Written questions by Whitby.

What support is in place to support local authorities with Best Start Family Hubs to ensure their offer is effective and evidence-based.

Through the delivery grant, all local authorities will receive funding from the department for developing and implementing Best Start local plans. This includes funding for a Best Start in Life system leadership function to take forward transformation activity locally, connecting and integrating local partners to respond to local needs. Further detail on this was shared with local authorities via funding allocation letters on 7 November, covering the three financial years 2026-29. Evidence based intervention (EBI) menus have also been developed and shared to support local authorities in selecting programmes that are both impactful and feasible to deliver starting from April 2026. Local authorities will be supported to embed and enhance their family hubs models, be ambitious in their approach, and integrate EBIs. The National Centre for Family Hubs, which is a delivery support provider is also working closely with local authorities to help them to identify the right EBIs suited to their population needs.

What steps the forthcoming Local Power Plan will take to support partnerships between schools, local authorities and community energy groups to deliver increased levels of community energy.

The forthcoming Local Power Plan will be a joint document owned by GBE and the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero which will outline our shared vision for the local and community energy sector. We are continuing to develop the Local Power Plan with GBE and updates will be provided soon.

What process will be used to value family businesses after the changes to Business Property Relief are introduced.

The inheritance tax value of a person’s estate is the open market value of all their assets and liabilities. The forthcoming changes to business property relief will not change the existing rules on valuing a business. Valuation assumes a sale between a hypothetical seller and buyer, reflecting reality for all other factors such as industry conditions, trading history, and prospects, according to industry standards.

Food and Rural Affairs, if she will take legislative steps to expand access rights for swimming and non-motorised craft on inland waters.

The Government recognises the importance of access to nature for people’s health and well-being, and is considering the best approach to improving that, including access onto unregulated inland waterways. We are committed to working with stakeholders as this develops.

Media and Sport, how much funding Sport England is providing to support the development of Futsal in 2025-2026 financial year.

In the 2025-2026 financial year, Sport England has allocated a total of £165,325 across 17 multi-sport awards where Futsal is specifically included as one of the supported sports or activities. In addition, Sport England is providing a total investment of £37.9 million into The Football Association over the five-year period from 2022 to 2027. This long-term commitment supports the development of all formats of football, including Futsal.

Food and Rural Affairs, how many hectares of privately-owned Plantations on Ancient Woodland Sites have received public subsidies to restore them into good ecological condition in the last 2 years.

The Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier (CSHT) scheme supports the restoration of Plantations on Ancient Woodland Sites (PAWS). In 2023 there was around 1,100 ha that received subsidies for the restoration of Plantations on Ancient Woodland Sites (PAWS) under the Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier scheme which increased to around 1,900 ha of land in 2024. It is not possible to differentiate between publicly and privately owned land within this figure. To Note: The payment window for existing CSHT agreements opens on the 01 December and receive annual payments. Applicants with a New CSHT agreement will receive quarterly payments.

Innovation and Technology, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of introducing device-level protections to prevent children from sending and viewing nude or explicit images on their phones.

Protecting children from harmful content like nude or explicit images is a priority for this government. The government welcomes industry innovation in developing new ways to keep children safe online, such as nudity detection software. We will continue to build evidence about the application and effectiveness of device level controls to ensure we take the action needed to protect children.We will continue to focus on implementing the protective measures contained within the Online Safety Act, while considering the potential benefits and impacts of this technology and others like it in parallel. Any future interventions will be proportionate and evidence based.

Innovation and Technology, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the 2017 Electronic Communications Code reforms on the time taken for the roll out of 5G masts in rural communities.

The aim of the 2017 reforms was to encourage investment in digital networks and improve coverage and connectivity across the UK.Our ambition is that all populated areas will have higher-quality standalone 5G by 2030. We are committed to removing barriers to the digital infrastructure, including reviewing where planning rules could be relaxed to support the deployment of 5G.No specific assessment has been made of the potential impact of the 2017 Electronic Communications Code reforms on the time taken for the roll out of 5G lasts in rural communities. However, analysis from the EU Commission showed 5G households' coverage in the UK at the end of 2024 (95%) was on par with India, China and ahead of France (94%) and the EU (94.3%), but behind South Korea (100%), Japan (99.2%), Norway, Iceland and Germany (all 99%) as well as USA (97.0%). Since this assessment, UK 5G coverage outside premises has increased to 96%.

