theodi/ndl-core-corpus huggingface dataset:
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-06)

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Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 19 February 2025 to Question 30711 on Resettlement: Afghanistan, how many Afghans have arrived in the UK (a) legally and (b) illegally since 15 August 2021. \p Dame Angela Eagle: The Home Office published the information you have requested by quarter in the Immigration system statistics quarterly release.

Data on the outcomes of entry clearance visas by nationality are published in table ‘Vis_D02’ of the detailed entry clearance dataset. A visa grant does not necessarily mean that the person arrived in the UK. For data on arrivals specifically via the Afghan Resettlement Programme, see table ‘Asy_D02’ of the detailed asylum and resettlement datasets.

Data on detected irregular arrivals by nationality is published in table Irr_D01 of the ‘Irregular migration to the UK detailed datasets’.

The latest data goes up to the end of December 2024. Data up to the end of March 2025 is due to be published on 22 May 2025. Information on how to use the datasets can be found in the ‘Notes’ pages of the workbooks.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-06)

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Steve Barclay:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 14 February 2025 to Question 30619 on Deportation, how many appeals against deportation orders have sought to rely on rights under the ECHR in the last month for which figures are available. \p Dame Angela Eagle: The requested information is not held in a reportable format. To provide this information would require a manual review of case records, which could only be done for the purpose of answering this question at disproportionate cost.
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James McMurdock:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 24 February 2025 to Question 29388, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of her Department holding information centrally on local council spending on housing for asylum seekers. \p Dame Angela Eagle: The cost of housing for asylum seekers is borne by the Home Office and not local government.
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James McMurdock:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people were overstaying legitimately-granted visas in the UK as of 25 February 2025. \p Dame Angela Eagle: As set out in legislation, an individual is liable to removal from the UK if "the person requires leave to enter or remain in the United Kingdom but does not have it". The Home Office does not routinely categorise immigration offenders by the manner in which they became liable to removal, and to do so could only be achieved at disproportionate cost.

We have already begun delivering a major surge in immigration enforcement and returns activity to remove people with no right to be in the UK and ensure the rules are respected and enforced, with almost 19,000 returns recorded between 5 July 2024 and 31 January 2025.

Further data on returns activity is published quarterly and can be found on gov.uk at Immigration system statistics quarterly release - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) (opens in a new tab).
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Lee Anderson:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many arrests of illegal workers have resulted in deportation to their country of origin in the last six months. \p Dame Angela Eagle: The Home Office publishes data on returns in the ‘Immigration System Statistics Quarterly Release’, which can be found here: Immigration system statistics quarterly release - GOV.UK (opens in a new tab). This does not include a separate category for individuals arrested for illegal working, and that could only be collated and verified for the purposes of this answering question at disproportionate cost.
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Lisa Smart:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions on ensuring that tax guidance relating to the McCloud remedy is issued in a timely manner. \p Darren Jones: HM Treasury and responsible departments are supporting public service pension schemes to ensure they are able to provide a timely remedy to affected members. HMRC has issued a range of tax guidance to assist pension schemes in administering the McCloud remedy and will continue to keep this updated.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-06)

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Chris Law:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what (a) total amount and (b) proportion of the reduction in ODA spending has been directly re-allocated to NATO spending. \p Darren Jones: The UK will step up to safeguard continental security on an enduring basis by increasing defence investment to 2.5% of GDP by 2027. Our increase in defence spending will be funded by reducing Official Development Assistance (ODA) from 0.5% to 0.3% of GNI. Precise allocations will be determined in the round during the Spending Review.
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Martin Wrigley:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether her Department holds information on the proportion of Russian oil (a) imports and (b) exports insured by UK financial instruments. \p Emma Reynolds: The Oil Price Cap was designed to meet two core objectives: to bear down on Russian revenues that could otherwise be used to fund its illegal war, whilst also maintaining global energy security and flows of affordable oil to countries that need it.

The measure has been effective partly thanks to the prevalence of highly sought after G7+ service providers, which means it is very difficult to make major oil trades or gain significant market share without using G7+ services at all.

