Written questions by Morton.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of a (a) national debate and (b) action plan on fly-tipping.

This Government has not made an assessment of the potential merits of a national debate or action plan on fly-tipping. We are committed to forcing fly-tippers to clean up the mess that they have created as part of a crackdown on anti-social behaviour. We will provide further details on this commitment in due course. We encourage councils to make good use of their enforcement powers, which include fixed penalty notices of up to £1000, seizing vehicles and prosecution, and we are taking steps to develop statutory fly-tipping enforcement guidance to support local authorities to consistently and effectively exercise these powers. We have also announced a review of council powers to seize and crush vehicles of suspected fly-tippers, to identify how we could help councils make better use of this tool.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of introducing a national litter awareness course.

This Government has not made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a national litter awareness course. Local councils have a range of enforcement powers to tackle littering, including civil penalties of up to £500 that can be issued to the keeper of a vehicle from which litter is thrown. Guidance for councils on littering enforcement explains that they are expected to combine enforcement with education in order to change behaviour.

What steps he has taken to ensure employers are aware of the available National Insurance relief when hiring apprentices under the age of 25.

HMRC maintains comprehensive Gov.uk guidance to help employers understand the Class 1 NICs relief for apprentices under the age of 25, which has been in place since 2016. It can be found here: Paying employer National Insurance contributions for apprentices under 25 - GOV.UK. Beyond the NICs relief, the Government is committed to supporting apprenticeships as a key component of its growth mission to achieve growth. The Autumn Budget provided £40 million to help to deliver new foundation and shorter apprenticeships in key sectors.

Whether the West Midlands Police’s per capita increase in neighbourhood officers for 2025/26 ranks (a) above or (b) below the national average.

The Government has provided £200 million for 2025/26 to kickstart the recruitment of 13,000 additional neighbourhood police officers and PCSOs by the end of the Parliament. Force-level allocations have been determined using the Police Funding Formula.The approach in 2025/26 is designed to deliver an initial increase to the neighbourhood policing workforce in a manner that is flexible and can be adapted to the local context and varied crime demands. This means the precise workforce mix in the first year of the programme is a local decision.All 43 forces submitted delivery plans in line with their force level allocations outlining projected increase in neighbourhood officers for year one of the four-year programme. All forces’ plans are therefore informed by a force-level understanding of what can be achieved.The specific grant allocations and projections are available for each force on gov.uk through the following link: Neighbourhood policing grant allocations and projections: 2025 to 2026 - GOV.UK .The local force baseline that growth must be achieved from has been set at 31st March 2025. Forces have developed delivery plans to benefit their neighbourhood policing teams in 25/26. The details of West Midlands Police allocations can be found on gov.uk on the link shared above.To ensure that funding effectively contributes to neighbourhood policing aims and is limited to expenditure that is critical for the programme, funding must be used for personnel in roles that fulfil neighbourhood policing functions (defined by CIPFA Category 1A) and items that directly support them in their roles.

What estimate her Department has made of the per capita increase in neighbourhood policing across different police force areas; and if she will publish that data.

The Government has provided £200 million for 2025/26 to kickstart the recruitment of 13,000 additional neighbourhood police officers and PCSOs by the end of the Parliament. Force-level allocations have been determined using the Police Funding Formula.The approach in 2025/26 is designed to deliver an initial increase to the neighbourhood policing workforce in a manner that is flexible and can be adapted to the local context and varied crime demands. This means the precise workforce mix in the first year of the programme is a local decision.All 43 forces submitted delivery plans in line with their force level allocations outlining projected increase in neighbourhood officers for year one of the four-year programme. All forces’ plans are therefore informed by a force-level understanding of what can be achieved.The specific grant allocations and projections are available for each force on gov.uk through the following link: Neighbourhood policing grant allocations and projections: 2025 to 2026 - GOV.UK .The local force baseline that growth must be achieved from has been set at 31st March 2025. Forces have developed delivery plans to benefit their neighbourhood policing teams in 25/26. The details of West Midlands Police allocations can be found on gov.uk on the link shared above.To ensure that funding effectively contributes to neighbourhood policing aims and is limited to expenditure that is critical for the programme, funding must be used for personnel in roles that fulfil neighbourhood policing functions (defined by CIPFA Category 1A) and items that directly support them in their roles.

What assessment she has made of the challenges faced by the Ukrainian community in securing employment opportunities as a result of their immigration status.

The Home Office will continue engaging with our stakeholders and partners to ensure employers are fully informed and can continue to support Ukrainians. We have also updated the online guidance for employers with details of the Ukraine Permission Extension (UPE) Scheme, which is available on Gov.uk.UPE provides the same rights and entitlements to access work as well as benefits, healthcare and education as the current Ukraine schemes. Where an in-time UPE application is made and the application is not decided before the person’s existing leave expires, section 3C of the Immigration Act 1971 extends the person’s existing leave, together with any existing rights (including a right to work), until the application has been determined.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of increasing penalties for fly-tipping.

