Written questions by Dhesi.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions she had with her Algerian counterpart on (a) religious freedoms and (b) the religious freedoms of the Ahmadiyya community in that country.

The UK champions Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) for all. Our Embassy in Algiers raises FoRB with the Algerian authorities, doing so most recently when our Ambassador met the Minister of Religious Affairs on 10 February. Our Embassy remains in regular contact with minority religious groups on how best to support FoRB. We will continue to raise the issue and advocate for freedom of expression for religious minority communities in Algeria.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the use of snares on animal welfare.

Defra recognises many people in this country have concerns about the use of snares. Free-running snares are currently legal in England and are regulated by law. They must be checked at least once a day and the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 prohibits the setting of any type of snare in places where they are likely to catch certain non-target animals. Anyone using snares also has a responsibility under the Animal Welfare Act 2006 to ensure their activities do not cause wild animals or pets any unnecessary suffering. 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. Defra is considering the most effective way to deliver this commitment and will be setting out next steps in due course.

What recent steps she has taken to prevent sanctioned individuals from using trusts to conceal their (a) identities and (b) assets.

The government is committed to preventing sanctioned individuals from misusing trusts to conceal their identities and assets. To this end, we have strengthened the transparency of the beneficial ownership of trusts through our various registers, including our world-leading People with Significant Control (PSC) register, our Trust Registration Service (TRS), and the Register of Overseas Entities (ROE). As of 1 September 2025, any individual can apply to Companies House for disclosure of trust information held on the ROE. The Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) continues to enhance its implementation and enforcement capabilities. OFSI has opened a record number of investigations this year, reflecting a commitment to robust financial sanctions enforcement. In 2025 OFSI also published a series of reports assessing sectoral threats and vulnerabilities relating to financial sanctions, including a Legal Services Threat Assessment, to help industry implement sanctions where trusts are being misused. In response to Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine, the UK has imposed robust sanctions designed to disrupt funding streams to the Russian regime and prevent those supporting it from benefiting from UK services. Under the UK’s trust services sanctions, trust services must not be provided to or for the benefit of designated persons. Since 16 December 2022, it is also prohibited to provide new trust services to or for the benefit of persons connected with Russia. For the Legal Services Threat Assessment Report, click here: OFSI_Legal_Services_Threat_Assessment.pdf

What recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of the levels of educational support available to autistic children in mainstream schools.

The Neurodivergence Task and Finish Group brought together experts to provide advice and recommendations to the department on how to best meet the needs of neurodivergent children and young people within mainstream education settings.To support schools, the department is also strengthening the evidence base of what works to improve inclusive practice in mainstream settings and has commissioned evidence reviews, including one on autism, from Newcastle University and University College London. The What Works in special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) research programme is researching tools that schools can use to identify the needs of neurodivergent children.The Partnerships for Inclusion of Neurodiversity in Schools programme provides health and education specialist support to upskill mainstream primary schools to better meet the needs of neurodivergent children, including pupils with autism. The programme is being evaluated, and the learning is informing future policy development around how schools support neurodivergent children.

Communities and Local Government, what recent assessment he has made of the affordability of (a) private and (b) social housing in Slough.

According to 2024 Office for National Statistics (ONS) data, private renters in Slough spent on average 27.9% of their income on rent. This compares to 29.6% in the South East as a whole and 36.3% in England. The ONS does not publish data on social housing affordability at a local authority level. However, according to the latest English Housing survey results from 2023/24 social renters spent on average 26.4% of their incomes on rent.

How much his Department has spent on (a) providing maternity care and (b) settling legal cases of medical negligence related to maternity care in each of the last four years.

In regard to maternity care spend, according to the Patient-Level Costing dataset from the National Cost Collection for the National Health Service, the annual spend for providing maternity care was as follows:£4,855,676,069.19 for 2021/22;£4,722,376,594.65 for 2022/23; and£5,174,161,637.32 for 2023/24.Data is not yet available for the 2024/25 financial year.NHS Resolution manages clinical negligence and other claims against the NHS in England. The table attached shows the spend on maternity clinical claims either closed or settled with a periodical payment order (PPO) between the 2021/22 and 2024/25 financial years, broken down by closure, or settlement PPO, year, for claims with obstetrics or neonatology as the primary specialty.The data includes the damages and legal costs paid up until 31 March 2025. It does not include future periodical payments on settled claims that are due after the end of the 2024/25 financial year.Please note that this is different to the value of claims “notified” in a year for obstetrics and neonatology. Data on “notified claims value” only includes an early estimate of the eventual settlement value if all the claims were to settle with damages.

What assessment he has made of the potential merits of introducing self-sampling for cervical screening as an alternative to clinic-based cervical screening.

