Written questions by McMahon.

What timetable has been set for HMRC to publish updated guidance specifically addressing the treatment of CGT-by-instalments under section 280 of the Taxation of Chargeable Gains Act 1992 in cases involving disposals to Employee Ownership Trusts.

The conditions for making an application to pay Capital Gains Tax by instalments are set out within HMRC’s Capital Gains Manual at CG14910, available at GOV.UK. HMRC has confirmed to the employee ownership sector that this guidance applies to disposals to Employee Ownership Trusts, in the same way as for any other disposal.A Self-Assessment tax return helpsheet on Employee Ownership Trusts will also be made available on GOV.UK from April 2026. This helpsheet will set out the process for applying to pay tax by instalments following disposals to Employee Ownership Trusts.

Whether HMRC will publish guidance specifically addressing the application of CGT-by-instalments under section 280 of the Taxation of Chargeable Gains Act 1992 in cases involving disposals to Employee Ownership Trusts.

The conditions for making an application to pay Capital Gains Tax by instalments are set out within HMRC’s Capital Gains Manual at CG14910, available at GOV.UK. HMRC has confirmed to the employee ownership sector that this guidance applies to disposals to Employee Ownership Trusts, in the same way as for any other disposal.A Self-Assessment tax return helpsheet on Employee Ownership Trusts will also be made available on GOV.UK from April 2026. This helpsheet will set out the process for applying to pay tax by instalments following disposals to Employee Ownership Trusts.

If he will take steps to include a prominent message prior to starting the benefits claim process online, in print, and by phone to make it clear that free, independent support is available through organisations such Citizens Advice and for claimants to avoid companies who charge for the same support.

Free help and support in applying for Universal Credit is available from Citizens Advice and Citizens Advice Scotland. Free help and support for claiming other DWP benefits is widely available, including on GOV.UK, from the Department itself, and from organisations such as Age UK. There is no need for claimants to pay for advice and support with benefit applications.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of reforms to Cash ISAs on (a) the balance sheets of building societies and (b) mortgage (i) availability and (ii) pricing.

ISA reform forms part of our strategy to support people into the higher returns that investing can provide. Rules will be introduced to avoid circumvention of the lower limit for cash ISAs where an individual is under the age of 65. The industry is being consulted on the draft rules, which will be made by amendments to the ISA Regulations and laid in Parliament ahead of April 2027.   Building societies and mortgage lenders are part of the industry consultation. We will consult on the final rules as soon as these are ready, so that firms have enough notice before the new limit applies in April 2027. The availability and pricing of mortgages is a commercial decision for lenders in which the Government does not intervene. However, mortgage rates are influenced by a range of factors, including Base Rate, which has been cut six times since this Government came to power.

When she plans to publish final legislation and guidance for ISA providers on the operation of the ISA regime from April 2027.

ISA reform forms part of our strategy to support people into the higher returns that investing can provide. Rules will be introduced to avoid circumvention of the lower limit for cash ISAs where an individual is under the age of 65. The industry is being consulted on the draft rules, which will be made by amendments to the ISA Regulations and laid in Parliament ahead of April 2027.   Building societies and mortgage lenders are part of the industry consultation. We will consult on the final rules as soon as these are ready, so that firms have enough notice before the new limit applies in April 2027. The availability and pricing of mortgages is a commercial decision for lenders in which the Government does not intervene. However, mortgage rates are influenced by a range of factors, including Base Rate, which has been cut six times since this Government came to power.

What steps her Department is taking to prevent the use of Stocks and Shares ISAs to circumvent revised Cash ISA limits due to be introduced in April 2027.

ISA reform forms part of our strategy to support people into the higher returns that investing can provide. Rules will be introduced to avoid circumvention of the lower limit for cash ISAs where an individual is under the age of 65. The industry is being consulted on the draft rules, which will be made by amendments to the ISA Regulations and laid in Parliament ahead of April 2027.   Building societies and mortgage lenders are part of the industry consultation. We will consult on the final rules as soon as these are ready, so that firms have enough notice before the new limit applies in April 2027. The availability and pricing of mortgages is a commercial decision for lenders in which the Government does not intervene. However, mortgage rates are influenced by a range of factors, including Base Rate, which has been cut six times since this Government came to power.

Communities and Local Government, what guidance her Department issues to ensure families with children placed in hotels have adequate access to cooking facilities, nutritional meals and safe communal spaces.

