Written questions by Hayes.

Whether his Department plans to restore the Government's Sexwise website.

The Department has no plans to restore the Government’s Sexwise website. Extensive sexual and reproductive health information is readily available from other sources, which provide quality up-to-date information for the general public and healthcare professionals. These include, but are not limited to:the National Health Service website, which is available at the following link: https://www.nhs.uk/;the Contraception Choices website, which is available at the following link: https://www.contraceptionchoices.org/;the British Association for Sexual Health and HIV website, which is available at the following website: https://www.bashh.org/;the British HIV Association website, which is available at the following link: https://www.bhiva.org/;the Faculty of Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare website, which is available at the following link: https://www.fsrh.org/;the Terrence Higgins Trust website, which is available at the following link: https://www.tht.org.uk/;the Brook website, which is available at the following link: https://www.brook.org.uk/; andthe Sexual health service finder, which is available on the NHS.UK website, at the following link: https://www.nhs.uk/nhs-services/sexual-health-services/find-a-sexual-health-clinic/.

Whether his Department has set a target for the share of power to be provided by (a) small modular reactors and (b) other nuclear power by 2035.

Nuclear power, as one of the most reliable, secure, low-carbon sources of electricity, is and will continue to be an essential part of our journey to net zero. This Government is working to get Hinkley Point C over the line, and, as announced at the Autumn Budget, Great British Nuclear’s Small Modular Reactor competition has entered the negotiation phase with shortlisted vendors, with final decisions to be taken in the spring. The Budget also confirmed that a Final Investment Decision on whether to proceed with Sizewell C will be taken in Phase 2 of the Spending Review, as well as allocating £2.7bn of funding to support Sizewell C’s development in the next fiscal year.

If he will make an assessment of the potential merits of amending article 9 of the Nursing and Midwifery Order 2001 to abolish the registration fee requirement.

The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) is the independent regulator of nurses and midwives in the United Kingdom, and nursing associates in England. The Government has no current plans to amend the Nursing and Midwifery Order 2001, to abolish the requirement for NMC registrants to pay a registration fee.The UK's model of healthcare professional regulation is founded on the principle of regulators operating independently from the Government. All registered health and social care professions in the UK pay an annual registration fee to their regulatory body. Being funded by registrant fees enables the NMC to maintain its independence, allowing it to take action if it identifies risks to patient safety or the public’s confidence in the profession.

How much funding he plans to provide through Great British Energy for small modular reactors over the next 10 years.

As Great British Energy (GBE) will be operationally independent, the exact mix of technologies GBE chooses to invest in will be determined by the company due course. The Government is considering how GBE and Great British Nuclear (GBN) can work best together to ensure that the UK achieves energy security and clean power whilst securing thousands of skilled jobs. GBN is pushing forward with the SMR competition for UK deployment. GBN is in negotiation with four companies; once negotiations have concluded, they will be invited to submit final tenders, which GBN will then evaluate. Final decisions will be taken in the spring.

What steps his Department is taking to (a) identify sites for and (b) deliver small modular nuclear reactors in the South West.

Great British Nuclear (GBN) completed its purchase of the site at Oldbury-on-Severn (Gloucestershire) in June 2024. As a site which has previously hosted a nuclear power station, and is now owned by GBN, Oldbury has the potential to host nuclear projects, though no decisions on projects or sites have yet been taken. In line with manifesto commitments, this Government is working to get Hinkley Point C over the line and will aim to bring forward further nuclear projects at Sizewell C and those involving Small Modular Reactors. As confirmed at the Autumn Budget, Great British Nuclear is progressing the SMR competition and is negotiating with four companies. These companies will be invited to submit final tenders, which will then be evaluated by GBN. Final decisions are intended to be taken in the Spring.

If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of creating a commuter pass similar to the Swiss Half Fare card that allows individuals to pay an upfront premium for a yearly pass and receive half price rail travel.

There are many Railcards that provide eligible passengers a one third discount off the cost of most rail fares. Some Railcards in this suite can be used during the morning peak, although the 16-25, 26-30 and Veterans’ Railcards have a £12 minimum fare before 10:00 am.

If she will take legislative steps to limit the increase in the cost of single journey rail tickets relative to return tickets.

