Asked by: John McDonnell (Labour - Hayes and Harlington)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what role Young Futures Hubs will play in the delivery of the National Year of Reading.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The National Year of Reading is a Department for Education initiative, in collaboration with the National Literacy Trust.
Young Futures Hubs will bring together services to improve access to opportunities and support for young people at community level, promoting positive outcomes and enabling them to thrive. Local Authorities participating in the programme will co-design the services in each hub alongside young people in the community to ensure it meets local needs.
Young Futures Hubs are just one part of delivering support within a much wider youth landscape, and will work closely with core services and wider initiatives spanning youth, education, employment, social care, mental health, youth justice and policing.
Asked by: John McDonnell (Labour - Hayes and Harlington)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether the replacement vessels his department has ordered from Serco Marine under the Defence Maritime Service Next Generation (DMS NG) programme will be owned by the MoD.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Yes. Information regarding the contract for the Defence Maritime Services Next Generation Vessel Replacement Programme can be found through the following link: https://www.gov.uk/contracts-finder
Asked by: John McDonnell (Labour - Hayes and Harlington)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what plans his Department has to promote the National Year of Reading in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
I recently hosted the East West Council in Belfast where the Minister for Early Years noted the significant collaboration between all four nations of the UK to support the National Year of Reading.
Education is a devolved matter and is the responsibility of the Northern Ireland Executive. Decisions about the National Year of Reading in Northern Ireland are for the Northern Ireland Education Minister.
This Government remains committed to working with partners across the United Kingdom to collaborate to share best practices and I look forward to seeing how this great initiative progresses throughout the year.
Asked by: John McDonnell (Labour - Hayes and Harlington)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the (a) actual and (b) estimated cost was of Corporation Tax relief for qualifying shipping company groups in the Tonnage Tax in each year for which there are figures between 2020-21 and 2026-27.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
You can find the requested statistics here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/tax-reliefs
Asked by: John McDonnell (Labour - Hayes and Harlington)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many ship management companies have qualified for the Tonnage Tax scheme since 1 April 2024 to date.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The data on the number of ship management companies which have qualified for Tonnage Tax scheme since 1 April 2024 to date is not available as the full set of corporation tax returns relating to 2024-25 liabilities are yet to be received and processed. Estimates will be published in the next Tax relief statistics publication, scheduled for January 2027.
Asked by: John McDonnell (Labour - Hayes and Harlington)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps she is taking to increase library engagement during the National Year of Reading.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Public libraries are central to the success of the National Year of Reading’s campaign to engage people of all ages with reading. The Reading Agency has been appointed to work with sector partners to deliver and support public library engagement. The Summer Reading Challenge in 2026, and World Book Night, the annual celebration of reading for adults on 23 April 2026, will be key moments for libraries during the National Year of Reading 2026. Throughout the year, The Reading Agency will provide public libraries with resources, toolkits, and print and digital materials to support their work and boost engagement.
Local authorities such as Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole, Hillingdon, Oxfordshire and Nottinghamshire are actively celebrating and participating in the National Year of Reading programmes with various activities and events at their library branches.
Asked by: John McDonnell (Labour - Hayes and Harlington)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what role public libraries will play in the delivery of the National Year of Reading.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Public libraries are central to the success of the National Year of Reading’s campaign to engage people of all ages with reading. The Reading Agency has been appointed to work with sector partners to deliver and support public library engagement. The Summer Reading Challenge in 2026, and World Book Night, the annual celebration of reading for adults on 23 April 2026, will be key moments for libraries during the National Year of Reading 2026. Throughout the year, The Reading Agency will provide public libraries with resources, toolkits, and print and digital materials to support their work and boost engagement.
Local authorities such as Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole, Hillingdon, Oxfordshire and Nottinghamshire are actively celebrating and participating in the National Year of Reading programmes with various activities and events at their library branches.
Asked by: John McDonnell (Labour - Hayes and Harlington)
Question to the Wales Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what plans her Department has to promote the National Year of Reading in Wales.
Answered by Jo Stevens - Secretary of State for Wales
My Department works closely with the Department for Education (DfE) and the Welsh Government to deliver for the people of Wales across a range of shared priorities.
The National Year of Reading, a DfE initiative, aims to address long-term declines in reading enjoyment through engaging new audiences, reshaping public attitudes and building the systems needed to embed lasting, meaningful change, during 2026 and beyond. The National Year of Reading includes a major physical and online marketing campaign, as well as exciting events, webinars, resources, and activities in communities, libraries, schools, and early years settings throughout the year.
In Wales, the bilingual campaign will build on work already underway to support schools, learners and families, to improve literacy standards and nurture a lasting habit of enjoying reading. The campaign will encourage people to ‘Go all in’/ Ymgolli’ and enjoy reading. The National Year of Reading offers further opportunity to celebrate and promote the love of reading in both English and Welsh, showcasing the rich linguistic landscape and encouraging more people to discover, enjoy and engage with literature in the language of their choice.
As Education is devolved, the Welsh Government is working with partners such as schools, local authorities, public libraries, and community groups across Wales to promote a love of reading and deliver a campaign to nurture lifelong reading habits. These partners play a vital role in the campaign and will take part in events across the year to showcase the joy of reading to people of all ages. The campaign also aligns with Estyn’s enhanced focus on reading, which will see the inspectorate working with all education providers to prioritise improving the reading skills of all learners in Wales.
Asked by: John McDonnell (Labour - Hayes and Harlington)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many (a) ratings and (b) officers claimed Seafarers’ Earnings Deduction in each financial year between 2015-16 and 2024-25.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
Seafarers are not required to report their grade as the Seafarers’ Earnings Deduction tax relief applies regardless.
Outturn data for the Seafarers’ Earnings Deduction claimants is available until 2023-24; HMRC does not publish an estimate of the number of claimants for 2024-25.
HMRC’s Tax Relief Statistics published on 22 January 2026 contain a forecast of the cost of relief for 2024-25. A forecast for 2025-26 will be produced for the 2026 Autumn publication and outturn cost in the following year.
Asked by: John McDonnell (Labour - Hayes and Harlington)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, when the cost figure for Seafarers’ Earnings Deduction from Income Tax for 2025-26 will be published.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
Seafarers are not required to report their grade as the Seafarers’ Earnings Deduction tax relief applies regardless.
Outturn data for the Seafarers’ Earnings Deduction claimants is available until 2023-24; HMRC does not publish an estimate of the number of claimants for 2024-25.
HMRC’s Tax Relief Statistics published on 22 January 2026 contain a forecast of the cost of relief for 2024-25. A forecast for 2025-26 will be produced for the 2026 Autumn publication and outturn cost in the following year.