Written questions by Savage.

How many children are living in (a) absolute and (b) relative poverty in South Cotswolds constituency.

The latest statistics show that in 2022/23, there were 1,557 children living in absolute poverty and 2,215 children living in relative poverty in South Cotswolds constituency. Figures are provided for all children (including 16- to 19-year-olds) and on a before housing costs basis, available on Stat-Xplore. Figures on an after housing costs basis are not available below region level. Source: Stat-Xplore (Children in Low Income Families Statistics)

How many children receive free school meals in South Cotswolds constituency.

As of January 2024, 12.5% (1,761) of pupils attending state-funded schools in the South Cotswolds constituency were eligible for and claiming free school meals. This compares with a rate of 24.6% of pupils in state-funded schools in England. These figures are calculated from the school level supporting file published as part of the 2023/24 statistical release ‘School, pupils and their characteristics’, which can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-pupils-and-their-characteristics.Schools have been matched to their post July 2024 constituency using the department’s Get Information about Schools service, which can be found here: https://get-information-schools.service.gov.uk/.

Food and Rural Affairs, when he plans to publish the (a) framework and (b) criteria for beaver releases into the wild.

This is a devolved matter, and the information provided therefore relates to England only. Defra are continuing to work with Natural England to develop our approach to beaver reintroductions and management in England. This includes the development of a framework and criteria to enable the wild release of beavers in England. Further information on this will be published in due course.

Whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of the increase in National Insurance contributions on the affordability of social care in rural villages.

The Government considered the cost pressures facing adult social care overall in England as part of the wider consideration of local government spending within the Spending Review process. To enable local authorities to deliver key services such as adult social care, the Government is making available up to £3.7 billion of additional funding for social care authorities in 2025/26. Overall, core local government spending power is increasing by 6% in cash terms.

What steps his Department is taking to (a) increase the number of NHS appointments in rural areas and (b) improve access to (i) emergency and (ii) routine dental care for those in urgent need.

The Government plans to tackle the challenges for patients trying to access National Health Service dental care with a rescue plan to provide 700,000 more urgent dental appointments and recruit new dentists to the areas that need them most. To rebuild dentistry in the long term, we will reform the dental contract with the sector, with a shift to focus on prevention and the retention of NHS dentists. The responsibility for commissioning primary care services, including NHS dentistry, to meet the needs of the local population has been delegated to the integrated care boards (ICBs) across England. For the South Cotswolds constituency, this is the NHS Gloucestershire ICB. ICBs have started to advertise posts through the Golden Hello scheme. This recruitment incentive will see up to 240 dentists receiving payments of £20,000 to work in those areas that need them most for three years, including rural areas.

If he will make an assessment of the potential local ecological impact of the proposed Lime Down Solar Farm in South Cotswolds constituency.

The Lime Down Solar Farm is a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project which is expected to be submitted to the Planning Inspectorate for examination in the third quarter of 2025. As part of the examination process the Examining Authority appointed by the Planning Inspectorate will consider the potential local ecological impact of the proposal as one of its potential impacts. At the end of the examination process, the Examining Authority will submit its Report to the Secretary of State, who will make his decision based on a careful consideration of all the material planning considerations.

Food and Rural Affairs, how much funding he has allocated to flood resilience in South Cotswolds constituency.

£2.4 billion will be invested in 2024/25 and 2025/26 to improve flood resilience by maintaining, repairing and building flood defences. The list of projects to receive government funding in 2025/26 will be agreed in the usual way through Regional Flood and Coastal Committees with local representation. The Environment Agency is continuing to work across the South Cotswolds constituency to support communities at flood risk, particularly those who have recently flooded. This includes communities such as Dauntsey where the Environment Agency is continuing to provide flood resilience advice to better prepare people for the risk of flooding.

Media and Sport, what steps she is taking to support hotel owners in South Cotswolds constituency.

The Government is supporting hotel owners in the South Cotswolds and across the UK through measures such as business rates relief, and funding opportunities like the UK Shared Prosperity Fund. These initiatives aim to alleviate operational costs, promote regional tourism, and drive economic growth. The Government also works closely with VisitBritain and Cotswold Plus (the Local Visitor Economy Partnership for the wider Cotswolds region) to boost marketing efforts, attract visitors, and support the hospitality sector's recovery and growth.

Food, and Rural Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on the mental health of farmers.

