Written questions by Law.

How many business owners employing those arrested in illegal working raids since 1 July 2024 are being (a) investigated and (b) have been prosecuted under modern slavery offences.

The Home Office take the issues of illegal working and modern slavery seriously and continues to take robust enforcement action against those who breach immigration and modern slavery laws.The Home Office does not hold data in a format that identifies how many business owners employing individuals arrested during illegal working enforcement operations since 1 July 2024 are being investigated or have been prosecuted under offences in the Modern Slavery Act 2015.Our enforcement approach prioritises administrative sanctions as the most effective means of tackling illegal working and ensuring compliance. Where evidence of criminality, including modern slavery, is identified during enforcement activity, cases are referred to the appropriate authorities for investigation and prosecution.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 23 October 2025 to Question 76596 and the Answer of 12 January 2023 to Question 119101 on Guantanamo Bay: Closures, which Ministers were involved in the decision to change the UK Government's policy on the closure of the Guantanamo Bay Detention Facility.

The Hon Member will be aware that it has been the stated intention of the US administration since January 2025 to expand the facilities at Naval Station Guantanamo Bay to serve as a large-scale migration detention centre. As stated in the answer to Question 76596, that remains a matter for the US.

Pursuant to the Answer of 23 October 2025 to Question 76596 and the Answer of 12 January 2023 to Question 119101 on Guantanamo Bay: Closures, whether her Department's policy on granting visas to former Guantanamo Bay detainees has changed following its decision to change its policy on the closure of the Guantanamo Bay Detention Facility.

The first priority of Government is protecting national security and the safety of UK citizens.The Home Office uses various tools to detect and disrupt travel by those posing a national security risk and all applications for visas or UK immigration status are subject to comprehensive checks.It would not be appropriate to comment in detail on operational security matters or specific cases. However, where an individual is assessed as presenting a risk to our country, we take swift and robust action.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 23 October 2025 to Question 76596 and the Answer of 12 January 2023 to Question 119101 on Guantanamo Bay: Closures, what assessment she has made of the potential impact on the UK's international human rights obligations of the change in her Department's policy on the closure of the Guantanamo Bay Detention Facility.

The Hon Member will be aware that it has been the stated intention of the US administration since January 2025 to expand the facilities at Naval Station Guantanamo Bay to serve as a large-scale migration detention centre. As stated in the answer to Question 76596, that remains a matter for the US.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 23 October 2025 to Question 76596 and the Answer of 12 January 2023 to Question 119101 on Guantanamo Bay: Closures, on what date did her Department change its policy on the closure of the Guantanamo Bay Detention Facility.

The Hon Member will be aware that it has been the stated intention of the US administration since January 2025 to expand the facilities at Naval Station Guantanamo Bay to serve as a large-scale migration detention centre. As stated in the answer to Question 76596, that remains a matter for the US.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 23 October 2025 to Question 76596 and the Answer of 12 January 2023 to Question 119101 on Guantanamo Bay: Closures, what discussions did her Department have with its US counterparts ahead of the decision to change the UK Government's policy on the closure of the Guantanamo Bay Detention Facility.

The Hon Member will be aware that it has been the stated intention of the US administration since January 2025 to expand the facilities at Naval Station Guantanamo Bay to serve as a large-scale migration detention centre. As stated in the answer to Question 76596, that remains a matter for the US.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what her timetable is for making a decision on the future of ODA funding for programmes in Malawi.

The Foreign Secretary was grateful for the First Minister's letter and will respond to the issues raised in due course.Our focus in Malawi remains on supporting resilience to climate and environment shocks, strengthening health systems and education outcomes, and supporting economic growth and improved governance.We are committed to a modern development partnership with Malawi, using UK expertise to support Malawians with their own reforms. Detailed decisions are currently being worked through on how our aid budget will be used from 2026/27 to 2028/29, and we plan to publish indicative allocations in the coming months.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of her Department's ODA programmes in Malawi on helping that country make progress toward the Sustainable Development Goals.

The Foreign Secretary was grateful for the First Minister's letter and will respond to the issues raised in due course.Our focus in Malawi remains on supporting resilience to climate and environment shocks, strengthening health systems and education outcomes, and supporting economic growth and improved governance.We are committed to a modern development partnership with Malawi, using UK expertise to support Malawians with their own reforms. Detailed decisions are currently being worked through on how our aid budget will be used from 2026/27 to 2028/29, and we plan to publish indicative allocations in the coming months.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions her officials have had with counterparts in the Scottish Government on the (a) alignment between and (b) potential impact of ODA programmes funded by both Governments in Malawi.

The Foreign Secretary was grateful for the First Minister's letter and will respond to the issues raised in due course.Our focus in Malawi remains on supporting resilience to climate and environment shocks, strengthening health systems and education outcomes, and supporting economic growth and improved governance.We are committed to a modern development partnership with Malawi, using UK expertise to support Malawians with their own reforms. Detailed decisions are currently being worked through on how our aid budget will be used from 2026/27 to 2028/29, and we plan to publish indicative allocations in the coming months.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what criteria she plans to use to determine whether her Department should continue to provide ODA funding for programmes in Malawi.

