Asked by: Alex Ballinger (Labour - Halesowen)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to help improve the confidence of the Sikh community in the police to report hate crimes that (a) include and (b) do not include extreme violence.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
This Government is determined to tackle all forms of hate crime, including those targeting the Sikh community. No one should ever be a victim of hatred because of their race or religion, and the Government continues to work with police and community partners to monitor and combat this.
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has provided funding to True Vision – the police hate crime programme and online reporting portal – to encourage communities to report hate crime and reinforce relationships between communities and policing. As part of this, True Vision has been working with the Sikh Guard (established by the National Sikh Police Association) and Rakkha (a third-party reporting site) to encourage reporting from within Sikh communities. The Home Office also funds the National Online Hate Crime Hub which supports individual local police forces in dealing specifically with all forms of online hate crime.
We back the police in taking strong action against those targeting our communities. As part of the Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee, communities are now benefitting from more visible patrols, and more focused local engagement.
Tackling violence against women and girls (VAWG), including sexual violence, is a top priority for this Government. We will deliver a cross-government transformative approach, underpinned by a new strategy which we aim to publish as soon as possible. The Home Office also announced £13.1 million funding to launch a new National Centre for VAWG and Public Protection (NCVPP). The Centre will improve the police response to VAWG, helping officers respond effectively to these crimes and to offer victims consistent protection.
Whilst the police are operationally independent and work in line with the College of Policing’s operational guidance to respond to all forms of hate crime, we expect the police to fully investigate these appalling offences and work with the Crown Prosecution Service to ensure perpetrators are brought to justice.
Asked by: Alex Ballinger (Labour - Halesowen)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to prevent racially-motivated (a) violence and (b) sexual assault against members of the Sikh community.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
This Government is determined to tackle all forms of hate crime, including those targeting the Sikh community. No one should ever be a victim of hatred because of their race or religion, and the Government continues to work with police and community partners to monitor and combat this.
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has provided funding to True Vision – the police hate crime programme and online reporting portal – to encourage communities to report hate crime and reinforce relationships between communities and policing. As part of this, True Vision has been working with the Sikh Guard (established by the National Sikh Police Association) and Rakkha (a third-party reporting site) to encourage reporting from within Sikh communities. The Home Office also funds the National Online Hate Crime Hub which supports individual local police forces in dealing specifically with all forms of online hate crime.
We back the police in taking strong action against those targeting our communities. As part of the Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee, communities are now benefitting from more visible patrols, and more focused local engagement.
Tackling violence against women and girls (VAWG), including sexual violence, is a top priority for this Government. We will deliver a cross-government transformative approach, underpinned by a new strategy which we aim to publish as soon as possible. The Home Office also announced £13.1 million funding to launch a new National Centre for VAWG and Public Protection (NCVPP). The Centre will improve the police response to VAWG, helping officers respond effectively to these crimes and to offer victims consistent protection.
Whilst the police are operationally independent and work in line with the College of Policing’s operational guidance to respond to all forms of hate crime, we expect the police to fully investigate these appalling offences and work with the Crown Prosecution Service to ensure perpetrators are brought to justice.
Asked by: Lord Shinkwin (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to mark the 60th anniversary of the Race Relations Act 1965; and what steps they will take to reassure the British Jewish community that the police will take seriously racially-motivated crimes in all forms.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The UK has a long and proud history of tackling race discrimination, with the first Race Relations Act 1965 introduced 60 years ago. The King's Speech announced our intention to build on this legacy through the Equality (Race and Disability) Bill, which we intend to publish in draft this session.
Making sure that British Jews are not only safe, but also feel safe, remains one of our top priorities. This year, the Government has allocated £18 million to the Community Security Trust through the Jewish Community Protective Security Grant to provide protective security measures at synagogues, Jewish educational establishments and community sites.
The Government works closely with the Independent Adviser on Antisemitism along with Jewish community voices on the most effective methods to tackle antisemitism. We also recently established an Antisemitism Working Group to provide advice on antisemitism and how government should engage Jewish communities around international, national and local events affecting British Jews. We are committed to tackling antisemitism and support the police in taking robust action against all forms of hate crime, wherever these crimes occur and whoever is responsible.
Asked by: Al Pinkerton (Liberal Democrat - Surrey Heath)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure individuals receive timely reasonable adjustments under the Equality Act 2010 to support access to dental services in Surrey Heath constituency.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The National Health Service contracts with independent dental providers to deliver NHS dental treatment in primary care settings. Dental practices are businesses and therefore able to decide how they operate, providing they remain compliant with the appropriate regulations.
Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for undertaking special care oral health needs assessments, to identify areas of oral health need, to inform local commissioning intentions, and to determine the local priorities for investment. For the Surrey constituency, this is the NHS Surrey Heartlands.
The NHS constitution states that NHS services will always be available for the people who need them. No one can deny a person the right to access these services because of their age, disability, race, gender or gender reassignment, sexual orientation, pregnancy and maternity, religion or belief, or marital or civil partnership status. The Handbook to the NHS Constitution is available at the following link:
Care Quality Commission regulations mandate that all registered providers must have due regard to the protected characteristics defined in the Equality Act 2010.
