Written questions by Cooper.

What steps he will take to reduce waiting times for those seeking a remedial service statement via Capita for their Civil Service Pension.

Capita, having assumed responsibility for the Civil Service Pension Scheme in December 2025, is currently preparing a delivery plan for the remaining 2015 Remedy work. The Cabinet Office expects the majority of the remaining Remediable Service Statements (RSS) will be issued by April 2027.

If he will bring forward from 2032 the New Hospital Programme construction work to redevelop Watford General hospital should capacity become available.

Watford General Hospital is part of Wave 2 of the New Hospital Programme, as set out in the published Plan for Implementation. Pre-construction activity, which includes business case development and enabling works, is expected to commence from 2028, with main construction expected to begin between 2032 and 2034. There are no current plans to bring forward the construction timetable for the scheme. As set out in the Plan for Implementation, delivery expectations may be subject to change depending on local and national factors and the programme reserves the right to adjust the delivery plan as schemes develop in the future.

With reference to the Answer of 14 April 2026 to Question 127101 on Cancer: Vaccination, (a) (i) how many and (ii) which pharmaceutical companies attended the NHS England webinar in 2025, and (b) (i) how many and (ii) which pharmaceutical companies have since expressed an interest in working with the Cancer Vaccine Launch Pad.

The Cancer Vaccine Launch Pad (CVLP) is a platform that is increasing access and speeding up recruitment to clinical trials for personalised cancer vaccines and other immunotherapies for patients who have been diagnosed with cancer. In 2025, the scope of the CVLP was expanded beyond personalised cancer vaccines to also include other immunotherapies. NHS England is responsible for the overall delivery of the CVLP and has contracted the Southampton Clinical Trials Unit to manage the day-to-day delivery of the platform. The platform is designed to be company and clinical trial agnostic so any company can contact the CVLP to explore how the platform can support their research.NHS England hosted a webinar in 2025, and representatives from 12 pharmaceutical or biotechnology companies attended. Since then, discussions have been held with 15 companies to explore potential support from the CVLP. NHS England cannot release the names of the companies as this is commercially sensitive information.The list of clinical trials supported by the CVLP that were previously or are currently open to recruitment can be viewed on the Southampton Clinical Trials Unit website.

What assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of ending multiple assessments for amputees to qualify for benefits.

Awaiting answer.

What progress her department has made in increasing the availability of driving tests in St Albans since 3 November 2025.

The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) is intensifying its efforts to reduce waiting times and improve access to driving tests. DVSA is continuing with its recruitment campaigns for new driving examiners. Since November 2025, for those test centres serving the St Albans area, seven driving examiners have successfully passed their training and are now conducting driving tests, with a further two driving examiners being booked onto a training course. Following a recent recruitment campaign, DVSA has made offers of employment to a further eight driving examiners in this area. The table below shows the number of tests booked and available at the driving test centres (DTCs) serving St Albans of 11 May 2026. Driving test centre (DTC)Booked tests (as of 11 May 2026)Tests available in 24 week booking window (as of 11 May 2026)Borehamwood4,801187St Albans2,069103Watford5,713339 Between June 2025 – April 2026, at the DTCs above, DVSA conducted 144 additional car practical driving tests in overtime, when compared to the equivalent overtime scheme between June 2024 – March 2025. This increase can largely be attributed to the additional test allowance scheme the agency introduced in June 2025.

What assessment he has made of the adequacy of acute mental health inpatient places in Hertfordshire.

Awaiting answer.

If she will approve funding for (a) the Croydon Area Remodelling Scheme and (b) Midland Mainline capacity improvement to mitigate forecasted capacity constraints on the Thameslink route.

Awaiting answer.

What steps she will take to reduce reliance on rest-day working to operate timetabled passenger rail services on the Thameslink route when the operator is nationalised.

Awaiting answer.

What steps she will take to increase the number of places available for educational psychology courses at universities in England.

The department is investing £21 million to train 400 more educational psychologists over two cohorts who started their studies in 2024 and 2025 as part of the Educational Psychology Funded Training scheme. This is in addition to the £10 million already being invested in the training of more than 200 educational psychologists who began their training in September 2023.

