theodi/ndl-core-corpus huggingface dataset:
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Laurence Turner:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent steps he has taken to progress Sustainable Development Goal 4. \p Stephen Doughty: With some 250 million children, and growing, out of school globally, it is very unlikely that Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG4) will be met by 2030. The UK is working with the humanitarian system, leveraging multilateral institutions' funding, and strategically deploying scarce resources to improve access to quality education through stronger systems.

For example, in November 2024, the UK provided £14 million of earmarked support for Sudanese refugees through Education Cannot Wait. This funding supports 200,000 vulnerable displaced children with education interventions in Sudan and reaches Sudanese refugee populations in Central African Republic, Chad, Ethiopia, Libya, South Sudan and Uganda.

With a global annual financing gap of $97 billion to deliver SDG4, the UK is working to unlock additional education finance through mechanisms such as the innovative International Finance Facility for Education, which will unlock up to $1 billion in additional and affordable education finance for lower middle-income country governments, providing a seven-fold return on our investment.
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Adam Thompson:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to support the delivery of Sustainable Development Goal 6 on clean water and sanitation by 2030. \p Stephen Doughty: The UK is committed to supporting delivery of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) by 2030. Steps we are taking to help deliver SDG 6 include the Enhanced Water Leadership in a Changing Climate programme. This is raising the profile of the water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) sector with a focus on national leadership, sector governance and finance. The programme also supports the generation of critical data governments need to establish effective strategies and plans. A sister programme, WASH Systems for Health, is strengthening WASH services in eight countries in Africa and South Asia. Finally, our Just Transitions programme is working to improve water resource management and climate resilience, through better planning, water governance, and increased investment in water related infrastructure.
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Adam Thompson:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to integrate water, sanitation and hygiene into the UK’s international (a) climate adaptation and (b) resilience programmes. \p Stephen Doughty: Since 2020 we have supported UNICEF to help governments in climate-vulnerable countries strengthen the resilience of water, sanitation and hygiene services. This work extends from climate risk assessments, capacity building and systems strengthening, to establishing risk-informed policies and plans. The latter includes Nationally Declared Commitments and National Adaptation Plans. This work has also helped governments prepare multiple proposals for climate finance worth over £250 million over the last four years, potentially benefitting up to 9 million people with climate resilient water, sanitation and hygiene services. The UK also supports the World Bank to develop climate resilient water and sanitation services, as well as the Resilient Water Accelerator. This aims to establish a pipeline of climate resilient water and sanitation programmes that are attractive to private investors.
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Adam Thompson:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he plans to take steps to encourage (a) the private sector and (b) other donors to increase funding for water, sanitation and hygiene programmes. \p Stephen Doughty: The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) recognises the potential of private investment to accelerate progress on water supply, sanitation and hygiene. We work with governments in eight countries to improve the performance of the water and sanitation sector, strengthening systems and capacity and reduce commercial risks that discourage private investment. Our support to the World Bank also helps do this, for example through the Water Security and Climate Adaptation Global Challenge Programme. This work is complemented by our support to the Heads of State Initiative for water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH), which is mobilising domestic finance and encouraging collaboration between governments, donors and other development partners. These initiatives mark the FCDO's shift from projects that delivered WASH infrastructure to a more strategic focus on governance and finance, improving the sustainability and resilience of WASH services that can attract funding from users, government budget allocations and private investors.
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Jim Shannon:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department is taking steps with NATO to help tackle global wildfires. \p Stephen Doughty: A recent World Resources Institute report (https://gfr.wri.org/latest-analysis-deforestation-trends) highlighted record-breaking levels of forest loss, linked to climate change driven wildfires. Rising temperatures and environmental degradation are increasing the likelihood, severity and frequency of wildfires. NATO's 2022 Strategic Concept also defines climate change as a "crisis and a threat multiplier". The UK is working with international partners to protect, restore, and sustainably manage critical ecosystems, including tropical forests, and encouraging increased international collaboration on wildfires including through the Food and Agriculture Organisation's Global Fire Management Hub. Within NATO, all Allies are able to request support or assistance in response to crises or natural disasters. The Euro-Atlantic Disaster Response Coordination Centre (EADRCC) is NATO's principal civil emergency response mechanism. In a crisis, it can coordinate assistance to the affected NATO Ally or partner country provided by other members and partners. The EADRCC has supported international responses to floods, earthquakes, wildfires, hurricanes, mining incidents, public health emergencies and refugee crises.
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Sir John Hayes:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how much and what proportion of the overseas aid budget is delivered in the form of direct (a) cash and (b) bank payments to individuals. \p Stephen Doughty: The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) has supported cash transfers within its humanitarian and social protection systems work for a number of years because they are a well-evidenced mechanism for reducing extreme hunger and poverty at scale, building resilience to prevent crises, and meeting the lifesaving humanitarian needs of highly vulnerable people, e.g. during droughts and conflict.