Chapter 17 of the Homelessness Code of Guidance includes information on the suitability of accommodation and makes clear that accommodation which may lack or require sharing of important amenities, such as cooking facilities, should be avoided wherever possible and is not suitable for families with children. You can access the Code of Guidance on gov.uk here. Such accommodation, including hotels and often referred to as B&B accommodation, should only be used in very short-term emergencies. That is why this government has set a target to end the unlawful use of B&B accommodation for families by the end of this Parliament. We are working with councils with some of the highest levels of B&B use for temporary accommodation through our £10.5 million Emergency Accommodation Reduction Pilots to test innovative approaches and kickstart new initiatives to provide more suitable accommodation for homeless families. This includes £360,000 for Oldham over 2024-26.

Communities and Local Government, what support his Department is providing to Oldham Council to reduce reliance on hotel-based temporary accommodation.

Chapter 17 of the Homelessness Code of Guidance includes information on the suitability of accommodation and makes clear that accommodation which may lack or require sharing of important amenities, such as cooking facilities, should be avoided wherever possible and is not suitable for families with children. You can access the Code of Guidance on gov.uk here. Such accommodation, including hotels and often referred to as B&B accommodation, should only be used in very short-term emergencies. That is why this government has set a target to end the unlawful use of B&B accommodation for families by the end of this Parliament. We are working with councils with some of the highest levels of B&B use for temporary accommodation through our £10.5 million Emergency Accommodation Reduction Pilots to test innovative approaches and kickstart new initiatives to provide more suitable accommodation for homeless families. This includes £360,000 for Oldham over 2024-26.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential safeguarding risk of unknown adults from the general public being on premises such as B&Bs and hotels along with families with children living in temporary accommodation.

The Government is clear that B&B accommodation is never suitable for families with children and their use in emergencies should be rare and short. Our National Plan to End Homelessness sets a target to end the use of B&B accommodation for families with children by the end of this parliament.

What assessment he has made of trends in the level of cancelled appointments as a result of strike action in the NHS since July 2024.

The National Health Service met its ambitious goal to maintain 95% of planned care during the November round of strike action, surpassing the 93% protected during action in July, while still maintaining critical services, including maternity services and urgent cancer care. Cancellations have reduced across successive periods of strikes. As a result of industrial action:there were 61,989 elective procedures and appointments rescheduled between 27 June and 1 July;there were 54,095 elective procedures and appointments rescheduled between 25 July and 29 July; andthere were 38,961 elective procedures and appointments rescheduled between 14 November to 18 November.

How many safety breaches have there been at rail road level crossings in Greater Manchester since 2015.

Great Britain’s level crossings are among the safest in Europe. The number of incidents at rail-road level crossings in Greater Manchester since 2017/18 is set out below. No comparable data is available for previous years. .Fiscal YearIncidents2017/2018382018/2019342019/2020312020/2021152021/2022362022/2023402023/2024582024/2025412025/2026 (to 12 December)38Total331

What plans are in place to build medium and long term NHS directly provided capacity to increase appointments in (a) diagnostic tests and (b) elective treatment.

As set out in the Plan for Change, we are committed to returning by March 2029 to the National Health Service constitutional standard that 92% of patients wait no longer than 18 weeks from referral to consultant-led treatment. Increasing surgical and diagnostic capacity is a key part of our plan to deliver this ambition.We are providing additional diagnostic and elective capacity through a mixture of investments in new equipment and facilities in acute hospitals and community settings, as well as improving utilising and the productivity of our existing assets.Dedicated and protected surgical hubs transform the way the NHS provides elective care by focusing on providing high volume, low complexity surgery, as recommended by the Royal College of Surgeons of England. There are currently 123 operational surgical hubs across England, 23 of which have opened since the Government took office. We will expand the number of hubs over the next three years to increase surgical capacity and deliver faster access to common procedures.Community diagnostic centres (CDCs) provide a broad range of elective diagnostics away from acute facilities, reducing pressure on hospitals and giving patients quicker and more convenient access to tests. CDCs are now delivering additional tests and checks on 170 sites across the country. We will expand existing CDCs, as well as building up to five new ones in 2025/26. We are also committed to opening CDCs 12 hours per day, seven days a week.This is supported by £6 billion of additional capital investment over five years for diagnostic, elective, urgent, and emergency capacity in the NHS. This includes £1.65 billion of capital funding in 2025/26 to deliver new surgical hubs, diagnostic scanners, and beds to increase capacity for elective and emergency care.We will create an NHS fit for the future, modernising care so that it takes place efficiently and closer to home, prioritising patient experience and ensuring that wherever you live in England, you will be seen, diagnosed, and treated in a timely way.

What discussions she has had with regulators on reviewing rules on credit unions offering insurance products such as income protection.

