Written questions by Hinchliff.

Food and Rural Affairs, what role will organically certified produce have in achieving 50 percent of public sector catering contracts from British producers or those certified to higher environmental standards.

We have published a new national procurement policy statement, which sets out expectations for government contracts to favour products certified to high environmental standards. We are currently considering the policy options available to deliver further on our ambitions for public sector catering, including the role of organic produce.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of the British Industrial Competitiveness Scheme on electricity bills for non-exempt consumers.

The government is looking to fund this support by bearing down on levies and other costs in the energy system, alongside revenues from the strengthening and expansion of carbon pricing.

Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the Nature Restoration Fund proposed by the Planning and Infrastructure Bill on the Marine Recovery Fund.

The Marine Recovery Fund is being established as a voluntary mechanism to deliver strategic compensation for offshore wind developers. The Nature Restoration Fund will offer a new way for developers to discharge existing environmental obligations related to protected sites and species, using resources strategically to maximise positive outcomes for nature. There are currently no plans to combine the two funds.

If she will make an estimate of the number and proportion of Personal Independence Payment claimants who use some of their Personal Independence Payment to pay for housing costs.

Personal Independence Payment (PIP) is intended to provide a financial contribution towards the extra costs faced by disabled people and people with long-term health. Claimants are free to use PIP according to their own needs and priorities. Information on how claimants spend their benefit is published in The Uses of Health and Disability Benefits, and, for a subset in receipt of the Support Group rate of Employment and Support Allowance and its Universal Credit equivalent, in chapter 3.4 of The work aspirations and support needs of claimants in the ESA Support Group and Universal Credit equivalent.

Whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of its proposed exemptions for certain industrial users from (a) Feed-in Tariffs, (b) Renewables Obligation Certificates and (c) the Capacity Market ion levy costs for other industrial, commercial or domestic consumers.

The government is looking to fund this support by bearing down on levies and other costs in the energy system, alongside revenues from the strengthening and expansion of carbon pricing.

Communities and Local Government, what estimate she has made of the proportion of projected additional funding for the Affordable Homes Programme that will be allocated to homes for social rent in the next three financial years.

The 2021-26 Affordable Homes Programme averages £2.3 billion of grant capital funding per year.The Spending Review 2025 policy paper (which can be found on gov.uk here) makes clear that spending on our new £39 billion, 10-year Social and Affordable Homes Programme (2026-27 to 2035-36) will reach £4 billion per year in 2029-30 and rise in line with inflation subsequently.As such, government spending on affordable housing investment will have almost doubled by the end of this Parliament.Government does not usually publish year-by-year spend on specific programmes in advance. We will continue to publish past year’s expenditure figures in the department's Annual Report and Accounts.

Communities and Local Government, what estimate she has made of the projected percentage increase in nominal funding for the Affordable Homes Programme in each of the next three financial years.

The 2021-26 Affordable Homes Programme averages £2.3 billion of grant capital funding per year.The Spending Review 2025 policy paper (which can be found on gov.uk here) makes clear that spending on our new £39 billion, 10-year Social and Affordable Homes Programme (2026-27 to 2035-36) will reach £4 billion per year in 2029-30 and rise in line with inflation subsequently.As such, government spending on affordable housing investment will have almost doubled by the end of this Parliament.Government does not usually publish year-by-year spend on specific programmes in advance. We will continue to publish past year’s expenditure figures in the department's Annual Report and Accounts.

Communities and Local Government, what estimate she has made of the real-terms percentage change in funding for the Affordable Homes Programme in each of the next three financial years.

The 2021-26 Affordable Homes Programme averages £2.3 billion of grant capital funding per year.The Spending Review 2025 policy paper (which can be found on gov.uk here) makes clear that spending on our new £39 billion, 10-year Social and Affordable Homes Programme (2026-27 to 2035-36) will reach £4 billion per year in 2029-30 and rise in line with inflation subsequently.As such, government spending on affordable housing investment will have almost doubled by the end of this Parliament.Government does not usually publish year-by-year spend on specific programmes in advance. We will continue to publish past year’s expenditure figures in the department's Annual Report and Accounts.

With reference to the Written Statement of 5 June 2025 on School Food, HCWS682, what the (a) timeframe and (b) scope of the consultation on revising School Food Standards will be; and whether that consultation will include direct engagement with young people.

To ensure quality and nutrition in meals for children, the department is acting quickly with experts across the sector to revise the school food standards, so every school is supported with the latest nutrition guidance. The department is currently engaging with a range of stakeholders to help us understand the challenges around school food.We intend to consult on these revisions and further details will be available in due course. Hearing from young people is an important part of this work and we will ensure there are appropriate opportunities for their engagement.

How many children aged between 28 days and 17 years old were admitted to NHS care for more than seven days in the latest period for which data is available.

NHS England collects the data on patient discharge episodes, including for children, through the Hospital Episode Statistics. Discharge data does not represent the number of individual children with a hospital stay, as a child may have more than one discharge from hospital within the reporting period.Between April 2023 and March 2024, there were 35,282 discharge episodes recorded where the patient was in hospital for more than seven days and was aged over 28 days old and under 18 years old when admitted into National Health Service care.

How many overseas voters from North East Hertfordshire constituency are impacted by frozen British Pensions; and whether she is taking steps to help tackle this.

There are no plans to change the policy on frozen State Pension. UK State Pensions are payable worldwide, without regard to nationality, and are only up-rated abroad where there is a legal requirement to do so, for example in countries with which we have a reciprocal agreement that provides for up-rating. The policy on up-rating UK State Pension paid overseas is a longstanding one and has been in place for over 70 years. The Department does not hold information on voter identification and is not able to reliably identify voters from a specific constituency among those whose State Pension has not been up-rated

What steps he is taking to support the implementation of community energy projects.

