Written questions by Kearns.

If he will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing controls to prevent the import of products made with Uyghur forced labour.

No company in the UK should have forced labour in its supply chain. The Department for Business and Trade will continue to assess and monitor the effectiveness of the UK's existing measures, alongside the impacts of new policy tools that are emerging, to ensure it can best tackle forced labour in supply chains, and work with businesses and international partners to understand the impact of measures to combat forced labour.

What steps his Department is taking to improve healthcare (a) access and (b) outcomes in rural communities.

The Department has asked distinguished surgeon Professor Lord Darzi to investigate the problems that are affecting the National Health Service. The Government will then begin work on an ambitious programme of action, a 10-year plan to put the NHS back on its feet. That includes the NHS in our rural and coastal areas, as well as the NHS in urban areas.

What steps his Department plans to take to improve mental health provision for farmers.

People across the country are not getting the mental health support they need, which is why the Government will fix the broken system to ensure we give mental health the same attention and focus as physical health. This should help people in rural areas, including farmers, to be confident in accessing high quality mental health support when they need it.

If he will take steps with Cabinet colleagues to help tackle the use of Uyghur forced labour in the supply chains of the solar industry.

No company in the UK should have forced labour in its supply chain. We will be working with colleagues across Government to tackle the issue of Uyghur forced labour in supply chains. We are also relaunching the Solar Taskforce, which will focus on identifying and taking forward the actions needed to develop supply chains that are resilient, sustainable and free from forced labour. This will support the significant increases in deployment of solar panels needed to meet our ambition of tripling the UKs solar power capacity by 2030.

What steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help protect (a) Hong Kongers, (b) Uyghurs and (c) Chinese dissidents who are resident in the UK from transnational repression by the Chinese Communist Party.

The UK does not tolerate attempts by the authorities of Hong Kong or China, or any other country, to intimidate and silence individuals in the UK. We continually assess potential threats in the UK, and take protection of individuals’ rights, freedoms, and safety in the UK very seriously. This involves taking a proactive approach to countering the most acute forms of state-directed threats to individuals.The National Security Act 2023 strengthens our legal powers to counter foreign interference, including those actions which amount to transnational repression, and provides the security services and law enforcement agencies with additional tools to deter, detect, and disrupt modern-day state threats.Anyone who thinks they might be a victim should report incidents or suspicious activity to the Police.

With reference to the Written Statement on Solar and protecting our Food Security and Best and Most Versatile (BMV) Land, published on 15 May 2024, HCWS466, whether it is his policy to retain the guidelines set out in that statement.

The Written Ministerial Statement made in May by the previous government did not change the policy on this matter that is set out in the relevant parts of the National Policy Statement (NPS) for Renewable Energy and the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF). It quoted extracts from that NPS and the NPPF. Decisions on solar that is Nationally Significant Infrastructure will be guided by the NPS in full, noting there are transitional provisions in place as the NPS was only designated this January. The NPPF will continue to be a material consideration for Local Authority planning decisions on solar.

What steps her Department is taking to help improve safety on the A1.

National Highways has completed a number of safety improvements to the A1 near Stamford in recent years, such as resurfacing, associated road markings, and improved lighting and signage. National Highways will undertake further work south of Grantham commencing this autumn.

With reference to paragraph 3.9.92 of the report by the Planning Inspectorate entitled Mallard Pass Solar Farm: Examining Authority’s Report of Findings and Conclusions and Recommendation to the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, published on 16 February 2024, if he will make an assessment of the adequacy of the measures set out in the Mallard Pass Solar Farm Outline Employment, Skills and Supply Chain Plan (Clean) published on 19 September 2023 on the ethical sourcing of solar panels.

The full reasons for the Secretary of State’s planning decision on the Mallard Pass project are set out in the Decision Letter. Given the Secretary of State’s quasi-judicial role in taking such decisions we are not able to give any further information at this stage, in line with the Planning Propriety Guidance on nationally significant infrastructure decisions.

What her planned timetable is for proscribing the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organisation.

The Government will keep the list of proscribed organisations under close review, as we seek to protect the UK from the threats that we face. However, we will not routinely comment on whether an organisation is or is not being considered for proscription.The Government is clear that Iran’s malign activity, including the activities of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), are unacceptable and will not be tolerated in the UK. The UK already maintains sanctions on over 400 Iranian individuals and entities covering human rights abuses and nuclear proliferation, including sanctioning the IRGC in its entirety. The Government will continue to consider what further steps may be taken to deter Iran’s malign activity.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure stability in the Western Balkans.

The stability and security of the Western Balkans is a key priority for the new government. The Prime Minister, Foreign Secretary and I recently met a number of Western Balkans leaders, including at the European Political Community and NATO Summits; discussions included efforts to promote stability, security and prosperity for mutual interests.We are also working with European and US allies to strengthen collective international engagement on the Western Balkans to resolve conflict legacies and risks, promote economic development, tackle organised crime and help to build stable, inclusive and prosperous societies - including through approaches empowering women. We continue to play a key role in KFOR.I recently met the EU Special Representative Miroslav Lajcak to discuss these issues, and welcomed Bosnia and Hercegovina Presidency Chair Becirovic to the FCDO.