Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what action her Department is taking to tackle anti-social behaviour in rural towns and villages in South Shropshire constituency.

Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)

Tackling Anti-Social Behaviour is a top priority for this Government.

Under the Government's Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee, we are putting neighbourhood officers back into communities and restoring public confidence by bringing back community-led, visible policing. West Mercia Police will receive £3,108,283 as part of the funding settlement for 2025-26.

In addition, the Home Office is providing £66.3 million funding in 2025-26 to all 43 forces in England and Wales to deliver high visibility patrols in the areas worst affected by knife crime, serious violence and anti-social behaviour. As part of the Hotspot Action Fund, West Mercia Police will be in receipt of £1,000,000.

The Winter of Action which commenced on the 1 December 2025 and will run to 31 January 2026, is currently underway, focusing on making town centres safer across England and Wales. This initiative builds on the Safer Streets Summer Initiative, continuing efforts to tackle crime and anti-social behaviour, while also addressing retail crime and night-time economy offences, particularly during darker evenings when risks to public safety increase. West Mercia have listed 14 areas, and Shropshire have listed 3 areas as part of the Winter of Action.

Through our Crime and Policing Bill, we are making our streets and neighbourhoods safer by strengthening the powers available to the police and other agencies to tackle anti-social behaviour. This includes introducing new Respect Orders to give local agencies stronger enforcement capability to tackle the most persistent adult anti-social behaviour offenders, and powers for the police to seize nuisance off-road bikes, and other vehicles which are being used in an anti-social manner, without having to first give a warning to the offender.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps are being taken to support community-backed housing schemes.

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

The government recognises that the community-led housing sector delivers a wide range of benefits including strengthening community participation in local decision-making, engendering community cohesion, achieving high quality design and strengthening the co-operative economy.

In March, we announced a £20m 10-year social finance investment to provide capital finance for community-led housing, which is expected to directly support the construction of more than 2,500 new homes over the next decade. These housebuilding projects will be led by communities to specifically address local needs in their area.

The revised National Planning Policy Framework published on 12 December strengthened support for community-led housing, including through changes to the size limit on community-led exception sites and a broadening of the definition of organisations able to deliver community-led housing.

The new Social and Affordable Homes Programme seeks to support an increase in the delivery of community-led and rural housing. The flexibility in grant rates provided for under the new programme will help community-led schemes achieve viability and help the sector grow towards its full potential.

The government is also considering opportunities to legislate to establish a legal framework for a co-operative housing tenure, which would help formalise the rights and responsibilities of both co-operatives and their tenants, and make co-operative housing a more attractive option.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what funding is available from her Department for local crime prevention measures in rural areas.

Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)

Rural crime can have devastating consequences for countryside communities and the agricultural sector.

We are improving the protections for rural communities, with tougher measures to clamp down on equipment theft, anti-social behaviour, strengthened neighbourhood policing and stronger measures to prevent farm theft and fly-tipping.

This financial year the Home Office has provided the first Government funding since 2023 for the National Rural Crime Unit (£365,000) as well as continuing funding for the National Wildlife Crime Unit (£450,000). The National Rural Crime Unit work with police forces and rural communities to promote the use of crime prevention measures such as Rural Watch.

We have also worked closely with the National Police Chiefs’ Council to deliver their updated Rural and Wildlife Crime Strategy for 2025-2028. The strategy highlights how policing can assist in the prevention of crime in rural areas.

It is the responsibility of Chief Constables and locally elected Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs), including Mayors who exercise PCC or equivalent functions, to take decisions around the allocation of their funding and resources.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what funding is available to increase access to grassroots sport in South Shropshire constituency.

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

The Government is investing £98 million to deliver new and upgraded grassroots sports facilities across the UK in 2025/26 through the Multi-Sport Grassroots Facilities Programme. Our delivery partner for the programme in England, the Football Foundation, plans its investment pipeline using Local Football Facility Plans (LFFPs), which are developed in partnership with local authorities to better understand the needs of each community. The LFFP for Shropshire can be found here: https://localplans.footballfoundation.org.uk/local-authorities-index/shropshire/shropshire-executive-summary/.

The Government provides the majority of support for grassroots sport through Sport England, which annually invests over £250 million in Exchequer and Lottery funding.

