Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what proportion of refugees received indefinite leave to remain in the latest period for which data is available.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

The Home Office publishes statistics relating to indefinite leave to remain and asylum in the Immigration system statistics publication.

Data on the number grants of Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) to refugees, is published in table Se_D01 of the Settlement detailed datasets. The latest data relates to 2023. In addition, information on the number of ILR grants to refugees, including persons given ELR (Exceptional Leave to Remain), HP (Human Protection) or DL (Discretionary leave) is published in table Se_D02 of the Settlement detailed datasets for which latest data relates to 2024.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she has had discussions with the National Police Chiefs' Council on the handling of FOI requests by the Central Referral Unit.

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

Responding to Freedom of Information requests and ensuring compliance with the Freedom of Information Act 2000 is a matter for the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC), or any public authority which receives such a request.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many first time applications there were for British passports in 2024.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

The information requested is not currently available from published statistics, and the relevant data could only be collated and verified for the purpose of answering this question at disproportionate cost.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what criteria she plans to use in applying her discretionary powers to give an exception to the current ban on citizenship being granted to an asylum seeker who has arrived irregularly.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

We have strengthened measures to make it clear that anyone who enters the UK illegally or who arrives without a required valid entry clearance or electronic valid authorisation having made a dangerous journey, including small boat arrivals, faces having a British citizenship application refused. The change applies to citizenship applications made from 10 February 2025, regardless of the time that has passed since the illegal entry took place.

However, citizenship applications have always been, and will continue to be, considered on a case-by-case basis considering all positive and negative factors. The Secretary of State may choose to apply discretion to grant citizenship on an exceptional basis where there are particularly exceptional, compelling, or mitigating circumstances and where necessary to comply with our international obligations.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what data they collect on wildfires.

Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Home Office collects data on incidents attended by Fire and Rescue Services (FRSs), including outdoor fires. However, "wildfires" is not a category recognised in the current system.

We are reviewing the incident records system, and the data it collects, and considering which categories to record in the future. Adding new categories, including wildfires, will be considered as part of this work.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of the tools available to (a) bars and (b) venues to (i) help prevent and (ii) spiking incidents.

Answered by Jess Phillips - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

Spiking is an appalling crime that undermines the people's right to feel safe when they are simply enjoying a night out.

The Government is currently delivering a range of measures to tackle this vile practice, specifically targeted at raising awareness, identifying perpetrators, and gathering evidence. They include:

• Introducing a new criminal offence for spiking to help police better respond to this crime. This is being delivered through the Crime and Policing Bill which is currently at Committee Stage in the House of Commons.
• Funding the development and delivery of increased training on spiking to staff in the Night Time Economy at no cost to venues.
• Working with the regulator of the UK private security industry, the Security Industry Authority to deliver mandatory spiking training for their 352,000+ door supervisor licence holders by April 2028. This has already been delivered to more than 135,000 new licence applicants since Spring 2024.
• The funding of police spiking "intensification weeks" which have seen an enhanced focus on spiking and led to increased arrests, detections, and prevention activity taking place.
• Investing in research into the accuracy and efficacy of commercially available spiking testing kits, to help the police detect if someone has been spiked in real-time.

The Home Office works closely with the hospitality and third sectors, as well as law enforcement to ensure that we are delivering measures on spiking which make it more difficult to carry out in the first place, that venues and the emergency services are proving the best possible response, and that victims are listened to and feel supported.

A wide range of spiking training, resources, support and advice options are available across a number of organisations, many of whom are referenced on the Government's spiking web pages or within our training package.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to help (a) identify and (b) promote new ways for (i) bars and (ii)venues to prevent spiking.

Answered by Jess Phillips - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

Spiking is an appalling crime that undermines the people's right to feel safe when they are simply enjoying a night out.

The Government is currently delivering a range of measures to tackle this vile practice, specifically targeted at raising awareness, identifying perpetrators, and gathering evidence. They include:

• Introducing a new criminal offence for spiking to help police better respond to this crime. This is being delivered through the Crime and Policing Bill which is currently at Committee Stage in the House of Commons.
• Funding the development and delivery of increased training on spiking to staff in the Night Time Economy at no cost to venues.
• Working with the regulator of the UK private security industry, the Security Industry Authority to deliver mandatory spiking training for their 352,000+ door supervisor licence holders by April 2028. This has already been delivered to more than 135,000 new licence applicants since Spring 2024.
• The funding of police spiking "intensification weeks" which have seen an enhanced focus on spiking and led to increased arrests, detections, and prevention activity taking place.
• Investing in research into the accuracy and efficacy of commercially available spiking testing kits, to help the police detect if someone has been spiked in real-time.

The Home Office works closely with the hospitality and third sectors, as well as law enforcement to ensure that we are delivering measures on spiking which make it more difficult to carry out in the first place, that venues and the emergency services are proving the best possible response, and that victims are listened to and feel supported.

A wide range of spiking training, resources, support and advice options are available across a number of organisations, many of whom are referenced on the Government's spiking web pages or within our training package.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to help tackle spiking.

Answered by Jess Phillips - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

Spiking is an appalling crime that undermines the people's right to feel safe when they are simply enjoying a night out.

The Government is currently delivering a range of measures to tackle this vile practice, specifically targeted at raising awareness, identifying perpetrators, and gathering evidence. They include:

• Introducing a new criminal offence for spiking to help police better respond to this crime. This is being delivered through the Crime and Policing Bill which is currently at Committee Stage in the House of Commons.
• Funding the development and delivery of increased training on spiking to staff in the Night Time Economy at no cost to venues.
• Working with the regulator of the UK private security industry, the Security Industry Authority to deliver mandatory spiking training for their 352,000+ door supervisor licence holders by April 2028. This has already been delivered to more than 135,000 new licence applicants since Spring 2024.
• The funding of police spiking "intensification weeks" which have seen an enhanced focus on spiking and led to increased arrests, detections, and prevention activity taking place.
• Investing in research into the accuracy and efficacy of commercially available spiking testing kits, to help the police detect if someone has been spiked in real-time.

The Home Office works closely with the hospitality and third sectors, as well as law enforcement to ensure that we are delivering measures on spiking which make it more difficult to carry out in the first place, that venues and the emergency services are proving the best possible response, and that victims are listened to and feel supported.

A wide range of spiking training, resources, support and advice options are available across a number of organisations, many of whom are referenced on the Government's spiking web pages or within our training package.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she considered the potential merits of consulting the Windrush scandal's (a) victims and (b) victims' representatives in determining the role specification of the Windrush Commissioner.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

The Windrush Commissioner will be a public appointee, operating independently of the Home Office to serve as an advocate and trusted voice for victims, families and impacted communities affected by the Home Office Windrush Scandal. They will provide independent scrutiny, challenge and advice to the Home Secretary and Ministers ensuring the lessons from Windrush are applied across the Home Office and are acted on throughout government.

We have actively engaged and listened to stakeholders’ views on the key responsibilities of this position, ensuring their reflections informed the role specification. On appointment, it is anticipated that the Commissioner will also engage with impacted groups to understand their viewpoint and identify how they can deliver meaningful change through this new role.

The recruitment process is being conducted in line with Cabinet Office principles and guidelines, with two independent panel members included on the Advisory Assessment Panel to ensure transparency and fairness.

Like other Home Office Commissioners, the Windrush Commissioner also will have dedicated funding to recruit and build their team, while also receiving civil service support from the re-established Windrush Unit in the Home Office. A Memorandum of Understanding will be drawn up between the Windrush Commissioner and the Home Office on the governance arrangements between both parties in line with the approach taken for all independent public officer holders.

To maintain momentum, drive early progress, and refine the role based on stakeholder engagement, the Commissioner will initially operate on a non-statutory basis. It may be put on a statutory footing at a later date subject to Parliamentary approval.

The Windrush Commissioner will also assure delivery of the Windrush Compensation Scheme to provide advice to Ministers on the scheme’s effectiveness in achieving its objectives and provide assurance that the needs of Windrush communities are met.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to ensure the the independence of the Windrush Commissioner in terms of (a) appointment, (b) resourcing and (c) reporting mechanisms.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

The Windrush Commissioner will be a public appointee, operating independently of the Home Office to serve as an advocate and trusted voice for victims, families and impacted communities affected by the Home Office Windrush Scandal. They will provide independent scrutiny, challenge and advice to the Home Secretary and Ministers ensuring the lessons from Windrush are applied across the Home Office and are acted on throughout government.

We have actively engaged and listened to stakeholders’ views on the key responsibilities of this position, ensuring their reflections informed the role specification. On appointment, it is anticipated that the Commissioner will also engage with impacted groups to understand their viewpoint and identify how they can deliver meaningful change through this new role.

The recruitment process is being conducted in line with Cabinet Office principles and guidelines, with two independent panel members included on the Advisory Assessment Panel to ensure transparency and fairness.

Like other Home Office Commissioners, the Windrush Commissioner also will have dedicated funding to recruit and build their team, while also receiving civil service support from the re-established Windrush Unit in the Home Office. A Memorandum of Understanding will be drawn up between the Windrush Commissioner and the Home Office on the governance arrangements between both parties in line with the approach taken for all independent public officer holders.

To maintain momentum, drive early progress, and refine the role based on stakeholder engagement, the Commissioner will initially operate on a non-statutory basis. It may be put on a statutory footing at a later date subject to Parliamentary approval.

The Windrush Commissioner will also assure delivery of the Windrush Compensation Scheme to provide advice to Ministers on the scheme’s effectiveness in achieving its objectives and provide assurance that the needs of Windrush communities are met.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether the Windrush Commissioner will have the authority to compel responses from government departments or agencies in the course of their work.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

The Windrush Commissioner will be a public appointee, operating independently of the Home Office to serve as an advocate and trusted voice for victims, families and impacted communities affected by the Home Office Windrush Scandal. They will provide independent scrutiny, challenge and advice to the Home Secretary and Ministers ensuring the lessons from Windrush are applied across the Home Office and are acted on throughout government.

We have actively engaged and listened to stakeholders’ views on the key responsibilities of this position, ensuring their reflections informed the role specification. On appointment, it is anticipated that the Commissioner will also engage with impacted groups to understand their viewpoint and identify how they can deliver meaningful change through this new role.

The recruitment process is being conducted in line with Cabinet Office principles and guidelines, with two independent panel members included on the Advisory Assessment Panel to ensure transparency and fairness.

Like other Home Office Commissioners, the Windrush Commissioner also will have dedicated funding to recruit and build their team, while also receiving civil service support from the re-established Windrush Unit in the Home Office. A Memorandum of Understanding will be drawn up between the Windrush Commissioner and the Home Office on the governance arrangements between both parties in line with the approach taken for all independent public officer holders.

To maintain momentum, drive early progress, and refine the role based on stakeholder engagement, the Commissioner will initially operate on a non-statutory basis. It may be put on a statutory footing at a later date subject to Parliamentary approval.

The Windrush Commissioner will also assure delivery of the Windrush Compensation Scheme to provide advice to Ministers on the scheme’s effectiveness in achieving its objectives and provide assurance that the needs of Windrush communities are met.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether the Windrush Commissioner will have (a) statutory powers of investigation and (b) access to Home Office data to fulfil their role independently.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

The Windrush Commissioner will be a public appointee, operating independently of the Home Office to serve as an advocate and trusted voice for victims, families and impacted communities affected by the Home Office Windrush Scandal. They will provide independent scrutiny, challenge and advice to the Home Secretary and Ministers ensuring the lessons from Windrush are applied across the Home Office and are acted on throughout government.

We have actively engaged and listened to stakeholders’ views on the key responsibilities of this position, ensuring their reflections informed the role specification. On appointment, it is anticipated that the Commissioner will also engage with impacted groups to understand their viewpoint and identify how they can deliver meaningful change through this new role.

