Written questions by Hinds.

Pursuant to the Answer of 27 January 2026 to Question 102744 on Hospitality Industry and Retail Trade: Business Rates, what estimate she has made for the total business rates liability for the current set of properties in category 159 (Local Authority Schools) in (a) 2025/6 (b) 2026/7, and (c) 2027/8.

The Valuation Office Agency is responsible for assessing non-domestic properties and determining their rateable value (RV). Local authorities are responsible for calculating business rates bills using the RV, the multiplier set by parliament, and any appropriate reliefs. The government has published guidance for estimating a property’s business rates for 2026-27: Estimate your business rates - GOV.UK.

Innovation and Technology, further to the three month consultation announced by the government on further measures to keep children safe online, how many full-time equivalent officials she has assigned to this consultation.

In order to ensure that the consultation considers all arguments and views, we are drawing on expertise from across the department and from a variety of different teams as necessary. This means that an accurate estimation in terms of FTE is not possible.

What capacity his Department has made available for Work Capability Assessments in the next six months; and what the backlog of cases is.

During the second half of 2024, DWP experienced a much higher level of demand for new Work Capability Assessments (WCA) than envisaged. As a result, 34,000 reassessments built up from individuals reporting a change in their condition before May 2025. We have worked with suppliers to rapidly increase capacity to clear this, including by accelerating the recruitment and training of additional assessors. As of 31 January 2026, 14,000 of these cases remain, and we expect the remainder to be cleared in the coming months.In the meantime, claimants awaiting a reassessment will continue to receive their current rate. Where a reassessment leads to entitlement to a higher rate of benefit, that rate will be backdated accordingly.Please note:All volumes have been rounded to the nearest 1,000.All of the above data is derived from contractual management information produced by the Assessment SuppliersThe above data is derived from unpublished management information which is collected for internal departmental use only and has not been quality assured to Official Statistics Publication standards.

Innovation and Technology, further to the three month consultation announced by the Government on further measures to keep children safe online, whether her Department plans to review submissions (a) as they come in or (b) at the close of that consultation.

The government will review submissions to the consultation once the consultation has closed and respond to the consultation in the summer. We will act quickly on the findings of the consultation.We want to be sure that everyone’s views are heard in the consultation on next steps to enhance children’s wellbeing online. This includes civil society organisations, parents and children from a wide variety of backgrounds.

Innovation and Technology, further to her oral contribution during the statement on Mobile Phones and Social Media on 20th January 2026 whether "before the summer" indicates prior to the House rising for the summer recess.

The government has announced a short, swift consultation, accompanied by a national conversation, on further measures to enhance children's wellbeing and ensuring they have positive, enriched digital lives.The government will act quickly on the findings and respond to the consultation in the summer.

Whether he plans to conduct a post-implementation review of the potential impact of the early waves of deployment of Mental Health Support Teams on schools.

The Department has no plans to conduct a post-implementation review of the potential impact of the early waves of deployment of Mental Health Support Teams on schools. In July 2025, the National Children’s Bureau published an independent Mental Health Support Teams evaluation report, Evaluating the implementation of the Transforming Children and Young People’s Mental Health Provision Green Paper programme. The impacts and other details are set out in the report, which is available at the following link: https://www.ncb.org.uk/sites/default/files/uploads/attachments/CYP%20MH%20GP%20survey%202024%20report%20-%20Mundy%20et%20al%20%282025%29.pdf

What steps he is planning to take to ensure the exchange of best practice among Healthcare Trusts from their deployment of Mental Health Support Teams.

The Department of Health and Social Care, along with NHS England and the Department for Education, jointly provide guidance and support to providers and commissioners of Mental Health Support Teams (MHST). This includes both the implementation of new teams and improving the quality and effectiveness of existing teams.A national MHST Community of Practice has also been established, hosted by NHS England, with examples of best practice routinely made available to providers and commissioners.

If she will make an assessment of the potential implications for her policies on Further Education Colleges of (a) business rates revaluation and (b) the new multiplier bands from April 2026.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given in UIN 104727.

Whether funding for NHS hospital trusts will be adjusted as a result of business rates revaluation and the new multiplier bands from April 2026.

