Written questions by Dhesi.

What the average staffing complement is for a ministerial private office within their Department; what grades those staff are appointed at; what the typical remuneration and contracted working hours are for those posts; and what the staff turnover rate is.

Ministerial private offices in the Home Office have a mean of 6 staff members, at grades ranging from Executive Officer to Grade 6 (excluding the Principal Private Secretary and one other member of staff, who are Senior Civil Servants). Staff are contracted between 36 and 37 hours per week depending on their terms and conditions, and their base remuneration is on this basis. An additional allowance is paid in recognition of the expectation that private office staff face additional and out of hours demands. The most recent publication of Home Office salaries (December 2024) lists the salary bands for these grades as: GradeSalary minimumSalary maximumPrivate Office allowanceExecutive Officer£30,000£35,700£5,000Higher Executive Officer£37,300£44,191£6,000Senior Executive Officer£44,720£52,130£7,000Grade 7£60,300£70,730£9,000Grade 6£73,900£85,690£10,000 Pay bands for the Senior Civil Service are centrally determined. Staff turnover for calendar year 2025 was 68%.

When he will respond to Question 109580 tabled on 29 January 2026.

A response has been issued here.

When he will respond to Question 109579 tabled on 29 January 2026.

A response has been issued here.

Food and Rural Affairs, what recent progress has been made on the banning of snares.

This Government was elected on a mandate to introduce the most ambitious plans to improve animal welfare in a generation and this included a commitment to bring an end to the use of snare traps in England. This was recently reaffirmed in the Government’s Animal Welfare Strategy, published in December 2025. Defra is now actively looking to bring a ban on snares into force as swiftly as possible.

What steps he is taking to increase the naval mine hunting capability of the Royal Navy.

The Mine Hunting Capability (MHC) programme continues to deliver an advanced suite of uncrewed surface vessels (USVs), uncrewed underwater vehicles (UUVs) and SWEEP (the first Sovereign minesweeping capability since 2006) into service within the Royal Navy, enabling frontline mine warfare specialists to enhance operational effectiveness. These cutting-edge autonomous mine-hunting systems are deployed by the Mine and Threat Exploitation Group for evaluation, training, and operational deployment. The comprehensive scope of the MHC programme encompasses multiple USVs, UUVs, remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) for identification and neutralisation, and a state-of-the-art, sovereign mine-sweeping capability. Additionally, the programme has delivered HMS STIRLING CASTLE, a dedicated support vessel designed to enhance the deployment and sustainment of autonomous systems.

What recent discussions her Department has had with train operating companies on the adequacy of information available to rail passengers on the use of (a) emergency door releases and (b) passenger communication alarms.

No recent discussions have been had, as these are operational matters which are the responsibility of the train operating companies. However, all train operating companies must adhere to relevant health and safety legislation to be able to operate on the railways. This is enforced by the independent railway safety regulator, the Office of Rail and Road.

What recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of the availability of treatments for patients with rare diseases in a) Slough constituency and b) the South East.

The Government is committed to improving the lives of those living with rare diseases, and we acknowledge unmet need remains, with just 5% of rare diseases having an approved and effective treatment. The UK Rare Diseases Framework sets out four priorities collaboratively developed with the rare disease community, such as improving access to specialist care, treatments, and drugs, including in Slough. We published the fifth annual England action plan in February 2026, where we report on the steps we have taken to advance these priorities. These include:the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) developing a framework to enable innovation in rare disease therapies;new clinical trial regulations being fully implemented from April 2026;the MHRA and the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) aligning a pathway for parallel decision making to reduce the gap between marketing authorisation and NICE guidance decisions;continuing to review the effectiveness of the Early Access to Medicines Scheme, the Innovative Licensing and Access Pathway and the Innovative Medicines Fund, access pathways for rare therapies; andNHS England progressing work to develop an operational framework for individualised therapies.

Communities and Local Government, what recent assessment has been made of the adequacy of regulations on private parking companies.

The Government will be raising standards in the private parking industry by introducing a new Code of Practice as soon as possible, in accordance with the Parking (Code of Practice) Act 2019.

Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions she has had with local authorities on the potential environmental impact of their use of pesticides in public places.