The recruitment process is being conducted in line with Cabinet Office principles and guidelines, with two independent panel members included on the Advisory Assessment Panel to ensure transparency and fairness.

Like other Home Office Commissioners, the Windrush Commissioner also will have dedicated funding to recruit and build their team, while also receiving civil service support from the re-established Windrush Unit in the Home Office. A Memorandum of Understanding will be drawn up between the Windrush Commissioner and the Home Office on the governance arrangements between both parties in line with the approach taken for all independent public officer holders.

To maintain momentum, drive early progress, and refine the role based on stakeholder engagement, the Commissioner will initially operate on a non-statutory basis. It may be put on a statutory footing at a later date subject to Parliamentary approval.

The Windrush Commissioner will also assure delivery of the Windrush Compensation Scheme to provide advice to Ministers on the scheme’s effectiveness in achieving its objectives and provide assurance that the needs of Windrush communities are met.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what metrics will be used to assess the effectiveness of the Windrush Commissioner in assuring delivery of the Windrush Compensation Scheme.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

The Windrush Commissioner will be a public appointee, operating independently of the Home Office to serve as an advocate and trusted voice for victims, families and impacted communities affected by the Home Office Windrush Scandal. They will provide independent scrutiny, challenge and advice to the Home Secretary and Ministers ensuring the lessons from Windrush are applied across the Home Office and are acted on throughout government.

We have actively engaged and listened to stakeholders’ views on the key responsibilities of this position, ensuring their reflections informed the role specification. On appointment, it is anticipated that the Commissioner will also engage with impacted groups to understand their viewpoint and identify how they can deliver meaningful change through this new role.

The recruitment process is being conducted in line with Cabinet Office principles and guidelines, with two independent panel members included on the Advisory Assessment Panel to ensure transparency and fairness.

Like other Home Office Commissioners, the Windrush Commissioner also will have dedicated funding to recruit and build their team, while also receiving civil service support from the re-established Windrush Unit in the Home Office. A Memorandum of Understanding will be drawn up between the Windrush Commissioner and the Home Office on the governance arrangements between both parties in line with the approach taken for all independent public officer holders.

To maintain momentum, drive early progress, and refine the role based on stakeholder engagement, the Commissioner will initially operate on a non-statutory basis. It may be put on a statutory footing at a later date subject to Parliamentary approval.

The Windrush Commissioner will also assure delivery of the Windrush Compensation Scheme to provide advice to Ministers on the scheme’s effectiveness in achieving its objectives and provide assurance that the needs of Windrush communities are met.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she plans to allow time spent under the Homes for Ukraine Sponsorship Scheme to count towards the five-year qualifying period for settled status.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

We recognise the Ukrainian government’s desire for the future return of its citizens to Ukraine. It is important our approach respects these wishes.

This is why the temporary sanctuary Ukraine Visa Schemes do not lead to settlement in the UK. Similarly, time spent in the UK with permission granted under the Ukraine Schemes cannot be relied upon towards the continuous qualifying period for the purposes of a Long Residence application.

There are other routes available for those who wish to settle in the UK permanently, if they meet the requirements.

The Ukraine Permission Extension (UPE) scheme, which opened to applications on 4 February 2025, will provide up to an additional 18 months’ permission to stay in the UK for those with existing Ukraine Scheme permission.

UPE is a new grant of permission; it is not an extension of a person's existing permission. An automatic extension of existing permission would mean providing further unnecessary permission, even to a person who has now left the UK and is no longer in need of temporary sanctuary in the UK.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make it her policy to grant an automatic extension of 18 months to all Ukraine Scheme visas.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

We recognise the Ukrainian government’s desire for the future return of its citizens to Ukraine. It is important our approach respects these wishes.

This is why the temporary sanctuary Ukraine Visa Schemes do not lead to settlement in the UK. Similarly, time spent in the UK with permission granted under the Ukraine Schemes cannot be relied upon towards the continuous qualifying period for the purposes of a Long Residence application.

There are other routes available for those who wish to settle in the UK permanently, if they meet the requirements.

The Ukraine Permission Extension (UPE) scheme, which opened to applications on 4 February 2025, will provide up to an additional 18 months’ permission to stay in the UK for those with existing Ukraine Scheme permission.

UPE is a new grant of permission; it is not an extension of a person's existing permission. An automatic extension of existing permission would mean providing further unnecessary permission, even to a person who has now left the UK and is no longer in need of temporary sanctuary in the UK.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how long visa terms for the Ukraine Permission Extension Scheme are.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

We recognise the Ukrainian government’s desire for the future return of its citizens to Ukraine. It is important our approach respects these wishes.

This is why the temporary sanctuary Ukraine Visa Schemes do not lead to settlement in the UK. Similarly, time spent in the UK with permission granted under the Ukraine Schemes cannot be relied upon towards the continuous qualifying period for the purposes of a Long Residence application.

There are other routes available for those who wish to settle in the UK permanently, if they meet the requirements.

The Ukraine Permission Extension (UPE) scheme, which opened to applications on 4 February 2025, will provide up to an additional 18 months’ permission to stay in the UK for those with existing Ukraine Scheme permission.

UPE is a new grant of permission; it is not an extension of a person's existing permission. An automatic extension of existing permission would mean providing further unnecessary permission, even to a person who has now left the UK and is no longer in need of temporary sanctuary in the UK.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to help (a) people seeking asylum and (b) refugees to (i) develop their skills and (ii) increase their employability.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

The UK has a long history of providing protection to those that need it and supporting refugee integration and employment. This includes work across government to ensure that mainstream services meet the needs of refugees.

Refugees granted refugee status or humanitarian protection (as well as those
arriving under one of the UK’s resettlement schemes) have immediate access to the labour market, including employment support from Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) work coaches in the same way as other jobseekers. Unemployed refugees are eligible for full funding for English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) learning.

In addition, through the Skilled Worker visa, the UK has labour mobility initiatives for refugees and displaced people to take up employment in the UK. We are currently reviewing labour mobility initiatives for refugees and displaced people to ensure we are learning from what works to increase employability and outcomes.

We continue to provide local authorities with a core tariff to support the integration of those who arrive through the UK’s Resettlement Scheme, the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme and the Afghan Relocation and Assistance Policy. We work across Government to ensure these services meet the needs of refugees and continue to keep our policies under review.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to tackle anti-social behaviour in rural towns and villages.

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

Tackling anti-social behaviour (ASB) is a top priority for this Government, and a key part of our Safer Streets Mission.

​The Government’s Plan for Change, announced by the Prime Minister on 5 December, sets out how we will reduce ASB. Every police force across England and Wales will have a dedicated lead officer for ASB, working with communities, including rural towns and villages, to develop a local ASB action plan.

We are delivering on our commitment to restore and strengthen neighbourhood policing, putting 13,000 neighbourhood police and community support officers into local communities – including rural communities - so residents have a named officer they can turn to when things go wrong.

Through the Crime and Policing Bill, we have introduced tougher powers to tackle repeat offending, including the new Respect Order to tackle the most persistent ASB offenders. Breach of a Respect Order will be a criminal offence and courts will have a wide range of sentencing options, including community orders, unlimited fines and, for the most severe cases, up to two years’ imprisonment.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to implement a scheme similar to the EU entry/exit system for EU nationals travelling to the UK.

Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)

The UK has introduced electronic travel authorisations (ETAs) to enhance our ability to screen travellers upstream, and improve the customer experience. The introduction of the ETA scheme is in line with the approach many of the UK’s international partners have already taken to border security, including the European Union’s forthcoming ETIAS and EES. The UK’s scheme was extended to eligible European nationals on 5 March 2025, and will be a requirement for this cohort for travel from 2 April 2025. In line with international partners, we are building upon our existing ability to track arrivals in and out of the country.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to require travellers to the UK to hold passports that (1) have been issued within ten years of their departure date, and (2) are valid for more than three months after their departure date.

Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)

The current requirement for travellers, as set out in the Immigration Rules - Guidance - GOV.UK, is that a person must, on arrival in the United Kingdom or when seeking entry through the Channel Tunnel, produce on request by a Border Force Officer a valid national passport or, subject to eligibility, another document satisfactorily establishing their identity and nationality. The document must be valid for the duration of the proposed travel to the UK.

There are currently no plans to change these requirements.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to implement a scheme similar to the European travel information and authorisation system for travellers to the UK.

Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)

The UK has introduced electronic travel authorisations (ETAs) to enhance our ability to screen travellers upstream, and improve the customer experience. The introduction of the ETA scheme is in line with the approach many of the UK’s international partners have already taken to border security, including the European Union’s forthcoming ETIAS and EES. The UK’s scheme was extended to eligible European nationals on 5 March 2025, and will be a requirement for this cohort for travel from 2 April 2025. In line with international partners, we are building upon our existing ability to track arrivals in and out of the country.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what diversity, equality and inclusion targets her Department has for staff recruitment.

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

I refer the Hon Member to my response to his previous PQ 40631.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of extending the offence of assaulting a retail worker to wholesale workers operating in business-to-business premises.

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

Shop theft continues to increase at an unacceptable level with ever greater numbers of offenders using violence and abuse against shopworkers as part of their crime. We will not stand for this. Everybody has a right to feel safe at their place of work.

Through our Crime and Policing Bill, we have therefore introduced a standalone offence of assaulting a retail worker to protect the hardworking and dedicated staff that work in stores, sending a strong message to offenders and would-be offenders that violence against retail workers will not be tolerated. The Bill is making its way through Parliament and committee stage started on 27 March.

As introduced, the definition of a ‘retail worker’ does not include wholesale workers operating in business-to-business premises, but it does include wholesale workers operating in premises that provide retail sales to the public. Keeping a tight definition provides legal clarity and ensures there is less ambiguity for courts in identifying whether an individual is a retail worker and impacted during their job. Workers whose roles are not included are already covered under other legislation such as the Offences against the Person Act 1861, which also covers more serious violence, such as actual bodily harm (ABH) and grievous bodily harm (GBH).

That said, the purpose of the parliamentary process is to scrutinise the provisions in the Bill and we will, of course, consider carefully any proposed amendments and supporting evidence.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she plans that access to each of the Extended Area Services masts located in Ceredigion Preseli constituency will be shared with mobile network operators.

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

We can confirm that four EAS masts have already been activated for the Shared Rural Network (SRN) and are delivering new 4G mobile coverage from all four mobile network operators across Ceredigion Preseli.

We continue to work with Building Digital UK (BDUK) and the operators to activate the remaining five masts for the SRN. BDUK officials have informed me that the Hon. Member has signed up for the next BDUK MP drop-in session and they would be happy to update him further on SRN EAS progress in Ceredigion Preseli then.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of recent trends in levels of rural crime rates in Buckinghamshire in the last five years.

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

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) publishes estimates, from the Crime Survey for England and Wales (CSEW), on the proportion of adults who had been a victim of crime. This is broken down by whether the household was located in a rural or urban location. The latest data can be found here:

https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/crimeandjustice/datasets/crimeinenglandandwalesannualtrendanddemographictables/current

Data is not available for county areas such as Buckinghamshire.

This Government is determined to tackle rural crime and is committed to safeguarding rural communities, with tougher measures to clamp down on anti-social behaviour, strengthened neighbourhood policing, and stronger laws to prevent farm theft.

We are taking a new approach by working closely with the National Police Chief’s Council to develop the next iteration of the Rural and Wildlife Crime Strategy, to ensure the government’s Safer Streets Mission benefits every community no matter where they live, including rural communities.

This new financial year the Home Office will be providing the first funding since 2023 for the National Rural Crime Unit (£365,000) as well as continuing funding for the National Wildlife Crime Unit (£450,000). This will allow these specialist units to continue their work in tackling rural and wildlife crime which can pose unique challenges for policing given the scale and isolation of rural areas.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to implement the public service pensions remedy for retired firefighters.

