Written questions by Barker.

How many service personnel were living in (a) single living accommodation and (b) grade four rated single living accommodation per local authority on (i) 1 May 2010 and (ii) 3 July 2024.

The attached supporting tables show a count of the number of Armed Forces Personnel living in single living accommodation and grade four rated single living accommodation per local authority on 1 May 2010 and 3 July 2024. The tables have been broken down by region as recorded on the Joint Personnel Administration System.

Whether his Department plans to provide additional funding to small businesses to help meet additional costs arising from the Autumn Budget 2024.

The Government remains committed to helping small businesses thrive and 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.At the Autumn Budget, the Chancellor announced £250 million for the British Business Bank’s small business finance programmes in 2025/26. Additional funding for two key growth-driving programmes was also announced for 2025/26: Growth Hubs in England and Help to Grow: Management across the UK. These programmes aim to help businesses and entrepreneurs unlock their potential through bespoke support and resources.

Innovation and Technology, what steps his Department is taking to help protect young people from (a) misogynistic behaviour and (b) unrealistic expectations of young women on social media platforms.

The Online Safety Act requires in-scope services to protect users from harmful illegal content, much of which disproportionately affects women and girls. Services must also employ age-appropriate measures to protect children from legal abusive and hateful misogynistic content. User-to-user services and publishers of pornography must also prevent children from encountering online pornography. Services over the designated threshold will need to remove misogynistic content where it is prohibited in their terms of service. Companies will need to have effective, accessible mechanisms in place for users to be able to report abuse and receive an appropriate response from the platform. Media literacy helps address online safety issues by raising awareness that online actions have offline consequences, encouraging critical engagement with content and fostering a respectful online environment. Since 2022, the Department of Science, Innovation and Technology has provided almost £3 million in grant funding for a range of media literacy projects. This covered funding for the National Literacy Trust’s ‘Empower’ programme which includes delivering media literacy education with a focus on women and girls’ online experiences to students aged 11-16.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will hold discussions with his international counterparts on taking steps to help prevent a polio outbreak in Gaza.

The UK has been at the forefront of efforts to drive urgent action on polio vaccination in Gaza, including by convening an emergency session of the UN Security Council in August. The UK supported delivery of the vaccination campaign through our funding to the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI). The final phase of the polio vaccination rollout has now ended, but an estimated 6,800 to 13,700 children in North Gaza were not reached, because of intense IDF activity there. This is deplorable. Delaying the vaccination of any child puts them at risk and is unacceptable. As winter takes hold, we are urgently pressing Israel to ensure sufficient aid, including vital medical treatment, reaches civilians in Gaza. The Foreign Secretary reiterated this in his 14 November call with Israeli Foreign Minister Sa'ar.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps the Government is taking to fulfil its (a) duty to prevent and (b) other obligations under the Genocide Convention with respect to Gaza, with reference to (i) the International Court of Justice’s order of provisional measures in South Africa v Israel (2023), (ii) paragraph 431 of the International Court of Justice's judgment in Bosnia and Herzegovina v. Serbia and Montenegro (2007) and (iii) the Articles on Responsibility of States for Internationally Wrongful Acts (2001).

It is the UK's long-standing policy that any determination as to whether genocide has occurred is a matter for a competent national or international court, and not for governments or non-judicial bodies. This approach ensures that any determination is above politics, lobbying, and individual or national interest. The Government is clear in our commitment to international law. This includes our obligations under the Genocide Convention and the Arms Trade Treaty. This Government is profoundly concerned about the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza. The Foreign Secretary has raised our grave concerns with Israeli Minister Dermer and Minister Katz in his recent bilateral meetings. At a multilateral level, the UK is using its presidency of the United Nations Security Council, to call for an immediate ceasefire, the immediate release of all hostages held since 7 October 2023, and urgent action to address the humanitarian crisis. On 2 September 2024, the Foreign Secretary announced the decision to suspend export licences for items that could be used in military operations in Gaza, exempting the F-35 components.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with international counterparts on the collective measures available to ensure the implementation of treaty obligations to prevent genocide and other atrocity crimes in the occupied Palestinian territories.

