Written questions by McEvoy.

With reference to the Autumn Budget 2025, what his planned timetable is for the implementation of the earned income disregards; and what assessment he has made of the potential merits of these changes.

As announced at Autumn Budget, the Department will be introducing new earned income disregards for those in receipt of Housing Benefit and live in Supported Housing and Temporary Accommodation. These disregards will help smooth the transition between the Universal Credit and Housing Benefit for individuals in Supported Housing and Temporary Accommodation as they move into work or increase their earnings, ensuring work always pays.The new disregards will be in place from Autumn 2026. This will require legislative changes and be accompanied by IT changes made to local authority IT systems. In preparation for this, we have already begun engagement with stakeholders to ensure that the implementation meets the needs of those affected. This is accompanied by clear communications to support local authorities, housing providers and third sector organisations to ensure that eligible customers are aware of and able to utilise this change.

What steps his Department is taking to support the treatment of cancer patients.

The National Cancer Plan sets out how we will tackle unwarranted variation head on and end the postcode lottery for cancer care.It will shift healthcare from hospitals to the community and ensure that all cancer patients, regardless of where they live, have access to high-quality, specialist cancer services.We will redesign cancer services around people’s lives, not just around hospitals, recognising that more people are living for longer with and beyond cancer and need ongoing, coordinated support. The plan provides the blueprint for England to become a world leader in cancer survival once again and improve the quality of life for those living with cancer in England.

What assessment he has made of the relevance of mental health conditions to the sentencing of people convicted of child sexual abuse.

Sentencing decisions are a matter for our independent courts, following any relevant sentencing guidelines, issued by the Sentencing Council. Sentencing guidelines are designed to increase consistency and transparency in sentencing.The Council has issued a package of guidelines on sexual offences, as well as an overarching guideline to assist courts when sentencing offenders with any mental disorder, neurological impairment or developmental disorder. These are available on its website at: https://sentencingcouncil.org.uk/guidelines/crown-court/.As the Deputy Prime Minister mentioned during Justice Oral Questions on 16 December, I will bring your particular concerns to the attention of the Chair of the Council.

Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to support local authorities to (a) impose penalties on developers who fail to complete adoptable highway works within agreed timescales and (b) recover administration and remedial costs through statutory enforcement notices.

Local planning authorities already have a wide range of enforcement powers, with strong penalties for non-compliance. Where a local planning authority thinks that a condition imposed on a planning permission has not been met, they can serve a breach of condition notice which requires the recipient to remedy the breach within a specified time. There is no appeal against such a notice and failure to comply with it is an offence punishable by an unlimited fine. An enforcement notice can be served against any breach of planning control – where there is no planning permission for development or the terms of a permission (including a condition) have been breached. Enforcement is a statutory function for which local planning authorities need to budget. As such, the costs of enforcement activity are not generally recoverable. In some circumstances, authorities can take direct action to remedy a breach of planning control and seek to recover any costs reasonably incurred in doing so from the landowner.

What steps she is taking to help tackle differences in sentencing guidelines that contribute to uses of the Unduly Lenient Sentence Scheme.

Sentencing decisions in individual cases are a matter for our independent judiciary. Sentencers must follow any relevant sentencing guidelines, issued by the Sentencing Council, unless not in the interests of justice to do so. The guidelines provide a structured approach for sentencers to follow and are designed to help enhance consistency and transparency in sentencing. The Sentencing Council keeps the guidelines under review continuously. Cases will vary widely in seriousness and complexity. Constantly evolving case law also helps to shape and influence how these are applied. The Unduly Lenient Sentence (ULS) scheme allows Law Officers to ask the Court of Appeal to review exceptional cases where there has been a gross error, or the sentence is unduly lenient. The Sentencing Council itself is within the policy area of the MOJ and my office, with its public interest role in bringing justice in qualifying cases only, is necessarily independent of it.

What steps his Department is taking to ensure access to (a) traditional incandescent and (b) halogen lightbulbs for individuals able to provide medical evidence of photosensitivity.

The previous government consulted on amending an exemption within the ecodesign requirements for lighting products, which would enable individuals with photosensitivity to access light sources suitable for their condition. We will set out our position in the Government Response in due course.

What steps his Department is taking to help support small businesses to improve the energy efficiency of their premises.

