Every parliamentary written question tabled by James McMurdock this session, with the full answer and department. See how every department answers, or back to the MP page.
Showing 1,721–1,740 of 3,503 · this parliament
Whether digital ID was discussed at the Citizens’ Rights Specialised Committee meeting on 18 December 2025.
Information on matters discussed at the Specialised Committee on Citizens’ Rights is available here: Citizens’ Rights Specialised Committee meeting, 18 December 2025: joint statement - GOV.UK. The UK and the EU are committed to working cooperatively to ensure full and faithful implementation of the citizens’ rights part of the Withdrawal Agreement.
What follow‑up actions the Government will take following the Citizens’ Rights Specialised Committee meeting on 18 December 2025.
Information on matters discussed at the Specialised Committee on Citizens’ Rights is available here: Citizens’ Rights Specialised Committee meeting, 18 December 2025: joint statement - GOV.UK. The UK and the EU are committed to working cooperatively to ensure full and faithful implementation of the citizens’ rights part of the Withdrawal Agreement.
Communities and Local Government, what support his Department provides to local authorities to develop skills required for effective digital engagement in planning.
Through my Department’s PropTech Innovation Fund, the government is funding local planning authorities to use digital citizen engagement tools, including interactive maps and 3D models, alongside leveraging AI to summarise consultation responses. Our case studies on Local Digital (see here) and gov.uk (see here) demonstrate how these can increase the quantity and quality of community engagement in respect of local plans and new developments, including reaching younger residents. My Department plans to launch a sixth round of the PropTech Innovation Fund in early 2026. The Fund is evaluated as a part of the Digital Planning Programme. Local planning authorities take a hybrid approach to public consultation, combining digital tools with traditional methods like in-person engagement, to ensure consultations are accessible and inclusively incorporate the views of those unable to participate in digital consultations. We have published guidance on gov.uk (see here) and a Digital Citizen Engagement toolkit (see here) to support authorities to adopt and use digital tools. Our Planning Capacity and Capability programme continues to develop its means of supporting authorities to ensure they have the skills they need both now and in the future. The new plan-making system that we are shortly commencing is designed not only to ensure that local plans are faster to prepare and simpler for end users to access and understand but to improve community engagement. We will publish further guidance and provide further support to help local planning authorities engage with communities effectively under the new system.
Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of the value of early‑stage 3D modelling in helping residents understand the potential height, scale and form of proposed developments.
Through my Department’s PropTech Innovation Fund, the government is funding local planning authorities to use digital citizen engagement tools, including interactive maps and 3D models, alongside leveraging AI to summarise consultation responses. Our case studies on Local Digital (see here) and gov.uk (see here) demonstrate how these can increase the quantity and quality of community engagement in respect of local plans and new developments, including reaching younger residents. My Department plans to launch a sixth round of the PropTech Innovation Fund in early 2026. The Fund is evaluated as a part of the Digital Planning Programme. Local planning authorities take a hybrid approach to public consultation, combining digital tools with traditional methods like in-person engagement, to ensure consultations are accessible and inclusively incorporate the views of those unable to participate in digital consultations. We have published guidance on gov.uk (see here) and a Digital Citizen Engagement toolkit (see here) to support authorities to adopt and use digital tools. Our Planning Capacity and Capability programme continues to develop its means of supporting authorities to ensure they have the skills they need both now and in the future. The new plan-making system that we are shortly commencing is designed not only to ensure that local plans are faster to prepare and simpler for end users to access and understand but to improve community engagement. We will publish further guidance and provide further support to help local planning authorities engage with communities effectively under the new system.
Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of digital‑led consultation tools in increasing participation across communities; and what steps he is taking to support councils to adopt those tools.
Through my Department’s PropTech Innovation Fund, the government is funding local planning authorities to use digital citizen engagement tools, including interactive maps and 3D models, alongside leveraging AI to summarise consultation responses. Our case studies on Local Digital (see here) and gov.uk (see here) demonstrate how these can increase the quantity and quality of community engagement in respect of local plans and new developments, including reaching younger residents. My Department plans to launch a sixth round of the PropTech Innovation Fund in early 2026. The Fund is evaluated as a part of the Digital Planning Programme. Local planning authorities take a hybrid approach to public consultation, combining digital tools with traditional methods like in-person engagement, to ensure consultations are accessible and inclusively incorporate the views of those unable to participate in digital consultations. We have published guidance on gov.uk (see here) and a Digital Citizen Engagement toolkit (see here) to support authorities to adopt and use digital tools. Our Planning Capacity and Capability programme continues to develop its means of supporting authorities to ensure they have the skills they need both now and in the future. The new plan-making system that we are shortly commencing is designed not only to ensure that local plans are faster to prepare and simpler for end users to access and understand but to improve community engagement. We will publish further guidance and provide further support to help local planning authorities engage with communities effectively under the new system.
Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of natural language processing and AI‑assisted tagging to reduce consultation processing times for local planning authorities.
Through my Department’s PropTech Innovation Fund, the government is funding local planning authorities to use digital citizen engagement tools, including interactive maps and 3D models, alongside leveraging AI to summarise consultation responses. Our case studies on Local Digital (see here) and gov.uk (see here) demonstrate how these can increase the quantity and quality of community engagement in respect of local plans and new developments, including reaching younger residents. My Department plans to launch a sixth round of the PropTech Innovation Fund in early 2026. The Fund is evaluated as a part of the Digital Planning Programme. Local planning authorities take a hybrid approach to public consultation, combining digital tools with traditional methods like in-person engagement, to ensure consultations are accessible and inclusively incorporate the views of those unable to participate in digital consultations. We have published guidance on gov.uk (see here) and a Digital Citizen Engagement toolkit (see here) to support authorities to adopt and use digital tools. Our Planning Capacity and Capability programme continues to develop its means of supporting authorities to ensure they have the skills they need both now and in the future. The new plan-making system that we are shortly commencing is designed not only to ensure that local plans are faster to prepare and simpler for end users to access and understand but to improve community engagement. We will publish further guidance and provide further support to help local planning authorities engage with communities effectively under the new system.
Communities and Local Government, whether his Department plans to provide (a) guidance and (b) funding to help local authorities introduce interactive digital surveys and mapping tools to improve engagement with local plan consultations.
Through my Department’s PropTech Innovation Fund, the government is funding local planning authorities to use digital citizen engagement tools, including interactive maps and 3D models, alongside leveraging AI to summarise consultation responses. Our case studies on Local Digital (see here) and gov.uk (see here) demonstrate how these can increase the quantity and quality of community engagement in respect of local plans and new developments, including reaching younger residents. My Department plans to launch a sixth round of the PropTech Innovation Fund in early 2026. The Fund is evaluated as a part of the Digital Planning Programme. Local planning authorities take a hybrid approach to public consultation, combining digital tools with traditional methods like in-person engagement, to ensure consultations are accessible and inclusively incorporate the views of those unable to participate in digital consultations. We have published guidance on gov.uk (see here) and a Digital Citizen Engagement toolkit (see here) to support authorities to adopt and use digital tools. Our Planning Capacity and Capability programme continues to develop its means of supporting authorities to ensure they have the skills they need both now and in the future. The new plan-making system that we are shortly commencing is designed not only to ensure that local plans are faster to prepare and simpler for end users to access and understand but to improve community engagement. We will publish further guidance and provide further support to help local planning authorities engage with communities effectively under the new system.
How many people were deported to Germany in each year since 2020.
The Home Office publishes data on returns in the ‘Immigration System Statistics quarterly release’. Data on returns by return type and destination can be found in Ret_D02 of the ‘Returns detailed datasets’. Data on returns of FNOs by destination can be found in Ret_D04 of the same file. This data covers the period 2004 to September 2025. For future publication dates, please see the release calendar.Deportations are a subset of published FNO returns relating to the removal of those who are subject to a Deportation order. FNO returns that are not deportations will generally be cases where a person is being returned for a breach of UK immigration laws or for not being able to demonstrate any lawful basis to remain in the UK.
Food and Rural Affairs, whether she plans to bring forward legislative proposals to require the humane slaughter of all terrestrial animals.
The Government encourages the highest standards of animal welfare at slaughter. There are already detailed protections in legislation to ensure that farmed animals are spared any avoidable pain, distress or suffering when being slaughtered. As set out in the Government’s animal welfare strategy, and following the Animal Welfare Committee’s report on the topic, we will consult on banning the use of carbon dioxide gas stunning of pigs. We continue to keep animal welfare at the time of killing policy under review and will take into account any new scientific research and evidence which emerges.
How many people were deported to France in each year since 2020.
The Home Office publishes data on returns in the ‘Immigration System Statistics quarterly release’. Data on returns by return type and destination can be found in Ret_D02 of the ‘Returns detailed datasets’. Data on returns of FNOs by destination can be found in Ret_D04 of the same file. This data covers the period 2004 to September 2025. For future publication dates, please see the release calendar.Deportations are a subset of published FNO returns relating to the removal of those who are subject to a Deportation order. FNO returns that are not deportations will generally be cases where a person is being returned for a breach of UK immigration laws or for not being able to demonstrate any lawful basis to remain in the UK.
