Written questions by Shannon.

To detail the average waiting time for gynaecological consultant appointments, in each of the last five years, broken down by Health and Social Care Trust.

The Department of Health and Social Care does not hold waiting list data for health and social care trusts of Northern Ireland. Health policy is largely devolved, and this data is therefore held by the Department of Health in Northern Ireland.In England, waiting list data for all specialities, including gynaecology services and median waiting times, is available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/rtt-waiting-times/This data does not provide a breakdown of waiting times for appointments and surgery, as waiting times are measured from referral to first definitive treatment, a decision not to treat, or when a patient has decided to refuse treatment.

Whether he plans to provide additional resources to gynaecology services to help reduce waiting times.

Reducing waiting lists is a key part of the Government’s Health Mission, and we are committed to cutting waiting times across all specialities, including gynaecology. We have committed to return to the National Health Service constitutional standard, that 92% of patients wait no longer than 18 weeks from referral to treatment, by March 2029. We are making good progress, as waiting lists have been cut by over 310,000 since the Government came into office, which includes almost 20,000 patients waiting for gynaecology treatment over the same period.Our Elective Reform Plan, published in January 2025, set out the reforms we are making to improve gynaecology waiting times, across England. This includes innovative models of care that offer care closer to home and in the community, piloting gynaecology pathways in community diagnostic centres for patients with post-menopausal bleeding, and increasing the relative funding available to incentivise providers to take on more gynaecology procedures. It also includes expanding the number of surgical hubs, which provide valuable and protected capacity across elective specialities, including gynaecology. Currently, over half of the 125 operational elective surgical hubs in England provide gynaecology services. Wider elective reforms will help cut waiting times for gynaecology services, including more consistent clinical triage, tackling missed appointments, and scaling up remote monitoring and use of patient-initiated follow ups. We are also introducing an “online hospital”, through NHS Online. From 2027, people on certain pathways, including severe menopause symptoms and menstrual problems that may be a sign of endometriosis or fibroids, will have the choice of getting the specialist care they need from their home, providing additional appointments to cut waiting times.

To detail the average waiting time for gynaecological surgery, in each of the last five years, broken down by Health and Social Care Trust.

The Department of Health and Social Care does not hold waiting list data for health and social care trusts of Northern Ireland. Health policy is largely devolved, and this data is therefore held by the Department of Health in Northern Ireland.In England, waiting list data for all specialities, including gynaecology services and median waiting times, is available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/rtt-waiting-times/This data does not provide a breakdown of waiting times for appointments and surgery, as waiting times are measured from referral to first definitive treatment, a decision not to treat, or when a patient has decided to refuse treatment.

On what date her Department first raised with the BBC that the announcement on Graduated Driver Licensing scheme could be made on the BBC’s day of road safety coverage.

The Department for Transport has not made an announcement on a Graduated Driving Licensing scheme. Whilst we are not considering further restrictions on newly qualified drivers such as carrying passengers or driving at night, as announced on the 7 January, we are consulting on a Minimum Learning Period in England, Scotland, and Wales before learner drivers can take their test, and on a lower drink drive limit for novice drivers..

Communities and Local Government, what discussions he has had with the devolved institutions on Local Growth Funds.

Ministers and officials in the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government regularly engage with counterparts in the devolved governments on matters relating to local and regional economic growth.Engagement with devolved governments and the Offices for the Nations forms part of the work to develop and implement the Local Growth Fund in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. This will ensure the funding fits the needs and circumstances of each nation, is spent on projects that matter to the people of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, and drives productivity and growth across the UK.

What legislative steps will be required to introduce the Graduated Driver Licensing scheme by October 2026.

Driver licensing is a devolved matter in Northern Ireland. The Northern Ireland Assembly can advise on the legislative steps required to introduce Graduated Driving Licensing in Northern Ireland. For England, Scotland and Wales on 7 January 2026 we published our new Road Safety Strategy, setting out our vision for a safer future on our roads for all. As part of the strategy, we launched a consultation on introducing a Minimum Learning Period for learner drivers in England, Scotland and Wales. Whilst we are not considering further restrictions on newly qualified drivers such as carrying passengers or driving at night, we are consulting on a Minimum Learning Period in England, Scotland, and Wales before learner drivers can take their test. Once the consultation has concluded, we will publish our response in due course.

Food and Rural Affairs, what her most recent annual estimate is for the amount of waste deposited illegally across England and Wales.

