Asked by: Angus MacDonald (Liberal Democrat - Inverness, Skye and West Ross-shire)
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 amount of resources available to police forces to investigate wildlife crime.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
Wildlife crime can have devastating consequences for our natural environments and countryside communities. This Government is committed to reducing crime, including in rural areas, and anyone exploiting or deliberately harming British wildlife should face the full force of the law.
This financial year, we are continuing to fund the National Wildlife Crime Unit who provide intelligence, analysis and investigative assistance to forces and other law enforcement agencies across the UK to support them in investigating wildlife crime.
Additionally, the Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee will ensure that every community in England and Wales will have named and contactable officers dealing with local issues, and that neighbourhood teams spend the majority of their time in their communities providing visible patrols and engaging with local communities and businesses.
Asked by: Angus MacDonald (Liberal Democrat - Inverness, Skye and West Ross-shire)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she has made an assessment of the adequacy of the transparency of letting arrangements for residential properties managed by the Crown Estate.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The Crown Estate operates under the requirements set out in the Crown Estate Act 1961, including the requirement to lay in the Houses of Parliament an annual report and accounts audited by the Comptroller and Auditor General. The Comptroller and Auditor General may also carry out value for money studies of The Crown Estate under the National Audit Act 1983, and has access to Crown Estate information in the same way as they do for government departments.
Asked by: Angus MacDonald (Liberal Democrat - Inverness, Skye and West Ross-shire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to help prevent offences against protected species.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government takes crimes against wildlife seriously and there is a range of legislation in place to protect it. Most notably, the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 protects all wild birds and some wild animals in England and Wales.
Under this Act, as well as the Wild Mammals (Protection) Act 1996 and the Animal Welfare Act 2006, and species-specific legislation such as the Protection of Badgers Act 1992, there are a range of offences around deliberate attempts to kill, injure or inflict harm on protected species of wildlife.
Additionally, Defra supports the National Wildlife Crime Unit (NWCU), which helps prevent and detect wildlife crime by obtaining and disseminating intelligence, undertaking analysis which highlights local or national threats and directly assisting law enforcers in their investigations. Defra is providing £424,000 for NWCU in the financial year 2025-26.
Furthermore, the UK Wildlife Trade Regulations (WTRs) implement the UK’s obligations under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) to ensure trade in protected species is legal and sustainable. Breaches can lead to prosecution with penalties of up to seven years’ imprisonment or unlimited fines, providing a strong deterrent against wildlife crime.
Asked by: Angus MacDonald (Liberal Democrat - Inverness, Skye and West Ross-shire)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of increasing public access to free, impartial financial guidance on (a) financial wellbeing and (b) household financial resilience.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The government recognises the importance of supporting people of all ages to develop the financial skills needed to manage their money effectively, and has taken steps to improve the provision of accessible financial guidance.
The Money and Pensions Service (MaPS) is an arm’s length body of Government which supports consumers with free, impartial financial guidance for every stage of their financial lives. Its MoneyHelper services – available online, via webchat and over the phone - offers information on a wide range of financial topics, along with easy-to-use tools and calculators to support people in managing their finances.
MaPS also runs the Money Guiders programme, which is designed to equip frontline staff – such as nurses, social workers, job coaches and community volunteers – with the skills and confidence to have effective conversations about money with the people they support. As set out in the Financial Inclusion Strategy, published on 5th November 2025, MaPS will expand and enhance Money Guiders to deliver quality financial guidance across the UK.
To date, Money Guiders has engaged over 18,000 practitioners and partnered with nearly 300 organisations. Evidence suggests that the programme has a positive impact on practitioner knowledge and understanding relating to money guidance, and their confidence delivering it, making it easier for people to access financial guidance when they need it. MaPS continues to evaluate the reach and impact of its guidance services.