Written questions by Rosindell.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of the Strategic Defence Review on the ballistic missile defence capabilities of the Royal Navy.

Ballistic missile and aircraft carrier capabilities are important to Defence. The importance of maritime power more broadly has been highlighted by the recent Royal Navy response to protect international shipping - vital to our way of life and economic security - from Houthi missile attacks in the Red Sea. It is only right that we do not pre-determine what may happen in the review. The Strategic Defence Review will set out recommendations on the roles, capabilities, and reforms which UK Defence must have to meet the challenges, threats and opportunities of the twenty-first century.

If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a cap on student numbers per university, in the context of recent trends in the availability of student housing.

Student accommodation is a busy part of the housing market, and this government recognises the concerns that some students may have about the availability of accommodation. As universities and landlords are private, autonomous bodies, the government has no role in student admissions or the provision of student accommodation, nor a remit to intervene in how it is allocated. Nevertheless, the department is working with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to promote the importance of a strategic approach to meeting student housing needs to providers and local authorities. The department expects universities and private landlords to review their accommodation policies to ensure they are affordable, fair, clear and promote the interests of students.

Whether she is taking steps to make tertiary education in the UK more accessible for British Overseas Territory citizens.

Since 2007, persons who have settled status in the UK, and who have come to the UK from specified British Overseas Territories, have been eligible for home fee status if they meet the requirement of three years’ ordinary residence in the UK, Channel Islands, Isle of Man and/or specified British Overseas Territories.Since 2022/23 those starting designated full-time and part-time undergraduate courses are also now eligible for tuition fee loans in England if they meet the residency requirements. These requirements are that they have been ordinarily resident in the UK, Channel Islands, Isle of Man and/or specified British Overseas Territories throughout the three-year period preceding the first day of the first academic year of the course, with at least part of that period having been spent in the British Overseas Territories.

If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of increasing the powers of Trading Standards officers to tackle tobacco duty avoidance.

Trading Standards have a range of powers to effectively tackle the illicit supply of tobacco. In 2023 those powers were extended to enable Trading Standards to tackle non-compliance with the UK’s Tobacco Track and Trace system, which regulates tobacco at all stages of the supply chain, from manufacture through to retail. These powers enable Trading Standards to make referrals to HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) on potential breaches of the law, and for HMRC to impose penalties. HMRC are responsible for tackling tax avoidance and evasion. Trading Standards and HMRC work closely together on tackling tobacco duty evasion. In 2021 they launched a joint initiative, called Operation CeCe to specifically target the illicit tobacco market. Through sharing of intelligence, combined with local knowledge and expertise, Operation CeCe contributes significantly to the detection and seizure of illicit tobacco products at retail level. Since introduction, more than 4,900 seizures have been made, and over £28 million of revenue loss has been prevented.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of the Strategic Defence Review on the aircraft carrier capabilities of the Royal Navy.

Ballistic missile and aircraft carrier capabilities are important to Defence. The importance of maritime power more broadly has been highlighted by the recent Royal Navy response to protect international shipping - vital to our way of life and economic security - from Houthi missile attacks in the Red Sea. It is only right that we do not pre-determine what may happen in the review. The Strategic Defence Review will set out recommendations on the roles, capabilities, and reforms which UK Defence must have to meet the challenges, threats and opportunities of the twenty-first century.

What steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help maintain the UK internal market.

We are committed to taking all steps necessary to protect the UK internal market and Northern Ireland's place in it, while implementing the Windsor Framework.As part of this, we are taking forward policies in Safeguarding the Union, including implementing the new UK Internal Market System.

If he will make supporting the growth of community-based renewable energy schemes an aim of Great British Energy.

Great British Energy’s Founding Statement is clear that the Local Power Plan will be one of Great British Energy’s core functions. Through the Local Power Plan, Great British Energy will support local and combined authorities – as well as community energy groups – to roll out small and medium-scale renewable energy projects. The Secretary of State will have the ability to set Great British Energy’s strategic priorities to ensure it remains focused on the Government’s aim to accelerate the delivery of homegrown clean energy. The Secretary of State will set out Great British Energy’s strategic priorities in due course.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how many illegal immigrants are currently being detained by the United Kingdom within the British Indian Ocean Territory (Chagos Islands).

