Written questions by Whittome.

What steps he is taking to ensure the adequacy of the level of funding for independent pharmacies.

The Government recognises that pharmacies are an integral part of the fabric of our communities. They provide an easily accessible ‘front door’ to the National Health Service, staffed by highly trained and skilled healthcare professionals.We have now concluded the consultation on funding for 2024/25 and 2025/26, and have agreed with Community Pharmacy England to increase the community pharmacy contractual framework to £3.073 billion. Community Pharmacy England represent all pharmacy contractors in England, including independent community pharmacies. This deal represents the largest uplift in funding of any part of the NHS, at over 19% across 2024/25 and 2025/26. This shows the Government’s commitment to rebuilding the sector.

What discussions he has had with independent pharmacy owners on the contracts offered to community pharmacies.

The Government recognises that pharmacies are an integral part of the fabric of our communities. They provide an easily accessible ‘front door’ to the National Health Service, staffed by highly trained and skilled healthcare professionals.We have now concluded the consultation on funding for 2024/25 and 2025/26, and have agreed with Community Pharmacy England to increase the community pharmacy contractual framework to £3.073 billion. Community Pharmacy England represent all pharmacy contractors in England, including independent community pharmacies. This deal represents the largest uplift in funding of any part of the NHS, at over 19% across 2024/25 and 2025/26. This shows the Government’s commitment to rebuilding the sector.

How many families are receiving Healthy Start support in Nottingham East constituency.

The NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) operates the Healthy Start scheme on behalf of the Department. Monthly figures for the number of people on the digital Healthy Start scheme are published on the NHS Healthy Start website, which is available at the following link:https://www.healthystart.nhs.uk/healthcare-professionals/The NHSBSA does not hold data on local constituencies. The following table shows the number of people on the digital Healthy Start scheme for all ward areas in Nottingham, as of February 2025:Local authorityWardWard numberPeople on Digital SchemeNottinghamAspleyE05012270314NottinghamBasfordE05012271184NottinghamBerridgeE05012272166NottinghamBestwoodE05012273285NottinghamBilboroughE05012274229NottinghamBulwellE05012275313NottinghamBulwell ForestE05012276128NottinghamCastleE0501227729NottinghamClifton EastE05012278148NottinghamClifton WestE0501227946NottinghamDalesE05012280168NottinghamHyson Green and ArboretumE05012281282NottinghamLeen ValleyE0501228248NottinghamLenton and Wollaton EastE05012283103NottinghamMapperleyE05012284126NottinghamMeadowsE05012285107NottinghamRadfordE05012286133NottinghamSherwoodE0501228890NottinghamSt. Ann'sE05012287208NottinghamWollaton WestE0501228951

Pursuant to the Answer of 20 March to Question 38689 on Racial Discrimination: Palestinians, if she will hold discussions with Educate against Hate on developing resources to tackle anti-Palestinian racism.

This government is committed to ensuring that teachers, parents, and young people are equipped with the guidance and resources designed to develop critical thinking, logical reasoning, and empathy, to build resilience to, and reject hateful narratives.The department’s Educate Against Hate website hosts quality-assured resources to help teachers and school leaders teach students about extremism, conflict, spotting misinformation and disinformation, online safety, and our shared fundamental British values.Following the events of 7 October 2023, a blog containing practical advice for discussing ongoing conflicts was published on the Educate Against Hate website. The blog signposts relevant resources from reputable organisations that can support schools to teach about this sensitive topic in a balanced way, avoiding antisemitic, anti-Muslim and/or other discriminatory narratives.Educate Against Hate provides a range of resources and guides to support teachers and education practitioners in confidently facilitating conversations around the ongoing Israel-Palestine conflict. The resources are wide ranging and address why it is important to discuss this topic, how to navigate the news and social media, and how to support young people who may be directly affected by the conflict. All guidance and teaching resources hosted on Educate Against Hate are drawn from reputable organisations.There are also practical resources designed to be used in classrooms, that focus on Palestine and Israel and cover the history of the conflict. They challenge students and learners to examine a range of sources such as images, maps and documentation to debate and discuss different perspectives in a polite and respectful way, and in the controlled environment of a classroom, before they reach their own views on the topic.

