Written questions by Chowns.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his polices on global climate action of (a) the US Executive Order entitled Putting America First in International Climate Agreements, dated 20 January 2025 and (b) other polices of the new US Administration on (i) climate finance commitments and (ii) international agreements; and if he will take steps to increase levels of climate adaptation funding for developing countries.

The UK notes the US Executive Order entitled Putting America First in International Climate Agreements and other climate-related policy steps, these are a matter for the US. The UK will continue to work with all countries and partners to tackle the urgency of the climate and nature crisis and will pursue an energy policy that gets UK household bills down in the long-term. Our next International Climate Finance commitment will be carefully determined through the multi-year Spending Review.

What steps his Department is taking to consult with (a) veteran communities and (b) service organisations to inform the (i) design, (ii) implementation, (iii) data security, (iv) data governance and (v) access requirements for the Digital Veteran Card.

To ensure the privacy and protection of Veteran's personal information, the implementation of the Digital Veteran Card system will be developed in collaboration with Government Digital Services and Office for Veterans’ Affairs. It will comply with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), Secure by Design Principles and other applicable data protection legislation. As with the current physical cards, the digital cards will not hold or present detailed or sensitive Service information. The Project is working in close collaboration with the Office of Veterans’ Affairs (OVA) to engage and consult with veterans throughout the development and delivery of the Virtual Veterans Card. This is completed via user research with veterans and charities to understand their needs to ensure the Ministry of Defence provides a high-quality user-centred service.

What assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of the implementation of the Digital Veteran Card system on the data protection of veterans (a) with sensitive service histories and (b) who served in Special Forces.

To ensure the privacy and protection of Veteran's personal information, the implementation of the Digital Veteran Card system will be developed in collaboration with Government Digital Services and Office for Veterans’ Affairs. It will comply with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), Secure by Design Principles and other applicable data protection legislation. As with the current physical cards, the digital cards will not hold or present detailed or sensitive Service information. The Project is working in close collaboration with the Office of Veterans’ Affairs (OVA) to engage and consult with veterans throughout the development and delivery of the Virtual Veterans Card. This is completed via user research with veterans and charities to understand their needs to ensure the Ministry of Defence provides a high-quality user-centred service.

Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to recommendation 13 in the Fifth Special Report of the Environmental Audit Committee of Session 2023-24 entitled The UK’s contribution to tackling global deforestation: Government Response to the Committee’s Fourth Report, HC 669, what steps he has taken to ensure that the statutory evaluation of the Schedule 17 due diligence system addresses whether the due diligence system has effectively supported the human rights of indigenous peoples to land, territories and resources.

We recognise the need to take action to ensure that UK consumption of forest risk commodities is not driving deforestation and we will set out our approach to addressing this in due course.

Food and Rural Affairs, if he will review the implementation of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 to assess its effectiveness at tackling pollution from contaminated land.

The Government is committed to ensuring that the Environmental Protection Act 1990 continues to be a robust and effective legislative framework for managing and mitigating pollution from contaminated land. The department is always assessing the effectiveness of legislation to ensure it is fit for purpose. Defra has recently commissioned the Environment Agency to produce a new State of Contaminated Land Report, which involves surveying Local Authorities progress on delivering their statutory responsibilities under Part2A of the Act, including the effectiveness of existing regulations and their remediation efforts.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he has made an assessment of the potential impact of statements on Gaza by President Trump on 4 February 2025 on the temporary Gaza ceasefire deal.

The government's objective remans a negotiated two-state solution, with a sovereign Palestinian state, which includes the West Bank and Gaza, alongside a safe and secure Israel. In order to deliver this, it is clear that Palestinian civilians must be permitted to return to their communities in Gaza and rebuild and that there can be no forcible transfer of Gazans from or within Gaza, nor any reduction in the territory of the Gaza Strip. The new US administration played an integral role in negotiating the ceasefire agreement, alongside Qatar and Egypt. The UK will continue to work closely with the US to sustain the fragile ceasefire, ensure that all the hostages are released, increase the supply of aid, and break the ongoing cycle of violence in pursuit of a permanent, sustainable peace.

