Written questions by Beavers.

How many outstanding Access to Work scheme payments there were in (a) February 2026, (b) October 2025 and (c) April 2025.

Access to Work (AtW) operates as a reimbursement grant, which means that the service or support must be provided before any payment can be made. Once AtW support has been approved, the customer can then submit their claim for payment. Customers have up to nine months to submit claims for their approved costs. As a result, on any individual day, there will always be claims awaiting review and payment. On average, we are currently processing and clearing claims within 13 days. We have plans in place to reduce this to 10 days.As of the 1st of February 2026, there were 16,389 payment claims being processed.As of the 1st of October 2025, there were 9,103 payment claims being processed.As of the 1st of April 2025, there were 28,499 payment claims being processed. Please note that the data supplied is derived from unpublished management information, which was collected for internal Departmental use only, and have not been quality assured to National Statistics or Official Statistics publication standard.

How her Department plans to promote the National Year of Reading within early years policy and strategy.

The National Year of Reading is a UK-wide campaign aiming to tackle long-term declines in reading enjoyment.Reading together is one of the most powerful ways to build a child’s language and communication skills, strengthen early bonds, and spark a lifelong love of reading. This is why early years is one of the priority groups for the National Year of Reading.The ‘Go All In’ campaign positions reading as a powerful way for parents and families to increase quality time with their children and explore shared interests further, rather than reading being seen as a parental obligation.​The National Year of Reading includes a major physical and online marketing campaign, as well as exciting events, webinars, resources, and activities in communities, libraries, schools and early years settings throughout the year.The government is also investing around £500 million in the national rollout of the Best Start Family Hubs, which includes simple, practical tips to help parents feel confident in sharing stories, songs and books.Early years settings and all interested parties are encouraged to sign up to www.goallin.org.uk for more information and to receive regular updates.

How his Department plans to promote the National Year of Reading within the criminal justice system.

The National Year of Reading is a welcome opportunity to promote a wide range of activity to improve literacy and engagement with reading for people in custody and on probation.As part of this work we have appointed the first ever Prison Reading Laureate, the author Lee Child. He will champion the transformative power of reading across the criminal justice system, continue expansion of his successful literacy pilot programme which has been running in a number of prisons since 2025 and will bring in more authors to work with prisons across the country, promoting the benefits of reading to rehabilitation.Reading is a priority for HM Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) who work with many voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) organisations such as the Reading Agency and National Literacy Trust. A programme of work is planned throughout this year to improve national access to books and facilitate workshops with authors. The Youth Custody Service is also launching its first ever Literacy Festival to inspire reading amongst some of the most complex children in our society.

How her Department plans to promote the National Year of Reading within early years policy and strategy.

The National Year of Reading is a UK-wide campaign aiming to tackle long-term declines in reading enjoyment.Reading together is one of the most powerful ways to build a child’s language and communication skills, strengthen early bonds, and spark a lifelong love of reading. This is why early years is one of the priority groups for the National Year of Reading.The ‘Go All In’ campaign positions reading as a powerful way for parents and families to increase quality time with their children and explore shared interests further, rather than reading being seen as a parental obligation.​The National Year of Reading includes a major physical and online marketing campaign, as well as exciting events, webinars, resources, and activities in communities, libraries, schools and early years settings throughout the year.The government is also investing around £500 million in the national rollout of the Best Start Family Hubs, which includes simple, practical tips to help parents feel confident in sharing stories, songs and books.Early years settings and all interested parties are encouraged to sign up to www.goallin.org.uk for more information and to receive regular updates.

Media and Sport, how her Department plans to promote the National Year of Reading within policy and strategy for public libraries.

Public libraries are central to the success of the National Year of Reading’s campaign to engage people of all ages with reading. The Reading Agency has been appointed to work with sector partners to deliver and support public library engagement. The Summer Reading Challenge in 2026, and World Book Night, the annual celebration of reading for adults on 23 April 2026, will be key moments for libraries during the National Year of Reading 2026. Throughout the year, The Reading Agency will provide public libraries with resources, toolkits, and print and digital materials to support their work.This is part of the broader programme of government support for the National Year of Reading including the £5 million funding for secondary schools to purchase books the Chancellor announced during her budget speech.

If he will make an assessment of the potential merits of integrating all at risk screening for breast cancer into the National NHS Breast Screening Programme.

The new and world-leading NHS National Inherited Cancer Predisposition Registry (NICPR), part of the National Disease Registration Service, will help the National Health Service to deliver proactive, targeted prevention, surveillance, and earlier diagnosis for people and their families. Women at Very High Risk (VHR) of breast cancer are now identified within the NICPR and referred into the NHS Breast Screening Programme (NHSBSP), which has enabled reconciliation to ensure that all identified women are safely referred into the programme. This is a step towards a fully electronic referral VHR process into the NHSBSP.The Government is advised on all screening matters by the UK National Screening Committee (UK NSC), an independent scientific advisory committee which is made up of leading medical and screening experts. Where the UK NSC is confident that offering screening provides more good than harm, they recommend a screening programme.In 2022 the remit of the UK NSC was expanded to include targeted, and risk stratified screening, in addition to population screening. So far, the UK NSC has not made a recommendation for targeted screening of women at a moderate or high risk of breast cancer.Currently, if women reach the criteria for moderate or high- risk screening with surveillance recommended, this is offered as part of screening provision managed locally with NHS trusts.

Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to ensure that local authorities within the most deprived decile receive above average increases in Core Spending Power in each year of the local government funding settlement.

Following extensive consultation and engagement, we are realigning funding distributed through the Local Government Finance Settlement with need and deprivation. These updates will account for local circumstances, including for different ability to raise income locally from council tax. By using the most up to date data available, the government will be able to assess local authorities' relative demand for services more effectively. This includes using the most up to date 2025 Indices of Multiple Deprivation in our assessment of need. We introduced the £600 million Recovery Grant in 2025-26 to support the most deprived local authorities. Following a large number of representations, the government has consulted on its plans to maintain the Recovery Grant across the multi-year Settlement; and to provide a Recovery Grant Guarantee, ensuring that upper-tier authorities in receipt of Recovery Grant see an increase of at least 5% in 2026-27, 6% in 2027-28 and 7% 2028-29, compared to their 2025-26 income, subject to a cap of £35m. As a result of our reforms, the most deprived places – such as Blackpool – will see increases in government funding which ensure that their Core Spending Power per head will on average be higher than in less deprived places.The government is considering the responses received following the consultation of the Provisional Local Government Finance Settlement 2026 to 2027 and will set out a position when the final Settlement is published in early February.

What information her Department holds on the number of drink-driving related (a) deaths and (b) serious injuries in Blackpool North and Fleetwood for each of the past 5 years.

Statistics regarding drink driving in personal injury road collisions in Great Britain are based on data reported to police using the STATS19 system. The estimated number of fatalities and serious injuries in drink-drive collisions for Blackpool North and Fleetwood between 2019 and 2023 (the latest 5 years available) are given in the table below. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10. Values of 0 indicate that the estimated number of fatalities or serious injuries is less than 5:YearFatalitiesSerious injuries (adjusted)2023002022010202100202000201900 These figures are based on the results of breath tests conducted by the police at the scene of personal injury road collisions and combined with data from coroners on blood alcohol levels of those killed in collisions. On 7 January 2026 we published our new Road Safety Strategy, setting out our vision for a safer future on our roads for all. The Strategy sets an ambitious target to reduce the number of people killed or seriously injured on British roads by 65% by 2035. Alongside the strategy we published a consultation on reforms to motoring offences, including lowering the drink drive limit in England and Wales and introducing tougher penalties for driving without insurance or without a licence.

How the new Community Help Partnerships will differ from the Changing Futures Programme.

The Government announced Community Help Partnerships (CHPs) at the Spending Review. Since then, we have been working closely with a wide range of stakeholders—including people with lived experience, the voluntary sector, and central and local government—to design a programme of preventative support for adults experiencing disadvantage.This will build on learning from the Changing Futures’ crisis-focused programme. CHPs will go further in addressing systemic barriers to allow local services to provide better integrated, earlier preventative support. The Cabinet Office is working closely with MHCLG to coordinate the two programmes.We are continuing to explore how to strengthen alignment with wider place-based public sector reform. Further details will be announced in due course.

How allocations will be decided for new Community Help Partnerships.

The Government announced Community Help Partnerships (CHPs) at the Spending Review. Since then, we have been working closely with a wide range of stakeholders—including people with lived experience, the voluntary sector, and central and local government—to design a programme of preventative support for adults experiencing disadvantage.This will build on learning from the Changing Futures’ crisis-focused programme. CHPs will go further in addressing systemic barriers to allow local services to provide better integrated, earlier preventative support. The Cabinet Office is working closely with MHCLG to coordinate the two programmes.We are continuing to explore how to strengthen alignment with wider place-based public sector reform. Further details will be announced in due course.

What progress he has made on the launch of Community Help Partnerships.

The Government announced Community Help Partnerships (CHPs) at the Spending Review. Since then, we have been working closely with a wide range of stakeholders—including people with lived experience, the voluntary sector, and central and local government—to design a programme of preventative support for adults experiencing disadvantage.This will build on learning from the Changing Futures’ crisis-focused programme. CHPs will go further in addressing systemic barriers to allow local services to provide better integrated, earlier preventative support. The Cabinet Office is working closely with MHCLG to coordinate the two programmes.We are continuing to explore how to strengthen alignment with wider place-based public sector reform. Further details will be announced in due course.

What assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of digitising the provision of English language tests for student and working visas on applicants.

