Written questions by Lavery.

If she will give assurance that Managed Service Provider expansion will not result in a reduction in permanent civil service posts over the medium term, and if she will make a statement.

The current staff provided by Managed Service Providers (MSPs) represent additional capacity in 2025/26. HMRC staff will not be made redundant as a result of this initiative. Other Government Departments (OGDs) already use MSP contracts to provide additional workforce flexibility. HMRC are currently in an initial approximately 18 month ‘proof of value’ phase using existing Government contracts. This will allow them to test, learn and ensure quality and value for money before wider implementation. HMRC provides the initial training for the services covered by the MSPs, before approving suppliers to train subsequent cohorts of staff themselves. All operational guidance is developed, owned and updated by HMRC, and HMRC retains full decision‑making authority, with a dedicated team actively managing the partnership. Callers are not informed whether the person they are speaking to is employed by HMRC or an MSP, as the service which they receive is the same. OGDs also take this approach.

How HMRC will ensure parity in standards of advice, security compliance, and customer outcomes between those employed by the Managed Service Provider and those employed directly by HMRC.

The current staff provided by Managed Service Providers (MSPs) represent additional capacity in 2025/26. HMRC staff will not be made redundant as a result of this initiative. Other Government Departments (OGDs) already use MSP contracts to provide additional workforce flexibility. HMRC are currently in an initial approximately 18 month ‘proof of value’ phase using existing Government contracts. This will allow them to test, learn and ensure quality and value for money before wider implementation. HMRC provides the initial training for the services covered by the MSPs, before approving suppliers to train subsequent cohorts of staff themselves. All operational guidance is developed, owned and updated by HMRC, and HMRC retains full decision‑making authority, with a dedicated team actively managing the partnership. Callers are not informed whether the person they are speaking to is employed by HMRC or an MSP, as the service which they receive is the same. OGDs also take this approach.

Whether callers to HMRC are advised whether the person they are speaking to is employed by HMRC or a Managed Service Provider.

The current staff provided by Managed Service Providers (MSPs) represent additional capacity in 2025/26. HMRC staff will not be made redundant as a result of this initiative. Other Government Departments (OGDs) already use MSP contracts to provide additional workforce flexibility. HMRC are currently in an initial approximately 18 month ‘proof of value’ phase using existing Government contracts. This will allow them to test, learn and ensure quality and value for money before wider implementation. HMRC provides the initial training for the services covered by the MSPs, before approving suppliers to train subsequent cohorts of staff themselves. All operational guidance is developed, owned and updated by HMRC, and HMRC retains full decision‑making authority, with a dedicated team actively managing the partnership. Callers are not informed whether the person they are speaking to is employed by HMRC or an MSP, as the service which they receive is the same. OGDs also take this approach.

What steps he has taken with Cabinet colleagues to implement recommendation nine of the Infected Blood Inquiry's report.

It is crucial we protect the safety of haemophilia care and the Government is committed to implementing recommendation 9 of the 2024 Infected Blood Inquiry report.The Government is committed to improving the lives of those living with rare diseases, such as haemophilia. The UK Rare Diseases Framework sets out four priorities collaboratively developed with the rare disease community: these include getting a final diagnosis faster; increasing awareness of rare diseases among healthcare professionals; better coordination of care; and improving access to specialist care, treatments, and drugs. We published the fifth annual England action plan in February 2026, where we report on the steps we have taken to advance these priorities.This includes peer review of UK comprehensive care centres, which has been an essential part of haemophilia services for many years. The triennial audit was replaced in 2019 with a more formal peer review process on a five-year cycle.The final peer review report is expected to be published imminently and once published, will be shared with the NHSE Specialised Commissioning Quality Oversight Group for consideration and action. This will be supported by a letter to Integrated Care Boards and Trust Boards, emphasising the valuable role of peer review and ask for confirmation of their commitment to review and implement the peer review findings.The Haemophilia Service Specification has been updated by the Blood Disorders Clinical Reference Group and is making its way through final approvals, having undergone public consultation. The new specification includes a contractual requirement for providers to participate in, and act upon peer review findings.

Whether HMRC has assessed the potential impact of differing terms, conditions, training, and turnover rates on service quality and resilience in relation to the use of Managed Service Providers.