The UK Pesticides National Action Plan, published last year, sets out actions we will take to increase awareness and knowledge of Integrated Pest Management (IPM) strategies across all sectors. Last year I chaired a roundtable on pest and weed management in urban settings to hear directly from representatives from local authorities and councils. This highlighted the importance of peer-to-peer learning, and Defra will continue to encourage local authorities to share knowledge that promotes best practice. Defra funded an update to the Parks for London Integrated Weed Management guide.This ensures that up to date guidance is now freely available to all amenity managers, including in local authorities, to help to promote the sustainable management of our public spaces.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to paragraph 88 of the policy paper entitled UK Government Resilience Action Plan, published on 14 July 2025, how many meetings have been attended by civil servants within their Department in relation to the Home Defence Programme; which directorate in the Department owns the Departmental contribution to the Home Defence Programme; and what the job title is of the civil servant leading and cohering the Departmental contribution to the Home Defence Programme.

I refer the Hon Member to the answer he was provided on 5 March in response to Question 115943.

With reference to paragraph 88 of the policy paper entitled UK Government Resilience Action Plan, published on 14 July 2025, how many meetings have been attended by civil servants within their Department in relation to the Home Defence Programme; which directorate in the Department owns the Departmental contribution to the Home Defence Programme; and what the job title is of the civil servant leading and cohering the Departmental contribution to the Home Defence Programme.

The Resilience Action Plan sets out the Government’s strategic approach to how we will strengthen our domestic resilience and invest to protect the nation. Scotland Office officials regularly attend meetings to discuss the implementation of the Resilience Action Plan as well as matters of national security and defence. The Scotland Office is actively contributing to this work and is working closely with other UK Government Departments to ensure effective delivery in Scotland, as well as coordination with the Scottish Government where responsibilities for resilience are devolved.

With reference to paragraph 88 of the policy paper entitled UK Government Resilience Action Plan, published on 14 July 2025, how many meetings have been attended by civil servants within their Department in relation to the Home Defence Programme; which directorate in the Department owns the Departmental contribution to the Home Defence Programme; and what the job title is of the civil servant leading and cohering the Departmental contribution to the Home Defence Programme.

The Resilience Action Plan sets out the Government’s strategic approach to how we will strengthen our domestic resilience and invest to protect the nation. Ministry of Defence officials regularly attend meetings to discuss the implementation of the Resilience Action Plan as well as matters of national security and defence. The Ministry of Defence is actively contributing to this work, particularly playing a key role within the Cabinet Office-led Home Defence Programme. This is clear from the recent comments by the Chief of the Defence Staff at the Munich Security Conference. Under Defence Reform, the Ministry of Defence have set up dedicated civil servant and military teams to cohere the planning and to input to the Home Defence programme. The work is led from within the Defence Security Policy and Military Strategy Operations and Commitments areas, under DG Security Policy and Deputy Chief of Defence Staff Military Strategy and Operations, working across the Department of State, Military Strategic Headquarters, Defence Nuclear Enterprise and National Armaments Directorate Group. There is a dedicated SCS2 senior civil servant, Director Homeland Defence and Strategic Threats, who with Assistant Chief Defence Staff Military Strategy is cohering the programme across the SCS2/2 star civil servant and military leads delivering different aspect of the programme.

With reference to paragraph 88 of the policy paper entitled UK Government Resilience Action Plan, published on 14 July 2025, how many meetings have been attended by civil servants within their Department in relation to the Home Defence Programme; which directorate in the Department owns the Departmental contribution to the Home Defence Programme; and what the job title is of the civil servant leading and cohering the Departmental contribution to the Home Defence Programme.

The Resilience Action Plan sets out the Government’s strategic approach to how we will strengthen our domestic resilience and invest to protect the nation. Cabinet Office officials regularly attend meetings to discuss the implementation of the Resilience Action Plan as well as matters of national security and defence.The Cabinet Office coordinates the Home Defence Programme working closely with the MoD and other departments. This is led by the COBR Director and COBR Directorate, with oversight by the Deputy National Security Advisor (DNSA) for Intelligence, Defence and Security.

With reference to paragraph 88 of the policy paper entitled UK Government Resilience Action Plan, published on 14 July 2025, how many meetings have been attended by civil servants within their Department in relation to the Home Defence Programme; which directorate in the Department owns the Departmental contribution to the Home Defence Programme; and what the job title is of the civil servant leading and cohering the Departmental contribution to the Home Defence Programme.

The Resilience Action Plan sets out the Government’s strategic approach to how we will strengthen our domestic resilience and invest to protect the nation. A range of senior officials from across the Ministry of Justice, including the Permanent Secretary, regularly attend meetings to discuss the implementation of the Resilience Action Plan as well as matters of national security and defence.

