theodi/ndl-core-corpus huggingface dataset:
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Jim McMahon:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the Ministerial Code. \p Nick Thomas-Symonds: The Prime Minister has made clear public service is a privilege and is committed to restoring trust in government by ensuring ministers are held to the highest standards.

Last year the Prime Minister published a new, strengthened, Ministerial Code which sets out the standards expected of all government ministers. It includes a full articulation of the Seven Principles of Public Life, bringing the importance of public service to the front and fore of the Code.

This commitment was further demonstrated in October when the Prime Minister updated the Ministerial Code. This update implemented reforms in relation to ministerial severance payments and changes to the operation of the Business Appointment Rules.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-20)

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Mike Wood:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the Cabinet Office news story of 5 August entitled "Extension of Generalist Member to the Senior Salaries Review Body", whether Pippa Greenslade was reappointed by open and fair competition; and what the (a) status and (b) cost of the competition to appoint such members to the Senior Salaries Review Body is. \p Nick Thomas-Symonds: Pippa Greenslade was appointed through a fair and open competition in 2019. Her second term as Generalist Member of the Senior Salaries Review Body was extended by 12 months, ending on 1 June 2026. Extensions do not require an open competition. The majority of the Cabinet Office’s public appointments are delivered internally; staff and administrative costs are absorbed within the department's existing budget.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-20)

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Mike Wood:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the answer of 5 November 2025, to Question 86056, on Government Departments: Social Media, and with reference to paragraph 1.6(d) of the Ministerial Code, what the public interest basis is for not placing the specific financial details in the public domain. \p Nick Thomas-Symonds: Due to commercial and broader sensitivities surrounding this expenditure, we are unable to provide a more detailed breakdown as this could negatively affect the government's ability to engage with influencers in the most cost-effective manner.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-20)

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Blake Stephenson:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 8 July 2025 to Question 64583, if his Department will publish the assessment they made to inform the GREAT Campaign’s focus for 2025-26. \p Nick Thomas-Symonds: Evaluation results for the GREAT Britain & Northern Ireland Campaign have not yet been finalised for financial year 2024/25. We expect initial economic returns generated by the campaign in 2024/25 to have been assessed and validated before the end of the year, and will be published via the GREAT website when appropriate.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-20)

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Jen Craft:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps (a) his Department and (b) its public bodies are taking to (i) develop and (ii) use artificial intelligence approaches to British Sign Language. \p Nick Thomas-Symonds: Providing BSL translations of pre-recorded audio and video content on public services is a legislative Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 AAA criterion. As outlined in the Government Service Standard, all digital government services must as a minimum meet Level AA. AAA is best practice.

Through the Service Standard and Service Assessments, the Government Digital Service encourages departments to incorporate BSL into service design. In May this year DVSA (Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency) launched the UK Government’s first British Sign Language (BSL) online translation service for candidates booking their theory test online. DVSA held a series of user research session with BSL users, with one participant calling the service ‘life-changing’.

There are opportunities to use AI to accelerate the creation of accessible content across public services. If public bodies trial the use of AI in approaches to BSL, they would be required to conform with both WCAG and the Service Standard, and must conduct research with disabled people, including Deaf users and where appropriate to the service provision, those who use sign language or a sign language interpreter to interact with the service.

Regardless of if AI generated, services must also make sure any BSL video is culturally appropriate by working with the BSL community, testing it, or getting feedback.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-20)

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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the answer of 5 November 2025 to Question 86240 on Chinese Embassy: Planning Permission, and further to his public comments at the G20 in November 2024, if he will publish the dates on which he discussed the proposed Chinese Embassy in London with the Chinese Government since 4 July 2024. \p Nick Thomas-Symonds: I refer the Hon Member back to the answer of 5 November 2025, Official Report, PQ 86240.
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Mike Wood:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 10 October 2025 to Question 74276 on 10 Downing Street: Official Hospitality, if he will provide a hyperlink to that data. \p Nick Thomas-Symonds: I refer the Hon Member to the answer of 10 October 2025, Official Report, PQ 74276.
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Mike Wood:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the Correspondence from the Interim Chair of ACOBA to the Permanent Secretary of the Cabinet Office on the closure of ACOBA and reform of the Rules, published on 12 October 2025, for what reason the letter was removed from gov.uk. \p Nick Thomas-Symonds: The correspondence was published in error and therefore it was removed from GOV.UK.
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Mike Wood:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 4 November 2025 to Question 86054 on Cabinet Office: Lord Lieutenants, when his Department first established a formal complaints procedure for (a) Lord-Lieutenants, (b) Vice Lord-Lieutenants and (c) Deputy Lieutenants; and on what statutory basis this procedure was created. \p Nick Thomas-Symonds: A formal complaints procedure relating to the Lieutenancies was published in 2021. The Lieutenancies Act 1997 and the Northern Ireland (Lieutenancy) Order 1975 provide the statutory framework relating to Lieutenancies.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-20)

