Written questions by Hudson.

Food and Rural Affairs, what percentage of consignments of products of animal-origin were taken, after being flagged, from Dover to the Border Control Post in Sevington from December 2025 to May 2026.

Awaiting answer.

Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 10 June 2025 to Question 57744 on Meat: Smuggling, how much illegally imported meat has been seized between the period of 19 April 2025 and 31 December 2025.

Awaiting answer.

Food and Rural Affairs, what percentage of consignments of products of plant-origin were taken, after being flagged, from Dover to the Border Control Post in Sevington from December 2025 to May 2026.

Awaiting answer.

Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 10 June 2025 to Question 57744 on Meat: Smuggling, how much illegally imported meat has been seized between the period of 1 January 2026 and 20 May 2026.

Awaiting answer.

What steps he is taking to support access to Post Offices in Epping Forest.

Awaiting answer.

What steps they are taking to support access to in-person banking services in Epping Forest.

Awaiting answer.

Communities and Local Government, what recent assessment he has made of the level of proposed development on Green Belt land in the Epping Forest District, and what steps his Department is taking to protect the Green Belt.

The government is committed to preserving Green Belts, which have served England’s towns and cities well over many decades. We have not changed the five purposes of the Green Belt set out in paragraph 143 of the National Planning Policy Framework. The Framework still contains strong protections for the Green Belt, making it clear that inappropriate development should not be approved unless justified by very special circumstances. It is for local planning authorities themselves, including Epping Forest District Council, to determine whether exceptional circumstances exist that justify the release of Green Belt, and we expect them to first demonstrate that they have examined fully all other reasonable options for meeting identified need for development – including making as much use as possible of suitable brownfield sites and underutilised land, optimising the density of development, and working with neighbouring authorities to assess whether identified need might be sensibly accommodated.

What steps he is taking to ensure that the Modern Service Framework for Frailty and Dementia includes a clear, defined pathway for post-diagnostic support for people with dementia.

In developing the Modern Service Framework (MSF) for Frailty and Dementia, we are engaging with a wide group of partners to understand what should be included to ensure the best outcomes for people living with frailty and dementia.We will consider what interventions should be supported to improve care and support for those living with dementia. We are considering all options to help reduce variation, including reviewing metrics and targets.We will also review existing guidance and literature, including the Dementia 100 pathway assessment tool, which continues the work of the Dementia Care Pathway and covers all elements of the Well Pathway.We are working to develop the content of the framework as soon as possible and we will keep partners updated on progress and timings as this work unfolds. We are committed to publishing an interim product in September this year to feed into National Health Service and local government planning cycles, and will aim to publish the full MSF by the end of this calendar year.

How the Modern Service Framework for Frailty and Dementia will reflect the complexity of dementia within system design, including coordination across health and social care services.

We want those living with dementia to benefit from better joined up care and coordination across services, and continue to engage with key professional groups, including those working within health and social care and neighbourhood health, while developing the modern service framework to support greater national coordination.The Frailty and Dementia Modern Service Framework Task and Finish Group is an advisory body to offer insight and guidance, helping to shape the Modern Service Framework for Frailty and Dementia by drawing on expertise from across the health and care system. The first meeting took place on 25 March and these meetings will occur monthly.To ensure we account for considerations across the health and social care sector, the Frailty and Dementia Modern Service Framework is co-chaired by:Dr Jeremy Isaacs, Consultant Neurologist at St George’s and Kingston Hospitals and National Clinical Director for Dementia and Older People’s Mental Health at NHS England;Sarah McClinton, Chief Social Worker for Adults and Mental Health Social Work lead in the Department of Health and Social Care; andProfessor Jugdeep Dhesi, Consultant Geriatrician at Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, Professor of Geriatric Medicine at Kings College London and President of the British Geriatrics Society.

What steps his department is taking to ensure that Advance Care Planning for people with dementia is a) proactive, b) effective and c) regularly reviewed.

Our health system has struggled to support those with complex needs, including those with dementia. Under the 10-Year Health Plan, those living with dementia will benefit from improved care planning and better services.Those with dementia will benefit from more joined up care through co-created care plans, and by 2027, 95% of those with complex needs will have an agreed care plan.We will deliver the first ever Modern Service Framework for Frailty and Dementia to deliver rapid and significant improvements in quality of care and productivity. This will be informed by phase one of the independent commission into adult social care, which is expected this year.In developing the Modern Service Framework for Frailty and Dementia, we are engaging with a wide group of partners to understand what should be included to ensure the best outcomes for people living with frailty and dementia.

If he will make an assessment of the potential impact of publishing a Data Protection Impact Assessment on the quality of public responses to the consultation on digital identity.

We have completed the DPIA for the digital ID consultation and have published a privacy notice, linked here as per UK GDPR requirements. The design and delivery of the digital ID will be informed by the open consultation which will be open till 5 May; this feedback will be important in designing our policy approach.

Innovation and Technology, whether he plans to publish a Data Protection Impact Assessment for GOV.UK One Login before 5 May 2026.

