Written questions by Patel.

With reference to the oral statement by her of 8 July 2025 on Road and Rail Projects, Official Report, column 815, if she will publish the (a) full detailed Green Book analysis, (b) costs and (c) benefits cost ratios for (i) each of the 50 schemes announced in that speech and (ii) the A12 widening scheme.

Business case documents, costs and benefit cost ratios for major schemes, including for the Strategic Road Network and for relevant schemes in the Rail Network Enhancement Pipeline are published on gov.uk. For the A12 (Chelmsford to A120) widening scheme, information is already available on the Planning Inspectorate’s website. For the wider set of 50 schemes referenced in the Secretary of State’s statement on 8 July 2025, detailed Green Book analyses, costs, and benefit cost ratios for each scheme have not been published as a single package. The scheme-level business cases and economic assessments for projects in the Government Major Projects Portfolio are published as they are finalised and reach the appropriate stage in the investment process. Summary information on costs and benefit cost ratios for major transport schemes may also be found in the Department for Transport’s Major Projects Portfolio, available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/major-projects-data In the case of Major Road Network schemes, the business cases belong to the relevant local authorities. Whilst we encourage them to publish these, it is their decision whether to publish their business cases on their respective websites. As each scheme progresses, further documentation is released and made available on gov.uk as appropriate. The Government is committed to transparency and will continue to make business case documents available in line with Green Book and Treasury guidance as schemes move forward.

What progress her Department has made on plans for the A120 dualling scheme, in the context of the cancellation of the A12 widening scheme.

Working closely with local partners, National Highways has developed options to improve the A120 between Braintree and Marks Tey as part of the pipeline of projects being developed for possible delivery in a future Road Investment Strategy. Schemes in the RIS pipeline are uncommitted, and the Department will need to take decisions on which are the most viable for delivery. The Department expects to confirm which schemes remain in the Pipeline, and which will continue to be developed, when RIS3 is published early next year.

Whether she considered including Marks Tey railway station in the rail access for all feasibility studies.

This government is committed to improving the accessibility of the railway and recognises the social and economic benefits this brings to communities. In May 2024, the previous government selected 50 stations for initial feasibility work for potential upgrades as part of our Access for All programme. This did not include Marks Tey Railway station. We expect to provide an update to stakeholders further during the summer.

Whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of the cancellation of the A12 widening scheme on housing growth.

As announced on 8 July 2025, this Government inherited a series of commitments that could not be afforded, therefore the Secretary of State for Transport had to take the difficult decision not to progress the A12 (Chelmsford to A120) Widening Scheme. The decision was based on evidence assessed against a wide range of criteria including housing growth impacts and in line with the HMT Treasury Green Book and the Department’s Transport Analysis Guidance. The Department will continue to work with National Highways and relevant partners to explore whether there are any small-scale interventions to potentially address issues on the A12 to support housing growth.

What the total cost to the public purse is for the A12 widening scheme.

As announced on 8 July 2025, this Government inherited a series of commitments that could not be afforded. Therefore, the Secretary of State for Transport had to take the difficult decision not to progress the A12 (Chelmsford to A120) Widening Scheme. In 2022, the A12 scheme had an estimated cost of between £1,045 million and £1,268 million, on the assumption of a start of works in 2023/24 under the previous government, which did not happen. Had the scheme proceeded following Spending Review 2025, the cost of delivery to the earliest timetable would be greater because of increases in prices over time and other factors. Following cancellation, National Highways will be working to bring the scheme to a close and will publish details on costs incurred in its Annual Report and Accounts in due course.

Whether she made an assessment of the potential impact of cancelling the A12 Widening Scheme on housing growth.

As announced on 8 July 2025, this Government inherited a series of commitments that could not be afforded. Therefore, the Secretary of State for Transport had to take the difficult decision not to progress the A12 (Chelmsford to A120) Widening Scheme. The decision was based on evidence assessed against a wide range of criteria, including housing growth impacts, and in line with the HMT Treasury Green Book and the Department’s Transport Analysis Guidance. The Department will continue to work with National Highways and relevant partners to explore whether there are any small-scale interventions to potentially address issues on the A12 to support housing growth.

What the cost to the public purse was of purchasing (a) land and (b) properties as part of the A12 widening scheme; and how (a) much land and (b) many properties were purchased.

As announced on 8 July 2025, this Government inherited a series of commitments that could not be afforded. Therefore, the Secretary of State for Transport had to take the difficult decision not to progress the A12 (Chelmsford to A120) Widening Scheme. The cost to the public purse to date of purchasing a) land is £0.8 million and b) the cost to the public purse to date of purchasing properties is £19.9 million; and a) 38,600 square metres of land and b) 26 properties have been purchased. Following cancellation of the scheme, National Highways will be working to bring the scheme to a close and will publish details on costs incurred in its Annual Report and Accounts in due course.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of the cancellation of the A12 widening scheme on (a) levels of congestion, (b) road safety and (c) the economy.

As announced on 8 July 2025, this Government inherited a series of commitments that could not be afforded. Therefore, the Secretary of State for Transport had to take the difficult decision not to progress the A12 (Chelmsford to A120) Widening Scheme. The decision was based on evidence assessed against a wide range of criteria including (a) congestion, (b) road safety and (c) the economy and in line with the HMT Treasury Green Book and the Department’s Transport Analysis Guidance.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he plans to place China on the enhanced tier of the Foreign Influence Registration Scheme.