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

While the Home Office has responsibility for overarching policy and legislative changes to the firefighters’ pension scheme regulations, the firefighters’ pension scheme is locally administered by each individual Fire and Rescue Authority. The regulations governing the McCloud remedy for the firefighters’ pension schemes were made in July 2023.

The Home Office continues to work with the fire sector to support the effective implementation of the McCloud remedy for all affected individuals.

As the designated scheme manager, it is for each Fire and Rescue Authority to determine their administrative timetable, in accordance with the Public Service Pensions and Judicial Offices Act 2022, including when remedy payments will be distributed.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 27 March 2025 to Question 40502 on Police: West Midlands, how many of those officers she expects the West Midlands force to recruit in each of the four years of that plan.

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

The Government has committed to restoring neighbourhood policing through the Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee. This includes putting thousands more police personnel on the beat in neighbourhood policing roles up and down the country. Every part of the country will benefit from this pledge, including the West Midlands.

Further details of the delivery of this programme, including areas the impact on individual areas, will be published in due course.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to prevent the export of stolen vehicles by organised criminal groups.

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

This Government is determined to drive down vehicle crime and we are working with the automotive industry and police – taking a national approach – to ensure our response is as strong as it can be, including working closely with the National Police Chiefs’ Council lead for vehicle crime.

This Government is committed to working domestically, applying the full range of disruption tactics, and with partners internationally to disrupt organised crime groups upstream.

We provided £250,000 funding in the financial year 2024-25 to help support enforcement at the ports to prevent stolen vehicles and vehicle parts being shipped abroad. This included additional staff and specialist equipment.

Through our Crime and Policing Bill, we have introduced measures to ban electronic devices used to steal vehicles, empowering the police and courts to target the criminals using, manufacturing and supplying them.

Via the recently established National Vehicle Crime Reduction Partnership and the police-led National Vehicle Crime Working Group, we are focusing on prevention and deterrence of theft of and from vehicles; this includes training police officers on the methods used to steal vehicles, encouraging vehicle owners to secure their vehicles, and working with industry to address vulnerabilities in vehicles.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to help prevent people under 18 years old from committing anti-social behaviour.

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

Tackling anti-social behaviour (ASB) is a top priority for this Government and a key part of our Safer Streets Mission.

The Government has committed to the creation of a new Young Futures Programme, which will establish a network of Young Futures Hubs and Young Futures Prevention Partnerships, to intervene early and ensure this cohort is identified and offered support in a more systematic way, as well as creating more opportunities for young people in their communities.

Prevention Partnerships will identify children and young people who are vulnerable to being drawn into crime and violence such as knife crime and ASB and divert them by offering them suitable support in a more systematic way.

The Government’s Plan for Change, announced by the Prime Minister on 5 December, sets out our plan to reduce ASB. This will include a dedicated lead officer in every police force across England and Wales working with communities to develop a local ASB action plan. We are also delivering on our commitment to bring back and strengthen neighbourhood policing, ensuring thousands of additional officers are visibly out patrolling in our town centres and communities to make our streets safer.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of changes to (a) pavement licences and (b) take-away pints on regulatory costs for businesses.

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

I refer the Hon Member to the Written Ministerial Statement I made to the House on 27 Feb on the lapse of the easement on takeaway pints.

A new impact assessment relating to the lapse of the easement was not required as no new policy or legislation has been introduced.

The pavement licensing regime, owned by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, is separate to the regime regulating the sale and supply of alcohol. The pavement licensing regime has not been impacted by the lapse of the aforementioned easement.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what funding has been allocated to community safety initiatives in (a) Buckinghamshire and (b) Milton Keynes.

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

Funding of £627.4 million has been allocated to Thames Valley Police in 2025-25, an increase of up to £40.8 million when compared to the 2024-25 funding settlement.

It is for locally elected Police and Crime Commissioners, or Mayoral equivalents, to make decisions on how they use their funding and deploy their resources using their knowledge of local need.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will consider transferring responsibility for the misuse of drugs to the Department of Health and Social Care.

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

Responsibility for drug policy is shared across a number of departments and both the Home Office and the Department for Health and Social Care have important roles to play in setting policy to tackle drug use and to reduce drug-related crime and drug health harms. The Home Office is the lead department for the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 and associated drug legislation, working with other departments as appropriate where changes in the law are required.

Illicit drug use affects the whole of society, and this Government is taking a collective response which will help our key missions to deliver safer streets, improve health outcomes and contribute to opportunities and growth through reducing crime and saving lives.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many additional police officers have been recruited under the Police Uplift Programme in Thames Valley Police.

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

Table U2 of the data tables accompanying the final ‘Police Officer Uplift’ release, covering the position as at 31 March 2023, provides a breakdown of additional officers recruited through the Police Uplift Programme by month since October 2019. These data can be accessed here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/64b6d5d30ea2cb000d15e560/police-officer-uplift-final-position-as-at-march-2023-tables-260723.ods. Data are provided on a headcount basis and broken down by Police Force Area.

During the Police Uplift Programme, Thames Valley recruited 784 additional police officers attributable to the Police Uplift Programme. This was against an allocation to recruit 609 additional police officers for the three-year programme.

Reporting on the size and composition of the police workforce continues on a bi-annual basis in the ‘Police Workforce, England and Wales’ statistical bulletin which can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/police-workforce-england-and-wales.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department plans to publish information on profits made by Asylum Accommodation and Support Services Contracts providers (a) Serco, (b) Mears and (c) Clearsprings through those contracts.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)

The providers of the Home Office’s Asylum Accommodation and Support Services Contracts are held to account on their performance against an agreed set of key performance indicators throughout the course of each contract to ensure that the taxpayer receives value for money, and that the standards of service required by the department are met.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 31 March 2025 to Question 41380 on Asylum: Hotels, how many hotels used for the housing of asylum seekers have closed between 21 January 2025 and 31 March 2025.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)

I refer the Honourable Member to the Answer he received on the 31 March 2025 to UIN 41380.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she has made an assessment of the potential impact of recent changes made to her Department's guidance entitled Nationality: good character requirement, published on 10 February 2025, on community cohesion.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

The British Nationality Act 1981 is clear that it is for the Home Secretary to determine the good character policy. There is no definition of good character in primary legislation, nor is there statutory guidance as to how this should be interpreted or defined. Changes to the good character policy are at the discretion of the Home Secretary.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government is leading cross-Government efforts to develop a longer-term, more strategic approach to social cohesion - working in partnership with communities and local stakeholders to rebuild, renew and address the deep-seated issues. A new cross-government ministerial ‘Communities & Recovery Steering Group’ has been stood up to oversee this work and this group includes the Home Secretary.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many visas expired before the recipient left the country in each of the last ten years.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)

As set out in legislation, an individual is liable to removal from the UK if "the person requires leave to enter or remain in the United Kingdom but does not have it". The Home Office has not historically recorded the means by which individual becomes liable to removal, and we could only collate and verify the requested information on visa overstayers for the purposes of answering this question at disproportionate cost.

The Government has already begun to deliver a major surge in the removal of people with no right to be in the UK, with over 24,000 returns recorded between 5 July 2024 and 22 March 2025.

Further data on returns activity is published quarterly and can be found on gov.uk at Immigration system statistics quarterly release - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)(opens in a new tab).

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she plans to use Eastwood Hall Hotel to accommodate irregular migrants.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)

As a matter of longstanding policy, the Home Office does not comment publicly on sites which may or may not be utilised to accommodate asylum seekers.

However, if a hotel has been identified for use as contingency accommodation, Home Office officials will write to the local authority Chief Executive and the constituency MP to inform them of any such plans.

It remains our absolute commitment to end the use of hotels over time, as part of our plans to reduce the overall cost of asylum accommodation.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 19 March 2025 to Question 34801 on Asylum: Albania, what steps her Department has taken to ensure the continued reduction in the number of Albanian nationals arriving in the UK by small boat.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)

Small boat crossings by Albanian nationals have reduced each year since their peak in 2022. This government is committed to working with the Albanian government to further reduce these numbers, including through communications campaigns that demonstrate the dangers of these crossings, and ensuring that Albanian nationals with no right to be in the UK are returned efficiently to Albania.

We also continue to work with other international partners to target the people smugglers who exploit migrants for profit. The Home Secretary has convened an international summit focussed on Organised Immigration Crime, bringing together Interior Ministers and law enforcement experts, including from Albania, to develop our combined response to the gangs who facilitate this vile trade in human lives.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what mechanisms her Department will put in place to ensure the Windrush Commissioner’s (a) advice and (b) recommendations to the Government are promptly acted upon.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

The Windrush Commissioner will provide independent scrutiny, challenge and advice to the Home Secretary and Ministers, ensuring the lessons from Windrush are applied across the Home Office and are acted on throughout government.

As the Windrush Commissioner is an independent role any decision on how the Commissioner engages with parliamentarians as part of their work is a matter to be raised with the Commissioner themselves. However, like other Home Office commissioners it is expected that they may be invited to give evidence to the Home Affairs Select Commitee on relevant issues.

The immediate priority is to appoint the right person into the role and ensure they engage swiftly with impacted communities to truly understand their views and concerns, and identify how the Commissioner can deliver meaningful change through their new role.

To maintain momentum, drive early progress, and refine the role based on stakeholder engagement, the Commissioner will initially operate on a non-statutory basis. It may be put on a statutory footing at a later date subject to Parliamentary approval.

A Memorandum of Understanding will be drawn up between the Windrush Commissioner and the Home Office on the governance arrangements between both parties in line with the approach taken for all independent public officer holders. Like other Home Office Commissioners, the Windrush Commissioner will have their own dedicated team, maintaining their independence while receiving civil service support. Further support will be provided from the re-established Windrush Unit in the Home Office.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make it her policy to mandate the Windrush Commissioner to report regularly to (a) Parliament (b) the Home Affairs Committee.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

The Windrush Commissioner will provide independent scrutiny, challenge and advice to the Home Secretary and Ministers, ensuring the lessons from Windrush are applied across the Home Office and are acted on throughout government.

As the Windrush Commissioner is an independent role any decision on how the Commissioner engages with parliamentarians as part of their work is a matter to be raised with the Commissioner themselves. However, like other Home Office commissioners it is expected that they may be invited to give evidence to the Home Affairs Select Commitee on relevant issues.

The immediate priority is to appoint the right person into the role and ensure they engage swiftly with impacted communities to truly understand their views and concerns, and identify how the Commissioner can deliver meaningful change through their new role.

To maintain momentum, drive early progress, and refine the role based on stakeholder engagement, the Commissioner will initially operate on a non-statutory basis. It may be put on a statutory footing at a later date subject to Parliamentary approval.

A Memorandum of Understanding will be drawn up between the Windrush Commissioner and the Home Office on the governance arrangements between both parties in line with the approach taken for all independent public officer holders. Like other Home Office Commissioners, the Windrush Commissioner will have their own dedicated team, maintaining their independence while receiving civil service support. Further support will be provided from the re-established Windrush Unit in the Home Office.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent estimate she has made of the total cost of providing accommodation for asylum seekers in hotels in each of the next five years; and what these costs were in each of the past five years.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Home Office publishes information on asylum expenditure in the Home Office Annual Report and Accounts at HO annual reports and accounts - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 31 March 2025 to Question 41380, how many asylum hotels have closed between 4 July 2024 and 31 March 2025.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)

I refer the Honourable Member to the Answer he received on the 31 March 2025 to UIN 41380.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make it her policy to grant Ukraine Scheme visa holders the right to settled status after five years.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

We recognise the Ukrainian government’s desire for the future return of its citizens to Ukraine. It is important our approach respects these wishes.

This is why the temporary sanctuary Ukraine Visa Schemes do not lead to settlement in the UK. Similarly, time spent in the UK with permission granted under the Ukraine Schemes cannot be relied upon towards the continuous qualifying period for the purposes of a Long Residence application.

