Written questions by Jopp.

What steps he is taking to increase the provision of equipment to Ukraine.

We can be very proud as a nation that this year, the UK will give more military support to Ukraine than ever, with a £4.5 billion boost, including £600 million into accelerating drone delivery. As part of the £1.6 billion announced earlier this year, we recently announced delivery of an extra 140 lightweight-multirole missiles ahead of schedule and a UK-Ukrainian project to mass produce thousands of advanced air defence interceptor drones to help take down shahids and cruise missile attacking civilians Ukraine. The UK is co-leading the Ukraine Defence Contact Group with Germany and Coalition of the Willing with France, encouraging allies to provide more to Ukraine.

Food and Rural Affairs, what progress he has made on the River Thames Scheme.

The River Thames Scheme is a proposed flood risk management project being developed by the Environment Agency and Surrey County Council. It is a landscape-based project designed to reduce flood risk to over 11,000 homes and businesses, while also creating new green open spaces and sustainable travel routes. The River Thames Scheme is currently in mid project review. This review is to ensure that the scheme remains efficient, cost-effective and aligned with long-term goals; and to ensure the project delivers flood risk benefits in a robust and sustainable manner.

What discussions he has had with Integrated Care Boards to facilitate the return of used (a) wheelchairs and (b) other medical equipment.

In October 2024, the Department published the Design for Life roadmap, a new strategy to transition away from all avoidable single-use medical technology (MedTech) products towards a functioning circular system by 2045. This includes improving systems that enable the return of mobility aids, such as wheelchairs, and many other types of MedTech.The Design for Life Roadmap is available at the following link:https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/679ca015a9ee53687470a2ed/design-for-life-roadmap.pdfThis was developed in discussion with a collaborative of more than 80 stakeholders from the UK MedTech industry, the health family, and academia, with wide support across the sector. Moving forward, the Department will continue to engage with the expanding collaborative, including with integrated care boards, to design and implement the systems that facilitate greater levels of return of used MedTech.

If she will make an assessment of the potential impact of taxing horse racing at the same rates of other types of gambling on the horse racing industry.

The Government consultation on proposals to simplify the current gambling tax system by merging the three current taxes that cover remote (including online) gambling into one closed on 21 July 2025. Responses are now being analysed and a response to the consultation will be published at Autumn Budget 2025. If any changes are made to gambling duties at a future Budget following the consultation, they will be accompanied by a Tax Information and Impact Note which will set out the expected impacts.

How many wheelchairs the NHS have issued in the last year.

Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for the provision and commissioning of local wheelchair services.Data on the number of National Health Service wheelchairs issued is not held centrally. While NHS England collects quarterly data from ICBs through the National Wheelchair Data Collection, which supports the drive for improvements in wheelchair services, this is ICB-level data that does not include specific data on individual services, such as numbers of wheelchairs issued. Further information about the National Wheelchair Data Collection is available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/national-wheelchair/

Whether her Department has agreed a new two-year contract to put asylum seekers in the Mercure Stanwell Hotel.

It has been the longstanding policy of the Home Office under successive governments not to disclose information about specific hotels which may or may not be used for asylum accommodation.However, the Home Office continues to work with a range of stakeholders to fulfil our statutory obligations and deliver our commitment to reduce the overall cost of asylum accommodation, including ending the use of hotels, by the end of this Parliament.

Whether she plans to close the asylum hotel in Spelthorne constituency.

It has been the longstanding policy of the Home Office under successive governments not to disclose information about specific hotels which may or may not be used for asylum accommodation.However, the Home Office continues to work with a range of stakeholders to fulfil our statutory obligations and deliver our commitment to reduce the overall cost of asylum accommodation, including ending the use of hotels, by the end of this Parliament.

What the evidential basis is for encouraging children with SEND into mainstream schools.

The department has published independently commissioned insight from the Delivering Better Value programme. This research suggests that, if the system were extensively improved, including using early intervention and better resourcing mainstream schools, tens of thousands more children and young people could have their needs met without the need for lengthy waits and assessments, and have their needs met in a mainstream setting, rather than a specialist placement. Further detail on the research is available here: https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/63b6e5debb4b0114060dc226/66421eaae18cb50ccc378780_66421a046d5569ec0ad11674_DBV%20-%20Phase%201%20Insights%20Summary_Website%20v1.0_Final.pdf.Further details of the government's intended approach to special educational needs and disabilities reform will be set out in a White Paper in the autumn.

What steps her Department is taking to help prevent people residing in asylum hotels from taking up illegal employment.