In 2023, £881 million of bilateral UK Official Development Assistance (ODA) was spent on humanitarian aid, a proportion of which was cash payments. In the same year, £129 million (1.3 per cent of bilateral UK ODA) was spent on social protection, including but not only cash transfers.

Cash transfers are increasingly being delivered through electronic payment systems, reducing the administrative cost and making them more secure. The delivery modality varies by context - the FCDO does not collect aggregated data on these modalities for direct cash payments.
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Esther McVey:To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, how many staff network events took place in her Department in May 2025; and what the names of those events were. \p Jo Stevens: No staff network events took place in my Department in May 2025.
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Ann Davies:To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, how much funding the Welsh government requested from her Department for coal tip safety and remediation work as part of the Spending Review 2025. \p Jo Stevens: At the Spending Review, the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced that HM Treasury would provide the Welsh Government with the funding it requested to continue its vital coal tip safety work. Ensuring coal tips across Wales remain safe is of the upmost importance and this is why the UK Government is committing £118 million over the three years of the Spending Review period (over financial years 2026/27-2028/29). This is in addition to the £25m provided at Autumn Budget last year, bringing the total UK Government investment in coal tip safety to over £140m. This is another example of how two governments working in partnership are delivering for the people of Wales.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Right hon. Member for Kenilworth and Southam, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, what discussions the Electoral Commission has had with the (a) Scottish and (b) Welsh government on spending limits for the (i) Scottish Parliament and (ii) Welsh Senedd elections in 2026; and what the Commission’s planned timetable is for the ratification of the spending limits. \p Sir Jeremy Wright: Each government, through the appropriate parliament, sets the spending limits for each relevant election. The Commission provides advice on the potential impact of any changes to the spending limits, and if necessary, consent. Any changes should be supported by rigorous analysis of relevant data and evidence to understand the likely impacts on parties and candidates, to maintain a level playing field, and on transparency and voter confidence. The Commission will monitor how recent changes made by governments function and their impact at the elections in 2026.

It is the role of individual parliaments to ratify their respective spending limits. The Commission offers proactive advice to the regulated community to ensure parties, campaigners and candidates understand the spending rules they must follow. It will update its guidance to reflect any changes.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Right hon. Member for Kenilworth and Southam, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, whether the Electoral Commission has given guidance to (a) political parties and (b) Reform UK Ltd on whether the provision of research is a donation in kind. \p Sir Jeremy Wright: The Electoral Commission provides guidance for all political parties. The guidance states that any service – including research – provided to a party for free or on non-commercial terms is a donation. If the market value is above £500, the donor must be permissible, and if the value is above the reporting threshold (£11,180 for donations to central parties, or £2,230 for donations to accounting units or subsequent donations from the same source), it must also be reported to the Commission.

If the party pays for the service, it would not be a donation.
wrans/answers2025-04-25 conversation_1
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-04-25)

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Dr Caroline Johnson:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, which official documents can be used to prove a person's sex to participate in single sex sports. \p Stephanie Peacock: We have always been clear that, when it comes to women's sport, biology matters. We will continue to support sports to develop policies that protect fairness and safety, particularly when it is not possible to balance those factors with inclusion. In terms of gender eligibility, National Governing Bodies set their own policies for who can participate in their sports in domestic competitions.

Our Sports Councils produce guidance to provide domestic sports bodies with the framework and support to determine the right position for their sport. Our Sports Councils are consulting with legal experts to clarify whether the Supreme Court ruling affects the guidance. The outcome of this will feed into their timescale for a planned wider review of the guidance.

