theodi/ndl-core-corpus huggingface dataset:
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James McMurdock:To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether his Department has plans to increase funding to the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. \p Kerry McCarthy: The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) budget is negotiated by parties on a biennium basis. The 2024-2025 budget was agreed in 2023, and this year parties will negotiate the budget for 2026-2027. The UK has historically advocated for a core budget that is in line with the needs of the UNFCCC and reflects the increase in mandates from the parties. This position was reflected in the UK's 2024 contributions, and the recently delivered 2025 core and supplementary budget contributions. The Government is assessing our position for the upcoming biennium negotiations alongside our broader negotiating objectives.
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Martin Wrigley:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to tackle the decline of wild bird populations. \p Mary Creagh: This Government remains committed to taking action to recover our threatened native species including wild birds. That is why, on the 30 July 2024 the Government announced a review of EIP 23 and the intention to develop a revised EIP to protect and restore the natural environment with delivery information to meet the Environment Act targets. This includes reversing the decline in species and reducing the risk of extinction.

Government actions to restore and create more than 500,000 hectares of wildlife-rich habitat by 2042 will support a wide range of native bird species. In addition, under ELM we have a number of offers to support the management, restoration and creation of grassland habitats that support a range of bird species.
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Ellie Chowns:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make it his policy to bring the statutory guidance entitled Applying the farming rules for water, updated 16 June 2022, on the application of manure, in line with The Reduction and Prevention of Agricultural Diffuse Pollution (England) Regulations 2018. \p Emma Hardy: We have heard concerns regarding the statutory guidance, issued under the previous Government, on the Farming Rules for Water. In response, the Secretary of State have instructed officials to conduct a review to ensure that it is fit for purpose and effective in its objectives.

We are currently assessing the findings of this review. We will share the outcomes as soon as practicable.
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Terry Jermy:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that environment regulations are upheld on intensive livestock farms in (a) East Anglia and (b) South West Norfolk constituency. \p Emma Hardy: To ensure compliance with environmental regulations, permitted farms in East Anglia have routine inspections as an essential part of Environment Agency (EA) regulation. Within East Anglia there is a target of completing more than 80% of one hundred intensive farm site visits for the performance year 2024-2025. This target is on track to be met. Inspections incorporate permitting aspects linked to business plans as well as environmental legislation, such as Farming Rules for Water and Nitrate Vulnerable Zones.

Farms with a high standard of compliance and within the Pig and Assurance Scheme are inspected once every three years by the EA and annually in the other two years by certified bodies. Farms not in the assurance scheme are inspected by the Environment Agency a minimum of once in every three years, depending on risk. Inspections are recorded on the National Compliance Assessment Database. Any permit condition breaches are given a Compliance Classification Scheme (CCS) score. CCS scores affect subsistence charges for farms that are not in the Pig and Poultry Assurance Scheme.
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Matt Bishop:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to ensure the protection of birds of prey in the Forest of Dean. \p Mary Creagh: While Defra has not implemented any protections specific to the Forest of Dean, all birds of prey are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. It is an offence to kill or injure or take any wild bird; take, damage or destroy the nest of any wild bird (while that nest is in use or being built); and take or destroy an egg of any wild bird.

Bird of prey persecution is a UK wildlife crime priority and Defra supports the work of the national Bird of Prey Crime Priority Delivery Group, which brings together police, government and stakeholders from conservation and country sports organisations to tackle bird of prey persecution. Furthermore, Defra is a principal funder of the National Wildlife Crime Unit (NWCU), which helps prevent and detect wildlife crime (including bird of prey crime) by obtaining and disseminating intelligence, undertaking analysis which highlights local or national threats and directly assisting law enforcers in their investigations.
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Martin Wrigley:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to help protect blue carbon habitats. \p Emma Hardy: In England, we have established a comprehensive network of 181 Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), which cover the majority of our saltmarsh and seagrass habitats. While blue carbon habitats may not always be an explicitly designated feature, MPA protection may still yield benefits.

