Written questions by Duffield.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking with the Ministry of Defence to deliver the target to protect and manage 30 per cent of the land and sea for nature by 2030.

To deliver our 30by30 commitments Defra works closely with arms-length bodies and other departments, including the Ministry of Defence (MoD). This includes through the National Estate for Nature Group, of which the MoD, which manages extensive estates, is a member. Natural England and other Statutory Nature Conservation Bodies (SNCBs) also support the MoD in managing land to enhance biodiversity, and in minimising the impacts of their operations on Marine Protected Areas. We are working across Government, including with the MoD, to publish our delivery strategy for 30by30 on land in England.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of forthcoming legislation relating to IVMS licensing on small-scale shellfish fisheries.

All English under 12 metre fishing vessels have been required to have a functioning iVMS system on board since 12 May 2025. iVMS provides vessel level data on position, course, and speed for under12 m English fishing vessels including those involved in small-scale shellfish fisheries. This information will be used to support decisions on fisheries management planning, conservation efforts, statistical and scientific analysis, compliance, and law enforcement.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the potential implications for his policies of levels of illegal shellfish harvesting in (a) English coastal waters and (b) Whitstable.

Defra works closely with the Marine Management Organisation (MMO), Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authorities (IFCAs), and other organisations to make sure the appropriate arrangements to enforce fisheries regulations are in place. Given the multijurisdictional nature of shellfish harvesting, particularly in areas such as Whitstable, a coordinated approach is essential. In this region, the MMO, the local IFCA, Environmental Health officers, and the police work jointly to monitor shellfish harvesting activities. Where necessary, enforcement action is taken to uphold regulatory standards and protect marine resources.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to ensure inshore fishing voices are equitably represented in Fisheries Management Plans and Marine Spatial Planning Decisions.

Inshore voices are considered across all fisheries management through support from regional fisheries groups, the Marine Management Organisation’s network of regional fisheries managers, meetings of Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authorities and other routine engagement. Marine plans should be used to guide decision makers on how to balance different interests in the sea, including fisheries. National policy statements also set out how marine activities should be considered.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to support the (a) sustainability and (b) economic resilience of small-scale shellfish fisheries post-Brexit.

The Fisheries Act 2020 enshrines in law the Government’s commitment to sustainable fishing, including to produce Fishery Management Plans (FMPs) to ensure our stocks are being fished sustainably and the marine environment is protected. Through FMPs we are working to further develop and implement effective, evidence-based management to deliver long-term sustainability of our important shellfish fisheries. Once the new partnership with the EU is implemented, we expect the SPS Agreement will allow exports of undepurated Class B live bivalve molluscs from GB to the EU to resume.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to ensure full and transparent consultation with the under 14m fishing fleet before mandating Remote Electronic Monitoring as a licence condition.

Remote Electronic Monitoring (REM) in English waters is in the early stages of development, concentrating on vessels over 10 metres in length. Until 2030, we will be working with volunteers in our early adopter phases to design and test systems. We will continue to work in collaboration with industry and individual members throughout this period, ensuring their views are represented.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to help tackle illegal shellfish harvesting in English coastal waters.

Defra works closely with the Marine Management Organisation (MMO), Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authorities (IFCAs), and other organisations to make sure the appropriate arrangements to enforce fisheries regulations are in place. Given the multijurisdictional nature of shellfish harvesting, particularly in areas such as Whitstable, a coordinated approach is essential. In this region, the MMO, the local IFCA, Environmental Health officers, and the police work jointly to monitor shellfish harvesting activities. Where necessary, enforcement action is taken to uphold regulatory standards and protect marine resources.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether he plans to review conflict of interest rules within the IFCA framework to ensure the industry appointed members can meaningfully contribute to decisions whilst maintaining transparency.

The statutory report on the IFCA conduct and operations was published in February along with the Government response. Ensuring transparency in decision making processes was a key improvement. Defra are working with IFCAs to action recommendations. In particular developing consistent guidance supporting industry members will develop including avoiding conflicts of interest.

Food and Rural Affairs, if he will conduct a review of Southern Water’s stakeholder engagement with local fisheries on (a) pollution and discharge events and (b) development in Thames Estuary.

This Government is putting customers at the heart of the water system. While stakeholder engagement is a matter for individual water companies, customers will be able to hold water company bosses to account through powerful new customer panels that are being developed. Ministers have met with all company boards to ensure they understand the Government’s drive to transform the water sector and to hear how they plan to meet their obligations to customers and the environment.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to ensure that the country’s strategy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions minimises damage to ecosystems.

