Written questions by Duncan-Jordan.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether all species of Zebra will be included in the proposed ban on hunting trophies.

Defra is continuing to engage with relevant stakeholders to help determine the most appropriate scope for a ban on the import of hunting trophies from species of conservation concern. Timeframes for introducing legislation and details of its scope will be provided once the Parliamentary timetable for future sessions is determined. Species of conservation concern are listed primarily on Appendices I and II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) based on the level of threat that international trade poses to their conservation status.

Whether she plans to provide music hubs with three year funding agreements.

The department has provided funding to support a network of Music Hub partnerships across England since 2012. As of September 2024, the network comprises of 43 Music Hub partnerships.The government has committed £76 million per year for the Music Hubs network, including the current 2025/26 academic year, to offer a range of services, including continuing professional development, musical instrument tuition, instrument loans and whole-class ensemble teaching.Future revenue grant funding will be confirmed with Music Hubs in the coming months, and matters related to level of funding and length of grant agreements will be set out at that point.

Whether her Department plans to provide an uplift in funding to music hubs parallel to that for National Portfolio Organisations.

The department has provided funding to support a network of Music Hub partnerships across England since 2012. As of September 2024, the network comprises of 43 Music Hub partnerships.The government has committed £76 million per year for the Music Hubs network, including the current 2025/26 academic year, to offer a range of services, including continuing professional development, musical instrument tuition, instrument loans and whole-class ensemble teaching.Future revenue grant funding will be confirmed with Music Hubs in the coming months, and matters related to level of funding and length of grant agreements will be set out at that point.

Communities and Local Government, whether he plans to publish a revised National Planning Policy for Waste before May 2026.

The government is currently consulting on a new National Planning Policy Framework that includes clearer, ‘rules based’ policies for decision-making and plan-making. The consultation will remain open for responses until 10 March 2026 and can be found on gov.uk here.

What steps he is taking to (a) promote and (b) enforce the new EN-1 and EN-3 requirements associated with incinerators.

The Overarching National Policy Statement for Energy (EN-1) and the National Policy Statement for Renewable Energy Infrastructure (EN-3) govern planning requirements for larger-scale incinerators (50MW+) that fall under the Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects (NSIP) regime. Applications for Development Consent of NSIPs, including larger-scale incinerators, are determined by the Secretary of State under these policy frameworks. In 2025 these documents were updated to reflect current policy, including removal of Critical National Priority policy presumption from Energy from Waste proposals. Updates were subject to public consultation, and the revised energy National Policy Statements were published and came into effect in January 2026.

What steps his Department is taking to ensure preserved Armed Forces Pension benefits are claimed.

The Ministry of Defence continues to conduct tracing exercises 60 working days after the pension due date to establish the member's address and invite them to claim; we continue to explore additional mechanisms to identify individuals who qualify for an unclaimed deferred pension.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether she is taking steps to ensure that water companies provide low income customers with cheaper social tariffs.

The Government expects water companies to ensure their customers know what support schemes are available and how to access them if they need help. Companies offer a range of support schemes for customers struggling to afford their bills, including social tariffs, WaterSure, debt support schemes, financial hardship funds, flexible payment plans and payment breaks. All companies voluntarily offer social tariff schemes for households – each setting their own eligibility criteria and level of support. Defra is working with water companies to ensure social tariffs are more consistent and taken up by those most in need. Defra also expects companies to hold themselves accountable for their public commitment to end water poverty by 2030. Additionally, the Government has committed to reforming the WaterSure scheme to extend scope and increase support to low-income households who have higher water usage due to medical needs or three or more children.

What assessment he has made of the suitability of Ithaca Energy developing on Rosebank oil field.

The NSTA is responsible for suitability checks of license-holders, including their technical and financial capability. The Secretary of State is responsible for determining whether to agree to the grant of consent for development of the project under the Environmental Impact Assessment regulations for offshore oil and gas, and will make a decision in due course.

Pursuant to the Answers of 14 October 2025 to Questions 77787, 77788 and 77789 on Pension Funds: Fossil Fuels, what estimate The Pensions Regulator has made of the (a) proportion of UK pension scheme assets invested in (i) thermal coal-fired and (ii) other fossil fuel-fired power generation capacity, (b) contribution of UK pension funds to fossil fuel expansion in (i) the UK, (ii) Europe and (iii) other international markets and (c) value of UK pension fund assets invested in fossil fuels that are at risk of becoming stranded.

