Every parliamentary written question tabled by Bell Ribeiro-Addy this session, with the full answer and department. See how every department answers, or back to the MP page.
Showing 221–240 of 1,057 · this parliament
Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of his grey belt policy on Green Belt farmland in London.
I refer the hon. Member to the answers given to Questions UIN 26509 on 5 February 2025 and UIN 67891 on 23 July 2025.
Food and Rural Affairs, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a licensing system for gamebird shooting to deter raptor persecution.
The Government appreciates that many people hold strong views on the issue of gamebird shooting and there is evidence to suggest a link between it and raptor persecution. It is vital that wildlife and habitats are protected and that the law is respected by those involved in the activity. While Defra has not yet made any formal assessment of the potential merits of licensing gamebird shooting in England, it will continue to work to ensure a sustainable, mutually beneficial relationship between gamebird shooting and conservation.
What assessment he has made of the potential merits of aligning the National Minimum Wage with the National Living Wage.
We remain committed to removing the discriminatory adult age band. The latest increase to the NMW of 8.5% continues to close the gap between the minimum wage for 18- to 20-year-olds and the NLW rate, moving towards a single adult rate.The Department has published an Impact Assessment providing a comprehensive analysis of the 2026 National Minimum Wage rates.
Food and Rural Affairs, how many prosecutions have been brought in relation to offences involving the persecution of birds of prey in each of the last five years.
Defra does not hold official data on the number of prosecutions that have been brought in relation to offences involving the persecution of birds of prey. The Ministry of Justice does publish data on prosecutions for a wide range of offences, including offences relating to birds under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, but this is not broken down to a level to identify prosecutions for offences specifically involving birds of prey. Based on data published by the Ministry of Justice, in the last five years there have been 50 prosecutions for offences relating to birds under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. Data relating to specific offences against wild birds under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 can be sourced using the Outcomes by Offences data tool on the Criminal Justice Statistics website: Criminal justice statistics - GOV.UK.
Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to increase enforcement action against wildlife crime linked to gamebird shooting.
The Government takes all wildlife crime seriously, including offences linked to gamebird shooting. There are strong penalties in place for offences committed against wild animals. Most of these crimes incur a penalty of an unlimited fine and/or up to a six-month custodial sentence.Defra is a principal funder of the National Wildlife Crime Unit (NWCU), which helps prevent and detect wildlife crime and directly assists law enforcers in their investigations. Defra is providing 494,000 for the NWCU this year. In 2024, the NWCU launched the Hen Harrier Task Force (HTF) – a partnership designed to help tackle the illegal persecution of hen harriers, often associated with grouse shooting. Through the HTF, more efficient channels of communication, cooperation, and data sharing between partners such as Natural England, the RSPB, and the NWCU expedites the coordination of an effective enforcement response. The HTF represents a pivotal shift in combating wildlife crime; it is using innovative technology (such as tracking drones and specialised detection dogs) to overcome logistical challenges and enhance evidence collection in remote areas.
Food and Rural Affairs, how many (a) confirmed and (b) suspected criminal incidents involving Hen Harriers have been recorded in each of the last five years.
Criminal offences against hen harriers are currently not ‘notifiable’. This means police forces are not required to record and report figures on this type of crime to the Home Office for statistical and monitoring purposes. Defra therefore holds no official statistics on the number of confirmed criminal (or suspected) incidents involving hen harriers from the last five years. Any decision to make such offences notifiable sits with the Home Office rather than Defra.
Whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of setting the annual level of student maintenance support at a level equivalent to a year's salary paid at the National Living Wage for a 36 hour week.
The government is committed to supporting the aspiration of every person who meets the requirements and wants to go to university. However, it is essential we keep our higher education system financially sustainable.To help students from the most disadvantaged backgrounds progress and excel in higher education, we are future proofing our maintenance offer by increasing loans for living costs in line with forecast inflation every academic year. This approach ensures that students from the lowest income families receive the largest year-on-year cash increases in support and provides long term certainty on the financial support students will receive while studying.The department will also provide extra support for care leavers, who will automatically become eligible to receive the maximum rate of loan from the 2026/27 academic year.Additionally, we are reintroducing targeted, means-tested maintenance grants, providing disadvantaged students with up to £1,000 extra per year on top of existing loans for living costs from the 2028/29 academic year.
How many applications were made to the Places of Worship Protective Security Scheme; how many were successful and whether she will provide a breakdown of applicants by religious group.
