Written questions by Jermy.

How many people with disabilities were employed in his Department on 2 September 2025.

Information on the number of people declaring a disability by each government department are published annually as part of Civil Service Statistics 2025, an accredited official statistics publication. Latest published data are as at 31 March 2025 and can be found at Table 29 of the statistical tables at the following web address: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/civil-service-statistics-2025Information for 31 March 2026 is due for publication in July 2026.

Communities and Local Government, how many people with disabilities were employed in her Department on 2 September 2025.

Information on the number of people declaring a disability by each government department are published annually as part of Civil Service Statistics 2025, an accredited official statistics publication. Latest published data are as at 31 March 2025 and can be found at Table 29 of the statistical tables at the following web address: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/civil-service-statistics-2025 Information for 31 March 2026 is due for publication in July 2026.

How many people with disabilities were employed in her Department on 2 September 2025.

Information on the number of people declaring a disability by each government department are published annually as part of Civil Service Statistics 2025, an accredited official statistics publication. Latest published data are as at 31 March 2025 and can be found at Table 29 of the statistical tables at the following web address: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/civil-service-statistics-2025 Information for 31 March 2026 is due for publication in July 2026

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how many people with disabilities were employed in his Department on 2 September 2025.

Latest figures show that 12.4 per cent of Senior Civil Servants (SCS) in the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) have a disability. This is up from 7.5 per cent when the FCDO was formed in 2020. Reporting rates in the delegated grades has consistently been below 60 per cent, the threshold set by Cabinet Office/ONS to allow us to have data confidence. The FCDO is encouraging staff to share their disability data so we can better understand outcomes for our staff, however this is voluntary.

Food and Rural Affairs, how many people with disabilities were employed in his Department on 2 September 2025.

Information on the number of people declaring a disability by each Government department are published annually as part of Civil Service Statistics 2025, an accredited official statistics publication. Latest published data are as at 31 March 2025 and can be found at Table 29 of the statistical tables at the following web address: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/civil-service-statistics-2025 Information for 31 March 2026 is due for publication in July 2026.

Media and Sport, how many people with disabilities were employed in her Department on 2 September 2025.

Information on the number of people declaring a disability by each government department are published annually as part of Civil Service Statistics 2025, an accredited official statistics publication. Latest published data are as at 31 March 2025 and can be found at Table 29 of the statistical tables at the following web address:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/civil-service-statistics-2025.Information for 31 March 2026 is due for publication in July 2026.

How many people with disabilities were employed in her Department on 2 September 2025.

Information on the number of people declaring a disability by each government department is published annually as part of Civil Service Statistics 2025, an accredited official statistics publication. Latest published data are as at 31 March 2025 and can be found in Table 29 of the statistical tables, which can be accessed at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/civil-service-statistics-2025.Information for 31 March 2026 is due for publication in July 2026.

Innovation and Technology, what steps their Department is taking to implement the guidance entitled The government’s approach to rural proofing 2025, published on 15 May 2025.

The Government has made a commitment that all policy decision-making should be rural proofed. Rural proofing ensures that rural areas are not overlooked and that the intended outcomes are deliverable in rural areas.Defra leads on rural proofing, but individual departments are responsible for ensuring that their policy decision-making is rural proofed.The Digital Inclusion Action Plan – First Steps, published in February 2025, sets out our first actions to tackle digital exclusion. While it outlines key demographic groups, it recognises that rural communities are also impacted.To ensure rural areas are not left behind and have access to digital infrastructure, we are continuing to deliver gigabit-capable broadband and 4G mobile coverage through Project Gigabit and the Shared Rural Network.

What steps she is taking to integrate health and employment support for people with (a) arthritis and (b) other long-term health conditions.

