Written questions by Anderson.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of recent trends in the level of retail investment on economic (a) growth and (b) resilience.

The Government wants to see more consumers participate in capital markets and benefit from the long-term financial security and returns that investing can provide. The Financial Services Growth & Competitiveness Strategy call for evidence, which closed on 12 December, identified that increasing retail participation in capital markets could support long-term sustainable growth within the sector and the wider economy. The call for evidence welcomed further evidence on how to improve consumer engagement with investing, and the Government is considering the feedback provided. The Government is already taking forward work to improve the information available to retail investors to help with their decision-making. This includes reforms to the UK’s retail disclosure regime and exploring options to expand the availability of support through the joint Government and FCA review of the boundary between financial advice and guidance.

Whether she plans to take steps to support greater supervisory data sharing between UK and Chinese financial regulators.

As the Chancellor’s Statement to the House on 14th January set out, the dialogue has delivered a set of tangible benefits to ensure that British firms have greater access to the world’s second largest economy, while safeguarding our national security and securing commitments to enhance financial regulatory and supervisory cooperation. The total value of what was agreed is worth £600 million over the next five years for the UK economy and sets us on course to deliver up to £1 billion of value for the UK economy. In particular, the agreement secured: new licences and quota allocations for UK asset managers, which will immediately improve their operating access and competitiveness in China; the launch a feasibility study into a UK-China Wealth Connect; the launch of UK-China over-the-counter bond business, which allows international investors to trade and settle RMB bonds more easily through the UK; and a commitment for the issuance of Sovereign and Corporate green bonds in the UK solidifying the City’s role as a Global Financial Centre and benefitting UK firms through increased fees for delivering this business.

What information her Department holds on the total value of investments in (a) cash, (b) stocks and shares, (c) innovative finance and (d) lifetime ISAs in each of the past five tax years, broken down by investors' income bracket.

Information on the total value of ISA subscriptions, the total market value of ISAs, and the number of ISA holders and subscribers broken down by income bands is available in HMRC’s Annual Savings Statistics.https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/annual-savings-statistics

What information her Department holds on the total market value of (a) cash and (b) stocks and shares ISA holdings in each of the past five tax years, broken down by investor income bracket.

Information on the total value of ISA subscriptions, the total market value of ISAs, and the number of ISA holders and subscribers broken down by income bands is available in HMRC’s Annual Savings Statistics.https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/annual-savings-statistics

Communities and Local Government, what estimate she has made of the change in (a) core spending power and (b) settlement funding for (i) Aylesbury Vale District Council in each financial year between 2010-11 and 2019-20, (ii) Buckinghamshire County Council in each financial year between 2010-11 and 2019-20 and (iii) Buckinghamshire Council in each financial year since 2020-21.

Detailed information on core spending power and settlement funding for Aylesbury Vale District Council, Buckinghamshire County Council and Buckinghamshire Council for each year from 2015/16 to 2020/21 can be viewed here.Due to changes in the function and financing of local government, comparable data on Core Spending Power is not available prior to 2015/16.

What criteria her Department plans to use to assess the effectiveness of the digital gilt instrument pilot.

This pilot would allow us to make more informed decisions on Distributed Ledger Technology’s (DLT) potential future application to wider government debt issuance. Demonstrating feasibility on a government bond issuance will also support the private sector by providing a use case that will assist their own use and investment in the technology. The pilot puts the UK at the forefront of capital markets innovation. This experimental issuance is separate from the government’s normal operations and overall debt issuance programme. The pilot will utilise the Digital Securities Sandbox (DSS), which opened for applications in September 2024. The DSS utilises temporary modifications to legislation to provide an environment where firms can use developing technology, in particular DLT, to create, trade, and manage securities, under the supervision of the Bank of England and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). This enables activity to happen in a controlled and monitored setting, ensuring that potential risks are managed while fostering innovation. I set out in a Written Ministerial Statement on 18 November 2024, that the government will engage with the financial sector in the new year to explore what the issuance could look like and the technology options available to facilitate it.

What the role of the (a) Bank of England and (b) Financial Conduct Authority will be in regulatory oversight of the digital gilt instrument pilot.

This pilot would allow us to make more informed decisions on Distributed Ledger Technology’s (DLT) potential future application to wider government debt issuance. Demonstrating feasibility on a government bond issuance will also support the private sector by providing a use case that will assist their own use and investment in the technology. The pilot puts the UK at the forefront of capital markets innovation. This experimental issuance is separate from the government’s normal operations and overall debt issuance programme. The pilot will utilise the Digital Securities Sandbox (DSS), which opened for applications in September 2024. The DSS utilises temporary modifications to legislation to provide an environment where firms can use developing technology, in particular DLT, to create, trade, and manage securities, under the supervision of the Bank of England and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). This enables activity to happen in a controlled and monitored setting, ensuring that potential risks are managed while fostering innovation. I set out in a Written Ministerial Statement on 18 November 2024, that the government will engage with the financial sector in the new year to explore what the issuance could look like and the technology options available to facilitate it.

