Written questions by Fox.

What the average length of wait was to receive the result of an application for a Standard Individual Export Licence using the SPIRE system between January to July 2024.

Between 1 January and 30 June 2024, the median processing time for Standard Individual Export Licence (SIEL) applications submitted on SPIRE and processed to first outcome was 16 working days.The Export Control Joint Unit’s (ECJU) current performance targets are to complete 70% of applications for SIELs within 20 working days, and 99% within 60 working days.The Export Control Joint Unit publish comprehensive statistics every quarter about export licence applications, which includes our median processing times. The most recent publication covers the quarter up to June 2024. This data is available at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/strategic-export-controls-licensing-data.

Food and Rural Affairs, what plans his Department has to update data held on farms by (a) constituency and (b) local authority.

Defra does not routinely publish farming statistics by parliamentary constituency. The latest available data on the number of farms by constituency are for 2021, but there are currently no plans to update these. Farming statistics by local authority are usually published every 5 years and are next due to be updated in March 2025 with 2024 data. The dataset will be published here Structure of the agricultural industry in England and the UK at June - GOV.UK

Media and Sport, what steps she is taking to support the tourism sector.

The Visitor Economy is a key sector in all of our constituencies.DCMS continues to deliver a generational change in how we develop visitor destinations in England through the Local Visitor Economy Partnership Programme.VisitBritain’s upcoming ‘Starring GREAT Britain’ campaign will invite the world to come to visit the UK’s iconic film and TV locations.I am chairing the inaugural meeting of the Government’s new Visitor Economy Advisory Council next week, which will play a pivotal role in co-creating and delivering a growth strategy which I hope to publish later this year.

Communities and Local Government, what guidance she has issued to civil servants in the Land Registry on how frequently they should attend the office each week; how many and what proportion of desks were occupied in each Land Registry office in the most recent four weeks for which figures are available; and how many staff attended each office in person in the same period; and what assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of the proposed PCS trade union industrial action.

The guidance given to HM Land Registry’s staff regarding office attendance is in line with the guidance published by the Cabinet Office. This guidance states that staff must spend a minimum of 60% of their contracted working time in an office location.The following table shows the percentage of desks that were occupied and how many staff attended an office location in the most recent four weeks where the data is available, for each of HM Land Registry’s 14 office locations:Office locationProportion of desks occupied during November 2024Volume of people who attended an office location during November 2024Birkenhead60.00%510Coventry58.79%254Croydon67.06%369Durham56.75%765Fylde51.61%405Gloucester68.78%353Hull54.42%347Leicester60.35%296Nottingham99.39%521Peterborough90.15%274Plymouth78.54%770Swansea68.11%823Telford44.28%342Weymouth57.47%254HM Land Registry63.84%6283HM Land Registry has always aligned office attendance policies with civil service expectations both before and since the 60% requirement and will remain committed to ensuring staff are meeting the attendance requirement throughout the proposed PCS trade union industrial action.

How many repurposed medicines have successfully been granted MHRA licences in the last two years.

In the last two years, there has been one medicine to date, namely Anastrozole, coming through the Repurposed Medicines Programme, with more information available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/medicines-2/medicines-repurposing-programme/As only one medicine has been through the Repurposed Medicines programme so far, there is no meaningful 'average time' at this point, but the review times are being monitored.

Whether his Department is taking steps to decrease the amount of time it takes for a repurposed medicine to be granted an MHRA licence.

The Medicines and products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) reviews the efficacy, safety and quality of a repurposed medicine in a similar way to other medicinal applications. This review is part of the activities which MHRA contributes to under the Medicines Repurposing Programme. Once sufficient evidence is available, MHRA will consider the applications within the statutory timelines which can be expedited if company dossiers contain all required information. Timelines for assessment vary and depend on the nature of the application. MHRA continuously reviews processes for the assessment of applications to determine whether any efficiencies and improved timelines are feasible.

What the average length of time has been for a repurposed medicine to be granted an MHRA licence from the point of application in the last two years.