Good work is generally good for health and wellbeing, so we want everyone to get work and get on in work, whoever they are and wherever they live. Disabled people and people with health conditions are a diverse group so access to the right work and health support, in the right place, at the right time, is key. We therefore have a range of specialist initiatives to support individuals, including people with arthritis and other long-term health conditions, to stay in work and get back into work, including those that join up employment and health systems. Measures include support from Work Coaches and Disability Employment Advisers in Jobcentres and Access to Work grants, as well as joining up health and employment support around the individual through Employment Advisors in NHS Talking Therapies, Individual Placement and Support in Primary Care and WorkWell. The Department also provides a range of support to help individuals to access, retain, and thrive in employment. This includes referrals to financial assistance, workplace adaptations, and personalised guidance. Our teams support customers with Access to Work to ensure customers have reasonable adjustment, specialist equipment, support workers and more to ensure that customers have all the necessary tools to get into and maintain work. It is also recognised that employers play an important role in addressing health and disability. To build on this, the DWP and DHSC Joint Work & Health Directorate (JWHD) is facilitating “Keep Britain Working”, an independent review of the role of UK employers in reducing health-related inactivity and to promote healthy and inclusive workplaces. The lead reviewer, Sir Charlie Mayfield, is expected to bring forward recommendations in Autumn 2025.Additionally, the JWHD has developed a digital information service for employers, continues to oversee the Disability Confident Scheme, and continues to increase access to Occupational Health. Backed by £240m investment, the Get Britain Working White Paper launched last November will drive forward approaches to tackling economic inactivity and work toward the long-term ambition of an 80% employment rate. In our March Green Paper, we set-out our Pathways to Work Guarantee, backed by £1 billion a year of new, additional funding by 2030 and a total of £2.2 billion by over four years. Our £2.2bn Pathways to Work investment brings our total investment in employment support for disabled people and those with health conditions to £3.8 billion over this Parliament. We will build towards a guaranteed offer of personalised work, health and skills support for all disabled people and those with health conditions on out of work benefits. We will further pilot the integration of employment advisers and work coaches into the neighbourhood health service, so that working age people with long term health conditions have an integrated public service offer. A patient’s employment goals will be part of care plans, to support more joined up service provision. The Department for Work and Pensions and the Department of Health and Social Care have worked together on the 10 Year Health Plan. The 10 Year Health Plan will ensure a better health service for everyone, regardless of condition or service area. The Plan sets out the vision for what good joined-up care looks like for people with a combination of health and care needs, including for disabled people.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to help tackle waste crime.

The Government is committed to tackling waste crime. We are preparing significant reforms and have increased the Environment Agency’s (EA) funding to continue to increase the pressure on illegal waste operators. We will reform the waste carriers, brokers and dealers regime and the waste permit exemptions regime. This will make it harder for rogue operators to find work in the sector and easier for regulators to take action against criminals. In addition, our planned digital waste tracking reforms will make it harder than ever to mis-identify waste or dispose of it inappropriately. We have increased the EA’s total budget for 2025-26, including the amount available to tackle waste crime. This will enable EA to increase its frontline criminal enforcement resource in the Joint Unit for Waste Crime and area environmental crime teams by 43FTE. This will be targeted at activities identified as waste crime priorities using enforcement activity data and criminal intelligence. These include tackling organised crime groups, increasing enforcement activity around specific areas of concern such as landfill sites, closing down illegal waste sites more quickly, using intelligence more effectively, and delivering successful major criminal investigations.

What steps their Department is taking to implement the guidance entitled The government’s approach to rural proofing 2025, published on 15 May 2025.

The Government has made a commitment that all policy decision-making should be rural proofed. Rural proofing ensures that rural areas are not overlooked and that the intended outcomes are deliverable in rural areas. Defra leads on rural proofing, but individual departments are responsible for ensuring that their policy decision-making is rural proofed. Rural proofing is important because rural communities are an important part of the economy. Rural areas are home to around one-fifth of England’s population and half a million registered businesses. Policy outcomes in rural areas can be affected by economies of scale, distance, sparsity and demography. That is why it is important that government policies consider how they can be delivered in rural areas. Rural proofing ensures that these areas receive fair and equitable policy outcomes. Our department takes its obligation to rural proofing seriously and has published its Small Business Plan (Backing your Business) in July of this year, delivering the most comprehensive package of support for small and medium sized businesses in a generation. The plan outlines five ambitious actions on how we will make thriving small and medium sized businesses, including in rural areas, a reality across the UK.

What steps their Department is taking to implement the guidance entitled The government’s approach to rural proofing 2025, published on 15 May 2025.

