Asked by: Andrew Murrison (Conservative - South West Wiltshire)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether he will make an assessment of the potential merits of the New Zealand model of Integrated Retirement Communities in formulating the Housing Strategy.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the Rt Hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 87630 on 11 November 2025.
Asked by: Andrew Murrison (Conservative - South West Wiltshire)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will include a Retirement Occupancy Lease in the forthcoming Housing Strategy as a means to facilitate Independent Retirement Communities.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the Rt Hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 87630 on 11 November 2025.
Asked by: Andrew Murrison (Conservative - South West Wiltshire)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, when he last met the Associated Retirement Community Operator (ARCO) to discuss the upcoming Housing Strategy.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the Rt Hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 87630 on 11 November 2025.
Asked by: Andrew Murrison (Conservative - South West Wiltshire)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether the Housing Strategy will include a plan for Integrated Retirement Communities.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the Rt Hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 87630 on 11 November 2025.
Asked by: Andrew Murrison (Conservative - South West Wiltshire)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether the Government plans to reopen (a) military and (b) non-military government training opportunities to Israelis following the ceasefire in Gaza.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK has a long history of providing assistance to other nations in the security and justice fields and continues to do so around the world. UK training courses promote British values, including human rights, democracy, and compliance with international humanitarian law.
The Ministry of Defence decided to pause future Israeli participation on UK training and education courses until the situation in Gaza and the West Bank had been satisfactorily addressed. Since the ceasefire we have continued to monitor the situation in Gaza and the West Bank, and the Government will keep this decision under review.
Asked by: Andrew Murrison (Conservative - South West Wiltshire)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to his Answer of 17 October 2025 to Question 77029 on Israel: Military Aid, following the ceasefire in Gaza, when he will review his decision on Israeli defence personnel attendance on UK courses.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
The Ministry of Defence decided to pause future Israeli participation on UK training and education courses until the situation in Gaza and the West Bank had been satisfactorily addressed We will keep this decision under review.
Asked by: Andrew Murrison (Conservative - South West Wiltshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much his Department spent on (a) external tenders and (b) contracts for (i) translation and (ii) interpretation services in the NHS in the last 12 months for which information is available.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department’s expenditure with external suppliers of translation or interpretation services from 1 October 2024 to 1 October 2025 was £32,442.
Asked by: Andrew Murrison (Conservative - South West Wiltshire)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the Prime Minister's oral contributions during Prime Minister's Questions on 10 September 2025, Official Report, if she will publish (a) the procedure followed for the appointment of Ambassadors and High Commissioners that are not career diplomats, (b) details of the independent element and (c) a list of the due diligence measures that are applied in such cases.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
All appointees for Ambassador and High Commissioner roles are subject to the same standard of background and vetting procedures. Pre-posting processes, including security vetting, are conducted for each appointment. We do not comment on the details of individual clearances or national security as a matter of course.
Asked by: Andrew Murrison (Conservative - South West Wiltshire)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many Israeli (a) civilians, (b) military officers, (c) military other ranks and (d) defence healthcare workers have previously accessed UK (i) defence courses (ii) training in each year for which records are available.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
Our records indicate 174 Israelis have previously accessed UK-based defence courses and training, between the years of 1976 and 2024. Further detail is provided in the attached Annex. Data has been obtained from all available sources but is not guaranteed to be exhaustive given the length of time and because training data is not held in a central database.
The data obtained does not differentiate between defence courses and training.
I would also note that positions on some UK courses are offered to the Israeli Ministry of Defence – who then allocate positions across the Israel Defence Force.
As you will be aware, the Government took the decision to pause Israeli Defence attendance on UK professional military education given our concerns about the military operation in Gaza. We are keeping this decision under review.
Asked by: Andrew Murrison (Conservative - South West Wiltshire)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will publish his Department's impact assessment for the removal of UK military courses from Israeli nationals.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
To protect formulation of Government policy, advice provided to Ministers on this matter will not be published.
Given our concerns regarding the Israeli Defence Force’s conduct in Palestine, particularly following the Government of Israel’s decision to escalate its offensive in Gaza City, the Ministry of Defence decided to pause future Israeli participation on UK training and education courses.
To avoid significant disruption to students and their families, any students on UK courses that are currently running have been permitted to continue.
We are keeping this decision under review and are mindful of the potential prospects for a ceasefire and long-term resolution to the conflict.