Written questions by Rosindell.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of maritime safety, search and rescue capability, and maritime security resources available to the British Overseas Territory of Montserrat; and if she will take steps to ensure that the territory retains an appropriately equipped maritime patrol and rescue vessel in order to meet the UK’s constitutional responsibilities for the security and good governance of the territory and its obligations under international law, including the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and the International Convention on Maritime Search and Rescue, to protect life at sea.

Since 2016 the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) has established a programme of activities to improve Montserrat's capacity to meet its international maritime safety and search and rescue (SAR) obligations. Montserrat has three UK-funded multipurpose vessels including two new fast police patrol boats provided by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office which improve the Royal Montserrat Police Service's capability to respond to maritime threats more efficiently and effectively, as well as fulfilling international obligations in relation to search and rescue.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether there is a limit to the Official Development Assistance available to Montserrat.

The UK remains committed to meeting the reasonable needs of the Overseas Territories (OTs) where financial self-sufficiency is not possible. As such, the OTs continue to have the first call on Official Development Assistance to facilitate sustainable economic growth and development.We have recently informed Montserrat of their new allocation, and I held a positive and constructive call with Premier Meade on 25 March.

Whether Air Safety Support International (ASSI) conducted a formal engine-out take-off performance and obstacle-clearance analysis for departures from John A. Osborne Airport, Montserrat, using a DHC-6 Twin Otter.

It is the responsibility of the individual aircraft operator, in accordance with their operational requirements and based upon the certified performance data, to ensure that the aircraft meet the international aircraft performance standards.ASSI has undertaken specific aircraft performance calculations for the DHC-6 Twin Otter, associated with engine-out take-off performance (accelerate stop distance), using approved aircraft manufacturers performance data, to review third party operations from John A. Osborne Airport, Montserrat.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how much funding the United Kingdom Government has provided to support primary and secondary education in Montserrat in each of the last five years.

As part of the UK's ongoing support to Montserrat, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) provides annual Budget Support to cover the provision of key services, including education. FCDO officials work with the Government of Montserrat (GoM) on annual budget allocations, but ultimately it is for GoM to determine those allocations, including what goes to the Education Ministry. Over the last five years the FCDO has provided the following:FY 25/26£37mFY 24/25£31.2mFY 23/24£30.2mFY 22/23£24.1mFY 21/22£23.6m

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps she is taking to meet obligations under Article 73 of the UN Charter in respect of the British Overseas Territories; and what assessment she has made of the potential impact of (a) the costs of healthcare, fuel and electricity, (b) quality of infrastructure and (c) levels of hurricane-resilient housing in Montserrat on people in that territory.

The UK fulfils its responsibilities under Article 73 of the United Nations Charter to promote the political, economic, social, and educational advancement of the Overseas Territories. As part of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office's capital allocation to Montserrat, we are investing in green energy, including solar and resilience works, as well appropriate and safe social housing.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether any patients in Montserrat who are (a) naturalised and (b) full British citizens and must travel to the United Kingdom for specialist treatment unavailable locally but fall outside the NHS–Montserrat referral scheme have been (i) denied (A) accommodation and (B) welfare support and (ii) advised to return to Montserrat.

I refer the Hon. Member to the answers he was previously provided on these issues on 6 November and 1 December 2025.

How much revenue was raised by the Heavy Goods Vehicle Road User Levy in (a) 2019, (b) 2022 and (c) 2024.

The HGV Road User Levy raised £204m in 2019-20 and £163m in 2024-25. It raised no revenue in 2022-23 as the levy was suspended for a period due to the pressures faced by the haulage industry caused by the Covid pandemic.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps she is taking to support access to legal assistance for Montserratian citizens residing in Montserrat, in the context of Article 73 of the United Nations Charter.

The UK fulfils its responsibilities under Article 73 of the United Nations Charter to promote the political, economic, social, and educational advancement of the Overseas Territories. As part of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office's capital allocation to Montserrat, we are investing in green energy, including solar and resilience works, as well appropriate and safe social housing.

Whether he has received reports regarding the treatment of disabled or seriously ill prisoners in Montserrat.

