Written questions by Rosindell.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the report by Policy Exchange entitled One Family: Harnessing the Strategic Potential of the Commonwealth, published on 17 October 2024, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of establishing a Commonwealth security and defence co-operation forum to (a) conduct joint military and naval exercises and (b) pool resources for cybersecurity.

The UK works bilaterally and multilaterally with many Commonwealth members on defence and security issues, including through other forums - and attaches great importance to this. The Commonwealth as a collective has also been vocal on security issues facing its members, including providing strong support for Guyana regarding Venezuela's actions in respect to the Essequibo region. On cyber security the UK continues to fund the Global Cyber Programme, which works with countries across the Commonwealth to increase their cyber capacity and resilience to threats.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the potential implications for his policies of the conclusions of the report entitled One Family: Harnessing the Strategic Potential of the Commonwealth, published by Policy Exchange on 17 October 2024.

I welcome the contribution of Policy Exchange's 'One Family' report to the debate on the future of the Commonwealth. In particular, I support the report's argument for the Commonwealth to focus on important areas including boosting intra-Commonwealth trade and investment, protecting the environment and advancing education and skills. At CHOGM (Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting) last month the UK demonstrated its commitment across these three priorities by announcing, amongst another initiatives: the Trade Centre of Expertise, the Commonwealth Investment Plan of Action, continued funding for the Commonwealth Climate Finance Access Hub and an improved scholarship offer to empower Commonwealth youth with skills for the future.

What percentage of the Armed Forces’ budget was spent on diversity initiatives in 2023.

The cost of the main diversity initiatives undertaken by the Royal Navy, Army, Royal Air Force and UK Strategic Command during financial year 202-24 represented an average of 0.007% of their budgets.

What steps she is taking to support the London Fire Brigade with fire prevention activities and operational training.

The Home Office’s Fire Kills campaign promotes fire safety messages at the national level and supports fire prevention activities undertaken by individual fire and rescue services (FRSs). Campaign plans and promotional materials are developed in partnership with the National Fire Chiefs Council (NFCC) and designed to support local delivery. Regular engagement with FRSs, including with the London Fire Brigade, ensures this support is fit for purpose and aligns with local priorities.We are working closely with both the London Fire Brigade and the NFCC to consider the recommendation from the second phase of the Grenfell Tower public inquiry on how the London Fire Brigade, and FRSs nationally, can implement lessons learned from previous incidents, inquests and investigations. It is something we take extremely seriously and the Government will carefully consider all recommendations from the public inquiry to ensure that such a tragedy can never occur again.

What steps he has taken to work with relevant organisations to increase blood donations in (a) England and (b) Romford constituency.

NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) is responsible for blood donation in England.Throughout the year, NHSBT produces advertising campaigns to attract new donors, such as the new gift of blood winter stocks campaign for 2024. As part of this work, NHSBT partners with organisations to utilise their expertise and national resources to increase blood donations. Notable examples of these partnerships include Disney, Dalgety Teas, Fulham Football Club, the Civil Service, National Health Service trusts, and integrated care boards.In addition, NHSBT awards funds to community groups through its Community Grants Programme to promote blood donation. This funds community, and faith and belief organisations to drive awareness, understanding, and behaviour change. During the latest funding round, NHSBT awarded funds to 23 organisations to promote blood donation.NHSBT’s physical and digital marketing, and collaboration and partnership, activity takes place across England, including in the Romford constituency.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with (a) US President-elect Trump and (b) his representatives on the (i) Good Friday Agreement and (ii) Northern Ireland Protocol in the last six months.

President-elect Donald Trump will not take office until the inauguration on January 20th. We look forward to working with the Trump Administration in the months and years ahead in the spirit of our shared values of freedom, democracy and enterprise. We continue to work with the current Biden Administration to ensure Northern Ireland can continue to prosper. The 10th April marks 27 years since the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement was signed - an achievement of which the UK, Ireland and the US are justifiably proud.

What the average waiting time for an NHS dental practice is in Romford constituency.

Patients in England are not registered with an NHS dental practice and there is no single waiting list, although many NHS dental practices do tend to see patients regularly and may operate local waiting list arrangements. The responsibility for commissioning primary care, including dentistry, to meet the needs of the local population has been delegated to all integrated care boards (ICBs) across England. For Romford constituency, this is NHS Northeast London ICB.

Food and Rural Affairs, if he will take steps to support Havering Council to enhance (a) the River Rom's environmental health, (b) maintenance of river-based infrastructure and (c) development of projects aimed at increasing the River Rom as a community resource.

The Government’s Water (Special Measures) Bill is the first important step in enabling wide, transformative change across the water sector, reducing pollution and cleaning up our waterways. The Government has also launched an Independent Commission into the water sector regulatory system, anticipated to form the largest review of the industry since privatisation. The Environment Agency (EA) is working collaboratively with partners within the Roding, Beam, and Ingrebourne Catchment Partnership to deliver environmental improvement projects that enhance the water quality and biodiversity of the River Rom. The EA has been working with Thames Water’s Surface Water Outfall Programme and the local authority to identify and sort out misconnected properties that are discharging untreated effluent into the River Rom. AMP7, the seventh Asset Management Period planned by the UK water industry, runs from 2020 – 2025.

Food and Rural Affairs, how many people were fined for not microchipping their (a) cats and (b) dogs in each year since 2016.

The Ministry of Justice currently collects and publishes data relating to the offence of not microchipping your dog in England and Wales. The relevant offence code is 11126 and the latest data is available here: As the compulsory microchipping of cats was only introduced in England in June 2024, these figures will relate to dogs only at this stage.

What steps she is taking to reduce the backlog in the administration of warrants for possession.

