Asked by: Susan Murray (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dunbartonshire)
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 proposals in the consultation paper entitled A Fairer Pathway to Settlement: statement and accompanying consultation on earned settlement, published on 28 November 2025, on (a) the number of Hong Kong British National (Overseas) visa holders eligible for indefinite leave to remain and (b) the time taken to qualify for settlement; and whether she plans to publish an impact assessment on the proposed English language level B2 requirement and a contribution to the Exchequer criteria.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The Government remains steadfast in its support for members of the Hong Kong community in the UK.
BN(O) visa holders will attract a 5-year reduction in the qualifying period for settlement, meaning they will continue to be able to settle in the UK after 5 years’ residence, subject to meeting the mandatory requirements.
We are seeking views on earned settlement through the public consultation A Fairer Pathway to Settlement and will continue to listen to the views of Hong Kongers. Details of the earned settlement model will be finalised following that consultation. An impact assessment will be developed alongside the finalised policy and published in due course.
In the meantime, the current rules for settlement under the BN(O) route will continue to apply.
Asked by: Scott Arthur (Labour - Edinburgh South West)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to ensure that newly recognised refugees who are survivors of trafficking, domestic abuse or torture are not left destitute or homeless when asylum support ends.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The Home Office is committed to supporting individuals granted leave to remain to successfully transition from asylum accommodation to mitigate the risk of homelessness.
The government is aware of the need for a smooth transition between asylum accommodation and other accommodation for those asylum seekers who are granted leave to remain. The Home Office is working to identify and implement efficiencies to support this process and mitigate the risk of homelessness.
Additionally, the Home Office has also placed Asylum Move On Liaison Officers (AMLOs) in over 50 Local Authorities across the UK, working alongside the Migrant Help and NGOs to support individuals who will be leaving asylum accommodation, and ensure a successful transition.
Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to his Department's press release entitled Armed forces to launch 'Gap Year' scheme for young people to bolster skills and leadership, published on 27 December 2025, what steps his Department is taking to encourage participation in that scheme.
Answered by Louise Sandher-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
The Armed Forces Foundation Year Scheme (‘Gap Year’) will offer new opportunities to experience military service through a new scheme set to launch in early 2026. The lessons of the first cohort (Tranche 1) will inform future practices for the Scheme. The first participants will be apportioned at 20 each for Royal Navy and Royal Air Force respectively with the Army offering the remainder (110). The ambition remains that the scheme will expand to over 1,000 participants subject to interest. We will be setting out further details in due course.
Asked by: Blake Stephenson (Conservative - Mid Bedfordshire)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what proportion of Secure English Language Tests were obtained via remote testing in 2024-25.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The current Secure English Language Testing contract is one that was tendered and awarded for physical test sites therefore, remote testing is not currently offered as part of the Secure English Language Test service.
Asked by: Damian Hinds (Conservative - East Hampshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the press release entitled Government modernises exam records with new app, published on 8 January 2026, how the £30m savings figure was estimated; and what the average saving for a state secondary school is estimated to be.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The £30 million saving in the education sector is based on reducing administrative processes in further education and apprenticeships. Extensive user research with colleges identified activities that could be eliminated or streamlined, including photocopying documentation, manually matching emails with applications, and reducing data entry and correction through improved quality. Other efficiencies include removing support time for paperwork, eliminating manual searches for unique learner numbers and reducing checks on prior attainment to simplify enrolment for mathematics and English. These changes will also reduce delays caused by missing documentation and cut follow-up activities linked to incomplete records. Due to the nature of the calculation, the department has not estimated a saving per secondary school.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the equitability of the current national funding formula for the Dedicated Schools Grant, in light of disparities in per-pupil funding between local authorities.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The schools national funding formula (NFF) distributes funding for mainstream schools based on schools’ and pupils’ characteristics.
The purpose of the schools NFF is not to give every school, or local authority area, the same level of per-pupil funding. It is right that schools with lots of pupils with additional needs, such as those indicated by measures of deprivation or low prior attainment, attract extra funding to help them meet the needs of all their pupils.
The formula also includes an area cost adjustment to reflect differences in labour market costs across the country. Staffing costs usually make up 70% to 80% of school expenditure, so it is important that schools’ funding takes into account that these costs vary.
Asked by: Luke Akehurst (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what progress has been made on developing a policy for the active engagement of unmanned aerial systems.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Ministry of Defence (MOD) works closely with partners across Government on a range of Counter-Uncrewed Aerial Systems (C-UAS) issues. The Home Office is responsible for C-UAS policy and strategy in the Homeland during peacetime. During wartime, C-UAS policy falls under the Integrated Air and Missile Defence (IAMD) framework, which the MOD is responsible for. The process of providing Military Aid to the Civil Authority (MACA) is well established and ensures a robust framework under which Defence capabilities may be used to support Other Government Departments.
In terms of legislation, work is underway to develop a suitable legislative framework that will enable Defence personnel to operate authorised equipment to protect critical Defence property and activities from the threat of UAS.
Asked by: Luke Akehurst (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether there are any formal agreements in place with allied nations for the provision of ground-based air defence for the UK homeland.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The UK is a NATO ally and participant in the NATO Integrated Air Defence System (NATINAMDS) a network of interconnected national and NATO systems comprising sensors, command and control facilities, and weapon systems. This system allows the UK to exchange information with Allied nations on a reciprocal basis, to improve sensor coverage and reaction times across the Alliance. Although there are no formal agreements for the provision of effectors of allied nations to be used to defend the UK homeland. NATO has the ability to position assigned or apportioned ground-based air defence effectors in response to emerging threats.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what estimate he has made of the number of homeowners who installed loft spray foam insulation during the period in which it was eligible under Government-backed energy efficiency schemes.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Schemes run by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero do not have a list of eligible products but require that assessments are made and designs produced for properties individually, with the most appropriate measures installed to the required standard.
Official statistics of government schemes are collected by measure rather than product. Under the Green Homes Grant Voucher Scheme there were 6,217 pitched roof loft insulation measures installed. As of August 2025, ECO 4 had installed 1,698, and GBIS 130. Spray foam is not the only product used for this measure, so the precise number will be lower.
Official statistics for the schemes can be found here: GHG Vouchers: Green Homes Grant and Home Upgrade Grant statistics - GOV.UK
ECO: Household Energy Efficiency Statistics - GOV.UK
GBIS: Great British Insulation Scheme - GOV.UK
Asked by: Bambos Charalambous (Labour - Southgate and Wood Green)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether his Department plans to introduce additional safeguards to ensure that third-party litigation funding agreements do not expose consumers to unfair financial outcomes.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
We intend to legislate to introduce proportionate regulation of litigation funding agreements when parliamentary time allows. The new regulatory framework will aim to enhance claimant protection, transparency, and the effectiveness of the litigation funding market.
The Government recognises the critical role third-party litigation funding plays in access to justice. That is why we are committed to ensuring it works fairly for all. We will outline next steps in due course.