Written questions by Roome.

With reference to the press notice entitled Major defence reforms launched, with new National Armaments Director to tackle waste and boost industry, published on 25 October 2024, what steps he is taking to (a) harmonise procurement and (b) streamline his Department’s governance and processes.

The new National Armaments Director will ensure our Armed Forces are properly equipped to defend Britain, will build up the British defence industry, and will reduce waste. Key to success will be harmonising procurement, which includes driving forward common procurement guidelines and processes to reduce inconsistencies; greater transparency for suppliers; international cooperation, notably with NATO allies; bulk purchasing, leading to better pricing and reduced costs; spiral acquisition; and, increased use of digital platforms for efficiency. This will be delivered by taking a Defence wide approach to procurement that breaks down previously vertical structures that do not allow cross Services procurement ways of working, and prioritises activity at Departmental level. The Ministry of Defence will work closely with wider Government, industry, academia, and international partners to deploy best practice and optimise investment.

Whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of extending business rate relief for retail, hospitality and leisure businesses beyond March 2026.

Retail, hospitality and leisure (RHL) relief has been extended year-by-year by previous governments since the pandemic. It has been a stopgap measure, and we recognise that businesses need longer term certainty on their liabilities. Without any government intervention, RHL relief would have ended entirely in April 2025, creating a cliff-edge for businesses. Instead, the Government has decided to provide a 40 per cent discount to RHL properties up to a cash cap of £110,0000 per business in 2025-26, ahead of introducing permanently lower rates for RHL properties, with rateable values below £500,000 from 2026-27.

What steps his Department is taking to improve access to NHS dentistry in deprived communities.

The Government plans to tackle the challenges for patients trying to access National Health Service dental care, and work is underway to ensure that patients can access the 700,000 additional urgent dental appointments, with integrated care boards (ICBs) asked to make these available from 1 April 2025.The most common reason children aged five to nine years old are admitted to hospital is for tooth decay. We have confirmed an investment of £11 million to rollout a national supervised toothbrushing programme for three to five year olds. This will reach up to 600,000 children in the most deprived areas of England.The responsibility for commissioning primary care services, including NHS dentistry, to meet the needs of the local population has been delegated to the ICBs across England. For the North Devon constituency, this is the NHS One Devon ICB.ICBs have started to advertise posts through the Golden Hello scheme. This recruitment incentive will see up to 240 dentists receiving payments of £20,000 to work in those areas that need them most for three years.

When her Department will review the results of funding given to local authorities for road repairs under the Plan for Change.

For the 2025/26 financial year, the Government is providing nearly £1.6 billion for highway maintenance, an increase of £500 million compared to 2024/25. It is the responsibility of individual highway authorities to maintain and improve their networks, based upon their local knowledge, circumstances, and priorities. Funding is not ringfenced, and it is a matter for local authorities to determine how the money is best spent. As of Monday 24 March, the Department has written to all local highway authorities advising them that 25% of their uplift in maintenance funding is contingent on them demonstrating to Government that they are complying with certain criteria aimed at driving best practice and continual improvement in highways maintenance practice. All authorities will have to publish information online by the end of June, and share further information with the Department by the end of October. This will allow local people to hold their councils to account for their performance in maintaining their highway networks. The Department will also review the information provided by local highway authorities when it is submitted and will say more on this in due course.

What assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the Digital Services Tax.

The UK remains committed to reaching a global solution on the taxation of the digital economy through Pillar 1 of the G20-OECD Inclusive Framework project. It is the UK’s intention to repeal our Digital Services Tax (DST) when this international solution is in place.

What her planned timetable is for restarting mandatory reassessments of incapacity benefits.

We will turn on WCA reassessments at scale as we build up capacity to do so. We will initially prioritise reassessments for people who are most likely to have had a change in their circumstances including those who have short-term prognoses, for which we can reasonably anticipate a change in health condition has occurred (e.g., those with risks from pregnancy complications or those who have recovered following cancer treatment). Over time, we will then prioritise available reassessment capacity for other cohorts who are likely to change award.

Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to help support (a) the tourism industry and (b) small businesses affected by seasonal trends.

The Government recognises the economic benefits that tourism brings to all communities throughout the UK especially coastal and rural areas. The newly established Visitor Economy Advisory Council (VEAC) is a joint industry and government-led board composed of employers, small businesses and representative organisations. The Council will help co-create a National Visitor Economy Growth Strategy that is anticipated to be launched in the Autumn.The government has recently implemented the most significant overhaul of destination management in a generation, creating a portfolio of nationally supported, strategic and high-performing Local Visitor Economy Partnerships (LVEPs) in partnership with VisitEngland. These LVEPs are providing strong local leadership and governance in tourism destinations all over the country, and North Devon is included in this programme as part of the Devon & Partners LVEP. LVEPs work collaboratively with both local authority and private sector partners as well as providing small business support.

If he will publish the detailed results of each hospital's funding bid scoring against the Multi Factorial Review of the New Hospital Programme.

My Rt. Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, set out a credible and deliverable plan for the new hospital schemes in the New Hospital Programme (NHP) on 20 January 2025, following the conclusion of the review of the NHP. The Plan for Implementation was laid in the House Library and is available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/new-hospital-programme-review-outcomeEstimated costs for each scheme are set out in the publication. However, these are estimates and the exact funding for schemes will be determined through the review and agreement of a Full Business Case, as is usual for large infrastructure projects.Funding has been agreed with HM Treasury to cover 2025/26. Funding beyond this will be agreed in the Spending Review in spring 2025.

What steps his Department is taking to help reduce the number of corporate insolvencies.

The Government aims to boost all businesses, across key policy areas to build business capabilities, and a strong business environment. The Government works closely with the British Business Bank to enhance small business's access to finance through targeted interventions. Under the umbrella of the Export Academy, UK Export Finance and the newly announced Business Growth Service, businesses can access support, information, training, events, and expert support from business and International Trade advisors to overcome trading and export barriers.

What steps his Department is taking to ensure improved access to NHS dentistry for people in rural areas.

We are aware of the challenges faced in accessing a dentist particularly in rural areas. The Government plans to tackle the challenges for patients trying to access National Health Service dental care with a rescue plan to provide 700,000 more urgent dental appointments and recruit new dentists to the areas that need them most. To rebuild dentistry in the long term, we will reform the dental contract with the sector, with a shift to focus on prevention and the retention of NHS dentists.The responsibility for commissioning primary care services, including NHS dentistry, to meet the needs of the local population has been delegated to the integrated care boards (ICBs) across England.The additional 700,000 appointments will be available across the country, with specific targets for each region. These targets are more heavily weighted towards those areas where they are needed the most. Further information is available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/arrangements-for-nhs-urgent-primary-dental-care-during-2025-26-and-confirmation-of-the-closure-of-the-new-patient-premium-scheme/#annex-a-distribution-of-700k-additional-appointmentsICBs have started to advertise posts through the Golden Hello scheme. This recruitment incentive will see up to 240 dentists receiving payments of £20,000 to work in those areas that need them most for three years.

What steps his Department is taking to ensure that equipment used by the armed forces is interoperable with that of NATO allies.

The Ministry of Defence takes a number of steps to ensure our equipment is interoperable with NATO allies. These include leading on the development, ratification, and implementation of NATO standards; participation in joint exercises and training such as Formidable Shield; and promoting and encouraging allies to jointly procure and integrate capabilities, including through the UK-led NATO Multinational Procurement Initiatives and DIAMOND. We are also working with allies and industry to ensure the implementation of NATO’s Defence Production Action Plan, which places strong emphasis on the need to ensure the interoperability of existing and future military capabilities.

Pursuant to his oral contribution in response to the Question from the hon. Member for North Devon on 20 January 2025, Official Report, column 769, when he will visit North Devon District Hospital.

I remain committed to visiting North Devon District Hospital. Ministers regularly consider visits across the country to see the impact of their policy areas. Any plans to visit specific locations will be notified to the relevant Members of Parliament in advance.

How much his Department has (a) spent and (b) committed to spend on Life Extension refits of Royal Navy Type 23 Frigates since October 2014.

