Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what financial support he is providing to low carbon farming.

Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Our Environmental Land Management schemes (ELMs), funded by a farming budget of £5 billion over two years, are paying farmers to take up land management practices that contribute to reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The Government has also spent £51.8 million through the Farming Innovation Programme (FIP), with a further £98 million committed to ongoing projects in support of Agri-technology research and innovation. FIP competitions for 2025/26 will include up to £12.5 million for the Net Zero Farming thematic competition.

Since 2021, Defra’s Farming Investment Fund awarded more than 11,000 grants worth over £130 million to farmers, growers and foresters to invest in technology, equipment and infrastructure, much of which supports low carbon farming practices. Of this, £107 million was through the Farming Equipment and Technology Fund (FETF). The next window of FETF will launch in Spring 2025.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 26 March 2025 to Question 39816 on Nitrogen Dioxide: Pollution Control, in which year he estimates that the (a) West Yorkshire urban area; (b) Coventry and Bedworth, (c) Liverpool urban area, (d) Great London urban area, (e) Greater Manchester urban area, (f) Nottingham urban area, (g) Portsmouth urban area and (h) Reading and Wokingham urban area will become compliant.

Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Predicting when locations will comply with the annual mean limit value for nitrogen dioxide is inherently uncertain. Our current estimates reflect the impact of agreed local Clean Air Plans and are based on 2023 data from Defra’s national monitoring networks and national modelling, as well as local authority-owned air quality monitoring and modelling. 2023 is the most recent year of fully ratified monitoring data available. As additional years of data become available or where additional measures are agreed some of these predictions are likely to change. Current estimates for when the following reporting zones will become compliant are:

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 26 March 2025 to Question 39816 on Nitrogen Dioxide: Pollution Control, in which year the (a) West Midlands urban area, (b) Bristol urban area, (c) Sheffield urban area and (d) the Potteries are expected to become compliant.

Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Predicting when locations will comply with the annual mean limit value for nitrogen dioxide is inherently uncertain. Our current estimates reflect the impact of agreed local Clean Air Plans and are based on 2023 data from Defra’s national monitoring networks and national modelling, as well as local authority-owned air quality monitoring and modelling. 2023 is the most recent year of fully ratified monitoring data available. As additional years of data become available or where additional measures are agreed some of these predictions are likely to change. Current estimates for when the following reporting zones will become compliant are:

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 26 March 2025 to Question 39816 on Nitrogen Dioxide: Pollution Control, in which year the South East non-agglomeration zone is expected to become compliant.

Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Predicting when locations will comply with the annual mean limit value for nitrogen dioxide is inherently uncertain. Our current estimates reflect the impact of agreed local Clean Air Plans and are based on 2023 data from Defra’s national monitoring networks and national modelling, as well as local authority-owned air quality monitoring and modelling. 2023 is the most recent year of fully ratified monitoring data available. As additional years of data become available or where additional measures are agreed some of these predictions are likely to change. Current estimates for when the following reporting zones will become compliant are:

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 26 March 2025 to Question 39816 on Nitrogen Dioxide: Pollution Control, which road links within 10 miles of Heathrow Airport are expected to exceed the nitrogen dioxide limit value in each of the last five calendar years of their non-compliance period.

Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The most recent national compliance assessment for 2023 did not report any road links within 10 miles of Heathrow Airport to be in exceedance of the annual mean limit value for nitrogen dioxide.

Local monitoring as part of the Local Air Quality Management (LAQM) process shows a small number of measurements in 2023 above 40µg/m³ at sites within a 10-mile radius of Heathrow Airport. There were single measurement sites above 40µg/m³ in the London Boroughs of Brent (A404), Wandsworth (A3), Richmond (A205), Merton (A219) and Kensington & Chelsea (A3220), and three measurement sites in Ealing (A4020, A40 and A406). National Highways’ assessments also indicated concentrations above 40µg/m³ at four road links on the Strategic Road Network (SRN). These are in the London Boroughs of Hounslow (two road links on the M4), Hillingdon (M4), and Spelthorne (A316). Air quality assessments under LAQM are assessed differently to the national assessment as they are focused on targeting local pollution hotspots which may occur in locations that don’t meet the data quality requirements for the national assessment.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 26 March 2025 to Question 39816 on Nitrogen Dioxide: Pollution Control, which road links within 10 miles of Gatwick airport are expected to exceed the nitrogen dioxide limit value in each of the last five calendar years of their non-compliance period.

Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The most recent national compliance assessment for 2023 did not report any road links within 10 miles of Gatwick Airport to be in exceedance of the annual mean limit value for nitrogen dioxide. There were also no exceedances reported through the Local Air Quality Management process in 2023.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 26 March 2025 to Question 39816 on Nitrogen Dioxide: Pollution Control, whether he has held discussions with the Office for Environmental Protection on the timescales for expected compliance of each reporting zone.

Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

There have been no discussions with the Office for Environmental Protection on this topic.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 26 March 2025 to Question 39816 on Nitrogen Dioxide: Pollution Control, whether his answer is consistent with the 2023 National Compliance Assessment.

Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The answer to Question 39816 was based on a combination of data from the 2023 national compliance assessment and additional local monitoring data that does not typically meet the requirements for formal national reporting but was included in the response for completeness. The national assessment is designed to meet the location and data quality requirements of the Air Quality Standards Regulations 2010 which seek to represent general exposure to air pollution, rather than local pollution hotspots. For this reason, the answer to Question 39816 captured some additional locations where nitrogen dioxide concentrations in 2023 were above 40µg/m³.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 26 March 2025 to Question 39816 on Nitrogen Dioxide: Pollution Control, which localised hotspot is expected to delay compliance with the nitrogen dioxide limit value in Newcastle upon Tyne.

Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The localised hotspot in Newcastle-upon-Tyne is located on Stephenson Road A1058. The high nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) concentrations observed here are due to several local factors including high traffic volumes, queuing traffic, an incline in the road that requires vehicle acceleration and overhanging trees that partially trap pollution. There is considerable uncertainty in the estimate of when this location will become compliant with the annual mean NO₂ limit value. The rest of Newcastle-upon-Tyne is expected to become compliant by 2029.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 26 March 2025 to Question 39816 on Nitrogen Dioxide: Pollution Control, which road links within the South East non-agglomeration zone are expected to exceed the nitrogen dioxide limit value in each of the last five calendar years of the non-compliance period.

Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The most recent national compliance assessment for 2023 reported one road link in the South East non-agglomeration zone as being in exceedance of the annual mean limit value for nitrogen dioxide. This road link is a stretch of the A34 in the Vale of White Horse. We don’t hold up-to-date detailed modelled projections to predict the impact of all current policies on future NO₂ concentrations, however current indicative estimates suggest that this road link will become compliant with the limit value in 2028.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the effectiveness of the Air Quality Standard Regulations 2010 in achieving reductions in nitrogen dioxide levels in ambient air.

Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

There are currently no plans to assess the Air Quality Standards Regulations 2010. We assess the effectiveness of schemes to reduce nitrogen dioxide through the NO₂ Programme’s evaluation programme. In addition, the revised Environmental Improvement Plan, due to be published later this year will review and clarify targets set under the Environment Act 2021.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the budget is for the Farming and Countryside Programme for 2025-26 by category in Annex 1 of the Farming and Countryside Programme annual report 2023 to 2024, published on 10 September 2024.

Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The farming blog published on Wednesday 12^th March set out Defra’s spend for 24/25 and 25/26 split across the Farming and Countryside Programme schemes.

Defra manages the farming budget flexibly to respond to demand, and achieve our intended outcomes for farm productivity, environment, climate and animal health and welfare.

In line with its obligations under the Agriculture Act 2020, Defra regularly publishes an annual report, setting out commitments in the previous financial year.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the effectiveness of The Environmental Targets (Fine Particulate Matter) (England) Regulations 2023 in achieving reductions in concentration of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) in ambient air.

Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The revised Environmental Improvement Plan is due to include further details on fine particulate matter targets set under the Environment Act 2021.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate he has made of the emissions reductions required in (a) agriculture, (b) land use and (c) waste to deliver the sixth carbon budget.

Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The extent of emissions reductions required by Defra sectors in order to deliver the Government’s overall Carbon Budgets is determined by a cross-Government decision making process led by DESNZ. Underpinning this is the UKTM (UK Times Model).

This takes assumptions on the ‘baseline’ trajectory for emissions informed by the annual Emissions and Energy Projections and seeks to determine what interventions can achieve the lowest cost pathway to achieving Net Zero, accounting for the Government’s energy and growth plans.

The Carbon Budget Delivery Plan provides the specific estimates on the extent of emissions reductions required in Defra sectors.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will bring forward legislative proposals to amend the International Development (Official Development Assistance Target) Act 2015 to change the target for official development assistance to 0.5 percent of gross national income.

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

There are no plans to amend the International Development (Official Development Assistance Target) Act 2015 to change the target for Official Development Assistance (ODA) to 0.5 per cent of Gross National Income (GNI).