This Government is committed to protecting the right of individuals to freely practise their religion at their chosen place of worship, and to ensuring that our streets and communities remain safe.This funding is provided for all faiths except the Jewish and Muslim faiths who are funded for their protective security needs through separate schemes. In total, the Government is providing up to £70.9m to protect faith communities in 2025/26.To safeguard the integrity of the scheme and ensure the continued protection of vulnerable sites, the Home Office does not publish the total number of successful applications, or any breakdown of applicants by religious group. Disclosure of this information could inadvertently reveal sensitive details about specific communities and their security needs.
With reference to the New Approach to Africa framework, published on 9 January 2025, how his Department plans to promote UK-Africa trade interests and protect import sensitive products.
Our new approach to Africa will place mutual growth at the centre of our relationships with the region. We have strengthened UK-Africa trade by building on the Developing Countries Trading Scheme, which will simplify trading rules, boost African exports, and support growth. We support the African Continental Free Trade Area through a Regional Cumulation Group which allows producers to source inputs from up to 50 countries. Our Economic Partnership Agreements with 15 African countries support development by providing duty-free access and, boosting imports into the UK from these countries, while allowing African partners to protect sensitive products through tariffs and safeguards.
How many (a) mosques and (b) associated Muslim faith community centre have applied for the Protective Security for Mosques Scheme; and how many of them have been (i) accepted and (ii) denied.
This Government is committed to protecting the right of individuals to freely practise their religion at their chosen place of worship, and to ensuring that our streets and communities remain safe.That is why up to £39.4 million is available through the Protective Security for Mosques Scheme in 2025/26. This includes additional funding announced by the Prime Minister of £10 million to further strengthen security at mosques and other Muslim community sites. The scheme provides protective security measures (such as security personnel services, CCTV, intruder alarms and secure perimeter fencing) to mosques, Muslim faith schools and associated Muslim faith community centres.To safeguard the integrity of the scheme and ensure the continued protection of vulnerable sites, the Home Office does not publish the total number of successful applications. Disclosure of this information could inadvertently reveal sensitive details about specific communities and their security needs.
What steps her Department is taking to increase awareness of the Protective Security for Mosques Scheme in the context of rising attacks on mosques.
The Protective Security for Mosques Scheme provides successful applicants with physical protective security measures and/or security guarding, depending on individual needs. For the year 25/26, £39.4m is available for this purpose, including the £10m emergency cash injection announced by the Prime Minister in October 2025.Information on the scheme is publicly available via GOV.UK and easily accessible online.
Whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential implications of the registration of birth provisions in the Births and Deaths Registration Act 1953 on the equal treatment of both parents.
No assessment of any potential implications of the registration of birth provisions in the Births and Deaths Registration Act 1953 on the equal treatment of both parents has been made.
What recent discussions he has had with his international counterparts on the completion of Costa Rica's accession to the CPTPP.
I attended a Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) ministerial meeting in Melbourne in November and a more recent virtual meeting, at which we discussed the progress made by Costa Rica to join the agreement. I have also spoken about this with several of my counterparts in bilateral meetings.The UK looks forward to Costa Rica’s Accession Working Group concluding soon and continuing the expansion of CPTPP.
How many (a) synagogues, (b) Jewish educational establishments and (c) community organisations have applied to the Jewish Community Protective Security Grant; and how many of them have been (i) accepted and (ii) denied.
To support Jewish communities in the UK, the Community Security Trust (CST) has been allocated £28 million in 2025/26 through the Jewish Community Protective Security (JCPS) Grant. This includes £10 million in additional emergency funding announced by the Prime Minister on 16 October following the terrorist attack at Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue. This funding enables the CST to deploy enhanced security personnel and physical security measures such as CCTV, alarms and floodlighting-across synagogues, Jewish educational establishments and other community sites.The Home Office does not publish a breakdown of recipient sites by category, nor does it publish data on applications or their outcomes. The scheme is delivered operationally by CST, and funding allocations are based on assessed security need rather than an application-based model.
Whether Government contracts were discussed with Palantir at the Prime Minister's meeting at Palantir's offices in Washington on 27 February 2025.
The visit was part of the Prime Minister's trip to Washington. During this visit the Prime Minister listened to a short presentation about Palantir’s work, followed by a tour of the premises and an introduction to members of staff. In December 2025, the MOD signed an extension to the Enterprise Agreement with Palantir that had been initially awarded in November 2022, by the previous Government, and via a direct award. This extension covered existing services and ensured there was no drop-off in MOD capability in critical areas. This contract - and all other contracts for any firm - go through the usual rigorous departmental processes and their decision makers.
