Written questions by Ribeiro-Addy.

What steps her Department is taking to tackle racial disparities in drug-related stop and search rates.

Disparity in the use of stop and search has reduced significantly in the past five years, but there is still far more work to do. In the year to March 2024, black people were 3.5 times more likely than white people to be stopped and searched on suspicion of carrying drugs. The disparity rate for stop and search as whole (including searches for weapons, stolen goods, etc) is 3.7.That is why the Government backs the National Police Chief’s Council’s Police Race Action Plan. The Plan aims to foster an anti-racist culture, values and behaviours within policing, which will inform all operational policing practice, improving experiences and outcomes for black people.On stop and search in particular, the Plan commits chief constables to identifying and addressing stop and search disparities, particularly on drugs searches and the searches of children.I will be working with police leaders to ensure the aims of the plan are adopted and embedded in all forces.

Communities and Local Government, if she will introduce a statutory requirement for swift bricks.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer to Question UIN 22080 on 15 January 2025.

Whether her Department has plans to introduce additional safe and legal routes, in the context of recent changes to its good character caseworker guidance.

The government is committed to supporting the most vulnerable people in the world and safe and legal routes will continue to play a role in our overall migration system. The government’s priority at present is the resettlement and relocation of those already identified as eligible but who have not yet travelled.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that its development funding in Tanzania is not implicated in the forced evictions of the Maasai people.

The UK works hard to uphold human rights around the world and UK Ministers and officials regularly raise human rights concerns with our international partners, including the Government of Tanzania.We have robust measures in place to ensure our aid spending is strictly monitored, and we work with the Independent Commission for Aid Impact to apply the highest standards to our programmes.Further information about our programmes can be found at Devtracker.fcdo.gov.uk.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that the conservation projects it funds in (a) Africa and (b) Asia do not lead to (i) forced evictions and (ii) violent abuses of Indigenous peoples.

Defra aims to take a do no harm approach to aid programming. Official development assistance (ODA) projects are required to undertake risk management and due diligence assessments in order to understand and mitigate programmatic risks, including understanding IPLC programming risks.

Pursuant to the Answer of 7 January 2025 to Question 21018 on UK Relations with EU, which articles of the (a) EU-UK Withdrawal Agreement, (b) Northern Ireland protocol, (c) Windsor Framework and (d) EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement the EU alleges the UK is in breach of.

I refer the Hon.Member for Clapham and Brixton Hill, Bell Ribeiro-Addy, to the answer provided to the Question on 20 January 2025 in the House of Lords. The response from The Baroness Twycross can be found here.

If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of establishing a Commissioner for Older People.

In its recent report into the rights of older people, the Women and Equalities Select Committee raised this matter and other issues. Together with other departments, we are considering those recommendations. More widely, I refer to Minister McGovern’s recent answer 29784 on how the Government is supporting older people in tackling age discrimination and ageism in the workplace.

How many GPs have been employed under the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme.

Primary care networks have been able to recruit newly qualified general practitioners (GPs) through the scheme since October 2024, with £82 million in funding provided in 2024/25. Information on the number of recently qualified GPs for which primary care networks are claiming reimbursement via the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme is currently being collated, but is not yet published. We are working to verify the data and establish its reliability, which is necessary before any dataset can be published.

What assessment he has made of the adequacy of the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme.

The Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme (ARRS) is subject to annual review as part of the consultation on the GP contract with professional representatives.The consultation on the 2025/26 GP contract has now concluded and the General Practitioners Committee England has voted in support of the proposed changes for 25/26. Several changes have been confirmed to increase the flexibility of the ARRS. This includes general practitioners (GPs) and practice nurses included in the main ARRS funding pot, an uplift of the maximum reimbursable rate for GPs in the scheme, and no caps on the number of GPs that can be employed through the scheme.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of the planned increase in employer National Insurance contributions on GPs.

We have made necessary decisions to fix the foundations of the public finances in the Autumn Budget. Resource spending for the Department will be £22.6 billion more in 2025/26 than in 2023/24, as part of the Spending Review settlement. The employers’ National Insurance rise will be implemented in April 2025.We are investing an additional £889 million in general practice to reinforce the front door of the National Health Service, bringing total spend on the GP Contract to £13.2 billion in 2025/26. This is the biggest increase in over a decade.

What assessment he has made of the adequacy of the Carr-Hill formula in allocating funding for GP practices in areas with high levels of deprivation.

