Written questions by Dillon.

What steps his Department is taking to support UK film exports, in the context of the announcement of 100% tariffs on films produced in the UK by the US President on 5 May 2025.

My department has a dedicated exports promotion programme for the film and high-end TV industry, which includes providing export support for businesses at major international film festivals and markets. We work with the UK film and TV sectors to remove market access barriers to enable businesses to increase their exports and use free trade agreements to grow exports.

What support her Department is providing to schools to ensure that at least 50 percent of children achieve passes in (a) maths and (b) English GCSEs in Newbury constituency.

In the 2023/24 academic year, 69.7% of students in the Newbury constituency achieved a grade 4 or above in both English and mathematics, and 49.5% of students achieved a grade 5 or above in both subjects.High and rising school standards, with excellent foundations in reading, writing and mathematics, are at the heart of the government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity and give every child the best start in life.To drive standards in reading and writing, the government has committed £27.7 million in the 2025/26 financial year. This includes new training and resources for secondary school staff to support reading in key stage 3, with a specific focus on readers who are at risk of falling behind. The department’s English Hubs programme also supports the teaching of phonics, early language development and reading for pleasure. Newbury’s nearest English Hub is Whiteknights English Hub.To drive standards in mathematics the department funds the Maths Hubs programme, supported by the National Centre for Excellence in the Teaching of Mathematics. Local maths hubs provide school-to-school support focused on mathematics subject knowledge and pedagogy training for teachers in primary and secondary schools. The Newbury constituency is served by the Buckinghamshire, Berkshire and Oxfordshire Maths Hub, which reports participation from 85% of schools from within its region.

Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of proposed US tariffs on foreign-produced films on the UK film industry.

There are no tariffs on the UK film industry, but we continue to monitor the situation closely and recognise the seriousness of this issue.We continue to take a calm and balanced approach to our discussions with the US following our recent UK-US Economic Prosperity Deal.The US and the UK have a special, mutually beneficial relationship, unique cultural and linguistic ties. Our film sectors are heavily connected, founded on decades of partnership and exchange.Our commitment to helping our film and TV industry flourish remains absolute and it is important to maintain the conditions that allow our sectors to continue to flourish together and avoid measures which undermine these conditions.

What support her Department is providing to schools that are having to reduce costs in Newbury constituency.

Overall school funding is increasing by £3.7 billion in the 2025/26 financial year, meaning the core school budget will total £65.3 billion. This is a 6% rise in cash terms compared to 2024/25.Schools in West Berkshire local authority are attracting £143.6 million through the dedicated schools grant. This represents an increase of 2.6% per pupil compared to 2024/25.We are providing schools with an additional £615 million in the 2025/26 financial year to support them with the 4% teacher pay award and 3.2% support staff pay offer. Schools will be expected play their part in driving productivity across the public sector and find approximately the first 1% of pay awards by ensuring resources are deployed to maximise support for teaching and learning.We are supporting schools to make savings and bring down operating costs. For example, 400 schools participating in the department’s new energy offer are projected to save an average of 36% compared to previous contracts.We are also working to secure better banking solutions and provide services such as Get Help Buying for Schools and the Teaching Vacancies Service to reduce procurement and recruitment costs.We know workforce deployment is the biggest component of school budgets. We will support schools to benefit fully from the tools we already offer to benchmark and integrate resourcing and curriculum planning, such as the Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool. We will also introduce a new toolkit to support schools to adopt evidence-based deployment models.

What steps he plans to take to help improve services at West Berkshire Community Hospital.

