Written questions by Snowden.

What assessment he has made of the potential merits of introducing a national screening programme for pancreatic cancer.

In the United Kingdom, national screening programmes are introduced based on the recommendations of the UK National Screening Committee (UK NSC), an independent scientific advisory committee which advises ministers and the National Health Service in all four countries on all aspects of population and targeted screening and which supports implementation. The UK NSC received a submission via its 2024 annual call process to consider a new screening programme for the early detection of pancreatic cancer. The UK NSC decided to explore this proposal further, and the next step will be an evidence mapping process. Further information on the annual call process can be found at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uk-nsc-annual-call-submitting-a-screening-proposal/uk-nsc-annual-call-how-to-submit-a-proposal

If she will issue guidance on whether gig economy platforms are required to report suspected illegal working.

The Hon Member will be aware the that Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill contains new measures requiring companies operating in the gig economy to carry out employment checks on all individuals working for them, further strengthening our controls against illegal working, and it is a matter of regret that the Hon Member and his colleagues voted against those measures at the third reading of the Bill on 12 May 2025.

Pursuant to the Answer of 9 July 2025 to Question 65159 on Undocumented Workers: Sharing Economy, whether gig economy platforms are required to report suspected illegal working; and what action is taken against platforms that fail to do so.

The Hon Member will be aware the that Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill contains new measures requiring companies operating in the gig economy to carry out employment checks on all individuals working for them, further strengthening our controls against illegal working, and it is a matter of regret that the Hon Member and his colleagues voted against those measures at the third reading of the Bill on 12 May 2025.

Pursuant to the Answer of 9 July 2025 to Question 65158 on Undocumented Migrants: Fingerprints, what procedures are followed if biometric data cannot be collected at the time of encounter due to (a) age and (b) other limitations.

Where biometric data cannot be collected at the time of encounter, the Biometric Enrolment: Policy Guidance – GOV.UK sets out the procedures that should be followed. Children under five are not required to provide fingerprints, though facial photographs should be taken. In cases involving individuals who are medically or physically unable to provide biometric data, the reason is recorded, and collection is deferred until the individual is able to comply except in circumstances where fingerprints can never be enrolled.

With reference to her Department's policy paper entitled Giving every child the best start in life, published on 7 July 2025, what progress has been made in awarding financial incentives to early years teachers in disadvantaged areas.

The commitment to champion early years teachers was announced on 7 July 2025 in the ‘Giving every child the best start in life’ strategy. The department wants the important role they play to be properly recognised. We want to grow the number of early years teachers, with the long-term aim of having one in every setting. To support this commitment, the new financial incentives policy will give all new and existing qualified early years teachers in eligible nurseries serving the most disadvantaged areas £4,500. We are in the early stages of developing this policy and will provide further details on eligibility and the delivery method in due course.

Pursuant to the Answer of 10 July 2025 to Question 63143 on Defibrillators, if he will have discussions with the Secretary of State for Business and Trade to ensure defibrillator manufacturers are encouraged to signpost buyers to register new devices with the Circuit network.

The Department for Business and Trade is not involved in the management or regulation of defibrillator manufacturers.The Circuit is the independently operated national automated external defibrillator (AED) database, developed by a partnership of the British Heart Foundation, the National Health Service, the Resuscitation Council UK, and the Association of Ambulance Chief Executives. The Circuit provides a national database of where defibrillators can be found so that ambulance services can quickly identify the nearest defibrillator.To improve patients' survival rates following out-of-hospital cardiac arrests, the Government committed to improving access to AEDs in public spaces and to reducing inequalities in access to these life saving devices. Following the depletion of the existing AED Fund, launched in September 2023, the Government approved a further £500,000 in August 2024 to fulfil existing applications to the fund.Applications to the fund were allocated based on where there is the greatest need, for instance remote communities with extended ambulance response times, places with high footfall and high population densities, hotspots for cardiac arrest including sporting venues and venues with vulnerable people, and deprived areas.

With reference to her Department's policy paper Giving every child the best start in life strategy, published on 7 July 2025, whether each local authority is required to publish a Best Start Local Plan; how those plans will be monitored centrally; and what the enforcement mechanisms will be if a local authority fails to meet its commitments.

On 7 July, the government’s landmark strategy ’Giving every child the best start in life’ set out that we will spend close to £1.5 billion over the next three years on improving family services and early years education.Local authorities will be tasked with developing ambitious Best Start local plans to achieve the Plan for Change milestone of 75% of 5 year-olds achieving a good level of development by 2028, working in partnership with government. These plans should build on local authorities’ existing strategic planning materials, such as children and young people plans. They can also build on local innovation already in place as part of the government's test, learn and grow agenda, with projects to improve the uptake of family services in Manchester and Sheffield already showing the value of this approach.We are discussing with local authority representatives how best to implement the commitments set out in ‘Giving every child the best start in life’. Further information will be communicated to local authorities soon.

