Asked by: Neil Shastri-Hurst (Conservative - Solihull West and Shirley)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the answer to written question 118611, what the policy rationale is for defining a delay under the Prisoner Escort and Custody Services (PECS) contracts, for the purposes of the relevant Contract Delivery Indicator, as arising only "where a Court is prevented from commencing its planned business at the intended start time, and/or it has no other business that can reasonably be rescheduled to undertake instead"; and what assessment his Department has made as to whether that definition adequately captures delays in the transfer of prisoners to court in circumstances where the court is able to proceed with alternative business.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
The Prisoner Escort and Custody Service (PECS) contracts require Suppliers to deliver prisoners to court in time for their hearing to avoid loss of court time. Contract Delivery Indicator (CDI)15 therefore measures “Courtroom delay due to Supplier actions resulting in a Prisoner who is the responsibility of the Supplier not being available in the Courtroom at the required Courtroom appearance time and delay to court proceedings”.
CDI 15 is structured to take account of the fact that not all prisoners are scheduled to appear at the standard 10:00 commencement time used by the courts. Within the Magistrates’ courts, several prisoners may be listed for hearings at the same time, and courts then determine the running order of cases as required. PECS Suppliers are, therefore, required to transport prisoners in accordance with their individual hearing times and to ensure that they are available when their hearings are due to begin. Where a courtroom is unable to begin proceedings because a prisoner is not available at the required time, this is recorded as a delay. Where the court is able to progress other work in the interim, a contractual delay is not recorded; however, the incident will be logged to support assurance activity.
CDI 15 aligns with H M Court and Tribunal Service’s Court Exception Reporting process. Through this process, any delays to court proceedings as a result of late prisoner delivery, regardless of fault, are formally recorded and shared with the PECS Contract Management Team in H M Prison and Probation Service. In addition, suppliers are required to self-report any delays resulting from their actions, to ensure consistency and accuracy in reporting.
These contractual mechanisms ensure that performance issues are rigorously captured, transparently monitored, and proportionately addressed. They take account of situations where delays arise owing to factors outside the supplier’s reasonable control, supporting fair and accurate performance assessment, and promoting continuous improvement across the criminal justice system.
Asked by: Neil Shastri-Hurst (Conservative - Solihull West and Shirley)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether the 2009 Drayson partitions remain Government and UK Research and Innovation policy.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The “Drayson partitions” policy established in 2010, prior to the formation of UKRI, was to avoid tensioning parts of the Science & Technology Facilities Council (STFC) portfolio in an inappropriate way, whilst acknowledging that tensioning different portfolio elements is a very necessary part of managing research and innovation investment.
These are not and have never been used as a ringfencing mechanism and crucially do not provide recourse to additional funds when cost pressures arise. Funding lines have been, and continue to be, independent and distinct, but cost pressures have always been dealt with across the portfolio.
Asked by: Neil Shastri-Hurst (Conservative - Solihull West and Shirley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what data his Department holds on complications arising out of non-therapeutic circumcision between 2020 and 2025.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Information on complications arising out of non-therapeutic circumcision between 2020 and 2025 is not held in the format requested.
Asked by: Neil Shastri-Hurst (Conservative - Solihull West and Shirley)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what guidance is available to local authorities under the licensing regime to restrict the operating hours of retail premises where there is evidence of persistent antisocial behaviour linked to those premises.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Secretary of State issues statutory guidance under section 182 of the Act to support licensing authorities in the discharge of their functions - https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/explanatory-memorandum-revised-guidance-issued-under-s-182-of-licensing-act-2003.
This includes guidance on the process to follow if evidence becomes available that a licensed premises is failing to uphold one of four licensing objectives, two of which relate to the prevention of crime and disorder and the prevention of public nuisance.
If concerns are raised about a particular premises, the licensing authority may conduct a review of the premises’ licence and take appropriate action up to and including revoking the licence.
Asked by: Neil Shastri-Hurst (Conservative - Solihull West and Shirley)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much revenue the Exchequer raised from the introduction of VAT to private school fees between 1 January 2025 to 31 December 2025.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
At Autumn Budget 2024, the revenue from applying the standard rate of VAT to education and boarding services provided by private schools from 1 January 2025 was estimated at £460 million in 2024-25 and £1,505 million in 2025-26, rising to £1,725 million in 2029-30.
In their November 2025 Economic and Fiscal Outlook, the Office for Budget Responsibility revised the yield from this measure up by an average of £40 million per year, with outturn data providing initial support for the original assumption on pupil movements.
Asked by: Neil Shastri-Hurst (Conservative - Solihull West and Shirley)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what estimate she has made of the number of diplomatic officers posted to Russia who are proficient in Russian to C1 CEFR level or higher.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided on 6 November 2025 in response to Question 86285.
Asked by: Neil Shastri-Hurst (Conservative - Solihull West and Shirley)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what estimate she has made of the number of diplomatic officers posted to China who are proficient in Chinese to C1 CEFR level or higher.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided on 6 November 2025 in response to Question 86285.
Asked by: Neil Shastri-Hurst (Conservative - Solihull West and Shirley)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what (a) performance standards and (b) key performance indicators on the timeliness of prisoner arrivals at court are set out within the contract for Prisoner Escort and Custody Services.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
The Prisoner Escort and Custody Services (PECS) contracts specify that the contractor shall deliver prisoners to court by the required times to ensure the efficient and effective running of courts without delay. The key performance indicator relating to the timeliness of prisoner arrivals in court is Contract Delivery Indicator 15, at Annex 1 to Schedule 5 of the contract.
The PECS contracts can be found in the Contracts Finder on the GOV.UK website:
Prisoner Escort and Custody Services (Generation 4) - Lot North - Contracts Finder.
Prisoner Escort and Custody Services (Generation 4) - Lot South - Contracts Finder.
Asked by: Neil Shastri-Hurst (Conservative - Solihull West and Shirley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to help prevent deaths related to non-therapeutic male circumcision.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department is currently considering its response to a prevention of future deaths report regarding non-therapeutic male circumcision. The response will set out any steps being taken to help prevent deaths related to non-therapeutic male circumcision. It will be published in due course.
Asked by: Neil Shastri-Hurst (Conservative - Solihull West and Shirley)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will publish a definition of a significant adverse impact in the context of the National Planning Policy Framework.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The government is currently consulting on a new National Planning Policy Framework that includes clearer, more rules-based policies for decision-making and plan-making.
We will consider any and all suggestions made in response to the consultation, including those relating to definitions, before making final decisions.
The consultation will remain open for responses until 10 March 2026 and can be found on gov.uk here.