Written questions by Pochin.

Communities and Local Government, what guidance his Department has issued to local authorities on informing electors when a scheduled local election is cancelled or postponed.

In the spirit of devolution and trusting local leaders we have listened to councils telling us about the capacity constraints they are operating within and the work that reorganisation introduces on top of existing challenges. We have been transparent about this process and the Secretary of State considered the position of each council individually, weighing up the evidence received and other relevant matters. I refer the hon. Member to the Secretary of State’s statement on 22 January 2026. We are preparing the necessary order, which will be laid in both houses when parliamentary time allows. The order will use section 87 of the Local Government Act 2000 to change the years in which the ordinary elections of councillors of those specified local authorities are to be held. The Secretary of State also has powers to implement proposals for local government reorganisation using the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007. These allow him to legislate for electoral matters. These powers are used to replace elections to councils which are shortly to be abolished with elections to the new councils for the area. An order using these powers is currently before the House in relation to local government reorganisation in Surrey. Councils communicate regularly with the public they serve and will issue information as appropriate.

Whether she plans to introduce a mandatory registration of staff working in children's homes.

The government set out its position regarding professional registration of the children’s homes workforce in its ’Tackling child sexual abuse: progress update’, published on GOV.UK in April 2025 here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/tackling-child-sexual-abuse-progress-update. The immediate focus is to develop workforce standards and review sector qualifications to ensure staff working in children’s homes are equipped with the knowledge and skills they need to provide the best possible care, and have access to high quality continuing professional development. This will provide the essential foundation for looking at the risks and benefits of a registration model for care staff, including a wider consultation in the longer term.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the answer of 15 January 2026 to Question 103696, how any proposed non statutory definition of anti Muslim hatred or Islamophobia may be used by public authorities outside the criminal justice system.

Ministers are taking the time to review and consider the independent Working Group’s advice before confirming next steps in due course. As per the Working Group's Terms of Reference, a definition could provide the government and other relevant bodies with a greater understanding of unacceptable treatment and prejudice against Muslim communities.

Communities and Local Government, what criteria his Department applies when determining whether a local authority election should be cancelled or postponed; and whether those criteria are applied consistently across England.

In the spirit of devolution and trusting local leaders we have listened to councils telling us about the capacity constraints they are operating within and the work that reorganisation introduces on top of existing challenges. We have been transparent about this process and the Secretary of State considered the position of each council individually, weighing up the evidence received and other relevant matters. I refer the hon. Member to the Secretary of State’s statement on 22 January 2026. We are preparing the necessary order, which will be laid in both houses when parliamentary time allows. The order will use section 87 of the Local Government Act 2000 to change the years in which the ordinary elections of councillors of those specified local authorities are to be held. The Secretary of State also has powers to implement proposals for local government reorganisation using the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007. These allow him to legislate for electoral matters. These powers are used to replace elections to councils which are shortly to be abolished with elections to the new councils for the area. An order using these powers is currently before the House in relation to local government reorganisation in Surrey. Councils communicate regularly with the public they serve and will issue information as appropriate.

What support his Department is providing to British industrial companies that employ significant numbers of people directly and indirectly through their supply chains.

The department’s modern Industrial Strategy will make the UK the best country to invest in and grow. We are targeting government investment towards our world-class eight-growth driving sectors, from life sciences to digital technologies and advanced manufacturing so British workers can upskill and fill vacancies. From 2027, the British Industrial Competitiveness Scheme (BICS) will reduce electricity costs by up to £35–40/MWh for manufacturing frontier industries in the Industrial Strategy and foundational industries in their supply chains, by exempting them from the indirect costs of the Renewables Obligation, Feed-in Tariffs and Capacity Market. DBT provides targeted capital through several key programmes:DRIVE35: A £4 billion fund (expanded to 2035) for zero-emission vehicle manufacturing and R&D.Automotive Transformation Fund (ATF): Supports large-scale industrialisation of the electrified automotive supply chain.Aerospace Technology Institute (ATI): Up to £2.3 billion in R&D funding to 2035 through the Aerospace Technology Institute (ATI) programme to support the UK’s world-leading aerospace sector develop ultra-efficient and zero-carbon aircraft.Connected and Automated Mobility (CAM): Up to £150 million to deploy self-driving services and logistics.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the answer of 15 January 2026 to Question 103696, what assessment his Department has made of the potential implications of any proposed definition for the consistent treatment of discrimination or hatred relating to other religions or belief groups.

