Written questions by Brown-Fuller.

Food and Rural Affairs, what plans she has to improve data processing at the Marine Management Organisation.

The Marine Management Organisation (MMO) is working with Defra and the Government data community to improve the overall data management and governance of all data it holds. This work is guided by the Data Maturity Assessment for Government Framework and underpins the efficiency and quality of data processing by the MMO. More specifically, MMO is currently reviewing its Fisheries data and IT estate, and defining a longer-term strategic vision in order to drive investment in improving services for our customers, and the underpinning data quality which is vital in order to manage fisheries sustainably.

Innovation and Technology, what plans she has to review the threshold for eligibility criteria for the Higher Education Innovation Fund.

The Government has no current plans to review the threshold for eligibility for the Higher Education Innovation Fund. The new eligibility criteria and threshold were recently developed and published in May 2025.

What support his Department provides to bereaved families awaiting coroner's inquests.

The Government is committed to supporting an inquest process which is swift as possible and puts the bereaved at the heart of the process. We recognise the impact of delays on bereaved families and wider systems. However, as coroner services are locally funded and administered, operational issues are the responsibility of the relevant local authority.We will continue to work closely with the Chief Coroner, local authorities and other key partners to reform and deliver a framework for the future development of coroner services across the 74 coroner areas in England and Wales. This work will also take into account the implications of the recently introduced Public Office (Accountability) Bill for the delivery of coroner services and the experience of the bereaved at inquest.

Whether he plans to review the Minimum Income Floor for Universal Credit claimants.

The Minimum Income Floor is designed to encourage self-employed customers to progress in work and grow their earnings to a sustainable level. An individual’s Minimum Income Floor is set and reviewed by their work coach based on the number of hours they are expected to work multiplied by the National Living Wage. The Department routinely keeps its policies under review. We are not currently reviewing the Minimum Income Floor for Universal Credit customers, but are always interested in views from customers and stakeholders.

Pursuant to the Answer of 17 June 2025 to Question 59607 on Infant Foods, when he plans to respond to the recommendations of the Competition and Markets Authority's report entitled Infant formula and follow-on formula market study, published on 14 February 2025.

The Government remains committed to giving every child the best start in life. Whilst breastfeeding has significant health benefits, we recognise that for those families that cannot or choose not to breastfeed, it is vital that they have access to infant formula that is affordable and high quality. Infant formula regulations ensure that all infant formula is suitable for meeting the nutritional needs of babies, regardless of the price or brand.The Government welcomes the Competition and Markets Authority’s market study into the United Kingdom’s infant formula and follow-on formula market. We have been working closely with the devolved administrations to consider its recommendations. We will respond in due course.

What assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of court delays on local authorities carrying out enforcement of unauthorised encampments on Council property.

Enforcement action against unauthorised encampments is treated as urgent business by the courts, and subject to any local capacity constraints, courts will issue proceedings and set a hearing date for the next available date.Work is ongoing to make improvements in the County Court, to deliver a more efficient, timely and digitised service. We are increasing resources, including through targeted judicial recruitment, and introducing new digital systems - such as a new end-to-end digital possession service for all possession claims in England and Wales – to drive efficiencies. Local Authorities will be able to use the new digital possession service for enforcement action against unauthorised encampments on Council property when fully rolled out.

What steps he is taking to ensure increased access to electric vehicle transition for residents without off-street parking.

The Government is driving forward the expansion of public charging infrastructure so that everyone, no matter where they live or work, can confidently make the switch to an electric vehicle. The £381 million Local EV Infrastructure (LEVI) Fund is supporting public EV charging for drivers without off-street parking. The funding, alongside substantial private investment, will support at least 100,000 local chargers, ensuring the rollout continues at pace to support drivers in every part of the country. In addition, the Government also announced a £25m fund to support the rollout of cross-pavement solutions in July, enabling thousands more drivers to charge from home.

Food and Rural Affairs, when she plans to confirm the number of Seasonal Worker visas that will be available for picking and packing fruit and vegetables in 2026.

The Government recognises that its vital farms have the labour they need to harvest their great British produce and grow their businesses. We’ve announced a 5-year extension to the seasonal worker visa route to provide stability and certainty to the horticulture sector and will set out the allocation for 2026 shortly.

What steps her Department is taking to to minimise the potential impact of court proceedings on domestic violence victims by (a) aligning the (i) burdens of proof, (ii) legal standards and (iii) duties of lawyers in the family and criminal courts and (b) improving the admissibility of evidence between the family and criminal courts.

