Written questions by Obese-Jecty.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the news story entitled Jonathan Powell appointed as Special Envoy for BIOT negotiations, published on 6 September 2024, whether the phrase He will begin his role immediately means that Jonathan Powell’s role as the Prime Minister’s Special Envoy for negotiations between the UK and Mauritius on the exercise of sovereignty over the BIOT officially started on 6 September 2024.

I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided on 18 March in response to Question 118787.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, when Jonathan Powell was appointed as the Prime Minister’s Special Envoy for negotiations between the UK and Mauritius on the exercise of sovereignty over the BIOT; and what security clearance he had upon that appointment.

I refer the Hon Member to the answers provided on 11, 18 and 19 March in response to Questions 117954, 118781 and 119899.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether Jonathan Powell was interviewed for the role of the Prime Minister’s Special Envoy for negotiations between the UK and Mauritius on the exercise of sovereignty over the British Indian Ocean Territory.

I refer the Hon Member to the answers provided on 11, 18 and 19 March in response to Questions 117954, 118781 and 119899.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 9 September 2024 to Question 2404 on Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office: Public Appointments, on what dates her predecessor met with Jonathan Powell prior to appointing him as the Prime Minister's Envoy for the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT)/Chagos Archipelago Sovereignty Negotiation with Mauritius.

I refer the Hon Member to the answers provided on 11, 18 and 19 March in response to Questions 117954, 118781 and 119899.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 9 September 2024 to Question 2404 on Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office: Public Appointments, on what date did her predecessor a) appoint Jonathan Powell, b) did he commence the role and c) was his appointment publicly announced.

I refer the Hon Member to the answers provided on 11, 18 and 19 March in response to Questions 117954, 118781 and 119899.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, on what date did Lord Mandelson receive STRAP level access.

I refer the Hon Member to the statement made by the Prime Minister on 21 April, and his answers to the questions raised in response, including his commitment that the Government would continue to comply with the instructions of Parliament in the Humble Address of 4 February.

Pursuant to the Answer of 20 April 2026 to Question 125514 on Armed Forces: Housing, for what reason has the number of void service family properties in Huntingdon constituency increased from 19 to 99 since May 2025.

The figure of 19 void properties in May 2025 given in the Answer of 20 April 2026 to Question 125514 referred to void properties in the hon. Member's constituency which had been reacquired from Annington and that were not suitable for occupation; it did not reflect the total number of void properties. As of 1 May 2025, there were a total of 108 void Service Family Accommodation (SFA) properties in the Huntingdon constituency. As of 22 April 2026, there are a total of 98 void SFA properties in the Huntingdon constituency.

Pursuant to the Answer of 20 April 2026 to Auestion 125323 on Ahmed al-Sharaa, whether she discussed the repatriation of ISIS-linked individuals from the Al-Roj camp in Syria with the (a) President of Syria, (b) Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates and (c) Director of the General Intelligence Service on 31 March 2026.

The details of conversations between the Home Secretary and senior international partners on matters of national security are confidential and not for release.Minister Falconer made a written ministerial statement to the house on 28 January on the situation in North-East Syria and has committed to providing further updates to the House in due course as the situation evolves.’

What assessment has he made of the surety of heating oil supply for October 2026 onwards.

The Government keeps the security of heating oil supply under close and continuous review. The UK benefits from strong and diverse security of fuel supplies, including heating oil. While heating oil markets can experience periods of operational pressure, supply continues to be available through established domestic and international supply routes. The Government works closely with the sector to monitor supply, demand and delivery conditions and will continue to monitor the position closely as the heating season approaches.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, on what date did Lord Mandelson (a) submit his application for STRAP clearance and (b) receive that clearance.

I refer the Hon Member to the statement made by the Prime Minister on 21 April, and his answers to the questions raised in response, including his commitment that the Government would continue to comply with the instructions of Parliament in the Humble Address of 4 February.

Innovation and Technology, with reference to the policy paper entitled Replacing animals in science: A strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods, published on 11 November 2025, what progress she has made on applying only validated alternative methods for pharmacopoeial pyrogen testing.

Rabbit pyrogen tests were removed from the British Pharmacopeia in 2025 under this Government, meaning that no rabbit pyrogenicity testing should now be conducted in the UK for any pharmacopoeial pyrogen testing purposes. International (ISO) standards for medical devices may require the use of rabbit pyrogen testing for market authorisation for non-UK markets. Where this is the case Prospective Authorisation would need to be granted by the Home Office, no such tests were carried out in 2025. We are working with the Home Office to ensure that no new licences are approved that include the use of the rabbit pyrogen tests where validated alternatives are available.

For what application are the 3 current active licences which authorise the use of the Forced Swim Test in preclinical animal testing.

The Home Office publishes annual National Statistics on the use of animals in scientific procedures in Great Britain under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986.As part of these statistics, information is collected and published on techniques of special interest. In 2024, the statistics included the forced swim test as a technique of special interest for the first time and includes information on the purpose of the research. All procedures were performed for the purpose of basic research in the areas of the nervous, endocrine and sensory systems, and were either mild or moderate severity.The annual statistics for 2025 will be published this year. The published annual statistics are available at:https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/animals-in-science-statistics

When his Department plans to respond to the Freedom of Information Act request by the hon. Member for Huntingdon, dated 9 March 2026.

