Written questions by Babarinde.

Whether his Department has taken recent steps to implement an advanced brain injury strategy.

The Government wants a society where every person, including those with a long-term condition such as an acquired brain injury (ABI), receives high-quality, compassionate continuity of care, with their families and carers supported.We will change the National Health Service so that it becomes not just a sickness service, but a service that is able to prevent ill health in the first place. This will help us be better prepared for the change in the nature of disease, and allow our services to focus more on the management of chronic, long-term conditions, like ABIs, including rehabilitation where appropriate. A decision on the next steps on ABI at the national level will be taken in the coming months.

What steps he is taking to improve NHS workforce training on HIV (a) awareness and (b) treatment.

The standard of training for doctors is the responsibility of the independent, statutory health care regulatory bodies and higher education institutions who set the outcome standards expected at undergraduate level and determine the content of their curriculum, in line with General Medical Council guidelines.Individual National Health Service trusts are responsible for investing in post-registration training to ensure that staff can effectively deliver sexual and reproductive health services, including HIV treatment. In addition, NHS England’s e-Learning for Healthcare includes a range of programmes and material which focus on HIV.The Department, the UK Health Security Agency, NHS England, and a broad range of system partners are developing a new HIV Action Plan and considering the next steps needed for the workforce within it. We aim to publish this by summer 2025.

What assessment she has made of the impact of her Department's anti-bullying funding on schools; and whether she plans to reinstate that funding.

The department’s most recent anti-bullying grants, which totalled over £3 million and ran between August 2021 and March 2024, were procured to support schools to target bullying related to protected characteristics under the Equality Act 2010. The department is currently reviewing the impact of these previous programmes and considering next steps for future programmes aimed at tackling bullying in schools. Funding beyond 31 March 2025 is subject to the next government Spending Review which will take place this autumn. The outcome of the Review will be communicated in due course.The department published advice in 2017 to support schools with addressing incidences of bullying, including bullying based on perceived differences and protected characteristics. This is available here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/625ee64cd3bf7f6004339db8/Preventing_and_tackling_bullying_advice.pdf.In 2016, the department also published a practical tool to help schools, which can be found on the Educate Against Hate website. This can be accessed at: https://educateagainsthate.com/resources/respectful-school-communities-self-review-signposting-tool-2/.

Whether she has made an assessment of (a) trends in the level of bullying in schools and (b) the potential impact of those trends on the (i) mental wellbeing of and (ii) performance of young people in schools.

There is no legal requirement for schools to record and report incidents of bullying to the government. However, the department does monitor evidence on the impact of bullying on children and young people through robust national surveys. According to the most recent published data from the department’s National Behaviour Survey (NBS), for the 2022/23 academic year, 26% of secondary pupils reported being bullied and 28% of primary and secondary school parents reported their child being bullied in the past 12 months. This is shown in the table below. To note, the total sample size for pupils was 2,521 and the approximate parent sample size was 2,335. 2021/22 Academic year2022/23 Academic yearPupil reported bullying victimisation22%26%Parent reported bullying victimisation26%28%Pupil reported bullying victimisation by gender Males21%25%Females22%27%Pupil reported bullying victimisation by SEND Pupils with SEND34%*36%*Pupils without SEND20%*24%*Pupil reported bullying victimisation by ethnicity White25%*29%*Ethnic minority14%*19%*Pupil reported bullying victimisation by FSM eligibility Eligible for FSM28%*38%*Not Eligible for FSM21%*22%**Indicates a significant difference between the sub groups. Changes over time have not been tested for significance. The department sees little difference in self-reported rates of bullying by gender. However, a greater proportion of white secondary-aged pupils reported being bullied compared to pupils from an ethnic minority background. Similarly, a larger proportion of secondary-aged pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) reported being bullied compared to those without SEND. Secondary-aged pupils eligible for free school meals (FSM) also reported being bullied more frequently when compared with those not eligible for FSM. Across most of these groups, there is a small percentage point increase in 2022/23 compared to 2021/22. This is between 2 and 5 percentage points, aside from FSM, where the increase was 10. The department does not know if these changes are statistically significant. The department will publish updated data from the NBS in due course.Other robust data sources which report on bullying prevalence, and with a longer time series, include the Health Behaviours of School-aged Children Study and the Crime Survey for England and Wales, surveying 10 to 15 year olds. These suggest overall prevalence rates have remained reasonably stable between 2018 and 2023.The department has not made a formal assessment of the links between the level of bullying and impacts on the mental wellbeing and performance of young people in schools, but we are aware of the range of evidence that shows these links. For example, national surveys which show a link between bullying and the impact on mental health include the NHS Digital: Mental Health of Children and Young People in England Survey and the Crime Survey for England and Wales, surveying 10 to 15 years olds. The department also follows the wider academic literature on the impacts of bullying. A recent internal review by departmental analysts identified numerous sources which demonstrate the link between bullying and both mental health and academic outcomes.

What support her Department plans to provide to tackle bullying in schools based on (a) perceived difference and (b) protected characteristics.

