Written questions by Robertson.

Pursuant to the Answer of 11 February 2026 to Question 108458, whether the £199 million in the Support for Rail Passenger Services budget line in 2028–29 will result in changes to a) service levels, b) fare policy and c) subsidy support for train operating services.

The £199 million efficiencies in the Support for Rail Passenger Services line are expected to be delivered mostly from more efficient workforce management, economies of scale as private sector operating companies move into public ownership, and ticketing and retail reform including the creation of a single GBR online retail offer. These efficiencies contribute to the more than 50 per cent reduction in the rail passenger services subsidy from £2.4 billion in 2024-25.

What assessments her Department has made of the potential impact of wire rope safety barriers on the safety of motorcyclists; and whether any research has been conducted into this area.

The safety of all road users remains important to the Department, and we work with partners to reduce motorcycle casualties through safer riding, better training and a safer road environment while considering motorcyclists’ needs in improving safety on the Strategic Road Network. The current requirements for road restraint systems are reflected in the updated standards within the Design Manual for Roads and Bridges, published in February 2026:https://www.standardsforhighways.co.uk/search/ef2e5866-3fb9-4e99-81aa-95a41adff4e7 National Highways has commissioned research from TRL Limited on the safety of motorcyclists and roadside barriers (including wire rope systems), which has been published at: https://www.trl.co.uk/uploads/trl/documents/PPR2051-Motorcyclists-and-Barriers-on-the-SRN.pdf.

What steps her Department is taking to help ensure that Initial Teacher Training equips new teachers with the skills required to deliver adaptive teaching for children with speech and language challenges.

The department is committed to improving support for all children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), including pupils with speech and language needs.Courses must incorporate the minimum entitlement set out in the Initial Teacher Training and Early Career Framework. It remains for individual providers to design courses that are appropriate to the needs of trainees and for the subject, phase and age range that the trainees will be teaching.Ofsted’s recent report on thematic monitoring visits found that, in the majority of the providers visited, the coverage of SEND in Initial Teacher Training is comprehensive and well integrated into programmes in the primary and secondary phases.We have recently reviewed the content of the Initial Teacher Training and Early Career Framework, adding significantly more content related to adaptive teaching and improving inclusivity for pupils with SEND. We have also committed to a further full review of early career teacher training in 2027, which will include a focus on SEND.This will complement work to upskill the sector on best practice for effective teaching for all pupils, including those with SEND, such as a review of our suite of national professional qualifications and a £200 million training package to upskill staff in every school, college and nursery.

How much and what proportion of the Teacher Training Core Content Framework includes specific requirements relating to supporting pupils with speech, language and communication needs.

The department is committed to improving support for all children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), including pupils with speech and language needs.Courses must incorporate the minimum entitlement set out in the Initial Teacher Training and Early Career Framework. It remains for individual providers to design courses that are appropriate to the needs of trainees and for the subject, phase and age range that the trainees will be teaching.Ofsted’s recent report on thematic monitoring visits found that, in the majority of the providers visited, the coverage of SEND in Initial Teacher Training is comprehensive and well integrated into programmes in the primary and secondary phases.We have recently reviewed the content of the Initial Teacher Training and Early Career Framework, adding significantly more content related to adaptive teaching and improving inclusivity for pupils with SEND. We have also committed to a further full review of early career teacher training in 2027, which will include a focus on SEND.This will complement work to upskill the sector on best practice for effective teaching for all pupils, including those with SEND, such as a review of our suite of national professional qualifications and a £200 million training package to upskill staff in every school, college and nursery.

What assessment she has made of the adequacy of current Initial Teacher Training provision in preparing teachers to support children with speech and language needs.

The department is committed to improving support for all children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), including pupils with speech and language needs.Courses must incorporate the minimum entitlement set out in the Initial Teacher Training and Early Career Framework. It remains for individual providers to design courses that are appropriate to the needs of trainees and for the subject, phase and age range that the trainees will be teaching.We have recently updated the Initial Teacher Training and Early Career Framework, adding significantly more content related to adaptive teaching and improving inclusivity for pupils with SEND.We have also committed to a full review of early career teacher training in 2027, which will include a focus on SEND.In addition, we have announced a training package of over £200 million that will upskill staff in every school, college and nursery to better support pupils with SEND. Finally, we know the importance of ensuring children can speak and listen well from the earliest years, so we will develop a new oracy framework to sit alongside the revised national curriculum.

What guidance exists for Government departments on responding to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman's (a) findings of maladministration and (b) recommendations for financial redress.

