Oral Answers to Questions

Sarah Jones Excerpts

Monday 26th October 2026 Commons Chamber

[Kirsteen Sullivan (Bathgate and Linlithgow) (Lab/Co-op)]

4. What steps she is taking to help reduce levels of abuse experienced by retail workers.

[The Minister for Policing and Crime (Sarah Jones)]

Abuse and violence against retail workers ballooned under the last Government. The Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers and others campaigned for action. We promised to take action, and we have: the Crime and Policing Act 2026 introduces a new offence of assaulting a retail worker, punishable by up to six months’ imprisonment, an unlimited fine, or both.

[Kirsteen Sullivan]

In 2021 my colleague Daniel Johnson MSP introduced landmark protections for Scottish shop workers, following a campaign by USDAW and the Co-operative party, but legislation is not enough. Community policing has declined in Scotland, and my constituents in Winchburgh, Armadale and Bathgate report rising retail crime and abuse of shop workers. Ahead of legislation commencing in England, what discussions has the Minister had with the Scottish Government to learn from Scotland’s experience, and what investment has she made in frontline policing to protect shop workers and communities?

[Sarah Jones]

My hon. Friend is absolutely right that alongside legislation, we need to ensure that we have the police in our communities and neighbourhoods to tackle crime. We have put 3,800 new police—extra police—in our neighbourhoods since we came to power. The collaboration between police and shop workers is having really good results in a lot of our town centres, and I encourage the Scottish National party Government to look at ensuring the same in Scotland.

[Helen Maguire (Epsom and Ewell) (LD)]

5. What plans she has to bring forward legislative proposals to support police to tackle the illegal use of e-bikes and e-scooters.

[The Minister for Policing and Crime (Sarah Jones)]

We all recognise the concern about the illegal use of e-bikes and e-scooters. We have taken action through the Crime and Policing Act 2026. Police no longer need to issue a warning before seizing vehicles that are being used antisocially. We have also reduced vehicle disposal timeframes to seven days, so we are taking action, but we are very much in the market for seeing what else we can do.

[Helen Maguire]

I welcome the new police powers to seize illegal e-scooters and e-bikes that, quite frankly, are out of control. In Epsom and Ewell, Operation Scramble seized 15 vehicles and made six arrests in two days, but some police are hesitant to engage in pursuits because of concerns for wider public safety. It is clear that the police cannot address this issue alone. With Christmas approaching, will the Minister commit to a national awareness campaign to ensure that the general public understand the law around e-scooters, and appreciate that they are legal only if they are part of a rental scheme or are being used on private land?

[Sarah Jones]

I thank the hon. Member for her thoughtful question. We hear what she says about e-bikes. We are having conversations with the College of Policing and others about how we can ensure that the police can respond in the way that they want to. In a big operation last month, the Met arrested 187 people and seized 157 vehicles in a crackdown on e-bikes, and Met police are using Sur-Ron bikes in that operation, so we are very much having conversations with colleagues to see what more we can do.

[Ms Julie Minns (Carlisle) (Lab)]

Cumbria police do really good work tackling the use of illegal e-bikes, but with ever-growing numbers of them hitting our streets every single week, Cumbria’s police, fire and crime commissioner and I believe that the single biggest help that we could give the police would be to ban the sale of illegal e-bikes, as my ten-minute rule Bill proposes. What discussions has the Minister had with colleagues in the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade about regulation to achieve that?

[Sarah Jones]

I thank my hon. Friend for her work on this issue. We are talking to the Department for Transport about exactly what we need to do to tackle the scourge of e-bikes and e-scooters. Every MP in this place will be facing the same challenge, and I hope that everybody would agree that we cannot allow this kind of behaviour to continue. We are looking at what else can be done. We have changed the powers in the Bill to move us in the right direction. I am talking to the police about what more support they need, and we will continue to have those conversations across Government.

