Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she is taking to modernise Job Centres in Birmingham, Edgbaston constituency.

Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

This Government’s number one mission is to grow the economy and drive up living standards right across the country as part of its Plan for Change. Building a thriving and inclusive labour market – which spreads the benefits of good work to as many people as possible – is central to achieving that goal.

Linking to the government’s missions of Kickstarting Economic Growth and Breaking Down Barriers to Opportunities, the Department is working to ensure that the DWP estate is more flexible and responsive and can react to the changing demands for services and economic changes. As set out in the ‘Get Britain Working White Paper’, the Department is transforming the Jobcentre Plus network across Great Britain to create a new national jobs and careers service that will enable everyone to access tailored support through an enhanced focus on people’s skills and careers, rather than merely monitoring and managing benefit claims.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of supporting cooperatives in developing countries.

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

The Government recognises the important contribution cooperatives have made in serving local communities around the world. Cooperatives are a tried-and-tested model in international development, that can enable citizens and producers to access services or markets and strengthen their voice in local processes. Cooperatives can enable sustainable and inclusive development centred on self-help, democratic ownership, and concern for the community. The UK has supported cooperatives and producer organisations in developing countries, including, for example in agriculture through funding to the Global Agriculture and Food Security Programme (GAFSP), which supports producer organisations, and the Commercial Agriculture for Smallholders and Agribusiness Programme (CASA), which partners with cooperatives and small agribusinesses in low-income countries to improve smallholder farmers' access to markets.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to provide opportunities for children from disadvantaged backgrounds to learn a musical instrument.

Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)

Music is an essential part of supporting children and young people to develop creativity and find their voice. The government believes creative subjects like music, art and drama are important elements of the rounded and enriching education every child deserves.

On 18 March 2025, the department announced its intention to launch a National Centre for Arts and Music Education to promote opportunities for children and young people to pursue their artistic and creative interests in school, including through the government’s network of music hubs. The department intends to launch this centre in September 2026, with a delivery lead appointed through an open procurement. Further details will be released in due course.

To support the delivery of music education, the government has committed £79 million per year for the music hubs programme, including the 2024/25 academic year. The 43 music hubs partnerships across England offer a range of services, including musical instrument tuition, instrument loaning and whole-class ensemble teaching. All partnerships have a local plan in place with an inclusion strategy that sets out specific support for disadvantaged children, including young people eligible for the pupil premium and those identified with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). To widen access to musical instruments, the government is investing £25 million in capital funding for musical instruments, equipment and technology from the 2024/25 academic year.

The government is also investing £2 million to support the Music Opportunities Pilot over a four-year period from the 2024/25 academic year to the 2027/28 academic year, backed by a further £3.85 million funding from Arts Council England and Youth Music. This pilot is delivered by Young Sounds UK in 12 areas of the country and aims to help disadvantaged children and young people, as well as those with SEND, to learn how to play an instrument of their choice or learn to sing to a high standard. The findings from the pilot will inform future policy on widening music opportunities.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to improve access to music education in schools.

Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)

Music is an essential part of supporting children and young people to develop creativity and find their voice. The government believes creative subjects like music, art and drama are important elements of the rounded and enriching education every child deserves.

On 18 March 2025, the department announced its intention to launch a National Centre for Arts and Music Education to promote opportunities for children and young people to pursue their artistic and creative interests in school, including through the government’s network of music hubs. The department intends to launch this centre in September 2026, with a delivery lead appointed through an open procurement. Further details will be released in due course.

To support the delivery of music education, the government has committed £79 million per year for the music hubs programme, including the 2024/25 academic year. The 43 music hubs partnerships across England offer a range of services, including musical instrument tuition, instrument loaning and whole-class ensemble teaching. All partnerships have a local plan in place with an inclusion strategy that sets out specific support for disadvantaged children, including young people eligible for the pupil premium and those identified with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). To widen access to musical instruments, the government is investing £25 million in capital funding for musical instruments, equipment and technology from the 2024/25 academic year.

The government is also investing £2 million to support the Music Opportunities Pilot over a four-year period from the 2024/25 academic year to the 2027/28 academic year, backed by a further £3.85 million funding from Arts Council England and Youth Music. This pilot is delivered by Young Sounds UK in 12 areas of the country and aims to help disadvantaged children and young people, as well as those with SEND, to learn how to play an instrument of their choice or learn to sing to a high standard. The findings from the pilot will inform future policy on widening music opportunities.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he is taking steps to integrate cooperative models into UK international development programmes.