Waste is a devolved matter and the information provided in this answer is for England only. The Environment Agency (EA) focuses on tackling large-scale waste crime in England, often linked to organised criminal activity while fly-tipping is managed by local authorities. The EA has no estimate of the total amount of waste deposited illegally each year - by its nature waste crime is hidden and so inherently difficult to measure. The EA estimates that the amount of waste deposited in illegal waste sites which came to their attention in 2025 was 845,906 tonnes. In addition to this, waste will have been deposited during 2025 at sites which came to EA’s attention in earlier years. This waste is of varying types, with significantly different environmental impacts. As these are estimates the true figure may be more or less. The estimates only relate to those sites of which the EA is aware. Defra does not have an estimate for the total amount of fly-tipped waste in England annually. However, local authorities in England are required to report fly-tipping incidents to Defra, which are published annually at https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/fly-tipping-in-england. These figures are separate to the large-scale incidents dealt with by the EA, and we expect that they exclude the majority of private-land incidents.

Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of the labour supply to the agri-food sector.

The Government recognises that access to a sufficient workforce is essential for the resilience and productivity of the farming. Whilst Defra does assess the number of people currently working in agriculture this does not include questions related to adequacy of supply. The Farming Profitability Review, however, is a recent assessment of impacts on farming, which includes considerations of labour availability. Recommendations from this review covered a range of labour supply issues related to migrant workers, education and wider skills requirements.

What steps he is taking to support the hospitality, pub and food to go sectors to remain in business.

The Government is committed to supporting pubs and the wider hospitality sector, which is why we have taken decisive action. We recently announced an additional 15% cut for pubs on top of the permanent reduction in the business rates multiplier for eligible retail, hospitality and leisure properties.We recognise that revaluation has increased bills for some businesses, which is why we are providing £4.3 billion over three years to protect ratepayers from sharp rises. We are also launching a review of how pubs and hotels are valued for business rates.Alongside this, we have introduced the first National Licensing Policy Framework, expanded temporary event permissions, doubled the Hospitality Support Fund to £10 million, and will bring forward a new High Streets Strategy later this year to help reinvigorate our communities.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to ensure effective regulation and enforcement is in place to tackle the environmental and financial impact of waste crime.

This Government is committed to tackling waste crime from the fly-tippers who blight our towns and villages to the serious and organised crime groups who are exploiting the waste sector.  Those responsible for committing waste crime, rather than taxpayers, should cover the cost of cleaning up the mess they create. We are making policy and regulatory reforms to close loopholes exploited by criminals and have increased the Environment Agency’s (EA’s) budget for waste crime enforcement by over 50% this year to £15.6 million. The EA hosts the Joint Unit for Waste Crime which brings together the EA, HMRC, National Crime Agency, the police, waste regulators from across the UK and other operational partners to share intelligence and tasking to disrupt and prevent serious organised waste crime. Our extra funding has enabled the EA to double the size of the Joint Unit for Waste Crime. Overall, the EA has been able to increase its frontline criminal enforcement resource in the Joint Unit for Waste Crime and area environmental crime teams by 43 full time staff.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department has undertaken an assessment of the environmental impacts associated with poor animal health.

Defra has made several assessments of the environmental impacts associated with animal health, including the impacts on greenhouse gas emissions. Improved animal health is recognised as important in reducing agricultural greenhouse gas mitigations in the Carbon Budget and Growth Delivery Plan (2025).

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to help improve the profitability of UK farm produce.

The Farming Roadmap and the full Government response to the Farming Profitability Review will be published later this year, which will set out the wider plan to boost profitability and long-term viability. The Government is currently already taking forward a series of measures. A new Farming and Food Partnership Board will bring together farmers, processors, retailers, and the wider supply chain to strengthen collaboration across the sector. The Government is investing £30 million in a Farmer Collaboration Fund to support peer-to-peer networks so farmers can share knowledge and learn from each other. The Sustainable Farming Incentive will be also reformed to make it simpler and fairer, with two application windows this year. The June window will support smaller farms and those without agreements, and the September window will be open to all farms. The Farming in Protected Landscapes programme will be extended for three additional years, supported by £30 million of funding next year.

What steps she is taking to ensure that employers provide supportive, flexible environments, including temperature control, modified duties, and open dialogue to prevent talent loss due to employees' menopausal and peri-menopausal symptoms.

