Every parliamentary written question tabled by Andrew Snowden this session, with the full answer and department. See how every department answers, or back to the MP page.
Showing 701–720 of 2,662 · this parliament
Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether Olly Robbins will be granted a period of gardening leave.
The Government does not comment on the individual terms and conditions of employment or personnel matters relating to individual civil servants.
Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to support park home residents.
I refer the hon. Member to the answers given to Questions UIN 115901 on 9 March 2026, UIN 63787 on 4 July 2025, UIN 114577 on 2 March 2026, UIN 110494 on 11 February 2026, and UIN 110492 on 11 February 2026.
What estimate he has made of the number of vacancies for newly qualified midwives in the North West of England.
The Department does not hold information on the number of vacancies for newly qualified midwives in the Northwest of England.
Communities and Local Government, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the regulatory framework governing park homes in England.
The government is committed to strengthening protections for park home residents and improving the standards of park home site management. We will continue to keep the relevant legislation under review. I otherwise refer the hon. Member to the answers given to Questions UIN 63787 on 4 July 2025, UIN 115901 on 9 March 2026, UIN 63787 on 4 July 2025, UIN 114577 on 2 March 2026, UIN 110494 on 11 February 2026, and UIN 110492 on 11 February 2026.
What steps her Department is taking to ensure new school meals guidance encourages use of local suppliers.
The government is committed to half of all food served in public settings being either locally sourced or certified to higher environmental standards.The School Food Standards allow school chefs and cooks creative freedom to adapt to the preferences of the children at their school, source seasonal or local food, and take advantage of price fluctuations.We are consulting on proposed changes to the School Food Standards in England until 12 June 2026. We will consider guidance for the new standards in due course. Presently, schools can voluntarily follow the Government Buying Standards for Food and Catering, which includes advice around sourcing their school food.The department is working closely with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs as they develop the Good Food Cycle vision.
Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the answer to question 39735 of 27 Mar 2025 on Park Homes, what further engagement he has had with the sector in relation to the commission on the sale of park homes.
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 115901 on 9 March 2026.
Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions he has had with stakeholders, including the British Veterinary Association, the RSPCA, and pharmaceutical manufacturers, on proposed changes to the regulation of parasiticides.
The Veterinary Medicines Directorate (VMD) leads the cross‑government Pharmaceuticals in the Environment (PiE) Group and is engaging with stakeholders on the environmental risks of flea and tick treatments containing fipronil and imidacloprid. Engagement has included several meetings with individual organisations, including the British Veterinary Association, the RSPCA and the pharmaceutical industry, as well as a PiE stakeholder workshop in Summer 2025 involving veterinary professionals, charities, retailers, industry and academia. The VMD has also launched an eight week Call for Evidence as part of its review of the distribution categories of veterinary medicines containing fipronil or imidacloprid. This open process invites evidence and views from all interested stakeholders to ensure that any future regulatory decisions are informed by robust evidence and consider impacts on animal health and welfare, the environment, pet owners and businesses. No decisions have yet been taken on regulatory changes, and stakeholder engagement will continue as the evidence base is considered.
Communities and Local Government, if he will introduce measures to cap or regulate service charges imposed by park home site operators.
The government has no current plans to legislate to prevent the use of terms in agreements requiring park home residents to pay variable service charges, but we will keep the matter under review.
Whether she plans to issue guidance to the public on the location of illegal migrants who have been moved out of hotel accommodation.
All asylum seekers residing in a closing hotel will be provided with alternative suitable accommodation. Moves are coordinated by Home Office accommodation providers, and options may include dispersed accommodation, alternative contingency sites, or larger accommodation sites. Individuals may be relocated anywhere within the wider contract region and not necessarily within the same local authority area.For the safety, security and wellbeing of those being accommodated and staff, the Home Office does not disclose information about accommodation sites which may or may not be utilised to the general public.
What steps she is taking to help ensure the safety of the Jewish community in (a) Fylde constituency, (b) North West England and (c) the United Kingdom.
The Government is committed to the safety of Jewish communities in our country. Everyone should feel safe to practise their faith and participate in public life, free from intimidation or fear.In 2026/27, we are providing record funding to protect faith communities, including £28.4 million through the Jewish Community Protective Security Grant to provide protective security measures at synagogues, Jewish educational establishments and other community sites.Eligible sites can apply for support for protective security measures through the Grant. The Grant is administered by the Community Security Trust (CST) on behalf of the Home Office, and full guidance on how to apply is available on GOV.UK: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/jewish-community-protective-security-grantEarlier this month, the Home Office also announced an additional £5 million to increase deployments under Project Servator, which places specialist officers unpredictably in public spaces to deter criminal activity and provide visible reassurance. This funding will initially focus on supporting communities, particularly Jewish and other faith communities, in London and Manchester.We continue to work closely with the police and other partners to review threats and ensure that proportionate and effective protections are in place where they are needed.
What recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the First-tier Tribunal in resolving park home disputes.
No specific assessment has been made of the effectiveness of the First-tier Tribunal Property Chamber in resolving park home disputes. However, the Ministry of Justice regularly considers the performance of tribunals more widely. Statistics are published on a quarterly basis and can be found at: htpps://www.gov.uk/government/collections/tribunals-statistics
How many staff members have left their roles working in 10 Downing Street in each of the last 12 months; and how many of those received a redundancy payment in each of the last 12 months.
Data on the number of officials in the Cabinet Office is published monthly at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cabinet-office-workforce-management-data-2023-to-2024. Business Unit level data including for Business Units in Number 10 Downing Street is published quarterly at https://www.data.gov.uk/dataset/ff76be1f-4f37-4bef-beb7-32b259413be1/organogram-cabinet-office. We do not routinely comment on individual HR matters.
