Written questions by Jones.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions she has had with her international counterparts on the protection of Christians in Sri Lanka.

The UK supports the right to freedom of religion or belief for all and regularly raises the importance of religious tolerance and the protection of rights for all Sri Lankans to practise their faith. Our High Commission in Colombo regularly meet government and religious leaders, including affected minorities and civil society, to hear their concerns and support interfaith dialogues and counter discrimination work based on religion or belief. During her visit to Sri Lanka in January 2025, the former Minister for the Indo-Pacific met activists working on freedom of religion or belief issues to reaffirm the UK's commitment to protecting these fundamental rights. More recently, the Minister for the Indo-Pacific met the Sri Lankan Speaker, Justice Minister and wider ministerial delegation in October and discussed the importance of respecting human rights and having an inclusive and transparent process as part of Sri Lanka's reconciliation.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions she has had with her international counterparts on the protection of civilians following the capture of El Fasher by the Rapid Support Forces on 26 October.

I refer the Hon. Member to the response provided to the Urgent Question on Sudan: Protection of Civilians on 30 October.

What steps is his Department taking to (a) promote earlier detection and (b) ensure (i) dentists, (ii) GPs and (iii) other frontline health professionals are (A) trained to identify early warning signs and (B) improve timely diagnosis and referral for treatment.

The responsibility for commissioning primary care, including dentistry and diagnostic activity, to meet the needs of the local population has been delegated to all integrated care boards (ICBs) across England.Dentists and other dental professionals, including hygienists, routinely check the soft tissues of a patient’s mouth for signs of cancer during dental visits and, as part of the check-up, will make an assessment and record an individual’s oral cancer risk.Dentists will prioritise patients at a higher risk of oral cancer for more frequent recall and review in line with National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidance. Members of the public who are worried about their oral health in relation to cancer should seek advice from their dentist or general practitioner (GP). Patients with symptoms of concern should be assessed and offered an urgent dental appointment based upon clinical need, in line with advice from NHS England.We know how important it is to detect cancer and other potentially life-threatening illnesses earlier, in GPs. That’s why we recently launched Jess’s Rule, a new patient safety initiative, in memory of Jessica Brady. In honour of Jessica Brady, all GPs are encouraged to think again if they have been unable to offer a diagnosis after three appointments or if the patient’s symptoms have escalated. This could include seeking a second opinion, offering episodic continuity of care, ordering additional tests, and offering more face-to-face appointments. As well as supporting the earlier identification of the most serious, potentially fatal conditions, this approach aims to improve timely diagnosis and referral for treatments.The Elective Reform Plan, published in January 2025, sets out the productivity and reform efforts needed to return to the 18-week constitutional standard by the end of this Parliament. The plan commits to transforming and expanding diagnostic services and speeding up waiting times for tests, a crucial part of reducing overall waiting times and returning to the referral to treatment 18-week standard.

What assessment he has made of (a) trends in the number of deaths from mouth cancer over the past ten years and (b) the potential role of late diagnosis in these trends.

We know that more needs to be done to improve outcomes for patients with mouth cancer. To support earlier and faster cancer diagnosis, we are now delivering additional checks, tests, and scans at 170 community diagnostic centres. As the first step to ensuring early diagnosis and treatment, the National Health Service in England has delivered an extra 40,000 operations, scans, and appointments each week since the start of this administration.Our forthcoming National Cancer Plan, which will be published in the new year, will have patients at its heart, and it will include further details on how we will speed up diagnosis and treatment, ensuring patients have access to the latest treatments and technology, and ultimately drive up this country’s cancer survival rates, including for mouth cancer.

With reference to the Answer of 19 October 2023 to Question 202528 on Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986, when the policy work to clarify Section 24 of the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 was (a) commenced, (b) paused and (c) resumed.

In 2014, the Government commenced a public consultation seeking views on section 24 with the aim of increasing openness and transparency. This work was paused due to changes in administration.The Home Office since resumed work on this issue and in 2022 a letter was sent from the responsible Minster to the Chair of the Animals in Science Committee setting out the intention to engage stakeholders on clarifying Section 24.Under this Government, the Home Office has been reviewing the matter internally and the intention to clarify the position on Section 24 remains.

Food and Rural Affairs, if she will create new regulatory protections from hazardous chemicals similar to those of the EU in the revised Environmental Improvement Plan.

The revised Environmental Improvement Plan will set out our approach to chemicals management. The ‘UK REACH Rationale for Prioritising Substances in the UK REACH Work Programme: 2025 to 2026’ policy paper set out our strategic approach to chemicals regulation. Notably that we are seeking to draw more from regulatory decision-making in other jurisdictions, and that this should enable new protections to be applied more quickly, more efficiently, and in a way which is more aligned with our closest trading partners.

