Written questions by Pinkerton.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has considered conducting an assessment of the potential impact of proposed Official Development Assistance cuts on children.

The Prime Minister has set out a new strategic vision for government spending on defence and security and Official Development Assistance (ODA). Detailed decisions on how the ODA budget will be used will be worked through as part of the ongoing Spending Review based on various factors including impact assessments.

Communities and Local Government, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of publishing a draft of the revised PAS 9980 code of practice for fire risk appraisals of external walls and cladding.

MHCLG and Home Office have jointly sponsored the British Standards Institution (BSI), who developed and are responsible for the PAS 9980 guidance, to review it to ensure it captures best practice, meets the needs of the market and identify whether any revisions are required. BSI has commenced work on the review and anticipate the review, including a 6-weeks public consultation, will be complete with updated guidance published in early 2026.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of consulting a broad range of stakeholders when revising the PAS 9980 standard.

MHCLG and Home Office have jointly sponsored the British Standards Institution (BSI), who developed and are responsible for the PAS 9980 guidance, to review it to ensure it captures best practice, meets the needs of the market and identify whether any revisions are required. BSI has commenced work on the review and anticipate the review, including a 6-weeks public consultation, will be complete with updated guidance published in early 2026.

What assessment her Department has made of the impact of London-licensed Uber drivers operating in non-metropolitan areas on the viability of independent taxi businesses.

Taxis and private hire vehicles have always been permitted to carry pre-booked fares outside the area in which they are licensed. This allows the sector to work more flexibly to meet the needs of their passengers. The Government however recognises concerns around out-of-area working and is considering options to strengthen the regulation of the sector.

What steps her Department has taken to (a) promote and (b) develop green transport infrastructure such as (i) cycle paths, (ii) electric vehicle charging points and (iii) electric bus routes.

The Department has recently announced nearly £300 million of funding to help local authorities and Sustrans to introduce and improve walking and cycling paths, and to fund promote walking, wheeling and cycling. As of 1 February 2025, the Government and industry have supported the installation of 74,234 publicly available charging devices (including 14,687 rapid charging devices). Since 2021, the Department has awarded over £460m of dedicated funding for zero emission buses and infrastructure in England (outside London). Future funding to support the continued decarbonisation of the bus sector, as well as to support local authorities to deliver important air quality improvements, will be considered as part of the forthcoming Spending Review.

What assessment she has made of the efficiency of response times of Fire and Rescue Services in Surrey Heath constituency.

The Government is committed to ensuring fire services have the resources they need to do their important work and to keep the public safe. In 2024/25, fire and rescue authorities received around £2.87 billion. Standalone Fire and Rescue Authorities (FRA) saw an increase in core spending power of £95.4m during 2024/25.Decisions on how FRA resources, including staff, are best deployed to meet their core functions including crewing and meeting response times, is a matter for each fire and rescue authority, based on risks identified within local Community Risk Management Plans.

What recent assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of Farnborough Airport’s expansion on (a) noise pollution and (b) air pollution in the South-East.

Assessment of the potential impact of Farnborough Airport’s expansion is a matter for Rushmoor Borough Council as local planning authority responsible for considering the airport’s planning application.

What steps her Department has taken to (a) prevent and (b) tackle wildlife crime in Surrey Heath constituency.

Wildlife crime can have devastating consequences for our natural environments and countryside communities. This Government is committed to reducing crime in rural areas and anyone exploiting or deliberately harming British wildlife should face the full force of the law.That is why, along with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, the Home Office directly funds the National Wildlife Crime Unit (NWCU), a specialist police unit, which plays a vital role in providing intelligence, analysis and investigative assistance to the police and other law enforcement agencies across the UK.The NWCU operates nationally; however, its activities include offering specialist support on tackling rural and wildlife crime to local forces, as well as training for frontline police officers.

What assessment he has made of the adequacy of his Department's (a) support for and (b) treatment of ADHD in Surrey Heath constituency.

It is the responsibility of the integrated care boards (ICBs) in England to make appropriate provision to meet the health and care needs of their local population, including attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) assessments, in line with the relevant National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines.The Department is supporting a taskforce that NHS England has established to look at ADHD service provision and its impact on patient experience. The taskforce is bringing together expertise from across a broad range of sectors, including the National Health Service, education, and justice, to better understand the challenges affecting people with ADHD, including timely access to services and support.In conjunction with the taskforce, NHS England has carried out detailed work to develop a data improvement plan, understand the provider and commissioning landscapes, and capture examples from ICBs who are trialling innovative ways of delivering ADHD services.

