Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what estimate he has made of the proportion of British-made steel procured by the UK defence industry in the last year.
Answered by Maria Eagle - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The UK steel sector provides vital support to the UK’s defence capabilities. Steel used in our major Defence programmes is sourced by our prime contractors from a range of UK and international suppliers, as programmes may often have requirements for specialist steel which cannot be sourced in the UK. The amount and origins of steel procured for Defence programmes is included in the Department for Business and Trade’s annual Steel Public Procurement report which can be found on the gov.uk website: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/steel-public-procurement
The Ministry of Defence (MOD) is developing a Defence Industrial Strategy that will align this Government’s national security and economic priorities. This will include a review of the UK’s approach to critical supply chain elements, such as steel, alongside reviewing and reconfirming the areas where the UK needs to retain sovereign production capacities onshore. The Government will also bring forward a new cross Government Steel Strategy which will establish a long-term vision for the industry, promoting long-term growth, that aligns with wider priorities, including the trade strategy, Strategic Defence Review and the upcoming Modern Industrial Strategy.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he is taking steps to increase domestic steel production capabilities for products required by the UK defence industry.
Answered by Maria Eagle - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The UK steel sector provides vital support to the UK’s defence capabilities. Steel used in our major Defence programmes is sourced by our prime contractors from a range of UK and international suppliers, as programmes may often have requirements for specialist steel which cannot be sourced in the UK. The amount and origins of steel procured for Defence programmes is included in the Department for Business and Trade’s annual Steel Public Procurement report which can be found on the gov.uk website: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/steel-public-procurement
The Ministry of Defence (MOD) is developing a Defence Industrial Strategy that will align this Government’s national security and economic priorities. This will include a review of the UK’s approach to critical supply chain elements, such as steel, alongside reviewing and reconfirming the areas where the UK needs to retain sovereign production capacities onshore. The Government will also bring forward a new cross Government Steel Strategy which will establish a long-term vision for the industry, promoting long-term growth, that aligns with wider priorities, including the trade strategy, Strategic Defence Review and the upcoming Modern Industrial Strategy.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of UK support for the Mozambique Liquefied natural gas project on the UK's international climate commitments.
Answered by Gareth Thomas - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
UK Export Finance is currently in talks with project sponsors and other lenders, including export credit agencies, and other stakeholders, regarding the latest status of the Mozambique LNG project. At present, UKEF is engaged in conducting relevant due diligence which has yet to conclude.
UK Export Finance follows internationally recognised frameworks for managing environmental, social & human rights risks and impacts of relevant projects. UKEF will take proper account of relevant factors, including international climate change issues.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent steps she has taken to (a) prevent vehicle number plate cloning and (b) support victims.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The cloning and use of false number plates is a serious issue and the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency is working with the police and others to improve the identification and enforcement of number plate crime.
The law requires anyone who supplies number plates for road use in the UK to be registered with DVLA and for suppliers to carry out checks to ensure that number plates are only sold to those who are entitled to the registration number. Number plate suppliers must also keep records of the number plates they have supplied. Those found to have committed number plate offences can be prosecuted by the police.
To help victims of numberplate cloning, the DVLA can, on request, provide a replacement age related registration number.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the average waiting time was to resolve urgent repairs requested for service family accommodation in the last 12 months.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
The average response time to resolve urgent repairs requested for Service Family Accommodation from April 2024 to March 2025 is below:
Month | Average Response Time In Hours |
April 2024 | 38.48 |
May 2024 | 37.99 |
June 2024 | 33.50 |
July 2024 | 38.10 |
August 2024 | 40.43 |
September 2024 | 38.35 |
October 2024 | 40.98 |
November 2024 | 38.26 |
December 2024 | 36.30 |
January 2025 | 40.86 |
February 2025 | 36.05 |
March 2025 | 38.39 |
Please note, the Department can only provide data up to the last quarterly period which ended in March 2025.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 3 June 2025 to Question 53953 on Gaza: Infant Mortality, whether the Israeli Government responded to the request to (a) stop military operations in and (b) immediately allow humanitarian aid to enter Gaza.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK continues to make clear that the UK stands firmly against Israel's resumption of military action in Gaza. We continue to call on the Government of Israel to lift restrictions immediately to enable humanitarian aid to enter at scale. We made this clear again at the UN Security Council last week, when we voted in favour of a draft UN Security Council Resolution on Gaza. Ministers continue to make representations to Israeli counterparts on these issues as we call for a lasting peace.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 3 June 2025 to Question 53953 on Gaza: Infant Mortality, whether he has made an assessment of the likelihood of the British Red Cross humanitarian funding reaching Gaza.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
On 4 June, I announced an additional £4 million to the British Red Cross (BRC) in supporting Gaza. The UK has assessed that, despite severe access constraints, BRC, has a credible and realistic pathway to reach Gaza through its partner, the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS). This assessment is based on the PRCS's longstanding operational presence in Gaza and its continued ability to deliver aid where conditions allow. The UK remains in close contact with the BRC to monitor delivery and ensure accountability. Working with the BRC and international partners, we continue to push for improved humanitarian access.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the total tax revenue collected from (a) business rates and (b) corporation tax was in the Slough constituency in the most recent period for which data is available.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
Data on the amount of business rates collected for 2023-24, which is the more recent publicly available data, is published by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) online here. Table 9 contains data at the local authority level:
HMRC publish total Corporation Tax (CT) receipts online here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/corporation-tax-statistics-2024. HMRC do not hold data on the amount of CT paid by companies in individual parliamentary constituencies.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the press release entitled Joint statement from the leaders of the United Kingdom, France and Canada on the situation in Gaza and the West Bank, published on 19 May 2025, and the Answer of 10 December 2024 to Question 16737 on Gaza: Israel, whether his Department's assessment of Israel's compliance with International Humanitarian Law included whether genocide had been committed.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK's long-standing policy is that any formal determination as to whether genocide has occurred is a matter for a competent national or international court, rather than for governments or non-judicial bodies. It should be decided after consideration of all the evidence available in the context of a credible judicial process.
Our International Humanitarian Law assessments address Israel's record of compliance across four domains: the conduct of hostilities; forced displacement; provision and facilitation of humanitarian relief; and the treatment of detainees.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has received unsolicited correspondence from legal experts on the legality of the Israeli blockade on the delivery of aid to the population of Gaza.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Government received an open letter concerning the Occupied Palestinian Territory on the 26 May 2025 from signatories comprising lawyers, legal academic and former judges who are UK-based or qualified.