Written questions by Anderson.

What assessment his Department has made of (a) the prevalence of respiratory disease and (b) the number of emergency hospital admissions for respiratory conditions in Putney constituency compared with national averages during the last five years.

Data is available for emergency Finished Admission Episodes (FAEs) where there was a primary diagnosis of 'respiratory conditions’. The following table shows the number of FAEs where there was a primary diagnosis of 'respiratory conditions’ for Putney and England, for activity in English National Health Service hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector, for 2024/25 and provisionally for 2025/26:Westminster Parliamentary Constituency of Residence2024/25 (August 2024 to March 2025)2025/26 (April 2025 to December 2025)Putney725705England612,855511,558Source: Hospital Episode Statistics, NHS England. Available data on trends in respiratory conditions can be found on the Department’s Fingertips dataset. Data is not available by parliamentary constituency. Data is available at regional, county, unitary authority, and integrated care board level. Information for Wandsworth can be found at the following link: https://fingertips.phe.org.uk/search/Respiratory#page/1/gid/1/pat/15/par/E92000001/ati/502/are/E09000032/iid/90933/age/314/sex/4/cat/-1/ctp/-1/yrr/1/cid/4/tbm/1

Whether his Department has considered establishing a national multi‑disciplinary team for neurosurgery for craniocervical instability (CCI) to improve outcomes for people with EDS, HSD and related conditions.

The Department recognises that people with Ehlers‑Danlos syndromes (EDS), hypermobility spectrum disorders (HSD), and related conditions such as postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome, mast cell activation disorders, myalgic encephalomyelitis, also known as chronic fatigue syndrome, and Long Covid often experience complex, multisystem symptoms that require joined‑up care.There is currently no single National Health Service service specification covering all these conditions collectively. However, care for people with EDS, HSD, and overlapping conditions is supported through a range of existing NHS service specifications, clinical guidelines, and frameworks. NHS England continues to keep service specifications and clinical frameworks under review to ensure they reflect emerging evidence and patient need.The Department also recognises the concerns raised by patients and clinicians about craniocervical instability (CCI), particularly where it is suspected in people with EDS, HSD, and related conditions.At present, the Department has not established a national multi‑disciplinary neurosurgical service for CCI. Neurosurgical services in England are commissioned by NHS England and are provided through established regional neuroscience centres, which already operate within multidisciplinary team arrangements to support complex spinal and neurological cases.The evidence base for the diagnosis and surgical management of CCI remains limited and is an area of ongoing clinical debate. Decisions about service configuration, including whether to develop new national service models, must be informed by robust clinical evidence on effectiveness, safety, and patient outcomes, as well as by advice from NHS England and relevant clinical experts.NHS England continues to keep specialised neurosurgical service arrangements under review, and patients with complex or rare presentations can be considered for assessment and management through existing specialist pathways. The Department will continue to work with NHS England and others to ensure that services for people with rare and complex conditions are safe, evidence‑based, and focused on improving patient outcomes.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the impact of implementing the Fingleton Nuclear Regulatory Review on existing environmental protections.

Defra worked closely with DESNZ and other government departments to consider how to implement the recommendations of the Nuclear Regulatory Review, whilst taking account of our international obligations and our important environmental protections. Our approach to achieve this is set out in the implementation plan published on 13 March 2026. The implementation plan sets out how we can simplify regulations and processes for new nuclear projects whilst continuing to protect the environment.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment has she made of the potential impact of the current Middle East conflict on the situation in Sudan.

I refer the Hon Member to the statement made by the Foreign Secretary on 5 February following her recent visit to the Chad-Sudan border.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment has she made of the potential implications for her policies of the conflict in Sudan being exacerbated by actors in the region and beyond.

I refer the Hon Member to the statement made by the Foreign Secretary on 5 February following her recent visit to the Chad-Sudan border.

Food and Rural Affairs, when her Department plans to publish its Circular Economy Growth Plan.

This Government is committed to transitioning towards a circular economy where resources are kept in use for longer and waste is designed out. This systemic change, with investment in green jobs and vital infrastructure, builds a path to economic growth, progress towards Net Zero, restoration of nature, and a more resilient economy. We intend to publish a Circular Economy Growth Plan that sets out how the Government will deliver a more circular and more prosperous economy. The Plan will set out the biggest opportunities to support growth in sectors right across the economy, including chemicals and plastics, as well as: agri-food; built environment; electrical and electronic equipment; textiles; and transport.

What measures NHS England has in place to ensure patients with suspected EDS‑related craniocervical instability receive appropriate physical assessment before being diagnosed with a psychological or anxiety‑based condition.

National clinical guidance, including guidance jointly issued by the Royal College of General Practitioners and the Royal College of Psychiatrists, explicitly instructs clinicians not to apply psychological explanations prematurely, and to conduct a full physical assessment before concluding that symptoms are medically unexplained or psychogenic. This principle applies in cases of suspected Ehlers Danlos syndrome (EDS) and craniocervical instability, because premature psychological labelling can delay the identification and subsequent treatment of structural instability.Integrated care boards are responsible for ensuring that local pathways support timely access to relevant specialists, including neurology, rheumatology, and spinal services. Specialist centres are also expected to use multidisciplinary approaches, drawing on neurology, neurosurgery, pain, and physiotherapy expertise, to ensure accurate diagnosis and to avoid misattribution of symptoms. We continue to work with NHS England to improve consistency of assessment for people with complex, multi‑system conditions, including EDS, and to ensure that patients are referred to appropriate physical health services where clinically indicated.