[John Grady (Glasgow East) (Lab)]

6. What progress her Department has made on reducing levels of knife crime.

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[Alex McIntyre (Gloucester) (Lab)]

15. What steps she is taking to tackle antisocial behaviour.

[The Minister for Policing and Crime (Sarah Jones)]

This Government are determined to tackle antisocial behaviour across England and Wales. From today, we are calling time on persistent offenders of ASB with the introduction of respect orders, honouring our manifesto commitment and cracking down on ASB.

[Graeme Downie]

Around 1,000 constituents in Dunfermline recently told me in a city centre survey that they were concerned about coming into the city centre, to places such as the bus station and the Kingsgate shopping centre, because of antisocial behaviour. Will the Minister agree to work with the Scottish Government on the respect orders to ensure that lessons can be learned on both sides of the border, so that people can feel safe in Dunfermline and across England, Scotland and Wales?

[Sarah Jones]

I am very happy to work with anybody who is committed to tackling antisocial behaviour. The Government have introduced not just respect orders, but extended dispersal directions. We have raised the maximum fixed penalties for public spaces protection orders from £100 to £500. We are passing legislation, putting neighbourhood police into our neighbourhoods and tackling antisocial behaviour.

[Gill German]

My recent Pride in Place survey in Rhyl found that antisocial behaviour such as street drinking and fly-tipping is putting many people off visiting their own town centre. With respect orders coming into force today, what guidance is being given to police to make good use of them against repeat offenders so that people want to visit their own town centre again?

[Sarah Jones]

My hon. Friend is absolutely right, and I suspect that a lot of similar conversations are happening on Pride in Place boards across England and Wales. In north Wales we have seen an increase of some 60 officers in neighbourhoods since 2015, which will make a very big difference. I have talked to every police force across the country, written to all the chief constables and met all the different agencies that are part of respect orders, and everyone is lined up to do this work. Guidance has been published, and I look forward to seeing the first court cases—hopefully this week.

[Alex McIntyre]

Far too many residents in Gloucester tell me about persistent antisocial behaviour in the city centre, and they are fed up with it. We are seeing a situation where people get off the bus and are immediately confronted by street drinkers, and the local corner shop is selling alcohol to them when they can barely stand up. The police are doing what they can but, given the challenges facing Gloucestershire constabulary, can the Minister outline what more can be done to tackle the antisocial behaviour blighting our city centre?

[Sarah Jones]

I went last week to Newcastle-under-Lyme, Southall and Hemel Hempstead, and I have been talking to all the police forces across the country. I expect my hon. Friend’s police force to take these powers in the manner in which they are intended—as a useful tool to help the police, local authorities, housing associations and other agents to tackle antisocial behaviour and introduce respect orders. We are increasing funding across the country. Importantly, we are also reforming policing to put local policing at the heart of everything we do, so that the public get the service they expect.

[Mark Pritchard (The Wrekin) (Con)]

Illegal car cruising is a real blight on communities, causing noise pollution and terrifying local communities, including pedestrians and legal road users alike, on private and public roads. Will the Minister look again at the legislation to see whether this particular crime—it is a crime—can be penalised in a different way? At the moment, the generic legislation for antisocial behaviour is not catching enough people and is not a deterrent.

[Sarah Jones]

I am happy to look into whether respect orders might cover the crimes that the right hon. Member talks about and help in this space. Of course we need to ensure that we have more police in our communities, and we will always look at the legislation to see whether there is more that we can do to come down hard on these kinds of behaviours, which make our constituents and our communities really not feel safe in their own environment. We will continue to work on that.

[Alison Bennett (Mid Sussex) (LD)]

I would like to add to what the right hon. Member just said about car cruising. Along the A2300 approaching Burgess Hill, car cruising is causing misery to residents, with noise waking people up through the night. It is really intimidating more rural residents as they try to come from rural lanes on to the A2300. I am told by one local farmer that people are coming from as far afield as the Netherlands to get involved. A public space protection order is in place and Sussex police are doing what they can. Please, what else can the Government do to deter and break up illegal car cruising?