Media and Sport, what steps his Department has taken to support the (a) upkeep and (b) preservation of culturally significant buildings in the Surrey Heath constituency.

The government believes that a fit-for-purpose cultural infrastructure, which increases access for all, is part of this sector's success.At the Autumn Spending Review government prioritised support for our cultural institutions so that they can continue to be world-leading. This settlement includes investment of over £270 million through the Arts Everywhere Fund for arts venues, museums, libraries and the heritage sector to boost growth and cement Britain’s place as a cultural powerhouse. £85 million will be available through the Creative Foundations Fund, which will support urgent capital works to keep cultural venues across the country up and running.In addition, DCMS and the Department’s Arm’s-Length Bodies provide a range of financial support for culturally significant buildings. These include the Theatres Trust, who provide small grants to theatres for building work; the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme; the National Lottery Heritage Fund, who have committed to investing around £100m between 2023 and 2026 to support places of worship; the Churches Conservation Trust, which funds repairs and maintenance of over 350 churches in the CCT portfolio; and Historic England's Heritage At Risk grants, funding £9 million worth of repairs to buildings on Historic England’s Heritage at Risk register between April 2024 and March 2025.All that being said, there has been no MEND or ACE Capital funding in Surrey Heath constituency in the last five years.

What steps he has taken to reduce waiting times for ADHD assessments in Surrey Heath constituency.

It is the responsibility of the integrated care boards (ICBs) in England to make appropriate provision to meet the health and care needs of their local population, including attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) assessments, in line with the relevant National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines.The Department is supporting a taskforce that NHS England has established to look at ADHD service provision and its impact on patient experience. The taskforce is bringing together expertise from across a broad range of sectors, including the National Health Service, education, and justice, to better understand the challenges affecting people with ADHD, including timely access to services and support.In conjunction with the taskforce, NHS England has carried out detailed work to develop a data improvement plan, understand the provider and commissioning landscapes, and capture examples from ICBs who are trialling innovative ways of delivering ADHD services.

What assessment he has made of the adequacy of his Department's (a) support for and (b) treatment of people with postural tachycardia syndrome in Surrey Heath constituency.

Improving health outcomes for people who live with long-term conditions, including postural tachycardia syndrome, is a key part of the Government's mission to build a National Health Service fit for the future. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) publishes guidance on the diagnosis and treatment of long-term conditions for use by healthcare professionals and commissioners. The NICE has produced a clinical knowledge summary on the clinical management of blackouts and syncope, which sets out how clinicians should assess and diagnose postural tachycardia syndrome. This was last updated in November 2023, and is available at the following link: https://cks.nice.org.uk/topics/blackouts-syncope/diagnosis/assessment/. Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for commissioning services that meet the needs of their population, and the Government expects ICBs to take account of NICE guidelines and other best practice when designing their local services.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of integrating carbon monoxide risks into country-based travel advisories.

We are now adding information to our dedicated page for independent travellers to highlight the risks of carbon monoxide poisoning globally. We will continue to include information about carbon monoxide in specific country travel advice where there is evidence of significant and enduring risk to British people. Currently that is China and Nepal. We keep this under regular review.

What assessment he has made of the adequacy of support available for people impacted by (a) pelvic mesh and (b) sodium valproate in Surrey.

Our sympathies remain with those affected by sodium valproate and pelvic mesh.There are nine specialist mesh centres across England, to ensure that women in every region with complications of mesh inserted for urinary incontinence and vaginal prolapse get the right support. Each mesh centre is led by a multi-disciplinary team to ensure patients get access to the specialist care and treatment that they need, including pain management and psychological support. In the South East region, the mesh centre is located at University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust; however patients can ask to be referred to any of the nine mesh centres.Significant action has been taken to strengthen oversight of valproate prescribing. Valproate must now not be started in new patients, male or female, younger than 55 years old unless two specialists independently consider and document that there is no other effective or tolerated treatment, or there are compelling reasons that the reproductive risks do not apply.The Government is carefully considering the work done by the Patient Safety Commissioner and the resulting Hughes Report. The report sets out options for redress for those harmed by sodium valproate and pelvic mesh. The Government will be providing an update to the Patient Safety Commissioner’s Report at the earliest opportunity.

Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that people affected by the proposed changes in the English Devolution White Paper, published on 16 December 2024, are consulted on the proposed implementation of unitary authorities.

