Asked by: Neil Shastri-Hurst (Conservative - Solihull West and Shirley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what data his Department holds on complications arising out of non-therapeutic circumcision between 2020 and 2025.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Information on complications arising out of non-therapeutic circumcision between 2020 and 2025 is not held in the format requested.
Asked by: Neil Shastri-Hurst (Conservative - Solihull West and Shirley)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what guidance is available to local authorities under the licensing regime to restrict the operating hours of retail premises where there is evidence of persistent antisocial behaviour linked to those premises.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Secretary of State issues statutory guidance under section 182 of the Act to support licensing authorities in the discharge of their functions - https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/explanatory-memorandum-revised-guidance-issued-under-s-182-of-licensing-act-2003.
This includes guidance on the process to follow if evidence becomes available that a licensed premises is failing to uphold one of four licensing objectives, two of which relate to the prevention of crime and disorder and the prevention of public nuisance.
If concerns are raised about a particular premises, the licensing authority may conduct a review of the premises’ licence and take appropriate action up to and including revoking the licence.
Asked by: Neil Shastri-Hurst (Conservative - Solihull West and Shirley)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much revenue the Exchequer raised from the introduction of VAT to private school fees between 1 January 2025 to 31 December 2025.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
At Autumn Budget 2024, the revenue from applying the standard rate of VAT to education and boarding services provided by private schools from 1 January 2025 was estimated at £460 million in 2024-25 and £1,505 million in 2025-26, rising to £1,725 million in 2029-30.
In their November 2025 Economic and Fiscal Outlook, the Office for Budget Responsibility revised the yield from this measure up by an average of £40 million per year, with outturn data providing initial support for the original assumption on pupil movements.
Asked by: Neil Shastri-Hurst (Conservative - Solihull West and Shirley)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what estimate she has made of the number of diplomatic officers posted to Russia who are proficient in Russian to C1 CEFR level or higher.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided on 6 November 2025 in response to Question 86285.
Asked by: Neil Shastri-Hurst (Conservative - Solihull West and Shirley)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what estimate she has made of the number of diplomatic officers posted to China who are proficient in Chinese to C1 CEFR level or higher.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided on 6 November 2025 in response to Question 86285.
Asked by: Neil Shastri-Hurst (Conservative - Solihull West and Shirley)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what (a) performance standards and (b) key performance indicators on the timeliness of prisoner arrivals at court are set out within the contract for Prisoner Escort and Custody Services.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
The Prisoner Escort and Custody Services (PECS) contracts specify that the contractor shall deliver prisoners to court by the required times to ensure the efficient and effective running of courts without delay. The key performance indicator relating to the timeliness of prisoner arrivals in court is Contract Delivery Indicator 15, at Annex 1 to Schedule 5 of the contract.
The PECS contracts can be found in the Contracts Finder on the GOV.UK website:
Prisoner Escort and Custody Services (Generation 4) - Lot North - Contracts Finder.
Prisoner Escort and Custody Services (Generation 4) - Lot South - Contracts Finder.
Asked by: Neil Shastri-Hurst (Conservative - Solihull West and Shirley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to help prevent deaths related to non-therapeutic male circumcision.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department is currently considering its response to a prevention of future deaths report regarding non-therapeutic male circumcision. The response will set out any steps being taken to help prevent deaths related to non-therapeutic male circumcision. It will be published in due course.
Asked by: Neil Shastri-Hurst (Conservative - Solihull West and Shirley)
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 a definition of a significant adverse impact in the context of the National Planning Policy Framework.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The government is currently consulting on a new National Planning Policy Framework that includes clearer, more rules-based policies for decision-making and plan-making.
We will consider any and all suggestions made in response to the consultation, including those relating to definitions, before making final decisions.
The consultation will remain open for responses until 10 March 2026 and can be found on gov.uk here.
Asked by: Neil Shastri-Hurst (Conservative - Solihull West and Shirley)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many state-funded schools in England have a knife arch installed, broken down by region.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The department does not hold data on how many schools in England have installed a knife arch.
Asked by: Neil Shastri-Hurst (Conservative - Solihull West and Shirley)
Question to the Attorney General:
To ask the Solicitor General, pursuant to the Answer of 13 January to Question 103029, on Crown Prosecution Service: Vacancies, how the vacancy rate for Crown Prosecutors as of the end of December 2025 compares the preceding five years, broken down by region.
Answered by Ellie Reeves - Solicitor General (Attorney General's Office)
The overall vacancy rate for ‘Crown Prosecutors’ across the 14 regional, geographic areas that make up the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) is 4.5% (at the end of December 2025). The table below includes the regional breakdown for CPS vacancy rates applicable to these legal roles for December 2025 against the three preceding years only*.
Area | Dec-22 | Dec-23 | Dec-24 | Dec-25 |
Cymru Wales | 10.3% | 6.0% | 2.4% | 7.0% |
East of England | 10.7% | 6.0% | 6.1% | 3.9% |
East Midlands | 14.9% | 8.8% | 4.0% | 8.6% |
London North | 1.5% | 0.4% | 0.9% | 9.0% |
London South | 6.1% | 4.7% | 0.4% | -3.9% |
Mersey Cheshire | 5.4% | 9.5% | -0.9% | 2.6% |
North East | 12.1% | 5.2% | 6.1% | 15.4% |
North West | 10.2% | 1.7% | 5.7% | -3.4% |
South East | 4.5% | 1.8% | -1.2% | 3.8% |
South West | 7.7% | 14.1% | 0.7% | -0.1% |
Thames and Chiltern | 7.5% | 8.8% | 7.4% | 11.5% |
Wessex | 10.0% | 5.5% | 4.8% | 1.3% |
West Midlands | 17.2% | 7.3% | 1.4% | 6.9% |
Yorkshire and Humberside | 12.8% | 5.0% | 4.7% | 4.0% |
14 Geographic Areas | 9.5% | 5.6% | 3.0% | 4.5% |
*The CPS does not hold information on vacancy rates dating back five years and has therefore provided the three years preceding December 2025 only.