Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she has made an assessment of the potential implications for her polices of trends in levels of theft of Royal Mail post boxes; and whether she has had recent discussions with Royal Mail on those trends.

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

In the year ending June 2024, there were 6,290 ‘Theft of mail’ offences recorded by the police across England and Wales, a 26% decrease compared with the previous year.

Theft, including the theft of post boxes is a serious issue. This Government recognises the distress and disruption that theft and vandalism can cause, not only to businesses, but also to local communities and critical infrastructure.

That is why we are putting 13,000 additional police officers and personnel into neighbourhood policing roles. This will ensure that everyone has a named, contactable officer, responsive to local problems including the theft of Royal Mail post boxes.

The 2025-26 final Police Funding Settlement provides funding of up to £19.6 billion for the policing system in England and Wales. This is an overall increase of up to £1.2 billion when compared with the 2024-25 settlement and includes an additional £200 million to kickstart the first phase of the additional neighbourhood policing roles.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 13 March 2025 to Question 36916 on British Overseas Territories: Companies, what discussions he has had with the British Virgin Islands government on the reasons why it did not implement a register of beneficial ownership by the end of June 2025.

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

At the Joint Ministerial Council (JMC) in November 2024, the British Virgin Islands (BVI) committed to implement a register of beneficial ownership accessible to those with a legitimate interest offering the maximum possible degree of access and transparency, whilst containing the necessary safeguards to protect the right to privacy in line with its constitution, by June 2025.

Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office officials have been in regular contact with the BVI to press for improvements to its register and to ensure that it meets its JMC commitment. The BVI published an updated policy on its register on 23 June. In my discussions with Premier Wheatley, I will continue to make clear the importance of further improvements in the BVI's proposal, as well as timely delivery of the register. My Written Ministerial Statement of 3 July provides further details of the next steps.

I have raised this issue on a number of occasions recently with the Premier both bilaterally and in the context of wider meetings with OT leaders. I look forward to meeting him again in person soon to raise this and other matters. Our expectations remain the same.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to encourage more young people to undertake vocational training to become (a) plumbers and (b) electricians.

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

The department continues to make available education and training opportunities in electrical and plumbing sectors, including:

• A range of apprenticeships, including the level 3 plumbing and domestic heating technician standard and the level 3 domestic electrician standard. We are also developing foundation apprenticeships in priority sectors, including construction from August.

• A T Level in Building Services Engineering for Construction provides students with the core knowledge and skills needed for entry to a range of occupations in the electrical and plumbing sectors.

• Investment of an additional £625 million in a construction skills package, expected to deliver up to 60,000 additional skilled construction workers, including in electrical and plumbing, this Parliament. This includes establishing ten technical excellence colleges specialising in construction skills, opening in September 2025.

The department continues to raise awareness amongst young people of the vocational training that is available. Secondary schools have legal requirements to provide independent careers guidance, including at least six opportunities for providers of technical education or apprenticeships to speak to all pupils. Our government-funded network of Careers Hubs, coordinated by the Careers and Enterprise Company, supports schools and colleges to maximise these opportunities.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of trends in the level of drop-outs from vocational courses; and what steps she is taking to increase course completion rates.

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

The department's Qualification Achievement Rates (QARs) include official statistics on levels of achievement for a range of qualifications, including vocational learning. Latest published statistics show overall achievement rates within the 19+ education and training cohort have increased from 86.8% in 2022/23 to 87.4% in 2023/24, an increase of 0.6 percentage points. Compared with 2021/22, they are up by 1.2 percentage points. Links to QAR data from current and previous years is available here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/introduction-to-qualification-achievement-rates-qars.

Retention rates are also improving at ages 16 to 18. The retained and assessed rate for students who finished their T Level across 16 subjects in summer 2024 was up five percentage points from the previous year in over 10 subjects. The rate for large Vocational Technical Qualifications was up three percentage points. Further details on provisional T Level results for the 2023/24 academic year are available here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/provisional-t-level-results/2023-24.

Alongside T Levels, the department continues to develop and improve qualifications to ensure that they meet the needs of learners. Newly reformed qualifications will become available for delivery at levels 2 and 3 at the start of the next academic year, and we are in the process of approving new level 3 qualifications for delivery from August 2026. These are high-quality, aligned to occupational standards in technical routes, and offer learners clear routes to higher education or skilled employment.

Carers and social care reform

Food waste

Loan Charge and settlement terms offered to large companies and individuals

Climate and Nature Bill

Found: Current membership Ruth Cadbury (Labour; Brentford and Isleworth) (Chair) Steff Aquarone (Liberal Democrat

Found: _NC1 Mr Paul Kohler Steff Aquarone Monica Harding .

