Katrina Murray

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.

A response to the lady’s Parliamentary Question of 20th May is attached.

Heritage funding is devolved, however listed places of worship in Scotland have benefitted from VAT rebate grants from the UK-wide Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme, which ran from 2001 to the end of this financial year.

The Department conducted an evaluation of the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme. Our evaluation showed that while it had many benefits, 80% of respondents said that they would still have carried out the work without the rebate. The evaluation included an extensive survey of current and past scheme users and is published here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/evaluation-of-the-listed-places-of-worship-scheme-final-report. We are aware that grants from the scheme will have benefited many recipients across Scotland, with a total of 1,513 Listed Places of Worship grant claims to a value of £6.9m being awarded to Scottish applicants since August 2022.

The Government has recently announced the Places of Worship Renewal Fund in England which will provide upfront capital support in the areas where it is needed most.

At Spending Reviews, the Devolved Governments generally receive Barnett consequentials as a proportion of overall departmental settlements, not specific funding lines or programmes. Barnett consequentials were confirmed taking into account the overall DCMS allocation, which includes funding for the Places of Worship Renewal fund. Decisions on the allocation of this funding are then for the Devolved Governments to take.

Funding for apprenticeships and skills is a devolved matter. This government is committed to engaging with the devolved governments on skills policy, including on the development of the growth and skills levy for England, to share best practice and support one another in boosting growth and spreading opportunity throughout the UK.

The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) is the independent regulator of nurses and midwives in the United Kingdom, and nursing associates in England. The NMC is independent of the Government, is directly accountable to Parliament, and is responsible for operational matters concerning the discharge of its statutory duties. The United Kingdom’s model of healthcare professional regulation is founded on the principle of regulators operating independently from the Government.

The Professional Standards Authority for Health and Social Care (PSA) oversees the bodies that regulate health and care professionals in the UK, which includes the NMC. As Minister of State for Health (Secondary Care), I monitor the NMC’s performance and both I and departmental officials meet with the organisation regularly.

Nurses, midwives, and nursing associates are required to declare cautions or convictions as part of their application to join the NMC register. The NMC Code requires registrants to inform the NMC and their employer if they receive a caution or conviction while on the register. If a registrant receives a caution or conviction while on the NMC register, it is considered through the NMC’s fitness to practise processes to determine whether any regulatory action is required.

The UK has been a leading international advocate of Colombia's peace process. Since 2016, the UK has committed over £80 million to support the implementation of the agreement and we are one of the largest UN Trust Fund donors. The Hon Member can find details of all programmes supported in Colombia on the GOV.UK Development Tracker (https://devtracker.fcdo.gov.uk/).

I refer the Hon Member to the statement made to the House by the Foreign Secretary on 5 January, and her responses to the questions raised in that debate.

The UK has been a leading international advocate for Colombian efforts to implement the 2016 Peace Agreement. The UK acts as penholder for the Colombian peace process at the UN Security Council and supports the important work of the UN Verification Mission, whose mandate the UN Security council renewed in October. Through the Integrated Security Fund (ISF), the UK has historically committed £80 million to support the implementation of the agreement. In partnership with UN agencies and civil society organisations, UK funding has supported rural development and reintegration programmes to strengthen the security of the communities in conflict affected areas. During her visit in November, Baroness Chapman met Foreign Minister Rojas and emphasised the UK's support for the Colombian peace process and 2016 agreement at international forums.

Yes - funding allocated to the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme in England is treated as comparable expenditure for the purposes of calculating Barnett consequentials for Scotland.

The off-payroll working rules, also known as IR35, have been in place for over twenty years and are designed to ensure that individuals working like employees but through their own company, usually a personal service company (PSC), pay broadly the same income tax and National Insurance contributions (NICs) as those who are directly employed.

The reform to the off-payroll working rules in the private and voluntary sectors, introduced in April 2021, is estimated to have generated an additional £1.8 billion in tax revenue up to March 2022. Further details are set out in HMRC’s research report published on gov.uk in December 2022:

Impacts of the off-payroll working rules reform in the private and voluntary sectors - GOV.UK

HMRC has previously evaluated the public sector reform and estimated it generated around £525m between April 2017 and March 2019.

