Jerome Mayhew

The Prime Minister’s Office commissioned the helicopter through the Cabinet Office Central Travel Contract.

Ministerial travel is carefully considered to ensure both efficiency and the interests of the taxpayer are prioritised.

While the Cabinet Office can facilitate helicopter travel in exceptional circumstances, routine helicopter journeys for ministers are no longer carried out under this Government.

Public procurement is a key lever for enabling delivery of the Government’s missions by using procurement policy to drive economic growth, raise employment standards in business, and achieve additional social value through the life of a contract. The Government’s ‘Plan to Make Work Pay’ sets out an ambitious programme to value organisations that create local jobs, skills and wealth and treat their workers well and equally. Ministers are considering how to take these plans forward.

The UK’s Critical Minerals Strategy sets out the UK’s vision for securing the critical minerals it needs across the Industrial Strategy’s growth sectors, including advanced manufacturing. The strategy introduced a forward-looking growth minerals list, identifying minerals of increasing importance to future industries and economic growth. While this assessment focused on passenger and light commercial electric vehicles rather than heavy goods vehicles, the strategy recognises the growing demand for critical minerals due to electrification across the UK economy. To help meeting this growing demand, we are therefore committed to optimising our domestic production and building resilient UK and global supply chains.

Existing regulations require all e-bikes and conversion kits to be safe when they are placed on the market. Government is committed to modernising the UK’s product safety framework and has launched a consultation that includes proposals to introduce strong and clear responsibilities for online marketplaces to ensure products on their sites are safe and sellers act responsibly. The consultation is open until 23 June and we welcome views.

The legal use of e-bikes and related conversion kits on public land is the responsibility of the Department for Transport, enforced by the police.

The Competition and Markets Authority (“CMA”) has not made an estimate of the overall expected resource requirements of its Sustainability Taskforce over the Spending Review period.

In reference to the previous answer to question 120645, the CMA does not allocate specific multi-year funding to individual workstreams such as the Sustainability Taskforce, which remain subject to wider prioritisation decisions.

The Advanced Propulsion Centre UK collaborates with Government, automotive industry, and academia to produce quarterly forecasts. The latest insights show, based on nameplate capacity, European cell production is projected to surpass demand in 2027.

While EU trade remains vital to the sector, it is critical for UK economic resilience and competitiveness that we build domestic battery production capacity and diverse supply chains.

This Government is supporting our domestic battery ecosystem through Industrial Strategy commitments, where we announced the UK's largest single commitment to battery R&D in the Battery Innovation Programme, and significant capital support through DRIVE35 funding.

The Competition and Markets Authority (“CMA”) is not able to provide an estimated annual cost for the Sustainability Taskforce for 2025/26 before its accounts for the financial year are finalised. Its Annual Report and Accounts for 2025/26 will be laid before Parliament in the normal way.

The CMA does not allocate specific multi-year funding to individual workstreams such as the Sustainability Taskforce, which remain subject to wider prioritisation decisions. Budgets for 2026/27 and 2027/28 have not yet been formally delegated by HM Treasury or approved through the Main Estimate process. Estimated costs for these future years are therefore not available.

The Government has built a high-quality digital-first system with an online emissions monitoring and reporting platform that has embedded guidance for the whole process. Free voluntary onboarding has been available since November 2025 for at least 96% of operators.

The regulators have also published five maritime newsletters, YouTube tutorial videos and hosted webinar Q&A sessions.

The Environment Agency, as regulator for the majority of maritime operators, operates a dedicated maritime helpdesk and reports on query themes to inform ongoing guidance.

The Government does not hold a central record of individual operator queries.

The Sizewell C project is being funded through the Regulated Asset Base (RAB) model.

Detailed questions about the delivery of Sizewell C, including funding arrangements for the proposed workforce academy, are matters for Sizewell C Ltd.

Sizewell has said the project will support 17,000 direct and indirect jobs at peak construction, and plans to employ 1,500 apprentices, including at least 540 from Suffolk.

The UK benefits from a diverse and resilient supply chain and remains well supplied across all fuel types with strong and varied sources of supply.

