Written questions by Rosindell.

Communities and Local Government, how many formal complaints the Building Safety Regulator received this year; and how many of these complaints were upheld.

“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.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of the Spanish Government's decision to restrict the use of Spanish airspace and military facilities for certain allied military operations on the UK’s defence, security and diplomatic interests relating to Gibraltar.

RAF Gibraltar continues to operate as a sovereign UK military airfield, and the current overflight restrictions by Spain does not impede our operational freedom with respect to aircraft movements and does not impact NATO interoperability in the region.

What discussions he has held with his Spanish counterpart regarding the application of Spanish airspace or basing policies in ways that could affect Gibraltar or UK access to the territory.

The Defence and Foreign Secretaries meet regularly with their Spanish counterparts to discuss a range of issues of shared strategic interest. These recent interactions have not included discussion on the transit through Spanish airspace of UK military aircraft arriving at or departing from RAF Gibraltar.

Whether the Government has alternative contingency arrangements in place to ensure uninterrupted defence and security support for Gibraltar should allied access through Spanish airspace or facilities be restricted.

RAF Gibraltar continues to operate as a sovereign UK military airfield, and the current overflight restrictions by Spain does not impede our operational freedom with respect to aircraft movements and does not impact NATO interoperability in the region.

Whether his Department has assessed the potential operational impact of Spanish restrictions on allied military aircraft on UK military mobility or contingency planning in the Western Mediterranean, including in relation to Gibraltar.

RAF Gibraltar continues to operate as a sovereign UK military airfield, and the current overflight restrictions by Spain does not impede our operational freedom with respect to aircraft movements and does not impact NATO interoperability in the region.

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.

Communities and Local Government, how many building control applications made under regulation 3 or 11 of the Building (Higher-Risk Buildings Procedures) (England) Regulations 2023 were determined by the Building Safety Regulator (BSR) within the respective statutory 8 or 12 week period in March 2025.

“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.

Whether he has (a) sought and (b) received reassurances from the Spanish Government that recent restrictions on military airspace use will not be applied in a manner that could prejudice the UK's (i) ongoing and (ii) future arrangements concerning Gibraltar.

The draft Agreement reached between the UK and the European Union in respect of Gibraltar fully protects the UK's ability to operate to, through, and from our military facilities in Gibraltar.RAF Gibraltar continues to operate as a sovereign UK military airfield, and the current overflight ban by Spain does not impede our operational freedom with respect to aircraft movements.

What steps the Government is taking to ensure that UK sovereignty, access and operational freedom in Gibraltar are not indirectly affected by unilateral policy decisions taken by neighbouring states.

The draft Agreement reached between the UK and the European Union in respect of Gibraltar fully protects the UK’s sovereignty, access and operational freedom in Gibraltar.

What plans he has to publish an implementation timetable for the regulations under the Tobacco and Vapes Bill.

The Tobacco and Vapes Bill is in its final stages, awaiting Royal Assent. We published a call for evidence to inform future regulations on licensing, registration, vape flavours, and appearance, which closed on 3 December 2025. On 13 February, we launched the consultation on smoke-free, heated tobacco-free, and vape-free places in England, which closes on 8 May, and which is available at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/smoke-free-heated-tobacco-free-and-vape-free-places-in-england/smoke-free-heated-tobacco-free-and-vape-free-places-in-england The devolved administrations will run separate consultations. Following Royal Assent of the bill, we will further develop proposals for secondary legislation, including public consultation. This will help to inform our implementation schedule, and we will update on it in due course.

What data her Department collects on children’s education, including pupil attainment and characteristics, and how this information is used to inform policy.

The department collects different categories of data for different cohorts of individuals depending on their interaction with the education and children’s services system in England. These data are collected through statutory data collections with categories including:Identifiers such as name and address.Characteristics such as sex or ethnicity.Details of any special educational needs.Details of schools attended.Information on absence and exclusions.Information relating to academic performance.Information relating to any contact with children’s services.Information relating to destinations after finishing school.This data provides a robust evidence base that enables the department to understand how well the education and children’s services sectors are functioning and ensure policy interventions are effectively targeted. The data also supports essential functions such as allocating school funding fairly and enabling parents, Parliament and the wider public to access clear information about educational outcomes and system performance.

