theodi/ndl-core-corpus huggingface dataset:
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Carla Lockhart:To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent steps his Department has taken to support the mental health needs of veterans in Northern Ireland. \p Al Carns: This Government is committed to ensuring that veterans can access the appropriate support wherever they live in the UK. We recently announced VALOUR, a new commitment to establish the first-ever UK-wide approach to veteran support to ensure easier access to essential care and support for veterans. This regional approach, based on a network of VALOUR support centres providing multiple services in one place, together with regional field officers coordinating the provision of local services, will ensure that services are designed to meet the needs of local communities.

Specialist statutory support for veterans who reside in Northern Ireland is delivered by the Veterans Welfare Service Northern Ireland (VWS NI) to ensure effective and enduring support is available. In April, the VWS NI renewed and expanded its unique medical contracts, providing psychological therapies and physiotherapy to eligible veterans, namely those with conditions attributable to their service.

Veterans who are resident in Northern Ireland can also access a range of UK-wide support, while Government funding via the Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust supports the Thrive Together Programme, which operates across the UK.
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Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi:To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what his planned timeline is for the introduction of the Digital Veteran Card. \p Al Carns: The digital HM Armed Forces Veteran Card is scheduled for release by the end of summer 2025.
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Rachel Gilmour:To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if his Department will make an assessment of the suitability of the appointment of General Sir Gwyn Jenkins as First Sea Lord. \p Al Carns: General Jenkins is a proven leader with a distinguished career in both the military and at the core of Government. He brings with him a wealth of operational and organisational expertise and he will continue the modernisation of the Royal Navy, ensuring it can meet future threats and continue to safeguard our nation’s security and prosperity.

As with all Defence appointments at this seniority, there was a rigorous selection process involving a panel with the Secretary of State, the Permanent Secretary, a Non-Executive Director and an independent panel member. Final approval to appoint was granted by the Prime Minister and the King.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-28)

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Wendy Morton:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 8 May 2025 to Question 47686 on Humanitarian Aid, how much of the allocation has been (a) spent and (b) allocated. \p Stephen Doughty: The Humanitarian Crisis Reserve (HCR) value is £100 million for financial year 2025/26.

At the time of asking, the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office has so far provided £15 million from the HCR this financial year to support the humanitarian response, following the severe earthquake in Myanmar.
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James McMurdock:To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the enforcement mechanisms in the Equality Act 2010 to ensure that disabled people have equality of access to (a) supermarkets and (b) other public-facing services. \p Sir Stephen Timms: I refer the hon member to the answer given to question 54052 which can be found here

https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-questions/detail/2025-05-06/50452
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Vikki Slade:To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the Supreme Court ruling of [2025] UKSC 16, 16 April 2025, on levels of provision of (a) services, (b) healthcare and (c) workplace facilities for trans people; and what steps she is taking to support trans people who cannot access those services. \p Dame Nia Griffith: The Government has set out our expectation that organisations follow the clarity the Supreme Court ruling provides. The EHRC has committed to support organisations with its updated statutory Code of Practice for Services, Public Functions and Associations which they are consulting on. We encourage people to ensure their views are heard by submitting a response to the consultation which launched on Tuesday 20th May.

Trans people should have access to the services and facilities they need. It is also vitally important that trans people receive the care and support they need when accessing NHS services, and that they are treated with dignity and respect.
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Carla Denyer:To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, whether she is taking steps to ensure that the views and experiences of older women are reflected in (a) decision-making processes and (b) policy development across departments. \p Dame Nia Griffith: The Government is clear that equality and opportunity for all are at the heart of our programme of national renewal. This includes actively considering the needs of older women and ensuring that they are not discriminated against. The Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED) requires organisations in scope to have due regard to the need to eliminate discrimination, advance equality of opportunity, and foster good relations between different people.

The scope of the PSED is set out in the Equality Act 2010 (the Act). It extends to all public authorities listed in Schedule 19 of the Act and all parties carrying out public functions. This includes private sector and voluntary organisations when carrying out public functions. The Government expects regulating public authorities to ensure organisations comply with their legal requirements.

