Home Office

There is no impact from the number of experiments on (a) beagles (b) non-human primates and (c) rabbits on progress towards the Government’s alternatives strategy. This is because licences for the use of animals in scientific procedures may only be granted only where there is robust scientific justification, no validated nonanimal alternative exists, and use is fully compliant with the requirements of the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986.

This Government remains firmly committed to working towards the phasing out of animals in science. The strategy, ‘Replacing animals in science’, sets specific targets to reduce the use of dogs and non-human primates by 2030, while ensuring the UK continues to support safe and effective scientific and medical research.

The strategy is clear that while the longterm vision is to replace the use of animals in science wherever possible, some animal use remains necessary at present to develop and test new medicines, advance understanding of biology and disease, and to protect human and animal health and the environment. These activities are integral to the UK’s national health preparedness and resilience, including the ability to respond to emerging health threats. Progress towards the phasing out of animal use must therefore be scienceled and supported by reliable alternative methods.

Accordingly, the Home Office licensing regime is compatible with the strategy; it enables only tightly controlled animal use where it is scientifically justified and no suitable alternative exists.

The Government is committed to tackle all forms of hate crime wherever in the country it occurs, including in Harpenden and Berkhamsted.

We have a robust legislative framework in place to respond to hate crimes and work closely with the police to ensure the strongest action is taken against the perpetrators of these appalling offences.

We have taken steps to strengthen this framework, through the Crime and Policing Bill, to extend the aggravated offences in the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 to cover hostility based on disability, sexual orientation, transgender identity and sex. This will provide parity with existing racially and religiously aggravated offences and strengthen protection for victims across the country.

We are also providing record levels of funding for protective security for faith communities, with up to £73.4 million in funding available in 2026/27.

In addition, we have commissioned an independent review of public order and hate crime legislation, led by Lord Ken Macdonald of River Glaven KC, to assess whether existing legislation is effective and proportionate, and whether it adequately protects communities from intimidation and hate.

The Home Office keeps the commencement of its legislation under review, taking account of operational readiness and delivery of wider priorities.

This is alongside an established post-legislative scrutiny process. Responsibility sits with policy teams to monitor the status of provisions and determine appropriate timings for when they should be brought into force.

On 7 April 2026, the Home Office published an ad-hoc statistical release on the growth in neighbourhood policing personnel in England and Wales, as at 28 February 2026, compared with 31 March 2025. This information is based on provisional management information, and is available broken down by Police Force Area here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/neighbourhood-policing-programme-as-at-28-february-2026

This ad-hoc statistical release is based on limited management information, meaning it is not possible for the Home Office to determine what proportion of the additional 3,123 neighbourhood policing personnel (at the 28 February 2026 snapshot) are new recruits or redeployed officers from other roles.

Police forces have been able to approach the neighbourhood policing programme in a way that best achieves local needs and varied crime demands. Therefore, the precise mix of redeployment and recruitment has been for forces to decide.

Finalised statistics will be published in the Accredited Official ‘Police Workforce, England and Wales’ statistics in July 2026.

On 7 April 2026, the Home Office published an ad-hoc statistical release on the growth in neighbourhood policing personnel in England and Wales, as at 28 February 2026, compared with 31 March 2025. This information is based on provisional management information, and is available broken down by Police Force Area here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/neighbourhood-policing-programme-as-at-28-february-2026

This ad-hoc statistical release is based on limited management information, meaning it is not possible for the Home Office to determine what proportion of the additional 3,123 neighbourhood policing personnel (at the 28 February 2026 snapshot) are new recruits or redeployed officers from other roles.

Police forces have been able to approach the neighbourhood policing programme in a way that best achieves local needs and varied crime demands. Therefore, the precise mix of redeployment and recruitment has been for forces to decide.

Finalised statistics will be published in the Accredited Official 'Police Workforce, England and Wales' statistics in July 2026.

The Government is committed to the safety of Jewish communities in our country. Everyone should feel safe to practise their faith and participate in public life, free from intimidation or fear.

In 2026/27, we are providing record funding to protect faith communities, including £28.4 million through the Jewish Community Protective Security Grant to provide protective security measures at synagogues, Jewish educational establishments and other community sites.