What data her Department gathers on the educational outcomes of children with dyslexia and other literacy challenges in the Key Stage 1 phonics screening check.

The department holds information on pupils’ special educational needs and their attainment by 14 types of primary need. Dyslexia is usually included in the wider category of primary need ‘specific learning difficulty’. In 2025, 33% of pupils with ‘specific learning difficulty’ recorded as their primary need met the expected standard in the phonics screening check in year 1. The English Hubs programme is dedicated to improving the teaching of reading, with a focus on supporting children making the slowest progress. ‘Reading Ambition for All’, developed with input from the British Dyslexia Association, is a continuous professional development programme to support schools help struggling readers, delivered by our 34 English Hubs, reaching more than 600 schools this academic year.

What steps her Department plans to take to ensure that the experiences of children and young people with dyslexia are captured when measuring attainment at the end of secondary school.

The department is committed to ensuring the exams system is equitable for all students, and that students with disabilities, including dyslexia, can access exams and assessments without disadvantage.Ofqual, the independent regulator of exams and assessments in England, has a statutory duty to ensure that assessments are a fair representation of a student’s knowledge and requires awarding organisations to put processes in place to ensure that all students can access assessments appropriately.The Equality Act 2010 also requires awarding organisations to make reasonable adjustments where assessment arrangements could place a student, who is disabled within the meaning of the Act, at a substantial disadvantage in comparison to someone who is not disabled.These adjustments can include, but are not limited to, extra time to complete assessments or assistance via a reader or a scribe, depending on the individual needs of the student.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether she has made an assessment of the adequacy of mechanisms for parliamentary scrutiny of Overseas Territories.

Mechanisms for parliamentary scrutiny are a matter for the House.

Whether she has had discussions with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on the potential merits of providing grants or financial support to vending operators to meet compliance costs arising from age verification requirements.

The Chancellor has regular discussions with the Secretary of State for the Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC) on a range of issues. DHSC ran a 12-week consultation on proposals for the ban of high-caffeine energy drinks to children under 16 years from 3 September to 26 November 2025. This included seeking views on how the ban should apply in vending machines. DHSC is now carefully considering the responses and will publish the government response in due course, setting out the consultation outcome and any next steps.

What plans his Department has to undertake trials or pilots of restrictions on high-caffeine energy drink sales through vending machines prior to national implementation, including to improve the evidence base and inform future policy decisions.

The Government has a commitment to ban the sale of high-caffeine energy drinks to children under 16 years old. We ran a 12-week consultation on our proposals for the ban from 3 September 2025 to 26 November 2025. This included proposals on:- the minimum age of sale for high-caffeine energy drinks;- the products and businesses in scope of the ban;- how the ban will apply in vending machines;- the length of time that businesses and enforcement authorities need to implement the ban; and- how the ban would be enforced.We are now carefully considering the consultation responses. We will publish the Government response in due course, setting out the consultation outcome and next steps.The accompanying impact assessment published on 3 September 2025 estimates the impact of our proposals. The Department engaged with relevant stakeholders, including representatives for the vending sector and enforcement, to inform this. If additional information or evidence provided through the consultation or published online becomes available, we will update our final impact assessment.

With reference to his Department’s Impact Assessment entitled Banning the sale of high-caffeine energy drinks to children under the age of 16 years, published on 23 June 2025, whether his Department has assessed the potential implications for his Department's policies of the Vending and Automated Retail Association's estimate that over 80% of vending machines operate in closed environments without routine access for under 16s; whether his Department has assessed the proportion of vending machines that operate in closed environments without routine access for under 16 year olds; and what assessment he has made of the proportionality of applying a blanket ban of the sale of high-caffeine energy drinks through vending machines in closed settings where under 16 year olds do not have access.

