Written questions by Evans.

Media and Sport, if she will undertake a review of (a) financial pressures and (b) governance challenges facing rugby union in England.

Rugby Union has a vital role to play in our national identity. I recently met with the Rugby Football Union and Premiership Rugby to discuss the future of the sport, and my department is in regular contact with the rugby union authorities.The RFU is independent of the Government and is responsible for the regulation of rugby union, and for protecting and promoting the financial sustainability of the sport. My department does not intend to conduct a review into the finances or governance of rugby union at this time.My department continues to work with the RFU, representatives of Premiership clubs and Championship clubs, and the wider sport sector to support the ongoing sustainability of elite and community level rugby union.

What discussions she has had with local authorities on ensuring (a) major new road infrastructure design is safe for motorcyclists and (b) pothole funding ensures smooth roads for (i) motorcyclists and (ii) other road users.

Local authorities are responsible for setting their own design standards for their roads. They are subject to various legal duties in managing their roads, including to promote road safety. It is for them to ensure road infrastructure is safe and fit for purpose and is designed and delivered in a way that takes account of all road users’ needs. This Government is committed to tackling the poor state of our roads. As announced in October’s Budget, the Government is providing local highway authorities in England with an additional £500 million funding for local highway maintenance for the 2025/26 financial year. This will help them to provide smoother, safer roads for motorcyclists and other road users. Further details of this will be set out shortly.

What discussions she has had with representatives of the motorcycle sector on improving safety of motorcyclists on the road.

This Government takes road safety seriously, and we are committed to reducing the numbers of those killed and injured on our roads, including motorcyclists who are overrepresented in casualty statistics. A representative of the motorcycling sector attended a Ministerial roundtable on 7 October to discuss road safety and motorcycle stakeholders also have regular meetings with officials from the Department.

What proportion of the revenue (a) raised by changes to employee national insurance contributions and (b) announced for the NHS at Autumn Budget 2024 will be allocated to fund non employee national insurance contribution related NHS activity.

At Autumn Statement, the Chancellor outlined the Government’s commitment to ensuring the sustainability and productivity of the NHS. As part of this, HM Treasury have allocated £22.6 billion to the NHS to support productivity improvements, upgrade IT systems, enhance working conditions for staff, and address the maintenance backlog. The Government will provide support for departments and other public sector employers for additional Employer National Insurance Contributions cost, in line with the approach taken under the previous Government’s Health and Social Care Levy. The Government will update Parliament on allocations in due course.

What estimate his Department has made of the percentage of funding announced in the Autumn Budget 2024 that will be allocated by NHS bodies to fund increases in National Insurance Contributions.

We have taken necessary decisions to fix the foundations in the public finances at the Autumn Budget, and this enabled the Spending Review settlement of a £22.6 billion increase in resource spending for the Department, from 2023/24 outturn to 2025/26.The Budget announced the increase to the National Insurance contribution, but additional funding will be agreed with HM Treasury for 2025/26 separately, which is not included in the £22.6 billion increase.The Employer National Insurance rise will be implemented in April 2025, with the Department setting out further details on allocation of funding in due course, including through planning guidance.

Pursuant to the Answer of 23 October 2024 to Question 9263 on Pedestrian Areas: Visual Impairment, what recent discussions he has had with the Disabled Persons’ Transport Advisory Committee on the (a) use and (b) safety of bus stop bypasses.

The Department is carefully considering options in developing next steps on bus stop bypasses. Active Travel England has been involved in those discussions as the executive agency of the Department with a remit to help deliver increases in walking and cycling. The Disabled Persons’ Transport Advisory Committee has also provided input, in their role as a statutory advisory body on disability transport issues.

What recent discussions her Department has had with Active Travel England on the use of bus stop bypasses.

The Department is carefully considering options in developing next steps on bus stop bypasses. Active Travel England has been involved in those discussions as the executive agency of the Department with a remit to help deliver increases in walking and cycling. The Disabled Persons’ Transport Advisory Committee has also provided input, in their role as a statutory advisory body on disability transport issues.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of police force reporting of dog on dog attacks.

Defra is working with the police, local authorities and animal welfare groups to help prevent attacks by encouraging responsible dog ownership, to ensure dog control issues are addressed before they escalate and to make sure the full force of the law is applied. As part of this work, we will continue to consider how we can improve data collection and recording on dog attacks so that we are in a better position to take action.

Food and Rural Affairs, if he will (a) undertake a review of the recording of dog on dog attacks by police forces and (b) make an assessment of the potential merits of reviewing guidance to ensure consistency of reporting of those attacks.

Defra is working with the police, local authorities and animal welfare groups to help prevent attacks by encouraging responsible dog ownership, to ensure dog control issues are addressed before they escalate and to make sure the full force of the law is applied. As part of this work, we will continue to consider how we can improve data collection and recording on dog attacks so that we are in a better position to take action.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what plans his Department has to support the work of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance.

The UK is one of the largest donors to Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance; committing £1.65 billion in the 2021-2025 period. This funding supports Gavi's mission to immunise 300 million children and save up to 8 million lives. There are a number of global health replenishments coming up in 2025. The UK is considering all future investments in the round and announcements will be made following the completion of the Spending Review.

Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the potential impact of temporarily closing the Sustainable Farming Incentive schemes to new applications on farmers.

The Government’s commitment to British farmers, including family farms, remains steadfast. We will always champion British farming to boost rural economic growth, strengthen food security and improve the environment. In the Budget announced last month, the Government committed £5 billion to the farming budget over two years, including more money than ever for sustainable food production: £1.8 billion for environmental land management schemes in 2025/26. This enables us to keep momentum on the path to a more resilient and sustainable farming sector. The Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) is open to farmers so they make their businesses more sustainable and resilient. We will continue to optimise it and our other farming schemes, so they work efficiently for all farmers, food security and the environment, especially for those that are too often ignored such as small, grassland, upland and tenanted farms.

