Written questions by Morton.

Communities and Local Government, what discussions she has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on plans to reform the Local Government Pension Scheme.

The Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) reforms are taking place as part of the Chancellor’s Pensions Review. As the Ministers responsible for the LGPS in England and Wales, the Deputy Prime Minister and I are working closely with the Minister for Pensions and the Chancellor of the Exchequer on the reforms to the LGPS and our shared priorities in relation to the Pensions Review.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether he plans to provide additional financial support to local authorities to meet the cost of disposing of fly-tipped waste.

Defra has no current plans to provide additional financial support to local authorities to meet the cost of disposing of fly-tipped waste. We are considering how we can support local authorities to tackle fly-tipping in other ways. Indeed, we are seeking powers in the Crime and Policing Bill to provide statutory enforcement guidance to help local authorities run an effective enforcement service which deters people from dumping waste in our communities. Revenue from fixed penalty notices must also be spent on enforcement or cleaning up fly-tipping. The majority of funding in the Local Government Finance Settlement is unringfenced recognising that local leaders are best placed to identify local priorities, such as fly-tipping. Funding announced by the Chancellor at the Autumn Budget and through the 2025-26 Local Government Finance Settlement will provide over £5 billion of new funding for local services over and above local council tax.

Pursuant to the Answer of 11 March 2025 to Question 36079 on Bus Services and Railways: Employers' Contributions, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the planned increase in employer's National Insurance contributions on the (a) operating costs of bus operators and (b) viability of bus routes.

The increase to National Insurance employers’ contributions announced at the Budget is expected to increase bus operator costs, but the Department has made no estimate of the specific costs. We are committed to working with the sector to deliver better bus services for passengers. In the Budget, the government confirmed investment of over £1 billion to support and improve bus services and keep fares affordable. West Midlands Combined Authority has been allocated nearly £50 million of this funding for the 2025 to 2026 financial year to support and improve bus services.

What information her Department holds on the number of children who transferred from private to state schools in the first three months of (a) 2024 and (b) 2025.

Data on pupil numbers in the state-funded and private school sectors is collected in January and published in June each year. This shows how pupil numbers at different types of school have changed over time.In January 2023 there were 591,954 pupils in independent schools. In January 2024, this number had increased by 1,532 to 593,486.This data is published at: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/f3ef2b69-9a02-4040-1972-08dd660c60ce. Pupil numbers for January 2025 will be published in June 2025.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether his department conducted an impact assessment before the decision to close the Sustainable Farming Incentive scheme was made.

We publish regular statistics on Farm Business Income broken down in various ways. Farming evidence packs have been recently updated including key statistics and farm performance. These set out an extensive range of data to provide an overview of agriculture in the UK. We will continue to carry out appropriate and timely assessments of our interventions to inform policy development. On the 11 of March 2025, we published forecasts which suggest that average Farm Business Income has risen in 2024/25 across all farm types with the exception of cereal farms. This follows a fall in income for most farm types in 2023/24, after some exceptional highs in the two preceding years. Across England, 50,000 farm businesses are already in agri-environmental schemes. We will open up initial applications for CS Higher tier and a revised ELM capital grants offer later in the Summer.

Communities and Local Government, what steps she plans to take to ensure that housing developments agreed through the accelerated planning process under the Planning and Infrastructure Bill align with the unique needs of local communities.

The Planning and Infrastructure Bill will improve certainty and decision-making in the planning system, including through introducing a new scheme of delegation to modernise local planning committees, and increasing the capacity of local planning authorities by enabling the cost recovery of planning fees.It is local development plans that set out a vision and a framework for the future development of any given area, addressing needs and opportunities in relation to housing, the economy, community facilities and essential infrastructure – as well as a basis for conserving and enhancing the natural and historic environment, mitigating and adapting to climate change, and achieving well designed places.Local plans are the best way for communities to shape decisions about how to deliver the housing and wider development that their areas need.

What steps her Department is taking to help support state schools with trends in the level of demand for state school places following the application of VAT to private school fees.

