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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to reduce litter pollution.

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

We raised the upper limit for fixed penalties for littering offences to £750 and published statutory litter enforcement guidance for local authorities.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to further regulate private property management companies.

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

I refer the hon. Member to the Written Ministerial Statement made on 12 October 2026 (HCWS363).

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what diplomatic steps his Department is taking to help secure the entry of fundamental emergency shelter materials, medical supplies and reconstruction equipment into Gaza.

Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

We remain deeply concerned by the humanitarian situation in Gaza, including the needs of displaced people ahead of winter. Recent United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reports indicate that available supplies could partially assist only 18 per cent of the families requiring shelter assistance for the rainy season. In September, alongside Jordan and Qatar, the Foreign Secretary and I co-hosted a meeting of senior government ministers at the UN General Assembly focused on improving humanitarian access and healthcare in Gaza. Following the meeting, the UK and international partners issued a Call to Action urging the Government of Israel to allow and facilitate rapid and unimpeded humanitarian access throughout Gaza. We also called on the Government of Israel to approve additional critical items including the ones considered "dual use" items, in particular related to shelter, fuel, water, sanitation, health supplies to prevent further deterioration of public health. The UK is providing £88 million in humanitarian and early recovery support for Palestinians this financial year.

We will continue to explore all opportunities to increase access for humanitarian aid into Gaza.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if her Department will take steps to encourage the Govia Thameslink Railway company to ensure their ticketing terminals are functional.

Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The department expects all train operators, including Greater Thameslink Railway, to maintain ticket retailing equipment to an appropriate standard so that passengers can purchase tickets conveniently and reliably. Operator performance is monitored through established contractual and operational arrangements such as the Service Quality Regime, which audits the functionality of a sample of station ticketing facilities in each Reporting Period.

Under this regime, Greater Thameslink Railway achieved a pass rate of 91.78 per cent, compared to an industry average (year to date) of 87.53 per cent.

The department expects DfT Operator to continue monitoring operator performance through these arrangements and engage with Greater Thameslink Railway if any concerns are identified.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of adding recognised martial arts disciplines to the list of sports and activities eligible for practical assessment in GCSE Physical Education.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)

I refer my hon. Friend, the Member for Crawley to the answer of 26 June 2026 to Question 33578.

Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to require social media companies to introduce mandatory marking requirements for content created by artificial intelligence.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)

The Government recognises that labelling AI-generated content can improve transparency for consumers by helping them understand when content has been created using AI. That is why we are launching the AI Labelling Taskforce. The Taskforce will gather evidence and consider technical solutions for the labelling of AI-generated content online, including on social media platforms. It will put forward proposals for government on best practice for labelling AI-generated content. We expect the Taskforce to be operational by the end of the year, ahead of publishing its final recommendations to the government next year.

Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to (i) prevent the creation and circulation of artificially generated sexual images of women and girls and (ii) ensure that online platforms remove such content promptly.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)

The government is taking robust action to tackle AI-generated intimate image abuse. Building on existing offences covering the sharing of intimate images without consent, we have introduced offences criminalising the non-consensual creation of AI intimate images, in addition to banning so-called “nudification” tools and making the sharing of such content a priority offence.

Under the Online Safety Act, in-scope services must swiftly remove illegal content, and regulated providers will soon be required to remove reported intimate image abuse content as soon as reasonably practicable, and no later than 48 hours.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to support the London Stock Exchange and encourage investment in UK-listed companies.

Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)

The government is committed to making the UK the best place to start, scale, list and invest. We have delivered an ambitious programme of capital markets reforms to make it easier for companies to raise capital, go public and grow as listed companies in the UK.

We have also taken action to increase participation in investing through major pensions reforms that are helping unlock more productive investment across the UK economy. We have introduced targeted support for consumers and are supporting industry-led initiatives to encourage greater retail investment and improve how firms communicate the risks and benefits of investing.

Our stock markets are showing signs of renewed momentum, with over £38 billion raised since the start of 2025 through IPOs and follow-on issuances.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to support local authorities in reducing the number of families in temporary accommodation.

