Written questions by Hayes.

How many police officers retired due to ill health in each of the last ten years.

The Home Office collects and publishes data annually on the number of police officers leaving the police service and their reasons for leaving, including medical retirements, as at 31 March each year, in the ‘Police Workforce, England and Wales’ statistical bulletin which can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/police-workforce-england-and-wales.Information on the number of police officers leaving the police service by reason for leaving, including medical retirements, between the years ending 31 March 2007 and 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.ods

How many and what proportion of individuals referred to the Prevent programme in the last three years were found to not be at risk of radicalisation.

The table below provides the number and proportion of individuals referred to the Prevent programme over the last three years who were assessed as ‘requiring no further action’.Table 1: Proportion of individuals found to not be at risk of radicalisation by year 2022/232023/242024/25Prevent Referrals6,8176,9228,778Prevent Referrals requiring no further action, Total1,1721,3392,636Proportion of individuals found to not be at risk of radicalisation17%19%30%Note: The proportion of individuals assessed as not at risk of radicalisation is calculated as the number of Prevent referrals requiring no further action divided by the total number of Prevent referrals.

If she will make new capital funding available for school buildings in South Holland and the Deepings constituency.

We are investing almost £3 billion per year by 2034/35 in capital maintenance to improve the condition of the school and college estate, rising from £2.4 billion in 2025/26. As part of this, in 2025/26, Lincolnshire County Council was allocated almost £6 million to invest across its maintained schools. Capital funding for other bodies responsible for schools in South Holland and the Deepings are also available on GOV.UK. We expect to publish capital allocations and the outcomes of the Condition Improvement Fund for the 2026/27 financial year in the spring. We are also investing almost £20 billion in the School Rebuilding Programme through to 2034/35, delivering rebuilding projects at over 500 schools within the existing programme, with a further 250 schools to be selected within two years. We plan to open a nomination round early in 2026. Lincolnshire has also been allocated £62.2 million of Basic Need capital funding to support it to create mainstream school places needed between May 2024 and September 2028.

What steps her Department is taking to ensure that secondary school pupils have access to appropriate school transport arrangements in South Holland and the Deepings constituency.

The department’s home to school travel policy aims to make sure that no child is prevented from accessing education by a lack of transport. Local authorities are responsible for arranging free home to school travel for eligible children. A child is eligible if they are of compulsory school age, 5 to 16, attend their nearest school and would not be able to walk there because of the distance, their special educational need, disability or mobility problem, or because the nature of the route means it would be unsafe for them to do so. There are extended rights to free travel for children from low-income families.In addition, the Bus Services Act 2025 puts the power over local bus services back in the hands of local leaders right across England. This will enable them to ensure local bus services meet the needs of local communities, including supporting access to education.

Food and Rural Affairs, what recent support the Government has provided for habitat creation initiatives in (a) South Holland and the Deepings constituency and (b) Lincolnshire.

Lincolnshire County Council is the responsible authority for the preparation of the Greater Lincolnshire Local Nature Recovery Strategy. The Strategy will agree priorities for nature recovery in the area and identify and map the best locations for habitat to be created or improved to benefit nature and the wider environment. Natural England works with local planning authorities to secure Biodiversity Net Gain through development. There are two sites in Lincolnshire on the Natural England Biodiversity Net Gain Register, one of which is in South Holland and The Deepings. Together these sites have committed 85 hectares of land to nature recovery. Private sector investment into these sites will create and enhance a mosaic of habitats including species-rich grassland, woodland, scrub and wetland. Natural England supports Landscape Recovery Projects in Lincolnshire, including the Greater Frampton, Doddington and Boothby Wildlands schemes, which create joined-up habitats that benefit local wildlife and ecosystems. The Lincolnshire Coronation Coast National Nature Reserve, declared in September 2023 as the first in the new King's Series, added 2,350 hectares of land managed for nature conservation. This expanded reserve supports habitat creation across sand dunes, salt marshes, mudflats and freshwater marshes of international importance. Natural England maintains numerous Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier agreements and Higher Level Stewardship agreements across Lincolnshire, working with farmers on projects that enhance nature recovery and create habitats for wildlife.

How many prisoners have been released in error from HM Prison Lincoln since July 2024.

Releases in error have been increasing for several years and are another symptom of the prison system crisis inherited by this Government. On 11 November, the Deputy Prime Minister announced a five-point national action plan to reduce releases in error, which includes strengthening release checks across prisons and an independent review led by Dame Lynne Owens.Totals for releases in error, including a breakdown by releasing prison (or Prisoner Escort Custody Services), are published each July in the HMPPS Annual Digest, available via HMPPS Annual Digest, April 2024 to March 2025 - GOV.UK(opens in a new tab), and provide data up to March 2025.The Government is determined to fix the issue of mistaken releases and ensure the public is properly protected.