Furthermore, Community Dental Services provide care to patients who may have difficulty accessing high street dental services due to their social, medical, or dental need. This may include children with learning disabilities, complex medical needs, physical disabilities, or challenging behaviour.
Asked by: Sammy Wilson (Democratic Unionist Party - East Antrim)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the potential implications for its policies of recent reports of the (a) detention and (b) deportation of members of the Baha'i community in Qatar; what representations he has made to his Qatari counterpart on the protection of religious minorities in that country; and what steps he is taking to support international efforts to (i) promote religious freedom and (ii) protect minority communities in the region.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is a strong advocate for freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) for all. No one should live in fear because of what they do or do not believe in. As part of the UN Universal Periodic Review in November 2024, the UK called on Qatar to adopt legislation to ensure non-discrimination on the grounds of disability, gender, sexual orientation, race, religion, or belief.
Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government what individual diversity networks, and trade union diversity networks, are recognised by the Ministry of Defence and each of the Armed Forces.
Answered by Lord Coaker - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Ministry of Defence (MOD) recognises a comprehensive range of diversity networks which are listed below.
In addition, the MOD recognises five main Trade Unions, (Prospect, PCS, FDA, GMB and Unite). The MOD’s Trade Unions have Diversity and Inclusion networks aimed at supporting their members however the MOD does not recognise nor engage directly with those networks.
Race Networks
Disability and Carers Networks
Gender Networks
LGBT Networks
Families Networks
Faith and Belief Networks
Social Mobility Networks
Wellbeing and Support
Asked by: Preet Kaur Gill (Labour (Co-op) - Birmingham Edgbaston)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what funding the Government has allocated to help increase levels of reporting of hate crimes by the Sikh community in each of the last five years.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
All forms of racial and religious discrimination are completely unacceptable, including that directed at Sikhs. No one should ever be a victim of hatred because of their race or religion and the government continues to work with police and community partners to monitor and combat this.
Over the last 5 years, the government has provided funding to True Vision – the police hate crime programme and online reporting portal – to encourage communities to report hate crime and reinforce relationships between communities and policing. As a part of this, True Vision has been working with the Sikh Guard (established by the National Sikh Police Association) and Rakkha initiatives to encourage reporting from within Sikh communities.
Asked by: Kevin Hollinrake (Conservative - Thirsk and Malton)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether her Department plans to make a submission to the Women and Equalities Committee's inquiry on gendered Islamophobia.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
We welcome the Committee's inquiry on this topic and ministers will take a keen interest in its findings.
The Government recognises that religious hatred is not specific to one place and can manifest in varying areas, such as online spaces and in public and educational settings. Certain characteristics, for example gender, sexuality and race, can often compound individual’s experiences of religious hatred.
British Muslim women are pivotal to our wider communities. They are often the driving force behind interfaith and community initiatives, yet they face specific challenges, with discrimination and intolerance often directed at them.
The Government has established a new working group to provide government with a definition of Anti-Muslim Hatred/Islamophobia. This work will consider views from a cross-section of society, including those of Muslim women, to improve understanding of unacceptable treatment and prejudice against Muslim communities, supporting wider and ongoing government-led efforts to tackle religiously motivated hate crime and foster cohesion.
Asked by: Neil O'Brien (Conservative - Harborough, Oadby and Wigston)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the Answers of 1 March 2024 to Questions 15743 and 15744, how many staff in (a) her Department, (b) Arts Council England and (c) the National Lottery Community Fund have job titles which include the words (i) equality, (ii) diversity, (iii) inclusion, (iv) gender, (v) LGBT and (vi) race.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The requested figures are
DCMS | 2 |
Arts Council England | 11 |
National Lottery Community Fund | 4 |
Asked by: Baroness Verma (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government why they have created the new Combatting Hatred Against Muslims Fund and not one that commits to combating hatred against people of all faiths.
Answered by Lord Khan of Burnley
All forms of hate crime are completely unacceptable, and this government is committed to tackling this wherever it manifests. Our efforts to build a country of tolerance and inclusion apply to people of all faiths and none.
The recent hate crime statistics showed almost 2 in 5 religious hate crimes were targeted against Muslims, which is why the Government announced this funding to provide a comprehensive service to monitor anti-Muslim hate and support victims. With cases on the rise, up-to-date and detailed information on incidents and drivers of this form of hatred will play a fundamental part in supporting the government to combat anti-Muslim hate and Islamophobia and ensure Muslim communities feel safe and supported.
No one should ever be a victim of hatred because of their race or religion and the Government continues to work with police and community partners to monitor and combat this.
The Government has worked with the police to fund True Vision, an online hate crime reporting portal, designed so that victims of all forms of hate crime do not have to visit a police station to report.
We are committed to protecting the right of individuals to freely practise their religion and we will not tolerate religious hatred in any form.