The Pensions Regulator (TPR) has not produced such estimates.Occupational pension schemes are required to set out how they consider financially material environmental, social and governance factors in their Statements of Investment Principles and to report annually on implementation. Larger schemes must also disclose their climate related risks and opportunities in line with the Task Force on Climate related Financial Disclosures framework. A 2024 TPR review found that more than 60% of sampled schemes had set a net zero goal for 2050 or earlier. The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is currently undertaking a Post Implementation Review of the TCFD regime. We will report our findings this year.In parallel, Government is working on the adoption of UK Sustainability Reporting Standards aligned with international standards and on mandating climate transition plans. TPR’s Transition Plan Working Group, which includes representatives from across the pensions industry, will report to the DWP in the spring. These initiatives will continue to strengthen transparency around scheme exposures to climate related risks and support the UK’s net-zero goals and broader green agenda.

Whether the Valour Veterans' Support Programme will include working with existing social enterprises that provide advice, services and support to veterans.

The VALOUR programme will engage across a wide range of stakeholders who provide support services for veterans, including social enterprises. VALOUR Field Officers will work with these stakeholders to improve the coordination of veteran support. The programme will also work with existing organisations to ensure VALOUR Recognised Centres provide a holistic network of support centres for veterans, in areas such as health, housing, employment and finance.

Whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of reviewing the definition of coercive and controlling behaviour within the Serious Crime Act 2015 to include extremist groups, cults and gangs.

Controlling or coercive behaviour (CCB) is an insidious form of domestic abuse. The CCB legislative framework was introduced in 2015 and was explicitly designed to address patterns of behaviour within relationships where the perpetrator and victim are “personally connected”, as outlined in Section 2 of the Domestic Abuse Act 2021. Expanding CCB beyond this context would risk undermining that clarity, creating uncertainty for police to identify, investigate and prosecute this offence.We do not intend to expand the CCB offence beyond its current scope at this time.

When she plans to answer Question 100240, tabled by the hon. Member for Poole on 15 December 2025.

The response to Written Parliamentary Question 100240 was published on 4 February 2026.

When he will recommend the Isle of Man Constitution Bill 2023 for Royal Assent.

The UK Government has yet to receive the Isle of Man Constitution Bill 2023 from Tynwald. The time required to scrutinise Crown Dependency legislation prior to Royal Assent varies depending on its complexity and any legal or constitutional questions that arise, including where clarification is needed from Law Officers in the Islands. Any decision on whether a Crown Dependency law can be recommended for Royal Assent will depend on the outcome of that process and as such, it would not be appropriate to speculate on the timing or outcome of the scrutiny in respect of the Isle of Man’s Constitution Bill in advance of its receipt.

What safeguards have been considered in relation to Meta support for building AI systems for UK national security.

The Ministry of Defence (MOD) does not use services from Meta to build Artificial Intelligence (AI) systems for United Kingdom (UK) national security purposes.Broader policy on the governance, assurance and oversight of the UK’s relationships with commercial AI developers, including any safeguarding expectations, sits with the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT), which leads for Government on the regulation and safe development of AI technologies.The MOD’s role is limited to ensuring that any AI technologies we adopt or develop follow our established Defence AI Strategy, our ethical principles for responsible AI in Defence as set out in our ‘Ambitious, Safe, Responsible’ policy document, and the security requirements set out in UK Government security classifications. These include robust technical; security and assurance measures appropriate to the sensitivity of MOD systems.We continue to work closely with DSIT, the National Cyber Security Centre and other cross-Government partners to ensure any Defence use of AI is safe, secure and compliant with national policy.

Whether he plans to review the (a) role and (b) voting rights of bishops in the House of Lords.

There are no plans to review the role and voting rights of the Lords Spiritual in the House of Lords. The Government has set out an ambitious programme of House of Lords reform in its manifesto, including a commitment to replace the House of Lords with an alternative second chamber that is more representative of the regions and nations. The Government will consult on proposals for an alternative second chamber, seeking the input of the British public on how politics can best serve them.

Pursuant to the answer of 22 January 2026 to question 105956, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for the Home Department on the impact of the immigration white paper on NHS and social workers.