How many prisoners have been released in error from HMP Morton Hall since July 2024.

Releases in error have been increasing for several years and are another symptom of the prison system crisis inherited by this Government. On 11 November, the Deputy Prime Minister announced a five-point national action plan to reduce releases in error, which includes strengthening release checks across prisons and an independent review led by Dame Lynne Owens.Totals for releases in error, including a breakdown by releasing prison (or Prisoner Escort Custody Services), are published each July in the HMPPS Annual Digest, available via HMPPS Annual Digest, April 2024 to March 2025 - GOV.UK(opens in a new tab), and provide data up to March 2025.The Government is determined to fix the issue of mistaken releases and ensure the public is properly protected.

How many prisoners have been released in error from North Sea Camp Prison since July 2024.

Releases in error have been increasing for several years and are another symptom of the prison system crisis inherited by this Government. On 11 November, the Deputy Prime Minister announced a five-point national action plan to reduce releases in error, which includes strengthening release checks across prisons and an independent review led by Dame Lynne Owens.Totals for releases in error, including a breakdown by releasing prison (or Prisoner Escort Custody Services), are published each July in the HMPPS Annual Digest, available via HMPPS Annual Digest, April 2024 to March 2025 - GOV.UK(opens in a new tab), and provide data up to March 2025.The Government is determined to fix the issue of mistaken releases and ensure the public is properly protected.

How many prisoners have been released in error from HM Prison Peterborough since July 2024.

Releases in error have been increasing for several years and are another symptom of the prison system crisis inherited by this Government. On 11 November, the Deputy Prime Minister announced a five-point national action plan to reduce releases in error, which includes strengthening release checks across prisons and an independent review led by Dame Lynne Owens.Totals for releases in error, including a breakdown by releasing prison (or Prisoner Escort Custody Services), are published each July in the HMPPS Annual Digest, available via HMPPS Annual Digest, April 2024 to March 2025 - GOV.UK(opens in a new tab), and provide data up to March 2025.The Government is determined to fix the issue of mistaken releases and ensure the public is properly protected.

How many and what proportion of people eligible for winter flu vaccinations received them in 2025.

For England, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) publishes provisional vaccine uptake data throughout the flu season. Weekly national level data for general practice (GP) patients is available from October to January, at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/national-flu-and-covid-19-surveillance-reports-2025-to-2026-seasonMonthly national and regional level data for GP patients, school-aged children, and frontline healthcare workers (HCWs) is available from October to January. The latest monthly data for the 2025 to 2026 season includes all vaccinations given between 1 September to 30 November 2025, and is avaiable at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/vaccine-uptake#seasonal-flu-vaccine-uptake:-figuresUp to 4 January 2026, over 18 million people eligible for the national programme had been vaccinated so far this season.

If she will take steps to remove business rates for early years providers.

Business rates are a broad-based tax on the value of non-domestic properties, including nurseries. To protect small businesses, the Government has frozen the small business multiplier for 2025-26. Taken together with Small Business Rates Relief, this intervention ensures that over a million properties will be protected from inflationary increases. More broadly, in 2026-27, we expect to provide over £9.5 billion for the early years entitlements. We are investing over £1 billion more in the early years entitlements this year compared to 2025-26, to deliver a full year of the expanded entitlements, and an above inflation increase to entitlements funding rates.

If she will publish an assessment of the economic impact on early years providers of changes to employers national insurance.

The government position was to compensate public sector employers only for the National Insurance Contributions (NICs) increase announced in Budget 2024. For eligible early years settings, this was provided through the dedicated £25 million Early Years NICs and Teachers’ Pay Grant in 2025/26.We recognise the impact on the early years sector and remain committed to protecting investment. We expect to invest over £9.5 billion in 2026/27, an above-inflation increase on 2025/26. National average funding rate increases reflect full costs of delivering a full year of expanded entitlements for early years providers.

If he will take steps to regularly monitor and report on dental access for cleft and other priority groups.

We recognise that certain groups of patients may be more vulnerable to oral health problems, including patients with clefts.NHS England commissions services for children, young people and adults with a cleft lip and/or palate. The patient pathway can start from pre-birth and continues into adulthood. Cleft services provide care through multi-disciplinary teams, and the comprehensive care pathway will include elements such as paediatric dentistry, restorative dentistry and orthodontics. More information is available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/d07-cleft-lip.pdfThe Office of the Chief Dental Officer England is in ongoing discussions with members of the Cleft Llip and Palate Association to assess what measures can be taken to better understand and improve access to care for patients born with a cleft.The responsibility for commissioning primary care services, including National Health Service dentistry, to meet the needs of the local population has been delegated to integrated care boards across England.