There are other routes available for those who wish to settle in the UK permanently, if they meet the requirements.

The Ukraine Permission Extension (UPE) scheme, which opened to applications on 4 February 2025, will provide up to an additional 18 months’ permission to stay in the UK for those with existing Ukraine Scheme permission.

UPE is a new grant of permission; it is not an extension of a person's existing permission. An automatic extension of existing permission would mean providing further unnecessary permission, even to a person who has now left the UK and is no longer in need of temporary sanctuary in the UK.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what information her Department holds on the average time taken to process an asylum claim after July 2024.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)

The specific data requested is not currently available from published statistics and could only be collated and verified for the purposes of answering this question at disproportionate cost.

However, the Home Office does publish data on the number of asylum claims awaiting an initial decision by duration. This data can be found at table Asy_D02 of the ‘Asylum and resettlement summary tables’.

Additionally, data on the percentage of applications processed within six months is published in table ASY_D03 of the ‘Immigration and Protection’ data of the Migration Transparency Data collection.

We are restoring order to the asylum system so that every part – border security, case processing, appeals and returns – operates swiftly.

As a result, asylum decision making increased by 52% in the last three months of 2024.

The Home Office continues to take action to speed up asylum processing whilst maintaining the integrity of the system.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the number of children in the UK who are (a) stateless and (b) at risk of statelessness.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)

The information requested is not available from published statistics and could only be collated and verified for the purposes of answering this question at disproportionate cost.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps is she taking to tackle fraudulent Certificates of Sponsorship as a route for illegal immigration.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)

Certificates of sponsorship (CoS) are electronic documents created by sponsors licensed by the Home Office. If we identify that a fraudulent, non-genuine CoS has been submitted, that does not match our records, we shall refuse the application.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what information her Department holds on people who have been deported.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)

Statistics on the returns of foreign national offenders (FNOs) by nationality and destination are published on a quarterly basis. These returns are published in the Returns Detailed Datasets, and are currently available to the end of December 2024, which are available at: Immigration system statistics data tables - GOV.UK.

In addition, a note providing an overview of the number of people who have been returned from the UK since 5 July 2024 was published on 31 March 2025, and can be found here: Returns from the UK from 5 July 2024 to 22 March 2025 - GOV.UK.

3,594 FNOs were returned in this period, which is an increase of 16% compared to 3,101 FNO returns in the same period 12 months prior (FNO returns include both enforced and voluntary returns).

Figures on deportations, which are a subset of enforced returns, are not separately available.

We are committed to delivering justice for victims and safer streets for our communities. Foreign nationals who commit crime should be in no doubt that the law will be enforced and, where appropriate, we will pursue their deportation.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether non-Syrian nationals displaced by the Syrian civil war seeking asylum have had their claims paused following the general pause of Syrian asylum claims from December 2024.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)

Following the fall of the Assad regime, the Home Office withdrew the Country Policy Information Notes and guidance relating to Syria and has temporarily paused all asylum interviews and decisions. The pause also applies those who have previously been habitually resident in Syria. The pause is being kept under constant review and when there is a clear basis upon which to make decisions, we will resume the processing of them.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people who entered the UK on a visa and who now live in (a) asylum hotels and (b) other state-funded accommodation are from (i) Pakistan, (ii) Nigeria and (iii) Sri Lanka.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)

Data on the ‘Source of asylum claims in 2024’ was published by the Home Office on 30^th March 2025. The remaining requested data is not available from published statistics and could only be collated and verified for the purposes of answering this question at disproportionate cost.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people in the UK on tourist visas went on to claim asylum in each of the last five years.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)

Data on the ‘Source of asylum claims in 2024’ was published by the Home Office on 30^th March 2025. The remaining requested data is not available from published statistics and could only be collated and verified for the purposes of answering this question at disproportionate cost.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people in the UK on student visas later claimed asylum in each of the last five years.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)

Data on the ‘Source of asylum claims in 2024’ was published by the Home Office on 30^th March 2025. The remaining requested data is not available from published statistics and could only be collated and verified for the purposes of answering this question at disproportionate cost.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what discussions she has had with the Mayor of London on supporting London boroughs to house asylum seekers.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Home Office is working closely with a range of stakeholders to fulfil its statutory obligations, while seeking to reduce the overall cost of asylum accommodation for the taxpayer.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what guidance her Department has issued on (a) ascertaining a court judgement and (b) informing a relevant local authority in cases where someone who (i) is seeking asylum, (ii) is housed in hotel accommodation and (iii) has been convicted of an offence has been given a non-custodial sentence.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)

No specific guidance has been published for the scenario referenced, but the Home Office works closely with our contracted accommodation providers and law enforcement partners to deal with any cases of concern, and we will always do everything necessary to keep local communities safe.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many asylum seekers who have had their applications rejected have been deported from the UK since July 2024; and what steps is she taking to increase such deportations in the next six months.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Home Office has recently published the number of asylum related returns between 05 July 2024 and 22 March 2025 in Returns from the UK from 5 July 2024 to 22 March 2025 - GOV.UK.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 12 March 2025 to Question 35307, on Asylum: Contracts, whether her Department directly procures asylum accommodation itself, separate to those contracts.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Home Office is working closely with a range of stakeholders to fulfil its statutory obligations, while seeking to reduce the overall cost of asylum accommodation for the taxpayer.

As part of this programme, the Home Office works with its contracted Estates delivery partner, Cushman and Wakefield, to identify potential leasehold and freehold properties for the Home Office to acquire. This involves assessing the feasibility of options and working with Local Authorities and MPs.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether, before selecting hotels as accommodation for asylum seekers, it is their policy to consult the chief executives and leaders of affected local authorities.

Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)

This Government inherited an asylum system under exceptional strain, with tens of thousands of people stuck in limbo without any prospect of having their claims processed. At their peak use under the previous Government, in the autumn of 2023, more than 400 asylum hotels were being leased by the Home Office, at a cost of almost £9 million a day.

Inevitably, due to the size of the backlog we inherited, the Government has been forced to continue with the use of hotels for the time being. It remains our absolute commitment to end the use of hotels over time, as part of our reduction in overall asylum accommodation costs.

When a hotel has been identified for use as contingency accommodation, Home Office officials will write to the local authority Chief Executive and the constituency MP to inform them of plans to accommodate asylum seekers there.

The Home Office continues to work closely with local authorities to manage all the pressures arising from the provision of asylum accommodation including the impact on wider local authority obligations and plans.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what discussions she has had with her international counterparts on third-country processing arrangements for people seeking to claim asylum in the UK.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Government will continue to work with international partners to tackle the global migration crisis. The Home Secretary has convened an international summit focussed on Organised Immigration Crime, bringing together Interior ministers and law enforcement experts from across the world to develop our combined response to the gangs who facilitate this vile trade in human lives.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to support victims of human trafficking in Havering London Borough.

Answered by Jess Phillips - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

The Government is committed to tackling modern slavery, ensuring that all victims are provided with the support they need to begin rebuilding their lives and that those responsible are prosecuted.

The Government offers support to all adult potential and confirmed victims of modern slavery in England and Wales through the Modern Slavery Victim Care Contract (MSVCC). Consenting adults who are potential victims of human trafficking can access safe and secure accommodation and financial support where necessary, and a support worker who will facilitate access to other support including medical assistance and mental health support, through the Modern Slavery Victim Care Contract.

Local authorities are responsible for safeguarding and promoting the welfare of all children in their area, including child victims of modern slavery. The Independent Child Trafficking Guardianship (ICTG) service, which is being piloted in Havering London Borough, also provides support to potential child victims of modern slavery. An ICTG offers direct or indirect support and advocacy to ensure the child is protected from further harm, and promote their child's recovery.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what is the average cost of a visa for a scientist from overseas to work in the UK, and whether they have benchmarked this against costs for similar visas provided by other countries.

Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)

The cost of a visa for a scientist to work in the UK will vary depending on the visa route they enter the UK through. Visa fees are published on gov.uk and can be viewed through the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/visa-fees-transparency-data.

Should an applicant wishing to work in the UK as a scientist apply for a skilled worker from overseas the current cost is £719 (up to three-years) or £1,420 (over three-years). Alternatively, should they enter the UK via the Global Talent route the current fee is £716. They could also apply for a 12-month Standard Visitor visa for academics which currently costs £200.

Visa products are difficult to compare because visa offers, including benefits and entitlements gained and duration of stay, vary significantly between countries. However, UK visa fees are broadly competitive when compared with the fees charged by comparative countries globally.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will take steps to establish a dedicated resettlement route for Palestinians leaving Gaza.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

The humanitarian situation in Gaza remains extremely challenging. The UK committed £129 million in the last financial year, including £41 million for UNRWA. This supports vital infrastructure and ensures that those most in need across the Occupied Palestinian Territories, as well as those in neighbouring countries, are able to access healthcare, shelter and food assistance.

In any humanitarian situation, the UK must carefully consider its approach in response. Any decision to implement a bespoke visa scheme would need to consider a range of factors, including assessing the unique crisis and relevant impacts on security, compliance and returns.

The Government is working with the Israeli, Jordanian and Egyptian authorities to identify safe routes for British nationals and other eligible people to leave Gaza. Palestinians who wish to settle in the UK can do so via the existing routes available which allow a person to apply to work, study, settle or join family in the UK. Further information can be found on the GOV.UK website: UK Visas and Immigration - GOV.UK.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what her policy is on Ukrainian families invited to the UK following the Russian invasion wishing to seek (a) employment, (b) rental agreements, (c) educational continuity for their children and (d) indefinite leave to remain; and whether time already spent in the UK counts towards qualifying for such leave.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

The UK’s Ukraine visa schemes (including the new Ukraine Permission Extension scheme) provide full access to the right to work, rent, access benefits, healthcare, and education in the UK.

The Ukraine Visa Schemes provide temporary sanctuary and do not lead to settlement in the UK. We recognise the Ukrainian government’s desire for the future return of its citizens to Ukraine. It is important our approach respects these wishes.

Similarly, time spent in the UK with permission granted under the Ukraine Schemes cannot be relied upon towards the continuous qualifying period for the purposes of a Long Residence application.

There are other routes available for those who wish to settle in the UK permanently, if they meet the requirements.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many and what proportion of applications for naturalisation as a British citizen took longer than the six month service standard in the latest reporting period for which data is available.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

The information requested is published at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/passports-and-citizenship-data-q4-2024.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Hanson of Flint on 25 March (HL5728), whether they collect or collate information about the removal of foreign nationals following the revocation of their student visas in unpublished format.

Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)

Official statistics published by the Home Office are kept under review in line with the Code of Practice for Statistics, taking into account a number of factors including user needs, the resources required to compile the statistics, as well as quality and availability of data. These reviews allow us to balance the production of our regular statistics whilst developing new statistics for future release.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Hanson of Flint on 25 March (HL5728), why information about the removal of foreign nationals following the revocation of student visas is not collected and published.

Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)

Official statistics published by the Home Office are kept under review in line with the Code of Practice for Statistics, taking into account a number of factors including user needs, the resources required to compile the statistics, as well as quality and availability of data. These reviews allow us to balance the production of our regular statistics whilst developing new statistics for future release.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they still intend to convert Derwentside immigration removal centre to a male-only facility.

Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)

Plans for Derwentside Immigration Removal Centre (IRC) are still being considered. Currently the centre remains a functioning female IRC, and we remain focused on the specific needs for women in our care.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what proportion of invoices from UK suppliers her Department paid within 10 days of receipt between September 2024 and February 2025.

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

All Government departments publish payment performance on a quarterly basis, showing the percentage of invoices paid in 5 days, the percentage of invoices paid in 30 days, and net debt interest liability. This is available on GOV.UK.

