Written questions by Hayes.

How many children have been investigated for non-crime hate crimes in the last five years.

The Home Office does not centrally hold or collate information on the number of children who have been investigated by police forces for non-crime hate incidents.The statutory Non-Crime Hate Incidents Code of Practice makes it clear that a child who is subject of an non-crime hate incident report may have lower appreciation of the impact of their words or behaviour, thus recording their personal data may be a disproportionate response.

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

Charities play a vital role in supporting our communities, and have a rich understanding of the local areas in which they are embedded, such as in South Holland and the Deepings.DCMS is supporting the sector across England in a number of ways, including through the provision of grants through, for example, the VCSE Energy Efficiency Scheme and the Know Your Neighbourhood fund. DCMS also supports charities by growing other sources of funding such as the social investment market and the dormant assets scheme, and building the capacity of VCSEs to bid for government contracts through the Contract Readiness Programme, which increases their sustainability.Last year, the Community Organisations Cost of Living Fund distributed £76 million to VCSE organisations to support them with the rising cost of living. This included funding to organisations in the East Midlands - a full list of recipients can be found online.The Government values the work that charities do. Resetting the relationship between civil society and Government is a priority, and we want to ensure that the sector is recognised as a trusted and independent partner whose voice is heard. That is why DCMS has been working closely with key civil society bodies to develop a framework for a new Covenant between government and civil society, which was launched by the Prime Minister in October.

How many applications for gangmaster licences have been refused in the last five years.

The annual number of applications for gangmaster licences that have been refused are published in the Gangmaster and Labour Abuse Authority’s Annual Reports and Accounts. Annual accounts have been published up to and including the 2022-23 financial year. From the available published data, the total number of refused applications since 2019/20 up to and including 2022/23 is 42.

How many and what proportion of care homes in South Holland and the Deepings constituency are rated (a) good and (b) excellent by the Care Quality Commission.

There are currently 36 care homes registered with the Care Quality Commission in South Holland and The Deepings constituency. Data from 1 November 2024 shows that two care homes, or 6%, are rated Outstanding, and 24 care homes, or 67%, are rated Good.

What steps her Department is taking to support people with learning difficulties in rural areas that are seeking paid employment.

We have a range of specialist initiatives to support people with learning disabilities and other disabled people into work. Measures include support from Work Coaches and Disability Employment Advisers in Jobcentres and Access to Work grants. £12.3 million has also been invested into 23 lead Local Authority areas to provide support to autistic people and people with learning disabilities, under the Local Supported Employment Programme. As part of the Get Britain Working plan, we will be devolving more power to local areas so they can shape a joined-up work, health, and skills offer that suits the needs of the people they serve. Employers play a key role in increasing employment opportunities and supporting disabled people and people with health conditions, to thrive as part of the workforce. Our support to employers includes promoting a digital information service for employers to help them support disability at work and the Disability Confident scheme.

If he will take steps to increase funding for brain injury reablement services in rural areas.

The Government wants a society where every person, including those with a long-term condition such as an acquired brain injury (ABI), receives high-quality, compassionate continuity of care, with their families and carers supported.We will change the National Health Service so that it becomes not just a sickness service, but one able to prevent ill health in the first place. This will help us be better prepared for the change in the nature of disease and allow our services to focus more on the management of chronic, long-term conditions, like ABIs, including rehabilitation where appropriate.A decision on the next steps on ABIs at the national level will be taken in the coming months. Meanwhile, we have committed to develop a 10-year plan to deliver an NHS fit for the future. We will be carefully considering input from the public, patients, health staff, and our stakeholders as we develop the plan over the coming months. The engagement process has been launched and I would encourage my fellow Parliamentarians to engage with that process, to allow us to fully understand what is not working as well as it should and what the potential solutions are, including on ABI. More information about how they can input into the plan is available at the following link:https://change.nhs.uk/en-GB/Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for commissioning services such as rehabilitation and reablement services, and ensuring that there is appropriate provision to meet the health and care needs of their population. The core ICB allocations formula is an estimate of the relative need for healthcare resources in each ICB, and is recommended by an independent committee. The formula includes a range of adjustments that account for the fact that the costs of providing health care may vary between rural and urban areas.Often, rehabilitation and reablement services don’t provide services exclusively for patients with brain injuries, but also provide rehabilitation for patients with other conditions, such as stroke and Parkinson’s disease. Therefore, it is difficult to quantify the total about of funding that is spent on brain injury reablement services specifically.

If she will collate the number of non-crime hate incidents recorded by police forces in each of the last five years.

The Home Office does not currently centrally hold or collate information on the number of non-crime hate incidents recorded by police forces.

What the cost to the public purse was of staff diversity networks in his Department in each of the last five years.

The Ministry of Defence does not routinely collate information on staff network costs and collating this information could only be done at disproportionate cost.Information on spending and staffing can be found in the Department's annual report and accounts: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/ministry-of-defence-annual-report-and-accounts-2023-to-2024

What the average waiting time is to register with an NHS dentist in Lincolnshire.

Patients in England are not registered with a National Health Service dental practice and there is no single waiting list, although many NHS dental practices do tend to see patients regularly and may operate local waiting list arrangements.The responsibility for commissioning primary care, including dentistry, to meet the needs of the local population has been delegated to all integrated care boards (ICBs) across England. For the South Holland and The Deepings constituency, this is the NHS Lincolnshire ICB.

How many properties her Department has rented for the temporary housing of asylum seekers awaiting a decision on their claim for asylum since 5 July 2024.

As was the case under the previous government, the Home Office does not rent properties; it discharges its statutory duties for accommodating destitute asylum seekers through a contract with three main accommodation providers, which was agreed by previous administrations. The providers are responsible for sourcing and acquiring accommodation to meet demand and the estate is subject to daily change.

