Written questions by Reynolds.

What assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of current consumer protection legislation in relation to manufacturers ending software support for connected consumer devices; and whether he plans to introduce minimum software support period requirements for smart home technology.

The government does not currently have any plans to introduce a minimum support period for smart home technology.Under the Consumer Rights Act 2015, goods or digital content must be of satisfactory quality, fit for a particular purpose and as described by the seller. A trader can upgrade, fix, enhance and improve the features of, or add new features to, digital content so long as it continues to match any description given by the trader. It must also continue to conform with any pre-contract information as to main characteristics, functionality and compatibility provided by the trader.Consumers in England and Wales are encouraged to report any concerns to the Citizens Advice consumer service, who will pass intelligence to Trading Standards, allowing them to understand and act upon areas where consumers are experiencing the most harm.

Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate her Department has made of the annual volume of electronic waste generated by manufacturers withdrawing software support for otherwise functional connected devices; and what assessment she has made of the potential merits of applying extended producer responsibility to smart technology.

Defra does not collect data relating to the volume of waste generated by devices made redundant due to software upgrades and only holds data relating to the Government’s own Information and Communication Technology devices. This Government is committed to transitioning towards a Circular Economy. The Government convened a Circular Economy Taskforce of experts to help map that transition, and will publish a Circular Economy Growth Plan that sets out how government will deliver a more circular and more prosperous economy. In the development of the Growth Plan, Defra are considering the evidence for action right across the economy and evaluating what interventions may be needed, including any interventions in the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) sector. The WEEE Regulations 2013 are founded on the principle of Extended Producer Responsibility and stipulate that all producers of electrical goods, including producers of smart technology, must take responsibility for the products they place on the market when they become waste.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to help prevent illegal persecution of hen harriers and other birds of prey on land managed for gamebird shooting.

The illegal killing of any wild bird of prey on land managed for gamebird shooting is unacceptable. Bird of prey persecution is a national wildlife crime priority and there are strong penalties in place for offences committed against these birds. Defra supports the work of a national Tactical Delivery Group which brings stakeholders together to tackle such criminality. Defra is a principal funder of the National Wildlife Crime Unit (NWCU), which helps prevent and detect wildlife crime and directly assists law enforcers in their investigations. Defra is providing £494,000 for NWCU this year. In 2024, the NWCU launched the Hen Harrier Task Force (HTF) – a partnership designed to help tackle the illegal persecution of hen harriers. Through the HTF, more efficient channels of communication between partners expedites the coordination of effective enforcement responses. The HTF is also using innovative technology such as tracking drones and specialised detection dogs to enhance evidence collection in remote areas.

How many directors with responsibility for human resources are employed across government departments and their executive agencies; and how many of those directors hold professional HR qualifications from the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development and equivalent professional bodies.

We are unable to answer this question as this data is not centrally held by the Cabinet Office.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the 10% sales commission on park home residents.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 97962 on 15 December 2025.

Communities and Local Government, what discussions he has had with park home resident groups on the sales commission rate in the last 12 months.

I attended a meeting of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Park Homes on 10 February 2025 to hear the sector’s views on the commission payment.At that meeting, I announced the government’s intention to seek further evidence to clarify the rationale for the payment of the commission and other aspects of the existing legislation. We will set out plans in due course.

What digital resources his Department provides to support small and medium-sized enterprises with exporting.

The Department for Business and Trade has integrated its support for SMEs in a single, accessible place – the Business Growth Service – making it easier and quicker for businesses to access the right support at the right time.Business.gov.uk hosts our online export offer and is the route into DBT’s wider network of export support. Businesses can access a wealth of information on exporting, including advice on paperwork, rules of origin, customs duties, and regulations.The support available also includes the Business Academy, which offers free online training through webinars to help businesses build market knowledge and export capability.

What steps his Department is taking to help reduce regulatory barriers for exporting businesses through digitisation.

