Written questions by Morton.

Pursuant to the Answer of 4 March 2025 to Question 33033 on Employers' Contributions: Apprentices, whether the employers' National Insurance contributions relief for under-21s and under-25 apprentices also applies to employed interns.

Employers of interns are eligible for these National Insurance Contributions reliefs provided the interns are either under age 21 with earnings between the Secondary Threshold (ST), currently £175 a week and the Upper Secondary Threshold (UST), currently £967 a week; or are under age 25 with earnings above the ST and not exceeding the Apprentice Upper Secondary Threshold (AUST), currently £967 a week, and on an approved UK Government apprenticeship standard or framework. Full details of the UK Government apprenticeship standard or frameworks which are approved can be found at Paying employer National Insurance contributions for apprentices under 25 - GOV.UK .

Communities and Local Government, whether she plans to take legislative steps to ensure there is consultation with local communities before any developments are approved on grey belt land.

I refer the right hon. Member to the answers to Question UIN 26011 on 31 January 2025; UIN 26507 on 5 February 2025; and UIN 36395 on 12 March 2025. It is for individual local authorities to plan and make decisions regarding the location and potential impacts of new development in their areas.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of the invasion of Ukraine by Russia on (a) security and (b) regional stability in the western Balkans.

A just and lasting peace is vital for Ukraine and for wider Euro-Atlantic and international security and prosperity. Russia has sought to undermine fragile democracies and fan ethnic tensions across the Western Balkans. This threatens hard-won peace and stability in the region and the ambitions for greater European integration chosen by states. We will continue to counter Russian interference in the region, including through supporting North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) partners, programming on cyber security and counter-disinformation and wider efforts to promote stability and security.

Whether she has considered implementing a phased introduction of planned Inheritance Tax changes for agricultural properties, in the context of support for smaller farms.

The Government set out its policy at Autumn Budget 2024. The Government believes its reforms to agricultural property relief and business property relief from 6 April 2026 get the balance right between supporting farms and businesses, and fixing the public finances. The reforms reduce the inheritance tax advantages available to owners of agricultural and business assets, but still mean those assets will be taxed at a much lower effective rate than most other assets. Despite a tough fiscal context, the Government will maintain very significant levels of relief from inheritance tax beyond what is available to others and compared to the position before 1992. The reforms are expected to result in up to 520 estates claiming agricultural property relief, including those also claiming business property relief, in 2026-27 paying more inheritance tax. Almost three-quarters of estates claiming agricultural property relief, including those that also claim for business property relief, will not pay any more tax as a result of the changes in 2026-27, based on the latest available data.

Communities and Local Government, with reference to the National Planning Policy Framework published in December 2024, whether her Department has conducted an environmental impact assessment on the proposed development of grey belt land.

I refer the right hon. Member to the answers to Question UIN 26011 on 31 January 2025; UIN 26507 on 5 February 2025; and UIN 36395 on 12 March 2025. It is for individual local authorities to plan and make decisions regarding the location and potential impacts of new development in their areas.

What steps her Department is taking to support community-led initiatives focused on preventing knife crime.

The Home Office has committed to the creation of a new Young Futures Programme, which will establish a network of Young Futures Hubs and Young Futures Prevention Partnerships, to ensure at risk children and young people are supported in a more systematic way. The Government recognises the vital role community voices can play in the effective delivery of crime reduction initiatives.This is why the Prevention Partnership model, and its associated functions will be designed in partnership with the communities it intends to support. As we continue to design the Young Futures Programme, we want to ensure that it learns from and builds on the work of the existing Violence Reduction Units in this regard. In 2025/26 we are investing £49.7m in Violence Reduction Units, including making over £4.3m available to the West Midlands this year, and £14.4m to Serious Violence Duty Partnerships nationally.Violence Reduction Units and Serious Violence Duty partnerships bring together key partners, including the local community, to understand and tackle the drivers of serious violence in their area. As part of the 'whole system' approach to violence prevention, they are required to operate 'with and for' the community. This involves support for community-led and grass-roots organisations to deliver interventions that help to prevent violence, including knife crime.The Prime Minister has also launched a Coalition to tackle the scourge of knife crime. The Coalition brings together key stakeholders, including community leaders, to help the Government develop an extensive understanding of what causes young people to be drawn into violence.

What impact assessment she has undertaken on the potential impact of the planned increase in employers' National Insurance contributions on levels of employment.

The Office for Budget Responsibility’s October 2024 Economic and Fiscal Outlook expects that the Employer National Insurance Contributions package will lead to a reduction in the participation rate by 0.1 per cent from 2025-26 onwards. Overall, once the impact of all the Budget measures are taken into consideration, the OBR expect the employment level to increase from 33.1 million in 2024 to 34.3 million in 2029.

Communities and Local Government, with reference to the oral statement by the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Local Growth and Building Safety of 4 March 2025 on Plan for Neighbourhoods, Official Report, columns 210-212, what criteria will be used to determine the (a) geographical boundaries and (b) jurisdiction of the Neighbourhood boards.