Eligible sites can apply for support for protective security measures through the Grant. The Grant is administered by the Community Security Trust (CST) on behalf of the Home Office, and full guidance on how to apply is available on GOV.UK: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/jewish-community-protective-security-grant

Earlier this month, the Home Office also announced an additional £5 million to increase deployments under Project Servator, which places specialist officers unpredictably in public spaces to deter criminal activity and provide visible reassurance. This funding will initially focus on supporting communities, particularly Jewish and other faith communities, in London and Manchester.

We continue to work closely with the police and other partners to review threats and ensure that proportionate and effective protections are in place where they are needed.

The information requested is not available from published statistics, and the relevant data could only be collated and verified for the purpose of answering this question at disproportionate costs. Under section 12(1) of the FOIA, the Home Office is not obliged to comply with an information request where to do so would exceed the appropriate limit.

The changes to the English language requirements announced on 5 March 2026 will apply to individuals who are applying for settlement based on their family life, with effect from 26 March 2027. It is reasonable and proportionate that we give those already on a pathway to settlement 12 months to undertake the necessary learning.

This does not affect individuals who are applying for temporary permission to stay in the UK based on their family life.

The requirement to achieve B2 level English is equivalent to an A-level in a foreign language and evidences the ability to hold a conversation in English with a strong degree of fluency.

Being able to communicate effectively in English is vital for integration, enabling people to make a meaningful contribution to their communities. We think this is a reasonable and realistic expectation.

The decision to introduce the visa brakes was driven by clear evidence of high levels of visa-linked asylum claims across all four nationalities. By year ending September 2025, asylum applications by students from Afghanistan, Cameroon, Myanmar and Sudan had risen to over 470% of their 2021 level. This continued and rising asylum risk from this cohort necessitated swift and decisive action through the introduction of a visa brake on a nationality basis.

The brake does not apply to those who already hold a valid Student visa, nor to applications submitted before it came into force on 26 March. In order to allow those prospective students with an offer from a licensed sponsor and a valid Confirmation of Acceptance of Studies (CAS) to apply for visas, we provided 21 days’ notice of the implementation of the visa brakes. There are no plans for any further exceptions to the brake.

The decision to introduce the visa brakes was driven by clear evidence of high levels of visa-linked asylum claims across all four nationalities. By year ending September 2025, asylum applications by students from Afghanistan, Cameroon, Myanmar and Sudan had risen to over 470% of their 2021 level. This continued and rising asylum risk from this cohort necessitated swift and decisive action through the introduction of a visa brake on a nationality basis.

The brake does not apply to those who already hold a valid Student visa, nor to applications submitted before it came into force on 26 March. In order to allow those prospective students with an offer from a licensed sponsor and a valid Confirmation of Acceptance of Studies (CAS) to apply for visas, we provided 21 days’ notice of the implementation of the visa brakes. There are no plans for any further exceptions to the brake.

The Home Office does not tolerate abuse of the immigration and asylum system and where we encounter such abuse, we take action. Protection status can and will be revoked where evidence emerges that it was obtained by deception.

If someone has concerns that a specific asylum claim may have been made fraudulently, these can be reported here: Report an immigration or border crime - GOV.UK. Any such reports will be fully investigated.

Furthermore, claiming asylum on the grounds of sexual orientation does not automatically result in a grant of asylum or other form of leave. All asylum and human rights claims, including those raised on grounds of sexual orientation are carefully considered on their individual merits in accordance with our international obligations. Our guidance for considering asylum claims is available on GOV.UK at: Assessing credibility and refugee status: caseworker guidance - GOV.UK.

A decision maker will not accept a person’s claimed sexual orientation at face value, such declarations constitute the starting point in the consideration process and are subject to probing at interview and a proper assessment of the facts and circumstances.

Each individual assessment is made against the background of relevant case law and the latest available country of origin information. Our assessment of the situation of a given group in a given country is set out in the relevant country policy and information note, which is available on GOV.UK at: www.gov.uk/government/collections/country-policy-and-information-notes.

