Asked by: Baroness Smith of Llanfaes (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what consideration they have given to reviewing the funding formula for policing.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
This Government is committed to ensuring that policing has the resources it needs and the allocation of funding to police forces remains an important consideration.
The Chancellor has announced a real terms increase in police spending power over the next three years. As with previous years, decisions on police force funding allocations for 2026-27 will be set out at the forthcoming police funding settlement.
Asked by: Edward Morello (Liberal Democrat - West Dorset)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she plans to review funding allocations to police forces to ensure that rural areas receive sufficient resources to maintain (a) police stations and (b) community policing.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
The funding formula used for distributing Home Office Police Main Grant to police forces in England and Wales as part of the annual police settlement divides funds between different activities that the police undertake. A portion of total funding is also distributed according to population sparsity, to address the specific needs of rural forces.
The Chancellor has announced a real terms increase in police spending power over the next three years. The allocation of funding to police forces remains an important consideration and as with previous years, more details on force funding allocations for 2026-27, including decisions on police force funding allocations, will be made via the provisional police funding settlement later in the year.
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 their resourcing and estates. They are best placed to make decisions with their communities based on their local knowledge and experience.
Asked by: Edward Morello (Liberal Democrat - West Dorset)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that rural areas receive adequate police funding to maintain (a) visible and (b) accessible policing.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
The funding formula used for distributing Home Office Police Main Grant to police forces in England and Wales as part of the annual police settlement divides funds between different activities that the police undertake. A portion of total funding is also distributed according to population sparsity, to address the specific needs of rural forces.
The Chancellor has announced a real terms increase in police spending power over the next three years. The allocation of funding to police forces remains an important consideration and as with previous years, more details on force funding allocations for 2026-27, including decisions on police force funding allocations, will be made via the provisional police funding settlement later in the year.
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 their resourcing and estates. They are best placed to make decisions with their communities based on their local knowledge and experience.
Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what consideration she has given to reviewing the funding formula for policing.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
This Government is committed to ensuring that policing has the resources it needs and the allocation of funding to police forces remains an important consideration.
The Chancellor has announced a real terms increase in police spending power over the next three years. As with previous years, decisions on police force funding allocations for 2026-27 will be set out at the forthcoming police funding settlement.
Asked by: John Whittingdale (Conservative - Maldon)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what representations her Department has received from sending banks under the authorised push payment reimbursement arrangements in relation to (a) claims and (b) complaints by 79th Group investors; and what guidance UK Finance has provided to those banks on handling such claims.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
Treasury Ministers have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery. Details of ministerial meetings with external organisations on departmental business are published on a quarterly basis and are available at the link below.
All payment services providers, including banks, are required to comply with the Payment Systems Regulator’s authorised push payment (APP) scam reimbursement regime, which came into force on 7 October 2024. This requires firms to reimburse victims for qualifying APP scams which took place from 7 October 2024 and over the Faster Payments System up to the value of £85,000. For APP scams which took place before this, these may be eligible for reimbursement under the Contingent Reimbursement Model Code, which applied from May 2019 and was signed by the UK’s largest banks and building societies.
The 79th group are currently subject to an ongoing investigation by The City of London Police. As such the Government is unable to comment on the specifics of the case.
The FCA and PSR have recently written to financial services firms setting out their expectation that firms should determine whether any claims, or parts of claims, are a qualifying APP scam, on an individual basis.
Asked by: John Whittingdale (Conservative - Maldon)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what representations her Department has received from receiving banks under the authorised push payment reimbursement arrangements in relation to (a) claims and (b) complaints by 79th Group investors; and what guidance UK Finance has provided to those banks on handling such claims.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
Treasury Ministers have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery. Details of ministerial meetings with external organisations on departmental business are published on a quarterly basis and are available at the link below.
All payment services providers, including banks, are required to comply with the Payment Systems Regulator’s authorised push payment (APP) scam reimbursement regime, which came into force on 7 October 2024. This requires firms to reimburse victims for qualifying APP scams which took place from 7 October 2024 and over the Faster Payments System up to the value of £85,000. For APP scams which took place before this, these may be eligible for reimbursement under the Contingent Reimbursement Model Code, which applied from May 2019 and was signed by the UK’s largest banks and building societies.
The 79th group are currently subject to an ongoing investigation by The City of London Police. As such the Government is unable to comment on the specifics of the case.
The FCA and PSR have recently written to financial services firms setting out their expectation that firms should determine whether any claims, or parts of claims, are a qualifying APP scam, on an individual basis.