The Cabinet Office responded to the Hon. Member's request for information on 21 April.

With reference to the Policy paper entitled Replacing animals in science: A strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods, published on 11 November 2025, what progress has he made in replacing the use of animals in botulinum toxin batch potency testing.

In line with the Government’s strategy to replace animals in science, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) supports the use of non-animal approaches where they are fit for purpose and accepts that, where a biological product is not pharmacologically active in animals and no relevant animal model exists, studies in animals, including with surrogate molecules, should not be undertaken and first-in-human applications can be supported using non-animal data, such as in vitro methods and computer modelling, to inform expected human exposure and safety. Further information is available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/replacing-animals-in-science-strategy/replacing-animals-in-science-a-strategy-to-support-the-development-validation-and-uptake-of-alternative-methodsMore broadly, alternative methods used to characterise safety must be demonstrated as fit for their intended purpose, and MHRA guidance, published in March 2026, sets out its current approach to medicines using non-animal methods, including how such approaches can support regulatory submissions and the adoption of validated alternatives as they become available. For potency testing and for adventitious agent testing, separate information for manufacturers on controls for batch release is on the MHRA website explaining how adoption of non-animal methods for these purposes is supported. Further information is available at the following two links:https://www.gov.uk/guidance/mhra-approach-to-medicines-using-non-animal-methodshttps://nibsc.org/about_us/our_use_of_animals.aspx

With reference to the policy paper entitled Replacing animals in science: A strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods, published on 11 November 2025, what progress he has made in replacing adventitious agent testing in animals.

I refer the Hon. Member to the answer I gave on 28 April 2026 to Question 128366.

Innovation and Technology, with reference to her Department's policy paper entitled Replacing animals in science: A strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods, published on 11 November 2025, what progress her Department has made in (a) developing AI prediction tools and (b) obtaining kinetic data from combining tests with general toxicity testing.

This is an area of extensive effort across industry and stakeholders. NC3Rs are funding development of a virtual dog to replace dogs in second species testing (Virtual Second Species Innovation Platform). We continue working with partners to develop resources to expand these efforts.The strategy has not committed to obtaining kinetic data. Basket 2 sets out long‑term ambitions that must be science‑led, partnership‑based and delivered over time.The strategy aims to use validated alternative methods to reduce use of dogs and non‑human primates in dedicated Pharmacokinetic studies for human medicines by at least 35% by 2030.

With reference to her Department's policy paper entitled Replacing animals in science: A strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods, published on 11 November 2025, what progress she has made in strengthening UK guidance on adventitious agents testing.

The Government is committed to strengthening guidance on adventitious agents testing in due course, as set out in the strategy.The use of animals in science in the UK continues to be regulated under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986, which requires that animals are only used where there is no suitable validated non‑animal alternative, the minimum number of animals is used, and the most refined methods are used to minimise harm.The Government will publish a delivery update, alongside key performance indicators on progress across all elements of the strategy, later in 2026.

Innovation and Technology, with reference to the policy paper entitled Replacing animals in science: A strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods, published on 11 November 2025, what progress she has made on collecting data annually on the number of clinical trial applications that include toxicity tests conducted in 2 species.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 20th April to Question UIN 125672.

With reference to the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology's policy paper entitled Replacing animals in science: A strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods, published on 11 November 2025, what progress his Department has made in applying only validated alternative methods for pharmacopoeial adventitious agent testing for human medicinal products licensed in the UK.

In line with the Government’s strategy to replace animals in science, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) supports the use of non-animal approaches where they are fit for purpose and accepts that, where a biological product is not pharmacologically active in animals and no relevant animal model exists, studies in animals, including with surrogate molecules, should not be undertaken and first-in-human applications can be supported using non-animal data, such as in vitro methods and computer modelling, to inform expected human exposure and safety. Further information is available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/replacing-animals-in-science-strategy/replacing-animals-in-science-a-strategy-to-support-the-development-validation-and-uptake-of-alternative-methodsMore broadly, alternative methods used to characterise safety must be demonstrated as fit for their intended purpose, and MHRA guidance, published in March 2026, sets out its current approach to medicines using non-animal methods, including how such approaches can support regulatory submissions and the adoption of validated alternatives as they become available. For potency testing and for adventitious agent testing, separate information for manufacturers on controls for batch release is on the MHRA website explaining how adoption of non-animal methods for these purposes is supported. Further information is available at the following two links:https://www.gov.uk/guidance/mhra-approach-to-medicines-using-non-animal-methodshttps://nibsc.org/about_us/our_use_of_animals.aspx

Innovation and Technology, with reference to her Department's policy paper entitled Replacing animals in science: A strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods, published on 11 November 2025, what progress she has made in obtaining the full validation of the Comprehensive in vitro Proarrhythmia Assay (CiPA) initiative to predict the proarrhythmic potential of new drugs.

The strategy has not committed to obtaining the full validation of the Comprehensive in vitro Proarrhythmia Assay (CiPA) initiative to predict the proarrhythmic potential of new drugs.Basket 2 of the strategy outlines long‑term ambitions which must be science‑led, partnership‑based, and delivered over time.The strategy aims to use validated alternative methods to reduce the use of dogs and non-human primates in dedicated Pharmacokinetic studies for human medicines by at least 35% by 2030.