£941.2 million has been spent on the delivery of T23 upkeeps completed since 2014. A further £63.7 million is currently contractually committed for the delivery of T23 upkeeps. These are a planned series of upkeep periods in order to maintain ship condition and to introduce, where appropriate, capability updates. It should be noted that the figure given includes upkeeps undertaken to two ships that started prior to 2014. Because of the length of time passed it is not possible to break down the figures further.

Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to regulate increases in service charges; and what steps she is taking to bring into force the legislative provisions of the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 relating to service charges.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 26965 on 4 February 2025.

What proportion of defence spending went to SMEs in 2023-24 by region.

Statistics relating to the Ministry of Defence's expenditure with industry, including Small and Medium Enterprises, can be found in the 'MOD regional expenditure statistics with industry: 2023/24' publication hosted on gov.uk: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/mod-regional-expenditure-statistics-with-industry-202324

What plans the Royal Navy has for the future of HMS Argyll.

No decision has been made on the future of HMS Argyll. As with all decommissioned ships, a full suite of options is being assessed to ensure that the disposal achieves value for money and is policy compliant (safety, environmental and security).

What guidance he has issued to GP practices in England on giving patients access to copies of their records.

Practices are contractually obliged to provide full prospective record access to all patients, for those aged 16 years old and above, unless exceptions apply or if the patient has informed the practice that they do not, or no longer, wish to have access.Since 2022, functionality and supporting guidance was successfully tested with early adopter general practice (GP) sites, and was rolled out nationwide to give all patients access to new health record entries online. This guidance is available at the following link:https://digital.nhs.uk/services/nhs-app/nhs-app-guidance-for-gp-practices/guidance-on-nhs-app-features/online-access-to-gp-health-records/what-general-practice-staff-should-know/prospective-record-access-manually-enabling-patient-access#:~:text=Practices%20are%20contractually%20obliged%20to,longer%2C%20wish%20to%20have%20access. In addition, NHS England worked with GPs and GP IT suppliers on the steps to take to restrict access to health records for vulnerable patients. NHS England has also provided guidance on its website on how anyone can request access to their GP record, using an online account such as the NHS App.

Food and Rural Affairs, when he plans to provide an Answer to Question 26922 on Waste Disposal: Monitoring, tabled on 28 January 2025.

An answer to Question 26922 was published on 27 February 2025. I apologise for the delay in responding to the hon. Member.

What his planned timetable is for the introduction of a new UK Youth Mobility scheme in partnership with the European Union.

The Government set out clear priorities for the reset with the EU in the manifesto. There are no plans for a Youth Mobility Scheme.

Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to help Ukrainian refugees on the Homes for Ukraine Scheme secure private rented accommodation.

The Government provides guidance for Ukrainian guests on renting private accommodation at Renting private accommodation: Homes for Ukraine - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk). Councils receive a tariff of £5,900 per Homes for Ukraine arrival in their area to support guests to rebuild their lives and fully integrate into communities. They have the flexibility to use the funding to support households as best suits the local area. This could include measures to support guests to access employment, English language provision and provide integration measures that support Ukrainians to access private rented accommodation. Councils are also using the funding to support measures such as 12 month rent guarantees, or paying rent in advance. Ukrainians who hold a Homes for Ukraine visa permission may be entitled to Universal Credit, which could help with the cost of rent. Homes for Ukraine visa holders could be entitled to a 50% Council Tax discount if they live alone or if all adults in the property have a Homes for Ukraine visa. We know that English language is a key factor to integration and economic independence, a critical enabler of access to the private rented sector, whilst in the UK. The Government has provided £11.5 million of funding for English language courses and employment support for up to 12,500 Ukrainians across the UK through the ‘STEP Ukraine’ programme. This will support their integration whilst in the UK, and economic independence - a critical enabler of access to the private rented sector (PRS). Ukrainians can also access the Adult Education Offer through councils which provide ESOL classes. We engage closely with councils and the voluntary and community sector to ensure that we understand the needs of Ukrainians living in the UK and that adequate support is available.