Written questions by McMurdock.

Media and Sport, pursuant to her Department’s press release entitled New requirements for UK’s biggest video-on-demand services, published on 24 February 2026, what steps she is taking to ensure that non-UK based video streaming services comply with the updated accessibility standards for UK consumers.

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport engaged extensively with video-on-demand services and disability advocacy groups throughout the passage of the Media Act 2024 and its implementation. This included organisations such as the Royal National Institute for Deaf People (RNID) and the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB). The Act sets minimum requirements for accessibility features, including that Tier 1 services must ensure that 80% of their total catalogue is subtitled, 10% is audio-described, and 5% is signed. These requirements mirror the existing access service requirements in place for commercial broadcasters and will be kept under review. The Government is also clear that these are minimum requirements, and fully expect services to go beyond this where feasible. Ofcom will shortly consult on and draft a new accessibility code, which will be an opportunity for the public and providers to share their views on the new rules. Once implemented, where Tier 1 services do not meet the requirements set out in the new accessibility code, Ofcom has powers to issue statutory sanctions, including financial penalties, where appropriate. These sanctions can be applied to both UK and non-UK Tier 1 services. Further information, including a draft of the regulations, can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/statement-on-designation-of-tier-1-video-on-demand-vod-services. Ofcom reports annually on the access services provided by UK-regulated video-on-demand services. The most recent report covers 2024, and is available here: https://www.ofcom.org.uk/tv-radio-and-on-demand/accessibility/television-and-on-demand-programme-services-access-services-report--january-to-december-2024.

Media and Sport, with reference to her Department’s press release entitled New requirements for UK’s biggest video-on-demand services, published on 24 February 2026, whether her Department plans to review the minimum thresholds for (a) subtitling, (b) audio description and (c) signing after the initial four-year implementation period.

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport engaged extensively with video-on-demand services and disability advocacy groups throughout the passage of the Media Act 2024 and its implementation. This included organisations such as the Royal National Institute for Deaf People (RNID) and the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB). The Act sets minimum requirements for accessibility features, including that Tier 1 services must ensure that 80% of their total catalogue is subtitled, 10% is audio-described, and 5% is signed. These requirements mirror the existing access service requirements in place for commercial broadcasters and will be kept under review. The Government is also clear that these are minimum requirements, and fully expect services to go beyond this where feasible. Ofcom will shortly consult on and draft a new accessibility code, which will be an opportunity for the public and providers to share their views on the new rules. Once implemented, where Tier 1 services do not meet the requirements set out in the new accessibility code, Ofcom has powers to issue statutory sanctions, including financial penalties, where appropriate. These sanctions can be applied to both UK and non-UK Tier 1 services. Further information, including a draft of the regulations, can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/statement-on-designation-of-tier-1-video-on-demand-vod-services. Ofcom reports annually on the access services provided by UK-regulated video-on-demand services. The most recent report covers 2024, and is available here: https://www.ofcom.org.uk/tv-radio-and-on-demand/accessibility/television-and-on-demand-programme-services-access-services-report--january-to-december-2024.

With reference to her Department's press release entitled Grant boost to cover almost half the cost of installing EV chargers for households and businesses, published on 25 February 2026, whether the increased funding for home EV charge point installation is part of the £25 million scheme announced last year.

The grant boost announced on the 25 February is not part of the £25 million EV Pavement Channel Grant announced in 2025.The EV Pavement Channel Grant is providing funding to local authorities in England for the installation of pavement channels during 2025/26.

With reference to her Department's press release entitled Grant boost to cover almost half the cost of installing EV chargers for households and businesses, published on 25 February 2026, how many grants were given in 2025 for home EV charging point installations; and what estimate she has made of the number of additional applications for the grant following that announcement.

Between January and October 2025, the Government’s Electric Vehicle Charge Point Grant (EVCG) supported the installation of 7,981 residential charge point sockets across the UK. This figure includes installations delivered across all eligible residential categories under the scheme, based on the latest data published up to 1 October 2025 at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/electric-vehicle-charging-device-grant-scheme-statistics-october-2025.The total grant expenditure associated with these installations over the same period was £3,706,049, according to the published administrative records. As with all EV grant statistics, the figures remain provisional due to processing times and potential undercounting of the most recent months.We expect the uplift in amounts for applicable residential properties and the increasing number of electric vehicles on the road to increase applications to the grant.

Media and Sport, with reference to her Department’s press release entitled New requirements for UK’s biggest video-on-demand services, published on 24 February 2026, whether YouTube will be included in the additional video services to be regulated.

