Written questions by Goldsborough.

What (a) operating system and (b) version of that operating system is used at (i) Sevington inland border facility and (ii) other border control posts.

Our Border IT systems have a range of measures in place to ensure they can continue to run critical services in the event of any major service issues. This includes critical incident, crisis and business continuity plans depending on the nature of the issue and what is impacted. It would not be appropriate to document the specific detail of those measures.

What steps her Department is taking to help ensure Border Control facilities have back-up plans in place in case of IT (a) systems failures and (b) service provider outages.

Our Border IT systems have a range of measures in place to ensure they can continue to run critical services in the event of any major service issues. This includes critical incident, crisis and business continuity plans depending on the nature of the issue and what is impacted. It would not be appropriate to document the specific detail of those measures.

What steps her Department is taking to ensure Border Control IT systems operate with full functionality.

Our Border IT systems have a range of measures in place to ensure they can continue to run critical services in the event of any major service issues. This includes critical incident, crisis and business continuity plans depending on the nature of the issue and what is impacted. It would not be appropriate to document the specific detail of those measures.

When the IT system at Sevington inland border facility was last updated.

Our Border IT systems have a range of measures in place to ensure they can continue to run critical services in the event of any major service issues. This includes critical incident, crisis and business continuity plans depending on the nature of the issue and what is impacted. It would not be appropriate to document the specific detail of those measures.

What assessment she has made of the potential merits of making training on the theft of heritage metal a mandatory requirement for acquiring a scrap metal dealer licence.

This Government recognises the distress and disruption that heritage theft can cause to local communities. The Scrap Metal Dealers Act 2013 was introduced to reduce metal theft by strengthening regulation of the scrap metal industry. The Act requires scrap metal dealers to obtain a licence from their local authority and to verify the identity of those selling the scrap metal. We do not currently plan to introduce a mandatory requirement for training. However, our supplementary guidance makes clear that scrap metal dealers must understand the legal obligations of holding a scrap metal dealer’s licence, and may wish to undertake training to ensure they understand the requirements they must comply with under the Act. The licensing authority may take training into account when considering whether an applicant is a suitable person to hold a licence. More broadly, we have supported the work of Historic England which leads on a number of initiatives to tackle heritage crime, particularly theft of metal from church roofs and other buildings primarily in rural locations. Historic England also works with the National Infrastructure Crime Reduction Partnership to provide training to scrap metal dealers on how to identify heritage metal which may have potentially been stolen, and provides guidance to assist in the identification of specialist metals.

Whether her Department has considered the potential merits of legislating to ensure that all crimes committed (a) on and (b) against a designated heritage site are provided with a single heritage crime recording code.

Legislation is not required to introduce a specific crime recording code within the Home Office Counting Rules for police recorded crime.At present, one offence relating to designated heritage sites damage to certain ancient monuments under Section 28 of the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979 is recorded within the broader category of criminal damage.There are no plans to introduce a separate recording code to disaggregate ‘heritage crime’ from the broader range of offences which may be committed at designated heritage sites in addition to damage, including crimes such as theft. This is because, in introducing new categories, consideration needs to be given to the insight such additional data will yield when compared to the additional administrative burden it will place on police forces. Unless such incidents are investigated by specialist heritage crime officers, it is unlikely that most investigating officers will know whether a damaged site is a scheduled heritage site or be aware of the need to record such incidents under such specific codes.

Whether her Department has considered the potential merits of legislating to ensure that the (a) historic and (b) cultural value of heritage metal is considered in prosecutions for metal theft.

This Government recognises the distress and disruption that heritage theft can cause to local communities.That is why the sentencing guidelines on theft were amended in 2016 to highlight that where theft is of heritage assets or causes disruption to infrastructure, this should be taken into account when assessing the level of harm caused.

What estimate her Department has made of the financial cost of heritage crime in each of the last 10 years.

This Government recognises the distress and disruption that heritage theft and vandalism can cause to local communities. We have supported the work of Historic England which leads on a number of initiatives to tackle heritage crime, particularly theft from church roofs and other buildings primarily in rural locations.We all have a part to play in preventing heritage crime. For example, the Heritage Watch scheme, a project brought together by Historic England and Country Eye Ltd encourages communities and other partners to get involved in protecting heritage buildings, by knowing how to spot the signs a crime has taken place and making it easier for local residents to report these crimes.There is no separate recording code to disaggregate ‘heritage crime’ from the broader range of offences involved, such as theft, vandalism, arson and anti-social behaviour. The Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 provides the police, local authorities and other agencies with a range of powers to tackle anti-social behaviour, including damage to heritage sites caused by vandalism or graffiti.

What assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the proposed changes to the Skilled Workers visa route on recruitment in (a) the biological sciences research sector, (b) universities and (c) the NHS.

On 12 May, we published our Immigration White Paper, outlining our future approach to legal migration routes. We have now made Immigration Rules changes to bring the first of these reforms into effect.It is our intention to publish an Impact Assessment (IA) at the earliest opportunity. A technical annex (www.gov.uk/government/publications/restoring-control-over-the-immigration-system-white-paper/restoring-control-over-the-immigration-system-technical-annex) was published alongside the Immigration White Paper setting out the impact of some of the key policy changes.

How many Border Force staff have been allocated to fast parcels in each of the last 10 financial years.

As an intelligence-informed organisation, Border Force do not disclose specific details regarding the deployment of resources to individual border threats. This is to ensure the integrity of our operations, and avoid compromising the effectiveness of our security response, which is based upon real time intelligence and operational sensitivity.

What steps her Department is taking to reduce speeding on rural lanes and highways.

Excess speed is still a major cause of death and serious injury on our roads. Anyone who breaks the speed limit should expect to face sanction.Enforcement of speeding offences in rural lanes and highways and the deployment of available resources and capabilities is an operational matter for individual Chief Constables and Police and Crime Commissioners to determine, taking into account the specific local problems and demands with which they are faced.

What steps her Department is taking to reduce shoplifting in rural convenience stores.

In the last year of the previous government, shop theft soared to a twenty-year high, with more and more offenders using violence and abuse against shopworkers. We will not stand for this.No matter where you live, we are clear that when you report a crime, it should be properly investigated with victims having faith justice will be delivered and criminals will face meaningful consequences.We will introduce a new offence of assaulting a retail worker to protect the hardworking and dedicated staff that work in stores. We will also end the effective immunity, introduced by the last government, granted to shop theft of goods of and under £200. This will remove any perception that offenders will escape punishment.We will also provide over £7 million over the next three financial years to support the police tackling retail crime.

What steps her Department is taking to reduce crime in rural villages.

Rural crime can have devastating consequences for countryside communities.That is why this Government is committed to reducing crime in rural areas.Under our Safer Streets Mission, rural communities will be safeguarded, with tougher measures to clamp down on anti-social behaviour, strengthened neighbourhood policing and stronger measures to prevent farm theft and fly-tipping.The Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee will deliver thousands of neighbourhood police and community support officers, across England and Wales, including in rural areas, to speed up response times and build public confidence. This Government is clear that when you report a crime, it should be properly investigated with victims having faith that justice will be delivered, and criminals will be punished – no matter where you live.We are also committed to implementing the Equipment Theft (Prevention) Act 2023 to fend off the theft and re-sale of high-value equipment, particularly for use in an agricultural setting.