Written questions by Stone.

For what reason she has made changes to the levels of payments made out of the Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund; if she will publish a risk assessment for this funding change; and what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the funding change on future numbers and proportions of looked-after children being diverted into (a) adoptive families and (b) other types of care.

The changes made to the adoption and special guardianship support fund (ASGSF) were made so that funding can be accessed by the maximum number of children and families. The level of funding per child in 2025/26 will still allow adoptive and kinship families to access a significant package of therapeutic support.The department always considers the impact of decisions on vulnerable children and reviews the risks of any policy changes.The ASGSF is an important package of support, which is why we have continued to fund it. However, it is not the only support available to adoptive and kinship families. The department is funding Adoption England with £8.8 million this year to improve adopter recruitment and support, including innovative approaches to matching and the establishment of Centres of Excellence. We are also continuing to improve the support available to kinship families, including a £40 million package to trial a new kinship allowance to support family members and friends who take in children.

Whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of appointing trade envoys to Nordic countries.

We carry out analyses of suitable countries, regions, and markets to identify where the appointment of a Trade Envoy can be of greatest benefit to our trade and investment objectives.We remain committed to strengthening our long, positive and wide-ranging trading relationship with each of the Nordic Countries, but there are no plans at present to add any Nordic Countries to the Trade Envoy Programme.Markets such as these already have significant diplomatic, trade and investment networks, as well as receiving regular high-level visits by Ministers.

What steps he is taking to help ensure improved (a) interoperability and (b) coordination between drone systems procured by his Department.

Uncrewed systems are changing the character of warfare. The pace of military and civilian uncrewed technology evolution means our traditional approaches to acquisition, regulation and operation need to adapt. Learning lessons from the conflict in Ukraine to optimise capabilities, programmes like the RAF StormShroud is evidence of this. The Department seeks to ensure that all its capabilities have the necessary interoperability with systems and allies. Further development and investment will be directed by the Strategic Defence Review recommendations.

Whether her Department plans to update Personal Independence Payment application forms to ask whether applicants are veterans; and if she will meet the hon. Member for Swindon North to discuss the potential merits of (a) data collection and (b) tailored support for veterans.

Personal Independence Payment (PIP) claim forms do not ask for an individual’s occupation, past or present as it is legally immaterial to the decision to award benefit or not. PIP is based on the daily living and mobility needs arising from a long-term health condition or disability. We do not currently have plans to update the PIP forms. The honourable member is welcome to write to me to set out the potential merits of the changes he envisages, including the case for a meeting to discuss them.

Food and Rural Affairs, if he will undertake an impact assessment on the XL Bully ban.

Defra is continuing to engage closely with the Police, local authorities, and rescue and rehoming organisations to monitor the impacts of the XL Bully dog ban. These measures are vital to protect the public and we expect all XL Bully owners to comply with the conditions.

Food and Rural Affairs, if he will introduce a mandatory regulated size requirement for gerbil and hamster cages.

The Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations 2018 (the LAIA Regulations) set strict animal welfare standards that commercial sellers of pets, such as gerbils and hamsters, must adhere to. The accompanying statutory guidance sets out specific minimum enclosure size standards for animals such as gerbils and hamsters in pet shops. Under these regulations, sellers must also ensure that any equipment being sold with an animal, including enclosures, are suitable for its’ needs. The Animal Welfare Act 2006 also requires owners to meet the welfare needs of their pets, including the need for a suitable environment. Anyone failing to ensure that their animal’s welfare needs are met may face an unlimited fine or be sent to prison for up to six months, or both.

What steps she is taking to support young people into (a) employment, (b) education and (c) training in Swindon North constituency.

As part of the Great Britain Working plan, we are launching a Youth Guarantee for all young people aged 18-21 in England to ensure that they can access quality training opportunities, an apprenticeship, or help to find work. The Youth Guarantee will build upon and enhance existing entitlements and provisions with the aim of tackling the rising number of young people who are not participating in education, employment or training. This spring, we will be launching trailblazers in eight Mayoral Strategic Authorities and will use the learning from the Trailblazers to inform the future design and development of the Youth Guarantee as it rolls-out across the rest of England. DWP currently provides young people aged 16-24 with labour market support through an extensive range of interventions at a national and local level. This includes flexible provision driven by local need, nationwide employment programmes and support delivered by work coaches based in our Jobcentres and in local communities working alongside our partners. For example, in Swindon DWP’s Employment Advisors are working with employers to deliver the Ready to Launch Your Career open day event on 8th April in Swindon town centre, where the focus will be to help young people into estate-agent roles with many employers from this sector involved.

Food and Rural Affairs, if he will take steps to protect brown hares in England and Wales from being shot for sport during their breeding season.

This is a devolved matter, and the information provided therefore relates to England only, with the potential for relevant policy to extend and apply to Wales. While the Government has no immediate plan to introduce a close season for hares in England, the policy remains under consideration as part of the Government’s plans to introduce the most ambitious programme for animal welfare in a generation.

Innovation and Technology, if he will consider Panettoni Park in Swindon North constituency for Government funding for jobs in science and technology.

The Government is supporting local leaders to unlock their regions’ innovation potential. This includes Innovation Accelerator pilots, with innovation clusters sharing £100 million; the Launchpad programme, with 11 sites each receiving up to £7.5 million for innovation projects; and the Strength in Places Fund, which is investing £316 million in 12 projects to develop research and development capacity.I understand Panettoni Park may host data centre space. The Government is reviewing and improving grid connections and exploring other ways to enable data centre capacity, with over £40 billion in private investment in new UK data centres announced since July 2024.

What plans he has to review the Department’s approach to tackling alcohol harm; and whether he will consider introducing an alcohol strategy in this Parliament.