In addition the Equalities and Human Rights Commission has confirmed their work to develop a revised Code of Practice which supports service providers, public bodies and associations to understand their duties under the Equality Act and put them into practice. Their revised code will incorporate the implications of the Supreme Court judgment. They hope to lay the revised code before Parliament before the summer recess.
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Jim Shannon:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Education on increasing youth engagement in sports outside school. \p Stephanie Peacock: The Secretary of State and I regularly meet with Ministerial counterparts from the Department for Education on a range of issues, including young people’s engagement in sport both inside and outside the school day.

As an example, in March, I attended a meeting with a range of National Governing Bodies on their role in enhancing access to sport and physical activity inside and outside the school day, hosted by the Minister for School Standards.
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Sarah Olney:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she has had recent discussions with relevant stakeholders on the safety of rehydration clauses in combat sports. \p Stephanie Peacock: I have not had any recent discussions with stakeholders about the safety of rehydration clauses in combat sports. It is the responsibility of individual sports and event organisers to determine the appropriate measures to ensure the safety of participants.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-04-25)

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Andrew Rosindell:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what information her Department holds on the number of TV license payers in each of the last five years. \p Stephanie Peacock: The BBC is responsible for collection of the TV licence via TV Licensing. TV Licensing publishes the number of licences in force in its Annual Review, which can be found here: https://www.tvlicensing.co.uk/about/our-performance-AB6
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Mr James Frith:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what plans she has to consult on reforms to press regulation. \p Stephanie Peacock: The Government currently has no plans to consult on reforms to press regulation.
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Mr James Frith:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to help ensure that people affected by press wrongdoing have access to redress. \p Stephanie Peacock: The Government does not intervene in or oversee the work of the UK’s independent press regulators. We are clear, however, that with this independence comes responsibility, and newspapers and regulators have a responsibility to ensure access to clear, timely and effective routes to redress.

If a member of the public objects to practices of the press they can complain directly to the publication, or the relevant independent regulator, including Impress or the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO). These regulators enforce codes of conduct which provide guidelines on a range of areas, including discrimination, accuracy, privacy, and harassment. If they find that a newspaper has broken the code of conduct, they can order corrections. Both regulators also offer arbitration schemes for legal claims relating to defamation, privacy and harassment.
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Lisa Smart:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether her Department has made a recent assessment of the adequacy of funding allocated to local leisure facilities. \p Stephanie Peacock: The Government recognises the importance of ensuring public access to leisure facilities which are vital spaces for people of all ages to stay fit and healthy, and which play an important role within communities.

The ongoing responsibility of providing access to public leisure facilities lies at local authority level. We are committed to supporting Local Government, recognising the significant financial challenges faced by the sector, and that the public leisure sector plays an important role in the delivery of sport, physical activity and leisure.

The Government encourages local authorities to make investments which offer the right opportunities and facilities for the communities they serve, investing in sport and physical activity with a place-based approach, to meet the needs of individual communities.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-04-25)

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Andrew Rosindell:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps she is taking with local authorities to help improve swimming facilities in (a) Romford constituency and (b) England. \p Stephanie Peacock: The Government recognises that sports facilities, in communities up and down the country, help to support more people to get active wherever they live.

The ongoing responsibility of providing access to public leisure swimming facilities lies at local authority level. We are committed to supporting Local Government, recognising the significant financial challenges faced by the sector and by ensuring that funding goes to the places that need it most through the Local Government Finance Settlement.

The Government encourages local authorities to make investments which offer the right opportunities and facilities (including swimming pools) for the communities they serve, investing in sport and physical activity with a place-based approach, to meet the needs of individual communities. This is complemented by the support and guidance available through the Government’s Arm’s Length Body, Sport England.
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Martin Wrigley:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 3 April 2025 to Question 41541 on Youth Services: Finance, if she will issue new guidance to local authorities on the provision of youth services in the context of proposed changes to funding for those services. \p Stephanie Peacock: In 2023, DCMS published updated statutory guidance to support local authorities’ understanding of the existing statutory duty on the provision of youth services and how to deliver it. That duty, and therefore local authorities’ responsibilities, have not changed. As such, we have no plans to issue new guidance to local authorities at this time.