The Home Office’s payment performance is available at:

Home Office prompt payment data 2024 to 2025 (accessible) - GOV.UK

The specific information requested is not readily available, and could only be collated and verified for the purposes of answering this question at disproportionate cost.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much and what proportion of funding allocated to the (a) National Rural Crime Unit and (b) National Wildlife Crime Unit will be for (i) operations and (ii) activities in Northern Ireland.

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

Chief Constables have operational independence to tackle the crimes that matter most to their communities; these decisions will inform the support that they request and receive from the units in question.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to prevent illegal street vending in Greater London.

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

Responsibility for tackling illegal street vending in Greater London is a matter for the relevant local police forces.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to prevent pedal cycle theft within the Havering London Borough.

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

Bike theft has a significant impact on individuals and for too long, many victims have felt not enough was being done to prevent their bikes being stolen or track down the thieves responsible.

As part of this Government’s Plan for Change, our Safer Streets Mission is determined to clamp down on the crime that damages our communities, and affects people’s lives, and tackling theft is a crucial part of that work.

The BTP-led National Cycle Crime Group, working with DfT, have set up Cycle Crime Reduction Partnerships across the country to coordinate regional enforcement activity to disrupt organised cycle theft.

We are also delivering on our commitment to restore and strengthen neighbourhood policing, recruiting 13,000 police personnel into neighbourhood roles, ensuring every community has a named officer to turn to, and doubling investment to £200 million to kickstart this.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of whether particular types of retail outlets in high streets and town centres are used for money laundering from the sale of drugs.

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

The Government recognises that cash intensive businesses such as barber shops and nail bars can be exploited by criminals seeking to launder their criminal cash from serious and organised crime. Addressing cash-based money laundering is one of the strategic priorities of the National Economic Crime Centre which sits within the National Crime Agency, and who are currently working with partners to facilitate an increased operational response to this threat.

In parallel, the National Police Chiefs’ Council economic crime co-ordinators are engaged in the development of Clear Hold Build strategies to help police forces tackle serious and organised crime. Clear Hold Build aims to reclaim and rebuild neighbourhoods affected by organised crime, including tackling financial crime on the high street.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much funding her Department has provided for improving Automatic Number Plate Recognition systems in the last three years.

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

A total of £85.45 million has been provided for maintaining and improving national Automatic Number Plate Recognition systems in the last three years.

ANPR technology is used for law enforcement purposes, to help detect, deter and disrupt criminality at a local, force, regional and national level.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of reviewing the (a) categorisation of nitrous oxide as a Class C drug and (b) the potential impacts this categorisation has on levels of use of nitrous oxide.

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

Nitrous oxide was controlled as a Class C drug under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 in November 2023. At the same time the Misuse of Drugs Regulations 2001 were amended to regulate its lawful use in healthcare, catering and other sectors.

In the year to March 2024, the most recent year for which we have data, 0.9% of people aged 16 to 59 years in England and Wales reported having used nitrous oxide in the last year, a decrease compared to the previous year (1.3%). Various factors underlie drug use and this decline cannot be attributed directly to the control implemented in 2023.

The Government will continue to keep all drug legislation under review.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of regulations governing the sale of nitrous oxide.

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

Nitrous oxide was controlled as a Class C drug under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 in November 2023. At the same time the Misuse of Drugs Regulations 2001 were amended to regulate its lawful use in healthcare, catering and other sectors.

In the year to March 2024, the most recent year for which we have data, 0.9% of people aged 16 to 59 years in England and Wales reported having used nitrous oxide in the last year, a decrease compared to the previous year (1.3%). Various factors underlie drug use and this decline cannot be attributed directly to the control implemented in 2023.

The Government will continue to keep all drug legislation under review.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what discussions she has had with the (a) Mayor of London and (b) Metropolitan Police Commissioner on increasing investment in the Metropolitan Police Estate.

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

The Metropolitan Police will receive up to £3.8 billion in 2025-26, an increase of up to £262.1 million compared to the 2024-25 funding settlement. This represents a 7.4% cash increase and 4.9% real terms increase in funding.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people employed by the Metropolitan police in (a) counter terrorism and (b) other national responsibility areas are based outside London.

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

The Home Office does not hold the requested information. Details of the numbers of Metropolitan Police Services employees in different locations are a matter for the service itself.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many Metropolitan Police employees are based outside London.

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

The Home Office does not hold the requested information. Details of the numbers of Metropolitan Police Services employees in different locations are a matter for the service itself.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when her Department plans to respond to e-petition 701064.

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

A response was sent to the Petitions Committee (Commons Select Committee) on 3 April 2025 for consideration for publication.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many police officers are currently assigned to the Operation Olympos investigation into the Post Office Horizon case; what ranks they hold; whether they are full time or part time; and where they are based.

Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Home Office does not hold the requested information. The resourcing of individual police investigations are operational matters for the force responsible.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department has issued guidance to South Wales Police on the roll-out of facial recognition surveillance in a city-wide CCTV network.

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

All police forces are expected comply with existing legislation and published guidance when they use facial recognition technology. In particular, when forces use live facial recognition, they must comply with the College of Policing’s Authorised Professional Practice. Its use must always be justified and pass the tests of necessity, proportionality and use for a policing purpose.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a medal to recognise people who have suffered severe injuries in the line of duty.

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

It is only right that we recognise the sacrifices made many members of the emergency services and we are always willing to consider proposes for new medals towards that end.

However, any official award is a gift from the Government, on behalf of His Majesty The King, and the creation of a new award requires cross Government consensus and approval from the Committee on The Grant of Honours, Decorations and Medals (“HD Committee”), before advice is put to HM The King to make any subsequent decision.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what funding she has allocated to frontline policing to mitigate changes to employer National Insurance contributions.

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

The 2025-26 final police funding settlement provides funding of up to £19.6 billion for the policing system in England and Wales. This is an overall increase of up to £1.2 billion when compared to the 2024-25 and represents a 6.4% cash increase and 3.9% real terms increase in funding.

This includes an additional £230.3 million of funding for territorial police forces to cover the costs of the increases to National Insurance Contributions.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what proportion of her Department's budget was spent on international operations during the 2024-25 financial year to date.

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

Details of all the Departments expenditure, including on activities and operations overseas, are set out on a regular basis in the Home Office’s Annual Reports, published on Gov.uk.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she has made an assessment of the potential implications for her policies of police use of live facial recognition technology.

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

The Government supports the police use of live facial recognition technology and will continue to ensure the right balance is struck between ensuring public safety and safeguarding individuals’ rights.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many and what proportion of domestic abuse victims were (a) men and (b) boys in the latest period for which data is available.

Answered by Jess Phillips - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

The Crime Survey for England and Wales year ending September 2024 showed that 3% of men aged 16 and over were victims of domestic abuse between September 2023 and September 2024 (compared to 6.6% of women).

The Government funds services that provide essential support to male victims, including support in accessing safe accommodation. These include Respect, Galop, SignHealth and Hourglass.

According to Women's Aid 2025 Annual Audit report, there were 50 refuges in England with bedspaces for men in May 2024, an increase of 11 from the previous year.

Since 2021, Part 4 of the Domestic Abuse Act has required local authorities in England to ensure support is available to all victims of domestic abuse in safe accommodation such as refuges.

Local authority data shows that in 2023/24 there were 63,950 individuals supported in safe accommodation, of which 3% (1,830) were men.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many children were referred to the national referral mechanism in Huntingdon constituency in each year since its start.

Answered by Jess Phillips - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

The Home Office does not hold or publish data on the number of National Referral Mechanism (NRM) referrals received for individuals on a constituency level.

The Home Office publishes quarterly and annual statistics regarding the NRM including the nationality of children referred. NRM statistics can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/national-referral-mechanism-statistics

Further disaggregated data is published via the UK Data Service and can be accessed here: https://beta.ukdataservice.ac.uk/datacatalogue/studies/study?id=8910

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many and what proportion of refuge spaces for victims of domestic abuse are committed to supporting male survivors.

Answered by Jess Phillips - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

The Crime Survey for England and Wales year ending September 2024 showed that 3% of men aged 16 and over were victims of domestic abuse between September 2023 and September 2024 (compared to 6.6% of women).

The Government funds services that provide essential support to male victims, including support in accessing safe accommodation. These include Respect, Galop, SignHealth and Hourglass.

According to Women's Aid 2025 Annual Audit report, there were 50 refuges in England with bedspaces for men in May 2024, an increase of 11 from the previous year.

Since 2021, Part 4 of the Domestic Abuse Act has required local authorities in England to ensure support is available to all victims of domestic abuse in safe accommodation such as refuges.

Local authority data shows that in 2023/24 there were 63,950 individuals supported in safe accommodation, of which 3% (1,830) were men.

Found: We do not currently compete with the Home Office, DWP or HMRC.

Found: If the Chancellor is right and GNI goes up—and, indeed, if the Home Office is right and they are able

Found: the government's broader strategy, given their pledge to halve violence against women and girls (Home Office

Found: in the year ending September 2023, just over 13,000 dependent children sought asylum in the UK (Home Office

Found: aiming to enter HE. 1 Numbers in these categories in 2024 were 40,300 achieving refugee status, (Home Office

Found: Home Office data for 2024 shows that there was a year-on- year decrease across the sector of 14% in international

Found: Home Office data for 2024 shows that there was a year-on- year decrease across the sector of 14% in international

Found: Home Office data for 2024 shows that there was a year-on- year decrease across the sector of 14% in international

Found: Another reported that when they accepted a post abroad in France their spouse—a Civil Servant in the Home Office—had

Found: Letter from the Second Permanent Secretary of the Home Office relating to Committee’s report Asylum accommodation

Found: The Statutory Neonatal Care Pay (Administration) Regulations 2025 Appendix 5: Memorandum from the Home Office

Found: Government space and future flight roles, the new Regulatory Innovation Office, as well as MOD, the Home Office

Found: the retail sector HC 355 8th Carbon Capture, Usage and Storage HC 351 7th Asylum accommodation: Home Office

Found: The Home Office is currently working with a wide group of stakeholders from business, academia and civil

Found: the following: a) Taking implementation of s.54 of the MSA 2015 out of the jurisdiction of the Home Office

Found: Government’s Ending Homelessness Strategy will deliver joined-up solutions covering benefit support and Home Office

Found: of the increase in asylum claims and the rapid decision-making that has been undertaken by the Home Office

Found: According to the Home Office Asset Recovery Statistical Bulletin published in September 2024, the value

Found: On the need for temporary accommodation, a lot of that comes because of Home Office and other policies

Found: SCS0042 - Speaker’s Conference on the security of candidates, MPs and elections Home Office Written Evidence

Found: dispersal accommodation as an example of a lack of joined-up working across government, as the Home Office

Found: Home Office, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Home Office, and Ministry of Housing

Found: Home Office, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Home Office, and Ministry of Housing

Found: That is more than we spend on defence, the Home Office and the Ministry of Justice combined.

Found: The first line in the asylum and immigration system is often a Home Office caseworker, who will make

Found: that I have found a tremendous amount of overlap between what DCMS, the Health Department and the Home Office

Found: that I have found a tremendous amount of overlap between what DCMS, the Health Department and the Home Office

Found: that I have found a tremendous amount of overlap between what DCMS, the Health Department and the Home Office

Found: Dr Ben Brindle: Just to add to that, the Home Office will have a record of who has sponsored care workers

Found: While we have been hearing evidence, in the main Chamber of Parliament the British Home Office has been

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to provide sustainable funding to the British Transport Police.

Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The British Transport Police’s (BTP) budget is set independently by the British Transport Police Authority (BTPA) and the Department of Transport has no powers to intervene in this process. BTPA sets the BTP’s budget annually following proposals from the Force and views from industry. Set against a backdrop of wider public sector efficiencies and affordability by the rail industry it has agreed a budget increase for the financial year 2025/26 of 5.9%. This is comparable with the budget settlements of Home Office police forces.

