Dan Norris

Data on National Minimum Wage (NMW) breaches by region is available in the published government’s Enforcement and Compliance report at: National Living Wage and National Minimum Wage: government evidence on enforcement and compliance, 2023 - GOV.UK

Small businesses are the beating heart of our high streets, our communities, and essential to our economic success. This Government will hardwire the voice of small business into everything we do.

Businesses in North East Somerset and Hanham can access support through the West of England Growth Hub, which provides businesses of all sizes and sectors with advice and support throughout the business journey.

The Government provides further support for small businesses through Business Support Service, Help to Grow, the UK Export Academy, International Trade Advisors, the Export Support Service, and the British Business Bank.

The government will continue to deliver the Warm Home Discount which provides a £150 annual rebate on energy bills for eligible low-income households. We will invest an extra £13.2 billion through our Warm Homes Plan over the next Parliament to upgrade 5 million homes and cut bills for families.

The Government actively supports AI research by collaborating with academic institutions and industry, investing in talent development, and funding research projects.

UKRI has allocated over £1 billion to AI research including doctoral training, the Alan Turing Institute, Bridge AI, Responsible AI UK, and BRAID programmes.

We are focused on reducing barriers to research through initiatives such as AISI’s Systemic Safety Grants Programme, which provides funding of up to £200,000 to innovative projects addressing AI risks.

The government is focused on ensuring that the industry-led switch-off of the public switched telephone network (PSTN) will cause minimum inconvenience to residents and businesses and is working with the industry to ensure safe and secure transition. A customer's PSTN landline will not be switched off unless an alternative connection is available, and since Voice over internet Protocol landline only requires a minimum stable connection, landline-only customers can order it without purchasing a broadband connection.

The Department will shortly publish a definition of customers who will require additional support from their communication providers during the PSTN switch-off. This includes landline-dependent customers. The government has also published guidance on how residential and business consumers can prepare for the PSTN switch-off. The link for guidance is:  https://www.gov.uk/guidance/uk-transition-from-analogue-to-digital-landlines

The Government is committed to improving UK mobile coverage. Ofcom’s reporting shows that 92% of the then constituency of North East Somerset had 4G geographic coverage from all four mobile operators, and non-standalone 5G is available from at least one mobile operator outside 94% of premises. I am aware that Ofcom’s data does not always reflect consumers’ experience at a local level, and I am intent on ensuring Ofcom takes all necessary steps to improve its accuracy.

Our ambition is for all populated areas to have high-quality standalone 5G by 2030, and we are committed to ensuring we have the right policy and regulatory framework to support investment and competition.

According to the independent website ThinkBroadband.com, over 98% of premises in the North East Somerset and Hanham constituency have access to superfast broadband speeds (>=30 Mbps) and over 86% can access a gigabit-capable (>1000 Mbps) connection.

Remaining premises that are not expected to receive an upgrade through suppliers’ commercial rollout are being considered for support through Project Gigabit. Under a framework agreement with Openreach, we plan to procure a contract to deliver fast, reliable broadband to eligible premises in the area.

Ministers have regular meetings with Ofcom on a range of subjects, including on providers’ duties to tackle child sexual abuse via the Online Safety Act and ensuring effective implementation of the Act’s duties. Both the Secretary of State and the Minister for the Future Digital Economy and Online Safety have met with Ofcom’s Chief Executive to discuss Ofcom’s work in ensuring children are protected online. The strongest protections in the Online Safety Act are against child sexual abuse and exploitation. Details of Ministerial meetings are published on the gov.uk website.

This data is shared by all constituencies in the ceremonial county of Somerset:

• Inbound: Somerset saw 496K visits, 3.2M nights, and a spend of £296M in 2022.

• Domestic: Somerset saw 2M trips, 6.7M bednights, and a spend of £460.4M - annual average based on 24 months between Sep 21-Sep 23

In July 2022, the department published the updated ‘behaviour in schools’ guidance, which is the primary source of advice for schools on developing and implementing a behaviour policy, providing clarity and support to schools on removing pupils from the classroom.

Updates to the guidance were informed by a call for evidence in June 2021 and public consultation in March 2022.

All schools are legally required to have a behaviour policy with measures to prevent all forms of bullying. They have the freedom to develop their own anti-bullying strategies appropriate to their environment and are held to account by Ofsted.

The department has published guidance for schools, which outlines schools’ responsibilities to support children who are bullied. These responsibilities to support children who are bullied include where bullying has a severe impact and the bullying incident should be addressed as a child protection concern under the Children Act 1989, where there is reasonable cause to suspect that a child is suffering, or where a child is likely to suffer significant harm. The guidance makes clear that schools should make appropriate provision for a bullied child's social, emotional and mental health needs. The guidance is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/preventing-and-tackling-bullying.