With reference to her predecessor's oral contribution of 18 November 2024, Official Report, column 49, when she plans to make a decision on concessionary bus travel for young people; and what criteria she plans to use.

Bus services are predominantly run on a commercial basis, where private operators decide on the level at which fares are set. Many bus operators offer reduced fares for young people, and the Department for Transport’s latest concessionary travel statistics show that in the year ending March 2025, youth concessions are offered by at least one commercial bus operator in 73 out of 85 local authority areas in England outside London. Local authorities can also introduce fares initiatives in their local areas. The government has allocated £712 million to local authorities to support and improve bus services in 2025/26 including Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP) and Bus Service Operators Grant funding. BSIP funding can be used in whichever way local authorities wish to improve services for passengers, which could include introducing fares initiatives for young people. The government is exploring options for targeted fares measures that deliver value for money to the taxpayer, to ensure affordable bus travel is always available for the groups who need it most – such as young people.

If she will make it her policy to automatically publish her Department's (a) internal process review statistics on an annual basis and (b) all internal process reviews.

For the last two operational years the department has reported on the Internal Process Reviews it undertakes in its Annual Report and Accounts. This is alongside reporting on the wider activities of its Advanced Customer Support Teams (available here: DWP annual report and accounts 2022 to 2023 - GOV.UK and here: DWP annual report and accounts 2023 to 2024 - GOV.UK). The department continues to consider what further information can be published in future Accounts. The department also already has plans to publish further, separate information on its Internal Process Review in a way that shows what the Department has learned from these cases and the improvements that have been made, but which importantly does not disclose the sensitive, personal and confidential information that can surround these cases. Publication is planned to start by 31 March 2025.

Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make it his policy to bring the statutory guidance entitled Applying the farming rules for water, updated 16 June 2022, on the application of manure, in line with The Reduction and Prevention of Agricultural Diffuse Pollution (England) Regulations 2018.

We have heard concerns regarding the statutory guidance, issued under the previous Government, on the Farming Rules for Water. In response, the Secretary of State have instructed officials to conduct a review to ensure that it is fit for purpose and effective in its objectives. We are currently assessing the findings of this review. We will share the outcomes as soon as practicable.

With reference to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs' policy paper entitled Environmental principles policy statement, published on 31 January 2023, whether his Department provides training further to section 19 of the Environment Act 2021 in the (a) statutory instrument capability programme, (b) parliamentary capability team training programme and (c) Policy Profession programme.

A range of guidance is available to civil servants when preparing legislation, including on section 19 of the Environment Act 2021. Ahead of the duty coming into force on 1 November 2023, guidance was issued to civil servants working on legislation. In January 2024, the Guide to Preparing Explanatory Memoranda (EMs) to Statutory Instruments was published and included information on this duty. The next update to The Guide to Making Legislation, which will be published shortly, will include guidance on the policy statement.

When he plans to publish an update to the Reduced Data Standard Assessment Procedure.

Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) are a crucial tool for consumers to understand the energy efficiency of their homes. We are implementing an interim update to the Reduced Data Standard Assessment Procedure (RdSAP), which underpins EPC ratings, in Spring this year. This update aims to enhance the accuracy and robustness of the current model. This is ahead of a more significant, ambitious EPC reform programme set for late 2026, aimed at better supporting Net Zero objectives and delivering the Warm Homes Plan.

What steps he is taking to ensure that illegal hunts do not take place on Ministry of Defence land.

The Ministry of Defence has only ever issued licences to recognised hunts for Trail and Drag hunting which are legal activities authorised by the Hunting Act 2004. Any suspicion of illegal hunting should be reported to the Police.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make representations to his Israeli counterparts for an independent investigation to be launched into the killing of two-year-old Palestinian child Laila Mohammad Ayman Khatib.

We cannot comment on individual cases, but we remain concerned by the situation in the West Bank and reiterate that Israel must ensure that civilians are protected. The Foreign Secretary has raised the situation in the West Bank and issues of international law compliance directly at the highest levels of the Israeli Government. This Government is clear that international law must be upheld, and civilians protected.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps the Government is taking to help protect the (a) safety and (b) wellbeing of Palestinian children in the Occupied Palestinian Territories.