The Home Office is committed to maintaining the highest standards of security and integrity in our immigration system whilst modernising services for legitimate applicants. Any changes to English language testing delivery through the upcoming Home Office English Language Testing (HOELT) procurement shall include robust safeguards including identity verification, secure test delivery, active monitoring, and fraud detection. The fundamental service shall be the same as the current SELT provision that is being replaced – a test which is largely digital already, albeit sat in a physical test centre. We will continue to engage with relevant stakeholders, experts, and the market to ensure proposals maintain rigorous standards, comply with regulatory requirements, and consider how language testing can be transformed to deliver the best service possible for our customers, by improving accessibility and efficiency for applicants. Any additional impacts will be addressed through a comprehensive Equalities Impact Assessment and associated mobilisation activity upon the conclusion of procurement and before the HOELT service goes live for customers.

Communities and Local Government, whether his Department plans to issue guidance to local authorities to aid the rollout of stepping stone housing to address homelessness.

My Department continues to engage with stakeholders in the homelessness sector to support the development of schemes and policies to tackle homelessness, including stepping stone accommodation.

Whether his Department is taking steps to investigate incidents of incorrectly installed cavity wall insulation that was installed before 2021.

Cavity wall insulation (CWI) is one of the most cost-effective means of improving energy efficiency in people’s homes when installed in suitable homes and supported by appropriate installation standards and guarantees. However, the Government is aware that there are instances where issues have arisen in some homes which may be attributed to a CWI installation.For installations under previous government schemes, guidance is available on the Government’s website for consumers who suspect they may have faulty CWI installed in their home, outlining routes to redress under these circumstances at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cavity-wall-insulation-cwi-consumer-guide-to-issues-arising-from-installations.

What assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the Unduly Lenient Sentence scheme.

The Unduly Lenient Sentence (ULS) scheme can deliver justice for the victims of some of the most serious crimes, including murder and rape. During 2024, my office dealt with requests to review 831 sentences. So far during 2025, we have already exceeded that figure, receiving 846 requests. Of those, 102 cases have been considered by the Court of Appeal, and in 59% of those cases the sentence has been increased. The ULS scheme continues to be effective by allowing the public to have a voice in the sentencing of offenders, and helping victims of the most abhorrent crimes to receive justice.

What assessment he has made of the extent of regional inequities in the provision of early access programmes for (a) innovative treatments and (b) people living with SOD1 motor neurone disease.

Company-led early access programmes (EAPs) are not endorsed by the Department or NHS England and no assessment has been made of whether there are regional inequities in the provision of early access programmes for innovative treatments and people living with SOD1 motor neurone disease.Participation in company-led schemes is decided at an individual NHS trust level. Under these programmes, the cost of the drug is free to both patients taking part in it, and to the National Health Service, but NHS trusts must still cover administration costs and provide clinical resources to deliver the EAP.NHS England has published guidance for integrated care systems (ICS) on free of charge medicines schemes, providing advice on potential financial, resourcing, and clinical risks. ICSs should use the guidance to help determine whether to implement any free of charge scheme including assessing suitability and any risks in the short, medium, and long term. The guidance is available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/free-of-charge-foc-medicines-schemes-national-policy-recommendations-for-local-systems/

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of potential merits of recovering the costs of treating chemical pollutants in (a) drinking water, (b) wastewater and (c) high risk sites in England from the producers of those substances.

Defra is committed to the ‘polluter pays’ principle and regularly reviews ways to improve its implementation and efficacy. The Government can already seek cost recovery for contaminated land so that the responsible party (typically the polluter or current owner/occupier) bears the financial burden of cleaning up the land. The Environment Act 1990 Part 2A outlines this principle, with local councils having a statutory duty to recover reasonable costs incurred for remediation. Where contaminated land is designated a special site and the Environment agency is the lead regulator, it also has similar cost recovery powers. The quality of drinking water in England is exceptionally high and among the best in the world. Water companies and local authorities have statutory duties to carry out risk assessments and to sample drinking water supplies for any contaminants they believe may cause the supply to be unwholesome.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the potential (a) implications for his policies of the recent tax introduced in France on industrial emissions of per- and polyfluorinated alkyl substances into the environment and (b) merits of introducing similar measures in the UK.

Defra continues to work closely with the other Government Departments, regulators, and the Devolved Governments to assess levels of PFAS occurring in the environment, their sources and their potential risks, in order to inform policy and regulatory approaches. Consideration of other countries’ plans can be helpful in informing the UK's management and regulation of PFAS.

What steps he has taken to encourage the insourcing of public services.

This Government is determined to deliver high quality public services and better value for money for the taxpayer. To further this aim, the government has committed to introducing a public interest test to assess whether expiring contracts could be better delivered in-house. This will ensure that the government makes evidenced-based decisions on the best way to deliver public services.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of a reviewing homelessness funding across departments.

The Deputy Prime Minister is leading cross-government work to deliver the long-term solutions we need to get us back on track to ending homelessness. This includes chairing a dedicated Inter-Ministerial Group, bringing together ministers from across government to develop a long-term strategy. As part of the current Spending Review, the government is reviewing all spending across government, including funding for tackling homelessness.