The Government is committed to shifting the focus of the National Health Service out of hospitals and into the community, and this will be referenced in our forthcoming 10-Year Health Plan. We recognise that delivering high-quality NHS healthcare services requires the right infrastructure in the right places.The Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and West Berkshire Integrated Care Board (ICB) and providers have been provisionally allocated £39.3 million this financial year from our Constitutional Standards Recovery Fund to deliver new surgical hubs, diagnostic scanners, and beds to increase capacity for elective and emergency care. In addition, it has been provisionally allocated £2.8 million from our Primary Care Utilisation Fund to modernise and upgrade general practice surgeries, and £37.1 million from our Estates Safety Fund to address critical infrastructure and safety risks.We are encouraging local NHS trusts and ICBs to explore possible options that could address constitutional standards recovery alongside addressing infrastructure issues, maximising value for money and patient benefits.Alongside national programme allocations, the system has been provisionally allocated £123.1 million in operational capital funding, including primary care business-as-usual capital, for 2025/26, to be prioritised according to local needs, such as investing in acute and community hospital infrastructure.

If he will support plans to relocate additional facilities to West Berkshire Community Hospital to help ease pressures at the Royal Berkshire Hospital.

National Health Service commissioners are responsible for delivery, implementation, and funding decisions for services, rather than the Department. Local health and care organisations are best placed to make decisions on commissioning services for their communities. Decisions about services should be clinically led, following appropriate engagement with the local authority, the local population, and stakeholders.All service changes should be based on clear evidence that they will deliver better outcomes for patients.Substantial planned service change is subject to a full public consultation and must meet the Government and NHS England’s ‘tests’ to ensure good decision making.

What assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of proposed reductions in staff numbers in schools in Newbury on academic outcomes for children.

Recruiting and retaining high-quality teachers is critical to the government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity and boost the life chances for every child. This is why the government’s Plan for Change has committed to recruiting an additional 6,500 new expert teachers in secondary and special schools, and in our colleges, over the course of this Parliament.To support this key pledge, we recently announced a 4% pay award for teachers and leaders in maintained schools from September 2025. This builds on the 5.5% pay award for 2024/25, resulting in a near 10% pay award since this government came to power, to ensure teaching is once again a valued and attractive profession. This is on top of the £700 million invested across schools and further education this year, which included bursaries for trainees and increasing targeted retention incentives for early career teachers, in key subjects. We also provided resources to improve teachers’ workload and wellbeing and now allow more flexibility for teachers, such as undertaking planning, preparation assessment from home.Our investment is starting to deliver. The workforce has grown by 2,346 full-time equivalent (FTE), between 2023/24 and 2024/25, in secondary and special schools. Overall teacher numbers have also increased in Newbury constituency under this government, with 842.2 FTE teachers in November 2024, as reported in the latest Schools Workforce Census.

What steps his Department plans to take to raise awareness in young children about the health benefits of wearing suncream.

The Department continues to advise patients to follow National Health Service guidance on sun protection. This advice is available publicly at the following link:https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/seasonal-health/sunscreen-and-sun-safety/It includes guidance on the extra care that should be taken for babies and children. As their skin is much more sensitive than adults, guidance advises children under six months old to be kept out of direct sunlight. Additionally, from March to October in the United Kingdom, children should wear suitable clothing, and wear at least SPF30 suncream.The UK Health Security Agency also provides guidance which includes information on suncream and is available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/guidance/looking-after-children-and-those-in-early-years-settings-before-and-during-hot-weather-teachers-and-other-educational-professionalsThe toolkit is intended to provide health information and other resources that can be communicated during hot spells.

What steps her Department is taking to ensure that schools in deprived areas offer A-level physics courses to pupils.