Where G7+ services are involved in the shipping of Russian oil and oil products to third countries, these trades must be conducted at or below the relevant price cap – constraining Putin’s ability to use inflated oil revenues to sustain his war machine. This is why the UK, alongside G7+ partners, has provided extensive guidance to industry to advise service providers, including insurers, on how they can move Russian oil in compliance with the price cap.

While the cap allows UK service providers to continue to be involved in the shipping of Russian oil and oil products to third countries, it is important to note that since 5 December 2022 the UK has banned the import, acquisition, supply and delivery of Russian oil and oil products into the UK.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-06)

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Mike Martin:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of expanding the Terms of Reference for the Independent Review of the Loan Charge to include (a) the effectiveness of the terms of the Loan Charge, (b) lessons learned by her Department in relation to the introduction of the Loan Charge and (c) the role of scheme promoters in promoting tax avoidance schemes. \p James Murray: The Government has commissioned an independent review of the Loan Charge to help bring the matter to a close for those affected whilst ensuring fairness for all taxpayers.

The Government does not think it is right for people affected by the Loan Charge to have to wait years for any progress on bringing this matter to a close for them and has therefore ensured that the review has a focused remit, allowing it to report by this summer. The Government will respond by Autumn Budget 2025.

Alongside the review, the Government is committed to tackling promoters of tax avoidance and will consult on measures to tackle promoters of marketed tax avoidance, including new powers focused on those who own or control promoter organisations and options to tackle legal professionals behind avoidance schemes.
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Esther McVey:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many procurement contracts awarded by her Department since 5 July 2024 have been terminated due to non-performance. \p James Murray: No contracts awarded by HM Treasury since 5 July 2024 have been terminated for that reason.
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James MacCleary:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make an estimate of the value of goods traded from (a) the UK to Russia via Georgia and (b) Russia to the UK via Georgia. \p James Murray: HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) is responsible for the collection and publication of data on imports and exports of goods to and from the UK. HMRC releases this information monthly, as an Accredited Official Statistic called the Overseas Trade in Goods Statistics (OTS), which is available via their dedicated website (www.uktradeinfo.com).

HMRC only collects and holds information for exports based on the initial country of destination that the goods were exported to and therefore are unable to provide an estimate for goods that are traded onwards. Exports to Georgia are published as stated below, but we do not hold information on goods that then move on to Russia from there.

Import information including country of origin (CoO) is available from www.tradeinfo.com. From this website, it is possible to build your own data tables based upon bespoke search criteria.

These tables include country of dispatch (CoD) which gives information on the country of export. If specifically wanting information on CoO this is available in the  bulk datasets archive. The data available includes value and volume/weight of imports.

If you need help or support in constructing a table from the data on uktradeinfo, please contact xxx@xxx.xx.
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Esther McVey:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many public contracts awarded by her Department since 5 July 2024 have been awarded to companies with offshore tax arrangements. \p James Murray: The information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

Where it makes business sense to do so, HM Treasury procures goods and services via Crown Commercial Service (CCS) framework agreements. Suppliers on those agreements must comply with the requirements of Procurement Policy Note 03/2014.
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Esther McVey:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many procurement contracts awarded by her Department since 5 July 2024 have been awarded without competitive tendering. \p James Murray: No contracts covered by the Public Contracts Regulations have been awarded by HM Treasury since 5 July 2024 without competitive tendering.
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James Cartlidge:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the revenues to the Exchequer will be from the application of Inheritance Tax to death in service payments in the (a) 2024-25 financial year and (b) each remaining financial year in this Parliament. \p James Murray: Estates of emergency services personnel will benefit from the normal nil-rate bands, reliefs, and exemptions available. For example, the nil-rate bands mean an estate can pass on up to £1 million with no inheritance tax liability and the general rules mean any transfers, including the payment of death benefits, to a spouse or civil partner are fully exempt from inheritance tax. There is also an existing full exemption from inheritance tax when a member of the emergency services dies from an injury sustained, accident occurring, or disease contracted when that person was responding to emergency circumstances. More information is available at www.gov.uk/hmrc-internal-manuals/inheritance-tax-manual/ihtm11291.