The current staff provided by Managed Service Providers (MSPs) represent additional capacity in 2025/26. HMRC staff will not be made redundant as a result of this initiative. Other Government Departments (OGDs) already use MSP contracts to provide additional workforce flexibility. HMRC are currently in an initial approximately 18 month ‘proof of value’ phase using existing Government contracts. This will allow them to test, learn and ensure quality and value for money before wider implementation. HMRC provides the initial training for the services covered by the MSPs, before approving suppliers to train subsequent cohorts of staff themselves. All operational guidance is developed, owned and updated by HMRC, and HMRC retains full decision‑making authority, with a dedicated team actively managing the partnership. Callers are not informed whether the person they are speaking to is employed by HMRC or an MSP, as the service which they receive is the same. OGDs also take this approach.

What safeguards are in place to prevent the creation of a two tier workforce between Managed Service Provider staff and those directly employed by HMRC, and if she will make a statement.

The current staff provided by Managed Service Providers (MSPs) represent additional capacity in 2025/26. HMRC staff will not be made redundant as a result of this initiative. Other Government Departments (OGDs) already use MSP contracts to provide additional workforce flexibility. HMRC are currently in an initial approximately 18 month ‘proof of value’ phase using existing Government contracts. This will allow them to test, learn and ensure quality and value for money before wider implementation. HMRC provides the initial training for the services covered by the MSPs, before approving suppliers to train subsequent cohorts of staff themselves. All operational guidance is developed, owned and updated by HMRC, and HMRC retains full decision‑making authority, with a dedicated team actively managing the partnership. Callers are not informed whether the person they are speaking to is employed by HMRC or an MSP, as the service which they receive is the same. OGDs also take this approach.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to protect domestic agriculture from climate‑related risks including flooding, heat stress and soil degradation.

Defra is targeting public money where it delivers most value, supporting farmers and land managers to help restore nature and boost farm productivity, which in turn protects food security and builds resilience to climate change. The Sustainable Farming Incentive offer for 2026 will be more focussed, more transparent and fairer, so as many farmers as possible can benefit from agreements. Defra’s Capital Grants offer, opening later this year, will offer funding for a wide range of items, including natural flood management measures. Landscape Recovery projects awarded development funding in rounds one and two continue to progress towards the delivery phase. Three projects are now in their implementation phase. This includes Evenlode Project, which will allow the river to reconnect with its floodplain, reducing flooding and improving habitats for wildlife. Defra has increased the Internal Drainage Board (IDB) Fund to £91m, benefitting over 400,000 hectares of farmland and over 200,000 properties.

What assessment he has made with Cabinet colleagues of the adequacy of UK's protection against simultaneous events such as extreme weather, cyber‑attack and global supply chain disruption.

The Government assesses the UK’s resilience through the National Security Risk Assessment (NSRA). Both the NSRA and the publicly available version, the National Risk Register (NRR), are kept under continual review to reflect the changing risk landscape. During every update, policy makers are encouraged to identify both linked risks and compounding risks to ensure preparedness for simultaneous challenges. Risk owners must also evidence how chronic risks — as set out in the Chronic Risks Analysis, including risks such as climate change and reliance on global supply chains — interact with and exacerbate acute events.This approach ensures resilience planning moves beyond risks in isolation, allowing the Government to develop flexible, generic capabilities that manage the common consequences of multiple, concurrent events.

Food and Rural Affairs, what evaluation her Department has made of levels of reliance on climate‑vulnerable food imports and the risks posed by extreme weather events overseas.

The UK has a resilient food system producing around 65% of all the food eaten in the country. Through international trade, the UK has access to food products that cannot be produced here, which supplements domestic production and ensures that any disruption from risks such as adverse weather do not affect the UK's overall security of supply. Whilst the UK has a high degree of food self-sufficiency, the UK Food Security Report 2024 shows that food security cannot be taken for granted. Climate and geopolitical volatility have weakened aspects of food supply stability since 2021, although food availability or the quantity of food available to the UK has been maintained thanks to continued resilience in food production.

Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment her Department has made of the UK’s overall level of food self‑sufficiency, and what steps are being taken to increase domestic production of key staples.

