Written questions by Hatton.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department plans to expand the Bathing Water (Amendment) (England and Wales) Regulations 2025 to apply to all recreational water users.

Bathing waters are one of the most visible ways in which the public interacts with the water environment, and so it is critical that appropriate regulations meet the needs of water users and those involved with managing bathing water sites. In the November – December 2024 consultation on bathing water reforms, we asked respondents about wider reforms including the expansion of the definition of ‘bathers’ to include other water users and introducing multiple monitoring points at sites. The Government response to the consultation, published in March 2025, outlined that a clear majority of respondents either agreed or strongly agreed with this proposal and many offered suggestions of what water users should be included. The Department is now exploring how evidence to support the delivery of these wider reforms, including expanding the definition of a bather might be developed. The timeline for detailed policy development and research will depend on the outcome of initial scoping work. Defra will engage with local and national stakeholders as this work progresses.

What steps her Department will take to ensure transparency in the operation of HMRC's proposed whistleblowing reward scheme; and whether she plans to publish (a) eligibility criteria and award thresholds for applicants, and (b) data on the number and value of awards granted.

At Autumn Budget on 26 November 2025 the Government launched the Rewards for informants of high value tax fraud. This scheme is designed to target serious non-compliance involving large corporates, wealthy individuals, offshore and avoidance schemes. Informants can receive a reward of between 15 and 30% when they provide information which leads directly to HMRC collecting more than £1.5M tax. HMRC have published eligibility criteria for the scheme at https://www.gov.uk/guidance/reporting-serious-tax-avoidance-and-evasion. HMRC has previously published data on the total amount of rewards paid annually through the standard informants reward scheme and will continue to do so. To protect the confidentiality of informants we do not publish the number of rewards or size of individual rewards.

Whether the Treasury plans to introduce additional protections for individuals who face retaliation as a result of engaging with the HMRC whistleblowing reward scheme; and whether HMRC will be required to provide support to whistleblowers involved in employment disputes or SLAPP-type legal proceedings arising from their disclosures.

HMRC treats all informants with the highest levels of confidentiality and security in line with the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (RIPA) 2000 and the Covert Human Intelligence Sources (CHIS) Codes of Practice. There is no legal obligation on HMRC to participate in an employment tribunal of an informant. However, if requested, HMRC can provide a disclosure to the informant or their legal representative to support any employment tribunal under Sec 18 (2)(c) Commissioners for Revenue and Customs Act 2005.

How many of the 74 HMRC engagement forums are involved in developing tax policy; and what is the composition of those stakeholder groups, including the proportion of tax practitioners compared to academics or independent experts.

The majority of HMRC’s engagement forums play a role in contributing to the development of tax policy, as well as addressing other key areas such as operations, compliance and communications. These forums bring together a diverse mix of representatives from professional bodies, other representative organisations, tax practitioners and independent experts.

What progress she has made on implementing the cross-system professional enablers strategy.

Professional enablers are a critical facilitator of serious and organised crime. In April 2024, the NCA’s National Economic Crime Centre (NECC) launched a cross-system strategy to tackle the threat posed by professional enablers; and steps taken towards that goal since include the following:- The NECC is working closely with professional body supervisors, statutory supervisors, policing and other system partners to improve information sharing between agencies.- The NECC is co-chairing the Europol Financial Intelligence Public Private Partnership (EFIPPP) work stream on professional enablers to improve intelligence with international partners.- Work is underway to create a comprehensive guide on professional enablers that will support operational teams and supervisors.- And there is further ongoing work to build a stronger evidence base around professional enablers through NCA/NECC research and analysis.

How many disclosure orders under the Proceeds of Crime Act the National Crime Agency has (a) sought and (b) been granted in each of the last three years.

The NCA has several well-established powers under Part 8 (investigations) of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002, which they may use to compel information during an investigation including production orders, customer information orders and disclosure orders. These allow relevant law enforcement agencies to obtain information on property, individuals and customer details in support of investigations.The use of these powers remains an operational decision which will be taken on a case by case basis by the relevant law enforcement body and the Home Office does not hold central data on the extent of their use.

What steps her Department is taking to support school-based nurseries.