The Government recognises the challenges some older women can face and is committed to ensuring that support systems are in place. These include improving older people’s participation online through the new Digital Inclusion Action plan, employment support through Jobcentres, and addressing healthcare inequality in the 10 Year Health Plan, to ensure the NHS is there for anyone who needs it, whenever they need it.
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Martin Wrigley:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether his Department has considered introducing a 12-month visitor visa route for Ukrainian military personnel. \p Seema Malhotra: There are currently no plans to introduce a 12-month visitor visa route for Ukrainian military personnel. All individual visitors have the option of applying for a visit visa for 6 months, or multi-entry visit visas of 2-, 5- or 10-years validity. Each stay in the UK must not exceed the permitted length of stay endorsed on the visit visa, usually 6 months.
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Wendy Morton:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate she has made of the potential change in the number of people supported by local authorities under the (a) Afghan and (b) Ukraine resettlement schemes caused by births in the UK. \p Seema Malhotra: Arrivals under Afghan Resettlement Programme (ARP) are granted indefinite leave to remain (ILR).

Afghan children born in the UK with parents who have ILR automatically become British citizens and are therefore eligible for support like any British Citizen. This does not impact the number of people supported by local authorities under the Afghan Schemes.

The Home Office does not hold data on the number of children born in the UK to Ukrainian nationals. However, to support guests to fully integrate into communities and rebuild their lives, local authorities continue to receive a tariff of £5,900 per Homes for Ukraine arrival in their area. Councils can use this funding flexibly to support households as best suits the local area.

Children who are born in the UK, to a Ukrainian national parent who holds permission to stay in the UK under the Ukraine Schemes, are able to apply for the Ukraine Permission Extension (UPE) scheme, to gain permission to stay for up to 18 months.
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Andrew Gwynne:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will publish guidance on the circumstances in which police forces should consider the possibility of domestic abuse when responding to incidents that involve (a) kinship carers and (b) the wider family of the child they care for. \p Jess Phillips: The statutory definition of domestic abuse, contained within the Domestic Abuse Act 2021, captures a wide range of relationships and applies to kinship carers where they are related to a perpetrator.

The Government will consider kinship carers when updating wider statutory guidance on domestic abuse to ensure all victims get the response they deserve.
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Mr Richard Holden:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of (a) section 21 and (b) other provisions within the Renters' Rights Bill on fixed-term asylum accommodation procured by her Department. \p Dame Angela Eagle: The Home Office keeps all aspects of the immigration system under regular review, in consultation with a wide range of experts and stakeholders.
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Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people that arrived illegally by small boat since 5 July 2024 have since been removed. \p Dame Angela Eagle: The information requested is not currently available from published statistics, and the relevant data could only be collated and verified for the purpose of answering this question at disproportionate cost.
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Shaun Davies:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate she has made of the total amount owed to the Home Office by companies that receive money to house irregular migrants in hotels since 2019; and what discussions she has had with those companies on the transfer of those monies to her Department. \p Dame Angela Eagle: The Home Office is currently conducting an open book audit covering the seven contracts with the three suppliers of Asylum Accommodation and Support Contracts. Following completion of the audit, excess profits will be returned to the Home Office in line with the contracts’ profit share provisions.
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Mr Peter Bedford:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of disapplying the Human Rights Act on the removal of foreign national offenders from British prisons. \p Dame Angela Eagle: The Immigration White Paper, published on 12 May 2025, announced new measures on a wide range of issues, including the removal of foreign national offenders, further details of which will be set out in due course.
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Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when the Asylum applications, initial decisions and resettlement detailed datasets for Quarter 1 2025 will be published. \p Dame Angela Eagle: The Home Office publishes data on asylum and resettlement in the 'Immigration System Statistics Quarterly Release'. Data for the year ending March 2025 was published on Thursday 22 May 2025.

Information on future Home Office statistical release dates can be found in the ‘Research and statistics calendar’.
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Fabian Hamilton:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to his Department's White Paper entitled Restoring control over the immigration system, published on 12 May 2025, whether the expansion of the Point-Based System to increase in the standard qualifying period for settlement to 10 years would apply to future applicants to the British National (Overseas) visa scheme. \p Seema Malhotra: The Government is committed to supporting members of the Hong Kong community who have relocated to the UK and those who may come here in future.

