Question to the Home Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what support UK political parties have received through the Defending Democracy Taskforce.

Since the Taskforce was established in November 2022 it has driven forward work to ensure the UK's democratic institutions and processes are safe and secure from threats to democracy. Supporting political parties is a key part of this.

This work includes:

• A Defending Democracy Policing Protocol, agreed with the police, to enhance the safety of elected representatives and protect the UK's democratic processes.

• Ahead of the General Election, the Joint Election and Preparedness Unit issued political parties with security advice and guidance, including on protective and information security which was made available on gov.uk.

• The National Cyber Security Centre provided an enhanced cyber security offer to political parties (and all Parliamentarians, including independent candidates) in the lead up to the General Election.