Asked by: Alison Bennett (Liberal Democrat - Mid Sussex)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment he has made of the benefits of extending protections for retail workers to retail delivery drivers in the Crime and Policing Bill.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Home Office)
Under the previous government, shop theft soared to record highs, with more and more offenders using violence and abuse against shopworkers. We won’t stand for this because everybody has a right to feel safe at their place of work.
To tackle the unacceptable surge in shoplifting and retail crime, and following years of campaigning, our Crime and Policing Bill introduces 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.
As introduced, the definition of a ‘retail worker’ does not include delivery drivers. 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 whole purpose of the parliamentary process is to scrutinise the provisions in the Bill and we will, of course, consider carefully any amendments and supporting evidence.
Public-facing workers are also covered by the aggravating factor introduced by the Police, Crime, Courts and Sentencing Act, which ensures the courts consider the public-facing nature of a victim’s role when issuing a sentence for an offence and sends a clear message that violence and abuse towards any worker will not be tolerated. We expect those who perpetrate these damaging crimes to always face the full force of the law.
Through the passage of this Bill, we will continue to engage with a number of stakeholders across relevant sectors to ensure the law is fit for purpose to protect all public-facing workers from violence and abuse.
Asked by: Alison Bennett (Liberal Democrat - Mid Sussex)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what discussions he has had with the Leader of the House on the timetable for bringing forward statutory instruments to make amendments to The Furniture and Furnishings (Fire) (Safety) Regulations 1988.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
I have not discussed this with the Leader of the House. As announced in the policy paper ‘The fire safety of domestic upholstered furniture’, published on January 22, the Government will bring forward amendments to the Furniture and Furnishings (Fire) (Safety) Regulations 1988, in advance of longer-term reforms.
The SI will be laid when parliamentary time allows.
Asked by: Alison Bennett (Liberal Democrat - Mid Sussex)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what plans she has to reduce the number of attacks on prison staff.
Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
Staff must be able to expect a safe and decent work environment. We will not tolerate any violence against prison officers and prisoners who are violent towards staff will face the full consequences of their actions.
The Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 doubled the maximum penalty to up to two years’ imprisonment for those who assault emergency workers, including prison officers.
To protect staff from serious assaults, PAVA – a synthetic pepper spray – is available for use by prison officers in the adult male estate.
Over 13,000 next generation Body Worn Video Cameras are available across public sector prisons, meaning every Band 3-5 officer can wear a camera whilst on shift. This will provide high-quality evidence to support prosecutions against those who commit assaults against staff. All cameras have pre-record capability which will help capture the lead up to events.
Asked by: Alison Bennett (Liberal Democrat - Mid Sussex)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps she plans to take to reduce deaths in custody.
Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
Every death in custody is a tragedy and we continue to do all we can to improve the safety of prisoners.
The Prisons and Probation Ombudsman investigates the deaths of prisoners in custody. The investigations are a vital tool to ensure lessons are learned following deaths in prison and to improve safety outcomes in the future.
We provide individualised support through our case management process for people assessed as at risk of suicide and self-harm. This approach places a strong emphasis on identifying individual risks, triggers and protective factors and having effective care plans in place to record, address and mitigate risks.
All new members of staff with prisoner contact receive training on suicide and self-harm prevention.
We continue to work with Samaritans to provide support in the period following a self-inflicted death in order to reduce the risk of further deaths and for the delivery of the Listener scheme, through which selected prisoners are trained to provide emotional support to their fellow prisoners.
Asked by: Alison Bennett (Liberal Democrat - Mid Sussex)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that retailers (a) provide (i) clear, (ii) accurate and (iii) impartial information on the nutritional sufficiency of infant formula products in (A) retail outlets and (B) online shopping channels and (b) display brands of infant formula together on retail shelves.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Infant feeding is critical to a baby’s healthy growth and development. The Government is committed to giving every child the best start in life and that includes helping families to access support to feed their baby.