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.
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Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what level of access do Border Force staff have to the Police National Database. \p Seema Malhotra: Border Force does not routinely disclose operationally sensitive information, as to do so has the potential to prejudice law enforcement and the operation of immigration controls.

However, Border Force continue to work closely with law enforcement partners as necessary to share intelligence and protect UK security.
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Manuela Perteghella:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many EU citizens had been granted pre-settled status on 30 April 2025. \p Seema Malhotra: The Home Office publishes data on the EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS) in ‘Immigration System Statistics’.

The published statistics can be found in the EU Settlement Scheme data tables. Data on grants of pre-settled status can be found in tables EUSS_03 and EUSS_RA_01 in the summary tables.
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Liz Jarvis:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she plans to introduce indefinite leave to remain for Ukrainians living in the UK. \p Seema Malhotra: I refer the Honourable Member to my answer given on 1 May to PQ UIN 47468.
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Edward Morello:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of including dentists on the Shortage Occupation List for immigration purposes. \p Seema Malhotra: The Immigration White Paper, published on 12 May 2025, announced new measures on a wide range of issues, including reforms to work visas, further details of which will be set out in due course.
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Suella Braverman:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department has made an estimate of the number of foreign nationals who would be fast-tracked to citizenship under the Restoring control over the immigration system: white paper. \p Seema Malhotra: The Immigration White Paper, published on 12 May 2025, announced new measures on a wide range of issues, including the rules on citizenship and refugee settlement, further details of which will be set out in due course.
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Bell Ribeiro-Addy:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on the potential impact of the no recourse to public funds condition on internationally educated nursing staff. \p Seema Malhotra: The proposals set out in the Immigration White Paper were discussed with all government departments in the normal way.
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Rebecca Long Bailey:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to her Department's White Paper entitled Restoring control over the immigration system, published on 12 May 2025, whether the proposals will apply retrospectively to people already on five or 10 year routes to settlement. \p Seema Malhotra: We will be consulting on the earned settlement scheme later this year and further details on the proposed scheme will be provided at the time.
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Rebecca Long Bailey:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the changes to “Good Character” guidance for UK citizenship applications made on 10 February 2025, what estimate she has made of the number of (a) parents and (b) guardians of UK-born children will have citizenship entitlements different from their (i) children and (ii) wards. \p Seema Malhotra: The requested data is not held by the Home Office.
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Euan Stainbank:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the White Paper entitled Restoring control over the immigration system, published 12 May 2025, whether her Department's proposed changes to the qualifying period for settled status will apply to people who have acquired settled status but have not yet lived in the UK continuously for ten years. \p Seema Malhotra: We will be consulting on the earned settlement scheme later this year and further details on the proposed scheme will be provided at the time.
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Rebecca Long Bailey:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to her Department's white paper entitled Restoring control over the immigration system published 12 May 2025, in relation to which visa routes she is considering increasing the level of English language required from B1 to B2 under the Common European Framework for Reference for Languages. \p Seema Malhotra: The White Paper states our intention to increase language requirements for Skilled Workers and workers where a language requirement already applies from B1 to B2 levels.
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Bell Ribeiro-Addy:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the cost of citizenship applications for children on (a) parents, (b) carers and (c) children. \p Seema Malhotra: Where changes to fee legislation are made, Impact Assessments are produced which identify potential impacts resulting from the changes. Although fees for child citizenship applicants were not increased as part of the recent fee changes that came into effect on 09 April 2025, the published Equalities Impact Assessment includes discussion of the impacts of nationality fees on child applicants and can be found at the following link: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2025/363/pdfs/uksiod_20250363_en_001.pdf.
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Sarah Gibson:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent steps she has taken with police forces to ensure the accurate collection of data on the abuse of older people; and if she will publish the most recent data held by her Department for Wiltshire. \p Jess Phillips: The Office for National Statistics (ONS), who are responsible for the publication of crime statistics in England and Wales has explored the feasibility of extending the Crime Survey for England and Wales, to cover the population resident in care homes and the use of other sources to improve coverage of elder abuse in its crime statistics. A report on this work has been published and can be found here:

