Written questions by Stephenson.

Whether Great British Railways will consider housing growth in capacity planning.

An integrated, affordable and sustainable transport network plays a vital role in unlocking homes and providing access to jobs and essential services. Great British Railways (GBR) will work closely with the Department for Transport, MHCLG and other government departments to align housebuilding with future transport infrastructure strategy and investment.  This will include considering housing growth as part of future capacity planning to help us deliver 1.5 million homes over the next 5 years.

Media and Sport, whether she had made an assessment with Cabinet colleagues of the potential impact of 3G football pitches on the environment.

The Government is aware of the potential impacts which 3G, or Artificial Grass Pitches (AGPs), have on the environment. The most prominent of these impacts relates to the spread of rubber infill (also known as ‘rubber crumb’) - which contains harmful microplastics - from 3G pitches, into the environment.It is also important to note though that AGPs currently play a crucial role in getting more people active across the UK. They provide durable, safe, year-round playing surfaces which can sustain up to 80 hours of use per week - significantly more than grass pitches, helping more people to access the benefits of physical activity.While, currently, there is no clear alternative to rubber crumb, DCMS continues to work closely with DEFRA and the wider sector to help identify a viable long-term solution. This includes the Sheffield Hub Test Site, where the Football Foundation are leading research to pilot a number of alternative infills which have a lower environmental impact, while still delivering safe, high-quality facilities for people to take part in physical activity.Sport England is also committed to working with partners to mandate - through grant conditions - that Artificial Grass Pitches (AGPs) are recycled when reaching their end of life. To support this, Sport England continues to work with relevant industry partners to increase recycling capacity available to sports providers across the country.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 31 March 2025 to Question 36495 on Derelict Land: Regeneration, how this will be funded.

The £51.5 million regeneration package announced on 13 February 2025 will be funded through existing departmental budgets for brownfield remediation and regeneration.

Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the press release £16 million boost to improve flood protection for farmers and rural communities, published on 16 March 2025, what the additional funding will be for each internal drainage board.

The Internal Draining Board (IDB) Storm Recovery and Asset Improvement fund was established to help IDBs recover from flooding events over winter 2023/24 and to modernise their infrastructure.On 31 March, the Government announced an additional £16 million to bolster the fund, bringing the total to £91 million.The whole fund will provide improved flood protection benefits to over 400,000 hectares of agricultural land and 91,000 homes and businesses.The additional £16 million will be allocated to previously submitted and assessed bids. The funding will support an additional 20 projects, across 18 different IDBs. Announcements of the specific amounts will be made in due course.

Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 25 March 2025 to Question 38457 on Electricity Generation: Infrastructure, what steps he has taken to identify suitable locations since July 2024.

Forestry England have not undertaken a detailed assessment of the potential suitable locations of renewable energy projects across the Public Forest Estate since July 2024. Forestry England will commence detailed assessments following Royal Assent of the Bill, with an aim to integrate proposals into the natural landscape with no net loss of woodland area.

With reference to her Department's press release entitled £740 million allocated for 10,000 new places for pupils with SEND, published on 27 March 2025, how many of those places will be in schools in Bedfordshire.

The statutory duty to provide sufficient school places for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) or who require alternative provision sits with local authorities.The department has now published allocations for £740 million in High Needs Provision Capital Allocations (HNPCA) for the 2025/26 financial year, to support local authorities to deliver new places in mainstream and special schools, as well as other specialist settings, and to improve the suitability and accessibility of existing buildings.The funding can be used to adapt schools to be more accessible for children with SEND, to create specialist facilities within mainstream schools that can deliver more intensive support adapted to suit the pupils’ needs and to create special school places for pupils with the most complex needs.Central Bedfordshire Council has been allocated £4.4 million for 2025/26 and it is up to the local authority to make decisions about the places they create and to prioritise this funding to meet local needs.School buildings are integral to high and rising standards and need to be fit for the future. The department therefore also supports local authorities, academy trusts and voluntary-aided school bodies, which are responsible for keeping buildings safe and well-maintained by providing, capital funding, delivering major rebuilding programmes and offering guidance and support.The department is increasing capital funding to improve the condition of school buildings to £2.1 billion for the 2025/26 financial year, up from £1.8 billion for the 2024/25 financial year.As part of this, for the 2025/26 financial year, Central Bedfordshire Council has been provisionally allocated a school condition allocation (SCA) of £3.3 million to decide how to allocate across its maintained schools based on local knowledge of condition need, prioritising keeping schools safe and operational. Local authority schools in Central Bedfordshire have also been provisionally allocated a total of £0.4 million in devolved formula capital (DFC) in 2025/26 to spend on their own capital priorities.Large multi-academy trusts and large voluntary aided school bodies, such as dioceses, will also have been provisionally allocated SCA, but allocations typically span across local authority boundaries. Smaller multi-academy and single academy trusts and sixth form colleges were instead eligible to apply to the Condition Improvement Fund, with outcomes due to be published later in the spring. All eligible non-maintained schools in Bedfordshire have also been provisionally allocated DFC.Provisional capital condition allocations for 2025/26 are published on GOV.UK, with final allocations to follow later in the spring.

