Rupert Lowe Alert Sample


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Information between 14th July 2025 - 23rd August 2025

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Speeches
Rupert Lowe speeches from: Financial Services Reform
Rupert Lowe contributed 2 speeches (175 words)
Wednesday 16th July 2025 - Commons Chamber
HM Treasury


Written Answers
Armed Forces: Food
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Monday 14th July 2025

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what proportion of food served in military catering contracts was sourced from the UK, in the latest period for which data is available.

Answered by Maria Eagle - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 17 March 2025 to Question 36360 to the hon. Member for South Holland and the Deepings (Sir John Hayes MP).

Terrorism Prevention and Investigation Measures
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Wednesday 16th July 2025

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what proportion of people subject to Terrorism Prevention and Investigation Measures entered the UK as asylum seekers or refugees.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)

The statutory reporting requirements associated with the use of TPIM measures are set out in Section 19(1) of the Terrorism Prevention and Investigation Measures Act 2011.

Prisons: Food
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Tuesday 15th July 2025

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what proportion of food served in prisons is sourced from British farms; and what plans she has to encourage more prisons to buy British produce.

Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

As at May 2025, 56.1% of food products sourced via the prisoner food contract and served in prisons is of British origin, however we do not hold a figure for farms specifically.

The sourcing of products is managed through commercial food contracts which are based upon value for money and the quality of the product, with British produce being chosen wherever possible. We continue to review options to source from UK suppliers as part of standard procurement processes.

Hospitals: Food
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Tuesday 15th July 2025

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of sourcing British food for hospitals on levels of (a) hospital food quality and (b) patient recovery.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

All National Health Service trusts are expected to follow NHS England’s guidance, National standards for healthcare food and drink, which is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/national-standards-for-healthcare-food-and-drink/

The guidance promotes the use of healthier, seasonal, and locally sourced food that can cut emissions and the wider environmental impact related to agriculture, transport, storage, and waste across the supply chain and on the NHS estate, while also supporting the local economy.

Hospitals: Food
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Tuesday 15th July 2025

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with the NHS on increasing procurement from British food producers in its supply chain.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

All National Health Service trusts are expected to follow NHS England’s guidance, National standards for healthcare food and drink, which is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/national-standards-for-healthcare-food-and-drink/

The guidance promotes the use of healthier, seasonal, and locally sourced food that can cut emissions and the wider environmental impact related to agriculture, transport, storage, and waste across the supply chain and on the NHS estate, while also supporting the local economy.

Hospitals: Food
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Tuesday 15th July 2025

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether planned updates to hospital food standards will include a requirement to prioritise British sourcing.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

All National Health Service trusts are expected to follow NHS England’s guidance, National standards for healthcare food and drink, which is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/national-standards-for-healthcare-food-and-drink/

The guidance promotes the use of healthier, seasonal, and locally sourced food that can cut emissions and the wider environmental impact related to agriculture, transport, storage, and waste across the supply chain and on the NHS estate, while also supporting the local economy.

Hospitals: Food
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Tuesday 15th July 2025

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what proportion of food served in NHS hospitals was sourced from British farms in the latest period for which data is available; and what steps he is taking to encourage NHS hospitals to buy food sourced from British farms.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

All National Health Service trusts are expected to follow NHS England’s guidance, National standards for healthcare food and drink, which is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/national-standards-for-healthcare-food-and-drink/

The guidance promotes the use of healthier, seasonal, and locally sourced food that can cut emissions and the wider environmental impact related to agriculture, transport, storage, and waste across the supply chain and on the NHS estate, while also supporting the local economy.

Public Sector: Food
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Tuesday 15th July 2025

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether Departments are required to report on the origin of food purchased through public procurement contracts.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

Departments are not currently required to report on the origin of food served in their canteens. In January the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs announced that the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs would be undertaking a review of public sector food procurement to better understand what food the public sector buys and where it comes from. As part of this review, the Government will be reviewing food provenance across all public sector settings, including Government departments.

Food: Public Sector
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Tuesday 15th July 2025

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what support is available for public sector caterers that would like to organise farm visits to help improve local food supply relationships.

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

We are currently considering the policy options available to deliver further on our ambitions for public sector catering, including the potential benefits of developing stronger ties between food producers, caterers, and end consumers.

Food: Public Sector
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Tuesday 15th July 2025

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what comparative assessment his Department has made of the environmental impact of sourcing food from British producers compared to overseas suppliers for public sector contracts.

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

In 2021, Defra assessed the scientific evidence on the environmental impacts of locally sourced food for public food procurement. This analysis considered the positive and negative environmental impacts of both imported and in country produced food, i.e. British. This analysis identified strong evidence and wide academic consensus that sourcing food locally does not necessarily guarantee a better environmental impact than importing: generally, production has a much greater impact on the environmental footprint of food products than the impacts of transport.

Food: Local Government
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Tuesday 15th July 2025

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has considered providing fiscal incentives to local authorities that prioritise British food in their catering contracts.

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

The Government is open to considering all lawful means of achieving its ambition that half of all food purchased across the public sector should be locally produced or certified to higher environmental standards. We have already published a new national procurement policy statement. It sets expectations for government contracts to favour products certified to high environmental standards that we think high-quality British producers are well-placed to meet.

Food: Public Sector
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Tuesday 15th July 2025

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to increase the proportion of British-grown food procured by the public sector.

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

The Government is open to considering all lawful means of achieving its ambition that half of all food purchased across the public sector should be locally produced or certified to higher environmental standards. The new national procurement policy statement sets expectations that government contracts will favour the purchase of food certified to higher environmental standards, which we believe British producers operating to the highest standards will be well-placed to meet.

Catering: Public Sector
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Tuesday 15th July 2025

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an estimate of the (a) number of food miles and (b) level of carbon emissions generated through catering provided by the public sector in the most recent period for which data is available.

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

The Government is currently considering policy options, including how best to demonstrate the beneficial impacts of the new national procurement policy statement, which sets out expectations for Government contracts to favour products certified to high environmental standards.