https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/crimeandjustice/articles/incorporatingdataoncrimesexperiencedbycarehomeresidentsintocrimestatistics/2023-12-01
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Sarah Champion:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 13 January 2025 to Question 21608 on Cephalopods and Shellfish: Animal Welfare, what estimate she has made of when the Animals in Science Committee will conclude its work on the future options for the regulation of the use of decapod crustaceans in scientific research. \p Dan Jarvis: The Home Office does not require advice from the Animals in Science Committee at this stage but will be guided by decisions made under the Animal Welfare Act regarding any consideration as to whether decapod crustaceans are regulated under the Animals (Scientific Procures) Act 1986.
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Mrs Elsie Blundell:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps she is taking with the Greater Manchester Combined Authority to improve connections between the Greater Manchester City Region and (a) Yorkshire, (b) the Liverpool City Region and (c) North Wales. \p Darren Jones: The Government has already demonstrated its commitment to improving Northern transport infrastructure. At and since the Budget last Autumn, further commitment and funding has been provided for key transport programmes in the North, including the Transpennine Route Upgrade, an £11 billion programme that will transform rail connectivity from Manchester through to York.

Through City Region Sustainable Transport Settlements (CRSTS) Round 1 (2022/23–2026/27), the Government has also provided Greater Manchester Combined Authority with £1 billion to invest in local transport priorities.

Future investment priorities for Northern transport infrastructure will be considered in the round as part of the Spending Review.
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Mrs Elsie Blundell:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps she is taking to support the Northern Arc infrastructure project. \p Darren Jones: The Government has already demonstrated its commitment to improving Northern transport infrastructure. At and since the Budget last Autumn, further commitment and funding has been provided for key transport programmes in the North, including the Transpennine Route Upgrade, an £11 billion programme that will transform rail connectivity from Manchester through to York.

Future investment priorities for Northern transport infrastructure will be considered in the round as part of the Spending Review.
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Mrs Elsie Blundell:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how the Infrastructure Strategy will support infrastructure enhancements in the North West. \p Darren Jones: The 10 Year Infrastructure Strategy will reduce uncertainty by bringing together a long-term plan for the social, economic and housing infrastructure across the UK, including the North West

Alongside considering the UK’s economic and social infrastructure needs, the strategy will set out how we are reforming institutions and changing the way we make decisions and deliver infrastructure, maximising the benefits of our strong fiscal and spending frameworks, breaking down regulatory and planning barriers, and resetting our relationship with the private sector.
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Mike Wood:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to paragraph 14 of the policy paper entitled UK-EU Summit: Common Understanding, published on 19 May 2025, what is the estimated change in financial payments from the UK to the EU and its agencies in each of the next four years. \p Darren Jones: We have agreed to work towards the association of the UK to the EU Erasmus+ programme. The specific terms of this association, including mutually agreed financial terms, should be determined as part of that process in order to ensure a fair balance as regards the contributions of and benefits to the United Kingdom.

The government has been clear that the UK will only associate to Erasmus+ on significantly improved financial terms which take into account the UK’s financial contribution and the number of UK participants who receive funding from the programme.
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Rachel Gilmour:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if her Department will make an assessment of the potential impact of the increase in employer National Insurance contributions on independent businesses in rural constituencies. \p James Murray: A Tax Information and Impact Note (TIIN) was published alongside the introduction of the Bill containing the changes to employer National Insurance contributions (NICs). The TIIN sets out the impact of the policy on the exchequer, the economic impacts of the policy, and the impacts on individuals, businesses, and civil society organisations, as well as an overview of the equality impacts.

The Government decided to protect the smallest businesses from these changes by increasing the Employment Allowance from £5,000 to £10,500. This means that this year, 865,000 employers will pay no NICs at all, and more than half of all employers will either gain or will see no change. It means employers will be able to employ up to four full-time workers on the National Living Wage without paying employer NICs.
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Carla Lockhart:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what fiscal support is available to (a) churches and (b) faith-based charities facing (i) increased energy costs and (ii) a decline in donations. \p James Murray: The Government recognises the importance of supporting churches and other listed places of worship.

Through the National Lottery Heritage fund, churches have access to grants ranging from £10,000 to £10million to support repair work for listed buildings and address issues around workforce and volunteer capability to manage heritage. Alongside this, the Government has extended the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme, with a budget of £23m until 31 March 2026, and this provides churches and other listed places of worship with grants of up to £25,000. This scheme will continue to enable religious organisations to claim grants covering eligible VAT costs paid towards repairs and renovations.