The independent anti-Muslim hatred/Islamophobia definition working group submitted their findings for Ministers to consider. As we have made clear, Government will consider this advice in a way that protects our fundamental right to free speech. Any definition would be non-statutory and compatible with relevant legislative frameworks, and Government will confirm next steps in due course.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the answer of 15 January 2026 to Question 103696, whether his Department has sought legal advice on the compatibility of any proposed definition with existing criminal law.

The independent anti-Muslim hatred/Islamophobia definition working group submitted their findings for Ministers to consider. As we have made clear, Government will consider this advice in a way that protects our fundamental right to free speech. Any definition would be non-statutory and compatible with relevant legislative frameworks, and Government will confirm next steps in due course.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 15 January 2026 to Question 103696, whether his Department has assessed the compatibility of a proposed Islamophobia definition with existing statutory protections for free speech.

The independent anti-Muslim hatred/Islamophobia definition working group submitted their findings for Ministers to consider. As we have made clear, Government will consider this advice in a way that protects our fundamental right to free speech. Any definition would be non-statutory and compatible with relevant legislative frameworks, and Government will confirm next steps in due course.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 15 January 2026 to Question 103696 on Islamophobia, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that any proposed non statutory definition of (a) anti Muslim hatred and (b) Islamophobia is compatible with existing hate crime legislation.

The independent anti-Muslim hatred/Islamophobia definition working group submitted their findings for Ministers to consider. As we have made clear, Government will consider this advice in a way that protects our fundamental right to free speech. Any definition would be non-statutory and compatible with relevant legislative frameworks, and Government will confirm next steps in due course.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the answer of 15 January 2026 to Question 103696, whether his Department intends to issue guidance to public authorities on the application of any proposed non statutory definition of (a) anti Muslim hatred and (b) Islamophobia.

The independent anti-Muslim hatred/Islamophobia definition working group submitted their findings for Ministers to consider. As we have made clear, Government will consider this advice in a way that protects our fundamental right to free speech. Any definition would be non-statutory and compatible with relevant legislative frameworks, and Government will confirm next steps in due course.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the answer of 15 January 2026 to Question 103696, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of any proposed definition on evidential thresholds used in the (a) recording and (b) investigation of hate incidents.

The independent anti-Muslim hatred/Islamophobia definition working group submitted their findings for Ministers to consider. As we have made clear, Government will consider this advice in a way that protects our fundamental right to free speech. Any definition would be non-statutory and compatible with relevant legislative frameworks, and Government will confirm next steps in due course.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the answer of 15 January 2026 to Question 103696, what criteria were used by the Working Group to assess and weigh evidence submitted through the Call for Evidence.

The independent anti-Muslim hatred/Islamophobia definition working group submitted their findings for Ministers to consider. As we have made clear, Government will consider this advice in a way that protects our fundamental right to free speech. Any definition would be non-statutory and compatible with relevant legislative frameworks, and Government will confirm next steps in due course.

How many convictions for incest under section 25 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 have been recorded in each of the last five years, disaggregated by the ethnicity and gender of the offender.