The Government will shortly lay the On-demand Programme Services (Tier 1 Services) Regulations 2026. These regulations will designate video-on-demand services with more than 500,000 average monthly users in the UK as Tier 1 services, bringing them under enhanced regulation by Ofcom. Under the Media Act 2024, YouTube channels that commercial public service broadcasters use to fulfil their public service remit will also be Tier 1 services. Other channels hosted on video-sharing platforms, such as YouTube, are exempt from the regulations. However, these channels may still have other legal obligations, for example under the Online Safety Act 2023. Further information, including a draft of the regulations, can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/statement-on-designation-of-tier-1-video-on-demand-vod-services.

Pursuant to Answer of 20 February 2026 to Question 109501 on Health Services: Reciprocal Arrangements, how many NHS overseas cost recovery claims remain outstanding after four years; and what the total value is of those claims.

Deadlines for settling claims between the United Kingdom and member states are set out in the implementing provisions of the UK’s agreements with the European Union, the European Economic Area, and with European Free Trade Association states, namely Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein, and Switzerland. These agreements include common rules for settling claims between states which have Social Security Coordination agreements. The relevant articles in the Trade and Cooperation Agreement are SSCI.47 to SSCI.54, and there are similar provisions in all relevant agreements. The use of common provisions and processing requirements facilitate operational delivery. Further information on the Trade and Cooperation Agreement is available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/ukeu-and-eaec-trade-and-cooperation-agreement-ts-no82021Under article SSCI.52 of the Trade and Cooperation Agreement, states have 12 months from the end of the calendar half-year when claims were recorded in accounts to introduce a claim. There are then 36 months to resolve any disputes between the UK and the relevant member state. Agreements require that reimbursements are made as promptly as possible, but these deadlines reflect the complexity of some cases and the volume of claims processed.Where agreement is not reached within this period, an independent committee provides a resolution process for any dispute between the UK and member states within the terms of the agreements. It is not possible to provide validated data relating to claims over four years as the status of these claims is continuously changing as they are settled, meet settlement deadlines, or go through the resolution process.

Pursuant to Answer of 20th February 2026 to Question 109501, for what reason some NHS overseas cost recovery claims take up to four years to settle.

Deadlines for settling claims between the United Kingdom and member states are set out in the implementing provisions of the UK’s agreements with the European Union, the European Economic Area, and with European Free Trade Association states, namely Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein, and Switzerland. These agreements include common rules for settling claims between states which have Social Security Coordination agreements. The relevant articles in the Trade and Cooperation Agreement are SSCI.47 to SSCI.54, and there are similar provisions in all relevant agreements. The use of common provisions and processing requirements facilitate operational delivery. Further information on the Trade and Cooperation Agreement is available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/ukeu-and-eaec-trade-and-cooperation-agreement-ts-no82021Under article SSCI.52 of the Trade and Cooperation Agreement, states have 12 months from the end of the calendar half-year when claims were recorded in accounts to introduce a claim. There are then 36 months to resolve any disputes between the UK and the relevant member state. Agreements require that reimbursements are made as promptly as possible, but these deadlines reflect the complexity of some cases and the volume of claims processed.Where agreement is not reached within this period, an independent committee provides a resolution process for any dispute between the UK and member states within the terms of the agreements. It is not possible to provide validated data relating to claims over four years as the status of these claims is continuously changing as they are settled, meet settlement deadlines, or go through the resolution process.

What steps is he taking to improve patient flow between emergency departments and inpatient wards.

Our Urgent and Emergency Care Plan set out steps we are taking to ensure that patients will receive better, faster, and more appropriate emergency care this winter, backed by a total of nearly £450 million of funding. We are aiming for 78% of patients to be seen in in four hours this year, meaning over 800,000 people will receive more timely care. Building on this, the NHS Medium-Term Planning Framework sets out a clear trajectory to improve urgent and emergency care performance year-on-year, reducing long waits and improving patient flow. In February, we published guidance on the Model Emergency Department, setting out the core principles and pathways for high-performing emergency departments. The guidance includes a national model for extended emergency medicine ambulatory care and is intended to support faster decision-making across urgent and emergency care pathways, whilst strengthening whole-system responsibility for performance. This will improve patient experience and patient flow, with lower waiting times and less overcrowding.

With reference to his Department’s press release entitled Patients to benefit from improved access to dental appointments, published on 21 February 2026, what steps he is taking to help ensure that high street dentists offer the additional urgent appointments.

