Written questions by Smith.

Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make it his policy to (a) exempt or (b) reduce extended producer responsibility fees for brewers using glass bottles containing a high proportion of recycled glass.

Extended Producer Responsibility for Packaging (pEPR) requires producers to bear the end-of-life costs associated with packaging that they place on the market, rather than the proportion of recycled materials contained. Officials have been working with stakeholders, including representatives from the hospitality sector, to consider potential future amendments to the definition of household packaging. The use of reusable/refillable packaging is encouraged under pEPR, as producers are only required to report and pay disposal cost fees for household packaging the first time it is placed on the market.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the extended producer responsibility scheme on (a) brewers and (b) other businesses.

Following the passage of the legislation introducing extended producer responsibility for packaging (pEPR) through parliament, the government has been working closely with industry, including the glass sector, to understand the impact of the upcoming fees on business as the scheme is implemented. To date we have had little evidence presented that pEPR fees cannot be afforded. We are encouraging the glass industry to seek to reduce the cost impacts of pEPR through a transition to reuse and refill, something that used to be commonplace in the UK and continues to be in many other countries. The use of reusable/refillable packaging is encouraged under pEPR, as producers are only required to report and pay disposal cost fees for household packaging the first time it is placed on the market, and can then offset these fees when they recycle this packaging at then end of its life, thereby avoiding the vast majority of pEPR fees. A full assessment of the impact of Extended Producer Responsibility was completed in 2024 and is published on legislation.gov.uk.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of extended producer responsibility fees on brewers using glass bottles.

Following the passage of the legislation introducing extended producer responsibility for packaging (pEPR) through parliament, the government has been working closely with industry, including the glass sector, to understand the impact of the upcoming fees on business as the scheme is implemented. To date we have had little evidence presented that pEPR fees cannot be afforded. We are encouraging the glass industry to seek to reduce the cost impacts of pEPR through a transition to reuse and refill, something that used to be commonplace in the UK and continues to be in many other countries. The use of reusable/refillable packaging is encouraged under pEPR, as producers are only required to report and pay disposal cost fees for household packaging the first time it is placed on the market, and can then offset these fees when they recycle this packaging at then end of its life, thereby avoiding the vast majority of pEPR fees. A full assessment of the impact of Extended Producer Responsibility was completed in 2024 and is published on legislation.gov.uk.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for the level of extended producer responsibility fees of the recyclable nature of glass packaging.

The potential implications of Extended Producer Responsibility for Packaging (pEPR) fees on the recyclable nature of glass packaging have been considered within the framework of the scheme, particularly through the mechanism of fee modulation. Modulation of pEPR fees from year two of the scheme will result in lower fees for more sustainable packaging and higher fees for less sustainable packaging.

What steps his Department has taken to work with (a) the NHS and (b) other (i) stakeholders and (ii) charities to increase awareness of ovarian cancer.

NHS England does not hold comprehensive national data on cancers diagnosed through non-specific symptom (NSS) pathways since their roll out began. The data set records the number of gynaecological cancers diagnosed through NSS pathways but does not specify how many of these were ovarian cancer cases specifically. In the latest evaluation report on the programme, covering data until January 2024, there were 55 patients diagnosed with gynaecological cancers.NHS England runs Help Us Help You campaigns to increase knowledge of cancer symptoms and address barriers to acting on them, to encourage people to come forward as soon as possible to see their general practitioner (GP).NHS England and other National Health Service organisations, nationally and locally, also publish information on the signs and symptoms of many different types of cancer, including ovarian cancer. This information can be found on the NHS website, in an online only format.It is a priority for the Government to support the NHS to diagnose cancer, including ovarian cancer, as quickly as possible, to treat it faster, and improve outcomes. This is supported by NHS England’s key ambition on cancer to meet the Faster Diagnosis Standard, which sets a target of 28 days from urgent referral by a GP or screening programme to patients being told that they have cancer, or that cancer is ruled out.The recently announced National Cancer Plan will have patients at its heart and will cover the entirety of the cancer pathway, from referral and diagnosis to treatment and aftercare. This will include improving levels of early diagnosis across England.

How many people have been diagnosed with ovarian cancer through the non-specific symptoms pathway.