On support for increased energy costs, in the short-term, the Government wants to provide businesses with better protection from being locked into unfair and expensive energy contracts, and more redress when they have a complaint. Last year, the Government launched a consultation on introducing regulation of Third-Party Intermediaries (TPIs), such as energy brokers. This is aimed at enhancing consumer protections, particularly for non-domestic consumers. The consultation has now closed, and a Government response will follow in due course once all feedback has been reviewed.

From 19 December 2024 Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) with fewer than 50 employees can now access free support to resolve issues with their energy supplier through the Energy Ombudsman. This means that 99% of British businesses can now access this service with outcomes ranging up to £20,000 in financial awards

Charities may also, depending on their status, be able to benefit from buying their energy through Crown Commercial Service. Crown Commercial Service are a trading fund of Cabinet Office and their frameworks allow charities to benefit from the collective purchasing power of the UK public sector.

More broadly, within the tax system, we provide support to charities through a range of reliefs and exemptions, including reliefs for charitable giving, with more than £6 billion in charitable reliefs provided to charities, CASCs and their donors in 2023 to 2024.
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Sammy Wilson:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential role of chartered accountants in the use of disguised remuneration tax avoidance schemes. \p James Murray: The Government is committed to tackling tax avoidance and is consulting on a package of measures, including potential new criminal sanctions, to facilitate swifter and stronger action against those who own or control promoter organisations.

The Government also announced action at 2024 Autumn Budget to tackle tax avoidance by umbrella companies. Legislation, effective from April 2026, will be introduced to make recruitment agencies using umbrella companies legally responsible for accounting for PAYE on workers’ pay. Where there is no agency in the supply chain, this responsibility will fall to the end client. This along with the measures on promoters will help prevent disguised remuneration in the future.
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Sammy Wilson:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, for what reason she has ruled out scheme promoters paying a proportion of Loan Charge liabilities. \p James Murray: The Government believes the review must bring the Loan Charge to a close for those people who still owe substantial amounts of money but can see no way to resolve their debts

The Government is committed to tackling promoters of tax avoidance and is currently consulting on a package of measures, powers and sanctions to facilitate swifter and stronger action against those who own or control promoter organisations. Further options are under consultation targeting those tax advisors and legal professionals behind avoidance schemes.
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Suella Braverman:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the increase in employer National Insurance contributions on pubs. \p James Murray: A Tax Information and Impact Note (TIIN) was published alongside the introduction of the Bill containing the changes to employer NICs. The TIIN sets out the impact of the policy on the exchequer, the economic impacts of the policy, and the impacts on individuals, businesses, and civil society organisations, as well as an overview of the equality impacts.

The Government decided to protect the smallest businesses from these changes by increasing the Employment Allowance from £5,000 to £10,500. This means that this year, 865,000 employers will pay no NICs at all, and more than half of all employers will either gain or will see no change. It means employers will be able to employ up to four full-time workers on the National Living Wage without paying employer NICs.
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Sammy Wilson:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of making the (a) marketing and (b) operation of disguised remuneration schemes a criminal offence. \p James Murray: The promotion or operation of mass marketed tax avoidance schemes is not, in or of itself, a criminal offence, unless the promoter is acting in breach of an HM Revenue and Customs Stop Notice.

The Government is committed to tackling tax avoidance and is consulting on a package of measures, including potential new criminal powers, to facilitate swifter and stronger action against those who own or control promoter organisations.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-05-28 conversation_139

Sammy Wilson:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of conducting a review into the adequacy of the system of (a) oversight and (b) accountability of HMRC. \p James Murray: I have overall ministerial responsibility for HMRC and have chaired its Board since September 2024. HMRC is headed by a body of Commissioners, appointed by the Crown, who are required to publish a Charter of Standards of behaviours and values for how they will deal with taxpayers and report on performance against these standards annually. Taxpayers can challenge HMRC’s decisions in the specialist tax tribunal or through the civil courts. Senior HMRC officials are also accountable to parliament and regularly give evidence to the Treasury and Public Accounts committees.

