Written questions by Wilkinson.

What comparative assessment she has made of the level of spending as a proportion of GDP on the state pension (a) other European nations, (b) other developed economies and (c) the UK.

It is difficult to make comprehensive direct comparisons between different countries’ spending on State Pensions as a proportion of GDP because there are many fundamental differences in the types of system and the wider social and economic contexts. There are many factors to take into account such as different tax systems, cost of living, access to occupational pensions and their taxation treatment plus the availability of healthcare free at the point of use, other social security benefits and the provision of services and goods free to pensioners or at concessionary rates.

What recent assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of foreign governments investing in UK media on national security.

As a matter of long-standing policy, we do not comment on the detail of security and intelligence issues.More generally, the Government is committed to a pluralistic media landscape, where citizens are able to access information from a range of sources in order to form opinions. The Department for Culture, Media, and Sport have provided an assessment on the potential impact of foreign states investing in UK Newspapers, which can be found in the Written Statement Ministerial of 15 May 2025 - Official Report Vol 767 Col 17WS.

If she will make an assessment of the potential impact of greater use of artificial intelligence in workplaces on welfare spending.

We are already witnessing AI’s impact on the labour market: transforming the workplace, demanding new skills and changing the jobs landscape. We remain mindful of this impact and its effect on the UK workforce and DWP customers, whilst working to harness the benefits that AI can bring. DWP has a strong track record of providing financial help during economic shifts and supporting people to reskill and to re-enter work. We are continuing to deliver our Get Britain Working reforms to ensure we provide people with access to good work and training opportunities fit for the future. DWP is also working across government to ensure that we are able to respond to emerging trends within the labour market, and to make the most of opportunities for economic growth, job creation and productivity.

What assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of foreign (a) company and (b) government ownership of British media on national security.

As a matter of long-standing policy, we do not comment on the detail of security and intelligence issues.More generally, the Government is committed to a pluralistic media landscape, where citizens are able to access information from a range of sources in order to form opinions. The Department for Culture, Media, and Sport have provided an assessment on the potential impact of foreign states investing in UK Newspapers, which can be found in the Written Statement Ministerial of 15 May 2025 - Official Report Vol 767 Col 17WS.

Innovation and Technology, which organisations have been invited to meet his Department in plenary sessions to discuss the intellectual property rights of creative industries.

The Government has committed to establishing stakeholder working groups to inform the development of policy on copyright and AI.In line with debates in Parliament on the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025, the Secretaries of State for the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport are convening the first meeting of these stakeholder working groups on 16th July. The Government will publish details and a list of working group members in due course.

Media and Sport, with reference to the press release of 15 May 2025 entitled Media law reforms to boost press sustainability and protect independence, whether a company (a) wholly owned by and (b) under the majority control of the Chinese government would be permitted to buy a stake of up to 15 per cent in a UK newspaper.

The new foreign state intervention (FSI) regime, set out in the Entreprise Act 2002, seeks to preserve the freedom of the press. It applies to all foreign powers that may seek to acquire control or influence a UK newspaper or news periodical and will be applied case by case based on the facts presented.Our assessment on the potential impact of foreign states investing in UK Newspapers can be found in my Written Statement Ministerial of 15 May 2025 - Official Report Vol 767 Col 17WS.

Media and Sport, with reference to the Draft Enterprise Act 2002 (Mergers Involving Newspaper Enterprises and Foreign Powers) Regulations 2025, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the partial ownership of UK newspapers by foreign governments on (a) democracy and (b) national security in the UK.

The new foreign state intervention (FSI) regime, set out in the Entreprise Act 2002, seeks to preserve the freedom of the press. It applies to all foreign powers that may seek to acquire control or influence a UK newspaper or news periodical and will be applied case by case based on the facts presented.Our assessment on the potential impact of foreign states investing in UK Newspapers can be found in my Written Statement Ministerial of 15 May 2025 - Official Report Vol 767 Col 17WS.

Media and Sport, what assessment her Department has made of the potential conflict between the impact of exemptions to copyright law for AI development on the creative sector and the creative sector being listed as an area growth in the Industrial Strategy.

