Written questions by Reynolds.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of proposed changes to SEND tribunal powers on the ability of parents and carers to secure named school placements for children with education, health and care plans.

Awaiting answer.

For what reasons sponsor employers are required to submit large volumes of sensitive information without the routine use of protective measures such as password‑protected files or encrypted transfer systems.

The Home Office routinely requires additional evidence from sponsors. The evidence requested is proportionate to the purpose of its use.The Home Office has appropriate technical and organisational safeguards in place and applies a sensible, risk-based approach in line with Article 32 of the GDPR.Inbound data is received to secure gov.uk accounts, managed by security cleared persons. Teams are assigned to manage only certain application strands to reduce risk of data integrity compromise, with data being uploaded onto immigration systems promptly.

Whether her Department has made a comparative assessment of the survivor pension rules in the Police Pension Scheme 1987 in England and Wales and the equivalent rules applying to (a) police officers in Scotland and Northern Ireland and (b) the Armed Forces Pension Scheme.

The 1987 police pension scheme is now a closed scheme, superseded by the 2015 scheme, and there are no plans to make further improvements to the benefits accrued under it. From 1 April 2015, the 1987 police pension scheme was amended to allow widows, widowers and civil partners of police officers who have died as a result of an injury on duty to receive their survivor benefits for life regardless of remarriage, civil partnership or cohabitation.Policing is a devolved matter in both Scotland and Northern Ireland. Decisions of the Scottish Government and the Northern Ireland Executive should not form a precedent without due consideration of the government’s continuing duty to ensure that public services are affordable, sustainable and fair in England and Wales.In 2015, a justification was made under the previous government for allowing all surviving partners of Armed Forces pension scheme members to retain their survivor’s pension for life, relating to the combination of factors that apply specifically to members of the Armed Forces and their families.

What steps her Department is taking to ensure that automated or AI-supported decision-making relating to sponsorship licences is transparent, fair, and subject to human oversight.

AI is not being used to make or support decision making in Sponsor Licensing applications, licence maintenance or visa sponsorship applications. There is some automation of updates to organisation and key personnel details made by sponsors via their Sponsorship Management System (SMS) and automated renewals of annual allocations of Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS), where Sponsors have demonstrated a track record of compliance.For organisation and key personnel changes, whilst details are updated automatically in SMS to ensure that licence details are up to date, appropriate checks and case working still takes place.For the automatic renewal of annual allocations of CoS, renewed allocations are calculated using the sponsor’s usage in the previous allocation year. Where an increase in that allocation is required, the sponsor is required to submit a request, stating the reason for the increase, for consideration.

What the annual expenditure by the National Institute for Health and Care Research on research workforce development programmes, including fellowships, training awards and capacity-building initiatives, was in each financial year from 2019–20 to 2024–25; and what proportion of that expenditure was allocated to (a) dementia, (b) cancer, (c) stroke and (d) coronary heart disease research, where such categorisation is held.

Awaiting answer.

What assessment he has made of the impact on Feed-in Tariff scheme participants of changing the indexation of payments from the Retail Price Index to the Consumer Price Index from April 2026.

Awaiting answer.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the lease extension premium formula on leaseholders with short leases; and whether he plans to bring forward proposals to reform the reversion value calculation under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993.

Awaiting answer.

What assessment his Department has made of the effect on reception year pupils of the age based eligibility threshold for the Nursery Milk Scheme; and whether he is taking steps to ensure consistent access to subsidised milk for all children within the same reception class.

Awaiting answer.

What data her Department collects on (a) the use of suspension by schools in England and (b) compliance with the statutory guidance "Suspension and Permanent Exclusion from maintained schools, academies and pupil referral units in England, including pupil movement"; and what mechanisms are in place to monitor proportionality in the application of that guidance at school level.

Awaiting answer.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of recent changes to mortgage rates, including those influenced by recent global economic conditions, on housing market activity.

