Written questions by Hodgson.

What steps she is taking to ensure adequate policing in Washington and Gateshead South constituency.

The Government’s Safer Streets Mission sets a clear expectation for policing to deliver safer communities and improved public confidence. An effective, well-supported police service is central to achieving this.For 2025-26, a total of up to £422.2 million will be available for Northumbria Police through the police funding settlement, an overall increase of up to £28.8 million when compared to the 2024-25 settlement.This includes:£10,781,126 through the officer maintenance ringfenced grant, and £4,742,769 through the top-up grant, to maintain a total headcount of 3,853 officers£6,160,643 through the neighbourhood policing grant to grow by 122 FTE Neighbourhood Policing officers (95 FTE police officers and 27 FTE PCSOs).It is for Chief Constables and directly elected PCCs, and Mayors with PCC functions, to make operational decisions based on their local knowledge and experience. This includes how best to allocate and deploy the resources at their disposal to provide an effective service to local communities.

What steps she is taking to help increase uptake levels of the license for access to controlled drugs in UK care homes with nursing provision.

Most care homes will not require a licence to access medicines containing controlled drugs for patients who need them. This is because care homes run by public authorities or charities are exempt from the need for a licence. In addition, all care homes with nursing provision are exempt from needing a licence for medicines containing controlled drugs in Schedules 3-5 of the Misuse of Drugs Regulations 2001, and Schedule 2 drugs in circumstances where medication is patient prescribed. Any care home that does need a licence can apply for one from the Home Office. Details of how to register and then apply are available on GOV.UK.No recent assessment has been made of the adequacy of the current controlled drugs licensing regime specifically in relation to care homes, however information about the process is easily available and the Home Office regularly receives applications from care homes to which it gives due consideration. Additionally, the Care Quality Commission provides guidance and tools to healthcare providers around the use of controlled drugs in care, and supports collaboration and consistent practice through its Controlled Drugs National Group.

What assessment she has made of the adequacy of the existing licensing scheme for access to controlled drugs in UK care homes.

Most care homes will not require a licence to access medicines containing controlled drugs for patients who need them. This is because care homes run by public authorities or charities are exempt from the need for a licence. In addition, all care homes with nursing provision are exempt from needing a licence for medicines containing controlled drugs in Schedules 3-5 of the Misuse of Drugs Regulations 2001, and Schedule 2 drugs in circumstances where medication is patient prescribed. Any care home that does need a licence can apply for one from the Home Office. Details of how to register and then apply are available on GOV.UK.No recent assessment has been made of the adequacy of the current controlled drugs licensing regime specifically in relation to care homes, however information about the process is easily available and the Home Office regularly receives applications from care homes to which it gives due consideration. Additionally, the Care Quality Commission provides guidance and tools to healthcare providers around the use of controlled drugs in care, and supports collaboration and consistent practice through its Controlled Drugs National Group.

Whether she plans to include provisions on the protection of wholesale workers in the Crime and Policing Bill.

Shop theft continues to increase at an unacceptable level, up 29% on year up to June 2024, with more and more offenders using violence and abuse against shopworkers to do this. We won’t stand for this.Everybody has a right to feel safe on the job and this government is committed to taking retail crime seriously.As part of the Government’s Safer Streets Mission, we will introduce a new specific offence for assaults on shopworkers to protect them from violence and abuse.The scope of this new offence will be confirmed when legislation is brought forward.

What assessment she has made of the potential merits of proscribing the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps as a terrorist organisation.

The Government keeps the list of proscribed organisations under close review, as we seek to protect the UK from the threats that we face. However, we do not routinely comment on whether an organisation is or is not being considered for proscription.Iran’s malign activities, including the activities of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), are unacceptable and will not be tolerated. The UK already maintains sanctions on over 450 Iranian individuals and entities covering human rights abuses, nuclear proliferation, malign influence internationally and state threats, including sanctioning the IRGC in its entirety. The Government will continue to consider what further steps may be taken to deter Iran’s malign activity.The National Security Act 2023 provides another significant toolkit in the fight against individuals working for state entities like the IRGC. The UK is now a harder target for those states which seek to conduct hostile acts against the UK, including espionage, interference in our political system, sabotage, and assassination.

