Asked by: Tracy Gilbert (Labour - Edinburgh North and Leith)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of the White Paper entitled Restoring control over the immigration system, published on 12 May 2025, on the UK Ancestry Visa.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The UK Government values its close cultural and historical ties with its fellow Commonwealth countries and this is reflected by the UK Ancestry visa, which allows Commonwealth citizens with a UK-born grandparent to live and work in the UK.
Further details of all measures announced in the Immigration White Paper will be set out in the normal way in due course and, where necessary, will be subject to consultation.
Asked by: Tracy Gilbert (Labour - Edinburgh North and Leith)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the White Paper entitled Restoring control over the immigration system, published on 12 May 2025, whether she plans to change the 12-month qualifying period between the grant of indefinite leave to remain and the right to apply for naturalisation.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
We will be consulting on the earned settlement and citizenship schemes later this year and further details on the proposed schemes will be provided at that time.
Asked by: Tracy Gilbert (Labour - Edinburgh North and Leith)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether his Department has undertaken preparatory work on a potential youth mobility scheme with the EU.
Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
We have agreed that we will work towards the establishment of a balanced youth experience scheme with the EU. We have agreed that any scheme will be time-limited and capped, and we have also been clear that it should be in line with the UK’s existing schemes with countries like Australia and New Zealand. The exact parameters will be subject to negotiation.
Asked by: Tracy Gilbert (Labour - Edinburgh North and Leith)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps his Department is taking to reduce the number of fraudulent companies registered with Companies House.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
In October 2023, the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 was enacted with the primary purpose of bearing down on the fraudulent use of corporate structures in the UK. The process of implementing that legislation is underway but strengthened powers have already enabled the registrar of companies to intervene against 100,400 companies – equivalent to 2% of the register. This is further helped by expanded data sharing powers to collaborate with Law Enforcement partners to tackle strategic threats. Furthermore, this year Companies House is implementing mandatory Identity Verification to prevent false or hijacked identities being used.
Asked by: Tracy Gilbert (Labour - Edinburgh North and Leith)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of lifting tariffs on non-folding Chinese e-bikes on British manufacturers.
Answered by Douglas Alexander - Minister of State (Cabinet Office)
On 6 February the government extended the anti-dumping and anti-subsidy measures on Chinese e-bikes but only for folding e-bikes. The independent Trade Remedies Authority assessed the annual impact of removing the measures on non-folding Chinese e-bikes, as can be found in their Final Recommendation to the Secretary of State. The Trade Remedy Authority’s assessment was considered by the Secretary of State as part of his decision.
Asked by: Tracy Gilbert (Labour - Edinburgh North and Leith)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, pursuant to the Answer of 5 September 2024 to Question 2198 on District Heating, when his Department plans to bring forward regulations to implement the Heat Network Market Framework.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The first part of the Heat Networks (Market Framework) (Great Britain) Regulations 2025 was signed into law on the 2nd of March 2025. The remaining parts of this regulatory framework will be laid in Parliament later this year, and Ofgem will assume its role as heat network market regulator on the 27th of January 2026.
On the 1st of April, the redress, advice and advocacy functions of the Heat Networks Market Framework came into force. Under these schemes, the Energy Ombudsman, Citizens Advice, and Consumer Scotland will monitor the market and have powers to take enforcement action against operators that break the rules on metering and billing.
Asked by: Tracy Gilbert (Labour - Edinburgh North and Leith)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many apprenticeships the Construction Industry Training Board supported in (a) Edinburgh North and Leith constituency and (b) Scotland in (i) 2023 and (ii) 2024.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
In the Edinburgh North and Leith constituency, the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) supported 36 registered employers in 2023, and 47 registered employers in 2024. A CITB registered employer may access more than one grant or fund, and the cumulative count of support for registered employers within the constituency was 58 and 113 respectively.
Across Scotland, the CITB supported 2,864 registered employers in 2023, and 3414 registered employers in 2024, with 6,683 and 9,076 cumulative counts of support respectively.
The number of apprentices supported is not routinely captured at constituency level, so the CITB is unable to provide this figure from currently available data.
Through the CITB’s contract with Skills Development Scotland, it supported an average of 4,440 apprentices per month in 2023, and an average of 4,500 apprentices per month in 2024.
Asked by: Tracy Gilbert (Labour - Edinburgh North and Leith)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many businesses the Construction Industry Training Board supported in (a) Edinburgh North and Leith constituency and (b) Scotland in (i) 2023 and (ii) 2024.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
In the Edinburgh North and Leith constituency, the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) supported 36 registered employers in 2023, and 47 registered employers in 2024. A CITB registered employer may access more than one grant or fund, and the cumulative count of support for registered employers within the constituency was 58 and 113 respectively.
Across Scotland, the CITB supported 2,864 registered employers in 2023, and 3414 registered employers in 2024, with 6,683 and 9,076 cumulative counts of support respectively.
The number of apprentices supported is not routinely captured at constituency level, so the CITB is unable to provide this figure from currently available data.
Through the CITB’s contract with Skills Development Scotland, it supported an average of 4,440 apprentices per month in 2023, and an average of 4,500 apprentices per month in 2024.
Asked by: Tracy Gilbert (Labour - Edinburgh North and Leith)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how much financial assistance his Department is providing to Myanmar following the earthquake that hit on 28 March 2025.
Answered by Catherine West - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK has announced up to £25 million in life-saving support for people affected by the earthquake in Myanmar. This includes up to £5 million to match the British public's generous donations to the Disasters Emergency Committee appeal.
The UK supports the people of Myanmar by funding local actors on the ground who can directly access affected populations. Immediately after the earthquake our partners assessed needs and mobilised an initial humanitarian response. UK-funded food, water, healthcare and shelter supplies are already reaching affected areas, helping over 86,000 people so far.
Asked by: Tracy Gilbert (Labour - Edinburgh North and Leith)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent representations he has made to his Israeli counterpart on the (a) right to access legal advice and (b) wellbeing of Dr Hussam Abu Safiya.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I remain deeply disturbed by the ongoing detention of Dr Hussam Abu Safiya and other medical staff from Gaza, and I have raised his case with the Government of Israel. We continue to urge Israel to clarify the reasons for the detention of Dr Abu Safiya and other medical personnel, and to allow the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) unfettered and immediate access to detention facilities.