Written questions by French.

What her Department's policy is in relation to tube strikes.

As Transport in London is devolved to TfL, it is for the Mayor of London to manage the impact of any strike action on London’s transport network. The Government encourages all sides to work together to resolve any disputes as quickly as possible.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of industrial action on (a) commuters within London and (b) commuters from outside London in March 2026.

As Transport in London is devolved to TfL, it is for the Mayor of London to assess and manage the impact of any strike action on London’s transport network. The Government understands, however, that the RMT union has suspended its planned industrial action between Tuesday 24 March and Friday 27 March.

Whether his Department has used the additional enforcement powers for secondary ticketing under section 216 of the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 on the use of bots to purchase tickets.

Consumer law enforcement is principally the responsibility of the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) and Local Authority Trading Standards. Section 216 of the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 grants the CMA enforcement functions under the Breaching of Limits on Ticket Sales Regulations 2018. Those regulations make it an offence to use software to purchase tickets in excess of the sales limit set by an event organiser for a UK recreational, sporting or cultural event, where the intent is to secure financial gain. As an independent authority, the CMA has discretion to undertake enforcement action which, according to its prioritisation principles, it considers most appropriate.

What steps she is taking to help prevent radicalisation amongst religious groups.

As a society we must not permit those that radicalise others into violence and terrorism to act with impunity. Prevent is about stopping people from becoming terrorists or supporting terrorism and tackles the ideological causes of terrorism and provides early intervention for people at risk of radicalisation.Although Prevent does not target any one community and deals with all forms of terrorist ideologies, part of this work involves working closely with religious communities and organisations to support them in safeguarding individuals susceptible to radicalisation and disrupting groups that radicalise others, online and in communities.Further information on the number of individuals referred to and supported through the Prevent Programme from April 2024-March 2025 can be found at Individuals referred to Prevent: to March 2025 - GOV.UK

With reference to figure of 2 of his Department's document entitled Analytical note on government response to resale of live events tickets consultation, published on 19 December 2025, what assessment his Department has made of the estimated change in the number and value of tickets sold on alternative resale channels and social media resulting from the proposed price cap on (a) the level of potential fraud and (b) consumer protection risks.

The Department has undertaken analysis to estimate the economic impact of introducing a price cap on the ticket resale market. The modelling uses a series of assumptions about how ticket touts might adapt their activities. These assumptions are inherently uncertain. The model assumes that 20% of tickets originally resold by touts on secondary ticketing platforms will instead by resold via alternative channels. We will continue to refine the modelling and further examine the risks associated with resale activity on alternative channels, before publishing an impact assessment when legislation is introduced to Parliament.

Whether he has had recent discussions with (a) NHS England, (b) the Royal Colleges and (c) the Joint Committee on Surgical Training on the future of Training Interface Group fellowships.

The Department and NHS England regularly engage with a wide range of stakeholders on issues relating to medical education and training.NHS England made the decision in 2025 to discontinue central funding of the salary support component of the Training Interface Group (TIG) programme, and to target financial resources more effectively to address regional workforce priorities.Regions or provider organisations that wish to continue developing these skills are still able to recruit, fund, and train staff using the curriculum set by the Joint Committee on Surgical Training.NHS England is also working to understand where they can enhance and support smaller, highly specialised areas of practice. NHS England specialised commissioning teams will feed into this work, which will consider how TIG programmes could be best supported in the future.

What assessment she has made of the level of international competitiveness of the Video Games Expenditure Credit; and what assessment she has made of the potential merits of increasing the (a) tax credit and (b) cap of total core expenditure to 100%.

The Government recognises the importance of the creative industries, including the contribution made by the UK’s video games sector to growth and innovation. We support the sector through the tax system and through funding, and this is a very competitive offer internationally. Video games companies benefit from the Video Games Expenditure Credit (VGEC), which provides a generous tax credit of 34 per cent on UK video games development costs. Some countries offering higher refundable rates but with tighter caps or narrower qualifying expenditure, while the UK’s approach provides a predictable and scalable form of support across a broad base of development costs. Tax support sits alongside the Department for Culture, Media and Sport’s new £30 million Games Growth package, designed to back the next generation of start‑up studios and talent and attract further inward investment. The Government keeps the whole tax system under review to ensure it remains effective, targeted and delivers value for money.

What assessment she has made of the (a) potential economic impact and (b) potential financial impact of the proposed industrial action by London Underground drivers who are members of the RMT union on businesses in London.

As transport in London is devolved to TfL, the Mayor of London is responsible for managing the impact of strike action on London’s transport network. Nevertheless, the Government continues to encourage all sides to work together to resolve this dispute as quickly as possible.

