Written questions by Hayes.

How many and what proportion of civil servants in his Department are (a) on temporary contract and (b) consultants.

Information on the number of civil servants employed on temporary contracts is published quarterly by the Office for National Statistics as part of the quarterly Public Sector Employment statistics. Information can be accessed for September 2025 at the following web address:https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/publicsectorpersonnel/bulletins/publicsectoremployment/september2025Departmental expenditure on consultancy is published within the Annual Report and Accounts. The latest report for FY 2024/25 can be found at the following web address:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/home-office-annual-report-and-accounts-2024-to-2025

How many full time equivalent staff in her Department have been employed for the purpose of making social media content in each of the past three years.

Responsibility for the Home Office's social media content sits primarily with the Home Office digital team. Each team member works across numerous projects & briefs. No one is solely employed to make just social media content.The FTE for the digital team can be broken down as follows:FTE 2023 - 7FTE 2024 - 10FTE 2025 - 9

What steps her Department is taking to (a) reduce and (b) prevent equipment theft in (1) South Holland and the Deepings constituency and (2) Lincolnshire.

Equipment theft can have devastating consequences for countryside communities and the agricultural sector. That is why we are committed to the implementation of the Equipment Theft (Prevention) Act 2023 and fully support its intentions to prevent the theft and re-sale of All-Terrain Vehicles, quad bikes and GPS systems. We will introduce the necessary secondary legislation when parliamentary time allows. The Crime and Policing Bill will introduce a new power for the police to enter and search premises to which items have been electronically tracked by GPS or other means, where the items are reasonably believed to have been stolen and are on those premises, and where it has not been reasonably practicable to obtain a warrant from a court. This will provide a valuable tool for police in tackling stolen equipment and machinery. This financial year the Home Office has provided the first Government funding since 2023 for the National Rural Crime Unit (£365,000). The National Rural Crime Unit provides police forces with specialist operational support in their response to rural crime, such as the theft of farming or construction equipment. They also help police across the UK tackle organised theft and disrupt organised crime groups. We have also worked closely with the National Police Chiefs’ Council to deliver their updated Rural and Wildlife Crime Strategy for 2025-2028. The strategy highlights how policing can assist in the prevention of crime in rural areas including equipment theft.

Whether she has made a recent assessment of the potential merits of creating a single crossbow licensing authority for England and Wales.

The Government is actively considering the introduction of further controls around crossbows.This follows a call for evidence on strengthening controls on crossbows on public safety grounds, which ran from 14 February to 9 April 2024, and tested ideas for whether there should be some form of licensing regime that would provide further controls on the use, ownership and supply of crossbows including whether sellers should be licensed in some way.We will publish the Government’s response to the call for evidence shortly, which will include what action we intend to take.

How many and what proportion of immigrants detained following their arrival in the UK by small boats have been searched for drugs in each of the past five years.

I refer the Hon. Member to the answer given to questions 71052, 71053 and 71054 on 4th September.

What assessment has she made of the potential implications for her policies of the availability of crossbows through online purchases.

The Government is actively considering the introduction of further controls around crossbows. This follows a call for evidence on strengthening controls on crossbows on public safety grounds, which ran from 14 February to 9 April 2024, and tested ideas for whether there should be some form of licensing regime that would provide further controls on the use, ownership and supply of crossbows including whether sellers should be licensed in some way. We will publish the Government’s response to the call for evidence shortly, which will include what action we intend to take.Crossbows are age restricted items and it is an offence, under the Crossbows Act 1987, for anyone under the age of 18 to purchase a crossbow or parts of a crossbow. The Government is taking action to strengthen the law on age verification for the online sale and delivery of crossbows through measures currently in the Crime and Policing Bill.

How many asylum claims (a) approved and (b) rejected since July 2024 involved interviews over video calls.

The information requested is not currently available from published statistics, and the relevant data could only be collated and verified for the purpose of answering this question at disproportionate cost.