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Alex Burghart:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, when the Prime Minister plans to reply to the letter from the hon. Member for Brentwood and Ongar dated 29 November 2024. \p Nick Thomas-Symonds: The correspondence referred to the resignation of the Rt Hon Member for Sheffield Heeley in November 2024. The Prime Minister has addressed this matter in the House and set out that, subsequent to her appointment as Secretary of State for Transport, further information emerged and that it was right for the former Transport Secretary to resign.

The public exchange of letters is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/louise-haighs-resignation-letter-and-the-prime-ministers-response-29-november-2024
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Mike Wood:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the answer of 17 October 2025, to Question 77543, on Political Parties: Conferences, whether Cabinet Office HR division collates information on (a) junior and (b) senior civil service staff who are given permission to (i) run for local election and (ii) attend party political conferences. \p Anna Turley: Cabinet Office Human Resources does collate information centrally on both junior and senior civil service staff who are given permission to run for local election. However, information on staff attending party political conferences is not collated centrally as previously referenced in my answer to Question 77543.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-20)

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Mike Wood:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will publish a list of (a) inward and (b) outward secondments by (i) Department, (ii) grade and (iii) external body. \p Anna Turley: Secondments into the Civil Service from other sectors are a key route to bring essential skills and experience into the right roles and teams, enabling talented individuals from outside the Civil Service to contribute to the work of Government by sharing critical capabilities and innovative thinking for a set period of time.

The secondments data commission provides insight on inward and outward secondments taking place across government. The Cabinet Office has worked closely with departments to improve the amount, detail and quality of the data available. The limited number of records/data sets makes the data personally identifiable information, therefore it will not be possible to publish this data.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-20)

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Mike Wood:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 9 June 2025 to Question 54273 on Government Departments: Sanitation, if he will publish all written submissions sent by PCS to the Cabinet Office on toilet provision in government buildings since the Supreme Court judgment in the case of For Women Scotland v The Scottish Ministers of 16 April 2025. \p Anna Turley: The Cabinet Office does not publish correspondence between unions and officials as this would undermine the ability to communicate freely.
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Mike Wood:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what information his Department holds on whether any public bodies operate (a) a four day week on full pay and (b) compressed hours for a week compressed into four days. \p Anna Turley: The department does not hold any information on whether public bodies operate four day weeks.
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Mike Wood:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the Cabinet Office Staff Handbook has a definition of Islamophobia; and whether the Cabinet Office has adopted a definition for HR disputes. \p Anna Turley: The Cabinet Office does not hold a definition of Islamophobia. We take all allegations of inappropriate language, hostility, discrimination or prejudice very seriously. We have robust processes in place to investigate such matters. Possible sanctions as a result of such behaviours could include dismissal.
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Mike Wood:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether special advisers have been informed by the Cabinet Office that they lose their employer contributions on the Civil Service pension scheme if they leave before two years of employment unless they transfer in another pension scheme. \p Anna Turley: Special Advisers are provided with guidance regarding Civil Service Pension schemes during onboarding and offboarding, as well as throughout their tenure. Special Advisers are also directed to published Civil Service Pension scheme resources.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-20)

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Mr Will Forster:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment he has made of the potential risks of using (a) Capita, (b) Equiniti and (c) other private providers for pension administration; and whether he plans to review the 2023 procurement exercise. \p Anna Turley: Prior to the 2023 procurement for the Civil Service Pensions Scheme (CSPS), the Cabinet Office conducted a formal, evidence-based Delivery Model Assessment. This assessment was carried out in line with Public Sector Procurement legislation and the Sourcing Playbook, evaluating the risks and benefits of various models, including insourcing.

