Lord Bishop of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich

The Government recognises that there has been a fall in religious programming being broadcast. We understand the important role religion plays in the lives of many people in the UK and would expect religious programming to continue to form an important part of the content produced by public service broadcasters (PSBs).

The Media Act 2024 has modernised the public service broadcasting system, including their remit and quotas system which enables our PSBs to continue delivering for all audiences.

The Act also gives Ofcom the powers, including a clear statutory monitoring role, to ensure that PSBs continue to produce a range of genres such as religious programming. If Ofcom believes that a certain genre of programming is being underserved they can recommend that the DCMS Secretary of State introduce a new quota.

As a signatory to the National Partnership Agreement for Health and Social Care for people in contact with the criminal justice system, the Department of Health and Social Care is committed to working with the Ministry of Justice, His Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service, NHS England and the UK Health Security Agency to ensure safe, legal, decent and effective care is provided for all prisoners.

NHS England commissions prison health care services into every prison in England to the equivalence of the community. Every prison will have a health needs assessment undertaken on a regular basis which is then used to locally determine the health needs and requirements of that prison’s population.

As a signatory to the National Partnership Agreement for Health and Social Care for people in contact with the criminal justice system, the Department of Health and Social Care is committed to working with the Ministry of Justice, His Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service, NHS England and the UK Health Security Agency to ensure safe, legal, decent and effective care is provided for all prisoners.

NHS England commissions prison health care services into every prison in England to the equivalence of the community. Every prison will have a health needs assessment undertaken on a regular basis which is then used to locally determine the health needs and requirements of that prison’s population.

As a signatory to the National Partnership Agreement for Health and Social Care for people in contact with the criminal justice system, the Department of Health and Social Care is committed to working with the Ministry of Justice, His Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service, NHS England and the UK Health Security Agency to ensure safe, legal, decent and effective care is provided for all prisoners.

NHS England commissions prison health care services into every prison in England to the equivalence of the community. Every prison will have a health needs assessment undertaken on a regular basis which is then used to locally determine the health needs and requirements of that prison’s population.

As a signatory to the National Partnership Agreement for Health and Social Care for people in contact with the criminal justice system, the Department of Health and Social Care is committed to working with the Ministry of Justice, His Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service, NHS England and the UK Health Security Agency to ensure safe, legal, decent and effective care is provided for all prisoners.

NHS England commissions prison health care services into every prison in England to the equivalence of the community. Every prison will have a health needs assessment undertaken on a regular basis which is then used to locally determine the health needs and requirements of that prison’s population.

The UK continues to call for full, safe, sustained and unhindered humanitarian access across Myanmar, and for the protection of aid workers. UK aid reaches vulnerable communities across the country, including areas outside of the control of the authorities. We are able to operate despite the military's continued obstruction, ensuring UK assistance is meeting the needs of those in conflict-affected and hard-to-reach areas.

We continue to condemn the obstruction of aid delivery and the arrest or detention of humanitarian workers and press all parties to protect civilians and comply with international humanitarian law.

The UK's longstanding position is that all external support to the warring parties in Sudan only serves to fuel the conflict. We continue to have regular conversations with our partners across the region and the Middle East - including with the UAE - and work closely with those with influence to try to bring the warring parties to the negotiating table.

The UK has imposed an arms embargo on Sudan, continues to call for compliance with the UN arms embargo on Darfur, and is currently supporting US efforts to secure its renewal and where possible to extend its scope.

We have already sanctioned individuals suspected of committing atrocities in the war in Sudan, or fuelling the conflict through the supply of mercenaries and military equipment, and have recently targeted actors suspected of using the gold trade to bankroll Sudan's brutal war from beyond its borders.

UK Official Development Assistance (ODA) provided to support Rohingya refugees and host communities in Bangladesh was £36.6 million in 2021-22, £20.2 million in 2022-23 and £22.8 million in 2023-24, £43 million in 2024-25 and £36.59 million in 2025-26.

For 2026-27, £18.15 million has been allocated for the response. £6.3 million has been disbursed to date, and 15 per cent of the funding is being held in reserve in line with central guidance. £19 million has been confirmed annually until FY 2028/29.

For detail on future funding, including in Bangladesh, I refer the Noble Lord to statement HLWS292 (https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-statements/detail/2026-07-16/hlws292) made by the Minister of State for International Development and Africa on the 16 July 2026 (The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office's planned ODA programme country and regional allocations 2026/27 - 2028/29). As noted in the statement, we will retain a significant humanitarian spend that will focus on alleviating the Rohingya crisis.

The Ministry of Defence recognises the importance of the ongoing investigation being conducted by Wiltshire Police. As this is not a Service Police investigation, we do not hold the information requested.

Information about cases of sexual violence that have been handled within the Armed Forces is reported in the Ministry of Defence’s (MOD) annual Official Statistic publications of Murder, Manslaughter, Sexual Offences and Domestic Abuse in the Service Justice System.

The table below shows how many sexual offence investigations were conducted by each Service Police Force in the relevant years.

Key: RNP = Royal Navy Police; RMP = Royal Military Police; RAFP = Royal Air Force Police; DSCC = Defence Serious Crime Command

As shown in the table, the DSCC became operational on 5 December 2022 (they take primacy for investigating all serious crime in Defence) and reporting in the Official Statistics for 2025 was changed to show one total number of service police investigations. Investigations that were transferred to Civilian Police Forces, and those reported as sexual offences but then reclassified to a non-sexual offence have not been included in these statistics. Commanding Officers have a legal obligation to notify the service police if they become aware that a sexual offence may have taken place.

Further data, including the number of reported victims and suspects, and a breakdown of Service within each of those categories, can be found in the data tables published each year at the following website: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/sexual-offences-in-the-service-justice-system

The MOD is continuing to take action to give greater confidence to those reporting criminal behaviour and step up support across Defence. This includes a Whistleblowing in Defence Review, stronger measures in the Armed Forces Bill to protect victims, our Violence Against Women and Girls Taskforce pilot, and the recent launch of the Independent Legal Advice pilot for victim-survivors of sexual offences within the Service Justice System.

Defence recognises domestic abuse and sexual violence as serious harms that affect members of the Armed Forces community. Therefore, Defence is focused on delivering a coordinated response that supports those affected, prevents abuse from occurring, and holds perpetrators to account. MOD holds Coordinated Community Response (CCR) membership, which is regarded as best practice, with domestic abuse leads in the single Services undertaking CCR training. Defence values the contribution of chaplains, whose pastoral support and engagement with Service personnel and families complements the work of welfare and safeguarding services across the Armed Forces. Through its whole-force domestic abuse policy, Domestic Abuse Action Plan, and Violence Against Women and Girls taskforces, Defence is raising awareness, improving understanding, strengthening professional practice and support for those affected. It is through these frameworks we are informing the work of welfare-facing services, including chaplaincy and welfare teams, which form part of the wider support network available to Service personnel and families.