If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of automatically releasing funds in unclaimed adult-owned Child Trust Funds through the (a) benefit, (b) payroll and (c) student loan systems.

The Government is aware of suggestions that a system could be developed for paying out the savings held in matured Child Trust Fund (CTF) accounts that have not been accessed by the account owners by the age of 21. The savings in these accounts belong to the account owners, and are held by private sector CTF providers. The Government does not have the authority to close these accounts, or to access and transfer the savings in them. Neither does the infrastructure that would be needed across government departments and CTF providers to implement the proposal, exist. The Government is committed to reuniting all young adults with their CTFs. HMRC works with CTF providers, industry representatives and others such as the University and Colleges Admissions service to explore ways of enabling account owners to be aware of and trace their accounts.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that (a) all plastic bottles sold in the UK are fully recyclable and (b) 100 per cent of such bottles are recycled by 2030.

The Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) is coming to England, Northern Ireland, and Scotland in October 2027 and will focus on increasing recycling and reducing littering. A new organisation called UK Deposit Management Organisation Ltd (UK DMO) will run the scheme. It’s a not-for-profit group, led by businesses. They were officially appointed in May 2025 (England & NI) and June 2025 (Scotland). Once the DRS is introduced, the Deposit Management Organisation will be required to reach a return rate of 90% in year 3 of the scheme. International DRSs have seen recycling rates increase to over 95%.

Food and Rural Affairs, when she expects the Deposit Return Scheme for drinks containers to be implemented across the UK; and what assessment he has made of its expected impact on plastic bottle recycling rates.

The Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) is coming to England, Northern Ireland, and Scotland in October 2027 and will focus on increasing recycling and reducing littering. A new organisation called UK Deposit Management Organisation Ltd (UK DMO) will run the scheme. It’s a not-for-profit group, led by businesses. They were officially appointed in May 2025 (England & NI) and June 2025 (Scotland). Once the DRS is introduced, the Deposit Management Organisation will be required to reach a return rate of 90% in year 3 of the scheme.

If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of providing match-funding for incentive payments to Stepladder PLUS.

The department wants to ensure that children leaving care have stable homes, access to health services, support to build lifelong loving relationships, and are engaged in education, employment and training.We recognise the importance of financial skills, such as those provided through the Stepladder Plus programme, in achieving this aim. The department currently supports the use of this programme through its contract, for the provision of Junior ISA savings accounts to children in care, with the Share Foundation. We do not currently have any plans to assess the merits of match-funding.

What assessment his Department has made of potential challenges to decarbonise (a) homes and (b) businesses that (i) use alternative energy sources and (ii) are off the main gas grid.

The Clean Heat Market Mechanism is focused on developing the market and supply chain for upgrading homes with hydronic heat pumps – a core technology for the UK’s transition to cleaner heating since around 90% of UK homes have water-based central heating systems. The Government will keep the scope of the scheme under regular review. The Government has published a response to the consultation on proposed Boiler Upgrade Scheme changes, confirming grants of £2,500 for air-to-air heat pumps in domestic properties, starting in 2026. This will increase consumer choice and support the UK’s transition towards low carbon heating systems.

Innovation and Technology, whether her Department has made provisions for the recovery of public funds from contractors who fail to deliver on Building Digital UK contracts.

Payments to suppliers for delivery under Project Gigabit contracts are made once a gigabit capable connection is available to the premises. Where a supplier fails, the supplier is required to repay any public money paid through the contracts for premises which do not reach this point.In May 2025, Building Digital UK (BDUK) and Full Fibre mutually agreed to terminate the Project Gigabit contract for the Peak District, which included some premises in the Derbyshire Dales constituency. This contract did not reach a stage where gigabit-capable connections were being delivered and therefore there was no requirement for any funding to be repaid by the supplier.

