Written questions by Aldridge.

What assessment he has made of the potential merits of allowing pregnant women and new mothers diagnosed with cancer to defer statutory maternity leave until the completion of their treatment.

Awaiting answer.

What steps his Department is taking through the Men's Health Strategy to improve support given to fathers and partners during the postnatal period and following a traumatic pregnancy or birth.

Awaiting answer.

Whether her Department has any guidance around restrictions being placed by nurseries on hours during which government funded childcare hours can be accessed, such as limiting provision to specific times of the day.

The ‘Early Education and Childcare’ statutory guidance states that local authorities should encourage providers to offer flexible packages of free hours, which will enable children to access regular, high-quality provision, while maximising flexibility for parents and ensuring a degree of stability for providers.Local authorities should enable parents to take up their child’s free place in patterns of hours that stretch their child’s entitlement by taking fewer hours a week over more weeks of the year, where there is provider capacity and parental demand.Additionally, local authorities should ensure that parents and providers are aware that there is no requirement that free places must be taken on, or delivered on, particular days of the week or at particular times of the day.

Whether students required to resit GCSE Mathematics alongside A-level study are mandated to attend school-delivered resit classes, including in cases where they are receiving private tuition outside of school.

Progress towards and attainment of Level 2 maths and English is essential for helping students seize opportunities in life, learning and work. The 16 to 19 maths and English Condition of Funding ensures students have this opportunity. Students aged 16 to 19 who have not yet achieved a GCSE grade 4 in maths are required to continue studying towards Level 2 maths as part of their study programme. Under the 16 to 19 maths and English Condition of Funding, institutions are required to deliver a minimum of 100 hours in-person, whole class, standalone teaching in maths each academic year for eligible students on 16 to 19 study programmes and T Levels. Any additional support, including remote, online delivery or private tuition can be delivered in addition to the minimum teaching hours.

Innovation and Technology, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of bringing forward legislative proposals to require the use of digital watermarking on AI images.

The government continues to explore the feasibility of technical solutions for the identification of AI-generated content, such as digital watermarking, to support transparency.AI is a general-purpose technology with a wide range of applications, which is why the government believes that most AI systems should be regulated at the point of use. In response to the AI Action Plan, the government committed to work with regulators to boost their capabilities. The government has been clear that we will legislate where needed but we will do so on the basis of evidence where any serious gaps are.

Whether her Department has considered allowing a proportion of speeding fine revenues to be ringfenced for local authorities for road safety purposes, including the funding of fixed speed cameras.

The Government considers having fines and penalty receipts such as speeding fines being paid into the Consolidated Fund to be preferable to ring-fencing or hypothecating funds for specific spending. This avoids creating incentives to collect fines and penalty receipts for the sake of generating revenues, rather than for the purpose of enforcement and road safety. Additionally, calculating funding based on need provides more certainty than funding based on fluctuating fine and penalty receipts.

Whether her Department plans to review the requirement of local authorities to provide capital funding for fixed speed cameras and that revenue generated from fixed speed camera enforcement is received by HM Treasury.

The Department has no plans to review the current arrangements under which local authorities are responsible for meeting the capital costs of installing fixed speed cameras, as part of their wider capital expenditure responsibilities. Revenue raised through fixed‑penalty notices issued by speed‑camera enforcement is paid into the Consolidated Fund and therefore received by HM Treasury.

Innovation and Technology, what steps her Department is taking to promote the use of content authentication technologies to help identify AI-generated content online; and if she will consider regulatory intervention to ensure provenance signals are preserved and visible to users.

Exploring solutions for enabling users and institutions to determine what media is real and what is AI-generated is a key part of tackling a wide range of AI risks. The government is examining the robustness of a range of such solutions in this space through the recent Deepfake Detection Challenge.AI is a general-purpose technology with a wide range of applications, which is why the government believes that the vast majority of AI systems should be regulated at the point of use. In response to the AI Action Plan, the government committed to work with regulators to boost their capabilities. The government has been clear that we will legislate where needed but we will do so on the basis of evidence where any serious gaps are.

What steps the Government is taking to reduce the potential impact of inflationary pressures on the pub industry, including rising energy costs, business rates, supply chain costs, and staffing pressures.

The Government recognises the significant pressures facing pubs, including those in Weston‑super‑Mare, and is taking action to support them.Through the Zero Carbon Hospitality Trial, 615 small and medium‑sized hospitality businesses are receiving free carbon‑footprinting and energy‑saving advice to help reduce costs. We have permanently lowered business rates multipliers for eligible Retail, Hospitality and Leisure properties, and have introduced a £4.3 billion support package over the next three years to protect ratepayers from increases following the business rates revaluation, with over half seeing no rise in bills.In addition, we have raised the Employment Allowance to £10,500, meaning 865,000 employers will pay no NICs this year, helping small businesses manage staffing costs.