The Ministry of Justice publishes data on prosecutions and convictions for a wide range of criminal offences including those under section 25 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 in England and Wales within the Outcomes by Offences data tool. This can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page here: Criminal Justice Statistics. Data within the published tool can be disaggregated by ethnicity and sex.The data specific to offences under section 25 of The Sexual Offences Act 2003 is available by selecting the HO offence filter and using the following codes02304 - Sexual activity with a female child family member aged 13 to 17 - offender aged 18 or over – penetration02305 - Sexual activity with a male child family member aged 13 to 17 - offender aged 18 or over – penetration02306 - Sexual activity with a female child family member aged 13 to 17 - offender aged under 18 - no penetration02307 - Sexual activity with a male child family member aged 13 to 17 - offender aged under 18 - no penetration02314 - Sexual activity with a female child family member aged under 13 - offender aged 18 or over – penetration02315 - Sexual activity with a male child family member aged under 13 - offender aged 18 or over – penetration02316 - Sexual activity with a female child family member aged under 13 - offender aged under 18 - no penetration02317 - Sexual activity with a male child family member - offender not 18 or over at time of offence and victim under 1302322 - Sexual activity with a female child family member aged 13 to 17 - offender aged 18 or over - no penetration02323 - Sexual activity with a male child family member aged 13 to 17 - offender aged 18 or over - no penetration02324 – Sexual activity with a female child family member aged under 13 – offender aged 18 or over – no penetration02325 - Sexual activity with a male child family member aged under 13 - offender aged 18 or over - no penetration02330 - Sexual activity with a female child family member aged under 13 - offender aged under 18 – penetration02331 - Sexual activity with a male child family member under 13 - offender under 18 - penetration of anus, vagina or mouth by penis or other part of body02332 - Sexual activity with a female child family member aged 13 to 17 - offender aged under 18 - penetration of anus, vagina or mouth by penis or other part of body02333 - Sexual activity with a male child family member aged 13 to 17 - offender aged under 18 - penetration of anus, vagina or mouth by penis or other part of body

How many people have been prosecuted under section 25 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 in each of the last five years, broken down by the recorded ethnicity of the defendant.

The Ministry of Justice publishes data on prosecutions and convictions for a wide range of criminal offences including those under section 25 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 in England and Wales within the Outcomes by Offences data tool. This can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page here: Criminal Justice Statistics. Data within the published tool can be disaggregated by ethnicity and sex.The data specific to offences under section 25 of The Sexual Offences Act 2003 is available by selecting the HO offence filter and using the following codes02304 - Sexual activity with a female child family member aged 13 to 17 - offender aged 18 or over – penetration02305 - Sexual activity with a male child family member aged 13 to 17 - offender aged 18 or over – penetration02306 - Sexual activity with a female child family member aged 13 to 17 - offender aged under 18 - no penetration02307 - Sexual activity with a male child family member aged 13 to 17 - offender aged under 18 - no penetration02314 - Sexual activity with a female child family member aged under 13 - offender aged 18 or over – penetration02315 - Sexual activity with a male child family member aged under 13 - offender aged 18 or over – penetration02316 - Sexual activity with a female child family member aged under 13 - offender aged under 18 - no penetration02317 - Sexual activity with a male child family member - offender not 18 or over at time of offence and victim under 1302322 - Sexual activity with a female child family member aged 13 to 17 - offender aged 18 or over - no penetration02323 - Sexual activity with a male child family member aged 13 to 17 - offender aged 18 or over - no penetration02324 – Sexual activity with a female child family member aged under 13 – offender aged 18 or over – no penetration02325 - Sexual activity with a male child family member aged under 13 - offender aged 18 or over - no penetration02330 - Sexual activity with a female child family member aged under 13 - offender aged under 18 – penetration02331 - Sexual activity with a male child family member under 13 - offender under 18 - penetration of anus, vagina or mouth by penis or other part of body02332 - Sexual activity with a female child family member aged 13 to 17 - offender aged under 18 - penetration of anus, vagina or mouth by penis or other part of body02333 - Sexual activity with a male child family member aged 13 to 17 - offender aged under 18 - penetration of anus, vagina or mouth by penis or other part of body

What actions are being taken to improve compliance with the Victims’ Code for survivors of child sexual abuse, in the context of the recommendation of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse.

