Written questions by Stephenson.

If she will make an assessment of the effectiveness of support for the police to tackle breaches of HGV restrictions.

Police have a range of powers to direct HGV drivers suspected of breaching restrictions off the road and issue fixed penalty notices for breaches. Enforcement of these powers is an operational matter for local forces.The police are supported in their HGV enforcement activities by the DVSA who also undertake enforcement activity on HGVs and share information and access to databases.

If she will make an assessment of the potential impact of Electronic Travel Authorisations on the economy.

The introduction of our ETA scheme is in line with the approach international partners, like the USA and Australia have already taken to border security. ETAs enhance our ability to pre-screen travellers and prevent the travel of those who pose a threat.They are a proportionate measure, supporting a quicker and more secure journey for millions of people who pass through the UK border each year.

If she will make an assessment of the potential impact of recent increases in the cost of Electronic Travel Authorisations on future trends in economic growth over the next five years.

The published Impact Assessment supporting the Immigration and Nationality (Fees) Order provides provisional estimates of economic impacts from increasing ETA fees from current levels to the proposed fee maxima: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukia/2025/9/pdfs/ukia_20250009_en.pdf

What steps her Department plans to take to help tackle financial fraud.

This Government is committed to working with law enforcement, industry and international partners to tackle financial fraud. This includes blocking fraud at its source, disrupting it before it reaches the public, and providing preventative advice and support such as our “Stop! Think Fraud” campaign.Further industry action includes potential legislative action to ban “SIM farms”, technical devices that allow criminals to send scam texts to thousands of people at the same time, and the Online Safety Act codes of practice which will come into effect in March.We are working closely with partners to develop a new expanded Strategy as set out in our manifesto. Further details on our approach will be set out in due course.

What estimate she has made of the potential impact of the increased cost of electronic travel authorisations on the number of annual visitors to the United Kingdom.

The Home Office has published an impact assessment for the recently proposed increases in maximum fees for certain immigration and nationality functions, which includes modelling for numbers of electronic travel authorisation (ETA) applications.ETAs are being introduced to enhance our ability to screen travellers upstream and stop those who pose a threat from travelling to the UK. ETAs will deliver a more streamlined, digital immigration system which will be quicker and more secure for the millions of people who pass through the UK border each year.

What steps her Department is taking through the immigration system to support the ambition of 50 million inbound tourism visitors by 2030.

The UK continues to welcome tourists from across the globe, who make an important contribution to the UK economy and enrich British culture. The UK Standard Visitor route offers individuals the ability to visit the UK for a temporary period, (usually for up to a maximum period of 6 months), for purposes such as tourism and visiting friends or family. Visitors may enter multiple times and regular travellers to the UK have the option of applying for longer term validity visas of 2-, 5- and 10-years duration.As part of our border transformation programme, we are creating a streamlined, digital immigration system which will be quicker and more secure for the millions of people who pass through each year and will enhance the security of the UK. This will include a digital approach to applying for permission to travel, proving identity and immigration status, crossing the border, and demonstrating entitlements in the UK. eVisas are a key part of this, enhancing applicants’ experience, delivering excellent value, and increasing security and efficiency.We are also introducing our Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) scheme which applies to those passengers visiting the UK who do not currently need a visa for short stays and do not have a valid UK immigration status prior to travelling. People providing their information in advance of travel paves the way for increased automation at the border, with security at the forefront.The ETA scheme currently applies to all eligible non-European non-visa nations. From 5 March, it will be extended to all eligible Europeans and will be a requirement for travel for this cohort from 2 April.Alongside British and Irish citizens, nationals of an EU/EEA country, Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea, Switzerland and the USA, who are over the age of 10 are normally eligible to use eGates to enter the UK. Frequent travellers who are members of the Registered Traveller service are also eligible to use eGates. We encourage all eligible passengers to make use of our e Gates where possible as they provide a safe, secure and efficient way of crossing the UK border.We continue to keep our borders and immigration system under review to ensure that it works in the national interest.

What steps she is taking to help tackle dangerous driving in rural areas.

Any form of dangerous driving is a serious road safety issue. Dangerous driving is the offence of driving far below the standard that would be expected of a careful and competent driver. The maximum sentence for dangerous driving is an unlimited fine, disqualification and up to 14 years in prison.How the police enforce road traffic legislation and investigate road traffic offences is an operational matter for the local chief officer, in conjunction with Police and Crime Commissioners.

If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a statutory duty for firefighters in England to respond to flooding.

Defra is the Lead Government Department for flooding, and they are responsible for the response to and prevention of flooding. Fire and Rescue Authorities have duties under the Civil Contingencies Act (2004) to prepare for emergencies, including major flooding. Fire Rescue Authorities also have discretionary powers to respond to incidents under their general powers in the Fire and Rescue Services Act (2004) and in response to the risks set out in their Community Risk Management Plans prepared under the National Framework.The Home Office is undertaking further work alongside Defra, National Fire Chiefs Council and other relevant stakeholders to understand in more detail if there are gaps in the Fire and Rescue Services flooding response and resilience system.