Asked by: Charlie Dewhirst (Conservative - Bridlington and The Wolds)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the answer of 16 December 2025 to Question 98794 on Mission Boards, who the internal and external members are of the Safer Streets Mission Board.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Safer Streets Delivery Board hasn’t explicitly been mentioned before as far as we are aware. DG Public Safety Group’s role leading the Safer Streets Mission at an official level is well publicised however. In an FOI in August 2025 there is reference to various teams working on the Safer Streets Mission but it doesn’t go as far as saying there is this Delivery Board.
However the existence of the Delivery Board isn’t contentious and helps us answer this question in the spirit in which it is intended.
The Safer Streets Mission Board is chaired by the Home Secretary. Ministers from relevant government departments are invited to attend meetings based on specific discussion topics, as are external experts where necessary.
The Mission Board is supported by a monthly Safer Streets Delivery Board, which brings officials from government departments together to drive delivery and outcomes under the Safer Streets Mission. The Delivery Board is chaired by the Director General for the Public Safety Group in the Home Office and is attended by senior officials from relevant government departments.
Asked by: Neil Coyle (Labour - Bermondsey and Old Southwark)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she has plans to help ensure that all strip searches of children have an appropriate adult present.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 requires that when a child is strip searched an appropriate adult must be present except in cases where delay would pose a risk of serious harm, or where the child specifically requests otherwise and the appropriate adult agrees. This safeguard is necessary to protect the welfare and dignity of children, whilst also providing the police necessary powers to keep the public safe.
For the year ending March 2025, the Home Office published data for the first time, on whether an appropriate adult was present for the full strip search of a child under stop and search powers (Stop and search, arrests, and mental health detentions, March 2025 - GOV.UK). Analysis of this type of data helps to increase transparency and enable effective oversight of the use of these powers.
The government remains committed to its manifesto commitment to introduce new legal safeguards around strip-searching children and young people.
Asked by: Jas Athwal (Labour - Ilford South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the consultation, Government Statistical Service Harmonisation: Assessing user needs for additional response options for the new ethnicity harmonisation standard, published on 28 October 2025, whether her Department plans to make a submission.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office notes plans by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) for an updated harmonised standard, which will be applied to our departmental statistics where applicable in due course.
This is an open consultation so anyone can provide a response on an individual basis. The Home Office typically gathers views from across the department prior to making any decisions about whether an organisational response is merited ahead of the deadline to respond.
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what proportion of her Department's major contracts are delivered via subcontractors; and what controls exist to ensure accountability for subcontracted delivery.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
Where Home Office Commercial use Key Subcontractors to deliver critical services, controls are in place to test their financial health throughout the life of the contract and performance monitored through KPIs.
The Home Office Commercial Assurance Board provides independent assurance for all procurement and Contracts above £10m.
The Commercial Assurance Board undertakes an assessment and approval at key stages of the commercial lifecycle (Strategic Outline case, outline business case and full business case) before the Contract is awarded.
Assurance and assessment of commercial and legal risks, value for money, compliance with regulations and how Social Value will be delivered in the Contracts is completed ahead of Contract Award.
Home Office commercial undertake a robust financial assessment of all Bidders financial health and viability to deliver contracts as part of the financial evaluation in procurements over £50m and these principles apply to all procurements.
For high value and complex contracts, Bidders are requested to provide a competed FVRA (Financial Viability Risk Assessment) which includes profitability ratios, debt ratios, liquidity ratios and solvency ratios. If Bidders are unable to meet the required thresholds, then they are removed from the procurement process.
Other information required would only be available at a disproportionate cost.
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether bidders for contracts above £50 million are required to disclose executive pay, profit margins and anticipated rates of return.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
Where Home Office Commercial use Key Subcontractors to deliver critical services, controls are in place to test their financial health throughout the life of the contract and performance monitored through KPIs.
The Home Office Commercial Assurance Board provides independent assurance for all procurement and Contracts above £10m.
The Commercial Assurance Board undertakes an assessment and approval at key stages of the commercial lifecycle (Strategic Outline case, outline business case and full business case) before the Contract is awarded.
Assurance and assessment of commercial and legal risks, value for money, compliance with regulations and how Social Value will be delivered in the Contracts is completed ahead of Contract Award.
Home Office commercial undertake a robust financial assessment of all Bidders financial health and viability to deliver contracts as part of the financial evaluation in procurements over £50m and these principles apply to all procurements.
For high value and complex contracts, Bidders are requested to provide a competed FVRA (Financial Viability Risk Assessment) which includes profitability ratios, debt ratios, liquidity ratios and solvency ratios. If Bidders are unable to meet the required thresholds, then they are removed from the procurement process.
