Written questions by Stafford.

Whether Defending Democracy Taskforce has made an assessment of the potential impact of convicted terrorists standing for elected public office on levels of national security.

The Defending Democracy Taskforce coordinates work across Government to continually review and respond to the full range of threats to our democratic system, working closely with the security and intelligence agencies, law enforcement and other partners.I refer the Hon Member to the question answered by Minister McGovern on 9 March 2026.

Whether any services provided by Yoti are currently used in Home Office identity verification, border control, or age assurance systems.

Details of central government contracts above £12,000 for procurements commenced before 24 February 2025 are published on Contracts Finder. Contracts procured under the Procurement Act 2023, which came into force on 24 February 2025, are published on the Central Digital Platform Find a Tender service.

What guidance her Department provides to police forces on the disposal of seized off-road electric motorbikes.

Decisions on the methods of disposal of seized vehicles are operational matters for individual police forces, or the recovery bodies acting on their behalf, to determine.The police have powers under section 59 of the Police Reform Act 2002 to seize vehicles, including off-road electric motorbikes. The Government intends, though the Crime and Policing Bill, to give the police greater powers to clamp down on all vehicles being used anti-socially with officers no longer required to issue a section 59 warning before seizure can occur.

Whether she has made an assessment of the risk to public safety arising from the publication of sensitive information relating to the physical security of properties on local authority planning registers.

I refer the Hon. Member to the answer given to UIN 106884 on 27 January 2026 by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.

What assessment the Department has made of the potential impact of refusal to grant temporary visas to overseas sheep shearers on rural farming communities and animal welfare.

Immigration Rules concessionary arrangements are temporary and subject to regular Ministerial review. The sheep shearing concession had been operating for 14 years and closed after the 2025 shearing season as it reasonable to expect that over this period a long-term sustainable solution had been found to fill this workforce gap. To provide plenty of time to plan and transition to new arrangements DEFRA and the sector was informed last year that the concession would not be renewed again.In addition, those in the UK on visas which allow general work rights, such as dependants or Youth Mobility Scheme visa holders, are free to take up work as a sheep shearer subject to the relevant visa restrictions.

For what reason dual British-Australian nationals, including children of such nationals who were born in Australia, will be required to hold a UK passport or a Certificate of Entitlement to enter the UK from 26 February 2026; what steps her Department is taking to support such people; and for what reason such requirements do not apply to dual British-Irish nationals.

Under UK immigration legislation, a dual British Citizen is not eligible for an Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA). Dual British citizens should prove their permission to travel and enter the UK border with a valid British passport or a passport containing a Certificate of Entitlement (CoE) to the right of abode. Without either of these documents, they risk being refused boarding when travelling to the UK from 25 February 2026. We have delivered a comprehensive range of communications and engaged with an extensive network of stakeholders, including global carriers and operators. We have sent emails to those impacted and have included information for dual citizens in our ETA communications campaign which has been running since 2023.Irish citizens, including dual citizens, are also exempt from the ETA requirement.

What assessment the Government has made of the potential impact of historical sex-based discrimination in British nationality law on individuals born to British mothers prior to January 1983.

Legislative reforms made through the British Nationality Act 1981 removed previous sex-based restrictions on the acquisition of British nationality. Further changes made in 2003 and 2022 provide routes for individuals born before 1983 to claim citizenship under sections 4C and 4L of the 1981 Act, where they were previously unable to become British due to historical legislative unfairness.

What assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of permitting Abu Wadee to (a) enter and (b) remain in the United Kingdom on (i) national security and (ii) public safety; and what checks were undertaken on previous statements, associations and activities relating to antisemitism and extremist ideology before any decision was taken.

The Home Office does not routinely comment on individual cases.The first priority of government is protecting national security. All applications for UK immigration status, including asylum claims, are subject to comprehensive security checks. Where an individual is assessed as presenting a risk to our country, we take swift and robust action.The Home Office uses various tools to detect and disrupt travel by individuals of national security interest and by individuals excluded from the UK; previously deported from the UK; or using lost, stolen or revoked documents and visas. This includes the use of domestic and international watchlists.

What assessment she has made of the compatibility of the Socialist Workers Party with the criteria for proscription.

To proscribe an organisation the Home Secretary must have a reasonable belief that it is currently concerned in terrorism, and it must be necessary and proportionate to do so. This means the organisation participates or commits; prepares for; promotes, encourages, or unlawfully glorifies; or is in some way otherwise concerned in terrorism. The Home Secretary may then exercise her discretion to proscribe an organisation and will consider all the relevant factors in deciding whether to do so.It is our long-standing policy not to comment on intelligence and security matters, including whether or not an organisation is under consideration for proscription.

What vetting processes are in place to prevent people with a history of violence or extremism from being granted asylum, in the context of recent developments in the Middle East.

All asylum claimants are subject to mandatory security checks to establish their identity and to link it to their biometric details for the purpose of immigration, security and criminality checks. These checks are critical to the delivery of a safe and secure immigration system.In line with the Refugee Convention, we will apply the relevant exclusion criteria and deny the benefits of refugee status to those who commit serious crimes and are a danger to the community or those who are a threat to national security.Extremists and other criminals who are denied protection status who cannot be removed because doing so would breach our obligations under the European Convention on Human Rights, may be granted shorter more restrictive leave and will be subject to regular review. They are not eligible for the same range of benefits as those with protection status and cannot qualify for settlement. Such individuals are not welcome in the UK and will be removed at the earliest opportunity.