Whilst breastfeeding has significant health benefits, we recognise that for those families that cannot or choose not to breastfeed, it is vital that they have access to infant formula that is affordable and high quality. Infant formula regulations ensure that all infant formula is suitable for meeting the nutritional needs of babies, regardless of the price or brand.
The Government welcomes the Competition and Markets Authority’s market study report on infant formula and follow-on formula. The report included recommendations related to clear, accurate and impartial information on the nutritional sufficiency of all infant formula products on product labelling and in retail settings as well as a recommendation related to displaying all brands of infant formula together and separate from other formula milks. We will carefully consider its findings and recommendations and respond in due course.
Asked by: Alison Bennett (Liberal Democrat - Mid Sussex)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that healthcare settings provide (i) timely, (ii) clear, (iii) accurate and (iv) impartial information on the nutritional sufficiency of infant formula products and (b) implement standardised infant formula labelling on products.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Infant feeding is critical to a baby’s healthy growth and development. The Government is committed to giving every child the best start in life and that includes helping families to access support to feed their baby.
Whilst breastfeeding has significant health benefits, we recognise that for those families that cannot or choose not to breastfeed, it is vital that they have access to infant formula that is affordable and high quality. Infant formula regulations ensure that all infant formula is suitable for meeting the nutritional needs of babies, regardless of the price or brand.
The Government welcomes the Competition and Markets Authority’s market study report on infant formula and follow-on formula. The report included recommendations related to clear, accurate and impartial information on the nutritional sufficiency of all infant formula products on product labelling and in retail settings as well as a recommendation related to displaying all brands of infant formula together and separate from other formula milks. We will carefully consider its findings and recommendations and respond in due course.
Asked by: Alison Bennett (Liberal Democrat - Mid Sussex)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether money spent on the UK and Rwanda Migration and Economic Development Partnership has been distributed to M23 militias in the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)
Under the previous government’s Migration and Economic Development Partnership (MEDP) with Rwanda, an Economic Transformation and Integration Fund was agreed to support the Government of Rwanda to achieve its Vision 2050 and National Strategy for Transformation 1 development strategies, which are intended to support sustainable and inclusive economic growth within Rwanda and improve the conditions of the existing refugee population and host communities, including in areas such as education, healthcare, agriculture, infrastructure, and job creation.
Further costs relating to the MEDP have been published here: Breakdown of Home Office costs associated with the MEDP with Rwanda and the Illegal Migration Act 2023 - GOV.UK.
Asked by: Alison Bennett (Liberal Democrat - Mid Sussex)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will publish funding by the Better Care Fund to support unpaid carers for (a) 2023 and (b) 2024, by region.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 3 March 2025 to Question 33291.
Asked by: Alison Bennett (Liberal Democrat - Mid Sussex)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to ensure the protection of personal data in the context of Apple’s withdrawal of Advanced Data Protection.
Answered by Dan Jarvis - Minister of State (Home Office)
The UK has a strong track record of protecting people’s privacy whilst also ensuring action can be taken against child sexual abusers and terrorists.
The Investigatory Powers Act contains robust safeguards and independent oversight to protect privacy and ensure that data is only obtained on an exceptional basis and only when it is necessary and proportionate to do so.
The Home Office does not comment on operational matters. This has been the longstanding position of successive UK Governments for reasons of national security.
Asked by: Alison Bennett (Liberal Democrat - Mid Sussex)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what plans his Department has to introduce a licensing scheme for builders undertaking domestic building works.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
This Government is working to ensure we have a high-quality and professional construction industry, with consumer protection at the heart of this. TrustMark, sponsored by the Department and licenced by the Government, is the Government Endorsed Quality Scheme that covers work a consumer chooses to have carried out in or around their home. In addition, the Building Safety Act 2022 has introduced competence requirements for both individuals and businesses working in the built environment.
Any action that the Government takes on licensing to protect customers and standards needs to be robust, proportionate and evidence based.