Written questions by Snowden.

What assessment she has made of the adequacy of current blue badge policy for people with Crohn's and Colitis.

The Blue Badge scheme supports people with severe mobility issues, including those with non‑visible disabilities that cause very considerable difficulty walking or significant psychological distress during a journey. The Government has already extended eligibility to people with non‑visible conditions, and local authorities assess applications on a case‑by‑case basis using medical evidence. While symptoms of Crohn’s and Colitis can be serious, these conditions do not automatically confer entitlement; however, applicants whose mobility is substantially impaired because of their condition may still qualify following assessment by their local authority.

Communities and Local Government, if he will make it his policy to ensure that monies raised in a geographic are ringfenced for spending in that area in the event of local government reorganisation.

The proposals set out in the Fair Funding Review will ensure local government funding delivers the best value for money for taxpayers and sees funding go to the places that need it most. It will be for new authorities to decide how spending is allocated within their areas.

What steps she is taking to ensure that (a) elderly people and (b) people without access to the internet are able to access their consultation on mandatory eye testing for older drivers.

We published the consultation on GOV.UK as a web page (HTML). This format allows people to resize the consultation text in their browser. People can write to us or contact us at mandatoryeyesighttestingconsultation@dft.gov.uk to request the consultation in alternative formats, including a printed hard copy. A BSL version will be made available. Those without the internet can request a printed hard copy or mail in a printed copy and can write to us at: Road Safety Division Department for Transport 33 Horseferry Road London, SW1P 4DR United Kingdom

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to support the recovery of Sri Lanka from Cyclone Ditwah.

The UK Government is deeply concerned about the extensive damage and distress caused by Cyclone Ditwah in Sri Lanka. The British High Commissioner in Colombo has been in regular contact with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Disaster Management Centre, and the UN Resident Coordinator to monitor the situation and understand emerging needs.We have allocated £1 million of humanitarian support through the Red Cross, UN partners and civil society organisations to support immediate humanitarian assistance.The UK is tracking the situation closely and remains in regular contact with the Sri Lankan authorities and humanitarian partners.

How frequently academy trusts will be inspected; and whether inspection frequency will vary according to previous performance.

The government has tabled an amendment to the Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill to bring in multi-academy trust inspections. Multi-academy trust inspections will raise standards and enable sharing of best trust-level practice, as well as incentivising and supporting improvement efforts across the sector.The government intends to specify the intervals for routine trust inspections in secondary legislation, after working closely with Ofsted and the sector to determine what an appropriate period of time would be.

Pursuant to answer 98955 of 16 December 2025 on Child Benefit, how many of the 7,781 enquiries which remained open have since been addressed; and what the outcomes were.

In total, of the 23,794 enquiries opened, 1,109 have been determined non-compliant. 5,637 remain open.

What assessment he has made of the average length of time of a GP appointment.

The General Practice Appointment Data (GPAD) records information on GP appointments, including the duration. Data regarding the length of appointments is only applicable when the appointment has been attended.The latest GPAD release is available at the following link:https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/appointments-in-general-practice/november-2025

How many new enquiries were opened into child benefit claims which were suspended from claimants as a result of data-sharing between HMRC and the Home Office in the period 1 to 31 December 2025.

There were no new Child Benefit compliance enquiries opened using Home Office international travel data in the period 1st to 31st December 2025. This is because HMRC's focus during that period was on reviewing the c. 23,500 cohort.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the Canal and River Trust’s grant settlement for maintaining the safety and integrity of inland waterways in England.

Canal maintenance, and ensuring funding for it, is the responsibility of navigation authorities. The Government provides the largest navigation authority, the Canal and River Trust, with an annual grant of £52.6 million to support the Trust’s network maintenance programme. This represented 22% of the Trust’s total income of £232 million last year. Following a comprehensive review of its funding in 2022, the Government agreed a further 10-year grant for the Trust from 2027 of £401 million. The new grant reflects the importance of inland waterways and provides a stable funding stream, gradually tapering each year, to support CRT as it delivers its long-standing objective of reducing reliance on public funding through developing alternative funding sources.

How migration data is shared with the Office for National Statistics to inform population estimates.

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority. A response to the Hon gentleman’s Parliamentary Question of 7th January is attached.

What assessment he has made of the accuracy of population estimates derived from the 2021 Census.

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority. A response to the Hon gentleman’s Parliamentary Question of 7th January is attached.

What correspondence the Government has had with the Information Commissioner's Office on the data sharing pilot between HMRC and the Home Office.

In October 2025, the ICO Review Board observer submitted an inquiry to the DEA Secretariat regarding a news article pertaining to a data sharing arrangement between HMRC and the Home Office.The DEA Secretariat subsequently contacted HMRC, who forwarded it to the ICO observer.The minutes from the DEA Debt and Fraud Review Boards are also routinely published on GOV.UK.

What assessment he has made of the impact of rising and unpredictable police escort costs on the abnormal load haulage sector and the wider tourism supply chain, particularly in rural and coastal areas.

The Department for Transport has not assessed the impact of police escort costs on the abnormal load haulage sector and the wider tourism supply chain.The provision and charging for police escorts is an operational matter for individual police forces. We are aware of concerns raised about some police forces increasing the costs for escorting abnormal loads. The Department therefore welcomes the National Police Chiefs’ Council’s revised guidance on abnormal loads, which aims to provide greater consistency and clarity in the approach to abnormal load movements and costs across the country.

