Written questions by Shannon.

Media and Sport, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of allowing charities lotteries to operate UK-wide.

Large-scale society lotteries in Great Britain are legislated through the Gambling Act 2005, which does not extend to Northern Ireland. Gambling is a devolved matter in Northern Ireland, and therefore the operation of large-scale society lotteries is a matter for the Northern Ireland Executive.

How many under 21s have been arrested for possession of drugs in the last 12 months.

The Home Office does not hold the specific information requested.The Home Office collects and publishes information on arrests for notifiable offences on an annual basis in the Stop and search, arrests, and mental health detentions, March 2025 - GOV.UK statistical series.However, data is collected at the high-level offence group only, so arrests for “possession of drugs” fall within the wider “drug offences” category, and cannot be separately identified.

What steps are being taken to encourage more young people into work.

The Government’s ambition is to transform young people’s prospects, by ensuring every one of them has the chance to earn or learn through a Youth Guarantee.We have already taken the first steps towards delivering a Youth Guarantee, launching Youth Guarantee Trailblazers in England, announcing funding to almost double our Youth Hubs across Great Britain, and we recently launched an Independent Report into Young People and Work, to identify potential areas for reform to better support young people with health conditions and disabilities.We are now expanding the Youth Guarantee, backed by a £820 million investment over the next three years to reach almost 900,000 young people. This includes Youth Hubs in every area in Great Britain and a new Youth Guarantee Gateway, offering a dedicated session and follow-up support to 16-24-year-olds on Universal Credit to get them into employment or training. This investment will also create around 300,000 more opportunities to gain workplace experience and training. In addition, it will provide guaranteed jobs to around 55,000 young people aged 18-21.Employment support policies are devolved in Northern Ireland and the responsibility of the Department for Communities.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions she has had with her Pakistani counterpart on slavery in Pakistan.

I refer the Hon Member to the answer I gave him on 26 November in response to question 91957. We continue to raise these issues with our Pakistani counterparts at ministerial and official levels.

If he will accept the Parliamentary Ombudsman’s compensation recommendations in regards to the WASPI women.

As my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State set out on 11 November 2025, we are retaking the decision made in December 2024 as it relates to the communications on State Pension age. The process to retake the decision is underway. We will update the House on the decision as soon as a conclusion is reached.

If he will provide an update into his Department's research efforts into Motor Neurone Disease.

Government responsibility for delivering motor neurone disease (MND) research is shared between the Department of Health and Social Care, with research delivered by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), and Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, with research delivered via UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), primarily through the Medical Research Council for MND.The Government is investing in MND research across a range of areas, including an £8 million investment via the NIHR into the EXPERTS-ALS, a pre-clinical study which is designed to accelerate the identification and testing of the most promising treatment candidates for treating amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), the most common form of MND.The MND Translational Accelerator, supported by £6 million of Government funding, is connecting the UK Dementia Research Institute, the UK MND Research Institute, and Dementias Platform UK. Twelve projects have been funded through the Accelerator, and all are aimed at speeding up the development of treatments for MND.In August 2025, the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency approved Tofersen to treat SOD1-ALS, a rare form of MND. Research into Tofersen was supported by NIHR’s Sheffield Biomedical Research Centre, and all three trial phases were delivered by the NIHR’s Research Delivery Network, demonstrating tangible impact of NIHR funded research into MND.The NIHR and UKRI continue to welcome funding applications for research into MND. These applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money, and scientific quality.

What discussions she has had with major airports on tackling noise pollution.

Ministers and officials engage regularly with airports on a range of issues including noise pollution.Major airports are required to produce noise action plans every five years. Current plans cover the period 2024-2028 and have been published on airports’ websites.The government also sets noise controls at Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted airports. At other airports, appropriate noise controls should be set locally through the planning system.

What steps she is taking to improve early detection of human trafficking.

The Government is committed to tackling modern slavery and human trafficking in all its forms and to giving survivors the support they need to recover. The National Referral Mechanism (NRM) is the UK’s framework for identifying and supporting potential victims of modern slavery.In July 2025, the Home Office launched a public Call for Evidence on how the Government can improve the process of identifying victims of modern slavery, human trafficking and exploitation. The Home Office is now analysing the responses received and will be engaging with survivors to explore the emerging themes further.The Home Office has also made a number of improvements to the NRM referral form following consultation with a range of experts. These changes aim to improve the quality of referrals, support more informed decision-making, and ensure the form better reflects the experiences of potential victims in a trauma-informed way.

What steps he is taking to improve allergy care.

