Written questions by Champion.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps she is taking with international partners to support (a) access to and (b) legislation protecting sexual and reproductive health and rights internationally, in the context of Official Development Assistance negotiations between the US and (i) low and (ii) middle-income countries.

I refer the Hon. Member to the answer provided in the House of Lords on 23 January 2025 to Question HL3786, which is reproduced below for ease of reference:The empowerment of women and girls is a top priority for the UK government, and sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) are key to this. When women and girls around the world are able to have control over their lives and their own bodies, they can avoid a life of early, multiple and often dangerous pregnancies and births, and instead complete their education, take up better economic opportunities and fulfil their potential. The UK therefore prioritises bodily autonomy and the rights of women and girls in the development of SRHR policies, in line with the Guttmacher-Lancet integrated definition of comprehensive SRHR for all.

What discussions she has had with National Highways on Post Opening Project Evaluation (POPE) reports; and what her planned timetable is for publication of existing unpublished POPE reports.

Post opening project evaluation (POPE) reports are detailed and complex evaluations and it is right that we take the time to fully assure findings. We are committed to transparency and will provide an update on publication in due course.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions she has had with her international counterparts ahead of the Gaza Reconstruction Conference hosted by Egypt in November 2025; and whether her Department plans to provide funding for the reconstruction of Gaza.

I refer the Hon. Member to the statement on the Middle East made by the Foreign Secretary on 18 November.

What assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of experts unregulated by the Health and Care Professions Council (a) diagnosing parental alienation and (b) advising courts on residence transfers on the outcomes of (i) general cases and (ii) where (A) mothers and (B) children have alleged abuse.

The Government does not recognise the concept of “parental alienation” syndrome and does not think it is capable of diagnosis. Having reviewed relevant family court judgments and published guidance by various organisations, the Government recognises that there is a need to review the role of unregulated experts in the family courts. The Government is already taking action on concerns about unregulated experts in family court proceedings. We are working with the Family Procedure Rule Committee on this issue to make changes to the Family Procedure Rules and their associated Practice Directions to restrict the instruction of these experts. There are existing mechanisms within the family court system for a case to be reconsidered.  A parent may apply to the family court to have an existing order varied or discharged. The court will consider all of the circumstances of the case and make any decision based on the welfare of the child, which is its paramount consideration.

If his Department will take steps to review the outcomes of Family Court cases where experts unregulated by the Health and Care Professions Council were used; and to ensure that children removed from their mothers based on their diagnosis can be returned.

The Government does not recognise the concept of “parental alienation” syndrome and does not think it is capable of diagnosis. Having reviewed relevant family court judgments and published guidance by various organisations, the Government recognises that there is a need to review the role of unregulated experts in the family courts. The Government is already taking action on concerns about unregulated experts in family court proceedings. We are working with the Family Procedure Rule Committee on this issue to make changes to the Family Procedure Rules and their associated Practice Directions to restrict the instruction of these experts. There are existing mechanisms within the family court system for a case to be reconsidered.  A parent may apply to the family court to have an existing order varied or discharged. The court will consider all of the circumstances of the case and make any decision based on the welfare of the child, which is its paramount consideration.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussion she has had with her counterparts at the UN on the resettlement of Rohingya refugees.

I refer the Hon. Member to the answer provided to question 77966 on 20 October 2025.

If he will set a target date for the publication of the Critical Minerals Strategy.

Critical minerals have been included in the recently published National Security Strategy and also in the UK Government’s Resilience Action Plan, highlighting their fundamental importance to safeguarding the UK's economic security and resilience. Thanks to the extensive engagement and insights from our industry and expert stakeholders as well as through cross-government collaboration, we have developed a powerful new vision and plan for securing critical minerals in the UK. Critical Minerals were identified as a foundational industry to growth driving sectors in the Industry Strategy. We will continue to refine this ahead of publication this year, taking into account the evolving international context.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps her Department is taking with partners to increase access to education for Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh.

The UK Government remains committed to improving the situation of Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh. In September, the Foreign Secretary announced £27 million in new funding, bringing the UK's total support to £447 million. This includes assistance to help refugees access to essential services, including education.We will continue working with the wider international community and our partners to improve access to education and skills training for the Rohingya.

What steps her Department is taking to ensure that the National Crime Agency is carrying out inspections on cargo flights from the Uyghur region to ensure they are not carrying goods made with Uyghur forced labour.

The Government remains firmly opposed to the use of state-imposed forced labour. We are committed to working with international partners and businesses to ensure global supply chains are free from human and labour rights abuses.The Proceeds of Crime Act (POCA) (2002) provides law enforcement agencies, including the NCA, with a powerful range of powers to seize cash and assets from individuals profiting from criminal activity. Government cannot direct how the POCA powers are used by law enforcement and independent operational decisions are a matter for the NCA.In the recently published Trade Strategy, the Government announced a review of its approach to Responsible Business Conduct (RBC) policy. The review will consider the effectiveness of the current UK regime and alternative means of supporting responsible business practices, including consideration of mandatory human rights and environmental due diligence laws and import controls on goods made by forced labour. The Department for Business and Trade will engage regularly with stakeholders to develop findings and provide updates.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of funding (a) civil society and (b) academic institutions to conduct (i) forced labour and (ii) supply chain research on the Uyghur region.