High and rising school standards are central to the government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity and provide every child with the best start in life. Whilst it is ultimately for individual schools to decide which A level courses to offer their students, the best way of supporting schools to offer A level physics courses, including those in deprived areas, is to ensure high quality physics teaching at all levels by helping schools to recruit and retain good teachers.For the 2024/25 and 2025/26 academic years, the department is offering a targeted retention incentive worth up to £6,000 after tax for physics teachers in the first five years of their careers who work in schools in disadvantaged areas. This is double the payments that were previously offered.For those training to teach in the 2025/26 academic year, there is a bursary worth £29,000 tax-free or a prestigious scholarship worth £31,000 tax-free to train to teach physics.There were 688 new entrants to physics postgraduate initial teacher training (PGITT) in the 2024/25 academic year, a 48% increase on the number of 2023/24 entrants.Recruitment is on track to improve even further for the cohort set to start training in the 2025/26 academic year. As of April 2025, 962 candidates have accepted offers for PGITT courses in physics, an increase of around 47% compared to the same point last year.Subject knowledge enhancement (SKE) courses support recruitment to initial teacher training in hard-to-recruit subjects, such as physics. SKE participants benefit from blended courses tailored to their individual needs to meet the minimum knowledge required to train to teach their chosen subject, which leads to the award of qualified teacher status.The department also funds the Subject Knowledge for Physics Teaching programme. This is a series of blended learning courses, with modules available each term to support non-specialist teachers of key stage 3 and 4 physics to enhance their subject knowledge.

What steps his Department is taking to improve services for people with Parkinson's disease.

At the national level, there are a number of initiatives supporting service improvement and better care for patients with Parkinson’s disease in England, including the Getting It Right First Time Programme for Neurology and the RightCare Progressive Neurological Conditions Toolkit. NHS England has also established a Neurology Transformation Programme, a multi-year, clinically-led programme, which has developed a new model of integrated care to support integrated care boards to deliver the right service, at the right time, for all neurology patients, including those with Parkinson’s.NHS England commissions the specialised elements of Parkinson’s care that patients may receive from 27 specialised neurology centres across England. Within specialised centres, neurological multidisciplinary teams ensure patients can access a range of health professionals and specialised treatment and support, according to their needs. NHS England is updating the Neurosciences specialised neurology (adults) service specification, which will: set out clear deliverables for specialised centres; provide a clearer model of care, incorporating up-to-date guidance and best practice; and set out new quality outcomes focusing on improving patient outcomes and experience. We are expecting the revised specification and standards to be published later in 2025.We have also set up a United Kingdom-wide Neuro Forum, facilitating formal, biannual meetings across the Department, NHS England, the devolved administrations and health services, and the Neurological Alliances of all four nations. The new forum brings key stakeholders together, to share learnings across the system and discuss challenges, best practice examples, and potential solutions for improving the care of people with neurological conditions, including Parkinson’s.

What discussions she has had with Cabinet colleagues on ensuring that the specific needs of older women are recognised in policy making.

The Government is committed to ensuring that equality and opportunity for all are central to our policymaking and every Mission. This includes actively considering the needs of older women and preventing discrimination against them. The Equality Act 2010 contains strong protections for older women in a variety of settings, including work and the provision of services. The Act prohibits discrimination because of age and harassment related to age. In addition, the Employment Rights Bill will introduce robust measures to further safeguard working women, including gender pay gap and menopause action plans. The Government recognises the challenges some older women can face and is committed to ensuring that support systems are in place. These include improving older people’s participation online through the new Digital Inclusion Action plan, employment support through Jobcentres, and addressing healthcare inequality in the 10 Year Health Plan, to ensure the NHS is there for anyone who needs it, whenever they need it.

What plans her Department has to increase funding for (a) road maintenance and (b) pothole repairs in Newbury.

West Berkshire Council is the local highway authority for Newbury. The Government is providing West Berkshire Council with £8.9 million of highway maintenance funding in 2025/26, an increase of over £2.3 million compared to 2024/25. Funding is not ring-fenced, and it is a matter for local authorities to determine how the money is best spent. Decisions on future funding settlements for local highway authorities, including West Berkshire Council, will be decided as part of the Spending Review.

When her Department plans to publish details of the changes to inheritance tax.

The Government has already published significant details about the reforms to inheritance tax announced at Autumn Budget 2024. The Government is currently considering the responses to the technical consultation on the application of agricultural property relief and business property relief to trusts. The Government is also considering the responses to the technical consultation on the liability for reporting and paying any inheritance tax due on pensions. The Government will respond to both these technical consultations in due course. Draft legislation will be published in the normal way later this year and legislation implementing these policies will be brought forward ahead of the measures taking effect.

Whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of developing a national brain tumour strategy.

I refer the Hon. Member to the answer given to the Hon. Member for Inverness, Skye and West Ross-shire on 14 March 2025 to Question 36024.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of changes to employer's National Insurance on small healthcare businesses.

A Tax Information and Impact Note (TIIN) was published alongside the introduction of the Bill containing the changes to employer NICs. The TIIN sets out the impact of the policy on the exchequer, the economic impacts of the policy, and the impacts on individuals, businesses, and civil society organisations, as well as an overview of the equality impacts.

What plans his Department has to provide support services for autistic adults in West Berkshire who are not supported (a) existing services and (b) charitable organisations.

It is the responsibility of the integrated care boards (ICBs) to make available appropriate provision to meet the health and care needs of their local population, including access to support for autistic adults, in line with relevant National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines.On 5 April 2023, NHS England published a national framework and operational guidance to help ICBs and the National Health Service to deliver improved outcomes for children, young people, and adults referred to an autism assessment service. The guidance also sets out what support should be available before an assessment and what support should follow a recent diagnosis of autism based on the available evidence. Since publication, NHS England has been supporting systems and services to identify where there are challenges for implementation and how they might overcome these.The Department has launched an independent commission into adult social care as part of our critical first steps towards delivering a National Care Service. Chaired by Baroness Louise Casey and reporting to the Prime Minister, the commission will work with people who draw on care and their families, staff, Parliamentarians, local government, and the public, private, and third sector to make clear recommendations for how to rebuild the adult social care system to meet the current and future needs of the population. The Government has also made available up to £3.7 billion of additional funding for social care authorities in 2025/26, which includes a £880 million increase in the Social Care Grant.

What plans his Department has to improve support for family carers providing care at home for relatives with learning disabilities.

The Government is committed to ensuring that the families of people with learning disabilities have the support they need.On the 7 of April 2025, the Government increased the Carer's Allowance weekly earnings limit from £151 a week to £196, the equivalent of 16 hours at the National Living Wage. This represents the largest increase in the earnings limit since the Carer’s Allowance was introduced in 1976.Lord Darzi’s independent review of the National Health Service highlighted the need for a fresh approach to supporting and involving unpaid carers, to improve outcomes across the board, for carers, for those they care for, and for the NHS itself.These findings will be carefully considered as part of our 10-year plan to reform and modernise the NHS, and as we continue to shape our plans to reform adult social care, including through the National Care Service.We have also launched an independent commission into adult social care as part of our critical first steps towards delivering a National Care Service.The commission will start a national conversation about what care and support working age adults, older people, and their families can expect from adult social care, including exploring the needs of unpaid carers, who provide vital care and support.

What assessment she has made of the potential merits of providing full compensation to Equitable Life policyholders.

The Equitable Life Payment Scheme has been fully wound down and closed since 2016 and there are no plans to reopen any decisions relating to the Payment Scheme or review the £1.5 billion funding allocation previously made to it. Further guidance on the status of the Payment Scheme after closure is available at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/equitable-life-payment-scheme#closure-of-the-scheme.

What plans his Department has to improve NHS dental service provision in Newbury.

The Government plans to tackle the challenges for patients trying to access National Health Service dental care with a rescue plan to provide 700,000 more urgent dental appointments and recruit new dentists to the areas that need them most. To rebuild dentistry in the long term, we will reform the dental contract with the sector, with a shift to focus on prevention and the retention of NHS dentists.The responsibility for commissioning primary care services, including NHS dentistry, to meet the needs of the local population has been delegated to the integrated care boards (ICBs) across England. For the Newbury constituency, this is the NHS Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire West ICB. ICBs have been asked to start making extra urgent dental appointments available from April 2025. The Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire West ICB is expected to deliver 15,454 additional urgent dental appointments as part of the scheme.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the Planning and Infrastructure Bill on the health of chalk streams.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 45278 on 30 April 2025.