Written questions by Smith.

What recent discussions she has had with her counterparts in the police on reducing knife crime.

Home Office Ministers meet regularly with Chief Constables and other senior policing leaders to discuss knife crime. For example, the Home Secretary discussed knife crime at the National Policing Board in July 2025 and the Policing Minister chaired the Knife-Enabled Robbery Group in November 2025.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of an increase in energy costs on businesses in North Yorkshire.

The Government has not made such an assessment specific to North Yorkshire. While the Government is tackling energy costs at every avenue, to drive growth, we also understand that some UK industries are struggling with the cost of energy. The Government has a variety of schemes, already in place or due to be launched soon, that either directly support businesses by reducing energy costs or support them to reduce costs by making energy efficiencies and decarbonising. Schemes that directly reduce energy costs include the British Industrial Competitiveness Scheme, which will reduce electricity prices by up to 25% for eligible businesses in electricity intensive manufacturing sectors in the Industrial Strategy and foundational sectors in their supply chain, and the British Industry Supercharger, which includes a series of targeted measures to bring down electricity policy costs for businesses in key energy intensive industries. The Government is also providing funding to improve the UK Business Climate Hub (UKBCH), an online resource which will support SMEs to identify and implement changes to their energy use, resulting in decarbonisation and energy bill savings. Funding is also being provided to support a Zero Carbon Services Hospitality trial, which will deliver a trial of online tools and services to support SMEs in hospitality across England to decarbonise and reduce their energy demand.

What estimate she has made of the number of injuries to pedestrians caused by rented electric bikes in each of the last five years.

The Department does not currently collect specific data on incidents involving rental e-bikes. The Standing Committee on Road Injury Collision Statistics, which oversees the collection of road collision and casualty statistics known as STATS19, is currently reviewing the recording of vehicle and propulsion types within STATS19 with a view to providing better guidance to reporting police officers on the classification of e-bikes.

Whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of phasing out the general sale of sharp-tipped culinary knives.

We recognise that the issue of knife crime and the harm caused by any knife has a very real impact on individuals, families and communities and we aim to halve knife crime in the next decade. The Government keeps the law in this area under constant review, but we do not have any plans to phase out the sale of sharp-tipped culinary knives.

What steps she is taking to reduce knife crime.

Tackling knife crime is a priority for Government. Since this Government has been in office, knife homicides have fallen by almost 20% while knife crime overall has fallen for the first time in 4 years, dropping by 5% in our first year from 54,215 to 51,527. Stabbings have fallen by 10% (as measured by hospital admissions for assault with a sharp object – NHS data).60,000 knives have also been removed from the streets of England and Wales under this Government, through weapons surrender schemes, knives seized by Border Force and those recovered through County Lines Programme operations.Our approach to tackling knife-crime is centred around smart, targeted interventions and enforcement, and a tough legislative landscape to remove dangerous weapons from our streets. Whilst also working across government to tackle the root causes of knife-crime, including through Violence Reduction Units and the new Young Futures Programme supporting those most at risk.We have introduced tougher knife control measures by banning zombie-style knives and machetes in September 2024 and ninja swords in August 2025. Ronan's Law tightens online knife sales with stricter age checks and penalties and we are introducing new powers to strengthen policing’s ability to seize, retain and destroy dangerous knives.These efforts are supported by smarter policing – including data led hotspot patrols, knife arches, facial recognition – and strong partnerships with charities and communities.We are also introducing new, innovative tools to fight knife crime, identifying crime hotspots by breaking towns and cities into small hexagonal zones where hyper-local issues can be spotted. It will allow the police to partner with local communities, advocacy groups, local authorities and youth outreach teams to spot a problem and take action together to stop it.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of reductions in the prices paid to British dairy farmers by suppliers; and whether she plans to review the adequacy of the regulatory framework governing the dairy supply chain.

Prices in the dairy sector are influenced by a wide range of factors, including global market trends, input costs and consumer demand. The Fair Dealing Obligations (Milk) Regulations 2024, which came fully into force earlier this year, are designed to bring greater transparency and fairness to contractual relationships between farmers and milk purchasers. The regulations require clear and objective pricing terms, helping farmers to understand how the price they receive is determined and to plan their business decisions with greater confidence. These regulations are subject to a statutory review to assess their effectiveness and ensure that the framework continues to operate as intended.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to help expedite grant clearance under the Farming Equipment and Technology Fund.

The Rural Payments Agency (RPA) understands the importance of cashflow for farmers and rural businesses. The Agency used an Online Application system to streamline data collection and is using automation to simplify due diligence checks. Agreement Holders should claim their payment by the deadline of midday on 31 March 2026 and provide all of the necessary evidence. The RPA aims to process and pay complete claims within 60 working days and continues to look at opportunities to expedite grant clearance for the Farming Equipment and Technology Fund as promptly as possible.