It is the UK's long-standing policy that any determination as to whether genocide has occurred is a matter for a competent national or international court, and not for governments or non-judicial bodies. This approach ensures that any determination is above politics, lobbying, and individual or national interest. The Government is clear in our commitment to international law. This includes our obligations under the Genocide Convention and the Arms Trade Treaty. This Government is profoundly concerned about the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza. The Foreign Secretary has raised our grave concerns with Israeli Minister Dermer and Minister Katz in his recent bilateral meetings. At a multilateral level, the UK is using its presidency of the United Nations Security Council, to call for an immediate ceasefire, the immediate release of all hostages held since 7 October 2023, and urgent action to address the humanitarian crisis. On 2 September 2024, the Foreign Secretary announced the decision to suspend export licences for items that could be used in military operations in Gaza, exempting the F-35 components.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of establishing a UN Investigative Team to (a) collect high-quality evidence on and (b) promote accountability for crimes committed in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories during the UK's Presidency of the UN Security Council.

The International Criminal Court (ICC) is the primary international institution for investigating and prosecuting the most serious crimes of international concern and prosecuting their perpetrators. The UK respects the independence of the ICC in its extant investigation of the situation in Israel and the OPTs. As we have consistently made clear, all parties must comply with International Humanitarian Law and take every possible step to minimise harm to civilians.

Communities and Local Government, how many social houses will be built by housing associations with Government support in the next 12 months.

I refer my Hon Friend to the answer I gave to Question UIN 11383 on 31 October 2024. The Government supports housing associations and local authorities to build new social and affordable housing through the Affordable Homes Programme. We do not set annual targets for the programme.

Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to support local authorities in maintaining parks in cities.

The Government supports local authorities in the maintenance of urban parks and green spaces in many ways. The Government’s Green Flag Awards scheme helps to increase access to quality green spaces and sets the standard for those spaces to meet the needs of the communities they serve. Furthermore, the Green Infrastructure Framework launched by Natural England in January 2023 will help local authorities and developers incorporate green infrastructure into development plans to improve access to nature on our doorsteps and build resilience to climate change.The £2.6 billion UK Shared Prosperity Fund provides funding for investment in local growth, and a further £900 million for 2025-26 was announced at the Autumn Budget. Local authorities can decide how to use funding to best serve their communities, including investing in improving and developing their parks. This Government will also support local authorities by moving towards multi-year funding settlements, ending competitive bidding for pots of money and reforming the local audit system.

What discussions she has had with police forces on how to effectively enforce the law in respect to buffer zones around abortion clinics.

The Crown Prosecution Service published guidance on 31 October 2024, alongside further information from the College of Policing, setting out how the police and prosecutors should approach enforcing the new offence.

Whether her Department plans to support students with (a) the cost of living and (b) accommodation costs.

The government is determined that the higher education funding system should deliver for our economy, for universities and for students. This government is committed to supporting the aspiration of every person who meets the requirements and wants to go to university.The government recognises the impact that the cost of living crisis has had on students. That is why we are increasing the maximum maintenance loans for living costs for the 2025/26 academic year by 3.1%, in line with the forecast rate of inflation, to ensure that more support is targeted at students from the lowest income families.Maximum maintenance loans will increase in line with forecast inflation, giving students up to an additional £414 a year of support in the 2025/26 academic year. This is the increase in the maximum loan for living costs for students living away from, and studying in, London from £13,348 to £13,762.Therefore, a student living away from home and studying outside London on a household income of £25,000 or less will qualify for a maximum loan for living costs of £10,544 for the 2025/26 academic year, an increase of £317 compared to 2024/25. Students living away from home and studying in London will qualify for higher rates of loan, as will students eligible for benefits and some disabled students.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his Israeli counterpart on allowing medical aid into Gaza.

The humanitarian situation in Gaza is intolerable, and we remain deeply concerned by the impact of the conflict on access to medical facilities and healthcare. We are clear that Israel can and must do more to get aid into Gaza. The Prime Minister stressed this in a call with Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu on 19 October; the Foreign Secretary reiterated this in his call with Foreign Minister Katz on 27 October. The UK is committed to alleviating the suffering in Gaza and we provide significant funding to partners, including support to UK-Med to run field hospitals in Gaza. On 17 October we announced the UK will match up to £10 million of public donations to the Disasters Emergency Committee's Middle East humanitarian appeal.

