Written questions by Naish.

Whether he has had discussions with his counterparts in the (a) European Commission and (b) European Defence Agency on UK-EU defence industrial cooperation.

As part of our recent Security and Defence partnership with the EU, we have agreed to explore closer co-operation and joint investment in our defence industrial base. In the first instance, the partnership creates a basis for broad consultations on defence readiness and defence industry and also means the UK now meets the criteria for discussing participation in common procurement under SAFE. We have set an ambition with the EU to swiftly explore possibilities for mutually beneficial cooperation under the SAFE mechanism. We will work closely with our European partners to take this, and discussion on any further areas for defence industrial cooperation, forward, in accordance with the EU’s necessary processes.

What steps he is taking to (a) increase and (b) ensure the ongoing availability of medical radioisotopes for NHS services.

The Department regularly engages with suppliers, specialist clinicians, the British Nuclear Medicine Society, and the UK Radiopharmacy Group to support the continued supply of medical radioisotopes for the National Health Service. The Department continues to work with the NHS and other parts of the Government to better understand future needs for medical radioisotopes.

Whether the Child Poverty Taskforce has had discussions with the Department for Education on family hubs.

The Ministerial Child Poverty Taskforce is co-chaired by the Secretaries of State for Work and Pensions and Education. It has met nine times to discuss the critical issues that drive child poverty. One such meeting in January focused on the role of local services in reducing poverty, including family hubs.The Taskforce will continue to explore all available levers to drive forward short and long-term action across government to reduce child poverty, including family hubs.

What discussions he had at the NATO Summit on 24 and 25 June 2025 on (a) strengthening Europe's ability to take independent strategic decisions and (b) developing corresponding military capabilities in response to (i) Russia and (ii) global instability.

Last week’s NATO Summit saw Allies reaffirm their ironclad commitment to collective defence and Euro-Atlantic Security. At the Summit, Allies committed to investing 5% of GDP annually on defence and security, composed of 3.5% core defence spending and 1.5% security and resilience spending, by 2035. This historic commitment on defence investment, underpinned by the recent agreement of ambitious new Capability Targets, demonstrates the collective and firm commitment of Allies to building and equipping a stronger, fairer and more lethal NATO to meet the threats we face.

What recent discussions he has had with his EU counterparts on UK's participation in the SAFE defence fund; and when he expects a decision to be made on the conditions under which UK defence firms can take part in that fund.

As part of our recent Security and Defence partnership with the EU, we have agreed to explore closer co-operation and joint investment in our defence industrial base. In the first instance, the partnership creates a basis for broad consultations on defence readiness and defence industry and also means the UK now meets the criteria for discussing participation in common procurement under SAFE. We have set an ambition with the EU to swiftly explore possibilities for mutually beneficial cooperation under the SAFE mechanism. We will work closely with our European partners to take this, and discussion on any further areas for defence industrial cooperation, forward, in accordance with the EU’s necessary processes.

What discussions he has had with NATO counterparts on the potential impact of changes to US strategic priorities on Euro-Atlantic security; and what steps he is taking with his counterparts in European NATO countries to increase joint defence (a) planning and (b) capabilities.

Last week’s NATO Summit saw Allies reaffirm their ironclad commitment to collective defence and Euro-Atlantic Security. At the Summit, Allies committed to investing 5% of GDP annually on defence and security, composed of 3.5% core defence spending and 1.5% security and resilience spending, by 2035. This historic commitment on defence investment, underpinned by the recent agreement of ambitious new Capability Targets, demonstrates the collective and firm commitment of Allies to building and equipping a stronger, fairer and more lethal NATO to meet the threats we face.

If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of increasing funding for specialist advice services.

We recognise the importance of access to justice and the key role that legal advice and support services play in helping people resolve their legal issues.This year we have invested over £6 million of grant funding to 60 organisations in 2025-26, via the Improving Outcomes Through Legal Support Grant and the Online Support and Advice Grant, to support the delivery of essential advice and support services.We are also working with the advice sector to co-develop and implement a long-term strategy to make the legal support system more sustainable, effective and efficient. We have established the Legal Support Strategy Delivery Group, comprised of key stakeholders from across the advice sector, to support this work. The workplan focuses on three key themes: service delivery, data and evidence, and funding. The funding theme is exploring options for unlocking more sustainable and consistent funding streams for advice services, as well as how to drive more collaborative and joined-up funding of the advice sector across funders.

How her Department plans to monitor the effectiveness of the Crisis and Resilience Fund for reducing reliance on emergency food parcels.