The government’s Industrial Strategy identifies eight growth-driving sectors with the greatest growth potential over the next decade including the Creative Industries, with more detail in the Creative Industries Sector Plan. As part of this, we have said it is important to ensure that the copyright regime values and protects human creativity, can be trusted and unlocks new opportunities for innovation. The government has committed to set out a detailed economic impact assessment on all options under consideration following its consultation on Copyright and AI.

Whether her Department will have direct responsibility for the quality of (a) hot drinks and (b) other catering on nationalised rail services.

Catering services are a matter for each train operating company, whether publicly or privately owned, 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.

Whether he has made a recent assessment of the potential merits of awarding the General Service Medal to military veterans who served in Aden during the early 1960s.

The award of the General Service Medal (GSM) for those who served in Aden during the early 1960s would be a matter for the independent Advisory Military Sub-Committee (AMSC) to consider, rather than the Ministry of Defence (MOD). The AMSC is a sub-committee of the Committee on the Grant of Honours, Decorations and Medals (HD Committee) at the Cabinet Office which provides advice to The Sovereign on honours and medals. The qualification period for the GSM for service in Aden has previously been considered by the Committee. It was decided that there would be no retrospective issue of the GSM for service between July 1960 and April 1964 as there was insufficient evidence to justify overturning the decisions made at the time. Whilst the MOD has no plans to review this case, this does nothing to lessen our appreciation of the professionalism, courage and contribution of all those who served in Aden.

With reference to his speech to the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists World Congress, published on 23 June 2025, what his planned timetable is for the NHS Chief Executive and Chief Nursing Office to meet (i) Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and (ii) Gloucestershire Health and Care NHS Foundation Trust; and if he will publish the outcomes of those meetings.

An initial meeting between the Chief Executive of the Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, the NHS Chief Executive, and the Chief Nursing Officer for England to discuss maternity and neonatal services took place on 25 June 2025. Further in-depth meetings will take place in due course, and following these meetings the trust board should report on their progress to their public board.

What assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of regional investment groups introduced under the SME Finance Charter.

The SME Finance Charter was an awareness-raising initiative introduced in 2019 and updated in 2022 following the Covid-19 pandemic.The British Business Bank's Nations and Regions Investment Funds provide debt and equity finance to businesses outside London. They are designed to support business growth in local communities by crowding in additional private investment for areas that have historically been underserved. The success of these funds to date was recognised at Spending Review with funding confirmed to allow for expansion.

What assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of the Great Western Railway franchise fleet maintenance regime.

My officials receive regular updates from Great Western Railway (GWR) with regard to its train fleet. Detailed maintenance arrangements are a matter for GWR, its maintenance providers and the rolling stock owning companies. GWR works closely with its maintainers and the supply chain to source parts to maintain the trains as required. In recent months GWR working with Hitachi has seen more consistent availability of its intercity fleet. The procurement of 26 Class 175 trains will also provide additional rolling stock resilience across the network.

What assessment her Department has made of the mechanical adequacy of Great Western Railway's fleet of trains.

My officials receive regular updates from Great Western Railway (GWR) with regard to its train fleet. Detailed maintenance arrangements are a matter for GWR, its maintenance providers and the rolling stock owning companies. GWR works closely with its maintainers and the supply chain to source parts to maintain the trains as required. In recent months GWR working with Hitachi has seen more consistent availability of its intercity fleet. The procurement of 26 Class 175 trains will also provide additional rolling stock resilience across the network.

What steps his Department is taking to reduce youth obesity rates.

We face a childhood obesity crisis, and the Government will take action to tackle the root causes of obesity head on, easing the strain on our National Health Service and creating the healthiest generation of children ever.We are delivering an ambitious programme of work to create a healthier food environment. We are taking action to restrict advertisements of less healthy food and drink to children on television and online, we are limiting school children’s access to fast food, we are taking steps to ensure the Soft Drinks Industry Levy remains effective and fit-for-purpose, and we are committed to banning the sale of high-caffeine energy drinks to under 16 year olds.The Government has announced the extension of free school meals to all children from households in receipt of Universal Credit from September 2026, and that work is in progress with experts from across the sector to revise the School Food Standards, so that every school is supported with the latest nutrition guidance.We are also working collaboratively across the Government on the Food Strategy and the Child Poverty Strategy to provide healthier, more easily accessible food to tackle obesity and give every child the best start in life.

