Written questions by Snowden.

What recent assessment her Department has made of trends in the number of young people aged 16 to 24 who are not in education, employment or training in (a) the North West and (b) Fylde constituency.

The department publishes official statistics on those not in education, employment or training (NEET) for England from the Labour Force Survey (LFS) for young people aged 16 to 24 here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/neet-statistics-annual-brief/2024.Since 2021, the number of 16 to 24 year-olds estimated to be NEET in the North West has been increasing with the latest estimate at end 2024 being 121,400. The lowest number in the series was in 2021, estimated to be 74,200. The data can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/cc3fd0f9-292c-47fa-d20e-08de2129b4fd.In recent years, the Office for National Statistics has faced challenges around the falling number of responses to the LFS, which has led to increased sampling variability. This is particularly notable at regional level and caution is advised when interpreting short-term changes. All estimates should be viewed alongside associated confidence intervals.These estimates are not available at lower-level geographies due to limitations with sample sizes. Therefore, NEET estimates in Fylde constituency are not available.

What assessment she has made of the effectiveness of data-sharing protocols between Departments following the suspension of child benefit payments by HMRC.

HMRC uses Home Office international travel data as a starting point for identifying potential unreported absences from the UK. Undetected changes to an individual’s residency status are a leading cause of Child Benefit error and fraud. The legal basis for disclosing information between HMRC and Home Office for the purpose of tackling fraud is Chapter 4 of the Digital Economy Act (“DEA”) 2017. The exchange of data between HMRC and the Home Office continues to work as expected and agreed.

Whether the Prime Minister sought advice from the Independent Adviser on Ministers’ Interests on the receipt of donations from David Kogan prior to his appointment as the Independent Football Regulator Chair.

I refer the Hon Member to the Prime Minister’s letter to the Independent Adviser for Ministerial Standards, published on 12 November.

If he will publish correspondence between the Prime Minister's Office and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport on the appointment of the Independent Football Regulator Chair.

I refer the Hon Member to the Prime Minister’s letter to the Independent Adviser for Ministerial Standards, published on 12 November.

Communities and Local Government, how many (a) social rent, (b) affordable rent, and (c) shared ownership homes have been provided through the Social and Affordable Homes Programme since its inception.

Bidding for the Programme in question has not yet opened. On 7 November 2025, my Department published a policy statement on the Social and Affordable Homes Programme (SAHP) which can be found on gov.uk here. This was accompanied by detailed guidance for prospective bidders published by Homes England and the Greater London Authority.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of the US government shutdown on UK-based financial institutions with exposure to US government (a) securities and (b) agencies.

The US Government shutdown ended on 12 November 2025. HM Treasury works closely with the Bank of England’s Financial Policy Committee (FPC) and UK financial regulators to assess any risks to the financial sector, including those relating to the global outlook.

What assessment he has made of trends in the prevalence of corridor care in hospitals in Lancashire.

The Government is determined to get the National Health Service back on its feet, so patients can be treated with dignity.  We are therefore doing everything we can as fast as we can to consign the delivery of care in temporary escalation spaces to the history books.Our Urgent and Emergency Care Plan, published in June 2025, set out the steps we are taking to ensure that patients will receive better, faster, and more appropriate emergency care this winter, backed by a total of nearly £450 million of funding. This includes a commitment to publish data on the prevalence of corridor care for the first time.

What information her Department holds on the number of animals bred for scientific research that (a) were killed and (b) died without being used in procedures in each of the last 12 months.

The Home Office has previously published (2017) additional statistics covering the number of non-genetically altered animals that were bred for scientific procedures but were killed or died without being used in procedures; and the number of animals (genetically altered and non-genetically altered) subject to tissue sampling for the purposes of genotyping. These statistics can be viewed here: www.gov.uk/government/collections/statistics-of-scientific-procedures-on-living-animals#additional-statistics-for-2017.The 2017 data collection was as a result of a requirement of the European Directive 2010/63/EU for additional statistics on animals bred for scientific procedures but that were killed or died without being used. After leaving the EU the UK was no longer required to collect and release additional statistics. Future publication of this data is presently under review.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of the US government shutdown on joint UK–US defence (a) projects and (b) research collaboration.