The new Crisis and Resilience Fund will be introduced from 1 April 2026. This represents the first ever multi-year settlement for locally delivered crisis support. This longer-term funding approach enables local authorities to provide preventative support to communities, and to support our ambition to end mass dependence on emergency food parcels. We will be working closely with local authorities and external stakeholders on the detailed design of the Crisis and Resilience Fund, including on how we monitor effectiveness of the scheme. We will issue further information on our planned approach in due course.

If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of developing a national outcomes framework for family hubs.

On 11 June, my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, set out plans for spending and public sector reforms through the Spending Review 2025. This announcement confirmed departmental budgets for 2026/27 onwards and committed the government will continue to invest in and expand the Family Hubs programme, working with parents to help give children the best start in life.This builds upon my right hon. Friend, the Prime Minister’s Plan for Change, published in December 2024, which outlined the ambition to give children the best start in life by strengthening and joining up family services to improve support through pregnancy and early childhood.We are working within the department and alongside the Department for Health and Social Care to share further information about what the Spending Review settlement means for the continuation and expansion of the programme.

If she will consider ring-fenced funding for adult learners of all ages to access accredited (a) training and (b) qualifications in social-welfare advice.

The department will provide approximately £1.4 billion in funding for the Adult Skills Fund (ASF) in the 2025/26 academic year. The ASF fully funds or co-funds education and skills training for eligible adults aged 19 and above from pre-entry to level 3, to help them gain the skills they need for work, an apprenticeship or further learning.Currently, 62% of the ASF is devolved to nine mayoral strategic authorities and the Greater London Authority. These authorities are responsible for the provision of ASF-funded adult education for their residents and allocation of the ASF to learning providers. The department is responsible for the remaining ASF in non-devolved areas.Colleges and grant funded providers in non-devolved areas have the freedom and flexibility to determine how they use their ASF, in line with the funding rules, and work with local stakeholders to determine what provision best meets local needs.

If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of bringing forward legislative proposals to ensure that all local authorities provide family hubs in their community.

On 11 June, my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, set out plans for spending and public sector reforms through the Spending Review 2025. This announcement confirmed departmental budgets for 2026/27 onwards and committed the government will continue to invest in and expand the Family Hubs programme, working with parents to help give children the best start in life.This builds upon my right hon. Friend, the Prime Minister’s Plan for Change, published in December 2024, which outlined the ambition to give children the best start in life by strengthening and joining up family services to improve support through pregnancy and early childhood.We are working within the department and alongside the Department for Health and Social Care to share further information about what the Spending Review settlement means for the continuation and expansion of the programme. We recognise the importance of providing local authorities with certainty of future funding across the whole programme and we will share further information when we are able to.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of withdrawing postgraduate-level apprenticeship funding on (a) recruitment and (b) retention in the independent advice sector.

I refer my hon. Friend, the Member for Rushcliffe to the answer of 13 June 2025 to Question 57098.

What information his Department holds on the number of appointments in (a) Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust, (b) the East Midlands and (c) the UK that have been delayed due to a lack of availability of medical radioisotopes in 2025 to date.

While we do not typically hold this information centrally, the Department is aware that the number of appointments delayed related to radioisotope supply issues at the Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust for the period of January 2025 to May 2025 consist of: - 68 patients delayed for a fluorodeoxyglucose (F-18 FDG) positron emission tomography/computed tomography scan; - 48 patients delayed for a F-18 FDG, prostate-specific membrane antigen positron emission tomography/computed tomography scan; and - 57 patients delayed across multiple nuclear medicine tests. We do not hold the information for the East Midlands more widely, or for the United Kingdom as a whole. The Department regularly engages with suppliers, specialist clinicians, the British Nuclear Medicine Society, and the UK Radiopharmacy Group to support the continued supply of medical radioisotopes for National Health Services. The Department continues to work with the NHS and other parts of the Government to better understand future need for medical radioisotopes.

What estimate he has made of the potential impact of the expanded Warm Homes Plan on average annual household spending.

The recently announced expansion of the Warm Home Discount means all households where a person or their partner is named on the energy bill and is on a qualifying means tested benefit will be eligible for the £150 Discount. This will bring around 2.7 million households into the scheme – pushing the total number of households that will receive the discount next winter up to around 6 million. We have not assessed the impact on average household spending. Further information on impacts can be found in the published Impact Assessment.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of family hubs on (a) neighbourhood health and (b) the effectiveness of the delivery of integrated community-based health services.