What targeted support his Department is providing people with asthma during the winter period.

NHS England has provided £2.61 million of funding in 2025/26 to support people with respiratory conditions this winter, including improving access to diagnostic tests such as spirometry to support early and accurate diagnosis of asthma.The funding builds on the work of NHS England to improve asthma outcomes, including the publication of commissioning standards for spirometry and the inclusion of Quality and Outcomes Framework indicators to support asthma diagnosis and management. These measures will support asthma patients to manage their condition throughout the year, including during the winter period.

Whether he plans to a) issue guidance or b) take action to prevent excessive charges for privately provided COVID-19 vaccinations.

As with other vaccines provided privately, the availability and price of COVID-19 vaccines available through the private market is a matter for the companies concerned. All those eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccination this autumn through the National Health Service, in line with advice by the independent expert Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation, are encouraged to take up this offer. The national programme launched on 1 October 2025 and runs until 31 January 2026.

What assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of the Autumn 2025 Covid-19 vaccination eligibility criteria on people with asthma; what consideration was given to including asthma as a qualifying condition for free Covid vaccination; and what assessment he has made of the affordability and pricing of privately purchased Covid vaccines for those no longer eligible for free vaccination.

The Government is committed to protecting those most vulnerable to COVID-19 through vaccination, as guided by the independent Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI). The primary aim of the national COVID-19 vaccination programme remains the prevention of serious illness, resulting in hospitalisations and deaths, arising from COVID-19.The JCVI has advised that population immunity to COVID-19 has increased due to a combination of naturally acquired immunity following recovery from infection and vaccine-derived immunity. COVID-19 is now a relatively mild disease for most people, though it can still be unpleasant, with rates of hospitalisation and death from COVID-19 having reduced significantly since COVID-19 first emerged.The focus of the JCVI advised programme has therefore moved towards targeted vaccination of the two groups who continue to be at higher risk of serious disease, including mortality. These are the oldest adults and individuals who are immunosuppressed.The Government has accepted the JCVI advice for autumn 2025 and in line with the advice, a COVID-19 vaccination is being offered to the following groups:adults aged 75 years old and over;residents in care homes for older adults; andindividuals aged six months old and over who are immunosuppressed.As with other United Kingdom vaccination programmes, the JCVI’s advice on eligibility for COVID-19 vaccination carefully considers the evidence on the risk of illness, serious disease, or death as a consequence of infection, in specific groups, as well as cost-effectiveness analysis. Further detail can be found at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-vaccination-in-2025-and-spring-2026-jcvi-advice/jcvi-statement-on-covid-19-vaccination-in-2025-and-spring-2026The JCVI keeps all vaccination programmes under review.As with other vaccines provided privately, the availability and price of COVID-19 vaccines provided through the private market is a matter for the companies concerned. All those eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccination this autumn through the National Health Service, in line with advice by the independent expert JCVI, are encouraged to take up this offer. The national programme launched on 1 October 2025 and runs until 31 January 2026.

Whether he will take steps to ensure that individuals seeking a divorce are automatically eligible for legal aid in cases where evidence demonstrates that a child of the family has been subjected to abuse.

This Government recognises that legal aid – a vital part of the justice system – supports the ability of individuals to access publicly funded legal assistance to uphold their legal rights.Legal aid is available for private family proceedings, such as divorce and financial remedy proceedings, if an adult is a victim of domestic abuse or at risk of being abused. Funding is subject to providing the required evidence of domestic abuse and passing the means and merits tests. The Government recognises that abuse may include behaviour directed at a third party, for example the victim’s child, to influence the victim. In May 2025, we amended the legislation to explicitly reflect this definition of domestic abuse; it now reflects the definition of domestic abuse from the Domestic Abuse Act 2021, and it clarifies that behaviour, violence or abuse between individuals may consist of or include behaviour, violence or abuse directed at another individual.Legal aid is available for individuals for some private family orders, such as child arrangement orders or prohibited steps orders, if the child who is the subject of the order is a victim of child abuse or at risk of abuse. This is subject to providing evidence of child abuse and passing the means and merits tests.The Government monitors legal aid provision and is carefully considering the criteria that govern financial eligibility for legal aid.Where an issue falls outside the scope of legal aid, eligible individuals may be able to obtain Exceptional Case Funding where they can show that, without the provision of legal aid, there is a risk that their human rights may be breached.

What assessment she has made of the potential implications for local pedestrian safety of encouraging local authorities to prioritise the creation and connectivity of active travel routes in ways that could affect their eligibility for Active Travel funding.