With reference to paragraph 88 of the policy paper entitled UK Government Resilience Action Plan, published on 14 July 2025, how many meetings have been attended by civil servants within their Department in relation to the Home Defence Programme; which directorate in the Department owns the Departmental contribution to the Home Defence Programme; and what the job title is of the civil servant leading and cohering the Departmental contribution to the Home Defence Programme.

The Resilience Action Plan sets out the Government’s strategic approach to how we will strengthen our domestic resilience and invest to protect the nation. Department for Transport officials regularly attend meetings to discuss the implementation of the Resilience Action Plan as well as matters of national security and defence. Led by the Director of Resilience, Analysis, International and Sanctions the Department for Transport is actively contributing to this through the work of several different teams including those in the Resilience, Analysis, International and Sanctions Directorate and the Transport Security Directorate. DfT regularly meet with the transport sector and colleagues across government to discuss and improve transport resilience and security.

With reference to paragraph 88 of the policy paper entitled UK Government Resilience Action Plan, published on 14 July 2025, how many meetings have been attended by civil servants within their Department in relation to the Home Defence Programme; which directorate in the Department owns the Departmental contribution to the Home Defence Programme; and what the job title is of the civil servant leading and cohering the Departmental contribution to the Home Defence Programme.

Any disclosure of specific meetings relating to defence is restricted to protect the principle of collective responsibility, allowing officials to debate policies freely in private.Various teams across the Department for Business and Trade contribute towards ongoing conversations in relation to the Home Defence Programme. The responsibility for this policy area is shared across several teams and does not fall to one singular official or directorate.

With reference to paragraph 88 of the policy paper entitled UK Government Resilience Action Plan, published on 14 July 2025, how many meetings have been attended by civil servants within their Department in relation to the Home Defence Programme; which directorate in the Department owns the Departmental contribution to the Home Defence Programme; and what the job title is of the civil servant leading and cohering the Departmental contribution to the Home Defence Programme.

The Resilience Action Plan sets out the Government’s strategic approach to how we will strengthen our domestic resilience and invest to protect the nation. Wales Office officials regularly attend meetings to discuss matters of national security and defence.

What recent estimate he has made of the number of specialist Parkinson nurses working in Slough constituency.

The Department does not hold a central count of the number of specialist Parkinson’s nurses working in the Slough constituency. Workforce planning, including decisions about the number and type of specialist nurses needed locally, is the responsibility of individual employers and their integrated care boards, which are best placed to assess the needs of their populations.We continue to work with NHS England through programmes like Getting It Right First Time to support improvements in access to specialist care for patients with Parkinson’s disease. We have also set up the United Kingdom‑wide Neuro Forum, which brings together the Department, NHS England, the devolved administrations, and health services and Neurological Alliances of all four nations to share best practice and address system-wide challenges, including neurology workforce challenges.The Government is committed to publishing a 10 Year Workforce Plan to set out action to create a workforce ready to deliver the transformed service set out in the 10-Year Health Plan. The 10 Year Workforce Plan will ensure the National Health Service has the right people in the right places, with the right skills to care for patients, when they need it. We are working through how the plan will articulate the changes for different professional groups.

Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to paragraph 88 of the policy paper entitled UK Government Resilience Action Plan, published on 14 July 2025, how many meetings have been attended by civil servants within their Department in relation to the Home Defence Programme; which directorate in the Department owns the Departmental contribution to the Home Defence Programme; and what the job title is of the civil servant leading and cohering the Departmental contribution to the Home Defence Programme.

The Resilience Action Plan sets out the Government’s strategic approach to how we will strengthen our domestic resilience and invest to protect the nation. Defra officials regularly attend meetings to discuss the implementation of the Resilience Action Plan as well as matters of national security and defence. The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs is actively contributing to this work with a team coordinating the department’s planning for home defence. This is overseen by the Director for Ministerial, Growth & Resilience, currently SRO for the Home Defence Programme.

Innovation and Technology, with reference to paragraph 88 of the policy paper entitled UK Government Resilience Action Plan, published on 14 July 2025, how many meetings have been attended by civil servants within their Department in relation to the Home Defence Programme; which directorate in the Department owns the Departmental contribution to the Home Defence Programme; and what the job title is of the civil servant leading and cohering the Departmental contribution to the Home Defence Programme.

The Resilience Action Plan sets out the Government’s strategic approach to how we will strengthen our domestic resilience and invest to protect the nation. The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology officials regularly attend meetings to discuss the implementation of the Resilience Action Plan as well as matters of national security and defence.The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology is actively contributing to this work.