With reference to her Department's policy paper entitled Giving every child the best start in life, published on 7 July 2025, how many best start family hubs are planned to be operational by April 2026.

On 7 July 2025, the government published ‘Giving every child the Best Start in Life’. This outlines the government’s commitment to deliver a new Best Start Family Service to bring together parenting, healthcare and education support services, as well as creating and funding Best Start Family Hubs in every local authority to give children the best start in life by strengthening and joining up family services.The department will provide over half a billion pounds of investment in the Best Start Family Service over the 2026/29 spending review period. Up to 1,000 Best Start Family Hubs will be rolled out following additional investment. Local authorities not currently funded through family hubs will receive development grants in 2025/26 to ensure national rollout from April 2026.We are working within the department and with the Department of Health and Social Care to share further information about what the spending review settlement means for the continuation and expansion of the programme.

What the average waiting time is for ambulances in the Lancashire Ambulance Service area.

NHS England publishes monthly official statistics for ambulance service performance. Lancashire is served by North West Ambulance Service NHS Trust (NWAS). The following table shows the most recent average response times for the NWAS, in hours, minutes, and seconds, broken down by category:Category namePerformance in June 2025Category 1 average00:07:15Category 2 average00:25:39Category 3 average01:42:46Category 4 average01:56:14Source: Ambulance Management Information dataset, available at the following link: https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/ambulance-quality-indicators/ambulance-management-information/

What steps he is taking to help reduce the number of mental health conditions among young people in (a) Fylde constituency and (b) Lancashire.

The NHS Lancashire and South Cumbria Integrated Care Board is responsible for commissioning services to meet the mental health needs of young people in Fylde and across Lancashire.Nationally, the Government is investing an extra £688 million this year to transform mental health services by hiring more staff, delivering more early interventions, and getting waiting lists down so young people can have the best possible start in life. We will fulfil our commitment to recruit an additional 8,500 staff across child and adult mental health services by the end of this Parliament, and 6,700 of these extra workers have been recruited since July 2024.We also want to intervene much earlier to support better outcomes for children and young people. That is why the 10-Year Health Plan sets out how we will work with schools and colleges to better identify and meet children's mental health needs by expanding mental health support teams in schools to cover 100% of pupils by 2029/30 and by embedding mental health support in the new Young Futures hubs, to ensure there is no 'wrong front door' for people seeking help. At the end of March 2025, 55% of pupils and learners in Lancashire were covered by a mental health support team.Additionally, we are continuing to provide top-up funding of £7 million to 24 existing early support hubs, including hubs in Chorley and Blackburn, to expand their services and to take part in an ongoing evaluation of these services in 2025/26. This funding will enable the supported hubs to deliver at least 10,000 additional mental health and wellbeing interventions, so that more children and young people are supported.

What steps her Department is taking to support teachers in Continuous Professional Development programmes in state schools.

High quality teaching is the most significant in-school determinant of pupil outcomes and is essential to reducing the attainment gap. The department supports new and experienced teachers with continuous professional development (CPD) to ensure teachers remain highly skilled. We will introduce a new teacher training entitlement to ensure teachers stay up to date on best practice.The department offers National Professional Qualifications (NPQs) that help boost teachers and leaders’ existing knowledge and confidence as they progress in their careers. We are currently reviewing NPQ courses to ensure they align with the latest evidence and best practice.The department has also established a network of 87 Teaching School Hubs across the country, which act as centres of expertise for CPD.The department provides support across a range of subjects via networks of hubs that help build teacher capability and pupil access to subjects. Examples include English Hubs, Maths Hubs and the Advanced Maths Support Programme. We are continuing and expanding the Subject Knowledge for Physics Teaching Programme, and are moving to an online national CPD offer which can support all teachers in computing and languages.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of changes to employer National Insurance contributions on employment levels in the hospitality sector in (a) Fylde constituency and (b) Lancashire.

A Tax Information and Impact Note (TIIN) was published alongside the introduction of the Bill containing the changes to employer National Insurance contributions (NICs). The TIIN sets out the impact of the policy on the exchequer, the economic impacts of the policy, and the impacts on individuals, businesses, and civil society organisations, as well as an overview of the equality impacts.The Office for Budget Responsibility also publishes Economic and Fiscal Outlooks (EFOs), which set out a detailed forecast of the economy and public finances.With all policies considered, the OBR's March 2025 EFO forecasts the employment level to increase from 33.6 million in 2024 to 34.8 million in 2029The Government decided to protect the smallest businesses from the changes to employer NICs by increasing the Employment Allowance from £5,000 to £10,500. This means that this year, 865,000 employers will pay no NICs at all, and more than half of all employers will either gain or will see no change.

