Written questions by Darling.

If he will take steps to (a) remove the cap on the number of days courts can sit, (b) help ensure prisoners are transported to court on time, (c) hold discussions with the Crown Prosecution Service on the removal of cases from the backlog, (d) help support the recruitment of more public sector barristers and (e) help ensure that court buildings are fit for purpose.

The Government inherited a justice system in crisis, with a record and rising open caseload of nearly 80,000 criminal cases waiting to be heard and too many victims waiting years for justice.In the Crown Court for this financial year (2025/26), we are funding 111,250 sitting days – the highest number of sitting days on record and over 5,000 more than the previous Government funded for the last financial year. The Deputy Prime Minister and Lady Chief Justice continue discussions on allocation for 2026-27, aiming to give an unprecedented three-year certainty to the system. The Deputy Prime Minister has been clear that sitting days in the Crown and magistrates’ courts must continue to rise and his ambition is to continue breaking records by the end of this Parliament. We will provide Parliament with an update on the sitting day allocations in the usual way at the conclusion of the Concordat process.Prisoners should be produced on time and we are committed to making improvements where we can. Prisoner transport delivery is regularly reviewed and a significant number of contract changes have been made already to adapt to the changing operational requirement. But even if every prison van ran like clockwork tomorrow, we would still be left with a backlog edging towards 100,000 cases. Prisoner transport delays are a symptom of a stretched system, not a cure for it.There is no quick fix to the criminal courts crisis, and no single lever that can be pulled. It is vital that all system partners work together to deliver swifter justice for victims. We continue to talk to system partners, including the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), to consider options, including those in Sir Brian Leveson’s Part I report on criminal court reform. In June 2025, the Chancellor announced a landmark increase of £96 million (RDELex) in additional funding for the CPS over the spending review period 2026-2029. This will help CPS protect victims by tackling the backlog, speeding up justice, and delivering a justice system that services victims.We are investing up to an additional £34 million per year for criminal legal aid advocates. We are also taking forward Sir Brian’s recommendation to match-fund a number of criminal barrister pupillages, with a particular focus on opening a career at the criminal Bar to even more young people from across society.This Government has also secured record investment of up to £450 million per year for the courts system over the Spending Review period, alongside investing £148.5 million in court and tribunal maintenance and project funding this financial year, £28.5 million more than the previous Government funded last financial year.But investment alone is not enough – that is why this Government asked Sir Brian Leveson to undertake his Independent Review of the Criminal Courts. On 2 December, the Deputy Prime Minister responded to the first part of that review and set out why structural court reform is necessary, alongside investment and modernisation.

Communities and Local Government, whether his Department takes account of exceptional circumstances in previous years when calculating Council Tax base growth, including reviews of single person discounts and the introduction of a Council Tax premium on second homes.

At the provisional Local Government Finance Settlement 2026-27 to 2028-29 on 17 December 2025, we set out the funding available to councils through the longstanding Core Spending Power measure, which was calculated in line with the approach used at previous Settlements. This means we assumed each authority’s council tax base increases in line with the five-year average annual growth in their council tax base. The inclusion of second homes premium income in Core Spending Power does not affect grant allocations, as it is excluded in the updated assessment of relative need and resources. We are aware over two thirds of billing authorities introduced second homes premiums in 2025-26, and under our proposals this additional income would be accounted for in Core Spending Power, given it is an important part of the resources available to local authorities to deliver services. No council will lose grant and/or business rates through our assessment of authorities’ relative need and resources as a result of this approach and as part of the government’s policy to reward places for housebuilding. The consultation on the provisional Settlement closed on 14 January. The government is now considering responses and will set out its position at the final Settlement in February.

What steps his Department is taking to ensure adequate funding for Time for Young People in Torbay; and if he will make an assessment of the adequacy of early support provision.

We recognise the importance of high-quality, community-based early support for children and young people’s mental health, including innovative local services such as Time for Young People in Torbay. These services play a key role in offering early, accessible support to young people at a point when they may not meet clinical thresholds for statutory National Health Service mental health services. It is open to integrated care boards and local authorities to commission voluntary sector providers to ensure the mental health and wellbeing needs of their local population are met.Whilst Government does not directly fund Time for Young People in Torbay, as part of the Department’s wider commitment to early intervention and prevention, we are working with NHS England to expand funding for a range of early support initiatives and to strengthen the evidence base for such provision. For example, in 2024/25, the Department provided £8 million of funding to boost and evaluate the impact of 24 existing early support hubs, with a further £7 million in 2025/26. Findings from the evaluation will help inform the design and implementation of Young Futures Hubs, a national model for open-access support in communities.This is in addition to other ongoing initiatives that deliver early intervention, for example through further investment and expansion of mental health support teams in schools so that up to 900,000 additional children and young people in England will have access to an NHS-funded mental health support team in their school or college by Spring 2026, compared to Spring 2025. We intend to reach full coverage by 2029.

From January 2023 to December 2025, what information his Department holds on the number of instances where waiting times for Access to Work have resulted in claimants losing their job or having their working hours reduced.