The Secretary of State has regular discussions with Cabinet colleagues on a range of issues, and Cabinet discussions are considered confidential. The department regularly meets with stakeholders as part of ongoing work to understand the causes behind poor mental health in farmers and what actions can be taken to assist those experiencing mental health challenges. Before Christmas, I hosted a roundtable for national farmer welfare organisations to discuss this important issue. The department is in contact with officials from the Department for Health and Social Care and will shortly be discussing the issues raised during the roundtable.

Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to support survivors of domestic violence in South Cotswolds constituency.

This government is committed to tackling violence against women and girls and supporting victims of domestic abuse, with a number of steps being taken across government.On 28 November, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) announced a £30 million increase to the Domestic Abuse Safe Accommodation Grant, raising total funding for 2025/26 to £160 million. This will help local authorities in England to invest in essential services for victims of domestic abuse. On 18 December, MHCLG published funding allocations for local authorities, available here Core Spending Power table: provisional local government finance settlement 2025 to 2026 - GOV.UK. Funding is all located at a local authority level. For 2024/25, Gloucestershire County Council, received £1,152,238 through the Safe Accommodation Grant, and in 2025/26, they have been allocated £1,435,985. It is for Gloucestershire County Council to allocate this funding based on local need, including in South Cotswolds. Future funding beyond April 2026 will be decided as part of Spending Review.On 24 September 2024, my department announced that domestic abuse survivors are to be exempt from local connection requirements for social housing.The Ministry of Justice (MOJ) is also providing funding to the Gloucestershire Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) to assist survivors of domestic and sexual abuse, including those in the South Cotswolds constituency. In 2024/25, the Gloucestershire PCC received £1,343,073 to support victims.The MOJ, through Sections 13-14 of the Victims and Prisoners Act 2024, will require local commissioners in England to collaborate when commissioning support services for domestic abuse victims. They must assess the needs of victims in their area and determine if those needs are being met by existing services. These assessments will inform a joint commissioning strategy. This duty aims to remove barriers to accessing support and ensure a more strategic approach to local commissioning.

What steps her Department is taking to ensure the (a) affordability and (b) transparency of train fares; and whether she plans to regulate dynamic pricing models for commuter routes.

Whilst it is our ambition through public ownership to deliver a more affordable railway, any long-term changes or concessions made to rail fares policy require balancing against the potential impacts on passengers, taxpayers and the railway. We are committed to reforming the overcomplicated fares and ticketing system to deliver simpler, easier and more flexible ways to travel and will expand ticketing innovations such as Pay As You Go in urban areas across the country.

Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to ensure housing associations provide clear and consistent communication during tenancy transitions; and what steps she is taking to support tenants facing (a) rent increases and (b) upfront payment requirements.

Under the Transparency, Influence and Accountability Standard set by the independent Regulator of Social Housing, registered providers must ensure that communication with and information for tenants is clear, accessible, relevant, timely and appropriate to the diverse needs of tenants.Under the new consumer regulation regime, the Regulator proactively seeks evidence that providers are delivering the outcomes set by the standards.In terms of support with rent increases: if eligible, tenants of housing associations can receive Housing Benefit or the housing element of Universal Credit to help pay their rent. Support is also available through Discretionary Housing Payments, which are delivered via local authorities.The government recently consulted on a future long-term rent settlement, inviting views on a range of issues relating to social housing rent policy.The Renters’ Rights Bill will prohibit private registered providers, as well as private landlords, from requiring or accepting any payment of rent before an assured tenancy has been entered into.

Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the readiness of the supply chain to implement a deposit return scheme; and if he will engage with the wine and spirits industry on steps to implement such a scheme.

The UK Government is fully committed to a Deposit Return Scheme and will continue to work closely with the Scottish Government and the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) in Northern Ireland to launch the scheme across England, Scotland and Northern Ireland in October 2027. The Department has been working closely with industry, including the wines and spirits sector, during the development of DRS policy and legislation. Officials have engaged with the Wine and Spirits Trade Association (WSTA) and the Society of Independent Brewers and Associates (SIBA) who have been acting as Industry Champions of the DRS Small Producers sub-group, working alongside the UK and devolved governments. In England and Northern Ireland, glass will not be in scope of the Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) for drinks containers. Scottish Government have also agreed to exclude glass from the DRS to progress the delivery of the schemes. This means most wine and spirit drinks containers will not be included in the scheme, only those supplied in PET plastic, aluminium and steel containers will be in scope of the scheme. We aim to appoint the industry-led scheme administrator, the Deposit Management Organisation (DMO), in April 2025. The DMO will work with industry and support them to implement DRS in England, Northern Ireland, and Scotland.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of the Autumn Budget 2024 on businesses in South Cotswolds constituency.