The assessment considered capability, capacity, and value for money, which informed the decision to procure from the third-party market. The subsequent procurement exercise was competitive, attracting multiple bidders and confirming a viable market.

The new contract contains robust governance procedures and contractual options, such as step-in rights, to manage supplier performance. As is current practice, performance data will continue to be published to ensure transparency.

The 2023 procurement was a formal process conducted in line with all legal requirements and is now complete, and there are no plans to review the exercise. The department is now focused on the transition to the new service. Capita has been contracted to assume full administrative responsibilities from 1 December 2025.
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Mike Wood:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether civil servants have used any of the residences in Admiralty House as an overnight dwelling since 4 July 2024. \p Anna Turley: A record of this information is not held. Admiralty House is occasionally used overnight by Civil Servants where there is operational need. This is in-line with the usage of Admiralty House across successive governments.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 13 October 2025 to Question HL9585, on Deputy Prime Minister: Admiralty House, on what date was the former Minister’s residence registered with Westminster City Council as a secondary residence according to records held by the Government Property Agency. \p Anna Turley: Before the Second Home premium was introduced in Westminster, the Cabinet Office was aware that the former Deputy Prime Minister (DPM) was occupying Admiralty House (AH) as a second home and that council tax would therefore be payable by Government. In line with long standing precedent under successive administrations, as the property was a second residence the Government was responsible for paying the Council Tax on Admiralty House, not the former DPM. Similarly, the Cabinet Office is responsible for liaising with Westminster City Council (WCC) for matters concerning residency at Admiralty House.

WCC were notified at the beginning of May that the former DPM was occupying AH as a second home for council tax purposes, and details were provided for WCC to issue a bill accordingly.

GPA wrote to WCC in June to confirm that the second home's premium applied. WCC issued an invoice in July which was paid the same day.
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Blake Stephenson:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will make an estimate of the cost to the public purse of Ministerial pensions in the 2024-25 financial year. \p Chris Ward: Each government department discloses their ministerial pension benefits in their own Annual Report and Accounts.

Pension benefits of Cabinet Office Ministers for 2024-25 is disclosed on page 90 of the Cabinet Office Annual Report and Accounts 2024-25. https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/690e1f38896fad804b050fba/36.17_CO_ARA_24-25_00-Book_v17_WEB.pdf
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Mike Wood:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if the UK Statistics Authority will make it their policy to undertake an assessment whether HM Government's use of the Social Time Preference Rate to discount the total cost of the Chagos Islands Treaty is in line with the best practice in their Code of Practice for Statistics. \p Josh Simons: The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.

A response to the Hon. gentlemen’s Parliamentary Question of 14th November is attached.

Letter from the National Statistician (pdf, 85.6KB)
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Mike Wood:To ask the Minister for Cabinet Office, how is the ethnicity definition of White Irish defined and what distinguishes it from White British (a) in relation to those who live or lived in Northern Ireland and (b) in general. \p Josh Simons: The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.

A response to the Hon. gentlemen’s Parliamentary Question of 14th November is attached.

Letter from the National Statistician (pdf, 157.3KB)
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Rebecca Paul:To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many sexual assaults of female prisoners by biologically male prisoners took place in HMP Downview in (a) 2016, (b) 2017, (c) 2018 and (d) 2019. \p Jake Richards: There were no recorded sexual assaults of female prisoners by biologically male prisoners at HMP & YOI Downview, during the specified periods.
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Rebecca Paul:To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what decisions his Department has made on the (a) scope and (b) timeline of the review of transgender prisoner policy following the Supreme Court judgment in For Women Scotland Ltd v The Scottish Ministers. \p Jake Richards: We are reviewing transgender prisoner policy following the For Women Scotland Supreme Court ruling. Alongside this, the Office for Equality and Opportunity is currently reviewing the Equality and Human Rights Commission’s draft updated Code of Practice on single sex spaces.

If the Code is approved, it will be laid before Parliament in due course. We are working closely with the Office for Equality and Opportunity on this, and will come forward with our updated policy on transgender prisoners once this process has concluded.
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Kim Johnson:To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of the current total amount of (a) compensation and (b) civil claim payments made to families of prisoners who have died in custody while serving a sentence of Imprisonment for Public Protection. \p Jake Richards: The information requested is not held centrally. Information relating to payments relating to civil claims following the death in custody of prisoners is not broken down by sentence-type.