Food and Rural Affairs, if she will make it her policy to publish an annual progress report on the implementation of the Animal Welfare Strategy.
The Animal Welfare Strategy was published on 22 December and sets out our priorities for animal welfare, focusing on the changes and improvements we aim to achieve by 2030 The Government will monitor progress against the strategy to ensure the outcomes we are seeking to achieve are met; however, we currently do not have any plans to publish an annual progress report. We will continue to work in partnership with key stakeholders, charities, experts, enforcement bodies, and industry from across the different sectors to deliver on the commitments in the strategy and improve the lives of millions of animals. Information and insights from stakeholders will be critical to assess whether policies are delivering on their intended outcomes.
Communities and Local Government, what the scope and timetable are for the Law Commission’s project on the management of housing estates, and how homeowners will be consulted.
The government expect the Law Commission to report on this project in 2028. Further information about the project, including its terms of reference, can be found on the Law Commission's website here.
Food and Rural Affairs, whether additional resources will be provided to police forces to enforce tougher penalties for livestock worrying.
The Department will continue to engage with the police to ensure that they are fully prepared to enforce the new powers introduced by the Dogs (Protection of Livestock) (Amendment) Act 2025. The measures will come into effect on 18 March 2026. We will also work closely with the police to monitor how enforcement operates in practice after the measures have come into force.
Communities and Local Government, with reference to his Department's press release entitled Housing Sec pledges to 'go further than ever before' to hit 1.5 million homes, published on 16 December 2025, whether housebuilding targets for Thurrock will be impacted.
The government has no plans to amend the Standard Method for assessing housing needs introduced in December 2024.
Food and Rural Affairs, what role local councils will play in the Animal Welfare Strategy.
Local councils have long played a vital role in animal welfare, across a wide range of functions. This includes their established responsibilities for animal activity licensing, Zoo Licencing, the management of stray dogs, and supporting compliance with health and welfare standards in farming. The Animal Welfare Strategy acknowledges and reaffirms this vital role, committing to continued close working with local councils, in developing, implementing and enforcing animal welfare policies.
If he will set out the selection criteria for the local authorities added to the Rent Repayment Order data sharing scheme.
The Department for Work and Pensions has worked closely with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) to develop and implement the Rent Repayment Order pilot. The opportunity to participate was offered to all local authorities through Operation Jigsaw, an organisation currently funded by MHCLG, which brings together 309 local housing authorities in England to support the sharing of expertise, best practices, and vital intelligence both regionally and nationally to raise housing standards in the private rented sector.
What assessment she has made of the annual cost to the logistics industry of the proposed pay-per-mile electric vehicle charging scheme.
As announced at Budget 2025, the Government is introducing Electric Vehicle Excise Duty (eVED) from April 2028, a new mileage charge for electric and plug-in hybrid cars, recognising that electric vehicles (EVs) contribute to congestion and wear and tear on the roads but pay no equivalent to fuel duty. The taxation of motoring is a critical source of funding for public services and investment in infrastructure. All UK-registered electric and plug-in hybrid cars will pay eVED. Other vehicle types such as vans, buses, coaches, motorcycles and HGVs will be out of scope of the tax upon its introduction. This is because the transition to electric for these vehicle types is less advanced than for cars at this stage.
Whether he has made an estimate of the savings for individual motorists from the Fuel Finder scheme.
Fuel price trends are monitored nationally and published in the Department’s weekly statistics on GOV.UK. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) oversee market transparency and compliance and publish quarterly and yearly reports on GOV.UK. Fuel Finder will increase fuel price transparency for drivers to make more informed choices of where to buy petrol and diesel and will incentivise competition between fuel retailers to lower their prices to attract customers. Once launched, our analysis suggests that households who own a car could save an average of around £40 a year.
Whether he plans to assess regional disparities in petrol prices.
Fuel price trends are monitored nationally and published in the Department’s weekly statistics on GOV.UK. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) oversee market transparency and compliance and publish quarterly and yearly reports on GOV.UK. Fuel Finder will increase fuel price transparency for drivers to make more informed choices of where to buy petrol and diesel and will incentivise competition between fuel retailers to lower their prices to attract customers. Once launched, our analysis suggests that households who own a car could save an average of around £40 a year.
Food and Rural Affairs, which public body will oversee mandatory licensing for domestic rescue and rehoming organisations.
Defra will launch a consultation on licensing domestic rescue and rehoming organisations, including on how such a scheme should be administered, in due course.