The Government keeps the economic outlook, including the housing market, under close review. The path to lower interest rates is through low inflation, and the government is fully committed to supporting the Bank of England get inflation back down to the 2% target. The pricing and availability of mortgages is ultimately a commercial decision for lenders in which the Government does not intervene. Despite recent global developments, the mortgage market remains open, resilient, and competitive across all major product types and segments, and the average offered mortgage rates on 2-year, and 5-year fixed rates remain below their peaks in 2023. The Government remains committed to addressing the cost of living and helping more people to own their own home. We do not yet have official data on housing market activity covering the period following the start of the conflict in Iran. The latest HMRC statistics on the number of UK property transactions covering up to and including February 2026 show that transactions increased by 6% compared to January 2026.

Whether he plans to introduce updated clinical (a) guidance and (b) training for healthcare professionals on the identification and management of Topical Steroid Withdrawal.

Topical corticosteroids are an important and effective treatment for inflammatory skin conditions, including eczema, when used appropriately. It is essential that healthcare professionals are aware of both the benefits and potential risks associated with their use, particularly where treatment is prolonged or involves higher‑potency products.The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency has taken steps to strengthen awareness of topical corticosteroid safety, including public drug safety updates and clearer product information to highlight the risk of adverse effects, including withdrawal reactions, when use has been prolonged or inappropriate. These measures are intended to support informed discussions between clinicians and patients and safer prescribing practice.Clinical guidance for healthcare professionals is already in place through National Institute for Health and Care Excellence clinical knowledge summaries, which set out best practice on the appropriate potency, duration, and frequency of topical corticosteroid use, and emphasise the importance of regular review. Decisions about diagnosis and management, including recognition of adverse reactions, remain clinical matters for individual healthcare professionals, who are expected to apply this guidance alongside their clinical judgement and the patient’s circumstances.The Department will keep emerging evidence under review and will work with regulators, the National Health Service, and professional bodies to support ongoing education, promote safe use of medicines, and improve awareness of potential adverse effects among clinicians, including general practitioners and dermatologists.

What steps his Department is taking to improve awareness and clinical recognition of Topical Steroid Withdrawal among GPs, dermatologists and other healthcare professionals.

Topical corticosteroids are an important and effective treatment for inflammatory skin conditions, including eczema, when used appropriately. It is essential that healthcare professionals are aware of both the benefits and potential risks associated with their use, particularly where treatment is prolonged or involves higher‑potency products.The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency has taken steps to strengthen awareness of topical corticosteroid safety, including public drug safety updates and clearer product information to highlight the risk of adverse effects, including withdrawal reactions, when use has been prolonged or inappropriate. These measures are intended to support informed discussions between clinicians and patients and safer prescribing practice.Clinical guidance for healthcare professionals is already in place through National Institute for Health and Care Excellence clinical knowledge summaries, which set out best practice on the appropriate potency, duration, and frequency of topical corticosteroid use, and emphasise the importance of regular review. Decisions about diagnosis and management, including recognition of adverse reactions, remain clinical matters for individual healthcare professionals, who are expected to apply this guidance alongside their clinical judgement and the patient’s circumstances.The Department will keep emerging evidence under review and will work with regulators, the National Health Service, and professional bodies to support ongoing education, promote safe use of medicines, and improve awareness of potential adverse effects among clinicians, including general practitioners and dermatologists.

Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to reduce the time taken to deliver Disabled Facilities Grant adaptations where the property requiring adaptation is owned by a social landlord but communal (a) grounds, (b) footpaths and (c) parking areas are held by (i) private developers and (ii) managing agents.

The government recognises the importance of timely Disabled Facilities Grant adaptations to help disabled people live independently and safely. Local authorities have a statutory duty to provide adaptations to eligible people, and have powers to agree a more generous local policy. To support this £723 million will be available for the Disabled Facilities Grant in 2026-27, an increase of £12 million on 2024–25. The government’s Disabled Facilities Grant guidance, which can be found on gov.uk here, encourages local authorities to work closely with landlords and other relevant parties such as private developers and managing agents, and work towards good practice timescales to reduce delays in the delivery of adaptations. MHCLG funds a national body, currently, Foundations, to support local authorities with delivery of Disabled Facilities Grants. Foundations can provide advice, including on complex cases involving communal areas and multiple owners, to help local authorities deliver adaptations efficiently and on time. Further information is available on their website: https://www.foundations.uk.com.

