Written questions by Shastri-Hurst.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of proposed changes to National Insurance contributions on the retention and recruitment of non-clinical staff in GP surgeries.

We have made the necessary decisions to fix the foundations of the public finances in the Autumn Budget. The employers’ National Insurance rise will be implemented in April 2025. We will set out further details on the allocation of funding for next year in due course.Primary care providers, including general practitioners (GPs), are valued independent contractors that provide nearly £20 billion worth of National Health Services. Every year we consult with each contracted sector about the services it provides, and the money providers are entitled to in return. As in previous years, this issue will be dealt with as part of that process. We will shortly begin discussions on the annual GP Contract.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of of climate change on instances of malaria in the United Kingdom.

Malaria is not currently transmitted in the United Kingdom, but travel-associated cases occur in those who have returned to, or arrived in, the UK from malaria-endemic areas. Modelling has investigated the impact of different climate change scenarios on the likelihood for plasmodium falciparum transmission in the UK. Four of the five models suggested a low risk by the year 2100, even at extreme scenarios, with the fifth model predicting suitability in southern England for sustained transmission lasting more than one month by 2080. With climate change, theoretically a warmer summer would reduce the extrinsic incubation of the pathogen in mosquitos and increase the local malaria risk.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of increases in employers' National Insurance contributions on the (a) retention and (b) recruitment of salaried GPs.

We have made the necessary decisions to fix the foundations of the public finances in the Autumn Budget. The employers’ National Insurance rise will be implemented in April 2025. We will set out further details on the allocation of funding for next year in due course.Primary care providers, including general practitioners (GPs), are valued independent contractors that provide nearly £20 billion worth of National Health Services. Every year we consult with each contracted sector about the services it provides, and the money providers are entitled to in return. As in previous years, this issue will be dealt with as part of that process. We will shortly begin discussions on the annual GP Contract.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of increases to employers National Insurance contributions on the (a) retention and (b) recruitment of nurses in GP surgeries.

We have made the necessary decisions to fix the foundations of the public finances in the Autumn Budget. The employers’ National Insurance rise will be implemented in April 2025. We will set out further details on the allocation of funding for next year in due course.Primary care providers, including general practitioners (GPs), are valued independent contractors that provide nearly £20 billion worth of National Health Services. Every year we consult with each contracted sector about the services it provides, and the money providers are entitled to in return. As in previous years, this issue will be dealt with as part of that process. We will shortly begin discussions on the annual GP Contract.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of increases in employers National Insurance contributions on the (a) provision and (b) resilience of air ambulance services.

No such assessment has been made. The Government has protected the smallest businesses and charities from the impact of the increase to employer National Insurance, by increasing the Employment Allowance from £5,000 to £10,500, which means that 865,000 employers will pay no National Insurance contributions (NICs) at all next year, more than half of employers will see no change or will gain overall from this package, and all eligible employers will be able to employ up to four full-time workers on the National Living Wage and pay no employer NICs.

What assessment she has made of the adequacy of magistrates determining Child Arrangement Orders.

The Ministry of Justice and HMCTS do not collect data on the number or outcome of applications for Child Arrangement Orders heard by magistrates in the family courts.When sitting in the family courts, magistrates are supported by legal advisers who are qualified to provide advice on the law and procedures magistrates must follow, and who are also subject to an ongoing family training requirement. All judges – including magistrates – who hear applications for Child Arrangements Orders are obligated by the Children Act 1989 to have the child’s welfare as their paramount consideration and must undergo extensive training.To safeguard their independence, the appointment and training of magistrates is overseen by the judiciary as set out under the Constitutional Reform Act 2005, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007, and Coroners and Justice Act 2009. Magistrates have been determining cases in the family court since that court’s inception in 2014, and in the predecessor Family Proceedings Courts before then.To be appointed as a magistrate, each individual must undertake training on determining the best interests of the child, navigating the welfare checklist, and ways of communicating with people in court, particularly where there is high conflict.

How many Child Arrangement Orders determined by a bench of lay magistrates have been appealed; and how many of those appeals were successful.

The Ministry of Justice and HMCTS do not collect data on the number or outcome of applications for Child Arrangement Orders heard by magistrates in the family courts.When sitting in the family courts, magistrates are supported by legal advisers who are qualified to provide advice on the law and procedures magistrates must follow, and who are also subject to an ongoing family training requirement. All judges – including magistrates – who hear applications for Child Arrangements Orders are obligated by the Children Act 1989 to have the child’s welfare as their paramount consideration and must undergo extensive training.To safeguard their independence, the appointment and training of magistrates is overseen by the judiciary as set out under the Constitutional Reform Act 2005, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007, and Coroners and Justice Act 2009. Magistrates have been determining cases in the family court since that court’s inception in 2014, and in the predecessor Family Proceedings Courts before then.To be appointed as a magistrate, each individual must undertake training on determining the best interests of the child, navigating the welfare checklist, and ways of communicating with people in court, particularly where there is high conflict.