Access to Work is only available to people who are in work or about to start work, and the number of hours worked does not affect eligibility, so this type of data is not recorded.

What steps he is taking to help ensure that local carer services are able to provide Income Maximisation services and crisis support to unpaid carers.

Overall Government responsibility for support for unpaid carers in England sits with the Department for Health and Social Care. DWP can provide financial support to qualifying unpaid carers through Carer’s Allowance, the Carer Element in Universal Credit and the Carer Addition in Pension Credit. Income Maximisation Services and other Crisis Support may be available to unpaid carers locally through a number of routes, including independent organisations such as the Carers Trust. DWP staff can signpost unpaid carers to this support where appropriate. DWP can also support unpaid carers who wish to combine their caring responsibilities with paid work through our Jobcentre Plus network and other employment support.

Whether unpaid carers will be classified as a financially vulnerable group eligible for the Crisis and Resilience Fund.

My Department has engaged with stakeholders on the design of the Fund through a structured co-design process, including eligibility requirements. We are considering feedback received through this process, and we plan to publish guidance in January 2026.

How many carers have been convicted of fraud since 2015 due to Carer’s Allowance overpayments.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has prosecuted cases of benefit fraud since 2012. DWP will refer cases where there is evidence that a claimant has deliberately claimed benefits they are not entitled to or provided false information. The decision to prosecute is decided by the CPS. The NAO published DWP’s data on the number of cases related to the overpayments of Carer’s Allowance that were referred to the Crown Prosecution Service (or Procurator Fiscal in Scotland) for prosecution since 2015. These are available on p.23 in the NAO Investigation into overpayments of Carer's Allowance report published on 26 April 2019. These volumes relate to cases where the individuals concerned have a Carer’s Allowance overpayment, however Carer’s Allowance might not be the primary benefit under consideration for the prosecution. On p.30 in the NAO Carer’s Allowance report published on 11 December 2024. These volumes are only where a case is being referred for prosecution where a Carer’s Allowance overpayment was the primary benefit under investigation. Therefore, they are not directly comparable to the preceding volumes. The volumes are for all prosecutions including earnings-related cases.

Innovation and Technology, what steps her Department is taking to regulate artificial intelligence.

AI is already regulated in the UK. A range of existing rules already apply to AI systems, such as data protection, competition, equality legislation and other forms of sector regulation. The Government will act where these laws are not enough to ensure safe use. We are exploring whether additional protections are needed. The Technology Secretary confirmed in Parliament last week that the Government will look at what more can be done to manage the emergent risks of AI chatbots.

What assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of the regional provision of Minor Eye Conditions Services.

Integrated care boards are responsible for assessing the health needs of their local population and commissioning primary and secondary eye care services to meet them. This can include the commissioning of enhanced eye care services from high street optical practices, including minor and urgent eye care services and glaucoma referral refinement services.NHS England’s accelerator pilots have demonstrated that improved IT connectivity and a single point of access can significantly speed up eye care referrals and support more patients to be managed in the community, in line with the ambitions in the 10-Year Health Plan.

What assessment his Department has made of the potential implications for his policies of the October 2024 report entitled Key Interventions to Transform Eye Care & Eye Health; and what estimate his Department has made of the potential savings to the public purse of that report’s recommendations for a national-roll out of (a) Community Urgent Eye Service and Minor Eye Conditions Service, (b) the Integrated Glaucoma Pathway and (c) the Integrated Cataract Pathway for pre and post assessments.

Integrated care boards are responsible for assessing the health needs of their local population and commissioning primary and secondary eye care services to meet them. This can include the commissioning of enhanced eye care services from high street optical practices, including minor and urgent eye care services and glaucoma referral refinement services.NHS England’s accelerator pilots have demonstrated that improved IT connectivity and a single point of access can significantly speed up eye care referrals and support more patients to be managed in the community, in line with the ambitions in the 10-Year Health Plan.

What assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of (a) eye care services provision and (b) steps taken by Integrated Care Boards to ensure equality of access to eye care services in each region.

Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for commissioning primary and secondary eye care services to meet local need. NHS sight tests are widely available across the country. The decision to commission enhanced eye care services will be determined by local ICBs following a local needs assessment.ICBs are required to work with local authorities to assess the current and future health, care and wellbeing needs of their local populations. They will then set out in joint local health and wellbeing strategies how they will meet those needs, which could include addressing any identified inequalities in accessing services. ICBs will also want to take account of published waiting list information which is broken down by demographics to allow greater visibility of potential health inequalities.

What assessment his Department has made of the efficacy of the (a) Minor Eye Conditions Service and (b) Community Urgent Eyecare Service.

Integrated care boards are responsible for assessing the health needs of their local population and commissioning primary and secondary eye care services to meet them. This can include the commissioning of enhanced eye care services from high street optical practices, including minor and urgent eye care services and glaucoma referral refinement services.NHS England’s accelerator pilots have demonstrated that improved IT connectivity and a single point of access can significantly speed up eye care referrals and support more patients to be managed in the community, in line with the ambitions in the 10-Year Health Plan.

What steps his Department is taking to create capacity in hospital eye services by expanding the use of optometry-led diagnostic and treatment pathways.