Our focus is now on ensuring that these MPAs are effectively protected to allow the designated features to achieve favourable condition. Three Highly Protected Marine Area (HPMAs) designations in English waters came into force in summer 2023. Two of the three designated sites, Allonby Bay and North East of Farnes Deep, contain blue carbon habitats.
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Martin Wrigley:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to help restore peatlands. \p Mary Creagh: The Government recognises the importance of England’s peatlands, and in our manifesto, we committed to expanding nature-rich habitats such as peatlands. This will contribute to ensuring nature’s recovery, one of Defra’s five priorities.

We have ambitions to restore hundreds of thousands of hectares of peatlands across the country, and we are working to ensure that we have the most effective mechanisms in place to go further than we have before. Peatland restoration is currently funded via the Nature for Climate Peatland Grant Scheme, and going forwards will be primarily funded through Environmental Land Management schemes, such as the Landscape Recovery and Countryside Stewardship schemes.

Private finance will also be vital if we are to meet our peatland restoration ambitions. To support peatland restoration, the Government is implementing a range of policies that will mobilise private investment. These include working with the IUCN to attract investment via carbon credits through the Peatland Code.
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Martin Wrigley:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will take legislative steps to prohibit the retail sales of horticultural peat. \p Mary Creagh: I refer the Hon. Member to the response given to PQ 4272 on 12 September 2024.
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Neil Duncan-Jordan:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to support the horticulture sector. \p Daniel Zeichner: The Government appreciates and values the vital work of our agricultural sectors including the fundamental part played by horticulture growers.

As part of our mission-driven Government we are currently considering how we can achieve our ambitious, measurable and long-term goals for all of our farming sectors. This includes, as the Secretary of state announced at the CLA conference, developing a 25-year Farming Roadmap to create a robust and resilient agriculture sector, capable of meeting current challenges whilst future proofing the sector for generations to come.

In addition, the department meets regularly with growers to discuss a range of specific issues facing the sector. These discussions help inform future policy development and help us understand what support the sector needs to help it thrive.
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Neil Duncan-Jordan:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he plans to introduce a new Food Bill for England in this Parliament. \p Daniel Zeichner: Our ambitious food strategy will set and deliver clear long-term outcomes that create a healthier, fairer, and more resilient food system. We will consider the need for legislation as we develop the strategy and will seek to make space in the legislative timetable if needed.
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Terry Jermy:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to improve services in rural isolated communities. \p Daniel Zeichner: This Government is committed to improving the quality of life for people living and working in rural areas, so that we can realise the full potential of rural communities. To achieve this, we are ensuring that the needs of people and businesses in rural areas are at the heart of our policymaking.

We recognise that there are significant challenges facing rural communities, and that the Government must play its part in overcoming them. We know that prosperous, thriving rural communities require improvements in rural transport and digital infrastructure, the availability of affordable housing and energy, and access to essential services such as healthcare and education.

That is why this Government is committed to rural proofing, ensuring that rural areas are not overlooked, that all intended outcomes of the missions are deliverable in rural areas, and all policy decision-making takes account of the issues facing rural communities. Defra leads on rural proofing, but individual departments are responsible for ensuring that their policy decision-making is rural proofed.
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Steve Barclay:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will publish all relevant reports submitted to the Environment Agency in 2024 by the operator of the Peterborough Stanground Thistle Drive Pumping Station in compliance with their obligations under the The Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2016. \p Emma Hardy: Relevant reports will be published in due course.

The permit (AWCNF428/10348) requires various information and data to be submitted to the Environment Agency as follows:
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Carla Lockhart:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of recent flooding on agricultural productivity; and whether he plans to provide funding to help farmers improve drainage management on their land. \p Daniel Zeichner: The 2023 to 2024 Autumn and winter season were the wettest in 30 years, this meant that many farms in affected areas experienced difficulty cultivating or grazing over that period. The primary impact of this on agricultural productivity is a shift from winter cropping to spring cropping. According to the AHDB annual harvest insight there was a shift in barley crops of 24% between winter and spring and much of this spring crop may get lower yields. To assist farmers with the impact of the extreme wet weather £57.5 million has been paid in farming recovery payments, to around 12,700 farmers.

