Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether he has visited an integrated retirement community.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Officials in MHCLG engage regularly with representatives from the sector.

Ministerial meetings are published quarterly. The latest publication is available on gov.uk here.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how much their Department has spent on X and xAI since July 2024.

Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip

Paid advertising on X was suspended in April 2023 following a SAFE Framework assessment. X is currently used only for organic (non-paid) content to communicate policies and public services.

No expenditure has been made by the Ministry of Justice with X since July 2024.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether any former Cabinet Ministers who are not former Prime Ministers retain access to the Government Car Service.

Answered by Dan Jarvis - Minister of State (Cabinet Office)

The Government Car Service (GCS) does not provide services to any former Cabinet Ministers.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how much their Department has spent on X and xAI since July 2024.

Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The central communication team at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) has spent £722.77 on X Premium since July 2024, to enable the posting of longer-form messages, which can be essential when communicating in crisis situations. There has been no paid advertising on X by the FCDO since April 2023. We do not hold a central record of spending by overseas posts on X services, and this information could only be collated and verified for the purpose of answering this question at disproportionate cost.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much their Department has spent on X and xAI since July 2024.

Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office

Paid advertising on X was suspended in April 2023 following a SAFE Framework assessment. X is currently used only for organic (non-paid) content to communicate policies and public services. No expenditure has been made by the Cabinet Office with X since July 2024.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to his Department's consultation entitled Make Work Pay: Right of Trade Unions to Access Workplaces, published on 23 October 2025, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the proposals on the administrative workload of SMEs.

Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

The government will introduce the new trade union right of access in a regulated and responsible manner, ensuring it is workable for employers who receive requests for access. Our published impact assessment titled "Strengthening workers’ rights to trade union access, recognition and representation" provides a further assessment of why these reforms will not disproportionately affect micro or small businesses. In the consultation document, Make Work Pay: Right of Trade Unions to Access Workplaces, the government sought views on exempting employers with fewer than 21 employees. This would mean that micro-businesses and most small employers would not be within scope of the policy. We are carefully reviewing all responses to the consultation and will publish a formal response in due course.

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much their department spent on X and xAI since July 2024.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

Paid advertising on X was suspended in April 2023 following a SAFE Framework assessment. X is currently used only for organic (non-paid) content to communicate policies and public services.

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport has spent a total of £481 since July 2024 on an X Premium Plus subscription.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, how much their department spent on X and xAI since July 2024.

Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

The department has spent £84 on X and £0 on xAI. The X spending is for a Premium subscription in order to use X Pro, a social media monitoring tool.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, how much their department spent on X and xAI since July 2024.

Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

Paid advertising on X was suspended in April 2023 following a SAFE Framework assessment. X is currently used only for organic (non-paid) content to communicate policies and public services.

The Department for Business and Trade has spent £84.00 with X since July 2024 on X Premium, the platform’s premium subscription service.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, how much their department spent on X and xAI since July 2024.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

No expenditure has been made by DSIT with X since July 2024.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much their Department has spent on X and xAI since July 2024.

Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)

Paid advertising on X was suspended in April 2023 following a SAFE Framework assessment. X is currently used only to communicate policies and public services. This incurs a small annual cost where it is appropriate for a channel to have a Premium subscription, but total figures for this are not held centrally.

The Ministry of Defence has not entered into any contracts with X or xAI and therefore has recorded no contract spend with the company. Any official Defence use of social media or AI is subject to a range of policies relating to acceptable and responsible use, including the responsible AI policy framework set out in the Dependable AI Joint Services Publication 936.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how much their Department has spent on X and xAI since July 2024.

Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

We have a monthly subscription with xPro and have spent £153.60 since July 2024.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much their Department has spent on X and xAI since July 2024.

Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

Paid advertising on X was suspended in April 2023 following a SAFE Framework assessment. X is currently used only for organic (non-paid) content to communicate policies and public services.

No expenditure has been made by the DWP with X since July 2024.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much their department spent on X and xAI since July 2024.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Paid advertising on X was suspended in April 2023 following a SAFE Framework assessment. X is currently used only for organic (non-paid) content to communicate policies and public services.

One month of X Premium was purchased in August 2024 at a cost of £9.60. This was paid to use the livestreaming functionality available with X Premium at a departmental event.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the absence of a statutory complaints scheme on enforcement of the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act 2023.

Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

The department is seeking a suitable legislative vehicle to amend and repeal elements of the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act 2023 at the earliest opportunity, including in relation to the complaints scheme.

The department cannot comment on what might or might not be considered for future legislation, but we will act to protect freedom of speech and academic freedom, and we are considering options.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much their department spent on X and xAI since July 2024.

Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Department for Transport has spent £783.30 with X since July 2024.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much their department spent on X and xAI since July 2024.

Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

During the period 1 July 2024 to 19 January 2026, the department and its executive agencies spent £27,118.12 on sector comms and awareness with X and its predecessor platform/brand Twitter.

xAI acquired X on 28 March 2025. £4,834.80 was spent before the acquisition by xAI. £22,283.32 was spent after the acquisition by xAI.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of vaping devices that (a) contain and (b) can be configured to contain more than the standard 2ml tank capacity through (i) interchangeable and (ii) modular components on public health.

Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Tobacco and Vapes Bill will stop vapes and nicotine products from being deliberately branded, promoted, and advertised to children and provides the Government with new powers to restrict the packaging, device appearance, and display of vapes and other nicotine products to stop the next generation from becoming hooked on nicotine.

On 8 October 2025, we launched a Call for Evidence which sought evidence on the size and shape of vapes, vape tanks, and the components of vaping products, including pods, puff-count capacity, and nicotine delivery.

We are now reviewing the responses, and these will help inform decisions around our future regulatory approach once the Tobacco and Vapes Bill has been enacted.

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, as part of their upcoming Circular Economy Growth Plan, will consider evidence across a range of interventions, including but not limited to the regulation of product features to support increased recyclability.

Rape gang overseas trafficking

Found: Douglas McAllister (Labour; West Dunbartonshire) Susan Murray (Liberal Democrat; Mid Dunbartonshire) Jack Rankin

Found: Douglas McAllister (Labour; West Dunbartonshire) Susan Murray (Liberal Democrat; Mid Dunbartonshire) Jack Rankin

Found: Ferguson (Chair); Maureen Burke; Lillian Jones; Mr Angus MacDonald; Douglas McAllister; Susan Murray; Jack Rankin