The Government is working in partnership with small businesses to make them more energy efficient including through the Net Zero Council. The Council’s work includes supporting sectors to develop transition plans and supporting SMEs to innovate, save energy, grow and decarbonise.To reduce energy bills the Government consulted on strengthening the non-domestic PRS Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards to EPC C by 2027 and EPC B by 1 April 2030. We are currently reviewing the policy to ensure it meets the needs of landlords and tenants and remains fair and proportionate. The Business Energy Advice Service pilot scheme has already supported nearly 3000 SMEs in the West Midlands with expert energy efficiency and decarbonisation advice, with a value of £8.7 million to date. We continue to look at other policy options to help small businesses save on their energy usage.

What steps his Department is taking to help ensure that the (a) diagnoses of and (b) treatments for motor neurone disease are undertaken in a (i) efficient and (ii) timely manner.

We are investing in additional capacity to deliver appointments to help bring waiting lists and times down. The Elective Reform Plan, published in January 2025, sets out the specific productivity and reform efforts needed to return to the constitutional standard, that 92% of patients wait no longer than 18 weeks from referral to treatment by March 2029.NHS England commissions the specialised elements of motor neurone disease (MND) 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.At the national level, there are a number of initiatives supporting service improvement and better care for patients with MND, 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 MND.

Whether his Department is taking steps to strengthen fire safety regulations for battery energy storage systems.

In GB, fires at battery sites are rare and are mitigated by a regulatory framework overseen by the Health and Safety Executive. The latest available 5-year annual average fire incidence rate for GB batteries is 0.7% (2020/21 to 2024 to 2025)[1], lower than for wider non-domestic building fires in England at 0.8% (2019/20 to 2023/24)[2]. To complement this regulation, DEFRA is consulting on including batteries within the Environmental Permitting Regulations (EPR). EPR requires sites to demonstrate to the Environment Agency that harms are avoided or controlled and provides for ongoing regulatory inspections. [1] https://modoenergy.com/indices/industry-metrics?r=gb&m=operationalSites [2] https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/fire-statistics-monitor

Innovation and Technology, what steps her Department is taking to help tackle online (a) grooming and (b) predatory behaviour on metaverse-type platforms; and what discussions her Department has had with Ofcom on the use of enforcement powers under the Online Safety Act 2023 to hold platforms with significant child user bases accountable.

The Online Safety Act (OSA) gives online user-to-user platforms duties to take steps to tackle online grooming and other child sexual abuse and exploitation on their services. These duties extend to user-to-user platforms that use virtual reality technology.Ofcom is the regulator for the regime. It sets out the steps in codes of practice that different providers can take to fulfil their duties. Ofcom is already enforcing the Act and has investigations into over 60 services for suspected non-compliance with the illegal and child safety duties, including for preventing the sharing of CSAM.

Whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing statutory menstrual leave for people diagnosed with (a) endometriosis, (b) adenomyosis and (c) other chronic reproductive health conditions; and what steps his Department is taking to support women who experience debilitating symptoms that affect their ability to work.

The Government takes women’s health issues very seriously; we are committed to supporting women to balance work alongside managing their health. Endometriosis and adenomyosis can classify as disabilities and, in these cases, existing protections under the Equality Act 2010 require employers to make reasonable adjustments where appropriate. By strengthening rights through the Employment Rights Bill, including expanding flexible working and statutory sick pay, the Government is also taking steps to support the wellbeing and work-life balance of all workers. Therefore, there are no plans to introduce a specific leave entitlement.

What steps her Department plans to take to support local authorities to help tackle the differences in (a) access to the Sure Start Maternity Grant and (b) other financial and practical support between pregnant 16 and 17 year olds who are (i) in care and (ii) not in care.

The Children Leaving Care Act places a responsibility on local authorities to support children and young people in their care financially until the age of 18. The Act also precludes entitlement to the Department for Work and Pensions benefits for this group unless specific circumstances apply. This support is managed through local authorities rather than central government. There are exceptional circumstances where 16 and 17-year-olds can claim Universal Credit in their own right. A 16 or 17-year-old may be able to claim Universal Credit if they are pregnant and within 11 weeks of their expected date of confinement. Eligibility for the Sure Start Maternity Grant is dependent on the claimant receiving a qualifying income-related benefit such as Universal Credit. Eligibility is not age dependent and the grant can be claimed up to 6 months after the baby is born. A pregnant 16 or 17-year-old may also qualify for either Statutory Maternity Pay or Maternity Allowance if they meet the standard employment and earnings eligibility criteria.