The Government’s announcement of £400 million to be invested in grassroots sports facilities across the UK over the next four years will ensure we can continue to deliver high-quality multi-sport facilities in the areas that require them, in order to increase participation and allow people to be active.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps are being taken to increase volunteering opportunities in South Shropshire constituency.

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

Volunteering plays a vital role in communities throughout the country, contributing to the very fabric of British life. The Government wants to encourage and enable as many people as possible to be involved in delivering positive change. That is why we are investing in developing an open data infrastructure for volunteering, which will make it easier for people to find opportunities online and volunteer in their communities.

DCMS is also supporting the launch of The Big Help Out 2026, which aims to encourage organisations to provide meaningful volunteering opportunities and inspire people to make a difference in communities across the country. The campaign will signpost local opportunities, including in South Shropshire, to encourage new volunteers to get involved in a range of activities.

Question

To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, when she plans to reply to the email from the hon. Member for South Shropshire dated 19 June 2025 with case reference number SA34564.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The Government is committed to transparency and accountability, including through clear and timely responses to correspondence. Your correspondence dated 19 June was passed to the Equalities Minister responsible for the UK equality framework; you should have now received the reply.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps are being taken to increase mobile connectivity in South Shropshire constituency.

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

Our ambition is for all populated areas to have access to higher quality standalone 5G by 2030. Government continues to work closely with the mobile network operators (MNOs), ensuring that we have the right policy and regulatory framework in place to support investment, as well as identifying and addressing barriers to deployment where they exist and it is practical to do so.

In Ofcom’s Connected Nations Annual Report, published on 19 November 2025, it is reported that 4G is available across 88% of landmass in the South Shropshire constituency from all four MNOs, while 5G (combined standalone and non-standalone) is available outside 80% of premises in the constituency from at least one MNO.

Whilst the rollout of 5G infrastructure is primarily commercially driven, government’s Shared Rural Network programme continues to deliver 4G coverage improvements. The programme has upgraded and activated two government funded Home Office masts which are providing new coverage to the more rural parts of South Shropshire.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps are being taken to support heritage assets in South Shropshire constituency.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

This government takes our responsibility to the built historic environment seriously. For this year alone, my Department has committed nearly £60 million of funding for heritage, including £15m for Heritage at Risk.

Funding is administered by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport’s Arms-Length-Bodies. Since 1994, The National Lottery Heritage Fund has awarded £20,766,738 to 241 projects in South Shropshire constituency, such as the 2024/25 grant of £592,109 to the Parochial Church Council of Nash and Boraston for St John the Baptist Church, Nash, to enable the repair of the tower spire and roof of St John the Baptist Church, and to celebrate the history of the church, creating a timeline for the building’s history.

Over the last 10 years, Historic England has administered £1,283,643 of funding in South Shropshire. Historic England is also actively engaged in discussion with the owners and managers of assets on the Heritage at Risk Register in South Shropshire as well as other assets within the constituency.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, when she plans to reply to the email from the hon. Member for South Shropshire dated 11 September 2025 with case reference number SA36696.

Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

The email from the hon. Member for South Shropshire dated 11 September 2025 with case reference number SA36696 has been transferred to the Department for Business and Trade (DBT). DBT will respond in due course.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment he has made of the potential contribution of the domestic tourism sector on his net zero targets.

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

The Carbon Budget and Growth Delivery Plan, published in October, sets out how the UK will continue to reduce emissions across all sectors of the economy on the pathway to net zero.

The Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero engages regularly on net zero with his colleagues in other departments.

Policy on domestic tourism is led by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. In 2023, tourism contributed £58.2bn GVA (2.5% of the UK economy) and directly employed 1.2 million people. DCMS works with VisitEngland, destinations, local visitor economy partnerships (LVEPs) and industry to support sustainable tourism practices. The government is committed to supporting the sector through the forthcoming Visitor Economy Growth Plan.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps have been taken to improve the accessibility of the high street for wheelchair users.

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

It is the responsibility of local authorities to manage their streets and to ensure this is done in a way which allows them to comply with the Public Sector Equality Duty.

The Department provides good practice guidance on designing accessible streets in Inclusive Mobility: A Guide to Best Practice on Access to Pedestrian and Transport Infrastructure.

This is available at: www.gov.uk/government/publications/inclusive-mobility-making-transport-accessible-for-passengers-and-pedestrians.