Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate she has made of the contribution of inbound international visitors to the UK economy in the five most recent years for which data are available.

Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)

VisitBritain publishes International Passenger Survey data which contains estimates of the number of inbound visitors to Great Britain and their spend. This data reveals that inbound visitors to Great Britain spent: £28.448 million in 2019; £4.344 million in 2020; £5.646 million in 2021; £26.497 million in 2022; £31.075 million in 2023; and £31.912 million in 2024.

The Economic Value of Tourism Report, published by VisitBritain in January 2026, estimates that in total, direct and indirect tax impacts of UK tourism reached £52 billion in 2024. This figure excludes induced impacts, driven largely by consumption taxes. Out of the total £52 billion in taxes, VisitBritain estimated £14 billion came as a result of inbound travel, or 27%.

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate she has made of the contribution of inbound international visitors to Exchequer receipts in the five most recent years for which data are available.

Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)

VisitBritain publishes International Passenger Survey data which contains estimates of the number of inbound visitors to Great Britain and their spend. This data reveals that inbound visitors to Great Britain spent: £28.448 million in 2019; £4.344 million in 2020; £5.646 million in 2021; £26.497 million in 2022; £31.075 million in 2023; and £31.912 million in 2024.

The Economic Value of Tourism Report, published by VisitBritain in January 2026, estimates that in total, direct and indirect tax impacts of UK tourism reached £52 billion in 2024. This figure excludes induced impacts, driven largely by consumption taxes. Out of the total £52 billion in taxes, VisitBritain estimated £14 billion came as a result of inbound travel, or 27%.

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 adequacy of the (i) systems and (ii) manpower capacity in local authorities to implement local government reorganisation; and if he will place a copy of those assessments in the Library.

Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Councils, as independent employers, are responsible for the management of their staff and undertaking workforce planning. As part of the local government reorganisation programme, local authorities were required to set out in their proposals how they would manage implementation, including their approach to systems, staffing and governance. The Government has considered this information as part of its assessment of proposals, including where decisions have already been taken, and continues to do so for proposals under consideration.

After decisions are taken on proposals, councils are required to put in place the necessary plans to implement the agreed proposal, including putting in place governance arrangements to oversee the delivery of implementation work.

We will continue to work actively with councils to support an effective transition, including providing support to ensure a smooth transfer of staff from councils that will be wound up to incoming new councils.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will place in the Library a copy of the cost-benefit analysis for local government reorganisation in (i) Hampshire (ii) Essex (iii) Norfolk and (iv) Suffolk, including (a) an assessment of the financial resilience of the proposed new authorities, (b) the estimated transition costs and (c) the financial and non-financial benefits of service transformation.

Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Councils were asked to set out in their proposals how their area would seek to manage transition costs, including how those costs would be met over time from existing budgets, such as through the flexible use of capital receipts to support transformation and invest‑to‑save projects. Proposals were also required to explain how the new authorities would be financially sustainable and resilient over the longer term, and the expected financial and non‑financial benefits of reorganisation.

The government's assessment of the proposals was taken in the round, having regard to all the criteria in the statutory invitation and all relevant information available. This included consideration of the evidence and assumptions provided by councils, representations received during the statutory consultation, and official advice, including assessment of proposed costs and savings and the financial sustainability and resilience of the new councils, informed by departmental analysis and sector benchmarks. A summary of the decision on local government reorganisation already has been provided for i) Hampshire ii) Essex iii) Norfolk and iv) Suffolk. The proposals considered in reaching those decisions are publicly available, and the government has no plans to publish further information relating to the decision‑making process.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will publish the estimated financial payback periods for each of the options for local government reorganisation in (i) Hampshire, (ii) Essex, (iii) Norfolk and (iv) Suffolk.

Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Councils were asked to set out in their proposals how their area would seek to manage transition costs, including how those costs would be met over time from existing budgets, such as through the flexible use of capital receipts to support transformation and invest‑to‑save projects. Proposals were also required to explain how the new authorities would be financially sustainable and resilient over the longer term, and the expected financial and non‑financial benefits of reorganisation.

The government's assessment of the proposals was taken in the round, having regard to all the criteria in the statutory invitation and all relevant information available. This included consideration of the evidence and assumptions provided by councils, representations received during the statutory consultation, and official advice, including assessment of proposed costs and savings and the financial sustainability and resilience of the new councils, informed by departmental analysis and sector benchmarks. A summary of the decision on local government reorganisation already has been provided for i) Hampshire ii) Essex iii) Norfolk and iv) Suffolk. The proposals considered in reaching those decisions are publicly available, and the government has no plans to publish further information relating to the decision‑making process.

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 adequacy of the availability of (i) ward and (ii) parish financial data to facilitate funding disaggregation as a result of boundary changes and deliver local government reorganisation in Hampshire, Norfolk and Suffolk.

Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Decisions about how funding, assets and liabilities are managed are for councils to take forward locally as part of their transition planning, including how budgets and financial risks are apportioned between successor councils and the arrangements needed to maintain safe and legal services during transition.

Recognising the complexity of this work, the Government has made transition funding available and is working with sector partners to provide practical implementation support to help councils manage the additional complexity where disaggregation is required.

The Secretary of State’s consideration of local government reorganisation proposals is based on information provided by councils, representations received through the statutory consultation, and official advice and analysis drawing on published sources and sector data.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether in areas with middle schools, a pupil transitioning to Middle school or from Middle school will count as a change in phase of education for the purposes of the EHCP reforms she outlined in February 2026.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)

It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether there are any changes of circumstances or residency, other than moving to secondary school or college, which could trigger the ‘change of educational phase’ provisions in the EHCP reforms she outlined in February 2026.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)

It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the specialist provision packages mentioned in the SEND Reform: Putting Children and Young People First consultation on children with complex needs reliant on statutory Education Other Than in School provision.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)

It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Found: Watch the meeting Members present: Dame Caroline Dinenage (Chair); Mr Bayo Alaba; Vicky Foxcroft; Damian Hinds

Found: Q57 Damian Hinds: Sometimes we call it culture—the dominant ideology.