Credit unions are regulated by the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to ensure the stability and soundness of the sector. The regulators are independent and make decisions on the regulation of credit unions in line with their statutory objectives.Credit unions themselves are not insurance providers. Following the Financial Services and Markets Act 2023, credit unions were given clearer permissions to act as distributors, enabling their members to access insurance products through partner firms. This does not allow credit unions to underwrite insurance themselves, and any arrangements made under these rules would be subject to the regulators' consumer protection rules.In response to a request from HM Treasury, the PRA and FCA published reports on the mutuals sector on 5 December. As part of this, the regulators have committed to reviewing the regulatory framework governing credit unions.

What discussions has he had with Northern Care Alliance on capital funding for additional parking at the Royal Oldham Hospital.

My Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, has not held discussions with the Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust regarding capital funding for additional parking at the Royal Oldham Hospital. Decisions on the provision and capital funding of car parking are made locally by National Health Service organisations. The Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust has been allocated over £211 million in operational capital funding for the 2026/27 to 2029/30 period. In addition, the Greater Manchester Integrated Care Board has been allocated over £18 million for this period. This funding may be utilised for additional parking at the Royal Oldham Hospital where this is a local priority.

What assessment he has made of the levels of the use of drones in importing contraband into prisons; and what was number of drone incidents recorded in each year since 2015.

Drone incidents around prisons in England and Wales pose a major threat to prison security. We are working hard to deter, detect and disrupt the illegal use of drones. This includes working across government and international partners on this global issue.We publish the number of drone incidents in England and Wales in the HMPPS Annual Digest, please see table 6_1 in the Finds tables. The latest issue covers the 12-month period to March 2025, with a time series of drone incidents starting from the 12-months to March 2021. We published Official Statistics on drone incidents for the first time in July 2025, with data back to April 2020. Drone statistics back to 2015 cannot be provided, having not been equivalently recorded or assured.Any increase in reported drone incidents should not be interpreted as an increase in incursions; it may reflect more focused reporting. Drone incidents should not be interpreted as definitive evidence of the delivery of contraband into prisons, as they include all incidents where a drone is sighted. Data specific to deliveries of illicit items cannot be disclosed for security reasons.

Whether he has held discussions with the Northern Ireland Executive on the potential merits of a National Library for Northern Ireland.

Responsibility for libraries in Northern Ireland is a devolved matter. My Ministerial colleagues in the Northern Ireland Office and I hold regular meetings with Northern Ireland Executive Ministers, including the Communities Minister, to discuss areas of mutual interest. I welcome discussion about the potential merits of a National Library for Northern Ireland, although thus far no discussions on this topic have been held.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of levels of homelessness relative to (a) levels of affordability of rented accommodation and (b) rates of local housing allowance.

A lack of affordable housing is a key driver of homelessness. This Government plan to deliver a decade of renewal for social and affordable housing, including with £39 billion funding for the Social and Affordable Homes Programme. We recognise some private renters need support with their rent. That is why we will work across government to keep Local Housing Allowance rates under review in order to deliver on the government's priorities, including maintaining the long-term fiscal sustainability of the welfare system.

What assessment he has made of possible generational links to suicide; and what support is available to children of people who have taken their own lives.

The Government has not made an assessment of possible generational links to suicide. The Suicide Prevention Strategy for England, published in 2023, identifies eight priority groups, including children and young people, for targeted and tailored support at a national level. Another key priority area is to improve support for people bereaved by suicide. The purpose of the Suicide Prevention Strategy is to set out our aims to prevent suicide through action by working across Government and other organisations. One of the key visions of the strategy is to reduce the stigma surrounding suicide and mental health, so people feel able to seek help through the routes that work best for them. This includes raising awareness that no suicide is inevitable. The Government is expanding access to mental health support teams in all schools and colleges to reach all pupils by 2029, ensuring that every pupil has access to early support services. This expansion will ensure that up to 900,000 more children and young people will have access to support from trained education mental health practitioners in 2025/26.

What estimate he has made of the number of cancelled annual leave days as a result of strike action in the NHS since July 2024.

The Department has made no estimate of the number of cancelled annual leave days as a result of strike action in the National Health Service. Information is not held centrally on the level of cancellation of annual leave of NHS staff, including for the reason of cover of staff who are undertaking industrial action.Our priority is to keep patients as safe as possible during any industrial action. The NHS makes every effort through rigorous contingency planning to minimise the disruption of industrial action and its impact on patients and the public. Assessments are made by local Trusts about levels of resourcing available, and they can escalate concerns via regions and nationally, where appropriate.

When the local housing allowance was last updated; and what estimate he has made of the difference between average rents at the time of the last update compared with the most recent available data.

Local Housing Allowance (LHA) rates were last updated in April 2024. The Office for National Statistics ‘Price Index of Private Rents’ (PIPR) provides monthly estimates for average rents in the whole private rental sector. PIPR data is available on the ONS website: https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/inflationandpriceindices/datasets/priceindexofprivaterentsukmonthlypricestatistics