The Government regularly works with civil society and academic institutions to fund a variety of research, including topics such as forced labour. We keep under review how we can best tackle forced labour in supply chains, by working across government departments, with businesses and international partners.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether she plans to implement the recommendations in the Independent Review into Public Sector Food Procurement, published in May 2024.

The Government is currently considering the policy options available to deliver further on our ambitions for public sector food and catering. We are engaging with stakeholders across public sector supply chains and are carefully reflecting on possible policy options. The findings of the Independent Review into Public Sector Food Procurement will be considered as part of this ongoing policy development process.

What information her Department holds on how much it cost for the Independent Office for Police Conduct to carry out the Operation Amazon investigation linked to child sexual abuse in Rotherham.

I refer the Hon Member to letter sent to her from the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) regarding the costs for Operation Linden. A copy of the letter was placed in the House Library. As noted in that letter, “the total operations cost of the 91 investigations [which comprised Operation Linden], calculated until end March 2021 was estimated at just over £6 Million”. The Home Office holds no additional information.

What information her Department holds on how much it cost for the Independent Office for Police Conduct to carry out the Operation Linden investigation linked to child sexual abuse in Rotherham.

I refer the Hon Member to letter sent to her from the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) regarding the costs for Operation Linden. A copy of the letter was placed in the House Library. As noted in that letter, “the total operations cost of the 91 investigations [which comprised Operation Linden], calculated until end March 2021 was estimated at just over £6 Million”. The Home Office holds no additional information.

What the cost to the public purse was for the Independent Office for Police Conduct produce the Updated summary published for 2017 IOPC investigation linked to child sexual abuse in Rotherham.

On 19 September 2025, following requests from complainants and other interested persons for further detail, the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) published a further summary of the Operation Amazon investigation, which formed part of the series of investigations under Operation Linden.The IOPC does not routinely publish the costs of individual investigations and reports. The Home Office holds no additional information.

Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 23 September 2025 to Question 75965 on Food: Public Sector, what her Department's planned timetable is for reviewing food purchased by the public sector; and how her Department plans to report where food procured by the public sector originated.

The Government is currently assessing what food the public sector buys and where it comes from. This will enable us to determine the extent to which public sector organisations are buying food from British producers, providing a baseline with which to measure progress.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of animal welfare enforcement in commercial pig farms; and what steps she is taking to ensure that audit and inspection processes lead to (a) timely investigation, (b) transparency and (c) meaningful sanctions where breaches are identified.

All farm animals are protected by comprehensive and robust animal health and welfare legislation, and potential breaches of the law are taken very seriously. We are actively working with enforcement authorities to reform the way they collect and publish data of on-farm enforcement activities and the actions they take to support compliance and act on non-compliance. We will also explore whether the current enforcement tools used by our enforcement bodies are effective, proportionate and transparent.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the (a) effectiveness and (b) enforcement of the current illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing import controls.

The UK Government is strongly committed to preventing seafood caught from illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing from entering the UK supply chain. Defra works closely with the Devolved Governments, Marine Management Organisation and Port Health Authorities to manage the risk of illegally caught fish entering the UK. For example, the UK maintains a strict ban on seafood imports from countries that have been identified as non-cooperative in tackling IUU fishing as well as seafood caught by vessels included in the UK’s IUU vessel list identified as having engaged in IUU fishing. Controls are also in place to prevent foreign vessels accessing UK ports if suspected of engaging in IUU fishing. Furthermore, all wild-caught fish imported into the UK must be accompanied by validated catch certificates to ensure legality and traceability.

What steps his Department is taking to undertake regular assessments of the exposure of supply chains to Uyghur forced labour.

This Government stands firm on human rights, including the repression of Uyghurs, and continues to work with international partners to find ways of holding China to account.The Government’s Overseas Business Risk guidance sets out the risks of operating in certain regions and urges companies to conduct appropriate due diligence, in line with the UN Guiding Principle on Business and Human Rights and the OECD Guidelines on Responsible Business Conduct.In the Trade Strategy, the Government launched a review into responsible business conduct. The review is considering how we can best tackle supply chain harms, such as forced labour. This includes consideration of measures to improve supply chain transparency and traceability.

Food and Rural Affairs, what her planned timetable is for ensuring that half of all food purchased across the public sector is (a) locally produced and (b) certified to higher environment standards.

The Government is open to considering all lawful means of achieving its ambition that half of all food purchased across the public sector should be locally produced or certified to higher environmental standards. As a first step, we will be reviewing the food currently purchased by the public sector and its provenance to help inform our future approach on public sector food procurement.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether he plans to issue guidance to local authorities on the procurement of food that is locally produced or certified to higher environment standards.

Defra is responsible for the Government Buying Standards for Food and Catering Services (GBSF), which set the requirements for sourcing, cooking, and serving of food for central Government and executive agencies in England. Local authorities are encouraged to comply with these where possible. Further, we have already published a new national procurement policy statement which sets expectations for Government contracts to favour products certified to high environmental standards that we think high-quality British producers are well-placed to meet.