School-based nurseries are a key part of this government’s opportunity mission, delivering on our Plan for Change by expanding high-quality early education across our brilliant early years market in England. 300 schools have been awarded up to £150,000 to repurpose their unused space to open or expand a school-based nursery, totalling £37 million. This funding will create up to 6,000 new childcare places, most of which are expected to be available from September 2025. This is a first step to making more childcare places available and accessible so parents can take-up the funded childcare they are entitled to. These new and expanded nurseries will help boost access to quality childcare and early years education.The department has published guidance for schools on setting up a high-quality early years learning environment and are exploring what further support can be provided to successful schools who may be new to early years provision. The department is also delivering programmes to support the sector to attract talented staff and childminders by creating conditions for improved recruitment, alongside programmes to better utilise the skills of the existing workforce. We are working closely with the early years sector and local authorities to develop the next steps to achieving this manifesto commitment.

How many (a) prosecutions and (b) convictions of companies for money laundering there were under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 in the last five years.

The number of companies and public bodies prosecuted for the principal offence of money laundering under POCA 2002 has fluctuated between 1 and 5 each year between the year ending June 2019 and the year ending June 2024. The number of companies and public bodies convicted for the principal offence of money laundering under POCA 2002 has fluctuated between 0 and 5 each year between the year ending June 2019 and the year ending June 2024. Money laundering prosecutions and convictions of companies and public bodies under POCA and Money Laundering Regulation’s 2007 (principal offence)Year ending June 2019Year ending June 2020Year ending June 2021Year ending June 2022Year ending June 2023Year ending June 2024Proceeded against155351Convicted510312 To note, a small proportion of defendant types are also recorded as ‘unknown’ each year (not included in figures in table). Source: Criminal Justice System statistics quarterly: June 2024 - GOV.UK

How many (a) land and (b) property assets are held through UK trusts registered with the Trust Registration Services; and what the aggregate value is of (i) land and (ii) property assets held via trusts.

I can only provide a partial answer to these questions, as the information held on the Trust Registration Service in relation to land and property holdings varies depending on the category of registration. Additionally, the Trust Registration Service does not record information on indirect holdings of land by trustees.From May 2021 (when the Trust Registration Service was expanded to accept registrations from non-taxable trusts) to 5 April 2024 (the end of the last tax year), c.56,000 trusts notified the Trust Registration Service that the trustees have acquired a direct interest in UK land or property on or after 6 October 2020. Of this figure, c.55,000 are UK resident trusts (including trusts categorised as ‘Type A') and c.1000 are non-UK resident trusts (including trusts categorised as ‘Type B’ or ‘Type C’).Taxable trusts, including those registered before May 2021, are required to provide a statement of assets held at the time of registration, including UK land or property. However, analysing this information to arrive at a total number and value of land and property assets held by these trusts would carry a disproportionate cost.

How many trusts registered with the Trusts Registration Service hold UK land or property via a type (a) A, (b) B and (c) C trust.

I can only provide a partial answer to these questions, as the information held on the Trust Registration Service in relation to land and property holdings varies depending on the category of registration. Additionally, the Trust Registration Service does not record information on indirect holdings of land by trustees.From May 2021 (when the Trust Registration Service was expanded to accept registrations from non-taxable trusts) to 5 April 2024 (the end of the last tax year), c.56,000 trusts notified the Trust Registration Service that the trustees have acquired a direct interest in UK land or property on or after 6 October 2020. Of this figure, c.55,000 are UK resident trusts (including trusts categorised as ‘Type A') and c.1000 are non-UK resident trusts (including trusts categorised as ‘Type B’ or ‘Type C’).Taxable trusts, including those registered before May 2021, are required to provide a statement of assets held at the time of registration, including UK land or property. However, analysing this information to arrive at a total number and value of land and property assets held by these trusts would carry a disproportionate cost.

How many of the trusts registered with the Trusts Registration Service hold UK land or property.

I can only provide a partial answer to these questions, as the information held on the Trust Registration Service in relation to land and property holdings varies depending on the category of registration. Additionally, the Trust Registration Service does not record information on indirect holdings of land by trustees.From May 2021 (when the Trust Registration Service was expanded to accept registrations from non-taxable trusts) to 5 April 2024 (the end of the last tax year), c.56,000 trusts notified the Trust Registration Service that the trustees have acquired a direct interest in UK land or property on or after 6 October 2020. Of this figure, c.55,000 are UK resident trusts (including trusts categorised as ‘Type A') and c.1000 are non-UK resident trusts (including trusts categorised as ‘Type B’ or ‘Type C’).Taxable trusts, including those registered before May 2021, are required to provide a statement of assets held at the time of registration, including UK land or property. However, analysing this information to arrive at a total number and value of land and property assets held by these trusts would carry a disproportionate cost.