What steps his Department is taking to reduce the risk of children and young people developing cancer.

The Department is committed to getting the National Health Service diagnosing cancer earlier and treating it faster, so that more patients survive this horrible set of diseases, including children and young people. The Government has now exceeded its pledge to deliver two million extra operations, scans, and appointments, having delivered 3.6 million additional appointments as a first step to delivering on the commitment that 92% of patients will wait no longer than 18 weeks from referral to consultant-led treatment, in line with the NHS constitutional standard, by March 2029. On 4 February 2025, the Department relaunched the Children and Young People Cancer Taskforce to identify tangible ways to improve outcomes and experiences for children and young people with cancer. The taskforce is exploring opportunities for improvement across genomic testing and treatment, research and innovation, patient experience, and early detection and diagnosis. The forthcoming National Cancer Plan will include further details on improving outcomes for cancer patients, including for children and young people with cancer, and will highlight how the Department will support the NHS to reduce the risk of children and young people developing cancer in all parts of England.

What assessment has his Department has made of the potential impact of childhood obesity on risk of cancer.

A specific assessment of a direct link between childhood obesity and the risk of cancer has not been made. However, there is evidence that children and adolescents living with obesity are more likely to remain living with obesity as adults. There is also evidence that adults living with obesity have a higher risk of developing several types of cancer, with further information available at the following link:https://www.cancerresearchuk.org/about-cancer/causes-of-cancer/obesity-weight-and-cancer/how-does-obesity-cause-cancerData suggests that 6% of cancer cases in the United Kingdom are attributable to obesity and overweight, including:- 34% of uterine cancer cases, or 3,000 out of 9,000;- 24% of kidney cancer cases, or 2,900 out of 12,400;- 17% of upper gastrointestinal cancer cases, or 5,600 out of 32,400;- 11% of colorectal cancer cases​, or 4,800 out of 41,800; and- 8% of breast cancer cases, or 4,600 out of 55,100.Further information on this data is available at the following link:https://www.nature.com/articles/s41416-018-0029-6The National Child Measurement Programme collects data on children aged four to five years old, who would be in reception, and 10 to 11 years old, who would be in year 6. In the 2023/24 school year, data on childhood obesity in England indicates that 22.1% of children in reception and 35.8% in year 6 were overweight or living with obesity. Further information on childhood obesity in England is available at the following link:https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/national-child-measurement-programme/2022-23-school-yearThe Department has commissioned research through the National Institute for Health and Care Research to quantify the health and social impacts of obesity during childhood and is awaiting results, with further information available at the following link:https://www.ucl.ac.uk/health/case-studies/2024/jul/quantifying-health-and-social-impacts-obesity-during-childhood

What steps his Department is taking to increase accessibility to healthier foods.

Under the Health Mission, the Government is committed to prevention and to tackling obesity, creating a fairer, healthier food environment. We are taking action to restrict the advertisements of less healthy food and drink products to children on television and online, we are limiting school children’s access to fast food, and are taking steps to ensure the Soft Drinks Industry Levy remains effective and fit-for-purpose. We are also committed to banning the sale of high-caffeine energy drinks to under 16 year olds.Through the Healthy Start scheme we encourage a healthy diet for pregnant women, babies, and young children under four years old from very low-income households, supporting the Government’s aim to create the healthiest generation of children in our history.We are also working closely with the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs to develop their cross-Government Food Strategy which will set the food system up for long-term success and will provide wide ranging improvements. The Food Strategy will work to provide healthier, more easily accessible food to help people live longer, healthier lives.

Communities and Local Government, what postcodes in Cheltenham her Department has identified as falling in the eligible Income Deciles 1-2 of the Indices of Multiple Deprivation.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government published the most recent iteration of the English Indices of Deprivation in September 2019. All data tables and resources are available on gov.uk here. Our Open Data Communities platform provides postcode level and decile data for each Local Authority across all Indices domains as at time of release.

With reference to the Spending Review 2025, published on 11 June 2025, whether he plans to allow cyber security entrepreneurs to have access to a proportion of the additional funding provided to the Single Intelligence Account for research and development.

As has been the policy of successive governments, the government does not comment on matters relating to the intelligence agencies.