Asked by: Luke Taylor (Liberal Democrat - Sutton and Cheam)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will take steps to strengthen the national framework for the Metropolitan Police’s vetting processes to (a) identify and (b) exclude applicants with discriminatory attitudes on the basis of characteristics protected under the Equality Act 2010.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
Police forces are expected to carry out vetting in alignment with the national framework set out in the College of Policing’s statutory Vetting Code of Practice and accompanying Vetting Authorised Professional Practice (APP).
Vetting decision-making is made on a case-by-case basis, taking into account any risks posed by the individual to the public and the police service. The APP is clear that any adverse information uncovered during the vetting and recruitment processes - including evidence of discriminatory behaviour such as racism or homophobia - must be flagged and subject to additional scrutiny.
It also highlights that clearance should be declined where an applicant has a caution or conviction that demonstrated targeting of persons due to their vulnerabilities or protected characteristics.
To help ensure the system is as robust as possible, earlier this year the Government made changes to introduce a statutory duty for officers to hold and maintain vetting clearance, and provided a route to dismiss them should they fail to do so. We are building on this by introducing statutory vetting standards later this year, which forces must adhere to.
Asked by: Luke Taylor (Liberal Democrat - Sutton and Cheam)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of including specific measures to improve the safety of women runners in the Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy.
Answered by Jess Phillips - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
This Government has been clear that the level of violence against women and girls (VAWG) in our country is intolerable, and we are treating it as the national emergency that it is.
Everyone should both be and feel safe whilst going about their day-to-day lives – and we recognise the particular vulnerability that women runners may feel. We are working across Government to use every tool available to target perpetrators and address the root causes of abuse and violence to keep all women safe.
We will go further than before to deliver a transformative approach to halve VAWG in a decade, underpinned by a new VAWG strategy, which we aim to publish shortly. This will be underpinned by an analytical sprint and Theory of Change to ensure that our approach is informed by the best available evidence.
Asked by: Luke Taylor (Liberal Democrat - Sutton and Cheam)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will (a) increase the accessibility of the deferral of biometric data applications and (b) expedite the process for visa applicants in Gaza.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
Where an applicant considers they cannot travel to a Visa Application Centre (VAC) to enrol their biometrics, they can contact us to explain their circumstances. We have published guidance that sets out the policy, “Unable to travel to a Visa Application Centre to enrol biometrics (overseas applications)”: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/biometric-information/unable-to-travel-to-a-visa-application-centre-to-enrol-biometrics-overseas-applications-accessible
These applicants can request either a predetermination of their visa application to enable them to decide whether to undertake a journey to a VAC, or to be excused from the requirement to attend a VAC to enrol their biometrics.
Predetermination and excusal requests, including by applicants in Gaza, are considered on a case-by-case basis. Each individual case may contain individual factors which make it compelling or compassionate and warrant it being expedited by UK Visas and Immigration staff and is carefully considered under its own merits.
Asked by: Luke Taylor (Liberal Democrat - Sutton and Cheam)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what her Department has to provide additional financial support for the widows of police officers who completed the majority of their service under the 1987 Pension Scheme even if they have remarried or cohabit after losing a spouse.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
The 1987 Police Pension Scheme provides survivor benefits to widows, widowers, and civil partners of police officers who die. In line with most public service pension schemes of that era, these benefits cease upon remarriage or cohabitation.
With the introduction of the 2006 and 2015 Police Pension Schemes, all eligible officers were able to join a pension scheme that provides life-long survivor benefits for spouses, civil partners and unmarried partners, including for those who remarry or cohabit after losing a spouse.
The 1987 police pension scheme is a closed scheme and there are no plans at this time to make any further improvements to benefits accrued in it.
Asked by: Luke Taylor (Liberal Democrat - Sutton and Cheam)
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 levels of Metropolitan Police Service (a) staffing numbers and (b) 24/7 front desk services on the safety of Londoners.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Home Office regularly meets with the Mayor of London and the Metropolitan Police Commissioner to discuss policing issues facing the capital.
