Written questions by Wilkinson.

What assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of the support provided by Retrofit Information Support and Expertise to Cheltenham Borough Council for implementing works funded through the Warm Homes Local Grant.

Retrofit, Information, Support, and Expertise (RISE) is a free support service funded by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ), which provides training, guidance and support to help social housing providers, local authorities and their supply chains across England plan and deliver successful domestic retrofit programmes. For specific queries relating to support received or available to specific organisations, organisations are encouraged to engage with the RISE team directly at info@riseretrofit.org.uk . If organisations would like to speak to the department about the RISE service, you are welcome to contact DESNZ at: TAF mailbox. tafteam@energysecurity.gov.uk

What funding his Department is allocating to reduce the maintenance backlog at sites owned by Gloucestershire NHS Foundation Hospitals Trust.

The Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is set to receive £9.7 million in funding through the Estates Safety Fund 2025/26. This funding will help deliver vital safety improvements at the Gloucestershire Royal Hospital and the Cheltenham General Hospital, enhancing patient and staff environments, and reducing the levels of critical maintenance backlog.In addition, the Gloucestershire Integrated Care Board has also been provisionally allocated £53.1 million in operational capital funding, including primary care business as usual capital, for 2025/26 to allocate to local priorities, including maintenance backlogs.

Whether she plans to include policies on tackling the backlog of (a) maintenance and (b) repairs to policing infrastructure in the forthcoming White Paper on policing.

The Home Office plans to publish a Police Reform White Paper later this year. It will set out a comprehensive package of reforms to policing in England and Wales that will drive quality, consistency and efficiency and ensure that all police forces are equipped to deliver the Government’s Safer Streets Mission and Plan for Change.We have been working closely with policing in the development of these important reforms. The new Joint Home Office and Policing Reform Team, which includes secondees from the National Police Chiefs’ Council, Association of Police and Crime Commissioners and other policing organisations, have been closely involved in helping to shape the police reform proposals and development of the White Paper.

With reference to the Spending Review 2025, published on 11 June 2025, how much funding has been allocated to her Department for police station (a) maintenance and (b) repairs.

Paragraph 5.35 of the Spending Review document, published on 11 June, sets out the overall financial allocation for policing in England in Wales.It is up to Chief Constables and directly elected Police and Crime Commissioners to make decisions on local resourcing and estates, including police stations. They are best placed to make these decisions based on their local knowledge and experience.

How much and what proportion of the £244 million to be spent on the development of new government hubs fund will be spent on relocating civil servants to Cheltenham.

The 2025 Spending Review confirmed £244 million investment supporting the relocation of roles out of Whitehall to complete the development of new hubs in the regions. Cheltenham will continue to be a vibrant Civil Service location and home to one of GCHQs strategic hubs. The Government Property Agency continues to work closely with departments based in Cheltenham.

Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the Spending Review 2025 on the Park Tennis Courts Programme.

The Government is determined to ensure that everyone has access to quality sport and physical activity opportunities. On 20 June, my Rt Hon Friend, the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, committed £400 million to continued investment in local sport facilities on 20 June, following the recent Spending Review. We will work closely with sporting bodies - including the Lawn Tennis Association - and local leaders to establish what each community needs and then set out further plans. The Park Tennis Court Programme was a joint investment between the UK Government and LTA that started in 2022 and concluded in 2024.

What assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of Children Not In School registers at helping to prevent abuse of home-schooled children.

I refer the hon. Member for Cheltenham to the answer of 23 June 2025 to Question 57754.

How much funding her Department has been allocated for the Midlands Rail Hub.

The Chancellor’s commitment to progress Midlands Rail Hub West in the 2025 Spending Review follows the release of £123 million last year to design the first phase, which could be delivered by the early 2030s.

Whether her Department has made an assessment of the percentage of first class train seats that were purchased in the last 12 months.

The Department has not made an assessment of the percentage of first class train tickets sold within the last 12 months.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of increasing funding to newly formed combined authorities on public services.

Combined authorities have limited involvement in the day-to-day running of most public services but are able to use their convening powers to bring partners together to improve delivery across public services in their area. The majority of combined authority funds are devolved from central government, transferred from Police and Crime Commissioners or pooled from local authorities in the area, so do not change the amount of funding provided locally. Additional funding for newly formed combined authorities includes Investment Funds and Mayoral Capacity Funding. Full details of the funding allocated to each area can be found in their individual devolution agreements, published on gov.uk. For these reasons no assessment has been done on the impact of funding combined authorities on public services.

Whether her Department has made an comparative assessment of the quality of catering between rail franchises.

The Department has not carried out a comparative assessment of catering between train operating companies. Catering services are a commercial matter for each train operating company, and they are responsible for their catering offer. The Department expects operators to tailor their catering provision to local needs while driving value for the taxpayer.

What steps she is taking to improve the quality of catering across the rail network during the transition to Great British Railways.

Catering services are a commercial matter for each train operating company, and they are responsible for their catering offer. The Department expects operators to tailor their catering provision to local needs while driving value for the taxpayer. Once established, Great British Railways will be able to set appropriate levels of catering on its train services.