Food and Rural Affairs, what guidance her Department plans to issue to Material Recovery Facilities to ensure consistent sorting standards.

Defra does not plan to issue specific guidance on sorting requirements for Material Recovery Facilities (MRFs). We are working with WRAP (Waste and Resources Action Programme) and waste industry representatives to support MRF readiness for the Simpler Recycling requirements. We have engaged with MRF operators and local authorities through WRAP’s MRF Forum to identify challenges with MRF capacity, investment and upgrade timelines, and to work with the sector to identify interventions to support MRFs as they prepare for Simpler Recycling. WRAP is developing interventions to support local authorities with the procurement of new MRF contracts, determine the potential future composition of dry mixed recyclable waste streams and the associated financial implications. Those MRF operators engaged with us are aware of their obligations and are working hard to upgrade their facilities to ensure they can separate the target materials as required by Simpler Recycling.

What steps her Department is taking to help tackle the rise in disguised employment in the hair and beauty sector.

HMRC is committed to ensuring that the tax system operates fairly and efficiently and creates a level playing field for compliant businesses. Most businesses pay what they owe but a minority fail to register with HMRC or only declare a portion of their earnings. HMRC is committed to tackling false self-employment and will investigate evidence suggesting businesses have misclassified individuals for tax purposes. In these cases, HMRC will take steps to ensure they pay the right Income Tax and National Insurance contributions. HMRC recognises that some customers can find it hard to understand their tax obligations. HMRC is developing and testing new educational material specific to the hair and beauty sector to explain better the rent-a-chair model, making it easier for customers to get things right.

What progress he has made towards publishing the family engagement strategy and methodology for the National Maternity Investigation.

The national maternity and neonatal investigation is operationally independent of the Department and, therefore, we do not hold this information.

Pursuant to the Answer of 10 September 2025 to Question 74400 on Juries: Childcare, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of increasing the amount jurors can claim for childcare to ensure that it remains in line with those costs.

Jurors can claim allowances to help cover additional costs arising from jury service, including the full additional cost of childcare within the overall daily financial loss allowance cap. Informal childcare can also be reimbursed at a set hourly rate, subject to the same allowance cap. Jurors can apply for a deferral or excusal based on childcare issues. These allowances are kept under review to ensure support remains appropriate and accessible. At present, there are no plans to increase the juror childcare allowance rate.

Whether the national maternity investigation will also look into cases of twin and triplet deaths as part of its investigation into NHS maternity and neonatal services.

The Government acknowledges that pregnancies for twins and multiples are associated with significantly higher risks for stillbirth, neonatal death and preterm birth.Cases of twin and triplet deaths will be looked at as part of the National Maternity and Neonatal Investigation where they fall within the scope of the terms of reference. These terms are available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/independent-maternity-and-neonatal-investigation-terms-of-reference/national-maternity-and-neonatal-investigation-terms-of-referenceThe National Maternity and Neonatal Investigation will produce an initial set of national recommendations by December 2025. The Investigation will publish its final report and recommendations in Spring 2026.

Innovation and Technology, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the early termination of the Building Digital UK Full Fibre contract on rural communities in Derbyshire.

Project Gigabit is designed to adapt in the event a contracted supplier can no longer complete its planned delivery, utilising a mix of contracts and interventions to enable us to continue to bring fast, reliable broadband to hard-to-reach premises across the UK. This process is intended to mitigate the potential impact of contract terminations on rural communities and to ensure that delays to the rollout of Project Gigabit are minimised.In May 2025, Building Digital UK (BDUK) and Full Fibre mutually agreed to terminate the Project Gigabit contract for the Peak District, which included some premises in the Derbyshire Dales constituency.BDUK is now engaging with suppliers to review alternative options for extending coverage in this region. The coverage that can be provided, and the timescale for its delivery, will depend on what suppliers are able to offer within the public funding that can be made available, and we are keen to ensure this happens as quickly as possible.