What steps he is taking to ensure people with cleft receive appropriate dental care.

We recognise that certain groups of patients may be more vulnerable to oral health problems, including patients with clefts.NHS England commissions services for children, young people and adults with a cleft lip and/or palate. The patient pathway can start from pre-birth and continues into adulthood. Cleft services provide care through multi-disciplinary teams, and the comprehensive care pathway will include elements such as paediatric dentistry, restorative dentistry and orthodontics. More information is available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/d07-cleft-lip.pdfThe Office of the Chief Dental Officer England is in ongoing discussions with members of the Cleft Llip and Palate Association to assess what measures can be taken to better understand and improve access to care for patients born with a cleft.The responsibility for commissioning primary care services, including National Health Service dentistry, to meet the needs of the local population has been delegated to integrated care boards across England.

What is the total cost to the public purse of money owed to HMRC in the form of unpaid (a) VAT and (b) corporation tax accrued since July 2024.

Our debt management workforce is deployed flexibly across all taxes to ensure efficient collection of debts owed and are not allocated to specific taxes. It is therefore not possible to provide a separate figure for staff working solely on VAT or corporation tax recovery. HMRC publishes information on VAT and corporation tax losses in its Annual Report and Accounts, of which the most recent can be found here: HMRC Annual Report and Accounts 2024-25. HMRC does not hold a separate breakdown of companies dissolved with unpaid VAT or corporation tax.

How many full time equivalent HMRC staff are working on unpaid (a) VAT and (b) corporation tax recovery.

Our debt management workforce is deployed flexibly across all taxes to ensure efficient collection of debts owed and are not allocated to specific taxes. It is therefore not possible to provide a separate figure for staff working solely on VAT or corporation tax recovery. HMRC publishes information on VAT and corporation tax losses in its Annual Report and Accounts, of which the most recent can be found here: HMRC Annual Report and Accounts 2024-25. HMRC does not hold a separate breakdown of companies dissolved with unpaid VAT or corporation tax.

How many companies owing unpaid (a) VAT and (b) corporation tax have been dissolved since July 2024.

Our debt management workforce is deployed flexibly across all taxes to ensure efficient collection of debts owed and are not allocated to specific taxes. It is therefore not possible to provide a separate figure for staff working solely on VAT or corporation tax recovery. HMRC publishes information on VAT and corporation tax losses in its Annual Report and Accounts, of which the most recent can be found here: HMRC Annual Report and Accounts 2024-25. HMRC does not hold a separate breakdown of companies dissolved with unpaid VAT or corporation tax.

How many fake license plates were recorded in each of the last five years.

It is not possible to provide the full-time equivalent number of staff who deal with number plate issues. The staff involved do not exclusively work on number plate related issues and also investigate other types of cases. While on road enforcement of number plates issues is a matter for the police, the information in the table below shows the number of occasions where members of the public contacted the DVLA about correspondence, fines or penalties that they have been received from third parties about the use of vehicles which they do not recognise or accept responsibility for in the last five years. However, it is important to note that the misuse of a registration number or number plate is just one of the possible reasons why someone might receive such correspondence. A proportion of these cases will have been made as a result of errors, for example where a vehicle registration number has been entered incorrectly. Calendar YearNumber of reports20217,43020227,83720239,848202410,461202511,402

How many trading standards inspections of high street shops took place in South Holland and the Deepings constituency in each of the last three years.

The department does not hold this information.Local authorities across England, Scotland and Wales operate independently from central government. Local authorities are responsible for determining their enforcement activity across a wide range of enforcement responsibilities in accordance with the needs of the local electorate and local resourcing priorities.

Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to support heritage assets in South Holland and the Deepings constituency.

This Government takes our responsibility to the built historic environment seriously. For this year alone, my Department has committed nearly £60 million of funding for heritage, including £15m for Heritage at Risk.Funding is administered by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport’s Arms-Length-Bodies. Since 1994, The National Lottery Heritage Fund has awarded £5,540,760 to 110 projects in South Holland and the Deepings.Historic England has also administered funding in South Holland and the Deepings. This has gone towards projects such as the 2024 - 2027 Lincolnshire Extended Urban Survey, which worked to underpin better decision making, archaeological understanding and design in the county’s towns, and received £211,000.There are currently 12 heritage assets on the Heritage at Risk Register in the area, and Historic England are actively engaged with all of them. These include conservation areas, listed buildings, and scheduled monuments.The Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme gives grants towards VAT paid on repairs and renovations to the nation’s listed sites of worship across the UK. Since August 2022, 41 claims have been paid to 15 Listed Places of Worship based in the South Holland local authority area to a value of £78,125.6.