We are alarmed by the impact of the Gaza conflict on children across the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPTs). The UK has consistently pressed Israel to do more to protect civilians in Gaza, not least children, and for all parties to ensure adherence to international humanitarian law. We led calls on Israel to enable the rollout of the polio vaccine across Gaza and we have supported partners to deliver lifesaving aid to children, as well as educational and psychosocial services. This includes an additional £6 million for United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) to support vulnerable families in Gaza announced in August 2024, and £41 million funding for United Nations Relief and Work Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) this financial year to provide essential services including education across Gaza, the West Bank and Palestinian refugees in the region. £5.8 million of the UK's contribution to the Global Partnership for Education has been earmarked to support essential education service delivery in Gaza and the West Bank. We are also one of the largest donors to the Education Cannot Wait initiative, contributing £1.64 million of its £9.65 million funding to Gaza this financial year.

Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make it his policy to include ice age ponds in the list of Irreplaceable Habitats for biodiversity net gain.

Irreplaceable habitat includes some of England’s most ecologically valuable terrestrial and intertidal habitats. The list of irreplaceable habitats in the biodiversity net gain regulations broadly mirrors the non-exhaustive list of examples of irreplaceable habitat in the National Planning Policy Framework. Defra will provide an update on irreplaceable habitat in due course. In the meantime, we are gathering evidence to inform whether an updated list would offer welcome additional protection to these important habitats, whilst aligning with wider Government objectives for house building and growth.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of joining the School Meals Coalition.

The UK is assessing the latest evidence on the impact of school feeding interventions on nutrition, education and social protection and continues to track developments in the evidence base for school feeding interventions. We note, for example, the World Bank's Investment Framework for Nutrition from October 2024 which states that investing in the first 1000 days of a child's life is more effective and cost-effective for preventing and reducing malnutrition. We are not a member of the School Meals Coalition but actively engage in global dialogue on school feeding through other processes, such as the World Food Programme's Executive Board, the G7 and the G20.

Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of including priority grassland habitats in the list of Irreplaceable Habitats for biodiversity net gain.

Irreplaceable habitat includes some of England’s most ecologically valuable terrestrial and intertidal habitats. The list of irreplaceable habitats in the biodiversity net gain regulations broadly mirrors the non-exhaustive list of examples of irreplaceable habitat in the National Planning Policy Framework. Defra will provide an update on irreplaceable habitat in due course. In the meantime, we are gathering evidence to inform whether an updated list would offer welcome additional protection to these important habitats, whilst aligning with wider Government objectives for house building and growth.

Food and Rural Affairs, when he plans to publish his Department's consultation on a broader definition of irreplaceable habitat.

Irreplaceable habitat includes some of England’s most ecologically valuable terrestrial and intertidal habitats. The list of irreplaceable habitats in the biodiversity net gain regulations broadly mirrors the non-exhaustive list of examples of irreplaceable habitat in the National Planning Policy Framework. Defra will provide an update on irreplaceable habitat in due course. In the meantime, we are gathering evidence to inform whether an updated list would offer welcome additional protection to these important habitats, whilst aligning with wider Government objectives for house building and growth.

If she will make it her policy to (a) end funding for the Ring Fence Expenditure Supplement for oil and gas companies and (b) redirect any savings to international climate finance.

Ring Fence Expenditure Supplement (RFES) maintains the time value of oil and gas exploration, appraisal and development costs. This recognises that oil and gas projects have high costs before production begins, but no production income to set these costs against. By maintaining the time value of these costs when they are used against production income in future years, RFES supports investment in the sector by ensuring companies receive an appropriate deduction for their expenditure. The government currently has no plans to change this aspect of the tax system, but keeps all of its taxes under review as a matter of course. This Government is engaged in international discussions regarding ways to mobilise finance at the scale needed to respond to the climate crisis. This includes mobilising funding from non-traditional donors, the private sector, philanthropies and through innovative financing.

If he will make an assessment of the potential impact of the Investor-State Dispute Settlement provisions of the UK/Colombia: Bilateral Agreement for the Promotion and Protection of Investments on the (a) natural environment and (b) rights of indigenous peoples.

I refer the Hon. Member for North Herefordshire to my response to Question 12968 on 12th November 2024.