We have committed to forcing fly-tippers to clean up the mess they have created. This will build on the sanctions already available which include fixed penalty notices of up to £1000, seizing and crushing of vehicles and prosecution which can lead to a significant fine, a community sentence or even imprisonment. There are no plans to increase the fixed penalty levels at this time. The Defra chaired National Fly-tipping Prevention Group has produced a guide on how local authorities, and others, can present robust cases to court. This is available at https://www.keepbritaintidy.org/national-fly-tipping-prevention-group. We encourage councils to make good use of their enforcement powers, and we are currently seeking powers to provide statutory guidance on fly-tipping enforcement. We have also announced a review of council powers to seize and crush the vehicles of suspected fly-tippers, to identify how we could help councils make better use of this tool.

Innovation and Technology, what assessment he has made of the potential benefits for businesses in Aldridge-Brownhills constituency of the £10m grant issued to the West Midlands Innovation Accelerator this year.

We were delighted to extend the Innovation Accelerator pilot into 2025/26, investing an extra £30 million in growing high-potential clusters in the West Midlands, Glasgow City Region and Greater Manchester.The West Midlands Innovation Accelerators is supporting a range of projects focused on business innovation. For example, Midlands Health Tech Innovation Accelerator is helping companies navigate “pinch-points” in the medical translation process, and Clean Futures is supporting SMEs to develop, demonstrate and grow clean-tech solutions in partnership with the wider ecosystem.Innovate UK will continue to work collaboratively with each regional partnership to maximise the impact on their regions.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of a fourth round of grants under the fly-tipping grant scheme.

This Government has not made an assessment of the potential merits of a fourth round of grants. The Government is making available £69 billion to council budgets across England – a 6.8% cash terms increase, to help fund key responsibilities like tackling fly-tipping. We will continue to work with the National Fly-tipping Prevention Group to highlight and share best practice with regards to tackling fly-tipping. Various practical tools, including case studies from previous grants, are available from their website https://www.keepbritaintidy.org/national-fly-tipping-prevention-group#.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 7 April 2025 to Question 42592 on Councillors: Planning, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of councillors on the planning process.

The Planning and Infrastructure Bill includes a regulation-making power to issue statutory guidance on a national scheme of delegation.The government intend to formally consult on proposals relating to the delegation of planning decisions in England alongside the Bill’s passage.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he plans to reduce in-donor refugee costs to meet Official Development Assistance budget allocations for (a) 2026-27 and (b) 2027-28.

The Government is committed to ensuring that asylum costs fall and has already acted. The Government has taken measures to reduce the asylum backlog, reform the asylum accommodation system to help end the use of expensive accommodation in the next Spending Review (SR) period and increase detention capacity to facilitate more asylum removals. Whilst there will always be volatility in asylum forecasts, we expect these decisions to drive down overall in-donor refugee costs over the next multi-year SR (2026/27- 2028/2029).Departmental Official Development Assistance allocations will be confirmed at the next Spending Review.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what proportion of Official Development Assistance spending will be on domestic (a) administrative and (b) staffing costs in 2025-26.

The Department estimates that the proportion of Official Development Assistance spending on domestic (a) administrative and (b) staffing costs in 2025-26 will be approximately 3 per cent and 1 per cent respectively. The staffing costs are part of the total administrative costs. These figures are indicative estimates only.

What steps he is taking to ensure the UK’s health security against (a) malaria, (b) tuberculosis and (c) HIV/AIDS.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) holds data on all malaria cases diagnosed in the United Kingdom by the Malaria Reference Laboratory (MRL) and Public Health Scotland. The MRL’s extensive service to users in the UK includes: malaria diagnosis; epidemiological data; prophylaxis advice to health professionals; and technical advice on methodology and laboratory procedures. Almost all malaria cases diagnosed in the UK are associated with recent travel to an endemic area, and the UKHSA is working with the African Diaspora Malaria Initiative to reduce the burden of malaria in particularly affected groups. Where cases are identified as having no recent travel history, a full investigation is undertaken by the UKHSA. A standard approach to managing these cases is under development.Information regarding malaria cases diagnosed in the UK is published on GOV.UK website, with annual reports and statistics on malaria imported to the UK available, respectively, at the following two links:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/malaria-in-the-uk-annual-reporthttps://www.gov.uk/government/publications/imported-malaria-in-the-uk-statisticsThe UKHSA and NHS England’s joint tuberculosis (TB) action plan for England details actions to achieve a 90% reduction in people with TB by 2035, aligned with World Health Organization elimination targets. The plan is available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/tuberculosis-tb-action-plan-for-england/tuberculosis-tb-action-plan-for-england-2021-to-2026#priority-2-prevent-tb.The UK pre-entry TB screening programme operates in 102 countries, to reduce the importation of TB by screening applicants for long term visas from high TB incidence countries. People are screened in line with the UK Tuberculosis Technical Instructions, which are available at the following link:https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5cd18ae5e5274a34ee7f0275/UK_tuberculosis_technical_instructions_version_7.pdfActive TB can be prevented by identifying, testing, and treating people with TB infection. People who are close contacts of individuals with infectious TB are also tested for infection, so they can be treated before the disease develops.The NHS England national latent TB testing programme for migrants from high incidence countries operates in 27 of the 42 integrated care board areas in England.In March 2025, NHS England and The Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital published a Getting it Right First Time review of TB services, which included a series of recommendations to reduce unwarranted variation in clinical practice and improve care, especially to underserved populations. The report is available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/girft-review-of-tuberculosis-national-report.pdfThe UKHSA, in collaboration with key stakeholders, is leading work to develop a new national action plan for 2026 to 2031, including a call for evidence.The Government is committed to ending new transmissions of HIV in England by 2030. The Department, the UKHSA, NHS England, and partners are developing the new HIV Action Plan for England, which we aim to publish this year.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department plans to take to help support Gavi between 2026 and 2030.