The Expert Advisory Group on Allergy (EAGA), co-chaired by the Department and the National Allergy Strategy Group, meets regularly to bring together stakeholders across the Government, the National Health Service, voluntary organisations, professional bodies, and patient representative groups, to consider how allergy care and support could be improved. The purpose of the EAGA is to inform policymaking, and to identify priorities in relation to the holistic care of people with allergies. The EAGA last met on 3 December2025. In July 2025, the Medicines and Healthcare products regulatory Agency licensed a new adrenaline nasal spray, EURneffy, for use in the emergency treatment of anaphylaxis. The Government welcomes the approval of needle free delivery methods of adrenaline, recognising the potential to benefit to those who suffer from allergies.More widely, there are a number of policies outlined in the 10-Year Health Plan which should have a positive impact on care for patients with allergy. More tests and scans delivered in the community, better joint working between services, and greater use of technology will all support people to manage allergies closer to home.Neighbourhood Health Services will be organised around the needs of their patients. The plan will create joined-up working across hospitals and into community settings with multi-disciplinary teams who can provide wrap-around support services to people with allergies or other long-term conditions.

What assessment has been made on the timescales for red flag referrals for breast cancer across the UK.

It is a priority for the Government to support the National Health Service to diagnose cancer, including breast cancer, as early and quickly as possible, and to treat it faster, to improve outcomes for all patients across England.The Department is responsible for healthcare in England and therefore has not made a formal assessment on the timescales for red flag referrals for breast cancer across the whole of the United Kingdom.As the first step to ensuring early diagnosis and treatment in England, NHS England has delivered an extra 100,000 operations, scans, and appointments each week since the start of this administration. This is supported by an increase in capacity to meet the demand for diagnostic services through investment in new magnetic resonance imaging and computed tomography scanners.The Department recognises that there is more to be done to ensure that patients have timely access to diagnosis, and remains committed to diagnosing all cancer types earlier, including breast cancer. To tackle late diagnoses, the NHS is implementing non-specific symptom pathways for patients who present with symptoms such as weight loss and fatigue, which do not clearly align to a tumour type.Reducing variation in cancer care in England, including the movement of patients through breast cancer care pathways, is a priority for the Government. To address this, NHS England funded audits into primary and metastatic breast cancer. Using routine data collected on patients diagnosed with breast cancer in an NHS setting, the audits bring together information to look at what is being done well, where it is being done well, and what needs to be done better. On 11 September 2025, the second State of the Nation report for primary and metastatic breast cancer was published by the National Cancer Audit Collaborating Centre, and officials in the Department and NHS England are acting on the findings where appropriate.

Whether the National Cancer Plan will include specific actions to deliver neighbourhood cancer care close to home, particularly for those in rural or underserved areas.

Bringing cancer care into the Neighbourhood Health Service is an important part of our forthcoming National Cancer Plan for England, enabling cancer patients to be treated and cared for closer to home.The National Cancer Plan, which will be published early this year, will seek to make cancer care easier, more local, and more responsive. Rather than requiring endless trips to hospitals, cancer care will happen as locally as it can. This means digitally by default, in a patient’s home if possible, in a neighbourhood health centre when needed, and in a hospital if necessary. As a larger proportion of England’s population survives cancer, this new model offers the potential for a higher quality of life, so that people in England to live longer, better lives after cancer diagnosis.

How many UK children are currently missing with active investigations to locate their whereabouts.

The Home Office does not hold this data centrally.Information about current missing persons incidents is held by individual police forces. The National Crime Agency’s UK Missing Persons Unit holds the national database for all missing incidents that are unresolved after 72hours, allowing the police to have access to missing persons information across force boundaries.In addition, annual missing persons statistics, broken down to police force level,are published by the National Crime Agency’s Missing Person’s Unit in its annual data report which can be found here: Downloads - National Crime Agency

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to support persecuted minorities in Bangladesh.

I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided on 6 November 2025 in response to Question 86282, and I would add that Baroness Chapman raised the issue of violence towards religious minority groups during her trip to Bangladesh later that month.

What steps he is taking to improve quality of life for people being diagnosed, treated for or living with cancer under the National Cancer Plan.

The National Cancer Plan for England will have patients at its heart and will cover the entirety of the cancer pathway, from referral and diagnosis to treatment and ongoing care, as well as prevention, and research and innovation. It will seek to improve every aspect of cancer care in England to better the experience and outcomes for people with cancer.The plan will aim to improve how, in England, the physical and psychosocial needs of people with cancer can be met, with a focus on personalised care to improve quality of life. It will address how the experience of care can be improved for those diagnosed, treated, and living with and beyond cancer in England.

What steps his Department is taking to help improve outcomes for cardiovascular disease.

