Written questions by MacCleary.

If she will take steps to review the process by which councils allocate funding to mainstream schools to support children with EHCPs.

This government’s ambition is that all children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) receive the right support to succeed in their education and as they move into adult life.The department is providing an increase of £1 billion for high needs budgets in England in the 2025/26 financial year, following the Autumn Budget 2024. This brings total high needs funding for children and young people with complex SEND to over £12 billion. Local authorities allocate this funding to schools, including for the costs of special provision in excess of £6,000 per annum for mainstream school pupils with education, health and care plans. The department provides operational guidance for local authorities to support their allocation of high needs funding, and this is reviewed prior to each financial year to which it applies. The full guidance for 2025/26 can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/high-needs-funding-arrangements-2025-to-2026.

What recent discussions she has had with East Sussex County Council on its ability to meet pupils' EHCP needs in mainstream primary schools.

The department is providing support and challenge to East Sussex to improve delivery of its special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) services following the most recent local area SEND inspection by Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission in November 2024.This inspection found that the local area partnership’s arrangements lead to inconsistent experiences and outcomes for children and young people with SEND. Specifically, one of the four areas for improvement was that the local area partnership should develop and embed its work with education settings on improving inclusion, so that the proportion of children and young people achieving strong outcomes increases.East Sussex are developing a strategic plan with specific actions to address all four areas for improvement. The department and NHS England will be tracking the progress that the local area makes against this plan, including through regular engagement, and will offer support as the local area’s improvement journey continues.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of schools being directed to admit pupils with high levels of need without the provision of additional (a) funding and (b) support staff on (i) children’s safety and (ii) educational outcomes.

Local authorities must consult with settings before naming them in an education, health and care (EHC) plan. The setting can express concerns about being named and the local authority must consider these concerns carefully. However, if named in the plan, the setting is under a statutory duty to admit the child or young person.Teachers have a key role to play in supporting learners with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) and there are numerous development opportunities available to help ensure that a focus on SEND is embedded across schools.All mainstream schools must also have a special educational needs co-ordinator (SENCO), who plays an important role in helping the development and implementation of an effective special educational needs policy and provision in the school. The school should ensure that the SENCO has sufficient time and resources to carry out these functions.Headteachers are responsible for employment in their schools, as they are best placed to understand the needs of their pupils and can make staffing decisions accordingly.When an EHC plan is issued, the local authority is statutorily required to secure the provision specified in the plan. This usually involves providing top-up funding to the setting from its high needs budget. High needs budgets will total over £12 billion in the 2025/26 financial year, following the additional £1 billion announced at the Autumn Budget 2024.

What steps she is taking to help ensure that schools are adequately (a) funded and (b) staffed to meet the needs of children with EHCPs in cases where the school has deemed it unsafe for the child to attend due to lack of support.

Local authorities must consult with settings before naming them in an education, health and care (EHC) plan. The setting can express concerns about being named and the local authority must consider these concerns carefully. However, if named in the plan, the setting is under a statutory duty to admit the child or young person.Teachers have a key role to play in supporting learners with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) and there are numerous development opportunities available to help ensure that a focus on SEND is embedded across schools.All mainstream schools must also have a special educational needs co-ordinator (SENCO), who plays an important role in helping the development and implementation of an effective special educational needs policy and provision in the school. The school should ensure that the SENCO has sufficient time and resources to carry out these functions.Headteachers are responsible for employment in their schools, as they are best placed to understand the needs of their pupils and can make staffing decisions accordingly.When an EHC plan is issued, the local authority is statutorily required to secure the provision specified in the plan. This usually involves providing top-up funding to the setting from its high needs budget. High needs budgets will total over £12 billion in the 2025/26 financial year, following the additional £1 billion announced at the Autumn Budget 2024.

Pursuant to the Answer of 22 April 2025 to Question 44342 on UK Trade with EU: Public Consultation, what discussions he has had with the EU TCA Domestic Advisory Group on improving UK-EU trade relations; and what (a) outcomes and (b) recommendations have arisen from those discussions.

Minister for the Cabinet Office Nick Thomas-Symonds oversees the UK-EU relationship including the Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) and its Domestic Advisory Group (DAG).The Minister has met the UK TCA DAG several times, including most recently on 3 September 2024 and 29 April 2025. He also met the chair and co-chairs on 4 March 2025.The minutes and conclusions of the DAG meetings are published on https://www.gov.uk/government/groups/uk-eu-trade-and-cooperation-agreement-domestic-advisory-group

Whether he has had recent discussions with Sussex Police on their investigation into alleged medical negligence at the Royal Sussex County Hospital; and whether he has considered providing additional resources to support their inquiry.

The Secretary of State for Health and Social Care has not had recent discussions with Sussex Police on their investigation and the provision of additional resources has not been considered to support them.Ministers have met with the leadership of University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust and are aware of the ongoing investigation. We have been reassured that the Trust and Sussex Police maintain an open and constructive working relationship, and governance frameworks are in place to safeguard patients, families, and staff.

What steps her Department plans to take to reduce the number of repeat missing incidents amongst children.