The Government will bring most unused pension funds and death benefits payable from a pension into a person’s estate for inheritance tax purposes from 6 April 2027. Inheritance tax is already applied to death in service benefits for some pension schemes.

The expected revenue from reforms to the inheritance tax treatment of unused pension funds and death benefits was set out at Autumn Budget 2024. A specific breakdown of the expected revenue from different forms of death benefits is not readily available.
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Manuela Perteghella:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether her Department plans to issue guidance on the tax treatment of payments received under the Biodiversity Net Gain scheme; and what progress the joint working group has made on that issue. \p James Murray: The Government has established the joint HMT/HMRC working group with industry representatives to identify solutions that provide clarity on the tax treatment of ecosystem service markets, including the Biodiversity Net Gain scheme. The work of the group is currently ongoing.
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Sir John Hayes:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps her Department is taking to support small businesses impacted by a reduction in in-person banking services in Lincolnshire. \p Emma Reynolds: The Government understands the importance of face-to-face banking to constituents and businesses in Lincolnshire and across the UK and is committed to championing sufficient access for all. This is why the Government is working closely with industry to roll out 350 banking hubs across the UK. The UK banking sector has committed to deliver these hubs by the end of this Parliament. Over 200 hubs have been announced so far, and over 100 are already open.

FCA guidance expects firms to carefully consider the impact of planned branch closures on their customers’ everyday banking and cash access needs and put in place alternatives where reasonable. This seeks to ensure that branch closures are implemented in a way that treats customers fairly.

Alternative options to access everyday banking services can be via telephone banking, through digital means such as mobile or online banking and via the Post Office. The Post Office Banking Framework allows personal and business customers to withdraw and deposit cash, check their balance, pay bills and cash cheques. The Government protects the Post Office network by setting minimum access criteria. These include ensuring that 99% of the UK population lives within three miles of a Post Office and 90% of the population within one mile.

To stimulate local economic growth the Government intends to introduce permanently lower tax rates for high street retail, hospitality, and leisure properties with rateable values below half a million pounds from 2026 – 2027 and later this year, the Government will publish a Small Business Strategy, setting out our vision for small businesses.

Taken together, these actions will support businesses in Lincolnshire and across the country to drive local economic growth.
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Charlotte Cane:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has of the potential merits of introducing a national financial inclusion strategy. \p Emma Reynolds: On 5 December, the Government announced its intention to publish a Financial Inclusion Strategy, developed alongside a supporting Committee. The Financial Inclusion Committee’s mission is to tackle barriers to individual and households’ ability to access affordable and appropriate financial products and services.

Through this committee, I am working with consumer groups and industry to develop, coordinate and implement interventions to support financial inclusion in the UK, ahead of the publication of a strategy later this year.
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Pippa Heylings:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to paragraph 3.11 of the Autumn Budget 2024, published on 30 October 2024, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of investments by occupational pension schemes on the (a) place, (b) people and (c) net zero pillars of the growth mission. \p Torsten Bell: The Government published the Interim Report of the Pensions Investment Review at Mansion House, which sets out proposals to reform the UK Pensions system. These reforms could unlock up to £80 billion in new productive investment including in businesses and infrastructure. Amongst other things this would help improve returns for savers and support the net-zero transition.

The proposed reforms to the defined contribution workplace pension market will accelerate consolidation, creating fewer, larger schemes. This will allow schemes to deliver better value, governance, and investment opportunities, through larger ‘mega-funds’ more able to undertake productive investment.

The Review also proposes reforms to the Local Government Pension Scheme (England and Wales) to tackle fragmentation and inefficiency. The LGPS manages £392 billion worth of assets, and the Interim Report proposes to require all 86 administering authorities to delegate investment management to pools. This will create large pools of professionally managed capital, in line with international best practice, and enhance the capacity and capability of the scheme to continue to drive national, regional and local investment.

