Lord Gascoigne

The Government has reviewed recent US Food and Drug Administration initiatives to reduce animal testing in preclinical safety studies and is engaging with the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency on accelerating the science-led adoption of alternative methods for drug development and testing. Through the Replacing Animals in Science strategy, the Government is investing in development, validation and regulatory uptake, including UK validation infrastructure and measures to build regulatory confidence. We will continue to monitor international developments, including in the US, and adopt approaches where supported by evidence and compatible with maintaining human, animal and environmental safety.

We are ready to negotiate a Security and Defence Partnership agreement with the EU which builds on the EU’s existing partnership agreements with other third countries, while recognising the unique nature of our security relationship. We are ready to look at strengthening our wider cooperation with the EU on defence and security matters, given the shared challenges facing us both, but as we’ve consistently said, we won’t be giving a running commentary on our discussions with the EU.

The Prime Minister and President of the European Commission have agreed to strengthen the relationship between the UK and EU. We are working with the EU to identify areas where we can strengthen cooperation for mutual benefit, such as the economy, energy, security and resilience.

The UK-EU Summit on 19 May will provide an opportunity to make further progress on areas which will deliver tangible benefits, for those in the UK and the EU on making people safer, more secure and more prosperous. We will set out further details in due course.

The Government has committed to partnering with scientists, industry, and civil society as we work towards the requirements for phasing out of animal testing. We are engaging with the sector in taking this commitment forward.

The Government funds research through UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) and many programmes, such as using organoids, may lead to the development of human-specific technologies that can replace the need for the use of animals. The Government also funds the development and dissemination of techniques that replace, reduce and refine the use of animals in research through the National Centre for the 3Rs (NC3Rs).

Research and innovation involving animals is funded where no alternatives exist, in line with UK legislation. Research using animals and animal models has had significant impacts for the UK, supporting government’s healthcare missions, Net Zero, and One Health priorities. UKRI invests directly to reduce reliance on the use of animals, including ca.£10m per annum from BBSRC and MRC for the National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research (NC3Rs).

UKRI also supports ‘human-specific’ research, for example ca.£22.5m commitment over two years to the MRC Experimental medicine programme, a £15m call on Novel human in vitro models of complex disease with NC3Rs and Wellcome, and an £18m call for Experimental medicine to define new mechanisms of neurodegeneration. The use of human specific approaches has increased.

Current legislation already provides protection for farmed fish kept for the production of meat or other products whilst on farm and during transport. The Animal Welfare Act 2006 makes it an offence to cause unnecessary suffering to any protected animal, including fish, or to fail to provide for the welfare needs of a protected animal, for which that person is responsible. Legislation on the protection of animals at the time of killing also requires that farmed fish are spared avoidable pain, distress or suffering during their killing and related operations.

The Animal Welfare Committee’s updated Opinion on the welfare of farmed fish at the time of killing was finalised in 2023. A copy is attached to this answer. As a result of this a GB-wide joint government and industry working group on farmed trout has been examining the issues raised in the report to explore potential options for more detailed welfare at killing requirements. This co-design work is making good progress. The Scottish Government is also working closely with the salmon industry regarding more detailed welfare at killing requirements. We are awaiting the completion of this group’s work and we will then explore all the potential next steps, including options for creating detailed guidance and new legislation.

Our fisheries relationship with the EU is governed by the Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) which provides reciprocal access to waters during a five-and-a-half-year adjustment period until 31 June 2026. After 31 June 2026, EU access to UK waters (and vice versa) becomes a matter for annual negotiation under the TCA, as is typical between coastal States.

We know that the EU want a new multi-year access agreement, and we will to listen to what they have to say. We will protect the interests of our fishing communities and fulfil our commitments to protect the marine environment.

This Government is committed to improving biodiversity across the country, including within the Green Belt. The Government’s intention is for Green Belts to provide multiple benefits, including nature recovery and increased public access to nature.

Local nature recovery strategies (LNRS) are being prepared across England. The LNRS statutory guidance states that if a responsible authority has Green Belt in their area, they should actively seek to target proposed actions for nature recovery inside it.

The Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) and Defra are working together to improve planning policy following the consultation on changes to the National Planning Policy Framework. This includes proposals for ‘golden rules’ for development in the Green Belt to deliver greener development which enhances nature and supports communities.

One of the Government’s key mechanisms to disincentivise harm to nature, including in the Green Belt, is biodiversity net gain, a new planning condition whereby habitats which are lost or degraded by development must be compensated for by enhancing or creating habitats that are of greater value to wildlife.

Both the UK and Scottish Governments closed English Waters of the North Sea and all Scottish Waters to fishing for sandeel in March 2024. The closure is in place to shield sandeel as an essential food source for threatened seabird populations, commercially valuable fish and for marine mammals. The EU has raised a dispute that the UK’s decision to prohibit fishing for sandeel within UK waters is not compliant with the Trade and Cooperation agreement (TCA). The dispute proceedings are confidential therefore there is little more I can say at this time.

The Prime Minister spoke to President Trump on 26 January, and the Foreign Secretary spoke to Secretary of State Rubio on 27 January. Lord Mandelson is going through the normal onboarding processes for a new Ambassador, and we expect him to take up his new post in the coming weeks.

The Prime Minister spoke to President Trump on 26 January and congratulated him on his inauguration. The Prime Minister and President Trump discussed the importance of the close and warm ties between the UK and US and agreed to meet in-person in the near future. Any travel will be announced in the usual way.

The Prime Minister spoke to President Trump on 26 January and congratulated him on his inauguration.