The Government is committed to reducing premature mortality from heart disease and stroke by 25% in the next 10 years. To accelerate progress towards this ambition, we will publish a cardiovascular disease (CVD) Modern Service Framework later this year. The framework will support consistent, high quality and equitable care whist fostering innovation across the CVD pathway.Alongside this, work is underway to improve the impact of the NHS Health Check, which is a core component of England’s CVD prevention programme, and prevents approximately 500 heart attacks and strokes a year.To improve access and to give patients more flexibility and choice, we are developing an NHS Health Check Online service that people can use at home at a time and place convenient to them, to understand and act on their CVD risk. Community pharmacies continue to strengthen prevention efforts, and since 2021 they have delivered nearly 4.2 million blood pressure checks, supporting earlier detection and management of key CVD risk factors.

What steps his Department is taking to meet cancer waiting time targets and ensure people living with and affected by cancer receive the timely care they need.

Improving cancer waiting times for patients is a high priority for the Government.We will do this through the increased use of community diagnostic centres (CDCs) which will increase the available capacity and bring healthcare closer to the community. CDCs are now delivering additional tests and checks on 170 sites across the country with 103 of these being are open 12 hours a day, seven days a week, offering at least one test in expanded hours, meaning patients can access vital diagnostic tests around their busy working lives.The National Cancer Plan, which is due to be published early this year, will set out how we will increase performance, speed up diagnosis and treatment, and ultimately provide better outcomes for cancer patients. It will ensure patients have access to the latest treatments and technology and improve patient experience and outcomes.

What steps are being taken to improve the time taken for red flag referrals for breast cancer to be seen.

It is a priority for the Government to support the National Health Service to diagnose cancer, including breast cancer, as early and quickly as possible, and to treat it faster, to improve outcomes for all patients across England.The Department is responsible for healthcare in England and therefore has not made a formal assessment on the timescales for red flag referrals for breast cancer across the whole of the United Kingdom.As the first step to ensuring early diagnosis and treatment in England, NHS England has delivered an extra 100,000 operations, scans, and appointments each week since the start of this administration. This is supported by an increase in capacity to meet the demand for diagnostic services through investment in new magnetic resonance imaging and computed tomography scanners.The Department recognises that there is more to be done to ensure that patients have timely access to diagnosis, and remains committed to diagnosing all cancer types earlier, including breast cancer. To tackle late diagnoses, the NHS is implementing non-specific symptom pathways for patients who present with symptoms such as weight loss and fatigue, which do not clearly align to a tumour type.Reducing variation in cancer care in England, including the movement of patients through breast cancer care pathways, is a priority for the Government. To address this, NHS England funded audits into primary and metastatic breast cancer. Using routine data collected on patients diagnosed with breast cancer in an NHS setting, the audits bring together information to look at what is being done well, where it is being done well, and what needs to be done better. On 11 September 2025, the second State of the Nation report for primary and metastatic breast cancer was published by the National Cancer Audit Collaborating Centre, and officials in the Department and NHS England are acting on the findings where appropriate.

What steps his Department is taking to support parents whose children have been diagnosed with spinal muscular atrophy.

Planning for a large-scale trial across the National Health Service is underway, where hundreds of thousands of babies will be screened for spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) from next year to help build the evidence base needed to support a national screening programme. My Rt. Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, has asked the Department to look at whether this evaluation can start sooner, and whether it can be expanded to involve all babies, rather than two thirds as currently planned and will be reporting back to the SMA community on this.

What assessment he has made of trends of hospital admissions of those with stroke symptoms in the last 5 years.

The following table shows the trend in stroke admissions for the last five years:YearStroke admissions incidenceStroke admissions rate per 100,000 population2020/2189,739166.32021/2293,710171.42022/2393,753168.42023/2497,843173.12024/2599,494172.7Source: Fingertips, available at the following link: https://fingertips.phe.org.uk/search/stroke%20admissions#page/4/gid/1/pat/159/par/K02000001/ati/15/are/E92000001/iid/90986/age/1/sex/4/cat/-1/ctp/-1/yrr/1/cid/4/tbm/1

Communities and Local Government, what steps are being taken to ensure businesses are routinely up to date with fire safety guidance.

The Government has established a programme to update guidance issued under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005. Nine new guides have been published with at least 13 still in development. This programme includes guidance specific to business and premises types, such as the guidance for small non-domestic premises, as well as the larger guides on offices & shops and factories & warehouses. We engage relevant businesses on specific guides through stakeholder engagement on the draft guides and promote these once published. This includes working with the Department for Business and Trade on pages specifically helping businesses to understand their duties. As part of this we published a new page aimed at small business on 6 January, which can be found on gov.uk here. Fire safety legislation is devolved. Government and devolved administration officials meet regularly, and the Northern Ireland Executive publish guidance similar to that published in England.