The final Pensions Investment Review report, including the final proposals to be legislated for, will be published in the Spring ahead of the introduction of the Pension Schemes Bill.
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Mark Garnier:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make an estimate of the potential impact of (a) reducing the cash ISA limit to £4,000 and (b) creating incentives to put money into stocks and shares ISAs on the amount of money that will be put into stocks and shares ISAs in each of the next three years. \p Emma Reynolds: The Government is committed to incentivising greater saving and investment. Individual Savings Accounts (ISAs) help people save for their future goals and build greater financial resilience.

The Government recognises the important role that cash savings play in helping households build a financial buffer for a rainy day. The Government also wants to see more consumers participate in capital markets and benefit from the long-term financial security and returns that investing can provide.

The Government continues to keep all aspects of savings policy under review.
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Anna Sabine:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will take steps to ensure that online retailers act on the requests of parents of deceased children regarding online (a) accounts and (b) payments. \p Emma Reynolds: In recent years banks and building societies have sought to make the bereavement process easier by increasing the amount they will release without needing a grant of probate. As such the threshold varies between different firms. The nominal threshold in legislation is to require probate to be obtained for estates above £5000 in value (The Administration of Estates (Small Payments) Act 1965), although in practice many financial institutions operate a threshold of £20,000. Banks also differ on issues such as whether they are willing to release funds for funeral and other essential expenses ahead of probate being granted. These are commercial decisions.

Where a bank or building society offers Direct Debits, these are covered by the Direct Debit guarantee. Under the guarantee, the account holder is entitled to an immediate refund of any unauthorised amounts collected from their account provider. Details of the guarantee can be found here: https://www.directdebit.co.uk/direct-debit-guarantee/

The Government is also supportive of previous industry efforts to improve handling of these sensitive cases, including the Financial Services Death Notification Service developed by UK Finance.

UK banks and building societies are regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). The FCA does not have specific rules or guidance regarding probate in its rules. Nonetheless, banks are bound by the FCA’s Consumer Duty which requires firms to act to deliver good outcomes and avoid causing harm to customers. The FCA also provides guidance on firms providing fair treatment for vulnerable customers, which includes those going through a bereavement. If an executor is having a dispute with a bank, then they will be able to raise a formal complaint. The FCA’s rules require firms to properly investigate all complaints, and it continues to monitor firms’ complaint handling processes.

The main current account providers also publish information about the additional services they offer all consumers, including information on the bereavement services they offer. More information can be found on the FCA website: https://www.fca.org.uk/data/mandated-voluntary-information-current-account-services/providers-links#voluntary
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Mark Garnier:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of removing stamp duty from UK listed equity transactions on economic growth. \p Emma Reynolds: Collectively, Stamp Duty and Stamp Duty Reserve Tax are currently forecast to raise up to £5bn per year, providing vital revenue which helps to fund key public services.

The existing framework contains multiple reliefs and exemptions which are designed to boost liquidity and growth.

The government keeps all taxes under review.
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Mark Garnier:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, when her Department plans to lay the Statutory Instrument for the introduction of the PISCES Sandbox. \p Emma Reynolds: As the Chancellor announced at Mansion House in November 2024, the government intends to lay the statutory instrument which will provide the legal framework for the PISCES Sandbox before Parliament by May 2025.
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Mark Garnier:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much money has been raised from stamp duty charged to UK listed equity transactions in each financial year since 2010. \p James Murray: HM Revenue and Customs does not hold the necessary information on its statistical data systems to separate transactions of UK listed equity and the resulting Stamp Tax on Shares charge from other sources of Stamp Tax on Shares revenue.

However, the majority of Stamp Duty Reserve Tax (SDRT) receipts likely relate to UK listed equity transactions. A timeseries of SDRT receipts is included in Table 1 of the UK Stamp Tax statistics publication available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/uk-stamp-tax-statistics
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Mark Garnier:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions she has had with the Bank of England on increasing the proposed eligibility threshold in its consultation on minimum requirement for own funds and eligible liabilities (MREL) to £50bn. \p Emma Reynolds: The Government is continuing to engage closely with the Bank of England on its recent consultation on its approach to setting a minimum requirement for own funds and eligible liabilities (MREL), which closed on 24 January. The Bank of England sets MREL policy, including the thresholds for MREL, independently in its capacity as resolution authority.