Consistent with past fiscal events, HMT has not produced a constituency-level breakdown of the impact of Autumn Budget 2024 (AB24).At AB24, the government set out the first major steps in its approach to regional growth, and confirmed an extension of the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, providing £900m to local authorities to invest in local growth.The government also committed to continuing funding for key business support programmes in 2025-26, including Growth Hubs in England. The Gloucestershire Growth Hub is open to all businesses in South Cotswolds, providing free expert advice and signposting to various government support.At Budget, the government announced that from 2026-27, it will permanently lower tax rates for high street retail, hospitality, and leisure (RHL) properties, with rateable values below £500,000.

What fiscal steps she is taking to support rural businesses.

Prosperous rural businesses will be underpinned by improvements to rural connectivity and productivity, access to public services and a thriving farming sector. To this end, we are restoring stability and investment in our public services as the best way to support growth across the country, including in rural areas. We are investing £5 billion in broadband connectivity which will support growth in rural areas across the UK. We confirmed over £650 million of funding for local transport beyond City Region Sustainable Transport Settlements in 2025-26 to ensure that transport connections improve in our towns, villages and rural areas. We have also committed £5 billion for the farming budget over two years – which includes the largest ever amount of funding directed at sustainable food production and nature’s recovery in our country’s history.

Food and Rural Affairs, which legislation created the requirement for individuals to obtain permission from every riparian property owner to pass through their land while using a waterway; and whether he plans to (a) clarify and (b) amend existing guidance on public access to rivers.

Determining access rights onto rivers is complex. There is no general waterway access right and the matter has not been tested in the courts. It is not government’s role to offer legal advice, and at present those seeking to navigate inland rivers for recreational purposes where there is no navigation authority should establish that they have a legal right to do so, either through voluntary agreement with riparian landowners or otherwise. The Government is considering the approach to improving access to nature and is committed to working with stakeholders as this develops. A further update will be provided in due course.

What steps the Government is taking to help ensure accurate representation of (a) cases involving children already known to social services and (b) other aspects of home education in (i) public statements and (ii) media coverage.

Public statements issued by the department are reviewed for accuracy by policy officials, communications specialists, special advisers and, where needed, lawyers.The department also draws on information from external sources such as local authorities’ children’s services departments where relevant.The department’s media team maintains a comprehensive record of all media queries and public statements made in response to journalists which can be drawn on for future enquiries. Similar processes are followed by the department’s correspondence team and ministerial private offices.Publicly available statistics are published by the department on the GOV.UK website.The department cannot comment on the content of external sources which are not the department’s responsibility and can only comment on information provided by the department itself.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to help the wine and spirits industry manage the implementation of a UK-wide Deposit Return Scheme.

The UK Government is fully committed to a Deposit Return Scheme and will continue to work closely with the Scottish Government and the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) in Northern Ireland to launch the scheme across England, Scotland and Northern Ireland in October 2027. The Department has been working closely with industry, including the wines and spirits sector, during the development of DRS policy and legislation. Officials have engaged with the Wine and Spirits Trade Association (WSTA) and the Society of Independent Brewers and Associates (SIBA) who have been acting as Industry Champions of the DRS Small Producers sub-group, working alongside the UK and devolved governments. In England and Northern Ireland, glass will not be in scope of the Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) for drinks containers. Scottish Government have also agreed to exclude glass from the DRS to progress the delivery of the schemes. This means most wine and spirit drinks containers will not be included in the scheme, only those supplied in PET plastic, aluminium and steel containers will be in scope of the scheme. We aim to appoint the industry-led scheme administrator, the Deposit Management Organisation (DMO), in April 2025. The DMO will work with industry and support them to implement DRS in England, Northern Ireland, and Scotland.

Food and Rural Affairs, when his Department plans to publish its land use framework.

The Government plans to publish the first steps of its land use strategy in due course.

Whether he has made an assessment of the potential risk of investment by Macquarie in (a) Lime Down Solar Park and (b) other Nationally Significant Infrastructure Developments.

Ofgem and DESNZ have robust market monitoring schemes to assess electricity generation licence applications. Ofgem’s principal objective is to protect the interests of existing and future consumers through maintaining security of supply and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Ofgem considers the experience, capability, and financial stability of each applicant. The National Security and Investment (NSI) Act gives the government powers to scrutinise and intervene in acquisitions that may pose threats to national security. The Government does not routinely comment on specific deals or the applicability of the Act.