If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of including financial education in the curriculum for GCSE Maths.

Currently pupils receive financial education through both the mathematics and citizenship curricula, for example covering compound interest in mathematics GCSE.The government has established an independent Curriculum and Assessment Review, chaired by Professor Becky Francis CBE. The Review is looking into the current programmes of study within its work to ensure a rich, broad, inclusive and innovative curriculum that readies young people for life and work.As set out in the Review Group’s interim report, they have heard consistently from children and young people and their parents that they want more focus on the applied knowledge and skills that will equip them for later life and work, such as financial education.The Review’s final report and recommendations will be published in the autumn, at which time the government will respond.

What steps she is taking to help improve the safety of train drivers in (a) Fylde constituency and (b) Lancashire.

Ensuring the continued safety of train drivers across the national rail network remains a priority for my department. Train operators are subject to strict legal duties, which are enforced by the Office of Rail and Road (ORR), to ensure that the train drivers they employ can work in safety. My department works closely with the ORR, the Rail Safety and Standards Board and the wider rail industry to keep these measures under review and to identify areas for improvement. This has included supporting research to improve the industry’s understanding of issues such as fatigue management and access to welfare facilities, and the development of improved standards and guidance to codify best practice.

How much his Department has spent on equipment for civil servants to work from home in each of the last five years.

The requested information is not centrally held, and complying with this request would incur a disproportionate cost to the department. Heads of departments have agreed that 60% minimum office attendance for most staff continues to be the best balance of working for the Civil Service, as was the case under the previous administration.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department has provided guidance to the police on the steps to take when the sale of single use vapes is reported to them.

The single-use vapes ban is enforced by Local Authority Trading Standards. The Government has worked closely with Trading Standards to ensure that they are prepared for the ban, this has included supporting training for Trading Standards Officers on the single-use vapes ban.

Communities and Local Government, what estimate her Department has made of the value of financial contributions secured through agreements under section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 in each of the last five years in (a) England, (b) Lancashire and (c) Fylde constituency.

Local Planning Authorities are required to publish an annual Infrastructure Funding Statement detailing developer contributions received through section 106 planning obligations or the Community Infrastructure Levy.Infrastructure Funding Statements for Fylde can be found here.There is no statutory requirement for a consolidated Infrastructure Funding Statement for England to be published, and one has not been published to date.

What assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the ban on single use vapes on the prevalence of vaping in schools.

The sale of vapes to under 18s is illegal, and the Tobacco and Vapes Bill will ban the sale of all consumer nicotine products to anyone under 18.Schools are required by law to have a behaviour policy that sets out what is expected of all pupils, including what items are banned from school premises. The department supports head teachers in taking proportionate and measured steps to ensure good behaviour in schools.To support schools to do so, the 'Behaviour in schools' guidance supports schools to develop a behaviour policy that will encourage good behaviour and set out the sanctions that will be imposed for misbehaviour, including vaping anywhere in school.Schools have the autonomy to decide which items should be banned from their premises, and these can include e-cigarettes or vapes. School staff can search pupils for banned items as outlined in the department’s Searching, Screening and Confiscation guidance.

Communities and Local Government, how her Department monitors whether contributions from agreements under section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 are spent (a) within agreed timeframes and (b) on the purposes specified in those agreements.