This Government knows that there is no route to tackling climate change that does not involve nature, and no pathway to nature recovery that does not consider climate change. This is why are committed to ensuring that the UK’s strategy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions supports, rather than harms, ecosystems. Nature recovery and preserving our ecosystems are an essential part of the Clean Energy Superpower Mission. As we unblock barriers to the deployment of clean power projects, we are committed to ensuring that, wherever possible, nature recovery is incorporated in development stages and that innovative techniques can be used to encourage nature recovery. Nature-based solutions which deliver for both climate and nature, such as tree planting and peatland restoration, are an essential part of the story. Later this year, the Government will set out our climate and nature priorities and policies in several key documents including an updated plan covering the policies and proposals which will deliver Carbon Budgets 4-6 and a revised Environmental Improvement Plan.

What steps he is taking to end the (a) exploration, (b) extraction, (c) export and (d) import of fossil fuels by the United Kingdom.

The Government has consulted on the implementation of its commitment to not issue new oil and gas licences to explore new fields and will respond in due course. It does not intend to revoke existing licences. The Government has announced it will introduce new legislation to restrict the future licensing of new coal mines in Great Britain. The last coal fired power station closed in October 2024. The Government’s Clean Power 2030 Action Plan paves the way to decarbonising the wider economy by 2050 as it pursues the electrification of heat in buildings, transport, and industry.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to take forward the spirit and substance of the Climate and Nature Bill.

This Government is absolutely committed to tackling the climate and nature crises. Though there is already a well-developed legislative framework in place, the Government agreed to several actions reflecting the spirit and substance of the Climate and Nature Bill, including an annual statement on the State of Climate and Nature. On July 14 2025 the Secretary of State for the Department of Net Zero and Energy Security, alongside Defra’s Secretary of State, delivered this first of-its-kind statement, setting out with radical transparency the scale of the crises and how the choices we make influence global action. The written statement notes further steps taken on nature restoration, consumption emissions, public participation and collaboration between the Joint Nature Conservation Committee and Climate Change Committee. This Government has restored the UK as an international leader on climate change and is reversing nature’s decline after years of neglect. In this year’s Spending Review, we secured the largest investment in clean power in a generation and record funding for nature restoration. The Government’s climate and nature priorities and policies will be further set out this year in a revised Environmental Improvement Plan, updated delivery plan for Carbon Budgets 4-6 and our Nationally Determined Contributions, Net Zero Public Participation Strategy, Food Strategy, Farming Roadmap, and Land Use Framework.

Communities and Local Government, whether it is her Department's policy that all planning decisions should adhere to the Mitigation and Conservation Hierarchy.

The National Planning Policy Framework makes clear that when determining planning applications, local planning authorities should apply the principle that if significant harm to biodiversity resulting from a development cannot be avoided, adequately mitigated, or, as a last resort, compensated for, then planning permission should be refused.Any mitigation or compensation would be set out in planning conditions and obligations associated with the relevant planning permission, enabling local planning authorities to monitor the development's implementation and, if necessary, take enforcement action.More widely, the government is clear that the current approach to discharging environmental obligations is too often delaying and deterring development and placing unnecessary burdens on housebuilders and local authorities. It requires housebuilders to pay for localised and often costly mitigation measures, only to maintain the environmental status quo. By not taking a holistic view across larger geographies, mitigation measures often fail to secure the best outcomes for the environment.The Nature Restoration Fund provided for by Part 3 of the Planning and Infrastructure Bill will end this sub-optimal arrangement. By facilitating a more strategic approach to the discharge of environmental obligations, in order to address the impact of development and improve the conservation status of the relevant environmental feature, it will streamline the delivery of new homes and infrastructure and result in improved environmental outcomes being delivered more efficiently.In establishing an alternative to the existing system, the Nature Restoration Fund intentionally provides flexibility to diverge from a restrictive application of the mitigation hierarchy. We believe this flexibility should apply where, in Natural England's expert judgement, this would be appropriate and in line with the overarching objective of delivering better outcomes for the relevant environmental feature over the course of the EDP - including conservation measures being delivered at a different site to where the development impacts are being felt.There will be a continued role for the mitigation hierarchy in the design of Environmental Delivery Plans, ensuring that local conservation measures are preferred unless there is a clearly articulated environmental basis to look further afield.

