Written questions by Mundell.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the ongoing situation in Iran on the conflict in Yemen.

The UK was clear from the outset of the conflict with Iran that we did not want to see it escalate and spread to other countries in the region, including Yemen, where more than 22 million people are already in need in of humanitarian assistance and 18.3 million are acutely food insecure. The UK remains firmly committed to supporting a UN‑led political process in Yemen, and working towards a lasting political settlement, peace and stability.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps she is taking with international partners and the Democratic Republic of Congo help bring lasting peace in that country.

I refer the Rt Hon Member to the report on GOV.UK from the Minister of State for Development's recent visit to the Democratic Republic of Congo, available at the link below: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/uk-reaffirms-commitment-to-peace-protection-and-development-in-the-drc.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if she will adopt the recommendations of the Report by the Eleanor Crook Foundation entitled UK Leadership on Malnutrition, A building block for security and stability.

I refer the Rt Hon Member to the answer provided to question 89032 on 10 November 2025 regarding the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office's (FCDO) approach to tackling food insecurity and malnutrition around the world.We will carefully consider the findings and recommendations of the Eleanor Crook Foundation's report, alongside other analysis and research, to inform our future approach to nutrition and food security. We will also continue to support the Child Nutrition Fund, which we proudly co-founded and support as members of the Steering Committee.Food and nutrition are issues that cut across key FCDO objectives in a range of areas, from humanitarian relief to climate change, and as such, they will not sit within a single Community of Expertise, but be covered by the Communities of Expertise covering those wider themes. Further details will be announced in the coming months.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, which of the Communities of Expertise announced by the Minister for International Development will cover food and nutrition.

I refer the Rt Hon Member to the answer provided to question 89032 on 10 November 2025 regarding the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office's (FCDO) approach to tackling food insecurity and malnutrition around the world.We will carefully consider the findings and recommendations of the Eleanor Crook Foundation's report, alongside other analysis and research, to inform our future approach to nutrition and food security. We will also continue to support the Child Nutrition Fund, which we proudly co-founded and support as members of the Steering Committee.Food and nutrition are issues that cut across key FCDO objectives in a range of areas, from humanitarian relief to climate change, and as such, they will not sit within a single Community of Expertise, but be covered by the Communities of Expertise covering those wider themes. Further details will be announced in the coming months.

What plans he has to scale the HIV Confident initiative, to (a) all NHS trusts, (b) care homes, (c) dentists and (d) other health and social care settings.

On World AIDS Day, 1 December 2025, the Department published the new HIV Action Plan, which was developed in collaboration with the UK Health Security Agency and NHS England. The plan is backed by over £170 million in funding and sets out five core priorities needed to reach our ambition to end new HIV transmissions within England by 2030. One of these priorities is to address stigma and improve the quality of life for people living with HIV, highlighting several initiatives health and care organisations can join to tackle stigma and discrimination.This includes HIV Confident, a national initiative led jointly by the National AIDS Trust, aidsmap, Positively UK, and Fast Track Cities, which provides a charter mark for businesses and organisations to ensure that people living with HIV can work for them and access any services they provide with confidence.NHS England also promotes an e-learning module, Tackling HIV Stigma and Discrimination, available via the NHS Learning Hub and Electronic Staff Record, aimed at equipping healthcare professionals to explore and counter stigma and discrimination in clinical settings.Currently, NHS England promotes and funds HIV peer support services in the Blood Borne Virus (BBV) emergency department opt-out testing programme, recognising the role of lived-experience facilitators in reducing isolation and stigma. NHS England is in the process of commissioning new HIV anti‑stigma training as part of delivery of the HIV Action Plan, for trusts participating in the BBV emergency department opt‑out testing programme.The action plan also includes actions for local and regional partners to ensure all health and social care staff have the right knowledge on HIV and can tackle stigma and discrimination. This includes encouraging commissioned services to implement HIV anti-stigma and discrimination training and ensuring staff receive training on HIV awareness, stigma reduction and inclusive care by embedding HIV education into workforce development programmes, safeguarding training, and induction processes.