Communities and Local Government, If she will make a comparative assessment of the effect of the (a) proposals in Planning Reform Working Paper: Planning Committee on the applicability of the Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006 and (b) protections afforded to the (i) habitats and (ii) species listed in Section 41 of that Act.

The government’s planning reform working paper on planning committees invites views on a number of proposals designed to support better decision making in the planning system. The working paper does not propose any changes which would affect the application of the biodiversity duties and protections under the Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006.

What estimate she has made of the cost of nationalising South Western Railway.

The exact costs associated with the transfer of a train operator’s services cannot be determined with any certainty at this stage. Each operator will have their own circumstances that need to be addressed to enable a successful transfer. The process to transfer South Western Railways will involve some mobilisation and due diligence costs, and the transfer programme as a whole will also incur costs, for example, to increase DfT Operator Ltd capacity. However, these costs are expected to be a fraction of the £110-150 million per year in fees to private operators that will no longer have to be funded by the taxpayer once all franchised services are back in public ownership.

What estimate her Department has made of the cost to the public purse of nationalising C2C.

The exact costs associated with the transfer of a train operator’s services cannot be determined with any certainty at this stage. Each operator will have their own circumstances that need to be addressed to enable a successful transfer. The process to transfer c2c will involve some mobilisation and due diligence costs, and the transfer programme as a whole will also incur costs, for example, to increase DfT Operator Ltd capacity. However, these costs are expected to be a fraction of the £110-150 million per year in fees to private operators that will no longer have to be funded by the taxpayer once all franchised services are back in public ownership.

What estimate her Department has made of the cost to the public purse of nationalising Greater Anglia.

The exact costs associated with the transfer of a train operator’s services cannot be determined with any certainty at this stage. Each operator will have their own circumstances that need to be addressed to enable a successful transfer. The process to transfer Greater Anglia will involve some mobilisation and due diligence costs, and the transfer programme as a whole will also incur costs, for example, to increase DfT Operator Ltd capacity. However, these costs are expected to be a fraction of the £110-150 million per year in fees to private operators that will no longer have to be funded by the taxpayer once all franchised services are back in public ownership.

Food and Rural Affairs, if he will issue updated guidance on household recycling collections.

Simpler Recycling will mean that people across England will be able to recycle the same materials at home, work or school, ending the confusion over what can or cannot be recycled in different parts of the country. Ministers are currently reviewing final Simpler Recycling policy decisions, including guidance on the approach to collections, and we hope to provide further certainty and clarity to stakeholders as soon as possible.

What assessment she has made of the challenges of (a) recruiting and (b) retaining educational psychologists to ensure the effective processing of education, health and care plans.

This department’s ambition is that all children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) or in alternative provision receive the right support to succeed in their education and as they move into adult life.Educational psychologists play a critical role in supporting children and young people, providing statutory input into education, health and care assessments and advising the school workforce on how to support children and young people with SEND.As the employers of educational psychology services, it is the responsibility of local authorities to ensure that their services are adequately staffed. The department is taking measures to support local authorities by investing in building the pipeline.The department is investing over £21 million to train 400 more educational psychologists from this year. This builds on the £10 million currently being invested in the training of over 200 educational psychologists who began their training in September 2023.To support retention, following graduation, trainees who have had their training funded by the department are required to remain in local authority employment for a minimum period. For trainees beginning their course in September 2024, this requirement has increased to three years.

What steps she is taking to increase the number of educational psychologists.

This department’s ambition is that all children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) or in alternative provision receive the right support to succeed in their education and as they move into adult life.Educational psychologists play a critical role in supporting children and young people, providing statutory input into education, health and care assessments and advising the school workforce on how to support children and young people with SEND.As the employers of educational psychology services, it is the responsibility of local authorities to ensure that their services are adequately staffed. The department is taking measures to support local authorities by investing in building the pipeline.The department is investing over £21 million to train 400 more educational psychologists from this year. This builds on the £10 million currently being invested in the training of over 200 educational psychologists who began their training in September 2023.To support retention, following graduation, trainees who have had their training funded by the department are required to remain in local authority employment for a minimum period. For trainees beginning their course in September 2024, this requirement has increased to three years.

Pursuant to the Answer of 13 November 2024 to Question 11294 on Armed Forces: Cadets, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of the ending of the additional SSI grant on the long term sustainability of school cadet forces.

The development and sustainability of school cadet units depends on a range of factors including senior leadership team support and the ability to attract and retain adult volunteers to manage and deliver cadet activities. Our commitment to supporting the school-based Combined Cadet Force and the Cadet Expansion Programme in schools remains unchanged. We are very aware of the benefits that cadet activity brings to the young people themselves and of the positive contribution that having a cadet unit makes to schools. Therefore, we continue to invest £3.6 million per year in the programme so that more young people can enjoy the benefits of the cadet experience, but I have also directed that a review be undertaken to ascertain how we can deliver more cadet activity both in schools and in the wider community settings. The role and support to the SSI will figure in this review.

Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 11 November 2024 to Question 12597 on Agriculture: Subsidies, what steps his Department is taking to consult (a) fruit and (b) vegetable growers on future financial aid schemes for the sector.

The Government appreciates and values the vital work of our fruit and vegetable growers and recognises their important role in maintaining a secure supply of home – grown fresh produce. As part of our mission-driven Government, and in partnership with the sector, the Department is considering how we can achieve our ambitious, measurable and long-term goals for the sector, including how to recognise the sector’s diversity and specialist needs. Defra meets regularly with growers to discuss a range of issues. These discussions help inform future policy development and help us understand what support the sector needs to help it thrive.