The Government is committed to ensuring people can access urgent dental care when they need it. Over the past year, integrated care boards (ICBs) have been commissioning additional urgent dental appointments and there is now an urgent care safety net available in all areas of the country. We will ensure a continued urgent care safety net by requiring, from April 2026, high street dentists to deliver 8.2% of their total contract value as urgent or unscheduled care.We are broadening the scope of the commitment to deliver additional appointments so that they can be used for more patients, not just those who meet the clinical criteria for “urgent” care. Additionally, we are increasing the urgent care payment to dentists from an average of £42 to £75 so that reimbursement better incentivises dentists to deliver the care patients need.ICBs already have capacity in place for urgent dental care and can now consider where capacity could be more effectively used, ahead of the April 2026 reforms that will embed urgent care requirements into all high‑street dental contracts. NHS England has written to ICBs with further information on the commissioning of the additional dental appointments.

What assessment he has made of trends since 2021 in the number of patients waiting more than 12 hours in Accident and Emergency departments.

No such assessment has been made. NHS England began publishing data on number of patients waiting more than 12 hours in accident and emergency (A&E) departments in February 2023. The data is available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/ae-waiting-times-and-activity/ae-attendances-and-emergency-admissions-2025-26/For Type 1 and Type 2 attendances, the proportion of patients spending more than 12 hours in A&E during the 12 months to February 2026 was 10.1%. This represents an improvement of 0.2 percentage points compared to the figure of 10.3% recorded in the 12 months to June 2024.

What proportion of graduates who were not in high-skilled roles 15 months after graduation remain outside high-skilled employment a) three years later and b) five years later.

The department does not produce estimates of the proportion of graduates in high-skilled roles at three or five years after graduation.Graduate Outcome survey data published by HESA shows that around 70% of UK domiciled students who graduated with an undergraduate degree from a UK higher education provider during the 2022/23 academic year were in high-skilled employment fifteen months after graduation. This survey data does not track graduates beyond fifteen months to outline details of graduate employment three or five years later.While the department uses Longitudinal Educational Outcomes data to track graduate earning and employment outcomes at three and five years after graduation, this data does not include graduate occupation. The latest Graduate Outcomes survey data was published in July 2025 and can be found at: https://www.hesa.ac.uk/data-and-analysis/sb272/figure-12.

Communities and Local Government, with reference to the oral contribution by the Minister of State for Local Government and Homelessness on 23 February 2026, how much less Thurrock council will need to repay each year following the removal of the pay-day loan premium.

The previous government made a sustained recovery for councils even harder by charging a premium on borrowing for councils needing Exceptional Financial Support. In December 2024, the government confirmed that the additional 1% premium on Public Works Loan Board (PWLB) borrowing would not apply to any council borrowing or refinancing going forward.

Communities and Local Government, with reference to the oral contribution by the Minister of State for Local Government and Homelessness on 23 February 2026, whether the removal of the pay-day loan premium will apply to councils not currently in receipt of Exceptional Financial Support.

The previous government made a sustained recovery for councils even harder by charging a premium on borrowing for councils needing Exceptional Financial Support. In December 2024, the government confirmed that the additional 1% premium on Public Works Loan Board (PWLB) borrowing would not apply to any council borrowing or refinancing going forward.

Communities and Local Government, with reference to the oral contribution by the Minister of State for Local Government and Homelessness on 23 February 2026, whether the removal of the pay-day loan premium will apply to the reorganised councils who will inherit the debt of areas such as Thurrock.

The previous government made a sustained recovery for councils even harder by charging a premium on borrowing for councils needing Exceptional Financial Support. In December 2024, the government confirmed that the additional 1% premium on Public Works Loan Board (PWLB) borrowing would not apply to any council borrowing or refinancing going forward.

What steps she is taking to provide support to schools in South Basildon and East Thurrock constituency where the number of pupils achieving a grade 4 or above in English and Maths is lower than the national average.

We know unacceptable inequalities in outcomes exist across the country and at every phase of education.The ‘Every child achieving and thriving’ White Paper establishes our plan to improve the outcomes of all children, building on support at home with a stretching, enriching and inclusive school experience.Our ambition is that all children achieve higher standards and the disadvantage gap is halved, enabling 30,000 more disadvantaged young people passing their English and maths GCSEs than today.The department has committed £28.3 million to drive standards in reading and writing, including the new continuing professional development programme for secondary schools, the Unlocking Reading programme, supporting struggling readers in key stage 3.Our 40 maths hubs provide local school-to-school support to improve maths teaching, including Venn Essex Maths Hub in South Basildon and East Thurrock constituency.We will go further by deepening the partnership between maths and English hubs and the Universal Regional Improvement for Standards and Excellence programme, and strengthening and extending Maths Hubs programmes in reception to boost early numeracy.

What assessment she has made of trends in the level of GCSE a) English and b) Maths attainment in South Basildon and East Thurrock constituency over the last two years.

