Written questions by Snowden.

How many small boat crossings have taken place in each of the last ten years, including 2025.

The Home Office publishes daily statistics on detected small boat arrivals to the UK in the Small boat activity in the English Channel - GOV.UK(opens in a new tab) release.More detailed published data on small boat arrivals to the UK are provided in the ‘Immigration System Statistics Quarterly Release(opens in a new tab)’, with the nationality, age grouping and sex of arrivals shown in table Irr_D01 of the ‘Irregular migration to the UK detailed datasets(opens in a new tab)’, with the latest data up to the end of September 2025.

What measures will be put in place to prevent any widening of attainment gaps between students with differing levels of access to digital technology when on-screen assessments are introduced.

Ofqual is consulting on a controlled approach to any further adoption of on-screen assessment that protects standards, fairness and teachers’ ability to prepare students effectively. Under its proposals, most GCSEs, AS and A levels will continue to be assessed with pen and paper. Each exam board would be limited to introducing a maximum of two new on-screen specifications, but not in the most popular subjects.It will be entirely optional for schools and colleges to offer on-screen assessments if they are confident in their ability to deliver them fairly. To support fairness, Ofqual is proposing that exam boards must offer separate specifications for paper-based and on-screen qualifications and maintain standards to ensure that it is no easier or harder to achieve a given grade, regardless of which specification is taken.Students will not be permitted to use their own laptops for exams to prevent unfairness arising from differences in device quality or access. Ofqual has published an equality impact assessment alongside the consultation and will refine it following analysis of consultation responses.

What steps will be taken to ensure that school leaders, exam officers, teachers, parents and students are fully consulted during the 12-week consultation on regulating on-screen assessments.

The department recognises the importance of securing responses from teachers, school leaders, exams officers, parents and students, and Ofqual is committed to achieving diverse representation. To support this, Ofqual is engaging these groups through targeted briefings with representative bodies, dedicated stakeholder sessions and a clear communications campaign. This includes a teacher focused blog and social media activity, alongside proactive media briefings ahead of launch which generated widespread national, local and sector coverage. The department is also promoting the consultation via its own channels and stakeholder networks, and is planning to support Ofqual with stakeholder engagement activities during its consultation period. Ofqual has also published a comprehensive evidence base reflecting views from these groups, which informed its proposals. It will monitor responses and adapt outreach to ensure strong participation.

Pursuant to the written answer of 9 December 25 to question 96953 on Child Benefit, how many of the 23,500 compliance enquiries (i) were confirmed to be eligible, (ii) were found to have been incorrectly receiving the benefit and (iii) are yet to receive an outcome.

HMRC has now completed its review of Child Benefit compliance cases where a PAYE check had not been undertaken. As of 30 November 2025, out of the 23,794 cases opened between August and October 2025, 14,994 Child Benefit customers have been confirmed to be eligible to Child Benefit. Of the remaining 8,800 cases, 1,019, have been determined to have been incorrectly receiving Child Benefit, and 7,781 enquiries remain open as the customer has not yet provided evidence to enable a final determination of residency. The data from the 23,794 cases is not comparable with the pilot. Recognising the issues with the implementation of the expansion, HMRC put in place an expediated process for customers that varied from the way it applied checks in the pilot. The information from the pilot remains HMRC’s best assessment of the effectiveness of the activity using international travel data to reduce error and fraud.

Media and Sport, when she expects to announce whether the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme will be renewed beyond 31 March 2026.

Future funding beyond March 2026 will be considered as we work through the output of the Spending Review and Departmental business planning process. An announcement will be made once this decision is finalised.

Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 4 December to Question 95479, on Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme: VAT, how many applications to the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme in the last 12 months exceeded the new £25,000 cap.

Since 1 December 2024, the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme has received a total of 222 applications that exceeded a value of £25,000, with a combined requested value of £12,442,052. Of these, 162 claims totalling £8,793,024 were subsequently approved for payment. All approved claims relate to the 2024/25 financial year, before the new cap came into effect.A total of 38 applications with a value in excess of £25k have been submitted since 1st April 2025. However, the value of grant award approved for payment against these claims was capped at £25k. I can confirm that since the annual cap of £25,000 per listed place of worship came into effect from 1 April 2025, no applicant has received funding above this £25,000 limit.

What assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the online Self Assessment Time to Pay system in reducing the number of late payment penalties.

