Asked by: Liz Jarvis (Liberal Democrat - Eastleigh)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of trends in reported violent crime in Eastleigh constituency in the last 12 months.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
Hampshire police recorded 3,350 violence against the person offences in Eastleigh in 2024/25, a 3% fall compared with the previous year (3,446 offences). This included one offence of homicide.
We are progressing towards this Government’s mission to make our streets safer. But we are not complacent and recognise there is much more to do, which is why we will continue to work across-government to tackle violent crime including our ambition to halve knife crime and violence against women and girls in a decade.
Asked by: Liz Jarvis (Liberal Democrat - Eastleigh)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to ensure the safety of Uyghur (a) exiles and (b) dissidents residing in the UK.
Answered by Dan Jarvis - Minister of State (Cabinet Office)
The first duty of government is to keep its citizens safe. The National Security Act 2023 provides the necessary tools to deter, detect and disrupt modern-day state threats.
The Government, working alongside operational partners, continuously assess the risks and threats faced by people living within the UK. Where we identify individuals at heightened risk, we are front footed in deploying protective security guidance and other measures as appropriate.
Where individuals have concerns for their safety, they are advised to contact the police via 101, a local police station or dial 999 in an emergency.
Asked by: Liz Jarvis (Liberal Democrat - Eastleigh)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to protect (a) children and (b) young people from online sextortion.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
To tackle the growing threat of sextortion, the Home Office is funding law enforcement capabilities to combat this crime, such as through investment in the National Crime Agency (NCA), who use their unique capabilities to disrupt the highest harm offenders, including those based overseas. The NCA is also a member of the Virtual Global Taskforce, which is an international alliance of 15 dedicated law enforcement agencies working together to tackle the global threat from all forms of child sexual abuse.
The Home Office also invests in a network of Undercover Online Officers in Regional Organised Crime Units to disrupt high harm offenders, including those seeking to groom or otherwise manipulate children into sharing sexual images.
The Online Safety Act protects citizens – especially children – from abuse and harm and applies to companies that provide user-to-user services and search services. It places robust duties on tech companies to prevent and swiftly remove illegal content, including child sexual abuse material, and to take proactive steps to protect children from harm. The strongest protections in the Act are for children.
Where a company fails to protect users, Ofcom will have a suite of enforcement powers such as issuing fines of up to 10% of their revenue and business disruption measures including blocking companies.
The Government will continue to engage with social media companies to make it clear they must act and implement robust detection measures to prevent their platforms being safe spaces for criminals.
This Government will continue to proactively review legislation, and we will not hesitate to legislate further to ensure the protection of children online.
Asked by: Liz Jarvis (Liberal Democrat - Eastleigh)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to reduce processing times for Disclosure and Barring Service checks for care workers.
Answered by Jess Phillips - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
As an Executive Non-Departmental Public Body of the Home Office, the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) is operationally independent, responsible for the service it provides. It currently operates to formalised service standards of completing 85% of Basic check applications within 2 days, 85% of Standard check applications within 3 days, and 80% of Enhanced check applications within 14 days.
Its latest performance against these service standards is available at DBS dataset 1: DBS checks, DBS Update Service, and disputes - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
For applicants intending to work with vulnerable adults, the DBS provides an “Adult First” service. This is a service whereby individuals working in certain care settings are permitted to start work with adults before a DBS certificate has been obtained. This applies to adult services such as care homes, domiciliary care agencies and adult placement schemes where DBS certificates are required by law. Further information about the service can be found at DBS Adult First Terms of Use (isaadultfirst.co.uk).
Asked by: Liz Jarvis (Liberal Democrat - Eastleigh)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the potential implications for her policies of trends in the number of (a) rape and (b) sexual violence cases that are withdrawn at the police stage before referral to the Crown Prosecution Service; and what support is available to victims to help them continue with their cases.
Answered by Jess Phillips - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
We recognise the devastating impact sexual violence can have. The Government is absolutely committed to tackling rape and sexual offences and achieving the best possible outcome for victims.