The Government has a commitment to ban the sale of high-caffeine energy drinks to children under 16 years old. We ran a 12-week consultation on our proposals for the ban from 3 September 2025 to 26 November 2025. This included proposals on:- the minimum age of sale for high-caffeine energy drinks;- the products and businesses in scope of the ban;- how the ban will apply in vending machines;- the length of time that businesses and enforcement authorities need to implement the ban; and- how the ban would be enforced.We are now carefully considering the consultation responses. We will publish the Government response in due course, setting out the consultation outcome and next steps.The accompanying impact assessment published on 3 September 2025 estimates the impact of our proposals. The Department engaged with relevant stakeholders, including representatives for the vending sector and enforcement, to inform this. If additional information or evidence provided through the consultation or published online becomes available, we will update our final impact assessment.

What duties the proposed policy on banning the sale of high-caffeine energy drinks to under 16s would place on gyms supervising under 16 sessions to enforce possible vending machine restrictions; and what assessment he has made of (a) the level of customer intervention required to enforce such restrictions and (b) the potential risks of confrontation or conflict arising from those duties.

The Government has a commitment to ban the sale of high-caffeine energy drinks to children under 16 years old. We ran a 12-week consultation on our proposals for the ban from 3 September 2025 to 26 November 2025. This included proposals on:- the minimum age of sale for high-caffeine energy drinks;- the products and businesses in scope of the ban;- how the ban will apply in vending machines;- the length of time that businesses and enforcement authorities need to implement the ban; and- how the ban would be enforced.We are now carefully considering the consultation responses. We will publish the Government response in due course, setting out the consultation outcome and next steps.The accompanying impact assessment published on 3 September 2025 estimates the impact of our proposals. The Department engaged with relevant stakeholders, including representatives for the vending sector and enforcement, to inform this. If additional information or evidence provided through the consultation or published online becomes available, we will update our final impact assessment.

With reference to his Department’s Impact Assessment entitled Banning the sale of high-caffeine energy drinks to children under the age of 16 years, published on 23 June 2025, what assessment his Department has made of (a) the proportion of high-caffeine energy drinks sold to children under 16 years by (i) vending machines (ii) corner shops and convenience stores and (b) the primary sources of high-caffeine energy drinks sold to children under 16 years.

The Government has a commitment to ban the sale of high-caffeine energy drinks to children under 16 years old. We ran a 12-week consultation on our proposals for the ban from 3 September 2025 to 26 November 2025. This included proposals on:- the minimum age of sale for high-caffeine energy drinks;- the products and businesses in scope of the ban;- how the ban will apply in vending machines;- the length of time that businesses and enforcement authorities need to implement the ban; and- how the ban would be enforced.We are now carefully considering the consultation responses. We will publish the Government response in due course, setting out the consultation outcome and next steps.The accompanying impact assessment published on 3 September 2025 estimates the impact of our proposals. The Department engaged with relevant stakeholders, including representatives for the vending sector and enforcement, to inform this. If additional information or evidence provided through the consultation or published online becomes available, we will update our final impact assessment.

With reference to his Department’s Impact Assessment entitled Banning the sale of high-caffeine energy drinks to children under the age of 16 years, published on 23 June 2025, what steps his Department is taking to tackle access to high-caffeine energy drinks by children under 16 years at home or through friends; what assessment he has made of the potential impact of banning vending machine sales of high-caffeine energy drinks to children under the age of 16 years on the level of overall consumption; and what plans his Department has to take further regulatory steps towards a wider ban of such drinks.

The Government has a commitment to ban the sale of high-caffeine energy drinks to children under 16 years old. We ran a 12-week consultation on our proposals for the ban from 3 September 2025 to 26 November 2025. This included proposals on:- the minimum age of sale for high-caffeine energy drinks;- the products and businesses in scope of the ban;- how the ban will apply in vending machines;- the length of time that businesses and enforcement authorities need to implement the ban; and- how the ban would be enforced.We are now carefully considering the consultation responses. We will publish the Government response in due course, setting out the consultation outcome and next steps.The accompanying impact assessment published on 3 September 2025 estimates the impact of our proposals. The Department engaged with relevant stakeholders, including representatives for the vending sector and enforcement, to inform this. If additional information or evidence provided through the consultation or published online becomes available, we will update our final impact assessment.