HMRC’s Time to Pay (TTP) arrangements help taxpayers to pay their liabilities in affordable and sustainable instalments. Late payment penalties do not apply provided the plan is agreed before penalty trigger dates and instalments are paid on time. HMRC’s online TTP service for Self Assessment offers taxpayers the option to set up their own payment plans for Self Assessment debts up to £30,000. HMRC publishes data on TTP arrangements as part of its quarterly performance updates and in its Annual Report and Accounts. Over 90% of TTP arrangements are completed successfully, demonstrating their effectiveness in supporting compliance and reducing penalties.

Pursuant to the Answer of 20 Oct 2025 to Question 81532 on Taxis: Licensing, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the powers available to local licensing authorities for ensuring the effective enforcement of private-hire vehicles that are licensed in one authority but predominantly operate in another.

The Department for Transport is legislating to tackle inconsistent standards of taxi and private hire vehicle licensing. The English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill would enable the setting of national minimum standards in licensing.We are considering further options including in relation to out of area working and enforcement powers. In the interim, as recommended in the Department’s guidance to licensing authorities in England, enforcement officers should be jointly authorised by authorities where there is a need. The guidance also highlights that licensing authorities can seek further powers from their local police chief constables under the Community Safety Accreditation Scheme (CSAS).

What recent discussions she has had with the brewing and pub sector on business rates affordability following the November Budget.

The amount of business rates paid on each property is based on the rateable value of the property, assessed by the Valuation Office Agency (VOA), and the multiplier values, which are set by the Government. Rateable values are re-assessed every three years. Revaluations ensure that the rateable values of properties (i.e. the tax base) remain in line with market changes, and that the tax rates adjust to reflect changes in the tax base. At the Budget, the VOA announced updated property values from the 2026 revaluation. This revaluation is the first since Covid, which has led to significant increases in rateable values for some properties as they recover from the pandemic. To support with bill increases, at the Budget, the Government announced a support package worth £4.3 billion over the next three years, including protection for ratepayers seeing their bills increase because of the revaluation. As a result, over half of ratepayers will see no bill increases, including 23% seeing their bills go down. This means most properties seeing increases will see them capped at 15% or less next year, or £800 for the smallest. More broadly, the Government is delivering a long overdue reform to rebalance the business rates system and support the high street, as promised in our manifesto. The Government is doing this by introducing new permanently lower tax rates for eligible retail, hospitality and leisure (RHL) properties. These new tax rates are worth nearly £900 million per year, and will benefit over 750,000 properties, including those on the high street. The new RHL tax rates replace the temporary RHL relief that has been winding down since Covid. Unlike RHL relief, the new rates are permanent, giving businesses certainty and stability, and there will be no cap, meaning all qualifying properties on high streets across England will benefit. Treasury Ministers and officials engaged with a wide range of stakeholders across the pub and hospitality sector ahead of the Budget to discuss business rates.

How much funding was allocated to the Civil Service LGBT Plus Network in each of the last five years.

I refer you to the response given by Minister Gould to PQ43014 in April of this year which asked what the cost to the public purse was of this employee network. The Civil Service LGBT+ staff network is a volunteer collaborative group of Civil Service staff. The LGBT+ network does not hold a budget, but a department can choose to provide support where there is a business case to do so. We are not aware of any such financial support. There has been no cost to the public purse of the LGBT+ network since 2020. We do not hold any records prior to this date. The LGBT+ network was created in 2003.

What guidance has been issued to help civil servants distinguish between acceptable network activity and activity that may breach impartiality rules.

The Staff Network Policy was launched on 23 September 2025 and is applicable to all cross-Civil Service Staff networks, from this date. Departments have been strongly encouraged to adopt or align to this policy for their own departmental networks. The policy establishes a consistent framework to ensure all staff networks operate effectively, in line with the Civil Service code.

What criteria will guide decisions on whether an overnight stay levy is “modest” and appropriate for local areas; and will there be a cap.

The precise design and scope of the power for Mayors to introduce a visitor levy is still under development. Mayors will decide whether to introduce a levy and, if so, consult on specific proposals. We expect Mayors to engage constructively with businesses and their communities to hear their concerns. This will inform their decisions regarding whether and how a levy will be applied and how any revenue is spent. Giving this power to local leaders who best understand their region enables them to tailor it to growing their local economies The Government has published a consultation running until 18 February 2026, so that the public, businesses, and local government can shape the design of the power to introduce a levy that will be devolved to local leaders. The consultation seeks views on whether there should be a cap on the rate.