What steps her Department has taken to help ensure that people who are deemed medically unfit to drive have appropriate access to alternative modes of transport.

The government wants everyone to have access to reliable and affordable public transport, and we appreciate how important this is for people who are unable to drive.The government is committed to improving bus services, so they are more inclusive and enable everyone to travel safely and confidently. The government introduced the Bus Services (No. 2) Bill on 17 December as part of its ambitious plan for bus reform. The Bill will put passenger needs, reliable services and local accountability at the heart of the industry by putting the power over local bus services back in the hands of local leaders right across England.In addition, the government has confirmed £955 million for the 2025 to 2026 financial year to support and improve bus services in England outside London. This includes £243 million for bus operators and £712 million allocated to local authorities across the country. Local authorities can use this funding to introduce new bus routes, make services more frequent and protect crucial bus routes for local communities.  The government reaffirmed its commitment to investing in bus services long-term in this Spending Review by confirming additional funding per year from 26/27 to maintain and improve bus services.The English National Concessionary Travel Scheme (ENCTS) also provides free bus travel in England, to those of state pension age and those with eligible disabilities between 9:30 to 23:00 on weekdays, and all day at weekends and Bank Holidays. Those who would, if they applied for a driving licence, have their application refused on the grounds of medical fitness, are eligible for an ENCTS bus pass. The government also has ambitious plans to reform the rail sector, unifying track and train under one organisation. Great British Railways will be the single ‘directing mind’ for the railway, putting passengers and customers first, rebuilding trust in the railway and simplifying the industry. We are also continuing to improve access to stations through our Access for All programme. Train operating companies also provide staff assistance and alternative transport for anyone unable to use a station.If someone has a disability that makes travelling by train difficult, they may qualify for a Disabled Persons Railcard, which offers one third off rail travel for the person and an adult companion. Details of eligibility can be found at www.disabledpersons-railcard.co.uk.

What steps she is taking to speed up the sentencing of people found guilty of domestic violence.

As part of our landmark mission to halve violence against women and girls within a decade, we are committed to strengthening the justice system’s response to domestic violence.Most domestic abuse cases are heard in magistrates’ courts where cases move more swiftly than the Crown Court. Despite this, we recognise that some cases are taking longer to work through the system, particularly in more serious cases that reach the Crown Court.This Government inherited a justice system in crisis. That is why we have asked Sir Brian Leveson to lead an Independent Review of the Crown Courts, which will propose bold and ambitious measures to deliver swifter justice for victims of serious crimes, including victims of domestic abuse.In parallel, we are actively exploring the merits of specialist domestic abuse court models as recommended in the Sentencing Review. In November, we launched Domestic Abuse Protection Orders in pilot areas to improve victim safety, and we have committed to rolling out domestic abuse experts in 999 control rooms to improve frontline responses.

Innovation and Technology, what progress his Department is making on the rollout of 5G in Darlington.

In their Connected Nations Spring update, published 8 May 2025, Ofcom reports that 5G (combined standalone and non-standalone 5G) is available outside almost 100% of premises in the Darlington constituency from at least one mobile operator, but this falls to 11% from all four operators.Our ambition is for all populated areas, including Darlington, to have higher quality standalone 5G by 2030. Where mobile network operators rollout 5G is a commercial decision but I am working closely with the mobile operators to drive up improvements in mobile infrastructure and we are committed to ensuring we have the right policy and regulatory framework in place to support investment into mobile networks and competition in the market.

When the guidance on people who will be protected from reassessment of PIP due to their long term severe conditions will be published.

The Government is committed to providing security and dignity for those who will never be able to work, and removing unnecessary stress, anxiety and uncertainty from the Social Security System. Subject to Parliamentary approval, the Welfare Bill legislates to formally protect those with the most severe, lifelong health conditions, who meet the Severe Conditions Criteria, from being called for reassessment for Universal Credit. The Severe Conditions Criteria applies to eligible customers in receipt of Universal Credit rather than those in receipt of Personal Independence Payment (PIP). If a customer’s condition changes, they will continue to have the ability to request a reassessment via the existing change of circumstances process. Regarding PIP, we are launching a wider review of the PIP assessment to ensure that it is fair, fit for the future and helps support disabled people to achieve better health, higher living standards and greater independence. There is no equivalent SCC in PIP, however we are considering how to protect those people who meet the SCC when the WCA is abolished and PIP becomes the passport to the new UC Health element.

