Asked by: Lord Swire (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have any guidance or advice for members of the public to deal with foxes that are ill or have mange.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This is a devolved matter and the information provided therefore relates to England only.
Members of the public are advised not to feed foxes, regardless of whether they are ill, because it can be detrimental for their health and change their natural behaviours, increasing potential for pathogen transmission.
The Chartered Institute of Environmental Health advise that whilst S. scabiei infestations (which in non-humans is referred to as ‘sarcoptic mange’) is contagious among foxes, there are few confirmed reports of mange being passed to dogs and little evidence to suggest outbreaks amongst domestic pets. The UK Health Security Agency advise that mange transmission between humans and animals has not been reported in the UK.
Animals with sarcoptic mange should be treated by a veterinarian but as foxes are wild animals, no one is responsible for seeking treatment for them and they can be dealt with by local landowners and vets as considered to be appropriate.
However, any suspicion of a notifiable disease such as rabies or influenza of avian origin in mammals must be reported immediately by calling 03000 200 301 in England.
Asked by: Lord Swire (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they consider any increase in urban fox populations to constitute a health or environmental risk to the public.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This is a devolved matter and the information provided therefore relates to England only.
Whilst there may have been an increase in the number of urban areas with resident foxes, we are not aware of an increased health or environmental risk to the public.
The Chartered Institute of Environmental Health has published guidance which indicates that the risk of catching an infection from a fox in the UK is very low and that whilst there may be a health risk if a person comes into direct contact with fox faeces, this can be reduced with appropriate hygiene.
Members of the public are advised not to feed foxes because it can be detrimental for their health and change their natural behaviours, increasing potential for pathogen transmission.
Asked by: Lord Swire (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with local authorities about any increase in the number of foxes in London.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government has not had any discussions with local authorities about the number of foxes in London.
Foxes are not protected for conservation purposes in England, and the owner or occupier of the property can decide whether to control them. Local authorities do not have a statutory responsibility to control them.
In conjunction with Government advice, the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health published guidance on the management of urban foxes for the benefit of local authorities, pest controllers and the public as part of their public health and protection resources.
Asked by: Lord Swire (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of any increase in the number of foxes in London.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government has not specifically assessed fox numbers in London.
In 2018, Natural England published the “Review of the Population and Conservation Status of British Mammals” which included an assessment of the fox population size and status in Britain; this was not specific to London.
In 2018, the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) co-authored research which measured fox group density in urban areas, which included London. Whilst this showed a general increase in the number of urban areas with resident foxes, fox density was not specifically higher in London than that of some other cities and no direct analysis has been carried out.
Asked by: Lord Swire (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by the Minister for the Cabinet Office on 9 February (HC110416), which (1) bodies, and (2) individuals, they consulted before making the strategic decision to adopt "UK Government" as the primary identity for all public-facing communications in the place of “HM Government”.
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
For information relating to stakeholder engagement, I refer the Noble Lord to Question HC112168:
Question: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the Prime Minister, as the King's principal adviser, (a) was consulted on and (b) approved the decision to change the HM Government identity to the UK Government; and whether the Prime Minister was advised by Tim Allan in this regard when Mr Allan was Executive Director of Communications. 112168
Answer: There are no plans to discontinue the use of “HM Government”.
Please refer to https://www.communications.gov.uk/guidance/marketing/branding-guidelines/ for guidance on logo use. There are no plans to publish the revised guidance held by the Government Digital Service and the Government Communication Service.
Communications teams are advised to use "UK Government" rather than departmental names and logos for announcements, to provide clarity to the public. This does not affect the use of "His Majesty's Government", which continues on relevant official communications and records.
"UK Government" has long been the term used for the government in public-facing communications. All governments have regularly reviewed and updated government branding guidance to ensure that communications with the public are clear.
This guidance was developed in consultation with relevant stakeholders and in accordance with standard protocols in Summer 2025.
