Written questions by Charalambous.

What assessment he has made of whether funding for epilepsy research is proportionate to the prevalence of epilepsy.

Awaiting answer.

Whether his Department plans to increase funding opportunities for epilepsy research.

Awaiting answer.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of the April 2026 business rates revaluation and the withdrawal of Retail, Hospitality and Leisure relief on post offices, including on small and rural branches.

Awaiting answer.

Whether the High Streets Strategy will include a policy on business rates support for post offices.

Awaiting answer.

Whether she has considered introducing targeted business rates relief for post offices in England.

Awaiting answer.

How many people diagnosed with dementia have their Advance Care Plan reviewed in the last a) 12 month b) 24 months.

Awaiting answer.

What assessment he has made of the effectiveness of how dementia is reflected within NHS Continuing Healthcare eligibility criteria; and whether he plans to review the eligibility criteria as a result of the findings of the Casey Commission.

Awaiting answer.

What assessments he has made of trends in the level of regional variations in access to Advanced Care Planning for people living with dementia.

Awaiting answer.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether she has had recent discussions with Cabinet colleagues on introducing a Clean Air Act to enshrine the World Health Organisation's 2021 Air Quality Guidelines into law.

The Government is committed to cleaning up our air and protecting the public from the harm of pollution. The World Health Organisation’s (WHO) Air Quality Guidelines inform our approach to improving public health. However, as the Guidelines do not take into account national circumstances or achievability, they cannot be readily adopted everywhere. We remain committed to continuous improvement and the WHO Guidelines will continue to inform our evidence when considering next steps. Air pollution comes from many different sources and has wide-ranging impacts. Issues such as air quality, climate action, public health and nature recovery are closely linked, creating opportunities for policies that deliver benefits across all these areas. Because of this, every part of government has a role in shaping policies that help reduce air pollution and its effects. I will continue to work collaboratively with colleagues across government to tackle key sources of air pollution, such as through transport, health and energy policy.

Food and Rural Affairs, what consideration she has given to (a) revising Daily Air Quality Index thresholds to align with health evidence and (b) expanding the air pollution alert system to include fine particulate matter 2.5.

The Government is taking forward work to improve how air quality information is communicated to the public. Health advice accompanying the Daily Air Quality Index was updated in 2025, ensuring the advice is clinically accurate and aligns with the latest health evidence. Alongside the updated health advice, the Government is considering how the Daily Air Quality Index can be updated and is continuing work to improve digital systems and air quality alerts to ensure that information is timely, accessible, and presented in a clear and user‑friendly way. An expanded alerts service will be incrementally released over the course of the next 5 months which will incorporate all DAQI pollutants, including PM2.5.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what the planned ODA funding within the Human Development thematic directorate will be for a) global health, b) women and girls, c) equalities, d) civil society, e) safeguarding, f) governance and g) education in 2026-27, 2027-28 and 2028-29.

I refer the Hon Member to the statement made to the House by the Foreign Secretary on 19 March outlining the UK's Official Development Assistance (ODA) allocations for the period up to 2028-29, and to the accompanying documents setting out the detail of those allocations. I also refer him to the evidence provided by the Foreign Secretary and the Minister of State for International Development at the International Development Committee on 24 March, where they addressed questions at length about the Government's ODA policies and allocation decisions.

How many prisoners serving an Imprisonment for Public Protection sentence have been released from prison in each of the last seven years broken down by prison.

The requested data is provided in the attached file. The data provided covers the number of prisoners serving IPP sentences released for the first time, broken down by prison, for the period 2018 to 2024 in England and Wales. The data does not cover release decisions following recall.

Whether the Department has assessed the potential impact on the NHS in winter 2026-27 of providing the shingles vaccination programme to adults aged 80 in April 2027; and whether it has considered launching the programme in autumn 2026 alongside the seasonal flu and COVID-19 vaccination campaigns.

In November 2024, the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) provided advice on eligibility for the shingles vaccination programme for adults aged 80 years old and over. The Government continues to carefully consider the JCVI’s advice.We are taking key steps to ensure the National Health Service is prepared for the colder months. This winter, approximately half a million more people were vaccinated against flu compared to the previous season, though we know there is further to go next winter. We are undertaking a comprehensive ‘lessons learned’ review to help us identify what worked well, where persistent pressures remain, and what actions we need to prioritise going into next winter.

Communities and Local Government, what plans the government has to introduce legislation and investment to ensure better and more equitable access to decent public toilets.

The government recognises the importance of clean, safe public toilets. In keeping with our commitment to funding simplification, we have no current plans to introduce a statutory duty or ringfenced funding relating to toilet provision. We believe that local authorities are best placed to assess and mange toilet provision as they best understand local needs. At the 2025 Spending Review, we committed more than £5 billion in new grant funding over three years for essential local services such as toilets. In addition, we continue to provide 100% mandatory business rates relief for separately assessed public toilets, reducing ongoing costs for local authorities and supporting the continued operation of these vital facilities.

What steps she is taking to ensure that consumers understand the contractual obligations they enter when signing digital or electronic agreements with claims management or legal services firms.

The legal and claims management sectors are regulated independently of government. The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) is responsible for regulating the professional conduct of solicitors and most law firms in England and Wales, including claims management activities they undertake. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) regulates specified claims management activities carried out by claims management companies.The government supports the action taken by the FCA and the SRA to ensure consumers receive clear and fair information before entering digital or electronic agreements. The FCA requires claims management firms to ensure that all digital and electronic agreements are clear, fair, and not misleading, and that customers fully understand the agreement and services before signing. FCA action on misleading online promotions led to 9,197 promotions being withdrawn by claims management firms in 2024. The SRA requires firms to provide clear information before any agreement is entered into – including about costs, termination provisions and ensuring proper client authority – whether instructions are given in person or online.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact on consumers of misleading “no win, no fee” advertising by high-volume claims firms, including instances where hidden fees or complex funding arrangements expose claimants to unexpected financial risk.

