Written questions by Owen.

What steps she is taking to ensure that Bedfordshire Police have sufficient resource to hit officer number targets.

The Government’s Safer Streets Mission sets a clear expectation for policing to deliver safer communities and improved public confidence. An effective, well-supported police service is central to achieving this.For 2025/26, £376.8 million has been made available to forces to support achievement of officer number targets. This funding was distributed as follows:£270.1 million in ringfenced funding has been made available, which PCCs have been able to access, as in previous years, by demonstrating that they have met their officer headcount targets.£106.7 million has been paid to forces who received additional recruitment allocations in 2023/24 and 2024/25. This funding has been provided as an additional recruitment top up grant. It is unconditional, and the funding has been distributed according to how much additional recruitment forces were allocated.For 2025/26, Bedfordshire Police have been allocated a total of up to £3,155,659 through the officer maintenance ringfenced grant, and £1,580,578 through the top-up grant, to maintain a total headcount of 1,466 officers.Published statistics show the force achieved this target at the mid-year point. As at 30 September 2025, Bedfordshire Police had a total of 1,467 police officers (headcount).For 2025/26, a total of up to £1,803,234 was also made available to Bedfordshire Police through the neighbourhood policing grant to grow by 38 FTE Neighbourhood Policing officers (30 FTE police officers and 8 FTE PCSOs).As at 30 September, Bedfordshire Police had grown their neighbourhood policing function by 13 FTE.

Whether she will provide an update on the status of Special Grant funding to Bedfordshire Police.

The 2026-27 Final Police Funding Settlement confirmed £49.6m for Special Grant in the coming financial year. Funding for Bedfordshire Police will be up to £175.8m, an increase of up to £7.5m from 2025-26. Special Grant awards will be confirmed in due course.The government has set out an ambitious programme of police reform in the Police Reform White Paper, and has committed to reform of the police funding model.

Whether stations with more than one million yearly journeys will be prioritised in future rounds of Access for All funding.

This government is committed to improving the accessibility of the railway and recognises the social and economic benefits this brings to communities. Funding for a future round of Access for All may be made available as part of the next Spending Review, which would present an opportunity to deliver full or partial accessibility upgrades at additional stations across Britain. As part of the establishment of Great British Railways, we will further reform the programme, shaped through engagement with disabled people and local transport bodies, to ensure future investment is targeted where it delivers the greatest benefit.

What recent progress she has made on improving rail accessibility in Luton North constituency.

This Government is committed to improving the accessibility of the railway and recognises the significant social and economic benefits that enhanced accessibility brings to communities.On 15 January, we confirmed that accessibility upgrades will not progress at Leagrave station in the Hon. Member’s constituency at this time. The absence of third-party funding contributions to the project was the crucial factor in this decision. In contrast, all 30 of the 50 shortlisted projects which included a third-party funding contribution will now be progressing.Nearby Luton Airport Parkway station already has step-free access to all platforms. Delivery is beginning on step-free upgrades at Luton station.In the meantime, where step-free access is not available, train operators are required to provide alternative accessible transport at no additional cost to the passenger.In addition to the Access for All programme, whenever the rail industry installs, replaces or renews station infrastructure, this work must comply with current accessibility standards, with enforcement action taken by the Office of Rail and Road where those standards are not met.Should sources of funding be identified locally, for example through section 106 contributions, this would provide an opportunity to bring forward accessibility improvements at Leagrave station.The Rail Minister would be pleased to meet with the Hon. Member, at her earliest convenience, to discuss accessibility at Leagrave station further.

What steps he is taking to ensure that the maintenance of Local Housing Allowance at current levels is not having a disproportionately negative impact on people from black, asian or minority ethnic groups.

The Secretary of State reviewed Local Housing Allowance rates for 2026/27 at Autumn Budget and a decision was made to maintain LHA rates at their current 2024/25 levels for 2026/27. A range of factors were considered, including rent levels across Great Britain, the wider fiscal context and welfare priorities. Ministers also considered the equality impacts, including by ethnicity, in line with the requirements of the Public Sector Equality Duty when taking decisions about policy.