What steps she is taking to help reduce crimes committed with catapults, especially against animals.

The Government shares concerns over the misuse of catapults, whether against people, property or wildlife.There are a wide range of laws in place to punish those who misuse catapults. The Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 provides the police, local authorities and other local agencies with a range of tools and powers that they can use to respond to anti-social behaviour involving catapults. This includes Community Protection Warnings and Notices and Public Spaces Protection Orders (PSPOs). The Prevention of Crime Act 1953 creates the offence of carrying an offensive weapon in a public place and there are significant penalties under the Offences against the Person Act 1861 if a person is deliberately harmed.Specific to animals and birds, the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 protects all wild birds and some wild animals in England and Wales. It is illegal under this Act to deliberately attempt to kill, injure, or harm protected species of wild birds. There are a range of other offences found in further legislation to protect wild animals from cruelty such as the Wild Mammals (Protection) Act 1996 and the Animal Welfare Act 2006. Significant sanctions are available to judges to hand down to those convicted of crimes under these Acts.We have noted proposals for new restrictions, and we are actively considering what more might be done around enforcement.

What steps he is taking to help support people with (a) Musculoskeletal conditions and (b) back pain conditions in Old Bexley and Sidcup constituency; and if he will make it his policy to utilise chiropractic capacity to support treatment within the NHS.

To support people with musculoskeletal (MSK) and back pain conditions, we are working to deliver the Getting It Right First Time (GIRFT) MSK Community Delivery Programme. GIRFT teams are working with health system leaders to further reduce MSK community waiting times, which are the highest of all community waits, and to improve data, metrics, and referral pathways to wider support services.In the Old Bexley and Sidcup constituency, those seeking support for MSK conditions and back pain conditions can access services such as the Bexley MSK Service, which provides specialist care for adults in the Bexley area experiencing a wide range of MSK conditions and which offers personalised treatment plans tailored to individual needs. Launched in Summer 2025, the getUBetter app, commissioned by the NHS South East London Integrated Care Board, is also accessible to Bexley residents aged 16 years old or over and those registered with a Bexley general practice. It offers information on local services, including self-referral options for leisure activities supporting health and wellbeing.NHS England does not nationally commission chiropractic care as it is a complementary and alternative medicine. Integrated care boards can make independent decisions on which health professionals they employ and may commission a limited amount of such treatment.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of (a) business rates and (b) other property-based business taxation on town centres and high streets.

The Government is creating a fairer business rates system that protects the high street. That is why, from April, the Government will introduce new permanently lower multipliers for eligible retail, hospitality and leisure (RHL) properties. These new multipliers are worth nearly £1 billion per year and will benefit over 750,000 properties, including those in town centres and on the high street. The new RHL multipliers replace the temporary RHL relief that has been winding down since the pandemic. Unlike RHL relief, the new multipliers are permanent, giving businesses certainty and stability, and there will be no cap, meaning all qualifying properties on high streets across England will benefit. In addition, at the Budget, the Government announced a support package worth £4.3 billion to help protect ratepayers seeing large bills increases as a result of the 2026 revaluation. On top of this, pubs and live music venues will benefit from 15% off their new business rates bills from April, ahead of their bills being frozen for two years in real terms.

Media and Sport, what discussions she has had with devolved Governments to ensure prevention, support and treatment for gambling harms is available across the UK.

The Government introduced a statutory gambling levy, a mandatory charge on licensed gambling operators, in April 2025. Funds collected from the levy will be used exclusively for the research, prevention and treatment of gambling harm across Great Britain. The levy has raised just under £120 million in its first year. 20% of these funds will be allocated to research, 30% to prevention and 50% to treatment. Scotland and Wales will receive their appropriate share, to ensure prevention, treatment and support are available across Great Britain. Officials are in frequent contact with officials in the Scottish and Welsh Governments, ensuring a stable transition to the statutory system. Additionally, both Welsh and Scottish officials sit on the Levy Delivery Group and the Levy Programme Board, each meeting quarterly. Terms of reference and membership of these groups can be found here. While the UK Government and Scottish and Welsh Governments are coordinating closely on levy implementation, health policy is a devolved matter.

What assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of restricting ticket resales via peer-to-peer messaging applications on user privacy and encryption.

The government has recently announced plans to introduce a price cap on the resale of live events tickets, which will make it illegal for tickets to be resold for more than their original cost.Our intention is that all businesses that facilitate the resale of live events tickets to UK consumers will be obliged to ensure compliance with the price cap.Detailed work to prepare the new legislation is ongoing, involving further consideration of how platform obligations should be configured.The government will legislate when Parliamentary time allows.