The Government recognises the varied feedback raised by industry, including on the asset-based threshold. The Government’s engagement with the Bank of England has included and will continue to include consideration of this feedback as well as the impacts on economic growth.
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Jayne Kirkham:To ask the Chancellor for the Exchequer, whether she has had discussions with the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, on the potential merits of equalising the duty treatment of renewable liquid fuels, in the context of encouraging its uptake amongst consumers. \p James Murray: Renewable liquid fuels such as hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) are relatively new fuels and have limited availability in the UK. When used for domestic heating, HVO benefits from the rebated duty rate of 10.18p per litre, in contrast to the full duty rate of 52.95p per litre.

The Chancellor makes decisions on tax policy at fiscal events in the context of public finances.
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Freddie van Mierlo:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of the overseas scale rates. \p James Murray: The Overseas Scale Rates are an administrative easement and do not limit the amount an employee can claim for. They reduce the need to provide evidence to support an employee’s claim for tax relief.

Employees travelling overseas for work have the same entitlement to tax relief whether they use the rates or not. An employee can claim tax relief on a higher value if that is appropriate, with the only distinction being they must provide receipts.

There will be occasions where OSR may not reflect the current prices in a particular location. In these cases, the employer can choose to reimburse the full expenses incurred by their staff, if receipts are kept. Should the employer choose not to reimburse all the actual expenses, the employee may claim tax relief on the difference from HMRC.
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Martin Wrigley:To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will make an assessment of the potential implications for his policies of the level of US government control of Starlink in Ukraine. \p Luke Pollard: The Ministry of Defence has assessed the implications of a disruption to Starlink services to Ukraine. The large number of Starlink terminals (reported at over 40,000) means Starlink makes a significant contribution to Ukraine civil and military sectors. As per Starlink terms and conditions, off-the-shelf purchases of Starlink terminals are not subject to US Government export regulations.
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Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what individual schemes for Afghan resettlement in the UK are available to be applied to under the Afghan Resettlement Programme. \p Luke Pollard: The Afghan Resettlement Programme (ARP) is a cross-Government delivery programme which brings the existing resettlement schemes into one, single pipeline, to ensure optimal outcomes at each stage of the resettlement journey.

Under the ARP, the Afghan Relocation and Assistance Policy (ARAP) is the only scheme that individuals can apply to. Eligible individuals on the ACRS will continue to be prioritised and referred through one of three pathways.

Further information on the ARP can be found on Gov.uk here: Afghan Resettlement Programme
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Dame Caroline Dinenage:To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 24 February 2025 to Question 31001 on Veterans: War Pensions, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of the level of the burden on British nuclear test veterans applying to the War Pension Scheme to prove they had experienced a radiation dose. \p Al Carns: This Government is deeply grateful to all those who participated in the UK nuclear testing programme. We recognise their Service and the huge contribution they have made to the UK’s security.

I am committed to looking into questions around medical records. That is why I have commissioned officials to look into what information the Department holds in relation to the medical testing of Service personnel who took part in the UK nuclear weapons tests. This is a priority and is now underway.

Altogether there were around 22,000 participants in the nuclear weapons tests, of which up to just over 6,000 veterans were involved in two or more operations. Dose monitoring records are available for 4,807 (23%) of the around 22,000 veterans considered in the most recent analysis of the data in the Nuclear Weapons Test Participants Study – a long-term epidemiological study of the health of veterans who were present at UK nuclear testing between 1952 and 1967. It has been undertaken by the National Radiological Protection Board and Cancer Research UK (formerly the Imperial Cancer Research Fund) following a commission from the Ministry of Defence in 1983. There have been four studies completed to date, which so far have concluded that Nuclear Test Veterans have a similar incidence of cancer and, in general, a longer healthy life expectancy that the control group of individuals.

