Lord Moraes

The government recognises international efforts being made to tackle the issues that arise from harmful content and age-inappropriate experiences on social media. This includes new age-restrictions on certain social media platforms in Australia that are due to take effect from 10 December.

We have a close relationship with Australia and continue to engage closely under the UK-Australia Memorandum of Understanding for Online Safety and Security to share evidence and learn from each other’s approaches to protecting children from harm online.

The Government recognises the importance of our EU adequacy decisions and continues to engage with the European Commission to support their successful renewal, acknowledging that this is a unilateral process undertaken by the EU.

The Government welcomed the publication of the European Commission’s draft adequacy decisions in July, which conclude that the UK continues to provide an adequate level of data protection, and looks forward to the completion of the adoption process ahead of the 27 December deadline.

Monitoring and evaluation are key to understanding the effectiveness of the online safety regime. The government and Ofcom are monitoring the regime’s impact through a programme of evaluation work to track the effect of the regime and feed into a statutory Post Implementation Review. The Online Safety Act applies to online user to user services and search services.

Further, Ofcom’s Online Experiences Tracker survey is issued twice a year. The most recent data was published in October covering the experiences of adults (aged 18+). The first wave of data from the new Children’s Online Safety Tracker will be published later this year, and the second wave will be published in Spring 2026.

We also engage with civil society and monitor research and reports they publish on online harms.

The UK and EU agreed a substantial package to take forward our future partnership, at the first UK-EU Summit in London on 19 May. At the summit, the UK agreed to work towards association to Erasmus+ on mutually agreed financial terms. The government will ensure that any agreement resulting from the negotiations reflects a fair balance between the UK financial contribution and the number of UK participants who receive funding from it.

Any form of racism or discrimination is unacceptable and has no place in our National Health Service.

NHS Staff Survey data shows that disabled staff, staff from an ethnic minority background, and staff with other protected characteristics face greater challenges when it comes to abuse, bullying, harassment, and career progression.

Recent incidents of antisemitism and racism in the health service have drawn stark attention to problems of culture and in the healthcare professional regulatory system. Action is being taken to address these issues, including an urgent review of antisemitism, other forms of racism, and the oversight and regulation of healthcare professionals. The NHS is also strengthening mandatory anti-racism training across the NHS. Additionally, as set out in the 10-Year Health Plan, we will introduce a new set of staff standards for modern employment which will include reducing violence against staff and tackling racism and sexual harassment. They will underpin the NHS Oversight Framework and act as an early warning signal for the Care Quality Commission.

I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided by the Minister of State for Europe on 28 April in response to Question HC129419, which - for ease of reference - is reproduced below:

The EU Entry/Exit System (EES) is an EU scheme introduced to register travellers from third countries each time they enter or leave the Schengen area. While the UK is supportive of the aims of EES to improve border security, we want to see EES implemented in a way that minimises negative impacts on border fluidity. The Government is actively engaging EU and Member State counterparts on EES and has worked with industry partners to encourage clear communications to travellers. We continue to monitor implementation closely and keep Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office Travel Advice updated. I have raised issues around EES implementation with multiple ministerial counterparts over recent months, and we continue to keep the situation in all Schengen member states under close review, raising issues as appropriate.

I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided by the Minister of State for Europe on 28 April in response to Question HC129419, which - for ease of reference - is reproduced below:

The EU Entry/Exit System (EES) is an EU scheme introduced to register travellers from third countries each time they enter or leave the Schengen area. While the UK is supportive of the aims of EES to improve border security, we want to see EES implemented in a way that minimises negative impacts on border fluidity. The Government is actively engaging EU and Member State counterparts on EES and has worked with industry partners to encourage clear communications to travellers. We continue to monitor implementation closely and keep Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office Travel Advice updated. I have raised issues around EES implementation with multiple ministerial counterparts over recent months, and we continue to keep the situation in all Schengen member states under close review, raising issues as appropriate.

The Public Protection Specialist Safeguarding Team (formerly the Citizenship Vulnerable Person Team) has worked with local authorities since June 2022 to promote awareness of citizenship options for children in care. It has proactively engaged with every local authority to help ensure they understand the full range of British citizenship registration routes available to children for whom they are responsible and to support them in making applications.

On 8 April, the fee to register a child as a British citizen was reduced from £1,214 to £1,000. The fee can be waived for those unable to afford it and does not apply to children looked after by a local authority.

The Nationality and Borders Act 2022 introduced section 4L of the British Nationality Act 1981, which allows adults to be registered as British citizens where they would have been, or would have been able to become, a British citizen but for historical legislative unfairness, an act or omission of a public authority, or exceptional circumstances relating to the applicant. While not limited to such cases, the provision provides a route for adults who were raised in care and who may have missed a time-limited opportunity to register as British citizens because the necessary action was not taken on their behalf.

The Government is committed to working with industry to tackle all fraud, including AI enabled fraud.

The ‘Fraud Strategy 2026 to 2029’ sets out our plan to tackle fraud. The strategy is already delivering a strong, partnership-focussed approach with business, including:

• the UK-sponsored Global Fraud Summit, co-hosted by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and INTERPOL in Vienna in March 2026, agreed a set of Global Public-Private Partnership Principles on Fraud.
• the launch of the Online Crime Centre which, backed by over £30m of investment, brings government, law enforcement and industry together in one place to act on shared data in real time, utilise cutting edge technology and coordinate action.