Guidance for Government departments on responding to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman's findings and recommendations is published on gov.uk (‘Handling of Parliamentary Ombudsman Cases’, Cabinet Office, May 2022). Financial redress is governed by HM Treasury’s ‘Managing Public Money’ principles that payments must be fair, reasonable and proportionate.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the decision to discontinue Island Forums on island communities; and whether he plans to introduce alternative mechanisms.

We recognise the unique opportunities and challenges faced by island communities, including those on the Isle of Wight, and it is essential that they are still able to raise issues with government. We also recognise that there has been positive and constructive engagement across and between Forum members, and we encourage them to continue working closely with colleagues to share best practice and develop effective, evidence‑based solutions. The decision to discontinue the Islands Forum at the 2024 Autumn Budget was taken considering the difficult fiscal circumstances we are facing. Since then, we have been working closely with other UK Government departments to determine the future of the forum and agree responsibilities for future engagement - we wanted to get this right. It has been agreed that officials from the Offices for Nations will now take forward island engagement in their respective nations, whilst MHCLG will continue working with island communities in England, on issues that are our responsibility respectively. My officials are also able to help island communities make connections with other departments across government.

What the car practical driving test waiting time was in weeks in each driving test centre in Great Britain in each month since 4 July 2024.

The attached Excel spreadsheet shows the car practical driving test waiting time in weeks for each driving test centre (DTC) in Great Britain, in each month since July 2024 to January 2026.Please note, some DTCs no longer conduct car tests or have closed. There are also some DTCs that did not conduct car tests in some individual months.

What guidance his Department has issued to conveyancers, the Land Registry, or other stakeholders on the application of perpetuity rules to commercial land instruments following the enactment of the Perpetuities and Accumulations Act 2009.

No guidance has been issued by the Ministry of Justice since the Act came into force. The explanatory notes to the legislation set out the effects of the changes to the law: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2009/18/notes/contents.This is a complex and technical area of law. Individuals should seek independent legal advice on how the Act applies to their unique circumstances.

Communities and Local Government, whether his Department conducted an impact assessment before ending Island Forums.

We recognise the unique opportunities and challenges faced by island communities, including those on the Isle of Wight, and it is essential that they are still able to raise issues with government. We also recognise that there has been positive and constructive engagement across and between Forum members, and we encourage them to continue working closely with colleagues to share best practice and develop effective, evidence‑based solutions. The decision to discontinue the Islands Forum at the 2024 Autumn Budget was taken considering the difficult fiscal circumstances we are facing. Since then, we have been working closely with other UK Government departments to determine the future of the forum and agree responsibilities for future engagement - we wanted to get this right. It has been agreed that officials from the Offices for Nations will now take forward island engagement in their respective nations, whilst MHCLG will continue working with island communities in England, on issues that are our responsibility respectively. My officials are also able to help island communities make connections with other departments across government.

What criteria are used to determine payments for patient pathways removed from the elective waiting list as a result of data validation; and what safeguards his Department has put in place to prevent potential abuses of the data validation system, including perverse incentives and data manipulation.

Validation is a routine part of providers’ waiting list management which ensures patient records are accurate, that patients are on the best pathway to meet their needs, and that they still need their appointments. There are safeguards in place to ensure patients are not wrongfully removed from waiting lists. This includes clinical oversight of the validation process. There is also published national guidance from NHS England to support National Health Service trusts to deliver effective validation and make best use of clinical time.

Since 1 January 2024, how many additional employees have been recruited by DFT Operator Limited (DFTO) on a headcount basis; and what the net change in total employee headcount at DFTO has been in each quarter from January 2024 to the most recent quarter for which figures are available.

The table below sets out the number of employees recruited from January 2024 and the change to net employee headcount per quarter for DFT Operator Limited (DFTO). The increases in headcount are as a result of the progressive public ownership programme managed by DFTO. The increase in staff costs are being offset by the savings in fees that would otherwise be payable to the former private sector owners. QuarterEmployees recruitedEmployees leftTotal headcountNet changeQ1 202441143Q2 202461195Q3 2024112289Q4 20241003810Q1 20252215921Q2 20251707617Q3 202531410327Q4 202526612320Q1 202622514017

A) what the failure-to-attend rate for practical car driving tests was in each month since January 2024; and b) whether the Department has assessed the impact on failure-to-attend rates of the change introduced on 8 April 2025 to the minimum notice period for cancelling or changing a practical car driving test.