However, since 2023 we have been funding peer reviews to help Local Authorities learn from each other on the best approaches to youth service provision. The Local Youth Transformation pilot will also test a new way of working and supporting local authorities, providing a package of support to assess, improve and develop impactful local youth offers. We will launch the pilot in 2025/26 and further details will be shared in due course.
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Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 8 April 2025 to Question 43255 on Cycling: Training, what her plans are for the future of British Cycling’s BMX freestyle training facility located at RAF Shawbury. \p Stephanie Peacock: The Government has committed to a multi-year investment of £344 million over the next cycle to support Olympic and Paralympic success, including over £38 million for cycling.

It is for National Governing Bodies such as British Cycling, to set out what it takes to win gold and how they target the investment they receive from the Government and National Lottery. British Cycling are working closely with RAF Shawbury to determine the parameters for this partnership going forward.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-04-25)

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Afzal Khan:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to help improve access to sports facilities for disabled people in Greater Manchester. \p Stephanie Peacock: The Government is dedicated to making sport in this country accessible and inclusive for everyone. The Government has announced a further £100 million in funding to deliver new and improved multi-sport grassroots facilities and pitches across the whole of the UK. The Multi-Sport Grassroots Facilities Programme’s aims include regular, weekly use by under-represented groups, including disabled people, so that everyone has the opportunity to participate. In 2024/25 the programme invested £2,706,842 in Greater Manchester.

Sport England, the Government’s Arm’s Length Body for grassroots sport, is committed to increasing participation in sport and physical activity for disabled people and improving their access to sport facilities. Sport England also has partnerships with organisations such as Disability Rights UK, Activity Alliance, Aspire, and Sense, to help more disabled people get active.
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Tom Morrison:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of (a) increasing funding for and (b) taking steps to help increase the profile of futsal. \p Stephanie Peacock: The Football Association is the recognised National Governing Body for futsal. As they are independent of Government, it is ultimately their responsibility to address issues related to the funding and profile of the game.

To date, this Government has not had any discussions with the FA relating to futsal or its funding.
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Steve Witherden:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether her Department has made a recent assessment of the potential merits of introducing a press regulator that is independent of (a) the media industry and (b) politicians. \p Stephanie Peacock: This Government is committed to an independent and free media, one that is completely separate from the Government and politicians. An independent self-regulatory regime is important to ensure the press adheres to clear and high standards. We are also clear, however, that with this freedom comes responsibility, and newspapers must operate within the bounds of the law. This includes ensuring access to clear, timely and effective routes to redress. The Government currently has no plans to change the current system.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-04-25)

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Steve Witherden:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many newspapers have been (a) investigated and (b) fined by the Independent Press Standards Organisation since 2014. \p Stephanie Peacock: The Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO), which is independent of Government, publishes annual reports on their website that include details on the number of complaints and enquiries received and their outcomes: https://www.ipso.co.uk/what-we-do/transparency-accountability/.
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Dr Scott Arthur:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she plans to introduce further regulation for prize draws. \p Stephanie Peacock: Large scale commercial prize draws are a significant and growing market. Whilst not regulated as a gambling product under the Gambling Act, we want people who participate to be confident that proportionate protections are in place. The department is grateful for the voluntary action taken so far by the sector to act transparently and apply player protection measures.

We want to ensure high standards across the sector. The Minister for Gambling recently met with the leading operator Omaze to discuss this work further and will meet others in the sector soon. We will update Parliament further in due course.
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Steve Witherden:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to prevent (a) phone hacking and (b) press intrusion. \p Stephanie Peacock: The press have a responsibility to behave ethically and they must also operate within the bounds of the law. Any illegal conduct such as phone hacking would be a matter for the police.

The Government does not intervene in or oversee the work of the UK’s independent press regulators. If a member of the public objects to practices of the press they can complain directly to the publication, or the relevant independent regulator, including Impress or the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO).

These regulators enforce codes of conduct which provide guidelines on a range of areas, including discrimination, accuracy, privacy, and harassment. If they find that a newspaper has broken the code of conduct, they can order corrections. Both regulators also offer arbitration schemes for legal claims relating to defamation, privacy and harassment.
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Euan Stainbank:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether her Department plans to renew funding for the Park Tennis Project. \p Stephanie Peacock: The Government is committed to ensuring that everyone, regardless of background, should have access to and benefit from quality sport and physical activity opportunities.

The Park Tennis Court Programme was a joint investment between the UK Government and Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) that started in 2022 and concluded in 2024.