64 migrants are currently under the care of the BIOT Administration on Diego Garcia, with 8 of those receiving medical treatment off island. The Government are working at pace to find a solution for the migrants that both protects their welfare and the integrity of UK borders.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of trends in the population of the bluebird species in England in the last 10 years.

Bluebirds are native to North America and not the UK. As such we have made no assessment of the implications of our policies on populations of this group of species.

If she will make it her policy to (a) reduce and (b) freeze tobacco excise duty.

The Government is unable to speculate on tax measures outside of fiscal events. As with all taxes, the Government keeps tobacco duty rates under review during its Budget process. The government accounts for the behavioural impact of tax changes when making tobacco duty policy decisions.

What steps she is taking to modernise public transport in Essex.

The government knows that Britain needs a modern transport network to help kickstart economic growth. Good local bus services are an essential part of prosperous and sustainable communities. As announced in the King’s Speech on 17 July 2024, the government will introduce a Buses Bill later this parliamentary session to put the power over local bus services back in the hands of local leaders right across England, including in Essex. This will allow local areas to determine how best to design their bus services so that they have control over routes and schedules.The government has also committed to increasing accountability by providing safeguards over local networks across the country and empowering local transport authorities through reforms to bus funding. The Department will work closely with local leaders and bus operators to deliver on the government’s ambitions. The Secretary of State has also set out plans for the biggest overhaul of our railways in a generation by delivering publicly owned passenger rail within the first term in government. The government will do this as contracts with existing operators expire or if the relevant contractual conditions for early termination are met. The Passenger Railway Services Bill, also announced on 17 July, will allow the government to deliver on this commitment to bring rail services back into public ownership. The government will also establish a new arm's length body, Great British Railways, which will deliver a unified system that focuses on reliable, affordable, high-quality, and efficient services; along with ensuring safety and accessibility.

How long the 20 longest delays between (a) occurrence date and (b) registration date were for covid-19 related deaths in England that (i) occurred in 2020 and (ii) were subject to an inquest.

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.A response to the Hon. Gentleman’s Parliamentary Questions of 14th October is attached.

If he will publish the 20 earliest covid-19 related deaths in the UK by (a) five year age-cohort, (b) sex, (c) nation, (d) week of occurrence and (e) week of registration; and whether each of those deaths were (i) referred to a coroner and (ii) subject to an inquest.

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.A response to the Hon. Gentleman’s Parliamentary Questions of 14th October is attached.

What steps he is taking to increase domestic defence production capabilities.

This Government recognises the vital role of the defence industry in both keeping our country safe and in providing businesses, jobs, prosperity and tax in all corners of our United Kingdom. Our UK industry partners, of all sizes, are very much at the heart of our One Defence approach and we recognise the value that suppliers bring to the defence enterprise. That is why this Government is committed to bringing forward a Defence Industrial Strategy. The Defence Industrial Strategy will align our national security and economic priorities and will aim to create a better, bigger, more modern, connected, innovative, and resilient defence sector. It will also consider requirements for onshore production capability to ensure the UK has the industrial base needed to meet potential future threats.

What progress she has made on increasing the number of potholes that are repaired in (a) Romford constituency and (b) England.

The Government takes the condition of local roads very seriously and is committed to maintaining and renewing the local road network. Havering Council is the local highway authority for the Romford constituency, and it is therefore responsible for the maintenance of its local road network. Havering Council has received £333,000 from this Department during 2024/25 to help it carry out its local highway maintenance responsibilities: it is up to the Council to decide how that funding is used. For England as a whole, the Government has a commitment to enable local highway authorities to fix up to a million more potholes a year.

Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to help reduce the number of children living in temporary accommodation.