Government routinely reviews and exercises its preparedness arrangements for a range of scenarios, including through the published National Emergency Plan for Fuel (NEP-F). This is a long-standing, precautionary framework designed to ensure that, in the unlikely event of a severe and sustained disruption, fuel can be prioritised for those who need it most.

It is important to stress that these measures are precautionary. We are not currently at, nor approaching, the threshold for their use, and fuel continues to be available through normal supply routes.

Neither the UK Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) nor its EU equivalent applies to maritime emissions, and this instrument does not introduce any CBAM obligations for maritime operators.

The Common Understanding, published in May 2025 sets out the parameters for a linking agreement between the UK and EU emissions trading schemes, including that the link should apply in respect of domestic and international maritime.

Linking will facilitate an exemption from the EU CBAM, removing a major barrier to trade and lowering costs for UK businesses.

The department publishes statistics on the cost of domestic electricity and gas.

Annual domestic energy bills - GOV.UK

This includes tables (2.2.4 for electricity and 2.3.4 for gas) outlining the average unit price in £/kWh and average fixed cost (standing charge) in £/year for the United Kingdom and by region.

This also includes tables (2.2.3 for electricity and 2.3.3 for gas) outlining the average unit cost in p/kWh inclusive of fixed costs for the United Kingdom and by region.

These are calculated using data supplied directly to the department by a sample of domestic energy suppliers.

Major sporting events provide a stage for powerful moments that can inspire people to participate in sport and physical activity. Following the UEFA European Women’s Championship in 2022, the FA reported the highest year-on-year participation increase among girls under 16.

Hosting the Grand Départs is about more than just the race; it’s an opportunity to inspire participation, boost cycling infrastructure, and enhance cycle tourism. As a Government we’re investing £32 million to not just deliver these iconic races, but also to support the new JOY social impact programme to deliver a lasting legacy from the event. JOY is built on three essential pillars: tackling inactivity and improving mental wellbeing, making our country more productive, and supporting our communities to thrive. The Government is working closely with Grand Départ GB on the development of this programme.

On 12 June the Government published the third Cycling and Walking Investment Strategy (CWIS3) which outlines the Government’s vision for walking, wheeling and cycling to be safe, easy and accessible choices for everyone. To help achieve this, we have set a target for 55% of all short stages in towns and cities to be walked or cycled by 2035.

The Places of Worship Renewal Fund is a new capital fund announced on 22 January 2026. This will have an annual budget of £23m starting in 2026/27. This is providing certainty for the remaining years of the Spending Review until 2029/30, providing £92m over the period. Support will be targeted at places of most need. Further details regarding the eligibility criteria and application process, will be published in due course. The Places of Worship Renewal Fund will award grants for projects to cover capital works, rather than just the VAT element of a project, as is the case with the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme. In some cases the amount granted could be greater than just the VAT element currently funded.

The Places of Worship Renewal Fund, a new capital fund announced on 22 January 2026, will have an annual budget of £23m starting in 2026/27. This is providing certainty for the remaining years of the Spending Review until 2029/30, providing £92m over the period.

Heritage funding is a devolved matter. However, listed places of worship in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have benefitted from VAT rebate grants from the UK-wide Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme, which ran from 2001 to 2026.

At Spending Reviews, the Devolved Governments receive Barnett consequentials as a proportion of overall departmental settlements, not specific funding lines or programmes. In last year’s Spending Review, Barnett consequentials were confirmed for Devolved Governments in the usual way, taking into account the overall DCMS allocation, which includes capital funding for the England only Places of Worship Renewal Fund. Decisions on how this funding is spent are for the Devolved Governments to take.

We are working closely with other funders in the sector to ensure that opportunities for funding places of worship throughout the UK are maximised. The NLHF already offers grants for places of worship across all the UK and is currently investing £100m over 3 years through National Lottery Heritage Grants and a strategic initiative designed to provide targeted support to build capacity.

Further details regarding the eligibility criteria and application process for the Places of Worship Renewal Fund will be published in due course.