To ensure increased and ongoing efficiency of County Court bailiff resources, HMCTS has introduced dedicated regional teams alongside an automated payment line to reduce the need for enforcement visits. This enables bailiffs to focus on priority work, including evictions. HMCTS continues to carry out recruitment and retention activities to ensure sufficient bailiff resources are available.

What steps her Department is taking to help reduce waiting times for practical driving tests in (a) Greater London and (b) Essex.

The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency’s (DVSA) main priority is upholding road safety standards while it works hard to reduce car practical driving test waiting times. Measures in place to reduce waiting times for customers at all driving test centres, include the recruitment of new driving examiners (DE), conducting tests outside regular hours, including at weekends and on public holidays, and buying back annual leave from DEs. DVSA also continues to deploy DEs from areas with lower waiting times into those where waiting times are longer. For recent recruitment campaigns, DVSA has used additional measures when advertising in and around the Greater London area, such as radio advertising, local managers attending and running recruitment events, and improved social media coverage. From recent recruitment DVSA has had 11 new DEs successful on their training course. This includes 10 for London and one for Essex. DVSA is planning training courses to the end of the business year and currently has nine individuals, who will serve the London and Essex areas, confirmed on courses to the end of February. Further applicants are in checks awaiting course dates.

What steps her Department is taking to help repair potholes in Romford constituency.

The Government takes the condition of local roads very seriously and is committed to maintaining and renewing the local highway network. Havering Council is the local highway authority for the Romford constituency, and they are therefore responsible for the condition and maintenance of their local network. This Government has a commitment to enable local highway authorities in England to fix up to a million more potholes a year. At Budget 2024, the Chancellor announced an extra £500 million for local highway maintenance for the 2025/26 financial year, an increase of nearly 50% compared to the current financial year. The Government will confirm funding allocations to English local highway authorities in due course.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what information his Department holds on how many citizens of (a) Haiti and (b) the Dominican Republic are resident in Turks and Caicos.

The FCDO does not hold this data. In line with the Turks and Caicos (TCI) Constitution, immigration is a devolved matter for the TCI Government, and therefore the FCDO does not hold details on any nationalities. However, the FCDO is aware of the ongoing pressure of inward immigration, including irregular migration, on TCI including from Haiti and is supporting its authorities to strengthen its border security. This support includes procuring new marine assets for its police force; delivering the rollout of advanced coastal sensors; and funding the accommodation of US air crews based in TCI to improve maritime surveillance.

Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to help reduce delays to cladding remediation works.

MHCLG are committed to fulfilling the Government’s ambition to accelerate the pace of remediation. We will work with partners across the construction and building safety sectors to make sure buildings are safer, faster. The Deputy Prime Minister is holding national roundtables to press home the urgency of this work and agree a joint plan for accelerating remediation.The Recovery Strategy Unit is continuing to take action against the worst offenders to hold them to account in fixing their buildings and paying for remediation. We will set out our Remediation Acceleration Plan containing further steps this autumn.

What support his Department provides for (a) wind and (b) solar power in the Overseas Territories.

The Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) leads the relationship with the Overseas Territories, and any work this Department has conducted in this area has been done via FCDO.

How much funding her Department has provided to neighbourhood watch organisations in each of the last five years.

This Government hugely values the work of local Neighbourhood Watch groups and the role they play in making our communities feel safe.The Home Office has provided funding for Neighbourhood Watch for the last 20 years, including providing £280,000 in funding per year in each of the last five years.

What assessment he has made of the potential merits of vorasdenib for treatment of low-grade gliomas.

It is critical that medicines used in the United Kingdom are safe and effective and as such, medicines cannot be marketed in the UK without a marketing authorisation. These are granted by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) which assesses all medicines with regard to their quality, safety, and efficacy. Vorasidenib, sold under the brand name Voranigo, has not been licensed by the MHRA as a treatment for low-grade gliomas. It is the responsibility of the company to apply to the MHRA for the relevant marketing authorisation. Should an application for it be received, the MHRA will consider this accordingly.In England, newly licensed medicines are also appraised by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) to determine whether they represent a clinically and cost-effective use of National Health Service resources. If the manufacturer of vorasidenib seeks a licence from the MHRA for the treatment of low-grade gliomas, then the NICE will consider it through the Technology Appraisal programme.

If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of requiring cyclists to (a) display number plates and (b) hold valid insurance.

The Government has no intention of requiring all cyclists to display number plates or to have insurance. A national registration scheme for all cycles would be complex and expensive to design and administer. As for insurance, the Government believes that this should remain a matter of personal choice. Some cyclists already have third party insurance via their membership of cycling organisations. Cyclists who are not insured are liable for the consequences of their actions should these result in injury or damages to others.

Food and Rural Affairs, what meetings (a) he and (b) other Ministers in his Department have had with animal welfare charities to discuss (i) puppy and cat smuggling and (ii) a ban of electronic shock collars for dogs since 5 July 2024.

This Government was elected on a mandate to introduce the most ambitious plans to improve animal welfare in a generation. As outlined in our manifesto we will end puppy smuggling. We will also be considering available evidence around the use of hand-controlled e-collars and their effects on the welfare of animals. We are considering the most effective ways to deliver our commitments. Ministers will continue to meet with animal welfare charities to discuss their views on a range of issues.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of levels of crime in the Turks and Caicos islands.

The UK is committed across government to supporting the Overseas Territories to reduce crime levels affecting their residents. I visited the Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI) in early November to understand better the security situation there, and I am in regular contact with colleagues in other UK Government departments on how best we can support the Overseas Territories. The FCDO support in TCI this year includes: deploying privately contracted Authorised Firearms Officers; continuing to embed serious crime investigators within the police; and strengthening border security by procuring new marine assets, delivering advanced coastal sensors, and funding the accommodation of US air crews based in TCI to improve maritime surveillance.