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

The Government recognises the important contribution cooperatives have made in serving local communities around the world. Cooperatives are a tried-and-tested model in international development, that can enable citizens and producers to access services or markets and strengthen their voice in local processes. Cooperatives can enable sustainable and inclusive development centred on self-help, democratic ownership, and concern for the community. The UK has supported cooperatives and producer organisations in developing countries, including, for example in agriculture through funding to the Global Agriculture and Food Security Programme (GAFSP), which supports producer organisations, and the Commercial Agriculture for Smallholders and Agribusiness Programme (CASA), which partners with cooperatives and small agribusinesses in low-income countries to improve smallholder farmers' access to markets.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of levels of screening of type 1 diabetes.

Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Early Surveillance for Autoimmune diabetes (ELSA) study is researching a screening programme for children, aged three to 13 years old, to detect for type 1 diabetes with a simple finger stick blood test. This looks for four antibodies, protein markers, which are associated with a higher risk of developing diabetes. Further information is available at the following link:

https://www.elsadiabetes.nhs.uk/

This study is currently screening children across the United Kingdom to identify those at risk of developing type 1 diabetes. The programme has been running through schools and general practice surgeries, as well as through online recruitment, and has been hugely successful, with over 24,000 children stepping forward for this test. The ELSA study launched in November 2022 with the intention for all enrolled children to be screened by the end of February 2025. The Department is awaiting the publication of the results of this study.

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 merits of screening relatives of people with type 1 diabetes.

Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Early Surveillance for Autoimmune diabetes (ELSA) study is researching a screening programme for children, aged three to 13 years old, to detect for type 1 diabetes with a simple finger stick blood test. This looks for four antibodies, protein markers, which are associated with a higher risk of developing diabetes. Further information is available at the following link:

https://www.elsadiabetes.nhs.uk/

This study is currently screening children across the United Kingdom to identify those at risk of developing type 1 diabetes. The programme has been running through schools and general practice surgeries, as well as through online recruitment, and has been hugely successful, with over 24,000 children stepping forward for this test. The ELSA study launched in November 2022 with the intention for all enrolled children to be screened by the end of February 2025. The Department is awaiting the publication of the results of this study.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential role of cooperative models in strengthening economic resilience in developing countries.

Answered by Catherine West - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

Cooperatives and producer organisations have an important role to play in enabling smallholder farmers and communities to access services and markets and raise productivity sustainably. The UK has supported cooperatives and other forms of collective action through the Global Agriculture and Food Security Programme (GAFSP) managed by the World Bank, which has a dedicated funding facility for producer organisations, and the Commercial Agriculture for Smallholders and Agribusiness Programme (CASA), which provides support to help producer organisations in Africa access markets.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to improve NHS Organ Donor Register registration rates among (a) Sikh and (b) Jewish people.

Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) manages transplant services across the United Kingdom. NHSBT works with an extensive network of organisations and individuals who have established and trusted relationships with their communities. Last year, in collaboration with the National Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic Transplant Alliance (NBTA), NHSBT delivered a conference with the aim of developing culturally and religiously sensitive messaging to promote organ donation within these communities by engaging faith leaders and organisations. Representatives from 51 organisations attended, including British Sikh Nurses. This promotes the sharing of messaging guidance with many faiths, including Sikhism. The report will be shared with all community grant groups and organisations working to increase engagement with faith groups. NHSBT and the NBTA, along with the Race Equality Commission, will continue to work together, and have established a Messaging Conference Implementation Group which will take forward the actions arising from the conference. NHSBT also creates and shares a host of faith-based assets on its website, including for Judaism, with further information available at the following link:

https://www.organdonation.nhs.uk/helping-you-to-decide/your-faith-and-beliefs/judaism/

The Jewish Organ Donor Association is a recipient of the Community Grant Programme, which is a two-year programme focused on building long-term relationships through trusted peers and leaders in the community, engaging with black African and Caribbean, South Asian, East and South East Asian, Hindu, Sikh, Jain, Muslim, and Christian communities. It aims to raise awareness, tackle misinformation, and change perceptions and behaviours around organ donation. A total of £600,000 was given to 51 recipients in 2024.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to improve NHS Organ Donor Register registration rates among ethnic minority groups.

Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The NHS Organ Donor Register is operated by NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT). Improving NHS Organ Donor Register registration rates overall and particularly for ethnic minority groups is a priority for the Government and NHSBT, to save and improve more lives. NHSBT runs marketing and communication activity throughout the year to increase organ donation, particularly for underrepresented groups, which includes but is not limited to:

- publication of the Annual Report of Ethnic Differences in Transplantation, with supporting media coverage, including on the BBC Asian Network;

- raising awareness during South Asian Heritage Month with charities and organisations; and

- Organ Donation Week 2024, which saw continued activity with partners, including Dalgety Tea, and an exclusive screening of the living donation film The Final Gift at Brixton’s Ritzy cinema

NHSBT’s Community Grants Programme is part of NHSBT’s works to build support for organ donation amongst black, Asian, mixed heritage, and minority ethnic communities, working through faith groups to increase understanding and drive behavioural change on organ donation.