This Government is committed to doing everything it can to halve Violence Against Women and Girls within a decade. We recognise why it is important that victims of domestic abuse can have confidence that their case will be heard in court as soon as possible, and that they have support to help them navigate the justice system. There are many procedural and systemic differences between family and criminal courts which are necessary and important given the very different contexts of those proceedings and the issues they are dealing with. Despite this, victims of domestic abuse are entitled to many of the same protections across our family, civil and criminal courts, including automatic eligibility for special measures, which can include giving evidence behind a screen or via a video link, and protection from being directly cross-examined by their perpetrators. In addition, our recently introduced Domestic Abuse Protection Order, is the first ever cross-jurisdictional order to be made available, on civil standard of proof, across family, civil and criminal courts. While the Government is pursuing a range of initiatives and longer-term reforms across both criminal and family courts, aimed at improving outcomes for victims of domestic abuse, no steps are being taken to align different standard of proof, admissibility of evidence or procedure between these different jurisdictions.

When the international student levy will be introduced.

This government is committed to supporting the aspiration of every person who meets the requirements and wants to attend higher education (HE). We must, therefore, reform the HE system to better support disadvantaged students.That is why the government will introduce targeted means-tested maintenance grants for students in low-income households studying on courses that support our missions and industrial strategy, funded by a levy on income from international student fees.The government will set out further details on the International Student Levy and targeted means-tested maintenance grants at the Autumn Budget.

What measures her Department is taking to help support access to dance education in schools.

The department provides funding for the Music and Dance Scheme (MDS) for means-tested bursaries for 11 to 19 year-olds and the Dance and Drama Awards (DaDA) means-tested grants for 16 to 19 year-olds to improve access to specialist dance education. These routes give students training at professional level in contemporary dance and classical ballet, and the funding is targeted towards those from lower income households.Dance is an important part of our creative industries. The creative industries have been announced as one of eight growth-driving sectors within the Industrial Strategy published in the summer, alongside the Creative Industries’ Sector Plan.The independent Curriculum and Assessment Review is considering dance as part of the physical education (PE) national curriculum, and the Review’s final report and government response will be published in the autumn.The department will launch a new National Centre for Arts and Music Education next year, to promote high quality arts education in schools, including in dance. We will also support dance teaching as part of PE through the new PE and School Sport Partnerships.

Communities and Local Government, whether his Department plans to update the National Planning Policy Framework to facilitate the installation of electric vehicle charging points for homeowners without driveways.

The National Planning Policy Framework makes clear that in setting local parking standards for residential and non-residential development, planning policies should take into account the need to ensure adequate provision of spaces for charging plug-in and other ultra-low emission vehicles. This includes consideration of charging points for homeowners without driveways. The Framework is also clear that applications for development should be designed to enable charging of plug-in vehicles in safe, accessible, and convenient locations.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if she will undertake a review of the (a) selection and (b) security process applied to appoint Lord Mandelson as Ambassador to the US; and if she will make it her policy to publish the findings of that review.

All appointees for Ambassador and High Commissioner roles are subject to pre-posting processes, including security vetting. We do not comment on the details of individual clearances or national security as a matter of course.

If the Government will consider appointing a Cabinet Minister for Children and Young People.

My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, has responsibility for children and young people at Cabinet.

Communities and Local Government, if he will (a) review and (b) update legal obligations on electricity providers to (i) inspect, (ii) evaluate and (iii) replace (A) outdated and (B) dangerous wiring.

An electricity Distribution Network Operator's responsibility ends at the domestic cutout fuse. An electricity supplier’s responsibility ends at the meter. Anything on the consumer side of the meter is the building owner’s responsibility, including domestic wiring. Building owners have a responsibility to manage their building with a view to the safety of occupiers and people who work in or may be around the building. New building work, including installation of controlled services, must meet the requirements of the Building Regulations including, at Schedule 1 Part P, Electrical Safety. Electrical work must be carried out in accordance with the Building Regulations.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of processing times at HM Land Registry.

Improving speed of service remains a top priority for HM Land Registry (HMLR). Plans to achieve this will be outlined in its forthcoming Strategy 2025+ being published shortly. As its sponsor department, MHCLG holds HMLR to account for performance and operational delivery and are in regular communication with HMLR about their processing times. HMLR has been making improvements in this area through hiring and training more staff and by improving the efficiency of the services its customers use. The introduction of new pre-submission validation checks will speed up processes and reduce staff time spent on dealing with errors or mistakes. The age of outstanding post-completion applications is now under 12 months across all service lines, from a peak of 20 months in February 2023. HMLR processing times are publicly available on gov.uk here. Anyone who is concerned that a delay to their application may cause financial, legal or personal problems or put a property sale at risk, can apply to have their application expedited free of charge. HMLR processes nearly 1,400 expedited applications every day, with more than 95% actioned within 10 working days.