The Government is clear that homelessness is too high and too many families are living in temporary accommodation. We want to take a long-term approach and, working with Mayors and councils across the country, we will develop a new cross-government strategy to get us back on track to ending homelessness. The Deputy Prime Minister will chair an Inter-Ministerial Group to drive this forward.We are also tackling the root causes of homelessness, including by delivering the biggest increase in social and affordable housebuilding in a generation. We will abolish Section 21 ‘no fault’ evictions with immediate effect, preventing private renters being exploited and discriminated against, and empowering people to challenge unreasonable rent increases.

How many Albion-class amphibious assault ships are (a) operationally available and (b) undergoing upgrades.

I can confirm that since 2010, one Landing Platform Dock (LPD) ship has been held in extended readiness so that she can be regenerated if required. HMS Albion has taken HMS Bulwark’s position in extended readiness so that HMS Bulwark can undergo regeneration. Once regenerated she can be ready to deliver defence outputs if required. The Ministry of Defence annually releases readiness data for the Royal Navy surface fleet, however for reasons of operational security, we do not disclose timetables or forecasts as this information would be helpful to our adversaries.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to help tackle biodiversity loss in the London Borough of Havering.

This Government is committed to tackling biodiversity loss. We have set targets on species abundance, species extinction and habitat creation and restoration through the Environment Act. These targets will drive actions to support biodiversity in Havering and every other local authority area across England. Government has launched a rapid review of the Environmental Improvement Plan (EIP) to ensure it fully supports our mission to recover nature. We will publish a summary of findings in early 2025, to be followed by publication of a revised EIP in Spring 2025. Local Nature Recovery Strategies (LNRS) are being prepared across the whole of England to support delivery of the biodiversity targets. The Greater London Authority is preparing a strategy which covers the Havering constituency, with support from the local planning authorities in the area, including Havering Borough Council.

What estimate she has made of the annual tax revenue loss from (a) illicit and (b) non-duty paid tobacco.

The new joint HMRC and Border Force strategy to tackle illicit tobacco was published earlier this year, ‘Stubbing out the problem’. The strategy:targets the demand for illicit trade (the consumers that criminals seek to exploit) as well as the supply (the criminals themselves)is supported by over £100 million new funding over the next 5 years to boost HMRC and Border Force enforcement capabilityestablishes a new, cross-government Illicit Tobacco Taskforce – combining the operational, investigative and intelligence expertise of various agencies, and enhancing our ability to disrupt organised crime.HMRC estimates the size of the illicit market using tax gap data, which is reported annually. The duty gap for tobacco duty is 14.5% of the theoretical tobacco duty liability, or £1.7 billion in absolute terms, in tax year 2022 to 2023. The tax gap for tobacco includes losses from the importation or production of illicit tobacco products and tax evaded on the smuggling of non-duty paid tobacco and genuine tobacco products sourced overseas.The link to the tobacco tax gap is here Measuring tax gaps 2024 edition: tax gap estimates for 2022 to 2023.Measuring tax gaps 2024 edition: tax gap estimates for 2022 to 2023 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

What steps she is taking to help tackle tobacco duty avoidance.

The new joint HMRC and Border Force strategy to tackle illicit tobacco was published earlier this year, ‘Stubbing out the problem’. The strategy:targets the demand for illicit trade (the consumers that criminals seek to exploit) as well as the supply (the criminals themselves)is supported by over £100 million new funding over the next 5 years to boost HMRC and Border Force enforcement capabilityestablishes a new, cross-government Illicit Tobacco Taskforce – combining the operational, investigative and intelligence expertise of various agencies, and enhancing our ability to disrupt organised crime.HMRC estimates the size of the illicit market using tax gap data, which is reported annually. The duty gap for tobacco duty is 14.5% of the theoretical tobacco duty liability, or £1.7 billion in absolute terms, in tax year 2022 to 2023. The tax gap for tobacco includes losses from the importation or production of illicit tobacco products and tax evaded on the smuggling of non-duty paid tobacco and genuine tobacco products sourced overseas.The link to the tobacco tax gap is here Measuring tax gaps 2024 edition: tax gap estimates for 2022 to 2023.Measuring tax gaps 2024 edition: tax gap estimates for 2022 to 2023 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)