How many police forces operate specialist rape and sexual offence investigation teams; and which forces do not yet have such teams in place.

Rape and sexual offences are amongst the most harmful crimes in society and can have a devastating impact on victims, their loved ones and our communities. Despite this, we assess only half of police forces in England and Wales have a specialist team to respond to and investigate these offences.We have therefore instructed all police forces in England and Wales to implement a specialist rape and sexual offence team by 2029 and are working with National Centre for VAWG and Publication to ensure consistency nationally.Our efforts will mean that by the end of this parliament, victims and their supporters can be confident that, wherever they live, police forces have the right skills, knowledge and capability to deploy every tool available to bring sex offenders to justice and provide the best possible support to victims.

What steps are being taken to ensure that carers affected by overpayments are proactively informed of their right to reassessment, debt reduction or refund.

I refer the hon. Member to my Written Statement of 25 November 2025 HCWS1092 where I set out that the department will be reassessing historical and existing Carer’s Allowance cases with an earnings-related overpayment in England and Wales. This will cover the period between 2015 and summer 2025 where the treatment of fluctuating earnings may have given rise to an incorrect overpayment. We will make sure further information is available on GOV.UK. Constituents do not need to do anything now. In most cases the department will get in touch with people whose overpayments of Carer’s Allowance may be affected.

If she will make an assessment of the potential impact of setting a 2029 deadline for the establishment of dedicated rape and sexual offence investigation teams on postcode disparities in the investigation of rape and sexual offences.

Rape and sexual offences are amongst the most harmful crimes in society and can have a devastating impact on victims, their loved ones and our communities. Despite this, we assess only half of police forces in England and Wales have a specialist team to respond to and investigate these offences.We have therefore instructed all police forces in England and Wales to implement a specialist rape and sexual offence team by 2029 and are working with National Centre for VAWG and Publication to ensure consistency nationally.Our efforts will mean that by the end of this parliament, victims and their supporters can be confident that, wherever they live, police forces have the right skills, knowledge and capability to deploy every tool available to bring sex offenders to justice and provide the best possible support to victims.

Whether she plans to extend the Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme to include offences such as stalking, sexual assault and harassment.

The scale of violence against women and girls in our country is intolerable, and this Government is treating it as the national emergency that it is.The Government committed in its manifesto to giving stalking victims the right to know the true identity of their online stalker. Through the Crime and Policing Bill, we are introducing statutory guidance to support the police to release identifying information about a stalker to a victim, so victims can know who is threatening them.The Crime and Policing Bill will also enable the Home Secretary to issue statutory guidance about the disclosure of information to prevent sexual offending. This will ensure the Child Sex Offender Disclosure Scheme and any similar schemes in the future are delivered consistently by all forces.The Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme currently enables the police to disclose information to a victim or potential victim of domestic abuse about their partner’s or ex-partner's previous abusive or violent offending.In the recently published Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy we committed to exploring the potential to expand both the stalking Right to Know scheme and the Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme to other forms of violence against women and girls.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of the new 40% first year allowance for for main-rate plant and machinery on the level of regional investment and economic growth.

The government has introduced a new 40% first-year allowance (FYA) from 1 January 2026. This is a permanent new feature of the capital allowance regime. This new FYA will allow businesses to deduct much of the cost of their investment in the year they make that investment and lower their tax bill. Crucially, this FYA will be available for assets bought for leasing and for unincorporated businesses which do not benefit from full expensing, increasing the amount of relief that can be claimed in the year of investment. For future investment, the present value and cost of capital for businesses that claim the new FYA remains broadly the same when considered alongside the changes to writing down allowances also announced at Budget. The expected impacts of this measure and planned monitoring are set out on gov.uk:Capital allowances: new first-year allowance and reducing main rate writing-down allowances - GOV.UK This policy is UK-wide and so businesses across all regions of the UK can claim this allowance. We are attracting international investors to opportunities across the country, with the £10 billion of investment commitments announced at our recent Regional Investment Summit.

Whether her Department plans to introduce a national regulatory framework governing when police forces may require escorts for abnormal load movements.

The police are best placed to determine police escort requirements for abnormal loads, based on a thorough assessment of local risk, which can include consideration of the risks to road users and the potential for congestion. A decision should take account of the force’s local geography, traffic conditions and events taking place. Forces should take account of the National Police Chiefs’ Council guidance to ensure decisions are safe, practical and effective.The National Police Chiefs’ Council Guidance on the management of abnormal loads was last updated in May 2025. It sets out consistent principles to guide force’s decision based on local circumstances.There are no plans to introduce a national regulatory framework governing the movement of abnormal loads. The government is satisfied that decisions are best handled by individual police forces to ensure decisions reflect local conditions.

Communities and Local Government, whether he plans to address the situation whereby motorists risk losing the discounted rate if they pursue an appeal against a private parking charge.

This government is determined to drive up standards in the private parking sector. In accordance with the Private Parking (Code of Practice) Act 2019, the government is preparing a Code of Practice that will provide guidance on the operation and management of private parking facilities. In preparation for the new Code, the government published a consultation document in 2025 outlining its proposals to raise standards across the private parking industry. This consultation specifically sought views on the current 40% discount rate for early payment of parking charges and the concerns motorists have regarding its application. All responses are now being analysed, and the government will publish a formal response and set out its final plans in due course.