Public Sector: Food
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Tuesday 15th July 2025

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will require public bodies to publish annual data on the percentage of British food procured.

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

Public bodies are not required to report on the origin of the food they procure. However, the Government will be reviewing food provenance across the public sector. This will help inform our future approach on public sector food procurement, including any potential considerations for data reporting.

Food: Local Government
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Tuesday 15th July 2025

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he takes steps to encourage local authorities to support local producers through food contracts for (a) care homes and (b) civic buildings.

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

We recognise the potential benefits of developing stronger ties between local authorities and food producers and support efforts from all parties in strengthening relationships across the supply chains, including into (a) care homes and (b) civic buildings. That is why our national procurement policy statement highlights the role of contracting authorities in driving economic growth and strengthening supply chains by giving small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and voluntary, community and social enterprises (VCSEs) a fair chance.

Offenders: Rehabilitation
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Wednesday 16th July 2025

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether her Department tracks the (a) religious and (b) ideological motivations of terrorist offenders as part of offender rehabilitation and risk assessment.

Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

Information about individuals convicted or in custody for terrorism and terrorism-connected offences, by ideology, is published by the Home Office as part of the ‘Operation of police powers under the Terrorism Act 2000’ statistics series. The series can be accessed via the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/operation-of-police-powers-under-the-terrorism-act-2000.

The numbers held in custody are shown on table P.01 of the annual and quarterly tables. As of 31 March 2025 (the most recent data available), 61% of terrorist prisoners were categorised as holding Islamist Extremist views.

Given the sensitive nature of the information, further breakdowns are not published as they may undermine our national security efforts.

Data on all terrorism-related offences is in the published series but not disaggregated by ideology. Table C.03 gives details on the numbers convicted for terrorism-related offences. Information on sentence length is included in table C.04, and the number released by sentence length is provided in table P.05.

All terrorists are managed through a specialist, multi-agency case management process, which includes regular risk assessments and rehabilitative tools to identify, assess and manage an offender’s terrorist risk and needs, including any clear links to an extremist ideology. We have a range of interventions to address and reduce the drivers of radicalisation and move offenders away from harmful ideologies. Our interventions are carried out by qualified staff who receive specialist training. The tracking of religion relies on prisoners’ self-declaration.

Islam: Terrorism
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Wednesday 16th July 2025

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people with previous convictions for Islamist terrorism offences have been released.

Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

Information about individuals convicted or in custody for terrorism and terrorism-connected offences, by ideology, is published by the Home Office as part of the ‘Operation of police powers under the Terrorism Act 2000’ statistics series. The series can be accessed via the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/operation-of-police-powers-under-the-terrorism-act-2000.

The numbers held in custody are shown on table P.01 of the annual and quarterly tables. As of 31 March 2025 (the most recent data available), 61% of terrorist prisoners were categorised as holding Islamist Extremist views.

Given the sensitive nature of the information, further breakdowns are not published as they may undermine our national security efforts.

Data on all terrorism-related offences is in the published series but not disaggregated by ideology. Table C.03 gives details on the numbers convicted for terrorism-related offences. Information on sentence length is included in table C.04, and the number released by sentence length is provided in table P.05.

All terrorists are managed through a specialist, multi-agency case management process, which includes regular risk assessments and rehabilitative tools to identify, assess and manage an offender’s terrorist risk and needs, including any clear links to an extremist ideology. We have a range of interventions to address and reduce the drivers of radicalisation and move offenders away from harmful ideologies. Our interventions are carried out by qualified staff who receive specialist training. The tracking of religion relies on prisoners’ self-declaration.

Terrorism: Sentencing
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Wednesday 16th July 2025

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the average custodial sentence for people convicted of Islamist terror offences is.

Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

Information about individuals convicted or in custody for terrorism and terrorism-connected offences, by ideology, is published by the Home Office as part of the ‘Operation of police powers under the Terrorism Act 2000’ statistics series. The series can be accessed via the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/operation-of-police-powers-under-the-terrorism-act-2000.

The numbers held in custody are shown on table P.01 of the annual and quarterly tables. As of 31 March 2025 (the most recent data available), 61% of terrorist prisoners were categorised as holding Islamist Extremist views.

Given the sensitive nature of the information, further breakdowns are not published as they may undermine our national security efforts.

Data on all terrorism-related offences is in the published series but not disaggregated by ideology. Table C.03 gives details on the numbers convicted for terrorism-related offences. Information on sentence length is included in table C.04, and the number released by sentence length is provided in table P.05.

All terrorists are managed through a specialist, multi-agency case management process, which includes regular risk assessments and rehabilitative tools to identify, assess and manage an offender’s terrorist risk and needs, including any clear links to an extremist ideology. We have a range of interventions to address and reduce the drivers of radicalisation and move offenders away from harmful ideologies. Our interventions are carried out by qualified staff who receive specialist training. The tracking of religion relies on prisoners’ self-declaration.

Prisoners: Radicalism
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Wednesday 16th July 2025

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what proportion of terrorism-related prisoners in the UK are linked to Islamist ideology.

Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

Information about individuals convicted or in custody for terrorism and terrorism-connected offences, by ideology, is published by the Home Office as part of the ‘Operation of police powers under the Terrorism Act 2000’ statistics series. The series can be accessed via the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/operation-of-police-powers-under-the-terrorism-act-2000.

The numbers held in custody are shown on table P.01 of the annual and quarterly tables. As of 31 March 2025 (the most recent data available), 61% of terrorist prisoners were categorised as holding Islamist Extremist views.

Given the sensitive nature of the information, further breakdowns are not published as they may undermine our national security efforts.

Data on all terrorism-related offences is in the published series but not disaggregated by ideology. Table C.03 gives details on the numbers convicted for terrorism-related offences. Information on sentence length is included in table C.04, and the number released by sentence length is provided in table P.05.

