Written questions by Heylings.

What his timeline is for launching the proposed framework to scrutinise additional costs and levies on consumer energy bills.

At the budget, the Chancellor agreed to subject any additional costs, including new levies, to enhanced scrutiny under a new framework to ensure they are affordable, represent value for money and do not impose unnecessary costs on households and businesses. The development of this new framework is underway with HM Treasury and we will provide an update in due course.

What steps she is taking to ensure her Department's consultations comply fully with the Gunning Principles in the future.

The Department, its executive agencies and arm’s-length bodies publish a large number of consultations and calls for evidence. The Department conducts consultations in line with the Government Consultation Principles. These state that consultations should last for a proportionate amount of time. The length of any consultation is decided based on legal advice and taking into account the nature and impact of the proposal. Consultations and calls for evidence are accompanied by other forms of engagement with the public and stakeholders. The Department always aims to publish government responses to consultations in a timely fashion, in line with the Government Consultation Principles, and to keep stakeholders updated on progress.

What steps she has taken to recover the 6120 missing responses from the Railways Bill consultation; and what steps she is taking to ensure the integrity of the consultation process for future consultations.

The Secretary of State has written to the Transport Select Committee on this issue, a copy of which can be found here: https://committees.parliament.uk/publications/50296/documents/271772/default/. We have no evidence of other consultations being affected and are taking all steps necessary to ensure our suppliers prevent a recurrence. This includes reviewing our email filtering system logs for all open consultations and seeking separate external assurance on the configuration of our replacement filtering system.

What recent assessment he has made of progress against the commitment in the NHS 10 Year Plan for Health to launch a new large-scale study to sequence the genomes of 150,000 adults and assess how genomics can be used in routine preventive care.

The 10-Year Health Plan for England committed to launching a large-scale study, led by Genomics England, to sequence 150,000 adult genomes and assess how genomics can support routine preventive care. Work is now underway to design the study, develop scientific and clinical methodologies, and establish governance in line with major programme standards. Genomics England has commissioned a structured literature review and launched the Genomics, Healthcare and You engagement programme to understand the diverse public and professional perspectives on pre-emptive, preventative population healthcare, while building trust and transparency. This engagement will run through 2025/26, with interim findings shaping study design and recruitment strategies which will be developed in 2026/27. Subject to ethics approval, the recruitment and sequencing of participants is expected to begin from 2027.

When he plans to launch the study to sequence the genomes of 150,000 adults.

The 10-Year Health Plan for England committed to launching a large-scale study, led by Genomics England, to sequence 150,000 adult genomes and assess how genomics can support routine preventive care. Work is now underway to design the study, develop scientific and clinical methodologies, and establish governance in line with major programme standards. Genomics England has commissioned a structured literature review and launched the Genomics, Healthcare and You engagement programme to understand diverse public and professional perspectives on pre-emptive, preventative population healthcare, while building trust and transparency. This engagement will run through 2025/26, with interim findings shaping study design and recruitment strategies which will be developed in 2026/27. Subject to ethics approval, the recruitment and sequencing of participants is expected to begin from 2027.

What his planned timeline is for rolling out the Connections Accelerator Service.

As set out in the Government’s Industrial Strategy, the Connections Accelerator Service will be operational by the end of 2025.

Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the answer of 24 November 2025 to Question 91533 on Brownfield Sites: Biodiversity, whether the full impact assessment will be published prior to her response to the consultation.

The Government response to the ‘Improving biodiversity net gain for minor, medium and brownfield development’ consultation and the impact assessment will be published in due course. The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government published in May a working paper on site thresholds for planning purposes, including a potential new category of medium development. They are assessing the response to this working paper.

Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the answer of 24 November 2025 to Question 91533 on Brownfield Sites: Biodiversity, if she will ensure adequate Parliamentary scrutiny of that impact assessment before final decisions on the future of Biodiversity Net Gain.

The Government response to the ‘Improving biodiversity net gain for minor, medium and brownfield development’ consultation and the impact assessment will be published in due course. The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government published in May a working paper on site thresholds for planning purposes, including a potential new category of medium development. They are assessing the response to this working paper.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department plans to make sites below 0.5 hectares exempt from Biodiversity Net Gain.

The Government response to the ‘Improving biodiversity net gain for minor, medium and brownfield development’ consultation and the impact assessment will be published in due course. The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government published in May a working paper on site thresholds for planning purposes, including a potential new category of medium development. They are assessing the response to this working paper.

Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the answer of 24 November 2025 to Question 91533 on Brownfield Sites: Biodiversity, when the full impact assessment will be published.

The Government response to the ‘Improving biodiversity net gain for minor, medium and brownfield development’ consultation and the impact assessment will be published in due course. The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government published in May a working paper on site thresholds for planning purposes, including a potential new category of medium development. They are assessing the response to this working paper.

Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the answer of 24 November 2025 to Question 91533 on Brownfield Sites: Biodiversity, whether she plans to consult further on the definition of (a) small and (b) medium sites before final decisions on the future of Biodiversity Net Gain.

The Government response to the ‘Improving biodiversity net gain for minor, medium and brownfield development’ consultation and the impact assessment will be published in due course. The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government published in May a working paper on site thresholds for planning purposes, including a potential new category of medium development. They are assessing the response to this working paper.

Whether he plans to bring forward proposals to improve the Access to Work scheme.

In the Pathways to Work Green Paper, we consulted on the future of Access to Work and how to improve the scheme so that it helps more disabled people in work. We are reviewing all aspects of Access to Work as we develop plans for reform following the conclusion of the consultation.

Whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of establishing a publicly searchable register of individuals convicted of sexual offences.

There are no plans to create a public sex offender registry. The current system allows for targeted disclosures where necessary to manage risk and protect individuals.Through the Crime and Policing Bill, we are introducing a range of legislative changes to strengthen the management of registered sex offenders. This gives the Home Secretary a power to publish statutory guidance for police on disclosing information to prevent sexual harm. By putting sexual harm disclosure schemes on a statutory footing, their implementation will be more consistent nationally, ensuring a uniform approach to protecting the public.Making information publicly available would undermine this approach, risk exposing victims, and make it harder for offenders to be monitored by the police and other agencies. Existing legal frameworks already provide effective safeguards and disclosure mechanisms where appropriate.

What assessment she made of the potential impact of the proposals in the consultation on Earned Settlement on victims of domestic violence before its publication; and what steps she will take to ensure that protections for those victims, including the Domestic Violence Concession and Indefinite Leave to Remain routes, continue under any future settlement framework.

We are committed to reducing Violence against Women and Girls.The Immigration White Paper, published in May 2025, committed to retain safeguards to protect the vulnerable, including settlement rights for victims of domestic violence and abuse.The current public consultation on the proposed earned settlement scheme seeks views on the proposal that vulnerable groups, including victims of domestic violence and abuse, should retain their ability to settle without being subject to a minimum qualifying period.

Whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of the Access to Work scheme on the economy and society.

Access to Work (AtW) is a demand-led, personalised discretionary grant which supports the recruitment and retention of disabled people in employment. The Scheme has been providing support for over 30 years. In 2024-2025, 74,190 people received a payment for an Access to Work provision. This is around a 10% increase when compared to 2023/24. Expenditure on Access to Work provision was around £320.7 million. We recognise that Access to Work is providing a poor experience for some applicants with processing delays affecting employees’ ability to start or continue in employment, and employers’ ability to support them. That is why in the Pathways to Work green paper, we consulted on the future of Access to Work and how to improve the scheme so that it helps more disabled people in work. We are reviewing all aspects of Access to Work as we develop plans for reform following the conclusion of the consultation.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking with the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero to identify how the UK can meet the latest World Health Organization air quality guidelines, including reducing PM2.5 to 10 micrograms per cubic metre and NO2 to 20 micrograms per cubic metre by 2030.

The Government has made rapid progress in reducing PM2.5 concentrations and we will be setting new interim targets for 2030 in the forthcoming Environmental Improvement Plan. The World Health Organisation (WHO) air quality guidelines will continue to inform our evidence when considering next steps. The Government continues to work with local authorities to deliver air quality measures to meet legal limits for nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and improve the health of their residents.

What steps his Department is taking to increase the early identification of palliative care needs.

Early identification of someone who has palliative and end of life care needs is vital. There are tools to aid clinicians in identifying those approaching the end of life, for example the Supportive and Palliative Care Indicators Tool and the EARLY toolkit. Further information on the Supportive and Palliative Care Indicators Tool and the EARLY toolkit is available, respectively, at the following two links:https://www.spict.org.uk/the-spict/https://www.england.nhs.uk/north-west/north-west-coast-strategic-clinical-networks/our-networks/palliative-and-end-of-life-care/for-professionals/early-toolkit-for-primary-care/The Government is developing a Palliative Care and End of Life Care Modern Service Framework for England. I refer the Hon. Member to the Written Ministerial Statement HCWS1087, which I gave to the House on 24 November 2025.

What steps his Department are taking to reduce emergency hospital admissions involving people who are in the last 12 months of life.

Our 10-Year Health Plan sets out that community-based advice and support will help more people die in their home, while community teams will work closely with care homes and paramedics to share care plans to avoid people being taken to accident and emergency unless absolutely necessary. Those teams can include hospice outreach staff and palliative care professionals. Additionally, rapid response teams will help symptom management, including pain.The Government is developing a Palliative Care and End of Life Care Modern Service Framework for England. I refer the Hon. Member to the Written Ministerial Statement HCWS1087, which I gave to the House on 24 November 2025. NHS England has published universal principles for advanced care planning (ACP). These principles facilitate a consistent national approach to ACP in England. The principles focus on the importance of providing opportunities for a person and their family or carers to engage in meaningful discussions, led by the person concerned, which consider that person’s priorities and preferences, including the place of care, when they are nearing the end of life. The universal principles for ACP are available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/universal-principles-for-advance-care-planning/

What steps his Department are taking to ensure that England has a palliative care workforce able to cope with increases in demand for end of life care.

The Government is committed to publishing a 10 Year Workforce Plan to set out action to create a workforce ready to deliver the transformed service set out in the 10-Year Health Plan.  The 10 Year 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, including in palliative care and end of life care.The Government is developing a Palliative Care and End of Life Care Modern Service Framework for England. I refer the Hon. Member to the Written Ministerial Statement HCWS1087, which I gave to the House on 24 November 2025.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that her Department meets the latest World Health Organization air quality guidelines, including the interim targets of 20 micrograms per cubic metre for NO2 and 10 micrograms per cubic metre for PM2.5 by 2030.

The Government has made rapid progress in reducing PM2.5 concentrations and we will be setting new interim targets for 2030 in the forthcoming Environmental Improvement Plan. The World Health Organisation (WHO) air quality guidelines will continue to inform our evidence when considering next steps. The Government continues to work with local authorities to deliver air quality measures to meet legal limits for nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and improve the health of their residents.