The Secretary of State does not routinely receive formal reports specifically on the treatment of disabled or seriously ill prisoners in Overseas Territory prisons. However, he would be informed in cases where a prisoner is transferred to the United Kingdom for medical treatment.Ministry of Justice officials have visited HMP Brades, the prison in Montserrat, on several occasions over the past five years to review prison operations, including healthcare provision. This has helped inform the overall management of the establishment by the Superintendent and Governor.

Which transport and infrastructure schemes received funds directly from the revenues raised by the Heavy Goods Vehicle Road User Levy in 2019, 2022 and 2024.

The HGV Road User Levy Act 2013 specifies that the levy is paid into the Consolidated Fund. This revenue is then available for general public expenditure, which includes transport investment.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps she is taking to improve emergency medical evacuation and overseas treatment on Montserrat.

I refer the Hon. Member to the answers he was previously provided on these issues on 6 November and 1 December 2025.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether the development needs of the Overseas Territories have first call on the UK’s Official Development Assistance programme.

The UK remains committed to meeting the reasonable needs of the Overseas Territories (OTs) where financial self-sufficiency is not possible. As such, the OTs continue to have the first call on Official Development Assistance to facilitate sustainable economic growth and development.We have recently informed Montserrat of their new allocation, and I held a positive and constructive call with Premier Meade on 25 March.

What standards and safeguards apply to the treatment of prisoners in British Overseas Territories; and what assessment he has made of whether those standards are equivalent to those applied to prisoners in the UK.

Prisons in the Overseas Territories are subject to the local laws and constitutions of each Territory. The Ministry of Justice works with the Overseas Territories to help align the treatment of prisoners with the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (the Nelson Mandela Rules).The standards the Overseas Territories operate under are not directly equivalent to those applied to the UK because HM Inspectorate of Prisons (HMIP), England and Wales has no formal jurisdiction in the Overseas Territories and the UK is a signatory to relevant international obligations, such as the Optional Protocol to the United Nations Convention against Torture, which the Overseas Territories are not.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether her Department has had discussions with the Government of Montserrat on the adequacy of levels of education funding in Montserrat; and if she will make an assessment of whether funding levels are adequate to meet the educational needs and aspirations of the Government and people of Montserrat.

As part of the UK's ongoing support to Montserrat, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) provides annual Budget Support to cover the provision of key services, including education. FCDO officials work with the Government of Montserrat (GoM) on annual budget allocations, but ultimately it is for GoM to determine those allocations, including what goes to the Education Ministry. Over the last five years the FCDO has provided the following:FY 25/26£37mFY 24/25£31.2mFY 23/24£30.2mFY 22/23£24.1mFY 21/22£23.6m

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps she is taking to help (a) reduce the cost of air access to Montserrat and (b) support its transition away from UK Government funding dependence.

I refer the Hon. Member to the answers he was previously provided on these issues on 6 November and 1 December 2025.

What the definition of substantial discount will be under the Tobacco and Vapes Act and how it will be enforced.

There is currently no restriction on the free distribution of samples of nicotine or non-nicotine vapes. It is completely unacceptable that a child could be given a harmful product that could lead them to a lifetime of addiction.That is why the Tobacco and Vapes Bill introduces a ban on businesses giving away any tobacco, herbal smoking, vaping, or nicotine products, as well as cigarette papers, to a member of the public.To support this, it will also be an offence to sell one of these products at a substantial discount. The bill does not give a definition of what constitutes a substantial discount because this will be different depending on the product and circumstances in question. However, further guidance will be provided after the bill becomes law.Enforcement action will be taken by the relevant enforcement authority if businesses do not comply.

Whether his Department has assessed the the Scottish Government’s report entitled Energy drinks: evidence brief, published on 30 May 2023.

