I recently met Becky Smith, a former student of UTC Portsmouth, who is now a degree apprentice studying mechanical engineering at the University of Chichester in my constituency. We are currently considering the applications we have received.

This Government are investing record levels of funding with an additional £3.8 billion in skills over this Parliament. That includes an extra £1.6 billion for 16-to-19 education, and increasing investment in apprenticeships to £2.7 billion by 2024-25.

The agreement in principle that we have just secured with New Zealand, alongside the comprehensive and progressive agreement for trans-Pacific partnership, will be hugely beneficial to my hon. Friend's constituency. I thank him for championing the Solent freeport, which will benefit Southampton and other local ports.

In June 2021, UK F-35B aircraft carried out their first operational sorties in support of the counter-Daesh operations from HMS Queen Elizabeth in the eastern Mediterranean, providing a valuable contribution to Op Shader and the coalition effort. This activity has formed a key part of improving the UK's carrier strike capability to operate closely with allies and our interoperability with the US and others. We are delighted with how those sorties have gone. The F-35B is a phenomenal aircraft launched from a magnificent aircraft carrier.

Our armed forces continue to provide support to the Iraqi Government in tackling the threat posed by Daesh. The RAF has flown more than 8,700 sorties and released more than 4,300 precision weapons to target Daesh in Iraq and Syria. On the ground, we have trained in excess of 120,000 Iraqi and Kurdish personnel in everything from engineering to countering improvised explosive devices. We remain wholly committed to the coalition and supporting our ally Iraq in countering Daesh.

The Department for Transport has made it clear that local authorities must focus on scheme quality, demonstrating appropriate consultation and consideration of access for emergency vehicles. The decision to implement schemes lies with the local authority.

Domestic cruises will restart alongside domestic tourism and indoor hospitality. International cruises will be considered within the global travel taskforce.

I agree with my hon. Friend about the cruise industry's covid-19 framework, published in October 2020. The financial and employment contribution of the cruise sector is significant, especially for Southampton. Domestic cruises will restart under step 3 of the road map no earlier than 17 May. International cruises will be considered through the global travel taskforce report on 12 April.

I absolutely would. Hansard will show an earlier pitch for joining the regular armed forces, and now it will show a pitch for joining the reserve armed forces. Over the last few months, we have needed all the skills and experience that our reservists bring, and as the integrated review seeks to draw ever more on the expertise of those serving in the reserve as we expand our capability into new domains, now is a great time for someone to go down to their local reserve centre and join.

My hon. Friend is correct; we have spoken with our friends across the region about supporting the Lebanese people. We can assure him that UK money committed to support Lebanon was targeted directly at vulnerable individuals and did not go through Hezbollah.

Our thoughts remain with those affected by the Beirut explosion. The Prime Minister, Foreign Secretary, and I spoke with Lebanese officials. We deployed medical, humanitarian, military, and logistical support immediately after the blast. The UK committed £25 million to help the most vulnerable people in Lebanon.

My hon. Friend is right, we need to capitalise on the recent growth in active travel, especially with bicycles and e-bicycles. Regarding e-scooters, trials will only include rental scooters for controlled assessment of safety and other impacts. A wide range of standards are available among different models. I hope these trials will demonstrate their usefulness.

Reflecting on the armed forces' role, their strengths in logistics, command and control, testing have been key. Power has been devolved down to regional commands enabling them to call upon military assistance as needed through MACA.

My hon Friend is absolutely right. The use of drugs is simply unacceptable and the fact of the matter is that those who misuse and take drugs should also be aware of the consequences of their actions: children around the country are being trafficked and abused and used by drugs gangs to fuel people's drug addictions. A great deal of work is taking place across Government on this, including by Dame Carol Black, who did a review of drugs and has provided further evidence on what other measures the Government can bring in, in addition to law enforcement measures.