The default geographic boundary for each place is determined as follows:for England and Wales: the built-up areas as defined by the Office for National Statistics (2022 boundaries GB BGG)for Scotland: based on Localities 2020 geographyfor Northern Ireland: Settlements 2015 data Neighbourhood Boards may make representations to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to alter their default boundary.

Communities and Local Government, with reference to the oral statement by the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Local Growth and Building Safety of 4 March 2025 on Plan for Neighbourhoods, Official Report, columns 210-212, who will the new Neighbourhood Boards be accountable to; and what steps her Department plans to take to measure the effectiveness of the Boards.

The relevant local authority in each place will act as the accountable body for the funds with responsibility for ensuring that public funds are distributed fairly and effectively, and that funds have been managed in line with the Nolan Principles and Managing Public Money principles. They will also be responsible for compliance with legal responsibilities in relation to subsidy control, state aid and procurement.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department plans to take steps to protect green belt land from fire risks when developing battery energy storage systems.

The Government agrees with the need to have robust measures in place to manage the risks associated with facilities that use large numbers of lithium-ion batteries. The Health and Safety Executive regulates grid-scale lithium-ion batteries within a robust regulatory framework which requires Battery Energy and Storage Systems (BESS) designers, installers, and operators to take the necessary measures throughout all stages of the system’s construction, operation and decommissioning to ensure its health and safety. Defra is considering further options, including environmental permitting, for managing the environmental and public health risks from fires at BESS sites.

Communities and Local Government, with reference to the oral statement by the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Local Growth and Building Safety of 4 March 2025 on Plan for Neighbourhoods, Official Report, columns 210-212, what steps her Department plans to take to ensure Neigbhourhood boards are representative of the community.

The local authority or an alternative organisation, such as a community group if agreed by the chair and local authority, should act as secretariat to the board. Recognising the partnership between the board and local authority, council officers may provide secretariat support and can sit as an observer to discussions, if agreed with the chair. We strongly encourage the board to consider whether an alternative organisation, e.g. a local community group, could act or support in this role to build capacity and capability. In line with the principles of public life and to ensure the local community can hold the board to account, its operations must be transparent, with membership and governance arrangements (including minutes of meetings and decision logs) published on the lead council’s website.

Whether she has considered providing targeted relief or exemptions from employers' National Insurance contributions increases to (a) charities, (b) social enterprises and (c) other not-for-profit entities.

The Government recognises the important role charities play in our society and has made it a priority to reset the relationship with civil society by developing a Civil Society Covenant.To repair the public finances and help raise the revenue required to increase funding for public services, the Government has taken the difficult decision to increase employer National Insurance.The Government recognises the need to protect the smallest businesses and charities, which is why we have more than doubled the Employment Allowance to £10,500, meaning more than half of employers with NICs liabilities either gain or see no change next year. Charities will still be able to claim employer NICs reliefs including those for under 21s and under 25 apprentices, where eligible.More broadly, within the tax system, we provide support to charities through a range of reliefs and exemptions, including reliefs for charitable giving with more than £6 billion in charitable reliefs provided to charities, CASCs and their donors in 2023 to 2024.

What steps are being considered to reduce financial burdens on small and independent high street businesses.

This government is committed to creating a fairer business rates system for small businesses on the high street. From 2026-27, we will introduce permanently lower tax rates for retail, hospitality, and leisure (RHL) properties with rateable values of less than £500,000.We recognise that businesses will need support during this period of transition. RHL relief will be extended for one year at 40% and the small business multiplier will be frozen for one year. This package is worth over £1.5 billion in 2025-26 and is aimed at supporting the most vulnerable businesses.Our new Business Growth Service will make it easier for businesses across the UK to get the help, support and advice they need. It will bring together existing offers including Business Support Service and the network of local Growth Hubs across England. Our forthcoming Small Business Strategy will set out how we intend to further support small businesses on the high street and beyond.

What steps his Department is taking to ensure that hospice care services across England are sufficiently funded; and what assessment he has made of the potential impact of an ageing population on demand for palliative care services.

Whilst the majority of palliative and end of life care is provided by National Health Service staff and services, we recognise the vital part that voluntary sector organisations, including hospices, also play in providing support to people at end of life and their loved ones.Most hospices are charitable, independent organisations which receive some statutory funding for providing NHS services. The amount of funding each charitable hospice receives varies both within and between integrated care board (ICB) areas. This will vary depending on demand in that ICB area but will also be dependent on the totality and type of palliative and end of life care provision from both NHS and non-NHS services, including charitable hospices, within each ICB area.We are pleased to confirm that the Government has released the first £25 million tranche of the £100 million capital funding, with Hospice UK kindly allocating and distributing the money to hospices throughout England. An additional £75 million will be available from April. We are also providing £26 million revenue funding to support children and young people’s hospices for 2025/26. This is a continuation of the funding which until recently was known as the children and young people’s hospice grant.No formal assessment has been made of the potential impact of an ageing population on demand for palliative care services, but we know that currently approximately 600,000 people die per year in the United Kingdom. We are aware that the Office for National Statistics has projected that, by 2040, approximately 800,000 people a year will die in the UK, meaning that, the number of people needing palliative and end of life care is expected to increase by 42% by then.