Which active substances used in biocidal products are approved for use in the UK and not approved in the EU by (a) name of active substance, (b) product type (c) CAS Registry Number and (d) entity name.

The only active substance that is currently approved for use in biocidal products under the GB Biocidal Product Regulation (BPR) in GB, and which is not approved in the EU under EU BPR, is sulfuryl fluoride, in product types 8 and 18, CAS 2699-79-8. The entity that supported the first approval of sulfuryl fluoride is Dow AgroSciences GmbH, and the company supporting the renewal of the approval in GB is Douglas BLG BVBA. The EU BPR continues to apply in Northern Ireland.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions she has had with her Nicaraguan counterpart on the imprisonment of Efrén Antonio Vílchez López.

I refer the Hon. Member to the answer of 17 October 2025 to question 81287. We remain concerned by the harassment and arbitrary detention of members of the Church in Nicaragua and urge the Nicaraguan authorities to release all political prisoners immediately and unconditionally.

Which chemical substances have received EU Harmonised Classification and GB Mandatory Classification since 1 January 2021 by (a) chemical name, (b) European Community number, (c) CAS Registry Number, (d) EU harmonised classification (i) hazard class and category code and (ii) hazard statement code and (e) GB Mandatory Classification (i) Hazard class and category code, (ii) Hazard statement code and (iii) date of entry into legal effect.

Since 1 January 2021, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), as the regulator, has acted as the Agency for the assimilated Regulation (EC) No. 1272/2008 on classification, labelling and packaging of substances and mixtures as amended in Great Britain (or the GB CLP Regulation). HSE is responsible for the GB mandatory classification and labelling system (GB MCL) and for updating the GB MCL List on the HSE website with new/revised or deleted entries in accordance with a timetable set out in UK law. The GB MCL List entries provide information on chemical substances that have GB MCLs including: a) chemical name, (b) European Community number, (c) CAS Registry Number, (e) GB Mandatory Classification and Labelling (i) Hazard class and category code, (ii) Hazard statement code and (iii) date of entry into legal effect. The GB MCL List does not include information on the EU harmonised classification and labelling, hazard class and category code and hazard statement code for these chemical substances. This information is available on the European Chemicals Agency website in the unofficial ‘Table of harmonised entries containing all updates to the harmonised classification and labelling of hazardous substances, available in Table 3 of Annex VI to the EU CLP Regulation’. The GB MCL List includes 4430 entries. Since 1 January 2021, 206 chemical substances have received GB MCLs, following a recommendation by HSE as the Agency and a Ministerial Decision made with the consent of Scottish and Welsh Ministers. The GB MCL entries for the 206 entries, including the requested information, are published in the GB MCL List on the HSE website – please see https://www.hse.gov.uk/chemical-classification/classification/mcl-list.htm.

With reference to the Answer of 16 June 2021 to Question 14142 on Chemicals: Health and Wildlife, when she expects the UK Health Security Agency to publish the biomonitoring data collected on the exposure of UK citizens to chemicals under (a) Horizon 2020, (b) the European Human Biomonitoring Initiative and (c) the Partnership for Chemicals Risk Assessment.

As part of the Human Biomonitoring for Europe (HBM4EU) project, funded under Horizon 2020, the feasibility of integrating human biomonitoring data into an existing United Kingdom health examination survey was explored. However, no UK biomonitoring data was collected in the project.As a result of the HBM4EU work carried out by the UK Health Security Agency in collaboration with Imperial College London, a human biomonitoring module was implemented into the NHS Health Survey for England 2022/23 programme. Samples collected in this study are currently being analysed to ascertain exposure within England to a number of priority substances. This data for England will be integrated into the Partnership for the Assessment of Risks from Chemicals alongside that of other participating countries.Data on background levels of metals, bisphenols, and phthalates in the population samples are expected to be published by Autumn 2026, with data on per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances and flame retardants to follow at a later stage.

What steps he is taking to ensure that migration from Employment Support Allowance to Universal Credit does not adversely impact disabled claimants financially.

The Department is committed to ensuring that customers, including those with disabilities, are supported when moving from Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) to Universal Credit (UC). For those moved under managed migration, we provide transitional protection to their legacy benefit entitlement at the point of claiming UC. In addition to transitional protection, customers receiving income-related ESA receive a two-week run-on of their legacy benefits to ensure the move to UC is as smooth as possible. To support customers moving from ESA who require more support to claim the Department has developed the Enhanced Support Journey. The Enhanced Support Journey helps ESA claimants with potential barriers through proactive measures such as outbound calls, system checks, and home visits to ensure they are not left without support during migration. Key features include safeguards to prevent benefit termination before a UC claim, tailored adjustments like alternative communication channels, and national Complex Case Coaches for vulnerable claimants.

