Written questions by Chamberlain.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the war in the Middle East on the cost of fertiliser for farmers.

The fertiliser market is a global market, and while there is no immediate risk to UK supply, the market price in the UK is strongly influenced by international prices for fertiliser and by the value of the pound. The Government is aware of the current price increase for fertiliser due to the conflict in the Gulf. Defra is in close contact with domestic fertiliser suppliers and is monitoring overall supply to the UK. The Government remains ready to support businesses as effectively as possible in these challenging times.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of the Middle East conflict on the cost of heating oil for domestic users.

The Government is closely monitoring heating oil supply and price in light of instability in the Middle East. International kerosene prices are >75% higher than they were before the conflict and this is putting pressure on heating oil prices. The Secretary of State has written to the industry reminding heating oil distributors of their commitments under the UKIFDA Code of Practice, including the need for fair, transparent and justifiable pricing. Ministers have also spoken with the Competition and Markets Authority, who have announced they are reviewing evidence of potential unfair practices and anti-competitive behaviour. We are keeping under review whether any further support or action is needed to protect consumers.

How many cases were awaiting Work Capability Assessment reassessments as of 31 January 2026 in (a) England, (b) Scotland and (c) Wales.

The information requested is not held because data is not held at individual country level.

How many cases were awaiting Work Capability Assessment reassessments as of 31 January 2026 in each constituency.

The information requested about Work Capability Assessment reassessments is not held, this is because the data is not held at constituency level.

The current (a) mean average and (b) longest waiting time for a Work Capability Assessment reassessment.

The Department for Work and Pensions is committed to reducing waiting times for claimants awaiting a WCA reassessment. The department is increasing assessment capacity by working with suppliers to expand their workforce, including through accelerated recruitment and training of additional assessors. These measures will help ensure that the department continues to prioritise assessments for new claims, while also increasing throughput of reassessment activity. From 1 January 2018 to 31 January 2026, the mean average working days for outstanding Work Capability Assessment (WCA) reassessments currently stands at 290 days, whilst the current longest waiting time for an outstanding WCA reassessment to be completed is 1,870 working days (3 December 2018). Please note All volumes have been rounded to the nearest 10.All the above data is derived from contractual management information produced by the Assessment Providers.The above data is derived from unpublished management information which is collected for internal Departmental use only and has not been quality assured to Official Statistics Publication standards.The date range for the mean average working days for outstanding WCA reassessments 1 January 2018 to 31 January 2026 has been used because the outstanding cases within our head of work can be traced back to 1 January 2018.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the answer of 6 January 2026 to Question UIN 101823, whether her Department (a) acknowledges; and (b) accepts the findings of the People's Tribunal of Women of Afghanistan's judgement of 11 December 2025.

The UK Government supports legal initiatives to hold the Taliban to account for their repression of Afghan women and girls, and we welcome the progress being made across a range of such initiatives. In the interim, we are continuing to work with international partners to maintain collective pressure on the Taliban to reverse their inhuman restrictions on women and girls.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps she is taking to implement the recommendations of the People's Tribunal of Women of Afghanistan's judgement of 11 December 2025.

I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided on 21 October in response to Question 81211.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if her Department has any plans to provide financial support to the operations of UNHCR in Afghanistan.

The UK remains one of the largest donors to Afghanistan, providing £151 million in aid for the 2025/26 financial year. The UK does not currently directly fund United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) operations in Afghanistan, but we have supported those operations indirectly via pooled funds managed by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). Future funding allocations for UN and non-governmental organisation partners in Afghanistan will be set out in the normal way in due course.

Whether his Department will commit to publishing regular data on leukaemia diagnosis delays and outcomes.

The National Disease Registration Service collects information on how many people in England are diagnosed with or treated for cancer. Blood cancer is included as a distinct category, labelled haematological neoplasms, with further information avaiable at the following link: https://nhsd-ndrs.shinyapps.io/incidence_and_mortality/ This creates a clinically rich data resource that is used to measure diagnosis, treatment, and outcomes for patients diagnosed with cancer. The 28-day faster diagnosis standard is a performance standard that aims to have a patient diagnosed with or have cancer ruled out within 28-days from referral. This performance metric monitors diagnostic performance and delays in diagnosis across cancer types, including leukaemia. It is published monthly and can be found at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/cancer-waiting-times/Data is collected on cancer survival, with the most recent dataset being published in February 2023, which provides survival data from 2016 to 2020, followed up to 2021. The next publication will be released soon and will provide data on cancer survival diagnosed from 2018 to 2022 followed up to 2023. The survival datasets can be found at the following link:https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/cancer-survival-in-england#latest-statistics

Pursuant to the answer of 11 December 2025 to Question 96736, how many HMRC National Minimum Wage inspections were conducted in Scotland in 2024/25; and how many of these were carried out in social care settings.