[Sarah Jones]

I recognise what the hon. Member describes. I have talked to the police about what more we can do in this space. I encourage everybody to report crimes as soon as they see them, because the police can put automatic number plate recognition cameras in place to retrospectively give people fines if they are breaking the law by car cruising. I know the police are looking for the resources to ensure that they can tackle these things. More neighbourhood policing, looking at shift times, and all these things can help.

[Josh Babarinde (Eastbourne) (LD)]

Too often, antisocial behaviour on our streets comes with a racist edge, and tackling it starts with naming it, something that shamefully the wannabe Chancellor, the right hon. Member for Newark (Robert Jenrick)—I have informed him that I would be referring to him—could not do this weekend when asked whether calling the Leader of the Opposition a “Nigerian scammer” is racist. Will the Minister say what he could not, and outline what the Government are doing to tackle racist antisocial behaviour?

[Sarah Jones]

Of course that comment is racist. We know that race and religious hate crime is rising and we are very concerned about that. We have taken some legislative action when it comes to protests, around things like cumulative impact and places of worship. We have our social cohesion plan, “Protecting What Matters”, and we have invested record amounts of money—sadly, we have had to do so—to protect religious spaces for the Jewish community, the Muslim community, and those of other faiths including Sikhs. We have put in £250 million to protect our Jewish communities. There is more to do, but we are certainly in agreement that that was racist, and we need to tackle all forms of hate crime.

[Dr Rupa Huq (Ealing Central and Acton) (Lab)]

This month has tragically seen a fatal shooting in East Acton. I know that, as they used to say on “Crimewatch”, these things are incredibly rare, but at a community meeting I went to, which also involved the council and the police, it still felt very raw. There is consternation that the gangs, violence and exploitation unit, which has been instrumental in solving previous murders, is being wound up. I wonder whether the Home Secretary, or one of my other hon. Friends in the Department, could meet me and the borough west commander to find a way forward.

[Sarah Jones]

My hon. Friend is right that statistics are not the answer to everything, but gun crime has gone down in the last year in the new stats that have come out, so we are making progress. She is right, of course, to be concerned about the awful incident in her constituency. I am always happy to meet her and others to talk about such matters. We are putting funding into tackling county lines, into knife crime concentration funds and into our violence reduction units. All that funding is helping us to make progress when it comes to both knife crime and gun crime.

[Mike Martin (Tunbridge Wells) (LD)]

Businesses, constituents and pets in Tunbridge Wells suffer from destructive and often cruel catapult attacks. It is a problem that many of us across this House have seen in our inboxes. Kent police and Tunbridge Wells borough council are working together to manage the problem, including looking at public space protection orders. Can I ask the Secretary of State whether she has considered restrictions or a ban at a national level in order to strengthen the hand of local police forces and local authorities such as mine in Tunbridge Wells?

[Sarah Jones]

The hon. Member cannot ask the Secretary of State, but he can ask the Minister for Policing. He raises a legitimate problem. We recently had a roundtable on catapults and the harm that they are doing, and we are looking at what more we need to do. Respect orders will work in this space as well, and it is worth him talking to the police on that front, because we want to ensure that we are doing everything we can. We have seen some particularly nasty catapult attacks in particular areas of the country, which we want to see an end to. Respect orders might be an answer.

[Mary Creagh (Coventry East) (Lab)]

I thank my hon. Friend the Policing Minister for her visit to Coventry last month to see the brilliant work done by the Labour council’s trading standards officers, in partnership with Coventry police, to tackle crime and antisocial behaviour on Foleshill Road, and the public spaces protection order for Edgwick Park, which has cleared that park, which is next to a school, of the drug dealers who used to blight it. Will she say what more respect orders can do to tackle this level of low but persistent antisocial behaviour that blights our streets?

