Written questions by Dewhirst.

What estimate she has made of the potential impact of increases in employers’ National Insurance contributions on early years settings.

It is our ambition that all families have access to high quality, affordable and flexible early education and care, giving every child the best start in life. This is key to the government’s Plan for Change, which starts with reaching the milestone of a record number of children being ready for school. In 2025/26 alone, this government plans to spend over £8 billion on early years entitlements and we have increased the early years pupil premium by over 45%. On top of this we are providing further supplementary funding of £75 million for the Early Years Expansion Grant to help providers meet their local demand.At the Spending Review 2025, the government announced that by 2028/29, it will provide an additional £1.6 billion per year, compared to 2025/26, to continue the expansion of government-funded childcare for working parents, boosting children’s life chances and work choices for parents.This increase in funding reflects the expansion of childcare for eligible working parents to 30 hours and expected increases to funding rates across the spending review period.The hourly funding rate for entitlement hours is intended to cover the core costs of providing 15 or 30 hours of childcare to parents. In setting funding rates, we take account of cost pressures facing the sector, including forecasts of average earnings and inflation, and the National Living Wage. HM Treasury have announced an increase to the rate of Employer National Insurance contributions by 1.2 percentage points, to 15%, and a reduction in the Secondary Threshold from £9,100 to £5,000 per year. They are also increasing the Employment Allowance to £10,500 and expanding this to all eligible employers.Employment Allowance is being increased to protect businesses by providing relief of up to £10,500 per annum on their employer Class 1 National Insurance contribution liabilities from 6 April 2025.Early Years childcare providers are entitled to claim the Employment Allowance if they are private businesses or charities and we expect the vast majority will be eligible to do so.Receiving over 50% of your income from government-funded childcare places won’t stop you from being eligible to claim, but you should check your individual circumstances against the HMRC guidance.

Food and Rural Affairs, what changes have been made to the style guide for answering written Parliamentary Questions since July 2024; and if he will publish that style guide.

As is normal, changes are made to take into account individual ministerial preferences. Defra continues to follow the guidance set out by the Cabinet Office on GOV.UK.

With reference to the oral contribution of the Parliamentary Under Secretary for Business and Trade of 31 October 2024, Official Report, column 927, what his Department's timetable is for publishing a Command Paper on support for small businesses.

The Government expects to publish the SME strategy later this year.This will set out the Government’s vision for SMEs, from encouraging entrepreneurship to boosting scale-ups, across key policy areas such as creating thriving high streets, making it easier to access finance, opening up overseas and domestic markets, building business capabilities, and providing a strong business environment.The paper will complement the Government’s forthcoming Industrial Strategy and Trade Strategy.

With reference to the press notice entitled Home Secretary to announce major policing reforms, published on 17 November 2024, what her Department's timetable is for establishing a unit to monitor police performance.

Since 19 November 2024, when My Rt Hon Friend, the Home Secretary, announced her plans for policing reform, we have been working closely with the sector to draw up a new Police Performance Framework to ensure standards are upheld across the country, and to establish a new Unit within the Home Office which will identify and support force-level improvements.Further details will be published in the forthcoming Police Reform White Paper.

What information her Department holds on the amount of funding that has been allocated for equality, diversity and inclusion roles in each police force in the (a) 2025-26 and (b) 2026-27.

The requested information is not centrally collated by the Home Office.Decisions on how funding and resources are utilised are an operational matter for Chief Constables and locally elected Police and Crime Commissioners.

What information his Department holds on the amount of funding Departments plan to provide to organisations that engage in the lobbying of Government in the (a) 2025-26 and (b) 2026-27 financial year.

This information is not centrally held by the Cabinet Office.

How many retailers with a retail value of under £51,000 are based on retail parks.

The Valuation Office Agency does not hold information specific to retail parks.

What budget her Department has allocated to public sector pay rises for 2025-26 and 2026-27.

Public Sector pay rises will be funded from Departmental Budgets across the Parliament – there is no centrally provided funding available for pay rises. Departments have set out in their evidence to the Pay Review Bodies (PRBs) what is affordable for 2025-26 pay awards for their workforces. Departmental budgets for 2026-27 onwards are subject to the ongoing Spending Review.

Media and Sport, what budget her Department has allocated to local government arts financing for (a) 2025-26 and (b) 2026-27.

Local authorities play a vital role in supporting arts and cultural institutions, but they operate independently of central government and make their own decisions about expenditure on the arts.The Settlement for 2025-26 makes available over £69 billion for local government, which is a 6.8% cash terms increase in councils’ Core Spending Power on 2024-25. The majority of funding in the Local Government Finance Settlement is not ringfenced, recognising that local leaders are best placed to identify local priorities.The Arts Council England, which is supported by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, also has multiple funding programmes where Local Authorities can apply on behalf of their cultural assets, including the National Portfolio Investment Programme, National Lottery Project Grants and the Museum Estate and Development Fund.Spending decisions beyond 2025-26 are a matter for the upcoming Spending Review.

Media and Sport, if she will make an estimate of the potential impact of charging overseas tourists £10 to visit museums on the public purse.

No.

What budget her Department has allocated to public sector equality, diversity and inclusion roles for (a) 2025-26 and (b) 2026-27.

HM Treasury has fewer than 5 staff in equality, diversity and inclusion roles for 2025/26. As the total number of individuals is less than 5, HM Treasury is unable to release salary information as doing so would mean these individuals may be identifiable. This is in line with HM Treasury's data reporting policy.The Department's budget for 2026/27 has not yet been finalised.

How much funding her Department has allocated to Stonewall for (a) 2025/26 and (b) 2026/27.

HM Treasury has not allocated any funding for Stonewall for 2025/26 and does not anticipate allocating any funding for Stonewall in 2026/27.