The Government recognises the need for an effective multi-agency response to missing person investigations and we are clear in our ambition to reduce missing incidents and safeguard those vulnerable to going missing. Missing children and adults represent a concern which spans many cross-Governmental priorities and policy areas. The Home Office is committed to working with the Department for Education and Department for Health and Social Care and other relevant departments; sending a clear message that missing needs a whole-system response.Repeat missing incidents are often a red flag for a number of the harms, such as child sexual or criminal exploitation. The Home Office is heavily invested in supporting and protecting vulnerable people, particularly children and young people from all forms of harm.The Home Office and Department for Education have been supporting the National Police Chiefs' Council (NPCC) lead for Missing Persons in the development of a 'Missing Children from Care' framework, which has been piloted in West Yorkshire. This framework outlines good practice that can be adopted by local areas when setting up their own multi-agency protocols for the strategic and operational response to a missing incident, with an aim to ensure that the appropriate safeguarding partner responds in the best interest of the missing person.

What assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of appointing cross-government leadership on the issue of missing persons.

The Government recognises the need for an effective multi-agency response to missing person investigations and we are clear in our ambition to reduce missing incidents and safeguard those vulnerable to going missing. Missing children and adults represent a concern which spans many cross-Governmental priorities and policy areas. The Home Office is committed to working with the Department for Education and Department for Health and Social Care and other relevant departments; sending a clear message that missing needs a whole-system response.Repeat missing incidents are often a red flag for a number of the harms, such as child sexual or criminal exploitation. The Home Office is heavily invested in supporting and protecting vulnerable people, particularly children and young people from all forms of harm.The Home Office and Department for Education have been supporting the National Police Chiefs' Council (NPCC) lead for Missing Persons in the development of a 'Missing Children from Care' framework, which has been piloted in West Yorkshire. This framework outlines good practice that can be adopted by local areas when setting up their own multi-agency protocols for the strategic and operational response to a missing incident, with an aim to ensure that the appropriate safeguarding partner responds in the best interest of the missing person.

What recent estimate his Department has made of the number of people diagnosed with temporomandibular disorder linked to orthodontic malpractice.

Information is not held centrally on the number of people with temporomandibular disorder linked to orthodontic treatment.More widely, the Government plans to tackle the challenges for patients trying to access National Health Service dental care with a rescue plan to provide 700,000 more urgent dental appointments and recruit new dentists to the areas that need them most. To rebuild dentistry in the long term, we will reform the dental contract with the sector, with a shift to focus on prevention and the retention of NHS dentists.

If he will have discussions with Cabinet colleagues on how to support individuals who develop temporomandibular disorder as a result of orthodontic treatment.

Information is not held centrally on the number of people with temporomandibular disorder linked to orthodontic treatment.More widely, the Government plans to tackle the challenges for patients trying to access National Health Service dental care with a rescue plan to provide 700,000 more urgent dental appointments and recruit new dentists to the areas that need them most. To rebuild dentistry in the long term, we will reform the dental contract with the sector, with a shift to focus on prevention and the retention of NHS dentists.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 20 March to Question 37889 on High Rise Flats: Insulation, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of increased insurance premiums due to cladding on the finances of leaseholders in buildings under 11 metres in height.

We do not hold information on insurance premiums for buildings under 11 metres in height. However, insurers should offer affordable premiums in line with risk, where life safety fire risk is generally proportional to the height of buildings. The department has been examining buildings under 11 metres on a case-by-case basis. To date, we have only identified a small number of under 11 metre buildings that require cladding remediation works. In the rare cases where remediation work is required, the department has engaged the relevant developers in conversations about funding these works so that leaseholders do not pay. Regardless of the height of the building, the responsibility for the costs of fixing such defects should rest with building owners, and not leaseholders.

What recent discussions he has had with EU-based businesses on UK-EU trade relations.

The Government regularly engages with UK and EU businesses as we strengthen the UK-EU relationship. This includes engagement through formal channels such as the UK TCA Domestic Advisory Group and the Trade Strategy’s open call for input, as well as Ministerial roundtables.As part of my visit to Brussels on 26 February, I held a roundtable with EU industry representatives on improving UK-EU trade relations. On 6 March, Minister Gustafsson led a business roundtable with Irish businesses regarding bilateral trade and investment opportunities. We will continue to engage businesses ahead of the UK-EU Summit.

What steps his Department is taking through the Product Safety and Metrology Bill to improve safety standards in relation to the (a) use and (b) sale of lithium-ion batteries.

The UK has some of the strongest consumer product safety laws in the world, that already requires businesses to only make safe products available on the market, including lithium-ion batteries. The powers in the Product Regulation and Metrology Bill will allow us to update the regulatory framework, if we determine that is necessary to ensure the best protections for consumers. In the meantime, the Office for Product Safety and Standards, as the national regulator, is taking action to prevent unsafe products, including lithium-ion batteries, from being sold in the UK.

What steps he is taking to consult UK businesses ahead of the UK-EU May Summit.