What recent assessment she has made of the potential merits of introducing specialist family judges to determine all child arrangement orders.

The Ministry of Justice and HMCTS do not collect data on the number or outcome of applications for Child Arrangement Orders heard by magistrates in the family courts.When sitting in the family courts, magistrates are supported by legal advisers who are qualified to provide advice on the law and procedures magistrates must follow, and who are also subject to an ongoing family training requirement. All judges – including magistrates – who hear applications for Child Arrangements Orders are obligated by the Children Act 1989 to have the child’s welfare as their paramount consideration and must undergo extensive training.To safeguard their independence, the appointment and training of magistrates is overseen by the judiciary as set out under the Constitutional Reform Act 2005, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007, and Coroners and Justice Act 2009. Magistrates have been determining cases in the family court since that court’s inception in 2014, and in the predecessor Family Proceedings Courts before then.To be appointed as a magistrate, each individual must undertake training on determining the best interests of the child, navigating the welfare checklist, and ways of communicating with people in court, particularly where there is high conflict.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he plans to authorise the use of frozen Russian state assets to finance the reconstruction of Ukraine.

This Government is clear that Russia must be held responsible for its illegal war. That includes its obligations under international law to pay for the damage it has caused in Ukraine. Working with allies, we continue to pursue all possible lawful avenues by which Russia can be made to meet those obligations. Our agreement with G7 partners to provide approximately $50 billion in additional funding to Ukraine, repaid by the profits generated on sanctioned Russian sovereign assets, is an important step towards ensuring Russia pays. Our focus is on delivering this commitment, including the UK's £2.26 billion contribution, as soon as possible.

When her Department was informed that former employees of (a) ISG and (b) ESS had access to the layout of prison estates; for what reason former employees were able to access the plans following the cessation of their employment; what assessment her Department has made of whether the former employees of other companies have had similar access; and what steps her Department is taking to prevent a similar security breach in the future.

When ISG Construction Limited entered administration on 20 September 2024, the Ministry of Justice took the necessary measures to immediately secure its data. Access to the Department’s software platform was immediately revoked to former employees of ISG and ESS, and the respective subcontractors.The Department was informed on 26 November 2024 that a small number of former employees of ISG and ESS, and the respective subcontractors, had accessed an active software platform managed by ESS following the administration. As soon as the Department was made aware of this, we liaised with the Administrator to ensure they revoked access. This was completed within 24 hours, on 27 November 2024.The Ministry of Justice is investigating the incident and any steps required to prevent a similar incident in future.

If he will take steps to ensure that the Strategic Defence Review contains adequate funding for UK Space Command to deliver (a) on procurement and (b) operationally.

The Strategic Defence Review is considering all aspects of Defence, including the major features of the force structure needed to create the necessary multi-domain integrated Defence capability of the future, of which space is a key part. Space is recognised as a critical enabler for defence, which forms part of the reviewers' considerations around the opportunities for modernisation and transformation.

When the next meeting is of the Space Council.

Along with colleagues from the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology and others across Government, the Ministry of Defence is developing plans for space activities to be coordinated and led across relevant Departments. These efforts will align with the Strategic Defence Review. I am happy to meet with the hon. Member to discuss the issue.

If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of amending the unit of measurement for court funding to judicial working days from sitting days.

The funding of HM Courts and Tribunals Service is agreed annually between the Lord Chancellor and the Lady Chief Justice and Senior President of Tribunals, via the Concordat process. Sitting days are an important metric used in this process, because they currently provide the best basis for estimating the number of case disposals that can be achieved for a given level of funding. This is essential to assess any funding proposal’s impact on waiting times, caseloads and access to justice. Judicial working time incorporates other important tasks (including work outside the hearing room, training, recruitment and leadership work) in addition to the time sitting in courts and tribunals. Work is underway to consider whether the definition of a ‘sitting day’ can be updated and improved to account for work outside of the hearing room that directly helps to progress cases towards disposal. As the Lord Chancellor has previously set out, she is determined that the Concordat process under her will be different and improved.

What the average length of time is in her Department to conclude investigations into reports of sexual harassment; and what steps her Department takes to ensure that this process is conducted (a) promptly and (b) thoroughly.