The Prime Minister confirmed the appointment of Lord Mandelson to be the next British Ambassador to the United States of America on Friday 20 December. He started the role on 10 February 2025.

The negotiations covered discussions on environmental protections in the Chagos Archipelago, including of the Marine Protected Area. The UK and Mauritius committed to cooperating on combatting environmental threats such as illegal fishing, with a shared objective of protecting one of the world's most important marine environments. This will include the establishment of a new Mauritian Marine Protected Area.

Each application to use animals in science is subject to a harm benefit assessment by a trained Home Office Inspector whom is a member of either the veterinary or medical profession. This ensures that any harm that may be caused to the animals is justified by the expected benefits for humans, animals or the environment.

All applications must conform with all legal requirements set out in the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986. This includes, applying the principles of the 3Rs (Replacement, Reduction and Refinement); the replacement of animals with alternatives, the reduction of the number of animals used to the minimum possible and the refinement of any techniques to reduce the harm suffered by the animals to the minimum. The Home Office only allows the use of animals if it can be demonstrated that the benefits outweigh the harms and the 3Rs have been fully applied. All licence holders have a responsibility to fully implement the 3Rs and demonstrate this requirement at audit.

Licence holders are also required to complete retrospective assessments for licences if the protocols in the studies are severe. Retrospective assessments must consider whether any lessons can be learnt from the programme of work which may contribute to the further implementation of the principles of replacement, reduction and refinement.

The Department for Science, Innovation & Technology (DSIT) is engaging with stakeholders to finalise a strategy to accelerate the development, validation and uptake of alternatives to animal testing which is scheduled for publication later this year.

Each application to use animals in science is subject to a harm benefit assessment by a trained Home Office Inspector whom is a member of either the veterinary or medical profession. This ensures that any harm that may be caused to the animals is justified by the expected benefits for humans, animals or the environment.

All applications must conform with all legal requirements set out in the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986. This includes, applying the principles of the 3Rs (Replacement, Reduction and Refinement); the replacement of animals with alternatives, the reduction of the number of animals used to the minimum possible and the refinement of any techniques to reduce the harm suffered by the animals to the minimum. The Home Office only allows the use of animals if it can be demonstrated that the benefits outweigh the harms and the 3Rs have been fully applied. All licence holders have a responsibility to fully implement the 3Rs and demonstrate this requirement at audit.

Licence holders are also required to complete retrospective assessments for licences if the protocols in the studies are severe. Retrospective assessments must consider whether any lessons can be learnt from the programme of work which may contribute to the further implementation of the principles of replacement, reduction and refinement.

The Department for Science, Innovation & Technology (DSIT) is engaging with stakeholders to finalise a strategy to accelerate the development, validation and uptake of alternatives to animal testing which is scheduled for publication later this year.

Potential ship names are proposed by the Royal Navy's Ships Names and Badges Committee, ahead of approval by Ministry of Defence Ministers and His Majesty The King.

There are no current plans to rename any other Royal Navy ships.

My Department regularly reviews research and evidence related to various aspects of the private rented sector.

The government has no plans to introduce rent controls in the private rented sector.

Rent inflation in England has been easing since the end of 2024. Average rents in England increased by 3.4% in the 12 months to June, down from a peak of 9.2% in November 2024. In England, annual rent inflation was lowest in London, at 2.2%.

The government is committed to a brownfield first approach, in which local authorities are expected to make as much use as possible of suitable brownfield land in sustainable locations. However, we know that in some places brownfield alone will not always be enough to meet development needs. This is why we are asking local authorities who cannot meet their needs to review their Green Belt to identify opportunities to create affordable, well-designed development in sustainable locations. In doing so, we expect local authorities to prioritise the development of brownfield and other low-quality grey belt land.

Where Green Belt land has to be released for major housing development, we have put in place new golden rules to ensure that development delivers higher levels of affordable housing; the provision of new – or improvements to – existing green spaces that are accessible to the public; and the making of necessary improvements to local or national infrastructure.

Between 16 December 2025 and 10 March 2026, we consulted on a new National Planning Policy Framework. That consultation, which can be found on gov.uk here, included proposals relating to controlling development in the Green Belt. We are currently analysing the feedback received and will publish our response in due course.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) publishes local authority level statistics on rough sleeping in England, including for local authorities in Greater Manchester. These statistics are available through both the annual rough sleeping snapshot and the quarterly rough sleeping data framework management information releases.

The latest Rough Sleeping Snapshot publication can be found here: Rough sleeping snapshot in England: autumn 2025 - GOV.UK.

The latest quarterly management information release can be found here: Rough sleeping data framework, January to March 2026 - GOV.UK.

The consultation into the draft New Towns Programme closed earlier this year. The government continues to make progress with the programme and plans to publish our consultation response, and confirm the New Town locations, later this year.

The government remains committed to delivering 1.5 million homes over this Parliament. Each new town will deliver at least 10,000 homes, with many expected to exceed that figure. The Taskforce recommended that new towns should aim for at least 40% affordable housing, with half for social rent.

The government is considering the Taskforce's recommendations and will respond in due course.

The consultation into the draft New Towns Programme closed earlier this year. The government continues to make progress with the programme and plans to publish our consultation response, and confirm the New Town locations, later this year.

The government remains committed to delivering 1.5 million homes over this Parliament. Each new town will deliver at least 10,000 homes, with many expected to exceed that figure. The Taskforce recommended that new towns should aim for at least 40% affordable housing, with half for social rent.

The government is considering the Taskforce's recommendations and will respond in due course.