Written questions by Maskell.

What assessment she has made of trends in the level of prospective adopters; and what steps her Department is taking to increase this.

The government inherited a situation marked by a growing disparity between the number of children awaiting adoptive families and the number of approved adopters. In 2024/25, Adoption England launched a national recruitment campaign funded by the government, which led to a modest increase in approved adopters to 2,230, which is a rise of 0.5% from the previous year. We acknowledge that further efforts are needed to close the adopter sufficiency gap. That is why, this year, we have doubled the funding allocated to Adoption England for adopter recruitment, increasing it to £1 million.

When she will place in the Library a copy of the Equalities Impact Assessment.

The equalities impact assessment for the adoption and special guardianship support fund will be deposited in the Libraries of both Houses shortly.

If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of establishing an Adoption Advisory Board of sector experts to advise the Minister for Children and Families on adoption policy.

I regularly meet with representatives from the adoption sector including Adoption England, Adoption UK and Coram amongst others to discuss a range of issues. I hosted an adoption roundtable sector meeting on 21 May with a number of key representatives to discuss some of the challenges within adoption and I am committed to hosting similar meetings in the future.The department already has a well-established Adopter Reference Group which meets regularly and acts as an important sounding board on adoption policy. I was pleased to meet with them on 6 May this year.

What estimate she has made of the number of adoption disruptions in the last year; and what steps her Department is taking to reduce these.

I refer my hon. Friend, the Member for York Central to the answer of 28 March 2025 to Question 37457.

If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of establishing an Adoptee Reference Group to provide guidance to the Department on adoption policy.

I regularly meet with representatives from the adoption sector including Adoption England, Adoption UK and Coram amongst others to discuss a range of issues. I hosted an adoption roundtable sector meeting on 21 May with a number of key representatives to discuss some of the challenges within adoption and I am committed to hosting similar meetings in the future.The department already has a well-established Adopter Reference Group which meets regularly and acts as an important sounding board on adoption policy. I was pleased to meet with them on 6 May this year.

Whether she has had recent discussions with the Foreign Secretary on taking steps to help support Palestinians to access locations to verify their biometric data for UK visa applications.

There are currently two UK Visa Application Centres operating in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, in Ramallah and Jerusalem. The centres in Ramallah and Jerusalem are open twice per week and once every two weeks respectively for biometrics enrolment. The UK Visa Application Centre in Gaza has been closed since 7 October 2023 due to the conflict in the region and to ensure the safety of staff and customers. UKVI will continue to monitor the situation and work closely with the supplier, VFS, to re-open this centre when it becomes safe to do so. There are also Visa Application Centres in neighbouring countries, such as Egypt and Jordan, which are open daily if customers are able to travel to these locations.

Whether her Department is taking to steps to help support children in Gaza with family members in the UK to come to the UK.

The Government is keeping all existing visa pathways under review in response to events in Gaza. Palestinians who wish to settle in the UK can do so via the existing routes available. Further information can be found on the GOV.UK website: Visas and immigration - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)(opens in a new tab).

Whether he has made a recent assessment of the potential merits of air dropping medical aid into Gaza.

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office leads on coordinating the Government’s humanitarian response to deliver lifesaving assistance to the civilian population in Gaza. The Ministry of Defence has provided military support when requested to facilitate the delivery of this assistance, including participating in airdropping aid as part of the Jordanian international coalition in 2024. However, the most effective way to meet the desperate needs of the Gazan people at the speed and scale that is needed is via overland routes.

What steps she is taking to help reunite people in Gaza with members of their families in the UK.

The Government is keeping all existing visa pathways under review in response to events in Gaza. Palestinians who wish to settle in the UK can do so via the existing routes available. Further information can be found on the GOV.UK website: Visas and immigration - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)(opens in a new tab).

Whether he has provided NHS equipment to help manage infection control in health settings in Gaza.

There have been no donations of National Health Service equipment specific to infection control. However, the Government recently announced a £7.5 million package to strengthen medical care in Gaza and the region, including additional funding for UK-Med and the World Health Organization in Egypt. The Government’s funding has provided 1.3 million items of life-saving medicines and enabled UK-Med to support over 500,000 patient consultations across Gaza.

What recent assessment she had made of the potential barriers to opportunity for adopted (a) children and (b) young people; and what steps her Department has taken to help tackle these in the last year.

The department recognises that many adopted children have experienced trauma and neglect. As part of the government’s Plan for Change, we are working to remove barriers to opportunity for all children, including those who are adopted.To support adopted children in school, we are prioritising their access to school admissions, providing Pupil Premium Plus funding, and ensuring support from designated teachers and virtual school heads.This year, we have allocated £50 million to the Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund to provide essential therapeutic services for eligible children. Additionally, we have invested £8.8 million in Adoption England to improve adoption practices. This includes expanding multi-disciplinary teams to offer specialist support, introducing a new early support framework called ‘Becoming a family’ for the first 12 to 18 months of placement, and implementing an Adoption Support Plan to assess and guide families’ support needs.

If he will provide opportunities for NHS staff to work in (a) Gaza and (b) other conflict zones.

There are options for National Health Service staff to voluntarily provide healthcare support on a humanitarian basis and separately to their NHS duties. For example, humanitarian medical charities such as UK Med are active in Gaza, with NHS clinicians volunteering to provide life-saving medical aid to people affected by the conflict.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will have discussions with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on increasing the level of ODA spend.