What steps his Department is taking to incentivise businesses to employ young people.

The Government’s plan to Make Work Pay is a core part of the mission to grow the economy, raise living standards across the country and create opportunities for all, including young people. In addition, the Department for Education has established Skills England to sit at the heart of a system that provides young people with the skills required to thrive in life. Skills England has set out a package of financial support to businesses which provide apprenticeships for young people to help drive up participation among this group.

What steps her Department is taking to address the intelligence failings outlined in the regulation 28 prevention of future deaths report issued on 20 May 2024 in the case of deaths in the Forbury Gardens terror attack of 20 June 2020.

The deaths of James Furlong, Joseph Ritchie-Bennett and David Wails in the Forbury Gardens terror attack of 20 June 2020 were a tragedy. Our thoughts and deepest condolences are with the families and loved ones of James, Joseph and David, and with all of those individuals impacted by this incident.The Home Office response to the Regulation 28 Report to Prevent Future Deaths was submitted to the Judge Coroner on 9 September 2024 and can now be viewed on the Courts and Tribunals Judiciary website: https://www.judiciary.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/2024-0276-Response-from-the-Home-Office.pdf. The Home Office and other interested persons received an extension from the original deadline of 15 July 2024 due to the timing of the General Election.In this response, the Home Secretary fully supported the Judge Coroner’s conclusion that the Home Office has made improvements since this tragic incident and that effective monitoring of these improvements is required. The Home Secretary will be overseeing the rigorous and robust implementation of recommendations and new commitments made.

Whether she has responded to the regulation 28 prevention of future deaths report issued on 20 May 2024 in the case of deaths in the Forbury Gardens terror attack of 20 June 2020, to which a response was due under statute by 15 July 2024.

The deaths of James Furlong, Joseph Ritchie-Bennett and David Wails in the Forbury Gardens terror attack of 20 June 2020 were a tragedy. Our thoughts and deepest condolences are with the families and loved ones of James, Joseph and David, and with all of those individuals impacted by this incident.The Home Office response to the Regulation 28 Report to Prevent Future Deaths was submitted to the Judge Coroner on 9 September 2024 and can now be viewed on the Courts and Tribunals Judiciary website: https://www.judiciary.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/2024-0276-Response-from-the-Home-Office.pdf. The Home Office and other interested persons received an extension from the original deadline of 15 July 2024 due to the timing of the General Election.In this response, the Home Secretary fully supported the Judge Coroner’s conclusion that the Home Office has made improvements since this tragic incident and that effective monitoring of these improvements is required. The Home Secretary will be overseeing the rigorous and robust implementation of recommendations and new commitments made.

Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that growth in the British film industry is shared across the UK.

The government is firmly committed to supporting the growth of the film industry across every nation and region. Through our UK-wide funding programmes, investment in infrastructure, tax reliefs and support for independent British content, we want the UK to be the best place in the world to make films.We fund the British Film Institute (BFI) to support the film sector through nationwide funding and initiatives. The BFI’s ten year strategy, Screen Culture 2033, sets out its core principle to reach across the full breadth of our nation. The BFI have sought to devolve funding, share power, and support networks across regions, in particular through their Film Audience Network (BFI FAN) which is a collaboration of 8 film hubs, managed by leading film organisations and venues around the UK. Film Hub North covers Liverpool.The BFI is also tackling skills shortages in the sector to underpin growth across the UK. Under the BFI’s National Lottery Skills Clusters Fund, £8.1 million has been awarded to enable six Skills Clusters across the UK to identify skills gaps, coordinate local skills training, and develop clearer pathways to long-term employment in the sector. This programme includes £2.3m awarded to Screen Alliance North - created by the Liverpool Film Office, North East Screen, Screen Manchester, and Screen Yorkshire - over 2023-2026.We support the British Film Commission (BFC) work, with £6 million in funding, to support the growth of seven geographic production hubs across the UK, by investing in infrastructure and attracting global film productions that bring inward investment into the local and national economy. This includes support for Liverpool, most recently supporting and advising on the Liverpool Littlewoods film studio development.We also want to support independent British content, to ensure stories from across the UK are told on screen. We recently brought in the Independent Film Tax Credit to support homegrown talent, and we support indie content to grow internationally through the £28 million UK Global Screen Fund (UKGSF). Daliland and The Almond and The Seahorse, both of which were shot in Liverpool, received international distribution awards from UKGSF.In addition, to boost the contribution of film tourism to local economies, DCMS Arm’s-Length Body VisitBritain uses high profile filming locations as part of its international tourism marketing activity.