Pursuant to the Answer of 7 January to Question 100439, on Luton Airport: Railways, what discussions she has had with Network Rail on the provision of step free access for passengers at Leagrave station travelling to and from London Luton Airport.

In May 2024, the previous government selected 50 stations for initial feasibility work for potential upgrades as part of the Access for All programme, before delivery funding was secured. We will make an announcement on which stations will progress in due course.

When he plans to provide an update on whether Leagrave station will progress to the development phase under the Access for All programme.

This government is committed to improving the accessibility of the railway and recognises the social and economic benefits this brings to communities.In May 2024, the previous government selected 50 stations for initial feasibility work for potential upgrades as part of our Access for All programme, before delivery funding was secured. This included Leagrave railway station and an update on those projects progressing to the next stage will be provided shortly. Given the acute funding pressures on capital investments, any sources of funding that can be identified locally, for example from s106 monies, would also be a way of bringing accessibility at this station further forward.

With reference to the Planning Inspectorate's press release entitled London Luton Airport Expansion development consent decision announced, published on 3 April 2025, what discussions she has had with Network Rail on the provision of step free access for passengers from the north of Luton travelling to and from London Luton Airport.

Luton Airport Parkway already has step free access and lifts are already due to be installed at Luton station under the Access for All programme. The Department will also expect any new transport infrastructure to meet current accessibility standards.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what humanitarian support her Department is helping to provide for displaced families in Gaza affected by severe weather.

The Hon Member is right to raise concerns about the impact of worsening weather conditions on the already appalling humanitarian crisis in Gaza, and the UK Government is doing all that we can alongside our international and civil society partners to alleviate that crisis.Earlier this month, the UK's Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) launched a new appeal to help support vulnerable families over the winter months, and warned of a dire shortage of shelter and essential items that means children are facing cold nighttime temperatures without warm clothes or blankets, a situation exacerbated by severe flooding in many areas of Gaza, and the increased risk of waterborne diseases due to severely damaged water and sewage infrastructure.The UK Government has agreed to match donations to the DEC appeal up to £3 million, with the Foreign Secretary stating in her announcement that: "The situation in Gaza remains critical, with winter weather taking conditions from bad to worse. Innocent families are facing icy winds and biting rain, forced to live in exposed conditions. We must act now to get vital winter aid to those that need it."Earlier this month UK-funded tents entered Gaza after months stuck at the border, to provide urgent shelter for families which are desperately needed now that winter has arrived. We are continuing to urge the Israeli authorities to open all crossings and routes, and lift all restrictions so that the UN and other humanitarian relief agencies can get supplies of shelter kits, medicine, food, and other essentials into Gaza at the volume and pace required to meet the scale and urgency of this crisis.

If he will publish a list of the research programmes that are underway on the safety of breast implants.

The Department commissions research through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). The NIHR is not currently funding any specific research into the safety of breast implants but welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health. Applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made based on the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money, and scientific quality.The Department does not hold information related to breast implant safety research funded by other sources.

How many reports of BIA-ALCL there have been in the UK; and which manufacturers of breast implants those reports have been associated with.

As has been previously shared in evidence submitted to the Women and Equalities Select Committee in July 2025, with further information in the document attached, the Medicines and Healthcare product Regulatory Agency (MHRA) closely monitors Breast Implant Associated- Anaplastic Large Cell Lymphoma (BIA-ALCL), a cancer of the immune system, not a breast cancer, and publishes the output from this monitoring on the GOV.UK webpage, at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/guidance/breast-implants-and-anaplastic-large-cell-lymphoma-alclThe MHRA has developed, with advice from independent expert advisory group, a follow up strategy to collect further data on adverse incidents reporting BIA-ALCL. This has informed the information that is published on the MHRA webpage relating to BIA-ALCL which includes the most up to date number of confirmed reports of BIA-ALCL made to the MHRA, and the breakdown of the number of confirmed reports of primary BIA-ALCL cases by manufacturer of breast implant.Please note that the data on the GOV.UK webpage should be interpreted in the context of the ‘Notes and limitations to the data’ section also provided on the webpage.

