Asked by: Caroline Dinenage (Conservative - Gosport)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the Ministry of Defence Police budget is in the (a) 2025-26 and (b) 2026-27 financial year; and whether he undertook a risk assessment before determining the budget for the next financial year.
Answered by Calvin Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans and People)
The Ministry of Defence Police budget for financial year 2025-26 was £192 million. Forecast expenditure for 2026-27 is £206 million.
Risk is an integral part of the Department's financial planning process. Forecast expenditure and budget allocation decisions are informed by assessments of affordability, historical performance, planned requirements, anticipated demand and other factors that may affect future financial performance.
Asked by: Caroline Dinenage (Conservative - Gosport)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of introducing measures to prevent pensioners with small amounts of income in addition to the state pension from facing a higher tax liability than those whose only income is the state pension.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
Pensioners whose only income is the basic or new State Pension, without any increments, do not currently pay income tax. This is because the full new State Pension is below the tax-free Personal Allowance this year.
In line with the commitment made at Budget 2025, pensioners whose incomes only just exceed the Personal Allowance will not have the administrative burden of paying small amounts of tax in this Parliament.
More details will be set out at Budget 2026.
Asked by: Caroline Dinenage (Conservative - Gosport)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the Answer of 5 August 2026 to Question HL2380, how many people over state pension age he estimates will be income taxpayers in 2027-28; and how many people he estimates will benefit from the commitment that people whose only income is the basic or new State Pension, without increments, will not pay income tax over this Parliament, in that year.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The vast majority of pensioners paid income tax under the last Conservative government. The OBR produces projections of the number of income taxpayers in future years.
In line with the commitment made at Budget 2025, pensioners whose incomes only just exceed the Personal Allowance will not have the administrative burden of paying small amounts of tax in this Parliament. The Government will set out more detail at Budget.
Asked by: Caroline Dinenage (Conservative - Gosport)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact on professional female footballers of the proposed changes to the tax treatment of image rights payments from 6 April 2027; and whether he plans to publish an impact assessment of those changes.
Answered by James Murray - Financial Secretary to the Treasury and Paymaster General
At Budget 2025, the Government announced it would legislate to clarify the tax treatment of image rights to ensure that all image rights payments related to an employment are treated as taxable employment income. As with all tax measures, an assessment of the impacts relating to the policy will be provided through the Government’s Tax Information and Impact Note (TIIN) which will be published alongside the relevant Finance Bill.
The Government regularly engages with stakeholders on technical detail of its announced policies and welcomes engagement with the Women’s Super League.
Asked by: Caroline Dinenage (Conservative - Gosport)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment her Department has made of the potential differential impact on professional female footballers of the proposed changes to the tax treatment of image rights payments from 6 April 2027, including in relation to differences in salary levels and the proportion of income derived from commercial and image rights arrangements.
Answered by James Murray - Financial Secretary to the Treasury and Paymaster General
At Budget 2025, the Government announced it would legislate to clarify the tax treatment of image rights to ensure that all image rights payments related to an employment are treated as taxable employment income. As with all tax measures, an assessment of the impacts relating to the policy will be provided through the Government’s Tax Information and Impact Note (TIIN) which will be published alongside the relevant Finance Bill.
The Government regularly engages with stakeholders on technical detail of its announced policies and welcomes engagement with the Women’s Super League.
Asked by: Caroline Dinenage (Conservative - Gosport)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what meetings his Department has had with representatives of the Women’s Super League on the proposed changes to the tax treatment of image rights payments.
Answered by James Murray - Financial Secretary to the Treasury and Paymaster General
At Budget 2025, the Government announced it would legislate to clarify the tax treatment of image rights to ensure that all image rights payments related to an employment are treated as taxable employment income. As with all tax measures, an assessment of the impacts relating to the policy will be provided through the Government’s Tax Information and Impact Note (TIIN) which will be published alongside the relevant Finance Bill.
The Government regularly engages with stakeholders on technical detail of its announced policies and welcomes engagement with the Women’s Super League.