The Carr-Hill formula aims to ensure that resources are directed to general practices (GPs) based on an estimate of their patient workload. It takes into account many factors under two groups, namely 'drivers of workload' and 'unavoidable costs', including additional needs related to morbidity and mortality, but it does not specifically address deprivation. Plans to review this funding formula may be revisited in future. However, any changes would need careful planning to ensure they do not threaten stability or cause financial uncertainty for GPs.We are committed to ensuring that primary care medical services receive appropriate support and resources. We recently announced a proposed funding uplift for GPs for 2025/26 of £889 million. This is the largest uplift to GP funding since the beginning of the five-year framework and means a rising share of total National Health Service resources being directed towards GPs.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of recent trends in the level of rent inflation on economic growth.

Rental prices are ultimately determined by the total supply of housing, relative to demand. Affordability of housing has fallen drastically, particularly in major cities, as too few homes have been built. This Government is taking meaningful steps to reform the planning system and make it easier to build. Changes to the National Planning Policy Framework, published in December, will reintroduce mandatory housing targets and bring low quality Green Belt land in scope of development. Building houses in the right places is vital to long-term economic growth, allowing prosperous places to grow, and providing the homes people want near good jobs.

What assessment has he made of the adequacy of the mechanisms in place for ICBs to hold Swift Queue to account for faulty services.

NHS England has not undertaken a specific assessment of the mechanisms in place for integrated care boards (ICBs) to hold Swift Queue accountable for service performance. However, ICBs, as commissioners of local health services, are responsible for ensuring that contracted service providers, including those providing digital booking systems, meet agreed performance and quality standards.Where issues arise with faulty services, ICBs have contractual levers available to address concerns, which may include service improvement plans, financial penalties, or contract reviews. If a specific issue has been identified with Swift Queue’s service provision, affected ICBs are expected to take appropriate action to resolve the matter in the interests of patient care. Where an ICB identifies systemic failures with Swift Queue or any similar provider, they can escalate concerns through NHS England and the relevant regulatory bodies.To note, ICBs are not always responsible for commissioning services like Swift Queue. National Health Service trusts may also directly procure and manage such contracts for their own operations. If an NHS trust has commissioned Swift Queue, then it holds responsibility for ensuring the system functions properly, using its contractual levers to address service issues. Regardless of the commissioner, ICB or trust, NHS England can provide oversight and guidance if widespread or systemic issues arise with the platform.

What assessment has he made of the number of registered GPs not in employment; and whether he is taking steps to reduce the number of unemployed GPs.

We hugely value the critical role that general practitioners (GPs) play and are determined to address the issues they face by shifting the focus of the National Health Service beyond hospitals and into the community. The Government committed to recruiting over 1,000 recently qualified GPs through an £82 million boost to the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme (ARRS) over 2024/25, as part of an initiative to address GP unemployment and secure the future pipeline of GPs.We are investing an additional £889 million through the GP contract to reinforce the front door of the NHS, bringing total spend on the GP Contract to £13.2 billion in 2025/26. This is the biggest increase in over a decade.Under recently announced changes to the GP contract in 2025/26, the ARRS will become more flexible to allow primary care networks (PCNs) to respond better to local workforce needs. The two ARRS pots will be combined to create a single pot for reimbursement of patient facing staff costs. There will be no restrictions on the number or type of staff covered, including GPs and practice nurses.In a drive to recruit GPs via the ARRS and to bring back the family doctor, the salary element of the maximum reimbursement amount that PCNs can claim for GPs will be increased from £73,113 in 2024/25, the bottom of the salaried GP pay range, to £82,418, an uplift of £9,305 representing the lower quartile of the salaried GP pay range, as some GPs will be entering their second year in the scheme. Proportionate employer on-costs will also be included within the overall maximum reimbursement amount which PCNs will be able to claim.Data on the number of unemployed GPs is not held centrally.

For what reason rheumatoid arthritis patients are not entitled to free NHS prescriptions; and if he will take steps to review the eligibility for free prescriptions for those patients.

There are no current plans to review the list of prescription charge exemptions or the list of medical conditions that entitle someone to apply for a medical exemption certificate.There are extensive arrangements in place in England to ensure that prescriptions are affordable for everyone. Approximately 89% of prescription items are dispensed free of charge in the community in England, and there is a wide range of exemptions from prescription charges already in place for which those with rheumatoid arthritis may be eligible. Eligibility depends on the patient’s age, whether they are in qualifying full-time education, whether they are pregnant or have recently given birth, whether they have a qualifying medical condition or whether they are in receipt of certain benefits or a war pension.People on low incomes can apply for help with their health costs through the NHS Low Income Scheme. Prescription prepayment certificates (PPCs) are also available. PPCs allow people to claim as many prescriptions as they need for a set cost, with 3-month and 12-month certificates available. The 12-month PPC can be paid for in instalments.