With reference to the policy paper entitled Fit for the future: 10 Year Health Plan for England, published on 30 July 2025, whether the proposal to provide opt-out smoking cessation interventions in all routine care within hospitals includes people who (a) have been referred through urgent suspected referral for cancer, (b) are awaiting cancer treatment and (c) are undergoing cancer treatment.

The 10-Year Health Plan committed to ensuring that all hospitals integrate ‘opt-out’ smoking cessation interventions into routine care. Within their 2025/26 allocations, integrated care boards have access to funding to support the rollout of tobacco dependency treatment services in hospital settings, including acute and mental health inpatient settings and maternity services. Where inpatients are identified as a smoker, including those in cancer-related services or undergoing cancer treatment, the expectation would be for them to receive an opt-out referral to talk to a specialist and subsequently make an informed decision about accessing treatment tailored to their needs.Future funding decisions, including any decision to expand tobacco dependency treatment services across routine care, are subject to the Spending Review process.

Pursuant to the Answer of 10 July 2025 to Question 64433 on Smoking: Health Services, if he will take steps to use (a) A&E, (b) lung screening and (c) other new NHS services to automatically enrol smokers into cessation services.

The 10-Year Health Plan committed to ensuring that all hospitals integrate ‘opt-out’ smoking cessation interventions into routine care. Within their 2025/26 allocations, integrated care boards have access to funding to support the rollout of tobacco dependency treatment services in hospital settings, including acute and mental health inpatient settings and maternity services. Where inpatients are identified as a smoker, including those in cancer-related services or undergoing cancer treatment, the expectation would be for them to receive an opt-out referral to talk to a specialist and subsequently make an informed decision about accessing treatment tailored to their needs.Future funding decisions, including any decision to expand tobacco dependency treatment services across routine care, are subject to the Spending Review process.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of the time taken for (a) Sustainable Farming Incentive and (b) productivity grant payments on (i) rural supply chains and (ii) farm investment decisions.

Defra and the Rural Payments Agency (RPA) understand the importance of cashflow for farmers and rural businesses in their investment decisions and any impacts on the wider supply chain. The RPA has in recent years made more payments for the schemes they administer, earlier in the payment window. The RPA has also taken steps to improve the flow of payments. With a quarterly payments structure for the Sustainable Farming Incentive, schemes continue to be administered with payment frequency in mind, and the RPA continues to look at opportunities to issue payments and expedite grant clearance as promptly as possible.

Whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of investing in early dispute resolution and mediation for the purposes of resolving disputes in the SEND system.

The department believes that more special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) disputes should be resolved earlier, with families, settings and local authorities working together to develop solutions to disagreements.We are aware that not all families are able to access high quality, earlier dispute resolution through either local authority-commission mediation or disagreement resolution services. We are considering what more we can do to strengthen earlier dispute resolution and will set out our vision for redress in a reformed SEND system shortly.

What plans his Department has to publish a response to the Civil Justice Council's report entitled Review of Litigation Funding, published on 2 June 2025.

The Government recognises the critical role third-party litigation funding plays in access to justice. That is why we are committed to ensuring it works fairly for all.The Civil Justice Council’s review will help inform the Government’s approach to any potential reforms in this area. The Government welcomes this review and is carefully considering the detailed recommendations in the final report . We will outline next steps in due course.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department is taking steps to support tenant stock-rearing farmers with the costs of (a) rising feed, (b) energy and (c) national insurance costs.

The Government’s New Deal for Farmers includes a raft of new policies and major investment to boost profits for farmers.  We have allocated a record £11.8 billion to sustainable farming and food production over this parliament. With regard to these specific issues:The UK agricultural sector is highly resilient and adaptable and operates in an open market with the value of commodities established by those in the supply chain. We have seen evidence of this particularly in recent years following global events such as the Covid-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine. It is recognised that there are a wide range of factors which can affect livestock production. These include the impacts of price, input costs, currency fluctuations, and market demand. Defra’s “Agriculture in the UK 2024” report published earlier this year found that feed prices overall have fallen. The government will continue to monitor the issue.The Government recognises that some businesses, in particular small businesses, may still be struggling to pay their bills. These businesses should contact their supplier to discuss their options. Non-domestic consumers with contracts agreed at higher prices may benefit from approaches such as ‘blend and extend’ contracts, where the original, higher, unit rate is ‘blended’ with a new lower rate, spreading the cost over the course of a longer contract. In the long-term, the Government believes that our mission to deliver clean power by 2030 is the best way to break our dependence on global fossil fuel markets and protect billpayers permanently. The creation of Great British Energy will help us to harness clean energy with less reliance on volatile international energy markets and help in our commitment to make Britain a clean energy superpower by 2030.The Government has protected the smallest businesses from the impact of the increase to employer National Insurance by increasing the Employment Allowance from £5,000 to £10,500. That means more than half of businesses with NICs liabilities either gain or see no change this year.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of (a) the effectiveness of agricultural funding schemes and (b) how they can support food production.