Asked by: Caroline Dinenage (Conservative - Gosport)
Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the letter from the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Sport, Tourism, Civil Society and Youth to the Culture, Media and Sport Committee, dated 24 June 2026, which grants for the business events growth programme and related funds were allocated to BTA for the purpose of growing business events in the last five years.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
DCMS recognises the economic contribution of business events, which facilitate trade and investment, support jobs and generate visitor spending across the UK. The UK’s business event sector is thriving and receives support from a number of national and local sources.
DCMS provides the British Tourist Authority (BTA) with funding each year to deliver an agreed set of objectives which the BTA allocates across a range of priority areas where it can most add value. Funding is also provided from the GREAT programme for international marketing.
From 2021/22 to 2025/26, BTA allocated approximately £1.25m of funding annually to support business events. In 2026/27, BTA reprioritised funding to avoid duplication with VisitScotland and VisitWales and to support smaller businesses to attend international trade shows. MeetEngland’s budget this year of £300,000 accounts for around 20% of VisitEngland’s core operational budget for 26/27.
Asked by: Caroline Dinenage (Conservative - Gosport)
Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the letter from the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Sport, Tourism, Civil Society and Youth to the Culture, Media and Sport Committee, dated 24 June 2026, what funding was (a) allocated for and (b) provided to the British Tourism Authority's Business Events Growth Programme in the last five financial years.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
DCMS recognises the economic contribution of business events, which facilitate trade and investment, support jobs and generate visitor spending across the UK. The UK’s business event sector is thriving and receives support from a number of national and local sources.
DCMS provides the British Tourist Authority (BTA) with funding each year to deliver an agreed set of objectives which the BTA allocates across a range of priority areas where it can most add value. Funding is also provided from the GREAT programme for international marketing.
From 2021/22 to 2025/26, BTA allocated approximately £1.25m of funding annually to support business events. In 2026/27, BTA reprioritised funding to avoid duplication with VisitScotland and VisitWales and to support smaller businesses to attend international trade shows. MeetEngland’s budget this year of £300,000 accounts for around 20% of VisitEngland’s core operational budget for 26/27.
Asked by: Caroline Dinenage (Conservative - Gosport)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure children and young people can access (a) dance, (b) sport, (c) gymnastics and (d) cheer as part of the curriculum.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The government is committed to ensuring all children and young people benefit from a high-quality PE curriculum. PE is compulsory at all four key stages, with schools able to choose the activities they use to deliver the curriculum. Dance is a specified element of the national curriculum, with programme of study content set out through to key stage 3.
The independent Curriculum and Assessment Review recommended greater clarity and specificity in areas such as dance. The government accepted these recommendations and is revising the PE national curriculum, while maintaining schools’ flexibility in delivery. The revised curriculum will be consulted on publicly and is intended for first teaching from September 2028.
Schools will be supported to deliver high-quality dance provision through the National Centre for Arts and Music. Supporting pupils to access PE, sport and physical activity opportunities such as gymnastics and cheer will also form part of the new PE and School Sport Partnerships.
Asked by: Caroline Dinenage (Conservative - Gosport)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she is taking to ensure people with severe ME in need of tube feeding can be safely fed lying flat in NHS hospitals.
Answered by James Frith - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has published guidance on nutrition support for adults and on the diagnosis and management of myalgic encephalomyelitis, also known as chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS). The guidance recognises that people with severe or very severe ME/CFS may be unable to eat and digest food easily and may require support with hydration and nutrition, including enteral tube feeding.
Enteral feeding must be provided safely. Feeding a patient lying flat can increase the risk of aspiration, and clinicians should take the NICE guidance fully into account. However, NICE guidance does not replace clinical judgement. Decisions about positioning and the most appropriate form of nutritional support should be made by the treating clinical team, following an individual assessment of the patient’s needs, risks, and preferences and, where appropriate, with input from a multidisciplinary nutrition support team.
These services are commissioned locally by integrated care boards, which are responsible for ensuring that appropriate services are available to meet the needs of their populations.