What assessment she has made of the potential merits of reducing business rates relief for retailers that choose to leave the high street and move their businesses to retail parks.

As set out at Autumn Budget 2024, the Government intends to introduce permanently lower tax rates for all retail, hospitality, and leisure (RHL) properties with rateable values below £500,000 from 2026-27. The Government intends to fund this by introducing a higher multiplier on all properties with a rateable value (RV) of £500,000 and above. The rates for any new business rate multipliers will be set at Budget 2025 so that the Government can take into account the upcoming revaluation outcomes as well as the economic and fiscal context.

What assessment she has made of the potential economic impact of the increase in employers’ National Insurance Contributions on (a) fish and chip shops and (b) other small businesses.

A Tax Information and Impact Note (TIIN) was published alongside the introduction of the Bill containing the changes to employer 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.

Whether the Small Business Strategy will consider the cost of full electrification of commercial properties for SMEs.

We will launch the Small Business Strategy later this year complementing the Government’s forthcoming Industrial and Trade Strategies as part of our economic growth mission.The strategy will help drive small business growth and productivity, for example – from boosting scale-ups to supporting budding entrepreneurs. It will cover a number of key policy areas, including creating thriving high streets, making it easier to access finance, opening up overseas markets, building business capabilities and supporting entrepreneurship. Although the full electrification of commercial properties is not a policy proposal we expect to be covered in the Small Business Strategy, we remain committed to a Net Zero economy by 2050.

What assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of full electrification on (a) fish and chip shops, (b) other businesses and (c) economic growth.

Fuel switching from fossil fuels to electricity has the potential to significantly reduce emissions, making a central contribution to our carbon budget commitments. Clean, homegrown energy is the best way to protect billpayers and boost Britain's energy independence. This will allow the UK to build an energy system that can bring down bills for households and businesses for good. Many electric technologies are more efficient than their gas counterparts, and therefore electrification has the potential to lower energy requirements for sites. The Government remains committed to supporting electrification and addressing the barriers to investment in electric technology. This includes further development of policy options to address the high cost of electricity relative to natural gas, and the implementation of planning reforms to speed up infrastructure development and unblock issues on grid connection delays. Taking the points specified in the hon Member’s question in turn: A) Fish & chip shops: Alongside the electrification of heating and cooling, a key approach for full electrification of a fish & chip shop could be switching from a gas fryer to an electric fryer. An electric fryer is more energy efficient and generally requires less maintenance than a gas fryer, but also tends to require higher upfront costs, and currently results in higher operating costs due to the higher price of electricity compared to gas. B) Businesses: For many businesses based in commercial units or offices, full electrification would require an electric source of heating and cooling, such as heat pumps or electric boilers. Heat pumps are highly efficient, reducing carbon emission significantly, and can provide both heating and cooling. As with the gas fryer, greater energy efficiency from heat pumps and electric boilers would reduce energy consumption, however upfront costs and operating costs are generally higher than gas alternatives. Some businesses with high temperature heat requirements, such as those involved in manufacturing, amy also require more specialised electrification technologies. C) Economic growth Electrification is the future for most UK industries, and brings with it a range of economic benefits. These include boosting the domestic supply chain, and supporting UK businesses to be more productive. Electrification will reduce the UK’s reliance on volatile fossil fuel prices, making the UK a more attractive place to do business leading to increased growth and jobs.At present, government provides grants of up to £7,500 for low carbon heating systems through the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, which are available to small commercial buildings.

What discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero on businesses’ reliance on gas for profitable commercial operations.

The Secretary of State works closely with all of Cabinet, discussing a wide range of issues. He is committed to this Government's growth mission and ensuring the UK is a place where businesses can thrive.

Whether (a) fish and chip shops and (b) other catering businesses will be required to replace existing gas cooking equipment.

Fuel switching from fossil fuels to electricity has the potential to significantly reduce emissions, making a central contribution to our carbon budget commitments. Clean, homegrown energy is the best way to protect billpayers and boost Britain's energy independence. This will allow the UK to build an energy system that can bring down bills for households and businesses for good. Many electric technologies are more efficient than their gas counterparts, and therefore electrification has the potential to lower energy requirements for sites. The Government remains committed to supporting electrification and addressing the barriers to investment in electric technology. This includes further development of policy options to address the high cost of electricity relative to natural gas, and the implementation of planning reforms to speed up infrastructure development and unblock issues on grid connection delays.

What discussions his Department has had with (a) fish and chip and (b) other commercial food providers on pressures faced by SMEs due to (i) taxation, (ii) the price of fish and (iii) the expense of full electrification.

Fish and chip shops are integral to our high streets, communities and culture. Commercial food providers more broadly play a key role in supporting economic growth in every corner of the UK. I recognise that these businesses are being challenged by rising costs, but we are protecting the smallest businesses by increasing the Employment Allowance and creating a fairer business rates system that protects the high street. The Government remains committed to supporting electrification and addressing the barriers to investment in electric technology. This includes further development of policy options to address the high cost of electricity relative to natural gas, and the implementation of planning reforms to speed up infrastructure development and unblock issues on grid connection delays.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has had recent discussions with regional allies on tackling Iran's alleged (a) involvement in training Polisario militias and (b) strategy to destabilise the region.

The UK has not seen requisite evidence to raise concerns with allies regarding the allegation of Iranian involvement in training of Polisario Front. However, we continue to monitor Iranian activity in the region. The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office regards the Polisario Front as a pro-independence movement and party to a UN-mediated dispute. The UK continues to support UN-led efforts to reach a just, lasting, and mutually acceptable political solution, based on compromise, which will provide for the self-determination of the people of Western Sahara.