All terrorists are managed through a specialist, multi-agency case management process, which includes regular risk assessments and rehabilitative tools to identify, assess and manage an offender’s terrorist risk and needs, including any clear links to an extremist ideology. We have a range of interventions to address and reduce the drivers of radicalisation and move offenders away from harmful ideologies. Our interventions are carried out by qualified staff who receive specialist training. The tracking of religion relies on prisoners’ self-declaration.

Terrorism: Convictions
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Wednesday 16th July 2025

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people have been convicted under terrorism legislation for offences linked to Islamist extremism in the past five years.

Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

Information about individuals convicted or in custody for terrorism and terrorism-connected offences, by ideology, is published by the Home Office as part of the ‘Operation of police powers under the Terrorism Act 2000’ statistics series. The series can be accessed via the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/operation-of-police-powers-under-the-terrorism-act-2000.

The numbers held in custody are shown on table P.01 of the annual and quarterly tables. As of 31 March 2025 (the most recent data available), 61% of terrorist prisoners were categorised as holding Islamist Extremist views.

Given the sensitive nature of the information, further breakdowns are not published as they may undermine our national security efforts.

Data on all terrorism-related offences is in the published series but not disaggregated by ideology. Table C.03 gives details on the numbers convicted for terrorism-related offences. Information on sentence length is included in table C.04, and the number released by sentence length is provided in table P.05.

All terrorists are managed through a specialist, multi-agency case management process, which includes regular risk assessments and rehabilitative tools to identify, assess and manage an offender’s terrorist risk and needs, including any clear links to an extremist ideology. We have a range of interventions to address and reduce the drivers of radicalisation and move offenders away from harmful ideologies. Our interventions are carried out by qualified staff who receive specialist training. The tracking of religion relies on prisoners’ self-declaration.

Terrorism: Foreign Nationals
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Wednesday 16th July 2025

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether foreign nationals convicted of Islamist extremist offences are automatically considered for deportation.

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

Any foreign national who is convicted of a crime and given a prison sentence is considered for deportation at the earliest opportunity.

Counter-terrorism
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Wednesday 16th July 2025

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people are under surveillance by counter-terrorism police for suspected links to Islamist extremism.

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

As a matter of long-standing policy, we do not comment on the detail of security and intelligence matters. However, we continuously assess potential threats to the UK and, where necessary, deploy the full range of tools available to mitigate them.

Radicalism
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Wednesday 16th July 2025

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many known Islamic extremists reside in the UK.

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

As a matter of long-standing policy, we do not comment on the detail of security and intelligence matters. However, we continuously assess potential threats to the UK and, where necessary, deploy the full range of tools available to mitigate them.

Radicalism: Young People
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Wednesday 16th July 2025

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to help tackle online Islamist (a) radicalisation and (b) propaganda targeting young people.

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

I refer the Hon Member to the answer I gave on 9 July to Question 64852.

Counter-terrorism: Prosecutions
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Wednesday 16th July 2025

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many and what proportion of Prevent cases resulted in prosecutions for Islamist-related offences during the past year.

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

Prevent seeks to intervene early and provide support to stop people from becoming terrorists or supporting terrorism. Prevent is not an investigative tool or a criminal sanction, and prosecution is not the intended outcome.

Department for Education: Translation Services
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Wednesday 16th July 2025

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much their Department has spent on (a) translation and (b) interpretation for languages other than (i) British Sign Language and (ii) languages native to the UK for people contacting (A) their Department and (B) its agencies in 2025.

Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

The total cost incurred by the department in providing translation services, other than British Sign Language and languages native to the UK, is £180.

Language service needs and spend are assessed to ensure these services offer good value for money for taxpayers while maintaining high standards of service delivery.

Counter-Terrorism
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Wednesday 16th July 2025

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to (a) monitor and (b) help prevent radicalisation in (i) mosques, (ii) Islamic schools and (iii) community centres.

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

The Prevent duty was introduced through the Counter Terrorism and Security Act 2015 and requires a range of public sector bodies working in local communities to prevent people from being drawn into terrorism as part of their day-to-day work.

The Prevent programme is run locally by experts who understand the risks and issues in their area, and how best to support their communities including working with faith institutions, education and community settings. These experts include local authorities, the Police, charities and community organisations.

In addition, the programme provides training for educators, healthcare professionals and other frontline staff to help them identify and support those susceptible to radicalisation. Prevent also works closely with local partners, policing, and other government departments to disrupt those groups that radicalise others, both online and in communities.

Counter-terrorism
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Wednesday 16th July 2025

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many referrals to Prevent related to Islamist ideology have been made in the last three years.

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

Information about Prevent referrals and Channel cases can be found on GOV.UK Individuals referred to and supported through the Prevent Programme statistics - GOV.UK.

Official statistics on individuals referred to and supported through the Prevent programme for year ending 31 March 2025 will be published later this year.

Visas: National Security
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Wednesday 16th July 2025

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many and what proportion of visa applications were rejected due to national security concerns related to Islamist extremism in each of the last ten years.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)

I refer the Hon Member to the answer he was given on 15 May to Question 51200.

Visas: National Security
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Wednesday 16th July 2025

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many visa applications were rejected on national security grounds in the last five years, broken down by country of origin.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)

I refer the Hon Member to the answer he was given on 15 May to Question 51200.

Passports: Disqualification
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Wednesday 16th July 2025

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many passports have been cancelled due to UK citizens travelling abroad to join Islamist terrorist groups in the last five years.

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

It is the longstanding policy of successive UK governments that we do not comment on operational intelligence or security matters , including the specific details of individuals who have and their passports revoked.

Counter-terrorism: Radicalism
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Wednesday 16th July 2025

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what support she is providing to local authorities to help them counter radicalisation in areas identified as high risk for Islamist extremism.

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

All Local Authorities in England, Scotland and Wales receive dedicated support from the Home Office to deliver the Prevent duty effectively and in proportion to the risk and threat.

Whilst Prevent seeks to tackle the threat from a range of ideologies, we expect all local authorities facing a high risk from Islamist extremism to identify this in their risk assessments and delivery plans, working closely with Counter-Terrorism Police.