What steps her Department is taking to manage potential risks associated with distributed ledger technology during the pilot digital gilt instrument issuance.

This pilot would allow us to make more informed decisions on Distributed Ledger Technology’s (DLT) potential future application to wider government debt issuance. Demonstrating feasibility on a government bond issuance will also support the private sector by providing a use case that will assist their own use and investment in the technology. The pilot puts the UK at the forefront of capital markets innovation. This experimental issuance is separate from the government’s normal operations and overall debt issuance programme. The pilot will utilise the Digital Securities Sandbox (DSS), which opened for applications in September 2024. The DSS utilises temporary modifications to legislation to provide an environment where firms can use developing technology, in particular DLT, to create, trade, and manage securities, under the supervision of the Bank of England and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). This enables activity to happen in a controlled and monitored setting, ensuring that potential risks are managed while fostering innovation. I set out in a Written Ministerial Statement on 18 November 2024, that the government will engage with the financial sector in the new year to explore what the issuance could look like and the technology options available to facilitate it.

Whether her Department is taking steps to involve private sector firms in developing distributed ledger technology for the digital gilt instrument pilot.

This pilot would allow us to make more informed decisions on Distributed Ledger Technology’s (DLT) potential future application to wider government debt issuance. Demonstrating feasibility on a government bond issuance will also support the private sector by providing a use case that will assist their own use and investment in the technology. The pilot puts the UK at the forefront of capital markets innovation. This experimental issuance is separate from the government’s normal operations and overall debt issuance programme. The pilot will utilise the Digital Securities Sandbox (DSS), which opened for applications in September 2024. The DSS utilises temporary modifications to legislation to provide an environment where firms can use developing technology, in particular DLT, to create, trade, and manage securities, under the supervision of the Bank of England and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). This enables activity to happen in a controlled and monitored setting, ensuring that potential risks are managed while fostering innovation. I set out in a Written Ministerial Statement on 18 November 2024, that the government will engage with the financial sector in the new year to explore what the issuance could look like and the technology options available to facilitate it.

How many jobs were created in (a) Milton Keynes and (b) Buckinghamshire as a result of foreign direct investment in the last year.

Official Statistics at https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/dbt-inward-investment-results-2023-to-2024 show 13 Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) projects landed in Buckinghamshire Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) in 2023-24. This includes single site and multiple site projects. It was not possible to publish the number of new jobs created due to confidentiality issues. Statistics are not published at Local Authority level due to confidentiality concerns, but Milton Keynes is within South East Midlands LEP where 38 FDI projects landed and 3,010 jobs were created in 2023-24. The estimated economic impact of FDI projects is only published at a UK level.

What the estimated economic impact of foreign direct investment projects in (a) Milton Keynes and (b) Buckinghamshire has been in the last five years.

Official Statistics at https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/dbt-inward-investment-results-2023-to-2024 show 13 Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) projects landed in Buckinghamshire Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) in 2023-24. This includes single site and multiple site projects. It was not possible to publish the number of new jobs created due to confidentiality issues. Statistics are not published at Local Authority level due to confidentiality concerns, but Milton Keynes is within South East Midlands LEP where 38 FDI projects landed and 3,010 jobs were created in 2023-24. The estimated economic impact of FDI projects is only published at a UK level.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has had discussions with the World Bank Group on the Government's climate finance commitments.

Alongside the Chancellor and Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, I attended World Bank Group Annual Meetings. As my Governor's statement set out, the UK will continue to be a leading contributor to international climate finance, including support for nature and forests and the Bank is a key partner for us. Alongside the Secretary of State, I called on the Bank to play a leading role in setting a new collective MDB climate finance target ahead of COP29. I discussed this with President Banga when he visited today.

How the Office for Investment will assess the potential impact of foreign direct investment on domestic businesses in key sectors.

Investment is at the heart of the government’s growth mission, increasing the number of good, well-skilled jobs and improving productivity across the country. Foreign direct investment is one part of this and can support domestic businesses directly through supply chains and indirectly through spillover benefits. The new Office for Investment will work closely with all businesses to increase facilitation of investment from UK and overseas businesses.Previous research in 2021 by DBT found that on average a £1 million FDI project into Great Britain leads to a net increase in national levels of GVA of around £98,000 and a net increase in employment.

How the Office for Investment plans to engage with local authorities and combined authorities to (a) identify and (b) promote investment opportunities.

We work with local and combined authorities to promote the most significant investment opportunities, by providing compelling products for use by the department’s UK and international teams.With the expanded Office for Investment, we will build further on this approach, working in partnership, to turn the Industrial Strategy and regional growth plans into a clear, commercially attractive pipeline of investment opportunities. We are piloting an enhanced way of supporting transformational local projects, connecting them with specialist support or expertise from across government to develop opportunities at scale and with commercial credibility to pull in large scale investment.