Nuclear Test Veterans are already entitled to apply for compensation under the War Pension Scheme. There is no time limit for claiming, however if a claim is made more than seven years after termination of service, as would be the case for Nuclear Test Veterans, the claimant is granted the benefit of doubt when there is uncertainty about whether the disablement is linked to or worsened by their service. Factors such as being on operations or in a hazardous environment can support a service-related claim. Claims handlers will review historical records, including medical records, to establish a causal link to service for Nuclear Test Veterans seeking compensation.
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Dame Caroline Dinenage:To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 24 February 2025 to Question 31001 on Veterans: War Pensions, what the minimum recordable level of radiation dose is for establishing radiation exposure. \p Al Carns: Exposure to a measurable level of ionising radiation is determined by a radiological dosimetry specialist report. Specialist reports are obtained from Defence Radiation and Protection Services and Atomic Weapons Establishment as they hold the relevant records and dosimetry.

Personal dosimeters used by nuclear test veterans were of the passive film badge type which embody a piece of film material sensitive to radiation. When processed, the degree of darkening of the film, if any, indicates the level of radiation exposure. The film badges are sensitive down to 0·2 millisievert (20 millirem).
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Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how Afghans who worked for British forces during Operation Herrick can apply for resettlement in the UK. \p Luke Pollard: The Afghan Relocation and Assistance Policy (ARAP) scheme is designed specifically for those who worked for or with the UK Government in Afghanistan in exposed or meaningful roles, such as in support of wider UK national security objectives. While Afghans who worked for British Forces during Operation Herrick can apply, all applications across the scheme are assessed individually, against the eligibility criteria using a case-by-case approach which takes into account the evidence available.

ARAP forms part of the cross-Government Afghan Resettlement Programme (ARP).
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Charlie Dewhirst:To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 10 February 2025 to Question 29217 on Prime Minister: Aviation, what the cost of helicopter travel for Defence Ministers is since 4 July 2024. \p Maria Eagle: The Ministry of Defence has spent £1,154.03 on helicopter travel for Defence Ministers since 4 July 2024.
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UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-06 conversation_118

Martin Wrigley:To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will fully implement the recommendations of the Atherton report. \p Al Carns: Following the July 2021 House of Commons Defence Committee report into Women in the Armed Forces, the Ministry of Defence has delivered a range of initiatives to improve the experience of women in the Armed Forces.

Key actions have been taken to combat unacceptable sexual behaviour, with two Zero Tolerance policies and a Sexual Exploitation and Abuse policy; improvements have been made to women’s health and wellbeing with new policies on menopause and breastfeeding, emergency sanitary provision, sports bras and a urinary support device; together with improved female fit uniform and equipment (including body armour); greater career flexibility; and improved access to childcare through the Wraparound Childcare scheme.

Related work has reformed the Service Complaints System to improve confidence and efficiency. The Service Justice System is more victim focussed, having established the Defence Serious Crime Unit and the Victim and Witness Care Unit in 2023.

The Raising our Standards Team will continue to focus on driving more inclusive behaviours. In addition, new initiatives are being developed on women’s health to better prepare them for arduous training as well as an increased focus on bringing a gender perspective to the future development of existing equipment and uniform.

The Armed Forces Commissioner Bill will establish an independent champion for our Serving personnel and their families. This a new, unprecedented post that will serve as a direct point of contact for Service personnel and their families to raise general service welfare matters.
wrans/answers2025-03-06 conversation_119
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-06)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-06 conversation_119

Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much was spent on recruitment advertising by the (a) Royal Navy excluding the Royal Marines, (b) Army, (c) Royal Air Force and (d) Royal Marines in (i) 2022, (ii) 2023 and (iii) 2024. \p Luke Pollard: We inherited a retention and recruitment crisis from the last administration, and we are determined to address it. Recruitment advertising is one part of our efforts to attract recruits to the UK Armed Forces.

The following information has been provided by the single Services, noting that figures for Financial Year 2024-25 are partially forecasted spend and are subject to change.