Whether she will produce new guidance on how to complete an Indefinite Leave to Remain application for families holding BNO citizenship, where one or more family members visa expiration date differs to the rest of the family.

The Hong Kong British National (Overseas) (BN(O)) route guidance already sets out the requirements for settlement, including the need for applicants to complete a period of five years’ continuous residence in the UK.Applications under the BN(O) route are considered on an individual basis, and families have flexibility in when they apply, which can result in differing visa expiry dates between family members. Where this occurs, individuals may need to make a further application to extend their leave in order to qualify for settlement.We keep all guidance under regular review to ensure it remains clear and up to date.

Communities and Local Government, with reference to Section 51 of the Planning and Infrastructure Act 2025, when he will lay regulations to delegate the power to set fees for planning applications to local planning authorities.

Between 23 March and 18 May 2026, the government consulted on establishing a new national default fee schedule and the key principles behind local fee setting. The consultation can be found on gov.uk here. Subject to the outcome of that consultation, we intend to lay the necessary regulations this year.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions she has had with (a) the Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister and (b) Israel’s ambassador to the UK on (i) the welfare of Dr Hussam Abu Safiya and (ii) access to detention facilities for the International Committee of the Red Cross.

I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided on 6 August 2025 in response to Question 68153.

If he will take legislative steps to end the five year rule on investigating sexual misconduct cases before the House rises for summer recess.

The Government is committed to modernising the regulation of all healthcare professionals in the United Kingdom.As a first step, on 24 March 2026, we published our Reforming the General Medical Council legislative framework consultation, which sets out proposals to modernise the General Medical Council’s (GMC’s) regulatory framework. The consultation runs until 23 June 2026. More information is available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/reforming-the-general-medical-council-legislative-framework/reforming-the-general-medical-council-legislative-framework-consultation-documentThe draft General Medical Council Order 2026 includes a modernised fitness to practise process for the GMC, which does not enable the GMC to replicate the five-year rule in its fitness to practise rules for doctors.Subject to the outcome of the consultation and the parliamentary process, the Government expects to lay the General Medical Council Order 2026 later this year.

What assessment she has made of the adequacy of the Lifetime ISA property cap threshold for (a) England and (b) St Albans constituency.

Data from the latest UK House Price Index shows that while the average price paid by first-time buyers has increased, it is still below the LISA property price cap in all regions of the UK except for London, where the average price paid is affected by boroughs with very high property values. At Autumn Budget 2025, the Government announced that it will consult on introducing a new, first-time buyer only savings product that will provide the bonus when a person uses it to buy a house, giving savers flexibility in case their circumstances change. Details of the new scheme will be set out as part of the consultation in due course. The Government keeps all aspects of savings tax policy under review.

Pursuant to the Answer of 17 September 2025 to Question 71117 on Immigration: Syria, whether a delay of 30 months to ILR applications for a Syrian national is considered to be within the acceptable level of service for UKVI.

On 11 December 2024, we paused all Syrian asylum interviews and decisions whilst we assessed the country situation. This pause extended to Settlement Protection applications from Syrian nationalsThe pause was a necessary step while there was no stable, objective information available to make robust assessments of risk on return to Syria.On 14 July 2025, we published updated country information which enabled decision making to resume. We are currently processing the large backlog of outstanding applications in line with published policy. For those that were granted refugee status having lodged an asylum claim in the UK, where the basis of the grant of status is affected by the change in circumstances, or where it is unclear, we are writing out to applicants where necessary to gather further evidence to assess these applications, and may interview applicants where necessary to determine if there is an ongoing need for protection.Those who made an in-time application will continue to have their conditions maintained under Section 3C of the Immigration Rules.Settlement is a privilege, not an automatic right, and provides permission to stay in the UK permanently and freedom from immigration control for those who still require protection. All settlement applications are carefully considered on their individual merits, and this includes assessing whether there have been significant changes in country conditions or personal circumstances, which means that an individual no longer needs our protection.In line with our international obligations, we will not remove anyone to their own or any other country where they have a well-founded fear of persecution or are at risk of serious harm.