The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 protects all wild birds and some wild animals in England and Wales. There are strict penalties in place for anyone who commits an offence under this and other wildlife legislation. Where any wildlife is harmed illegally the full force of the law should apply to proven perpetrators of the crime.

Defra supports the valuable work of the National Wildlife Crime Unit (NWCU). Defra is providing £424,000 for the NWCU in 2025-2026. The NWCU helps prevent and detect wildlife crime by obtaining and disseminating intelligence, undertaking analysis which highlights local or national threats and assisting law enforcers with investigations. The NWCU has also provided training to police officers across the UK, including three officers in Avon and Somerset Police. This training reflects the National Police Chiefs' Council wildlife crime strategy and provides comprehensive training in UK wildlife crime priorities and emerging trends. Additionally, the NWCU has supported Avon and Somerset with ten wildlife crime cases since January 2024.

The Western Forest has been selected as the first new national Forest in 30 years. The Western Forest is working with the National Forest Company to implement their plans. It is aiming to plant 20 million trees across the West of England by 2050. The forests target for end 2025 is 50 hectares of tree cover and contributing to 2,500 hectares by 2030. As planting density varies dependent on the type of woodland created or site-specific factors, we cannot accurately predict the number of trees to be planted by specific milestones.

I refer the Hon. Member to the reply previously given to the hon. Member for Mid Dorset and North Poole, Vikki Slade, on 29 April 2025, PQ 47556.

This Government was elected on a mandate to introduce the most ambitious plans to improve animal welfare in a generation. The Department is engaging with key stakeholders as part of the development of our overarching approach to animal welfare. We will be outlining more details on this in due course.

The Laying Hen Housing for Health and Welfare Grant was recently offered to commercial laying hen and pullet keepers in England. It supports these farmers to improve the health, welfare, and productivity of their flocks through access to £22.6 million in grants towards the cost of upgrading their housing. Applications closed on 18 September 2024, and all applicants have been contacted to notify them of next steps.

The use of cages and other close confinement systems for farmed animals is an issue which we are currently considering very carefully.

The consultation on Land Use in England is underway and the outcome will inform the publication of a Land Use Framework planned for later this year. Many of the authorities responsible for Local Nature Recovery Strategies were involved in discussions that informed the proposals and questions in the Land Use Consultation

During the consultation period, Government officials will be consulting with a wide range of respondents, including authorities responsible for Local Nature Recovery Strategies.

Yes, I can reassure My Honourable Friend that our departments are working closely together to deliver on this manifesto commitment. You will notice that the recently published consultation on the principles for a land use framework specifically reference transport issues and include questions about its role. This is because both departments recognise:

- that different spatial choices will impact trip generation and travel patterns;

- that transport data – such as our emerging national measure of connectivity – are key to guide decisions about land; and

- that vision-led approaches can help better coordinate land use and transport issues.

I can reassure My Honourable Friend that we will continue to work closely with the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on land use questions; firstly, to respond to the representations received through the consultation and then to ensure that transport issues and fully considered in the future development of the Land Use Framework.

Active Travel England (ATE) recently announced £222.5 million of funding for local authorities to support the development and build out of local networks. It is for local authorities to decide on priorities for this investment, including to and through green spaces.

In addition, ATE is providing £30 million to Sustrans to develop the National Cycle Network in both rural and urban areas. This is on top of £100,000 previously awarded to each National Park Authority in England to develop active travel network plans. These are also designed to improve access to green space for residents and visitors alike.

Great Western Railway cancelled just under two per cent of total services in December due to driver related issues, particularly on Sundays. We acknowledge that performance is not where it needs to be on Great Western Railway and the Department is working closely with the Operator to improve performance and ensure greater resilience going forward.

The information requested can only be provided at disproportionate cost. A scan of both the Driver and Vehicle Licencing Agency’s and the NSL Services Ltd databases would be required. Subsequent manual scrutiny and organisation of the data would be necessary to obtain the information requested.

The information requested can only be provided at disproportionate cost. A scan of both the Driver and Vehicle Licencing Agency’s and the NSL Services Ltd databases would be required. Subsequent manual scrutiny and organisation of the data would be necessary to obtain the information requested.

In response to what the average time taken was to (a) process Access to work claim in each of the last 5 years, Access to work can provide this for the last 4 years. The average time taken was:

2021-2022 = 28.1 days

2022-2023 = 57.8 days

2023-2024 = 45.1 days

2024-2025 = 56.9 days

(b) the average time taken to process a payment once an invoice has been submitted is not available as there is no reporting systems in place.

Please note that the data supplied is derived from unpublished management information, which was collected for internal Departmental use only, and have not been quality assured to National Statistics or Official Statistics publication standard. They should therefore be treated with caution.