Asked by: John Whittingdale (Conservative - Maldon)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent discussions her Department has had with UK Finance on proposed changes to the (a) role and (b) remit of the Financial Ombudsman Service; and what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of those proposed changes on protections for (i) people in the 79th Group and (b) other vulnerable investors.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
Treasury Ministers meet with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the regular business of government. Details of ministerial meetings with external organisations on departmental business are published on a quarterly basis and are available at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/hmt-ministers-meetings-hospitality-gifts-and-overseas-travel
The Government engaged a wide range of stakeholders as part of its review of the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS), which was conducted between March and July 2025. The Government recently consulted on proposed reforms following the conclusion of the review, and the consultation closed on 8 October 2025. The Government is now reviewing responses, and will set out its proposed next steps in due course. The review’s findings and the consultation on proposed reforms can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/fs-sector-strategy-review-of-the-financial-ombudsman-service.
The Government’s proposed reforms will not undermine the important role of the FOS in providing consumers with a cost-free route to quickly and easily resolve disputes with financial services firms. The review concluded that the FOS’s role providing an impartial dispute resolution service within the financial services regulatory framework should be preserved, and that the fair and reasonable test remains appropriate for its position as an informal alternative to the courts.
The Government is proposing that the fair and reasonable test should be retained and adapted to align with the overall regulatory approach for financial services, so that where conduct complained of is in scope of FCA rules, a firm will be considered to have acted fairly and reasonably.
These reforms will improve the regulatory coherence between the FOS and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), to deliver a more consistent and predictable regulatory environment, which the Government believes will benefit both consumers and industry..
The 79th Group is subject to an ongoing investigation by The City of London Police. As such the Government is unable to comment on the specifics of the case. However, the FCA and PSR have recently written to financial services firms setting out their expectation that firms should determine whether any claims, or parts of claims, are a qualifying APP scam, on an individual basis.
Asked by: John Whittingdale (Conservative - Maldon)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions she has had with UK Finance on reforming of the role of the Financial Ombudsman Service.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
Treasury Ministers meet with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the regular business of government. Details of ministerial meetings with external organisations on departmental business are published on a quarterly basis and are available at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/hmt-ministers-meetings-hospitality-gifts-and-overseas-travel
The Government engaged a wide range of stakeholders as part of its review of the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS), which was conducted between March and July 2025. The Government recently consulted on proposed reforms following the conclusion of the review, and the consultation closed on 8 October 2025. The Government is now reviewing responses, and will set out its proposed next steps in due course. The review’s findings and the consultation on proposed reforms can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/fs-sector-strategy-review-of-the-financial-ombudsman-service.
The Government’s proposed reforms will not undermine the important role of the FOS in providing consumers with a cost-free route to quickly and easily resolve disputes with financial services firms. The review concluded that the FOS’s role providing an impartial dispute resolution service within the financial services regulatory framework should be preserved, and that the fair and reasonable test remains appropriate for its position as an informal alternative to the courts.
The Government is proposing that the fair and reasonable test should be retained and adapted to align with the overall regulatory approach for financial services, so that where conduct complained of is in scope of FCA rules, a firm will be considered to have acted fairly and reasonably.
These reforms will improve the regulatory coherence between the FOS and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), to deliver a more consistent and predictable regulatory environment, which the Government believes will benefit both consumers and industry..
The 79th Group is subject to an ongoing investigation by The City of London Police. As such the Government is unable to comment on the specifics of the case. However, the FCA and PSR have recently written to financial services firms setting out their expectation that firms should determine whether any claims, or parts of claims, are a qualifying APP scam, on an individual basis.
Asked by: Stuart Anderson (Conservative - South Shropshire)
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 help support (a) high streets and (b) town centres in South Shropshire constituency.
Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
This Department is committed to support constituencies like South Shropshire grow their high streets and town centres. Our Plan for Small Businesses sets out how government will work across departments to tackle high street decline.
This year 500 towns including Ludlow and Bridgenorth developed local plans, as part of the Safer Streets Summer, to develop bespoke local action plans with police, businesses and local councils to crackdown on crime on the high street.
SMEs on the high street will also benefit from the new tools to unlock access to finance, action to address late payments and regulatory costs, improve digital adoption and create easier pathways to business support through the Business Growth Service.
Asked by: Shaun Davies (Labour - Telford)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of extending capitalisation flexibilities to police forces.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Police and Crime Commissioners already fall under the definition of local authorities in the relevant parts of the Local Government Act 2003, under which the Secretary of State may grant capitalisation flexibilities to local authorities.