I have set priorities for HMRC to close the tax gap, improve day to day performance and the overall customer experience, and reform and modernise the UK tax and customs system. These are hardwired into the Department’s business plan, and we will be setting out more detail about how we will transform to deliver these priorities in a Transformation Roadmap.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-05-28 conversation_140

Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she has considered providing Income Tax relief for party political donations. \p James Murray: The Government is not considering an income tax relief for party political donations.
wrans/answers2025-05-28 conversation_141
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-05-28 conversation_141

Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she make it her policy to introduce a new business rates system before the 2026-27 financial year. \p James Murray: Transforming the business rates system is a multi-year process, and reforms taken forward will be phased over the course of the Parliament to provide certainty for businesses and local government finance.

Through these reforms, we will create a fairer business rates system that protects the high street, supports investment, and is fit for the 21st century.

In summer, the Government will publish an interim report that sets out a clear direction of travel for the business rates system, with further policy detail to follow at Autumn Budget 2025.
wrans/answers2025-05-28 conversation_142
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-05-28 conversation_142

Neil Duncan-Jordan:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, when she plans to respond to the Technical consultation - Inheritance Tax on pensions: liability, reporting and payment which closed on 22 January 2025. \p James Murray: As announced at Autumn Budget 2024, from 6 April 2027 most unused pension funds and death benefits will be included within the value of a person’s estate for inheritance tax purposes.

The Government is considering the responses to the technical consultation on the liability for reporting and paying any inheritance tax on pensions, which closed on 22 January.

The government will publish a response document and draft legislation later this year in the normal way.
wrans/answers2025-05-28 conversation_143
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-05-28 conversation_143

Anneliese Dodds:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps she is taking to ensure the full amount of Gift Aid claimed by online fundraising platforms reaches charities. \p James Murray: The Government recognises the vital role played by the charity sector and the generosity of the British public. We support charitable giving with over £1.6billion in Gift Aid each year.

Charities have the flexibility to decide on their own strategy for fundraising and are free to partner with other organisations to process their Gift Aid claims. It will ultimately be a commercial decision on the part of a charity to work with a fundraising platform. If they do, any fee paid to the platform for processing gift aid claims may be calculated by reference to the amount claimed but is not itself gift aid.

Fundraising platforms do not receive financial support from the government and their profits are taxable.

Many of the fundraising platforms are voluntarily registered with the Fundraising Regulator which is the independent, non-statutory regulator of charitable fundraising in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The Fundraising Regulator can act if it believes standards have been breached.
wrans/answers2025-05-28 conversation_144
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-05-28 conversation_144

Kanishka Narayan:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether her Department plans to review the Approved Mileage Allowance Payment rates for employees who use their own vehicles for work purposes, in the context of trends in the level of (a) fuel and (b) maintenance costs. \p James Murray: Approved Mileage Allowance Payments (AMAPs) are used by employers to reimburse an employee’s expenses for business mileage in their private vehicle.

The rates for cars are 45 pence per mile for the first 10,000 miles and 25 pence per mile thereafter. These rates are arrived at after considering a range of factors including: • the costs of motoring per business mile for a range of cars and mileages; • the transport needs of business; • the cost to the Exchequer of changing the rate; and • the overall fiscal position

The AMAP rates are not mandatory, and employers can choose to pay more or less than the AMAP rate. It is therefore ultimately up to employers to determine the rate at which they reimburse their employees.
wrans/answers2025-05-28 conversation_145
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-05-28 conversation_145

Mr Louie French:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps she is taking to ensure that lived experience groups are included in the (a) research, (b) prevention and (c) treatment of gambling harms. \p Stephanie Peacock: The government’s priority is to ensure funding is directed where it is needed most to deliver our objective to further understand and reduce gambling-related harms. DCMS and HMT Ministers have powers to decide how funding is divided between three key strands of work: research, prevention and treatment, and we are establishing robust governance structures to ensure the core aims of the levy are met within each of these strands.

