Written questions by Bailey.

What assessment she has made of the need for improvements to the Strategic Road Network to be included within the scope of the forthcoming 10 Year Infrastructure Strategy.

The 10 Year Infrastructure Strategy will set out the Government’s approach to core economic and social infrastructure, including transport. The Department recognises the Strategic Road Network (SRN) as a critical component of the UK’s transport infrastructure, supporting economic growth, connectivity, and the movement of people and goods across the country. In collaboration with National Highways, the Department undertakes regular assessments of the SRN to identify priorities for investment and improvement through the preparation of road investment strategies. The third Road Investment Strategy (RIS3), starting in April 2026, is currently in development. Decisions on longer-term funding for the SRN will be made through the Spending Review 2025. However, the Government has already committed £4.842 billion for the SRN in 2025/26. The Interim Settlement, published in March 2025, details how this funding will be allocated, including priorities for maintenance, operations, and enhancements.

With reference to the National Infrastructure Commission’s 2024 Cost Drivers report, published in October 2024, what steps she is taking to tackle the cost drivers for major UK infrastructure projects.

The Government will publish a Ten-year Infrastructure Strategy this summer, alongside the Spending Review, to outline the approach it is taking to improve the delivery of economic infrastructure, such as transport. The strategy aims to address the root causes of many of the cost drivers of major projects identified by the National Infrastructure Commission (NIC) in 2024. The strategy also includes plans for housing and social infrastructure, such as hospitals.My department also has a rolling programme of project delivery change activity to improve project delivery outcomes over time. This includes established learning and development pathways, with all Senior Responsible Officers of our Major Projects Portfolio required to complete the Major Projects Leadership Academy.Significant progress has also been made improving the governance of our portfolio of projects with the introduction of “IPDC (the Department’s senior investment committee) in Portfolio Mode”, and new arrangements to manage portfolio-level risks with our delivery partners, including National Highways, Network Rail, and HS2 Ltd.

With reference to her Department's White Paper entitled Restoring control over the immigration system, published on 12 May 2025, which visa schemes the points-based system would apply to; and whether it would apply retrospectively to existing visa holders.

We will be consulting on the earned settlement scheme later this year and further details on the proposed scheme will be provided at that time.

With reference to her Department's White Paper entitled Restoring control over the immigration system, published on 12 May 2025, whether the proposals will apply to British National (Overseas) visa holders; and whether provisions will be introduced to allow access for British National (Overseas) visa holders to local university tuition fee rates before settlement is achieved.

The Government is committed to supporting members of the Hong Kong community who have relocated to the UK and those who may come here in future.Further details of all measures announced in the Immigration White Paper will be set out in the normal way in due course, and where necessary, will be subject to consultation.

With reference to her Department's White Paper entitled Restoring control over the immigration system, published on 12 May 2025, whether the reforms will apply retrospectively to current visa holders; and whether (a) transitional arrangements and (b) specific exemptions will be considered for people currently on the five-year residency pathway.

We will be consulting on the earned settlement scheme later this year and further details on the proposed scheme will be provided at that time.

With reference to her Department's White Paper entitled Restoring control over the immigration system published on 12 May 2025, in relation to which visa routes she is considering an increase in the standard qualifying period for settlement from 5 to 10 years.

We will be consulting on the earned settlement scheme later this year and further details on the proposed scheme will be provided at the time.

By how much has the level of funding for the Access to Work scheme changed in the last 12 months.

Access to Work expenditure data is published in the annual Access to Work Official Statistics publication. The most recently available data available is for the financial year 2023/24: Access to Work statistics: April 2007 to March 2024 - GOV.UK. The Department intends to publish expenditure data for the financial year 2024/25 in the next official statistics release which we expect to publish in September or October 2025. Forecast expenditure for this period, which includes some outturn data, is published in the Benefit Expenditure and Caseload Tables 2025: Benefit expenditure and caseload tables 2025 - GOV.UK

What consultation her Department has conducted with (a) users, (b) support workers and (c) deliverers of Access to Work before implementing changes to the operational delivery of Access to Work.

Since the beginning of this Parliament the Department for Work and Pensions has taken steps to improve operational guidance and process to ensure Access to Work grants are awarded consistently and as quickly as possible. No significant changes have been made which would entail a consultation or impact assessment. As part of our Plan for Change, and as set out in the Pathways to Work Green Paper published in March, we are consulting on the future of Access to Work and how to improve the programme to help more disabled people into work and support employers, ensuring value for money for taxpayers. We will review all aspects of the Scheme following the conclusion of the consultation and carefully assess the impact of any proposed changes. We encourage people to have their views and voices heard on how they think the programme and the welfare system could be improved.

What (a) equality and (b) human rights impact assessments have been conducted on the proposed changes to the operational delivery of Access to Work.

Since the beginning of this Parliament the Department for Work and Pensions has taken steps to improve operational guidance and process to ensure Access to Work grants are awarded consistently and as quickly as possible. No significant changes have been made which would entail a consultation or impact assessment. As part of our Plan for Change, and as set out in the Pathways to Work Green Paper published in March, we are consulting on the future of Access to Work and how to improve the programme to help more disabled people into work and support employers, ensuring value for money for taxpayers. We will review all aspects of the Scheme following the conclusion of the consultation and carefully assess the impact of any proposed changes. We encourage people to have their views and voices heard on how they think the programme and the welfare system could be improved.