The Government accepted recommendation 14 from the Inquiry to commission a joint inspection of compliance with the Victims’ Code in relation to victims and survivors of child sexual abuse. The Criminal Justice Joint Inspectorates have confirmed that the inspection will take place in 2026-27.Additionally, the Victims and Prisoners Act 2024 introduces a new duty on criminal justice Inspectorates to consult the Victims’ Commissioner in developing their individual and joint inspection programmes. This measure was commenced in December 2025. This will support a clearer and sharper focus on how victims and survivors are treated across the system, allowing issues to be identified and solved.The Government is committed to ensuring that victims can access the information and support they need. The Victims and Prisoners Act 2024 created a framework to monitor criminal justice agencies' compliance with the Victims' Code, including legislative duties for agencies to collect and share information on Code compliance. The framework has not yet been commenced but preparatory work is underway with criminal justice agencies on the underlying data that will support the development of the framework.We will begin consulting on a new Victims’ Code shortly to ensure that we get the foundations for victims right. Part of the consultation will specifically look at how the Code can better support child victims.

When the Government intends to bring forward legislation to introduce mandatory reporting of child sexual abuse by designated professionals, in the context of the recommendation of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse.

The Tackling Child Sexual Abuse Progress Update, published in April last year, set out clearly the actions the Government is taking to respond to IICSA’s recommendations. We are now delivering on those commitments overseen by an inter-ministerial group on child sexual abuse chaired by the Minister for Safeguarding and Violence Against Women and Girls.Child Protection AuthorityLast month the Government published a consultation seeking views on the creation of the new Child Protection Authority for England. A Government response will be published by summer 2026 including a plan to establish the new body, and further information on its scope, structure, activities and responsibilities.Mandatory ReportingMeasures to introduce a new statutory duty for individuals undertaking key roles with responsibility for children and young people in England to report sexual abuse, and to create a new criminal offence of obstructing an individual from making a report under the duty are included in the Crime and Policing Bill which is currently passing through Parliament.Disclosure and Barring ServiceThe Government, working with the DBS, has been driving forward a continuous programme of work to improve employers’ and stakeholders’ understanding of, and compliance with, their statutory duty to inform the DBS about individuals who may pose a risk of harm to children.That work has included bespoke workshops on the legal duty to refer, how to make a good quality barring referral and recognising when it may be appropriate to refer someone to DBS because of harm caused outside the workplace. Through these workshops the DBS has reached over 12,000 individuals working in safeguarding roles. Since the DBS Outreach Service was introduced the number of referrals has increased by over 50% in every region.On 18 December 2025, legislation was also brought into force which enabled ACRO Criminal Records Office to include an individual’s barred list status on its International Child Protection