The Government has invested £50 million to internal drainage boards (IDBs) as part of the one-off £75 million IDB Fund to support greater resilience for farmers and rural communities in the long term. The IDB Fund will accelerate IDBs’ recovery from the winter 2023-24 storms and provide opportunities to modernise and upgrade assets that protect agricultural land and rural communities.
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Andrew Rosindell:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking through the National Fly-Tipping Prevention Group to reduce instances of fly-tipping in (a) Romford constituency and (b) England. \p Mary Creagh: Defra chairs the National Fly-Tipping Prevention Group (NFTPG), through which we work with a wide range of stakeholders such as local councils and the Environment Agency to promote good practice on preventing fly-tipping. Various practical tools, including case studies and ‘how to’ guides on key issues such as setting up effective local partnerships, are available from their webpage which is available at: https://www.keepbritaintidy.org/national-fly-tipping-prevention-group. We will continue to work with the NFTPG to expand upon these materials.
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Martin Wrigley:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with water companies on sewage infiltration. \p Emma Hardy: For too long, water companies have discharged unacceptable levels of sewage into our rivers, lakes and seas.

Regulators are working with South West Water on their Drainage and Wastewater Management Plans and will be ensuring they look at the investment needs for the issues raised relating to reducing infiltration in their sewerage system, leaks from the system, and removing surface water.

As part of its Waterfit programme, South West Water is carrying out surface water separation programmes within the catchments of Dawlish, Goodrington, Mothecombe, Millandreath & Ilfracombe, with the purpose of spill reduction and bathing water protection.
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Steve Barclay:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when the operator of the Peterborough Stanground Thistle Drive Pumping Station fitted an early duration monitor on the combined sewage overflow. \p Emma Hardy: Peterborough Stanground Thistle Drive Pumping Station has an EDM (Event Duration Monitor) on site as this is now a legal requirement for sites that discharge storm sewage. Further information on EDM data across the UK can be found at Storm Overflow Spill Frequency and information from the Anglian Water website on EDM data for 2023 can be found here.
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Martin Wrigley:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the effectiveness of water butts in reducing sewage overflow in Devon. \p Emma Hardy: Defra have had no recent discussions with water companies about the use of water butts to prevent sewage overflow in Devon. However, as part of a well-designed sustainable drainage system (SuDS), water butts can help in reducing pressure on sewerage.

This Government is strongly committed to requiring standardised SuDS in new developments. These should be to designs that cope with changing climatic conditions as well as delivering wider water infrastructure benefits, reduce run off and help to improve water quality, amenity and biodiversity. It is also important to ensure appropriate adoption and maintenance arrangements are in place.
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Neil Duncan-Jordan:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to help protect blue carbon habitats from damaging human activities. \p Emma Hardy: In England, we have established a comprehensive network of 181 Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), which cover the majority of our saltmarsh and seagrass habitats. While blue carbon habitats may not always be an explicitly designated feature, MPA protection may still yield benefits.

Our focus is now on ensuring that these MPAs are effectively protected to allow the designated features to achieve favourable condition. Three Highly Protected Marine Area (HPMAs) designations in English waters came into force in summer 2023. Two of the three designated sites, Allonby Bay and North East of Farnes Deep, contain blue carbon habitats.

Defra set up the UK Blue Carbon Evidence Partnership in partnership with DESNZ and the Devolved Administrations to address evidence gaps around these important habitats. We are funding a multi-year research project to increase our understanding of UK seabed sediment carbon storage and sequestration, the impact of human activities and to model potential management interventions. Initial outputs from this work were published in January 2025.
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Uma Kumaran:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of including shared (a) walking and (b) cycling paths in the National River Walks. \p Mary Creagh: We are committed to making the nine new river walks accessible to a wide range of users where it is feasible to do so, so that where possible they can benefit walkers, cyclists and horse riders.
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Neil Duncan-Jordan:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to key recommendation 3 of the Office for Environmental Protection’s report entitled Progress in improving the natural environment in England 2023 to 2024, published on 16 January 2025, if he will set out a timetable for improving management of Marine Protected Areas. \p Emma Hardy: I refer the hon. Member to the answers I gave to the hon. Member for Brent West on 10 December 2024 and 6 January 2025, PQs 17500 and 20559.
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Olly Glover:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to (a) support the restoration of peatlands and (b) deliver the targets in the England Peat Action Plan. \p Mary Creagh: The Government recognises the importance of England’s peatlands, and in our manifesto, we committed to expanding nature-rich habitats such as peatlands. This will contribute to ensuring nature’s recovery, one of Defra’s five priorities.