Regulated fares make up around 45 per cent of rail fares and include commuter fares, such as season ticket and shorter-distance peak return, alongside longer-distance off-peak returns to ensure an affordable, walk-up option is available for leisure passengers. Where there are no return fares, the single fare is regulated. We have been exploring options to improve flexibility for passengers. This has included working with London North Eastern Railway (LNER) to trial switching the regulated fare from the return fare to the single fare. This has reduced the price of many single fares on LNER so that all singles are now priced at around half the cost of the old return fare. The impact of this trial is being evaluated and will be published in due course. We will consider the evaluation carefully before taking further decisions.

If she will take steps to cap the administration fee charged by third party train ticket websites.

Third-party retailers have the option to charge a booking fee on their website, though not all of them do. Passengers can book rail tickets without a booking fee by purchasing direct from one of the train operating company websites/apps. Last year the Office of Rail and Road published its ‘Review of the Transparency of Fees Charged when Purchasing Rail Tickets Online’. We disseminated this report to all rail ticket retailers and asked them to ensure consumers understand the fees that will be charged and can make informed purchasing decisions. The maximum administration fees that can be charged for refunds was reduced from £10 to £5 earlier this year, as per the National Rail Conditions of Travel. This doesn’t apply to Advance tickets, which are normally non-refundable, nor to refunds on Season Tickets.

What assessment has he made of the adequacy of the NHS continuing healthcare programme.

The Department works closely with NHS England, which holds integrated care boards accountable and engages with them to discharge their functions, including via regular and well-established assurance mechanisms.The Department also engages with the wider sector such as the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman and voluntary organisations representing people with lived experience.

If she will make it her policy to review the VAT framework to reduce incentives towards (a) demolition and (b) rebuilding of housing.

This Government is committed to improving the quality and sustainability of our housing stock, through improvements such as low carbon heating, insulation, solar panels, and batteries. This will be vital to making the UK more energy resilient and meeting our 2050 Net Zero commitment.Installations of qualifying energy-saving materials in residential accommodation and buildings used solely for a charitable purpose benefit from a temporary VAT zero rate until March 2027, after which they will revert to the reduced rate of VAT at five per cent.VAT is a broad-based tax on consumption and the 20 per cent standard rate applies to most goods and services. VAT is the UK’s second largest tax forecast to raise £171 billion in 2024/25. Taxation is a vital source of revenue that helps to fund vital public services.One of the key considerations when assessing a new VAT relief is whether the cost saving is likely to be passed on to consumers. Evidence suggests that businesses only partially pass on any savings from lower VAT rates. In some cases, reliefs do not represent good value for money, as savings will not always be passed on to consumers.The Government has no current plans to formally review the VAT treatment of building works. However, all taxes are kept under review as part of the tax policymaking process. The Chancellor makes decisions on tax policy at fiscal events in the context of the overall public finances.

What steps he is taking to support industry to reduce the embodied carbon emissions related to the (a) production and (b) use of new construction materials.

Ministers are considering options to reduce embodied emissions in industry by growing the demand for construction materials such as low carbon steel, cement and concrete. This includes resolving questions such as how embodied emissions in products are measured.The Government will consult on options for answering these questions in due course.The Government has established a Circular Economy Taskforce to support the efficient use of construction materials to reduce embodied carbon. Alongside this, Government continues to collaborate with industry groups to promote the efficient, circular use of construction materials, supporting research to enable this.

Communities and Local Government, if she will have discussions with the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero on the potential impact of planning policy on target reductions in the UK carbon account, in the context of section 1 of the Climate Change Act 2008.

Climate change is one of the greatest challenges facing the world today, and the planning system can play a powerful role in helping to mitigate and adapt to its effects. Our recent consultation on proposed reforms to the National Planning Policy Framework consultation sought views on how best to reflect climate change adaptation and mitigation in strengthened planning policies. The consultation closed on the 24 September and officials in my department are currently analysing responses with a view to publishing a government response before the end of the year.

If she will make it her policy to remove VAT for building refurbishment works when energy performance targets are met to incentivise retrofit.