What data her Department holds on the number of incidents of anti-Palestinian racism (a) on university campuses, (b) in further education colleges and (c) in schools in each of the last 18 months.

The department does not hold data on the number of incidents of anti-Palestinian racism in education.

What steps she is taking to expand the availability of evening school classes for (a) plumbing, (b) bricklaying, (c) electrical work and (d) other building trades in Nottinghamshire.

Skills are crucial to this government’s mission to grow the economy under our Plan for Change and deliver our commitment to build 1.5 million homes across this Parliament.On 23 March, my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, announced measures to address skills shortages in the construction sector. This package commits over £600 million over the Parliament to deliver up to 60,000 skilled construction workers. This includes additional funding to deliver more construction courses, skills bootcamps, foundation apprenticeships, to support industry placements and to deliver 10 new Technical Excellence Colleges. The department will continue to work with post-16 skills providers on their plans to meet local, regional and national skills priorities in construction.Furthermore, as part of the government’s devolution agenda, from August 2025 the East Midlands Combined Authority will be responsible for administering and delivering their Adult Skills Fund (ASF), allowing them to make best use of the ASF to meet their local needs, including in construction.

What recent progress she has made on reducing school class sizes in (a) the East Midlands and (b) Nottingham East constituency.

The average class size for state-funded primary schools in the East Midlands is 26.3 pupils, which is below the national average of 26.6 pupils, and 26.7 for Nottingham East, which is a fraction higher than the national average. The average class size for state-funded secondary schools in the East Midlands is 22.4 pupils, which is equal to the national average, and 23 for Nottingham East, which is just above the national average of 22.4.Legislation limits the size of an infant class to 30 pupils per school teacher. An infant class is one in which the majority of children will reach the age of five, six, or seven during the school year, which includes reception, year 1 and year 2.There is no statutory limit on the size of classes for older children (pupils aged eight and over), and it is up to schools to decide how to organise classes based on local needs and circumstances to ensure all children can be supported to achieve and thrive.

What steps he is taking to help reduce the time it takes for (a) Army and (b) RAF applicants to complete the recruitment process.

This Government inherited a recruitment crisis, with targets being missed every year for the past 14 years and is taking decisive action to get recruitment back on track. This has included the largest pay rise to personnel in decades and scrapping 100 outdated policies that slow recruitment down.I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question 34507 to the hon. Member for Mid Derbyshire (Jonathan Davies).

What steps she is taking to help tackle anti-Palestinian racism in (a) schools and (b) universities.

There is no place for racism in our education system or anywhere else in society. Students, regardless of their background, should be able to study in a safe and supportive environment that allows them to thrive.The Equality Act 2010 enshrines in law that all public sector bodies, including schools and higher education institutions, must not discriminate against a student because of their protected characteristics. All educational institutions have a responsibility to take a zero-tolerance approach to any racism towards students and staff. They have clear responsibilities under the Equality Act 2010 to adopt robust policies and procedures that enable them to investigate and address reports of racism swiftly. The department has published guidance for schools on how to comply with their duties. This guidance is accessible at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/equality-act-2010-advice-for-schools.Schools should actively promote the fundamental British values of democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty and mutual respect and tolerance for those of different faiths and beliefs. Actively promoting these values means challenging opinions or behaviours in school that are contrary to fundamental British values. Schools should further tolerance and harmony between different cultural traditions by enabling students to acquire an appreciation of and respect for their own and other cultures. Promotion of these values plays an important role in preparing our children and young people for life in a modern and diverse Britain. Ofsted inspects how schools and colleges develop their pupils' understanding of these values. The Educate Against Hate website features more than 150 free resources to help pupils, teachers and parents tackle sensitive topics with students, including in relation to discrimination and hatred.In universities, the Office for Students (OfS) is introducing a new condition of registration for preventing, addressing and investigating incidents of harassment with effect from 1 August 2025. The government is working with the OfS and sector bodies to help providers prepare to implement the new measures. The condition will enable the OfS to do more to ensure that universities are taking appropriate and timely action to prevent and tackle harassment of all kinds, including anti-Palestinian racism.

Whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of creating a new funding stream for students who have been educated in registered alternative provision to continue in that setting after the age of 16.

The statutory duty on local authorities to provide alternative provision applies to children of compulsory school age. If any alternative provision schools would like to offer post-16 placements, they should approach the department to discuss this. Funded post-16 education has a variety of different provider types which deliver different provision, relevant to the different aspirations and needs of post-16 students. In addition, 16-19 study programmes should be tailored to meet the individual needs of the young person.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department is taking steps to education people on the potential impact of (a) littering and (b) fly-tipping on local communities.

Littering and fly-tipping are crimes which blight our communities and harm the environment. Defra chairs the National Fly-Tipping Prevention Group which aims to develop and disseminate various practical tools on tackling fly-tipping. These include a guide on how local authorities can raise awareness of the household waste duty of care, which helps to prevent householders from giving their waste to a fly-tipper. The guide provides suggested messaging, including the impact of fly-tipping locally. Defra is also proud to support and endorse national clean-up initiatives such as the Great British Spring Clean, and we will continue to use our influence to encourage as many people and businesses as possible to participate in these types of events.

What steps her Department is taking to improve waiting times for the Personal Independence Payment helpline.

Telephony is our customers’ primary channel to contact us. We continually assess the number of calls we are receiving and the associated waiting times, deploying resources accordingly to support service levels wherever this is possible. However, due to recent media articles regarding PIP, we have been receiving high volumes of calls. As a result, we have been deploying, where practical (whilst also balancing the need to complete necessary processing work) 100% dedicated telephony specific resource to the Personal Independent Payment telephony lines which will give extra support with the increase in both volume of traffic and waiting times.

Food and Rural Affairs, if he will publish a new national strategy for tackling littering.

At this time, the Government is not planning to implement a new national litter strategy. This Government is committed to reducing waste by transitioning to a circular economy. To support the government in achieving this goal we have convened a Circular Economy Taskforce, comprising experts from across government, industry, academia and civil society, to help us develop a Circular Economy Strategy for England. As part of this we remain focused on delivering the Collection and Packaging Reforms including the Deposit Return Scheme (DRS). The DRS will go live in October 2027. It will introduce a redeemable deposit on single-use in-scope drinks containers which can be claimed back by customers when the empty container is returned. This will reduce litter, increase recycling rates, create high quality recyclate for producers, and promote a circular economy. We remain committed to supporting local authorities to tackle littering and are currently examining what further steps we can take to aid them.

What steps she is taking to help tackle litter along (a) motorways and (b) dual carriageways.

National Highways is responsible for litter collection on motorways and some ‘A’ roads whilst the relevant local authorities manage litter collection on the rest of the roads in England.National Highways is committed to keeping its roads predominantly free from litter, without compromising safety and delivering affordably. National Highways pick litter on a section of the Strategic Road Network (SRN) every day and is consistently working to deliver an improved and more rapid clean up using innovative interventions such as industrial vacuums, as well as undertaking a number of anti-littering interventions to influence behaviours and attitudes of road users towards litter. These include anti-littering messaging through social media, trialling AI enforcement cameras to capture those throwing litter on the SRN, using geofencing to send targeted anti-littering messages to mobile devices around identified litter hotspots, as well as putting up anti-littering posters and signs and installing car and lorry height bins at motorway service areas, to encourage drivers and passengers to dispose of their litter appropriately.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions his Department has had with the (a) Iraqi Government and (b) Kurdish Regional Government on (i) resolving the teachers’ dispute and (ii) protecting workers' rights in Iraqi Kurdistan.

Through the UK's diplomatic engagements with the Government of Iraq and the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), we continue to encourage greater cooperation to resolve outstanding issues. This includes disputes between Baghdad and Erbil around federal budget allocations and salary payments.The UK is aware that payments of KRG civil servants' salaries have been missed, and that this has led to continued teachers' protests. This is despite a ruling by Iraq's Federal Supreme Court last year, which mandated that the salaries of KRG civil servants, including teachers, must be paid by Baghdad.Our Ambassador in Baghdad, and our Consul General in Erbil continue to advocate for greater workers' rights and employment protections across Iraq, and a resolution to this dispute.

