Written questions by Timothy.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of (a) her Department's proposals on gambling harmonisation and (b) affordability checks on levels of black market gambling.

The Government is consulting on proposals to simplify the current gambling tax system by merging the three current taxes that cover remote (including online) gambling into one – reducing complexity and improving compliance. A new system for financial risk assessments is currently being piloted by the Gambling Commission. Stage 1 of the pilot showed that 95% of checks were frictionless and this increased to 97% of checks in stage 2. DCMS works closely with the Gambling Commission to ensure that illegal gambling, in all its forms, is addressed. The Crime and Policing Bill, introduced in Parliament on 25 February 2025, will grant the Gambling Commission with powers to move quickly and effectively to take down illegal gambling websites.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of transferring Police and Crime Commissioner powers to combined authorities on communities.

As set out in the English Devolution White Paper, the government’s ambition is that where mayoral geographies align with police force geographies, Mayors will be, by default, responsible for exercising Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) functions. By enabling more Mayors to take on PCC functions, we aim to provide efficient, accountable, and visible local leadership. More Mayors with public safety functions means strengthening Mayors’ accountability and enables them to forge stronger links and partnerships for the good of people in their areas. It will also enable them to better join up local services and take an integrated approach to improving local outcomes.

Media and Sport, what discussions she has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on the potential impact of harmonising gambling duties on (a) horseracing and (b) other sports.

The Government recognises the important contribution horseracing and the wider sports sector makes to the national economy and cultural life. We remain committed to engagement with stakeholders across the sector with a view to bolstering and protecting this contribution.Future proposals on Gambling Duties are a matter for HMT, and we would encourage all interested parties to engage with ongoing consultations on the matter, which runs until the 21st of July. Ministerial engagement has taken place between DCMS and HMT, and should legislative changes come about following this consultation, we expect them to be accompanied by tax and impact notes from HMT, as is standard practice.A new system for financial risk assessments is currently being piloted by the Gambling Commission. Stage 1 of the pilot showed that 95% of checks were frictionless and this increased to 97% of checks in stage 2.We are working closely with the Gambling Commission to ensure that illegal gambling, in all its forms, is addressed. The Crime and Policing Bill, introduced in Parliament on 25 February 2025, will grant the Gambling Commission with new powers to more quickly and effectively take down illegal gambling websites.

Whether her Department collects data on the number of people that have made more than one attempt to illegally enter the UK by crossing the English Channel in each year since 2020.

No robust or comprehensive data is held in this category, given that many attempts to cross the Channel illegally will fail before an individual has been identified by the UK authorities.

Media and Sport, whether she has made an assessment of the potential impact of (a) affordability checks and (b) the harmonisation of gambling duties on levels of black market gambling.

The Government recognises the important contribution horseracing and the wider sports sector makes to the national economy and cultural life. We remain committed to engagement with stakeholders across the sector with a view to bolstering and protecting this contribution.Future proposals on Gambling Duties are a matter for HMT, and we would encourage all interested parties to engage with ongoing consultations on the matter, which runs until the 21st of July. Ministerial engagement has taken place between DCMS and HMT, and should legislative changes come about following this consultation, we expect them to be accompanied by tax and impact notes from HMT, as is standard practice.A new system for financial risk assessments is currently being piloted by the Gambling Commission. Stage 1 of the pilot showed that 95% of checks were frictionless and this increased to 97% of checks in stage 2.We are working closely with the Gambling Commission to ensure that illegal gambling, in all its forms, is addressed. The Crime and Policing Bill, introduced in Parliament on 25 February 2025, will grant the Gambling Commission with new powers to more quickly and effectively take down illegal gambling websites.

What discussions his Department has had with food manufacturers on the labelling of (a) phosphorus, (b) potassium and (c) other minerals that are potentially harmful for people on dialysis.