We are preparing an easily digestible version of our Data Protection Impact Assessment for publication, which will be published later this year.We continually develop our Data Protection Impact Assessment to take into account the new identity verification journeys, such as the no photo ID route. We have an obligation to let citizens know how we are processing their data, which we do via a privacy notice published on GOV.UK.

Innovation and Technology, whether a Data Protection Impact Assessment has been completed in relation to the UK Digital Identity and Attributes Trust Framework.

As DSIT is not a data controller or processor with respect to the UK digital verification services trust framework, we are not required to produce a data protection impact assessment, and have not done so. Instead, we require data controllers certified against the trust framework to complete a data protection impact assessment. As required under the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025, we have consulted the ICO on each publication of the trust framework.

Food and Rural Affairs, how many times, since 5 July 2024, the Government has attended meetings of the National Fly-Tipping Prevention Group.

The National Fly-Tipping Prevention Group has met 4 times since 5 July 2024. The Group is chaired by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, and so the Department has been present at each of the last 4 meetings.

Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made of the number of approved planning permissions in England that have not yet been built out.

My Department does not collect data on the number of approved planning permissions that have not yet been built out. In May 2025, we published a Planning Reform Working Paper: Speeding Up Build Out inviting views on further action the government should take to speed up homes being built. It can be found on gov.uk here. The working paper drew on a range of independent research and market studies, including the Letwin Review and the Competition and Markets Authority’s October 2024 market study into housebuilding, exploring stalled sites and build out rates. Alongside the working paper, we launched a technical consultation on implementing measures to improve the transparency of build rates from new residential developments, which includes proposals to implement provisions in Section 113 of the LURA on the power to decline to determine applications. That consultation can be found on gov.uk here. We will set out our next steps in due course.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to support criminal prosecution of fly-tipping.

The Government is seeking powers in the Crime and Policing Bill to provide statutory enforcement guidance to support councils make full and proper use of their fly-tipping enforcement powers. Defra has published best practice guidance and case studies on the website of the National Fly-Tipping Prevention Group (NFTPG), which will support councils to make better use of their power to seize vehicles of suspected fly-tippers. The NFTPG chaired by Defra has developed various practical tools including guides on how councils and others can present robust cases to court, set up and run effective local partnerships to tackle fly-tipping and raise awareness of the household and business waste duty of care. These are available at: https://nftpg.com/.

What steps her Department is taking to embed CPR training in schools in a) Epping Forest constituency and b) England.

I refer the hon. Member for Epping Forest to the answer of 28 November 2025 to Question 92868.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of VAT liability on further education colleges’ capacity to deliver the skills priorities set out in the Industrial Strategy; and whether her Department plans to extend VAT exemption to further education colleges.

Further Education (FE) funding is vital to ensure people are being trained in the skills they need to thrive in the modern labour market. The 2025 Spending Review provided an additional £1.2 billion per year by 2028-29 for skills and £1.7 billion of capital funding to help colleges maintain the condition of their estate. In addition, the Government is providing £375 million of capital investment to support the FE system to accommodate increasing student numbers. For their non-business activity, FE colleges are unable to reclaim VAT incurred. We operate several VAT refund schemes for schools and academies which are designed variously to ensure that VAT is not a burden on local taxation, and that academies are not disincentivised to leave LA control. FE colleges do not meet the criteria for either scheme. In relation to business activity, FE colleges enjoy an exemption from VAT which means that they do not have to charge VAT to students but cannot recover it either.

What steps she is taking to ensure that further education colleges are included in the design and implementation of the SEND reforms set out in the Schools White Paper, including the new Individual Support Plan system and the Inclusive Mainstream Fund.

Our special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) reform proposals, including the new Individual Support Plans and the Inclusive Mainstream Fund, aim to improve help and support for children and young people with SEND up to age 25. The consultation document explains the changes we plan to make and asks for comments from everyone with an interest.Our proposals were informed by our national conversation on SEND, through a series of online conversations and regional events. For the post-16 sector this also included two roundtables, a series of follow-up discussions with key stakeholders on emerging themes and visits to colleges by departmental officials and Ministers.During the consultation period, we are engaging with the post-16 sector in several ways, including a series of webinar events, facilitated by post-16 membership organisations, which are aimed directly at providers, and including representatives of the post-16 sector in key working groups such as the SEND development group. These seek to provide clarity on key proposals and offer an opportunity for open discussion so that providers feel able to make informed written responses to the consultation.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the sustainability of mackerel stocks in UK waters.

The Government draws on independent scientific assessments from the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) to understand the status of the North East Atlantic mackerel stock. The latest ICES assessment highlights increased uncertainty and pressure on the stock, underlining the need for sustainable management. Key to this is reaching a comprehensive sharing agreement with coastal States to the stock, and the UK is committed to reaching such an agreement. In its absence, the UK has reached an agreement with Faroe Islands, Iceland and Norway that brings down pressure on the stock by around 10 percentage points compared to last year.