The attached Excel spreadsheet shows failure-to-attends (FTA) as a percentage of the total number of bookings for each month since January 2024. DVSA monitors failure to attend rates and consider potential causes of those rates changing, together with potential interventions to reduce such rates, on an ongoing basis.

A) how many additional practical car driving tests were delivered by DVSA in each month since July 2024 compared with the same months in the previous year; b) of those additional tests, how many were delivered by (i) examiners working overtime, (ii) warrant card holders temporarily deployed from other DVSA roles, and (iii) newly recruited examiners; and c) during which months warrant card holders from non-examiner roles were deployed to conduct practical driving tests.

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/driving-test-and-theory-test-data-cars shows the number of car practical driving tests conducted up to February 2026. The spreadsheet attached shows the number of overtime tests for the period July 2023 to January 2026. Further information is not available.

What assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of student finance support for dentistry students.

Students attending undergraduate dentistry courses qualify for support from Student Finance England for the first four years of their course. For the fifth and subsequent years of their courses, they qualify for the NHS Bursary and for reduced rate loans for living costs from Student Finance England. Students attending the first year of a four-year graduate entry accelerated programme, qualify for support from Student Finance England. For years two to four, they qualify for the NHS bursary and for reduced rate loans for living costs. We are increasing loans for living costs each year in line with forecast inflation with students from the lowest income families receiving the largest year-on-year cash increases in support. Maximum loans for living costs will increase by 2.71% for the 2026/27 academic year. We will continue to engage with the Department for Health and Social Care to consider the financial support that students in dentistry receive.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of financial pressures on dentistry students’ ability to complete training.

No such assessment has been made. The Department for Education provides the primary student support package for domestic dental students in higher education through Student Finance England (SFE).From year five of an undergraduate and year two of a graduate-entry course, these students can access the NHS Bursary. For this academic year the Government increased the NHS Bursary tuition fee contributions, maintenance grants, and all allowances by 3.1%, in line with increases to SFE support.This is the second academic year the Government has increased support for medical and dental students through the NHS Bursary. Prior to this the maintenance grants had not been uplifted since 2015. We understand that these uplifts do not go far enough to make up for the historical lack of uplift. However, this is a step in the right direction, and we continue to keep funding for dental students under review.

What steps he is taking to introduce a redress scheme for women affected by (a) vaginal mesh and (b) sodium valporate.

The Department continues to take forward work to explore redress for those affected by pelvic mesh and sodium valproate, which includes recommendations made by the Patient Safety Commissioner in the Hughes Report. We recognise the importance of these issues for all those affected. This remains a cross-Government policy area involving multiple organisations, and given the complexity of the issues involved, it is important we get this right.I met with the Patient Safety Commissioner in December 2025, to discuss progress following the Hughes Report and have made clear the Department’s expectation of continued, proactive engagement with the Patient Safety Commissioner and key stakeholders.

Pursuant to the Answer of 9 February 2026 to Question 108807, what progress her Department has made towards the 2030 public electric vehicle charge point target.

An estimate of potential future demand for charge points was originally published in the 2022 “Taking Charge: the National Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure Strategy” and ranged from 280,000 to 720,000 in 2030. This analysis was updated in 2024 to a range of 250,000 to 550,000 in 2030. Both the 2024 NAO ‘public chargepoints for electric vehicles’ report, and the Climate Change Committee 2025 Progress report, concluded that rollout is on track. As of 1 February 2026, there are 88,513 public charging devices across the country. The majority of public chargepoints will be delivered by industry, who have already committed £6 billion of private sector investment before 2030.

Pursuant to the Answer of 3 February 2026 to Question 109699, what proportion of the estimated revenue from domestic maritime will result in direct emissions abatement within the maritime sector.

The Government’s Impact Assessment estimates that including domestic maritime in the UK ETS will increase allowance purchase revenue by around £1.9 billion over the 20-year appraisal period, averaging roughly £95 million a year. Revenue from the UK ETS is not currently hypothecated, but is used to fund the government’s spending priorities, including spending and subsidies supporting the Net Zero transition. The Government continues to support the maritime sector’s decarbonisation through existing funding, guidance and policies that support the uptake of cleaner technologies.

What discussions Minister in his Department have had with Alan Milburn about the costs of clinical negligence since 4 July 2024.

Details of internal ministerial meetings are not routinely declared.As announced in the 10-Year Health Plan for England, David Lock KC is providing expert policy advice on the rising costs of clinical negligence and how we can improve patients’ experience of claims. The review is ongoing, following initial advice to ministers and the recent National Audit Office and Public Accounts Committee reports.