If she will list the number of people in receipt of the personal independence payment due to a psychological disorder by (a) psychological disorder and (b) constituency in (i) January 2020 and (ii) in the most recent period for which data is available.

Information on Personal Independence Payment (PIP) claimants by psychiatric disorder and constituency for January 2020 and April 2025 can be found on Stat Xplore.The requested data can be found in the ‘PIP Cases with Entitlement from 2019’ dataset. You can use the ‘Month’ filter produce figures for January 2020 or April 2025. You can expand the ‘Disability’ filter to narrow to ‘Psychiatric disorders’. You can use the ‘Geography’ filter to produce a breakdown by parliamentary constituency. You can log in or access Stat-Xplore as a guest user. Guidance on how to use Stat-Xplore is also available here: Personal Independence Payment data on Stat-Xplore: user guide - GOV.UK.

What steps she is taking to reform the Child Support Agency to improve the speed and success of claims.

As more customers apply to the Child Maintenance Service (CMS) the demand for our service is increasing. To allow us to meet this demand and provide an efficient service we continuously look at the resources we have and where we should focus our efforts to get the greatest value for money and deliver the best service to our customers. We review our overall resource supply twice yearly and take appropriate steps to ensure that staffing levels meet current demands My Child Maintenance Case (MCMC) online service offers customers the ability to access and update information held on their case and request changes 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. CMS has the ability to process simple changes through MCMC, automatically speeding up the time taken to make a change and greatly improving customer outcomes. Through extensive modernisation to both telephony and digital channels, and by promoting self-service online, the CMS are ensuring customers have greater choice of how and when they contact us. Our service improvements allow customers to use the most appropriate and efficient contact method to quickly resolve their queries and reduce demand on our services. Through efficient call routing, we have freed up resources to deliver a more responsive service and allow caseworkers more time to better assist customers who need to reach out to us via telephone. We have improved all forms of communication, including greater use of SMS and email as well as improving letter content. Furthermore, we have taken timely action to further train, support and redeploy resource within CMS to where it is needed most. In the response to the consultation on proposed reforms to the CMS, the Government has set out plans to introduce a single service where all payments will be monitored, enabling the CMS to identify missed, late, or partial payments in real time. This will enable swift enforcement action to restore compliance and increase the amount of money reaching children. We expect the reforms will make hidden non-compliance within Direct Pay visible, enabling the CMS to intervene earlier to ensure children receive the financial support they are entitled to. Families currently using Direct Pay can either move to a family-based arrangement (with additional support from CMS to do so) or opt into Collect and Pay if that is not appropriate or they require the added security of enforcement. Where compliance cannot be achieved, the CMS has a range of strong enforcement powers that are designed to get money flowing quickly, prevent the build-up of arrears and ensure children get the financial support they deserve.

If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of using Darlington as a pilot case study for the place based reforms to the Green Book.

Following the Green Book Review 2025, the government has committed to introducing place-based business cases. These will help to identify the right combination of long-term interventions needed to unlock growth in a particular area. The government will set out further details on place-based business cases in due course.

What steps she is taking to auto-enroll people who lose their PIP payments into suitable appropriate support programs within 13 weeks of the decision.

As I set out in the House of Commons on 1 July 2025, this Government has listened to the concerns raised by Members from across the House regarding the proposed changes to Personal Independence Payment (PIP). Clause 5 of the Universal Credit and Personal Independence Payment Bill would have amended the legal framework underpinning PIP assessments, specifically by implementing a new requirement that claimants must score a minimum of four points in at least one daily living activity to be eligible for the daily living component of PIP. In light of the concerns raised, I confirmed during the debate that we are going to remove clause 5 from the Bill in Committee. (Hansard, 1 July, col 219) Any changes to PIP eligibility will come after a comprehensive review of the benefit, led by me and co-produced with disabled people, the organisations that represent them, clinicians, experts, MPs and other stakeholders, so a wide range of views and voices are heard. This review aims to ensure that the PIP assessment is fair and fit for the future.