UK self-sufficiency has remained broadly stable for several decades. In 2024, the UK was 65% self-sufficient for all food; 77% for food that can be produced here. In most scenarios, strong domestic production as well as imports through stable trade routes ensures a supply of food is maintained and can withstand disruptive events. The picture is nuanced, and moving to a higher level of self-sufficiency does not automatically make the UK more food secure. In December 2025, the Secretary of State announced the Farming & Food Partnership Board in response to the independent Farming Profitability Review led by Baroness Minette Batters. The Board will bring together farming, food, retail, finance and Government to take a strategic farm‑to‑fork approach to improving farming profitability and strengthening UK food production. It will oversee sector plans aimed at boosting productivity, reducing costs and opening new markets in ways that support health and environmental goals.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to support controlled‑environment agriculture, regenerative farming and other sustainable methods.

The Government has allocated a record £11.8bn to sustainable farming and food production over this parliament. Defra is targeting public money where it delivers most value, supporting farmers and land managers to help restore nature and boost farm productivity. Support includes the Sustainable Farming Incentive offer for 2026, which will be more focussed, more transparent and fairer, so that as many farmers as possible can benefit from agreements. It will open in two windows, the initial window from June 2026 being for small farms and farms without existing Environmental Land Management revenue agreements. Defra will reopen the Capital Grants offer in July. This new round will make £225 million available to farmers to buy equipment or services that help them make farming and environmental improvements across England. Defra has also announced £120 million will be available in farming grants for 2026 to boost productivity and innovation across the agricultural sector.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing food mile targets in food networks.

An assessment of the potential merits of food mile targets has not been made. The Good Food Cycle highlighted the importance of strong and resilient local food systems. It is important to note that ‘food miles’ alone are not a reliable measure of a product’s total environmental impact. For most foods, the production stage represents the largest share of emissions rather than transport. Through the Food Data Transparency Partnership, the Government is working to improve the consistency, accuracy and accessibility of environmental impact data across the food sector. This includes the standardisation of scope 3 greenhouse gas emissions reporting, covering emissions generated across supply chains, including those associated with transport. The Government is also working to strengthen local food systems and support integration of local business into supply chains, particularly for public procurement.

What assessment his Department has made of UK energy resilience to disruption to global gas or electricity markets.

The UK benefits from a strong and diverse security of supply and we continue to monitor the situation in the Middle East closely. The Government works with Ofgem, the National Energy System Operator and the Gas and Electricity System Operators to monitor the energy supply horizon and ensure industry continues to have the tools required to manage supply and demand. The Government is strengthening energy security by reducing dependency on volatile global fossil fuel markets and delivering a diverse, secure and clean energy system based on renewables and nuclear, backed up by unabated gas to be used only when essential.

What steps are being taken to develop domestic processing and recycling of critical minerals.

The Government’s 2025 Critical Minerals Strategy sets out clear steps to expand domestic processing and recycling. We are harnessing UK strengths in midstream processing and advanced recycling, supported by strong research institutions and government-backed financing such as DRIVE35, the National Wealth Fund and UK Export Finance.The Strategy also includes an ambition for 20% of UK demand to be met through recycling by 2035. Government intends to publish the Circular Economy Growth Plan soon to further strengthen circularity and recovery.New funding of up to £50 million will be made available later this year to support critical mineral projects, including projects in midstream processing and recycling. Further detail will be announced later this year.

What analysis his Department has undertaken of the UK’s level of reliance on imported critical minerals essential for battery production, semiconductors and renewable energy technologies.

The 2025 Critical Minerals Strategy sets out the UK’s vision for securing the critical minerals that are essential for our advanced manufacturing, clean energy, defence, and digital and technology sectors. In 2025, the UK imported £13.4 billion of critical minerals and their derivatives from the rest of the world. The Department is assessing the UK’s reliance on other countries, and working with international partners and industry to address this.

What steps he is taking to support (a) SMEs and (b) strategic industries in the context of reducing dependence on global supply chains.

We are establishing a new Supply Chain Centre within the Department for Business and Trade which will lead the government's efforts to strengthen the resilience of supply chains critical to the UK's security and prosperity. The Supply Chain Centre will collaborate with industry to ensure the UK is prepared for future disruptions.The Department has also brought its SME support into the Business Growth Service, providing UK businesses with the tools they need to start, scale and compete globally through business.gov.uk.Our Industrial Strategy focuses on boosting investment, driving economic growth and supporting high quality jobs, while enhancing economic security through stronger capability, diversified suppliers and strategic international partnerships.

What assessment he has made of the UK’s preparedness for medicine shortages caused by future pandemics or international disruptions.