Found: _NC1 Mr Paul Kohler Steff Aquarone Monica Harding .

Found: Mr Alistair Carmichael Tessa Munt Vikki Slade Wera Hobhouse Andrew George Daisy Cooper Steff Aquarone

Found: Mr Alistair Carmichael Tessa Munt Vikki Slade Wera Hobhouse Andrew George Daisy Cooper Steff Aquarone

Found: Mr Alistair Carmichael Tessa Munt Vikki Slade Wera Hobhouse Andrew George Daisy Cooper Steff Aquarone

Found: Mr Alistair Carmichael Tessa Munt Vikki Slade Wera Hobhouse Andrew George Daisy Cooper Steff Aquarone

Found: _NC1 Mr Paul Kohler Steff Aquarone Monica Harding .

Found: _NC1 Mr Paul Kohler Steff Aquarone Monica Harding .

Found: Mr Alistair Carmichael Tessa Munt Vikki Slade Wera Hobhouse Andrew George Daisy Cooper Steff Aquarone

Found: Mr Alistair Carmichael Tessa Munt Vikki Slade Wera Hobhouse Andrew George Daisy Cooper Steff Aquarone

Found: _NC5 Steff Aquarone Vikki Slade Caroline Voaden Liz Jarvis John Milne Dr Roz Savage Steve Darling

Found: _NC5 Steff Aquarone Vikki Slade Caroline Voaden Liz Jarvis John Milne Dr Roz Savage Steve Darling

Found: New Amendments: 18 to 21 and NC17 to NC24 _NC1 Mr Paul Kohler Steff Aquarone .

Found: New Amendments: 18 to 21 and NC17 to NC24 _NC1 Mr Paul Kohler Steff Aquarone .

Found: Mr Alistair Carmichael Tessa Munt Vikki Slade Wera Hobhouse Andrew George Daisy Cooper Steff Aquarone

Found: Mr Alistair Carmichael Tessa Munt Vikki Slade Wera Hobhouse Andrew George Daisy Cooper Steff Aquarone

Found: July 2025 _3 Max Wilkinson Liz Jarvis Mr Lee Dillon Manuela Perteghella Mr Will Forster Steff Aquarone

Found: _3 Max Wilkinson Liz Jarvis Mr Lee Dillon Manuela Perteghella Mr Will Forster Steff Aquarone

Found: Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.” 31 COMMITTEE STAGE Tuesday 8 July 2025 _NC5 Steff Aquarone

Found: _NC5 Steff Aquarone Vikki Slade Caroline Voaden Liz Jarvis .

Found: New Amendments: 3 to 17 and NC2 to NC16 _NC1 Mr Paul Kohler Steff Aquarone .

Found: _3 Max Wilkinson Liz Jarvis Mr Lee Dillon Manuela Perteghella Mr Will Forster Steff Aquarone

Found: _NC5 Steff Aquarone .

Found: _NC5 Steff Aquarone .

Found: Mr Alistair Carmichael Tessa Munt Vikki Slade Wera Hobhouse Andrew George Daisy Cooper Steff Aquarone

Found: _NC5 Steff Aquarone ★.

Found: Withdrawn after debate_70 Steff Aquarone Mr Paul Kohler Caroline Voaden .

Found: _65 Mr Paul Kohler Steff Aquarone Caroline Voaden Olly Glover .

Found: _65 Mr Paul Kohler Steff Aquarone Caroline Voaden Olly Glover .

Found: Mr Alistair Carmichael Tessa Munt Vikki Slade Wera Hobhouse Andrew George Daisy Cooper Steff Aquarone

Found: Withdrawn after debate_70 Steff Aquarone Mr Paul Kohler Caroline Voaden .

Found: Jopp Mr Angus MacDonald Sarah Gibson Sam Rushworth Sarah Olney Vikki Slade Luke Taylor Steff Aquarone

Submit Evidence (by 8 Sep 2025)

Taxis and private hire vehicles (PHVs) form a key part of the transport network, particularly for people who face barriers to using other forms of transport and as a driver of the nighttime economy. However, the current system for regulating these vehicles can vary across different licensing authorities, creating inconsistencies and raising questions about how effective present standards are.

Submit Evidence (by 15 Sep 2025)

The UK has a long tradition of manufacturing motor vehicles, buses, aeroplanes, trains, and ships, but manufacturers in the transport industries are concerned about skills shortages. These industries are integral to the economic health of the communities they are based in, and they provide high-quality, British-built equipment for companies here and around the world.

Submit Evidence (by 16 Oct 2025)

The Transport Committee is looking at how Government can mould transport services, networks and options around the journeys that people need and want to make in their daily lives. We want to find out what kinds of changes need to be made to bring this about, including in different parts of the country and for transport users with different needs.