Written questions by Chadwick.

What estimate she has made of how many farms in Wales will be affected by the changes to agricultural property relief in each of the next five years.

The Government published information about the reforms to agricultural property relief and business property relief at www.gov.uk/government/publications/agricultural-property-relief-and-business-property-relief-reforms, and further explanatory information at https://www.gov.uk/government/news/what-are-the-changes-to-agricultural-property-relief. Around 500 estates across the UK are expected to be affected each year from 2026-27. In accordance with standard practice, a tax information and impact note will be published alongside the draft legislation before the relevant Finance Bill.

How many businesses in Wales will benefit from changes to employment allowance.

Estimates of the number of businesses in Wales that will benefit from changes to the Employment Allowance announced at Autumn Budget 2024 are not available.

Whether her Department has undertaken an evaluation of the Mid-life MOT initiative.

The Midlife MOT is designed to help individuals in their 40s and 50s to stay in and return to work. Midlife MOT sessions are delivered through Jobcentre Plus for Universal Credit claimants aged 50+. The research on these sessions is currently ongoing and will be published upon completion. The Private Sector Midlife MOT pilots were delivered through providers, direct to employees, in three pilot areas (the North East of England; Cornwall and Devon; and East Anglia). These pilots have now ended. Evaluation of the pilots was the responsibility of the programme providers individually. DWP also conducted in-house research as part of a wider evaluation strategy. The Digital Midlife MOT website, providing access to financial, health and career guidance, is open to all and website analytics are continuously monitored. Further research into the Digital MOT website is ongoing and will be published upon completion.

If she will bring forward legislative proposals to extend eligibility for trivial commutation.

My response to Parliamentary Question 11127 provides more details on the rules around trivial commutation. The purpose of these rules is to provide individuals with flexibility, while also helping to reduce the administrative burden on pension schemes of paying small pensions. In the case of trivial commutation, the £30,000 limit applies to the aggregate value of an individual’s pensions, rather than to each pension pot. This is to prevent the commutation of much larger – non-trivial - pensions by splitting them into multiple smaller pots just before retirement. The Government has no current plans to extend this limit.

If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of reinstating trivial commutation following the changes to the Lifetime Allowance this year.

For defined benefit (DB) pensions, trivial commutation continues to exist. If an individual’s total pension wealth across all DB pension schemes (excluding their state pension) is no more than £30,000, they may be able to surrender their pension for a taxable one-off payment (though usually up to 25% is available tax-free as with other kinds of pension withdrawal). Alternatively, if an individual’s pension within a scheme is valued at no more than £10,000, it may be possible to surrender this for a taxable one-off payment without any assessment against their total pension wealth.For defined contribution pensions, trivial commutation was removed because Pension Freedoms reforms meant that trivial commutation was no longer needed.

If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of removing the VAT charges on medicines dispensed in hospitals.

Where medications are provided as part of the NHS’s statutory obligation of medical care, they are exempt from VAT. This means that medications are VAT-free for patients when provided to an in-patient in hospital. Furthermore, medications for out-patients prescribed by most hospital pharmacies are zero-rated for VAT, meaning that these pharmacies can recover their VAT costs and the medication is also VAT-free for patients.While the NHS is unable to reclaim its VAT costs, due to the exemption, this irrecoverable VAT is taken into account in NHS funding.

Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of the use of (a) Fipronil and (b) Imidacloprid in flea treatments for pets on the (i) water courses and aquatic ecosystems and (ii) the environment.

In the UK, the Veterinary Medicines Directorate (VMD) authorises veterinary medicinal products under the Veterinary Medicines Regulations 2013 (as amended), with the aim of protecting public health, animal health, the environment, and to promote animal welfare. The VMD carefully balances the benefits of these medicines, including protection of companion animals and humans from parasitic and zoonotic diseases, against potential risks, including environmental impacts, and only authorises products if the benefits outweigh the risks. We are aware of concerns about flea and tick treatments, particularly fipronil and imidacloprid, contributing to pollution in UK surface waters. Addressing this is a priority, and we have established the cross-government Pharmaceuticals in the Environment Group to develop strategies to reduce the environmental impact, focusing on reducing the exposure of these substances to watercourses.

If she will remove VAT from medicines for NHS hospitals.

As the NHS is a public body and is not in business for VAT purposes, the VAT charged by the supplier on the total price of the medications cannot be reclaimed from HMRC. Many public bodies incur VAT in a similar way whilst delivering their statutory responsibilities, and HM Treasury funds them, including the NHS, with this irrecoverable VAT in mind. There are no current plans to change the VAT treatment of medicines for NHS hospitals. The government keeps all taxes under review.

Whether his Department provides guidance to local planning authorities on (a) assessing the potential noise impact of proposed wind turbines and (b) the consideration of potential noise impact in planning applications for (i) individual wind turbines and (ii) wind farms.

Noise from onshore wind turbines is limited and in most instances well sited onshore wind turbines will not be built in close proximity to dwellings and will therefore have minimal noise impacts. Nevertheless, we recognise that there can be exceptions to the rule, and that noise can be a concern for communities when this is the case. That is why we work closely with acoustic experts and leading scientists to ensure that planning authorities from across the UK have access to the best guidance, so that they can measure and take account of noise emissions when making decisions on onshore wind infrastructure.

What steps he is taking to ensure that immunocompromised people with conditions that render them more vulnerable to covid-19 have timely access to effective (a) protective drugs and (b) support measures.

Since June 2023, the pathway for COVID-19 treatments has been delegated from the former national pandemic-specific arrangements to more routine local arrangements for assessment and treatment. Integrated care boards are now responsible for ensuring that local health systems understand local pathways and how to refer patients for assessment and treatment. Information on treatments for COVID-19 is available at the following link:https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/covid-19/treatments-for-covid-19/This autumn, individuals who are immunocompromised or otherwise at high risk will receive booster vaccinations, following the recommendations of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation. The UK Health Security Agency supports engagement within its remit with the voluntary and community sector, including through the Voluntary, Community, and Social Enterprise Health and Wellbeing Alliance, the Immunocompromised Coalition, and organisations representing inclusion health groups.