We have ambitions to restore hundreds of thousands of hectares of peatlands across the country, and we are working to ensure that we have the most effective mechanisms in place to go further than we have before. Peatland restoration is currently funded via the Nature for Climate Peatland Grant Scheme, and going forwards will be primarily funded through Environmental Land Management schemes, such as the Landscape Recovery and Countryside Stewardship schemes.

Private finance will also be vital if we are to meet our peatland restoration ambitions. To support peatland restoration, the Government is implementing a range of policies that will mobilise private investment. These include working with the IUCN to attract investment via carbon credits through the Peatland Code.

The England Peat Action Plan was published under the previous Government.
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Martin Wrigley:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what information his Department holds on the number and proportion of homes that use a (a) combined and (b) segregated sewerage system in Devon. \p Emma Hardy: Defra does not hold the specific information on sewerage operations in different regions. It is the responsibility of the sewerage undertaker to manage its own operation, in this case South West Water.
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Daisy Cooper:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of bringing forward legislative proposals to require the provision of sanitary waste bins in men's bathrooms. \p Mary Creagh: The Government oversees policy and legislation with respect to the safe management of waste and litter as well as the protection of drains and sewers. It does not, however, have powers to compel the provision of sanitary bins in public toilets. The maintenance of public toilets is a matter for local authorities.
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Juliet Campbell:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of increasing funding to help tackle the knotweed in Nottinghamshire. \p Mary Creagh: The Government recognises the impacts caused by invasive species, including Japanese knotweed.

Funding is available for control and management of Japanese knotweed and other invasive plant species through Defra’s Environmental Land Management (ELM) Countryside Stewardship scheme. Furthermore, Defra funds research to identify cost and time effective ways of managing this species through biocontrol. Information about the research can be found on CABI's website.

Additionally, the Government has developed guidance on how to prevent the spread of Japanese knotweed and other harmful weeds, as well as how to treat and dispose of them, which can be found on GOV.UK: How to stop invasive non-native plants from spreading - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
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Andrew Rosindell:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to promote tree coverage in (a) the borough of Havering and (b) England. \p Mary Creagh: The Government is working towards the statutory target to reach 16.5% tree canopy and woodland cover in England by 2050. Defra is funding a significant package of grants and supporting activity across England to increase tree coverage. This includes funding a national network of fifteen Community Forests. These Forests are planting thousands of hectares of new trees and woodland in and around our towns and cities providing social, economic and environmental transformation. The Thames Chase Community Forest is one of this network with tree planting sites in Havering.
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Tom Morrison:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much the Environment Agency spent on flood defences in Cheadle constituency in the last Parliament. \p Emma Hardy: The Environment Agency (EA) undertook the following activities in Cheadle constituency over the course of the last parliament:

o Major refurbishments of Abney Hall and debris screens on Heald Green Brook are planned.

Many of these activities were undertaken across multiple constituencies, meaning that the cost of each cannot be solely attributed to Cheadle constituency. Consequently, the EA cannot provide an exact number spent on flood defences in Cheadle Constituency.
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Gregory Stafford:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when he plans to publish the findings of the consultation entitled Reform of the Bathing Water Regulations 2013, published on 12 November 2024. \p Emma Hardy: The consultation on Reforms to the Bathing Water Regulations 2013 closed on 23 December 2024. We are currently analysing responses and evaluating how any proposed changes may impact the application and designation process. We will issue a formal government response to the consultation in due course.
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Alicia Kearns:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what guidance his Department issues to local authorities on the Aarhus Convention. \p Mary Creagh: The Aarhus Convention concerns access by the public to environmental information, to participation in environmental decision-making and access to justice in environmental matters. Defra does not issue specific guidance to local authorities on the Convention.
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James McMurdock:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the adequacy of the Environmental Information Regulations 2004 in relation to the transparency of private companies that perform public services. \p Mary Creagh: This is a devolved matter, and the information provided therefore relates to England only.