Decisions on how levy funds are spent within research, prevention and treatment lie with commissioning leads. We want a range of expertise, including that of lived experience, to inform commissioning bodies’ efforts to deliver on the government’s objectives across research, prevention and treatment. Commissioning bodies are working at pace to develop spending plans and will update in due course.
wrans/answers2025-05-28 conversation_146
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-05-28 conversation_146

Maureen Burke:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, for what reason a cap was introduced to the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme. \p Chris Bryant: The Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme was previously due to end in March 2025. The Government extended this for one year with an overall budget of £23m. To ensure this budget remains affordable, claims are now capped at £25,000 per place of worship. These changes to the scheme were necessary given the tight fiscal challenges we inherited and the pressures on other parts of the heritage and cultural sectors and we feel that the cap ensures the fairest distribution of the available budget. Based on the Department’s analysis of previous data, 94% of applications between 2022-2024 have been under £25,000, and most of these claims were for under £5,000.
wrans/answers2025-05-28 conversation_147
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-05-28 conversation_147

Ben Maguire:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to increase the provision of youth clubs in (a) North Cornwall constituency and (b) rural areas. \p Stephanie Peacock: This Government fully recognises the importance of youth services to help young people live safe and healthy lives, and we remain committed to giving all young people the chance to reach their full potential regardless of where they grow up.

In Cornwall, over £1.2 million was invested under the Youth Investment Fund, with Yes KBSK dance group in Bodmin receiving a £400,000 grant to provide them with a permanent home called "the Space". The group offers sessions in the performing arts and other youth work, focusing on helping disadvantaged families.

Our engagement for the National Youth Survey has proactively involved young people from rural areas, as well as other demographics. In order to reach young people in all areas of the country, we developed a communications campaign and worked with a variety of stakeholders who support young people to disseminate information. We developed a toolkit for organisations to run their own consultation workshops with young people to feed in their views. In addition to this, we have run a wide-ranging survey, workshops, focus groups and ‘hacks’ to give young people the opportunity to develop solutions.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-05-28 conversation_148

Sammy Wilson:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to help reduce the prevalence of gambling among children and young people in Northern Ireland. \p Stephanie Peacock: We are committed to reviewing the best available evidence from a wide range of sources and working with all stakeholders in order to ensure there are robust protections in place to protect those at risk of gambling related harm, particularly children and young people. While gambling is a devolved matter for Northern Ireland and regulation is thus a consideration for the Northern Ireland Executive, the department has noted the findings on prevalence and consequences of gambling from the Department for Communities' 2024 Northern Ireland Gambling Prevalence Survey.
wrans/answers2025-05-28 conversation_149
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-05-28 conversation_149

Mr Louie French:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what data her Department uses to assess policies for the land-based adult gaming sector. \p Stephanie Peacock: DCMS regularly engages with Members of Parliament, local authorities, the gambling industry, and members of the public on issues such as adult gaming centres. The Government uses various data sources to assess policies and impacts, including data provided by the Gambling Commission and the industry, a range of research findings, and feedback from a wide range of stakeholders.

The Government recognises the contributions that adult gaming centres and bingo clubs make to the economy and communities such as seaside towns, including providing local employment and spaces where people can have fun and socialise. But, as set out in the Minister for Gambling’s recent correspondence with the sector, we are also aware of concerns about how the adult gaming centre sector protects vulnerable people, and we will seek further assurance on how the sector is addressing these concerns. We will continue to work with the whole land-based gambling sector to mitigate the risks of gambling-related harm and strengthen player protections in venues and to support a growing gambling industry.
wrans/answers2025-05-28 conversation_150
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-05-28 conversation_150

Mr Louie French:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the proposed single Remote Betting and Gaming Duty on (a) gambling rates and (b) black market gambling rates. \p Stephanie Peacock: The consultation on the tax treatment of remote gambling is a matter for HM Treasury. I would encourage all interested stakeholders to respond to this consultation, which runs until 21 July. The department continues to engage with His Majesty’s Treasury and if any legislative changes are made to gambling duty following the consultation, they will be accompanied by a tax information and impact note from HM Treasury, as is standard practice.
wrans/answers2025-05-28 conversation_151
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-05-28 conversation_151

Andy MacNae:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of free-to-air sports broadcasting on levels of (a) physical activity and (b) participation in grassroots sports. \p Stephanie Peacock: The Government recognises the importance of ensuring free-to-air access to sporting events of national interest so that they can be enjoyed by a wide audience and can inspire more people to be physically active and participate in grassroots sport.

The Government believes that the current list of events works well and that it strikes an appropriate balance between access to sporting events and allowing sports to maximise broadcasting revenue.