Currently, the 28 highest threat areas in England and Wales receive Home Office Prevent funding to help them to go above and beyond the requirements of the Prevent duty. This funding supports the provision of dedicated Prevent posts in these local authorities. Some of these local authorities also receive additional funding to support regional working and share their Prevent expertise with other neighbouring local authorities.

All local authorities have access to the Preventing Radicalisation Fund. This supports the delivery of targeted Prevent projects, that aim to identify and mitigate local radicalisation risks, including the risk from Islamist extremism.

Asylum: Radicalism
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Wednesday 16th July 2025

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many asylum seekers have been flagged for links to (a) extremist and (b) Islamist networks since 2018.

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

It is the longstanding policy of successive UK Governments that we do not comment on operational intelligence or security matters.

Foreign Nationals: Sexual Offences
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Thursday 17th July 2025

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many foreign nationals convicted of sexual offences with a signed deportation order have yet to be deported.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)

This Government pledged to deliver the highest rate of removals since 2018 and this target has been surpassed, with a surge in returns activity since the election leading to almost 30,000 people with no right to be in the UK being removed before the end of May.

Of the total returns since 5 July 2024, 4,436 were of foreign national offenders (FNOs). This is an increase of 14% compared to the 3,879 FNO returns in the same period 12 months prior.

The specific information requested is not currently available from published statistics, but work is currently underway to publish more detailed information on FNOs subject to deportation. Further information on this work can be found at: Statistics on foreign national offenders and the immigration system - GOV.UK.

Sexual Offences: Foreign Nationals
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Thursday 17th July 2025

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make it her policy to automatically deport foreign nationals convicted of sexual offences.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)

I refer the Hon Member to the answer I gave to Question 47069 on 30 April.

Immigration: Sexual Offences
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Thursday 17th July 2025

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many foreign nationals with prior convictions for sexual offences were granted (a) asylum, (b) humanitarian protection and (c) leave to remain in each of the last five years.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)

I refer the Hon Member to the answer I gave him on 19 May in response to Question 51194.

Juries
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Thursday 17th July 2025

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many civil cases tried in court had a jury in each of the last ten years, broken down by case type.

Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

No central data is recorded on the numbers of juries convened for civil proceedings in England and Wales, nor the breakdown into types of case. Requests are passed to the jury summoning bureau as the need arises.

The use of juries in civil cases is highly exceptional, and the most common examples where a civil jury may still be used would be for claims relating to false imprisonment or malicious prosecution.

Juries
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Thursday 17th July 2025

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many and what proportion of criminal trials were heard before a jury in each of the last five years.

Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

The Ministry of Justice does not centrally hold information on the numbers and proportion of criminal trials heard before a jury. However, the vast majority of criminal cases are heard in the magistrates’ courts without juries – with 90% of all criminal cases being dealt with by magistrates. Of the remaining defendants that do progress to the Crown Court for trial, most plead guilty, meaning their cases do not go before a jury. Therefore, the most accurate proxy available for how many cases are heard by a jury in the Crown Court is the number of defendants who plead not guilty. The table below provides a breakdown of this data over the past five years:

Defendants dealt with in trial cases disposed of in the Crown Court, 2020-2024

Year

Total number of defendants

Plea entered: Guilty

Plea entered: Not guilty

Guilty plea rate

2020

50,353

34,341

7,404

72%

2021

63,884

40,613

12,069

67%

2022

61,193

37,340

11,964

64%

2023

70,917

42,039

14,838

62%

2024

76,653

44,288

15,638

61%

Juries
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Thursday 17th July 2025

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of trials by jury on levels of public confidence in the criminal justice system.

Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

Sir Brian Leveson has published the first part of his Independent Review of the Criminal Courts, setting out a number of recommendations on the use of jury trials in the Crown Court. Jury trials are a cornerstone of our justice system and will remain in place for the most serious cases. However, we must consider bold action to tackle the rising backlog. There is evidence that significant delays undermine confidence in the system. Over 90% of criminal cases are heard without a jury and deliver swift justice. We will carefully consider Sir Brian’s proposals before setting out the Government’s full response in the autumn.

Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office: Contracts
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Thursday 17th July 2025

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what proportion of his Department's procurement contracts were awarded to British companies in the last financial year.

Answered by Catherine West - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

Based on available data, in the financial year 2024-25, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) centrally awarded a total of 558 commercial contracts. Of these, 277 contracts-representing approximately 49.6 per cent of awarded contracts-were awarded to companies with their head office registered in the United Kingdom.

The FCDO ensures that its contracts are tendered in accordance with UK procurement legislation, promoting open and fair competition, following a set of standard processes designed to ensure transparency, value for money, and equal opportunity for suppliers.

Immigration: National Security
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Thursday 17th July 2025

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what criteria her Department uses to assess the national security risk posed by migrants from specific countries.

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

As a matter of longstanding policy, we do not comment on the detail of security and intelligence matters.

Immigration Controls
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Thursday 17th July 2025

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many countries are designated as high risk for immigration control purposes, and on what basis.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

The UK operates a robust and effective visa system, which is an important part of securing the UK border and a vital tool for the UK in reducing illegal immigration, tackling organised crime and protecting national security. A requirement to obtain a visa prior to travelling to the UK means that we can assess whether an individual is a genuine visitor to the UK and will comply with the Immigration Rules on arrival. It allows us to intervene and, where necessary, refuse a visa before the individual travels to the UK.

The UK visa system, including the Visa National List, is kept under regular review. Decisions on which countries are required to apply for a visa (known as “visa national” countries) and which are not required to apply for a visa (known as “non-visa national” countries) are taken on the basis of a range of factors including security, compliance and returns arrangements.

Immigration and Visas: National Security
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Thursday 17th July 2025

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department maintains an internal country risk list for (a) immigration and (b) visa purposes.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

The UK operates a robust and effective visa system, which is an important part of securing the UK border and a vital tool for the UK in reducing illegal immigration, tackling organised crime and protecting national security. A requirement to obtain a visa prior to travelling to the UK means that we can assess whether an individual is a genuine visitor to the UK and will comply with the Immigration Rules on arrival. It allows us to intervene and, where necessary, refuse a visa before the individual travels to the UK.