Proposals for introducing an earned settlement model, as set out in the Command Paper “A Fairer Pathway to Settlement” (CP1448), were subject to a public consultation, which opened on 20 November 2025 and closed on 12 February 2026.

As part of this consultation, we sought views on the potential impact of the proposed changes on vulnerable groups, including how an earned settlement system may be tailored for victims of domestic abuse.

We are now reviewing and analysing all responses received. This analysis will help inform the development of the final earned settlement model, including consideration of any potential exemptions or transitional measures for those already on a pathway to settlement.

Once the final model has been decided, the Government will communicate the outcome publicly.  As with all significant policy changes, the proposals will be subject to both economic impact assessments and equality impact assessments, which we will make available when the full response to the consultation is published.

We do not hold information related to enforcement operations and/ or compliance visits targeting foreign national offenders at risk of reoffending in Great Yarmouth.

The Home Office takes reports of immigration offences very seriously and encourages reporting via the public allegations form available at: https://www.imsallegations.homeoffice.gov.uk/start.

Any suggestion of sexual offences should be reported to the police immediately.

Immigration Enforcement operations can only be mounted where relevant, current information and / or intelligence suggests that individuals in breach of immigration law may be found at a particular location.

We work closely with Policing partners to use immigration powers to disrupt criminal activity including those who commit serious crimes including sexual offences.

Where Foreign National Offenders are required to report to police (as part of their strict immigration bail conditions) are identified as being removable from the United Kingdom we will take steps to detain and enforce their removal.

To intensify these efforts we have redeployed staff and expanded our detention estate to bolster our capacity for swift, firm and fair returns.

The latest published statistics for the removal of Foreign National Offenders and overall enforcement visits can be found below:

https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/immigration-statistics-quarterly-release

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/returns-from-the-uk-and-illegal-working-activity-since-july-2024/illegal-working-and-enforcement-activity-to-the-end-of-september-2025

We do not hold information related to enforcement operations and/ or compliance visits targeting foreign national offenders at risk of reoffending in Great Yarmouth.

The Home Office takes reports of immigration offences very seriously and encourages reporting via the public allegations form available at: https://www.imsallegations.homeoffice.gov.uk/start.

Any suggestion of sexual offences should be reported to the police immediately.

Immigration Enforcement operations can only be mounted where relevant, current information and / or intelligence suggests that individuals in breach of immigration law may be found at a particular location.

We work closely with Policing partners to use immigration powers to disrupt criminal activity including those who commit serious crimes including sexual offences.

Where Foreign National Offenders are required to report to police (as part of their strict immigration bail conditions) are identified as being removable from the United Kingdom we will take steps to detain and enforce their removal.

To intensify these efforts we have redeployed staff and expanded our detention estate to bolster our capacity for swift, firm and fair returns.

The latest published statistics for the removal of Foreign National Offenders and overall enforcement visits can be found below:

https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/immigration-statistics-quarterly-release

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/returns-from-the-uk-and-illegal-working-activity-since-july-2024/illegal-working-and-enforcement-activity-to-the-end-of-september-2025

We do not hold information related to enforcement operations and/ or compliance visits targeting foreign national offenders at risk of reoffending in Great Yarmouth.

The Home Office takes reports of immigration offences very seriously and encourages reporting via the public allegations form available at: https://www.imsallegations.homeoffice.gov.uk/start.

Any suggestion of sexual offences should be reported to the police immediately.

Immigration Enforcement operations can only be mounted where relevant, current information and / or intelligence suggests that individuals in breach of immigration law may be found at a particular location.

We work closely with Policing partners to use immigration powers to disrupt criminal activity including those who commit serious crimes including sexual offences.

Where Foreign National Offenders are required to report to police (as part of their strict immigration bail conditions) are identified as being removable from the United Kingdom we will take steps to detain and enforce their removal.

To intensify these efforts we have redeployed staff and expanded our detention estate to bolster our capacity for swift, firm and fair returns.