There has been no impact on our defence projects or research collaboration where we have continued to engage with those essential US staff who continued to work during the shutdown.

How many and what proportion of NHS staff will receive armed forces-specific training by (a) 2026 and (b) 2028.

The training and education programmes will be rolled out to all National Health Service organisations and for all NHS staff over the next two and a half years. The programmes will share best practice about how the NHS can identify and support patients with an Armed Forces background.By the end of 2026, the target is for all board members of integrated care boards and Department national commissioning teams to have completed Armed Forces healthcare specific training. In addition, by the end of 2026, the ambition is for 200,000 NHS staff in England to have completed the training.By 2028, the ambition is for 400,000 NHS staff to have completed Armed Forces healthcare specific training. Performance will be reviewed against ambitions regularly, and appropriate changes will be made to the programme so that uptake continually increases.

Communities and Local Government, how much funding under the Social and Affordable Homes Programme has been (a) allocated and (b) spent.

Bidding for the Programme in question has not yet opened. On 7 November 2025, my Department published a policy statement on the Social and Affordable Homes Programme (SAHP) which can be found on gov.uk here. This was accompanied by detailed guidance for prospective bidders published by Homes England and the Greater London Authority.

What recent estimate she has made of the proportion of people not in employment, education, or training who are claiming Universal Credit in the North West.

Statistics on young people claiming UC can be found on DWP Stat Xplore - Stat-Xplore - Log in Statistics on young people who are NEET are produced by DfE and the ONS –Statistics: NEET and participation - GOV.UK and Young people not in education, employment or training (NEET), UK - Office for National Statistics The Get Britain Working White Paper set plans to develop a Youth Guarantee which will ensure 18- to 21-year-olds are earning or learning. An independent investigation has been launched to tackle the persistently high numbers of young people out of work, education and training. Led by former Health Secretary Alan Milburn, the probe will examine why increasing numbers of young people are falling out of work or education before their careers have begun — with a particular focus on the impact of mental health conditions and disability. The Terms of Reference can be found here.

How many asylum claimants were found to have provided a false age; and how many of those identified led to claims being rejected.

The Home Office publishes data on asylum in the ‘Immigration System Statistics Quarterly Release’.Data on initial decisions and outcomes on asylum claims, is published in table Asy_D02 of the ‘Asylum claim and initial decisions detailed datasets’. The latest data relates to as at 30 June 2025.Data for 30 September 2025 will be published on 27 November 2025.Data on the number of raised and resolved age disputes is published in table Asy_D05 of the ‘Age disputes detailed datasets’ . Age disputes data for July 2024 onwards is not available due to ongoing work on a new case working system. Updated data will be included in a future edition of the Immigration System Statistics release.Published Home Office data on asylum outcomes and age disputes does not include reasons for refusal.Official statistics published by the Home Office are kept under review in line with the code of practice for statistics, taking into account a number of factors including user needs, the resources required to compile the statistics, as well as quality and availability of data.

Media and Sport, what criteria will be used to determine eligibility for funding under the scheme for the repair and conservation of local war memorials.

The Government announced on 9 November 2025 the new £2 million fund for the repair and maintenance of war memorials. Further details, including criteria, will be announced in due course.

What his planned timeline is for the (a) rollout and (b) completion of the training for NHS staff on (i) identifying and (ii) supporting patients with an armed forces background.

The training and education programmes will be rolled out to all National Health Service organisations and for all NHS staff over the next two and a half years. The programmes will share best practice about how the NHS can identify and support patients with an Armed Forces background.By the end of 2026, the target is for all board members of integrated care boards and Department national commissioning teams to have completed Armed Forces healthcare specific training. In addition, by the end of 2026, the ambition is for 200,000 NHS staff in England to have completed the training.By 2028, the ambition is for 400,000 NHS staff to have completed Armed Forces healthcare specific training. Performance will be reviewed against ambitions regularly, and appropriate changes will be made to the programme so that uptake continually increases.

Whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of suspended child benefit payments on (a) Universal Credit and (b) other means-tested benefits.