The UK visa system, including the Visa National List, is kept under regular review. Decisions on which countries are required to apply for a visa (known as “visa national” countries) and which are not required to apply for a visa (known as “non-visa national” countries) are taken on the basis of a range of factors including security, compliance and returns arrangements.

Schools: Food
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Thursday 17th July 2025

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department plans to amend the guidance entitled School food standards practical guide, published on 13 February 2025, to encourage schools to buy British produce.

Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

The department is acting quickly with experts across the sector to revise the school food standards, so every school is supported with the latest nutrition guidance. We are currently engaging with stakeholders on the school food standards to help us understand the challenges around school food.

Schools are responsible for their school meals service and how and where they choose to buy their produce. Schools can voluntarily follow the government's buying standards.

Additionally, the National Procurement Policy Statement, published in February 2025, underscores the government's commitment to increasing the procurement of food that meets higher environmental standards and upholding ethical sourcing practises across public sector contracts, which we believe our high quality British producers are well-placed to meet.

Alongside this, the government’s wider food strategy will create a healthier, fairer, and more resilient food system, boosting our food security, improving our health, ensuring economic growth, and delivering environmental sustainability.

As with all aspects of the school food standards review, the department will review our guidance and consider our approaches to procurement of UK-grown produce.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport: Remote Working
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Friday 18th July 2025

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many staff in her Department have permission to work remotely outside the UK; and in which countries those staff are based.

Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)

DCMS does not allow any staff to work remotely outside of the UK on a permanent basis.

Staff may be given time-limited permission to work overseas. Short term overseas approval granted from 1st January - 4th July 2025 are as follows:

  • Travelling for business reasons: 103 instances

  • Accompanying a spouse on an overseas military posting: 0 instances

  • On-call during annual leave: 12 instances

  • Temporary short term remote working overseas: 9 instances

Schools: Food
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Thursday 17th July 2025

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to support schools to source (a) fresh and (b) seasonal food produced in the UK.

Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

The department is acting quickly with experts across the sector to revise the school food standards, so every school is supported with the latest nutrition guidance. We are currently engaging with stakeholders on the school food standards to help us understand the challenges around school food.

Schools are responsible for their school meals service and how and where they choose to buy their produce. Schools can voluntarily follow the government's buying standards.

Additionally, the National Procurement Policy Statement, published in February 2025, underscores the government's commitment to increasing the procurement of food that meets higher environmental standards and upholding ethical sourcing practises across public sector contracts, which we believe our high quality British producers are well-placed to meet.

Alongside this, the government’s wider food strategy will create a healthier, fairer, and more resilient food system, boosting our food security, improving our health, ensuring economic growth, and delivering environmental sustainability.

As with all aspects of the school food standards review, the department will review our guidance and consider our approaches to procurement of UK-grown produce.

Ministry of Defence: Translation Services
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Friday 18th July 2025

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much their Department has spent on (a) translation and (b) interpretation for languages other than (i) British Sign Language and (ii) languages native to the UK for people contacting (A) their Department and (B) its agencies in 2025.

Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)

The Department has spent on (a) translation and (b) interpretation (excluding Arm’s Length Bodies) £27,611,694.85 ex VAT in FY24/25

Excluding (i) British Sign Language and (ii) languages native to the UK for people contacting the Department has spent on (a) translation and (b) interpretation (excluding Arm’s Length Bodies) £27,596,855.85 ex VAT in FY24/25.

Within Strategic Command, the Permanent Joint Headquarters has an ongoing requirement for interpreters and written translation services to support operational activity overseas and in the UK. Within the contract, over 99% of the value is spent on interpreters who support training and Headquarters activity. Estimated Annual spend against this contract is £30 million.

Department for Transport: Contracts
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Monday 21st July 2025

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many and what proportion of departmental procurement contracts were awarded to British companies in the last financial year.

Answered by Mike Kane - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

Across DfT (DfTc and EAs), in FY 24/25, 901 out of 909 contracts were awarded to British Companies (based in England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland).

Companies were determined as British Companies by reviewing suppliers addresses and operations for the contracts (to determine if they were based in England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland).

Department for Work and Pensions: Contracts
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Monday 21st July 2025

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of her Department's procurement contracts were awarded to British companies in the last financial year.

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

The information requested is not held centrally and to provide it would incur disproportionate costs. Information on government contracts can be found here: DWP Contracts Finder.

Ministry of Justice: Contracts
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Monday 21st July 2025

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what proportion of procurement contracts were awarded to UK companies in the 2024-25 financial year.

Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

Within financial year 2024-2025, the Ministry of Justice awarded 601 contracts to suppliers for provision of goods and services across the justice sector. 591 (98.3%) of these contracts were awarded to UK companies.

Details of central government contracts above £12,000 for procurements commenced before 24 February 2025 are published on Contracts Finder. Contracts procured under the Procurement Act 2023 above £12,000 inc VAT are published on the Central Digital Platform Find a Tender service. This includes a note of the winning supplier.

Asylum: Sexual Offences
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Friday 18th July 2025

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many (a) asylum seekers and (b) recent arrivals were charged with (i) rape and (ii) sexual assault in each of the last five years.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)

Available data on the age, ethnicity, gender and region of individuals prosecuted and convicted at criminal courts in England and Wales in the Ministry of Justice Outcomes by Offences data tool, can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page, which is available online here:

Criminal justice statistics - GOV.UK

However, this data is not broken down by nationality or immigration status.

Foreign Nationals: Sexual Offences
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Friday 18th July 2025

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many foreign nationals were arrested for sexual offences in each of the last five years, broken down by nationality.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)

Available data on the age, ethnicity, gender and region of individuals prosecuted and convicted at criminal courts in England and Wales in the Ministry of Justice Outcomes by Offences data tool, can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page, which is available online here:

Criminal justice statistics - GOV.UK

However, this data is not broken down by nationality or immigration status.