Innovation and Technology, what assessment she has made of the level of use of virtual private networks since July 2025.

The government and Ofcom continue to monitor the use of VPNs since the Child Safety Duties commenced in July.After these duties came into force, UK users of VPN apps temporarily doubled to around 1.5 million. Ofcom has since reported that VPN app usage dropped to around 900,000 by the end of November.There remains limited evidence on how many children use VPNs and the government is working to address this gap. We will ensure any future interventions are proportionate and driven by the evidence.

What assessment she has made of the prevalence of drug smuggling among illegal migrants who arrive in the UK via the Channel.

I refer the Hon. Member to the answer given to questions 71052, 71053 and 71054 on 4th September.

How many staff in her Department are permitted to undertake diversity-related network time during core working hours; and what proportion of overall working time are they permitted to spend on such network activity.

Participation in staff networks is primarily voluntary and carried out in addition to an employee’s job role.

Communities and Local Government, which level of local authority will be responsible for collecting the proposed tourist tax; and what estimate his Department has made of the administrative costs of implementing and collecting the tax.

The design and scope of the new visitor levy power is still under development. The government is consulting on whether local authorities or a national authority should be responsible for administering the Visitor Levy in England. The administrative costs of implementing and collecting any levies will depend on the decisions taken by Mayors, including whether they choose to bring forward a levy in their area. We are proposing that, should the levy be locally-administered, a small proportion of levy income be used to cover administrative costs, including staffing, systems and compliance activity.

What assessment she has made of the comparative operational performance of publicly owned rail operators versus privately owned rail operators since December 2024.

The Department for Transport holds all the operators that it funds to account for delivering performance for passengers. The Rail Minister meets regularly with the Managing Directors of train operators and their Network Rail counterparts to address poor performance and demand immediate action to raise standards. The table below shows the most recent data on levels of reliability and punctuality for DfT funded services over the past year. This compares operators currently in public ownership and shows that reliability is higher for operators currently in public ownership under DfT Operator Ltd (DFTO) compared to private sector operators contracted by DfT. Year to end to of last confirmed rail periodOperators currently in public ownershipOperators currently in private ownershipCancellationsTime to 3 punctuality CancellationsTime to 3 punctuality 10 November 2024 - 8 November 20253.3%82.8%4.7%81.8% “Time to 3 punctuality” refers to the proportion of trains calling at stations within three minutes of schedule.

What mechanisms exist for healthcare professionals to report poverty in people with terminal illnesses to the Department for Work and Pensions.

The Department for Work and Pensions does not ask healthcare professionals to report a patient’s poverty status.The Government remains committed to providing a financial safety net for those who need it. Support is available through the welfare system to those who are unable to work, are on a low income, or have additional costs as a consequence of a long-term health condition or disability but who are not eligible to pensioner benefits because of their age For those nearing the end of their life, the Government’s priority is to provide people with financial support quickly and compassionately. The main way this is applied is through the Special Rules for End of Life. These enable people who are nearing the end of their lives to get faster, easier access to certain benefits, without needing to attend a medical assessment or serve waiting periods, and in most cases, receive the highest rate of benefit.

How many staff in his Department are permitted to undertake diversity-related network time during core working hours; and what proportion of overall working time are they permitted to spend on such network activity.

DWP is transitioning its EDI Networks in line with the new Cabinet Office Guidance. Currently in DWP we have 8 Departmental EDI Networks. Each Network has 2 co-chairs who receive 25% time allowance and up to 10 committee members who receive 10%. When all roles are occupied (which is not the case currently) this equates to 12FTE. As of November 2025 DWP has an FTE of 84,699, so this equates to around 0.01% of working time. From April 2026, DWP will still have 8 Departmental EDI Networks. Each Network will have 2 co-chairs who receive 10% time allowance and up to 5 committee members who also receive 10%. EDI Community Network Chairs (of which we have 14) will also receive a 10% time allowance. If all roles are filled this will equate to 7FTE, a reduction of 5FTE.

Whether any train operator has failed to meet its performance benchmarks since entering public ownership.

Since April 2025, all operators funded by the Department - both public and private - have failed at least one performance benchmark. Performance is measured on a four-weekly basis against ambitious and realistic targets. We expect train operators to work consistently towards meeting these targets and delivering good performance for passengers. Recent data published by the Office for Road and Rail shows that reliability is higher for operators currently in public ownership under DfT Operator Ltd (DFTO) compared to private sector operators contracted by DfT.