The latest published statistics for the removal of Foreign National Offenders and overall enforcement visits can be found below:

https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/immigration-statistics-quarterly-release

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/returns-from-the-uk-and-illegal-working-activity-since-july-2024/illegal-working-and-enforcement-activity-to-the-end-of-september-2025

The Home Office funded police forces who were yet to undertake the Domestic Abuse Matters training which provides specialist domestic abuse training to police. In 2024/ 2025 we provided £83,056 funding to Norfolk to deliver this training.

Support for victims and survivors of VAWG crimes at a local level is funded through local Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) by the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) rather than the Home Office. The Home Office invested over £20 million in 2025/26 to support victims of VAWG and raise awareness of these horrific crimes, including over £6 million for VAWG Helplines and over £2.6 million for the Flexible Fund, which offers direct cash payments for victims fleeing domestic abuse. These schemes are available for all victims across England and Wales.

Through the Domestic Abuse and Stalking Perpetrator Intervention Fund, the Police and Crime Commissioner for Norfolk has been allocated £1,082,500 across the financial years 2023-24 to 2026-27. This funding aims to improve the safety, and feeling of safety, of victims and their children, by reducing the risk posed by perpetrators through locally commissioned perpetrator interventions.

The Entry/Exit System (EES) was fully implemented across all Schengen countries on 10 April 2026.

EES is an EU system and its implementation is a matter for the EU and member states. The Home Office does not record suspension of border control processes in European airports.

The information requested is not currently available from published statistics, and the relevant data could only be collated and verified for the purpose of answering this question at disproportionate cost.

We are fully committed to making our communities safer by returning those who break our laws. In the period between this government coming to power and January 2026, over 8,700 foreign national offenders (FNOs) have been returned from the UK. This is a 32% increase on the FNO returns recorded in the previous nineteen-month period ending June 2024, and we will continue to do everything we can to remove these vile criminals from our streets.

The information that you have requested regarding FNOs in Great Yarmouth is not available from published statistics.

Work is currently underway to publish more detailed information on FNOs subject to deportation. Further information on this work can be found at: Statistics on foreign national offenders and the immigration system - GOV.UK.

We are fully committed to making our communities safer by returning those who break our laws. In the period between this government coming to power and January 2026, over 8,700 foreign national offenders (FNOs) have been returned from the UK. This is a 32% increase on the FNO returns recorded in the previous nineteen-month period ending June 2024, and we will continue to do everything we can to remove these vile criminals from our streets.

The information that you have requested regarding FNOs in Great Yarmouth is not available from published statistics.

Work is currently underway to publish more detailed information on FNOs subject to deportation. Further information on this work can be found at: Statistics on foreign national offenders and the immigration system - GOV.UK.

We are fully committed to making our communities safer by returning those who break our laws. In the period between this government coming to power and January 2026, over 8,700 foreign national offenders (FNOs) have been returned from the UK. This is a 32% increase on the FNO returns recorded in the previous nineteen-month period ending June 2024, and we will continue to do everything we can to remove these vile criminals from our streets.

The information that you have requested regarding FNOs in Great Yarmouth is not available from published statistics.

Work is currently underway to publish more detailed information on FNOs subject to deportation. Further information on this work can be found at: Statistics on foreign national offenders and the immigration system - GOV.UK.

The Asylum Accommodation Plans are the mechanism via which the Home Office works towards achieving Full Dispersal and thus, a fair and balanced distribution of asylum accommodation across all local authorities nationally.

The Asylum Accommodation Plans are underpinned by an indexing model which accounts for a multitude of pressures within local authorities, including – availability of housing, levels of homelessness, availability of GP and dentists as well as levels of community cohesion. Development of the plans was informed by engagement with a range of national, regional and local stakeholders, to ensure that the evidence base was reflective of broader local authority feedback.

For the safety and security of those we accommodate and staff, it is our longstanding policy not to disclose information about sites which may or may not be utilised by the Home Office.

The latest published Immigration Statistics detail the number of supported asylum seekers accommodated in each local authority area, including those in dispersal properties. These statistics can be found at Immigration system statistics data tables - GOV.UK.

The Asylum Accommodation Plans are the mechanism via which the Home Office works towards achieving Full Dispersal and thus, a fair and balanced distribution of asylum accommodation across all local authorities nationally.