[Sarah Jones]

It was a pleasure to visit my hon. Friend’s constituency and see the good work being done and the partnerships being forged. She asks what more respect orders can do. They are there to help tackle vandalism, public drunkenness, aggressive begging, irresponsible dog owners—I think all of us agree that is very irritating—and noisy or abusive behaviour. The Environment Agency can also use them for fly-tipping and persistent fly-tippers, so there is a whole raft of measures for which we can use respect orders. I look forward to seeing the results.

[John Milne (Horsham) (LD)]

Following recent changes, police are now able to seize vehicles that are used antisocially without first issuing a warning. This is potentially a way for police in my constituency to deal with illegal street racing meets on the A24 and the A264 from Kilnwood Vale down to Southwater. Can the Minister confirm whether this new power is proving to be effective, and how many vehicles have been seized thus far?

[Sarah Jones]

It is very early days, so I am unable to give the hon. Member the numbers at this point, but they will be collected by constituency. I encourage him to keep in touch with his local police to see what the numbers are. He is absolutely right that the power to seize a vehicle without giving warning is a powerful tool.

[Tom Hayes (Bournemouth East) (Lab)]

9. What progress she has made on reforming the police funding formula.

[The Minister for Policing and Crime (Sarah Jones)]

My hon. Friend is a persistent campaigner on this issue and I salute him for his work. We are committed to a review of the funding formula. We have started internal work on it and I will be updating the House as soon as we have considered the recommendations from the independent review of police force areas.

[Tom Hayes]

I thank the Minister for that response. I want more funding for policing, as well as the fairer allocation of it, to tackle the issues blighting Bournemouth, whether illegal e-bike use or ketamine use. I thank the Minister for agreeing, in writing today, to meet constituents whose lives have been deeply affected by that drug. I understand why police reform and funding formula reform go hand in glove, but can I urge the Minister, as we move forward with those reforms, to do everything she can to minimise the number of consultations needed to achieve fairer funding for Dorset? The longer we have to wait, the longer Dorset is at a disadvantage.

[Sarah Jones]

I thank my hon. Friend for his question. It was a delight, as a Minister, to get a letter from the Cabinet Office saying, “You don’t have to do as many consultations as you used to.” Hopefully, we can get things moving a bit quicker than the previous Government managed. I think they promised police reform for over 10 years and never delivered, so I hear what he is saying and we will keep working as fast as we can.

[Munira Wilson (Twickenham) (LD)]

The Metropolitan Police Commissioner is clear that, despite recent welcome funding increases from the Government to the capital city grant, to be able to police protests and events in London he has two pretty invidious choices on his hands: he either has to take police officers out of constituencies like mine—and the Policing Minister’s—to police those protests and events, or he has to cut back on just-in-case police officers, so there is a huge risk if an event flairs up. Which does the Policing Minister think is the better option?

[Sarah Jones]

I meet the commissioner regularly and we talk about these issues all the time. I should point out to the House that this Government are funding the police to record levels. Hundreds of millions of pounds extra are going to the Metropolitan police, with £2 billion extra going into policing since we came to power. The National Police Chiefs’ Council has just agreed rules on abstraction rates, which I know is a big challenge. I have had a lot of conversations with the commissioner about managing the risk of protests and maintaining officers in our communities. I think he has got the right balance at the moment, but we will, of course, continue to monitor that.

[Mr Speaker]

I call the shadow Minister.

[Matt Vickers (Stockton West) (Con)]

It has been an incredibly hard few months for Cleveland. Local people are not interested in point scoring, but they do want answers. Cleveland has the highest recorded crime rate in the country, yet the latest Home Office data reveals that it has 17 fewer police officers than it had a year ago. Can the Minister explain why?

[Sarah Jones]

The hon. Member knows of, and shares, our horror at what happened to the two Cleveland police officers recently—it was an honour to attend their funerals, which I know he did as well—and I will therefore not respond with a political point.