NHSBT works closely with the National Black, Asian, Mixed Race, and Minority Ethnic (BAME) Transplant Alliance to deliver culturally and religiously sensitive messaging about low donation rates amongst their communities. In addition, a range of online and printed materials in relation to faith are available on the dedicated faith and beliefs section of the NHSBT website, which is available at the following link:

https://www.organdonation.nhs.uk/helping-you-to-decide/your-faith-and-beliefs/

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent assessment she has made of the potential impact of practices of landlords repeatedly occupying properties for short periods of time in order to claim further Empty Property Relief on local government finances.

Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

This government will not tolerate tax avoidance. We are committed to ensuring that every person and every business pays their fair share.

Most businesses pay the rates that are due, but a minority abuse the system, through either avoidance or evasion, to reduce their bills or avoid paying rates altogether. This imposes an unfair burden on the majority and prevents funding from reaching local services.

In its response to the 2023 Business Rates Avoidance and Evasion consultation, the government noted that abuse of Empty Property Relief (EPR) through repeated artificial occupation was a significant avoidance challenge. To tackle this the government extended the reset period (the period of occupation required to be eligible for further EPR) from six weeks to thirteen weeks from 1 April 2024 in England. The government will keep this change and the treatment of empty properties under review.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps she is taking to help tackle the practice of landlords repeatedly occupying properties for short periods of time in order to claim further Empty Property Relief.

Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

This government will not tolerate tax avoidance. We are committed to ensuring that every person and every business pays their fair share.

Most businesses pay the rates that are due, but a minority abuse the system, through either avoidance or evasion, to reduce their bills or avoid paying rates altogether. This imposes an unfair burden on the majority and prevents funding from reaching local services.

In its response to the 2023 Business Rates Avoidance and Evasion consultation, the government noted that abuse of Empty Property Relief (EPR) through repeated artificial occupation was a significant avoidance challenge. To tackle this the government extended the reset period (the period of occupation required to be eligible for further EPR) from six weeks to thirteen weeks from 1 April 2024 in England. The government will keep this change and the treatment of empty properties under review.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the average waiting times were for patients requiring an organ transplant in each of the last five years, broken down by (a) religion and (b) ethnic group.

Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

Information on waiting times is not held by year for religious or ethnic groups. Waiting times also vary between organ types.

NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) is responsible for organ donation and managing the organ transplant waiting list across the United Kingdom. Information available on annual activity and the current waiting list is captured in the NHSBT Annual Activity Report, which is available at the following link:

https://www.odt.nhs.uk/statistics-and-reports/annual-activity-report/

Improving National Health Service Organ Donor Register registration rates overall and particularly for ethnic minority groups is a priority for the Government and NHSBT, to save and improve more lives.

NHSBT conducts marketing and communication activity throughout the year to increase organ donation particularly for underrepresented groups which includes but is not limited to: publication of the Annual Report of Ethnic Differences in Transplantation with supporting media coverage including on the BBC Asian Network; raising awareness during South Asian Heritage Month with charities and organisations; continued activity during Organ Donation Week 2024 with partners including Dalgety Tea and an exclusive screening of the living donation film ‘The Final Gift’ at Brixton’s Ritzy cinema.

NHSBT is committed to reducing health inequalities in treatment and health outcomes that see some people wait longer for life saving treatments, or in some cases miss out on them all together. Some of the priority areas to tackle health inequalities include reducing the waiting time for minority groups waiting for organs and increasing access to automated exchange transfusion by people with sickle cell disorder.

NHSBT’s Community Grants Programme is part of NHSBT’s work to build support for organ donation amongst Black, Asian, mixed heritage and minority ethnic communities, working through faith groups to increase understanding and drive behavioural change on organ donation. In the latest funding round, we awarded 51 organisations funding to begin their work in September 2024. This included £150,000 to support deceased organ donation and £150,000 to support living kidney donation.

Projects range from local community charities, experienced blood/organ charities to universities and places of worship. For example, the South Asian Heritage Trust aims to raise awareness about organ donation and tackling health inequalities by empowering South Asian communities to make informed choices and increase the number of registered organ donors. NHSBT also works closely with patient groups and charities including the Sickle Cell Society, the National Black, Asian, Mixed Race, and Minority Ethnic Transplant Alliance (NBTA), the African Caribbean Leukaemia Trust, the NHS Race Health Observatory and many more.

NHSBT works closely with the NBTA to deliver culturally and religiously sensitive messaging about low donation rates amongst their communities.

Found: Net Zero Olivia Bailey MP Work and Pensions Gordon McKee MP Work and Pensions Preet Kaur Gill