The Government is also working with leading technology companies, academics and experts to develop and implement a world-first deepfake detection evaluation framework. This will help to tackle synthetic media threats, including image, audio and video.

According to the Office for National Statistics, there were an estimated 4.16 million incidents of fraud against adults in England and Wales, across 3.4 million victims in the year ending March 2025. 56% of these incidents were estimated to have some online element to them, implying 2.3 million incidents of online-enabled fraud.

We do not collect data on the number of frauds that originate from overseas. However, in 2022, the City of London Police estimated that around 70% of fraud incidents have an international element to them.

We use data from a wide range of sources to build our understanding of the fraud landscape, including published reports from businesses and consumer groups, and surveys such as the Economic Crime Survey. We continue to build the threat picture to better target our interventions, including through our Online Crime Centre launched in April.

According to the Office for National Statistics, there were an estimated 4.16 million incidents of fraud against adults in England and Wales, across 3.4 million victims in the year ending March 2025. 56% of these incidents were estimated to have some online element to them, implying 2.3 million incidents of online-enabled fraud.

We do not collect data on the number of frauds that originate from overseas. However, in 2022, the City of London Police estimated that around 70% of fraud incidents have an international element to them.

We use data from a wide range of sources to build our understanding of the fraud landscape, including published reports from businesses and consumer groups, and surveys such as the Economic Crime Survey. We continue to build the threat picture to better target our interventions, including through our Online Crime Centre launched in April.

The Home Office publishes quarterly transparency data showing the number of applications for citizenship.

There are currently no plans to publish data with the level of detail mentioned in the question.

The surge in anti-Muslim hatred is deeply alarming. Recent hate crime statistics showed 45% of religious hate crimes targeted Muslims – a record high. This is unacceptable, and we must have zero tolerance of anti-Muslim hatred in any form.

The Government established an independent working group to advise government on a definition of Anti-Muslim Hatred/Islamophobia, and how to best understand, quantify and define prejudice, discrimination, and hate crime targeted against Muslims or anyone who is perceived to be Muslim. The group have now provided their advice to Ministers who will rightly take the time to review and consider the advice carefully before confirming next steps in due course.

The British Muslim Trust will receive funding to provide a comprehensive service to monitor anti-Muslim hatred and support victims.

Up to £39.4 million is available for protective security at mosques and Muslim faith schools in 2025/26. This includes additional funding announced by the Prime Minister of £10 million to further strengthen security at mosques and other Muslim community sites.

The Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 (LASPO) sets out the matters in scope of legal aid and the eligibility criteria, and seeks to ensure that legal aid is available to those most in need.

The rights of adults to be registered as British citizens under the British Nationality Act 1981 is not within scope of legal aid. Where an issue falls outside the scope of legal aid, individuals can apply for Exceptional Case Funding (ECF). ECF will be granted if, without legal aid, there is a risk that the person’s human rights may be breached. ECF applications are determined by the Legal Aid Agency on a case-by-case basis.

Legal aid is available for separated migrant children for applications for registration as a British citizen or British subject, and for immigration applications for entry clearance, leave to enter, or to remain in the United Kingdom. This provision is available due to the particular vulnerability of this cohort, subject to means and merits testing as applicable.

We regularly engage with other government departments to understand the impact of their policies on immigration legal aid and consider taking action to expand the scope of legal aid where needed.

The Government recognises the impact family court proceedings can have on children and adult survivors of domestic abuse, which is why we are prioritising the protection of abuse survivors going through the family court. This includes the expansion of the Pathfinder programme, which promotes safeguarding and supports victims of domestic abuse through early multi-agency collaboration and expert domestic abuse support.

The family court also has a range of powers to protect victims. These include prohibiting the cross-examination of domestic abuse survivors by their abusers and automatically deeming survivors eligible for special measures, such as giving evidence via video link or from behind a screen. Additionally, Independent Domestic Violence Advisers (IDVAs) and Independent Sexual Violence Advisers (ISVAs) can attend court to provide support throughout proceedings.

The Government welcomes the Domestic Abuse Commissioner’s report. We are carefully considering the recommendations and will publish a full response in due course.

On 22 October we announced that, as part of the wider package of family court reforms, we will repeal the presumption of parental involvement. Alongside this announcement, we have published the Review of the Presumption of Parental Involvement and the accompanying reports from the three commissioned research projects.

The Government recognises the impact family court proceedings can have on children and adult survivors of domestic abuse, which is why we are prioritising the protection of abuse survivors going through the family court. This includes the expansion of the Pathfinder programme, which promotes safeguarding and supports victims of domestic abuse through early multi-agency collaboration and expert domestic abuse support.

The family court also has a range of powers to protect victims. These include prohibiting the cross-examination of domestic abuse survivors by their abusers and automatically deeming survivors eligible for special measures, such as giving evidence via video link or from behind a screen. Additionally, Independent Domestic Violence Advisers (IDVAs) and Independent Sexual Violence Advisers (ISVAs) can attend court to provide support throughout proceedings.

The Government welcomes the Domestic Abuse Commissioner’s report. We are carefully considering the recommendations and will publish a full response in due course.

On 22 October we announced that, as part of the wider package of family court reforms, we will repeal the presumption of parental involvement. Alongside this announcement, we have published the Review of the Presumption of Parental Involvement and the accompanying reports from the three commissioned research projects.