Whether her Department plans to bring forward proposals to block public listings on national security grounds.

The previous government consulted on a power to block listings on national security grounds and published a summary of responses to this consultation in December 2021. The government keeps all policy under review.

What steps his Department is taking to support cancer care in Milton Keynes University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust.

The Department is working closely with NHS England to make sure we have the right workforce with the right skills up and down the country, including in Milton Keynes. This also includes cancer care and treatment.The Government believes that cancer patients are waiting too long for diagnosis and treatment. We will get the National Health Service diagnosing cancer earlier and treating it faster. We will improve patients’ experience across the system.

What estimate he has made of the number and proportion of small businesses that will benefit from the Energy Bill Discount Scheme in (a) Buckinghamshire and (b) Milton Keynes, between 28 October 2024 and 31 March 2025.

The Energy Bills Discount Scheme closed on 31 March 2024, and so no businesses will benefit from the scheme during this time.

What steps his Department is taking to support improvements in stroke care services at Milton Keynes University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust.

Milton Keynes University Hospital (MKUH) is demonstrating an ongoing commitment to delivering stroke services in line with the best practise, set out in the National Stroke Service Model.MKUH operates a 24-bed Hyper-Acute Stroke Unit, providing a seven-day thrombolysis service from 8:00am to 5:00pm, with additional services outside these hours offered at Luton and Dunstable Hospital. Rated B by the Sentinel Stroke National Audit Programme, the MKUH Stroke Unit had an average Door-to-Needle time of 31 minutes over the last year, compared to the national average of 55 minutes. MKUH is the second-best performing trust in England for door-in-and-out transfer time for thrombectomy to Oxford University Hospitals, with a median time of 84 minutes versus the national average of 133 minutes, and ranks 4th nationally for mechanical thrombectomy rates, at 5.9%, compared to 2.6% nationally.MKUH also uses artificial intelligence powered software called e-Stroke to analyse computed tomography scans, identify brain damage, and automatically alert the clinical team, supporting quicker clinical decisions.

What consultation has been undertaken with industry stakeholders on the effectiveness of the National Security and Investment Act 2021.

The National Security and Investment (NSI) Act 2021 gives the Government power to scrutinise and intervene in acquisitions that may pose threats to national security, whilst also supporting secure and resilient growth. All sectors are within scope of the NSI Act, with acquisitions of entities related to 17 sensitive areas of the economy having to notify and receive approval from the Government before the acquisition can be completed. The Government is taking a number of steps to ensure the continued effectiveness of the NSI Act.The previous Government published a Call for Evidence in November 2023 and a response in April 2024. The Call for Evidence sought feedback from a wide range of stakeholders on the scope of the regime, the notification process and Government guidance and comms. The Government is currently considering its next steps, drawing on responses received.The Government will review and produce a report on the mandatory notification areas under the NSI Act, as required by section 4 of the Notifiable Acquisitions Regulations 2021, before January 2025.The Government will complete a Post-Implementation Review, as committed to in the NSI Act Impact Assessment, evaluating the effectiveness of the NSI Act. This is expected to be published in 2026.The Government regularly engages with stakeholders on the NSI Act, including speaking events, meetings and feedback exercises. The Government has published extensive guidance for businesses and investors. The NSI Act Market Guidance sets out what businesses and investors, including small and medium-sized businesses, need to be aware of and is available on GOV.UK. The guidance is kept under review to ensure it remains up to date. The “National Security & Investment Act 2021: Annual Report 2023-2024” published in September shows that the NSI system is continuing to run well and as intended. It demonstrates that we have the powers to protect sensitive sectors whilst continuing to support investment. Analysis to date has not found evidence of the Act affecting the total volume of investment into the UK. The UK’s approach to investment screening is in line with many other countries, including our close allies. We continue to work closely with international partners to draw on global best practice.

What steps his Department is taking to improve mental health service provision for young people in Buckinghamshire.

It is unacceptable that too many children and young people, including in Buckinghamshire, are not receiving the mental health care they need, and we know that waits for mental health services are far too long.The Department is working across Government to consider how to deliver our commitment of access to a specialist mental health professional in every school. We need to ensure that any support meets the needs of young people, teachers, parents, and carers. This includes considering the role of existing programmes of support with evidence of a positive impact, such as Mental Health Support Teams in schools and colleges.Alongside this we are working towards rolling out Young Futures hubs in every community and working with colleagues at NHS England to consider options to deliver our commitment to recruit 8,500 additional mental health workers across both adult, and children and young people’s mental health services.It will be important that these commitments can provide appropriate support for children and young people with a range of mental health needs.