We know unacceptable inequalities in outcomes exist across the country and at every phase of education.The ‘Every child achieving and thriving’ White Paper establishes our plan to improve the outcomes of all children, building on support at home with a stretching, enriching and inclusive school experience.Our ambition is that all children achieve higher standards and the disadvantage gap is halved, enabling 30,000 more disadvantaged young people passing their English and maths GCSEs than today.The department has committed £28.3 million to drive standards in reading and writing, including the new continuing professional development programme for secondary schools, the Unlocking Reading programme, supporting struggling readers in key stage 3.Our 40 maths hubs provide local school-to-school support to improve maths teaching, including Venn Essex Maths Hub in South Basildon and East Thurrock constituency.We will go further by deepening the partnership between maths and English hubs and the Universal Regional Improvement for Standards and Excellence programme, and strengthening and extending Maths Hubs programmes in reception to boost early numeracy.

What steps he is taking to improve transparency in reporting patient harm occurring in accident and emergency departments.

The Government is committed to transparency in reporting patient harm in the National Health Service. The Learn from Patient Safety Events (LFPSE) service allows frontline workers in NHS providers to record and analyse their own patient safety incidents in order to identify trends. At the national level, NHS England reviews hundreds of incidents each week via LFPSE, looking for risks that can be acted on, including by issuing National Patient Safety Alerts and collaborating with partners to address issues identified.We recognise that urgent and emergency care performance has not consistently met expectations in recent years and are committed to restoring the waiting standards set out in the NHS Constitution by the end of this Parliament, as outlined in the Medium-Term Planning Framework, which is available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/medium-term-planning-framework-delivering-change-together-2026-27-to-2028-29/NHS England has also published guidance on the Model Emergency Department, setting out core principles and pathways for high-performing emergency departments, which is available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/the-model-emergency-department-high-performing-urgent-and-emergency-care-pathways/We are also taking action to tackle corridor care by introducing new reporting arrangements and committing to publishing data on its prevalence for the first time, improving transparency and driving operational improvement. Where corridor care cannot be avoided, updated guidance has been published to support trusts to deliver it safely, while maintaining patient dignity and privacy. The updated guidance is available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/principles-for-providing-patient-care-in-corridors/

What assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of regional variations in access to (a) nursing and (b) residential home spaces for patients waiting to be discharged.

Local authorities are best placed to understand and plan for the needs of their population. That is why, under the Care Act 2014, local authorities are tasked with the duty to shape their care market and to commission a range of high-quality, sustainable, and person-centred care and support services to meet the diverse needs of all local people.In performing that duty, a local authority must have regard to current and likely future demand for such services and consider how providers might meet that demand. This includes ensuring sufficient rehabilitation and recovery capacity to support timely and safe discharge for people with more complex needs, including those who may require a new nursing or residential home placement where appropriate.The Government is making over £4.6 billion of additional funding available for adult social care in 2028/29 compared to 2025/26, to support the sector in making improvements. Additionally, through the Better Care Fund, over £9 billion is provided for 2025/26 for the National Health Service and local authorities to work jointly towards agreed goals on reducing discharge delays.

Media and Sport, with reference to her Department’s press release entitled Government to crack down on gambling operator sport sponsorship, published on 23 February 2026, what information her Department holds on the number of people in 2025 who utilised unlicensed gambling operators which sponsored sports clubs.

We do not hold this information, as it is difficult to calculate the exact number of people who use unlicensed operators. British consumers using these sites do so using a virtual private network which affects web traffic data.However, the Government remains committed to tackling the illegal market and the threats it poses to British consumers. Last year, the Gambling Commission published a series of research reports on the illegal market and is working to further improve its evidence base. We also invite further information on the use of unlicensed operators through the consultation process.

What discussions he has had with NHS England on reducing long-stay hospital delays caused by social care capacity.

The Department works closely with NHS England on reducing long-stay hospital delays including those caused by social care capacity. Though the Better Care Fund (BCF) the Government provides over £9 billion to be used jointly by the National Health Service and local authorities towards achieving agreed goals for reducing discharge delays.Local systems have been asked to place a particular focus on reducing bed occupancy and improving patient flow. We have asked National Health Service trusts to work with local authorities on eliminating the longest days, including those caused by waiting for care packages. Areas facing the most significant pressures are receiving targeted support to improve discharge performance.Updated BCF guidance published in February sets out arrangements to further support timely discharge from hospital including focussing on services that help people regain independence. The updated BCF guidance is available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/better-care-fund-framework-2026-to-2027/better-care-fund-framework-2026-to-2027