With reference to her Department's press release entitled £740 million allocated for 10,000 new places for pupils with SEND, published on 27 March 2025, how much of the investment into the condition of the school and sixth-form college estate in England will be spent in Bedfordshire.

The statutory duty to provide sufficient school places for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) or who require alternative provision sits with local authorities.The department has now published allocations for £740 million in High Needs Provision Capital Allocations (HNPCA) for the 2025/26 financial year, to support local authorities to deliver new places in mainstream and special schools, as well as other specialist settings, and to improve the suitability and accessibility of existing buildings.The funding can be used to adapt schools to be more accessible for children with SEND, to create specialist facilities within mainstream schools that can deliver more intensive support adapted to suit the pupils’ needs and to create special school places for pupils with the most complex needs.Central Bedfordshire Council has been allocated £4.4 million for 2025/26 and it is up to the local authority to make decisions about the places they create and to prioritise this funding to meet local needs.School buildings are integral to high and rising standards and need to be fit for the future. The department therefore also supports local authorities, academy trusts and voluntary-aided school bodies, which are responsible for keeping buildings safe and well-maintained by providing, capital funding, delivering major rebuilding programmes and offering guidance and support.The department is increasing capital funding to improve the condition of school buildings to £2.1 billion for the 2025/26 financial year, up from £1.8 billion for the 2024/25 financial year.As part of this, for the 2025/26 financial year, Central Bedfordshire Council has been provisionally allocated a school condition allocation (SCA) of £3.3 million to decide how to allocate across its maintained schools based on local knowledge of condition need, prioritising keeping schools safe and operational. Local authority schools in Central Bedfordshire have also been provisionally allocated a total of £0.4 million in devolved formula capital (DFC) in 2025/26 to spend on their own capital priorities.Large multi-academy trusts and large voluntary aided school bodies, such as dioceses, will also have been provisionally allocated SCA, but allocations typically span across local authority boundaries. Smaller multi-academy and single academy trusts and sixth form colleges were instead eligible to apply to the Condition Improvement Fund, with outcomes due to be published later in the spring. All eligible non-maintained schools in Bedfordshire have also been provisionally allocated DFC.Provisional capital condition allocations for 2025/26 are published on GOV.UK, with final allocations to follow later in the spring.

Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an estimate of what the median income of farmers was in the 2023-24 financial year who will be affected by the changes to Agricultural Property Relief and Business Property Relief.

Assessing the impact of the new Inheritance Tax policy, which comes into force from 6 April 2026, relies on a number of factors such as ownership structure and debt levels. The Government is aware that each farm is different, and so we encourage farmers to speak to their tax advisors and agents to understand how these changes may impact their specific situation and how to plan for the future. Published data for all farms in the Farm Business Survey population in England are based on mean average incomes and are available at: Farm business income - GOV.UK.

Pursuant to the Answer of 13 March 2025 to Question 35855 on Govia Thameslink Railway: Standards, whether the timetable referred to would reduce the number of services provided on a given line in some cases.

Currently all train operators are required to plan services and timetables designed to meet both current and future passenger demand, while also ensuring value for money for the taxpayer. In the future Great British Railways (GBR) will be accountable for decisions on the use of the railway including in relation to the planning of train services. GBR will plan and implement an achievable, reliable timetable, so that the services promised to passengers are delivered. It is anticipated that better coordination of the timetable will reduce delays, improve reliability and reduce costs. GBR will need to continually reassess its services to ensure it provides rail timetables that meet passenger travel patterns, are fit for the future, and carefully balance cost, capacity and performance. This could potentially result in increases or decreases in service levels across different routes to ensure the best outcomes for both passengers and taxpayers.

If she will make an estimate of the potential impact of East West Rail on passenger numbers on Thameslink services (a) from London to Bedford, (b) from Bedford to London, (c) northbound on the East Coast Main Line and (d) southbound on the East Coast Main Line.

East West Rail Co. will be considering abstraction of passengers from other services as part of the Outline Business Case for East West Rail.