Foreign Nationals: Sexual Offences
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Friday 18th July 2025

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what proportion of people arrested for sexual offences were foreign nationals in the last 12 months.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)

Available data on the age, ethnicity, gender and region of individuals prosecuted and convicted at criminal courts in England and Wales in the Ministry of Justice Outcomes by Offences data tool, can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page, which is available online here:

Criminal justice statistics - GOV.UK

However, this data is not broken down by nationality or immigration status.

Wales Office: Contracts
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Monday 21st July 2025

Question to the Wales Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what proportion of her Department's procurement contracts were awarded to UK companies in the last financial year.

Answered by Jo Stevens - Secretary of State for Wales

Details of central government contracts above £12,000 for procurements commenced before 24 February 2025 are published on Contracts Finder (https://www.gov.uk/contracts-finder).

Contracts procured under the Procurement Act 2023 above £12,000 inc. VAT are published on the Central Digital Platform Find a Tender service. This includes a note of the winning supplier (https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Search).

Scotland Office: Contracts
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Monday 21st July 2025

Question to the Scotland Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what proportion of procurement contracts were awarded to UK companies in the 2024-25 financial year.

Answered by Ian Murray

The Scotland Office did not award any procurement contracts in 2024-25.

The Scotland Office is a small Ministerial Department which, other than for minor or bespoke purchases, does not normally undertake direct procurement.

Attorney General: Contracts
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Monday 21st July 2025

Question to the Attorney General:

To ask the Solicitor General, how many and what proportion of departmental procurement contracts were awarded to British companies in the 2024-2025 financial year.

Answered by Lucy Rigby - Solicitor General (Attorney General's Office)

Details of central government contracts above £12,000 for procurements commenced before 24 February 2025 are published on Contracts Finder (Contracts Finder - GOV.UK). Contracts procured under the Procurement Act 2023 above £12,000 inc VAT are published on the Central Digital Platform Find a Tender service. (https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Search).

No procurement contracts were awarded by the AGO below £12,000 during the 2024-2025 financial year.

Department for Education: Contracts
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Tuesday 22nd July 2025

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many and what proportion of departmental procurement contracts were awarded to British companies in the last financial year.

Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

The department’s procurement and contract management system only collects information related to company head office addresses rather than the ‘nationality’ of a company.

Details of central government contracts above £12,000 for procurements commenced before 24 February 2025 are published on Contracts Finder, which can be accessed at: https://www.gov.uk/contracts-finder.

Contracts procured under the Procurement Act 2023 above £12,000 including VAT are published on the Central Digital Platform Find a Tender service. This includes a note of the winning supplier. The service can be found here: https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Search.

Northern Ireland Office: Contracts
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Tuesday 22nd July 2025

Question to the Northern Ireland Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what proportion of procurement contracts were awarded to UK companies in the 2024-25 financial year.

Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland

In the 2024-25 financial year, the Northern Ireland Office has awarded all procurement contracts to UK companies.

Details of central government contracts above £12,000 for procurements commenced before 24 February 2025 are published on Contracts Finder (https://www.gov.uk/contracts-finder).

Contracts procured under the Procurement Act 2023 above £12,000 inc. VAT are published on the Central Digital Platform Find a Tender service. This includes a note of the winning supplier (https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Search).

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government: Remote Working
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Tuesday 22nd July 2025

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many staff in her Department have permission to work remotely outside the UK; and in which countries those staff are based.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

In line with wider Government policy, the Department policy allows spouses of Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office officials to work abroad when their spouses have been posted overseas. The Department allows working abroad when officials are overseas on official business, typically to support Ministers.

If there is a clear business need, the Department allows officials to take equipment abroad to keep in touch whilst on leave. The Department also allows working overseas for up to two weeks for exceptional welfare reasons

The numbers of staff with equipment oversees varies during the year. On 9 July, seven officials were working overseas on official business in Italy. 10 officials had equipment overseas allowing them to work if there was a need to keep in touch in, variously, Belgium, Bulgaria, France (three), Sweden, Switzerland, and the United States of America (three).

Department for Energy Security and Net Zero: Contracts
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Tuesday 22nd July 2025

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what proportion of departmental procurement contracts were awarded to British companies in the 2024-2025 financial year.

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

The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero awarded 98.5% of its contracts to British Companies.

Cabinet Office: Contracts
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Tuesday 22nd July 2025

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many and what proportion of departmental procurement contracts were awarded to British companies in the 2024-25 financial year.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

Central government contracts above £12,000 for procurements commenced before 24 February 2025 are published on Contracts Finder (https://www.gov.uk/contracts-finder). Contracts procured under the Procurement Act 2023 above £12,000 inc VAT are published on the Central Digital Platform Find a Tender service. This includes a note of the winning supplier. (https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Search).

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government: Contracts
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Tuesday 22nd July 2025

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what proportion of procurement contracts were awarded to UK companies in the 2024-25 financial year.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Details of central government contracts above £12,000 for procurements commenced before 24 February 2025 are published on Contracts Finder (https://www.gov.uk/contracts-finder). Contracts procured under the Procurement Act 2023 above £12,000 inc VAT are published on the Central Digital Platform Find a Tender service. This includes a note of the winning supplier. (https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Search).

Department for Business and Trade: Contracts
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Tuesday 22nd July 2025

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, how many and what proportion of departmental procurement contracts were awarded to British companies in the last financial year.

Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

In the financial year 2024-25, the Department awarded 274 contracts, 239 (87.2%) of which were to UK companies.

Home Office: Contracts
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Tuesday 22nd July 2025

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what proportion of procurement contracts were awarded to UK companies in the 2024-25 financial year.

Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Home Office)

The requested information is not held in a reportable format. To provide this information would require a manual review of contract records, which could only be done for the purpose of answering this question at disproportionate cost.

Department for Science, Innovation and Technology: Contracts
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Tuesday 22nd July 2025

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, how many and what proportion of departmental procurement contracts were awarded to British companies in the last financial year.

Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

Details of central government contracts above £12,000 for procurements commenced before 24 February 2025 are published on Contracts Finder (https://www.gov.uk/contracts-finder).

Contracts procured under the Procurement Act 2023 above £12,000 inc VAT are published on the Central Digital Platform Find a Tender service. This includes a note of the winning supplier. (https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Search).

Department for Science, Innovation and Technology awarded 95% of its contracts to British Companies.

Treasury: Contracts
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Tuesday 22nd July 2025

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what proportion of her Department's procurement contracts were awarded to British companies in the last financial year.

Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury

Contracts are awarded in compliance with the relevant public procurement regulations to ensure value for money, and most go to UK firms.

Taxis: Licensing
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Wednesday 23rd July 2025

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what information her Department holds on the proportion of local authorities that conduct (a) in-person interviews and (b) English language testing before issuing (i) taxi and (ii) private hire vehicle licences.

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

The Policing and Crime Act 2017 enables the Secretary of State for Transport to issue statutory guidance to licensing authorities on exercising their taxi and private hire vehicle licensing functions to protect children and vulnerable adults. Statutory guidance was published in 2020 under these powers. This statutory guidance includes a recommendation that a licensing authority’s test of a driver’s English language proficiency should cover both oral and written English language skills to ensure that drivers have the ability to understand written documents, such as policies and guidance, relating to the protection of children and vulnerable adults and can identify and act on the signs of potential exploitation.

As of 1 April 2024, 81% of licensing authorities in England reported that they require the taxi drivers that they license to meet a minimum standard of proficiency for either written, oral or both written and oral English language. As of 1 April 2024, 82% of licensing authorities in England reported that they require the private hire vehicle drivers that they license to meet a minimum standard of proficiency for either written, oral or both written and oral English language. We are currently reviewing licensing authorities’ compliance with existing guidance and will hold those who do not follow it to account.

The Department does not hold any information about whether licensing authorities conduct in-person interviews for applicants for taxi or private hire vehicle driver licences.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport: Contracts
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Wednesday 23rd July 2025

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many and what proportion of departmental procurement contracts were awarded to British companies in the last financial year.

Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)

From April 1st 2024, to March 31st 2025, a total of 135 agreements were executed. Out of these, 131 contracts were awarded to British companies, which equates to approximately 97% of contracts.

Business: Income
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Wednesday 23rd July 2025

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many businesses have had a turnover below the VAT threshold in each of the past five years.

Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury

The total number of businesses in 2024 is estimated at 5.6 million (see Business population estimates 2024 - GOV.UK, detailed table 2). According to HMRC statistics, there were around 1.3 million business registered for VAT with turnover above the threshold in 2023-34 (see Value Added Tax (VAT) annual statistics - GOV.UK, Table T5). Thus the number of businesses with turnover below the threshold would be approximately the remainder of the 5.6 million, or 4.3 million.

It should be noted that some businesses with turnover below the threshold are voluntarily registered for VAT; there were around 0.9 million such businesses in 2023-24.

Apprentices: Finance
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Wednesday 23rd July 2025

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much of the funds raised through the apprenticeship levy was allocated directly to apprenticeships; and how much was redirected to general government revenue in each of the last ten financial years.

Answered by Darren Jones - Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster

The Apprenticeship Levy was introduced in 2017, and is paid by large employers with a total annual pay bill of over £3 million. Their contribution is 0.5% of their total annual pay bill.

HMT sets the Department for Education’s budget at each Spending Review. The apprenticeship budget funds all apprenticeship training in England – both existing and new apprenticeships – across all employers.

Underspends are returned to HMT as per the Consolidated Budgeting Guidance.

While the Apprenticeship Levy is raised UK wide, apprenticeship policy and spending is devolved. This means that the devolved governments receive funding through the Barnett formula in relation to apprenticeship spending in England, with the formula applying in the normal way, as set out in the Statement of Funding Policy, when the Department for Education’s budgets change. As set out in the Policy, the Barnett formula applies to overall changes in DfE’s settlement at Spending Reviews. This means it is not possible to identify the Barnett consequentials for individual programmes. It is the devolved governments’ responsibility to allocate their funding in devolved areas as they see fit, including investing in their skills programmes, and they are accountable to the devolved legislatures for those decisions.

The table below sets out the apprenticeship budget in relation to Levy receipts once Barnett consequentials are accounted for. This is an indicative profile based on a population-based share, rounded to the nearest £5 million.

(£ million)

FY 17-18

FY 18-19

FY 19-20

FY 20-21

FY 21-22

FY 22-23

FY 23-24

FY 24-25

Levy Receipts

2,271

2,713

2,798

2,910

3,213

3,580

3,841

4,100

England Apprenticeship Budget

2,010

2,231

2,469

2,467

2,466

2,554

2,525

2,771

Devolved Governments Funding (notional Barnett allocation beyond 2019-20)

425

440

460

460

460

480

500

550

Difference

-164

42

-131

-17

287

546

816

779

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: Contracts
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Thursday 24th July 2025

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many and what proportion of departmental procurement contracts were awarded to British companies in the last financial year.

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

There were 508 contracts awarded by Defra as the contract owner in financial year 2024/25 – 500 are to UK-based suppliers, which equates to 98.43% and excludes purchase orders raised for Defra below threshold.

Details of central Government contracts above £12,000 for procurements commenced before 24 February 2025 are published on Contracts Finder. Contracts procured under the Procurement Act 2023 above £12,000 including VAT are published on the Central Digital Platform Find a Tender service. This includes a note of the winning supplier.
Asylum: Proscribed Organisations
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Thursday 24th July 2025

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether (a) migrants and (b) asylum seekers are checked for associations with Islamist terror organisations.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)

The first priority of Government is protecting national security and protecting UK citizens from terrorism. It would not be appropriate to comment in detail on operational security matters or specific cases but the Home Office uses various tools to detect and disrupt travel by those posing a national security risk, and all applications for UK immigration status, including asylum claims, are subject to comprehensive security checks.

