Asked by: Wendy Chamberlain (Liberal Democrat - North East Fife)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when was the most recent evacuation under the (a) Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme and (b) Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy; and when are the next planned evacuations.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The UK made an ambitious and generous commitment to help at-risk people in Afghanistan and, so far, we have brought around 38,700. people to safety, including thousands of people eligible for our Afghan schemes.
Afghanistan Resettlement Schemes operational data is published quarterly with the last publication on the 21 August 2025.
Data on recent and planned resettlement is not available due to the operational nature of the schemes. For operational security reasons, we are unable to provide additional information on plans for future resettlement flights.
The data published within: immigration system statistics release (year ending June 2025, published 21 August 2025) provides a breakdown of arrivals by quarter. The number of individuals resettled under the schemes is as follows: 19,048 under ARAP. 10,160 individuals under ACRS Pathway 1, 1,406 individuals under ACRS Pathway 2 and 1,679 individuals under ACRS Pathway 3.
Afghan Operational data is viewable at: Afghan Resettlement Programme: operational data - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)(opens in a new tab)
Asked by: Wendy Chamberlain (Liberal Democrat - North East Fife)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether ODA spending for Afghanistan will be ringfenced in the upcoming spending decisions.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided on 17 September to Question 70974.
Asked by: Wendy Chamberlain (Liberal Democrat - North East Fife)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent assessment she has made of the potential impact of reductions to Official Development Assistance spending on women and girls in Afghanistan.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
With £151 million allocated this year, Afghanistan remains one of the UK’s largest bilateral aid programmes. We aim for women and girls to make up at least 50% of those reached, and continually assess programme effectiveness to support that goal. We regularly engage with a range of Afghans and partner organisations to inform and shape our policy and programmes.
Asked by: Wendy Chamberlain (Liberal Democrat - North East Fife)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps her Department is taking to improve offline access to public services.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government wants to put digital inclusion at the heart of how we deliver better designed, time-saving public services, to ensure as many people as possible can access public services digitally. Our ambition is for everyone in the UK to have the access, skills, support and confidence to participate in our modern digital society, whatever their circumstances.
Digital public services provided by government departments are also subject to the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018. Under these regulations departments are obliged to provide reasonable adjustments, such as alternative channels for users who need additional support.
Asked by: Wendy Chamberlain (Liberal Democrat - North East Fife)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will place in the House of Commons Library all (a) reports, (b) reviews, (c) internal evaluation and (d) evidence gathered in relation to her Department's pilot of a 56-day move period from asylum accommodation for refugees with newly granted status to remain in the UK.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Move-on evaluation report will be published as part of the Home Office Analysis and Insights (HOAI) Research Series subject to satisfactory peer review and Ministerial clearance. The House of Commons library and any member of the public can access all HOAI research reports which are published online here: Research at Home Office - Home Office - GOV.UK
Asked by: Wendy Chamberlain (Liberal Democrat - North East Fife)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps he is taking to support (a) whisky distilleries and (b) other energy intensive industries located outside the government designated clusters to decarbonise.
Answered by Chris McDonald - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government will set out plans to support industrial decarbonisation in the Carbon Budget and Growth Delivery Plan in October and in its upcoming Industrial decarbonisation Strategy. This will draw on extensive engagement with industrial sectors, which has included representatives of the distilleries sector.
The £6 million Local Industrial Decarbonisation Plans (LIDP) competition has funded 13 decarbonisation projects in local clusters, supporting dispersed industrial manufacturers not located in the UK’s largest existing industrial clusters to start their journey towards Net Zero.
We are delivering on our Clean Power 2030 Mission to provide the electricity to help firms get off the rollercoaster of volatile fossil fuel prices. We are investing in the infrastructure and accelerating connections to help industrial firms across the country to electrify. And we have set our intention to design the first Hydrogen Transport and Storage Business Model allocation rounds to establish the UK’s first regional hydrogen network from 2031. Developing the first regional network is an important starting point and provides the foundations for future network expansion, including connections between regions or supporting demand further afield outside of clusters.
Asked by: Wendy Chamberlain (Liberal Democrat - North East Fife)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps his Department is taking to expand consumer-led flexibility solutions in rural constituencies to (a) reduce household energy bills and (b) improve grid efficiency.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Consumer-led flexibility (CLF) will help households reduce bills and improve grid efficiency in both urban and rural areas. The Clean Flexibility Roadmap sets out actions to unlock CLF across all regions, including through improved consumer engagement, smart tariffs, and support for technologies such as EV smart charging.
Directly participating households can see immediate bill reductions. However all households will benefit from lower electricity system costs from a more flexible system that requires less generation and associated network infrastructure.
Asked by: Wendy Chamberlain (Liberal Democrat - North East Fife)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what data the Government holds on levels of digital exclusion among people aged 65 and over.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Tackling digital exclusion, which disproportionately impacts certain demographics including older people, is a priority for Government. That is why we published the Digital Inclusion Action Plan – First Steps in February 2025 which outlines the first five actions we are taking over the next year on digital inclusion.
In 2025, Ofcom reported that 13% of UK households with respondents aged 65+ had no internet access, 45% did not own a laptop, and 18% did not own a smartphone. In 2024, its Online Nation Report found that 15% of UK adults aged 65-74 were not confident in their ability to stay safe online. We estimate that only 4-16% of those aged 65 or over took part in training in digital or online skills.
Asked by: Wendy Chamberlain (Liberal Democrat - North East Fife)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will provide the (a) criteria and (b) arrangements for evacuating students from Gaza to the relevant (i) universities and (ii) hon. Members.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
I refer the Honourable Member to the previous Home Secretary’s oral statement to the House on 1 September 2025 on strengthening border security and reforms to the asylum system. Further details will be set out in due course.
The Home Office has put in place systems to issue expedited visas, with biometric checks conducted prior to arrival for all Chevening Scholars from Gaza.
We are in the process of doing the same for a group of students who have been awarded fully funded scholarships covering course fees and living costs at UK universities so they can start their studies in Autumn 2025.
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office is doing everything it can to support their safe exit and onward travel to the UK. The situation on the ground in Gaza makes this extremely challenging.
Asked by: Wendy Chamberlain (Liberal Democrat - North East Fife)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to her remit letter to the FCA on 14 November 2024, what steps her Department is taking to work with the FCA to have regard to financial inclusion.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government recognises the key role the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has in improving financial inclusion for UK consumers. This is why the FCA is part of the Financial Inclusion Committee which has been convened to develop a Financial Inclusion Strategy. The membership of the committee reflects the fact that the whole financial inclusion ecosystem will need to work together for the strategy to be a success, including government, industry, consumer representatives, and the regulator.
The strategy will be published later this year and will seek to tackle a range of barriers which prevent individuals from accessing the financial services and products they need. This will include actions for the FCA to take forward as part of their responsibilities within the sector, as well as relevant metrics to monitor the strategy’s progress.
The Government will work closely with the FCA to deliver the strategy and regularly engages with the FCA on this topic at ministerial and official level. In November, the Chancellor also included reinforcing financial inclusion as a matter for the FCA to have regard to in her letter of recommendation. In response to this, Nikhil Rathi noted the FCA’s support for the development of the Financial Inclusion Strategy and its collaboration with partners to help build consumers’ financial resilience.