On 17 October, the government published a consultation on regulating Buy-Now, Pay-Later (BNPL) products and enhancing users’ protections. The proposals will require BNPL firms to conduct affordability checks to prevent unaffordable borrowing and provide clear information to consumers. Users will gain rights under Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act and have access to the Financial Ombudsman Service, making it easier to obtain refunds and redress if something goes wrong.

My response to your previous question of PQ 3544 confirmed that changes to the Basic Compliance Assessment (BCA) policy were first announced on 23 May 2024.

Since then, I have continued to engage regularly with the education sector on the BCA policy and what will be expected of them. That has provided the sector with over two years to prepare for the changes.

It has been a long-standing principle that education institutions wanting to recruit international students must demonstrate a strong record of immigration compliance, and education providers responsible for offering places to these students must treat their roles as recruiting sponsors with the diligence and seriousness that those roles demand.

Student visa applications are considered on their individual merits, in line with the Immigration Rules and published guidance. Caseworkers must be satisfied that an applicant meets the requirements of the Student route, including the genuine student requirement and, where applicable, academic progression requirements set out in Appendix Student.

All immigration routes are kept under regular review, including trends in student visa refusals to ensure the integrity of the immigration system is maintained. Refusal rates are monitored at an aggregated level as part of wider operational and compliance activity.

UKVI provides structured training to caseworkers, supported by a quality assurance framework and operational oversight processes to ensure decisions are made consistently and in line with the Immigration Rules and guidance. The Administrative Review process provides a mechanism for applicants to challenge a refusal.

UKVI also maintains ongoing engagement with the education sector, including through dedicated support routes to assist sponsors in understanding decision making, raising queries, and seeking clarification on how the rules and guidance are applied.

My response to your previous question of PQ 3544 confirmed that changes to the Basic Compliance Assessment (BCA) policy were first announced on 23 May 2024.

Since then, I have continued to engage regularly with the education sector on the BCA policy and what will be expected of them. That has provided the sector with over two years to prepare for the changes.

It has been a long-standing principle that education institutions wanting to recruit international students must demonstrate a strong record of immigration compliance, and education providers responsible for offering places to these students must treat their roles as recruiting sponsors with the diligence and seriousness that those roles demand.

Student visa applications are considered on their individual merits, in line with the Immigration Rules and published guidance. Caseworkers must be satisfied that an applicant meets the requirements of the Student route, including the genuine student requirement and, where applicable, academic progression requirements set out in Appendix Student.

All immigration routes are kept under regular review, including trends in student visa refusals to ensure the integrity of the immigration system is maintained. Refusal rates are monitored at an aggregated level as part of wider operational and compliance activity.

UKVI provides structured training to caseworkers, supported by a quality assurance framework and operational oversight processes to ensure decisions are made consistently and in line with the Immigration Rules and guidance. The Administrative Review process provides a mechanism for applicants to challenge a refusal.

UKVI also maintains ongoing engagement with the education sector, including through dedicated support routes to assist sponsors in understanding decision making, raising queries, and seeking clarification on how the rules and guidance are applied.

My response to your previous question of PQ 3544 confirmed that changes to the Basic Compliance Assessment (BCA) policy were first announced on 23 May 2024.

Since then, I have continued to engage regularly with the education sector on the BCA policy and what will be expected of them. That has provided the sector with over two years to prepare for the changes.

It has been a long-standing principle that education institutions wanting to recruit international students must demonstrate a strong record of immigration compliance, and education providers responsible for offering places to these students must treat their roles as recruiting sponsors with the diligence and seriousness that those roles demand.

Student visa applications are considered on their individual merits, in line with the Immigration Rules and published guidance. Caseworkers must be satisfied that an applicant meets the requirements of the Student route, including the genuine student requirement and, where applicable, academic progression requirements set out in Appendix Student.

All immigration routes are kept under regular review, including trends in student visa refusals to ensure the integrity of the immigration system is maintained. Refusal rates are monitored at an aggregated level as part of wider operational and compliance activity.