The Asylum Accommodation Plans are underpinned by an indexing model which accounts for a multitude of pressures within local authorities, including – availability of housing, levels of homelessness, availability of GP and dentists as well as levels of community cohesion. Development of the plans was informed by engagement with a range of national, regional and local stakeholders, to ensure that the evidence base was reflective of broader local authority feedback.

For the safety and security of those we accommodate and staff, it is our longstanding policy not to disclose information about sites which may or may not be utilised by the Home Office.

The latest published Immigration Statistics detail the number of supported asylum seekers accommodated in each local authority area, including those in dispersal properties. These statistics can be found at Immigration system statistics data tables - GOV.UK.

The Home Office is working closely with other Government departments in relation to the Russian Shadow Fleet. It would not be appropriate to comment in detail on those discussions or on security matters.

The Home Office monitors impacts of HMG actions, policy changes and world events on our assessment of asylum applications.

The Home Office publishes data on asylum in the ‘Immigration System Statistics Quarterly Release’. Data on the number of people claiming asylum where the latest leave held prior to claim was a study visa is published in table Asy_D01a of the ‘Asylum claims and initial decisions datasets’. The number of student entry clearance visas issued is published in table Vis_D02 of the 'Entry clearance visas datasets'.

The requested information on asylum claims from Chevening scholars is not available from published statistics.

Official statistics published by the Home Office are kept under review in line with the Code of Practice for Statistics, taking into account a number of factors including user needs, the resources required to compile the statistics, as well as quality and availability of data. These reviews allow us to balance the production of our regular statistics whilst developing new statistics for future release.

It is longstanding policy that the Home Office does not publicly comment on individual hotels which may or may not be utilised by the department.

The Home Office does, however, publish statistics on a quarterly basis detailing the number of supported asylum seekers accommodated in each local authority area. These statistics can be found in at Immigration system statistics data tables - GOV.UK.

The Cabinet Office publish annual grant funding data (Government Grants Data and Statistics) where you can find details of grant levels by local authority area broken down per year. The Home Office does not publish any additional information.

The Home Office is investing in innovative techniques, including AI, to explore how we can improve productivity and continue to maintain order in the asylum system. AI technology does not make decisions on Asylum applications, instead, it helps analyse data and provides insightful information that can further inform choices. This is in line with the ‘human in the loop’ principle. The Home Office does not currently use AI software to transcribe asylum interviews or other components of the asylum decision making process.

Comprehensive Equality Impact Assessments and DPIAs were carried out for our AI caseworking tools during their development and ahead of pilots – this applies to both the Asylum Policy Search tool (APS; fully rolled out) and Asylum Case Summarisation tool (ACS; still in development and testing). Feedback loops and comprehensive monitoring is in place to continuously assess usage and impact for users and overall purpose.

The Equality Impact Assessments for APS and ACS are being reviewed and updated following the pilots for both tools and will be published in due course, after ACS has been fully operationalised.

We ran an expression of interest exercise on new accommodation models with local authorities in 2025. However, further information on responses or guidance given to interested local authorities on the new accommodation model is considered commercially sensitive.

We have committed to closing every asylum hotel, and work is well underway, with more suitable sites, including military bases, being brought forward to ease pressure on communities. The Home Office are working with MHCLG to explore a model of asylum accommodation that achieves value for money and supports asylum system reform and further detail will be provided in due course.

The enhanced voluntary return offer is a strategic and time-limited approach mirroring schemes seen in Denmark, where voluntary return is prioritised and families are offered payments up to the equivalent of £30,000 to expedite departures. This has contributed to them halving the number of people awaiting deportation, including rejected asylum seekers and foreign criminals more broadly.

AI is being used for a range of purposes in the Home Office to improve business delivery as part of overall digital improvements in the department. The use of AI tools is supported by departmental guidance and ongoing staff training to ensure responsible, ethical and effective adoption.

Officials may use approved AI tools, including Microsoft Copilot to assist in day-to-day activities such as assisting in the creation of emails, documents and presentations; transcribing meetings; summarising information; and performing advanced search, data retrieval and analysis. Where AI tools are used this must be made clear, and officials remain responsible for the content produced.

