Asked by: Scott Arthur (Labour - Edinburgh South West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether any UK passport holders have been accused of breaching international law in Gaza.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) does not comment on individual cases or provide information relating to specific UK nationals, in line with long-standing policy to protect personal data and in accordance with General Data Protection Regulation.
The FCDO currently advises against all travel to Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories. This guidance is based on the current security situation and is regularly reviewed. We urge all British nationals to consult the latest FCDO Travel Advice before travelling to the region and to follow local authority guidance at all times.
Asked by: Scott Arthur (Labour - Edinburgh South West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with pursuant to the Answer of 19 June 2025 to Question 58444 on Israel: F-35 Aircraft, whether international allies who are not F-35 Partners have raised concerns with him on the use of UK-made F-35 parts in Gaza.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Our conversations with international allies on Gaza have focused on the need for an immediate ceasefire, including release of hostages, a surge of aid into Gaza and a path towards permanent peace and security for Israelis and Palestinians based on a two-state solution. We take our export licensing responsibilities seriously and regularly discuss them with allies.
Asked by: Scott Arthur (Labour - Edinburgh South West)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps she is taking to reduce the tax gap.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
A key part of restoring economic stability and fiscal responsibility is closing the tax gap. Unpaid tax deprives UK public services of vital funding and puts businesses who pay the right tax at a competitive disadvantage.
At the Budget last autumn, the Government introduced the most ambitious package ever to close the tax gap, ensuring more individuals and businesses pay the taxes they owe and raising £6.5 bn in additional tax revenue per year by 2029-2030. At the Spring Statement, the Government built on this and announced a package of measures to further close the tax gap and raise over £1 billion more.
The announcements since the start of this Government will see 5,500 more compliance officers, alongside 2400 staff in HMRC's debt management teams to ensure those who can afford to pay their tax debts do so.
The Government is also delivering on its commitments to prosecute more tax fraudsters, to introduce a new HMRC reward scheme for informants, to tackle 'phoenixism', and to overhaul HMRC's approach to offshore tax non-compliance. The Government has also set out its plans to go further in the future to make it easier for taxpayers to pay the right tax through a modern and digital tax system.
Asked by: Scott Arthur (Labour - Edinburgh South West)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if she will make it her policy to implement all recommendations made in the Ministry of Justice report entitled Assessing Risk of Harm to Children and Parents in Private Law Children Cases, published in June 2020, as part of her Department's planned Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The Government was elected with a mission to halve violence against women and girls in a decade. As part of this we are committed to ensuring everyone involved in private law children cases in the family courts is protected from harm and that the welfare of the child is always the court’s paramount consideration when making decisions about children’s lives.
In May 2023, the Ministry of Justice published a delivery update which outlined the progress made against the recommendations of the Final Report on Assessing Risk of Harm to Children and Parents in Private Law Children Cases. This can be found on GOV.UK.
The Ministry of Justice has already taken forward many of the actions it committed to following the report, including announcing family court reforms, such as expanding our Pathfinder programme in the family court which is improving the experience of children, and domestic abuse survivors in private law court proceedings relating to children. The Government will be publishing its new cross-government strategy later this summer, which will outline how we aim to meet our ambition to tackle violence against women and girls.