No additional funding has been made to National Health Service hospital trusts as a result of business rates revaluation and the new multiplier bands from April 2026. However, the Government uses the Market Forces Factor (MFF) within the NHS payment scheme to account for the higher business rates that providers in high-value areas pay. This mechanism adjusts resource allocations to ensure fairness across different regions. So increased costs will feed into the MFF and allocations.NHS England has not made an assessment of the business rates revaluation and the new multiplier bands on the NHS. However, NHS England does have regular conversations with NHS hospitals to understand their financial position against the plan and will work with them to address any specific issues raised.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of (a) business rates revaluation and (b) the new multiplier bands from April 2026 on Further Education colleges.

The amount of business rates paid on each property is based on the rateable value of the property, assessed by the Valuation Office Agency (VOA), and the multiplier values, which are set by the Government. Rateable values are re-assessed every three years. Revaluations ensure that the rateable values of properties (i.e. the tax base) remain in line with market changes, and that the tax rates adjust to reflect changes in the tax base. At the Budget, the VOA announced updated property values from the 2026 revaluation. This revaluation is the first since Covid, which has led to significant increases in rateable values for some properties. To support with bill increases, at the Budget, the Government introduced a support package worth £4.3 billion over the next three years to protect ratepayers seeing their bills increase because of the revaluation. As a result, over half of ratepayers will see no bill increases, including 23% seeing their bills go down. Government support also means that most properties seeing increases will see them capped at 15% or less next year, or £800 for the smallest.

What estimate he has made of the potential of (a) business rates revaluation and (b) the new multiplier bands from April 2026 on (i) NHS hospitals (ii) other NHS facilities and (ii) facilities of other services contracted to the NHS.

No additional funding has been made to National Health Service hospital trusts as a result of business rates revaluation and the new multiplier bands from April 2026. However, the Government uses the Market Forces Factor (MFF) within the NHS payment scheme to account for the higher business rates that providers in high-value areas pay. This mechanism adjusts resource allocations to ensure fairness across different regions. So increased costs will feed into the MFF and allocations.NHS England has not made an assessment of the business rates revaluation and the new multiplier bands on the NHS. However, NHS England does have regular conversations with NHS hospitals to understand their financial position against the plan and will work with them to address any specific issues raised.

What assessment she has made of the potential of business rates revaluation and the new multiplier bands from April 2026 on (a) hotels, (b) Sports & Leisure Centres, (c) theatres, (d) live music venues and (e) other sectors.

The amount of business rates paid on each property is based on the rateable value of the property, assessed by the Valuation Office Agency (VOA), and the multiplier values, which are set by the Government. Rateable values are re-assessed every three years. Revaluations ensure that the rateable values of properties (i.e. the tax base) remain in line with market changes, and that the tax rates adjust to reflect changes in the tax base At the Budget, the VOA announced updated property values from the 2026 revaluation. This revaluation is the first since Covid, which has led to significant increases in rateable values for some properties as they recover from the pandemic. To support with bill increases, at the Budget, the Government announced a support package worth £4.3 billion over the next three years, including protection for ratepayers seeing their bills increase because of the revaluation. As a result, over half of ratepayers will see no bill increases, including 23% seeing their bills go down. This means most properties seeing increases will see them capped at 15% or less next year, or £800 for the smallest The new RHL tax rates replace the temporary RHL relief that has been winding down since Covid. Unlike RHL relief, the new rates are permanent, giving businesses certainty and stability, and there will be no cap, meaning all qualifying properties on high streets across England will benefit.

Whether her reference to warehouses in the Budget statement, Hansard 26 November 2025, Col 395, in relation to Business Rates was referring to Valuation Office Agency Special Category Code 151.

The reference to warehouses in the Chancellor's Budget speech relates to all warehouses with rateable values of £500k and above, including those in the Valuation Office Agency Special Category Code 151.

What estimate she has made of the change to the level of (a) payment and (b) reimbursement of business rates in (i) her Department and the (ii) Education and Skills Funding Agency between financial years (A) 2025-2026 and (B) 2026-2027.