NHS England does not hold comprehensive national data on cancers diagnosed through non-specific symptom (NSS) pathways since their roll out began. The data set records the number of gynaecological cancers diagnosed through NSS pathways but does not specify how many of these were ovarian cancer cases specifically. In the latest evaluation report on the programme, covering data until January 2024, there were 55 patients diagnosed with gynaecological cancers.NHS England runs Help Us Help You campaigns to increase knowledge of cancer symptoms and address barriers to acting on them, to encourage people to come forward as soon as possible to see their general practitioner (GP).NHS England and other National Health Service organisations, nationally and locally, also publish information on the signs and symptoms of many different types of cancer, including ovarian cancer. This information can be found on the NHS website, in an online only format.It is a priority for the Government to support the NHS to diagnose cancer, including ovarian cancer, as quickly as possible, to treat it faster, and improve outcomes. This is supported by NHS England’s key ambition on cancer to meet the Faster Diagnosis Standard, which sets a target of 28 days from urgent referral by a GP or screening programme to patients being told that they have cancer, or that cancer is ruled out.The recently announced National Cancer Plan will have patients at its heart and will cover the entirety of the cancer pathway, from referral and diagnosis to treatment and aftercare. This will include improving levels of early diagnosis across England.

What steps he is taking to help tackle regional variation in the levels of early diagnosis of ovarian cancer.

NHS England does not hold comprehensive national data on cancers diagnosed through non-specific symptom (NSS) pathways since their roll out began. The data set records the number of gynaecological cancers diagnosed through NSS pathways but does not specify how many of these were ovarian cancer cases specifically. In the latest evaluation report on the programme, covering data until January 2024, there were 55 patients diagnosed with gynaecological cancers.NHS England runs Help Us Help You campaigns to increase knowledge of cancer symptoms and address barriers to acting on them, to encourage people to come forward as soon as possible to see their general practitioner (GP).NHS England and other National Health Service organisations, nationally and locally, also publish information on the signs and symptoms of many different types of cancer, including ovarian cancer. This information can be found on the NHS website, in an online only format.It is a priority for the Government to support the NHS to diagnose cancer, including ovarian cancer, as quickly as possible, to treat it faster, and improve outcomes. This is supported by NHS England’s key ambition on cancer to meet the Faster Diagnosis Standard, which sets a target of 28 days from urgent referral by a GP or screening programme to patients being told that they have cancer, or that cancer is ruled out.The recently announced National Cancer Plan will have patients at its heart and will cover the entirety of the cancer pathway, from referral and diagnosis to treatment and aftercare. This will include improving levels of early diagnosis across England.

What steps his Department is taking to help shorten the diagnostic pathway for ovarian cancer.

NHS England does not hold comprehensive national data on cancers diagnosed through non-specific symptom (NSS) pathways since their roll out began. The data set records the number of gynaecological cancers diagnosed through NSS pathways but does not specify how many of these were ovarian cancer cases specifically. In the latest evaluation report on the programme, covering data until January 2024, there were 55 patients diagnosed with gynaecological cancers.NHS England runs Help Us Help You campaigns to increase knowledge of cancer symptoms and address barriers to acting on them, to encourage people to come forward as soon as possible to see their general practitioner (GP).NHS England and other National Health Service organisations, nationally and locally, also publish information on the signs and symptoms of many different types of cancer, including ovarian cancer. This information can be found on the NHS website, in an online only format.It is a priority for the Government to support the NHS to diagnose cancer, including ovarian cancer, as quickly as possible, to treat it faster, and improve outcomes. This is supported by NHS England’s key ambition on cancer to meet the Faster Diagnosis Standard, which sets a target of 28 days from urgent referral by a GP or screening programme to patients being told that they have cancer, or that cancer is ruled out.The recently announced National Cancer Plan will have patients at its heart and will cover the entirety of the cancer pathway, from referral and diagnosis to treatment and aftercare. This will include improving levels of early diagnosis across England.

Media and Sport, with reference to her Department's Sector Plan for the creative industries, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of changes to the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme on (a) creators and creative networks in the UK and (b) the ability to deliver Art for Everyone Everywhere.

DCMS Ministers received advice on changes to the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme, including consideration of the potential impacts of various options to scale the scheme.We believe that the changes announced were necessary and adequate given the tight fiscal challenges we inherited from the previous government and considering competing financial demands in other parts of the heritage and cultural sector, and will continue the widest distribution of the scheme’s benefits within the available means. Based on previous scheme data, we expect 94% of claims to be unaffected by this change.

Media and Sport, what discussions her Department has had with grant making agencies on additional financial assistance to buildings with projects over £25,000 (a) underway and (b) about to commence work unable to claim back VAT under proposed changes to the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme.

Based on the Department’s analysis of previous data, 94% of applications between 2022-2024 have been under £25,000, and most of these claims were for under £5,000. We believe that the modifications were necessary and adequate given the tight fiscal challenges we inherited from the previous government and the capital pressures on other parts of the heritage sector.

Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of (a) phasing in and (b) enabling the completion of projects already (i) on-site, (ii) soon-to-start and (iii) those part of the phased work part started prior to the changes to the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme.

Claims received in this financial year are unaffected, assuming that they are eligible claims with the required detail and documentation. We expect the cap will be applied to all claims received on or after 1 April 2025. We will be publishing guidance on scheme applications and eligibility in due course.

Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of reductions to the Listed Places of Worship Grants Scheme on the Government's aim of increasing access to the arts at (a) local, (b) regional and (c) national level.

DCMS Ministers received advice on changes to the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme, including consideration of the potential impacts of various options to scale the scheme.We believe that the changes announced were necessary and adequate given the tight fiscal challenges we inherited from the previous government and considering competing financial demands in other parts of the heritage and cultural sector, and will continue the widest distribution of the scheme’s benefits within the available means. Based on previous scheme data, we expect 94% of claims to be unaffected by this change.

Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of changes to the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme on the number of apprenticeships and training opportunities across the heritage sector.

We believe that the changes announced were necessary and adequate given the tight fiscal challenges we inherited from the previous government and considering competing financial demands in other parts of the heritage and cultural sector, and will continue the widest distribution of the scheme’s benefits within the available means. Based on previous scheme data, we expect 94% of claims to be unaffected by this change.

Food and Rural Affairs, how the quantum for the Rural England Prosperity Fund for 2025-2026 was decided.

The Department announced on 4th March that it would be providing an additional £33 million for the Rural England Prosperity Fund in financial year 2025-26. This announcement continues funding beyond the lifetime of the original scheme providing new money for new projects in rural areas. The Autumn Statement on 30 October confirmed Defra’s budgets for 2024-25 and 2025-26. Funding allocations for individual programmes have been determined through the departments business planning exercise. Future funding decisions remain subject to the Government spending review.

Food and Rural Affairs, for what reason the Rural England Prosperity Fund has been reduced for the year 2025-2026.

The Department announced on 4th March that it would be providing an additional £33 million for the Rural England Prosperity Fund in financial year 2025-26. This announcement continues funding beyond the lifetime of the original scheme providing new money for new projects in rural areas. The Autumn Statement on 30 October confirmed Defra’s budgets for 2024-25 and 2025-26. Funding allocations for individual programmes have been determined through the departments business planning exercise. Future funding decisions remain subject to the Government spending review.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of the restoration of funding to UNRWA on the UK's relations with the United States.

Since the Foreign Secretary restored funding to the United Nations Relief and Work Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) in July 2024, the UK has committed £41 million this financial year to UNRWA, to deliver essential services for civilians in Gaza and the West Bank, and to Palestinian refugees across the region. UNRWA plays a vital role in delivering humanitarian assistance in Gaza and enabling the broader international response through its logistics and distribution network. We reiterated this position in our E3 joint Foreign Ministers' statement of 31 January, alongside France and Germany.We continue to work together with the new US administration to ensure regional security and stability, including ensuring lasting peace for Israelis and Palestinians, and we thank the US for the integral role it played in negotiating the ceasefire agreement, alongside Qatar and Egypt. The Prime Minister reiterated this in his call with President Trump on 26 January. Our shared priority must be to work together to ensure the ceasefire is implemented in full, becomes permanent, and supports a pathway to a sustainable peace.

What meetings (a) she and (b) Ministers have had with Doug Gurr since 4 July 2024.

Treasury Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and deliveryDetails of ministerial and permanent secretary meetings with external organisations on departmental business are published on a quarterly basis and are available on GOV.UK.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of the increase to employers' National Insurance contributions on hospices.

We have taken necessary decisions at the Autumn Budget, which enabled a £22.6 billion increase in resource spending for the Department. In December, we announced a £100 million capital funding boost for adult and children’s hospices and an additional £26 ...

If she will conduct modelling on the potential impact of increases in the use of (a) low carbon-emitting and (b) synthetic fuels by vehicles in the logistics sector on carbon emissions.

Low carbon fuels, including synthetics, are helping decarbonise the logistics sector and are supported by the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation. Any future policy decisions on the support for low carbon fuels in transport will be developed and informed ...

What recent discussions she has had with the DVLA on the call for evidence entitled Registering historic, classic, rebuilt vehicles and vehicles converted to electric: call for evidence, updated on 9 December 2

The summary of the responses to the call for evidence was published on 9 December.As part of the ongoing engagement regarding this matter, the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency held a positive meeting with representatives of the Historic Vehicle User Gr...