Written questions by Rankin.

Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate she has made of the cost of maintaining and keeping open the Jubilee River Channel in the last four years.

The Jubilee River is part of the Maidenhead, Windsor and Eaton Flood Alleviation Scheme which is operated and maintained by the Environment Agency. The cost of maintaining and keeping the Jubilee River channel open are difficult to extract from the overall cost of operating and maintaining the flood alleviation scheme; calculating this would fall into disproportionate costs. The Environment Agency has allocated £2.3m for maintenance and capital improvements on the whole Maidenhead, Windsor and Eaton Flood Alleviation Scheme this year. In previous years spending has varied, depending on the programme of work.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the role of local plans in the planning system in the future.

I refer the hon. Member to the Written Ministerial Statement made on 27 February 2025 (HCWS480).

Communities and Local Government, whether borough local plans have precedence over parish level neighbourhood plans.

Once passed at referendum, neighbourhood plans form part of the development plan. Policies in a neighbourhood plan may become out of date, including if they conflict with policies in a local plan adopted after the making of the neighbourhood plan. In such cases, the more recent plan policy would take precedence.

Communities and Local Government, whether the tilted balance in decision making is formally recognised as part of national planning policy; and what guidance his Department has issued to ensure consistent application by planning authorities.

Users of the National Planning Policy Framework sometimes describe the effect of paragraph 11d of the Framework as a ‘tilted balance’. However, the term itself does not form part of national planning policy. The Framework is a material consideration in decision-making. The government’s suite of planning practice guidance contains guidance for decision makers regarding the application of the policies in the Framework.

Communities and Local Government, whether Councils are able to use money from the Community Infrastructure Levy to refresh neighbourhood plans.

Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) receipts must be used for the purposes which are set out in section 216 of the Planning Act 2008 and Part 7 of the CIL regulations. Local authorities must spend the levy on infrastructure needed to support the development of their area Where charging authorities collect the levy, they can use up to 5% of funds from the levy to recover the costs of administering the levy. Where all or part of a chargeable development is within the area of a parish council, the charging authority must pass a proportion of the CIL receipts from the development to the parish council. The ‘neighbourhood portion’ of CIL can be spent on infrastructure or anything else that is concerned with addressing the demands that development places on an area. Further information on spending the levy is set out in CIL guidance which can be found on gov.uk here.

What the estimated average cost per child of breakfast food is at school breakfast clubs according to the latest available data.

The government is delivering on its pledge to provide a free breakfast club in every state-funded school with primary-aged children. This will ensure every child, regardless of their circumstances, has a supportive start to the school day.The department has confirmed over £30 million of funding for free breakfast clubs for the current 2025/26 financial year and around £80 million for the 2026/27 financial year. Schools will be funded for the running of a breakfast club, including food, staffing and day-to-day delivery. Learning from the early adopters, we will provide further information, including specifics on eligibility, funding, and expectations for schools, later in the autumn term.The department does not collect data on how much money schools spend per child on breakfast food.

Whether she has made an assessment of the potential impact of UK stamp duty on the level of share trading volumes in Metlen.

Stamp Duty and Stamp Duty Reserve Tax are forecast to raise up to £5.1bn per year combined to help fund vital public services. The framework of the taxes contains many reliefs and exemptions which are designed to provide a boost to growth, liquidity, and trading volumes in UK listed companies. The government keeps this area of tax under review.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the policy paper entitled UK and Palestinian strategic cooperation: memorandum of understanding, published on 28 April 2025, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of the Palestinian Authority’s commitment to peaceful coexistence with neighbouring countries.

I refer the Hon Member to my response of 17 September to Question 74028.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the adequacy of the Jubilee Flood Alleviation Channel.

The Jubilee Flood Alleviation Channel is part of the Maidenhead, Windsor, and Eton Flood Alleviation Scheme, protecting over 3000 properties in those areas. Since opening in 2002 it has successfully protected local communities from flooding on multiple occasions. The scheme also provides valuable local amenity and recreation benefit. The Environment Agency is currently undertaking mechanical & electrical refurbishment work to the structures which control the flow of water into the relief channel. This will ensure that the asset continues to provide protection to communities this winter and into the future. Additionally, they are carrying out repairs to a section of riverbank which was damaged during high flows in 2024 and supporting Buckinghamshire County Council with their removal of a timber footbridge which collapsed into the channel earlier this summer.