DBT is taking steps to reduce regulatory barriers for exporting businesses by supporting the uptake of digitalised trade processes. Through the Digital Trade Corridors programme, focused on key European markets such as France and Germany, we are identifying regulatory and policy barriers and encouraging businesses to adopt digital tools. This is complemented by an SME capability programme helping smaller firms benefit from digitalisation. Internationally, the UK works with partners, including through UNCITRAL, the WTO, and the Commonwealth, as well as bilaterally through Trade Committees and Dialogues, to promote legal and regulatory harmonisation.

What assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the repayment term for post-2012 student loans being set at 40 years on (a) graduates in lower-paid or insecure employment, (b) social mobility and (c) students from lower-income backgrounds.

The repayment term for Plan 2 loans is 30 years. They were designed and implemented by previous governments. Students in England starting degrees under this government have different arrangements. The student loan system is designed to protect borrowers, and repayments are determined by income, not the amount borrowed or the rate of interest. Borrowers only start repaying their student loan once earnings exceed the threshold, after which they pay 9% of income above that level. To protect lower earners, if a borrower’s earnings drop, so do their repayments, and if earnings fall below the repayment threshold, then they repay nothing at all. After 30 years any outstanding loan and interest is cancelled at the end of the loan term, and debt is never passed on to family members or descendants. A borrower on Plan 2 entering repayment at age 21 would have any outstanding loan amount written off at age 51. No commercial loan offers this level of protection.

What assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the student loan repayment threshold remaining at its current level on (a) graduates in lower-paid or insecure employment, (b) social mobility and (c) students from lower-income backgrounds.

It was announced at the Autumn Budget that the repayment and interest thresholds for Plan 2 student loans will be frozen from the 2026/27 financial year until April 2030, when they will increase annually by inflation.The department has produced the attached analysis regarding the impact of freezing the repayment and interest thresholds.If a borrower is earning above the repayment threshold and their income stays the same, then their repayments will remain the same. If a borrower is not earning above the repayment threshold and their income remains the same, they will continue to not be required to make any repayments.

What level of recurrent funding has been identified to fund new treatments through NHS England’s Clinical Priorities Advisory Group Prioritisation meeting.

The Clinical Priorities Advisory Group is an advisory committee that makes recommendations on the relative priority of treatments to be commissioned subject to the available discretionary funding. It is not a decision-making body and does not allocate funds or have a budget for approving new treatments. Further information is available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/commissioning/cpag/

What the (a) total number of full-time equivalent customer service staff employed by HM Revenue and Customs was in each of the last ten financial years and (b) number of these positions that were based in (i) call centres, (ii) face-to-face service locations and (iii) digital support teams.

HMRC operates a flexible resourcing model, meaning staff are deployed across different types of customer service work throughout the year. This approach allows the department to direct people to the areas of highest demand, whether that is helplines, post correspondence, webchat, or other customer contact channels. Because staff move between these activities as demand changes, HMRC does not separate out staffing into specific categories. However, HMRC can provide overall full‑time equivalent figures for Customer Services from 2019-20 to 2024-25, noting that these staff may work across several frontline customer service functions depending on business need. HMRC is unable to provide figures prior to 2019-20 because doing so would exceed the cost threshold for answering written parliamentary questions. This is due to the information, where it is available, being held across multiple systems that do not align with current reporting definitions, and producing the data would require significant separate interrogation and analysis. Average number of frontline customer service staff (000):2019-20: 20.02020-21: 19.62021-22: 19.22022-23: 19.42023-24: 18.22024-25: 17.4 Most customers are satisfied with the service they are receiving from HMRC. Satisfaction with phone, webchat and digital services was 80.0% to the end of November 2025-26, meeting their 80% customer satisfaction target. Customer satisfaction with digital services is consistently above 80% (82.9% up to the end of November 2025-26). Notes:Staff numbers represent averages of monthly data.Numbers include permanent and temporary staff for HMRC Customer Services Group. Numbers are for full-time equivalents.

What estimate his Department has made of the average time taken to complete earnings assessments for carers in receipt of Carer's Allowance who undertake part-time self-employment; and if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing monthly online income reporting for self-employed carers to streamline the assessment process.