Following the announcement to introduce human papilloma virus (HPV) self-sampling in the National Health Service cervical screening programme for the under-screened population, the NHS has begun planning an in-service evaluation (ISE) of HPV self-sampling in the wider population.The purpose of the ISE is to ensure the self-sampling test is as accurate at detecting HPV compared with a clinician-collected specimen, and to evaluate its impact on cervical screening uptake. The findings of the ISE will inform any future recommendation from the UK National Screening Committee to Ministers to offer self-sampling across the whole population.

What recent steps her Department has taken to support (a) local authorities and (b) police forces to tackle anti-social behaviour (i) in town centres and (ii) on high streets.

This Government wants town centres to be vibrant, welcoming places where businesses thrive and people feel safe and come to shop, socialise and live.The Safer Streets Summer Initiative commenced on 30 June and runs until the end of September. It is tackling crime and anti-social behaviour in town centres, including city centres, through enhanced police visibility and meaningful consequences.Police and Crime Commissioners are leading on targeted action to reduce crime and anti-social behaviour (ASB) that blights our town centres and high streets. The work is being delivered in partnership with councils, schools, health services, business, transport providers and community groups all playing a role over the summer. Under the initiative, partners will use targeted enforcement, visible policing and place-based interventions to reduce retail and street crime and ASB in over 500 town centres and high streets, across England and Wales, including Slough.£200m has been made available to forces in 2025/26 to kickstart the delivery of 13,000 more neighbourhood officers across England and Wales by the end of this Parliament - of which up to 3,000 will be in place by March 2026. In particular, Thames Valley Police has been awarded £6,093,042 as part of the Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee.In addition to this, £66.3 million in Hotspot Action (HAF) funding has been made available for 2025/26 to all 43 territorial police forces across England and Wales. The Fund will increase visible uniformed patrols (delivered by police and local authority wardens) in Town Centres and areas (hotspots) most impacted by knife crime, serious violence and ASB. This includes allocating £1,690,460 to Thames Valley Police.In support, all police officers are receiving national guidance, a policy toolkit and access to hyper-local ASB crime mapping analysis, which overlays crime concentration data against hotspot responses and points of interest such as town centres. It aims to support analysis, identification of priority town centres, planning, and delivery.

What recent discussions she has had with the Financial Conduct Authority on the adequacy of the regulation of peer-to-peer banking.

Treasury Ministers and officials meet with their counterparts at the Financial Conduct Authority often, as part of their regular engagement on various topics. This includes peer-to-peer lending, which the FCA is responsible for regulating. Peer-to-peer investments are a higher risk investment where customers put their own capital at stake, without recourse to the Financial Services Compensation Scheme. The FCA has investigative and enforcement powers and has commenced investigations into particular peer-to-peer collapses, certain of which are ongoing. This is also an area in which the Financial Regulators Complaints Commissioner has taken an interest and that work is ongoing.

If he will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a national prostate cancer screening programme.

The UK National Screening Committee (UK NSC), which advises ministers on all screening matters, commissioned an evidence review modelling the clinical effectiveness and cost of several approaches to prostate cancer screening. This included different potential ways of screening the whole population and targeted screening aimed at groups of people identified as being at higher-than-average risk, such as black men or men with a family history of cancer.The modelling and evidence review are now complete, and the reports are being considered by the UK NSC and experts. Subject to no further revisions being required, the UK NSC plans to start a three-month public consultation towards the end of 2025. After this, the UK NSC will make a recommendation about screening for prostate cancer. Ministers will then be asked to consider whether to accept the recommendation.

What recent steps his Department is taking to reduce treatment waiting times for people with prostate cancer in the South East.

The Government understands that more needs to be done to improve outcomes for all patients with prostate cancer, including in the South East.NHS England has introduced a best-practice timed pathway for prostate cancer so that those suspected of prostate cancer receive a multi-parametric magnetic resonance imaging scan first, which ensures that only those men most at risk of having cancer undergo an invasive biopsy. The AI in Health and Care Award has also been established, which aims to accelerate the testing and development of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies. £113 million has already been allocated to support 86 AI technologies, and three of these projects specifically relate to prostate cancer, one of which is the Paige prostate cancer detection tool, developed by the University of Oxford.The Department will publish a National Cancer Plan which will include further details on how we will improve outcomes for cancer patients across England, including the South East, speed up diagnosis and treatment, and ensure that patients have access to the latest treatments and technology.

What recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of compliance with international tax standards by the Overseas Territories.