Whether his Department’s plan to ban for-profit ticket resale will apply to (a) tickets sold through peer-to-peer messaging platforms and (b) tickets sold through encrypted peer-to-peer messaging platforms such as WhatsApp.

The government has recently announced plans to introduce a price cap on the resale of live events tickets, which will make it illegal for tickets to be resold for more than their original cost.Our intention is that all businesses that facilitate the resale of live events tickets to UK consumers will be obliged to ensure compliance with the price cap.Detailed work to prepare the new legislation is ongoing, involving further consideration of how platform obligations should be configured.The government will legislate when Parliamentary time allows.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of the the EHRC Code of Practice on single-sex spaces on (a) businesses, (b) community spaces and (c) public spaces.

The EHRC has submitted a draft Code of Practice to Ministers, and we are reviewing it with the care it deserves, engaging with the EHRC to ensure that it provides clarity for service providers.We have always been clear that the proper process needs to be followed, which includes understanding the potential impact on businesses, public functions and services. The Code will have implications for service providers up and down the country so it is important that we get this right.

Media and Sport, if she will set out the timeline for the youth portion of Every Child Can Dormant Assets funding to support the delivery of grassroots enrichment and youth provision.

‘Every Child Can’ is a £132.5 million programme to support the provision of services, facilities or opportunities between 2024 and 2028 to meet the needs of young people. This funding will increase disadvantaged young people’s access to enrichment opportunities in the culture, sport, and wider youth sectors. Development is in active progress and further details will be announced in due course, including expected timelines.

Media and Sport, what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Education on the plans set out in the National Youth Strategy for the implementation of enriching activities for young people.

I am responding as the Minister for Sport, Tourism, Civil Society and Youth with responsibility for DCMS youth enrichment policy.On 10th December 2025, we published ‘Youth Matters’, the first cross-government Strategy for young people in England in 15 years. Backed by £500m of DCMS funding over the next 3 years, the Strategy will ensure every young person has somewhere to go, someone who cares for them and a community they feel part of. We are working closely with Other Government Departments to ensure the successful delivery and accountability of the National Youth Strategy, including the implementation of enriching activities for young people. This involves establishing a cross-government reporting and governance process to ensure successful delivery.

Media and Sport, which Minister within her Department has responsibility for (a) measuring the impact of the National Youth Strategy on the provision of enrichment activity for young people and (b) leading on implementation of enrichment programmes in that Strategy.

I am responding as the Minister for Sport, Tourism, Civil Society and Youth with responsibility for DCMS youth enrichment policy.On 10th December 2025, we published ‘Youth Matters’, the first cross-government Strategy for young people in England in 15 years. Backed by £500m of DCMS funding over the next 3 years, the Strategy will ensure every young person has somewhere to go, someone who cares for them and a community they feel part of. We are working closely with Other Government Departments to ensure the successful delivery and accountability of the National Youth Strategy, including the implementation of enriching activities for young people. This involves establishing a cross-government reporting and governance process to ensure successful delivery.

Whether his Department provided funding to boxing programmes to help prevent crime amongst young people.

In the financial year 2022/2023, the Ministry of Justice invested £5 million in sports-related projects across England and Wales, to use sport to enhance positive outcomes for vulnerable young people at-risk of criminality (the ‘Youth Justice Sport Fund’). Around 50% of the 220 organisations funded through this programme provided boxing support to young people. Youth justice funding now takes a more flexible approach. Local authorities receive funding to deliver youth justice services, including through the Turnaround early intervention programme. Local authorities can use this funding to commission activities that were previously supported by Youth Justice Sports Fund such as boxing. An independent evaluation of the Turnaround programme published earlier this month highlighted that boys taking part in boxing reported improved physical and mental health.

Media and Sport, what discussions she has had with (a) the National Governing Bodies for Boxing and (b) white collar boxing event promoters on improving safety at white collar boxing events.

Following participant fatalities in white collar boxing, the Government is exploring improvements to participant safety, and recently undertook a targeted consultation on this topic to support the development of those options. The findings are being used to inform next steps, which will be set out in due course.As part of this work, DCMS officials have met and engaged with National Governing Bodies for boxing and white collar boxing event promoters. These stakeholders were also invited to respond to the written consultation, which ran from 6th October to 21st November, 2025. DCMS will publish its response to the consultation by Summer 2026.The DCMS does not centrally collect data on deaths occurring at such sporting events or resulting from participation in specific sports. Primary responsibility for investigating the cause and circumstances of such deaths rests with the relevant Coroner. However, DCMS and its ALBs will respond to any relevant recommendations made by coroners when deaths have occurred as a result of sport to ensure the maintenance of safety in all sports.