What plans he has to address the potential impact of HIV stigma on women, particularly Black African women and menopausal women.

On World AIDS Day, 1 December 2025, the Department published the new HIV Action Plan, which was developed in collaboration with UK Health Security Agency and NHS England. The plan is backed by over £170 million in funding and sets out five core priorities needed to reach our ambition to end new HIV transmissions within England by 2030. One of these priorities is to address stigma and improve the quality of life for people living with HIV, including an action to ensure the needs of women living with HIV are considered and addressed in future work, and the role of care for menopausal women living with HIV is included in women’s health hubs best practice.The Department is also investing £4.8 million from 2026 to 2029 in the newly procured National HIV Prevention England Programme, which will be delivered by a consortium of the Terrence Higgins Trust and the Africa Advocacy Foundation. This programme includes an aim to reduce levels of HIV related stigma, particularly self-stigma and stigma within different communities, including Black African women.In high and very high prevalence areas, routine HIV testing is normalised within emergency departments, through the Blood Borne Virus (BBV) emergency department opt-out testing programme. This helps to reduce stigma, avoids singling out individuals, and improves early diagnoses, including among people from Black African heritage who are less likely to access traditional sexual health services.NHS England promotes and funds HIV peer support services in the BBV emergency department opt-out testing programme, recognising the role of lived-experience facilitators in reducing isolation and stigma. Case studies, including for women in their 50s diagnosed via emergency department testing, highlight how peer-led support fosters empowerment and combats stigma-related barriers.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether the Government plans to raise access to long-acting injectable HIV prevention and treatment technologies in low and middle-income countries at the UN High-Level Meeting on HIV/AIDS in June 2026.

The High-Level Meeting comes at a critical moment for the global HIV response and offers an opportunity to reaffirm international commitments to end AIDS for good. The UK has endorsed the Global AIDS Strategy 2026-2031 and will work to ensure the political declaration upholds its ambitions, particularly on human rights, and harnesses the opportunity presented by long-acting injectable HIV prevention and treatment.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if she will set out the Government's negotiating priorities will be at the UN High-Level Meeting on HIV/AIDS in June 2026; and whether the Government plans to ensure that the new Global AIDS Strategy 2026-2031 includes measurable commitments to (a) reduce stigma and discrimination, and (b) increase funding for community-led responses in low and middle-income countries.

The High-Level Meeting comes at a critical moment for the global HIV response and offers an opportunity to reaffirm international commitments to end AIDS for good. The UK has endorsed the Global AIDS Strategy 2026-2031 and will work to ensure the political declaration upholds its ambitions, particularly on human rights, and harnesses the opportunity presented by long-acting injectable HIV prevention and treatment.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what representations the UK plans to make at the UN High-Level Meeting on HIV/AIDS in June 2026.

The High-Level Meeting comes at a critical moment for the global HIV response and offers an opportunity to reaffirm international commitments to end AIDS for good. The UK has endorsed the Global AIDS Strategy 2026-2031 and will work to ensure the political declaration upholds its ambitions, particularly on human rights, and harnesses the opportunity presented by long-acting injectable HIV prevention and treatment.

If funding will be allocated to address HIV stigma.