Certificate (ICPC) which is available to those who are looking to work with children overseas. By ensuring that overseas employers can also learn an individual’s barred list status, this will reduce the risk of those barred from working with children in the UK being able to do so overseas.Limitation Period for Civil ClaimsThe Government has committed to remove the three-year time limit for victims to bring civil child sexual abuse claims with the burden of proof falling on defendants (rather than victims, as at present) to show that a fair trial is not possible. This measure has been included in the Crime and Policing Bill which is currently passing through Parliament.Joint inspections of compliance with the Victims’ CodeThe Government has asked the Criminal Justice Joint Inspectorates (CJJI) to include an inspection on the experiences of victims of child sexual abuse in the criminal justice system, including compliance with the Victims’ Code, in their 2025-27 Business Plan. The inspection is expected to take place in summer 2026.Retention of RecordsThe Government is preparing regulations instructing the Information Commissioner’s Office to produce a code of practice on the retention of personal data relating to child sexual abuse. We intend to lay the regulations before the House as soon as possible. Once the regulations have been laid, the ICO will prepare the code following consultation with an expert panel.Single Core National DatasetThe Government is taking a range of steps to improve the consistency of data collection and sharing related to child sexual abuse. The Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, currently passing through Parliament, will introduce a new information sharing duty and a consistent identifier for children to improve opportunities for agencies to better share their information about children at risk of child sexual abuse. The Government also continues to support the independent Centre of Expertise on Child Sexual Abuse which, through it’s Trends in Official Data report and Data Insights Hub brings together local and national data on the prevalence, identification and response to child sexual abuse.National Public Awareness CampaignThe Government is committed to raising public awareness about the scale and impacts of child sexual abuse and is supporting several targeted programmes to achieve this, including the #LookCloser campaign, aiming to raise awareness of all forms of child exploitation, and the Lucy Faithfull Foundation’s Stop It Now! Online Deterrence campaign and its services to prevent offending. As part of the Government’s commitment to halve VAWG in a decade, we are also supporting the ENOUGH campaign, a long-term national programme of behaviour change campaigns to deliver a generational shift in the awareness, attitudes, and behaviours underpinning abuse.Expenditure on Services Supporting Victims and SurvivorsThe Government is committing significant funding towards specialist support for victims and survivors of child sexual abuse. The Department for Health and Social Care has announced a £50m package to support expansion of the ‘Child House’ model, a key step in addressing IICSA’s recommendation on improving therapeutic support for children affected by sexual abuse. The Ministry of Justice will be investing £550 million in victim support services over the next three years – the biggest investment in victim support services to date - and the Home Office will also invest £2.59m this year to support frontline providers that offer nationally accessible services to support victims and survivors of child sexual abuse.

