Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what discussions she has had with MBR Acres about rehoming beagles who do not meet laboratory requirements.

Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Home Office engages with licensed establishments, including MBR Acres, through its regulatory activity. The Home Office provides a clear framework to all licensed establishments that supports the rehoming of animals where the statutory safeguards can be met and the welfare of the animals concerned remains the primary consideration.

Decisions on whether an individual animal is suitable for rehoming are made on a case-by-case basis, informed by veterinary advice and the animal’s health, welfare and behavioural needs. Where the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 applies, rehoming must meet the relevant statutory safeguards.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether she plans to review the effectiveness of penalties for drivers who fail to stop when directed to do so by police; and whether her Department has assessed the potential road-safety benefits of legislative reforms adopted in Queensland and Western Australia to deter motorists from evading police pursuits.

Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

Drivers are required by law to stop when directed to do so by a police officer in uniform. Failing to do so is an offence.

Drivers who drive dangerously while evading police can also be prosecuted for dangerous driving, which carries a maximum sentence of two years’ imprisonment, an unlimited fine and obligatory disqualification from driving. The sentencing guidelines treat evading police as a ‘high-culpability’ factor. This means the driver’s actions attract a greater degree of blame, which is taken into account when the court decides the sentence. We are not currently considering introducing a separate offence combining failure to stop for police and dangerous driving, but we keep the motoring offences framework under review.

The police and Crown Prosecution Service decide whether to bring charges, and the courts decide the sentence in each case.

The Department has not assessed the road-safety benefits of the legislative reforms adopted in Western Australia and Queensland. However, alongside the Road Safety Strategy, the Government consulted on changes to motoring offences, including introducing penalty points for failing to stop for police and requiring drivers to switch off their engines when stopped. The consultation closed on 11 May 2026 and responses are being analysed.

The decision to commence, continue or terminate a police pursuit is an operational matter for the officers involved.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether she has considered introducing a specific criminal offence for motorists who fail to stop for police and engage in dangerous driving while attempting to evade pursuit; and if she will review international approaches to strengthening penalties for such offences.

Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

Drivers are required by law to stop when directed to do so by a police officer in uniform. Failing to do so is an offence.

Drivers who drive dangerously while evading police can also be prosecuted for dangerous driving, which carries a maximum sentence of two years’ imprisonment, an unlimited fine and obligatory disqualification from driving. The sentencing guidelines treat evading police as a ‘high-culpability’ factor. This means the driver’s actions attract a greater degree of blame, which is taken into account when the court decides the sentence. We are not currently considering introducing a separate offence combining failure to stop for police and dangerous driving, but we keep the motoring offences framework under review.

The police and Crown Prosecution Service decide whether to bring charges, and the courts decide the sentence in each case.

The Department has not assessed the road-safety benefits of the legislative reforms adopted in Western Australia and Queensland. However, alongside the Road Safety Strategy, the Government consulted on changes to motoring offences, including introducing penalty points for failing to stop for police and requiring drivers to switch off their engines when stopped. The consultation closed on 11 May 2026 and responses are being analysed.

The decision to commence, continue or terminate a police pursuit is an operational matter for the officers involved.

Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness and independence of the Independent Press Standards Organisation, in light of its record on upholding complaints, conducting standards investigations and issuing sanctions against member publishers.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)

The UK has a self-regulatory system for the press, which is independent from Government. An independent press is important for press freedom and to ensure the public has access to accurate and trustworthy information from a range of different sources.

We expect all publishers to operate within the bounds of the law and adhere to high ethical and professional standards, as well as ensure appropriate routes to redress if these standards are not met. However, the Government does not intervene in or evaluate the work of regulators, including the Independent Press Standards Organisation. Since the findings of the Leveson Report in 2012 there has been a substantial shift in the regulatory landscape, including the establishment of two regulators, IPSO and Impress, as well as the Press Recognition Panel, to ensure these high standards are met.

Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether her Department will consider the potential merits of establishing a new independent system of press regulation, audited against the Leveson criteria.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)

The UK has a self-regulatory system for the press, which is independent from Government. An independent press is important for press freedom and to ensure the public has access to accurate and trustworthy information from a range of different sources.

We expect all publishers to operate within the bounds of the law and adhere to high ethical and professional standards, as well as ensure appropriate routes to redress if these standards are not met. However, the Government does not intervene in or evaluate the work of regulators, including the Independent Press Standards Organisation. Since the findings of the Leveson Report in 2012 there has been a substantial shift in the regulatory landscape, including the establishment of two regulators, IPSO and Impress, as well as the Press Recognition Panel, to ensure these high standards are met.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she has considered the potential merits of upgrading nitrous oxide to a higher drug class; and whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing tougher penalties for the supply and use of nitrous oxide, particularly in cases where individuals drive under its influence.

Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)

Nitrous oxide was controlled in November 2023 as a Class C drug under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 (“the 1971 Act”). Illicit supply can lead to up to 14 years’ imprisonment and possession up to two years’ imprisonment. The Government will continue to keep the measures related to nitrous oxide under the 1971 Act under review, but there are currently no plans to change its classification.

Data from the Crime Survey for England and Wales suggests that the use of nitrous oxide decreased among those aged 16 to 59 from 0.9% in the year ending March 2024 to 0.5% in the year ending March 2025. This is equivalent to a reduction from an estimated 311,000 users to 151,000.

Under section 4 of the Road Traffic Act 1988, a person commits an offence if their ability to drive is impaired by drugs, including nitrous oxide. A person convicted of driving or attempting to drive while impaired can face up to six months' imprisonment, an unlimited fine, and a driving disqualification of at least 12 months.

There are no specific proposals to increase these penalties. The Department for Transport has consulted on possible changes to the motoring offences framework, including drink and drug driving penalties and enforcement. The consultation has now closed and responses are being considered.

150th anniversary of Stourbridge Football Club

Module 3 of the UK Covid-19 Inquiry

Arrests of Friends of Standing Together and British nationals in the West Bank

Cleaning and catering workers on Transpennine Express

Cleaners on Merseyrail

Student finance

UK Disability History Month

Cable Street 90th anniversary

Support for outsourced gatesolutions catering workers at LNER

Seafarers and the Employment Rights Act 2025

Fur Belongs to Animals campaign

Contribution of cinemas to local communities

International panel on inequality and the UK's 2027 G20 presidency

150th anniversary of the Cruelty to Animals Act 1876

90th anniversary of the Jarrow Crusade

Abuse Doesn't Fly campaign

Food Club Survey report

Taxation of bank windfall profits

Consultation on an alternative second chamber