The Government is committed to returning to spending 0.7 per cent of GNI on ODA as soon as fiscal circumstances allow.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what progress she has made on implementing (a) the draft RSHE curriculum and (b) the suicide prevention content in that curriculum.

Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)

The government is clear that children’s wellbeing must be at the heart of statutory guidance on teaching relationships, sex and health education and, as such, the department is looking carefully at responses to the public consultation conducted last year, considering the relevant evidence and discussing with stakeholders before setting out next steps to make sure the guidance draws from the best available evidence.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he plans to take to support brewers meet the costs of the Extended Producer Responsibility for packaging scheme.

Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The government has worked closely with industry, including the brewing and hospitality sectors, throughout development of Extended Producer Responsibility for Packaging (pEPR). This is a major reform that will be iterated over several years to incentivise packaging producers to reduce their material footprint and use more sustainable packaging.

Since Autumn 2024, the Government has been working with stakeholders, including representatives of the brewing and hospitality sector, to consider potential amendments to the definition of household packaging. Despite considering multiple approaches, a consensus on a single approach that works for all sectors and within the bounds of legal and regulatory requirements, was not reached. We are continuing to engage with sectors on a way forward and on assessing the tonnages of packaging any amendment might affect in the hospitality sector and in other sectors. We are planning next steps as a priority and will share more information soon.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she has had recent discussions with the Metropolitan Police on arrests made in a Quaker meeting house in March 2025.

Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Home Office)

The police are operationally independent of the government and make decisions on specific incidents based on their intelligence and judgment. The Home Office does not have the power to direct them to make any operational decisions. However, the Home Secretary has regular meetings with all policing leaders, including the Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS), covering a range of matters.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many (a) successful and (b) unsuccessful applicants there were to the Fruit and Vegetables Aid Scheme in (i) 2023 and (ii) each year since its creation.

Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The Fruit and Vegetable Aid Scheme (FVAS) runs from 01 January – 31 December. In relation to the 2023 scheme year, the Rural Payments Agency (RPA) received 32 successful applications by recognised Producer Organisations (POs). There were no unsuccessful applications during the same period.

The scheme was first introduced in 1996 and the number of UK-recognised Producer Organisations (POs) has varied overtime, but now there are 32 F&V POs across the UK. Each recognized PO will submit an application for an operational programme (OP) or amendment to that OP each year.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will provide the 2024-25 spend figures to date for the Farming and Countryside Programme to match the categories set out in Annex 1 of the Farming and Countryside Programme annual report 2023 to 2024.

Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The farming blog published on Wednesday 12 March set out Defra’s spend for 24/25 and 25/26 split across the Farming and Countryside Programme schemes.

Defra manages the farming budget flexibly to respond to demand, and achieve our intended outcomes for farm productivity, environment, climate and animal health and welfare.

In line with its obligations under the Agriculture Act 2020, Defra regularly publishes an annual report, setting out commitments in the previous financial year.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on the availability of dental appointments for women.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

We are aware of the challenges faced in accessing a dentist and are committed to reducing health inequalities.

The Government plans to tackle the challenges for patients trying to access National Health Service dental care with a rescue plan to provide 700,000 more urgent dental appointments and recruit new dentists to the areas that need them most. To rebuild dentistry in the long term, we will reform the dental contract with the sector, with a shift to focus on prevention and the retention of NHS dentists.

The responsibility for commissioning primary care services, including NHS dentistry, to meet the needs of the local population has been delegated to the integrated care boards across England.

Immigration application fees for young adults and children

Comic art

Sewage pollution

Injury on Duty Award Scheme

Ensuring stability for Ukrainian refugees in the UK

Restless legs syndrome

Found: Ferguson Simon Hoare Adam Jogee Mary Kelly Foy Wera Hobhouse Melanie Ward Barry Gardiner Tim Farron

Found: Smart Christine Jardine Ben Maguire Josh Babarinde Mr Will Forster Susan Murray Siân Berry Tim Farron

Found: support the provision of adequate supply. 63 COMMITTEE STAGE Monday 12 May 2025 _NC27 Gideon Amos Tim Farron

Found: Ferguson Simon Hoare Adam Jogee Mary Kelly Foy Wera Hobhouse Melanie Ward Barry Gardiner Tim Farron

Found: _NC27 Gideon Amos Tim Farron Vikki Slade Liz Jarvis David Chadwick Sarah Dyke Sarah Gibson Zöe