UKVI provides structured training to caseworkers, supported by a quality assurance framework and operational oversight processes to ensure decisions are made consistently and in line with the Immigration Rules and guidance. The Administrative Review process provides a mechanism for applicants to challenge a refusal.

UKVI also maintains ongoing engagement with the education sector, including through dedicated support routes to assist sponsors in understanding decision making, raising queries, and seeking clarification on how the rules and guidance are applied.

My response to your previous question of PQ 3544 confirmed that changes to the Basic Compliance Assessment (BCA) policy were first announced on 23 May 2024.

Since then, I have continued to engage regularly with the education sector on the BCA policy and what will be expected of them. That has provided the sector with over two years to prepare for the changes.

It has been a long-standing principle that education institutions wanting to recruit international students must demonstrate a strong record of immigration compliance, and education providers responsible for offering places to these students must treat their roles as recruiting sponsors with the diligence and seriousness that those roles demand.

Student visa applications are considered on their individual merits, in line with the Immigration Rules and published guidance. Caseworkers must be satisfied that an applicant meets the requirements of the Student route, including the genuine student requirement and, where applicable, academic progression requirements set out in Appendix Student.

All immigration routes are kept under regular review, including trends in student visa refusals to ensure the integrity of the immigration system is maintained. Refusal rates are monitored at an aggregated level as part of wider operational and compliance activity.

UKVI provides structured training to caseworkers, supported by a quality assurance framework and operational oversight processes to ensure decisions are made consistently and in line with the Immigration Rules and guidance. The Administrative Review process provides a mechanism for applicants to challenge a refusal.

UKVI also maintains ongoing engagement with the education sector, including through dedicated support routes to assist sponsors in understanding decision making, raising queries, and seeking clarification on how the rules and guidance are applied.

The Home Office publishes data on entry clearance visas, by visa type, in the ‘Immigration System Statistics Quarterly Release’. Data on outcomes of visa applications, including refusals, are published in table ‘Vis_D02’ of the detailed entry clearance visas dataset. Information on how to use the dataset can be found in the ‘Notes’ page of the workbook. The latest data is from January 2005 up to the end of March 2026.

Information on future Home Office statistical release dates can be found in the ‘Research and statistics calendar’.

With our record settlement for Northern Ireland, and work of the Executive, waiting lists are starting to come down.

Soon, I will meet with Health Minister Mike Nesbitt to discuss long-term transformation.

Hundreds of thousands of homes were affected by Storm Éowyn and I know the House would wish to express its thanks to all those who worked so hard to restore services.

The Government worked closely with the NI Executive to ensure that all the help needed for Northern Ireland to recover was provided.

The responsibility for skills policy, and the provision of apprenticeship training in Scotland, lies with the Scottish Government as a devolved matter. Funding for apprenticeships and providers in Scotland are a devolved responsibility. UK Government officials, including those from DWP responsible for apprenticeships, regularly meet their counterparts in the devolved administrations to discuss issues, including eligibility.

Apprenticeship schemes in England are available to eligible learners working most of their time in England, including those who live in other parts of the UK. Due to devolved funding arrangements, learners based in Scotland who do not work in England are not eligible for funding for an English apprenticeship, even in cases where a comparable training provider does not exist in Scotland.

The Scotland Office and the Department for Work and Pensions maintain regular engagement with the Scottish Government on issues relating to Scotland’s skills development. While decisions on the provision and accreditation of training providers are a matter for the Scottish Government, the UK Government continues to work constructively with the devolved governments to support skills development and economic growth across the UK.

Whilst heritage policy is a devolved matter, we recognise the importance of places of worship to Scotland’s communities. Scotland Office Ministers have had a number of discussions with Scottish Government Ministers covering a range of topics. Additionally, Ministers from both Scotland Office and Department for Culture, Media & Sport Ministers are due to discuss this matter with officials from the Church of Scotland in the coming weeks.

We want to see Scotland's building and cultural heritage protected for future generations. Whilst heritage policy is a devolved matter, both Scotland Office and Department for Culture, Media and Sport Ministers are due to discuss this matter with officials from the Church of Scotland in the coming weeks.