Asked by: Tonia Antoniazzi (Labour - Gower)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many asylum claimants there are in Northern Ireland for which the latest data is available.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office are unable to state how many asylum claimants there are in Northern Ireland as this information is not routinely collated.
The Home Office publishes data on the number of individuals in receipt of asylum support. The most recent published statistics show that, as at the end of March 2026, 2,379 asylum seekers were receiving Home Office support in Northern Ireland (source: Immigration system statistics data tables - GOV.UK (opens in a new tab) table Asy_D11). This figure does not include asylum claimants who are not in receipt of asylum support, as this information is not available from published statistics and could only be collated at disproportionate cost.
Asked by: Tonia Antoniazzi (Labour - Gower)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people made asylum applications at Drumkeen House in Belfast in each of the last three years.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
The information requested is not currently available from published statistics, and the relevant data could only be collated and verified for the purpose of answering this question at disproportionate cost.
Asked by: Tonia Antoniazzi (Labour - Gower)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of trends in the number of asylum seekers in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
Immigration and asylum policy are reserved matters for the Home Office. I would encourage the Honourable Member to write to the Home Secretary on this matter.
Asked by: Tonia Antoniazzi (Labour - Gower)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of advising prophylactic antibiotics for those at risk of endocarditis from basic dental examinations.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
No assessment has been made by the Department, however the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) has guidance on the use of antibiotic prophylaxis to prevent infective endocarditis in NICE Clinical Guideline CG64, which can be found at the following link:
https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/cg64
This guideline states that antibiotic prophylaxis to prevent infective endocarditis is not currently routinely recommended for people undergoing dental procedures, but it is recommended for a small number of people who are at increased risk of infective endocarditis, such as those with certain structural heart conditions. For these individuals, clinicians should provide clear information on the risks and benefits and may consider antibiotic prophylaxis on an individual basis following an informed discussion, rather than as part of routine care. Where used, prophylaxis is typically limited to a single, targeted dose, consistent with antimicrobial stewardship principles.
From an antimicrobial resistance perspective, the Department’s position is that preventing infection in the first place, through good oral hygiene, timely access to dental care, and effective infection prevention and control, is the most sustainable way to reduce both endocarditis risk and the need for antibiotics. NICE has recently highlighted additional advice for high‑risk groups, but has confirmed that the evidence remains insufficient to change the overall recommendation against routine antibiotic prophylaxis, which can be found at the following link:
https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/cg64/chapter/recommendations
Asked by: Tonia Antoniazzi (Labour - Gower)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether users of LPG can access the £53 million emergency support package for vulnerable households.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The additional £53 million announced by the government to be targeted at heating oil includes £3.8 million support for Wales, which is being provided to the Welsh Government. It is for the Welsh Government to determine how this funding is allocated and delivered, in line with its devolved responsibilities and existing delivery mechanisms, including any support available for households reliant on LPG.
Asked by: Tonia Antoniazzi (Labour - Gower)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential implications for its policies of the Portman Group’s report entitled Protecting Consumers and Supporting Producers: Regulatory Report 2025, published on 4 February 2026.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department has noted the publication of the report Protecting Consumers and Supporting Producers: Regulatory Report 2025, which provides the Portman Groups review of its regulation in 2025.
The Portman Group are the alcohol industry’s self-regulatory body with responsibility for the application of two codes to regulate the sponsorship, naming, packaging, and marketing of alcoholic products.
Asked by: Tonia Antoniazzi (Labour - Gower)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 4 February 2026 to Question 118047, which section of the most recent Block Grant Transparency publication details the Barnett consequentials allocated to the Northern Ireland Executive following increases in police funding to PCCs in England and Wales in each year since 2020.
Answered by James Murray - Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
The Barnett formula applies to all changes in UK Government Departmental Expenditure Limits, as set out in the Statement of Funding Policy. The Block Grant Transparency publication breaks down all changes to the Northern Ireland Executive’s block grant funding since Spending Review 2015. The most recent report was published in October 2025.
At spending reviews, the Barnett formula is applied to overall changes to department funding, rather than to individual programmes or specific funding streams. Therefore, it is not possible to identify or specify Barnett consequentials allocated to the Northern Ireland Executive for particular programmes where funding was provided at spending reviews, including increases in police funding to Police and Crime Commisioners in England and Wales.
Asked by: Tonia Antoniazzi (Labour - Gower)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 3 February 2026 to Question 109187 and Question 109186 on Religious Buildings: Wales, what additional funding was agreed with the Treasury to support the Places of Worship Renewal Fund; and what amount of proportional funding was made available to the Welsh Government.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
At the Spending Review 2025, HM Treasury agreed budgets for Departments for a three-year period for Resource DEL, and a four-year period for Capital DEL. The Department then completed a Business Planning process to allocate this funding to programmes. This included £92 million (£23 million per year) for the Places of Worship Renewal Fund.
At Spending Reviews, the Devolved Governments generally receive Barnett consequentials as a proportion of overall departmental settlements, not specific funding lines or programmes. Decisions on the allocation of this funding are then for the Devolved Governments to take. We are not therefore able to provide Barnett numbers relating to specific policy measures.
Asked by: Tonia Antoniazzi (Labour - Gower)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate she has made of the Barnett consequentials allocated to the Northern Ireland Executive from the £750,000 uplift provided in 2019 for an increase in officer numbers to 20,000 in England and Wales.
Answered by James Murray - Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
The Barnett formula applies to all changes in UK Government Departmental Expenditure Limits, including the Home Office, as set out in the Statement of Funding Policy. The Block Grant Transparency publication breaks down all changes to the Northern Ireland Executive’s block grant funding since Spending Review 2015. The most recent report was published in October 2025.
Asked by: Tonia Antoniazzi (Labour - Gower)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate she has made of the Barnett consequentials allocated to the Northern Ireland Executive following increases in police funding to PCCs in England and Wales in each year since 2020.
Answered by James Murray - Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
The Barnett formula applies to all changes in UK Government Departmental Expenditure Limits, as set out in the Statement of Funding Policy. The Block Grant Transparency publication breaks down all changes to the Northern Ireland Executive’s block grant funding since Spending Review 2015. The most recent report was published in October 2025.