We have been talking regularly to both the chief constable and the police and crime commissioner in Cleveland. Following that incident, we agreed to give an extra £2 million to contribute to tackling serious and organised crime, and today we agreed to provide a further £3.2 million to meet the additional costs that have been incurred. We are also considering Cleveland’s application for exceptional funding. I hope that the hon. Gentleman will welcome that additional funding for Cleveland and will work with us to ensure that it has the resources it needs.

[Damien Egan (Bristol North East) (Lab)]

12. What steps her Department is taking to support the provision of local policing.

[The Minister for Policing and Crime (Sarah Jones)]

Our police reform plans will embed highly localised policing. We have already delivered 3,800 extra neighbourhood police to our communities, and in Avon and Somerset we have delivered 71 since 2025.

[Damien Egan]

In recent years shoplifting has become an increasing issue for many of the high streets in my constituency, and our shop workers are having to deal with increasingly frightening and dangerous situations. In the light of that, we look forward to seeing meaningful progress towards the Government’s ambitious targets for the expansion of neighbourhood policing. What practical steps are the Government taking to boost local police numbers and neighbourhood policing in the Bristol area?

[Sarah Jones]

As I have said, neighbourhood police numbers in Avon and Somerset have risen by 71 since 2025. We are also introducing a raft of measures to deal with shop theft, such as the removal of the £200 threshold, and investment in new technology to help the police and retailers to work together so that crime can be reported and people can then be charged. There has been huge progress in many parts of the country where retailers and police are working together. During the two years in the run-up to the general election, shop theft went up by 60%, but it is now on the turn, falling by 2% this year. We are making progress with those extra police, but there is still a great deal more to do.

[Helen Morgan (North Shropshire) (LD)]

West Mercia police have changed the hours of police community support officers, introducing an 8 pm finish in order to save money. Unsurprisingly, that has led to an increase in antisocial behaviour in my constituency after 8 pm. The police are very thin on the ground: Ellesmere’s safer neighbourhood team consists of one police officer—who I do not think works 24/7—and just two PCSOs. Our officers and PCSOs do a fantastic job, but they are far too thinly spread. Will the Minister meet me so that she can understand the challenges facing rural policing and the resources that are required in places such as Shropshire?

[Sarah Jones]

We are delivering more neighbourhood police to our communities, and we are encouraging the police to use data as much as they can to determine where they go, which means that, as often as possible, they go to the areas where crime is occurring. The purpose of our police reforms is to answer some of the challenges that the hon. Lady has raised. At present we have 43 forces who are having to look up towards serious and organised crime, international and national fraud and online crime, and having to look down towards their local communities, and they are doing neither very well at the moment.

[Samantha Dixon (Chester North and Neston) (Lab)]

13. What steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to tackle violence against women and girls.

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[Rishi Sunak (Richmond and Northallerton) (Con)]

T5. I recently met hard-working gamekeepers and farmers in the Yorkshire dales concerned about the recent uptick in antisocial behaviour and criminality. I am grateful to the North Yorkshire chief constable for his support and responsiveness in addressing these concerns. However, does the Minister agree with me about the importance of tackling crime in remote rural areas and of effective cross-border policing to tackle criminals who are crossing police boundaries?

[The Minister for Policing and Crime (Sarah Jones)]

I join the right hon. Member in recognising the important work that our police do in rural communities. It is exactly because we want to tackle these problems that we are introducing police reform to embed highly localised policing in our rural areas as well as our urban areas.

[James Naish (Rushcliffe) (Lab)]

T4. I have met doctors at the Queen’s medical centre in Nottingham about the rise in acquired brain injuries among young people due to e-bike accidents. There have been 10 cases since April this year. Nottinghamshire police has already seized 208 such bikes this year, so officers are trying to act, but what more can the Department do to give the police the resources they need to tackle this genuine concern?

[Sarah Jones]

I thank my hon. Friend for bringing these awful cases to my attention. We have changed the law to make it easier to seize those bikes, and we are looking at what more we can do. We are working with the Department for Transport to see what changes it needs to make, and we will continue to do that.