To fund an increase in defence spending, the Government has taken the decision to reduce our ODA budget to 0.3% of Gross National Income (GNI) by 2027. This reflects the world we live in and the threats our country faces. We must do this to maintain economic stability - the foundation of this Government's Plan for Change. The Government is committed to returning to spending 0.7% of GNI on ODA when the fiscal circumstances allow.The government will continue to monitor future forecasts closely, and each year will review and confirm, in accordance with the International Development (Official Development Assistance Target) Act 2015, whether a return to spending 0.7% GNI on ODA is possible against the latest fiscal forecast. The Office for Budget Responsibility's latest forecast shows that the ODA fiscal tests are not due to be met within the Parliament.

What consideration he has given to opening a unit in the UK for surgical emergencies from Gaza.

In October 2023, the Department of Health and Social Care helped the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office to arrange 21 tonnes of vital, life-saving Government humanitarian aid for displaced civilians in Gaza. Essential supplies included 76,800 surplus trauma kits, 1,350 water filters, and 2,560 solar lights. The Government recently announced a £7.5 million package to strengthen medical care in Gaza and the region, including additional funding for UK-Med and the World Health Organization in Egypt.The Department is not currently considering opening a unit dedicated to surgical emergencies from Gaza, however we continue to urge the Israeli Government to allow and facilitate the safe, rapid, and unimpeded passage of humanitarian aid and ensure that basic services are provided for all Gazan civilians.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to help de-escalate the conflict in Sudan.

We are engaging with a range of international partners to coordinate action on de-escalation of the conflict in Sudan, including through our role as penholder on Sudan at the UN Security Council. The UK has shown clear leadership on Sudan, including the London Sudan Conference on 15 April, convened by the Foreign Secretary and attended by Foreign Ministers and high-level representatives from 21 countries and multilateral bodies. Discussions focussed on how to make progress on shared goals of ending the conflict, protecting civilians and scaling-up the delivery of humanitarian aid, echoed in the Co-Chairs' Statement. Participants agreed on the need for an immediate and permanent ceasefire and committed to proactively support efforts to find a peaceful solution. We continue to engage with international partners towards this goal. Senior UK officials also continue to engage with the warring parties to urge them to return to the negotiating table and commit to a meaningful, sustainable ceasefire in Sudan.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will provide clean (a) medical and (b) surgical equipment in Gaza.

Healthcare in Gaza is on the brink following Israel's expanded military operations.  It is appalling that nearly all Gaza's hospitals are damaged or partly destroyed, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). We recently announced a £7.5 million package to strengthen medical care in Gaza and the region, including additional funding for UK-Med. Through our partnership with UK-Med, they have provided over 500,000 patient consultations in their field hospitals, emergency departments, and mobile clinics in Gaza since January 2024.We urgently need more supplies reaching healthcare facilities and better protections for aid and medical workers. As the Minister for International Development said in August, we are straining every sinew to get the aid that is needed in, and quickly.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Defence on establishing field hospitals in Gaza.

Healthcare in Gaza is on the brink following Israel's expanded military operations.  It is appalling that nearly all Gaza's hospitals are damaged or partly destroyed, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). We recently announced a £7.5 million package to strengthen medical care in Gaza and the region, including additional funding for UK-Med. Through our partnership with UK-Med, they have provided over 500,000 patient consultations in their field hospitals, emergency departments, and mobile clinics in Gaza since January 2024.We urgently need more supplies reaching healthcare facilities and better protections for aid and medical workers. As the Minister for International Development said in August, we are straining every sinew to get the aid that is needed in, and quickly.

What steps his Department is taking to help increase the number of jobs in the renewable energy sector.

Meeting the UK’s Clean Energy Superpower Mission and delivering Clean Power by 2030 are vital to enhancing our economic and energy security whilst driving economic growth across the country. This transition will create tens of thousands of opportunities across the sector, from renewables to upgrading the UK’s grid infrastructure. The Government is backing this ambition with major investment. Over the next three years, over £100 million will boost engineering skills in England. Working with Skills England, this investment will grow the talent pipeline through education, apprenticeships, and new Technical Excellence Colleges. Supported by the Skills Mission Fund, these colleges will tackle engineering shortages critical to the clean energy sector. DESNZ estimates that the offshore and onshore wind sectors could support up to 145,000 direct and indirect job across Great Britain by the end of the decade. In 2025, DESNZ will publish a full Clean Energy Workforce Strategy, setting out further actions to ensure that the workforce needed for clean energy delivery is in place, and that the jobs created across the country are high-quality, inclusive, and long-term.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to engage with his Iranian counterparts on the status of the Jewish community in Iran; and what diplomatic steps he is taking to help ensure the protection of (a) religious freedoms and (b) civil rights for Jews and other religious minorities in Iran.

Iran's human rights record continues to be of serious concern to the UK. Religious minorities, including the Jewish community, suffer discrimination in law and practice, including in access to education, employment, child adoption, political office and places of worship. The UK's Permanent Representative to the UN raised the continued systematic targeting and repression of religious minorities on the 18 March. We were integral to the delivery of a new Human Rights Council resolution on Iran on 3 April, which renewed and expanded the mandate of the Fact-Finding Mission on Iran. This will investigate a broader range of abuses including against religious minorities, in an important step towards accountability. Our Ambassador to Iran and the Foreign Secretary continue to raise human rights directly with the Iranian Government.

If she will review the Guide to Judicial Conduct.

The Lord Chancellor and Lady Chief Justice have a joint responsibility for judicial discipline. However, to preserve judicial independence, the statutory responsibility for the guidance of the judiciary, including for setting the conduct standards for the judiciary, is held by the Lady Chief Justice, Senior President of Tribunals and Chief Coroner, under the Constitutional Reform Act 2005, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007, and Coroners and Justice Act 2009 respectively.The Lord Chancellor has no role in this respect, and it is not constitutionally appropriate for the Government to review the judiciary’s guidance.