As set out in HM Treasury’s tax information and impact note published on GOV.UK, the introduction of VAT is anticipated to have a very limited impact on the number of pupils in state and private schools. The department has not seen any evidence that contradicts the expectations set out in the government’s impact assessment.Ending tax breaks on private schools will help raise around £1.8 billion per year by the 2029/30 financial year for investment in public services, including state-funded education which serves 94% of children. This will help break down barriers to opportunity, ensuring every child has access to high-quality education.​Local authorities are responsible for securing school places for children in their area. Pupil numbers in schools fluctuate for a number of reasons, and the school funding system is already set up to manage that. The department provides capital funding through the basic need grant to support the provision of mainstream school places, based on local authorities’ own pupil forecasts and school capacity data.

What assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the application of VAT on private school fees on the (a) accessibility and (b) quality of state education.

As set out in HM Treasury’s tax information and impact note published on GOV.UK, the introduction of VAT is anticipated to have a very limited impact on the number of pupils in state and private schools. The department has not seen any evidence that contradicts the expectations set out in the government’s impact assessment.Ending tax breaks on private schools will help raise around £1.8 billion per year by the 2029/30 financial year for investment in public services, including state-funded education which serves 94% of children. This will help break down barriers to opportunity, ensuring every child has access to high-quality education.​Local authorities are responsible for securing school places for children in their area. Pupil numbers in schools fluctuate for a number of reasons, and the school funding system is already set up to manage that. The department provides capital funding through the basic need grant to support the provision of mainstream school places, based on local authorities’ own pupil forecasts and school capacity data.

Whether she has allocated funding to support the (a) resettlement and (b) integration of Chagossians in the UK.

The British nationality route for those of Chagossian decent allows individuals to become British citizens and to build their future in the UK, should they wish to, with the full range of rights and entitlements afforded to any other British citizen.The Home Office has made funding available to cover costs incurred by local authorities providing statutory support to newly arrived Chagossian British citizens.

Communities and Local Government, whether she plans to take legislative steps to ensure there is consultation with local communities before any developments are approved on grey belt land.

I refer the right hon. Member to the answers to Question UIN 26011 on 31 January 2025; UIN 26507 on 5 February 2025; and UIN 36395 on 12 March 2025. It is for individual local authorities to plan and make decisions regarding the location and potential impacts of new development in their areas.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of the invasion of Ukraine by Russia on (a) security and (b) regional stability in the western Balkans.

A just and lasting peace is vital for Ukraine and for wider Euro-Atlantic and international security and prosperity. Russia has sought to undermine fragile democracies and fan ethnic tensions across the Western Balkans. This threatens hard-won peace and stability in the region and the ambitions for greater European integration chosen by states. We will continue to counter Russian interference in the region, including through supporting North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) partners, programming on cyber security and counter-disinformation and wider efforts to promote stability and security.

Whether she has considered implementing a phased introduction of planned Inheritance Tax changes for agricultural properties, in the context of support for smaller farms.

The Government set out its policy at Autumn Budget 2024. The Government believes its reforms to agricultural property relief and business property relief from 6 April 2026 get the balance right between supporting farms and businesses, and fixing the public finances. The reforms reduce the inheritance tax advantages available to owners of agricultural and business assets, but still mean those assets will be taxed at a much lower effective rate than most other assets. Despite a tough fiscal context, the Government will maintain very significant levels of relief from inheritance tax beyond what is available to others and compared to the position before 1992. The reforms are expected to result in up to 520 estates claiming agricultural property relief, including those also claiming business property relief, in 2026-27 paying more inheritance tax. Almost three-quarters of estates claiming agricultural property relief, including those that also claim for business property relief, will not pay any more tax as a result of the changes in 2026-27, based on the latest available data.

Communities and Local Government, with reference to the National Planning Policy Framework published in December 2024, whether her Department has conducted an environmental impact assessment on the proposed development of grey belt land.

I refer the right hon. Member to the answers to Question UIN 26011 on 31 January 2025; UIN 26507 on 5 February 2025; and UIN 36395 on 12 March 2025. It is for individual local authorities to plan and make decisions regarding the location and potential impacts of new development in their areas.

