Written questions by Collier.

What recent discussions she has had with local authorities on their use of her Department's connectivity tool in (a) plan-making and (b) decision-taking.

The Connectivity Tool was launched on 26 June and is free to use by all local authorities via the gov.uk website. The tool is jointly badged with the MHCLG and has been explicitly designed in collaboration with local authorities to help inform their plans, strategies and decisions. This landmark platform will serve as the new national metric of connectivity, transforming how we plan for new development and the transport infrastructure needed to support it.

What estimate she has made of the cost to businesses of implementing the proposed EHRC Code of Practice for Services, Public Functions and Associations.

Awaiting answer.

What estimate she has made of the cost to Great British Railways of implementing the proposed EHRC Code of Practice for Services, Public Functions and Associations.

Work is underway to design the form and functions of Great British Railways. Set up costs and future budgets will be confirmed in due course.

What assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the Restart Scheme.

The Department undertook a mixed-method, multi-strand evaluation of the Restart Scheme, delivered by external research providers Learning and Work Institute (L&W) and Ipsos. The research comprised three strands: a longitudinal cohort study, a survey of Restart Scheme providers, and case study research of 12 geographic areas. The report was published in May 2024 and can found on gov.uk here The Evaluation of the Restart Scheme - GOV.UK. Official Statistics on the Restart Scheme are published bi-annually and can be found on gov.uk here Restart Scheme statistics - GOV.UK.

Whether people not in receipt of the Personal Independence Payment daily living component will lose their entitlement to the health element of Universal Credit after the abolition of the work capability assessment.

Our Pathways to Work Green Paper set out why we are scrapping the Work Capability Assessment (WCA). We want to end the binary categorisation of groups and labelling as either ‘can or can’t work’. Instead, any extra financial support for health conditions in UC will be assessed via a single assessment – the PIP assessment – and be based on the impact of disability on daily living, not on capacity to work. This will de-couple access to the health element in UC (current LCWRA rate referred to as UC health throughout) from work status, so people can be confident that the act of taking steps towards and into employment will not put their benefit entitlement at risk. We are considering how any change of this kind could affect individuals who currently meet limited capability for work and work-related activity (LCWRA) criteria due to non-functional special circumstances; for example, those affected by cancer treatment, people with short term conditions that get better, women with a high-risk pregnancy and those currently classed as having substantial risk. Individuals in these categories may not be eligible for PIP, and therefore the UC health element, in the reformed system. In the reformed system these groups will still be eligible for UC and for the proposed new higher rate Unemployment Insurance if they meet relevant eligibility criteria. Individuals who are nearing the end of their life with 12 months or less to live will continue to be able to access PIP through the existing fast track route (Special Rules for End of Life (SREL) to ensure we protect those who are nearing the end of their life, irrespective of the duration of their illness. Further details on these changes will be set out in a White Paper in the Autumn.

What information her Department holds on how many and what proportion of Universal Credit claimants under the age of 25 (a) live outside of their family home and (b) do not receive financial support from their families.

The information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to gather accurate data on the number of people sofa surfing.

The English Housing Survey does not collect data on the number of sofa surfers, but does collect data on households who hosted someone in the previous 12 months who would have otherwise been homeless, and publishes these statistics annually.The total number of households that hosted someone homeless in the past 12 months was 521,000 (2% of households).By tenure, 3% of private renters (122,000 households) and 3% of social renters (120,000 households) hosted someone homeless in the past 12 months. This proportion was higher than for owner occupiers (2%, 279,000 households).See The EHS 2022-23 rented sector report, Annex Table 3.21.

Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to help build more affordable accommodation for young people living in supported housing.

I refer my hon. Friend to my answer to Question UIN 11383 on 31 October 2024.

Media and Sport, what assessment her Department has made of the (a) economic and (b) social impact of loneliness.

There are multiple sources of evidence on loneliness including research on the economic and social impact of loneliness.The economic impact of lonelinessDCMS research estimates that the costs associated with loneliness based on the impact on subjective wellbeing, health and productivity of the chronically lonely individual can be represented as a yearly sum of £9,537 per person. Chronic loneliness refers to loneliness that occurs frequently over a period of time, this has been shown to have a negative effect on health and wellbeing.This figure is our current best estimate. It is challenging to understand the economic impact of loneliness as it can be difficult to disentangle this from the impact of other drivers of low wellbeing. Further research is underway to enhance our understanding of these nuances.The social impact of lonelinessDCMS research shows a bidirectional and cyclical relationship between chronic loneliness and mental health, with people experiencing chronic loneliness 3.7 times more likely to experience mental health distress compared to those who do not experience chronic loneliness. Furthermore, external research in the US and the Quartet Community Foundation Health and Wellbeing report demonstrate the negative impact chronic loneliness can have on physical health.Loneliness has also been linked to poorer educational and employment performance by external research and DCMS research suggests those who are unemployed and economically inactive are more likely to experience chronic loneliness.

What data her Department holds on the maintenance schedule for Branston Bridge in Staffordshire.

Asset management and safety, including information on maintenance schedules, is the responsibility of the owner of the infrastructure in question, which for this bridge is Staffordshire County Council.

What steps his Department is taking to support people with long covid.

I know firsthand how complex and debilitating long COVID can be, and I am committed to improving support for people affected.Since 2020, specialist long COVID services have been made available. This includes setting up over 100 long COVID services across England.We have also invested over £57 million in long COVID research, and I recently co-chaired a roundtable on strategies to stimulate further research into treatments.