In 2025 and 2026 Great British Energy will provide over £9m in support directly for community energy projects – from solar on rooftops to hydropower in rivers - through the GBE Community Fund as well as support for the CARES scheme in Scotland. These projects will help to support jobs, boost our energy security and increase public support for the energy transition. GBE will grow this support over this parliament as it becomes fully established.

Media and Sport, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a national support scheme for the insurance of (a) thatched and (b) listed residential properties to help homeowners (i) manage increases in insurance costs and (ii) preserve heritage buildings.

The government acknowledges that homeowners can face challenges in managing increased insurance costs and preserving heritage buildings, such as thatched properties.The Department has not made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a national support scheme for the insurance of thatched and listed residential properties. However, Historic England, the government's statutory advisors on the historic environment, commissioned analysis from industry experts to understand the causes behind these increases. The research revealed that fewer companies are offering insurance for highly listed (Grade I and II*) buildings, leading to reduced competition. The report found that the increased cost of materials and labour, which influence rebuild valuations, amongst other factors. These impacts are largely dictated by market forces and the Government is not considering intervention at this stage.A range of policies and programmes the Government offers centrally and through its Arms Length Bodies, including repair and restoration grants, skills initiatives, and streamlining and simplifying the planning system, are designed to reduce the costs of works to listed buildings.

How much was spent on (a) maternity, (b) paternity and (c) adoption leave in the most recent period for which data is available.

HMRC hold information on the amounts paid by employers to employees for Statutory Parental Pay, but do not hold this for additional ‘occupational’ pay offered by employers.The table below shows the amounts paid for statutory pay in 2023/24 (the latest complete year available). Value of Employee Claims (£Million)Statutory Maternity Pay3,338.3Statutory Paternity Pay69.0Statutory Adoption Pay25.1 Notes:1) Data collected using HMRC Real Time Information (RTI) and extracted in December 2024. RTI is subject to revision or updates.2) Total value of claims rounded to nearest £100,000.

Innovation and Technology, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of provisions within the Data, Use and Access Bill on (a) copyright and (b) AI on the long-term sustainability of the music and arts sector.

The Data (Use and Access) Bill does not contain any provisions relating to copyright law and AI or the music and arts sectors. Nor does it change copyright law in any regard. In response to concerns, the Government has committed on the face of the Bill to produce an economic impact assessment and report on key matters relating to use of copyright works in the development of AI systems.

What discussions his Department has had with providers of community equipment services on their role in supporting (a) timely hospital discharge and (b) effective community-based care.

Local National Health Service procuring authorities are responsible for assessing the timeliness and the quality of medical equipment delivered for their patients, procured under contracts they hold with suppliers.Timely provision of community equipment supports people to remain as independent as possible, for as long as possible, and contributes significantly to the priorities of the Department, the NHS, and local authorities in terms of hospital avoidance and discharge.Many NHS trusts and local authorities offer an Integrated Community Equipment Service (ICES) within the integrated health and social care system, as they support both the home first agenda and hospital flows. These services can be provided in-house or by external suppliers following a tender exercise. An ICES enables people to remain in or return to their homes as the primary setting for care, avoiding unnecessary stays in hospital or care homes. Also, an ICES facilitates timely hospital admissions, treatment, and discharge processes, minimising delays and improving capacity across the sector.

What his Department’s long-term plan is for the community equipment services sector in the health and social care system.

Local National Health Service procuring authorities are responsible for assessing the timeliness and the quality of medical equipment delivered for their patients, procured under contracts they hold with suppliers.Timely provision of community equipment supports people to remain as independent as possible, for as long as possible, and contributes significantly to the priorities of the Department, the NHS, and local authorities in terms of hospital avoidance and discharge.Many NHS trusts and local authorities offer an Integrated Community Equipment Service (ICES) within the integrated health and social care system, as they support both the home first agenda and hospital flows. These services can be provided in-house or by external suppliers following a tender exercise. An ICES enables people to remain in or return to their homes as the primary setting for care, avoiding unnecessary stays in hospital or care homes. Also, an ICES facilitates timely hospital admissions, treatment, and discharge processes, minimising delays and improving capacity across the sector.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of his policy on arms trade with Israel.

In September 2024, we took decisive action, suspending licences for the Israeli Defence Forces that might be used to commit or facilitate serious violations of international humanitarian law in Gaza. We have maintained the suspension and assess there are no export licences currently being used for military operations in Gaza. This is subject to the specific measures taken with respect to the global F-35 programme.

Whether she has issued an expiry notice to Govia Thameslink Railway; and what her planned timetable is for the nationalisation of Govia Thameslink Railway.

The date on which Govia Thameslink Railway’s franchise will end, and its services transfer to public ownership, has not yet been decided. Accordingly, no expiry notice has been issued to Govia Thameslink Railway. The Rail Minister and Secretary of State meet with all the Train Operating Companies and their Network Rail counterparts regularly to discuss performance and staffing amongst other topical issues.

What steps her Department is taking to consult people living with motor neurone disease on the development of the health and disability green paper.

This government strongly values the input of disabled people and people with health conditions, and that is why we have brought forward this Green Paper and opened a public consultation. The consultation welcomes their views, and we hope that a wide range of voices will respond before it closes on the 30 June 2025. We are also running a programme of accessible public events to further facilitate input. The series of both virtual and in-person events across the country, will help us to hear from disabled people and representative organisations directly. We are continuing to facilitate other ways to involve stakeholders and disabled people in our reforms. In addition to the consultation itself, we will establish ‘collaboration committees’ that bring groups, including disabled people and other experts, together for specific work areas. Our wider review of the PIP assessment, led by myself, will also bring together a range of experts, stakeholders and people with lived experience.