My Rt. Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, has regular discussions with my Rt. Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for the Home Department on a range of subjects, including immigration policy.The Government has published an Impact Assessment alongside the Spring 2025 Immigration Rules, which sets out the expected effects of the reforms on the Skilled Worker and Health and Care worker routes, including modelling of changes in overall visa volumes. The Impact Assessment is published on the GOV.UK website, at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/impact-assessments-covering-migration-policyThe forthcoming 10-Year Health Workforce Plan will ensure the National Health Service has the right people in the right places, with the right skills to care for patients when they need it. As part of that plan, we will outline strategies for improving retention, productivity, training, and reducing attrition, thereby enhancing conditions for all staff while gradually reducing reliance on international recruitment, without diminishing the value of their contributions.For adult social care, it is also the Government’s policy to reduce reliance on international recruitment and improve domestic recruitment and retention. We recognise the scale of reform needed to make the adult social care attractive as a career and are determined to ensure that those who work in care are respected as professionals. We are introducing a new Fair Pay Agreement for Adult Social Care, implementing the first universal career structure for adult social care, and providing £12 million this year for staff to complete training and qualifications.

Pursuant to the answer of 22 January 2026 to question 105956, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the immigration white paper on the NHS long-term staff plan.

My Rt. Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, has regular discussions with my Rt. Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for the Home Department on a range of subjects, including immigration policy.The Government has published an Impact Assessment alongside the Spring 2025 Immigration Rules, which sets out the expected effects of the reforms on the Skilled Worker and Health and Care worker routes, including modelling of changes in overall visa volumes. The Impact Assessment is published on the GOV.UK website, at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/impact-assessments-covering-migration-policyThe forthcoming 10-Year Health Workforce Plan will ensure the National Health Service has the right people in the right places, with the right skills to care for patients when they need it. As part of that plan, we will outline strategies for improving retention, productivity, training, and reducing attrition, thereby enhancing conditions for all staff while gradually reducing reliance on international recruitment, without diminishing the value of their contributions.For adult social care, it is also the Government’s policy to reduce reliance on international recruitment and improve domestic recruitment and retention. We recognise the scale of reform needed to make the adult social care attractive as a career and are determined to ensure that those who work in care are respected as professionals. We are introducing a new Fair Pay Agreement for Adult Social Care, implementing the first universal career structure for adult social care, and providing £12 million this year for staff to complete training and qualifications.

Pursuant to the answer of 22 January 2026 to question 105956, if he will publish an assessment of the potential impact of the immigration white paper on social care workers and NHS workers.

My Rt. Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, has regular discussions with my Rt. Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for the Home Department on a range of subjects, including immigration policy.The Government has published an Impact Assessment alongside the Spring 2025 Immigration Rules, which sets out the expected effects of the reforms on the Skilled Worker and Health and Care worker routes, including modelling of changes in overall visa volumes. The Impact Assessment is published on the GOV.UK website, at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/impact-assessments-covering-migration-policyThe forthcoming 10-Year Health Workforce Plan will ensure the National Health Service has the right people in the right places, with the right skills to care for patients when they need it. As part of that plan, we will outline strategies for improving retention, productivity, training, and reducing attrition, thereby enhancing conditions for all staff while gradually reducing reliance on international recruitment, without diminishing the value of their contributions.For adult social care, it is also the Government’s policy to reduce reliance on international recruitment and improve domestic recruitment and retention. We recognise the scale of reform needed to make the adult social care attractive as a career and are determined to ensure that those who work in care are respected as professionals. We are introducing a new Fair Pay Agreement for Adult Social Care, implementing the first universal career structure for adult social care, and providing £12 million this year for staff to complete training and qualifications.

What data her Department holds on the number of NHS and social care workers impacted by the Immigration White Paper in (a) Poole constituency and (b) the UK.

The Spring 2025 Impact Assessment (published here: Impact assessments covering migration policy - GOV.UK) provides the Department’s estimates on the volumes of impacted care and senior care workers resulting from the Immigration White Paper proposals. Place-based impacts are estimated at a regional level in the impact assessment.

Communities and Local Government, whether his Department has issued guidance to local authorities on the assessment of entitlement to a Council Tax reduction for residents who are in receipt of Universal Credit.

The department has not issued any recent guidance to local authorities on the assessment of entitlement to a council tax reduction for residents who are in receipt of Universal Credit. The administration of council tax reduction for working-age claimants is the responsibility of local authorities. The government encourages taxpayers who are in hardship to contact their local authority to discuss their options.