No assessment has been made. Child Benefit, administered by His Majesty’s Revenue & Customs (HMRC), is not taken into account as income when calculating a Universal Credit award or other means-tested benefits. It is used to assess benefit levels for the purpose of determining whether to apply the benefit cap which limits the amount of social security benefits a working age household can receive. The benefit cap is applied through Housing Benefit and Universal Credit. The Department will continue to work closely with HMRC on all relevant matters.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of the contribution of the Social and Affordable Homes Programme to meeting national housing need.

Bidding for the Programme in question has not yet opened. On 7 November 2025, my Department published a policy statement on the Social and Affordable Homes Programme (SAHP) which can be found on gov.uk here. This was accompanied by detailed guidance for prospective bidders published by Homes England and the Greater London Authority.

Whether her Department plans to introduce new targeted measures to reduce long-term not in employment, education, or training rates among 18–24-year-olds.

The Government’s plan to Get Britain Working includes a new Youth Guarantee for all young people aged 18-21 to ensure that they can access quality training opportunities, an apprenticeship or help to find work.As a first step, we are working with eight Youth Guarantee Trailblazers across England which are testing innovative approaches to identify and deliver localised support to young people who are not in education, employment or training (NEET) or at risk of becoming NEET. This includes strengthening local coordination, through local leadership, and outreach to better connect young people with opportunities. We will use the learning from these Trailblazers to inform the future design and development of the Youth Guarantee as it rolls out across the rest of Great Britain.In addition, the Government is investing £25 million to expand Youth Hubs, which bring together employment support from a Jobcentre work coach and place-based support fromlocal partnerships to help young NEET people into work. This investment will almost double the number of Youth Hubs to over 200 across England, Scotland and Wales over the next three years, ensuring more young people can access personalised, wraparound support in their local communities.The Chancellor has also announced that every eligible young person who has been on Universal Credit for 18 months without earning or learning will be offered guaranteed paid work. Participants of the scheme will receive support to take advantage of available opportunities, with the aim of helping them transition into regular employment. The scheme forms part of the government’s aim to provide targeted support for young people at risk of long-term unemployment. Further details including eligibility criteria and the structure of placements, will be confirmed at Budget.The above builds on existing DWP labour market support for 16-24-year-olds through an extensive range of interventions at a national and local level as part of the Youth Offer. This includes flexible provision driven by local need, nationwide employment programmes and support delivered by work coaches based in our Jobcentres and in local communities. This support includes the Youth Employment Programme, Youth Employability Coaches for young people with additional barriers to finding work, and Youth Hubs across Great Britain.

Media and Sport, what processes were followed in the (a) longlisting and (b) shortlisting of candidates for the role of Independent Football Regulator Chair.

All regulated public appointments roles follow the same processes as outlined in the Governance Code for Public Appointments.A full account of the appointment process for the Chair of the Independent Football Regulator is available in the recent report by the Commissioner for Public Appointments.

Whether HMRC plans to publish the findings of its review into suspended child benefit payments.

As part of its ongoing efforts to reduce error and fraud in the Child Benefit system, HMRC undertook a pilot last year using international travel data. This pilot saw thousands of people who had left the UK but carried on claiming Child Benefit removed from the system, preventing around £17m in incorrect payments. This led to the expansion of the measure and investment in an additional 180 counter-fraud staff, announced at the Autumn Budget 2024, and is expected to save around £350 million over the next five years. In expanding the process over the past few months, a check of HMRC PAYE systems to look for continuing UK employment was excluded on around 23,500 enquiries in order to streamline the process, with a view to employment status being tested as part of any subsequent customer enquiry. We have apologised for this. Following concerns being raised, swift action was taken to improve the processes. A decision was made on 29 October to reinstate the employment check for all cases with immediate effect, meaning that HMRC’s risking has a higher success rate for identifying ineligible claims. HMRC reviewed all compliance cases already opened and conducted a PAYE check. These checks were completed for all customers on 14 November. Where there was evidence that customers had continued UK employment, HMRC reinstated payments automatically without any need for customer contact and those payments have been backdated. By the end of November, HMRC will have written to all customers who have not yet contacted them to provide a further 4 weeks to make contact. HMRC will also be responding to the Treasury Select Committee to outline the steps it has taken in relation to this issue.