The resilience of United Kingdom supply chains is a key priority, and the Department and NHS England are committed to helping to build long term supply chain resilience for medicines. We are continually learning and seeking to improve the way we work to both manage and help prevent supply issues and avoid shortages.The Department, working closely with NHS England, is taking forward a range of actions to further improve our ability to mitigate and manage shortages and strengthen our resilience. As part of that work, we continue to engage with industry, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, and other colleagues across the supply chain as we progress work to co-design and deliver solutions. However, medicine shortages are a complex and global issue and everyone in the supply chain has a role to play in addressing them, and any action will require a collaborative approach.The Department also undertakes significant proactive risk evaluation to assess readiness against threats that could lead to potential disruption of medical supply chains. As part of this, the Department has participated in and led on a number of preparedness exercises, spanning across nationwide loss of power, cyber-attacks, and global pandemics, to test and improve our ability to respond to supply disruption.In early August, the Department published a policy paper, Managing a robust and resilience supply of medicines, which provides greater transparency of the supply chains we rely on, the actions we take to protect patients from medicines shortages when they occur, and the steps we are taking to enhance resilience in our supply chains. This paper is available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/managing-a-robust-and-resilient-supply-of-medicines/managing-a-robust-and-resilient-supply-of-medicines

What plans his Department has to accelerate domestic renewable generation, including offshore wind, tidal energy, green hydrogen and geothermal.

Accelerating renewable generation is one of this Government’s missions and that’s why we published the Clean Power Action Plan. There are a range of interventions this Government made since coming to power, including lifting the onshore wind ban in England and the significant progress already made to deliver a solar rooftop revolution. The Contracts for Difference (CfD) mechanism is one of our main levers to intervene and in Allocation Round 7, we secured a record 14.7GW of renewable capacity, including 8.4GW of offshore wind, and four new tidal stream projects totalling 20.9MW. We look forward to more capacity being released under future CfDs. We are supporting 10 green hydrogen projects across England, Scotland and Wales through the first Hydrogen Allocation Round. The Government recognises the renewable resource that the UK has for geothermal energy and is pleased to see innovation in both heat and power applications.

What steps he is taking to help increase domestic manufacturing capacity in (a) grid components, (b) pharmaceuticals, (c) advanced materials and (d) other essential sectors.

Last year this government published our 10-year Modern Industrial Strategy, setting out our long-term approach to strengthening domestic capability across strategically important sectors. Alongside it we published several sector plans. The Advanced Manufacturing Sector Plan, sets out our support for six ‘frontier’ manufacturing industries, including advanced materials. It also outlines cross-cutting measures aimed at boosting manufacturing overall, including for component manufacturers and foundational industries.The Life Sciences Sector Plan sets out support for the pharmaceuticals industry, while the Clean Energy Industries Sector Plan shares our priorities for the UK’s clean energy economy, including how we’re tackling and improving grid connections.

What proportion of NHS medicines and medical devices depend on overseas supply chains, and what action is being taken to strengthen domestic manufacturing capacity.

Given the complexity and global nature of medical supply chains, the Department does not collect definitive data on the proportions of products dependent on overseas supply chains. Many products rely on components sourced from overseas. For example many active pharmaceutical ingredients, the biologically active components that produce the intended therapeutic effect in medicines, have a license for manufacturing in India, Germany, China, Italy and the United States of America, and many of our finished medicine products have a license for manufacturing in India, and Germany, as per Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency licensing data in 2022. The Government is taking forward a package of measures to strengthen domestic life sciences manufacturing capacity and reduce reliance on overseas supply chains. This includes committing up to £520 million through the Life Sciences Innovation Manufacturing Fund to support capital investment in United Kingdom based manufacturing of human medicines, medical diagnostics, and medical technologies. Alongside this, the Life Sciences Transformational Research and Development Investment Fund supports large‑scale, innovative research and development projects that create new or expanded research and development capabilities and strengthen the UK’s research base. This sits alongside the Life Sciences Sector Plan, a ten‑year mission led jointly by the Department of Health and Social Care and the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, which includes action to improve National Health Service innovation and adoption, clearer procurement routes into the NHS, reformed incentives to support innovation, and faster regulatory approval for new medicines and technologies. These measures are reinforced through the Government’s Industrial Strategy, which identifies life sciences as a priority growth sector and focuses on creating a pro‑business environment that supports investment and strengthens UK manufacturing capability.