Asked by: Alex Brewer (Liberal Democrat - North East Hampshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, in what way the animal welfare strategy mitigates the risk of pet theft.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
All dogs over 8 weeks of age and cats over 20 weeks of age in England must be microchipped and registered on a compliant database. The legislation is intended to improve animal welfare by increasing the likelihood of reuniting lost or stray pets with their keepers.
The Animal Welfare Strategy for England sets out the Department's commitment to improve the effectiveness of the microchipping regime, including by improving the accuracy and accessibility of pet microchip records and strengthening oversight of microchip databases. These measures support the identification and reunification of lost or stolen pets with their keepers.
Asked by: Alex Brewer (Liberal Democrat - North East Hampshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assesement her Department have made of the potential merits of a microchip database for pets to help reunite (a) stolen and (b) missing pets with their owner.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
All dogs over 8 weeks of age and cats over 20 weeks of age in England must be microchipped and registered on a compliant database. The legislation is intended to improve animal welfare by increasing the likelihood of reuniting lost or stray pets with their keepers.
The Animal Welfare Strategy for England sets out the Department's commitment to improve the effectiveness of the microchipping regime, including by improving the accuracy and accessibility of pet microchip records and strengthening oversight of microchip databases. These measures support the identification and reunification of lost or stolen pets with their keepers.
Asked by: Alex Brewer (Liberal Democrat - North East Hampshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of requiring nature conservation volunteers to pay for a three-year licence to restore and manage roadside grass verges on (a) volunteer participation and (b) biodiversity outcomes.
Answered by Jenny Riddell-Carpenter - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Natural England is not involved in the issuing of these licenses and therefore has not conducted any assessment of potential impact of requiring nature conservation volunteers to pay for these on (a) volunteer participation and (b) biodiversity outcomes.
Asked by: Alex Brewer (Liberal Democrat - North East Hampshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to increase the number of pets reunited with their owner following (a) theft and (b) going missing.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
All dogs over 8 weeks of age and cats over 20 weeks of age in England must be microchipped and registered on a compliant database. The legislation is intended to improve animal welfare by increasing the likelihood of reuniting lost or stray pets with their keepers.
The Animal Welfare Strategy for England sets out the Department's commitment to improve the effectiveness of the microchipping regime, including by improving the accuracy and accessibility of pet microchip records and strengthening oversight of microchip databases. These measures support the identification and reunification of lost or stolen pets with their keepers.
Asked by: Alex Brewer (Liberal Democrat - North East Hampshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of GCSE pass requirements in specific subjects on access to T Levels and other vocational qualifications for students who have demonstrated competence through alternative qualifications or relevant subjects.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Entry requirements for all vocational and technical qualifications for 16–19-year-olds, including T Levels, are set by individual providers. Young people with a range of prior attainment are accessing T Levels - the GCSE grade split for students receiving T Level results is very similar to those receiving results for Applied General Qualifications (AGQs). In addition, the proportion of students accessing T Levels without having achieved GCSE English and maths at grade 4 or above has increased each year, demonstrating that T Levels are reaching a broader group of learners and becoming increasingly accessible.
16-19 students have access to a range of English and maths qualifications: GCSEs, Functional Skills Qualifications and other approved Level 1 and entry-level qualifications where appropriate. New Level 1 qualifications will provide an additional progression route for learners with prior GCSE attainment of grade 2 or below. The government consultation response will be published later this year.
Asked by: Alex Brewer (Liberal Democrat - North East Hampshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many women's health hubs have been established in NHS Hampshire and Isle of Wight ICB in each of the last three years.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS Hampshire and Isle of Wight Integrated Care Board (ICB) established a virtual Women’s Health Hub in 2023/24 as a foundation for wider service development in subsequent years. One Women’s Health Hub was then established in 2024/25. In 2025/26, four Women’s Health Hubs were established in Portsmouth, Southampton, Isle of Wight and Hampshire, alongside a mobile women’s health service offering menopause and long-acting reversible contraception services, and a core women’s health offer through pharmacies providing health checks, cardiovascular disease screening and contraception services.
Asked by: Alex Brewer (Liberal Democrat - North East Hampshire)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the impact of inheritance tax on middle-income households whose estates are primarily comprised of residential property, including the effect on their ability to fund social care costs; and what proportion of estates were liable for inheritance tax in each of the last five years.