It remains a priority for the Government that all those on IPP sentences receive the support they need to progress towards safe release from custody or, where they are being supervised on licence in the community, towards having their licence terminated altogether. Guidance has been provided to all prison staff and partner agencies to raise the importance of recognising the heightened level of risk of self-harm and suicide amongst IPP prisoners and an IPP Safety Toolkit has been developed, with a range of resources to promote learning and to help front-line staff support and engage those serving the IPP sentence effectively.
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Rebecca Paul:To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what criteria his Department uses to determine placement of transgender young people within the Children and Young People's Estate. \p Jake Richards: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 4 November 2025 to Question 85613.
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Lee Anderson:To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what data his Department holds on the number of interpreters used in the court system in each of the last fives years; and what languages these interpreters were for. \p Sarah Sackman: The Ministry of Justice uses interpreting and translation services provided under contract.

The information requested is not held centrally.
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Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to his Statement in the House on 11 November 2025, how many personnel from his Department will form the urgent warrant query unit. \p Sarah Sackman: The Urgent Warrant Query Unit (UWQU) will be formed out of an existing national service centre which currently answers all calls to the Magistrates’ Courts in England and Wales. Its function will be to provide a reliable and accountable route of escalation for urgent queries to HMCTS from Prisons, covering both Crown and Magistrates' Courts.

We anticipate the unit will be initially staffed with 8 members of existing staff daily based on an assessment of likely contact volumes. Staff allocated to the unit will be given additional training and flexibly deployed to the Query Unit to ensure all calls and emails to the Unit from Prisons are answered and then dealt with swiftly.
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Sir James Cleverly:To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 16 September 2025 to Question 75606 on Community Development: English Language, what estimate he has made of the cost to his Department of providing English language support in (a) 2024-25 and (b) 2025-26. \p Sarah Sackman: The Ministry of Justice has a statutory duty to provide Language Services to enable access to justice for users for whom English is not their first language. Language Service needs and spend are assessed to ensure these services offer good value for money for taxpayers while maintaining high standards of service delivery.

The services provided under the Ministry of Justice’s contracts include face-to-face, video, and telephone interpretation for spoken foreign languages, as well as written translation and transcription.

In financial year 2024/25, the Ministry of Justice spent £36,920,721 providing these services via contract.

To date, in financial year 2025/26, the Ministry of Justice spent £20,478,950 providing these services via contract. Expenditure to date is comparable with the same point as last financial year, so we anticipate that overall spend for 2025–26 will be broadly consistent with expenditure in the previous financial year.
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Sir James Cleverly:To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of (a) trends in the level of (i) delays and (ii) backlogs in the Planning Court and (b) the implications for his policies of the time taken to enforce a temporary stop notice. \p Sarah Sackman: Temporary Stop Notice (TSN) is a planning enforcement tool available to local planning authorities to halt breaches of planning control on a temporary basis while they consider whether more substantive enforcement action is required.

While the initial stages of Planning Court proceedings are generally within expected timeframes, delays persist at later stages, and substantive hearings continue to experience backlogs. The number of live cases has gradually increased over the past year.

The time taken to enforce a temporary stop notice has implications for the effectiveness of planning enforcement policy. These notices are intended to provide swift intervention to prevent unauthorised development, but delays in judicial processes can weaken their deterrent effect and undermine confidence in the planning system. Prolonged enforcement proceedings may increase costs for local authorities and frustrate wider policy objectives on development control.

The Government is working with HM Courts & Tribunals Service and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to ensure enforcement tools remain robust and planning policy continues to operate effectively.
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Nadia Whittome:To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to ensure safe, transparent and non-discriminatory judicial use of artificial intelligence. \p Sarah Sackman: The judiciary are constitutionally independent and have established their own procedures and policies governing the use of artificial intelligence. Guidance for judicial office holders on the appropriate and responsible use of AI has been issued by the judiciary and is publicly available on the judiciary’s website.

Judicial office holders, like civil servants within the Ministry of Justice, have been provided with secure versions of Microsoft Copilot. The deployment of this tool for judicial use has been subject to a data protection impact assessment to ensure compliance with data protection legislation and principles.

