Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential financial implications for the dairy and yoghurt manufacturing industry of redesigning labels and packaging as a result of yoghurt and other dairy-based products being classified as high in fat, sugar, or salt under the revised Nutrient Profiling Model.

Answered by Ashley Dalton

As set out in our 10-Year Health Plan for England: fit for the future, we will take decisive action on the obesity crisis, easing the strain on our National Heath Service and creating the healthiest generation of children ever.

As part of this, we are committed to updating the standards which underpin the advertising restrictions on television and online and the promotions restrictions in stores and their equivalent places online on ‘less healthy’ food and drink products. The Nutrient Profiling Model (NPM) 2004/05 is plainly out of date and updating the standards will strengthen the restrictions by reflecting the latest dietary advice and will more effectively target the products of most concern to childhood obesity.

Applying the new NPM to our advertising and promotions policies will further incentivise businesses to reformulate their products, making it easier for consumers to make healthier food choices.

We have published guidance to industry on how to determine which food and drink products will be in scope of the advertising and promotions restrictions. Products are classified as ‘less healthy’ for the purpose of the restrictions if they achieve a score within the thresholds of the NPM and fall into one of the categories of food and drink products which are of most concern to childhood obesity, which are set out in the regulations.

We will publish a consultation this year to seek stakeholder views on applying the new NPM to the advertising and promotions restrictions on less healthy food and drink products, including an impact assessment of the costs to businesses and intended health outcomes. We set out in the 10-Year Health Plan for England: fit for the future that applying the new NPM to these policies is expected to reduce a further 170,000 cases of childhood obesity.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential financial implications for the dairy and yoghurt manufacturing industry of reformulating products if the revised Nutrient Profiling Model results in yoghurt and other dairy-based products being classified as high in fat, sugar, or salt.

Answered by Ashley Dalton

As set out in our 10-Year Health Plan for England: fit for the future, we will take decisive action on the obesity crisis, easing the strain on our National Heath Service and creating the healthiest generation of children ever.

As part of this, we are committed to updating the standards which underpin the advertising restrictions on television and online and the promotions restrictions in stores and their equivalent places online on ‘less healthy’ food and drink products. The Nutrient Profiling Model (NPM) 2004/05 is plainly out of date and updating the standards will strengthen the restrictions by reflecting the latest dietary advice and will more effectively target the products of most concern to childhood obesity.

Applying the new NPM to our advertising and promotions policies will further incentivise businesses to reformulate their products, making it easier for consumers to make healthier food choices.

We have published guidance to industry on how to determine which food and drink products will be in scope of the advertising and promotions restrictions. Products are classified as ‘less healthy’ for the purpose of the restrictions if they achieve a score within the thresholds of the NPM and fall into one of the categories of food and drink products which are of most concern to childhood obesity, which are set out in the regulations.

We will publish a consultation this year to seek stakeholder views on applying the new NPM to the advertising and promotions restrictions on less healthy food and drink products, including an impact assessment of the costs to businesses and intended health outcomes. We set out in the 10-Year Health Plan for England: fit for the future that applying the new NPM to these policies is expected to reduce a further 170,000 cases of childhood obesity.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much and what proportion of central Government advertising spend was spent with (a) Meta, (b) Google, (c) Twitter/X, (d) YouTube and (e) TikTok in the last (i) three, (ii) six and (iii) 12 months; and what the total spend was in each of those periods.

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

As digital and social media become central to how people consume information, Government is adapting its communications approach to meet audiences where they are.

Digital and social media channels enable us to reach audiences more cost-effectively, delivering better value from communications budgets.

The table shows monthly platform expenditure for the last 12 complete months. Twitter/X is excluded due to zero expenditure. This list is not comprehensive of all social media platforms used.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to improve HM Courts and Tribunal Service response times in cases which require referral for expert probate examination.

Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

HM Courts & Tribunals Service has invested in more staff in 2026, alongside system process improvements and a programme of upskilling new and existing staff to conduct more specialist examiner work. This will improve the timeliness for applications that require referral to a more experienced probate case worker.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to recruit more specialist examiners in HM Courts and Tribunal Service.

Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

HM Courts & Tribunals Service has invested in more staff in 2026, alongside system process improvements and a programme of upskilling new and existing staff to conduct more specialist examiner work. This will improve the timeliness for applications that require referral to a more experienced probate case worker.