We expect local leaders to engage their Members of Parliament, and to ensure there is wide engagement with local partners and stakeholders, residents, workforce and their representatives, and businesses in working up their proposals. The engagement that is undertaken should both inform the development of robust proposals and should also build a shared understanding of the improvements you expect to deliver through reorganisation. The views of other public sector providers will be crucial to understanding the best way to structure local government in an area. This will include the relevant Mayor, Integrated Care Board, Police (Fire) and Crime Commissioner, Fire and Rescue Authority, local Higher Education and Further Education providers, National Park Authorities, and the voluntary and third sector. Once a proposal has been submitted it will be for the Government to decide on taking a proposal forward and to consult as required by statute.

What steps she is taking to support Surrey residents affected by the delayed roadworks at Junction 10 on the M25 motorway.

The Department understands the concerns residents may have due to the delays of the M25 Junction 10. National Highways is focused on completing these works as soon as possible and will do everything possible to keep disruption to a minimum. The A245 is a key east-west route in Surrey, carrying heavy traffic between the A3/M25, Cobham, and key locations such as Feltonfleet school. Any work on this route is inherently disruptive, but efforts have been made to reduce the impact. National Highways has reduced the number of weekend closures, cutting the original 16 full weekend closures for the M25 and A3 down to five for the M25 and four for the A3, avoiding seven closures in total. This approach helps to minimise overall network disruption. Additionally, overnight working and close traffic monitoring are in place to reduce congestion and swiftly address any incidents. Where traffic management is necessary, National Highways uses extensive CCTV monitoring to swiftly address incidents. National Highways remains committed to ongoing engagement with key stakeholders and will continue to share plans for the remaining works.

What funding his Department is making into new treatment research and innovation for low grade brain treatments.

The Department recognises that brain cancer patients are often waiting too long for diagnosis. We are determined to change that, which is why we are developing a National Cancer Plan which will seek to improve every aspect of cancer care and the experience and outcomes for people with cancer, including brain cancer. Although low-grade brain tumours are non-cancerous, they can have similar, serious symptoms and require surgery or radiotherapy to treat them. The Department welcomes submissions on brain tumours to the new online platform, Shaping the national cancer plan. Further information is available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/calls-for-evidence/shaping-the-national-cancer-planIn the five years between 2018/19 and 2022/23, the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) directly invested £11.3 million in research projects and programmes focused on brain tumours, including low grade brain tumours.  In addition, our wider investments in NIHR research infrastructure, which includes facilities, services, and the research workforce, are estimated to be £31.5 million, between 2018/19 and 2022/23, and have enabled 227 brain cancer research studies to take place in the same period. In total, NIHR investments have enabled 8,500 people to participate in potentially life-changing research in the National Health Service over this time.In September 2024, the NIHR announced new research funding opportunities for brain cancer research, spanning both adult and paediatric populations. This includes a national NIHR Brain Tumour Research Consortium, to ensure that the most promising research opportunities are made available to adult and child patients, and a new funding call to generate high quality evidence in brain tumour care, support, and rehabilitation.The NIHR welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including low grade brain tumours. Applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money, and scientific quality.

Communities and Local Government, what estimate she has made of the number of EWS1 forms issued by Tri Fire Ltd since the introduction of the assessment process.

10 mortgage lenders have signed a statement confirming they will lend on buildings before they have been remediated. We expect these lenders to honour this statement and not require an EWS1. The statement can be found here.Where a lender is not accepting an EWS1 for a building, leaseholders should provide alternative evidence, for example a letter from the department or the developer, to a mortgage lender that: their building is in the Cladding Safety Scheme, Building Safety Fund or covered by a developer that has signed the Developer Remediation Contract. They can also complete a Leaseholder Deed of Certificate to evidence they qualify for the leaseholder protections in the Building Safety Act. More information for leaseholders on completing a Leaseholder of Certificate can be found hereEWS1s (External Wall System Fire Review) are not a legal or regulatory requirement and as such we do not collect information on the number of EWS1 forms issued by individual firms. EWS1s are not used in the consideration of applications for government funded cladding remediation schemes.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment has she made of the potential impact of the construction of housing developments on infrastructure in Surrey Heath constituency.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 26106 on 5 February 2025.

What assessment she has made of the effectiveness of dispersal orders to reduce (a) theft and (b) anti-social behaviour in market towns in Surrey.

Engagement with policing partners suggests that police consider dispersal orders straightforward to use and effective in the short-term.Through the Crime and Policing Bill, we will be legislating to extend dispersal orders from 48 to 72 hours, making them more effective.Additionally, to tackle persistent adult ASB offenders, the Crime and Policing Bill has also introduced Respect Orders. Breach of a Respect Order will be a criminal offence and courts will have a wider range of sentencing options, including community orders, unlimited fines and, for the most severe cases, up to two years’ imprisonment.