Supporting local planning authorities (LPAs) to attract, retain and develop skilled planners is crucial to ensuring they provide a proactive, efficient planning service for local communities and that new developments are well designed and facilitate local growth. The government appreciates that planning departments across the country are experiencing challenges with recruitment, retention, and skills gaps and that in many cases these issues are having a negative impact on service delivery. At the Budget last year, the Chanceller announced a £46 million package of investment into the planning system as a one-year settlement for 2025-2026. Our manifesto committed us to appointing 300 new planning officers into LPAs. We are on track to meet that commitment through two routes, namely graduate recruitment through the Pathways to Planning scheme run by the Local Government Association and mid-career recruitment through Public Practice. On 27 February 2025, the government announced funding to support salaries and complement graduate bursaries. Further information can be found in the Written Ministerial Statement I made on 27 February 2025 (HCWS480). On 12 March 2025, the Town and Country Planning (Fees for Applications, Deemed Applications, Requests and Site Visits) (England) (Amendment and Transitional Provision) Regulations 2025 were made. These regulations increase planning fees for householder and other applications, with a view to providing much-needed additional resources for hard-pressed LPAs. More broadly, the Department’s established Planning Capacity and Capability programme is also developing a wider programme of support, working with partners across the planning sector, to ensure that LPAs have the skills and capacity they need, both now and in the future, to modernise local plans and speed up decision making, including through innovative use of digital planning data and software. Lastly, the Planning and Infrastructure Bill includes provisions that will allow LPAs to set planning fees or charges at a level that reflects the individual costs to the LPA to carry out the function for which it is imposed and to ensure that the income from planning fees or charges is applied towards the delivery of the planning function. Planning practice guidance on planning obligations makes clear that it may be appropriate in some cases for LPAs to make use of collaborative agreements, skills of officers from other LPAs, or external third-party experts to ensure planning obligations can be agreed quickly and effectively. The relevant PPG also encourages local planning authorities to use and publish standard forms and templates to assist with the process of agreeing planning obligations. On 28 May 2025, the government published the Planning Reform Working Paper: Reforming Site Thresholds (which can be found on gov.uk here) which sought views on a number of specific proposals including standardised S106 templates and the rules relating to suitable off-site provision and/or appropriate financial payment. Local planning authorities are required to keep a copy of any planning obligation – together with details of any modification or discharge of that obligation – and to make these publicly available on their planning register. In addition, any local planning authority that has received a contribution from development through section 106 planning obligations is legally required to publish an Infrastructure Funding Statement at least annually, which sets out how developer contributions are used to fund local priorities. On 26 June, the Chief Planner wrote to all LPAs reminding them of their statutory duty to publish an Infrastructure Funding Statement where applicable. Authorities can charge a monitoring fee through section 106 planning obligations, to cover the cost of monitoring and reporting on delivery for the lifetime of that obligation. Authorities must report on monitoring fees in their Infrastructure Funding Statements. The government is committed to strengthening the system of developer contributions to ensure new developments provide necessary affordable homes and infrastructure. Further details will be set out in due course.

Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that local planning authorities have adequate resources to (a) negotiate, (b) monitor and (c) enforce agreements under section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990.

Supporting local planning authorities (LPAs) to attract, retain and develop skilled planners is crucial to ensuring they provide a proactive, efficient planning service for local communities and that new developments are well designed and facilitate local growth. The government appreciates that planning departments across the country are experiencing challenges with recruitment, retention, and skills gaps and that in many cases these issues are having a negative impact on service delivery. At the Budget last year, the Chanceller announced a £46 million package of investment into the planning system as a one-year settlement for 2025-2026. Our manifesto committed us to appointing 300 new planning officers into LPAs. We are on track to meet that commitment through two routes, namely graduate recruitment through the Pathways to Planning scheme run by the Local Government Association and mid-career recruitment through Public Practice. On 27 February 2025, the government announced funding to support salaries and complement graduate bursaries. Further information can be found in the Written Ministerial Statement I made on 27 February 2025 (HCWS480). On 12 March 2025, the Town and Country Planning (Fees for Applications, Deemed Applications, Requests and Site Visits) (England) (Amendment and Transitional Provision) Regulations 2025 were made. These regulations increase planning fees for householder and other applications, with a view to providing much-needed additional resources for hard-pressed LPAs. More broadly, the Department’s established Planning Capacity and Capability programme is also developing a wider programme of support, working with partners across the planning sector, to ensure that LPAs have the skills and capacity they need, both now and in the future, to modernise local plans and speed up decision making, including through innovative use of digital planning data and software. Lastly, the Planning and Infrastructure Bill includes provisions that will allow LPAs to set planning fees or charges at a level that reflects the individual costs to the LPA to carry out the function for which it is imposed and to ensure that the income from planning fees or charges is applied towards the delivery of the planning function. Planning practice guidance on planning obligations makes clear that it may be appropriate in some cases for LPAs to make use of collaborative agreements, skills of officers from other LPAs, or external third-party experts to ensure planning obligations can be agreed quickly and effectively. The relevant PPG also encourages local planning authorities to use and publish standard forms and templates to assist with the process of agreeing planning obligations. On 28 May 2025, the government published the Planning Reform Working Paper: Reforming Site Thresholds (which can be found on gov.uk here) which sought views on a number of specific proposals including standardised S106 templates and the rules relating to suitable off-site provision and/or appropriate financial payment. Local planning authorities are required to keep a copy of any planning obligation – together with details of any modification or discharge of that obligation – and to make these publicly available on their planning register. In addition, any local planning authority that has received a contribution from development through section 106 planning obligations is legally required to publish an Infrastructure Funding Statement at least annually, which sets out how developer contributions are used to fund local priorities. On 26 June, the Chief Planner wrote to all LPAs reminding them of their statutory duty to publish an Infrastructure Funding Statement where applicable. Authorities can charge a monitoring fee through section 106 planning obligations, to cover the cost of monitoring and reporting on delivery for the lifetime of that obligation. Authorities must report on monitoring fees in their Infrastructure Funding Statements. The government is committed to strengthening the system of developer contributions to ensure new developments provide necessary affordable homes and infrastructure. Further details will be set out in due course.