All future funding of sports facilities will be considered as part of the Spending Review.
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Mr Louie French:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the Twentieth Report of the Committee of Public Accounts’ of Session 2024-25 on DCMS management of COVID-19 loans, HC 364, published on 2 April 2025, what steps her Department took to delegate Accounting Officer responsibility for the loans to top–tier rugby union clubs; and, with reference to paragraph 3.9.1 of HM Treasury's document entitled Managing public money, published on 4 May 2023, what assessment she has made of those steps' compatibility with that guidance. \p Stephanie Peacock: On appointment to the role in 2023, the Permanent Secretary declared her interests and these were recorded in the DCMS Annual Accounts. A conflict management plan was completed which deemed it appropriate that Accounting Officer responsibility for decisions regarding Rugby Union would be delegated. This included Loan Book decisions relating to Rugby Union.

As a result, DCMS’s Chief Finance Officer has delegated Accounting Officer responsibility for matters relating to Rugby Union. This is in line with HM Treasury’s Managing Public Money guidance which states that after declaring the conflict other individuals can have delegated responsibility to make decisions.
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Euan Stainbank:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps she is taking to help improve the availability of indoors tennis courts to the public. \p Stephanie Peacock: The Government is committed to ensuring that everyone, regardless of background, should have access to and benefit from quality sport and physical activity opportunities.

The Government provides the majority of funding for grassroots sport through our Arm’s Length Body, Sport England, which invests over £250 million in Exchequer and Lottery funding each year. Sport England’s work focuses on increasing participation in sport, including tennis, at grassroots level to give more and better opportunities to all. Sport England provides long term investment to the Lawn Tennis Association, the National Governing Body for tennis in Britain, which receives up to £10.2 million for five years to invest in community tennis initiatives that will benefit everyone.
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James Cartlidge:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps she is taking to ensure that World War Two veterans are able to attend (a) VE day and (b) VJ day commemorative events (i) in the UK (ii) overseas. \p Stephanie Peacock: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) is working closely with veteran organisations, including the Royal British Legion (RBL), to provide travel, welfare and infrastructure support to ensure veterans can attend official events in the UK. The Ministry of Defence (MOD) is also working with veterans’ charities to support and where necessary fund veterans’ attendance at relevant VE Day and D-Day commemorations overseas.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-04-25)

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James Cartlidge:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she has held discussions with the Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust on funding used to sponsor World War Two veterans attending (a) VE day and (b) VJ day commemorative events (i) in the UK (ii) overseas. \p Stephanie Peacock: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) is working closely with veteran organisations, including the Royal British Legion (RBL), to provide travel, welfare and infrastructure support to ensure veterans can attend official events in the UK. The Ministry of Defence (MOD) is also working with veterans’ charities to support and where necessary fund veterans’ attendance at relevant VE Day and D-Day commemorations overseas.

DCMS is working closely with key departments and external partners who will make a significant contribution to the VE and VJ Day 80 commemorations, including the MOD for ceremonial and military assets. Final costs will be confirmed after the event and in due course.

The Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust, an Arm’s Length Body of the MOD, reinforces the nation's Covenant promise to support Armed Forces personnel, their families and veterans. The Trust manages the £10 million annual Armed Forces Covenant Fund on behalf of the MOD and collaborates with the UK Government to deliver strategic and targeted programmes that benefit Armed Forces communities.
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Claire Hanna:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, when she plans to answer Question 41236 on BBC Radio: Ireland. \p Stephanie Peacock: An answer was provided to the Hon Member on 22nd April. I apologise for the delay.
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Mr Richard Holden:To ask the hon. Member for Blaenau Gwent and Rhymney, representing the House of Commons Commission, whether any changes have been made to the display of (a) portraits and (b) busts of Winston Churchill on the Parliamentary estate since 4 July 2024. \p Nick Smith: Items from the Parliamentary Art Collection are on display in corridors, meeting and Committee rooms as well as private offices. Since 4 July 2024, no changes have been made to the display of busts of Winston Churchill on the Parliamentary estate. In the same timeframe, seven print or photographic portraits of Churchill have been taken off display. Six were taken off display from Members’ offices following changes to office locations and occupancy after the election, and one required conservation work.

