Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 29 October 2025 to Question 84961 on Armed Forces: Northern Ireland, whether there were any remuneration capping arrangements applied to legal costs incurred in the defence of Soldier F; and whether Schedule 1 of the Legal Aid for Crown Court Proceedings (Costs) Rules (Northern Ireland) 2005 was applied to defence costs.

Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)

The Ministry of Defence (MOD) did not impose any cap on the legal costs associated with the defence of Soldier F. Schedule 1 of the Legal Aid for Crown Court Proceedings (Costs) Rules (Northern Ireland) 2005 does not apply to costs funded by the MOD.

The MOD will continue to provide the welfare and legal support to all Service personnel that served during the Troubles.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 29 October 2025 to Question 84961 on Armed Forces: Northern Ireland, what the hourly rate of legal fees paid to (a) Senior Counsel, (b) Junior Counsel and (c) solicitors instructed during the course of proceedings were.

Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)

This is considered commercially sensitive information and is being withheld accordingly.

The MOD will continue to provide the welfare and legal support to all service personnel that served during the Troubles.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what progress he has made on implementing an energy labelling scheme that is compatible with EU standards.

Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

The Government is assessing updates to Great Britian’s energy labelling standards on a case-by-case basis. The department is working to address challenges from differing labelling regimes, informed by independent analysis of EU standards and potential implications for the UK internal market.

Additional information on energy labelling can be found here: https://energysavingtrust.org.uk/advice/home-appliances/. Further guidance on energy labelling for suppliers can be found here https://www.gov.uk/guidance/the-energy-labelling-of-products, and on the Office for Product Safety & Standards website.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the length of time taken for UK Visas and Immigration to process requests for an increase in undefined Certificates of Sponsorship allocations for healthcare providers.

Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

The same service standard applies to all sponsors using the immigration system and the onus is on the sponsors to be aware of the legal status of their workers and request the relevant Certificates of Sponsorship in accordance with those timescales. Priority services are available albeit capped for an expedited consideration. We keep our service standards under review.

Healthcare workers who qualify for the Health and Care Visa benefit from faster in-country visa processing times and are exempt from paying the Immigration Health Surcharge (IHS).

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of creating an expedited process for healthcare organisations seeking Certificates of Sponsorship to support visa renewals for existing employees.

Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

The same service standard applies to all sponsors using the immigration system and the onus is on the sponsors to be aware of the legal status of their workers and request the relevant Certificates of Sponsorship in accordance with those timescales. Priority services are available albeit capped for an expedited consideration. We keep our service standards under review.

Healthcare workers who qualify for the Health and Care Visa benefit from faster in-country visa processing times and are exempt from paying the Immigration Health Surcharge (IHS).

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that HMRC’s fraud detection systems do not incorrectly suspend child benefit payments for claimants that travel through the Republic of Ireland.

Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

Child Benefit is paid to over 6.9 million families, supporting 11.9 million children. It is one of the most widely accessed benefits in the UK.

As part of its ongoing efforts to reduce error and fraud in the Child Benefit system, HMRC undertook a pilot last year using international travel data. This pilot saw thousands of people who had left the UK but carried on claiming Child Benefit removed from the system - preventing around £17m in wrongful payments. This led to a wider rollout and investment in an additional 180 counter-fraud staff, announced at the Autumn Budget 2024 and is expected to save £350 million over the next five years.

In expanding the process last month, a check of HMRC systems to first look for continuing UK employment was inadvertently omitted on around 23,500 enquiries. While evidence from the pilot suggests that most of these cases will have been correctly suspended, the omission of the check has meant that HMRC will have incorrectly suspended payments in some instances.

HMRC has taken immediate corrective action to resolve this issue. The employment check has been reinstated for all future cases meaning fewer people will be sent letters in the first instance. In addition, HMRC has retrospectively applied this check to the 346 Northern Ireland customers, resulting in reinstated payments for 134 cases. HMRC have also reinstated payments for a further 46 Northern Ireland customers while we clarify their residency status.

HMRC has taken steps to improve the process. HMRC will no longer suspend payments at the outset and will give customers time to evidence their entitlement first. Together these changes will reduce error and ensure fair treatment of claimants.

Customers affected by the issue who believe they are still eligible should call the number on the letter they received. HMRC have set up a dedicated team to handle their cases swiftly.

Where eligibility is confirmed, payments will resume and HMRC will make backdated payments, so no-one is left out of pocket.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 29 October 2025 to Question 84961 on Legal costs for ‘Soldier F’, what information his Department holds on the cost to the public purse for pastoral care provided to (a) Soldier F and (b) the families of the people who died on Bloody Sunday.

Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)

The Ministry of Defence do not provide pastoral care to those who have not served.

Pastoral care provided to Soldier F during his legal proceedings involved the time of various employees and multiple organisations across the Department. Most of the associated costs are covered by central budgets within which the costs of support to individual cases are not separately identifiable, as such we cannot determine a specific figure for this support.

The Ministry of Defence will continue to provide the welfare and legal support to all service personnel that served during the troubles.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 29 October 2025 to Question 84961 on legal costs for ‘Soldier F’, if she will publish the cost for each stage of the legal processes for which support was provided.

Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)

The Ministry of Defence do not hold records of legal costs in a way that allows for the extraction and presentation of costs associated with each stage of the legal process.

The Ministry of Defence will continue to provide the welfare and legal support to all Service personnel that served during the troubles.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of Ministers travelling to settlements deemed illegal under international law.

Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office did not provide support. UK Government Ministers do not visit Israeli-run institutions in the West Bank.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether her Department provided support to Paul Givan MLA on his recent official visit to the Ofek school in Jerusalem.

Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office did not provide support. UK Government Ministers do not visit Israeli-run institutions in the West Bank.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what his policy is on ministerial visits to Israeli-run state institutions beyond the Green Line.

Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office did not provide support. UK Government Ministers do not visit Israeli-run institutions in the West Bank.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment she has made of the statement of 14 November 2025 by the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon that Israel’s wall in southern Lebanon has crossed the Blue Line and made 4000sq metres of Lebanese territory inaccessible to Lebanese people.

Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The UK is concerned by reports of escalating strikes by Israel on Lebanon, and of United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) peacekeepers being affected by Israeli military activity. All necessary measures must be taken to protect UNIFIL personnel and premises and allow them to fulfil their mandate.

The UK continues to call for the full implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701 and the Cessation of Hostilities agreement between Israel and Lebanese Hizballah. On my recent visit to Southern Lebanon, I repeated those calls, and reiterated the UK's support for Lebanon's plan to disarm non-state actors, including Lebanese Hizballah.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the implications for his Department’s policies of the Israel Defense Forces statement that it fired at two UN peacemakers.

Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The UK is concerned by reports of escalating strikes by Israel on Lebanon, and of United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) peacekeepers being affected by Israeli military activity. All necessary measures must be taken to protect UNIFIL personnel and premises and allow them to fulfil their mandate.

The UK continues to call for the full implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701 and the Cessation of Hostilities agreement between Israel and Lebanese Hizballah. On my recent visit to Southern Lebanon, I repeated those calls, and reiterated the UK's support for Lebanon's plan to disarm non-state actors, including Lebanese Hizballah.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions she has had with her Israeli counterpart about the continued Israeli bombing in south Lebanon and the Bekaa Valley.

Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The UK is concerned by reports of escalating strikes by Israel on Lebanon, and of United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) peacekeepers being affected by Israeli military activity. All necessary measures must be taken to protect UNIFIL personnel and premises and allow them to fulfil their mandate.

The UK continues to call for the full implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701 and the Cessation of Hostilities agreement between Israel and Lebanese Hizballah. On my recent visit to Southern Lebanon, I repeated those calls, and reiterated the UK's support for Lebanon's plan to disarm non-state actors, including Lebanese Hizballah.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment the government has made of how the parties have respected the November 2024 ceasefire in Lebanon.

Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The UK is concerned by reports of escalating strikes by Israel on Lebanon, and of United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) peacekeepers being affected by Israeli military activity. All necessary measures must be taken to protect UNIFIL personnel and premises and allow them to fulfil their mandate.

The UK continues to call for the full implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701 and the Cessation of Hostilities agreement between Israel and Lebanese Hizballah. On my recent visit to Southern Lebanon, I repeated those calls, and reiterated the UK's support for Lebanon's plan to disarm non-state actors, including Lebanese Hizballah.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions she has had with her Israeli counterpart about Israel’s occupation of parts of south Lebanon.

Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The UK is concerned by reports of escalating strikes by Israel on Lebanon, and of United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) peacekeepers being affected by Israeli military activity. All necessary measures must be taken to protect UNIFIL personnel and premises and allow them to fulfil their mandate.

The UK continues to call for the full implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701 and the Cessation of Hostilities agreement between Israel and Lebanese Hizballah. On my recent visit to Southern Lebanon, I repeated those calls, and reiterated the UK's support for Lebanon's plan to disarm non-state actors, including Lebanese Hizballah.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what diplomatic steps the Government is taking to help ensure a ceasefire in Lebanon.

Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The UK is concerned by reports of escalating strikes by Israel on Lebanon, and of United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) peacekeepers being affected by Israeli military activity. All necessary measures must be taken to protect UNIFIL personnel and premises and allow them to fulfil their mandate.

The UK continues to call for the full implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701 and the Cessation of Hostilities agreement between Israel and Lebanese Hizballah. On my recent visit to Southern Lebanon, I repeated those calls, and reiterated the UK's support for Lebanon's plan to disarm non-state actors, including Lebanese Hizballah.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps the Government is taking to support Palestinian refugees in Lebanon.

Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The UK plays a leading role in responding to the humanitarian needs of vulnerable groups across Lebanon.

This year, the UK has provided £15.5 million in programming budget support for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA). UNRWA programming supports Palestinians in Lebanon, Gaza, the West Bank, Jordan, and Syria. The UK's funding contributes to UNRWA's delivery of basic education, health, relief services, and humanitarian aid to Palestinians.

This financial year, the UK has also spent £33.5 million in humanitarian support focussed on Lebanon's most vulnerable and marginalised populations. This support includes a partnership with the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), which supports 'Makani' community centres across Lebanon, including in 11 Palestinian camps and gatherings. These centres provide Early Childhood Education and Retention Support to 1,200 vulnerable Palestinian children.

Israel’s use of cluster munitions

Cumulative disruption proposals and the right to protest

Crohn’s and Colitis Awareness Week 2025

New private capital in the NHS in the Autumn Budget

Two-child limit

Loan Charge and settlement terms offered to large companies and individuals

Found: Campbell MP Democratic Unionist Party Fermanagh & South Tyrone Pat Cullen MP Sinn Féin Foyle Colum Eastwood

Found: Campbell MP Democratic Unionist Party Fermanagh & South Tyrone Pat Cullen MP Sinn Féin Foyle Colum Eastwood