The Government has a commitment to ban the sale of high-caffeine energy drinks to children under 16 years old. This has been subject to a consultation which we ran for 12-weeks from 3 September to 26 November 2025.In the consultation, we proposed using powers under the Food Safety Act 1990 to introduce the ban, to protect children’s health, and reduce health inequalities from the negative outcomes associated with high-caffeine energy drink consumption.We considered the range of available evidence when developing the proposals. Our assessment is available in the consultation document, with further detail set out in the accompanying impact assessment. The impact assessment includes consideration of devolved governments’ policy on high-caffeine energy drinks.The impact assessment also estimates the impact of our proposals, including on the vending sector. The Department engaged with relevant stakeholders, including representatives for the vending sector, to inform this. If additional information or evidence provided through the consultation or published online becomes available, we will update our final impact assessment.The Government is considering all consultation responses and will publish its response in due course.Any legislation proposed following the consultation outcome would depend on ministerial decisions following the consultation, impact assessment requirements, and the necessary parliamentary scrutiny.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of the proposed ban on the sale of high-caffeine energy drinks from vending machines on gym users during physical activity.

The Government has a commitment to ban the sale of high-caffeine energy drinks to children under 16 years old. This has been subject to a consultation which we ran for 12-weeks from 3 September to 26 November 2025.In the consultation, we proposed using powers under the Food Safety Act 1990 to introduce the ban, to protect children’s health, and reduce health inequalities from the negative outcomes associated with high-caffeine energy drink consumption.We considered the range of available evidence when developing the proposals. Our assessment is available in the consultation document, with further detail set out in the accompanying impact assessment. The impact assessment includes consideration of devolved governments’ policy on high-caffeine energy drinks.The impact assessment also estimates the impact of our proposals, including on the vending sector. The Department engaged with relevant stakeholders, including representatives for the vending sector, to inform this. If additional information or evidence provided through the consultation or published online becomes available, we will update our final impact assessment.The Government is considering all consultation responses and will publish its response in due course.Any legislation proposed following the consultation outcome would depend on ministerial decisions following the consultation, impact assessment requirements, and the necessary parliamentary scrutiny.

For what reason the proposed ban of the sale of high-caffeine energy drinks to people under 16 years of age will be implemented using the Food Safety Act 1990.

The Government has a commitment to ban the sale of high-caffeine energy drinks to children under 16 years old. This has been subject to a consultation which we ran for 12-weeks from 3 September to 26 November 2025.In the consultation, we proposed using powers under the Food Safety Act 1990 to introduce the ban, to protect children’s health, and reduce health inequalities from the negative outcomes associated with high-caffeine energy drink consumption.We considered the range of available evidence when developing the proposals. Our assessment is available in the consultation document, with further detail set out in the accompanying impact assessment. The impact assessment includes consideration of devolved governments’ policy on high-caffeine energy drinks.The impact assessment also estimates the impact of our proposals, including on the vending sector. The Department engaged with relevant stakeholders, including representatives for the vending sector, to inform this. If additional information or evidence provided through the consultation or published online becomes available, we will update our final impact assessment.The Government is considering all consultation responses and will publish its response in due course.Any legislation proposed following the consultation outcome would depend on ministerial decisions following the consultation, impact assessment requirements, and the necessary parliamentary scrutiny.

Communities and Local Government, with reference to the Building Safety Regulator’s (BSR) report entitled Building control approval application data January to March 2026, published on 31 March 2026, what is the BSR’s definition of a complex case; and for what reasons has the complex cases category been created in the January to March 2026 data.

“Complex Cases” has replaced the term for cases previously referred to as being with an Account Manager. The change in name is representative of the nature of these cases. These cases can include:Large and/or multi-building developmentsCases where the construction systems, materials or design approaches that are proposed give rise to a new technical or operational policy issue that requires extra consultation with subject matter expertsCases that contain disputable design solutions that cannot be fully resolved through the normal MDT processThese criteria mean the application may take longer than a standard case to work to completion.The Building Safety Regulator (BSR) can confirm that 100 Gateway Two applications were completed in March 2025, with 40 of these being determined within the 8 or 12-week statutory period.Between 1st January 2026 and 13th April 2026 there have been 38 formal complaints raised to the BSR. Within these complaints, 8 have been upheld, and 11 have been partially upheld. Of the remainder, 11 were not upheld and 8 are still live.