On World AIDS Day, 1 December 2025, the Department published the new HIV Action Plan, which was developed in collaboration with the UK Health Security Agency and NHS England. The plan is backed by over £170 million in funding and sets out five core priorities needed to reach our ambition to end new human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) transmissions within England by 2030. One of these priorities is to address stigma and improve the quality of life for people living with HIV, with several actions to achieve this.The Department is investing £4.8 million from 2026 to 2029 in the newly procured National HIV Prevention England Programme, which will be delivered by a consortium of the Terrence Higgins Trust and the Africa Advocacy Foundation. This programme includes an aim to reduce levels of HIV related stigma, particularly self-stigma and stigma within different communities.NHS England is commissioning a new HIV anti-stigma programme to be rolled out across trusts with the emergency department Blood Borne Viruses (BBV) opt-out testing programme, to ensure that staff have the right knowledge on HIV and can tackle stigma and discrimination. Currently, NHS England promotes and funds HIV peer support services in the BBV emergency department opt-out testing programme, recognising the role of lived-experience facilitators in reducing isolation and stigma. Case studies highlight how peer-led support fosters empowerment and combats stigma-related barriers.Local areas will also monitor progress through staff surveys, service user feedback, and quality assurance mechanisms to promote a culture of understanding and respect.

What steps he is taking to address the finding from the Positive Voices 2022 survey.

The Positive Voices survey is used to monitor levels of stigma and discrimination experienced by people living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) within the health and social care system. The Positive Voices survey 2022 found that one in 13 people had avoided accessing healthcare services and one in seven had worried about being treated differently to other patients by healthcare staff during the previous year.Therefore, the new HIV Action Plan, developed by the Department, the UK Health Security Agency, and NHS England, and backed by over £170 million in funding, sets out five core priorities to reach our ambition to end new HIV transmissions within England by 2030, including addressing stigma and improving the quality of life for people living with HIV.The Department is investing £4.8 million from 2026 to 2029 in the newly procured National HIV Prevention England Programme, which will aim to reduce levels of HIV related stigma, particularly self-stigma and stigma within different communities. NHS England is commissioning a new HIV anti-stigma programme to be rolled out across trusts with the emergency department Blood Borne Viruses opt-out testing programme, to ensure that staff have the right knowledge on HIV and can tackle stigma and discrimination. Local areas will also monitor progress through staff surveys, service user feedback and quality assurance mechanisms to promote a culture of understanding and respect.

What steps he is taking to raise public awareness of Undetectable = Untransmittable (U=U) through the £4.8 million HIV Prevention England programme.

The Department is investing £4.8 million from 2026 to 2029 in the newly procured National HIV Prevention England Programme, which will be delivered by a consortium of the Terrence Higgins Trust and the Africa Advocacy Foundation.One of the key aims of the programme is to improve awareness, knowledge, understanding and uptake of combination HIV prevention interventions, among populations most affected by HIV. This includes using local outreach and partnerships and digital and non-digital health promotion to provide consistent messaging and education to improve awareness and understanding about U=U.

How the £5 million trial of HIV home testing through the NHS App will address the ASSIST study finding that postal testing uptake is higher among White and affluent populations, risking widening inequalities among populations who already experience higher stigma.

The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) home testing programme has engaged directly with the ASSIST research team to understand the risks of open access, first come first served models. The insights from the ASSIST study are informing thinking not only for HIV testing but for the wider home testing ambition, where effective targeting of key populations will be important across multiple conditions. Recommendations such as invitation‑based approaches and simplified journeys are being considered as part of ongoing service design.The programme is working with local authority commissioners to explore approaches to reaching people who have never tested before. This includes considering how population-level data, such as UK Health Security Agency insights, might inform future targeting without reinforcing stigma.While the NHS App is one access route, the service is being designed with flexibility in mind, including consideration of alternative, non-digital or assisted routes to testing. This reflects evidence from ASSIST on barriers linked to digital access, health literacy, age, and housing circumstances.The programme is working in partnership with commissioners and providers so that it complements, rather than replaces, existing face-to-face services and does not create unmanaged pressure in local systems.

What proportion of the new anti-stigma programmes commissioned across trusts will be delivered in partnership with voluntary and community sector organisations with lived experience expertise, and how this will be monitored.

