Written questions by Cartlidge.

With reference to the NHS Long Term Workforce Plan, updated on 22 April 2024, what plans he has to prioritise measures to (a) make workers feel valued and (b) encourage workers to remain working in the NHS.

The Government is committed to making the National Health Service the best place to work, to ensure the retention of our hardworking and dedicated staff. We will publish a refreshed workforce plan to deliver the transformed health service we will build over the next decade, and treat patients on time again.NHS England is leading work nationally through its retention programme to drive a consistent, system-wide approach to staff retention across NHS trusts. This ensures trusts have access to proven retention strategies, data-driven monitoring, and can foster a more stable, engaged, productive, and supported workforce.

With reference to Annex 1, Clause 2, of the document entitled UK/Mauritius: Agreement concerning the Chagos Archipelago including Diego Garcia (CS Mauritius No.1/2025), published on 22 May 2025, for what reason Mauritius requires advanced notice of any armed attack on a third state emanating from the Base.

As the hon. Gentleman will recall from his time as a Defence Minister, it is standard practice for basing arrangements to include an agreement to inform a host nation about military action from their territory. Additionally, the UN Charter has a requirement to notify the UN of military action taken in self-defence. Any notification to Mauritius will take place after the event and will not require the UK to divulge sensitive information. The United Kingdom will inform Mauritius through normal diplomatic channels.

With reference to Annex 1, Clause 3, of the UK/Mauritius: Agreement concerning the Chagos Archipelago including Diego Garcia [CS Mauritius No.1/2025], for what reason Mauritius requires notification of (a) maintenance and (b) upgrades to UK equipment on the base.

As stated in Annex 1, paragraph 1 of the Treaty, the United Kingdom will have unrestricted ability to authorise the installation, operation, and repair of new and existing systems on Diego Garcia, without the need to give notification. In respect of the Chagos Archipelago beyond Diego Garcia, Annex 1, paragraph 3 states that the UK shall have rights of access to maintain and upgrade equipment after notification to Mauritius. There is no requirement to seek permission in either scenario. With the robust security provisions negotiated under this agreement, the UK maintains full operational control of the military base on Diego Garcia.

With reference to Annex 1, Clause 2, of the UK/Mauritius: Agreement concerning the Chagos Archipelago including Diego Garcia [CS Mauritius No.1/2025], what level of detail is required to be passed onto Mauritius in relation to an armed attack.

As the hon. Gentleman will recall from his time as a Defence Minister, it is standard practice for basing arrangements to include an agreement to inform a host nation about military action from their territory. Additionally, the UN Charter has a requirement to notify the UN of military action taken in self-defence. Any notification to Mauritius will take place after the event and will not require the UK to divulge sensitive information. The United Kingdom will inform Mauritius through normal diplomatic channels.

With reference to Annex 1, Clause 2, of the document entitled UK/Mauritius: Agreement concerning the Chagos Archipelago including Diego Garcia (CS Mauritius No.1/2025), published on 22 May 2025, who will be responsible for informing Mauritius of any armed attack on a third state emanating from the Base.

As the hon. Gentleman will recall from his time as a Defence Minister, it is standard practice for basing arrangements to include an agreement to inform a host nation about military action from their territory. Additionally, the UN Charter has a requirement to notify the UN of military action taken in self-defence. Any notification to Mauritius will take place after the event and will not require the UK to divulge sensitive information. The United Kingdom will inform Mauritius through normal diplomatic channels.

With reference to Annex 1, Clause 2, of the UK/Mauritius: Agreement concerning the Chagos Archipelago including Diego Garcia [CS Mauritius No.1/2025], whether Mauritius will be required to receive operational planning in relation to an armed attack.

As the hon. Gentleman will recall from his time as a Defence Minister, it is standard practice for basing arrangements to include an agreement to inform a host nation about military action from their territory. Additionally, the UN Charter has a requirement to notify the UN of military action taken in self-defence. Any notification to Mauritius will take place after the event and will not require the UK to divulge sensitive information. The United Kingdom will inform Mauritius through normal diplomatic channels.

What assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the NHS Agenda for Change Pay Scale for reflecting trends in the level of workloads faced by medical professionals in the NHS.

The management of staff workloads is a matter for local employing organisations, and is not considered to be a national pay, terms, and conditions issue.The Agenda for Change pay scale, and the national terms and conditions of service, are used to support the employment of non-medical staff in the National Health Service. The NHS Staff Council has overall responsibility for the maintenance of the pay scales and the conditions of service.The Job Evaluation Scheme underpins the Agenda for Change system of pay and supports the principle of equal pay for work of equal value. Pay bands are assigned based on the requirements of the role, such as skills and knowledge.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of using rural exception sites for delivering affordable housing.

The National Planning Policy Framework expects local planning authorities to support opportunities to bring forward rural exception sites to provide affordable housing to meet identified local needs. In the government response to the revised NPPF published on 12 December 2024, we committed to give further consideration to how we can better support rural affordable housing, including through rural exception sites, as part of our work to produce a set of national policies for decision making in 2025.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of applying permitted development rights to small reservoirs.

Under existing nationally set permitted development rights, farmers are able to create smaller, on-farm reservoirs. Guidance on the rights in question is available on gov.uk here.The government continues to keep permitted development rights under review.

What estimate he has made of the amount of funding required to certify relevant F-35 variants as dual capable aircraft.

We will be examining ways in which the UK could enhance support to NATO's nuclear mission. There are many options for how we might do this, and no decisions have been made. We will announce decisions on the UK's future combat air requirement in due course as part of the Defence Investment Plan.

Whether he plans to donate Warrior Infantry Fighting vehicles to Ukraine.

Warrior Infantry Fighting Vehicles (IFV) are key platforms for the British Army to meet Defence Commitments.Although small numbers are scheduled for disposal, these will have been selected in line with serviceability and suitability for role. As such, without substantial investment, they are not likely to offer significant capability to Ukraine and providing such small numbers would only increase the diversity of Ukraine's armoured vehicle fleet - increasing their logistic and training burdens.The UK will continue to work with Ukraine to identify how best to help them to resist Russian aggression.

When each (a) person and (b) company received unredacted hard copies of the Strategic Defence Review on 2 June 2025.

For the launch of the Strategic Defence Review, the Government offered embargoed briefings to our people and senior defence leaders, plus certain Parliamentarians, trade unions, businesses, allies and media. This was broadly consistent with the approach for previous defence reviews.

Food and Rural Affairs, what long term plans his Department has to develop nature-friendly farming policies.

We recognise the huge importance of nature friendly farming, and we will look to maintain momentum in the coming years. Our farming roadmap ‘Farming 2050: Growing England’s Future’ will involve government working with farmers and farming and environmental organisation representatives to set the course of farming over the next 25 years. It will provide a vision for our farming sector and set the direction for how we get there, with a focus on delivering our food security and environmental objectives and supporting farms to be resilient and profitable. Publication is planned later this year.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether he intends to authorise changes to the Hunting Act 2004.

This Government was elected on a mandate to introduce the most ambitious plans in a generation to improve animal welfare and that is exactly what we will do. The Hunting Act 2004 makes it an offence to hunt a wild mammal with dogs, except where it is carried out in accordance with the exemptions in the Act and completely bans hare coursing. Those found guilty under the Act are subject to the full force of the law. The Government has committed to a ban on trail hunting. Work to determine the best approach for doing so is ongoing and further announcements will be made in due course.

What steps he is taking to ensure that people with Parkinson’s disease have access to their medication on time.