To identify the time taken to investigate all cases specifically alleging sexual harassment would require gathering information from across DWP managers and would therefore incur disproportionate cost. For cases investigated by our expert HR Investigation Service, the average time taken to investigate a complaint and reach a decision is 14 weeks. DWP attaches the highest priority to rigorously investigating allegations of alleged sexual harassment and will always listen sensitively to employees raising concerns about alleged harassment and ensure they are fully supported. All allegations of sexual harassment are required to be notified to the DWP HR Investigation Service, DWP’s in house expert investigation team. The team investigate the most serious and complex cases, with other cases being investigated either by one of a pool of independent trained investigators drawn from across the Department, or by local managers. If the HR Investigation Service team are not personally investigating, they provide support investigators. Senior managers in the work area are also required to monitor progress of investigations and to keep all concerned informed of progress. All investigations are completed in line with DWP policy and standard, with a suite of advisory videos, template reports and guidance for those conducting investigations.

How many incidents of sexual harassment have been formally reported in her Department in each of the last five years; and what steps her Department is taking to estimate the number of such cases that are unreported.

All formal cases of harassment, bullying and discrimination are required to be flagged with the DWP’s expert HR Investigation Service. In the past year (Dec 23 - Nov 24) the HR Investigation Service has investigated 24 cases of alleged sexual harassment. DWP is currently defending Employment Tribunal 34 cases, lodged within the past two years, with harassment as one of the heads of claim. The ET1 claim form specifies only “harassment” so the 34 cases include cases of harassment on grounds other than sexual harassment. DWP has improved data collation and insight over the past year. Data for each of the past 5 years can only be provided at disproportionate cost as it would require collecting data from local managers across the Department. DWP has not taken formal steps to estimate the number of cases of sexual harassment that are unreported. DWP attaches the highest priority to investigating allegations of alleged sexual harassment and will always listen sensitively to employees raising concerns about alleged harassment and ensure they are fully supported. There are a number of alternative routes for possible reporting of concerns and these are regularly publicised to all colleagues

What his policy is on the future of the Tempest programme.

Tempest is the name used in the UK for the next generation combat aircraft being jointly developed with Japan and Italy under the Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP). GCAP is an important programme, as the Prime Minister has stated, which is why the Defence Secretary hosted his Japanese and Italian counterparts within weeks of taking office. Positive progress on GCAP continues, with over 3,500 people employed on future combat air. In October, the UK completed its ratification processes for the GCAP Convention, the International Treaty that sets up the GCAP International Government Organisation, earlier this month.

What steps his Department is taking to help community pharmacies with (a) funding, (b) workforce and (c) supply of medicines.

The Government is committed to expanding the pharmacy workforce and better utilising the skills of pharmacists and pharmacy technicians. That includes making prescribing part of the services delivered by community pharmacists, as we shift care from the hospital to the community.We have inherited ongoing global supply problems that continue to impact medicine availability. We know how frustrating this can be for patients and community pharmacists. We are working closely with industry, the National Health Service, manufacturers, and other partners in the supply chain to resolve issues as quickly as possible to make sure patients can access the medicines they need.Now that the budget for the Government has been set, we will shortly be resuming our consultation with Community Pharmacy England regarding the funding arrangements for 2024/25. We are unable to say more until these have been concluded.

Communities and Local Government, if she will take steps to ban the use of direct emission heating systems in new build homes.

Future standards will set our new homes and building on a path that moves away from relying on volatile fossil fuels and towards more clean, secure energy. The future is likely to see a mix of low carbon technologies used for heating, including heat pumps and heat networks.The Future Homes Standard consultation was published in December 2023 and closed in March 2024. It set out detailed technical proposals for what future standards could entail. All the options that were proposed would preclude the use of fossil-fuel boilers in new homes. We are reviewing proposals and feedback from the consultation and will publish the Government response in due course.

If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of extending the unduly lenient sentence scheme to cases sentenced in the Magistrates’ Court.

The Unduly Lenient Sentence (ULS) scheme operates in respect of qualifying sentences passed in the Crown Court, where the offender has been convicted of: (a) an indictable only offence (such as murder, manslaughter and rape); and/or (b) certain either-way offences specified by order(s). This is because the intention behind the ULS scheme is that it is reserved for the most serious cases.Offences within scope of the scheme therefore include all indictable-only offences – such as murder, manslaughter, rape and robbery. Certain triable either way offences, mainly relating to terrorism, physical or sexual assaults, and drug related crime, are also included.While the scheme is kept under constant review, Parliament intended this to be an exceptional power. The general rule is that a person should expect to serve the sentence a judge has imposed upon them.

How much funding his Department plans to provide for training in the (a) Royal Navy, (b) British Army and (c) Royal Air Force in the 2024-25 financial year.

The Department has interpreted funding for training to mean funding for direct training exercises only. This includes Phase 1 (basic training) and Phase 2 (initial training) costs. The final outturn for FY2023-24 is below and the equivalent for the current financial year will be released in due course. (a) Royal Navy: £89 million(b) British Army: £105 million(c) Royal Air Force: £131 million