The UK is one of the largest donors to Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance. We have committed £1.65 billion to the current strategic period covering 2021-2025. Following the decision to reduce UK Official Development Assistance (ODA) from 0.5% of GNI to 0.3% by 2027, we are taking a rigorous approach to ensure all ODA delivers value for money and assessing how the UK can have the greatest impact with our health investments. Announcements on individual investments will be made following the completion of the Spending Review process.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he will take to ensure UK (a) health and (b) health security is not adversely impacted by changes to (i) Official Development Assistance and (ii) the global health budget.

Decisions on how the Official Development Assistance (ODA) budget will be used are being worked through as part of the ongoing Spending Review, based on various factors including impact assessments. We plan to publish final 2025/26 ODA programme allocations in the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office Annual Report & Accounts this summer.We continue to work across Government to strengthen global health security and to protect the health of our people in the UK. The UK's role in helping secure agreement to a Pandemic Accord at the World Health Organization last month is a good example of that collective effort.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department undertakes Child's Rights impact assessments during the development of international development policies.

As a ratifier of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, the UK is committed to safeguarding and promoting the rights and wellbeing of children. The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) does not undertake mandatory Child Rights Impact Assessments, but it is FCDO policy to consider the Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED), which includes age, and Safeguarding responsibilities across our policies and investments.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 8 April 2025 to Question 39011 on Sudan: Development Aid, how much has been allocated for the 2025-26 financial year.

I refer the Hon. Member to the answer given to their previous Question, 47226.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to paragraph 2.13 of the Spring Statement 2025, published in March 2025, what (a) plans he has to share progress on working with (i) the financial sector and (ii) international partners to mobilise private capital for international development and (b) benchmarks are in place to assess progress.

To strengthen links with the financial sector, the Minister of State for International Development and the Economic Secretary to the Treasury will convene an industry led Emerging Markets and Developing Economies taskforce following an industry report "The UK as a climate finance hub" to increase UK private investment for climate and development. British International Investment - the UK's Development Finance Institution (DFI) - is working with institutional investors to develop solutions through a new Mobilisation Facility [announced in September 2024]. We are also working with international partners, including the G7, G20, and through our shareholdings in the Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs), to reform the global financial system to unlock more finance, including through their private sector arms. We will also be reporting on our financial commitments to the Partnerships for Global Infrastructure and Investment initiative at the G7 Summit in June. To assess progress, we are working closely with the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and MDBs/DFIs to report on private capital mobilisation, and through our business plan and programme annual reviews we monitor a number of outcome indicators - they can be found on Development Tracker.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of changes to levels of Official Development Assistance on the number of women and girls using modern methods of family planning in recipient countries.

The UK's commitment to defending and promoting Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights (SRHR), including family planning, uses multiple levers: working to influence policy, through health and development diplomacy, as well as using our Official Development Assistance (ODA) budget, to advance SRHR for all.We plan to publish final 2025/26 ODA programme allocations in the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office Annual Report & Accounts this summer. Decisions on how the ODA budget will be used from 2026/27 onwards will be worked through as part of the ongoing Spending Review, based on various factors including impact assessments. The UK is committed to empowering women and girls around the world through our international work.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of protecting funding for global health multilaterals, in the context of changes to levels of Official Development Assistance funding.

The UK is one of the largest donors to global health multilaterals delivering significant impact. Our £1.65bn funding to Gavi, the Vaccine Allice (2021-2025) is supporting the vaccination of 300 million children and our £1bn funding to the Global Fund for Aids, Tuberculosis and Malaria (2023 - 2025) is expected to save 1.276 million lives and avert 28.25 million new infections. UK support to the World Health Organization, will enable WHO to prioritise activities that will help save over 40 million lives, improve the health of over 6 billion people, and protect an additional 7 billion people from health emergencies. This investment, alongside other international partners' support, will enable the WHO to prioritise activities that will help save over 40 million lives, improve the health of over 6 billion people, and protect an additional 7 billion people from health emergencies. Following the decision to reduce UK Official Development Assistance (ODA) from 0.5 per cent of GNI to 0.3 per cent by 2027 we are taking a rigorous approach to ensure all ODA delivers value for money. Announcements on individual investments will be made following the completion of the Spending Review process.