Found: Ferguson Simon Hoare Adam Jogee Mary Kelly Foy Wera Hobhouse Melanie Ward Barry Gardiner Tim Farron

Found: Negatived on division_NC17 Lisa Smart Anna Sabine Luke Taylor Tim Farron Ben Maguire COMMITTEE STAGE

Found: _NC17 Lisa Smart Anna Sabine Luke Taylor Tim Farron Ben Maguire COMMITTEE STAGE Thursday 8 May 2025

Found: _NC27 Gideon Amos Tim Farron Vikki Slade Liz Jarvis David Chadwick Sarah Dyke Sarah Gibson Zöe

Found: _NC17 Lisa Smart Anna Sabine Luke Taylor Tim Farron Ben Maguire COMMITTEE STAGE Wednesday 7 May

Found: _NC27 Gideon Amos Tim Farron Vikki Slade Liz Jarvis David Chadwick Sarah Dyke Sarah Gibson Zöe

Found: Ferguson Simon Hoare Adam Jogee Mary Kelly Foy Wera Hobhouse Melanie Ward Barry Gardiner Tim Farron

Found: _NC17 Lisa Smart Anna Sabine Luke Taylor Tim Farron Ben Maguire COMMITTEE STAGE Tuesday 6 May 2025

Found: _NC27 Gideon Amos Tim Farron Vikki Slade Liz Jarvis David Chadwick Sarah Dyke Sarah Gibson Zöe

Found: _NC17 Lisa Smart Anna Sabine Luke Taylor Tim Farron Ben Maguire COMMITTEE STAGE Friday 2 May 2025

Found: Ferguson Simon Hoare Adam Jogee Mary Kelly Foy Wera Hobhouse Melanie Ward Barry Gardiner Tim Farron

Found: _NC17 Lisa Smart Anna Sabine Luke Taylor Tim Farron Ben Maguire COMMITTEE STAGE Thursday 1 May 2025

Found: COMMITTEE STAGE Thursday 1 May 2025 40 _NC27 Gideon Amos Tim Farron Vikki Slade Liz Jarvis David

Found: Ferguson Simon Hoare Adam Jogee Mary Kelly Foy Wera Hobhouse Melanie Ward Barry Gardiner Tim Farron

Found: _NC17 Lisa Smart Anna Sabine Luke Taylor Tim Farron Ben Maguire COMMITTEE STAGE Wednesday 30 April

Found: the provision of adequate supply. 39 COMMITTEE STAGE Wednesday 30 April 2025 _NC27 Gideon Amos Tim Farron

Found: Ferguson Simon Hoare Adam Jogee Mary Kelly Foy Wera Hobhouse Melanie Ward Barry Gardiner Tim Farron

Found: _NC17 Lisa Smart Anna Sabine Luke Taylor Tim Farron Ben Maguire 67 COMMITTEE STAGE Tuesday 29 April

Found: _NC27 Gideon Amos Tim Farron Vikki Slade Liz Jarvis David Chadwick Sarah Dyke .

Found: Ferguson Simon Hoare Adam Jogee Mary Kelly Foy Wera Hobhouse Melanie Ward Barry Gardiner Tim Farron

Found: _NC17 Lisa Smart Anna Sabine Luke Taylor Tim Farron Ben Maguire 67 COMMITTEE STAGE Monday 28 April

Found: _NC27 Gideon Amos Tim Farron Vikki Slade .

Found: Ferguson Simon Hoare Adam Jogee Mary Kelly Foy Wera Hobhouse Melanie Ward Barry Gardiner Tim Farron

Found: _NC17 Lisa Smart Anna Sabine Luke Taylor Tim Farron Ben Maguire 67 COMMITTEE STAGE Friday 25 April

Found: _NC27 Gideon Amos Tim Farron .

Found: Ferguson Simon Hoare Adam Jogee Mary Kelly Foy Wera Hobhouse Melanie Ward Barry Gardiner Tim Farron

Found: _NC17 Lisa Smart Anna Sabine Luke Taylor Tim Farron Ben Maguire 29 COMMITTEE STAGE Thursday 24 April

Found: _NC27 Gideon Amos Tim Farron .

Found: Ferguson Simon Hoare Adam Jogee Mary Kelly Foy Wera Hobhouse Melanie Ward Barry Gardiner Tim Farron

Found: _NC17 Lisa Smart Anna Sabine Luke Taylor Tim Farron Ben Maguire 29 COMMITTEE STAGE Wednesday 23

Found: Negatived on division_NC2 Dame Caroline Dinenage Vikki Slade Tim Farron Mike Martin Ellie Chowns