The Government has made a commitment that all policy decision-making should be rural proofed. Rural proofing ensures that rural areas are not overlooked and that the intended outcomes are deliverable in rural areas. The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs leads on rural proofing, but individual departments are responsible for ensuring that their policy decision-making is rural proofed. Rural proofing is important because rural communities are an important part of the economy. Rural areas are home to approximately one-fifth of England’s population and half a million registered businesses. Policy outcomes in rural areas can be affected by economies of scale, distance, sparsity, and demography. That is why it is important that Government policies consider how they can be delivered in rural areas. Rural proofing ensures that these areas receive fair and equitable policy outcomes. Our Department takes its obligation to rural proof seriously. The 10-Year Health Plan and its three shifts, from hospital to community, from treatment to prevention, and from analogue to digital, are aiming to better reflect the needs of the local population and thereby support better health and social care access and outcomes in rural communities.

Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate he has made of the financial impact of waste crime on (a) England, (b) Norfolk and (c) South West Norfolk constituency in the last five years.

It is estimated that waste crime costs the English economy about £1 billion per year and that 20% of waste in England, or 38 million tonnes per year is handled illegally. We do not have a further breakdown of these figures at county or constituency level.

Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 14 February 2025 to Question 28814 on Lead: Paint, if he will make it his policy to issue updated guidance.

The Environmental Protection (Controls on Injurious Substances) Regulations 1992 banned the use of lead paint, except for certain specialist uses. Concerns over the presence of lead paint should be referred to a certified lead-based paint risk assessor, who can assist you in following the necessary steps, guidelines including safety protocols. The Government is not currently planning to release further guidance on lead paint.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to help tackle environmental harm in (a) South West Norfolk constituency and (b) Norfolk.

The Environment Agency (EA) regulates businesses in energy, agriculture, and waste, and is the environmental regulator for water companies. It prosecutes polluters, protects against flood risk and coastal erosion, and is a Category 1 Responder under the Civil Contingencies Act 2004, working with local responders during flood incidents. In Norfolk, the EA advises on planning applications and supports Local Planning Authorities in developing Local Plans, ensuring flood risk, climate change, and water environment issues are addressed. It partners with other organisations including Local Authorities and the Police to tackle environmental waste crime using an intelligence-led enforcement approach. The EA investigates poor water quality sites and implements pollution reduction actions. Regulation of water companies has increased significantly, with over 700 inspections of Anglian Water wastewater assets completed last year - more than the previous four years combined, with plans to double inspections again this year.

Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 14 February 2025 to Question 28814 on Lead: Paint, whether his Department is taking steps to help tackle toxic lead paint in (a) homes and (b) public buildings.

The Environmental Protection (Controls on Injurious Substances) Regulations 1992 banned the use of lead paint, except for certain specialist uses. Concerns over the presence of lead paint in private domiciles should be referred to a certified lead-based paint risk assessor, who can assist you in following the necessary steps, guidelines including safety protocols. Regarding public buildings, the HSE is responsible for regulating health and safety risks associated with paints and coatings, including those used in construction and refurbishment.

Food and Rural Affairs, how many vehicles were seized for waste crime offences in (a) South West Norfolk constituency and (b) Norfolk in each of the last five years.

Local authorities in England are required to report fly-tipping incidents and enforcement actions, such as vehicle seizures, to Defra, which are published annually at https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/fly-tipping-in-england. This data isn't available at a constituency level and excludes the majority of private-land incidents. The Environment Agency also has the power to seize vehicles suspected of being used in waste crime. The Environment Agency has not seized a vehicle in Norfolk or the South West Norfolk constituency since 2020.

What steps their Department is taking to implement the guidance entitled The government’s approach to rural proofing 2025, published on 15 May 2025.

The Government recognises that different areas have different characteristics and needs for their local bus network. The Government has committed to delivering better buses, including in rural areas, and reforming bus funding to create a fairer and simpler system that takes into account local needs. The Government introduced the Bus Services (No. 2) Bill on 17 December as part of its ambitious plan for bus reform. The Bill will put passenger needs, reliable services and local accountability at the heart of the industry by putting the power over local bus services back in the hands of local leaders right across England, including in our rural areas.We confirmed funding of £955 million for the 2025 to 2026 financial year to support and improve bus services in England outside London, including £712 million for local authorities. The Government took the first step towards a fairer allocation system by using a formula to determine allocations for 2025/26 based on need, including population, the distance that buses travel, and the levels of deprivation. Under this formula, Norfolk County Council was allocated £15.9 million. Funding allocated to local authorities to improve services can be used in whichever way they wish to deliver better services for passengers. We are currently reviewing this formula to ensure funding is allocated as fairly as possible in future years.The government reaffirmed its commitment to investing in bus services long-term in this Spending Review. On 11 June, the government confirmed additional £900m funding per year from 2026/27 to maintain and improve bus services, including taking forward franchising pilots and extending the £3 bus fare cap until March 2027.