This Government is determined to tackle illegal working, and since coming to office, we have increased the number of raids, arrests and fines against offenders to their highest level in almost a decade.We have also secured pledges from delivery firms to increase verification checks on their drivers, and introduced new legislation in the Border Security Bill to make employment checks mandatory in the gig economy. It remains very disappointing that the party opposite chose to vote against those crucial measures.

With reference to the press release entitled UK to purchase F-35As and join NATO nuclear mission as Government steps up national security and delivers defence dividend, published on 24 June 2025, whether his Department plans to buy fewer F-35B aircraft.

The Ministry of Defence will initially purchase 12 F-35A aircraft from within previously agreed F-35B purchase schedules. Future F-35 purchases will be reviewed as part of the Defence Investment Plan, which will conclude in the autumn.

What the average time was for an export license to be granted to a defence business from first application to approval in the latest period for which data is available.

During 2024, the median processing time in SPIRE for all completed Standard Individual Export Licence (SIEL) applications was 16 working days. On average, completed SIEL applications account for around 95% of all completed licence applications. We do not gather the median processing time per sector.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of the publication of the Strategic Defence Review on trading of shares in UK-listed defence companies.

The Strategic Defence Review was published on 2 June 2025. It is not government policy to comment on the market impacts of policy announcements.

If the Prime Minister will fly the Middlesex flag from 10 Downing Street to celebrate Middlesex Day on 16 May 2025.

I refer the Hon Member to my answer of 9 May 2025, Official Report, PQ 48177

What steps she is taking with South Western Railway to help improve service reliability.

South Western Railway’s performance has been impacted by the late introduction of their Class 701 ‘Arterio’ fleet, leading to a reliance on older, less reliable trains. Officials are meeting regularly with the operator to discuss performance, and the Secretary of State met with FirstGroup and MTR on 13th May to discuss recent failures in the introduction of the new fleet and what they are doing to speed up next steps.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of Chinese citizens deployed by Russia in the war on Ukraine.

Russia's increasing recruitment of foreign nationals to fight in its illegal invasion of Ukraine demonstrates its underlying weakness. We have noted recent reports of Chinese citizens deployed by Russia in Ukraine. We have seen no evidence of state sponsorship in relation to these recent reports, but we continue to monitor the situation.

Whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of launching a public awareness campaign on sudden unexpected death in childhood.

We recognise the devastating impact of sudden unexplained death in childhood (SUDC) on affected families and communities, and the importance of raising awareness of SUDC among relevant professionals, communities, and parents. Information on SUDC is available on the National Health Service website, which also signposts to the charity SUDC.UK. Further information is available at the following link:https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/sudden-infant-death-syndrome-sids.Additional information for parents on SUDC is available in the form of the booklet, When a Child Dies. Health visitors and school nurses also play an important role in promoting health literacy to families. There are no plans at present to launch a public awareness campaign on SUDC.

Whether the £50 million allocated to the new VALOUR comes from his Department's existing budget.

VALOUR is a new commitment to establish the first-ever UK-wide approach to veteran support. A new VALOUR HQ within the Ministry of Defence, a network of field officers, regional VALOUR-recognised support centres, and development funding to support local delivery will be established, overseen by the Office for Veterans’ Affairs. VALOUR will foster the enterprising spirit of veteran charities, better connect local and national services and ensure veterans’ support is data driven. With new funding for veterans from the Ministry of Defence budget, the detailed structures and processes that will underpin VALOUR will be designed in collaboration with relevant partners and further details will be announced in due course.

What assessment he has made of the adequacy of information in the parent leaflet for febrile seizures; and whether he plans to further update them.

Individual providers are responsible for the content in the leaflets they produce, and trusts have the freedom to decide what to include in their local leaflets.Information on febrile seizures can be found on the NHS.UK website, which contains the nationally recommended guidance, at the following link:https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/febrile-seizures/All information provided to patients should be accurate and reflect the best possible advice, in line with guidance published by the Department, which is available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/best-practice-guidance-on-patient-information-leaflets

If he will take steps to ensure the implementation of the Supreme Court judgment on biological sex in Government department workplaces.

We will review and update policy wherever necessary to ensure it complies with the latest legal requirements.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what the key milestones of the China Audit are.

The Government is carrying out an Audit of the UK's interests with regards to China, to bring a long term and strategic approach to managing our relations. The timeline for the Audit is driven by the need for sufficient consultation, not just across government, but also business, academia, civil society, and Parliamentarians [including those sanctioned by China], to inform its analysis. The Audit's findings, which will also inform other important developments such as the forthcoming National Security Strategy and Industrial Strategy, will be shared with Parliament and other stakeholders in due course.