Whether she plans to publish the (a) minutes, (b) outcomes and (c) performance monitoring for meetings of Lead Ministers for Disability.

On 3 December 2024, International Day of Persons with Disabilities, I announced new Lead Ministers for Disability in every Government department.In addition to their day-to-day Ministerial portfolios, the Lead Ministers for Disability have a specific responsibility to break down barriers to opportunity right across the Government’s long-term missions, and to fulfil the manifesto commitment that this Government will champion the rights of disabled people and work with them so that their views and voices are at the heart of everything we do.To do this effectively, I and my fellow Lead Ministers for Disability work together across Government and routinely engage with disabled people and those with lived experience, along with a broad range of disabled people’s organisations and other external stakeholders. Feedback I have received suggests that this engagement is well received and beneficial to all involved.The Government does not intend to publish an annual or periodic report on the work of Lead Ministers for Disability. However, I chair regular meetings of the group throughout the year, to ensure that the needs and rights of disabled people are being properly considered and addressed across all Government departments.To date, we have met in December 2024, March and June 2025 and are expecting to meet again in the near future.Although we do not publish the minutes, outcomes and performance monitoring for meetings of Lead Ministers for Disability, the agendas for the meetings so far have consisted of updates from Lead Ministers for Disability on progress across their departments’ policies which particularly impact disabled people; updates on the British Sign Language Act 2022 and the requirement for Departments to develop and publish five year plans on how they will improve the use of BSL (all published in July 2025); discussion of issues relating to collection across Government of data on disability; and the Government’s intention to develop a Plan for Disability.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of migration from Employment Support Allowance to Universal Credit on care charges levied on disabled people by local authorities.

Under the Care Act 2014, the responsibility for interpreting and applying the law and the Care and Support Statutory (CASS) guidance rests with local authorities. Where local authorities decide to charge for the provision of care and support, they must follow the Care Act 2014 and the Care and Support (Charging and Assessment of Resources) Regulations 2014, and they must act under the CASS guidance.We are aware of some concerns raised around the impact of migration from Employment Support Allowance to Universal Credit on care charges. We are actively looking into this potential impact. To date, no specific assessment has been made.

When he last met with representatives of the WASPI campaign.

The previous Minister for Pensions met with representatives from WASPI on 5th September 2024 to hear their experiences directly, the first Minister to do so in eight years.

If he will make an assessment of the effectiveness of the Lead Ministers for Disability scheme in communicating the (a) needs and (b) views of disabled people across Government.

On 3 December 2024, International Day of Persons with Disabilities, I announced new Lead Ministers for Disability in every Government department.In addition to their day-to-day Ministerial portfolios, the Lead Ministers for Disability have a specific responsibility to break down barriers to opportunity right across the Government’s long-term missions, and to fulfil the manifesto commitment that this Government will champion the rights of disabled people and work with them so that their views and voices are at the heart of everything we do.To do this effectively, I and my fellow Lead Ministers for Disability work together across Government and routinely engage with disabled people and those with lived experience, along with a broad range of disabled people’s organisations and other external stakeholders. Feedback I have received suggests that this engagement is well received and beneficial to all involved.The Government does not intend to publish an annual or periodic report on the work of Lead Ministers for Disability. However, I chair regular meetings of the group throughout the year, to ensure that the needs and rights of disabled people are being properly considered and addressed across all Government departments.To date, we have met in December 2024, March and June 2025 and are expecting to meet again in the near future.Although we do not publish the minutes, outcomes and performance monitoring for meetings of Lead Ministers for Disability, the agendas for the meetings so far have consisted of updates from Lead Ministers for Disability on progress across their departments’ policies which particularly impact disabled people; updates on the British Sign Language Act 2022 and the requirement for Departments to develop and publish five year plans on how they will improve the use of BSL (all published in July 2025); discussion of issues relating to collection across Government of data on disability; and the Government’s intention to develop a Plan for Disability.

Food and Rural Affairs, how many farm inspections were conducted by the Animal and Plant Health Agency following a complaint of alleged breaches of animal welfare in each of the last five years.