[Olly Glover (Didcot and Wantage) (LD)]

T8. A business with which a constituent liaises missed out on work as a result of senior officials in the Ghanaian Government being denied business visas, which is believed to be due to their salaries being too low. That work then went to another country. Will the Minister meet me and my constituent to discuss the requirements for business visas and how a more sensible policy could help UK businesses be more competitive?

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[Sarah Pochin (Runcorn and Helsby) (Reform)]

T10. Many of my communities in Runcorn and Helsby are plagued by antisocial and threatening gangs of youths on illegal e-motorbikes. Will the Minister please give the police the powers and the training to stop them? Most importantly, will the Government back officers when they do stop them, as incidents can happen and injury might occur?

[Sarah Jones]

We support the police with the powers that they need. I am looking at training to make sure that enough people are being trained in what we need.

[Lizzi Collinge (Morecambe and Lunesdale) (Lab)]

T7. Between 2023 and 2025, we saw an 82% drop in net migration. This week, the Chancellor will lay out his Budget and there will be lots of chatter about headroom, tax take and fiscal rules. Given that Government estimates show that the entire 2022-23 skilled worker visa cohort will make a net positive lifetime contribution of approximately £47 billion, what assessment has the Home Secretary made of the economic impact on tax take and other measures of the reduction in net migration and the proposed changes to legal migration policy?

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[Jeff Smith (Manchester Withington) (Lab)]

T9. Have Ministers noted the recent report from the University of Sheffield, which showed that drug diversion schemes for people caught in possession of controlled drugs are more successful at cutting reoffending than prosecutions? Will the Minister encourage police forces to use those schemes?

[Sarah Jones]

I have noted that piece of work. We support drug diversion schemes, which are part of the respect orders that we have announced today, part of our rough sleeping programme and part of lots of the work we do to help people get off drugs, but they are not a substitute for the right punishment where necessary.

[Wendy Chamberlain (North East Fife) (LD)]

When the Minister announced new refugee pathways in September, we were told that Afghan women and girls would be prioritised. I have since received correspondence that says there will be no prioritisation. Can we get clarity on what is correct?

[David Williams (Stoke-on-Trent North) (Lab)]

In Stoke-on-Trent, whether it is Kidsgrove or Tunstall, residents tell me that they are fed up with being terrorised by off-road bikes that tear through our parks and our streets. Will the Minister please reassure me that Staffordshire police will have the neighbourhood officers, the funding and the powers available to them to deal with those who are making life a misery for others?

[Sarah Jones]

We will make sure that there are more neighbourhood police in our communities and in his communities. We will make sure that the legal powers are there for the police to take the action that they need, and we are working to see what else needs to be done about the scourge of e-bikes, of which everyone in all our constituencies feels that we have had enough.

[Mr Speaker]

I call the Chair of the Select Committee.

[Dame Karen Bradley (Staffordshire Moorlands) (Con)]

In our inquiry looking at the impact that serious and organised crime has on local neighbourhoods, we have heard evidence from Trading Standards that organised criminals are now using online second-hand marketplaces to sell stolen goods and launder money. What conversations are the Government having with those online vendors to try to stop such sites being used by organised criminals to make money?

[Sarah Jones]

The right hon. Lady asks a very good question, and we are grappling with this issue. I have asked PoliceAI to do a piece of work on how we can look for and act on stolen goods across all the different second-hand sites. It is very much a live issue in the Home Office.

[Anna Dixon (Shipley) (Lab)]

I recently ran a local campaign calling for a ban on illegal e-motorbikes. It is clear they are being used by criminals, and yet police are often powerless to pursue them. Will the Minister look again at guidance for police forces and ensure they have the resources they need, including drones and off-road bikes, to take enforcement action against those dangerous bikes?

[Sarah Jones]

My hon. Friend raises a good point that has not been mentioned yet, which is the power of drones in this space. Using more technology to ensure that we can go after the people who are using those illegal bikes is a good idea.