What progress has been made towards establishing a Child Protection Authority for England; and when such an authority is expected to become operational.

The Tackling Child Sexual Abuse Progress Update, published in April last year, set out clearly the actions the Government is taking to respond to IICSA’s recommendations. We are now delivering on those commitments overseen by an inter-ministerial group on child sexual abuse chaired by the Minister for Safeguarding and Violence Against Women and Girls.Child Protection AuthorityLast month the Government published a consultation seeking views on the creation of the new Child Protection Authority for England. A Government response will be published by summer 2026 including a plan to establish the new body, and further information on its scope, structure, activities and responsibilities.Mandatory ReportingMeasures to introduce a new statutory duty for individuals undertaking key roles with responsibility for children and young people in England to report sexual abuse, and to create a new criminal offence of obstructing an individual from making a report under the duty are included in the Crime and Policing Bill which is currently passing through Parliament.Disclosure and Barring ServiceThe Government, working with the DBS, has been driving forward a continuous programme of work to improve employers’ and stakeholders’ understanding of, and compliance with, their statutory duty to inform the DBS about individuals who may pose a risk of harm to children.That work has included bespoke workshops on the legal duty to refer, how to make a good quality barring referral and recognising when it may be appropriate to refer someone to DBS because of harm caused outside the workplace. Through these workshops the DBS has reached over 12,000 individuals working in safeguarding roles. Since the DBS Outreach Service was introduced the number of referrals has increased by over 50% in every region.On 18 December 2025, legislation was also brought into force which enabled ACRO Criminal Records Office to include an individual’s barred list status on its International Child Protection Certificate (ICPC) which is available to those who are looking to work with children overseas. By ensuring that overseas employers can also learn an individual’s barred list status, this will reduce the risk of those barred from working with children in the UK being able to do so overseas.Limitation Period for Civil ClaimsThe Government has committed to remove the three-year time limit for victims to bring civil child sexual abuse claims with the burden of proof falling on defendants (rather than victims, as at present) to show that a fair trial is not possible. This measure has been included in the Crime and Policing Bill which is currently passing through Parliament.Joint inspections of compliance with the Victims’ CodeThe Government has asked the Criminal Justice Joint Inspectorates (CJJI) to include an inspection on the experiences of victims of child sexual abuse in the criminal justice system, including compliance with the Victims’ Code, in their 2025-27 Business Plan. The inspection is expected to take place in summer 2026.Retention of RecordsThe Government is preparing regulations instructing the Information Commissioner’s Office to produce a code of practice on the retention of personal data relating to child sexual abuse. We intend to lay the regulations before the House as soon as possible. Once the regulations have been laid, the ICO will prepare the code following consultation with an expert panel.Single Core National DatasetThe Government is taking a range of steps to improve the consistency of data collection and sharing related to child sexual abuse. The Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, currently passing through Parliament, will introduce a new information sharing duty and a consistent identifier for children to improve opportunities for agencies to better share their information about children at risk of child sexual abuse. The Government also continues to support the independent Centre of Expertise on Child Sexual Abuse which, through it’s Trends in Official Data report and Data Insights Hub brings together local and national data on the prevalence, identification and response to child sexual abuse.National Public Awareness CampaignThe Government is committed to raising public awareness about the scale and impacts of child sexual abuse and is supporting several targeted programmes to achieve this, including the #LookCloser campaign, aiming to raise awareness of all forms of child exploitation, and the Lucy Faithfull Foundation’s Stop It Now! Online Deterrence campaign and its services to prevent offending. As part of the Government’s commitment to halve VAWG in a decade, we are also supporting the ENOUGH campaign, a long-term national programme of behaviour change campaigns to deliver a generational shift in the awareness, attitudes, and behaviours underpinning abuse.Expenditure on Services Supporting Victims and SurvivorsThe Government is committing significant funding towards specialist support for victims and survivors of child sexual abuse. The Department for Health and Social Care has announced a £50m package to support expansion of the ‘Child House’ model, a key step in addressing IICSA’s recommendation on improving therapeutic support for children affected by sexual abuse. The Ministry of Justice will be investing £550 million in victim support services over the next three years – the biggest investment in victim support services to date - and the Home Office will also invest £2.59m this year to support frontline providers that offer nationally accessible services to support victims and survivors of child sexual abuse.