As part of the blood borne virus (BBV) emergency department opt-out testing programme, NHS England currently promotes and funds HIV peer support services in partnership with voluntary and community sector organisations, recognising the role of lived-experience facilitators in reducing isolation and stigma.NHS England is in the process of commissioning new HIV anti‑stigma training as part of delivery of the HIV Action Plan, for trusts participating in the BBV emergency department opt‑out testing programme. NHS England strongly expects a voluntary and community sector partner with lived experience expertise to lead this work, recognising the critical role such organisations play in tackling stigma and discrimination effectively. Delivery of the programme will be overseen by the national BBV emergency department opt‑out team. Progress will be monitored through quarterly meetings and update reports, aligned to the agreed deliverables, including trust engagement and risk management.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of running buses from Qatar to Oman for the purposes of repatriation.

The safety and security of British nationals is our top priority. On 3 March, the Foreign Secretary spoke to the House about the consular support available to individuals in the Middle East, and assisted departures have now taken place from both Oman and Dubai. We will provide further updates on a regular basis, including details of our ongoing evacuation flights, as well as our efforts to secure an end to Iran's attacks on countries in the region, and the full resumption of normal commercial flights.

Communities and Local Government, what discussions he has had with the Royal Mail's on its ability to deliver outgoing and returned postal votes.

Officials in the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government meet regularly with the Royal Mail to discuss matters relating to elections including capacity, capability and contingency planning.As part of the usual engagement ahead of the significant electoral events, Ministers and senior government officials have met with the Chief Executive and other senior representatives from Royal Mail and it is intended to do so again ahead of the May elections.

Representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, what discussions he has had with the Royal Mail's on its ability to deliver outgoing and returned postal votes.

The Electoral Commission regularly engages with Royal Mail to consider the logistics and operational pressures of postal vote delivery, particularly in the run up to elections. This engagement informs the support the Commission provides to Returning Officers, who are responsible for issuing postal votes, and Royal Mail, who are responsible for delivery.The Commission provides guidance to electoral administrators on how to plan and manage postal votes. The guidance recommends Returning Officers liaise early and regularly with their Royal Mail contact about postal vote pack delivery and returns.The Commission has recommended the postal vote system should be reformed to improve the service for voters and strengthen resilience. Key areas for improvement include the information given to postal voters, considering whether the current deadline to return a postal vote should be extended and more flexibility for reissuing postal votes.The Commission responded to Ofcom's consultation on the universal post service in 2025 highlighting the implications of postal service reforms for the management and funding of UK elections. The Commission's view is that reform proposals must ensure that electoral processes can continue to depend on an agile, flexible and reliable universal postal service.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps she is taking to help tackle hunger and malnutrition across Africa through the Africa Strategy.

The UK's new Approach to Africa sets out how we are building respectful long-term partnerships with African countries to deliver shared priorities. Through our support for the Global Compact on Nutrition Integration, the Child Nutrition Fund, and other initiatives, the UK is continuing to play a leading role in tackling hunger and malnutrition in Africa and beyond, as set out in the answers previously provided to Questions 89032 (18 November 2025), 35685 (14 March 2025) and 28246 (11 February 2025).

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to deliver the UK’s financial commitments from the Nutrition for Growth Summit 2021.

The UK’s longstanding commitment to addressing malnutrition was reaffirmed earlier this year at the Nutrition for Growth Summit.During that summit, we launched the Global Compact on Nutrition Integration and committed to continue integrating nutrition across our development programmes.We are also continuing to support the Child Nutrition Fund to tackle acute malnutrition, and providing Technical Assistance to help developing countries improve their own nutrition responses.

Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of protecting authorised sales of debenture tickets above face value in proposed legislation on ticket sales.

The government response to our consultation on the resale of live events tickets recognised that debenture schemes operate differently from one-off events tickets and allow venues to generate secure, up-front revenue that can be invested in bringing world-class sporting, music and other live events to the public. As the response set out, we believe there is a good case for a narrow exemption to allow event organisers to authorise debenture holders to resell tickets in excess of the price cap. We will continue to explore how this exemption should be defined so that it does not undermine the overall effectiveness of the price cap.