What impact assessment she has undertaken on the potential impact of the planned increase in employers' National Insurance contributions on levels of employment.

The Office for Budget Responsibility’s October 2024 Economic and Fiscal Outlook expects that the Employer National Insurance Contributions package will lead to a reduction in the participation rate by 0.1 per cent from 2025-26 onwards. Overall, once the impact of all the Budget measures are taken into consideration, the OBR expect the employment level to increase from 33.1 million in 2024 to 34.3 million in 2029.

Pursuant to the Answer of 4 March 2025 to Question 33030 on Agriculture: Inheritance Tax, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of these reforms on the agricultural equipment and machinery sector.

I refer the Right Honourable Member to the answers given to her previous questions on this same topic in both UIN 16240 and UIN 33030.

Communities and Local Government, with reference to National Planning Policy Framework, published in December 2024, what role will local communities play in the assessment of land designated as grey belt.

I refer the right hon. Member to the answers to Question UIN 26011 on 31 January 2025; UIN 26507 on 5 February 2025; and UIN 36395 on 12 March 2025. It is for individual local authorities to plan and make decisions regarding the location and potential impacts of new development in their areas.

What consultation she has undertaken with agricultural stakeholders on the potential impacts of planned changes to Agricultural Property Relief.

I refer the Right Honourable Member to the answer given to UIN 33134.

Communities and Local Government, with reference to the oral statement by the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Local Growth and Building Safety of 4 March 2025 on Plan for Neighbourhoods, Official Report, columns 210-212, what (a) involvement and (b) engagement the Neighbourhood boards will have with (i) Councillors, (ii) Mayors and (iii) hon. Members.

MPs whose constituencies sit within the boundary of the place must sit on the board. In Scotland and Wales the appropriate constituency MSP or MS should also sit on the board. Councils in Northern Ireland are encouraged to invite the MLAs to the board and should ensure that representation is balanced. In areas where there are 2 tiers of local authorities, there should be one councillor from each tier. In unitary authorities, there should be 2 councillors from the authority. Mayoral representatives may be invited to sit on the board.

What steps his Department is taking to improve educational support and engagement for vulnerable young people at risk of becoming involved in knife crime.

The Home Office has committed to the creation of a new Young Futures Programme, which will establish a network of Young Futures Hubs and Young Futures Prevention Partnerships, to ensure at risk children and young people are supported in a more systematic way. The Government recognises the vital role community voices can play in the effective delivery of crime reduction initiatives.This is why the Prevention Partnership model, and its associated functions will be designed in partnership with the communities it intends to support. As we continue to design the Young Futures Programme, we want to ensure that it learns from and builds on the work of the existing Violence Reduction Units in this regard. In 2025/26 we are investing £49.7m in Violence Reduction Units, including making over £4.3m available to the West Midlands this year, and £14.4m to Serious Violence Duty Partnerships nationally.Violence Reduction Units and Serious Violence Duty partnerships bring together key partners, including the local community, to understand and tackle the drivers of serious violence in their area. As part of the 'whole system' approach to violence prevention, they are required to operate 'with and for' the community. This involves support for community-led and grass-roots organisations to deliver interventions that help to prevent violence, including knife crime.The Prime Minister has also launched a Coalition to tackle the scourge of knife crime. The Coalition brings together key stakeholders, including community leaders, to help the Government develop an extensive understanding of what causes young people to be drawn into violence.

Pursuant to the Answer of 4 March 2025 to Question 33033 on Employers' Contributions: Apprentices, whether the employers' National Insurance contributions relief for under-21s and under-25 apprentices also applies to employed interns.

Employers of interns are eligible for these National Insurance Contributions reliefs provided the interns are either under age 21 with earnings between the Secondary Threshold (ST), currently £175 a week and the Upper Secondary Threshold (UST), currently £967 a week; or are under age 25 with earnings above the ST and not exceeding the Apprentice Upper Secondary Threshold (AUST), currently £967 a week, and on an approved UK Government apprenticeship standard or framework. Full details of the UK Government apprenticeship standard or frameworks which are approved can be found at Paying employer National Insurance contributions for apprentices under 25 - GOV.UK .