Asked by: Rebecca Long Bailey (Labour - Salford)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what discussions he has had with businesses on the steps they are taking to (a) identify and (b) prevent forms of support that help to maintain unlawful occupation in the Occupied Palestinian Territories.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The UK Government has a clear position that Israeli settlements in Palestine are illegal under international law. The overseas business risk guidance, available on gov.uk, states there are clear risks to UK operators related to economic and financial activities in the settlements. UK citizens and businesses should be aware of the potential reputational implications of involvement in economic and financial activities in settlements, as well as possible abuses of the rights of individuals that such activity may entail. We discourage such activity and advise that those contemplating any economic or financial involvement in settlements should seek appropriate legal advice. Separately, we are conducting a review of Responsible Business Conduct, focusing on the global supply chains of businesses operating in the UK, as outlined in our Trade Strategy.
Asked by: Rebecca Long Bailey (Labour - Salford)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of updating building (a) requirements and (b) regulations to make it mandatory to display a street building number on the outside of a building.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The government has made no assessment of the merits of updating Building Regulations to accommodate street building numbers on the outside of buildings.
Local authorities already use their legal powers to manage requirements for street and building numbering.
Asked by: Rebecca Long Bailey (Labour - Salford)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, when she next expects to discuss the case of detained British national Alaa Abd el-Fattah with her Egyptian counterpart.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Alaa Abd El-Fattah was released from prison on 23 September 2025, following a Presidential pardon.
Asked by: Rebecca Long Bailey (Labour - Salford)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what further steps she plans to take to encourage the Egyptian authorities to release Alaa Abd El-Fattah.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Alaa Abd El-Fattah was released from prison on 23 September 2025, following a Presidential pardon.
Asked by: Rebecca Long Bailey (Labour - Salford)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions she has had with international allies on the case of Alaa Abd el-Fattah.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Alaa Abd El-Fattah was released from prison on 23 September 2025, following a Presidential pardon.
Asked by: Rebecca Long Bailey (Labour - Salford)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of ending the Strategic Priorities Grant funding for journalism courses in higher education on their future financial viability.
Answered by Janet Daby
I refer my hon. Friend, the Member for Salford to the answer of 16 July 2025 to Question 63373.
Asked by: Rebecca Long Bailey (Labour - Salford)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of ending the Strategic Priorities Grant funding for journalism courses in higher education on students from different social and economic backgrounds seeking employment in professional journalism.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government has had to make tough prioritisation decisions driven by the challenging fiscal context that we inherited. For the Department of Education, this has meant prioritising support for high-cost subjects that are essential to delivery of our industrial strategy and core funding to support access to higher education for disadvantaged groups. It is important that the targeted funding allocated through the Strategic Priorities Grant (SPG) supports courses that have higher costs of delivery and our Plan for Growth.
The Government’s commitment that opportunity is available for all remains unwavering, and we will achieve this by addressing gaps in access and outcomes faced by disadvantaged groups. That is why we have asked that the Office for Students retain the per-student funding rates for the full-time, part-time, disabled premium and mental health Student Premiums at their current level. We have also maintained funding for Uni Connect, which delivers targeted interventions and support aimed at increasing the number of young people from under-represented groups going into further and higher education.
The Government also remains committed to supporting the invaluable role which journalism plays in the fabric of our society. We acknowledge journalism as an important and valued subject in higher education, alongside numerous other subjects that do not attract SPG high-cost subject funding, such as history, languages, economics, maths and law.
DCMS officials are engaging with the Department for Education, as well as the press sector and the key journalism professional bodies, to better understand the impact this will have on the journalism industry. These discussions form part of our planning for the DCMS Local Media Strategy. It is important to maintain a healthy and diverse pipeline of talent into the industry through the provision of journalism education opportunities. With this in mind, we are exploring through the Strategy whether more can be done to promote journalism as a career amongst young people, including through the DCMS-funded Creative Careers Programme which is intended to promote careers in the creative industries among young people and recently added the National Council for the Training of Journalists to its steering group.
Asked by: Rebecca Long Bailey (Labour - Salford)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Education on the decision to end Strategic Priorities Grant funding for journalism courses in higher education.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government has had to make tough prioritisation decisions driven by the challenging fiscal context that we inherited. For the Department of Education, this has meant prioritising support for high-cost subjects that are essential to delivery of our industrial strategy and core funding to support access to higher education for disadvantaged groups. It is important that the targeted funding allocated through the Strategic Priorities Grant (SPG) supports courses that have higher costs of delivery and our Plan for Growth.
The Government remains committed to supporting the invaluable role which journalism plays in the fabric of our society. We acknowledge journalism as an important and valued subject in higher education, alongside numerous other subjects that do not attract SPG high-cost subject funding, such as history, languages, economics, maths and law.
DCMS officials are engaging with the Department for Education, as well as the press sector and the key journalism professional bodies, to better understand the impact this will have on the journalism industry, as part of the wider creative industries.
Asked by: Rebecca Long Bailey (Labour - Salford)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to her Department's White Paper entitled Restoring control over the immigration system, published on 12 May 2025, whether it is her policy to maintain the original terms of the British National (Overseas) visa route.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Government is committed to supporting members of the Hong Kong community who have relocated to the UK and those who may come here in future.
Further details of all measures announced in the Immigration White Paper will be set out in due course.
We regularly engage with representatives of the Hong Kong diaspora in the UK on issues related to the BN(O) visa and will continue to do so.
Asked by: Rebecca Long Bailey (Labour - Salford)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, which enforcement body is responsible for ensuring that employers are in compliance with Regulation 3 of the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999; and what steps her Department has taken to assess the effectiveness of that body.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) (alongside Local Authorities) is responsible for ensuring that employers are in compliance with Regulation 3 of the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999.
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) assesses the effectiveness of HSE by various means, including quarterly accountability reviews, at which HSE’s performance measures are considered. Furthermore, DWP has carried out a full review of each of its arm’s-length bodies, employing an independent reviewer. This review examines in detail how the body is performing across various areas, and is published on gov.uk. The last review was completed in 2023.