How many asylum claims (a) approved and (b) rejected since July 2024 involved face-to-face interviews.

The information requested is not currently available from published statistics, and the relevant data could only be collated and verified for the purpose of answering this question at disproportionate cost.

If she will publish the nationalities of people detained for removal caught working illegally as delivery drivers.

The Home Office takes the issue of illegal working seriously and continues to take robust enforcement action against those who breach immigration laws.Official statistics published by the Home Office are kept under review in line with the Code of Practice for Statistics, taking into account a number of factors including user needs, the resources required to compile the statistics, as well as quality and availability of data. These reviews allow us to balance the production of our regular statistics whilst developing new statistics for future release.

What steps she is taking to prevent immigration rules abuse where people on tourist visas claim asylum.

All visitors must be able to demonstrate that they are genuine and will leave the UK at the end of their visit. The Visitor route is not intended to facilitate individuals travelling to the UK with the intention of claiming asylum. Visitor visa applications are rigorously assessed against the Immigration Rules. We are committed to further strengthening the integrity of visa decision making by continuing to apply greater scrutiny to those where there is evidence to demonstrate a greater risk of an asylum claim once in the UK — ensuring that visas are only issued to genuine visitors. This government has also taken decisive action to address instances of individuals using visa-free travel to reach the UK and claim asylum. As a result, we have introduced visa requirements for Jordan, Colombia, Trinidad and Tobago, and Botswana. Where we have data available (the requirement for Botswana was only introduced on 14 October 2025) this action has been extremely effective: asylum seekers from Jordan, Colombia and Trinidad and Tobago have fallen by 93% and asylum seekers at port have fallen by 99% from their peak prior to the introduction of a visa requirement compared to Q3 2025. Where countries are not cooperating on the return of their nationals who have no right to be in the UK, including failed asylum seekers, we will not hesitate to use the visa system (particularly visit visas) to bring about better cooperation. As announced on 17 November, we have told Angola, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Namibia that if they do not comply with international rules and norms, we will impose visa penalties on them.Unless other countries heed this lesson, further sanctions will follow. Any asylum claim that is then subsequently lodged from within the UK and admitted to the UK asylum system, is given full and careful consideration. Our approach is to promptly consider asylum claims, with a rapid appeals process, so that claims from genuine asylum seekers can be accepted, and those that are not, can be rejected. The Government’s recently published Asylum Policy Statement sets out significant reforms to the UK’s asylum and illegal migration system. The Statement outlines the current challenges, the Government’s objectives, and a comprehensive package of measures to restore order, control, fairness and public confidence in the system.

How many and what proportion of cameras used in facial recognition technology are made in the UK.

The information requested is not held by the Home Office. Decisions on the procurement of cameras used in facial recognition technology are for individual police forces and other relevant authorities. Procurement decisions by police forces must comply with UK procurement law, including the Public Contracts Regulations 2015, Procurement Act 2023, and relevant Cabinet Office guidance on supply chain risk. They are also expected to follow the Surveillance Camera Code of Practice issued under the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012. In addition, forces have been advised to consider supply chain security and have received guidance from the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) and the Cabinet Office on the use of Chinese-manufactured surveillance equipment.

How many people resident in the UK are recorded on the National DNA Database.

As of 30 September 2025, a total of 7,490,730 subject samples were retained on the National DNA Database. It is estimated that these samples correspond to 6,210,328 individuals.The Home Office is unable to confirm how many of these records pertain specifically to individual’s resident in the United Kingdom as the National DNA Database does not hold address details.

What assessment she has made of trends in the levels of recruitment and retention in Lincolnshire Police in the past 10 years.