Defra will not be making the suggested assessment. The relevant provisions of the Environmental Information Regulations 2004 (EIRs) already set out the legal tests which will determine whether or not a private company performing public services is subject to its transparency requirements.
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Sir Julian Smith:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 11 October 2024 to Question 6209 on Lead: Contamination, whether he has had recent discussions with the Environment Agency on the Water and Abandoned Metal Mines programme. \p Emma Hardy: Defra works closely with the Environment Agency to ensure it is equipped to carry out its functions effectively and deliver for the public and the environment; this includes its work to reduce pollution from abandoned metal mines.
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Adam Jogee:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what information his Department holds on the (a) number and (b) proportion of people impacted by flooding in homes who have accessed financial support through the (i) Property Flood Resilience grant and (ii) Flood Recovery Framework. \p Emma Hardy: The Flood Recovery Framework (FRF) has been activated four times since its publication in 2017. A total of 13,538 flooded residential properties have been reported by eligible local authorities across all four activations. Of the two MHCLG schemes that provide support to households, 11,689 community recovery grant payments and 9,967 council tax discount payments have been made to date.

The Property Flood Resilience (PFR) Grant Scheme is currently running for Babet (6/11/23 - 06/05/25) and Henk (08/01/24 - 08/07/25). Data for these will be available after each of the schemes close later this year.
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Joe Robertson:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 23 January 2025 to Question 24130, on Domestic Waste: Recycling, if he will publish the (a) equality impact assessment and (b) environmental principles assessment. \p Mary Creagh: These documents are used to support internal decision making and therefore are not routinely published. A full impact assessment of the Simpler Recycling project is published online here: The Separation of Waste (England) Regulations 2025 - Impact Assessment.
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Sir John Hayes:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, for what purposes OFWAT has used artificial intelligence in the last 12 months. \p Emma Hardy: Your question refers to the time before the current Government, but Artificial Intelligence (AI) is at the heart of the new Government’s plan to kickstart an era of economic growth, transform how Britain delivers public services, and boost living standards for working people across the country.

Ofwat has conducted a trial of licenced generative AI, making sure it has considered and mitigated security concerns. Ofwat draws on a range of resources, published on GOV.UK, to inform AI usage.

Ofwat also has access to the Government Digital Service, part of the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology, for expert advice.
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Steve Barclay:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to his Department's press release entitled Government to crack down on waste incinerators with stricter standards for new builds, published on 30 December 2024, whether he plans to review environmental permits granted to schemes where construction has not started including the MVV Wisbech incinerator. \p Mary Creagh: The statement and analysis issued by my department sets out that any new waste incineration facilities should demonstrate a clearly defined domestic residual waste treatment capacity need, to facilitate the diversion of residual waste away from landfill or enable the replacement of older, less-efficient facilities. These matters are considered through the planning, rather than permitting process. It is worth noting that the analysis published identified that of the seven local authorities that sent more than 40% of collected residual waste to landfill in 2022-23 (the most recent data available), four are located in the East of England and East Midlands.

My department also set out that new facilities will have to maximise efficiency and support the delivery of economic growth, net zero and the move to a circular economy. To maintain confidence in the UK’s regulatory system, as well as support investment in UK infrastructure to support economic growth, it is important that modifications are not retrospectively imposed to environmental permits that have been granted in line with the established regulatory framework. However, those developing energy recovery facilities (at all stages in the process) are encouraged to consider forecast changes to future capacity, demand, and the Government's circular economy opportunities in light of the evidence we have published.
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Tessa Munt:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if his Department will take steps to ensure that recovered tyres exported to India are not shipped in a form which enables them to be used in batch pyrolysis plants. \p Mary Creagh: The UK has strict controls on the export of waste to ensure that the waste is treated in an environmentally sound manner. These controls are established in UK legislation and enforced by the UK’s waste shipment competent authorities.

Defra and the Environment Agency are engaging with the Indian authorities including the Indian Ministry of Environment, Forest, and Climate Change who have confirmed that the import of waste tyres for pyrolysis is prohibited under Indian law.
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Michael Payne:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of council run youth centres in (a) tackling youth crime and (b) supporting young people. \p Dame Diana Johnson: This government recognises the vital role youth services play in reducing a young person’s likelihood of becoming involved in crime. This will be a vital element of our Young Futures Programme, which will establish a network of Young Futures Hubs and Young Futures Prevention Partnerships, to intervene earlier to ensure this cohort is identified and offered support in a more systematic way, as well as creating more opportunities for young people in their communities, through the provision of open access to mental health and careers support.