Integrated care boards are responsible for assessing the health needs of their local population and commissioning primary and secondary eye care services to meet them. This can include the commissioning of enhanced eye care services from high street optical practices, including minor and urgent eye care services and glaucoma referral refinement services.NHS England’s accelerator pilots have demonstrated that improved IT connectivity and a single point of access can significantly speed up eye care referrals and support more patients to be managed in the community, in line with the ambitions in the 10-Year Health Plan.

What steps his Department is taking to expand the use of community optometry services.

Integrated care boards are responsible for assessing the health needs of their local population and commissioning primary and secondary eye care services to meet them. This can include the commissioning of enhanced eye care services from high street optical practices, including minor and urgent eye care services and glaucoma referral refinement services.NHS England’s accelerator pilots have demonstrated that improved IT connectivity and a single point of access can significantly speed up eye care referrals and support more patients to be managed in the community, in line with the ambitions in the 10-Year Health Plan.

Which Departments and schemes will include families with No Recourse to Public Funds within their eligibility criteria following the introduction of new guidance; and what steps she will take to monitor and enforce consistency of support.

The new guidance being produced by the Home Office is designed to assist local authorities in supporting families with NRPF, as set out in the Child Poverty Strategy. The guidance will provide clarity around statutory duties and key safeguards for local authorities, ensuring a clear and consistent approach. The guidance does not alter the eligibility criteria for any current schemes or benefits.Children whose families are subject to the ‘no recourse to public funds’ condition (NRPF) can currently access schemes and benefits such as free school meals, 15 hours of free childcare for disadvantaged two-year-olds and 15 hours free childcare for three- to four-year-old.The Home Office will continue to work across government where relevant to ensure that migrant children with NRPF are specifically considered when reviewing or deciding on eligibility for schemes and benefits.

Innovation and Technology, what steps she is taking to improve the availability of high-quality STEM skills and support innovation in the South West, particularly in sectors critical to defence, ICT, and energy security.

The Government is committed to strengthening STEM skills and driving innovation across the UK, including the South West. DSIT has launched the TechFirst programme to deliver tech and AI learning to 1 million young people by 2029. This builds on CyberFirst, which has reached 415,000 students and recognised 230 schools, including 47 in the South West.Since 2022, DSIT’s Cyber Local programme has delivered 18 initiatives in the South West, supporting economic growth and skills development. A list of 2024–25 programmes is available here.DSIT is working with other government departments to increase regional and national STEM skills provisions. Through the Clean Energy Jobs Plan, the Government is investing £1.2 billion in skills development, including a £100 million Engineering Skills Package and new Technical Excellence Colleges. The South West hosts the Offshore Renewable Energy Catapult in Hayle, supporting innovation and skills development in marine and energy technologies.The UK Government’s Defence Industrial Strategy, backed by a £182 million skills package, includes the Plymouth Defence Growth Deal (September 2025), securing a share of £250 million to boost defence innovation and skills in the region.The Post‑16 Education and Skills White Paper focuses on employer‑led training and technical routes to tackle skills gaps. In the South West, this means Local Skills Improvement Plans shaping provision for priority sectors like clean energy, digital and defence, alongside Technical Excellence Colleges, expanding higher technical courses and apprenticeships to meet regional demand.

Innovation and Technology, whether she has a strategy to accelerate the development and adoption of metamaterials.

The government is committed to support the development and adoption of metamaterials, as part of our wider ambition to strengthen the UK’s advanced materials ecosystem. In June 2025, the UK’s Modern Industrial Strategy prioritised advanced materials as a frontier industry and committed an initial £50 million to a National Materials Innovation Programme. The first feasibility call went live in November and specifically highlights metamaterials and metasurfaces as a strategic opportunity area.This builds on existing government support for metamaterials, including the £19.6 million MetaHub public-private partnership with the University of Exeter, to advance 3D nanoscale metamaterials, and the Metamaterials Network Plus.

When she plans to publish a fuller equalities impact assessment of the Child Poverty Strategy, including its impact on groups at highest risk of poverty.

A full summary equalities analysis was published alongside the Child Poverty Strategy and is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/child-poverty-strategy-summary-equalities-analysis.The impacts of policies contributing to the Child Poverty Strategy will be kept under review and monitored on an ongoing basis by departments using their own established approaches to considerations made under the Public Sector Equality Duty.The ongoing monitoring and evaluation of the Child Poverty Strategy will also continue to assess the poverty risk and prevalence for groups with protected characteristics, as far as the data and evidence gathering allow.The monitoring and evaluation framework, published alongside the Strategy, set out that a baseline report will be published in summer 2026, with annual reporting on progress thereafter.

When she plans to respond to the urgent correspondence from the hon. Member for Torbay dated 12 November 2025 on the potential closure of the custody suite in Torbay.

A response to this letter has been sent.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether her Department provides trauma informed training to their Embassies and Consulates.

We prioritise maintaining a global network of internally trained Trauma Risk incidence Management assessors through a regular training programme which is open to all staff, UK and Country-Based. We have also begun to offer Type 2 trauma courses to both home and overseas based teams on demand.