Active Travel England (ATE) undertakes assurance of new or upgraded schemes in close collaboration with local authorities. Submitted scheme designs are put through a series of checks using the ATE scheme review tools, last published in February 2024. These tools include an assessment of the critical safety issues for walking, wheeling and cycling to support local authorities over scheme quality. Additional guidance on how to work with the safety issues was published in November 2025. Eleven of the sixteen critical safety issues relate to walking and cover examples such as conflict at junctions, trip hazards, the standard and positioning of crossings and the condition of the footway. Tool outputs for completed schemes are considered as part of authority active travel capability ratings, which in turn help to determine future funding impacts.

What steps she is taking to ensure that accredited rail retailers offer standardised and automated Delay Repay compensation directly to passengers; and what assessment she has made of the potential merits of doing so.

Passengers can currently claim delay repay by applying directly to the train operator they travelled with. Through delivering Great British Railways (GBR), the Government is committed to improving the passenger experience. As set out in the recently introduced Railways Bill, GBR will retail both on line and in person once established, creating a more streamlined, unified offer for passengers by bringing together 14 existing train operator websites and apps. GBR will retail alongside independent retailers, in a fair and open market, and the Government recognises the important role they play in terms of innovating and driving up standards for passengers. The Government will continue to keep Delay Repay policy under review, including in the context of the move to GBR.

When he plans to publish the Modern Service Framework for Frailty and Dementia.

The Modern Service Framework for Frailty and Dementia is expected to be published in 2026 and will deliver rapid and significant improvements in the quality of care and productivity. This will be informed by phase one of the independent commission into adult social care, expected in 2026.We intend to engage with a range of partners over the coming months to enable us to build a framework which is both ambitious and practical, to ensure we can improve system performance for people with dementia both now and in the future.

Whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of freezing the accrual of interest on student loans for individuals on maternity or paternity leave.

Student loans are subject to interest to ensure that those who can afford to do so contribute to the full cost of their degree.The student finance system protects borrowers if they see a reduction in their income for whatever reason, including those on maternity or paternity leave. Student loan repayments are based on a borrower’s monthly or weekly income, not the interest rate or amount borrowed, and no repayments are made for earnings below the relevant student loan repayment threshold. Any outstanding debt, including interest built up, is written off at the end of the loan term with no detriment to the borrower.A full equality impact assessment of how the student loan reforms may affect graduates, including detail on changes to average lifetime repayments under Plan 5, was produced and published in February 2022, and can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/higher-education-reform-equality-impact-assessment.

What assessment he has made of (a) the sufficiency of the supply of covid-19 vaccines during winter 2025/26 and (b) whether there will be sufficient supply of covid-19 vaccines to meet the expected demand from people eligible for a free NHS covid-19 vaccine.

Vaccine availability is monitored as part of standard operational practice by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), NHS England, and the devolved administrations.The UKHSA collects and analyses data from the vaccination programmes to understand the impact, the effectiveness, and any inequalities.The UKHSA has procured COVID-19 vaccines for the upcoming season in line with uptake forecasts received from all four nations. Based on procured volumes, it is expected that there is sufficient COVID-19 vaccine available for those eligible to receive a vaccine across the current autumn/winter campaign. People aged 75 years old and over, those in older adult care homes, and those aged six months and over who are immunosuppressed are eligible.

Whether his Department is taking steps to ensure parity of pay between staff employed by (a) independent sector providers of NHS services and (b) the NHS.

National Health Service staff pay is set by the Government and usually informed by recommendations made by pay review bodies (PRBs). The PRBs are independent advisory bodies made up of industry experts who carefully consider evidence submitted to them by a range of stakeholders, including the Government and trade unions, to make recommendations for headline pay awards and on related matters.PRBs make recommendations to the Prime Minister and ministers for most staff working in the NHS. The PRBs do not advise on the pay or terms and conditions for staff employed by independent sector providers of NHS services such as social enterprises.Independent organisations, such as social enterprises, are free to develop and adapt their own terms and conditions of employment. This includes the pay scales that they use and the provision of any non-consolidated pay awards.It is for them to determine what is affordable within the financial model they operate and how to recoup any additional costs they face.

Whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of private healthcare providers using NHS hospital facilities on NHS waiting lists.

No specific assessment has been made as these decisions are taken locally. National Health Service trusts can utilise ‘insourcers’, private healthcare providers who operate using NHS facilities, but services must be arranged in a manner which offers value for money compared to the other options available.NHS England published updated guidance on the use of insourcing in July 2024 to support NHS trusts in achieving value for money. This guidance is available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/guidance-for-trusts-on-the-use-of-insourcing/#In this guidance, NHS England clearly prohibits the use of insourcing solutions where rates are not in line with, or are below, the prices in the NHS Payment Scheme, and where compliant approved frameworks are not used.