Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Department's register of board members' interests 2024-2025, updated on 16 January 2025, whether Alan Milburn has recused himself from (a) discussions and (b) activity relating to NHS dentistry.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Mr Milburn has agreed to recuse himself from discussions and activity relating to National Health Service dentistry. Declarations of interest and any updates to them are published in the Register of Interests in the Department’s Annual Report and Accounts, and on the GOV.UK website, in alignment with Government policy.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what estimate he has made of the annual cost to the public purse of joining the European Defence Security Fund.

Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)

This Government has delivered an ambitious security and defence partnership with the European Union. The Strategic Defence Review will strengthen NATO, the cornerstone of the UK’s defence, and it will help grow the economy. It allows us to step up on Euro-Atlantic security together and ensures we are able to explore UK access to Security Action for Europe (SAFE). We are working with our European partners to understand how an arrangement might work. The exact detail of UK participation will be subject to discussions on the specific terms of a UK-EU bilateral participation agreement; we do not wish to pre-empt the outcome of any such negotiations. This Government wants the right deal on the right terms.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether applicants for company directorships on the Companies House register can nominate Palestinian as their nationality.

Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

‘Palestinian’ is included in the list of nationalities permitted for the purposes of company filings. The full list of nationalities and geographical names is available at the link below:
Nationalities and countries for company filings - GOV.UK

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether the Certification Officer has received the BDO auditor's report on the Unite trade union's hotel and conference centre development.

Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

The Certification Officer has received the BDO auditor's report and is currently reviewing this.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to his Department's press release entitled New mapping tool launched to help bring healthy food to those who need it most, published on 8 July 2025, who will run the state-subsidised eateries in (a) Dundee and (b) Nottingham; and if he will publish the project (a) specification and (b) plan for the DISHED: co-designing innovative infrastructure for sustainable healthy and equitable diets’ piloting public restaurants scheme.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) has funded six projects under its “Health inequalities in the food system” programme, announced on 8 July 2025. These projects aim to understand the causes of dietary health inequalities and explore interventions for equitable, healthy consumption. ‘DISHED: co-designing innovative infrastructure for sustainable healthy and equitable diets’ is a funded project within this programme, which will examine different models of public restaurants in Dundee and Nottingham to assess their feasibility in current UK contexts. The project is led by an academic principal investigator. Full grant details will be published on the UKRI Gateway to Research website in due course.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether NHS staff who are on strike are permitted to work for (a) non-NHS bodies, (b) other NHS trusts and (c) other NHS organisations during days of industrial action.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

NHS staff who are on strike are allowed to work for non-NHS bodies and other NHS organisations including NHS trusts on days of industrial action, as long as they are not provided by an employment business to cover the work of striking workers. Some employment contracts may require employees to either declare to or seek permission from their employer before working for another employer.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to the written statement of 13 March 2025, HCWS517, on Board of Trade, when the Lords of the Committee of the Privy Council appointed for the consideration of all matters relating to Trade and Foreign Plantations last met.

Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

The Board of Trade last met on the 21^st May 2025.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference the UK Visas and Immigration guidance entitled (a) Skilled Worker visa: going rates for eligible occupation codes and (b) Skilled Worker visa: temporary shortage list, updated on 22 July 2025, what the evidential basis is for (i) a shortage of Equality, diversity and inclusion managers and (ii) the impact on the UK economy of granting visas for such roles; and whether the Migration Advisory Committee has advised on the matter.

Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

On 12 May, we published our Immigration White Paper, outlining our future approach to legal migration routes and the 22 July changes to the Immigration Rules delivered key steps, including raising the skills threshold governing Skilled Worker route to RQF 6, which removed access to over 100 occupations.

The Skilled Worker system relies on Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) codes, which are managed by the Office for National Statistics. Occupations which are recognised as meeting the skills threshold for the Skilled Worker immigration route can continue to be sponsored through the route.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many people have been fined by the Environment Agency for fishing with a rod licence since 4 July 2024.

Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

All anglers caught fishing without a licence are subject to enforcement action as outlined in the Environment Agency’s Enforcement and Sanctions Policy here. Rod licence income is ring fenced to be used by the Environment Agency to maintain, improve and develop freshwater fisheries in England and Wales.

Please see below the number people and actions for Offences for fishing without a Rod licence (Salmon and Freshwater Fisheries Act Section (1) (a).

NB: The table includes for actions taken between 04/07/2023 to 01/09/2024, for comparison purposes.