Deportation: Personal Records
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Thursday 24th July 2025

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether it is her policy to allow people with pending deportation orders to change their name.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)

I refer the Hon Member to the answer I gave him to Question 58408.

Universal Credit: Habitual Residence Test
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Monday 28th July 2025

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, for what reason new claimants from (a) Israel and (b) the Occupied Palestinian Territories will be exempt from the Habitual Residence Test for Universal Credit.

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

Given the circumstances in which British nationals and their eligible families have urgently travelled to the UK following the Government’s evacuations, DWP want to ensure that those arriving can access benefits as soon as possible (where they meet all other eligibility requirements).

This does not enable DWP to pay benefits to anyone who does not already have an underlying entitlement to benefits. For those who are not British or Irish citizens, they must have a valid immigration status that provides recourse to public funds to access benefits, on top of meeting other benefit-specific eligibility criteria.

More detail can be found in the explanatory memorandum for this amendment: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2025/884/memorandum/contents.

Social Security Benefits: Migrants
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Monday 28th July 2025

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what guidance she has issued to (a) work coaches and (b) case managers on processing claims for new claimants from (i) Israel and (ii) the Palestinian Occupied Territories.

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

Guidance for DWP staff making benefit decisions is available on gov.uk. Specific guidance on new customers arriving in the UK from Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories will be published in the usual way.

Sexual Offences: Foreign Nationals
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Wednesday 30th July 2025

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what proportion of sex offenders serving a custodial sentence in prison are foreign nationals, broken down by nationality.

Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

In line with the Code of Practice for Statistics, we are unable to provide the requested information at this time, as doing so would disclose a subset of data which is currently intended for future publication by the Ministry of Justice.

Data on the number of Foreign National Offenders in prison by offence group is due for publication on 31 July 2025 in the Offender Management Statistics Quarterly.

Department of Health and Social Care: Contracts
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Friday 8th August 2025

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what proportion of his Department's procurement contracts were awarded to British companies in the last financial year.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

In the last financial year, 2024/25, 95.7% of procurement contracts were awarded to suppliers which reported to the Department that their legal entity is registered in the United Kingdom, in the UK Companies House Register.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: Remote Working
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Wednesday 6th August 2025

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many staff in his Department have permission to work remotely outside the UK; and in which countries those staff are based.

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

Information on civil servants employed by Defra based overseas is publicly available.



MP Financial Interests
14th July 2025
Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
2. Donations and other support (including loans) for activities as an MP
Hepburn Bio Care Ltd - £5,000.00
Source
14th July 2025
Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
2. Donations and other support (including loans) for activities as an MP
Margaret Hepburn - £5,000.00
Source
14th July 2025
Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
1.1. Employment and earnings - Ad hoc payments
Payment received on 09 July 2025 - £1,594.68
Source
14th July 2025
Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
1.1. Employment and earnings - Ad hoc payments
Payment received on 08 July 2025 - £180.00
Source
14th July 2025
Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
2. Donations and other support (including loans) for activities as an MP
Benyamin Naeem Habib - £5,000.00
Source
14th July 2025
Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
2. Donations and other support (including loans) for activities as an MP
Laurent Sartran - £8,000.00
Source
14th July 2025
Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
2. Donations and other support (including loans) for activities as an MP
Derek Holder - £5,000.00
Source
14th July 2025
Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
8. Miscellaneous
Leader of Restore Britain. This is an unpaid role.
Source
4th August 2025
Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
2. Donations and other support (including loans) for activities as an MP
David Swift - £5,000.00
Source
4th August 2025
Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
2. Donations and other support (including loans) for activities as an MP
Peter Lawery - £5,000.00
Source
4th August 2025
Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
8. Miscellaneous
£586,172.81 withdrawn from a Crowdfunder in Rupert's name. The money was withdrawn on 23/06/2025 directly in to the Rape Gang Inquiry CIC's bank account account.
Source
4th August 2025
Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
2. Donations and other support (including loans) for activities as an MP
Christopher Newman - £5,000.00
Source
4th August 2025
Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
1.1. Employment and earnings - Ad hoc payments
Payment received on 23 July 1993 - £1,200.18
Source
4th August 2025
Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
2. Donations and other support (including loans) for activities as an MP
Munish Sharma - £2,000.00
Source


Early Day Motions Signed
Tuesday 22nd July
Rupert Lowe signed this EDM as a sponsor on Tuesday 22nd July 2025

35th anniversary of the murder of Ian Gow MP

11 signatures (Most recent: 3 Sep 2025)
Tabled by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
That this House recalls with deep sorrow, this 35 years ago, the cowardly murder of Ian Gow, the then hon. Member for Eastbourne, a former Minister of The Crown and Parliamentary Private Secretary to the then Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher, when, in the early hours of 30 July 1990, a …
Tuesday 22nd July
Rupert Lowe signed this EDM as a sponsor on Tuesday 22nd July 2025

Consequences of the Equality Act 2010

9 signatures (Most recent: 3 Sep 2025)
Tabled by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
That this House notes with deep concern the damaging implications of the Equality Act 2010; highlights that equality under the law already existed prior to 2010; recognises the Equality Act 2010 as an imposition of constitutional codification over traditional common law protections; acknowledges that racial discrimination cases have tripled between …
Tuesday 22nd July
Rupert Lowe signed this EDM as a sponsor on Tuesday 22nd July 2025

Historic County Flags Day 2025

10 signatures (Most recent: 4 Sep 2025)
Tabled by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
That this House celebrates Historic County Flags Day on Wednesday 23 July 2025; expresses immense pride in seeing the flag of each and every historic county flown in Parliament Square this week to mark the occasion; recognises that the historic counties of the UK continue to play an important part …



Rupert Lowe mentioned

Select Committee Documents
Wednesday 9th July 2025
Oral Evidence - X (formerly known as Twitter), Meta, and University of Glasgow

Speaker’s Conference on the security of candidates, MPs and elections - Speaker's Conference (2024) Committee

Found: That was about Rupert Lowe. That is the one that remains up. Why does it remain up?