When joint inspections of compliance with the Victims’ Code for child sexual abuse cases will commence, in the context of the recommendations of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse.

The Tackling Child Sexual Abuse Progress Update, published in April last year, set out clearly the actions the Government is taking to respond to IICSA’s recommendations. We are now delivering on those commitments overseen by an inter-ministerial group on child sexual abuse chaired by the Minister for Safeguarding and Violence Against Women and Girls.Child Protection AuthorityLast month the Government published a consultation seeking views on the creation of the new Child Protection Authority for England. A Government response will be published by summer 2026 including a plan to establish the new body, and further information on its scope, structure, activities and responsibilities.Mandatory ReportingMeasures to introduce a new statutory duty for individuals undertaking key roles with responsibility for children and young people in England to report sexual abuse, and to create a new criminal offence of obstructing an individual from making a report under the duty are included in the Crime and Policing Bill which is currently passing through Parliament.Disclosure and Barring ServiceThe Government, working with the DBS, has been driving forward a continuous programme of work to improve employers’ and stakeholders’ understanding of, and compliance with, their statutory duty to inform the DBS about individuals who may pose a risk of harm to children.That work has included bespoke workshops on the legal duty to refer, how to make a good quality barring referral and recognising when it may be appropriate to refer someone to DBS because of harm caused outside the workplace. Through these workshops the DBS has reached over 12,000 individuals working in safeguarding roles. Since the DBS Outreach Service was introduced the number of referrals has increased by over 50% in every region.On 18 December 2025, legislation was also brought into force which enabled ACRO Criminal Records Office to include an individual’s barred list status on its International Child Protection Certificate (ICPC) which is available to those who are looking to work with children overseas. By ensuring that overseas employers can also learn an individual’s barred list status, this will reduce the risk of those barred from working with children in the UK being able to do so overseas.Limitation Period for Civil ClaimsThe Government has committed to remove the three-year time limit for victims to bring civil child sexual abuse claims with the burden of proof falling on defendants (rather than victims, as at present) to show that a fair trial is not possible. This measure has been included in the Crime and Policing Bill which is currently passing through Parliament.Joint inspections of compliance with the Victims’ CodeThe Government has asked the Criminal Justice Joint Inspectorates (CJJI) to include an inspection on the experiences of victims of child sexual abuse in the criminal justice system, including compliance with the Victims’ Code, in their 2025-27 Business Plan. The inspection is expected to take place in summer 2026.Retention of RecordsThe Government is preparing regulations instructing the Information Commissioner’s Office to produce a code of practice on the retention of personal data relating to child sexual abuse. We intend to lay the regulations before the House as soon as possible. Once the regulations have been laid, the ICO will prepare the code following consultation with an expert panel.Single Core National DatasetThe Government is taking a range of steps to improve the consistency of data collection and sharing related to child sexual abuse. The Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, currently passing through Parliament, will introduce a new information sharing duty and a consistent identifier for children to improve opportunities for agencies to better share their information about children at risk of child sexual abuse. The Government also continues to support the independent Centre of Expertise on Child Sexual Abuse which, through it’s Trends in Official Data report and Data Insights Hub brings together local and national data on the prevalence, identification and response to child sexual abuse.National Public Awareness CampaignThe Government is committed to raising public awareness about the scale and impacts of child sexual abuse and is supporting several targeted programmes to achieve this, including the #LookCloser campaign, aiming to raise awareness of all forms of child exploitation, and the Lucy Faithfull Foundation’s Stop It Now! Online Deterrence campaign and its services to prevent offending. As part of the Government’s commitment to halve VAWG in a decade, we are also supporting the ENOUGH campaign, a long-term national programme of behaviour change campaigns to deliver a generational shift in the awareness, attitudes, and behaviours underpinning abuse.Expenditure on Services Supporting Victims and SurvivorsThe Government is committing significant funding towards specialist support for victims and survivors of child sexual abuse. The Department for Health and Social Care has announced a £50m package to support expansion of the ‘Child House’ model, a key step in addressing IICSA’s recommendation on improving therapeutic support for children affected by sexual abuse. The Ministry of Justice will be investing £550 million in victim support services over the next three years – the biggest investment in victim support services to date - and the Home Office will also invest £2.59m this year to support frontline providers that offer nationally accessible services to support victims and survivors of child sexual abuse.

What assessment has been made of public expenditure on services supporting victims and survivors of child sexual abuse, and when those assessments will be published, in the context of the recommendations of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse.