The Parliamentary Art Collection contains 33 artworks either by or depicting Winston Churchill. 13 are currently on display in high-profile locations including Members’ Lobby, Committee Corridor and Ministerial offices. None of the works on display in those high-profile locations have been moved since 4 July 2024, other than briefly to facilitate project works.
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Bell Ribeiro-Addy:To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people released on licence were electronically tagged as part of a home detention curfew programme in the most recent period for which data is available. \p Sir Nicholas Dakin: The number of prisoners released on Home Detention Curfew (HDC) where a tag had not been fitted for the entirety of their monitoring period can be found in the attached at Annex A.

All prisoners released on HDC are subject to a statutory electronically monitored curfew. The requested information is routinely published as part of the department’s Offender Management Statistics Quarterly publication. The most recent published data (covering the period October to December 2024) can be found in Table 3_Q_10 here:

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6807c23692d50839757a61b7/prison-releases-Oct-to-Dec-2024.ods

.’

Annex (xlsx, 17.3KB)
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Bell Ribeiro-Addy:To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent assessment she has made of the average time taken for Serco to tag (a) priority one critical offenders and (b) people classified as likely to offend. \p Sir Nicholas Dakin: Serco’s performance has been unacceptable, and we will not hesitate to impose further penalties if our high-performance targets are not met and performance does not improve. There are regular meetings between the Minister for Prisons and Probation and the CEO of Serco to impress upon him the need for improvement.

The contract contains strict time bound service levels within which all equipment installations for all electronic monitoring orders must take place. In addition, the small number of national security cases and those requiring more intensive monitoring plus Domestic Abuse Perpetrators on Licence and those with Domestic Abuse Protection Orders (DAPO) are prioritised. Electronic monitoring orders are identified by order type and terms such as priority one critical offenders and people classified as likely to offend are not used.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-04-25)

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Grahame Morris:To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many (a) prison officers, (b) probation officers, and (c) workers in her Department submitted their resignation in each of the past five years. \p Sir Nicholas Dakin: The number of prison and probation officers who have resigned is published each quarter in the “HM Prison and Probation Service workforce statistics” publication.

The latest data, which goes back to the year ending March 2019, is available in Table 14b of this spreadsheet: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/67b5c95fb56d8b0856c2fec9/hmpps-workforce-statistics-tables-dec-2024_final.ods.

The number of Ministry of Justice staff who have resigned each year is published as part of the Cabinet Office’s “Civil Service statistics” publication. The latest resignations data, for the year ending March 2024, is available in Table 42 of this spreadsheet: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/66e1631138493bbcd79f4706/Statistical_tables_-_Civil_Service_Statistics_2024.ods.

Figures for previous years are available in earlier publications available here: www.gov.uk/government/collections/civil-service-statistics.
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Liz Saville Roberts:To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many (a) standard delivery, (b) fast delivery, and (c) oral pre-sentence reports were produced in (i) Wales and (ii) England in 2024. \p Sir Nicholas Dakin: The Probation Service is responsible for producing pre-sentence reports (PSRs) where they have been requested by the Court. The PSR assesses the offender’s behaviour, the risk they pose, and recommend sentencing options tailored to the individual. The report can suggest community sentences and specific requirements like treatment programmes. Ultimately, the PSR provides recommendations to the Court, but the final decision rests with the judge.

The following table shows the number of PSRs prepared by the Probation Service and presented to the criminal courts in England and Wales between January 2024 and December 2024.

Magistrates' and Crown Courts

England

Wales

Total

Total pre-sentence court reports (PSR)

91,857

7,149

99,006

Standard PSR

4,838

748

5,586

Fast Delivery PSR written

71,157

4,376

75,533

Fast Delivery PSR oral

15,862

2,025

17,887

Note, PSR figures by region are published every April as part of the Offender Management Statistics quarterly bulletin. Please also note that the data pipeline used to compile the figures has been updated. This change was introduced for the 2024 figures. More details can be found in the 'Probation data process transition' section of Chapter 6 of the publication, available here: Offender management statistics quarterly: October to December 2024 - GOV.UK.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-04-25)

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Jim Shannon:To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment she has made of trends in the level of smuggling prosecutions. \p Sarah Sackman: The Ministry of Justice publishes data on prosecutions by individual year for a wide range of offences at criminal courts in England and Wales in the Outcomes by Offences data tool, that can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page here: Criminal Justice Statistics.