The Department has no estate with grass or lawned areas, and therefore is not participating in the No Mow May initiative.

Regulations for mandatory closed-circuit television (CCTV) in slaughterhouses in England came into force on 5 May 2018, with a six-month transitionary period to 5 November 2018, from when enforcement action could be taken. 100% compliance of the regulations was achieved by March 2019. There were therefore no enforcements for not having a CCTV system in place in slaughterhouses in England in the last five years.

We recognise that certain groups of patients may be vulnerable to oral health problems and may find it difficult to access dental care. Specialised dental services are in place to provide dental treatment in several settings, including care homes.

Integrated care boards are responsible for commissioning primary care dental services, including domiciliary care. Domiciliary care may be delivered by any dentist holding a contract to deliver general dental services, or it may be commissioned as an additional service.

The Department is committed to improving the adequacy of all cancer services including for prostate cancer, including cancer services in Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire.

NHS England has funded 10 clinical audits, including a national prostate cancer audit. Using routine data, collected on patients diagnosed with cancer in a National Health Service setting, the audit is looking at what is being done well, where it’s being done well, and what needs to be done better. This will seek to reduce unwarranted variation in treatment and reduce inequalities across different groups.

The Government recognises that a cancer-specific approach is needed to meet the challenges in cancer care, and to improve all cancer services and outcomes for people living with cancer including those with prostate cancer. Following publication of the 10-Year Health Plan, we will publish a new national cancer plan, which will include further details on how we will improve cancer services across England.

We are now in discussions about what form that plan should take, and what its relationship to the 10-Year Health Plan and the Government’s wider Health Mission should be and will provide updates on this in due course.

As of 1 December 2024, the Food Standards Agency (FSA) and their Service Delivery Partner between them employed 282 Official Veterinarians (OVs) and 596 Meat Hygiene Inspectors / Official Auxiliaries, as well as 12 Trainee Official Auxiliaries.

The Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs and the Welsh Government have policy responsibility for animal welfare controls within approved slaughterhouses. Application of the controls is carried out by the FSA in England and Wales under a Service Level Agreement with the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs and the Welsh Government.

FSA OVs that are based in approved slaughterhouses during operating periods monitor animal welfare. Animal Welfare checks are incorporated into the OVs daily Official Controls duties and are conducted at unloading, at ante mortem i.e. pre-slaughter, and during the slaughter operations for all animals being processed.

The FSA is responsible for enforcement of breaches of animal welfare legislation by the slaughterhouse operator or their operatives. In 2024, there were 190 slaughterhouse non-compliance cases in which FSA took enforcement action.

The Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs and the Welsh Government have policy responsibility for animal welfare controls on farm or during transportation. The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) and Local Authority (LA) animal welfare teams are responsible for enforcement. Where checks by the OV at the slaughterhouse identify farm and transport breaches, they are referred to APHA and the LA. In 2024, there were 4,210 farm and transport non-compliance cases that FSA OVs referred to APHA and LAs to investigate and enforce.

Application of animal welfare controls at slaughterhouses are carried out by the FSA in England and Wales under a Service Level Agreement with the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs and the Welsh Government.

Monitoring and reporting requirements are built into the Service Level Agreement between the FSA, the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs and the Welsh Government to provide assurance on the adequacy of animal welfare at abattoirs. This includes monthly reporting of all non-compliance cases, additional welfare assurance checks conducted by a specifically trained team of Meat Hygiene Inspectors, annual animal welfare themed audits undertaken by veterinary auditors, and biennial slaughter sector surveys. This reporting is supplemented by regular liaison over operational issues and formal quarterly review meetings.

The Government recognises that cash continues to be used by millions of people across the UK, including those in vulnerable groups, and is committed to protecting access to cash for individuals and businesses.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) assumed regulatory responsibility for access to cash in September 2024. Its rules require the UK’s largest banks and building societies to assess the impact of a closure or material alteration of a relevant cash withdrawal or deposit facility and put in place a new service if necessary. Assessments are undertaken by LINK, the industry designated coordinating body responsible for conducting cash access assessments. LINK take into account a number of factors including those unique to each location, such as the size and vulnerability of the population and whether it is reasonable for people to travel to nearby facilities, factoring in geographic barriers such as hills, rivers and major roads.

The Government is working closely with industry to roll out 350 banking hubs across the UK by the end of this Parliament. These hubs will provide small businesses and individuals with critical cash and in-person banking services. Over 225 banking hubs have been recommended to date and over 150 are already open.

Information on Child Trust Funds is available in HMRC’s Annual Savings Statistics.

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/annual-savings-statistics-2024

HMRC does not hold information on the geographical locations of Child Trust Fund account holders, therefore the requested constituency breakdown cannot be provided.