What steps her Department is taking to encourage small and medium-sized enterprises to offer apprenticeships.

Apprenticeships can support small and medium sized employers (SMEs) to improve their skills base, boost productivity and develop a pipeline of future talent.To support non-levy paying employers, usually SMEs, to offer apprenticeships, the government pays the full training costs for young apprentices aged 16 to 21 years-old, and for apprentices aged 22 to 24 years-old who have an education, health and care (EHC) plan or have been in local authority care. For all other apprentices, employers who do not pay the levy are required to co-invest 5% towards apprentice training costs.Employers of all sizes can also benefit from £1,000 payments when they take on apprentices aged 16 to 18 years-old, or apprentices aged 19 to 24 years-old who have an EHC plan or have been in local authority care. This is in recognition of the additional support that younger apprentices may require when entering employment. Employers can choose how they spend these payments.Employers also benefit from not being required to pay anything towards employees’ National Insurance for all apprentices aged up to age 25 where they earn less than £967 a week (£50,270 a year).Employers that need help with employing an apprentice, including accessing funding, can access the employer support GOV.UK page, which is available here: https://help.employersupport.apprenticeships.gov.uk/hc/en-gb.The apprenticeship ambassador network is a group of employers and former and current apprentices. Around 35%of the employers are SMEs. Their remit is to inspire greater numbers of employers and individuals to connect with apprenticeships.

What provisional allocation of defence spending he has made to cover the costs associated with the (a) Chagos Islands deal and (b) the transfer of sovereignty to Mauritius.

The terms of the treaty and the associated funding arrangements are still being finalised, and no decision has been made at this time. This will be laid before Parliament in the usual way.

What financial arrangements have been made for the continued lease of the Diego Garcia military base; and what estimate he has made of the annual costs of that base.

There is no lease with respect to Diego Garcia. US presence and operations in the British Indian Ocean Territory are governed by a series of international agreements, beginning with a 1966 Exchange of Notes between the US and UK The direct cost to the Ministry of Defence (MOD) for running the UK element of the UK-US military base in the British Indian Ocean Territory in financial year 2023-24 was £3.8 million. This excludes minor costs incurred directly by, for example, visiting units or HQ elements in the UK. Any costs incurred by other government departments cannot be provided by MOD With regard to the agreement reached between the UK and Mauritius, details of the proposed treaty will come before Parliament for scrutiny in the usual manner following its signature.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with NATO allies on the potential deployment of peacekeeping troops in Ukraine in the event of any ceasefire.

The Foreign Secretary is in regular contact with North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) Allies as well as Ukraine on how to achieve a just and lasting peace that safeguards Ukraine's security and sovereignty. The Foreign Secretary attended the G7 Foreign Ministers' Meeting in Canada from 12-14 March 2025, which discussed security support for Ukraine. The UK has been clear that when this war ends, Ukraine will need robust security guarantees to ensure against future Russian aggression. The UK is playing a leading role alongside France to build a coalition of countries willing to play a role in supporting Ukraine's future security.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to counter foreign disinformation and manipulation campaigns.

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) works closely with the Home Office, which leads on addressing malign information activity aimed at UK audiences, and the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) which leads on online safety and information threats in the UK. The FCDO is responsible for understanding and addressing information threats relating to third countries, deterring hostile activity globally and building a global ecosystem through partnerships to collectively challenge the threat.The Foreign Secretary recognised the importance of 'stepping up action with allies on Kremlin Disinformation' in his January 2025 Locarno speech.We have dedicated resources to identifying foreign information manipulation and interference (FIMI) and taking action against Russian networks. This includes sanctioning the Social Design Agency (SDA) for attempting to undermine and destabilise Ukraine; exposing Russia's attempts at electoral interference in Moldova and exposing how RT (formerly Russia Today) engages in covert influence on behalf of the Kremlin.We are driving a collaborative international approach - the G7 pledged to 'strengthen our coordinated efforts to better prevent, detect and respond to FIMI threats'. In January 2025, the G7 Rapid Response Mechanism exposed ongoing deceitful activity of RT and the SDA to advance Russia's interests.We have a range of programmes to build societal resilience in third countries to protect against deceptive information campaigns, and we will continue to provide factual narratives to global audiences.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what plans his Department has to continue supporting the delivery of humanitarian aid to Lebanon.

The UK is committed to supporting Lebanon to meet the humanitarian needs of both refugees and vulnerable Lebanese communities. The UK has played a leading role in addressing the humanitarian situation in Lebanon and announced £41 million in humanitarian aid in Financial Year 24/25 to support thousands of displaced and host communities to meet their basic needs and access essential services. We recognise post-ceasefire needs remain high and the UK's ongoing response will continue, including working with international partners to support the Government of Lebanon to respond to the UN Flash Appeal extension.