The cost of policing the rail network in Great Britain is primarily covered through the funding agreements that the British Transport Police Authority holds with Network Rail, the rail operators and Transport for London.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether the Anti-Muslim Hatred/Islamophobia Definition Working Group is obliged to take into consideration the views of adherents of any other religion besides Islam.

Answered by Lord Khan of Burnley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

All forms of racial and religious discrimination are completely unacceptable and have no place in our communities.

In the most recently published Home Office statistics the number of religious hate crimes targeting Muslims accounted for 38% of all religious hate crimes. The number of religious hate crimes targeting Jews accounted for 33%. These together make up 71%, and show government action here is urgently needed and whilst the government has adopted the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s definition for antisemitism, it does not have an equivalent definition to aid its work in tackling hate directed towards Muslims.

The Anti-Muslim Hatred/Islamophobia Definition Working Group’s objective is to develop a working definition of Anti-Muslim Hatred/Islamophobia which is reflective of a wide range of perspectives and priorities for British Muslims. The Chair will agree a work and engagement plan with the Minister for Faith and Communities and will use this as the basis for the work of the Group.

The Group’s proposed definition will be non-statutory and will provide the government and other relevant bodies, including the police, with an understanding of unacceptable treatment and prejudice against Muslim communities.

Full terms of reference for the Working Group have been published on GOV.UK.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether the Anti-Muslim Hatred/Islamophobia Definition Working Group will meet with representatives of any other religion besides Islam.

Answered by Lord Khan of Burnley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

All forms of racial and religious discrimination are completely unacceptable and have no place in our communities.

In the most recently published Home Office statistics the number of religious hate crimes targeting Muslims accounted for 38% of all religious hate crimes. The number of religious hate crimes targeting Jews accounted for 33%. These together make up 71%, and show government action here is urgently needed and whilst the government has adopted the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s definition for antisemitism, it does not have an equivalent definition to aid its work in tackling hate directed towards Muslims.

The Anti-Muslim Hatred/Islamophobia Definition Working Group’s objective is to develop a working definition of Anti-Muslim Hatred/Islamophobia which is reflective of a wide range of perspectives and priorities for British Muslims. The Chair will agree a work and engagement plan with the Minister for Faith and Communities and will use this as the basis for the work of the Group.

The Group’s proposed definition will be non-statutory and will provide the government and other relevant bodies, including the police, with an understanding of unacceptable treatment and prejudice against Muslim communities.

Full terms of reference for the Working Group have been published on GOV.UK.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether the police will be expected to use the working definition of Anti-Muslim Hatred/Islamophobia once it is formulated by the Anti-Muslim Hatred/Islamophobia Definition Working Group.

Answered by Lord Khan of Burnley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

All forms of racial and religious discrimination are completely unacceptable and have no place in our communities.

In the most recently published Home Office statistics the number of religious hate crimes targeting Muslims accounted for 38% of all religious hate crimes. The number of religious hate crimes targeting Jews accounted for 33%. These together make up 71%, and show government action here is urgently needed and whilst the government has adopted the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s definition for antisemitism, it does not have an equivalent definition to aid its work in tackling hate directed towards Muslims.

The Anti-Muslim Hatred/Islamophobia Definition Working Group’s objective is to develop a working definition of Anti-Muslim Hatred/Islamophobia which is reflective of a wide range of perspectives and priorities for British Muslims. The Chair will agree a work and engagement plan with the Minister for Faith and Communities and will use this as the basis for the work of the Group.

The Group’s proposed definition will be non-statutory and will provide the government and other relevant bodies, including the police, with an understanding of unacceptable treatment and prejudice against Muslim communities.

Full terms of reference for the Working Group have been published on GOV.UK.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to formulate official definitions of hatred or abuse of adherents of Sikhism, Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism, or any other religions besides Islam.

Answered by Lord Khan of Burnley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

All forms of racial and religious discrimination are completely unacceptable and have no place in our communities.

In the most recently published Home Office statistics the number of religious hate crimes targeting Muslims accounted for 38% of all religious hate crimes. The number of religious hate crimes targeting Jews accounted for 33%. These together make up 71%, and show government action here is urgently needed and whilst the government has adopted the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s definition for antisemitism, it does not have an equivalent definition to aid its work in tackling hate directed towards Muslims.

The Anti-Muslim Hatred/Islamophobia Definition Working Group’s objective is to develop a working definition of Anti-Muslim Hatred/Islamophobia which is reflective of a wide range of perspectives and priorities for British Muslims. The Chair will agree a work and engagement plan with the Minister for Faith and Communities and will use this as the basis for the work of the Group.

The Group’s proposed definition will be non-statutory and will provide the government and other relevant bodies, including the police, with an understanding of unacceptable treatment and prejudice against Muslim communities.

Full terms of reference for the Working Group have been published on GOV.UK.

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

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the level of (1) theft from farms and (2) flytipping in each of the last three years, and what steps they are taking to reduce these.

Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Data on overall levels of farming theft has been collected by stakeholders. In 2023, National Farmers Union Mutual estimated the cost of specific crimes that victimise famers:

• GPS theft: £4.2 million
• Quad bike/All-Terrain vehicle theft: £3.2 million
• Agricultural vehicle theft: £10.7 million

We recognise the importance of tackling rural crime and are committed to safeguarding rural communities. The Home Office and Defra are working closely with the National Police Chiefs’ Council to deliver the updated Rural and Wildlife Crime Strategy.

The Equipment Theft (Prevention) Act 2023 requires secondary legislation before it can come into effect. We are currently considering the views of those who may be affected by the legislation and its regulations, to understand the potential implications and determine the scope of the legislation. We will publish the Government’s response to the Call for Evidence on the scope of the legislation soon and intend to have the necessary regulations in place later this year.

Local authorities are required to report fly-tipping incidents and enforcement actions to Defra, which we publish annually at https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/fly-tipping-in-england. This excludes the majority of private-land incidents.

Local authorities have enforcement powers to help them tackle fly-tipping, including fixed penalty notices and prosecution action which can lead to a significant fine or imprisonment. We intend to seek powers in the Crime and Policing Bill to enable the Secretary of State to issue statutory enforcement guidance to support local authorities to appropriately and consistently exercise their enforcement powers.

We have committed in our manifesto to forcing fly-tippers and vandals to clean up their mess. We will provide an update on this in due course.

We will continue to work with stakeholders through the National Fly-Tipping Prevention Group, such as the National Farmers Union, local authorities and police, to promote and disseminate good practice on tackling fly-tipping.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will require the Anti-Muslim Hatred/Islamophobia Definition Working Group to take into consideration the views of adherents of religions other than Islam; and if not, why not

Answered by Lord Khan of Burnley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

All forms of racial and religious discrimination are completely unacceptable and have no place in our communities.

In the most recently published Home Office statistics the number of religious hate crimes targeting Muslims accounted for 38% of all religious hate crimes. The number of religious hate crimes targeting Jews accounted for 33%. These together make up 71%, and show government action here is urgently needed. Whilst the government has adopted the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s definition for antisemitism, it does not have an equivalent definition to aid its work in tackling hate directed towards Muslims.

The Anti-Muslim Hatred/Islamophobia Definition Working Group’s objective is to develop a working definition of Anti-Muslim Hatred/Islamophobia which is reflective of a wide range of perspectives and priorities for British Muslims. Full terms of reference for the Working Group have been published on GOV.UK.

It is important that government is transparent in the actions it takes to address all forms of hatred, however any independent work should also have the space to consider sensitive and complex issues in private. This is the approach the Working Group will take when considering the appropriate and sensitive language to describe, understand and define unacceptable treatment, prejudice, discrimination and hate targeting Muslims or anyone who is perceived to be Muslim.

Once the Government has had time to review the advice, it will consider its next steps.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether the planned definition of Anti-Muslim Hatred/Islamophobia will allow for ridicule or abuse of Islamic beliefs and practices.

Answered by Lord Khan of Burnley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

All forms of racial and religious discrimination are completely unacceptable and have no place in our communities.

In the most recently published Home Office statistics the number of religious hate crimes targeting Muslims accounted for 38% of all religious hate crimes. The number of religious hate crimes targeting Jews accounted for 33%. These together make up 71%, and show government action here is urgently needed. Whilst the government has adopted the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s definition for antisemitism, it does not have an equivalent definition to aid its work in tackling hate directed towards Muslims.

The Anti-Muslim Hatred/Islamophobia Definition Working Group’s objective is to develop a working definition of Anti-Muslim Hatred/Islamophobia which is reflective of a wide range of perspectives and priorities for British Muslims. Full terms of reference for the Working Group have been published on GOV.UK.

It is important that government is transparent in the actions it takes to address all forms of hatred, however any independent work should also have the space to consider sensitive and complex issues in private. This is the approach the Working Group will take when considering the appropriate and sensitive language to describe, understand and define unacceptable treatment, prejudice, discrimination and hate targeting Muslims or anyone who is perceived to be Muslim.

Once the Government has had time to review the advice, it will consider its next steps.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will require the Anti-Muslim Hatred/Islamophobia Definition Working Group to meet adherents of religions other than Islam.

Answered by Lord Khan of Burnley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

All forms of racial and religious discrimination are completely unacceptable and have no place in our communities.

In the most recently published Home Office statistics the number of religious hate crimes targeting Muslims accounted for 38% of all religious hate crimes. The number of religious hate crimes targeting Jews accounted for 33%. These together make up 71%, and show government action here is urgently needed. Whilst the government has adopted the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s definition for antisemitism, it does not have an equivalent definition to aid its work in tackling hate directed towards Muslims.

The Anti-Muslim Hatred/Islamophobia Definition Working Group’s objective is to develop a working definition of Anti-Muslim Hatred/Islamophobia which is reflective of a wide range of perspectives and priorities for British Muslims. Full terms of reference for the Working Group have been published on GOV.UK.

It is important that government is transparent in the actions it takes to address all forms of hatred, however any independent work should also have the space to consider sensitive and complex issues in private. This is the approach the Working Group will take when considering the appropriate and sensitive language to describe, understand and define unacceptable treatment, prejudice, discrimination and hate targeting Muslims or anyone who is perceived to be Muslim.

Once the Government has had time to review the advice, it will consider its next steps.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government on what grounds they determined that the work of the Anti-Muslim Hatred/Islamophobia Definition Working Group should not be made public.

Answered by Lord Khan of Burnley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

All forms of racial and religious discrimination are completely unacceptable and have no place in our communities.

In the most recently published Home Office statistics the number of religious hate crimes targeting Muslims accounted for 38% of all religious hate crimes. The number of religious hate crimes targeting Jews accounted for 33%. These together make up 71%, and show government action here is urgently needed. Whilst the government has adopted the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s definition for antisemitism, it does not have an equivalent definition to aid its work in tackling hate directed towards Muslims.

The Anti-Muslim Hatred/Islamophobia Definition Working Group’s objective is to develop a working definition of Anti-Muslim Hatred/Islamophobia which is reflective of a wide range of perspectives and priorities for British Muslims. Full terms of reference for the Working Group have been published on GOV.UK.

It is important that government is transparent in the actions it takes to address all forms of hatred, however any independent work should also have the space to consider sensitive and complex issues in private. This is the approach the Working Group will take when considering the appropriate and sensitive language to describe, understand and define unacceptable treatment, prejudice, discrimination and hate targeting Muslims or anyone who is perceived to be Muslim.

Once the Government has had time to review the advice, it will consider its next steps.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will invite the Anti-Muslim Hatred/Islamophobia Definition Working Group in formulating its definition to protect freedom of expression in similar terms to the saving provision in section 29J of the Public Order Act 1986, so that the definition does not, for example, restrict criticism of Islam or prevent individuals from urging Muslims to cease practising Islam.