National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidance on Parkinson’s disease in adults highlights the importance of patients getting Parkinson’s medicines on time, to prevent harmful effects. NICE guidance states that people with Parkinson’s disease who are admitted to hospital or care homes should be given their medicines at the appropriate times, which, in some cases, may mean allowing self-medication.Whilst hospital providers are responsible for ensuring that patients within hospital settings, including those with Parkinson’s disease, receive their appropriate medication on time, there are tools to support both patients and staff to achieve this. Electronic prescribing systems, currently in use in 85% of hospitals in England, enable in-depth monitoring and reporting on missed or delayed dosing of medications.Parkinson’s UK has produced resources, as part of their Get It on Time campaign, which support people with Parkinson's with medicine management in preparation for a hospital stay. These resources can also support hospital and care home staff to make sure that patients and residents get their medication on time, every time.NHS England has also published guidance, developed in partnership with charities, including Parkinson’s UK, to help local National Health Service staff take practical steps to improve the care for patients with progressive neurological conditions in hospitals. The Right Care Toolkit for progressive neurological conditions provides advice on medicine optimisation, highlighting the importance of the timely administration of specific drugs for Parkinson’s, such as Levodopa, in both acute and community health settings.

Food and Rural Affairs, what plans his Department has to support farmers in developing sustainable farming practices.

This Government is committed to delivering net zero by 2050 and we will work in collaboration with farmers and others with a stake in our food system towards this. The transition to more climate friendly practices will work hand in hand with food security and farm productivity. We will support farmers to adopt low carbon farming practices, increasing the carbon stored on their land while boosting profitability. We remain committed to investing £5 billion of funding in the farming budget over two years and are on track to do so. As part of this, we will optimise environmental land management schemes to make them work for farmers and nature, and introduce a land-use framework, helping to protect both the environment, food security and livelihoods. We will also look carefully at how to enable the benefits of innovation in reaching net zero carbon targets and the integration of new technologies and best practice into farming practices.

What plans his Department has to send an update to applicants to the LGBT Financial Recognition Scheme following the delay to the 18-week point update.

The LGBT Financial Recognition Scheme (FRS) launched in December of 2024, and as of 9 June 2025, 44 applicants have received payment. We have been prioritising payment to the elderly and those with serious health conditions to ensure they receive support as quickly as possible, with the first payments issued as planned within 15 weeks of the scheme going live to these prioritised groups. Some cases are more complex and require additional time due to the unique and individual circumstances involved. We envisage the scheme speeding up once the most complex cases are delt with. The Scheme continues to make progress with applications, with process capacity expected to increase in the coming months. The FRS is continually looking for opportunities to automate processes where possible, to streamline processing and to work as efficiently as possible processing applications, taking account of the complexity and need for careful consideration. Payments made by the FRS are not compensation payments and do not seek to compensate for any pecuniary losses or attempt to place personnel in a financial position they could have been in, had the ban not existed. There is no predetermined target for the number of claims that will be assessed at each sitting of the Independent Panel for the FRS. The volume of claims reviewed at each sitting will vary depending on the length and complexity of individual cases, so it is not possible to confirm in advance how many cases will be considered in any given meeting. The Department expects to increase the frequency of Independent Panel sittings, with the aim of holding up to two sittings per week. No formal assessment has been made of trends in waiting times for the assessment of claims under the Scheme. However, the Department is currently working on how we can simplify the process to update applicants. Applicants can contact the Restorative Action Team at the following email address: lgbt-frscheme@mod.gov.uk The Department will continue to keep resourcing under close review to ensure the FRS is fully supported. This includes assessing whether additional staff are required to manage demand and maintain the timely assessment of claims. The Department continues to monitor the overall progress of claims and remains committed to ensuring the scheme is delivered as efficiently and fairly as possible.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department plans to take to improve the Environmental Land Management scheme.