The Government is committed to the implementation of the Equipment Theft (Prevention) Act 2023, which will introduce measures to make it harder for criminals to steal and re‑sell high‑value machinery and equipment. The Home Office has completed a Call for Evidence to inform delivery and is working closely with industry, policing and other partners to develop the necessary secondary legislation, which will be introduced in Parliament as time allows.

To support rural businesses the Government is strengthening the policing response to acquisitive crime through improved neighbourhood policing, specialist national capability and legislative tools to support enforcement. This includes continuing to fund the National Rural Crime Unit and National Wildlife Crime Unit, which work with forces to tackle organised machinery and fuel theft.

The deployment of specific security technologies is an operational matter for policing and business. Police reforms and wider crime prevention measures are intended to ensure that forces have the capability and flexibility to work with rural communities and businesses to tackle theft, such as agricultural machinery and fuel, that affect rural locations.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) publishes official statistics on the offences recorded by the police in England and Wales on a quarterly basis, including shop theft and drug offences. The most recent data available is for the year ending September 2025, which can be accessed here:

https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/crimeandjustice/datasets/crimeinenglandandwalesappendixtables

Theft offences recorded by the police where a mobile phone was stolen are not separately identifiable in the police recorded crime data published by the ONS.

The ONS does collect data on the number of people who have been victims of mobile phone theft, as part of the Crime Survey for England and Wales (CSEW). The most recent data available is for the year ending March 2025, which can be accessed here:

https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/crimeandjustice/datasets/focusonpropertycrimeappendixtables

The Metropolitan Police publish the number of incidents of theft from the person and personal robbery which involved the theft if a mobile phone. This data is available on the Metropolitan Police’s Crime Dashboard, which can be accessed here:

https://public.tableau.com/app/profile/metropolitan.police.service/viz/MonthlyCrimeDataNewCats/Coversheet

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. That is why forces should have the right resources to tackle crime and keep communities safe.

Through the police funding settlement, a total of £442.4 million will be available to Northumbria Police in 2026/27, an increase of £20.2 million compared to 2025/26. This represents a 4.8% cash increase.

We are focused on what police officers are doing, rather than achieving arbitrary officer headcount targets and are putting officers where people want to see them.

We have scrapped arbitrary officer headcounts, which has led to forces hiring officers and, in some cases, putting them in back-office roles. Some 12,000 warranted police officers are now working in support roles across England and Wales. We are instead focussed on putting 13,000 additional policing personnel in neighbourhood roles across England and Wales by the end of this Parliament. By February 2026, we had delivered more than 3,100 additional police officers and PCSOs into neighbourhood roles. (Growth under the Neighbourhood Policing Programme, as at 28 February 2026: management information - GOV.UK)

We are also expanding police use of AI and automation technologies. In the Police Reform White Paper we announced £115m over the next three years, led by the creation of “Police AI”, a new national centre for AI in policing focused on supporting police forces rapidly but responsibly use AI to improve their efficiency and effectiveness, resulting in better public safety outcomes for local communities. Taken together this investment package is expected to free up at least 3,000 FTE (or 6 million officer hours) a year by 2028/29.

Baroness Casey made clear in her audit into Group-Based Child Sexual Exploitation and Abuse that local authorities, police forces and other relevant agencies should be required not to destroy any relevant records. Once the government responded to Baroness Casey’s report and accepted all her recommendations in June 2025, including establishing an Inquiry, organisations already had additional legal obligations to protect relevant information.

Alongside her appointment on 9 December 2025, the Chair of the Inquiry wrote to the Cabinet Secretary to highlight the publication of the draft Terms of Reference at the earliest possible opportunity, to ensure that organisations were retaining information in line with the specific scope that the draft Terms of Reference established, including the time period, organisations, and issues likely to be examined. This letter highlighted the need for relevant local and national bodies to be ready to meet their legal obligations to provide relevant records, information and data to the Inquiry as it is requested.