Answered by James Murray - Financial Secretary to the Treasury and Paymaster General
Inheritance tax is only paid by a small number of estates. For the 2023-24 tax year, the most recent year available, fewer than 5% of UK deaths resulted in an inheritance tax charge.
No inheritance tax is due on any property, money, or other assets passed on to a spouse or civil partner, more widely, various nil-rate bands, exemptions, and reliefs exist including a £325,000 nil-rate band and a residence nil-rate band of a further £175,000 for those passing on a qualifying residence on death to their direct descendants, such as children or grandchildren. This means qualifying estates can pass on up to £500,000 and the qualifying estate of a surviving spouse or civil partner can pass on up to £1 million without an inheritance tax liability.
Information of the proportion of estates liable for inheritance tax is published online at the following:
Inheritance tax should not affect the ability of individuals to fund social care costs as it is only paid on the estate of someone who has died.
Asked by: Alex Brewer (Liberal Democrat - North East Hampshire)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of not including grassroots and community sports clubs in the bodies subject to The Prevent Duty.
Answered by Dan Jarvis - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security) (Jointly with the Cabinet Office)
The Prevent duty applies to specified authorities including local authorities, education, health, police, and criminal justice agencies. Whilst no formal assessment of applying the duty to grassroots and community sports clubs has been made, this is not required for such organisations to work with Prevent in stopping people from becoming involved in, or supporting, terrorism.
Prevent statutory guidance can be used to inform best practice in sectors that are not specified authorities. The Home Office also has a central fund, the Preventing Radicalisation Fund (PRF), to support project delivery. This initiative has established a catalogue of Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), including community and grassroots sports clubs that have a track record in implementing Prevent-relevant projects, which aim to reduce the risk of radicalisation at a local level. There are currently 70 CSOs on the PRF framework, of which 4 are sports clubs but this initiative would be open to any local grassroots organisations to join. The Home Office funded 93 projects for the financial year 2025/2026.
Anyone, including staff or volunteers at grassroots and community sports clubs, can make a Prevent referral if they are concerned that someone is at risk of becoming radicalised. These concerns can be raised with Counter Terrorism Policing via the 24/7 Act Early support line on 0800 011 3764. Further information is available at www.actearly.uk/contact.
Where there is an immediate risk of harm or danger to life, emergency services should be contacted via 999.
Asked by: Alex Brewer (Liberal Democrat - North East Hampshire)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the levels of delays in the international extradition of individuals suspected of murder and other serious violent offences; and what steps her Department is taking to expedite extradition proceedings and reduce delays.
Answered by Dan Jarvis - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security) (Jointly with the Cabinet Office)
This Government recognises the importance of robust extradition arrangements in creating a pathway to justice for all victims of crime. Extradition in the UK is very largely a judicial process, with strong legal safeguards and independent decision making. The Government works with operational and international partners to support effective extradition cooperation and ensure that individuals accused or convicted of serious offences can be surrendered to face trial or serve their sentence.
Asked by: Alex Brewer (Liberal Democrat - North East Hampshire)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what mechanisms exist for grassroots and community sports clubs to report concerns on radicalisation and potential terrorist activity.
Answered by Dan Jarvis - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security) (Jointly with the Cabinet Office)
The Prevent duty applies to specified authorities including local authorities, education, health, police, and criminal justice agencies. Whilst no formal assessment of applying the duty to grassroots and community sports clubs has been made, this is not required for such organisations to work with Prevent in stopping people from becoming involved in, or supporting, terrorism.
Prevent statutory guidance can be used to inform best practice in sectors that are not specified authorities. The Home Office also has a central fund, the Preventing Radicalisation Fund (PRF), to support project delivery. This initiative has established a catalogue of Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), including community and grassroots sports clubs that have a track record in implementing Prevent-relevant projects, which aim to reduce the risk of radicalisation at a local level. There are currently 70 CSOs on the PRF framework, of which 4 are sports clubs but this initiative would be open to any local grassroots organisations to join. The Home Office funded 93 projects for the financial year 2025/2026.
Anyone, including staff or volunteers at grassroots and community sports clubs, can make a Prevent referral if they are concerned that someone is at risk of becoming radicalised. These concerns can be raised with Counter Terrorism Policing via the 24/7 Act Early support line on 0800 011 3764. Further information is available at www.actearly.uk/contact.
Where there is an immediate risk of harm or danger to life, emergency services should be contacted via 999.