Natural England has not paid Dorset Wildlife Trust (DWT) for any land in the last three years.

Natural England’s Nutrient Mitigation Scheme (NMS) has recently purchased the rights to nutrient mitigation credits being created by DWT at Lyscombe Farm in Dorset. This £5m investment is securing mitigation for an estimated 3,700 homes, with costs to be fully recovered through the sale of these credits by the NMS to housing developers.

The most recent year for which we hold complete tax records is for businesses with a basis period ending in 2021-22. For this year across the whole of the UK, there were a total of 9,170,000 businesses that declared turnover below the VAT threshold. Of these, 210,000 also had profits above £45,000.

Please note that this is the total number of businesses with turnover below the VAT threshold. Of these some may have registered for VAT voluntarily, and others may be exempt from VAT for other reasons.

HMRC does not hold readily available data on the regional breakdown of the total number of businesses across the UK which can be used for analysing VAT. This is because some businesses can have both single and multiple sites, and therefore such breakdowns would be of limited value.

The most recent year for which we hold complete tax records is for businesses with a basis period ending in 2021-22. For this year across the whole of the UK, there were a total of 9,170,000 businesses that declared turnover below the VAT threshold. Of these, 210,000 also had profits above £45,000.

Please note that this is the total number of businesses with turnover below the VAT threshold. Of these some may have registered for VAT voluntarily, and others may be exempt from VAT for other reasons.

HMRC does not hold readily available data on the regional breakdown of the total number of businesses across the UK which can be used for analysing VAT. This is because some businesses can have both single and multiple sites, and therefore such breakdowns would be of limited value.

The most recent year for which we hold complete tax records is for businesses with a basis period ending in 2021-22. For this year across the whole of the UK, there were a total of 9,170,000 businesses that declared turnover below the VAT threshold. Of these, 210,000 also had profits above £45,000.

Please note that this is the total number of businesses with turnover below the VAT threshold. Of these some may have registered for VAT voluntarily, and others may be exempt from VAT for other reasons.

HMRC does not hold readily available data on the regional breakdown of the total number of businesses across the UK which can be used for analysing VAT. This is because some businesses can have both single and multiple sites, and therefore such breakdowns would be of limited value.

My hon. Friend is, as ever, a brilliant advocate for his local area. I note that West Dorset is getting £4.4 million from the UK shared prosperity fund, and the wider Dorset area is benefiting from a range of other significant investments, including £9.7 million from the future high streets fund, but I am happy to meet him to discuss the matter further.

In 2020, the Treasury undertook a comprehensive review of the Green Book and how it is used in practice, and we have made several changes as a result. We regularly update the Green Book to ensure that it remains fit for purpose, and we published a further technical update in 2022.

A social tariff is fundamentally about supporting the most vulnerable with the cost of energy and this is what we have delivered. Between 2022-25 we are delivering a package of support worth £108 billion, or £3,800 per household on average.

In 2023-24 we have supported millions of vulnerable households with up to £900 in further cost-of-living payments. Despite the Quarter 2 2024 Ofgem price cap falling nearly 60% since its 2023 peak, we have committed to supporting households past April, by cutting National Insurance, and increasing benefits and the National Living Wage.

We have also been working with Ofgem on their new involuntary prepayment meter rules and a long-term solution to end the prepayment meter premium. I met with suppliers at the end of last year to outline my expectation that they support vulnerable customers and improve their customer service.

In the spring of 2019 the House of Bishops discussed why some of the recommendations of the Church Buildings Review, which was approved by the General Synod in November 2015, had not been implemented. Paula Vennells was subsequently asked by the Archbishops to undertake a lessons learnt review. During the course of the review its remit was expanded to look at the wider working together of the National Church Institutions (NCIs), including issues around organisational governance, leadership and culture. The report, ‘Church Buildings Review- Lessons Learnt’, was completed in October 2019 and Paula Vennells attended a meeting of the House of Bishops in December 2019 at which it was presented.