In addition, in 2025/26 DCMS will launch the Local Youth Transformation pilot, which will support local authorities to build youth service capacity. They will also allocate over £85m of capital funding in 2025/26 to create fit-for-purpose, welcoming spaces for young people, including launching the new Better Youth Spaces fund, which will allocate at least £26m for youth clubs to buy new equipment and undertake renovations. This will also include completing the Youth Investment Fund projects.

The Home Office does not measure the outcomes for council run youth centres.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-11)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-11 conversation_234

Andrew Rosindell:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an estimate of the number of assaults on (a) men and (b) boys in 2024; and what steps she is taking to reduce this. \p Dame Diana Johnson: The Office for National Statistics (ONS) publishes estimates, from the Crime Survey for England and Wales (CSEW), on the population aged 16 years and over who had been victims of violent crime broken down by the age and sex of victims in its annual nature of violent crime statistical release. The latest information can be found here:

https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/crimeandjustice/articles/thenatureofviolentcrimeinenglandandwales/yearendingmarch2024

The CSEW does not include children aged below 16 years in its main survey from which the headline estimates are derived.

This Government has put prevention front and centre of our plans to improve the lives of people across the United Kingdom and is taking ambitious action to reduce violent crime. This includes a commitment to halve national levels of knife crime over the next decade as part of the delivery of our mission to make our streets safer.

The Safer Streets Mission is one of five key missions the Government has committed to. It is the vehicle to drive delivery across Government to halve violence against women and girls, halve knife crime, tackle ASB, address the criminal exploitation of children and restore confidence in the policing and justice system.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-11)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-11 conversation_235

Andrew Rosindell:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to tackle shoplifting. \p Dame Diana Johnson: In the last year of the previous government, shop theft soared to a twenty-year high, with more and more offenders using violence and abuse against shopworkers. We will not stand for this.Everybody has a right to feel safe at their place of work and the Government is committed to tackling retail crime.

We will introduce a new offence of assaulting a retail worker to protect the hardworking and dedicated staff that work in stores. We will also end the effective immunity, introduced by the previous Government, granted to shop theft of goods of and under £200. This will remove any perception that offenders will escape punishment.

We will provide £100k additional funding next financial year for the National Police Chiefs' Council to give further training to police and retailers on prevention tactics.

We will continue to crack down on the organised gangs targeting retailers. We will provide £5 million over the next three years to continue to fund a specialist analysis team within Opal, the National Policing Intelligence Unit for serious organised acquisitive crime.

We will also invest £2 million over the next three years in the National Business Crime Centre (NBCC) which provides a resource for both police and businesses to learn, share and support each other to prevent and combat crime.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-11)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-11 conversation_236

Luke Taylor:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to stop the reselling of stolen tools. \p Dame Diana Johnson: We recognise the negative impact theft has on victims who rely on the tools of their trade to earn a living, including small businesses.

We are continuing to work with the police-led National Business Crime Centre and industry via the Combined Industries Theft Solutions forum to explore ways to tackle and prevent the theft of tools.

The Police Crime Prevention Initiatives (PCPI) is a not-for-profit, police-owned organisation that works on behalf of Police and Crime Commissioners and Chief Constables to deliver crime prevention and reduction initiatives across the UK. It also provides crime prevention advice: Secured by Design - Vans & Tool Theft.

A key part of making acquisitive crime less attractive to criminals is making stolen goods harder to sell on. That is why we are working closely with policing and academic leads to examine what more can be done to tackle the disposal markets for stolen goods and reduce the profit from acquisitive crime.

The Office for National Statistics publishes estimates from the Crime Survey for England and Wales on the proportion of incidents that involved tools being stolen in personal theft offences. These estimates are available in Table 3b of Nature of crime: personal and other theft. They provide estimates of theft of tools against individuals, including those who are self-employed but do not cover crimes against commercial premises. These estimates cover England and Wales, but no regional breakdown is available.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-11)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-11 conversation_237

Michelle Welsh:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to help tackle illegal off road biking in Sherwood Forest constituency. \p Dame Diana Johnson: Tackling anti-social behaviour is a top priority for this Government and a key part of our Safer Streets Mission.