What timetable Network Rail has set for the clearance of construction and maintenance waste from lineside land across the rail network.

When work is being undertaken, how any waste will be removed is part of Network Rail’s plan for the works and, in general, waste is removed at the end of works. At times, material will be left lineside for forthcoming works in the same area.On occasion, it may be difficult for Network Rail to remove material at the end of works due to availability of appropriate equipment, for example a specific recovery train may be needed. Depending on the location, it may be more cost effective to leave materials lineside for some time until the required logistics can be planned. There is no specific timeframe for this, but Network Rail is aware there is value in all its materials either via reuse internally, for onward sale, or recycling, so materials will not be left lineside if cost efficient recovery is feasible. Network Rail’s track materials currently have a reuse rate of almost 80% with 19.9% recycled and less than 1% sent for recovery (generally contaminated material).

What recent assessment she has made of the potential financial impact of school transport costs on families in areas outside London; and whether she has plans to review school transport policy to address regional disparities in costs.

Children of compulsory school age, 5 to 16, will be eligible for free travel if they attend their nearest school and would not be able to walk there because of the distance, their special educational needs, disability or mobility problem, or the safety of the route. Extended rights to free travel support low-income families to exercise school choice. The department does not currently have any plans to change the existing statutory framework.Central government funding for home-to-school travel is provided through the Local Government Finance Settlement. From the 2026/27 financial year, it includes a new specific relative needs formula for home-to-school travel which estimates each authority’s relative need to spend based on pupil numbers and home-to-school distances. This ensures funding reflects real journeys to school including in areas outside London.

What steps his Department is taking to ensure that publicly funded electric bus procurement schemes support domestic manufacturing supply chains.

DBT works closely with DfT, the Cabinet Office and Crown Commercial Service to ensure publicly funded electric bus procurement supports UK manufacturing where possible, within procurement and trade rules. This includes through setting up the DfT UK Bus Manufacturing Expert Panel, the recent publication of a zero emission bus order pipeline and promoting stronger, more consistent use of social value to reflect UK jobs, skills and supply chain resilience.

What assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of Chinese state export subsidies, including the export VAT rebate applied to zero-emission vehicles, on the competitiveness of UK bus manufacturers.

DBT keeps the impact of overseas state support for zero emissions vehicles under close review and engages regularly with UK manufacturers to understand effects on competitiveness. While reports include mechanisms such as export VAT rebates, only the independent Trade Remedies Authority can formally investigate whether such measures constitute countervailable subsidies and have caused injury to UK industry, based on evidence from producers. DBT will continue to monitor the position closely.

What steps are being taken to ensure patients prescribed topical corticosteroids are informed of potential risks, including withdrawal reactions.

Clinicians are expected to work with patients to make decisions about their care and treatment as part of shared decision-making, including discussing risks, benefits, and possible consequences of different options through information-sharing. Further information on shared decision-making can be found on the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s website:https://www.nice.org.uk/about/what-we-do/our-programmes/nice-guidance/nice-guidelines/shared-decision-making

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps the she is taking to fulfil to help ban the importation of foie gras; and whether he has set a timeline for doing so.

I refer the Hon. Member to the reply given to Ruth Jones on 17 March 2026 to PQ UIN 119441.

Whether his Department is working with the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence to introduce a stand‑alone clinical rule for suspected bowel cancer, including for patients under 50, to allow timely referral for (a) further investigation and (b) a second opinion at first presentation.

The National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is an independent body and is responsible for making decisions on whether its published guidelines should be updated in light of new evidence or emerging issues not in the scope of the original guideline. NICE maintains surveillance of new evidence that may affect its published guidance, and decisions on whether guidelines should be updated are taken by a prioritisation board chaired by its Chief Medical Officer.NICE has no current plans to update the guidance it has issued on Suspected cancer: recognition and referral, code NG12, or to introduce a standalone clinical rule for suspected bowel cancer, including for patients under 50 years old, to allow timely referral for further investigation and a second opinion at first presentation.