Under our Health Mission, the Government is committed to prioritising preventative public health measures to support people to live longer, healthier lives. The Department will continue to work across Government to better understand how we can best reduce alcohol-related harms.

What representations she has received on the potential merits of Minimum Unit Pricing in England; and whether she plans to introduce the policy in England this Parliament.

Under our Health Mission, this government is committed to prioritising public health measures to support people to live longer, healthier lives.We are continuing to work closely across government to better understand what can be done to address the drivers of alcohol-related harms.

If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing an exemption from the increase in employer's National Insurance contributions for care homes where more than half of residents are funded by the local authority.

The Government will provide support for departments and other public sector employers for additional employer National Insurance costs only. This does not include support for the private sector, including private sector firms contracted by central or local government. This is the usual approach Government takes to supporting the public sector with additional employer NICs costs, as was the case with the previous government’s Health and Social Care Levy. The Government considered the cost pressures facing adult social care and wider local government spending as part of the Spending Review process. The Government is providing a 6.8% cash terms increase in council’s Core Spending Power in 2025-26. To support social care authorities to deliver key services in light of pressures, we announced at the provisional Local Government Finance Settlement a further £200 million for adult and children’s social care. This will be allocated via the Social Care Grant, bringing the total increase of this grant in 2025-26 to £880 million, meaning that up to £3.7 billion of additional funding will be provided to social care authorities in 2025-26.

Communities and Local Government, if she will make an assessment of the reason that only 7% of Housing, Health and Safety Ratings System (HHSRS) inspections led to an Improvement Notice being served.

The government is committed to making sure homes are safe, decent and warm.Local housing authorities have powers to take a proactive approach to enforcement against unacceptable conditions in rented housing.Improvement notices are just one of the types of enforcement action that can be taken by local authorities in respect of hazards. Local authorities can use informal as well as formal methods to secure compliance following inspections. Through the Renters’ Rights Bill we are strengthening local authorities’ enforcement powers, including a new power to issue fines of up to £7,000 where a landlord has not taken reasonably practicable steps to remove category 1 hazards from the property.A review of the Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS) was published in September 2022. The government is considering the outcomes of this review, in line with wider recommendations from the Grenfell Inquiry Report to make sure that the guidance is as effective and accessible as possible.

Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential implications for his policies of trends in the number of greyhounds that have been killed at racetracks since 2023.

The Greyhound Board of Great Britain (GBGB) has published data for injuries, retirements and euthanasia of greyhounds from GBGB affiliated tracks and trainers each year since 2018. This data is published online at https://www.gbgb.org.uk/welfare-care/injury-and-retirement-data/(opens in a new tab). The long-term trend for the total number of greyhounds that have died at racetracks has shown, with the exception of figures for 2023, a welcome decline. Defra will continue to monitor figures published by GBGB in the coming years to see whether any new trends are identifiable.

Innovation and Technology, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of (a) requiring social media accounts to be linked to a form of ID and (b) preventing people with certain convictions from interacting with users under the age of 18.

The Online Safety Act gives online platforms new duties to protect users from illegal content and safeguard children.The Act stipulates that where there is a risk to children from the most harmful types of content (‘primary priority content), in-scope services including social media sites must use highly effective age assurance.Ofcom’s draft codes also propose additional protections for under 18s to keep their accounts private and prevent them being contacted and groomed by strangers.

If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of allowing asylum applications from people from Syria.

Following the fall of the Assad regime, the Home Office has withdrawn the Country Policy Information Notes and Guidance relating to Syria, and has temporarily paused all asylum interviews and decisions from Syrian nationals.We keep all country guidance relating to asylum claims under constant review, so we can respond to emerging issues. When there is a clear basis upon which to make decisions on Syrian claims, we will resume the processing of them.

If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing an exemption from the increase in employer's National Insurance contributions for care homes in which more than half of residents are funded by the local authority.

The Government will provide support for departments and other public sector employers for additional employer National Insurance costs only. This does not include support for the private sector, including private sector firms contracted by central or local government.This is the usual approach the Government takes to supporting the public sector with additional employer National Insurance contribution costs, as was the case with the previous Government’s Health and Social Care Levy.The Government considered the cost pressures facing adult social care and wider local government spending as part of the Spending Review process.The Government is providing a 6.8% cash terms increase in core council spending power in 2025/26. To support social care authorities to deliver key services in light of pressures, at the provisional Local Government Finance Settlement we announced a further £200 million for adult and children’s social care. This will be allocated via the Social Care Grant, bringing the total increase of this grant in 2025/26 to £880 million, meaning that up to £3.7 billion of additional funding will be provided to social care authorities in 2025/26.

Communities and Local Government, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of creating a new national post of Chief Environmental Health Officer to provide leadership on enforcement.

The government has no plans to create a new post of National Chief Environmental Health Officer.

Communities and Local Government, if she will take steps to prevent duplication between the planned landlord database and local licensing schemes to reduce inefficiencies.

The Private Rented Sector Database will operate alongside selective licensing to drive improvement in standards in the private rented sector, not as a replacement for these schemes.We will continue to review the use of selective licensing as we implement the Private Rented Sector Database, including how data may be shared to improve efficiency.

Communities and Local Government, what recent discussions she has had with local authorities on improving the collection of fines issued to rogue landlords; and if she will bring forward legislative proposals to devolve more powers to local authorities to help enforce the collection of such fines.

My Department engages regularly with local authorities and other stakeholders on how enforcement against rogue landlords in the private rented sector might be strengthened. Local authorities have a range of tools they can use to support the collection of unpaid fines imposed on rogue landlords, including charging orders and bankruptcy proceedings. The Department will continue to engage with local authorities and consider how best practice can be shared as part of supporting the effective implementation of the Renters’ Rights Bill.