This letter was shared with Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG), Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), Department for Education (DfE) and Ministry of Justice (MoJ) to cascade the requirement to retain records to their relevant sectors, including local councils, health agencies and police forces.

Following this, on 14 January 2026 the Home Office Permanent Secretary wrote to the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) and other arm’s length bodies to pass on the Chair’s letter to the Cabinet Secretary, to set out the need for full transparency and cooperation with the Inquiry.

The Inquiry has full statutory powers to compel evidence and witnesses and the Inquiry Chair has been clear that any gaps in evidence will be identified and investigated. If the Inquiry identifies potential criminal wrongdoing, including the destruction of evidence that should have been retained, this will be passed to law enforcement to assess.

We expect organisations to comply with the law on record retention and do not intend to issue further guidance. The Inquiry may choose to write to affected organisations on record retention in due course now it has been formally established.

Baroness Casey made clear in her audit into Group-Based Child Sexual Exploitation and Abuse that local authorities, police forces and other relevant agencies should be required not to destroy any relevant records. Once the government responded to Baroness Casey’s report and accepted all her recommendations in June 2025, including establishing an Inquiry, organisations already had additional legal obligations to protect relevant information.

Alongside her appointment on 9 December 2025, the Chair of the Inquiry wrote to the Cabinet Secretary to highlight the publication of the draft Terms of Reference at the earliest possible opportunity, to ensure that organisations were retaining information in line with the specific scope that the draft Terms of Reference established, including the time period, organisations, and issues likely to be examined. This letter highlighted the need for relevant local and national bodies to be ready to meet their legal obligations to provide relevant records, information and data to the Inquiry as it is requested.

This letter was shared with Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG), Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), Department for Education (DfE) and Ministry of Justice (MoJ) to cascade the requirement to retain records to their relevant sectors, including local councils, health agencies and police forces.

Following this, on 14 January 2026 the Home Office Permanent Secretary wrote to the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) and other arm’s length bodies to pass on the Chair’s letter to the Cabinet Secretary, to set out the need for full transparency and cooperation with the Inquiry.

The Inquiry has full statutory powers to compel evidence and witnesses and the Inquiry Chair has been clear that any gaps in evidence will be identified and investigated. If the Inquiry identifies potential criminal wrongdoing, including the destruction of evidence that should have been retained, this will be passed to law enforcement to assess.

We expect organisations to comply with the law on record retention and do not intend to issue further guidance. The Inquiry may choose to write to affected organisations on record retention in due course now it has been formally established.

Baroness Casey made clear in her audit into Group-Based Child Sexual Exploitation and Abuse that local authorities, police forces and other relevant agencies should be required not to destroy any relevant records. Once the government responded to Baroness Casey’s report and accepted all her recommendations in June 2025, including establishing an Inquiry, organisations already had additional legal obligations to protect relevant information.

Alongside her appointment on 9 December 2025, the Chair of the Inquiry wrote to the Cabinet Secretary to highlight the publication of the draft Terms of Reference at the earliest possible opportunity, to ensure that organisations were retaining information in line with the specific scope that the draft Terms of Reference established, including the time period, organisations, and issues likely to be examined. This letter highlighted the need for relevant local and national bodies to be ready to meet their legal obligations to provide relevant records, information and data to the Inquiry as it is requested.

This letter was shared with Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG), Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), Department for Education (DfE) and Ministry of Justice (MoJ) to cascade the requirement to retain records to their relevant sectors, including local councils, health agencies and police forces.

Following this, on 14 January 2026 the Home Office Permanent Secretary wrote to the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) and other arm’s length bodies to pass on the Chair’s letter to the Cabinet Secretary, to set out the need for full transparency and cooperation with the Inquiry.

The Inquiry has full statutory powers to compel evidence and witnesses and the Inquiry Chair has been clear that any gaps in evidence will be identified and investigated. If the Inquiry identifies potential criminal wrongdoing, including the destruction of evidence that should have been retained, this will be passed to law enforcement to assess.

We expect organisations to comply with the law on record retention and do not intend to issue further guidance. The Inquiry may choose to write to affected organisations on record retention in due course now it has been formally established.