Labelling of packaged foods and drinks plays an important role in helping individuals access information they need to make informed choices about the food they buy and eat.Where minerals are added to foods, these must be included by law in the list of ingredients. Having this information on-pack means that consumers will always know if a product contains an added micronutrient, such as potassium. It is also mandatory for food and drinks packaging to include a nutrition declaration which shows the quantities of energy and key nutrients contained within them. Information on energy plus amounts of fat, saturated fat, carbohydrate, sugars, protein and salt in required by law. When minerals are added to a packaged foods and drinks at a significant amount, as set out in legislation, it is mandatory to include them in the nutrition declaration.Unpackaged foods, such as loose fruit and vegetables, are not required by law to carry a label, which we understand makes it difficult for consumers to know their mineral content. However, manufacturers may, supplement the nutrition label with the amounts of naturally occurring minerals in a product, such as phosphorus and potassium, provided they are present in at least a significant amount as defined in legislation, should they choose to do so.The key nutrients that must be included in the nutrition declaration on a mandatory basis are the most relevant to current population level public health concerns in Great Britain. A standardised set of nutrients ensures consumers can easily compare products and requiring too many nutrients to be included on a mandatory basis may complicate labels and make comparisons harder.The Department has not had discussions with manufacturers specifically on this topic, but we maintain forums to regularly engage industry and enforcement authorities on general labelling matters where these issues can be discussed.For individuals with specific dietary needs, such as those on dialysis, personalised advice from a registered dietitian or healthcare professional is recommended to help manage mineral intake, including minerals from naturally occurring sources, while maintaining a healthy balanced diet.

What information her Department holds on the number of (a) prosecutions brought and (b) successful prosecutions in relation to offences contrary to Section 4A of the Public Order Act 1986 in each year since 1995.

The table below shows the number of offences charged by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) by way of section 4A (intentional harassment, alarm or distress) in which a prosecution commenced from 1 January 2004 to 31 December 2024. These figures relate to the number of offences charged and not the number of individual defendants.The CPS does not hold data showing the number of defendants prosecuted and convicted of offences created by the Public Order Act 1986, including section 4A. To establish the number of defendants charged pursuant to and convicted under section 4A would require a manual review of case files and this would be at disproportionate cost.Calendar YearPublic Order Act 1986 { 4A(1) and (5) }20044,52420055,34920066,07720076,65120086,89220097,15120108,32920118,27820128,14020138,26920149,790201510,878201611,038201711,969201811,620201910,88220209,616202112,299202211,560202310,797202411,693Data Source: CPS Case Management Information System

What steps his Department is taking to ensure that dementia care is included in the NHS 10 year plan.

The 10-Year Health Plan will address the challenges diagnosed by Lord Darzi and will set the vision for what good joined-up care looks like for people with a combination of complex health and care needs, including people living with dementia. We are carefully considering policies, including those that impact people with dementia, with input from the public, patients, health staff, and our partners, as we develop the plan.

How many different suppliers there are for ICT systems used across police forces in England and Wales.

The Home Office does not centrally collect all of the information requested. Obtaining and verifying this information for the purposes of answering these questions could only be done at disproportionate cost.However, the Hon Member may be interested to read the Home Secretary's speech to the National Police Chiefs' Council and Association of Police and Crime Commissioners' annual conference on 19 November 2024, where she set out her vision on police reform and efficiency, including the potential savings to be achieved through greater collaboration on IT contracts. https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/home-secretarys-vision-for-police-reform

What assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the Child Maintenance Service in reaching targets set under its service level standards in each year since 2020.