I refer the Rt. Hon. Member to my response given to question 36632.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with his international counterparts on continuing to fund the organisations tracking Ukrainian children abducted by Russia.

The UK-led multi-donor Partnership Fund for a Resilient Ukraine (PFRU) is providing more than £5.7 million of funding for support to the return and reintegration of children - of which the UK contributes a third. Through this fund, we have supported Bring Kids Back, Save Ukraine, and other leading child protection civil society organisations.In addition, the UK is an active member of the International Coalition for the Return of Children, whose work includes supporting initiatives to identify, locate, and return children to their families.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to Article 5 of the UK-Mauritius Treaty ,when he expects the Mauritian Government to establish a Marine Protected Area in the Chagos Archipelago.

I refer the Rt Hon Member to the reply given to her question 59325.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has had discussions with (a) international partners and (b) representatives from the Yale Humanitarian Research Lab Ukraine Conflict Observatory on the future funding of the Yale Humanitarian Research Lab Ukraine Conflict Observatory to support its work on tracking Ukrainian children abducted by Russia.

The UK is an active member of the International Coalition for the Return of Children, whose work includes supporting initiatives to identify, locate, and return children to their families. On the issue of tracking Ukrainian children abducted by Russia, we are working closely with the Government of Ukraine to identify which Open-Source Intelligence providers will best meet their needs to provide this data going forward.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with which organisations he has held discussions on the development of the China Audit.

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office China Audit team proactively engaged a wide range of stakeholders to ensure that the full range of interests arising from the UK's relationship with China was represented; this included Parliament, business, the academic sector, civil society and the devolved governments.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how much of the £290 million FCDO transformation fund announced in the National Security Strategy will be directed towards countering potential threats posed by China.

National Security is the first duty of government. As the National Security Strategy said on China, we will increase our China capabilities across the national security system to strengthen our ability to engage, as well as to enhance our resilience and readiness.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with the International Atomic Energy Agency on Iran’s nuclear programme since June 2025; and what assessment he has made of the potential impact of strikes from Israel and the US on Iran’s nuclear facilities.

The Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Office continues to have regular dialogue with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) at all levels, including via our Permanent Mission in Vienna and the Foreign Secretary. The Foreign Secretary last spoke to Director General Grossi on 26 June. We have taken every opportunity, including a public E3 statement on 30 June, to reiterate our support for the Director General and the IAEA's mandate in Iran, urging the Iranians to abide by their legal commitments under the Non-Proliferation Treaty. The IAEA has as yet not been able to report on the state of Iran's nuclear programme following US and Israeli strikes and I will not comment on intelligence matters in this response.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with his counterparts in (a) Israel, (b) the US and (c) other strategic partners in the region on Iran’s nuclear programme since June 2025.

The Foreign Secretary has had extensive discussions with Foreign Minister Sa'ar and Secretary Rubio on 22 June regarding how to tackle what remains of Iran's nuclear programme after major US and Israeli strikes on its facilities. Our objective is to encourage Iran to return to talks to reach a lasting diplomatic solution. We have also spoken to the Gulf Cooperation Council and other regional partners to this end since 13 June, as well as the Iranians on numerous occasions. We will continue to use all diplomatic tools at our disposal, including UN snapback if necessary, to reach a diplomatic solution.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what diplomatic steps he is taking to help prevent Iran resuming its nuclear programme.

Alongside his French and German counterparts, the Foreign Secretary continues to work with Secretary Rubio and Foreign Minister Araqchi towards a durable nuclear deal which ensures Iran never develops a nuclear weapon. Military action alone cannot solve this issue for the long term. We'll continue to use all diplomatic tools at our disposal to ensure Iran does not develop a nuclear weapon, including the snapback mechanism, if necessary.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to Article 6 of the UK-Mauritius Treaty, what discussions he has had with his Mauritian counterpart on (a) visits to and (b) resettlement of the Chagos Archipelago since 22 May 2025.

These issues continue to be discussed with Mauritius as part of the implementation of the Treaty. The Government will not provide a running commentary on these conversations, but ahead of ratification, the Government will make a Ministerial Statement in both Houses on Chagossian eligibility for resettlement. It is our aim to restart visits at the earliest opportunity and we will provide further information on this later this year.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 2 July 2025 to Question 62580 on Chagos Islands: Sovereignty, whether he has budgeted for the first payment to Mauritius to be in financial year 2025-26; and if he will make it his policy to announce the budget lines each element of the payments to Mauritius will come from prior to the publication of the annual accounts.

I refer the Rt Hon member to the answer to her previous questions 57197 and 62580.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 2 July 2025 to Question 62574 on Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office: Cost Effectiveness, whether the FCDO2030 change programme has (a) key performance indicators and (b) outcomes; when she will publish details of the programme; and when she will provide an update on the programme.

The FCDO2030 Programme was set up in May this year and will establish key strategic outcomes alongside a set of metrics. Our strategic outcomes will be in pursuit of delivering tangible benefits for the British public, under the Plan for Change. We are currently restructuring the department to provide both efficiencies, and enhanced ability to deliver these outcomes, while developing the metrics in parallel.