Asked by: Lord Swire (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the effect of the asylum policies of the government of Germany on the number of Afghans seeking asylum in the United Kingdom.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Government has not undertaken a formal assessment of the isolated impact of stricter asylum policy measures introduced by the German government as part of the ‘migrationswende’ on Afghan asylum claims in the UK.
Afghan asylum claims to the UK are down 8% (September – September) from 2024-2025.
The Government does monitor global migration trends closely, including illegal migration into the UK via Europe. We have enhanced our close cooperation with European partners on this shared challenge, including with Germany via our Joint Action Plan, as members of the Calais Group and via EU agencies such as Europol and Frontex.
On 17 November 2025, the Home Secretary announced new measures in the asylum policy statement to Parliament, with the aim of reducing the pull factors which underpin illegal migration to the UK. Many of these measures are comparable to European counterparts and will restore order and control to the UK asylum system via EU agencies via EU agencies.
Asked by: Lord Swire (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government what the average sentence was for those found guilty of female genital mutilation in each of the last five years.
Answered by Baroness Levitt - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
The Ministry of Justice publishes data on prosecutions and average custodial sentence lengths at criminal courts in England and Wales in the Outcomes by Offences data tool, including offences under the Female Genital Mutilation Act 2003. They can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page here: Criminal Justice Statistics
The table below provides the number of prosecutions over the past 5 years for offences under the Female Genital Mutilation Act 2003. There have been no offenders sentenced to immediate custody during this period.
Offences under the Female Genital Mutilation Act 2003 | Year ending 30 June 2023 | Year ending 30 June 2025 |
Proceeded against | 1 | 1 |
Asked by: Lord Swire (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many prosecutions were brought for female genital mutilation in each of the past five years.
Answered by Baroness Levitt - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
The Ministry of Justice publishes data on prosecutions and average custodial sentence lengths at criminal courts in England and Wales in the Outcomes by Offences data tool, including offences under the Female Genital Mutilation Act 2003. They can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page here: Criminal Justice Statistics
The table below provides the number of prosecutions over the past 5 years for offences under the Female Genital Mutilation Act 2003. There have been no offenders sentenced to immediate custody during this period.
Offences under the Female Genital Mutilation Act 2003 | Year ending 30 June 2023 | Year ending 30 June 2025 |
Proceeded against | 1 | 1 |
Asked by: Lord Swire (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what publicity British embassies worldwide are undertaking to make clear the illegality of female genital mutilation in the UK.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
The UK has a zero-tolerance approach for all forms of female genital mutilation (FGM) including medicalisation. There is no medical justification for FGM in any circumstances.
The Government's new strategy for tackling Violence against Women and Girls, published on 18 December, sets out the actions we are taking against so-called honour-based violence in the UK, including FGM. The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office will play its full part in the implementation of that strategy, including ensuring that our posts around the world are communicating its contents as appropriate through their work in each country.
Asked by: Lord Swire (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many people have been stopped and arrested for attempting to take girls abroad for female genital mutilation in each of the last five years.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) is a crime, it is child abuse, and it can destroy lives. On Thursday 18 December, we published the VAWG Strategy setting out the strategic direction and concrete actions to deliver on the Government’s VAWG ambition, including on FGM.
The Home Office routinely collects and publishes data on police recorded crime that has been flagged as FGM. In the year ending March 2025, there were 109 FGM offences recorded by the police. We do not collect data on whether these cases involve a risk of FGM taking place abroad or within England and Wales. This data also only represents cases reported to and recorded by the police as FGM. For that reason, it does not reflect the true scale of the crime.
FGM is not confined to one group. It affects many communities and is carried out in various forms. That is why improving our understanding of the scale and nature of this horrific crime is essential to ensure there is adequate support available. Building on a feasibility study conducted by the University of Birmingham in 2024, the Home Office has commissioned a study this financial year to test the viability of producing a national prevalence estimate for FGM (and forced marriage).