The Child Maintenance Service (CMS) has four official Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), each with a standard measure for 1) assessment accuracy, 2) application clearances, 3) change of circumstances clearances and 4) Collect and Pay compliance. Information on the accuracy of CMS assessments, which has a standard level of >99%, is published in the annual CMS Client Funds Account, and since 2020 has shown a consistent level of 99.4%, increasing for the latest year available (2023/24) to 99.5% . The published quarterly CMS statistics provide information on application clearances, change of circumstances clearances and Collect and Pay compliance, with the latest data available for quarter ending December 2024, and these are shown in the table below. Quarterly Child Maintenance Service Key Performance Indicators for Applications, Change of Circumstances and Collect & Pay Compliance, April 2020 to December 2024 Applications - cleared within 12 weeks Standard 90%Change of Circumstances - cleared within 28 days Standard 80%Collect and Pay compliance - paying parent paid some maintenance Standard 67%Apr - Jun 2080%87%74%Jul - Sep 2095%83%72%Oct – Dec 2094%78%72%Jan - Mar 2191%80%72%Apr - Jun 2189%78%74%Jul - Sep 2190%75%72%Oct – Dec 2187%76%68%Jan - Mar 2287%84%63%Apr - Jun 2285%79%64%Jul - Sep 2289%73%64%Oct – Dec 2290%77%65%Jan - Mar 2389%78%65%Apr - Jun 2387%77%67%Jul - Sep 2387%72%69%Oct – Dec 2387%74%68%Jan - Mar 2487%76%69%Apr - Jun 2485%77%69%Jul - Sep 2490%79%68%Oct – Dec 24[x][x]68% Source: CMS statistics, Stat-Xplore Notes:[x] denotes that figures for the most recent quarter will not be available until the next publication.Application clearance figures are available in Table 1 of the latest CMS National tables.Change of circumstances clearance figures are available in Table 8 of the latest CMS National tables.Collect and Pay compliance figures are calculated using the CMS Paying Parents dataset on Stat-Xplore and are reported in the ‘Paying Parents and the Collect and Pay service’ section of each quarterly bulletin.During the quarter ending June 2020, the Child Maintenance Service was affected by the COVID-19 outbreak and the resultant changes to the Department’s operational priorities. During this period, new applications to Child Maintenance Service will have experienced a reduced level of service and will have been provided with an indicative calculation of maintenance only, which is not considered a clearance for this table. In addition, the COVID-19 outbreak may have reduced the demand for new Child Service Maintenance arrangements. This also means that only priority changes of circumstance would have been progressed during this period. Since 2020, as part of the DWP Service Modernisation Programme, the CMS has been undergoing extensive improvements to increase the quality and range of online services available to separated parents. This program has transformed how customers can interact with CMS, providing them with the choice to make contact through digital routes while ensuring that assistance is available for those who need additional support and non-digital customers via the telephone service. These improvements have allowed case workers to focus more on actioning their work. The wide-reaching programme aims to continue to reform and modernise CMS services with increased effectiveness and efficiency.Additionally, the CMS has amended its service to allow Direct Pay arrangements to quickly move to Collect and Pay when the Paying Parent is not paying or when Direct Pay is no longer appropriate. 14,000 arrangements moved from Direct Pay to Collect and Pay in the quarter ending December 2024 meaning CMS are collecting money for children quicker. In the quarter ending December 2024, over 1 million children were covered by CMS arrangements, an increase of 61,000 from the quarter ending December 2023.

Innovation and Technology, what steps his Department is taking to enable parents the right to access their deceased child’s social media data.

The government is committed to ensuring families feel that the system is on their side when tragedies happen. In these cases, the Online Safety Act provides for Ofcom to require information from services on a child’s online activity at a coroner’s request. To strengthen this, the Data (Use and Access) Bill seeks to establish a data preservation process requiring companies to preserve such relevant information at a coroner’s request.The Online Safety Act will also require categorised services to be transparent with parents regarding a company’s data disclosure processes, following the death of a child.

Which companies supply police ICT systems; and how many (a) contracts have been awarded to and (b) systems are managed by each company.

The Home Office does not centrally collect all of the information requested. Obtaining and verifying this information for the purposes of answering these questions could only be done at disproportionate cost.However, the Hon Member may be interested to read the Home Secretary's speech to the National Police Chiefs' Council and Association of Police and Crime Commissioners' annual conference on 19 November 2024, where she set out her vision on police reform and efficiency, including the potential savings to be achieved through greater collaboration on IT contracts. https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/home-secretarys-vision-for-police-reform

How many ICT systems are used across police forces in England and Wales.