The Government regularly engages with UK and EU businesses as we strengthen the UK-EU relationship. This includes engagement through formal channels such as the UK TCA Domestic Advisory Group and the Trade Strategy’s open call for input, as well as Ministerial roundtables.As part of my visit to Brussels on 26 February, I held a roundtable with EU industry representatives on improving UK-EU trade relations. On 6 March, Minister Gustafsson led a business roundtable with Irish businesses regarding bilateral trade and investment opportunities. We will continue to engage businesses ahead of the UK-EU Summit.

What assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of Gatwick Airport expansion on the (a) capacity and (b) reliability of the rail network serving that airport; and what steps she is taking to mitigate potential disruption to (i) passengers and (ii) local communities.

In her letter of 27 February 2025, my Right Honourable Friend, the Secretary of State for Transport indicated that she was minded to approve the proposed development of the Gatwick Airport Northern Runway Project based on the principles of the requirements set out by the Examining Authority in its report. It is now for the applicant to respond. Both the letter and the report are published on The Planning Inspectorate’s website - https://national-infrastructure-consenting.planninginspectorate.gov.uk/projects/TR020005 .The effects of the proposed development on the rail network, its users and local communities will be taken into account in the final decision, though my Right Honourable friend will note both Network Rail and rail operators were consulted as part of the application and have not objected to the proposals. However as this remains a live planning application with the Department, I cannot comment further on those issues at the current time.

What assessment she has made of trends in the level of the cost of railcards; and what steps her Department is taking to ensure rail travel remains affordable for (a) young people, (b) older passengers and (c) people on lower incomes.

The price of most railcards increased by £5 from 2 March 2025, except the Disabled Persons Railcard. Railcards still offer significant savings on rail fares with the average railcard holder saving up to £158 annually. In many cases, the price of railcards has not increased in a decade, during which time the cost of running the railway and the subsidy provided to the railway by the taxpayer has increased significantly. This small price increase helps to balance the funding for the railway between passengers and taxpayers.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment her Department has made of the (a) effectiveness and (b) adequacy of the pace of the existing system for identifying and remediating dangerous cladding and fire safety issues; and what steps she is taking to accelerate the process.

This government has been clear that the pace on remediation has been too slow. Seven years on from the Grenfell Tower tragedy, it is unacceptable that so many buildings still have unsafe cladding. We have announced a step change towards addressing the building safety crisis through the publication of our ambitious Remediation Acceleration Plan (RAP). Our plan will drive the pace of remediation through new proposed legal duties and powers, new funding, new resources and new partnerships. In December 2024, the Remediation Acceleration Plan was launched. We recognise that the scale and importance of the challenge is so significant that we expect to publish a further update on this plan in summer 2025 to report on progress and to reflect the second phase of the spending review. Through this plan, we aim that by the end of 2029 all 18m+ (high-rise) buildings with unsafe cladding in a government funded scheme will have been remediated. Furthermore, by the end of 2029, every 11m+ building with unsafe cladding will either have been remediated, have a date for completion, or the landlords will be liable for severe penalties. We are also driving pace and effectiveness through existing funding schemes. The Cladding Safety Scheme (CSS) was launched in 2023 to help fund work to address unsafe cladding for buildings between 11-18 metres, as well as those over 18 metres outside London, but has since been expanded to include all government funded remediation projects outside London. The benefits of transferring buildings to this scheme include increased pace through the use of automated processes, better experience for residents, and greater cost effectiveness. We are continuing to seek opportunities to exploit the benefits of the CSS further.

What steps he is taking to make (a) dental mouth guards and (b) other dental orthotics services available for free on the NHS for people who are on Pension Credit.

Dental mouth guards are available for free to any patient who is in receipt of Pension Credit, Guarantee Credit, or anyone else who is exempt from dental patient charges, where they have a specific dental need for one. There are currently no plans to change the dental patient charge exemption criteria.National Health Service orthodontic treatment is free for people under 18 years old with a clear health need for treatment. Orthodontic treatment is not usually available on the NHS for adults. More information is available at the following link:https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/orthodontics/

How much her Department has spent on infrastructure upgrades for (a) ports and (b) airports in preparation for the implementation of the Entry/Exit System.

EES will need to be implemented at the juxtaposed controls in the UK. In general, ports are expected to provide infrastructure relating to border controls without government funding. Given the specific issues caused by the need to implement EES, the previous Government awarded a £3.5m grant to each of Port of Dover, Eurotunnel and Eurostar to assist with achieving the optimum implementation models at these juxtaposed controls. My Department, National Highways and Kent County Council are working with Port of Dover on minor capacity improvements to the A20/Union Street junction to support the port’s new Western Docks EES processing facility. This is being led by Kent County Council. British airports, and maritime ports other than Port of Dover, will not be implementing EES, as these ports do not host juxtaposed controls.

When she plans to (a) publish her long-term transport strategy and (b) make a decision on the Major Road Network project put forward by East Sussex County Council.

The Integrated National Transport Strategy will be published later this year following collaborative and open engagement with our stakeholders and will meet the manifesto commitment to develop a “long-term strategy for transport”. Regarding the A259 South Coast Road Corridor scheme, all future spend is subject to the Spending Review and until that is completed, I am unable to provide assurances on any individual project. Local authority scheme promoters will be updated on the future of schemes in due course.