In the last two years, there has been one medicine to date, namely Anastrozole, coming through the Repurposed Medicines Programme, with more information available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/medicines-2/medicines-repurposing-programme/As only one medicine has been through the Repurposed Medicines programme so far, there is no meaningful 'average time' at this point, but the review times are being monitored.

How many people convicted of causing a death have been granted parole before the halfway point in their original sentences in the last year.

No prisoners are eligible to be considered for release by the Parole Board before the half-way point in their sentence.

Whether he has agreed to meet with the British Coal Staff Superannuation Scheme Trustees.

Details of Ministers’ and Permanent Secretaries' meetings with external individuals and organisations are published quarterly in arrears on GOV.UK. Published declarations include the purpose of the meeting and the names of any additional external organisa...

If he will publish the minutes from the recent Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition horizon scan meeting of 9 October 2024 on ultra-processed foods.

United Kingdom dietary recommendations are based on independent advice from the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN). The SACN publishes minutes for all its meetings on its GOV.UK webpages.On 9 October 2024, the SACN held a horizon scan meeti...

How many Probation Service staff are assigned to work in each office in London; and how many desks are there in each office.

Information on staff numbers at London Probation Delivery Units (PDUs) as at 30 September 2024 can be found in table 16, lines 91-108 (broken down by grade), of the HMPPS workforce statistics bulletin: September 2024 tables at: https://assets.publishing.s...

What discussions the recent UK Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition meeting had on (a) ultra-processed foods and (b) future policies to reduce consumption of those foods.

Dietary recommendations for the United Kingdom are based on independent advice from the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN).In July 2023, the SACN published a position statement on processed foods and health, summarising a scoping review of ...

Pursuant to the Answer of 13 November 2024 to Question 13145 on DWP: Buildings, how many staff were in attendance in Caxton House on average in the last week for which figures are available.

We have the data that you have requested for week commencing 2nd December 2024 (02/12/24 – 06/12/24). The average attendance per day for Caxton House this week is 623.

Pursuant to the Answer of 19 November 2024 to Question 13970 on Wales Office: Buildings, how many staff attended the Department's HQ building in that period; and how many staff are assigned to that workplace.

The average number of staff attending the Department's HQ building in that period for which figures are available is 15. The Office currently has 24 civil servants assigned to its London Office.

Pursuant to the Answer of 15 November 2024, to Question 12889 on Ministry of Justice: Ministers’ Private Offices, if he will provide a breakdown of the (a) goods and services purchased and (b) cost of each.

As outlined in PQ 9269, the Ministry of Justice’s total cost spent on refurbishments to Ministerial Private Offices, including new furniture and fittings, was £13,314.73, during the period requested.The following table provides details of furniture purcha...

Communities and Local Government, how many civil servants are assigned to work in the Land Registry’s London office; and how many desks there are for those civil servants.

HM Land Registry’s Head Office is in Croydon and it does not have any other London-based offices. It had 416 staff based in the Croydon office on 13 December 2024 with 280 desks available for HM Land Registry’s use.

How many HMCTS staff, expressed as a numeric headcount, assigned to 102 Petty France, occupied a desk in 102 Petty France, on average, in the last week for which figures are available.

The new Government has recently committed to keep to the current guidance on civil service office attendance. Office occupancy data for the period July - September has been published, with further publications to now happen on a quarterly basis. The data ...

How many departmental staff, expressed as a numeric headcount, assigned to 102 Petty France, occupied a desk in 102 Petty France, on average, in the last week for which figures are available.

The new Government has recently committed to keep to the current guidance on civil service office attendance. Office occupancy data for the period July - September has been published, with further publications to now happen on a quarterly basis. The data ...

How many desks in 102 Petty France offices are made available for (a) HMCTS and (b) Ministry of Justice staff.

The new Government has recently committed to keep to the current guidance on civil service office attendance. Office occupancy data for the period July - September has been published, with further publications to now happen on a quarterly basis. The data ...

What assessment he has made of the impact of introducing Fixed Recoverable Costs in clinical negligence on vulnerable people’s ability to access justice.

Currently, the Government is considering the way forward on a wide range of matters, including clinical negligence costs reform, and we will announce our position in due course.