What assessment his Department has made of the role of the hospitality industry in the upcoming industrial strategy.

The Industrial Strategy Green Paper identified eight growth-driving sectors: Advanced Manufacturing, Clean Energy Industries, Creative Industries, Defence, Digital and Technologies, Financial Services, Life Sciences and Professional and Business Services. All sectors will benefit from wider policy reform through the Industrial Strategy’s cross-cutting policies alongside the broader Growth Mission. This will help create the pro-business environment for all businesses to invest and employ, and consumers to spend with confidence.Government launched a licensing taskforce to reduce red tape and barriers that too often hold businesses back and we intend to introduce permanently lower business rates for retail, hospitality and leisure properties with a rateable value less than £500,000.Additionally, we’ve announced a £1.5 million Hospitality Support Scheme to co-fund projects that align with Department for Business and Trade and Hospitality Sector Council Priorities, this will include helping those furthest from the jobs market into work and improving business productivity.

What assessment her Department has made of the potential long-term impact of removing funding for level seven apprenticeships on people over 22 years of age.

I refer the hon. Member for Cheltenham to the answer of 13 June 2025 to Question 57098.

What assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of changes to funding for level seven apprenticeships on cyber skills in the workforce.

I refer the hon. Member for Cheltenham to the answer of 13 June 2025 to Question 57098.

If he will review levels of access to cognitive behavioural therapy for insomnia.

It is for local integrated care boards to decide whether cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) should be offered to their populations as a treatment for insomnia.NHS Talking Therapies for anxiety and depression offers low-intensity therapy which may include interventions around sleep hygiene. Individuals who are experiencing symptoms of anxiety and/or depression can be referred by their general practitioner, or can self-refer to NHS Talking Therapies via the following link:https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/talking-therapies-medicine-treatments/talking-therapies-and-counselling/nhs-talking-therapies/Individuals can also access helpful resources on sleep problems on the Every Mind Matters website, which is available at the following link:https://www.nhs.uk/every-mind-matters/mental-health-issues/sleep/In addition, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s Prioritisation Board has agreed to prioritise digital technologies that deliver CBT interventions for insomnia and insomnia symptoms as a topic for the development of HealthTech guidance.

What assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of accessing the European Defence Security Fund on tech companies in Cheltenham.

We welcome European efforts to increase defence spending and provide the critical capability uplift needed by Europe, including the EU’s European Defence Readiness / ReArm initiatives and the Security Action for Europe (SAFE) instrument, the EU’s recently adopted €150 billion loan instrument. On 19 May 2025, the UK and the EU agreed an ambitious new Security and Defence Partnership as part of a wider package of the UK-EU reset. Crucially, the Security and Defence Partnership means the UK now meets the criteria for discussing participation in common procurement under SAFE, which could provide new opportunities for UK companies. Recognising the important role that the UK’s defence industry plays for European security, the UK and the EU have set out our joint ambition to swiftly explore the potential for cooperation under the SAFE mechanism.

What assessment he has made of the potential merits of increasing the number of digital cognitive behavioural therapy treatments available for insomnia on the NHS.

It is for local integrated care boards to decide whether cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) should be offered to their populations as a treatment for insomnia.NHS Talking Therapies for anxiety and depression offers low-intensity therapy which may include interventions around sleep hygiene. Individuals who are experiencing symptoms of anxiety and/or depression can be referred by their general practitioner, or can self-refer to NHS Talking Therapies via the following link:https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/talking-therapies-medicine-treatments/talking-therapies-and-counselling/nhs-talking-therapies/Individuals can also access helpful resources on sleep problems on the Every Mind Matters website, which is available at the following link:https://www.nhs.uk/every-mind-matters/mental-health-issues/sleep/In addition, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s Prioritisation Board has agreed to prioritise digital technologies that deliver CBT interventions for insomnia and insomnia symptoms as a topic for the development of HealthTech guidance.

Whether the cyber security sector will be included in the industrial strategy.

The Industrial Strategy will focus on eight growth-driving sectors. Digital and Technologies has been identified as one of those eight sectors, the UK being the third country in the world to have a tech sector valued at over $1trillion. Within those growth sectors, the Government will prioritise sub-sectors that meet our objectives and where there is evidence that policy can address barriers to growth.

What assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of the Golden Valley development in Cheltenham on growth in the defence sector in the industrial strategy.

The Government’s Industrial Strategy will be published shortly. Defence has been identified as a priority growth-driving sector within the Industrial Strategy and the Ministry of Defence is developing a sector plan - the Defence Industrial Strategy - to ensure we seize the opportunities.The Golden Valley Development in Cheltenham is a nationally significant, £1billion investment in the UK’s cyber security sector. By co-locating industry, innovators, academia, and government agencies adjacent to GCHQ, it will accelerate the development of sovereign cyber capabilities, supporting national security and economic growth and resilience. The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology continues to work to encourage further growth in the sector.