For most self-employed earners the department relies on their accounts to calculate the relevant weekly net earnings figure for Carer’s Allowance (CA) purposes. The modernisation of DWP IT systems will provide the foundation to deliver DWP’s long-term strategy to improve how earnings are treated in CA. This is being explored through discovery work to explore potential solutions including the automation of earnings. The department does not collect data on the average time taken to complete earnings assessments for unpaid carers in receipt of CA who are self-employed.

What steps he is taking to reduce the backlog for NHS England’s Clinical Priorities Advisory Group Prioritisation meeting.

The next Clinical Priorities Advisory Group (CPAG) prioritisation meeting is planned for spring 2026, where policies that are ready and require investment decisions to be taken will be considered. It is expected up to 20 such policies will be considered at the next meeting.CPAG also continues to meet monthly to consider policy and service specifications that are categorised as cost saving or cost neutral.

How many times NHS England’s Clinical Priorities Advisory Group Prioritisation meeting happens each year; and when the next meeting will be.

NHS England’s Clinical Priorities Advisory Group (CPAG) meets monthly to consider policy and service specifications that are categorised as cost saving or cost neutral. CPAG prioritisation meetings are held annually. The next prioritisation meeting is planned for spring 2026.

Food and Rural Affairs, when her Department plans to publish its response to the consultation entitled Amending the hydrofluorocarbon phasedown schedule, published on 5 November 2025.

Information submitted through the consultation, which closed on 17 December 2024, is being used to inform our consideration of next steps. A response and an outline of next steps will be published on GOV.UK in due course. Other regulatory changes may be considered in the future in relation to fluorinated gases (which include hydrofluorocarbons). The UK Government, in collaboration with the Scottish and Welsh Governments, is committed to further exploring areas for reform considered out of scope of last year’s consultation. This includes assessing the situation regarding training on alternatives to fluorinated gases.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department plans to review the proposed timelines to implement the safety measures required for the transition to alternative refrigerants with flammability or toxicity characteristics in the consultation entitled Amending the hydrofluorocarbon phasedown schedule, published on 5 November 2025.

Information submitted through the consultation, which closed on 17 December 2024, is being used to inform our consideration of next steps. A response and an outline of next steps will be published on GOV.UK in due course. Other regulatory changes may be considered in the future in relation to fluorinated gases (which include hydrofluorocarbons). The UK Government, in collaboration with the Scottish and Welsh Governments, is committed to further exploring areas for reform considered out of scope of last year’s consultation. This includes assessing the situation regarding training on alternatives to fluorinated gases.

What support his Department is providing to small and medium-sized exporters to maintain tariff relief secured under the US-UK Economic Prosperity Deal.

It was this government that got the first trade deal with the US, protecting British jobs and saving people money. We remain the only country to have secured a 10% tariff on cars within quota, agreed a 0% tariff on pharmaceutical exports to the US, and avoided the 50% global steel and aluminium tariff.The Department for Business and Trade has integrated its support for SMEs in a single, accessible place – the Business Growth Service – designed to help businesses across the UK start, scale, and succeed globally. UK businesses can access guidance on exporting, including to the US, via business.gov.uk.

If he will make an assessment of the potential impact of the UK-US Pharmaceuticals Deal concluded in December 2025 on (a) NHS procurement costs and (b) consumer access to affordable medicines before any provisions of that Deal take effect.

There are no current plans to publish an impact assessment or modelling on the United Kingdom and United States’ pharmaceutical trade deal. Further detail on the deal will be shared in due course.Tens of thousands of National Health Service patients will benefit from this deal, which will secure and expand access to vital drugs, and thereby safeguard our medicines supply chain.Costs will start smaller but will increase over time as the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) approves more life improving and lifesaving medicines. Total costs over the Spending Review period are expected to be approximately £1 billion. The final costs will depend on which medicines NICE recommends and the actual uptake of these.This deal is a vital investment that builds on the strength of our NHS and world leading life sciences sector, without taking essential funding from our frontline NHS services.

What plans he has to provide Parliament with the opportunity to scrutinise the US-UK Economic Prosperity Deal before its provisions take effect.

Any final agreement will be scrutinised by Parliament in line with established procedures. Any primary or secondary legislation required to implement an agreement will also be subject to standard legislative procedures.