On 27 November 2024, the Government announced proposals to give the police greater powers to clamp down on off-road bikes and other vehicles involved in anti-social behaviour, with officers no longer required to issue a warning before seizing vehicles.

This will allow the police to quickly remove anti-social vehicles which are bringing misery to city centres and pedestrian areas. These powers will be included in the forthcoming Crime and Policing Bill.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-11)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-11 conversation_238

Steve Darling:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will publish a regional breakdown of the costs of tool theft. \p Dame Diana Johnson: We recognise the negative impact theft has on victims who rely on the tools of their trade to earn a living.

We are continuing to work with the police-led National Business Crime Centre and industry via the Combined Industries Theft Solutions forum to explore ways to tackle and prevent the theft of tools.

We are also working alongside the police and businesses to tackle these crimes and ensure perpetrators receive just punishment including work to make tradespeople’s vans secure.

Following engagement with the Home Office and National Vehicle Crime Working Group, Thatcham Research agreed to add to their New Vehicle Security Assessment (NVSA), locks and alarms on the back of vans (previously NVSA only covers the cab area of vans) and a motion sensor on the load area of the van.

The Office for National Statistics publishes estimates from the Crime Survey for England and Wales on the proportion of incidents involving tools being stolen in personal theft offences. These estimates are available in Table 3b of Nature of crime: personal and other theft. They also provide estimates of theft of tools against individuals, including those who are self-employed, but do not cover crimes against commercial premises. No regional breakdown is available.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-11)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-11 conversation_239

Bradley Thomas:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many asylum seekers have been granted the right to remain in Bromsgrove constituency since July 2024. \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.

The Home Office publishes data on asylum in the ‘Immigration System Statistics Quarterly Release’. Data on the initial decision of asylum claims (including grants), is published in table Asy_D02 of the ‘Asylum applications, initial decisions and resettlement detailed datasets’. This data is not broken down by constituency. The Home Office does not track the addresses of those granted refugee status, and refugees are free to move around the UK or leave.

Data on asylum seekers on support by local authority is published in table Asy_D11 of the ‘Asylum seekers in receipt of support by local authority detailed datasets’. This data does not include information about the decisions made on the asylum claims of these individuals.

The latest data relates to the year ending September 2024. Data for October to December 2024 will be published on 27 February 2025.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-11)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-11 conversation_240

Bradley Thomas:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of increasing firearms license fees on firearms license holders. \p Dame Diana Johnson: On 15 January, the Government laid a statutory instrument before Parliament that will increase fees charged by police forces to provide full-cost recovery for firearms licensing applications, giving effect to a commitment in the Government’s manifesto. The new fees will come into force on 5 February 2025.

The fees were last increased in 2015 and they no longer meet the cost of the service provided. It is essential for both public safety and police efficiency that full cost recovery fees are introduced so that service improvements can be made. The need to increase firearms licensing fees to help address shortcomings in firearms licensing was highlighted by the Senior Coroner in his Preventing Future Deaths reports into the fatal shootings in Plymouth in August 2021.

The NPCC Lead on Firearms Licensing is developing a new performance framework for firearms licensing teams. In addition, His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services will later this year be undertaking a thematic inspection of police forces’ arrangements in respect of firearms licensing.

A full impact assessment, which covers the impact of increased fees on the shooting community, was published alongside the statutory instrument.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-11)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-11 conversation_241

David Simmonds:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 22 January 2025 to Question 24505 on Asylum: housing, what is the expected cost to the public purse of accommodation for asylum seekers in 2025. \p Dame Angela Eagle: The Home Office publishes information on asylum expenditure in the Home Office Annual Report and Accounts at Home Office annual reports and accounts - GOV.UK.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-11)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-11 conversation_242

David Simmonds:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 22 January 2025 to Question 24505, how many people were housed in asylum accommodation in the last 12 months. \p Dame Angela Eagle: Data on the number of supported asylum seekers in accommodation, including hotels, and by local authority can be found within the Asy_D11 tab for our most recent statistics release: Immigration system statistics data tables - GOV.UK.