What steps his Department is taking to help support the growth of independent brewers in Lincolnshire.

Independent brewers, including those in Lincolnshire, are at the heart of many of our communities and important for economic growth.The government is reducing alcohol duty on qualifying draught products, representing an overall reduction in duty bills of over £85m a year and will consult on ways to encourage small brewers to retain and expand their access to UK pubs, maximising drinkers’ choice and local economies.This Government will be publishing our Small Business Strategy next year. This will set out our vision for all small businesses, from boosting scale-ups to growing the co-operative economy.Through the Hospitality Sector Council, we are addressing strategic issues for the sector related to high street regeneration, skills, sustainability, and productivity.

What assessment he has made of the economic impact of foreign direct investment projects in Lincolnshire in the last five years.

The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) looks to encourage investment across the UK, working closely with relevant economic development and inward investment officers across the whole of the Lincolnshire region. Investment into the region has seen 1,295 new jobs were created in the Greater Lincolnshire Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) area in 2021-22, 1,159 in 2022-23 and 198 in 2023-24. Statistics at LEP level are not available for previous years. The estimated economic impact of FDI in the UK in 2023-24 was £5.8bn and analysis shows that FDI has a net economic benefit to the whole of the UK.

How many and what proportion of asylum seekers being accommodated in hotels are awaiting a decision on their application by (a) nationality, (b) sex and (c) age range.

Data on the number of asylum seekers in receipt of support by nationality, can be found within the Asy_D09 tab for our most recent stats release: Immigration system statistics data tables - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)(opens in a new tab) (opens in a new tab).

How many apprentices her Department has employed each year since 2010.

The Department formally began recording apprenticeship data from 2017, following the publication of the Civil Service Apprenticeship Strategy. This data reflects DfTc, excluding the agencies.YearApprentice Numbers2017 - 2018192018 - 2019202019 - 2020242020 - 202172021 - 2022442022 - 20231232023 - 20241122024 - present53

What steps she is taking to support parents of children with SEND to access transport to school in (a) South Holland and the Deepings constituency and (b) Lincolnshire.

The department's ambition is that all children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) receive the right support to succeed in their education and as they move into adult life. The department’s home-to-school travel policy aims to make sure no child is prevented from accessing education by a lack of transport.Local authorities must arrange free home-to-school travel for children of compulsory school age who attend their nearest school and would not be able to walk there because of the distance, their special educational needs, disability or mobility problem, or because the route is unsafe. There are extended rights to free home-to-school travel for children from low-income families, aimed at helping them exercise school choice.The department is aware that challenges within the wider SEND system are creating pressure on home-to-school travel. The government is committed to improving inclusivity and expertise in mainstream schools, with specialist provision supporting children with the most complex needs, so fewer children need to travel long distances to a school that can meet their needs. This will reduce the pressure on home-to-school travel over time.Most central government funding for home-to-school travel is provided through the Local Government Finance Settlement administered by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government. The government recognises the challenges local authorities are facing. The department has listened to voices across the sector and prioritised local government at the Autumn Budget 2024. £1.3 billion of new grant funding in 2025/26 was announced for local government to deliver core services. Together with local income from council tax and business rates, this will provide a real-terms increase in core spending power of around 3.2%.

What estimate her Department has made of the value of the counterfeit cigarette market.

HMRC estimated that the illicit tobacco market cost £2.2bn in lost excise duty and VAT for the year 2022/23. Cigarettes account for £0.7bn of this amount. We do not have an estimate relating to specifically counterfeit cigarettes. Further details can be found in the Measuring Tax Gaps 2024 publication.

What recent assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the Probation Service in the East Midlands.

His Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service routinely publishes information about Probation Service regions’ performance as part of the Community Performance Annual Statistics. The most recent data, published in July, cover the financial year 2023-24, and includes the performance of East Midlands Probation.This publication includes details of performance against key performance indicators, a set of ‘Probation Service Scorecard Ratings,’ and other supporting information, which can all be accessed using the following link: Community Performance Annual, update to March 2024 - GOV.UK.

How many foreign nationals have been refused visas because of criminal convictions in their home countries in each of the last five years.

The Home Office publishes data on entry clearance visas in the ‘Immigration System Statistics Quarterly Release’. Data on visas refused are published in table ‘Vis_D02’ of the detailed entry clearance visas dataset. However, this information is not broken down by reason for refusal. Further information on how to use the dataset can be found in the ‘Notes’ page of the workbook. The latest data relates up to the end of June 2024.

What estimate her Department has made of how many illegal cigarettes were smuggled into the UK in 2023.

The transparency data showing the total amount of illegal cigarettes seized by Border Force in 2023 is available at the following page:Border Force Transparency 2023Qty of Cigarettes (sticks)Q1 156,104,848Q2 197,641,347Q3 259,625,932Q4 210,205,139Total 823,577,266

Communities and Local Government, how much funding has been provided via the Disabled Facilities Grant in (a) South Holland and the Deepings constituency and (b) Lincolnshire in the last three years.

South Holland and the Deepings constituency is part of Lincolnshire. Government provided the following Disabled Facilities Grant (DFG) funding to South Holland, South Kesteven (which covers Deeping) and to Lincolnshire for each financial year since 2022-2023. DFG Allocation 2022-20232023-20242024-2025South Holland£772,382£839,780£842,476South Kesteven£975,298£1,060,402£1,063,807Lincolnshire£6,976,485£7,585,253£7,609,604 This information is publicly available on the Foundations website: Disabled Facilities Grant Annual Allocations.