Smuggling offences together with their HO offence code can be identified using the Offence Group Classification which is available in the above link. The number of prosecutions together with annual trends for offences related to smuggling can then be accessed by navigating to the ‘Prosecutions and Convictions tab, using the “HO Offence code” filter and selecting the relevant HO offence code.
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Ann Davies:To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a separate criminal offence of desecration of a corpse. \p Alex Davies-Jones: The Government understands the concerns of bereaved families who are pressing for a review of the legislative framework around the desecration of corpses. While there is no specific offence of desecrating a corpse in England and Wales, other related offences can apply, such as preventing the lawful burial of a body. When the concealment or desecration of a body is linked to a homicide (to avoid detection, for example), the current sentencing framework treats this as an aggravating factor, ensuring robust sentences. The Government recognises that desecration could include a range of behaviours and is keeping the law under review.

The Government is also taking action to expand the offence of sexual penetration of a corpse under section 70 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003. The Crime and Policing Bill will replace this offence with a broader offence of sexual activity with a corpse. This will ensure that all intentional sexual touching of a corpse is criminal, not just penetration as is currently the case. Non-penetrative sexual touching will attract a maximum penalty of five years’ imprisonment. The Bill will increase the maximum penalty for sexual penetration from 2 years’ imprisonment to 7 years.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-04-25)

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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 7 April 2025 to Question 40908 on New Towns: Planning Permission, which rare (a) plant, (b) bird and (c) invertebrate species other than the Distinguished Jumping Spider lead to the creation of the Site of Special Scientific Interest in the Ebbsfleet area. \p Mary Creagh: Natural England notified the Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) at the Swanscombe Peninsula in 2021 due to its special interest for numerous rare plant, bird and invertebrate species. The SSSI’s citation sets out the full list of species concerned and can be found at : Swanscombe Peninsula 2021 SSSI Citation.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-04-25)

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Helen Whately:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will instruct the Environment Agency to provide information on their planned inspections of battery storage units at Cleve Hill Solar Park before they are switched on. \p Emma Hardy: The Environment Agency (EA) does not directly regulate the batteries associated with solar power schemes; this is the remit of the Local Authority. The EA, under the planning processes, advises on various aspects associated with the building and operation of battery storage facilities to ensure that risks to the environment are appropriately managed. This includes site wide flood risk assessments and pollution prevention plans.

The EA are satisfied that drainage of the site, including the management of fire water, will prevent harm to the environment and that any recommendations have informed the Battery Safety Management Plan, approved by the Planning Inspector.

If a permit is required from the EA to undertake any part of the operation, the operator is expected to submit a permit application. Details of the proposal will be inspected and a permit granted, where it can be shown by the applicant that the proposal will not cause a risk to the environment. The EA inspects permitted sites to ensure compliance with permits.

If a pollution incident occurs, the EA will work with all other emergency services to ensure the environment is fully considered as part of the response.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-04-25)

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Tim Farron:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 26 March 2025 to Question 39816 on Nitrogen Dioxide: Pollution Control, which road links within the South East non-agglomeration zone are expected to exceed the nitrogen dioxide limit value in each of the last five calendar years of the non-compliance period. \p Emma Hardy: The most recent national compliance assessment for 2023 reported one road link in the South East non-agglomeration zone as being in exceedance of the annual mean limit value for nitrogen dioxide. This road link is a stretch of the A34 in the Vale of White Horse. We don’t hold up-to-date detailed modelled projections to predict the impact of all current policies on future NO2 concentrations, however current indicative estimates suggest that this road link will become compliant with the limit value in 2028.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-04-25)

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Andrew Rosindell:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking with relevant authorities to improve tree coverage in (a) England and (b) Romford constituency. \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 part of this network with tree planting sites in Romford.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-04-25)

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Tim Farron:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 26 March 2025 to Question 39816 on Nitrogen Dioxide: Pollution Control, which localised hotspot is expected to delay compliance with the nitrogen dioxide limit value in Newcastle upon Tyne. \p Emma Hardy: The localised hotspot in Newcastle-upon-Tyne is located on Stephenson Road A1058. The high nitrogen dioxide (NO2) concentrations observed here are due to several local factors including high traffic volumes, queuing traffic, an incline in the road that requires vehicle acceleration and overhanging trees that partially trap pollution. There is considerable uncertainty in the estimate of when this location will become compliant with the annual mean NO2 limit value. The rest of Newcastle-upon-Tyne is expected to become compliant by 2029.