Answered by Lord Khan of Burnley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

All forms of racial and religious discrimination are completely unacceptable and have no place in our communities.

In the most recently published Home Office statistics the number of religious hate crimes targeting Muslims accounted for 38% of all religious hate crimes. The number of religious hate crimes targeting Jews accounted for 33%. These together make up 71%, and show government action here is urgently needed. Whilst the government has adopted the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s definition for antisemitism, it does not have an equivalent definition to aid its work in tackling hate directed towards Muslims.

The Anti-Muslim Hatred/Islamophobia Definition Working Group’s objective is to develop a working definition of Anti-Muslim Hatred/Islamophobia which is reflective of a wide range of perspectives and priorities for British Muslims. Full terms of reference for the Working Group have been published on GOV.UK.

It is important that government is transparent in the actions it takes to address all forms of hatred, however any independent work should also have the space to consider sensitive and complex issues in private. This is the approach the Working Group will take when considering the appropriate and sensitive language to describe, understand and define unacceptable treatment, prejudice, discrimination and hate targeting Muslims or anyone who is perceived to be Muslim.

Once the Government has had time to review the advice, it will consider its next steps.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to formulate official definitions of hatred or abuse against adherents of any religion other than Islam.

Answered by Lord Khan of Burnley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

All forms of racial and religious discrimination are completely unacceptable and have no place in our communities.

In the most recently published Home Office statistics the number of religious hate crimes targeting Muslims accounted for 38% of all religious hate crimes. The number of religious hate crimes targeting Jews accounted for 33%. These together make up 71%, and show government action here is urgently needed. Whilst the government has adopted the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s definition for antisemitism, it does not have an equivalent definition to aid its work in tackling hate directed towards Muslims.

The Anti-Muslim Hatred/Islamophobia Definition Working Group’s objective is to develop a working definition of Anti-Muslim Hatred/Islamophobia which is reflective of a wide range of perspectives and priorities for British Muslims. Full terms of reference for the Working Group have been published on GOV.UK.

It is important that government is transparent in the actions it takes to address all forms of hatred, however any independent work should also have the space to consider sensitive and complex issues in private. This is the approach the Working Group will take when considering the appropriate and sensitive language to describe, understand and define unacceptable treatment, prejudice, discrimination and hate targeting Muslims or anyone who is perceived to be Muslim.

Once the Government has had time to review the advice, it will consider its next steps.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many Christians have been recorded as victims of Islamophobic hate crimes in the last five years.

Answered by Lord Khan of Burnley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

MHCLG has policy responsibility for racial and religiously motivated hate crime, but all hate crime data recorded by the police is collected by the Home Office.

In the year ending March 2024, there were 140,561 hate crimes recorded by the police in England and Wales. There was a 5% decrease compared with the previous year on total hate crimes recorded, but there was a 25% increase in religious hate crimes compared with the previous year. 38% of religious hate crimes were targeted against Muslims, a 13% rise on the previous year.

The Home Office collects and publishes official statistics on religious hate crimes which is recorded by the police in England and Wales. This is broken down by the perceived religion of the victim, but information is not collected on the actual religion/identity of the victim, so it is not possible to disaggregate the number of victims of Islamophobic hate crimes who were not Muslims.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many non-Muslims have been recorded as victims of Islamophobic hate crimes in the last five years.

Answered by Lord Khan of Burnley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

MHCLG has policy responsibility for racial and religiously motivated hate crime, but all hate crime data recorded by the police is collected by the Home Office.

In the year ending March 2024, there were 140,561 hate crimes recorded by the police in England and Wales. There was a 5% decrease compared with the previous year on total hate crimes recorded, but there was a 25% increase in religious hate crimes compared with the previous year. 38% of religious hate crimes were targeted against Muslims, a 13% rise on the previous year.

The Home Office collects and publishes official statistics on religious hate crimes which is recorded by the police in England and Wales. This is broken down by the perceived religion of the victim, but information is not collected on the actual religion/identity of the victim, so it is not possible to disaggregate the number of victims of Islamophobic hate crimes who were not Muslims.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what information his Department holds on the number of 16-week old puppies brought into the UK for animal testing purposes in the latest period for which data is available.

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

Defra does not hold the data requested. Imports data drawn down from the import of products, animals, food and feed system (IPAFFS) does not record the age of the animal.

The Home Office assures that, in every research proposal, animals are replaced with non-animal alternatives wherever possible, the number of animals are reduced to the minimum necessary to achieve the result sought, and that, for those animals which must be used, procedures are refined as much as possible to minimise their suffering.

Dogs are a specially protected species under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986. The Home Office will only grant a project licence for a programme of work using dogs where the purpose of the programme of work specified in the licence can only be achieved by their use, or where it is not practicable to obtain other suitable animals.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on increased tax receipts as a result of new registers of beneficial ownership in overseas territories and crown dependencies.

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

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, Home Office and Treasury officials coordinate regularly on work around advancing beneficial ownership transparency. We are clear on the benefits of accessible registers of beneficial ownership, which not only include tackling illicit finance and corruption, but also fighting tax and sanctions evasion.

At the Overseas Territories Joint Ministerial Council (JMC) in November 2024, the Falkland Islands and Saint Helena committed to join Montserrat and Gibraltar in implementing fully public registers by April 2025. The British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Bermuda, Anguilla and Turks and Caicos Islands agreed to implement registers of beneficial ownership, accessible to those with a legitimate interest, by June 2025. It remains our expectation that the Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies will ultimately implement fully public registers.

The Crown Dependencies have committed to increasing the transparency of their beneficial ownership registers and are working towards implementing access to those with legitimate interest, in line with the EU's 6th Anti-Money Laundering Directive.

I have and will continue to raise this directly with elected leaders across the Overseas Territories, and Home Office Ministers and officials will continue to engage with the Crown Dependencies. I regularly engage with Ministerial colleagues on matters related to the Overseas Territories, including in HM Treasury.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to his Department's Civil Service HQ occupancy data transparency data, last updated on 28 February 2025, which changes in reporting methodology lead to a revision of the figures.

Answered by Abena Oppong-Asare - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

The revision of figures applied to the Home Office occupancy stats only. This was because of a change in reporting by the Home Office.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask His Majesty's Government what further consideration they have given to the size and coverage of the Shared Rural Network programme, and whether they have made any change to the scale of the programme or number of masts required as a result.

Answered by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

The Shared Rural Network (SRN) has already delivered significant coverage improvements across the UK. However, there are still rural parts of the UK where there is either limited or no mobile coverage. The government-funded parts of the SRN will deliver this new coverage by utilising existing Home Office masts across Great Britain and building new masts in Scotland. We continue to work with the four mobile network operators to minimise the number of new masts required in Scotland and now expect to meet this part of the programme’s objectives with far fewer masts than originally planned. We expect to reach a position on exactly how many new masts will be built in Scotland soon.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what proportion of the population of England and Wales has a criminal record.

Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

To answer the question exactly would be disproportionate costs. The Ministry of Justice holds an extract of data from the Police National Computer (PNC). To obtain data on all those with a criminal record would require collaborating with the Home Office as they hold the complete source data.

In October 2024, the Ministry of Justice published an ad-hoc statistical publication which estimated that 9.4 million working age people in the UK have a nominal record with a criminal element against their name held on the MoJ extract of the PNC. This is a high-level estimate based on the UK population and is equivalent to 22% of the working aged population (those aged 16-64). This is an estimate with limitations. A comprehensive programme of work would need to be undertaken to determine a precise figure and this would incur disproportionate cost.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of service life on non-UK nationality families of serving personnel.

Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)

This Government recognises and values the vital support which all Service families provide to our Armed Forces, which enables them to serve our country both in the UK and overseas in order to maintain national security.

We are therefore committed through the Armed Forces Covenant to continuously work to improve the lives of the Armed Forces community in conjunction with other Government Departments, and work is currently underway to fully extend the legal duty further.

For our non-UK families, much of that work focusses on their UK immigration status, and the Ministry of Defence works very closely with the Home Office to ensure that those who serve or have served in the Regular Armed Forces and their families are not disadvantaged by Service life. This includes special Immigration Rules Appendix HM Armed Forces which offer a number of advantages for families such as being exempt from paying the Immigration Health Surcharge to access NHS services; being granted visas for entry to the UK valid for up to 60 months compared to 30 months on other family routes; being able to count time outside the UK on accompanied overseas assignments towards future Settlement or naturalisation applications; and children born in the UK or qualifying territories to Serving personnel are British by birth.

Support and information is also available to families on a range of issues including relocation, accommodation, education and NHS facilities through the Single Services, the HIVE Information Centres, the new Families Hub and the Families Federations.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to help identify victims of child-trafficking in schools in Cambridgeshire.

Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

Protecting children requires cooperation and coordination across multiple agencies. Local authorities, police, and health services share a joint and equal statutory duty to work together to safeguard and promote the welfare of children. The three safeguarding partners (local authorities, police, and health services) collaborate with other relevant agencies, including education settings, to make strategic decisions essential for effective practice and child safety.

There is also an established robust framework in place in the form of ‘Keeping children safe in education’ (KCSIE), which is the statutory safeguarding framework to which all schools and colleges must have regard when safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children.

Part 1 of this guidance, which should be read by all staff who work directly with children, not only sets out the different types of abuse and harm but it also supports all staff to know what signs to look out for, including how to respond to any concerns about a child.

In addition, the guidance includes information on modern slavery, the National Referral Mechanism and links to joint guidance from the Department for Education and the Home Office. The full guidance can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/safeguarding-children-who-may-have-been-trafficked-practice-guidance.

This safeguarding framework ensures that all concerns are identified and managed swiftly, effectively and in line with local safeguarding protocols. Schools and colleges must also work with their local safeguarding partners to ensure these processes are implemented consistently.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will increase the powers of local education authorities to take action against parents who threaten teaching staff over decisions taken under school disciplinary procedures.

Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

No teacher should feel unsafe or face violence or abuse in the workplace. The department will always support teachers to ensure they can work in safe and calm classrooms. All school employers, including trusts, have a duty to take reasonable steps to protect the health, safety, and welfare of their employees.

Schools should have their own clear processes in place for dealing with issues of bullying or harassment from parents. All incidences of bullying or harassment by a parent should be reported immediately to the designated lead and head teacher or governing body or proprietor.

Should the incident constitute a potential criminal offence, it would be for the school to consider involving the police, having followed the advice contained in the ‘When to call the police’ guidance for schools and colleges by the National Police Chief’s Council, written in partnership with the department and Home Office.

For staff who are experiencing bullying or harassment from any source, support is available from sources including Education Support, a charity supporting the mental health and wellbeing of teachers and education staff in schools, colleges and universities.

Question to the Leader of the House:

To ask the Leader of the House, how many (a) oral statements, (b) urgent questions, (c) end of day adjournment debates and (d) Westminster Hall debates each Department has responded to since 5 July 2024.

Answered by Lucy Powell - Lord President of the Council and Leader of the House of Commons

Urgent questions, adjournment debates and Westminster Hall debates are a matter for the House. Information relating to each of these is available on the Parliament website.

The Government is responsible for the arrangement of oral statements. As of 3rd April 2025, there have been 129 oral statements from the following departments:

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if she will hold discussions with HM Courts and Tribunals Service on the potential merits of ensuring that domestic abuse victims attending Liverpool Family Court can use a different entrance to the building to that of their alleged perpetrator.

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

It is important that the Family Court works for children and families. That is why the Government is committed to ensuring there are adequate protections in place for users and that we improve the timeliness of cases.

I am aware that, due to the building’s architecture, layout and shared use there are issues in arranging separate entrances at Liverpool Family Court. To mitigate this, it is possible to arrange staggered arrival times, secure waiting rooms and separate exits. Special measures can be requested by contacting the court as soon as possible, ideally 5 days before the hearing. Liverpool Family Court's contact details can be found at: Liverpool Civil and Family Court - Find a Court or Tribunal - GOV.UK.