The Tackling Child Sexual Abuse Progress Update, published in April last year, set out clearly the actions the Government is taking to respond to IICSA’s recommendations. We are now delivering on those commitments overseen by an inter-ministerial group on child sexual abuse chaired by the Minister for Safeguarding and Violence Against Women and Girls.Child Protection AuthorityLast month the Government published a consultation seeking views on the creation of the new Child Protection Authority for England. A Government response will be published by summer 2026 including a plan to establish the new body, and further information on its scope, structure, activities and responsibilities.Mandatory ReportingMeasures to introduce a new statutory duty for individuals undertaking key roles with responsibility for children and young people in England to report sexual abuse, and to create a new criminal offence of obstructing an individual from making a report under the duty are included in the Crime and Policing Bill which is currently passing through Parliament.Disclosure and Barring ServiceThe Government, working with the DBS, has been driving forward a continuous programme of work to improve employers’ and stakeholders’ understanding of, and compliance with, their statutory duty to inform the DBS about individuals who may pose a risk of harm to children.That work has included bespoke workshops on the legal duty to refer, how to make a good quality barring referral and recognising when it may be appropriate to refer someone to DBS because of harm caused outside the workplace. Through these workshops the DBS has reached over 12,000 individuals working in safeguarding roles. Since the DBS Outreach Service was introduced the number of referrals has increased by over 50% in every region.On 18 December 2025, legislation was also brought into force which enabled ACRO Criminal Records Office to include an individual’s barred list status on its International Child Protection Certificate (ICPC) which is available to those who are looking to work with children overseas. By ensuring that overseas employers can also learn an individual’s barred list status, this will reduce the risk of those barred from working with children in the UK being able to do so overseas.Limitation Period for Civil ClaimsThe Government has committed to remove the three-year time limit for victims to bring civil child sexual abuse claims with the burden of proof falling on defendants (rather than victims, as at present) to show that a fair trial is not possible. This measure has been included in the Crime and Policing Bill which is currently passing through Parliament.Joint inspections of compliance with the Victims’ CodeThe Government has asked the Criminal Justice Joint Inspectorates (CJJI) to include an inspection on the experiences of victims of child sexual abuse in the criminal justice system, including compliance with the Victims’ Code, in their 2025-27 Business Plan. The inspection is expected to take place in summer 2026.Retention of RecordsThe Government is preparing regulations instructing the Information Commissioner’s Office to produce a code of practice on the retention of personal data relating to child sexual abuse. We intend to lay the regulations before the House as soon as possible. Once the regulations have been laid, the ICO will prepare the code following consultation with an expert panel.Single Core National DatasetThe Government is taking a range of steps to improve the consistency of data collection and sharing related to child sexual abuse. The Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, currently passing through Parliament, will introduce a new information sharing duty and a consistent identifier for children to improve opportunities for agencies to better share their information about children at risk of child sexual abuse. The Government also continues to support the independent Centre of Expertise on Child Sexual Abuse which, through it’s Trends in Official Data report and Data Insights Hub brings together local and national data on the prevalence, identification and response to child sexual abuse.National Public Awareness CampaignThe Government is committed to raising public awareness about the scale and impacts of child sexual abuse and is supporting several targeted programmes to achieve this, including the #LookCloser campaign, aiming to raise awareness of all forms of child exploitation, and the Lucy Faithfull Foundation’s Stop It Now! Online Deterrence campaign and its services to prevent offending. As part of the Government’s commitment to halve VAWG in a decade, we are also supporting the ENOUGH campaign, a long-term national programme of behaviour change campaigns to deliver a generational shift in the awareness, attitudes, and behaviours underpinning abuse.Expenditure on Services Supporting Victims and SurvivorsThe Government is committing significant funding towards specialist support for victims and survivors of child sexual abuse. The Department for Health and Social Care has announced a £50m package to support expansion of the ‘Child House’ model, a key step in addressing IICSA’s recommendation on improving therapeutic support for children affected by sexual abuse. The Ministry of Justice will be investing £550 million in victim support services over the next three years – the biggest investment in victim support services to date - and the Home Office will also invest £2.59m this year to support frontline providers that offer nationally accessible services to support victims and survivors of child sexual abuse.

Whether he is taking steps to introduce professional registration for staff working with children in (a) young offender institutions and (b) secure training centres.

The Government has been undertaking work to determine the most suitable registration framework for the youth custody estate. A final decision on this had been planned, as set out in the Tackling Child Abuse Progress Update, for March 2026. Since the Progress Update was published in April 2025, I commissioned a wider review of safeguarding in youth custody to be undertaken by a panel, led by the Chief Social Worker for Children and Families. Ensuring the correct safeguards are in place and that staff are properly equipped to be working with children, is all within remit of the panel and it is right we let this conclude. The panel will finalise its recommendations by June 2026. We will respond to its recommendations and this IICSA recommendation in autumn 2026.The Government rejected recommendation 5 from the Inquiry and will not be introducing legislation. Where physical safety of all children and staff in custody is concerned, it is important that trained staff are able to use these techniques, as a last resort in an emergency, to bring an incident to a safe conclusion.The Government recognises the particular vulnerabilities of children in custody, which is why staff in the Youth Custody Service continue to be appropriately trained and that there is independent oversight and transparency over all use of these techniques through an Independent Restraint Review Panel.