This Government is committed to improving the quality and sustainability of our housing stock, through improvements such as low carbon heating, insulation, solar panels, and batteries. This will be vital to making the UK more energy resilient and meeting our 2050 Net Zero commitment.Installations of qualifying energy-saving materials in residential accommodation and buildings used solely for a charitable purpose benefit from a temporary VAT zero rate until March 2027, after which they will revert to the reduced rate of VAT at five per cent.VAT is a broad-based tax on consumption and the 20 per cent standard rate applies to most goods and services. VAT is the UK’s second largest tax forecast to raise £171 billion in 2024/25. Taxation is a vital source of revenue that helps to fund vital public services.One of the key considerations when assessing a new VAT relief is whether the cost saving is likely to be passed on to consumers. Evidence suggests that businesses only partially pass on any savings from lower VAT rates. In some cases, reliefs do not represent good value for money, as savings will not always be passed on to consumers.The Government has no current plans to formally review the VAT treatment of building works. However, all taxes are kept under review as part of the tax policymaking process. The Chancellor makes decisions on tax policy at fiscal events in the context of the overall public finances.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to support industry to reduce waste generated in the construction industry.

The 9 English Water and Sewerage Companies (WaSCs) submit data to the Environment Agency on the total quantity of sludge sent to different outlets to meet the European reporting requirements. The total sludge sent to the agriculture outlet over the last 10 years is shown in the table below. YearTotal sludge to agriculture – England only (tonnes dry solids)2014716,9282015696,3552016750,0492017726,0632018752,9922019698,5972020761,2462021759,5782022766,6302023764,810

What steps he is taking to incentivising energy performance-related improvements of commercial buildings in the private sector.

Minimum energy efficiency standards in non-domestic buildings have improved energy efficiency and Government has consulted on strengthening them. We will publish our government response early next year. In addition, our Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme requires large businesses to undertake energy audits and encourages improvements.There are also incentives to decarbonise with grants to small businesses through the Boiler Upgrade Scheme and the Industrial Energy Transformation Fund offers up to £500 million to support existing firms to decarbonise and grow, with the government recently confirming £163 million in phase 3 funding to invest by 2028. More detail on the Government’s approach to decarbonising non-domestic buildings, including through the Warm Homes Plan, will be published in due course.

Communities and Local Government, whether she plans to respond the consultation on Future Homes and Buildings Standard.

The Future Homes and Buildings Standards consultation was published in December 2023 and closed in March 2024, and a government response has not yet been issued. We fully support the need for low carbon homes, fit for a net zero future. We are reviewing proposals and feedback from the Future Homes and Buildings Standards consultation and will publish the government response in due course.

Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to improve the terms of employment as a local authority planning officer.

Proactive planning is vital to delivering the housing we desperately need and to support economic growth. The Government recognise that local authority planning departments face capacity and capability challenges due to prolonged underfunding of services and that this has placed significant strain on the planners that provide these services.Within weeks of taking office, the Government consulted on increasing planning fees to put planning services on a firmer footing and to reflect the real costs. We have now gone further and committed an additional £46 million in the spending review to fund 300 additional planners in local government and to support local planning authorities to deliver the essential reforms to local plans and development management.Planning officers play a vital role, and I wrote to the President of the RTPI to underline the value we place on them and the work they do.

Communities and Local Government, if she will make it her policy to reform (a) planning policy and (b) permitted development rights to support the high quality retrofit of existing buildings.

Improving energy efficiency and decarbonising buildings is a crucial element in our mission to make Britain a clean energy superpower. The National Planning Policy Framework encourages the reuse of existing resources, including through the conversion of existing buildings. It also expects local authorities to support applications for energy efficiency and low carbon heating improvements to existing buildings, where these do not already benefit from permitted development rights. We continue to keep permitted development rights under review.

If he will make an assessment of the potential merits of providing support for landlords with increasing the energy efficiency of properties that are difficult to retrofit.

Landlords can use our ‘Help for Households’ GOV.UK page to find available support via the Home Upgrade Grant and the Great British Insulation Scheme. In addition, there is a zero-rate of VAT until March 2027 on energy saving measures. Government will consult this year on increasing minimum energy efficiency standards in the domestic private rented sector. This consultation will set out proposals on maximum spend required from landlords and the exemptions regime to manage the cost burden placed on landlords, including those who own properties that are difficult to retrofit, whilst still achieving our ambition to lift households out of fuel poverty.

If he will make it his policy to give (a) local authorities and (b) Councils (i) powers, (ii) responsibility and (iii) resources to accelerate the delivery of the Government’s Warm Homes programme.

The Government’s ambitious Warm Homes Plan will upgrade 5 million homes across the country by making them cleaner and cheaper to run, from installing new insulation to rolling out solar and heat pumps. We will partner with combined authorities and local and devolved governments to roll out this plan. We will set out further detail on delivering our Warm Homes Plan in due course.