If she will publish the agenda for the meeting with Crown Dependencies on 3 March 2025.

We publish all Ministerial meetings in our quarterly transparency returns.We do not routinely publish the agenda or minutes of such meetings. publish the agenda or minutes of such meetings.

With reference to The Register of Overseas Entities (Protection and Trusts) (Amendment) Regulations 2025, when applicants are required to demonstrate a legitimate interest; how this differs from information required on application under Regulation 4(1).

Under these regulations the presumption is that trust data on the Register of Overseas Entities will normally be disclosed when requested. Most applications will not require the applicant to demonstrate any legitimate interest. Legitimate interest applies where trust data involves a minor or multiple entities. In such cases, applicants must demonstrate their request relates to the investigation of possible money laundering, tax evasion, terrorist financing or sanctions breaches, make a statement it is to further their investigation and explain the information's intended use.A legitimate interest must be shown for each new application.The registrar will consider any appropriate restrictions on the use and further disclosure of trust information before disclosing this information to a successful applicant. The applicant may publish this information unless the registrar has imposed a restriction on its further disclosure.

How many customer compliance managers there are in the HMRC large business directorate.

As of 31 March 2024, HMRC’s Large Business Directorate had a total of 2422 full time equivalent staff working within the directorate which includes 169 Customer Compliance Managers.

How many people work in the large business directorate in HMRC.

As of 31 March 2024, HMRC’s Large Business Directorate had a total of 2422 full time equivalent staff working within the directorate which includes 169 Customer Compliance Managers.

With reference to the Register of Overseas Entities (Protection and Trusts) (Amendment) Regulations 2025, whether applicants who obtain trust information through this regulation will be allowed to publish this information where it is in the public interest.

Under these regulations the presumption is that trust data on the Register of Overseas Entities will normally be disclosed when requested. Most applications will not require the applicant to demonstrate any legitimate interest. Legitimate interest applies where trust data involves a minor or multiple entities. In such cases, applicants must demonstrate their request relates to the investigation of possible money laundering, tax evasion, terrorist financing or sanctions breaches, make a statement it is to further their investigation and explain the information's intended use.A legitimate interest must be shown for each new application.The registrar will consider any appropriate restrictions on the use and further disclosure of trust information before disclosing this information to a successful applicant. The applicant may publish this information unless the registrar has imposed a restriction on its further disclosure.

With reference to HMRC's document entitled Measuring tax gaps 2024 edition: tax gap estimates for 2022 to 2023, updated on 20 June 2024, if she will take steps to widen the scope of the published offshore tax gap statistics.

HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is assessing the feasibility of extending the published estimate of the tax gap arising from undisclosed foreign income, including engaging with academics. HMRC is determined to address offshore tax non-compliance. At Autumn Budget 2024, the government published a supplementary document outlining HMRC’s approach to addressing offshore tax non-compliance, as part of the government’s wider efforts to close the tax gap: Tackling offshore tax non-compliance - GOV.UK.

With reference to the Register of Overseas Entities (Protection and Trusts) (Amendment) Regulations 2025, whether applicants will need to demonstrate legitimate interest for each application where relevant or whether legitimate interest will be presumed once demonstrated.

Under these regulations the presumption is that trust data on the Register of Overseas Entities will normally be disclosed when requested. Most applications will not require the applicant to demonstrate any legitimate interest. Legitimate interest applies where trust data involves a minor or multiple entities. In such cases, applicants must demonstrate their request relates to the investigation of possible money laundering, tax evasion, terrorist financing or sanctions breaches, make a statement it is to further their investigation and explain the information's intended use.A legitimate interest must be shown for each new application.The registrar will consider any appropriate restrictions on the use and further disclosure of trust information before disclosing this information to a successful applicant. The applicant may publish this information unless the registrar has imposed a restriction on its further disclosure.

Whether she plans to require public country-by-country reporting by multinational corporations on (a) taxation and (b) where companies are (i) trading and (ii) making profits.

The UK is at the forefront of Pillar 2 implementation, ensuring that large multinational enterprises are subject to an effective tax rate of at least 15% in each jurisdiction they operate. The government does not have plans to make country-by-country reports public, but will keep the position under review.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department has provided the interim government in Bangladesh with support for the asset recovery of funds potentially misappropriated by the previous government.

The UK is committed to assisting investigative, prosecuting and judicial authorities in combating international crime. We have robust illicit finance legislation and instruments which can be used to support asset recovery requests. Requests require signif...