What steps her Department is taking to help ensure that children in care have their citizenship status resolved before turning 18.
Children seeking to register as a British citizen will have the fee waived if they are able to credibly demonstrate that they cannot afford the fee. In addition, where an application has been made by or on behalf of a child who is looked after by a Local Authority, no fee is payable and it is not necessary for the child’s financial circumstances to be evidenced.Since 16 June 2022, when the fee exemption for registering looked after children as British citizens was introduced, the Home Office has proactively engaged with every local authority. This work has focused on informing and supporting them to understand the exemption and the full range of citizenship registration options available to children under local authority care and supporting them with bespoke communication channels for local authorities to assist on a case-by-case basis.In addition, a person over the age of 18 who missed out on becoming a British citizen as a child may qualify for registration under section 4L of the British Nationality Act 1981 in certain circumstances. That provision can be used where an applicant can demonstrate that they would have been able to become British while a child in care.In the Restoring control over the immigration system: white paper, which was published on 12 May 2025, we stated that consideration will be made to removing financial barriers to acquiring British citizenship for young adults who have lived their entire lives in the UK.
Whether his Department plans to (a) reinstate and (b) standardise NHS provision of ear wax removal in primary care.
Integrated care boards (ICBs) have a statutory responsibility to commission cost-effective healthcare to meet the needs of their local population. This includes commissioning ear wax removal services in line with the recommendations for ear wax removal as set out in guidance produced by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), which is available at the following link: https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng98/chapter/Recommendations This may involve commissioning general practices (GPs) or other providers, to whom GPs may refer patients, to provide ear wax removal services. Manual ear syringing is no longer advised by NICE due to the risks associated with it, such as trauma to their ear drum or infection, so GPs will often recommend home treatment remedies to alleviate ear wax build-up. However, in line with the NICE’s guidance, a person may require ear wax removal treatment if the build-up of earwax is linked with hearing loss. A GP may then refer the patient into audiology services, which ICBs are responsible for commissioning.
What steps his Department has taken to ensure that GP practices are able to provide NHS-funded ear wax removal services, particularly for patients at risk of hearing loss.
Integrated care boards (ICBs) have a statutory responsibility to commission cost-effective healthcare to meet the needs of their local population. This includes commissioning ear wax removal services in line with the recommendations for ear wax removal as set out in guidance produced by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), which is available at the following link: https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng98/chapter/Recommendations This may involve commissioning general practices (GPs) or other providers, to whom GPs may refer patients, to provide ear wax removal services. Manual ear syringing is no longer advised by NICE due to the risks associated with it, such as trauma to their ear drum or infection, so GPs will often recommend home treatment remedies to alleviate ear wax build-up. However, in line with the NICE’s guidance, a person may require ear wax removal treatment if the build-up of earwax is linked with hearing loss. A GP may then refer the patient into audiology services, which ICBs are responsible for commissioning.
What steps she is taking to help ensure that children eligible for British citizenship are able to afford the application fee for citizenship.
Children seeking to register as a British citizen will have the fee waived if they are able to credibly demonstrate that they cannot afford the fee. In addition, where an application has been made by or on behalf of a child who is looked after by a Local Authority, no fee is payable and it is not necessary for the child’s financial circumstances to be evidenced.Since 16 June 2022, when the fee exemption for registering looked after children as British citizens was introduced, the Home Office has proactively engaged with every local authority. This work has focused on informing and supporting them to understand the exemption and the full range of citizenship registration options available to children under local authority care and supporting them with bespoke communication channels for local authorities to assist on a case-by-case basis.In addition, a person over the age of 18 who missed out on becoming a British citizen as a child may qualify for registration under section 4L of the British Nationality Act 1981 in certain circumstances. That provision can be used where an applicant can demonstrate that they would have been able to become British while a child in care.In the Restoring control over the immigration system: white paper, which was published on 12 May 2025, we stated that consideration will be made to removing financial barriers to acquiring British citizenship for young adults who have lived their entire lives in the UK.
If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of amending the Births and Deaths Registration Act 1953 to include registration of the father during a registration of birth, unless reason to omit this information is given.
There are currently no plans to change the Births and Deaths Registration Act 1953 to amend the circumstances in which the father’s details may be entered on a birth registration. The latest available data from the Office for National Statistics shows that, in 2024, over 95% of registrations included the details of both parents.