How many (a) breast implants and (b) PIP breast implants have ruptured and had to be removed in the last 10 years; and how many of those ruptured implants were not listed on the breast and cosmetic implant registry when implanted.

The Breast and Cosmetic Implant Registry (BCIR), set up in 2016, collects all implant data, and explant data where possible.Practically, it is always difficult and often impossible to identify a model and product code on an explant. If explanted devices, or patients undergoing explant, cannot be linked to data collected at time of implant, then this often reduces explant data to 'patient, surgeon, location, date'. This in turn makes it impossible to monitor trends in explant/failure.NHS England is in the process of clarifying and mandating the detail required in the BCIR and other device-related collections.This will place a greater responsibility on trusts to either identify a device at the point of explant, or to identify the device from internal trust records created during the same patient's implant procedure. This will only be possible if the implant and explant are performed at the same trust. It is then the intention of NHS England to provide the same matching service for implant/explant where the trusts differ.This solution will, when implemented, give a full, proactive picture of device longevity/risk, for the purposes of research and surveillance, alongside the existing ability to identify patients affected by a device recall notice.

How many women in the UK have received Allergan breast implants.

The Breast and Cosmetic Implant Registry (BCIR), set up in 2016, collects all implant data, and explant data where possible.Practically, it is always difficult and often impossible to identify a model and product code on an explant. If explanted devices, or patients undergoing explant, cannot be linked to data collected at time of implant, then this often reduces explant data to 'patient, surgeon, location, date'. This in turn makes it impossible to monitor trends in explant/failure.NHS England is in the process of clarifying and mandating the detail required in the BCIR and other device-related collections.This will place a greater responsibility on trusts to either identify a device at the point of explant, or to identify the device from internal trust records created during the same patient's implant procedure. This will only be possible if the implant and explant are performed at the same trust. It is then the intention of NHS England to provide the same matching service for implant/explant where the trusts differ.This solution will, when implemented, give a full, proactive picture of device longevity/risk, for the purposes of research and surveillance, alongside the existing ability to identify patients affected by a device recall notice.

If she will make an assessment of the potential impact of reducing child poverty on the economy.

The Child Poverty Action Group estimate the cost to the country at £40bn per year, which is one of the reasons why the government is removing the two-child limit and lifting 550,000 children out of poverty in the final year of this Parliament.

What discussions he has had with the Nursing and Midwifery Council on wait times for (a) general cases and (b) cases before the case examiner.

The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) is the independent regulator of nurses and midwives in the United Kingdom, and nursing associates in England. The NMC is independent of Government, directly accountable to Parliament and is responsible for operational matters concerning the discharge of its statutory duties. The United Kingdom’s model of healthcare professional regulation is founded on the principle of regulators operating independently from the Government. The Professional Standards Authority for Health and Social Care oversees the bodies that regulate health and care professionals in the UK, which includes the NMC.As Minister of State for Health (Secondary Care), I monitor the NMC’s performance and meets with the organisation regularly, which includes discussion on the timeliness of the NMC’s fitness to practise processes. In line with the Ministerial Code, details of all ministerial meetings, including those with the NMC, are published quarterly on the GOV.UK website, at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/ministerial-gifts-hospitality-overseas-travel-and-meetings

Communities and Local Government, what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport on the impact of Sport England’s consultee status on planning applications for playing fields.

The Secretary of State has regular discussions with Cabinet colleagues on a wide range of issues. In line with the practice of successive administrations, details of internal discussions are not normally disclosed. A consultation on reforms to the statutory consultee system is underway and can be found on gov.uk here. The consultation asks for views on the impacts of removing Sport England’s status as a statutory consultee as part of our work to align the statutory consultee system with the development and economic growth objectives set out in our Plan for Change.

Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to protect leaseholders from (a) poor-performing managing agents and (b) excessive service charges.

I refer the hon. Member to the proposals set out in the consultation on strengthening leaseholder protections over charges and services published on 4 July 2025 (which can be found on gov.uk here) and the answer given to Question UIN 77534 on 17 October 2025.

What steps his Department is taking to support victims of rape and sexual violence through the court system.

I recognise that the experience of attending court can be distressing, particularly for vulnerable victims, such as those of rape and sexual violence.Special measures can help vulnerable witnesses who may otherwise feel unable to give evidence.The Ministry of Justice-funded Witness Service also provides on-the-day support to victims at court.

Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to ensure fire safety for new (a) high rise buildings, (b) complex or mixed use developments and (c) sites with known access or water-supply constraints and (d) other new build major residential developments.

The Department has taken steps to strengthen fire safety in all new buildings, including those that are high-rise, complex, or located on constrained sites.The Building Safety Act 2022 established the Building Safety Regulator, which since October 2023 has acted as the Building Control Authority for Higher Risk Buildings. Fire safety is considered from the earliest design stages through Planning Gateway One and Gateway Two.Approved Document B (Fire Safety) is subject to continuous review. Updates since 2017 include the ban on combustible materials in external walls over 18 metres, sprinkler requirements for buildings over 11 metres, evacuation alert systems, and provision for second staircases in buildings over 18 metres, which will apply to new buildings where applications are submitted after 30 September 2026.For complex or mixed-use developments, applications are assessed by multi-disciplinary teams. Where standard guidance is insufficient, expert advice should be sought.For sites with access or water-supply constraints, developers must demonstrate compliance with fire service access provisions or justify alternative approaches.All new residential developments, regardless of size, must comply with the Building Regulations, including Part B (Fire Safety). Approved Document B provides statutory guidance on how these requirements may be met in common building situations, but developers may choose alternative approaches provided they can demonstrate compliance with the functional requirements of the Regulations.

What steps he is taking to promote (a) culturally competent and (b) community-led prevention measures for older black men.

This Government recognises the evidence that men of Black ethnicity are at a higher risk of some diseases. Tackling these inequalities is a top priority for the Government.For example, black men are at higher risk of cardiovascular disease yet evidence shows that men in Black and Mixed ethnic groups are the least likely to receive lipid-lowering therapy or reach blood pressure targets. The National Health Service is tackling these inequalities through the Core20PLUS5 programme, a national approach to inform action to reduce healthcare inequalities in the most deprived areas. Hypertension and lipid management are one of the top clinical priorities for the framework, and the NHS is supporting systems where the burden of undiagnosed hypertension and untreated cholesterol is highest. Community based delivery models, such as pharmacy blood pressure checks and BP@Home, are also increasing access for underserved groups, including those in deprived and ethnically diverse communities.Prostate cancer is another example where incidence rates are higher among Black men. We are jointly delivering the £42 million TRANSFORM trial with Prostate Cancer UK, with £16 million from the Department, which aims to find better ways of detecting prostate cancer and address inequalities, ensuring at least 10% of those invited to participate are Black men. In November, the first men began receiving letters from their general practitioners, inviting them to join the landmark trial designed to make diagnosis earlier, safer, and more effective.There are around 17,000 people living with sickle cell disease in England. It is the fastest growing genetic condition in the country and is more common in people of Black African and Black Caribbean heritage (77% of patients) and in more deprived communities (47% of patients). NHS England, through the Sickle Cell and Thalassemia Quality Improvement programme, has stepped up a programme of work aligned to the Government’s 10-Year Health Plan particularly focusing on the shift to prevention, through a new education programme, that aims to develop a series of e-learning modules, training and communication material, which will focus on improving the knowledge and awareness about the condition, including for black men.