Since April 2022, most schools’ business rates are paid directly by the department to billing authorities. If all billing authorities in the local authority have not agreed to this system, academies make business rates payments and are reimbursed by the department.For both of these payment mechanisms, we operate on a reactive basis. Therefore, it is not possible to provide funding totals for either the 2025/26 financial year, as the financial year has not concluded, or 2026/27.For local authority-maintained schools where the local authority does not have agreement from all billing authorities within it, the department allocates funding to local authorities via the Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) to cover business rates payments. DSG publications show total funding to local authorities for each financial year:2025/26: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dedicated-schools-grant-dsg-2025-to-2026.2026/27: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dedicated-schools-grant-dsg-2026-to-2027.

With reference to the press release entitled Government modernises exam records with new app, published on 8 January 2026, how the £30m savings figure was estimated; and what the average saving for a state secondary school is estimated to be.

The £30 million saving in the education sector is based on reducing administrative processes in further education and apprenticeships. Extensive user research with colleges identified activities that could be eliminated or streamlined, including photocopying documentation, manually matching emails with applications, and reducing data entry and correction through improved quality. Other efficiencies include removing support time for paperwork, eliminating manual searches for unique learner numbers and reducing checks on prior attainment to simplify enrolment for mathematics and English. These changes will also reduce delays caused by missing documentation and cut follow-up activities linked to incomplete records. Due to the nature of the calculation, the department has not estimated a saving per secondary school.

What estimate she has made of the number of premises that will be in the new, higher multiplier bracket for properties with a Rateable Value of £500,000, that will be in SIC code Sector P (85) [Education]; and what proportion of the total number of premises in the new, higher multiplier bracket these will form.

The Valuation Office Agency has published official statistics around the change in the rateable value of non-domestic properties in England and Wales for the 2026 revaluation on GOV.UK.These statistics include the number of properties with a Rateable Value of £500,000 and over (Table RVL_3.1, Row 13), and the number of properties within the education sub-sector in this category (Table RVL_SCAT_1_1 Row 1471).

Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made of the percentage of Local Authorities that had an up to date Local Plan and 5 Year Housing Land Supply prior to the 2024 changes to the Standard Method, but no longer do.

I refer the Rt Hon. Member to the answers given to Question UIN 102025 and UIN 102035 on 12 January 2026.

Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made of the percentage of Local Authorities that have an up to date Local Plan and 5 Year Housing Land Supply.

I refer the Rt Hon. Member to the answers given to Question UIN 102025 and 102035 on 12 January 2026.

Communities and Local Government, further to WPQ 97762 answered on 15 Dec 2026, what is the (a) minimum and (b) maximum estimate of the (i) cost, and (ii) saving effects on the public purse of proposed local government reorganisation among the proposals he is considering, at their current stage of development for Hampshire in each of the next five years.

Local Government Reorganisation is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to work together to put local government on a more sustainable footing, creating simpler structures that will deliver the services that local people and businesses need and deserve.In our invitations to councils, we asked areas to set out in their proposals how they will seek to manage their transition costs up to vesting day in 2028, as well as the projected costs and savings for the new unitary councils. The financial cases for each proposal have been published online by those councils, and are signposted in the government’s consultation documents.

For each wave of Mental Health Support Teams up to Wave 12, what the anticipated ratio of FTE clinical staff (a) was and (b) is in the Mental Health Support Team to pupil numbers in the schools covered.

Mental Health Support Teams (MHSTs) typically comprise of approximately eight full-time equivalent (FTE) clinical staff. Each team was anticipated to cover a population of between 8,000 and 8,500 children and young people. This figure refers to the total population covered by an MHST, not the number of children and young people receiving direct care.The most recent coverage analysis indicates that MHSTs support an average population of approximately 8,300 children and young people. This equates to a current estimated ratio of FTE clinical staff to children and young people of approximately 1:1,037.In July 2025, the National Children’s Bureau published an independent MHST evaluation report, Evaluating the implementation of the Transforming Children and Young People’s Mental Health Provision Green Paper programme. According to survey data published as part of this report, 86% of respondents in schools and colleges were satisfied or very satisfied with the direct interventions that the MHST provided for pupils/students or families. The evaluation report is available at the following link:https://www.ncb.org.uk/what-we-do/practice-and-programmes/building-integrated-child-centred-health-services/mental-2