We recognise the significant impact that delay can have on children and families. We are committed to tackling backlog of cases we inherited from the previous Government and the latest published data shows progress is being made. When comparing October to December 2024 to the same period in 2023, under the previous Government, the average duration of private law cases has fallen from 45 to 42 weeks and care proceedings over the same period have fallen from 42 weeks to 36. We know that there is more to do and the Family Justice Board has agreed system-wide targets for 2025/26 and these are focused on increasing the proportion of public law cases concluded within the statutory 26-week timeframe and closing the longest running cases in both private and public law. To support this, Cheshire and Merseyside is a designated Trailblazer area, developing and testing targeted solutions to address the biggest local drivers of delays.

Our new Pathfinder courts are improving the experience and outcomes for children and parents involved in private law proceedings, and particularly those who may need additional support such as domestic abuse survivors. The pilot courts work closely with local domestic abuse agencies, including Independent Domestic Violence Advisers. The Pathfinder pilot started in February 2022 in Dorset and North Wales. It was expanded to Southeast Wales and Birmingham in 2024 and Mid and West Wales on 3 March 2025. Pathfinder will be rolled out to West Yorkshire on 3 June. Areas delivering the Pathfinder model for private family law are making significant progress in addressing delay, with the initial two pilot sites showing an 11-week reduction in average case duration and a 50% reduction in outstanding caseloads between February 2022 and November 2024.

Alongside improving how cases move through the system we need to properly support those involved. Victims of domestic abuse must receive emotional and practical support to recover and rebuild their lives. The Ministry of Justice provide Police and Crime Commissioners with annual grant funding to commission local support services. This includes ring-fenced funding for sexual violence and domestic abuse community-based services and Independent Sexual Violence and Domestic Abuse Advisors. Alongside this the Home Office runs the Flexible Fund, administered by Women’s Aid, which offers financial support to victims in specific circumstances.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps he is taking with the Secretary of State for the Home Department to prevent the online sale of illegal e-bikes.

Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

Product safety law requires that all consumer products placed on the UK market must be safe. The Office for Product Safety and Standards, in my Department, has a programme of work focused on tackling the sale of illegal e-bikes, making sure online platforms are aware of their responsibilities and working closely with Border Force on the issue at the UK Border. My officials work closely with counterparts across Government, including the Home Office on e-bike safety.

The Product Safety and Metrology Bill will provide powers that can be used to place new duties on online marketplaces with regards to unsafe products.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps her Department is taking to ensure the adequacy of the number of specialist domestic abuse services available to assist victims during the court process in Liverpool.

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

It is important that the Family Court works for children and families. That is why the Government is committed to ensuring there are adequate protections in place for users and that we improve the timeliness of cases.

I am aware that, due to the building’s architecture, layout and shared use there are issues in arranging separate entrances at Liverpool Family Court. To mitigate this, it is possible to arrange staggered arrival times, secure waiting rooms and separate exits. Special measures can be requested by contacting the court as soon as possible, ideally 5 days before the hearing. Liverpool Family Court's contact details can be found at: Liverpool Civil and Family Court - Find a Court or Tribunal - GOV.UK.

We recognise the significant impact that delay can have on children and families. We are committed to tackling backlog of cases we inherited from the previous Government and the latest published data shows progress is being made. When comparing October to December 2024 to the same period in 2023, under the previous Government, the average duration of private law cases has fallen from 45 to 42 weeks and care proceedings over the same period have fallen from 42 weeks to 36. We know that there is more to do and the Family Justice Board has agreed system-wide targets for 2025/26 and these are focused on increasing the proportion of public law cases concluded within the statutory 26-week timeframe and closing the longest running cases in both private and public law. To support this, Cheshire and Merseyside is a designated Trailblazer area, developing and testing targeted solutions to address the biggest local drivers of delays.

Our new Pathfinder courts are improving the experience and outcomes for children and parents involved in private law proceedings, and particularly those who may need additional support such as domestic abuse survivors. The pilot courts work closely with local domestic abuse agencies, including Independent Domestic Violence Advisers. The Pathfinder pilot started in February 2022 in Dorset and North Wales. It was expanded to Southeast Wales and Birmingham in 2024 and Mid and West Wales on 3 March 2025. Pathfinder will be rolled out to West Yorkshire on 3 June. Areas delivering the Pathfinder model for private family law are making significant progress in addressing delay, with the initial two pilot sites showing an 11-week reduction in average case duration and a 50% reduction in outstanding caseloads between February 2022 and November 2024.

Alongside improving how cases move through the system we need to properly support those involved. Victims of domestic abuse must receive emotional and practical support to recover and rebuild their lives. The Ministry of Justice provide Police and Crime Commissioners with annual grant funding to commission local support services. This includes ring-fenced funding for sexual violence and domestic abuse community-based services and Independent Sexual Violence and Domestic Abuse Advisors. Alongside this the Home Office runs the Flexible Fund, administered by Women’s Aid, which offers financial support to victims in specific circumstances.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps she is taking to the reduce the time taken for domestic abuse cases to reach family courts in (a) the North West and (b) Liverpool.

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

It is important that the Family Court works for children and families. That is why the Government is committed to ensuring there are adequate protections in place for users and that we improve the timeliness of cases.

I am aware that, due to the building’s architecture, layout and shared use there are issues in arranging separate entrances at Liverpool Family Court. To mitigate this, it is possible to arrange staggered arrival times, secure waiting rooms and separate exits. Special measures can be requested by contacting the court as soon as possible, ideally 5 days before the hearing. Liverpool Family Court's contact details can be found at: Liverpool Civil and Family Court - Find a Court or Tribunal - GOV.UK.

We recognise the significant impact that delay can have on children and families. We are committed to tackling backlog of cases we inherited from the previous Government and the latest published data shows progress is being made. When comparing October to December 2024 to the same period in 2023, under the previous Government, the average duration of private law cases has fallen from 45 to 42 weeks and care proceedings over the same period have fallen from 42 weeks to 36. We know that there is more to do and the Family Justice Board has agreed system-wide targets for 2025/26 and these are focused on increasing the proportion of public law cases concluded within the statutory 26-week timeframe and closing the longest running cases in both private and public law. To support this, Cheshire and Merseyside is a designated Trailblazer area, developing and testing targeted solutions to address the biggest local drivers of delays.

Our new Pathfinder courts are improving the experience and outcomes for children and parents involved in private law proceedings, and particularly those who may need additional support such as domestic abuse survivors. The pilot courts work closely with local domestic abuse agencies, including Independent Domestic Violence Advisers. The Pathfinder pilot started in February 2022 in Dorset and North Wales. It was expanded to Southeast Wales and Birmingham in 2024 and Mid and West Wales on 3 March 2025. Pathfinder will be rolled out to West Yorkshire on 3 June. Areas delivering the Pathfinder model for private family law are making significant progress in addressing delay, with the initial two pilot sites showing an 11-week reduction in average case duration and a 50% reduction in outstanding caseloads between February 2022 and November 2024.

Alongside improving how cases move through the system we need to properly support those involved. Victims of domestic abuse must receive emotional and practical support to recover and rebuild their lives. The Ministry of Justice provide Police and Crime Commissioners with annual grant funding to commission local support services. This includes ring-fenced funding for sexual violence and domestic abuse community-based services and Independent Sexual Violence and Domestic Abuse Advisors. Alongside this the Home Office runs the Flexible Fund, administered by Women’s Aid, which offers financial support to victims in specific circumstances.

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Found: • Gender-sensitive approaches “had not been mainstreamed” across Home Office services for refugees

Found: Education 10 2.4 Department of Health and Social Care 10 2.5 HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) 11 2.6 Home Office

Found: more detail see House of Commons Library, ‘Crime and Policing Bill 2024–25’, 6 March 2025. 132 Home Office

Found: more detail see House of Commons Library, ‘Crime and Policing Bill 2024–25’, 6 March 2025. 132 Home Office

Found: From: Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, Home Office and Feryal Clark MP Published

Found: , 2023 and 2024 Figure 2 legend: FCDO = Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office; HO = Home Office

Found: 5535.46351270295 0.360758166455674 4312.4072782705 0.306580352809567 -1223.05623443245 -0.220949199940664 Home Office

Found: science and cocktails lectures International review: immigration routes for social care workers Home Office

Found: acquisition of former HMP Northeye 32 Home Office Eighth report: Carbon capture, Usage and Storage

Found: acquisition of former HMP Northeye 32 Home Office Eighth report: Carbon capture, Usage and Storage

Found: All research involving animals is licensed by the Home Office, in accordance with relevant legislation

Found: Lord Hanson, Minister of State (Lords Minister) for the Home Office, today announced that Dr Sally Robinson

Found: But Dan added: “Line management is line management, whether you’re at the MoD, the Home Office, Tesco

Found: We are working closely with the Home Office to prepare for this and look forward to reporting on progress

Found: The prevalence of illegal workers is highlighted even further as the Home Office have increased fines

Found: From: Police Advisory Board for England and Wales and Home Office Published 11 April 2025

Found: Unsatisfactory performance or attendance, and conduct allegations: Chapter 4 of ‘ Home Office Guidance

Found: For more information, view the Home Office factsheets about Martyn’s Law.

Found: • The principle of alignment with Home Office forces to pay up to the full 10 hours unsocial hours

Found: in relation to effective pension age (EPA) moving to 65 which would give CNC parity with other Home- Office

Found: Home Secretary and are to be regarded as national recommendations for the College of Policing, Home Office

Found: Now criticising two-tier policing can be example of 'far-Right extremism' , leaked Home Office report

Found: • The Scottish Government is working closely with the Home Office to update the Prevent Duty Guidance

Found: use and physical or mental health issues—and use the property as a base for criminal activity (Home Office

Found: Children and Young People2024-12-11 00:00:00Meeting / with MPDame Angela Eagle, Minister of State (Home Office

Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many police (a) officers and (b) staff currently have access to a body-worn camera.

Answered by Constance, Angela - Cabinet Secretary for Justice and Home Affairs

As highlighted in the launch of Police Scotland's Body Worn Video (BWV) rollout, around 750 Tayside (D) Division officers, including road policing officers, operational support and custody staff, will be equipped with the new devices over the coming weeks. As the roll out progresses, Police Scotland will issue more than 10,500 Home Office-approved Motorola VB400 cameras to frontline officers from constable to inspector ranks, and to police custody staff, across the country.

Previously to this national rollout, approximately 440-Armed Policing Officers have access to BWV. BWV has been used in A Division since 2010 as part of a legacy Grampian Police deployment and currently have 228 operational devices in use on a pool basis. The national BWV solution will replace this legacy system in line with other divisions.

In total approximately 1440 BWV devices are currently operational with a mixed estate of both pool and personal issue. Training across Tayside is currently ongoing, which will increase officer use of this technology daily.

Found: This clause also addresses the historic legal vires for the Home Office Visas and Nationality Service

Found: Nationalities and Borders Act 2022 and Illegal Migration Act 2023 relating to child detention powers, Home Office

Found: Asylum and Immigration Bill (BSAIB), particularly the repeal of child detention powers,1 the Home Office

Found: clarification about how the issues addressed in clause 51 arose in the first place and whether the Home Office

Found: Asylum and Immigration Bill (BSAIB), particularly the repeal of child detention powers,1 the Home Office

Found: Nationalities and Borders Act 2022 and Illegal Migration Act 2023 relating to child detention powers, Home Office

Found: connection with the following three services provided by a third-party supplier on behalf of the Home Office

Found: This clause also addresses the historic legal vires for the Home Office Visas and Nationality Service

Found: items for NHS Wales Digital Health Identity Standard for Primary Care (NHS Login) Score of 2 • A Home Office

Found: The Home Office is responsible for this accommodation and your information request would be better sent

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