Baroness Casey made clear in her audit into Group-Based Child Sexual Exploitation and Abuse that local authorities, police forces and other relevant agencies should be required not to destroy any relevant records. Once the government responded to Baroness Casey’s report and accepted all her recommendations in June 2025, including establishing an Inquiry, organisations already had additional legal obligations to protect relevant information.

Alongside her appointment on 9 December 2025, the Chair of the Inquiry wrote to the Cabinet Secretary to highlight the publication of the draft Terms of Reference at the earliest possible opportunity, to ensure that organisations were retaining information in line with the specific scope that the draft Terms of Reference established, including the time period, organisations, and issues likely to be examined. This letter highlighted the need for relevant local and national bodies to be ready to meet their legal obligations to provide relevant records, information and data to the Inquiry as it is requested.

This letter was shared with Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG), Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), Department for Education (DfE) and Ministry of Justice (MoJ) to cascade the requirement to retain records to their relevant sectors, including local councils, health agencies and police forces.

Following this, on 14 January 2026 the Home Office Permanent Secretary wrote to the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) and other arm’s length bodies to pass on the Chair’s letter to the Cabinet Secretary, to set out the need for full transparency and cooperation with the Inquiry.

The Inquiry has full statutory powers to compel evidence and witnesses and the Inquiry Chair has been clear that any gaps in evidence will be identified and investigated. If the Inquiry identifies potential criminal wrongdoing, including the destruction of evidence that should have been retained, this will be passed to law enforcement to assess.

We expect organisations to comply with the law on record retention and do not intend to issue further guidance. The Inquiry may choose to write to affected organisations on record retention in due course now it has been formally established.

The Home Office does not hold or publish data on whether victims of modern slavery with a positive Conclusive Grounds decision were eligible for local authority housing, as housing eligibility decisions are made by local authorities and are not recorded in the National Referral Mechanism (NRM) datasets.

Engagement with affected individuals, civil society organisations, community representatives and academics informed the Defending Democracy Taskforce’s review of transnational repression and its recommendations. Insights from this engagement helped shape the Government’s response, including the publication of practical guidance on GOV.UK for individuals who believe they may be at risk.

The Government continues to engage with civil society and affected individuals at both official and Ministerial levels to refine its understanding of how transnational repression presents in the UK and to ensure that its response, including guidance, remains proportionate, evidence led and responsive to the evolving threat.

Modern slavery crimes are complex to investigate and prosecute, and ensuring a consistent and coordinated national policing response to modern slavery remains a priority for the Home Office.

The Department worked closely with the Modern Slavery and Organised Immigration Crime Unit (MSOICU) and the National Crime Agency (NCA) to review the programme’s functions and agree contingency arrangements to ensure key functions are preserved to maintain national coordination following the programme’s closure.

This includes issuing an expression of interest to appoint a new National Police Chief Council (NPCC) lead for modern slavery to continue to provide national leadership on the policing response to modern slavery. Once appointed, the Home Office will work closely with the NPCC lead and the NCA to ensure modern slavery remains a policing priority.

Forces will continue to receive relevant updates from the Home Office on modern slavery and human trafficking through existing stakeholder forums, such as the Modern Slavery Engagement Forum and the First Responder Forum.

The Home Office did not receive any advice from the Propriety, Ethics and Constitution team in the Cabinet Office prior to launching the Family Returns: Reforming Asylum Support and Enforcing Family Returns consultation on 5 March. This team provides advice on the interpretation of the Consultation Principles, but not on how to run specific consultations.

The consultation was developed and launched in line with the Cabinet Office’s Consultation Principles, including ensuring clarity of scope, openness to a wide range of views and appropriate duration. The consultation document sets out clearly the proposals under consideration, the questions on which views are sought and how responses will be used.

As no such advice was received, there are no plans to publish it.

As set out in the Terms of Reference for the Inquiry, published on 31 March 2026, the final report of the Inquiry must be submitted to the Home Secretary by 31 March 2029. It is supported by a £65 million budget.

In addition, within three months of the formal setting up date of the Inquiry, the Chair and Panel must determine what must be delivered within this timeframe and budget and agree that assessment with the Home Secretary.