What steps her Department is taking to monitor far-right activity.

The government is absolutely committed to tackling those who spread views that promote violence and hatred against individuals and communities in our society, and that radicalise others into terrorism.To understand such threats, we routinely monitor and assess all forms of extremist activity and behaviour, which includes Extreme Right Wing. We work closely with law enforcement and multi-agency partners to respond to any such activity which may pose as a threat.

What discussions she has had with Merseyside Police on tackling (a) violent and (b) knife-related crime.

Tackling knife crime and violence is a top priority for the Government.We are already taking action to get dangerous weapons off the street. We have banned Zombie style knives and zombie style machetes, and the manufacture, supply, sale and possession of zombie-style knives and machetes became illegal on 24 September 2024. We will also be taking action to ban ninja swords in line with our manifesto commitment and a review of online sales of knives is currently being conducted by the national police lead, Commander Clayman, at the request of the Home Secretary.We will also create a new Young Futures programme - intervening earlier to stop young people being drawn into crime. It is vital we have a system that can identify and support those young people who need it most and we will be introducing Prevention Partnerships and Young Futures Hubs to help deliver this.In addition, we are working closely with policing partners, including Merseyside Police, and we will be looking to initiatives such as the Merseyside Violence Reduction Partnership that works with a range of local agencies to deliver preventative interventions.

Whether she has had discussions with the Metropolitan Police in relation to (a) reports of planned protests by Tommy Robinson on Saturday 26 October 2024 and (b) public protection during those protests.

The Home Secretary is in regular contact with the Metropolitan Police Service on a range of issues, including public order.The management of demonstrations is an operational decision for the police, who are independent from government.

Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to support the growth of the film industry in Liverpool.

The government is firmly committed to supporting the growth of the film industry across every nation and region. Through our UK-wide funding programmes, investment in infrastructure, tax reliefs and support for independent British content, we want the UK to be the best place in the world to make films.We fund the British Film Institute (BFI) to support the film sector through nationwide funding and initiatives. The BFI’s ten year strategy, Screen Culture 2033, sets out its core principle to reach across the full breadth of our nation. The BFI have sought to devolve funding, share power, and support networks across regions, in particular through their Film Audience Network (BFI FAN) which is a collaboration of 8 film hubs, managed by leading film organisations and venues around the UK. Film Hub North covers Liverpool.The BFI is also tackling skills shortages in the sector to underpin growth across the UK. Under the BFI’s National Lottery Skills Clusters Fund, £8.1 million has been awarded to enable six Skills Clusters across the UK to identify skills gaps, coordinate local skills training, and develop clearer pathways to long-term employment in the sector. This programme includes £2.3m awarded to Screen Alliance North - created by the Liverpool Film Office, North East Screen, Screen Manchester, and Screen Yorkshire - over 2023-2026.We support the British Film Commission (BFC) work, with £6 million in funding, to support the growth of seven geographic production hubs across the UK, by investing in infrastructure and attracting global film productions that bring inward investment into the local and national economy. This includes support for Liverpool, most recently supporting and advising on the Liverpool Littlewoods film studio development.We also want to support independent British content, to ensure stories from across the UK are told on screen. We recently brought in the Independent Film Tax Credit to support homegrown talent, and we support indie content to grow internationally through the £28 million UK Global Screen Fund (UKGSF). Daliland and The Almond and The Seahorse, both of which were shot in Liverpool, received international distribution awards from UKGSF.In addition, to boost the contribution of film tourism to local economies, DCMS Arm’s-Length Body VisitBritain uses high profile filming locations as part of its international tourism marketing activity.