Please note, the EA has brought prosecutions against people, however the court imposes penalties after convictions, and the EA itself does not have the power to fine individuals for Salmon and Freshwater Fisheries Act offences. Fines are imposed by the courts and go to Treasury.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the Written Statement of 21 July 2025 on Government of service, HCWS870, whether the appointment of members to the Ethics and Integrity Commission will be made under the Public Appointments Order in Council; and which Department will be responsible for approving those appointments.

Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office

The Ethics and Integrity Commission will be established on 13 October 2025 by the Government strengthening and reforming the Committee on Standards in Public Life (CSPL).

The appointment of independent members to the Ethics and Integrity Commission will continue to be subject to the Governance Code for Public Appointments and regulated by the Commissioner for Public Appointments, as has been the case with CSPL.

As an Arm's Length Body of the Cabinet Office, appointments to the Ethics and Integrity Commission will be the responsibility of Cabinet Office Ministers.

Question to the Attorney General:

To ask the Solicitor General, pursuant to the Answer of 28 July 2025 to Question 68480 on Government Legal Service, if she will publish that guidance.

Answered by Ellie Reeves - Solicitor General (Attorney General's Office)

The Attorney General's Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether the payment of armed forces pensions counts towards the 5% NATO defence spending target.

Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)

In line with the current NATO definition, spend on armed forces pensions is already included as part of core defence spending. This will continue to be the case against the 5% defence spending target.

Question to the Attorney General:

To ask the Solicitor General, pursuant to the Answer of 22 July 2025 to Question 68773 on Civil Service: Equality, if she will publish the (a) handouts and (b) presentations used at the conference.

Answered by Ellie Reeves - Solicitor General (Attorney General's Office)

The Crown Prosecution Service does not, as a matter of practice, publish materials used in internal conferences.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 4 August 2025 to Question HL9820 on Cryptocurrencies, whether the Government’s crypto-asset holdings are deemed to be held in the Consolidated Fund under the Exchequer and Audit Departments Act 1866; and what the Government’s methodology is for valuing crypto-assets.

Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury

The Consolidated Fund is a sterling denominated fund and therefore does not hold cryptocurrencies. Departments are responsible for applying relevant accounting standards on a case by case basis to value any assets held.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the press release entitled Internship Scheme To Get More Working Class Students Into Civil Service, published on 1 August 2025, whether children of members of the armed forces will be able to apply for the Summer Internship Programme in his Department in 2026.

Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)

The Summer Internship Programme is a pan-Civil Service initiative designed to increase the representation of those from a working-class background into the Civil Service, and support opportunities to join the Fast Stream within this group. As such, it has a number of eligibility requirements, including socio-economic status. Children of Armed Forces personnel are subject to the same eligibility criteria as other applicants.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, further to page 142 of the Home Office annual report and accounts 2024-25, published in July 2025, for what reason £30,000 of the exit payment to the Permanent Secretary was deemed non-taxable.

Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)

Decisions about Permanent Secretary exit payments are made by the Cabinet Office. In line with other exit payments, the first £30,000 of this payment was not taxable, and the remaining balance was taxable.

Tax on termination payments: What you pay tax and National Insurance on - GOV.UK

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department has made payments to digital influencers since July 2024.

Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)

There has been no spend on influencer marketing within the time frame specified.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will make it his policy to repeal the assimilated EU law of Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/1816 in relation to the classification of controversial weapons under the (a) UK Climate Transition Benchmarks and (b) UK Paris-aligned benchmarks to prevent divestment in (i) Trident renewal and (ii) sub-contractors who undertake Trident-related contracts.

Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my hon. Friend the former Economic Secretary to the Treasury (Ms Reynolds) on 9 April 2025 to Questions 43043 and 43449 to the hon. Member for Salisbury (Mr Glen).

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 17 July 2025 to Question 66658 on Official Hospitality: Lancaster House, how much was spent on alcohol at the event.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

£56 was spent on wine. All other drinks at the event were provided by sponsors.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether senior members of the Diplomatic Service are permitted to attend the Labour Party political conference.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

All senior civil servants, including members of the Diplomatic Service, are subject to the Civil Service Management Code.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what is the salary of the UK Ambassador to the US; and what the percentage employer contribution to his pension scheme is.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

Details of all senior staff salaries are published in the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office Organograms of Staff Roles and Salaries (https://www.data.gov.uk/dataset/73e0260a-0516-44ff-b4eb-ba9fec420c45/fcdo-organograms). All staff enrolled in the Civil Service pension scheme have an employer pension contribution calculated at 28.97 per cent of salary.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the amount of trade union facility time given to the BMA across the NHS.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

This estimate has not been made. The Department for Health and Social Care does not collect data on trade union facility time given to the British Medical Association (BMA) across the NHS in England. The Cabinet Office routinely publishes overall public sector trade union facility data. However, data is not collected to the level of granularity requested. Data is available at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/public-sector-trade-union-facility-time-data

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether the National Cyber Security Centre has issued guidance for (a) politicians and (b) the public on using Virtual Private Networks.

Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) provides advice and guidance for high risk individuals (https://www.ncsc.gov.uk/collection/defending-democracy/guidance-for-high-risk-individuals). NCSC also works closely with the Parliamentary Authorities on their advice and support to Members of both Houses of Parliament.

Personal Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) are not primarily used for cyber security purposes, and their use can introduce security risks to a user, not just mitigate them. As such NCSC neither recommend nor discourage the use of VPNs by private individuals.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether the proposed socio-economic duty will apply to fiscal decisions made by her Department.

Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury

The Office for Equality and Opportunity in the Cabinet Office is currently working toward commencement of the duty. This includes drafting statutory guidance which will clarify how the duty can be applied effectively.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether Jonathan Powell was involved in the negotiation of the UK–Mauritius agreement on the Chagos Archipelago as National Security Adviser.

Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

I refer the Hon. Member to the Answer given on 24 February 2025 to Question 30609.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, when the Lords' Commissioners of the Treasury will next meet.

Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

There are no plans for the Lords Commissioners of the Treasury to meet.

As set out in the Annual Report and Accounts, the Treasury Board met once since July 2024 and the Chancellor of the Exchequer was in attendance.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, pursuant to the Answer of 3 June 2025 to Question 54390 on Data Statistics Research on Sex and Gender Independent Review, if he will make a statement to Parliament with a formal government response to that report.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

As outlined in previous Answers of 3 June to Question 54390 and 2 May 2025 to Question 47834, relevant departments and policy teams will consider the findings in light of their ongoing policy work.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what funding (a) the Government Digital Service and (b) his Department has provided to DigiGov Expo 2025.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

No funding has been provided to DigiGov Expo 2025 by either the Government Digital Service or the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what guidance the National Protective Security Authority has provided on using Virtual Private Networks.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

As part of our ongoing monitoring of the potential impact of circumvention techniques on the effectiveness of the Online Safety Act, Government is engaging with relevant bodies. However, the National Protective Security Authority has not provided the department with guidance on the use of VPNs.

The child safety duties are newly implemented and represent a major milestone in the protection of children online. It is now much harder for children to accidentally or intentionally access harmful content. Services that deliberately target UK children and promote VPNs to circumvent online safety measures could face enforcement action under the Act.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to paragraph 2 of the document entitled DSR 2: General Principles of Conduct of the Diplomatic Service Code, if he will publish a copy of any supplementary guidance on political activities in addition to the guidance in DSR 36.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

No such supplementary guidance has been published, nor is any considered necessary.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what his policy is on the (a) re-use and (b) disposal of branded (i) goods and (ii) signage out of date following machinery of Government changes.

Answered by Chris Ward - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

The Cabinet Office does not issue guidance on the re-use and/or disposal of branded goods and signage made obsolete as a result of Machinery of Government changes. It is the responsibility of individual departments to ensure their branded assets are managed appropriately following changes in government structures.

Question

To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, with reference to the style guide entitled Writing about ethnicity, updated in October 2024, for what reason the reference to communities was removed.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The ‘Writing about ethnicity’ style guide is kept under review, in order to ensure it aligns with government communication preferences.

The guide was updated by the Office for Equality and Opportunity in October 2024.

Conduct of Lord Mandelson

Found: Liberal Democrat; Orkney and Shetland) (Chair) Sarah Bool (Conservative; South Northamptonshire) Charlie Dewhirst

Found: Watch the meeting Members present: Alistair Carmichael (Chair); Sarah Bool; Charlie Dewhirst; Helena

Found: Watch the meeting Members present: Alistair Carmichael (Chair); Sarah Bool; Charlie Dewhirst; Helena

Found: Watch the meeting Members present: Alistair Carmichael (Chair); Sarah Bool; Charlie Dewhirst; Helena

Found: Liberal Democrat; Orkney and Shetland) (Chair) Sarah Bool (Conservative; South Northamptonshire) Charlie Dewhirst

No description available