The level of cases closing due to the victim withdrawing support for the investigation remains stubbornly high, with over 40% of closed sexual offence investigations in the year ending March 2025 ending this way. The figure is higher for rape cases, rising to 55% of closed cases.
The Home Office has invested £13.1 million to establish a new National Centre for VAWG and Public Protection (NCVPP) to improve the police response to violence against women and girls and child sexual abuse. The NCVPP is continuing to drive forward the transformational work of Operation Soteria, ensuring officers build the strongest possible, suspect-focused cases. It is vitally important that every police force has the specialist capability necessary to support victims of rape and sexual violence and bring perpetrators to justice. The Centre will also support the development of strengthened specialist training for officers across the country ensuring they offer consistent protection for victims and relentlessly pursue these vile crimes.
Asked by: Liz Jarvis (Liberal Democrat - Eastleigh)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether the Ukrainian Permission Extension Scheme will be extended automatically; and whether her Department is considering a visa route for Ukrainians that could could provide a pathway to permanent settlement.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Government recognises the importance of providing clarity and reassurance to Ukrainians living in the UK under the Ukraine visa schemes and is aware that many individuals and families are seeking certainty about their future once their leave under the UPE schemes expires. As such, the Government is actively considering the future of the Ukraine visa schemes and will provide further clarity as soon as it is in a position to do so.
The Government has been clear from the outset that these schemes are temporary and do not provide a direct route to settlement. They reflect a generous and meaningful commitment to support those displaced by the conflict, while also respecting the Ukrainian Government’s strong desire for its citizens to return and contribute to the country’s future recovery.
Asked by: Liz Jarvis (Liberal Democrat - Eastleigh)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she has considered reviewing Police Remuneration Review Body processes to help increase (a) trust and (b) transparency in that system.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Police Remuneration Review Body (PRRB) and Senior Salaries Review Body (SSRB) make recommendations to the Government on the appropriate level of pay and allowances for police officers.
The pay review bodies gather and invite parties to submit evidence to inform their decisions. This includes both written and oral evidence from the Government, police employers and police staff associations. They weigh the evidence, consider independent research, and formulate detailed recommendations.
We are committed to the Pay Review Body process and the Government appreciates and values the independent, expert advice and contribution that the pay review bodies make.
Asked by: Liz Jarvis (Liberal Democrat - Eastleigh)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she plans to introduce indefinite leave to remain for Ukrainians living in the UK.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the Honourable Member to my answer given on 1 May to PQ UIN 47468.
Asked by: Liz Jarvis (Liberal Democrat - Eastleigh)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she plans to introduce additional safety requirements for (a) temporary events and (b) fan zones to protect pedestrians from vehicle access.
Answered by Dan Jarvis - Minister of State (Cabinet Office)
Homeland Security Group (HSG) works closely with the National Protective Security Authority (NPSA), who provide publicly available technical and practical advice relating to Hostile Vehicle Mitigation (HVM). This includes the 'NPSA Public Realm Design Guide for Hostile Vehicle Mitigation' document, available publicly at npsa.gov.uk.
Additionally, the National Counter Terrorism Security Office provides support to local authorities and businesses through the ProtectUK platform (protectuk.police.uk) and networks like the UK-wide Counter Terrorism Security Advisor network, supporting the development of suitable mitigation measures to protect from vehicle incursions.
Asked by: Liz Jarvis (Liberal Democrat - Eastleigh)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of existing measures to prevent vehicles from entering areas with high pedestrian footfall.
Answered by Dan Jarvis - Minister of State (Cabinet Office)
Homeland Security Group (HSG) works closely with the National Protective Security Authority (NPSA), who provide publicly available technical and practical advice relating to Hostile Vehicle Mitigation (HVM). This includes the 'NPSA Public Realm Design Guide for Hostile Vehicle Mitigation' document, available publicly at npsa.gov.uk.
Additionally, the National Counter Terrorism Security Office provides support to local authorities and businesses through the ProtectUK platform (protectuk.police.uk) and networks like the UK-wide Counter Terrorism Security Advisor network, supporting the development of suitable mitigation measures to protect from vehicle incursions.