We are committed to moving towards a Neighbourhood Health Service, with more care delivered locally to create healthier communities, spot problems earlier, and support people to stay healthier and maintain their independence for longer.The Family Hubs and Start for Life programme supports the three reform shifts set out in the Government’s Health Mission, including the shift from hospital to community. It is already delivering a community-based model to transform health outcomes for babies, children, and their families.The effectiveness of the programme will take time to be realised, as long-term evaluation is required. The programme is subject to two national, independent evaluations to understand its implementation and impact.

What steps his Department is with manufacturers of blood transfusion sampling bottles to improve their design.

NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) is responsible for collecting and processing blood donations across England, to meet hospital demand for treating patients.Blood collection tubes are used to collect blood samples at the time of blood donation. These samples are used to perform mandatory and discretionary infectious disease marker screening and blood grouping at every donation. Additional samples are taken from apheresis donors for tests such as haemoglobin levels, total protein testing. Sample tubes are also used for quality monitoring of components.NHSBT is not aware of any issues surrounding the current containers and is therefore not actively working with manufacturers of blood transfusion sampling bottles, as the current design meets their needs.

What progress his Department has made on implementing the Family Hubs and Start for Life programme.

The Family Hubs and Start for Life programme is now in its fourth year of delivery, and we are seeing important progress. 75 local authorities have established a network of family hubs and are providing universal, preventative services that benefit babies, children, and their families. Local authorities are developing services based on local need to improve health and educational outcomes, delivered through integrated, multi-agency workforces. Through Start for Life funding, families with babies can access support for perinatal mental health, parent-infant relationships, and infant feeding.The effectiveness of the programme will take time to be realised, as long-term evaluation is required. The programme is subject to two national, independent evaluations to understand its implementation and impact. We are already seeing evidence of promising progress as demonstrated by the thematic review undertaken by the Care Quality Commission and Ofsted.

Whether the forthcoming 10 Year Health Plan will include measures to integrate (a) welfare and (b) debt advice provision into primary care settings.

As part of the 10-Year Health Plan, Neighbourhood Health Centres will co-locate National Health Service, local authority and voluntary sector services, to help create an offer that meets population need holistically. Examples of this include providing debt advice and employment support services.

What steps her Department is taking help to ensure that teachers are trained to (a) identify and (b) support children with dyslexia; and if she will take steps to introduce universal dyslexia screening checks for children within their first two years of school.

​​I refer my hon. Friend, the Member for Rushcliffe to the answer of 1 August 2025 to Question 61402. ​

What assessment he has made of the adequacy of the £75 million budget allocated for financial reparations to LGBT veterans affected by the historic ban on homosexuality in the armed forces.

The LGBT Financial Recognition Scheme (FRS) continues to make progress with applications, with processing capacity expected to increase in the coming months. As of 23 June 2025, the FRS had made payments of £3.4 million to 69 applicants with life-limiting conditions or serious health concerns, with the first payments issued as planned within 15 weeks of the Scheme going live. We are now processing applications based on date received. The Independent Panel, responsible for reviewing and making fair and equitable determinations on applications, convened for its first sitting within days of their appointment on 13 May 2025, demonstrating a commitment to delivering the Scheme at pace. Further sittings have taken place since then, with several more sittings planned over the coming months. We are reviewing payment systems to ensure that once applications are approved, payments are issued promptly and efficiently. While processing times may vary depending on the complexity of individual cases, we aim to provide regular updates on progress and remain committed to delivering this important recognition fairly, responsibly, and as swiftly as possible. The eligibility criteria for the FRS can be found within the Scheme Rules, published on Gov.UK. The Scheme is open to individuals who served in the UK Armed Forces and were dismissed or discharged due to their sexual orientation, or who experienced other forms of harm or disadvantage as a result of the historic Ban. Applicants must provide supporting evidence for assessment against the Rules. We recognise the importance of timeliness in delivering the FRS. While we are unable to provide a definitive timeline at this stage, we are committed to processing applications as quickly and efficiently as possible. Evidence gathering remains the most complex and time-consuming part of the process, requiring information to be retrieved from a variety of sources, including historical records. This work must be conducted thoroughly to ensure fair and accurate outcomes for applicants and the responsible management of public funds. The design was informed by Fighting with Pride to ensure that the ‘most hurt’ were recognised appropriately and that timely payments were able to be made where evidence is most readily available. We continue to routinely engage with Fighting With Pride to ensure the voices of LGBT veterans are heard throughout the implementation of the Scheme and we take on their constructive feedback. This Government listened to the concerns of veterans and increased the overall budget by 50% to up to £75 million. The Scheme’s two-payment design ensures that a broad range of experiences can be recognised and that payments are proportionate to the impact of the Ban. The Ministry of Defence has assessed the £75 million budget as sufficient to meet the anticipated demand based on current estimates of eligible applicants.