The judiciary’s approach to AI is designed to ensure that any use of AI by judicial office holders is safe, transparent, and consistent with the principles of fairness and non-discrimination, while preserving judicial independence.
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Nadia Whittome:To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will take steps to amend the Civil Procedure Rules to make explicit that litigants-in-person are not to be denied procedural safeguards normally afforded to represented parties, including circulation of draft reserved judgments. \p Sarah Sackman: Civil court rules governing judgments and orders are set out in Part 40 of the Civil Procedure Rules (CPR) and are supplemented by Practice Directions (PD). PD40E provides additional directions in relation to reserved judgments before they are handed down. Paragraph 2.3 of PD40E states that the court will provide a copy of the draft judgment to the parties’ legal representatives, however, paragraph 2.4 goes on to state that a copy of the draft judgment may be supplied to the parties provided that they: 1) do not disclose it or its substance to anyone else; and 2) do not take any action in relation to the judgment until it is handed down. This, therefore, provides for litigants in person to be given an embargoed/draft judgment and to engage with the steps taken before such a judgment is handed down.

It is also important to recognise that Part 1 of the CPR sets out the overriding objective of the rules. These overriding objectives include ensuring that the parties are on an equal footing and can participate fully in proceedings. This is the principal safeguard under pinning how the rules operate in practice.
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Nadia Whittome:To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will take steps to require public authority respondents in Judicial Review hearings to confirm compliance with the duty of candour at Permission Stage. \p Sarah Sackman: The duty of candour is a well-established principle in judicial review, and its application is clearly set out in the Administrative Court’s Judicial Review Guide.

The duty of candour applies at all stages of judicial review proceedings. This duty requires all parties to ensure that relevant information is put before the Court, whether it supports or undermines their case. There is a particular obligation on public authorities to ensure that this duty is fulfilled given they are engaged in a common enterprise with the Court to fulfil the public interest in upholding the rule of law.

At the permission stage, public authorities are required to identify any material facts, highlight any matters of factual dispute and provide a summary of the reasoning underlying the measures in question. The Court can take into account a lack of candour in deciding whether to grant permission.
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Nadia Whittome:To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will make it a statutory duty for judges to comply with guidance in the Equal Treatment Bench Book. \p Sarah Sackman: In line with the principle of judicial independence, it is the senior judiciary and not the Government who have statutory responsibility for judicial guidance and training.

It would therefore not be constitutionally appropriate for the Government to seek to prescribe how this responsibility should be discharged.
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Mr Andrew Snowden:To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of the potential number of historical child sexual abuse cases likely to be brought following the removal of the limitation period for such claims. \p Alex Davies-Jones: Measuring the scale and nature of child sexual abuse is difficult because it is usually hidden from view. Victims often feel unable to report their experiences and adults are not always able to recognise that abuse is taking place. As a result, there is no data available to represent the full scale of the issue. We therefore do not know how many people are currently experiencing, or have experienced, child sexual abuse or how many potential victims and survivors may be impacted by these changes.

However, the Government recognises, as was reinforced by the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse, that it might take years and in many cases decades for the victims and survivors of child sexual abuse to come forward and feel ready to disclose their trauma. That is why we accepted the critical issue the Inquiry sought to remedy in calling for reform of limitation law to overcome some of the barriers to justice that are faced by victims and survivors.
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Joe Morris:To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what discussion his Department has had with relevant stakeholders in Hexham constituency on legislative changes to recognise that under 16s can be victims of domestic abuse. \p Alex Davies-Jones: This Government was elected with a landmark mission to halve violence against women and girls (VAWG) in a decade. I regularly meet with my counterparts on this and we will publish our cross-government strategy as soon as possible.

Responsibility for the definition of domestic abuse as set out in the Domestic Abuse Act 2021 sits with the Home Secretary. Responsibility for reported incidents of violence against women and girls also sits with the Home Office.
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Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many new prisons have been (a) planned and (b) approved since 5 July 2024. \p Jake Richards: As set out in the December 2024 10-Year Prison Capacity Strategy, we are committed to delivering an additional 14,000 prison places and aim to do so by 2031; we have already delivered c.2,600 of these since taking office.

No new prisons have been (a) planned or (b) approved since 5 July 2024.