This year (2025/26), the Metropolitan Police Service will receive a total of up to £3.8 billion of funding, as set out in the police funding settlement. This is a £262.1 million increase when compared with the 2024-25 settlement, equating to a 7.4% cash increase and 4.9% real terms increase. There will also be a £65 million increase to the National and International Capital City grant to reflect the challenges faced in London.
Forces are operationally independent, and it is for the Metropolitan Police Commissioner to make local operational decisions on how best to deploy officers and staff to secure public safety. However, the Government is committed to restoring neighbourhood policing to local communities through the Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee. In 2025/26 the Metropolitan Police Service was allocated £45,639,456 and has set out a delivery plan to grow neighbourhood policing this year by 420 (FTE) police officers and 50 (FTE) Police Community Support Officers.
Asked by: Luke Taylor (Liberal Democrat - Sutton and Cheam)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what discussions she has had with the Mayor of London on staffing levels at the Metropolitan Police Service.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Home Office regularly meets with the Mayor of London and the Metropolitan Police Commissioner to discuss policing issues facing the capital.
This year (2025/26), the Metropolitan Police Service will receive a total of up to £3.8 billion of funding, as set out in the police funding settlement. This is a £262.1 million increase when compared with the 2024-25 settlement, equating to a 7.4% cash increase and 4.9% real terms increase. There will also be a £65 million increase to the National and International Capital City grant to reflect the challenges faced in London.
Forces are operationally independent, and it is for the Metropolitan Police Commissioner to make local operational decisions on how best to deploy officers and staff to secure public safety. However, the Government is committed to restoring neighbourhood policing to local communities through the Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee. In 2025/26 the Metropolitan Police Service was allocated £45,639,456 and has set out a delivery plan to grow neighbourhood policing this year by 420 (FTE) police officers and 50 (FTE) Police Community Support Officers.
Asked by: Luke Taylor (Liberal Democrat - Sutton and Cheam)
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 the Spending Review 2025 on the number of Metropolitan Police officers.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Paragraph 5.35 of the Spending Review document, published on 11 June, sets out the overall financial allocation for policing in England in Wales.
As usual, more detail on force funding allocations will be set out in the police settlement later this year.
Asked by: Luke Taylor (Liberal Democrat - Sutton and Cheam)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she has had discussions with Action Fraud on (a) proposals for crypto asset rules and (b) support for investigations into scams.
Answered by Dan Jarvis - Minister of State (Cabinet Office)
We are replacing the current Action Fraud service with a new, improved service. The new service will provide better support services and reporting tools for victims, provide greater intelligence to law enforcement to support investigations, and allow for greater prevention and disruption at scale.
A phased introduction of the new service is now underway and will continue throughout 2025. Changes have already been made to improve the analysis of reports, the quality of intelligence drawn from them, and how quickly this is sent to police forces for investigation.
The new service has been designed to recognise crypto currency as both an enabler of frauds, such as investment fraud, and an enabler to the cashing out mechanism to realise the benefits of the criminal activity. This will ensure accurate reporting and deliver a greater understanding of the threat posed by crypto currency and how to tackle it more effectively.
Asked by: Luke Taylor (Liberal Democrat - Sutton and Cheam)
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 English language requirements on British National (Overseas) visa holders seeking to (a) extend their stay and (b) apply for indefinite leave to remain for adult dependents in Sutton.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Further details of all measures announced in the Immigration White Paper will be set out in the normal way in due course, and where necessary, will be subject to consultation.
Asked by: Luke Taylor (Liberal Democrat - Sutton and Cheam)
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 the extended ten-year standard qualifying period for settlement on Hongkongers in Sutton exploring pathways beyond the British Nationals (Overseas) route.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Further details of all measures announced in the Immigration White Paper will be set out in the normal way in due course, and where necessary, will be subject to consultation.