In February 2020 Paula Vennells was invited to attend the Church Commissioners Board of Governors for a discussion of the Lessons Learnt report, but she was unable to attend and the report was considered in her absence. The Lessons Learnt report was considered by the Archbishops’ Council in March 2020, again in the absence of Paula Vennells, who was invited but unable to attend.

In March 2020 the Archbishops established a Coordinating Group, to continue the work of the Triennium Funding Working Group, and to coordinate certain strands of national work for the Church during the Covid 19 pandemic. Paula Vennells was invited to join the Coordinating Group and to lead on the part focusing on Governance. She attended three meetings of the Group, in April, May and June 2020 and sent apologies to two further meetings in June and July, before withdrawing from the work. The Coordinating Group became what is now the Emerging Church Steering Group. A Governance Review group under the Chairmanship of the Bishop of Leeds proceeded from August 2020, without the involvement of Paula Vennells.

The Ethical Investment Advisory Group (EIAG) is convened and funded by the three National Investment Bodies, to whom it provides ethical investment advice. Paula Vennells was appointed to the EIAG by its Nominations Committee and was a member between March 2019 and April 2021. She attended two meetings, in March and October 2019, and sent apologies for meetings thereafter until she took leave of absence from the Group from June 2020, lasting until her resignation in April 2021. More information about the EIAG can be found here: Ethical Investment Advisory Group | The Church of England

I agree with my hon. Friend that cuckooing is an abhorrent practice that often preys on the most vulnerable in society. As part of the Government’s antisocial behaviour action plan, the Home Office engaged with relevant stakeholders about whether a new criminal offence was necessary. The results of that engagement demonstrated that a range of existing powers can be used to disrupt that activity, but of course I will ensure that the relevant Minister meets with my hon. Friend and updates her on the work we are doing to share effective practice to tackle this abhorrent problem.

In a couple of years’ time, we will have increased spending to over £8 billion every year on free hours and early education, which will help working families with childcare costs; indeed, it is the single biggest investment in childcare in England ever. But my hon. Friend makes an excellent point, and that is why we will ensure that there is a discretionary supplement in the local authorities’ local funding formula for rural communities to account for the smaller economies of scale, so that they can continue to deliver their vital work.

Helicopters form an important part of our integrated operating concept. Through past and current investment in rotary capability, the UK industrial base remains well placed to support existing and future helicopter platforms. Positive progress is being made towards the next stage of the competition with the three downselected suppliers: Airbus Helicopters UK, Leonardo Helicopters UK and Lockheed Martin UK.

I am grateful to my hon. Friend. We are keen to get on with this, and that is certainly our intention. At the moment, we are in the process of securing final cross-Government approval. As I said, that is our aim, but I cannot absolutely guarantee it.

It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

In addition to the steps we are taking to drive up NHS dentistry everywhere, we are going further in the south-west, with NHSE commissioning additional urgent appointments. There are several hundred extra appointments every week.

Absolutely. I am keen to continue the conversation with my hon. Friend. These issues are exactly why, this summer, we legislated to allow rebasing and to end the inflexibility he describes. We are also in the process of ringfencing local dental budgets, because we do not want to see underspends. We want to see that money going to NHS dentistry.

I am happy to join my hon. Friend; indeed, I am sure the whole House is happy to pay tribute to the exemplary public service Mr Warrender has provided, both in the Royal Navy and with the ambulance trust, and to wish him a very happy retirement.

This is an industry-led process. The outcomes of the consultations will not be known until the Ticketing and Settlement Agreement process has been concluded.

No individuals will be placed on the vessel unless it is safe to do so and all the legal and regulatory requirements are met.

The vessel will be managed by our supplier, under contractual terms agreed with the Home Office. The same supplier has safely and successfully managed two vessels for Ukrainian refugees for the Scottish Government over the past year.

The supplier and partners including Dorset Council, Dorset Police, Dorset Fire & Rescue and the Health & Safety Executive will ensure that the appropriate risk assessments have been completed and approved to ensure that the accommodation is safe to occupy prior to the first cohort of asylum seekers arriving.