Financial Year

Royal Navy £million

Army £million

Royal Air Force £million

Royal Marines £million

2022-23

14.800

11.981

12.720

3.763

2023-24

14.572

9.297

13.414

4.188

2024-25

14.320

17.216

15.744

4.304
wrans/answers2025-03-06 conversation_120
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-06)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-06 conversation_120

Jim Shannon:To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what discussions he has had with his Northern Irish counterpart on the expansion of Northern Ireland's defence workforce. \p Luke Pollard: Northern Ireland plays a vital role in the defence of the UK, as demonstrated by the £1.6 billion deal with Thales that the Prime Minister announced on 2 March 2025. The deal will see 200 new jobs created at Thales in Belfast, and hundreds more supported in the Thales supply chain across the UK.

The Ministry of Defence has consulted with a wide range of stakeholders in Northern Ireland on the Government’s new Defence Industrial Strategy, which will seek to create high quality jobs across all the nations and regions of the UK.
wrans/answers2025-03-06 conversation_121
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-06)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-06 conversation_121

Rupert Lowe:To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the oral statement by the Prime Minister of 26 February 2025 on Defence and Security, Official Report, column 631, on what his Department plans to spend the increase in defence spending. \p Luke Pollard: Full details will be set out in the Strategic Defence Review to be published in spring 2025.
wrans/answers2025-03-06 conversation_122
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-06)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-06 conversation_122

Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will take steps with Cabinet colleagues to make indefinite leave to remain available to the dependents of non-UK service personnel at zero cost this Parliament. \p Al Carns: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 25 July 2024 to Question 121 to the hon. Member for South Suffolk (Mr Cartlidge).

Armed Forces: Visas (docx, 15.7KB)
wrans/answers2025-03-06 conversation_123
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-06)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-06 conversation_123

Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will remove the cost of UK citizenship for non-UK service personnel. \p Al Carns: British citizenship is not a requirement for Service in the UK Armed Forces, and not all countries we recruit from permit their citizens to have dual nationality. There are no current plans therefore to remove the cost. We are, however, committed to removing visa fees for non-UK personnel who have served for four or more years and their families, whilst maintaining the option for non-UK personnel to choose to naturalise as a British citizen whilst still serving.
wrans/answers2025-03-06 conversation_124
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-06)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-06 conversation_124

Max Wilkinson:To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the Prime Minister's oral contribution of 25 February 2025, Official Report, column 633, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of investing in Cheltenham’s intelligence and cyber security sectors as part of the defence reform and efficiency plan. \p Luke Pollard: We should rightly be proud of our intelligence agencies, and the work they do every day to keep the UK and its interests safe. The defence reform and efficiency plan will be focused on driving maximum value for money from this Government's additional investment in my Department – the hon. Member will understand that I obviously cannot comment on the merits and efficiency of spend in the intelligence agencies (with the exception of Defence Intelligence) who sit under other Government Departments.
wrans/answers2025-03-06 conversation_125
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-06)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-06 conversation_125

James Cartlidge:To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what discussions he has held with international allies regarding Britain’s role in the Joint Expeditionary Force, in the context of his attendance at the Munich Security Conference 2025. \p Luke Pollard: The UK is the framework nation for the Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF). Since the Munich Security Conference, the Secretary of State has discussed the JEF with his Norwegian counterpart during a visit to Norway from 19 - 20 February 2025 and at a meeting of JEF Defence Ministers by VTC on 27 February 2025. The Secretary of State will also host a meeting of JEF Defence Ministers in London on 26 March 2025. Additionally, I discussed matters relating to JEF on visits to Finland, Lithuania, Denmark and the Netherland last week.
wrans/answers2025-03-06 conversation_126
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-06)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-06 conversation_126

Mr Mark Francois:To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the total cost to the public purse is of the five multi-role electronically scanned array radars as part of the E-7 Wedgetail programme. \p Maria Eagle: The cost of procurement for the Multi-Role Electronically Scanned Array (MESA) radar is approximately £60 million each, therefore approximately £300 million in total. In March 2021, a decision was taken to reduce the numbers of E-7 Wedgetail platforms from five to three.