The Government is aware of concerns that misleading "no win, no fee" advertising can expose consumers to unexpected financial risk, including through unclear information about fees, deductions, and related funding or insurance arrangements. Whether entering into a “no win, no fee” arrangement through a legal services provider or claims management company (CMC), consumers should receive clear and timely information about what they are agreeing to.The legal and claims management sectors are regulated independently of government. The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) is responsible for regulating the professional conduct of solicitors and most law firms in England and Wales, including claims management activities they undertake. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) regulates specified claims management activities carried out by CMCs.The Ministry of Justice has been working closely with relevant regulators and partners across the system, including engagement with the SRA and FCA, to understand and support action to address risks to consumers in the high-volume consumer claims market. I met with both organisations recently and impressed upon the regulators the need for tougher, more consistent regulation of conditional fee agreements.The SRA has, and is, undertaking a range of work in this area, including ongoing investigations, a thematic review and discussion paper, requiring mandatory compliance declarations from firms operating in the high-volume consumer claims sector, consumer research, and guidance and Warning Notices for law firms. This includes action to improve how “no win, no fee” arrangements are explained, including exploring standardised wording and templates to support clearer consumer communications. The SRA will also shortly be reminding firms of their current obligations by publishing a Warning Notice relating to “no win, no fee” claims. Further information on the SRA’s work in relation to high-volume consumer claims is available at: https://www.sra.org.uk/home/hot-topics/high-volume-consumer-claims/.The FCA has set out clear expectations for CMC marketing and customer communications, including that promotions must be fair, clear and not misleading and that “no win, no fee” advertising must include prominent information about relevant fees and termination charges. The FCA has also intervened to require misleading CMC promotions to be amended or withdrawn, and has recently written to CMCs active in motor finance claims to remind them to review their promotions and ensure compliance with FCA rules and the Consumer Duty.

What steps he is taking to improve the recruitment and retention of staff in women’s health services.

Decisions about recruitment are a matter for individual National Health Service employers, who manage this at a local level to ensure they have the staff they need to deliver safe and effective care.The 10 Year Workforce Plan will ensure the NHS has the right people in the right places, with the right skills to care for patients, when they need it.As set out in the 10-Year Health Plan, the Government is committed to making the NHS the best place to work, by supporting and retaining our hardworking and dedicated healthcare professionals.To support this ambition, the Government plans to introduce a new set of standards for modern employment in April 2026. The new standards will reaffirm our commitment to improving retention by tackling the issues that matter to staff including promoting flexible working, improving staff health and wellbeing, and dealing with violence, racism, and sexual harassment in the NHS workplace. They will provide a framework for leaders across the NHS to build a supportive culture that embeds retention.

Whether his Department plans to introduce additional safeguards to ensure that third-party litigation funding agreements do not expose consumers to unfair financial outcomes.

We intend to legislate to introduce proportionate regulation of litigation funding agreements when parliamentary time allows. The new regulatory framework will aim to enhance claimant protection, transparency, and the effectiveness of the litigation funding market.The Government recognises the critical role third-party litigation funding plays in access to justice. That is why we are committed to ensuring it works fairly for all. We will outline next steps in due course.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of mass legal claims against publicly funded bodies, such as the Legal Aid Agency, on (a) vulnerable consumers and (b) levels of resource available for frontline services.

Public bodies are expected to identify material risks to vulnerable consumers or levels of resource available for frontline services, including due to any mass legal claims, and are responsible for managing their impact.The Ministry of Justice has a partnership relationship with each of its funded public bodies that enables the body to escalate new risks as appropriate. The Department carries out an annual risk assessment of each of its public bodies, where significant upcoming risks can be identified and an assessment of the impact made.Additionally, public bodies that receive funding from the Ministry of Justice are responsible for working collaboratively with the Department as it determines the level of funding that will be provided to them annually. Any pressures that can be predicted due to mass legal claims would be expected to be raised with the Ministry of Justice and levels of resource would be discussed with those bodies on an individual basis through existing financial allocation processes.Other Government Departments are responsible for the assessment of risks to public bodies sponsored by them.

What assessment he has made of the adequacy of civil justice processes in providing effective access to justice for claimants; and if he will publish any data on the average percentage of a claimant's compensation award which is taken up by legal and third party costs.

The Government is committed to ensuring access to justice, and we welcomed the Justice Committee’s recent inquiry into the Work of the County Court. As the Government acknowledged in its response, the County Court faces substantial challenges. However, performance is beginning to turn a corner with good progress being made towards a more efficient, timely and digitised service; and we expect this to continue.The Civil Justice Council (CJC) is a statutory body that advises the Lord Chancellor, the judiciary, and the Civil Procedure Rule Committee. Amongst its statutory functions, the CJC keeps the civil justice system under review and makes recommendations on, how to make the civil justice system more accessible, fair, and efficient. The CJC’s recent report into litigation funding has been critical in helping shape Government policy on improving the civil justice system.Claimants may be able enter into a private agreement with a lawyer using a Conditional Fee Agreement or a Damages Based Agreement, or with a third-party funder using a Litigation Funding Agreement. Such agreements usually mean that a claimant will not have to pay all or part of their own legal costs unless they win their case. This payment would usually be deducted from the compensation awarded, though it could be defined as a percentage of compensation or a multiple of legal base costs, depending on the type of agreement used. Solicitors should inform their clients of any fees, and the circumstances in which their fees, or part of their fees, are payable.The Ministry of Justice does not hold data on the average percentage of a claimant’s compensation award that is taken up by legal and third-party costs.