Whether her Department plans to require periodic redeclaration of circumstances every six months for Universal Credit claimants from April 2025.

As announced at Autumn Budget 2024, the department will prompt Universal Credit claimants to confirm whether they have had a change in circumstances that might affect their claim. Any changes in circumstances declared will be processed and verified in the usual way. A roll out of this initiative will commence in April and testing will help determine frequency.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that Overseas Territories' registers of beneficial ownership accessible only to those with a legitimate interest (a) support transparency and (b) tackle illicit financial transactions.

At the Joint Ministerial Council (JMC) in November 2024, the Falkland Islands and Saint Helena committed to join Montserrat and Gibraltar in implementing fully public registers by April 2025. Other OTs, including the British Virgin Islands, Cayman, Bermuda, Anguilla and Turks & Caicos Islands agreed to implement registers of beneficial ownership, accessible to those with a legitimate interest, by June 2025. Effective implementation will be an important step to improved financial transparency and part of our shared efforts to tackle illicit finance.These Territories agreed that their registers would offer the maximum possible degree of access and transparency whilst containing the necessary safeguards to protect the right to privacy in line with respective constitutions. UK officials have since set out further clarifications on our requirements, ensuring access conditions do not unduly deter effective proactive investigations and analysis. UK officials are actively engaging with OT officials to ensure that they are met. I will also continue to raise this issue directly with elected leaders.It remains our expectation that all OTs will ultimately implement registers that are fully accessible to the public.

What assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of policies aimed at increasing office attendance on civil service staff, including regional employees.

The Government renewed its commitment to the 60% office attendance expectation on 24 October, emphasising the importance of collaboration through face-to-face interactions. This decision is supported by a variety of studies highlighting the benefits of hybrid working. By colocating departments and fostering great workplaces tailored to support local communities, Places for Growth is helping improve office attendance in regional areas. This strategic approach not only enhances collaboration among civil service staff but also strengthens ties within the local community, making the office a more attractive and supportive environment for employees.

If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of increasing the number of weeks that people who live in supported accommodation and who have increased their working hours above 16 hours can claim extended housing benefit payments for.

Most working-age customers residing in supported housing now receive Universal Credit for their daily living costs and Housing Benefit for their rent support. Customers in receipt of Universal Credit are not eligible for extended rent support as Universal Credit is both an in-work and out-of-work benefit. Like Universal Credit, Housing Benefit has an income taper. As Housing Benefit may be claimed by those both in work and out of work, there are no rules around the number of hours that someone may work; instead, there are income tapers which apply. The income taper in Housing Benefit ensures people in work are better off than someone wholly reliant on benefits. In addition to any financial advantage, there are important non-financial benefits of working. These benefits include learning new skills, improved confidence and independence as well as a positive effect on an individual's mental and physical health. However, Housing Benefit treatment of earnings is less generous than that of Universal Credit. Therefore, although customers living in Supported Housing are better off working than doing no work at all, they can be financially better off limiting the hours they work to ensure they retain a small amount of Universal Credit entitlement.Notwithstanding these positive outcomes from work, the Department acknowledges there is a challenge presented by the interaction between Universal Credit and Housing Benefit for those residing in Supported Housing and Temporary Accommodation and receiving their housing support through Housing Benefit. The department will consider the issue carefully in partnership with stakeholders.

Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the oral contribution of the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs of 24 January 2025 in the Climate and Nature Bill debate, what steps the Government plans to take to strengthen the narrative on imported emissions.

This Government is absolutely committed to tackling the climate and nature crises and has agreed steps to take forward the spirit and substance of the Climate and Nature Bill with the Bill’s Sponsors. An update on these steps will be set out in a Ministerial Statement by the autumn. Information about the Carbon footprint for the UK – including UK consumption emission figures from imported goods and services - is published by Defra and is available up to 2021 : Carbon footprint for the UK and England to 2021 - GOV.UK . Figures are due to be updated in the Spring.