Answered by Florence Eshalomi - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

From 2026/27 to 2028/29, over £4 billion in funding will be provided for homelessness and rough sleeping services to help local areas deliver tailored services to tackle all forms of homelessness. In addition, the Government has committed £30 million for a three-year Emergency Accommodation Reduction Programme to support local authorities with the highest pressures to bring down bed and breakfast (B&B) use for families, particularly unlawful placements of families in B&B for more than 6 weeks. The Government is also providing £950 million of investment for the fourth round of the Local Authority Housing Fund, the largest investment in the fund to date, to support local authorities in England to increase the supply of good quality temporary accommodation and drive down the use of costly B&Bs.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to strengthen the use of early warning systems to identify and prevent emerging conflicts from escalating.

Answered by Kirsty McNeill - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office supports the development and use of early warning to anticipate, mitigate and prevent emerging and escalating conflicts working with partners. For example, the UK has financed Complex Risk Analytics Fund (CRAF'd), the UN multi-donor fund, with £6.24 million to invest in crisis data, to ensure that key early warning data remain viable and open to as many conflict actors as possible.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what processes his Department has in place to hold foreign governments accountable for extra-judicial assassinations and abductions of political figures in sovereign territory.

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

The UK is clear that any attempt by a foreign state to intimidate, abduct or harm individuals is unacceptable. The Government condemns extra-judicial assassinations and abductions and works with partners to uphold international law.

The National Security Act 2023 and the National Security (State Threats) Act 2026 have strengthened the Government's powers, including to disrupt organisations acting for foreign powers.

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) uses diplomatic tools to raise the costs of such activity and make clear that states conducting transnational repression cannot act with impunity. Where appropriate, the Government coordinates international responses with partners and has used sanctions against hostile state activity.

Most recently, the Government sanctioned Ruholla Bazghandi under the Iran (Sanctions) Regulations 2023 for involvement in hostile activity by the Government of Iran, namely threatening, planning or conducting attacks against persons and assets in the UK.

Question to the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, what steps his Department is taking to diversify and support aviation reliant economies.

Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade) (Jointly with the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

The Government recognises the importance of aviation and aerospace to local economies across the UK. Through our modern Industrial Strategy, we are supporting investment, innovation and high-skilled employment in sectors including advanced manufacturing and clean aviation. At the last Spending Review, the Government committed up to £2.3 billion over 10 years to the Aerospace Technology Institute Programme, supporting innovative research and development, strengthening UK aerospace supply chains and encouraging industrial investment. We are also working across government and with local partners to attract investment and support sustainable economic growth in communities with significant aviation and aerospace activity.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what measures may be being considered to reduce the time it takes for energy companies to refund customers any credit after a change of energy supplier.

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

The Government expects energy suppliers to refund customers promptly where money is owed. Ofgem already requires automatic compensation in specific cases, including where final bills or credit balance refunds are delayed following a switch.

The Government supports Ofgem’s ongoing review of Guaranteed Standards of Performance (GSOP) payments including proposals for inflation-linked compensation. A further consultation on this work is expected in the coming months as part of Ofgem’s Consumer Outcomes package.

More broadly, through its review of Ofgem and its consultation on faster and fairer redress for consumers, the Government has set out reforms to strengthen the regulator as a consumer champion, including stronger powers to enforce consumer law directly and help ensure customers receive what they are owed.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking to help prevent ticketless travel on rail and underground services.

Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Government is working with the rail industry to tackle ticketless travel, while ensuring passengers who make genuine mistakes are treated fairly and consistently.

We have committed £33.4 million to new and improved ticket gates across England, targeted at fare evasion hotspots. We are also working with the rail industry to improve data sharing, prosecutions and the consistency of revenue protection activity.

Responsibility for enforcement on London Underground rests primarily with Transport for London and the British Transport Police.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when the Health and Safety Executive's revised hydrogen modelling will be made available for use in the development control process.

Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government) (Equalities)

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) regularly reviews and refines the models and risk assessment tools that underpin its land use planning advice. HSE is currently undertaking a programme of research to ensure its modelling approach remains robust, evidence based and fit for purpose across a range of hydrogen applications.

Primary research is continuing into the financial year of 2027/28. The outcomes of this research will inform whether updates to HSE's modelling methodologies, including those relating to hydrogen are required or if further research is required.

Gaza flooding response

Undercover Policing Inquiry

Arrests of Friends of Standing Together and British nationals in the West Bank