The department’s most recent anti-bullying grants, which totalled over £3 million and ran between August 2021 and March 2024, were procured to support schools to target bullying related to protected characteristics under the Equality Act 2010. The department is currently reviewing the impact of these previous programmes and considering next steps for future programmes aimed at tackling bullying in schools. Funding beyond 31 March 2025 is subject to the next government Spending Review which will take place this autumn. The outcome of the Review will be communicated in due course.The department published advice in 2017 to support schools with addressing incidences of bullying, including bullying based on perceived differences and protected characteristics. This is available here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/625ee64cd3bf7f6004339db8/Preventing_and_tackling_bullying_advice.pdf.In 2016, the department also published a practical tool to help schools, which can be found on the Educate Against Hate website. This can be accessed at: https://educateagainsthate.com/resources/respectful-school-communities-self-review-signposting-tool-2/.

Whether she has made an assessment of trends in the level of bullying in schools based on (a) perceived differences and (b) protected characteristics.

There is no legal requirement for schools to record and report incidents of bullying to the government. However, the department does monitor evidence on the impact of bullying on children and young people through robust national surveys. According to the most recent published data from the department’s National Behaviour Survey (NBS), for the 2022/23 academic year, 26% of secondary pupils reported being bullied and 28% of primary and secondary school parents reported their child being bullied in the past 12 months. This is shown in the table below. To note, the total sample size for pupils was 2,521 and the approximate parent sample size was 2,335. 2021/22 Academic year2022/23 Academic yearPupil reported bullying victimisation22%26%Parent reported bullying victimisation26%28%Pupil reported bullying victimisation by gender Males21%25%Females22%27%Pupil reported bullying victimisation by SEND Pupils with SEND34%*36%*Pupils without SEND20%*24%*Pupil reported bullying victimisation by ethnicity White25%*29%*Ethnic minority14%*19%*Pupil reported bullying victimisation by FSM eligibility Eligible for FSM28%*38%*Not Eligible for FSM21%*22%**Indicates a significant difference between the sub groups. Changes over time have not been tested for significance. The department sees little difference in self-reported rates of bullying by gender. However, a greater proportion of white secondary-aged pupils reported being bullied compared to pupils from an ethnic minority background. Similarly, a larger proportion of secondary-aged pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) reported being bullied compared to those without SEND. Secondary-aged pupils eligible for free school meals (FSM) also reported being bullied more frequently when compared with those not eligible for FSM. Across most of these groups, there is a small percentage point increase in 2022/23 compared to 2021/22. This is between 2 and 5 percentage points, aside from FSM, where the increase was 10. The department does not know if these changes are statistically significant. The department will publish updated data from the NBS in due course.Other robust data sources which report on bullying prevalence, and with a longer time series, include the Health Behaviours of School-aged Children Study and the Crime Survey for England and Wales, surveying 10 to 15 year olds. These suggest overall prevalence rates have remained reasonably stable between 2018 and 2023.The department has not made a formal assessment of the links between the level of bullying and impacts on the mental wellbeing and performance of young people in schools, but we are aware of the range of evidence that shows these links. For example, national surveys which show a link between bullying and the impact on mental health include the NHS Digital: Mental Health of Children and Young People in England Survey and the Crime Survey for England and Wales, surveying 10 to 15 years olds. The department also follows the wider academic literature on the impacts of bullying. A recent internal review by departmental analysts identified numerous sources which demonstrate the link between bullying and both mental health and academic outcomes.

Media and Sport, what steps she plans to take to support art galleries with financial pressures.

Museums and galleries enrich communities, creating thriving places for people to live and visit.We’re working with Arts Council England and others to understand the sector’s priorities and needs, looking at the sector as a whole: from our commitment to restoring stability to Local Government, to our forthcoming review of Arts Council England.Regional art galleries are a major beneficiary of DCMS’s £86 million Museum Estate and Development Fund, with Round 4 currently underway.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether he plans to accelerate the introduction of the Deposit Return Scheme.

This Government remains committed to delivering the Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) for drinks containers in October 2027, as agreed with the devolved Governments of the UK, and in accordance with the Joint Policy Statement published in April 2024. There are no plans to accelerate this work – industry have been clear that this is the time they need to launch the scheme. Defra intenda to lay the DRS regulations for England and Northern Ireland before Parliament later this year, assuming Parliamentary time allows. If so, the regulations would come into force in early 2025, before the Deposit Management Organisation (DMO), (who will run the scheme), would be appointed in April 2025.

Whether he has plans to bring forward legislative proposals to require all wind turbines in England to use bio-based lubricants.

The Department has no plans to require wind turbines to use bio-based lubricants. The small amounts of lubricants used in modern turbines means the environmental risks from release of lubricants are very small.

What steps he plans to take to support (a) households and (b) organisations to reduce their carbon footprint.

The Government’s Warm Homes Plan will transform homes across the country by making them cheaper and cleaner to run, rolling out upgrades from new insulation to solar and heat pumps. We have already announced the new Warm Homes: Local Grant to help low-income homeowners and private tenants with energy performance upgrades including insulation, as well as the Warm Homes: Social Housing Fund, to support social housing providers and tenants. More detail will be provided in due course. Small and medium-sized organisations can visit the UK Business Climate Hub for advice and support, run in partnership with government. Climate Change Agreements provide tax discounts for businesses reducing their emissions, and the Industrial Energy Transformation Fund supports industrial sites with high energy use to transition. We are currently running a pilot in the West Midlands, providing energy audits and grants to small and medium businesses to support them in decarbonising.