However, since 5 July 2024, the delivery of c.1,080 places have been approved through the Small Secure Houseblocks programme at the following sites:

HMP Northumberland

HMP Lancaster Farms

HMP Humber

HMP Ranby

HMP Onley

HMP Erlestoke

We have also uplifted the Accelerated Houseblock Delivery Programme by c.125 places at HMP Wayland.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-20)

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Munira Wilson:To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of the amount of court time used to pursue Palestine Action prosecutions in the last 12 months. \p Sarah Sackman: The Ministry of Justice does not hold information on the amount of court time used to pursue Palestine Action prosecutions over the last 12 months.

We have been working with the judiciary and other criminal justice partners to put in place measures to manage anticipated demand and ensure any prosecutions are dealt with efficiently and expeditiously.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-11-20 conversation_146

Sarah Hall:To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that the government endorsed Trustmark scheme protects consumers from rogue traders. \p Chris McDonald: This Government is working to ensure we have a high-quality and professional construction industry, with consumer protection at its heart. We work closely with TrustMark, which is sponsored by the Department and licenced by the Government, as the Government Endorsed Quality Scheme that covers work a consumer chooses to have carried out in or around their home.

The Government is supporting TrustMark to continue to further its ability to improve the quality of the information it has and to identify firms and individuals that pose a risk to consumers.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-11-20 conversation_147

Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether his Department provided support to Vivergo prior to their decision to close their bioethanol plant. \p Chris McDonald: The government did not provide financial support to Vivergo before it’s closure.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-11-20 conversation_148

Mr Louie French:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether she has had recent discussions with Ambassadors to the Court of St James's on the payment of outstanding congestion charge debts by embassies. \p Chris Elmore: I refer the Hon. Member to the Written Ministerial Statement laid in the House on 19 November concerning the Debts owed by Diplomatic Missions and International Organisations in the UK, Official Report, vol. 775, cols. 57WS-60WS.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-11-20 conversation_149

Juliet Campbell:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps the Department is taking to ensure there are easy, accessible, diplomatic routes for ambassadors and high commissioners to utilise during travel to and from the United Kingdom. \p Chris Elmore: The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) regularly liaises with missions and airports to assist with the transit arrangements for ambassadors and high commissioners entering or leaving the UK, as well as other international visitors travelling to the UK on official business.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-11-20 conversation_150

Catherine West:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps she is taking to ensure that a diplomatic path is pursued by the USA and Venezuela. \p Chris Elmore: The bilateral relationship between the USA and Venezuela is a matter for those countries. The UK will continue to work with our international partners to achieve a peaceful, negotiated transition in Venezuela that ensures the will of all Venezuelans is respected.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-11-20 conversation_151

John Glen:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions she has had with the Mexican Government concerning the proposed restrictions on the online expression of Catholic clergy; and what assessment she has made of the implications for freedom of religion or belief in Mexico. \p Chris Elmore: The UK is committed to promoting freedom of religion or belief and freedom of expression globally. Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office officials discussed these issues with the Mexican Government during the Mexico-UK Human Rights Dialogues in January 2024 and May 2025. We understand that the bill proposed in Mexico's Congress to limit online expression by religious groups was withdrawn by its author following his engagement with faith groups. We continue to monitor developments.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-11-20 conversation_152

Damien Egan:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what information her Department holds on the proportion of BBC Arabic’s funding that is drawn from (a) grants from the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office and (b) the TV licence fee. \p Chris Elmore: Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office grant funding to the BBC World Service does not allocate a specific amount to BBC Arabic.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-11-20 conversation_153

Damien Egan:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether she has had recent discussions with the BBC on journalists working for BBC Arabic who have made antisemitic and pro-Hamas comments. \p Chris Elmore: It is crucial that the BBC upholds the highest standards of reporting and impartiality, so it remains the most trusted news source in the UK and overseas. The BBC has rightly acknowledged where coverage, standards and enforcement of those standards has fallen short. We welcome the actions taken by the BBC to strengthen editorial quality and standards for the BBC Arabic Service, as set out in the BBC Chair's letter to the Media, Culture and Sport Committee of 10 November, and we will continue to demand both rapid implementation and rigorous monitoring of those changes.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-11-20 conversation_154

Steve Darling:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps her Department is taking with international partners to ensure accountability for alleged violations of international humanitarian law in the West Bank. \p Mr Hamish Falconer: I refer the Hon. Member to the answers given on 29 July to question 66511, and on 3 September to question 71442.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-11-20 conversation_155

Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment has she made of the merits of providing intelligence support to US forces involved in Operation Southern Spear. \p Stephen Doughty: I refer the Hon. Member to the answer provided on 3 November to Question 85121.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-11-20 conversation_156

David Mundell:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent progress she has made on helping to tackle global malnutrition and hunger. \p Chris Elmore: I refer the Hon. Member to the answers provided to Questions 89032 (18 November), 35685 (14 March) and 28246 (11 February) on the issues of global malnutrition and hunger; Question 46477 (30 April) on the Child Nutrition Fund; and Question 35278 (14 March) on the work of the fund in Nigeria.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-11-20 conversation_157

David Mundell:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether she plans she to continue to provide the current level of funding to the Child Nutrition Fund. \p Chris Elmore: I refer the Hon. Member to the answers provided to Questions 89032 (18 November), 35685 (14 March) and 28246 (11 February) on the issues of global malnutrition and hunger; Question 46477 (30 April) on the Child Nutrition Fund; and Question 35278 (14 March) on the work of the fund in Nigeria.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-11-20 conversation_158

Wendy Morton:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how much Overseas Development Aid has been provided to Ukraine through the (a) World Bank, (b) International Monetary Fund and (c) other multilateral mechanisms since February 2022. \p Stephen Doughty: I refer the Rt. Hon Member to the statement on Ukraine made by the Foreign Secretary on 15 October 2025, and the joint statement made by G7 Foreign Ministers following their meetings in Canada on 11-12 November, which has been published on Gov.uk: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/joint-statement-of-g7-foreign-ministers-meeting-in-the-niagara-region

Since February 2022, the World Bank has mobilised nearly $82 billion in support for Ukraine, through a range of financing instruments using a combination of its own and donor resources. The International Monetary Fund currently supports Ukraine through a 4-year Extended Fund Facility, which was approved in March 2023, and has disbursed $10.6 billion as of 30 June 2025. Other multilateral institutions have provided tens of billions of financing since the start of the full-scale invasion, including EU institutions.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-11-20 conversation_159

Chris Evans:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if she will honour Red Wednesday on 19 November with reference to the intensification of religious persecution in Sudan. \p Chris Elmore: I refer the Hon. Member to the oral statement on Sudan given by the Foreign Secretary on 18 November.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-11-20 conversation_160

Dr Andrew Murrison:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether the Government plans to reopen (a) military and (b) non-military government training opportunities to Israelis following the ceasefire in Gaza. \p Mr Hamish Falconer: The UK has a long history of providing assistance to other nations in the security and justice fields and continues to do so around the world. UK training courses promote British values, including human rights, democracy, and compliance with international humanitarian law.

The Ministry of Defence decided to pause future Israeli participation on UK training and education courses until the situation in Gaza and the West Bank had been satisfactorily addressed. Since the ceasefire we have continued to monitor the situation in Gaza and the West Bank, and the Government will keep this decision under review.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-11-20 conversation_161

Sarah Champion:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions she has had with her international counterparts ahead of the Gaza Reconstruction Conference hosted by Egypt in November 2025; and whether her Department plans to provide funding for the reconstruction of Gaza. \p Mr Hamish Falconer: I refer the Hon. Member to the statement on the Middle East made by the Foreign Secretary on 18 November.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-11-20 conversation_162

Steve Darling:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to support international efforts to document and investigate alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza. \p Mr Hamish Falconer: I refer the Hon. Member to the answer given on 19 September to Question 74226.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-11-20 conversation_163

Andy Slaughter:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the Civil Military Coordination Centre at Kiryat Gat on coordinating aid delivery into Gaza. \p Mr Hamish Falconer: I refer the Hon. Member to the answer provided on 28 October to Question 84235.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-11-20 conversation_164

Steve Darling:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to ensure the participation of Palestinian representatives in post-ceasefire governance arrangements for Gaza. \p Mr Hamish Falconer: I refer the Hon. Member to the statement made on Gaza and Sudan by the Foreign Secretary on 18 November and the statement on the Middle East by the Prime Minister on 14 October, following his participation in the Gaza Peace Summit in Egypt on 13 October, where he addressed these issues at length.