The inhabited Overseas Territories are largely self-governing jurisdictions with democratically elected governments, and are responsible for fiscal matters. All Overseas Territories with financial centres have committed to upholding international tax standards, including those on tax transparency and exchange of information, and Base Erosion and Profit Shifting. Compliance with international standards is assessed through a system of peer reviews and monitoring within the G20/OECD Inclusive Framework on Base Erosion and Profit Shifting and the Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information for Tax Purposes. The UK also works bilaterally with the Crown Dependencies and Overseas Territories on issues of mutual concern. For example, on 27 May 2025, the UK and Isle of Man issued a joint statement, agreeing to explore ways to further enhance information flows, joint working and other ways in which tangible benefits for both jurisdictions can be achieved, noting our shared objective of combatting tax avoidance and evasion.

What recent steps she has taken to improve passenger railway services in (a) Slough and (b) the South East.

The Secretary of State is committed to improving rail services by working together with train operators, Network Rail, and where appropriate, Transport for London, to continue to improve reliability and punctuality in the South East. Slough already benefits from contactless ticketing, which we have announced will be further expanded to 49 more stations across the South East later this year.

What information her Department holds on the number of recorded offences related to the illegal use of an e-scooter in a public place in the past 5 years.

The Home Office collects information on the number of notifiable offences recorded by the police in England and Wales.The Home Office does not hold information on whether an offence was related to the use of e-scooters.

What recent steps his Department has taken to raise public awareness of the availability of government grants for the installation of solar panels on homes.

Although domestic rooftop solar remains a key priority for the Government, there are currently no grants on offer to support the installation of solar panels specifically. However, alongside the £13.2bn we are investing in the Warm Homes Plan, officials will work with the finance sector on the role Government may play in scaling up and mobilising low-cost lending to support households with the up-front costs of energy efficiency and clean energy upgrades. Additionally, our Solar Roadmap carries several actions for government and industry to facilitate the provision of financial solutions for suitable customers. We will monitor and support delivery of these actions through the Solar Council co-chaired with industry.

What assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of statutory paternity leave entitlements for self-employed parents.

Self-employed parents are not currently eligible for statutory paternity leave or pay. On 1 July the Government launched the Parental Leave and Pay Review. The Review will consider all existing and upcoming parental leave entitlements, including whether support available meets the needs of self-employed parents.

What progress his Department has made on increasing (a) solar and (b) rooftop solar capacity.

Accelerating solar deployment is a key part of the Government’s clean energy mission. As set out in the recently published Solar Roadmap, solar capacity will need to rise to 45-47GW by 2030. Since the Government took office, UK solar capacity has increased from 17.8GW (July 2024) to 19.1GW (July 2025). The Government does not hold precise figures for rooftop solar deployment. However, UK solar capacity from installations smaller than 50kW has risen from 6.3GW (July 2024) to 7.2GW (July 2025).

What guidance her Department issues to police forces to ensure that they use their public order powers at protests in compliance with human rights legislation.

Guidance on the use of public order powers is jointly produced by the College of Policing and the National Police Chiefs’ Council.The College of Policing publishes the Public Order Public Safety Authorised Professional Practice, while the Protest Operational Advice Document is issued collaboratively by both organisations.These documents provide comprehensive operational guidance and include robust, detailed consideration of human rights legislation, ensuring that policing practices align with legal obligations and uphold fundamental rights.

What information his Department holds on the number of rooftop solar panels in use in (a) Slough and (b) Berkshire.

The Government does not have data for the number of rooftop solar panels in total by parliamentary constituency; however, we do hold figures for domestic solar installations across parliamentary constituencies, and these are available online. Our latest figures show that Slough has a solar PV capacity of 4.4MW across 1,312 domestic installations. Across the nine parliamentary constituencies in Berkshire, there is 73.6MW of solar capacity over 19,218 domestic installations. Wokingham leads the charge with 11.9MW over 2,790 installations.

Food and Rural Affairs, what recent steps his Department has taken to prevent the importation of low-welfare animal products.

The Government shares the public’s high regard for the UK’s environmental protections, food standards and animal welfare. We will promote robust standards nationally and internationally. All agri-food products must comply with our import requirements in order to be placed on the UK market. This includes ensuring imported meat products have been slaughtered to animal welfare standards equivalent to our domestic standards. As set out in the UK’s Trade Strategy, the Government will not lower food standards and will uphold high animal welfare standards. We recognise concerns about methods of production, such as sow stalls and battery cages, which are not permitted in the UK. While methods vary in line with different climates, diseases, and other contextual reasons, we will always consider whether overseas produce has an unfair advantage and any impact that may have. Where necessary, we will be prepared to use the full range of powers at our disposal to protect our most sensitive sectors including permanent quotas, exclusions, and safeguards.