What steps she has taken to reduce wait times for Access to Work support.

We are committed to reducing waiting times for Access to Work and are considering the best way to deliver that for customers. Delivery practices have been streamlined, and the number of staff processing claims increased. Since May 2024, 118 additional staff have been redeployed to support Access to Work. We prioritise applications from customers due to start a role within four weeks. In March 2025, the department published the Pathways to Work Green Paper, to consult on the future of Access to Work. We will review all aspects of the Scheme following the conclusion of the consultation.

What recent assessment has been made of the (a) Equality Impact and (b) Human Rights Impact of the No Recourse to Public Funds condition on people following the 10-year settlement route.

The Home Office keeps all aspects of the immigration system under regular review, in consultation with a wide range of experts and stakeholders.

With reference to the changes to “Good Character” guidance for UK citizenship applications made on 10 February 2025, what estimate she has made of the number of (a) parents and (b) guardians of UK-born children will have citizenship entitlements different from their (i) children and (ii) wards.

The requested data is not held by the Home Office.

With reference to her Department's white paper entitled Restoring control over the immigration system, published on 12 May 2025, how her Department defines a contribution for the purpose of considering a persons contribution to society and the economy; how this will be measured; and whether the measurements will be conducted in house by her Department.

We will be consulting on the earned settlement scheme later this year and further details on the proposed scheme will be provided at the time.

Whether (a) an Equality Impact Assessment and (b) a Human Rights Impact Assessment have been made of the impact of changes made on 10 February 2025 to “Good Character” guidance in relation to UK citizenship applications on long-term UK residents and their UK-based family members.

The requested data is not held by the Home Office.

With reference to her Department's White Paper entitled Restoring control over the immigration system, published on 12 May 2025, whether the proposals will apply retrospectively to people already on five or 10 year routes to settlement.

We will be consulting on the earned settlement scheme later this year and further details on the proposed scheme will be provided at the time.

With reference to her Department's white paper entitled Restoring control over the immigration system published 12 May 2025, in relation to which visa routes she is considering increasing the level of English language required from B1 to B2 under the Common European Framework for Reference for Languages.

The White Paper states our intention to increase language requirements for Skilled Workers and workers where a language requirement already applies from B1 to B2 levels.

Whether (a) an Equality Impact Assessment and (b) a Human Rights Impact Assessment have recently been made in relation to the 10-year immigration pathway to settlement.

We will be consulting on the earned settlement scheme later this year and further details on the proposed scheme will be provided at the time.

If he will make it his policy to ensure that the release of Alaa Abd el-Fattah is included in any trade agreement with Egypt.

The Government is committed to securing Mr El-Fattah’s release, and we continue to raise his case at the highest levels of the Egyptian government. The Prime Minister raised the case in a letter to President Sisi on 4 May. The National Security Adviser also raised Mr-El Fattah’s case with the Egyptian Foreign Minister Abdelatty on 27 April and the Foreign Secretary raised with Foreign Minister Abdelatty on 9 April.Our strong bilateral relationship with Egypt enables us to raise our human rights concerns. We will continue to act in standing up for human rights around the world, providing support to open societies and drawing on our full range of tools and levers, including our independent global human rights sanctions regime to hold to account those involved in serious human rights violations and abuses. HM Government continues, in London and through British Embassies worldwide, to discuss and advocate for human rights.

Whether the Minister for Trade Policy and Economic Security has had discussions with his Egyptian counterpart on the detention of Alaa Abd el-Fattah.

The Government is committed to securing Mr El-Fattah’s release, and we continue to raise his case at the highest levels of the Egyptian government. The Prime Minister raised the case in a letter to President Sisi on 4 May. The National Security Adviser also raised Mr-El Fattah’s case with the Egyptian Foreign Minister Abdelatty on 27 April and the Foreign Secretary raised with Foreign Minister Abdelatty on 9 April.Our strong bilateral relationship with Egypt enables us to raise our human rights concerns. We will continue to act in standing up for human rights around the world, providing support to open societies and drawing on our full range of tools and levers, including our independent global human rights sanctions regime to hold to account those involved in serious human rights violations and abuses. HM Government continues, in London and through British Embassies worldwide, to discuss and advocate for human rights.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of the medical care offered to detained British national Alaa Abd el-Fattah in Egypt.

We consistently raise Mr El-Fattah's case at the highest levels of the Egyptian Government and lobby extensively for consular access. However, the Egyptian Government does not recognise his British nationality. Consular officials are in regular contact with Mr El-Fattah's family, who continue to provide regular updates with regards to his health and welfare. The Prime Minister raised the case with President Sisi on 22 May. The Foreign Secretary raised the case with Foreign Minister Abdelatty on 1 June. I discussed the case with the Egyptian Ambassador to the UK on 31 May. The UK Government is committed to securing Mr El-Fattah's release.