This Government inherited an Environmental Land Management (ELM) scheme, the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI), which was uncapped, despite a finite farming budget. We reached the upper limit in March.Now is the right time for a reset via the reformed SFI offer: supporting farmers, delivering for nature and targeting public funds fairly and effectively towards our priorities for food, farming and nature. We will work with the farming sector to prioritise funding for future years so we can target those who will benefit most before reopening SFI to new applicants. Further details about the reformed SFI offer will be announced following the spending review in summer 2025.We plan to launch the new Higher Tier scheme later this year; Capital Grants will re-open in summer 2025; we continue to move forward with Landscape Recovery; we are increasing payment rates for Higher Level Stewardship (HLS) agreement holders to recognise their ongoing commitment to delivering environmental outcome; and we are making £110 million available for new grant competitions to support research and innovation, technology and equipment for farmers.

Whether he has a target for the number of claims that will be assessed at each meeting of the independent panel as part of the LGBT Financial Recognition Scheme announced on 12 December 2024.

The LGBT Financial Recognition Scheme (FRS) launched in December of 2024, and as of 9 June 2025, 44 applicants have received payment. We have been prioritising payment to the elderly and those with serious health conditions to ensure they receive support as quickly as possible, with the first payments issued as planned within 15 weeks of the scheme going live to these prioritised groups. Some cases are more complex and require additional time due to the unique and individual circumstances involved. We envisage the scheme speeding up once the most complex cases are delt with. The Scheme continues to make progress with applications, with process capacity expected to increase in the coming months. The FRS is continually looking for opportunities to automate processes where possible, to streamline processing and to work as efficiently as possible processing applications, taking account of the complexity and need for careful consideration. Payments made by the FRS are not compensation payments and do not seek to compensate for any pecuniary losses or attempt to place personnel in a financial position they could have been in, had the ban not existed. There is no predetermined target for the number of claims that will be assessed at each sitting of the Independent Panel for the FRS. The volume of claims reviewed at each sitting will vary depending on the length and complexity of individual cases, so it is not possible to confirm in advance how many cases will be considered in any given meeting. The Department expects to increase the frequency of Independent Panel sittings, with the aim of holding up to two sittings per week. No formal assessment has been made of trends in waiting times for the assessment of claims under the Scheme. However, the Department is currently working on how we can simplify the process to update applicants. Applicants can contact the Restorative Action Team at the following email address: lgbt-frscheme@mod.gov.uk The Department will continue to keep resourcing under close review to ensure the FRS is fully supported. This includes assessing whether additional staff are required to manage demand and maintain the timely assessment of claims. The Department continues to monitor the overall progress of claims and remains committed to ensuring the scheme is delivered as efficiently and fairly as possible.

What steps his Department is taking to improve services for people living with Parkinson’s disease in South Suffolk constituency.

At the national level, there are a number of initiatives supporting service improvement and better care for patients with Parkinson’s disease in England, including the Getting It Right First Time Programme for Neurology and the RightCare Progressive Neurological Conditions Toolkit. These initiatives will help to improve services for people living with Parkinson’s disease in South Suffolk.NHS England has also established a Neurology Transformation Programme, a multi-year, clinically led programme, which has developed a new model of integrated care to support integrated care boards (ICBs) to deliver the right service, at the right time, for all neurology patients, including those with Parkinson’s. This focuses on providing access equitably across the country, with care as close to home as possible and early intervention to prevent illness and deterioration in patients with long-term neurological conditions. A toolkit is being developed to support ICBs to understand and implement this new model, which will include components on delivering acute neurology services, improving health equity in neurology, and improving community neurology services.NHS England commissions the specialised elements of Parkinson’s care that patients may receive from 27 specialised neurology centres across England. Within specialised centres, neurological multidisciplinary teams ensure that patients can access a range of health professionals and specialised treatment and support, according to their needs. NHS England is updating the Neurosciences specialised neurology (adults) service specification, which will: set out clear deliverables for specialised centres; provide a clearer model of care incorporating up-to-date guidance and best practice; and set out new quality outcomes focusing on improving patient outcomes and experience. We are expecting the revised specification and standards to be published later in 2025.