Our data represents all closed inspections (‘investigations’). There were 220 closed inspections in Scotland in 2024/25. This data was published in the Supplementary data for the 2024/2025 National Minimum Wage Enforcement and Compliance Report (Table 6).https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-living-wage-and-national-minimum-wage-government-evidence-on-enforcement-and-compliance-2025Of the 220 closed inspections, 6 were social care cases.

Pursuant to the Answer of 12 December 2025 to Question 96733, how many of the EASI inspections carried out in Scotland in 2024/25 took place (a) on farms and (b) in social care settings.

The Employment Agency Standards Inspectorates legal remit only extends to Employment Agencies and Businesses.Therefore, EAS has no legal powers to conduct visits to farms or social care settings and has conducted no visits in the sectors queried.EAS does however work closely with The Gangmasters Labour Abuse Authority (GLAA) and the Care Inspectorate in Scotland, who do have the necessary powers in the queried sectors.

Pursuant to the Answer of 12 December 2025 to Question 96731, how many of the 16 in person visits were conducted as joint inspections and with which other enforcement bodies.

Following my answer on 12 December 2025, in which I stated there had been 16 visits since 1 January 2025, the GLAA has identified a further 36 visits during the same period.Therefore, since 1 January 2025, GLAA Officers have undertaken 52 (not 16) in person inspection visits to farms in Scotland.Of these 52, 10 were conducted in partnership with other enforcement bodies including Police Scotland, Home Office Immigration Enforcement, UK Visas & Immigration, Local Authority Environmental Health Teams, the Health & Safety Executive and the Scottish Fire & Rescue Service.

Pursuant to the answer of 12 December 2025 to Question 96735, how many of the HSE inspections carried out in Scotland in 2024-25 took place (a) on farms and (b) in social care settings.

In the year 2024/ 2025, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) carried out 1,444 inspections in Scotland. Seven of these took place on farms (not including premises predominately involved in forestry or aquaculture); and eleven took place in social care settings. These figures are based on raw live data and can be subject to change due to updates to historical cases. Therefore these figures may differ to the figures published in HSE’s Annual Reports.

What guidance his Department has issued on visits by DWP staff to claimant households.

Our Operational Instructions include a specific section to support colleagues undertaking Home Visits. For context, please find attached an excerpt from our Core Visits Referral Guide. Other topics in this section include content relating to Safeguarding, Communication Strategies and links to Learning and Development products. This content is available to all DWP staff. Further sections related to Identity Verification and Keeping Customer Interactions Safe includes instructional content that supports DWP staff navigating systems, which store sensitive customer data and therefore is not suitable for public disclosure.

Innovation and Technology, what steps she is taking to support collaboration between Government-funded bodies and private-sector researchers following the identification on 4 December 2025 of multiple biological pathways implicated in ME by the LOCOME study.

The LOCOME study, led by Precision life, was funded by Innovate UK through the Advancing Precision Medicine programme. Reporting more than 250 core genes associated with ME, including 76 shared with long COVID, and dozens of drug repurposing opportunities, these findings have important implications for future ME and long COVID research, diagnosis and treatment development. UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) actively fosters collaboration with the private sector by combining the expertise of Innovate UK, which is fully business-focused, with the knowledge exchange expertise of Research England, and disciplinary expertise of their research councils. Innovate UK is well-positioned to collaborate with private-sector researchers on the findings of the LOCOME study.

What recent assessment he has made of the potential merits of the use of the drug Vorasidenib to manage the symptoms and progression of low grade Glioma.

While the Department has made no assessment, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is the independent body that makes evidence-based recommendations for the National Health Service on whether new medicines should be routinely funded by the NHS on the basis of an assessment of clinical and cost effectiveness. NICE is currently evaluating vorasidenib for treating astrocytoma or oligodendroglioma with IDH1 or IDH2 mutations after surgery in people 12 years old and over. The draft guidance was shared with all stakeholders as well as being published on the NICE website for public comment as part of the consultation which took place between 15 October and 4 November 2025. The committee reviewed the consultation comments at the committee meeting on 20 November 2025. NICE currently expect to publish final guidance in January 2026.

With reference to his Department's guidance entitled Independent review into mental health conditions, ADHD and autism, published on 4 December 2025, what steps he will take to (a) engage and (b) consult with (i) children and (ii) parents with lived experience.