As part of Employment Rights Act 2025, we took the first step towards requiring large employers from the private and voluntary sectors in England, Wales and Scotland and the public sector in England to publish an action plan detailing what they are doing to support employees through the menopause. In order to support employers to produce their plans, we will provide guidance on the actions we recommend they take, drawn from existing evidence. This is likely to include elements around workplace flexibility and training for line managers and will be publicly available for all employers. In addition, the Department for Work and Pensions has already published guidance for small employers on measures to consider relating to uniform and temperature, flexible working and recording menopause-related leave and absence. This is available on the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service website. Furthermore, broader measures introduced as part of the Employment Rights Act 2025 will encourage more supportive workplaces. With elements around access to flexible working and changes to Statutory Sick Pay helping employees managing menopause symptoms.

What steps he is taking to help improve respite services for carers.

The Government recognises the vital role of unpaid carers and is committed to ensuring they have the support they need.In England, the Care Act 2014 requires local authorities to deliver a wide range of sustainable, high-quality care and support services, including support for carers. The Better Care Fund includes funding that can be used for carer support, including short breaks and respite services. Local areas determine how the money is best used to support carers, depending on local need and with reference to their statutory responsibilities.We have raised the Carer’s Allowance earnings limit from £151 to £196 per week, the equivalent of 16 hours at the National Living Wage and representing the largest cash increase ever.The Government is making around £4.6 billion of additional funding available for adult social care in England in 2028-29 compared to 2025/26, to support the sector in making improvements.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department plans to bring forward legislative proposals to set a target for the reduction of the use of single-use plastic.

Defra does not currently have plans to bring forward legislative proposals to set a target for the reduction of the use of single-use plastic. This Government is committed to moving to a circular economy and will publish a Circular Economy Growth Plan that sets out how government will deliver a more circular and more prosperous economy. Defra will continue to review the latest evidence on problematic products and/or materials to take a systematic approach, in line with circular economy principles, to reduce the use of unnecessary single-use plastic products and encourage reuse solutions.

If he will take steps to ensure that people with cystic fibrosis have access to Orkambi, Symkevi and Kaftrio on the NHS.

In July 2024, National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) approved three disease modifying treatments, Orkambi, Symkevi, and Kaftrio, as treatment options for eligible National Health Service patients with cystic fibrosis, under the terms of a commercial agreement reached between NHS England and the manufacturer, Vertex. These treatments are now routinely funded by the NHS in England for eligible patients.Across England, further access to Orkambi, Symkevi, and Kaftrio on the NHS for people with cystic fibrosis who do not meet the eligibility requirements in the NICE guidance, is guided by the NHS England commissioning statement at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/nhs-england-commissioning-statement-arrangements-for-access-to-cystic-fibrosis-transmembrane-conductance-regulator-cftr-modulators-for-licensed-and-off-label-use-in-patients-with-cystic-fibrosis/This means that means approximately 95% of people with cystic fibrosis in England are now eligible for modulator therapy.NICE is an England-only body. Health is largely a devolved matter and decisions on the availability of medicines for use in the NHS in the devolved administrations is a matter for the devolved government.

How many people in the prison population are deemed to have a learning difficulty.

The data we hold is for public sector prisons in England only (education in Wales is a devolved responsibility) and is limited to prisoners who have undertaken an assessment of educational standard prior to enrolment on an education course, rather than the population as a whole. It can be found via the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/prison-education-and-accredited-programme-statistics-2024-to-2025/prison-education-and-accredited-programme-statistics-2024-2025.

How many people in England and Wales are on remand awaiting trial.

The Ministry of Justice publishes data on the untried remand population in custody in the Offender Management Statistics Quarterly (OMSQ) publication. This data can be found in Population Table 1_Q_2 of OMSQ: Offender management statistics quarterly: July to September 2025 - GOV.UK.

What steps he is taking to maximise the amount of time surgeons spend in theatre.

The Government is taking steps to maximise the amount of time surgeons spend in theatre so they can get through theatre lists more quickly. This includes providing additional capacity via surgical hubs to get through high volume, low complexity lists, and by other productivity measures to free up clinicians’ time to spend in theatres.

Food and Rural Affairs, what recent steps she has taken to improve food supply security across the UK.

The UK has a resilient food supply chain built on supply from diverse sources, strong domestic production as well as imports through stable trade routes. Defra works with industry and across Government to monitor risks that may arise. This includes extensive, regular and ongoing engagement in preparedness for, and response to, issues with the potential to cause disruption to food supply chains.