What steps she has taken to ensure that (a) the Border Force and (b) UK national security agencies are aware of the identities of high-risk individuals released in prisoner exchanges in the Middle East.

The Home Secretary has not had any engagement with Israeli authorities to discuss these matters. Since October 2023, a specialist team of experts from the FCDO have been providing support to family members in the UK and Israel. Officials have offered support to the hostage families forum, including through ministerial and senior official engagement.We have also connected the families with specialist agencies and organisations that can offer practical and psychological support, including FCDO-funded partner Hostage International.The Home Office uses various tools to detect and disrupt travel by terrorists, by criminals and by individuals excluded from the UK; previously deported from the UK; or using lost, stolen or revoked documents and visas. This includes the use of domestic and international watchlists.It is a longstanding policy that HMG does not comment on the specific data held on the watchlist, how the data is used, or its source, as to do so would be harmful to the national security of the UK.

What discussions she has had with the Israeli authorities on the sharing of (a) intelligence, (b) biometric data and (c) watchlists in relation to people released under prisoner agreements related to conflict in the Middle East.

It is the long-standing policy of successive governments not to comment publicly on discussions related to the UK sharing intelligence with international partners. The Home Office uses various tools to detect and disrupt travel by terrorists, by criminals and by individuals excluded from the UK; previously deported from the UK; or using lost, stolen or revoked documents and visas. This includes the use of domestic and international watchlists. It is a longstanding policy that HMG does not comment on the specific data held on the watchlist, how the data is used, or its source, as to do so would be harmful to the national security of the UK.

How she plans to maintain the integrity of UK borders while fulfilling international obligations towards asylum seekers, in the context of evolving security risks.

All asylum and human rights claims are carefully considered on their individual merits in accordance with our international obligations so that we do not remove anyone to a country where they would face persecution or serious harm. All asylum claimants are subject to mandatory security checks to confirm their identity and to link it to their biometric details for the purpose of immigration, security and criminality checks. These checks are critical to the delivery of a safe and secure immigration system.The Home Office conducts mandatory identity and security checks on all irregular arrivals. We capture the given identity, and biometric (facial and fingerprint) data. This biographic and biometric data is checked and compared against relevant Home Office systems and police databases, including domestic and international data so we can establish whether the person is a known threat to public safety. Checks are conducted by the Home Office for a number of purposes, primarily for effective immigration control, safeguarding national security, and preventing, detecting and investigating serious and organised crime.Anyone convicted of a ‘particularly serious crime’, defined as being convicted by a final judgment and sentenced to a period of imprisonment of at least 12 months, and are considered a danger to the UK, will be denied asylum and considered for removal from the UK.

Whether she plans to use recently closed independent schools as alternative accommodation for illegal immigrants.

No, there are no current plans. Home Office officials work in collaboration with other government departments on a future strategy for asylum accommodation, aiming to develop a better, long-term model of accommodation supply, which may be more locally led, should reduce competition for affordable housing, and help deliver new supply. Greater emphasis is being placed on engagement and collaboration with local authorities, and a variety of options are being tested. Value for money, community cohesion and the wellbeing of asylum seekers will continue to be at the forefront of decision making as officials continue to explore options and develop this strategy.

What estimate she has made of the potential impact of (a) digitising and (b) centralising the firearms licensing process on police time.

The Government has no plans to introduce the centralisation of the firearms licensing process. The Firearms Act 1968 places statutory responsibility for firearms licensing on the Chief Officer of Police of each individual force in England, Wales and Scotland.This framework is supported by Statutory Guidance to Chief Officers of Police issued by the Home Secretary in respect of firearms licensing and by Authorised Professional Practice issued by the College of Policing.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of changes to the licensing system for Section 2 shotguns on rural economies.

We will be undertaking a public consultation later this year on the greater alignment of the controls on shotguns with other firearms.The Government response to the 2023 firearms licensing consultation, published on 13 February this year, included a commitment to having a consultation on strengthening the licensing controls on shotguns.We will carefully consider the views put forward to the consultation in due course and this includes the possible impact of any changes.

What information her Department holds on the (a) number and (b) nature of instances in which members of the public have been subject to monitoring by government agencies on social media platforms in the last 12 months.

It is the longstanding policy of successive UK Governments that we do not comment on operational intelligence or security matters.

For what reason chefs were removed from the Shortage Occupation List under the Skilled Worker visa route; and what assessment he has made of the potential impact of that decision on (a) small and (b) independent hospitality businesses.

As set out in the Immigration White Paper ‘Restoring Control over the Immigration System’, published on 12 May, this Government’s approach is to link migration policy and visa controls to skills and labour market policies, so that immigration is not used as an alternative to training or tackling workforce problems in the UK.Chefs were removed from the Shortage Occupation List upon the recommendation of the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) in their 2020 review under the previous government. In their 2023 review the MAC found that entry to the now defunct Shortage Occupation List would ‘contribute to downward pressure on wages in the occupation’.

What assessment has been made of the adequacy of the information on gov.uk on the support available to asylum seekers.

The Home Office keeps all its information pages under regular review.

What assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of the (a) Irish band Kneecap and (b) Bob Vylan performances at Glastonbury.

Avon and Somerset Police have opened an independent criminal investigation into the matters raised, and it would therefore be inappropriate to comment further at this stage.