What steps his Department is taking to improve the number of haemopoietic stem cell transplants sourced from the UK.

The Department’s Stem Cell Programme has provided £2.4 million of funding for the period 2022-25. The programme is being delivered by NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) and Anthony Nolan. It aims to enhance the resilience of the United Kingdom's stem cell supply by strategically recruiting donors, particularly those most likely to donate, and to address health disparities through targeted campaigns, with a focus on ethnic minority communities. By increasing the pool of potential donors, the programme seeks to improve the availability of matches in the UK, ultimately reducing waiting times for patients in need of stem cell treatment.The UK aligned registry has over 2.3 million potential stem cell donors registered. NHSBT and Anthony Nolan are raising awareness of the importance of stem cell donation and increasing the number of donors on the register through a range of methods including partnering with community organisations, working with volunteer student groups, and engaging with active blood, plasma and platelet donors.

What the cost to the NHS is of sourcing a haematopoietic stem cell donation from the UK Aligned Stem Cell Registry compared to stem cell donation imports from United States, Germany and Poland; and what the oversight mechanism is for agreeing these costs.

Details on the costs of haematopoietic stem cell transplants are not held centrally by the Department.The UK Aligned Stem Cell Registry supplies stem cells from United Kingdom donors to the National Health Service. It is made up of four partners: Anthony Nolan and DKMS UK, which are both independent charities; NHS Blood and Transplant; and the Welsh Bone Marrow Donor Registry. The cost to the NHS for provisions of donated peripheral blood stem cells (PBSCs), cord blood units and donor lymphocytes from UK sources is reviewed annually by the UK Aligned Registry partners and reflects the costs involved in the provision of cell products. Costs are communicated to transplant centres by Anthony Nolan on behalf of the Aligned Registry, with due notice of implementation. Cost increases are maintained at or below inflation with adjustments to avoid any corresponding large increase in a given year.For products from international sources, Anthony Nolan is the importing organisation. Products are charged at the international registry fee plus a flat service fee. The international registry fee can vary significantly, depending on the organisation or country from which the product is being imported, the graft source, whether it be PBSCs, bone marrow or cord blood units, and the current foreign exchange rate. The service fee includes: management and maintenance of the search system and international search connections; facilitating the import of the stem cell product; quality assurance and management; and legal and insurance costs for the import of stem cell products.Fees for both UK and international cell products are charged directly to NHS transplant centres. NHS England has oversight of the tariff paid to NHS hospitals to cover the cost of unrelated donor transplantation and individual NHS hospitals or Trusts oversee how funds for unrelated transplants are allocated.The choice of donor is made by the medical team, who choose the donor they feel will be best for their patient, whether that is a donor available in the UK or one available overseas.

What percentage of haemopoietic stem cell transplant performed by the NHS were from UK registered donors between 1 October 2024 to 31 December 24 or the last three months for which data is available.

For the third quarter of 2024/25, registered donors in the United Kingdom provided by the Aligned Registry accounted for 23% (n=73) of the total unrelated, allogeneic haematopoietic stem cell transplants (n=311) for UK patients.

What estimate his Department has made of the cost of small-scale nuclear production relative to larger plants.

The Government is clear that nuclear power, including small modular reactors (SMRs), is and will continue to be an important part of the UK energy mix, providing secure, low carbon energy and thousands of skills jobs. Great British Nuclear is pushing forward with its SMR competition for UK deployment with final decisions to be taken this spring. As with all energy projects, the economic case for SMRs would be considered as part of any investment decision into the technology.

What estimate he has made of the number of small modular reactors needed to power AI data centres across Britain.

The Government continues to assess future energy requirements, including the potential impact of powering datacentres. Consumption from datacentres has been forecast by NESO to increase and require an uninterrupted supply of electricity. The Government is committed to nuclear playing an important role in generating low carbon power and contributing to UK energy security. Alongside large-scale plants, such as Hinkley Point C and Sizewell C, SMRs have the potential to supply the grid or to be a dedicated energy source for datacentres.