What steps her Department is taking to reduce demand for trafficking for sexual exploitation in Washington and Gateshead South constituency.

The trafficking of women and girls for sexual exploitation is a truly horrific crime. This Government has committed to halve violence against women and girls in a decade, and will use every lever available to deliver this. We must ensure law enforcement relentlessly pursue perpetrators and that victims are supported to recover from this horrendous abuse. The Government is working closely with law enforcement to tackle the drivers of trafficking for sexual exploitation, including through operational intensifications to target prolific perpetrators. We have several ways to estimate the scale of sexual exploitation. Victims of sexual exploitation make up a significant proportion of referrals to the National Referral Mechanism (NRM, the framework for identifying and referring potential victims of modern slavery to appropriate support). The most recent statistics show that in 2023, sexual exploitation accounted for 10% (1,679) of all referrals, a 2% increase from the previous year, with 9% (1,470) of referrals relating to women. The Home Office does not hold data specific to Washington and Gateshead South. However, from January to June 2024, 6 potential victims of modern slavery referred to the NRM who reported (either part or wholly) sexual exploitation disclosed that their exploitation occurred in Tyne and Wear. Online platforms are a significant enabler of sexual exploitation. The Online Safety Act 2023 sets out priority offences, including sexual exploitation and human trafficking offences, and companies will need to adopt measures and put in place systems and processes to identify, assess and address these offences based on a risk assessment. To help support victims, we are providing £1.36m over three years to Changing Lives for their Net-Reach project, which provides early intervention and targeted support for women and girls at high-risk of commercial exploitation. We are also providing £378,811 to Trevi Women who provide trauma-informed support to women wishing to exit on-street prostitution. In addition, the Modern Slavery Victim Care Contract provides support to adult potential and confirmed victims of modern slavery in England and Wales. This includes financial support and a support worker to help them access wider services, including medical treatment, legal aid, legal representatives, and legal advice. Home Office Ministers regularly meet with stakeholders, including NGOs and law enforcement partners, to promote the better identification and prosecution of perpetrators, and to enhance support for victims who are trapped within commercial sexual exploitation.

What steps her Department is taking to prevent organised crime groups advertising victims of trafficking and other sexual exploitation offences on websites advertising prostitution in Washington and Gateshead South constituency.

The trafficking of women and girls for sexual exploitation is a truly horrific crime. This Government has committed to halve violence against women and girls in a decade, and will use every lever available to deliver this. We must ensure law enforcement relentlessly pursue perpetrators and that victims are supported to recover from this horrendous abuse. The Government is working closely with law enforcement to tackle the drivers of trafficking for sexual exploitation, including through operational intensifications to target prolific perpetrators. We have several ways to estimate the scale of sexual exploitation. Victims of sexual exploitation make up a significant proportion of referrals to the National Referral Mechanism (NRM, the framework for identifying and referring potential victims of modern slavery to appropriate support). The most recent statistics show that in 2023, sexual exploitation accounted for 10% (1,679) of all referrals, a 2% increase from the previous year, with 9% (1,470) of referrals relating to women. The Home Office does not hold data specific to Washington and Gateshead South. However, from January to June 2024, 6 potential victims of modern slavery referred to the NRM who reported (either part or wholly) sexual exploitation disclosed that their exploitation occurred in Tyne and Wear. Online platforms are a significant enabler of sexual exploitation. The Online Safety Act 2023 sets out priority offences, including sexual exploitation and human trafficking offences, and companies will need to adopt measures and put in place systems and processes to identify, assess and address these offences based on a risk assessment. To help support victims, we are providing £1.36m over three years to Changing Lives for their Net-Reach project, which provides early intervention and targeted support for women and girls at high-risk of commercial exploitation. We are also providing £378,811 to Trevi Women who provide trauma-informed support to women wishing to exit on-street prostitution. In addition, the Modern Slavery Victim Care Contract provides support to adult potential and confirmed victims of modern slavery in England and Wales. This includes financial support and a support worker to help them access wider services, including medical treatment, legal aid, legal representatives, and legal advice. Home Office Ministers regularly meet with stakeholders, including NGOs and law enforcement partners, to promote the better identification and prosecution of perpetrators, and to enhance support for victims who are trapped within commercial sexual exploitation.

What assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of the scale of commercial sexual exploitation in Washington and Gateshead South constituency.

The trafficking of women and girls for sexual exploitation is a truly horrific crime. This Government has committed to halve violence against women and girls in a decade, and will use every lever available to deliver this. We must ensure law enforcement relentlessly pursue perpetrators and that victims are supported to recover from this horrendous abuse. The Government is working closely with law enforcement to tackle the drivers of trafficking for sexual exploitation, including through operational intensifications to target prolific perpetrators. We have several ways to estimate the scale of sexual exploitation. Victims of sexual exploitation make up a significant proportion of referrals to the National Referral Mechanism (NRM, the framework for identifying and referring potential victims of modern slavery to appropriate support). The most recent statistics show that in 2023, sexual exploitation accounted for 10% (1,679) of all referrals, a 2% increase from the previous year, with 9% (1,470) of referrals relating to women. The Home Office does not hold data specific to Washington and Gateshead South. However, from January to June 2024, 6 potential victims of modern slavery referred to the NRM who reported (either part or wholly) sexual exploitation disclosed that their exploitation occurred in Tyne and Wear. Online platforms are a significant enabler of sexual exploitation. The Online Safety Act 2023 sets out priority offences, including sexual exploitation and human trafficking offences, and companies will need to adopt measures and put in place systems and processes to identify, assess and address these offences based on a risk assessment. To help support victims, we are providing £1.36m over three years to Changing Lives for their Net-Reach project, which provides early intervention and targeted support for women and girls at high-risk of commercial exploitation. We are also providing £378,811 to Trevi Women who provide trauma-informed support to women wishing to exit on-street prostitution. In addition, the Modern Slavery Victim Care Contract provides support to adult potential and confirmed victims of modern slavery in England and Wales. This includes financial support and a support worker to help them access wider services, including medical treatment, legal aid, legal representatives, and legal advice. Home Office Ministers regularly meet with stakeholders, including NGOs and law enforcement partners, to promote the better identification and prosecution of perpetrators, and to enhance support for victims who are trapped within commercial sexual exploitation.

What support her Department provides to help victims of sexual exploitation in Washington and Gateshead South constituency exit prostitution.

The trafficking of women and girls for sexual exploitation is a truly horrific crime. This Government has committed to halve violence against women and girls in a decade, and will use every lever available to deliver this. We must ensure law enforcement relentlessly pursue perpetrators and that victims are supported to recover from this horrendous abuse. The Government is working closely with law enforcement to tackle the drivers of trafficking for sexual exploitation, including through operational intensifications to target prolific perpetrators. We have several ways to estimate the scale of sexual exploitation. Victims of sexual exploitation make up a significant proportion of referrals to the National Referral Mechanism (NRM, the framework for identifying and referring potential victims of modern slavery to appropriate support). The most recent statistics show that in 2023, sexual exploitation accounted for 10% (1,679) of all referrals, a 2% increase from the previous year, with 9% (1,470) of referrals relating to women. The Home Office does not hold data specific to Washington and Gateshead South. However, from January to June 2024, 6 potential victims of modern slavery referred to the NRM who reported (either part or wholly) sexual exploitation disclosed that their exploitation occurred in Tyne and Wear. Online platforms are a significant enabler of sexual exploitation. The Online Safety Act 2023 sets out priority offences, including sexual exploitation and human trafficking offences, and companies will need to adopt measures and put in place systems and processes to identify, assess and address these offences based on a risk assessment. To help support victims, we are providing £1.36m over three years to Changing Lives for their Net-Reach project, which provides early intervention and targeted support for women and girls at high-risk of commercial exploitation. We are also providing £378,811 to Trevi Women who provide trauma-informed support to women wishing to exit on-street prostitution. In addition, the Modern Slavery Victim Care Contract provides support to adult potential and confirmed victims of modern slavery in England and Wales. This includes financial support and a support worker to help them access wider services, including medical treatment, legal aid, legal representatives, and legal advice. Home Office Ministers regularly meet with stakeholders, including NGOs and law enforcement partners, to promote the better identification and prosecution of perpetrators, and to enhance support for victims who are trapped within commercial sexual exploitation.