Parts from the radars originally planned for aircraft four and five will be retained for spares allowing a saving /offset of initial procurement and future sustainment requirements from the overall programme cost.
wrans/answers2025-03-06 conversation_127
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-06)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-06 conversation_127

Mr Mark Francois:To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether the proposed agreement with Mauritius on the Chagos Islands contains a clause allowing other States to use the allocated electromagnetic spectrum in the British Indian Ocean Territory; and what steps his Department is taking to help prevent risks to the Automated Digital Network System 3. \p Luke Pollard: Details of the Treaty agreed between the UK and Mauritius will come before Parliament for scrutiny in the usual manner following its signature. We routinely assess the range of potential threats to the operation of the joint UK-US base on Diego Garcia.
wrans/answers2025-03-06 conversation_128
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-06)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-06 conversation_128

Dame Caroline Dinenage:To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 24 February 2025 to Question 31001 on Veterans: War Pensions, what the average acceptance rate is for applications made by (a) British nuclear test and (b) other veterans to the War Pension Scheme. \p Al Carns: The War Pensions Computer System has no facility to uniquely identify those who participated in the nuclear tests. The paper claim file may include a copy of the Nuclear Test Veterans (NTV) Priority Claim Request or additional information on whether the claimant was involved in nuclear testing, however this information is not always present.

To accurately identify the number of NTVs who applied for, and received compensation would involve a manual interrogation of all War Pension files and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

The average outcome rates for cleared first claims under the War Pension Scheme for the past ten years can be found in the table below:

Outcome rates of cleared First Claims1 under the War Pension Scheme by financial year, percentages2.

1 April 2014 – 31 March 2024

Claim Type

2014/15

2015/16

2016/17

2017/18

2018/19

2019/20

2020/21

2021/22

2022/23

2023/24

Successful3

74%

75%

74%

75%

76%

73%

75%

71%

72%

67%

Awarded 0%

17%

17%

17%

16%

16%

16%

14%

18%

17%

21%

Rejected

8%

8%

9%

9%

9%

11%

11%

11%

12%

12%

Sources: War Pensions Computer System (WPCS)
wrans/answers2025-03-06 conversation_129
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-06)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-06 conversation_129

Robin Swann:To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 27 February 2025 to Question 32722 on Reserve Forces: Retirement, whether the review will consider readmitting former reservists if the age of retirement is changed. \p Al Carns: I am grateful for the contribution of our Reserve Forces who provide the UK with the ability to meet the threats we face at home and overseas, with the scale, skills, agility and connection to society that it needs, in a cost-effective way.

Alongside the Strategic Defence Review’s interest in Reserves, and in tandem with the transformational work already underway in Defence, I am reviewing the Reserves landscape, in a meaningful and impactful way, to ensure that we are making the most of the unique skills our Reserves offer Defence.
wrans/answers2025-03-06 conversation_130
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-06)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-06 conversation_130

James Cartlidge:To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of the decision by the US Defence Secretary to suspend (a) operations and (b) planning for offensive cyber operations against Russia. \p Luke Pollard: The Ministry of Defence maintains a close security partnership with US counterparts. While the UK’s offensive cyber capabilities remain essential to both its and partner nations national security, I hope the hon. Gentleman will recall from his time as a Minister in the Department that we do not comment on operational matters.
wrans/answers2025-03-06 conversation_131
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-06)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-06 conversation_131

Adam Dance:To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 6 January 2025 to Question 20867 on Military Aircraft: Helicopters, whether the introduction into service of the New Medium Helicopter will be brought forward in light of the commitment to spend 2.5% of GDP on defence by 2027. \p Maria Eagle: The progress of the New Medium Helicopter programme is not affected by the commitment to spend 2.5% GDP on defence by 2027.

There are no plans to change the extant New Medium Helicopter competition which started on 27 February 2024 with the release of the Invitation to Negotiate to Aribus Helicopters UK, Leonardo Helicopters UK and Lockheed Martin UK.

The Ministry of Defence is continuing with the established procurement process, managed by Defence Equipment and Suport, and the proposal will be evaluated through 2025 when, subject to Government approvals, a contract award is anticipated.