If she will take steps to establish a multi-year recruitment and retention strategy for the magistracy.

In light of the Independent Review of the Criminal Courts and the Sentencing Review, Ministers are considering the implications for the magistracy, including how best to ensure sufficient capacity in magistrates’ courts to meet both current and future demand and how we can best give deserved recognition to the long term service that many of our existing magistrates provide.We will set out further details of our approach following the publication of the Government response to the Independent Review of the Criminal Courts.

Whether his Department plans to promote the UK’s Swap to Stop scheme at the World Health Organisation Framework Convention on Tobacco Control Eleventh Session of the Conference of Parties.

The health advice is clear, that whilst vapes can be an effective quit aid for adult smokers, children and non-smokers should never vape. The Swap to Stop scheme is a national smoking cessation programme through which the Department provides adult smokers access to free vape start kits alongside behavioural support to help them quit.The Government has regularly set out our position on vaping at the Conference of the Parties to the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control and will do so at the next conference in Geneva in November 2025.

What representatives his Department plans to send to the World Health Organisation Framework Convention on Tobacco Control Eleventh Session of the Conference of Parties by (a) job title and (b) name.

The World Health Organization Conference of the Parties of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control will take place in Geneva from Monday 17 to Saturday 22 November.The United Kingdom’s delegation will consist of officials from the Department of Health and Social Care, as is usual practice for this conference.A decision on who will attend is yet to be made. However, it is departmental policy not to name officials below Senior Civil Service grades who attend these events.

How many people are employed by Border Force at Heathrow Airport.

In the interests of maintaining border security, Border Force does not routinely disclose information of a port-specific nature, and the requested national information is not available from published statistics.

Pursuant to the Answer of 15 May 2025 to Question 50803 on Heathrow Airport: Money, how much cash was seized by the Border Force (a) at Heathrow Airport and (b) nationally in the last year for which figures are available.

In the interests of maintaining border security, Border Force does not routinely disclose information of a port-specific nature, and the requested national information is not available from published statistics.

Whether policies on smart thermostats will be included in the Warm Homes Plan.

We recognise the key role that smart technologies play in decarbonsing homes. A digitised energy system will help consumers manage their usage and reduce their bills. We will set out further details in the Warm Homes Plan later this year.

How many Border Force personnel at Heathrow Airport specifically (a) track and (b) seize illegally imported money.

In the interests of maintaining border security, Border Force does not routinely disclose information of a port-specific nature.

Whether she plans to mandate local government reorganisation.

The English Devolution White paper set out our plans to facilitate a programme of local government reorganisation, and to do so as quickly as possible. Councils in two tier areas and small neighbouring unitary councils have already been invited to submit proposals.

If she will make an assessment of the potential impact of the proposals on the harmonisation of gambling duties outlined in the consultation entitled The Tax Treatment of Remote Gambling, last updated on 6 May 2025, on the British horseracing industry.

The Government is consulting on proposals to simplify the current gambling tax system by merging the three current taxes that cover remote (including online) gambling into one – reducing complexity. The Government is committed to engaging with all stakeholders, including representatives of the horseracing industry, as part of the consultation process. The Government recognises the significant cultural and economic value of British horseracing, both as a major sporting tradition and as an important contributor to rural economies across the country. The Government encourages all interested parties to participate in the consultation to ensure the interests of British horseracing industry are fully considered.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of the proposals outlined in the consultation entitled The Tax Treatment of Remote Gambling, last updated on 6 May 2025, on black market gambling.

The Government is consulting on proposals to simplify the current gambling tax system by merging the three current taxes that cover remote (including online) gambling into one. If any changes are made to gambling duties at a future Budget following the consultation, they will be accompanied by a Tax Information and Impact Note which will set out the expected impacts.

Media and Sport, what discussions she has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on the potential impact of the proposals in the consultation entitled The Tax Treatment of Remote Gambling, last updated on 6 May 2025, on the British horseracing industry.

There has been ministerial engagement between my Department and His Majesty’s Treasury to ensure that they are aware of the specific way British horseracing is funded and the potential implications of any changes to taxation.Future proposals on taxation are a matter for His Majesty’s Treasury. We would encourage interested parties and stakeholders to engage with ongoing consultations on the matter, which run until the 21st of July. Should legislative change be brought about following this consultation, we expect the impact of such changes to be outlined in tax and impact notes published alongside, as is standard practice.