What assessment he has made of the potential merits of replicating the Australian policy of permitting those non-nationals living in the United Kingdom the opportunity to apply for service in the military after one year of residency in the country.

The UK Armed Forces already accept applications from some nationalities if they are a dual national of a permitted nationality. Eligible applicants must be either a British Citizen, British Overseas Citizen, British Overseas Territory Citizen, British National (Overseas) Citizen, British Protected Person, British Subject, Irish Citizen or a Citizen of a Commonwealth member country, which includes Australia, Canada, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea. This can be as a sole or dual national. The British Army also has the Brigade of Gurkhas who are from Nepal. There is no UK residency requirement for those who are not British or Irish citizens to be eligible to apply to join the Royal Navy or the British Army, but the Royal Air Force normally require eligible candidates to have lived in the UK for between five and ten years prior to application. Members of the Armed Forces are subject to the National Security Vetting process owned by the Cabinet Office, and clearance levels depend on the rank, role and Service applied for. UK (Great Britain and Northern Ireland) residency and nationality are an integral part of that process, and each application is risk assessed. There are no current plans to change nationality or residency requirements.

If he will take steps to ensure Royal Mail responds to the Hon Member for St Albans and other Hon Members with regards to constituency casework correspondence.

Royal Mail is an independent business. However, I have been assured that it endeavours to respond to all correspondence in a timely manner and to provide a full response to concerns Honourable Members raise, rather than a standard response. Some concerns can, however, take some time to investigate properly.

Pursuant to the Answer of 30 March to Question 119469 on Cancer: Vaccination, how many pharmaceutical companies have been contacted by his Department with details of the expansion of eligibility of the NHS Cancer Vaccine Launch Pad since May 2025.

The Cancer Vaccine Launch Pad (CVLP) is a platform that is increasing access and speeding up recruitment to clinical trials for personalised cancer vaccines and other immunotherapies for patients who have been diagnosed with cancer. In 2025, the scope of the CVLP was expanded beyond personalised cancer vaccines to also include other immunotherapies. NHS England is responsible for the overall delivery of the CVLP and has contracted the Southampton Clinical Trials Unit to manage the day-to-day delivery of the platform. The platform is designed to be company and clinical trial agnostic so any company can contact the CVLP to explore how the platform can support their research. NHS England hosted a webinar with interested pharmaceutical companies in 2025 after the expansion of the scope had been agreed, and continues to engage with companies through multiple avenues, including working with the National Institute for Health and Care Research and the Vaccine Innovation Pathway.

Pursuant to the Answer of 12 March to Question 118384 on Hybrid Vehicles: Excise Duties, whether she has considered the potential merits of allowing those PHEV drivers who (a) opt in to doing so and (b) have vehicles with the technical means to record miles driven in electric or petrol mode, to submit accurate returns to allow eVED to be paid only on those miles not already subject to fuel duty.

As announced at Budget 2025, plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEVs) will be subject to a reduced electric Vehicle Excise Duty rate of 1.5 pence per mile upon its introduction in April 2028 – half the rate that will apply to fully electric cars. This approach recognises that PHEVs have the capacity to drive in either electric or petrol mode and strikes the right balance between fairness, protecting motorists’ privacy and minimising administrative burdens on motorists. The government recognises that the large majority of EVs and PHEVs have in-built vehicle telematics, which monitor various driving activities and are viewable by drivers, vehicle manufacturers, or permitted third parties in some cases. The government will not mandate use of these telematics for administering eVED; however, it welcomed views in the consultation on how various types of technologies could be used on an opt-in basis in future to simplify the system and reduce administrative burdens on motorists and businesses. The consultation closed on 18 March 2026. The Government will publish a response in due course.

If she will take steps to introduce a cap on the fees charged by app providers to local authorities for operating the National Parking Platform.

The National Parking Platform is intended to support greater competition and choice by enabling multiple parking app providers to operate across participating local authorities. While the Government is keen to see this system make parking easier for all, pricing decisions relating to the operation of the National Parking Platform are commercial matters for the National Parking Platform, app providers and local authorities. Both local authorities and app providers are represented on the Board of the National Parking Platform as a part of its not-for-profit governance structure.