Other information required would only be available at a disproportionate cost.
Asked by: Wendy Morton (Conservative - Aldridge-Brownhills)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of police officer numbers in the West Midlands Police force area and planned officer numbers for 2026/27 and 2027/28.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
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.
Published statistics show, as at 30 September 2025, West Midlands Police had 8,027 full-time equivalent police officers.
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.
Chief Constables, PCCs and Mayors with PCC functions will also be able to make decisions on the shape of their overall workforce of officers and staff in response to the 2026/27 Police Funding Settlement and future funding settlements.
Asked by: Matt Vickers (Conservative - Stockton West)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department has issued guidance to the Metropolitan Police on the circumstances in which conditions that effectively prevent a protest from taking place may be imposed under sections 12 and 14 of the Public Order Act 1986 in the last 12 months.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
Sections 12 and 14 of the Public Order Act 1986 allow the police to impose conditions on public processions and public assemblies as necessary to prevent serious public disorder, serious damage to property, or serious disruption to the life of the community.
Any conditions that are necessary can be placed on the public procession or public assembly, including the location or route, time and date, or prohibiting individuals entering any public space specified. These powers do not allow police to ban protests or prevent protests from taking place.
Decisions on how to police demonstrations are an operational matter for the police, working within the legal framework of the Public Order Act 1986. In making these considerations, the police must always balance decisions with the right to peaceful protest.
The College of Policing is responsible for providing guidance and operational advice for frontline policing. The College of Policing produces the Public Order Public Safety authorised professional practice. Alongside this, the Protest Operational Advice Document is published jointly by the College of Policing and the National Police Chiefs’ Council.
Asked by: Wendy Morton (Conservative - Aldridge-Brownhills)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to support police forces in tackling shoplifting and retail crime.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
Police recorded crime figures recorded 529,994 shoplifting offences for year ending June 2025. This represents a 13% increase from the previous year.
Charges for shop theft rose by 25% (up to 107,090 charges). That is why we’re committed to restoring visible, responsive neighbourhood policing with 3,000 additional officers in neighbourhood policing roles by spring next year.
In the Crime and Policing Bill, we are bringing a new offence of assaulting a retail worker to protect the hardworking and dedicated staff that work in stores and we are removing the legislation which makes shop theft of and below £200 a summary-only offence, sending a clear message that any level of shop theft is illegal and will be taken seriously.
The Home Office has regular discussions with the police and other partners on protecting retail workers and tackling shop theft.
We are also providing over £7 million over the next three years to support the police and retailers tackle retail crime, including continuing to fund a specialist policing team – in partnership with the retail sector - to better understand the tactics used by organised retail crime gangs and identify more offenders.
Asked by: Alex McIntyre (Labour - Gloucester)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to tackle anti-social behaviour in Gloucester city centre.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
Through the Crime and Policing Bill, we are strengthening the powers available to police and other relevant agencies to tackle ASB, including introducing new Respect Orders to give local agencies stronger enforcement capability to crack down on the most relentless ASB perpetrators.
Under the Government’s Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee, we are putting neighbourhood officers back into communities, both urban and rural, and restoring public confidence by bringing back community-led, visible policing. By the end of this parliament there will be 13,000 more neighbourhood policing personnel across England and Wales, including up to 3,000 additional neighbourhood officers by the end of March 2026. Gloucestershire Constabulary’s projected growth over 2025 to 2026 will be 23 police officers (FTE).
Gloucestershire Constabulary participated in the Safer Streets Summer Initiative, as part of activity to tackle anti-social behaviour, retail crime and street crime across six town centres. The force is currently participating in the Winter of Action, which builds on this work and covers twelve town centres, including Gloucester City Centre, with activity focused on anti-social behaviour, retail crime, offending linked to the night-time economy, and violence against women and girls. The full list of locations Gloucestershire has been focusing on as part of the Winter of Action can be found here: Winter of Action: location list - GOV.UK
Asked by: Layla Moran (Liberal Democrat - Oxford West and Abingdon)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what guidance the Government provides to police forces to (a) help deal with racially aggravated sexual assault and (b) support victims of those crimes.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
Police are operationally independent and work in line with College of Policing guidance to respond to hate crime and sexual offences.
However, the Government expects the police to fully investigate each and every assault and work with the Crown Prosecution Service to ensure perpetrators are brought to justice.
The Ministry of Justice will invest £550 million over the next three years to provide counselling, court guidance and children’s services for victims. This funding will be delivered via PCCs, who assess local need and are best placed to commission tailored services, including for victims with protected characteristics such as race.