If she will make an assessment of the potential impact of the proposed Luton Airport expansion on Thameslink services.

Luton Airport Parkway station is well served with up to eight Thameslink and two East Midlands Railway trains an hour to and from the station. Most passenger demand for the airport is either in the off-peak period or in the contra-peak direction, when trains are typically less busy. The two train operators for the station, Govia Thameslink Railway and East Midlands Railway, were involved in the planning process for the airport expansion plans, including in relation to their ability to provide sufficient capacity to meet expected changes in demand.

If she will make an assessment of the potential impact of employers’ National Insurance contributions on the availability of apprenticeships in 2025-26.

I refer the hon. Member for Mid Bedfordshire to the answer of 26 March 2025 to Question 39407.

Media and Sport, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of the proposed reduction in funding for the GREAT Britain and Northern Ireland programme on the Starring GREAT Britain campaign.

The GREAT Britain and Northern Ireland campaign has played and continues to play an important role in promoting the UK as a top global destination and supporting growth in the visitor economy. While decisions around the overall GREAT programme budget sit with the Cabinet Office, DCMS continues to work closely with the Minister for the Cabinet Office and other relevant departments to ensure that tourism remains a core focus of the campaign. Discussions are ongoing on how to maximise impact within available resources. We remain committed to working with VisitBritain and the wider sector to support the UK’s international tourism recovery, grow the visitor economy, and deliver on our ambition to attract 50 million inbound visitors by 2030.

Media and Sport, what recent discussions she has had with the Minister for the Cabinet Office on the GREAT campaign.

The GREAT Britain and Northern Ireland campaign has played and continues to play an important role in promoting the UK as a top global destination and supporting growth in the visitor economy. While decisions around the overall GREAT programme budget sit with the Cabinet Office, DCMS continues to work closely with the Minister for the Cabinet Office and other relevant departments to ensure that tourism remains a core focus of the campaign. Discussions are ongoing on how to maximise impact within available resources. We remain committed to working with VisitBritain and the wider sector to support the UK’s international tourism recovery, grow the visitor economy, and deliver on our ambition to attract 50 million inbound visitors by 2030.

Media and Sport, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of the proposed reduction in funding for the GREAT Britain and Northern Ireland programme on the visitor economy.

The GREAT Britain and Northern Ireland campaign has played and continues to play an important role in promoting the UK as a top global destination and supporting growth in the visitor economy. While decisions around the overall GREAT programme budget sit with the Cabinet Office, DCMS continues to work closely with the Minister for the Cabinet Office and other relevant departments to ensure that tourism remains a core focus of the campaign. Discussions are ongoing on how to maximise impact within available resources. We remain committed to working with VisitBritain and the wider sector to support the UK’s international tourism recovery, grow the visitor economy, and deliver on our ambition to attract 50 million inbound visitors by 2030.

What discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on the potential impact of the GREAT campaign on economic growth.

The GREAT Britain & Northern Ireland campaign remains an effective tool in driving economic growth and we will continue to work closely with partners to optimise the campaign’s resources to deliver growth across the UK as part of our Plan for Change.

Whether he has made an assessment of the contribution of the GREAT campaign to economic growth.

The GREAT Britain & Northern Ireland campaign remains an effective tool in driving economic growth and we will continue to work closely with partners to optimise the campaign’s resources to deliver growth across the UK as part of our Plan for Change.

For what reason he has cut funding for the GREAT programme by 41%.

The GREAT Britain & Northern Ireland campaign remains an effective tool in driving economic growth and we will continue to work closely with partners to optimise the campaign’s resources to deliver growth across the UK as part of our Plan for Change.

Media and Sport, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of the proposed reduction in funding for the GREAT Britain and Northern Ireland programme on her target for international tourism visitors.

The GREAT Britain and Northern Ireland campaign has played and continues to play an important role in promoting the UK as a top global destination and supporting growth in the visitor economy. While decisions around the overall GREAT programme budget sit with the Cabinet Office, DCMS continues to work closely with the Minister for the Cabinet Office and other relevant departments to ensure that tourism remains a core focus of the campaign. Discussions are ongoing on how to maximise impact within available resources. We remain committed to working with VisitBritain and the wider sector to support the UK’s international tourism recovery, grow the visitor economy, and deliver on our ambition to attract 50 million inbound visitors by 2030.

Whether he has undertaken an impact assessment for the decision to reduce GREAT programme funding.

The GREAT Britain & Northern Ireland campaign remains an effective tool in driving economic growth and we will continue to work closely with partners to optimise the campaign’s resources to deliver growth across the UK as part of our Plan for Change.