Communities and Local Government, what criteria are used to determine when central government intervention in a local authority is warranted in relation to standards or governance failures.
The Secretary of State must be satisfied that a local authority is failing to carry out its functions in compliance with the Best Value Duty before intervening on a statutory basis under section 15 of the Local Government Act 1999. The Secretary of State’s decision to intervene, when, and what form that intervention takes relies on the analysis of a complex set of data and circumstances. This assessment is based on the standards set out in statutory guidance for the local government sector on how to fulfil the Best Value Duty.
If she will make an assessment of the impact of the war in Iran on household budgets in Fylde.
The Government keeps the impact of global developments on household budgets under close review. The economic impact of the situation in the Middle East will depend on its severity, duration and the extent of disruption to energy supplies. The Government does not produce constituency level assessments of the impact of specific geopolitical events on household budgets. Official forecasts are published by the independent Office for Budget Responsibility. Living standards have now risen 2.1% this Parliament, after falling over the last Parliament, and real household disposable income per capita is £700 higher in the last 12 months compared to the final year of the last Parliament. More of the decisions the Government has made to ease pressures on the cost of living have now come into effect this month. The energy price cap fell, taking £117 off the average household bill. The National Minimum and Living Wage both went up – worth up to £1,500 a year for full-time young workers. Millions of pensioners are now getting up to a £575 boost on their State Pension thanks to our Triple Lock commitment. The two-child limit has been scrapped, lifting half a million children out of poverty.
Communities and Local Government, whether the government has any plans to amend the Localism Act 2011 in this Parliament.
The Localism Act 2011 covers a broad range of local government and community empowerment matters, and the government keeps this legislative framework under review. The government is committed to widening and deepening devolution across England, rebuilding and reforming local government and giving communities stronger tools to shape their local areas. The government is delivering on this through the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill, by devolving powers to local leaders across areas such as transport, skills, housing and growth, and by enhancing community empowerment, including greater influence over local decision-making and control over local assets.
Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of sanctions available to local authorities under the Localism Act 2011 in ensuring compliance with councillors’ Codes of Conduct.
The current local authority standards and conduct regime is in certain key aspects ineffectual, inconsistently applied, and lacking in adequate powers to effectively sanction members found in serious breach of their codes of conduct. This is why, in November 2025, we announced our intention to legislate to introduce a clearer and consistently applied conduct system that will help local elected members to hold themselves and their colleagues to account. We will do this when Parliamentary time allows.
Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of postal delays on the delivery of postal ballots for 2026 local elections.
Local Returning Officers undertake stringent risk assessments and contingency planning as part of running elections, including the monitoring of known or emerging postal issues. Officials in the Ministry of Housing and Communities and Local Government meet regularly with suppliers to discuss matters relating to elections including capacity, capability and contingency planning, and I will meet with senior representatives of Royal Mail to discuss preparedness ahead of the May elections.
What assessment she has made of trends in (a) shop theft, (b) mobile phone theft and (c) drug offences over the past 12 months.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) publishes official statistics on the offences recorded by the police in England and Wales on a quarterly basis, including shop theft and drug offences. The most recent data available is for the year ending September 2025, which can be accessed here:https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/crimeandjustice/datasets/crimeinenglandandwalesappendixtablesTheft offences recorded by the police where a mobile phone was stolen are not separately identifiable in the police recorded crime data published by the ONS.The ONS does collect data on the number of people who have been victims of mobile phone theft, as part of the Crime Survey for England and Wales (CSEW). The most recent data available is for the year ending March 2025, which can be accessed here:https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/crimeandjustice/datasets/focusonpropertycrimeappendixtablesThe Metropolitan Police publish the number of incidents of theft from the person and personal robbery which involved the theft if a mobile phone. This data is available on the Metropolitan Police’s Crime Dashboard, which can be accessed here:https://public.tableau.com/app/profile/metropolitan.police.service/viz/MonthlyCrimeDataNewCats/Coversheet
How many of the additional neighbourhood policing personnel announced since April last year have been recruited to (a) Lancashire Constabulary and (b) each police force in England and Wales.
On 7 April 2026, the Home Office published an ad-hoc statistical release on the growth in neighbourhood policing personnel in England and Wales, as at 28 February 2026, compared with 31 March 2025. This information is based on provisional management information, and is available broken down by Police Force Area here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/neighbourhood-policing-programme-as-at-28-february-2026This ad-hoc statistical release is based on limited management information, meaning it is not possible for the Home Office to determine what proportion of the additional 3,123 neighbourhood policing personnel (at the 28 February 2026 snapshot) are new recruits or redeployed officers from other roles.Police forces have been able to approach the neighbourhood policing programme in a way that best achieves local needs and varied crime demands. Therefore, the precise mix of redeployment and recruitment has been for forces to decide.Finalised statistics will be published in the Accredited Official 'Police Workforce, England and Wales' statistics in July 2026.
Innovation and Technology, what steps her Department is taking to prevent websites from imitating legitimate digital services in order to mislead consumers into entering paid subscriptions.
The Online Safety Act lists certain fraud offences as ‘priority offences’, meaning regulated services must prevent users encountering user-generated fraudulent content, swiftly remove it when appearing, and mitigate and manage the risk of their services facilitating fraud. Ofcom has robust powers to act where services are failing in their regulatory duties.Online platforms must comply with The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024, which clarifies that online platforms must exercise professional diligence in relation to consumer transactions promoted or made on their platforms. The legislation carries criminal penalties and is enforced by Trading Standards officers and the Competition and Markets Authority.