houses, as communicated by the Minister for the Overseas Territories in a recent letter to the Hon Gentleman. The St Helena Government has also published the Memorandum of Understanding on their website.The St Helena Government are responsible for any local consultation. FCDO and Home Office Ministers worked closely with St Helena's Chief Minister and her team to conclude this agreement, which was welcomed by the St Helena Government in a public statement after the signing of the agreement.

How many people of Chagossian descent have taken British nationality since 2022.

We are unable to provide this data as we do not record data relating to an individual’s ancestry.Whilst the BIOT (British Indian Oceans Territory) citizenship registration route was introduced in November 2022, there may be people of Chagossian descent who have applied outside of this route within the requested period and we would not be able to identify such cases.

How many people of Chagossian descent have applied for (a) British overseas territories and (b) British citizenship in the last five years for which data is available, broken down by the country in which each applicant lived at the time of application.

We are unable to provide this data as we do not record data relating to an individual’s ancestry.Whilst the BIOT (British Indian Oceans Territory) citizenship registration route was introduced in November 2022, there may be people of Chagossian descent who have applied outside of this route within the requested period and we would not be able to identify such cases.

What steps she is taking to help support (a) primary and (b) secondary education for citizens of British overseas territories.

Education is a devolved matter and decisions about primary and secondary education is the responsibility of each Overseas Territory (OT). The department responds positively to direct requests from the OTs for support to enhance or reform their education systems by sharing information on approaches in England and facilitating opportunities to engage with policy and technical experts.Montserrat, the Pitcairn Islands, St Helena and Tristan da Cunha are in receipt of Official Development Assistance through the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), which is used to assist their governments in the delivery of essential services including education. This includes funding for teaching staff and the FCDO work in partnership with the local governments to agree targets to improve outcomes and standards in education. Work is underway to establish partnerships between education teams in the OTs with counterparts in the UK, similar to the partnerships the FCDO have helped to establish on child safeguarding.The FCDO funded capital investment programme in Montserrat has included improvements to building in the secondary school and equipment for schools in St Helena.

If she will make an estimate of the number and proportion of outbound flights from the six largest airports serving London that were delayed over the last three months; and whether she has had discussions with (a) London Heathrow airport, (b) London Gatwick airport, (c) City airport, (d) Luton airport, (e) London stansted airport and (f) Southend airport on steps they are taking to decrease the number of (i) delays and (ii) cancellations.

The aviation industry predominantly operates in the private sector, therefore it is the responsibility of the industry to have robust resilience plans in place to meet demand, recruit, and roster staff, and have appropriate mitigations in place. The Civil Aviation Authority publishes quarterly aviation trends, which include delay statistics for the airports in question. The most recent published data is for April – June 2024 and can be found here. The Department for Transport engages regularly with industry to understand the issues facing industry, and to ensure that plans are in place to minimise delays and disruption. For example, the Aviation Minister wrote to the industry in October 2024 regarding preparedness for the upcoming winter period.

How many companies have been reported to Companies House for using (a) names and addresses and (b) other personal information without consent when registering in the last year; and whether his Department has plans to require people seeking to register new companies to send Companies House proof of identity before (i) issuing a certificate of incorporation and (ii) publishing the company's details online.

To the year ending 30 September 2024, Companies House received 28,933 reports related to the unauthorised use of addresses. No figure is available for personal information. In future, all directors (and equivalents), persons with significant control and those filing information with Companies House will be required to undergo identity verification checks and proposed directors will need to complete these checks before a company is incorporated. The phased introduction of compulsory identity verification is due to begin by Autumn 2025.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his US counterpart on the British Indian Ocean Territory.

The Foreign Secretary is in regular contact with Secretary Blinken on a range of issues, including the British Indian Ocean Territory / Chagos Archipelago. The agreement on the exercise of sovereignty over the archipelago is strongly supported by our partners, including the US. President Biden, Secretary Blinken and Secretary Austin all released statements shortly after the announcement praising the deal for securing the operational future of the joint US-UK facility on Diego Garcia.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what the timescale is for implementing the agreement with Mauritius on sovereignty of the British Indian Ocean Territory.

The Agreement is subject to the finalisation of a treaty, which both sides have committed to complete as quickly as possible. After signature, the treaty is required to be ratified by both the UK and Mauritius before entry into force. Parliament will have the opportunity to scrutinise the detail of the Treaty prior to ratification, in the usual way.

Whether he plans to take steps with NHS England to expand access to indication-specific pricing agreements.

As part of the 2024 Voluntary Scheme for Branded Medicines Pricing, Access and Growth, NHS England committed to undertake two consultations on amendments to the NHS Commercial Framework for New Medicines. The first of these was launched on 31 July 2024 and ran for eight weeks. The proposed amendments would make the framework more explicit about the circumstances in which NHS England will consider indication specific pricing mechanisms. They would also align the framework with the Competition and Markets Authority statement on combination medicines.NHS England and the Department engaged with key stakeholders throughout the consultation period, and NHS England intends to publish an updated NHS Commercial Framework for New Medicines by the end of 2024.

What steps she is taking to reduce unauthorised school absences.

The government recognises that school absence is a key barrier to learning. Thanks to the sector's efforts, more students are attending school this year compared to last. However, 1.6 million children remain persistently absent, missing 10% or more of lessons. To address this, backed by £15 million, the government will expand the investment and reach of attendance mentoring. This will help to reach 10,000 more children and cover an additional ten areas which have some of the worst attendance rates across the country. In addition, the department will roll out funded breakfast clubs to all primary schools so that all children are ready to learn. The department will also introduce new annual Ofsted reviews on safeguarding, attendance, and off-rolling. Mental health support is also being expanded, with specialists in every school. The statutory ‘Working together to improve school attendance’ guidance promotes a 'support first' approach, encouraging schools, trusts, and local authorities to work with families to address attendance barriers. This guidance is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/working-together-to-improve-school-attendance.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his Argentinian counterpart on the Falkland Islands.

The UK is resolutely committed to defending and supporting the Falkland Islanders' right of self-determination and our sovereignty of the Falkland Islands. The Foreign Secretary met Argentine Foreign Minister Diana Mondino on 24 September and he conveyed the clarity of the UK's unequivocal position on these matters during the meeting.