Alicia Kearns: All Documents

Written Question

Universities: China

Monday 2nd February 2026

Asked by: Alicia Kearns (Conservative - Rutland and Stamford)

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department issues guidance on membership of the Chinese Communist Party being a declarable interest for university senior staff and trustees.

Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

Education is a devolved matter, and this response outlines the information for England only.

Higher education (HE) providers are independent and autonomous bodies, and as such are responsible for designing and implementing their own policies.

As the independent regulator, it is the role of the Office for Students to monitor and assess registered universities’ compliance with its conditions of registration, including those relating to good governance, and to take regulatory action where they have been breached. This includes that higher education providers must uphold public interest governance principles, which encompasses management of conflicts of interest.

We are clear that foreign interference in the HE sector is unacceptable, and whilst there are a range of existing requirements on universities to protect against it, we believe more should be done to support providers to proportionately mitigate risk. We set out our considerations in the ‘Future of the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act’ policy paper published in June 2025, and are taking steps to share good practice, raise awareness and develop new responses where necessary.

Written Question

Terrorism

Thursday 22nd January 2026

Asked by: Alicia Kearns (Conservative - Rutland and Stamford)

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the report on the Southport attack by the Independent Reviewer of Terrorism Legislation, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a new offence of planning a mass casualty attack.

Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

The Government accepts and strongly supports the Independent Reviewer of Terrorism Legislation’s (IRTL) recommendation to consider creating a new offence to capture individuals intending to kill multiple people and planning for such attacks. As recognised by the IRTL, this is a complex area of law and will require working through difficult legal and ethical issues to avoid unintended consequences. We are considering carefully the best way to close the gap in the legislation.

Division Vote (Commons)
21 Jan 2026 - National Insurance Contributions (Employer Pensions Contributions) Bill - View Vote Context
Alicia Kearns (Con) voted No - in line with the party majority and against the House
One of 98 Conservative No votes vs 0 Conservative Aye votes
Vote Tally: Ayes - 316 Noes - 194

Division Vote (Commons)
21 Jan 2026 - National Insurance Contributions (Employer Pensions Contributions) Bill - View Vote Context
Alicia Kearns (Con) voted Aye - in line with the party majority and against the House
One of 98 Conservative Aye votes vs 0 Conservative No votes
Vote Tally: Ayes - 195 Noes - 317

Division Vote (Commons)
21 Jan 2026 - National Insurance Contributions (Employer Pensions Contributions) Bill - View Vote Context
Alicia Kearns (Con) voted Aye - in line with the party majority and against the House
One of 95 Conservative Aye votes vs 0 Conservative No votes
Vote Tally: Ayes - 191 Noes - 326

Division Vote (Commons)
21 Jan 2026 - Northern Ireland Troubles: Legacy and Reconciliation - View Vote Context
Alicia Kearns (Con) voted No - in line with the party majority and against the House
One of 88 Conservative No votes vs 0 Conservative Aye votes
Vote Tally: Ayes - 373 Noes - 106

Speech in Commons Chamber - Wed 21 Jan 2026
Oral Answers to Questions

"The Bertie Arms is a fantastic family pub, but because of the Chancellor’s tax raid on local business, it faces a 2,000% increase in its business rates by 2029. That means that the Treasury will lose £200,000 in tax take and Uffington will lose the heart of its community. The …..."
Alicia Kearns - View Speech

View all Alicia Kearns (Con - Rutland and Stamford) contributions to the debate on: Oral Answers to Questions

Speech in Commons Chamber - Tue 20 Jan 2026
Diego Garcia Military Base and British Indian Ocean Territory Bill

"Some “very tiny islands”. That is how this Government’s National Security Adviser described Diego Garcia and the Chagos islands. I am afraid that that contempt is consistent with how they continue to treat those people. The former Foreign Secretary never once met Chagossians. There is no evidence that the current …..."
Alicia Kearns - View Speech

View all Alicia Kearns (Con - Rutland and Stamford) contributions to the debate on: Diego Garcia Military Base and British Indian Ocean Territory Bill

Division Vote (Commons)
20 Jan 2026 - Diego Garcia Military Base and British Indian Ocean Territory Bill - View Vote Context
Alicia Kearns (Con) voted No - in line with the party majority and against the House
One of 97 Conservative No votes vs 0 Conservative Aye votes
Vote Tally: Ayes - 344 Noes - 182