All farm animals are protected by comprehensive and robust animal health and welfare legislation. The Animal and Plant Agency (APHA), as the national regulator for farmed animal welfare in Great Britain, undertake proactive and reactive inspections on farm to monitor compliance with legislation. The proactive inspections are risk based taking into account factors such as previous non-compliances, frequency of inspections and mortality rates. Reactive inspections are triggered by complaints and/or FSA referrals; any allegations of poor animal welfare is assessed by APHA and where there are non-compliances with the regulations, appropriate action is taken. This may include a follow-up, unannounced, inspection by APHA at a later date to confirm compliance. In most animal health and welfare cases of non-compliance, the statutory enforcement body will be the Local Authority. Defra publishes data in the Multi-annual National Control Plan (MANCP) annual reports, relating to animal welfare official controls and enforcement activities undertaken within GB. Outcomes of inspections, rates of compliance and types of non-compliance on farms are included in the report. MANCP reports are available here.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether she plans to require the Animal and Plant Health Agency to publish the (a) outcomes of inspections, (b) rates of compliance and (c) types of non-compliance on farms.

Defra publishes data in the Multi-annual National Control Plan (MANCP) annual reports, relating to animal welfare official controls and enforcement activities undertaken within GB, which the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) contributes to. Outcomes of inspections, rates of compliance and types of non-compliance on farms are included in the report. MANCP reports are available here.

Food and Rural Affairs, if she will take steps to ensure that the Animal and Plant Health Agency acts on reports of animal welfare breaches on farms by animal protection groups.

All farm animals are protected by comprehensive and robust animal health and welfare legislation. The Animal and Plant Agency (APHA), as the national regulator for farmed animal welfare in Great Britain, undertake proactive and reactive inspections on farm to monitor compliance with legislation. The proactive inspections are risk based taking into account factors such as previous non-compliances, frequency of inspections and mortality rates. Reactive inspections are triggered by complaints and/or FSA referrals; any allegations of poor animal welfare is assessed by APHA and where there are non-compliances with the regulations, appropriate action is taken. This may include a follow-up, unannounced, inspection by APHA at a later date to confirm compliance. In most animal health and welfare cases of non-compliance, the statutory enforcement body will be the Local Authority. Defra publishes data in the Multi-annual National Control Plan (MANCP) annual reports, relating to animal welfare official controls and enforcement activities undertaken within GB. Outcomes of inspections, rates of compliance and types of non-compliance on farms are included in the report. MANCP reports are available here.

How frequently the Lead Ministers for Disability have met over the last year; and if he will publish the (a) agenda and (b) topics discussed by the Lead Ministers for Disability in the last year.

On 3 December 2024, International Day of Persons with Disabilities, I announced new Lead Ministers for Disability in every Government department.In addition to their day-to-day Ministerial portfolios, the Lead Ministers for Disability have a specific responsibility to break down barriers to opportunity right across the Government’s long-term missions, and to fulfil the manifesto commitment that this Government will champion the rights of disabled people and work with them so that their views and voices are at the heart of everything we do.To do this effectively, I and my fellow Lead Ministers for Disability work together across Government and routinely engage with disabled people and those with lived experience, along with a broad range of disabled people’s organisations and other external stakeholders. Feedback I have received suggests that this engagement is well received and beneficial to all involved.The Government does not intend to publish an annual or periodic report on the work of Lead Ministers for Disability. However, I chair regular meetings of the group throughout the year, to ensure that the needs and rights of disabled people are being properly considered and addressed across all Government departments.To date, we have met in December 2024, March and June 2025 and are expecting to meet again in the near future.Although we do not publish the minutes, outcomes and performance monitoring for meetings of Lead Ministers for Disability, the agendas for the meetings so far have consisted of updates from Lead Ministers for Disability on progress across their departments’ policies which particularly impact disabled people; updates on the British Sign Language Act 2022 and the requirement for Departments to develop and publish five year plans on how they will improve the use of BSL (all published in July 2025); discussion of issues relating to collection across Government of data on disability; and the Government’s intention to develop a Plan for Disability.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of Animal and Plant Health Agency procedures on providing farms with advanced notice of an inspection on the enforcement of animal welfare standards.

All farm animals are protected by comprehensive and robust animal health and welfare legislation. The Animal and Plant Agency (APHA), as the national regulator for farmed animal welfare in Great Britain, undertake proactive and reactive inspections on farm to monitor compliance with legislation. The proactive inspections are risk based taking into account factors such as previous non-compliances, frequency of inspections and mortality rates. Reactive inspections are triggered by complaints and/or FSA referrals; any allegations of poor animal welfare is assessed by APHA and where there are non-compliances with the regulations, appropriate action is taken. This may include a follow-up, unannounced, inspection by APHA at a later date to confirm compliance. In most animal health and welfare cases of non-compliance, the statutory enforcement body will be the Local Authority. Defra publishes data in the Multi-annual National Control Plan (MANCP) annual reports, relating to animal welfare official controls and enforcement activities undertaken within GB. Outcomes of inspections, rates of compliance and types of non-compliance on farms are included in the report. MANCP reports are available here.