What assessment she has made of the level of equity of access for children to healthcare checks in independent schools in the UK.

Access to healthcare services is based on the clinical needs of the individual. The type of school a child attends does not affect their eligibility for access to NHS healthcare services. Parents or carers with concerns about their child’s health can speak to their GP who can make a referral to the relevant healthcare services. The NHS will consider referrals based on clinical need.It remains the case that the NHS is free at the point of use and provides care to anyone who needs it.

What role neighbourhood mental health centre pilot schemes will play in improving (a) care and (b) support for people living with bipolar; and whether these centres will provide specialist support to help reduce delays in (i) diagnosis and (ii) treatment.

I refer the Hon. Member to the answer I gave to the Hon. Member for Bermondsey and Old Southwark on 10 June 2025 to Question 53884.

What assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of taking immunosuppressant drugs in cases of pregnancy after organ transplant on babies in utero.

Some immunosuppressive drugs are known to cause a structural or functional change in the foetus, known as teratogenic drugs, and so this is a critical area of concern in transplant medicine, and discussion with a patient’s transplant team is important to ensure the most appropriate immunosuppressive regime is provided for the best care of both parent and embryo. NHS England Specialised Commissioning has not undertaken a specific impact assessment of taking immunosuppressant drugs during pregnancy on babies in utero, specifically in the context of transplant recipients. However, guidance is typically informed by a combination of clinical experience, research literature, and recommendations from broader medical bodies. The policies and practices in place in solid organ transplant centres are evidence based, and consider the safety and efficacy of the use of these drugs, including where National Institute for Health and Care Excellence evaluations have taken place.

If he will mandate the compulsory listing of health risks on adverts placed by the NHS and fertility clinics which seek egg donors.

The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA), the United Kingdom’s fertility sector regulator, has advised that it sets out strict requirements in its Licence Conditions and Code of Practice in relation to the recruitment of donors and the information that must be given to egg donors in advance of donating at United Kingdom licensed fertility clinics, which includes information about the potential immediate or longer-term health risks. The HFEA Code of Practice states that advertising should be designed with regard to the sensitive issues involved in recruiting donors and should follow the Advertising Standards Authority codes.My Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care has not considered additional compulsory listing of health risks on adverts for egg donors.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of including wombs on the list of routine organ donations included for transplant by the NHS on women's health.

NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) is responsible for organ donation across the United Kingdom.In the UK, womb donation for transplant is not included in the standard organ donation process and is therefore not part of routine deemed consent. Donations for new types of transplants are only undertaken following a special and/or additional voluntary request to a family. It is also usually done for specific research programmes where people die in very rare circumstances and where a particular kind of donation may be possible.The Department has worked in collaboration with National Health Service hospitals like Imperial College Healthcare Trust and Oxford University Hospitals in facilitating womb transplant research and clinical trials, however, it is not yet a standard NHS treatment and there are no current plans to include womb transplants on the organ donation register.

What recent assessment he has made of the potential impact of the sale of his Department's Old Park and Chequers Wood site in Canterbury on levels of biodiversity.

The Defence Infrastructure Organisation has undertaken a Baseline Biodiversity Net Gain Assessment for Old Park and Chequers Wood.This Assessment details primary habitats and provides an ecological baseline for the site.The site is being disposed of in accordance with the Department's standard process as mandated by His Majesty's Treasury. The site is designated in part as a Site of Special Scientific Interest and any development potential is limited. However, once sold, the future use of the site is a matter for the potential purchaser in conjunction with the local planning authority, and this is something the Ministry of Defence cannot influence.

What information his Department holds on which (a) cognitive behavioural therapy, (b) family therapy, (c) exploratory therapy and (d) other non-medical treatments are offered to young people by NHS Children and Young People’s Gender Services.

NHS England commissions gender services for children and young people in line with its interim service specification for children and young people with gender incongruence.Children and young people are cared for holistically by specialist multi-disciplinary teams based in specialist children's hospitals. The multi-disciplinary teams include expertise in child and adolescent mental health, including family therapy, cognitive behavioural therapy, and neurodevelopmental conditions.Each child or young person will have a tailored individual care plan to meet their needs. Depending on individual need, the gender service for children and young people will provide psychosocial and clinical interventions, including support for the family.