Forces are expected to manage their recruitment and retention activities to ensure that they meet officer headcount targets linked to funding arrangements set out in the Police Funding Settlement.The Home Office collects and publishes data on the number of joiners and leavers in England and Wales, on an annual basis, in the ‘Police Workforce, England and Wales’ statistical bulletin which can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/police-workforce-england-and-walesInformation on the number of joiners to the police service, by police force area and worker type, between the years ending 31 March 2007 and 31 March 2025 can be found in the Joiners Open Data table here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/687a363b312ee8a5f0806b7b/open-data-table-police-workforce-joiners-230725.odsInformation on the number of leavers from the police service, by police force area and worker type, between the years ending 31 March 2007 and 31 March 2025 can be found in the Leavers Open Data table here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/687a364d312ee8a5f0806b7c/open-data-table-police-workforce-leavers-230725.odsInformation on the length of service of police officer leavers, by police force area, between the years ending 31 March 2024 and 31 March 2025 can be found in the Length of Service Open Data table here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/687a36caa5561a5a7e726b7d/open-data-table-police-workforce-length-of-service-230725.ods

How many people have been (a) investigated and (b) prosecuted for cheating on Secure English language tests in each of the last five years.

The cost of providing the information requested would result in disproportionate cost.

How many people have been (a) investigated and (b) prosecuted for attempting to impersonate someone else on a Secure English language test in each of the last five years.

The cost of providing the information requested would result in disproportionate cost.

What steps her Department is taking to support police forces in tackling shoplifting in South Holland and the Deepings constituency.

Shop theft continues to increase at an unacceptable level. We will not stand for this.We are ensuring the right powers are in place. Through the Crime and Policing Bill, we are bringing in a new offence of assaulting a retail worker to protect the hardworking and dedicated staff that work in stores. We are also removing the legislation which makes shop theft of and below £200 a summary-only offence, sending a clear message that any level of shop theft is illegal and will be taken seriously.Additionally, we are providing over £7 million over the next three years to support the police and retailers tackle retail crime, including continuing to fund a specialist policing team – in partnership with the retail sector - to better understand the tactics used by organised retail crime gangs and identify more offenders.Tackling retail crime requires a partnership approach between policing representatives and business. The previous Minister for Crime and Policing launched the ‘Tackling Retail Crime Together Strategy’, which was jointly developed by the police and industry and aims to provide a collaborative and evidence-based approach to preventing retail crime.

What the cost to the public purse was of the use of taxis by asylum seekers in each of the last five years.

Transport services for asylum seekers are provided through our Asylum Accommodation & Support Contracts. We pay a fixed rate for transportation services which is set out in the contracts. Our suppliers must deliver transportation requirements in line with contractual standards and the fixed rate – with the type of transportation determined by our suppliers within this framework. Information on spend by specific transportation types is therefore not readily available.

How many asylum caseworkers have (1) left and (2) joined her Department since July 2024.

The number of full time equivalent (FTE) asylum caseworkers employed at the Home Office per month until September 2025 is published in the ASY_05(M) tab of the published migration transparency statistics, located here: Migration transparency data - GOV.UK (Immigration and Protection data; July to September 2025)At the end of July 2024, there were 2,455 FTE asylum caseworkers.The latest published data shows that at the end of September 2025, there were 2,113 FTE asylum caseworkers. Attrition will have occurred since that time.

How many people have been (a) arrested and (b) convicted in relation to the sale of illegal vape products in each of the last five years.

The data requested is not held by the Home Office.The Home Office collect and publishes data on arrests as part of the Police Powers and Procedures statistical series, available here: Stop and search, arrests, and mental health detentions, March 2025 - GOV.UKHowever, data is collected by broader offence group and for notifiable offences only, therefore data on arrests for the sale of illegal vapes is not available.Convictions is a matter for the Ministry of Justice.

How many and what proportion of stop and searches resulted in the seizure of (a) Class A drugs and (b) Class B drugs in each of the last three years.

The data requested is not held centrally.The Home Office collects and publishes data on the number of stop and searches for drugs. The latest data is available here: Stop and search, arrests, and mental health detentions, March 2025 - GOV.UKHowever, data on the class of drug searched for is not collected, nor is information on the type of drugs seized following a stop and search.