[Sir James Cleverly (Braintree) (Con)]

The asylum accommodation centre at Wethersfield has blighted the local community and made it impossible for people to sell their homes. The number of pupils in the primary school is declining, putting the school’s future in question. When I was Home Secretary there was a cap on numbers and a commitment to a closure date in spring next year. The Government have reneged on both of those. When will the asylum centre in Wethersfield close, and when will my constituents be able to get back on with their lives properly?

[Andy McDonald (Middlesbrough and Thornaby East) (Lab)]

I am grateful to the Policing Minister for her confirmation that £5.2 million will be sent to Cleveland police to help to deal with the mutual aid bill—that is most welcome—but she will recognise that the police funding formula is simply not fit for purpose, especially when Cleveland has the highest level of crime and the poorest level of resources devoted to it. Although I welcome her indication about exceptional funding, does she agree that the situation will not be resolved until there is a complete reconfiguration of policing in this country? The people of Cleveland cannot wait for police restructuring.

[Sarah Jones]

I thank my hon. Friend for the numerous conversations we continue to have about this issue, which are important. We have confirmed the extra funding, and we are looking at the funding for next year as part of an exceptional request made by Cleveland. We have sent the request to the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy, which will go through the figures to ensure that we have a robust response for the next year. We will then prioritise the funding formula, which my hon. Friend is right to say is no longer fit for purpose.

[David Davis (Goole and Pocklington) (Con)]

Following their convictions for LIBOR manipulation, Jay Merchant and Christian Bittar were deported from the UK and barred from returning. Earlier this month, their convictions were comprehensively quashed by the Court of Appeal. With their convictions thrown out, the reason for their deportation is completely invalid, but the deportation order will remain in place until removed by the Home Office. Will the Home Secretary look into those cases, accelerate the decision-making process on their applications and have their deportations revoked, so that they do not receive any more unearned punishment?

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[Jonathan Hinder (Pendle and Clitheroe) (Lab)]

I am grateful to the Policing Minister for her answer to my written question on the Police Federation’s accounts, which have not been published since 2023. In that answer, she made reference to the police reform White Paper, saying that the “Government stands ready” to act. As she knows, seven senior officials from the Police Federation have been arrested since then, so I do not think it is going in the right direction—it is going in the wrong direction. It is time to act, is it not?

[Sarah Jones]

I thank my hon. Friend for the many conversations we have had about this issue; he certainly has a strong view, and we completely agree that there is a problem. Police officers deserve to have high-quality representation, and I hope to update him soon.

[Patrick Spencer (Central Suffolk and North Ipswich) (Con)]

Last year there was unanimous objection in Parliament and across the country to plans for aligning section 1 and section 2 forms for gun licences, mostly because it would make shotgun ownership more onerous for farmers. The Home Office has still not ruled out making those changes. Will the Home Secretary guarantee to this House now that she will not make life any harder for farmers by changing the way that we license gun ownership?

[Sarah Jones]

We have committed to introducing consultation, which we will do. Most deaths from legal guns are from shotguns, so we are always in the market to consider what more we can do. As the hon. Gentleman knows, we have had lots of conversations and lots of debate about the value that gun use can bring to our sporting industry, our farmers and others, so we will get the balance right.

[Sonia Kumar (Dudley) (Lab)]

The police funding formula disadvantages towns such as Dudley. We know that visible policing in town centres is essential when rebuilding public trust. Does my right hon. Friend agree that the formula needs updating to deliver fairer funding to Dudley, and that residents in St James’s should vote on 29 October for our Labour candidate Caroline Reid, who champions safer streets?

[Sarah Jones]

I agree with my hon. Friend; those residents should, of course, vote for Caroline Reid. We are putting more police into our neighbourhoods, and my hon. Friend’s area has received increased funding for the police. We understand the priorities of the British people, which include tackling the epidemic of everyday crime in our communities.