What is the date of the next meeting of the Hammersmith Bridge task force.

A further meeting of the Hammersmith Bridge Taskforce will be held after funding arrangements for the Structures Fund have been confirmed. My officials will be in touch with relevant stakeholders in due course.

Food and Rural Affairs, what plans she has to help ensure that the Environmental Improvement Plan's commitment to implement fisheries byelaws for offshore marine protected areas by the end of 2026 will be met on time.

The Marine Management Organisation is following a four-stage process to consider necessary fisheries byelaws in our MPAs. Stages one and two are complete. A consultation on stage three which proposes further restrictions on bottom trawling in offshore MPAs closed on 29 September. The Marine Management Organisation is now carefully considering all responses received, and decisions will be made in due course. The stage four call for evidence has been completed, and any proposed byelaws will be subject to consultation in due course.

Food and Rural Affairs, what is her proposed timetable for publishing a decision on restricting bottom-towed fishing in 41 English marine protected areas as consulted on in 2025.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for Ely and East Cambridgeshire on 13 November 2025, PQ 88509.

Food and Rural Affairs, what amount of bottom-towed fishing has taken place since June 2025 within each of the 41 English offshore marine protected areas subject to public consultation in summer 2025.

While the Marine Management Organisation can record data on gear type in MPAs as it did for the 41 English offshore marine protected areas consulted on in summer 2025, this takes significant time to compile and quality‑check.

How much of the Structures Fund is available to be released in the 2026/27 financial year.

The Government remains committed to the plans it set out at the Spending Review, including in relation to providing £24 billion of capital funding between 2026-27 and 2029-30 to maintain and improve our motorways and local roads. This also includes £1 billion for key local highway enhancement projects and a new Structures Fund for repairing run-down bridges, decaying flyovers and worn-out tunnels.The Department for Transport surveyed local highway authorities and other transport stakeholders on the criteria for prioritising structures for investment through the Structures Fund in February 2026. The Department is currently considering responses to the survey and will confirm further detail on the Structures Fund and the funding available for the 2026/27 financial year in due course.

Whether the Government still plans to allocate £1 billion through the Structures Fund for the repair of critical transport infrastructure such as bridges, flyovers and tunnels.

The Government remains committed to the plans it set out at the Spending Review, including in relation to providing £24 billion of capital funding between 2026-27 and 2029-30 to maintain and improve our motorways and local roads. This also includes £1 billion for key local highway enhancement projects and a new Structures Fund for repairing run-down bridges, decaying flyovers and worn-out tunnels.The Department for Transport surveyed local highway authorities and other transport stakeholders on the criteria for prioritising structures for investment through the Structures Fund in February 2026. The Department is currently considering responses to the survey and will confirm further detail on the Structures Fund and the funding available for the 2026/27 financial year in due course.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what efforts have her department made to engage with local women’s led organisations in support of survivors of violence against women and girls in Sudan.

I refer the Hon Member to the statement made by the Foreign Secretary on 5 February following her recent visit to the Chad-Sudan border, and to the answer she was provided on 2 March in response to Question 114073.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential implications of her policies of flows of weapons into Sudan, supported by external parties.

I refer the Hon Member to the statement made by the Foreign Secretary on 5 February following her recent visit to the Chad-Sudan border.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of committing the UK to supporting the development of a UN Convention on the Rights of Older Persons.

I refer the Hon Member to the response provided on 4 March 2025 to Question 33140.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to help ensure accountability for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in the offensive to capture El Fasher in October 2025.

I refer the Hon Member to the speech and accompanying statement made by the Foreign Secretary to the UN Security Council on 19 February, links to which can be found below:www.gov.uk/government/news/foreign-secretarys-statement-on-the-un-fact-finding-mission-report-on-el-fasherwww.gov.uk/government/speeches/let-this-be-the-time-that-the-world-comes-together-to-end-the-cycle-of-bloodshed-in-sudan-uk-statement-at-the-un-security-council.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of allocating Official Development Assistance to support the upcoming replenishment of the Global Partnership for Education.

I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided on 9 December 2025 in response to Question 95975.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what proportion of UK funding for support of communities in Sudan has gone to local organisations.

UK support to channels which provide direct funding to local responders (including through international organisations) totals £55 million from our total £146 million in aid funding for Sudan this financial year. This includes £28 million to the OCHA-led Sudan Humanitarian Fund (SHF) - to which the UK is the second largest donor - and over £21 million to the Mercy Corps-led Cash Consortium who provide significant support to local actors. The SHF channels 30 per cent of its funding to local actors. We have also recently launched two new partnerships totalling £6 million, through Proximity to Humanity and the First Response Fund, through which we can channel funding more directly to local responders. Under our new programme, HELP-S, we will continue increasing our support to local actors, with the aim that at least 30 per cent of programme spend goes to local actors by the end of the programme in 2029.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether she has considered introducing a licensing system for gamebird shooting in England.

The Government recognises well-managed gamebird shooting can be an important part of a local rural economy, providing direct and indirect employment. It also appreciates that many people hold strong views on the issue of gamebird shooting and there is evidence to suggest a link between it and crimes against birds of prey. It is vital that wildlife and habitats are protected and that the law is respected by those involved in the activity. While Defra has not yet made any formal assessment of the potential merits of licensing gamebird shooting in England, it will continue to work to ensure a sustainable, mutually beneficial relationship between gamebird shooting and conservation.