What steps she is taking to help increase awareness of (a) Access to Work and (b) other employment support programmes.

Access to Work aims to support the recruitment and retention of disabled people into employment. It is a personalised discretionary grant that provides support with workplace adjustments beyond an employer’s obligation as outlined in the Equality Act 2010. As part of our Plan for Change, and as set out in the Pathways to Work Green Paper published in March, we consulted on the future of Access to Work and how to improve the programme to help more disabled people into work and support employers.We will review all aspects of Access to Work after evaluating the findings of the Pathways to Work consultation. The Disability Confident Scheme encourages employers to create disability inclusive workplaces and to support disabled people to get work and get on in work. The scheme covers all disabilities, including hidden disabilities. It provides employers with the knowledge, skills, and confidence they need to attract, recruit, retain and develop disabled people in the workplace and to take positive action to address the issues disabled employees face. We recognise there are opportunities to improve the scheme, and I have been discussing ideas for making the Disability Confident scheme criteria more robust, and officials are continuing to engage with stakeholders to discuss reform proposals. In addition, DWP has a digital information service for employers, (www.support-with-employee-health-and-disability.dwp.gov.uk), which provides tailored guidance to businesses to support employees to remain in work. This includes guidance on health disclosures and having conversations about health, plus guidance on legal obligations, including statutory sick pay and making reasonable adjustments. In January this year, we launched an expert academic panel to advise us on boosting neurodiversity awareness and inclusion at work. The panel will consider the reasons why neurodivergent people have poor experiences in the workplace, and a low overall employment rate, making their recommendations later this year. In our Get Britain Working White Paper, published November 2024, we committed support for employers to recruit, retain and develop staff. As part of that, the Secretaries of State for Work and Pensions and Business and Trade have asked Sir Charlie Mayfield to lead ‘Keep Britain Working’, an independent review to consider how best to support and enable employers to recruit and retain more people with health conditions and disabilities, promote healthy workplaces, and support more people to stay in or return to work from periods of sickness absence. Sir Charlie Mayfield will deliver a final report with recommendations in the autumn.

What steps their Department is taking to implement the guidance entitled The government’s approach to rural proofing 2025, published on 15 May 2025.

The Government has made a commitment that all policy decision-making should be rural proofed. Rural proofing ensures that rural areas are not overlooked and that the intended outcomes are deliverable in rural areas. Defra leads on rural proofing, but individual departments are responsible for ensuring that their policy decision-making is rural proofed. Rural proofing is important because rural communities are an important part of the economy. Rural areas are home to around one-fifth of England’s population and half a million registered businesses. Policy outcomes in rural areas can be affected by economies of scale, distance, sparsity and demography. That is why it is important that government policies consider how they can be delivered in rural areas. Rural proofing ensures that these areas receive fair and equitable policy outcomes. Our department takes its obligation to rural proofing seriously and is committed to ensuring there is a suitable low-carbon heat solution for every home, including rural properties, through the Warm Homes Plan. The government recognises that heat pumps may not be the best solution for all buildings. Other low carbon heating technologies are available, and the government offers grants of £5,000 for biomass boilers in off-gas-grid rural homes under the Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS). The department has recently consulted on expanding BUS to support other low carbon heating technologies. The government is offering energy efficiency upgrades to rural low-income homeowners through the Warm Homes: Local Grant, with support available until 2028. The Local Net Zero Delivery Group convenes Government Ministers and local government leaders, including from rural areas, to discuss net zero strategy, policy and delivery, this provides a forum which supports rural proofing. Great British Energy, the new publicly owned energy company, will be supporting community energy schemes, including in rural communities, as it delivers its mission to accelerate clean power deployment.