[Stuart Andrew (Daventry) (Con)]

The villages of Crick and Flore in my constituency are two small rural communities with few amenities, but both have hotels housing asylum seekers. The previous Minister responsible for asylum, in fairness, recognised that they are not suitable and said that they would be temporary, but all the communication I get now says, “It will be done by 2029”. Can I invite the Minister to visit these villages and see for herself how unsuitable they are for those hotels?

[Chris Ward (Brighton Kemptown and Peacehaven) (Lab)]

October marks the first anniversary since the appalling arson attack on a mosque in Peacehaven in my constituency. I will forever be grateful to the Home Secretary and the Policing Minister for coming to Peacehaven in the immediate aftermath and standing with me and the local community. I am also grateful to the Home Office for the extra security measures it has given to my community. A year on, what more does the Home Secretary think we can do to stop this kind of appalling hate crime and rebuild community cohesion so that something like that never happens again?

[Sarah Jones]

I thank my hon. Friend for the work he has done to support his community in Peacehaven. We need to make sure that the right policing is in place. Our £40 million fund for mosques is there to protect those buildings, but we also need to bring back cohesion to our communities, and our social cohesion plan “Protecting What Matters” is designed to do that.

[Mr Will Forster (Woking) (LD)]

The PEEL—police effectiveness, efficiency and legitimacy—review into Surrey police recently found that my local force requires improvement on a range of matters, including how it investigates crime, how it responds to serious crime and the leadership itself. What steps is the Home Secretary taking to ensure that Surrey police improves and that we tackle crime in Woking?

[Sarah Jones]

We are increasing funding to police and introducing more neighbourhood policing. We are also reforming a lot of the structures within policing to ensure that we have good quality leadership. Lord Blunkett and Lord Herbert did a big piece of work for us looking at how we ensure that we have good leadership across all our forces. We will be looking at their recommendations and bringing them forward.

[Deirdre Costigan (Ealing Southall) (Lab)]

Ealing Southall is unique, as two thirds of our rough sleepers have overstayed their visas. Many would go home voluntarily but are often stopped at the airport because the police national computer says that there is a pending case against them, when in fact it has been closed. Will the Minister look at how the police national computer can be updated more regularly so that these people can leave a life on the streets in Southall and go home with dignity?

[Sarah Jones]

I was pleased to visit my hon. Friend’s constituency last week, where I saw for myself the struggles that those rough sleepers are having. We are trying to go through the piece of work to update the creaking infrastructure that was left to us by the last Government. I have certainly taken that issue away.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

I am concerned that recorded crime figures in York Central reached an 11-year high this summer. About a third of those were antisocial behaviour offences, and retail crime reached its highest level, with around 15,000 offences in August alone. What steps is the Minister taking to ensure that places like York are properly funded and have all the resources that they need to tackle crime so that we can get on top of this rising level of offending?

[Sarah Jones]

We are increasing funding and putting more neighbourhood police into our communities. I have seen some really good examples of town centres where retail crime has plummeted because the police and retail are working together to target persistent offenders. We are also looking at introducing a new pilot on persistent offending. I would be happy to talk to her more about that.

[Baggy Shanker (Derby South) (Lab/Co-op)]

Earlier this month I met reps from East Midlands airport who were telling me about the abuse that their staff face. Some 42% of cabin crew nationwide have experienced physical assault. Does the Minister agree that, as in retail, no airport worker should face abuse just for doing their job?

[Sarah Jones]

I absolutely agree with my hon. Friend. We have introduced an offence of assaulting a retail worker, which was deliberately and intentionally narrow. There are other crimes that these people can be charged for, but he is absolutely right to call it out, and we all should.

[Perran Moon (Camborne and Redruth) (Ind)]

I warmly welcome the £722,000 investment that the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly integrated care board will receive as part of the new steps to safety programme, which will train GPs’ staff to spot the signs of domestic abuse and provide referrals to specialist support. Does the Minister agree that trusted local services such as GPs’ services have a vital role to play to identify victims earlier?