What steps her Department is taking to help support the funding of training for young dancers from (a) disadvantaged backgrounds and (b) all backgrounds; and what assessment she has made of the potential merits of such support on the future of the (a) performing acts and (b) creative industries sectors.

The department provides funding for the Music and Dance Scheme (MDS) for means-tested bursaries for 11 to 19 year-olds and the Dance and Drama Awards (DaDA) means-tested grants for 16 to 19 year-olds to improve access to specialist dance education. These routes give students training at professional level in contemporary dance and classical ballet, and the funding is targeted towards those from lower income households.Dance is an important part of our creative industries. The creative industries have been announced as one of eight growth-driving sectors within the Industrial Strategy published in the summer, alongside the Creative Industries’ Sector Plan.The independent Curriculum and Assessment Review is considering dance as part of the physical education (PE) national curriculum, and the Review’s final report and government response will be published in the autumn.The department will launch a new National Centre for Arts and Music Education next year, to promote high quality arts education in schools, including in dance. We will also support dance teaching as part of PE through the new PE and School Sport Partnerships.

Innovation and Technology, what steps her Department is taking to ensure (a) effective management and (b) oversight of fibre broadband rollout in Chichester constituency.

CityFibre is delivering Project Gigabit contracts across East and West Sussex, as well as Hampshire. These contracts currently include approximately 4,750 premises in the Chichester constituency.All Project Gigabit contracts include criteria and obligations regarding time and budget against which suppliers’ performance is monitored. These include measures to manage effective build plans, milestones, risks and issues.My Department holds regular meetings with suppliers to discuss their progress. Each supplier’s performance is measured using monthly contractual reporting, reviewing the build progress and payment claims on each contract.Failure to deliver to a contract milestone on any build phase of a contract can result in the trigger of a rectification plan process and cessation of payments until the milestone is achieved.Beyond Project Gigabit, in areas where deployment is commercially viable, we have created a competition-friendly environment to support the roll-out of gigabit broadband.

What steps he is taking to provide clearer support pathways for women experiencing surgical menopause.

The Government recognises that women suffering from symptoms of menopause have been failed for far too long, and we acknowledge the impact it has on women’s lives, relationships, and participation in the workplace.Surgical menopause can have significant consequences both in the short and long term. Menopausal symptoms can be particularly severe due to the sudden loss of ovarian function in both pre/post-menopausal women. Experiences vary, but this can be very debilitating.Women should be counselled prior to surgery about what to expect and offered hormone replacement therapy if appropriate and desirable in managing symptoms. They should have a full discussion about implications of removal of ovaries and treatment options.We have supported the system to improve access to more specialised and multidisciplinary teams in the community through the introduction of women’s health hubs. The hubs provide better communication and integrated care for women with a range of different needs, including menopause symptoms.NHS England has supported a range of tools and interventions that will help to upskill more general practitioners in menopause care and will improve access to treatments that can be helpful, including a Menopause Optimal Pathway Toolkit (OPT). The OPT is an online resource that was developed in collaboration with partners including the British Menopause Society, the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, the Royal College of General Practitioners, and the Royal College of Physicians. It is designed to be used in real-time, alongside the consultation, to guide health professionals through a menopause consultation. The information within the OPT is intended to be comprehensive, including National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines, easy-to-use and locate, and should provide up-to-date information.

Media and Sport, what steps her Department has to help increase (a) participation in and (b) access to dance in local communities.

Improving access to the arts is a priority for this Government. Dance plays a central role in our country’s cultural ecology, from organisations like the English National Ballet and Rambert through to the community clubs across the country that ensure the talent pipeline for dancing of all styles continues to thrive.The government supports the arts financially, including dance, through its arm’s-length body Arts Council England. Arts Council England has provided over £58 million to 153 organisations across England over 2024/25 to support dance. For instance, the Royal Ballet and Opera’s initiative “The Bridge” provides funding for working with schools and community groups nationwide to involve individuals in opera and ballet.ACE also provides £450,000 in funding to the National Youth Dance Company, which offers high-quality training and performance opportunities through outreach to communities with higher proportions of young people from underrepresented and disadvantaged backgrounds.