Food security is national security. We need a resilient and healthy food system, that works with nature and supports British farmers, fishers and food producers. As part of the Government’s Plan for Change we are delivering on the Government’s New Deal for Farmers which includes a raft of new policies and major investment to boost profits for farmers. We have allocated a record £11.8 billion to sustainable farming and food production over this parliament. We are working closely with farmers and industry stakeholders to design a future SFI offer that fairly and responsibly directs funding. Further details about the reformed SFI offer will be announced later this year. The Farming Innovation Programme, delivered in partnership with Innovate UK, provides grants to support industry-led R&D to develop technologies and innovative practices to drive innovation in agriculture and increase productivity, sustainability and resilience in our farming sectors. We have also protected farmers in trade deals and provided a five-year extension to the Seasonal Worker route, giving farms certainty to grow their businesses. We are using our own purchasing power to back British produce, with an ambition, where possible, for half of food supplied into the public sector to be produced locally or certified to high environmental standards. We are reforming the planning system to support clean energy projects that align with our Clean Power 2030 ambitions, helping farm businesses to become more profitable and resilient.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to develop a sustainable funding solution for the BBC World Service.

The Government highly values the BBC World Service, which makes a significant contribution to UK soft power. According to a 2025 survey conducted for the BBC by the independent polling company, Tapestry, the BBC is a leader in driving favourable impressions of the UK and is the country's most recognised cultural export internationally.The World Service is currently funded by the BBC Licence Fee and Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office Grant-in-Aid. Any changes to funding models will be explored through the Charter Review process, led by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. The Charter Review is the right moment to look at potential future World Service funding mechanisms for the longer-term.Despite a tough fiscal situation, we have continued to back the World Service, providing a large uplift of £32.6 million this year alone, taking our total funding to £137 million.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the BBC World Service on the UK's soft power.

The Government highly values the BBC World Service, which makes a significant contribution to UK soft power. According to a 2025 survey conducted for the BBC by the independent polling company, Tapestry, the BBC is a leader in driving favourable impressions of the UK and is the country's most recognised cultural export internationally.The World Service is currently funded by the BBC Licence Fee and Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office Grant-in-Aid. Any changes to funding models will be explored through the Charter Review process, led by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. The Charter Review is the right moment to look at potential future World Service funding mechanisms for the longer-term.Despite a tough fiscal situation, we have continued to back the World Service, providing a large uplift of £32.6 million this year alone, taking our total funding to £137 million.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of allocating BBC World Service funding on a three year basis.

Grant-in-Aid funding for the BBC World Service will be decided through the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office allocations process in the autumn.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of funding reductions to the BBC World Service on the UK's ability to counter foreign threats.

Through high quality and investigative journalism, the BBC exposes and debunks the misinformation, disinformation and harmful narratives that malign actors, hostile states and others produce internationally. The World Service remains the world's most trusted international news service. That is why this Government has given the World Service a funding uplift in 2025/26.

What assessment she has made of the potential implications for his policies of representations received by his Department on its proposed reforms to inheritance tax on farms.

The Government believes its reforms to agricultural property relief and business property relief from 6 April 2026 get the balance right between supporting farms and businesses, and fixing the public finances. The reforms reduce the inheritance tax advantages available to owners of agricultural and business assets, but still mean those assets will be taxed at a much lower effective rate than most other assets. Despite a tough fiscal context, the Government will maintain very significant levels of relief from inheritance tax beyond what is available to others and compared to the position before 1992. Where inheritance tax is due, those liable for a charge can pay any liability on the relevant assets over 10 annual instalments, interest-free. Ministers and officials from multiple Government departments have had several meetings with organisations on this matter since Autumn Budget 2024. After listening, the Government believes the approach set out is an appropriate one.

What assessment he has made of the potential merits of using mandatory mediation in the Competition Appeal Tribunal.

This government is committed to access to justice, and I share the interest of the Rt. Hon. member’s in reducing the burdens of litigation through Alternative Dispute Resolution. The CAT Rules afford the Tribunal significant powers to encourage and facilitate Alternative Dispute Resolution.