The Home Office does not centrally collect all of the information requested. Obtaining and verifying this information for the purposes of answering these questions could only be done at disproportionate cost.However, the Hon Member may be interested to read the Home Secretary's speech to the National Police Chiefs' Council and Association of Police and Crime Commissioners' annual conference on 19 November 2024, where she set out her vision on police reform and efficiency, including the potential savings to be achieved through greater collaboration on IT contracts. https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/home-secretarys-vision-for-police-reform

Which companies supplied police ICT systems in each year since 2010; and what the value of contracts awarded to those companies was.

The Home Office does not centrally collect all of the information requested. Obtaining and verifying this information for the purposes of answering these questions could only be done at disproportionate cost.However, the Hon Member may be interested to read the Home Secretary's speech to the National Police Chiefs' Council and Association of Police and Crime Commissioners' annual conference on 19 November 2024, where she set out her vision on police reform and efficiency, including the potential savings to be achieved through greater collaboration on IT contracts. https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/home-secretarys-vision-for-police-reform

What steps she is taking to tackle antisemitism in universities.

This government is deeply concerned about the continued, unacceptably high, prevalence of antisemitism in universities. We have confirmed £7 million in funding to address antisemitism in education, and the Office for Students will be introducing a new registration condition from August that will require universities to act against all forms of harassment, including antisemitism.Furthermore, my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education will soon host a round table with leading vice-chancellors from across the country to discuss what more can be done collectively, and at all levels, to make our universities a safe and inclusive environment for all.

What information her Department holds on the number of charging points scheduled to be built in each year from 2025 to 2035.

As of 1 May 2025, there are 79,326 publicly available charging devices, up 30% on this time last year. We expect the majority of public chargepoints to be delivered by the private sector, with industry announcing over £6bn in charging infrastructure investment before 2030.While the Government does not hold data on the number of chargepoints scheduled to be built annually, Government investment will continue to accelerate the rollout of charging infrastructure. Over 100,000 local chargepoints are expected to be delivered through the £381m Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Fund alone, alongside grants to support the installation of chargepoints in certain residential and commercial properties as well as businesses, charities and public sector organisations.

What assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of US tariffs on (a) manufactured components and (b) raw materials for the domestic production of electric vehicles.

The Secretary of State and I frequently engage with stakeholders to discuss automotive sector issues, including the potential impacts of US tariffs on manufactured components and raw materials for domestic EV production. On May 8, a landmark economic deal with the US was announced, protecting jobs in key sectors such as automotive. This deal reduces tariffs on UK car exports from 27.5% to 10%, which is positive news for British car manufacturers. We are also providing additional support for the sector; the 2024 Autumn Budget allocated over £2 billion for zero-emission vehicle manufacturing and supply chains.

What estimate her Department has made of the cost to (a) businesses and (b) public services of building charging points for electric vehicles in each year between 2025 and 2035.

As of May 2025, there are 79,326 publicly available charging devices, up 30% on this time last year. We expect the majority of public chargepoints to be delivered by the private sector, with industry announcing over £6bn in charging infrastructure investment before 2030. Government investment will continue to address market failures and accelerate the rollout of public charging infrastructure. Government confirmed in the Autumn Budget further investment of over £200 million in 2025-26 to accelerate EV chargepoint rollout across the country.

What information her Department holds on the number of charging points for electric vehicles that have been built in each year since 2015, broken down by local authority.

The information requested is not available. The Department does hold and publish the number of public electric vehicle charging devices in the UK by local authority as of the first day of the month each quarter from 2019 onwards. This information can be found in the attached table.

Whether his plans to introduce independent (a) oversight and (b) accountability mechanisms to monitor solar development supply chains.

Legislation and guidance are already in place to help businesses and contracting authorities to oversee supply chains. Further information on the actions needed to develop sustainable supply chains will be set out in the Solar Roadmap, due to be published shortly.