The Foreign Secretary was grateful for the First Minister's letter and will respond to the issues raised in due course.Our focus in Malawi remains on supporting resilience to climate and environment shocks, strengthening health systems and education outcomes, and supporting economic growth and improved governance.We are committed to a modern development partnership with Malawi, using UK expertise to support Malawians with their own reforms. Detailed decisions are currently being worked through on how our aid budget will be used from 2026/27 to 2028/29, and we plan to publish indicative allocations in the coming months.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if she will publish a response to the letter addressed to her published by the First Minister of Scotland on 14 December 2025.

The Foreign Secretary was grateful for the First Minister's letter and will respond to the issues raised in due course.Our focus in Malawi remains on supporting resilience to climate and environment shocks, strengthening health systems and education outcomes, and supporting economic growth and improved governance.We are committed to a modern development partnership with Malawi, using UK expertise to support Malawians with their own reforms. Detailed decisions are currently being worked through on how our aid budget will be used from 2026/27 to 2028/29, and we plan to publish indicative allocations in the coming months.

How many official visits a) to Scotland and b) abroad the Prime Minister has made since 4 July 2024.

Prime Ministerial travel is published on gov.uk and includes both domestic and international visits. The Prime Minister’s first ever official visit as Prime Minister was to Scotland.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how much Official Development Assistance was allocated to Malawi in each of the last ten financial years.

Details of UK ministers' bilateral meetings with overseas counterparts are routinely published on GOV.UK, details of ministerial travel overseas are set out in the Government's quarterly transparency releases, and details of funding allocations for individual countries and programmes can be found using the Development Tracker tool on GOV.UK.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, on how many occasions the Minister of State (International Development and Africa) has visited Malawi since 4 July 2024.

Details of UK ministers' bilateral meetings with overseas counterparts are routinely published on GOV.UK, details of ministerial travel overseas are set out in the Government's quarterly transparency releases, and details of funding allocations for individual countries and programmes can be found using the Development Tracker tool on GOV.UK.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, on how many occasions the Prime Minister has met with his Malawian counterpart since 4 July 2024.

Details of UK ministers' bilateral meetings with overseas counterparts are routinely published on GOV.UK, details of ministerial travel overseas are set out in the Government's quarterly transparency releases, and details of funding allocations for individual countries and programmes can be found using the Development Tracker tool on GOV.UK.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, on how many occasions she has visited Malawi since 4 July 2024.

Details of UK ministers' bilateral meetings with overseas counterparts are routinely published on GOV.UK, details of ministerial travel overseas are set out in the Government's quarterly transparency releases, and details of funding allocations for individual countries and programmes can be found using the Development Tracker tool on GOV.UK.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, on how many occasions she has met with her Malawian counterpart since 4 July 2024.

Details of UK ministers' bilateral meetings with overseas counterparts are routinely published on GOV.UK, details of ministerial travel overseas are set out in the Government's quarterly transparency releases, and details of funding allocations for individual countries and programmes can be found using the Development Tracker tool on GOV.UK.

How many private aircraft landed at Leuchars Station between 28 September 2025 and 6th October 2025.

A total of twenty civil private aircraft used Leuchars during that period.

If he will make an assessment of the potential economic impact of foreign government subsidies on the competitiveness of UK natural stone producers; and whether the Government plans to introduce targeted support for UK SMEs in the sector.

The Trade Remedies Authority (TRA) is the UK’s investigatory body that exists to defend the UK against unfair international trade practices, including foreign government subsidies. I encourage UK industry to engage directly with the TRA if they believe they are being injured by unfair trading practices as it will be for the TRA to decide whether evidentiary thresholds to initiate a trade remedies investigation are met. The Department remains vigilant to any reports of potential injury to industries from unfair trading practices and regularly engages with the natural stone sector. We have no specific plans to introduce the specific kind of support he refers to.

What assessment his Department has made of the contribution of natural stone and other low-carbon materials to reducing embodied carbon in the UK construction sector.

The department is currently developing policies that will help grow the market for low carbon industrial products, including green procurement and improved carbon accounting. The initial focus of these policies is steel, cement, and concrete products used in construction. The department recently ran a technical consultation that included questions on whether other industrial sectors should be included in the scope of these policies in future. Although natural stone was not explicitly mentioned in the consultation, it would align with one of the options; to take a strategic approach to expand these policies to other sectors related to construction. The department is currently reviewing the responses to this consultation and will publish a summary and its own response in due course. The government also recognises the role that whole life carbon assessments can play in helping developers to evaluate carbon emissions across all stages of a building or structure’s life. This approach can support decision makers to adopt materials which have a lower overall environmental impact. Whole life carbon assessments are embedded into green procurement approaches being taken by government departments, such as instituting carbon management plans. The department would welcome engagement with any interested stakeholders from the natural stone sector.