The Department is committed to ensuring that the independent review into mental health conditions, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and autism reflects the voices of those with lived experience.As stated in the terms of reference published on the GOV.UK website, the independent review will work closely with people with lived experience of mental health conditions, ADHD, and autism across different age groups, including young people, and reflect under-represented groups. It will also consult closely with parents and carers, key partners, and wider clinical and academic experts as appropriate. The terms of reference are available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/independent-review-into-mental-health-conditions-adhd-and-autism-terms-of-reference/independent-review-into-mental-health-conditions-adhd-and-autism-terms-of-reference#outputsThe review Chair and Vice-Chairs are currently developing their approach to engaging with lived experience groups.

What data his Department holds on the number of children and young people with cancer from Scotland who have received some or all of their treatment in England within the last five years; and whether his Department provides support for travel costs for those patients.

The Government is committed to putting patients first and providing speedy and high-quality care, irrespective of where patients are treated in United Kingdom. The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) works collaboratively with the Devolved Governments to drive forward its objective of supporting people, including children and young people with cancer, to lead more independent, healthier lives for longer.DHSC knows that the cost of travel is an important issue for many young cancer patients and their families in England.The National Health Service in England runs the Healthcare Travel Costs Scheme (HTCS) to provide financial assistance for travel to a hospital or other NHS premises for specialist NHS treatment or diagnostics tests, when referred by a doctor or other primary healthcare professional. Patients who do not qualify for the HTCS and who are on a low income may be able to claim the costs from the Department for Work and Pensions through Universal Credit or a Personal Independence Payment. There are also several charities in the UK who provide support, including financial support, for patients with cancer.On 4 February 2025, DHSC relaunched the Children and Young People Cancer Taskforce to identify tangible ways to improve outcomes and experiences for young cancer patients in England. The taskforce will ensure that the unique needs of children and young people with cancer are carefully considered as part of the National Cancer Plan, which will include further details on how we will improve experience and outcomes for children and young people with cancer in England.

Whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a fund to support children and young people with cancer with the costs of travelling to specialist treatment centres through the development of the National Cancer Plan for England.

The Government is committed to putting patients first and providing speedy and high-quality care, irrespective of where patients are treated in United Kingdom. The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) works collaboratively with the Devolved Governments to drive forward its objective of supporting people, including children and young people with cancer, to lead more independent, healthier lives for longer.DHSC knows that the cost of travel is an important issue for many young cancer patients and their families in England.The National Health Service in England runs the Healthcare Travel Costs Scheme (HTCS) to provide financial assistance for travel to a hospital or other NHS premises for specialist NHS treatment or diagnostics tests, when referred by a doctor or other primary healthcare professional. Patients who do not qualify for the HTCS and who are on a low income may be able to claim the costs from the Department for Work and Pensions through Universal Credit or a Personal Independence Payment. There are also several charities in the UK who provide support, including financial support, for patients with cancer.On 4 February 2025, DHSC relaunched the Children and Young People Cancer Taskforce to identify tangible ways to improve outcomes and experiences for young cancer patients in England. The taskforce will ensure that the unique needs of children and young people with cancer are carefully considered as part of the National Cancer Plan, which will include further details on how we will improve experience and outcomes for children and young people with cancer in England.

What steps he is taking to ensure equity of access to cancer treatment and care for children and young people with cancer from Scotland who may receive some or all of their care in England; and what recent discussions he has had with the Scottish Government on this matter.

The Government is committed to putting patients first and providing speedy and high-quality care, irrespective of where patients are treated in United Kingdom. The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) works collaboratively with the Devolved Governments to drive forward its objective of supporting people, including children and young people with cancer, to lead more independent, healthier lives for longer.DHSC knows that the cost of travel is an important issue for many young cancer patients and their families in England.The National Health Service in England runs the Healthcare Travel Costs Scheme (HTCS) to provide financial assistance for travel to a hospital or other NHS premises for specialist NHS treatment or diagnostics tests, when referred by a doctor or other primary healthcare professional. Patients who do not qualify for the HTCS and who are on a low income may be able to claim the costs from the Department for Work and Pensions through Universal Credit or a Personal Independence Payment. There are also several charities in the UK who provide support, including financial support, for patients with cancer.On 4 February 2025, DHSC relaunched the Children and Young People Cancer Taskforce to identify tangible ways to improve outcomes and experiences for young cancer patients in England. The taskforce will ensure that the unique needs of children and young people with cancer are carefully considered as part of the National Cancer Plan, which will include further details on how we will improve experience and outcomes for children and young people with cancer in England.