Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how funding for undercover online policing units will be distributed; and what outcomes each unit is expected to deliver.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
Undercover Online Police Officers (UCOLs) deploy online to identify and pursue offenders seeking to sexually exploit children. Using unique capabilities and covert tactics to target dangerous offenders, UCOLs focus on a range of offences including grooming, peer-to-peer offending, live streaming, contact offences and historic or current familial offending.
The UCOL Network has achieved continued success, surpassing its targeted annual outcomes for operational activity and responding to emerging threats, including the proliferation of AI-generated child sexual abuse material.
Given the UCOLs’ continued success in disrupting online child sexual abuse, the Home Office has invested £11.7m in this capability this past FY 2025/26. The government has also committed to expand the use of the Home Office’s network of Undercover Online Operatives to address Violence Against Women and Girls in its’ “Freedom from Violence and Abuse: a cross-government strategy to build a safer society for women and girls”, published on 18th December 2025.
Asked by: Stella Creasy (Labour (Co-op) - Walthamstow)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of joining an European Union-wide repository of incidents of violence against police officers.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
Assaults on police officers and staff are unacceptable. We are working with policing partners to ensure victims receive the right support, both physical and psychological, and that data on assaults is captured consistently to inform prevention and care. This forms part of the wider Police Covenant commitment to protect and support those who protect us.
Data on the number of police recorded crimes for assaults on officers is published by the Office for National Statistics as part of the quarterly Crime in England and Wales series.
We are not aware that a European Union-wide repository of incidents of violence against police officers currently exists. The UK and EU Member States share a wide range of information on law enforcement and criminal justice matters under the arrangements set out in Part 3 of the UK- EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the answer of 28th July 2025, to question 67588 on MBR Acres: National Security, with reference to The Public Order Act 2023 (Interference With Use or Operation of Key National Infrastructure) Regulations 2025, what additional resources will be provided to Cambridgeshire Constabulary in order to facilitate the implementation of this legislation.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
In 2026-27 Cambridgeshire Police will receive up to £220.5 million in funding. This represents an increase of up to £10.6 million when compared to the 2025-26 police settlement. There are no plans to provide additional funding to Cambridgeshire Constabulary in light of the amendment to the Public Order Act 2023.
It is a long established principle that policing in England and Wales is operationally independent. Decisions regarding the allocation and use of resources within Cambridgeshire Constabulary are therefore matters for the police.
Asked by: Lee Anderson (Reform UK - Ashfield)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will give police further powers to combat antisocial drug smoking within houses.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
The police, local authorities and other relevant agencies already have a range of flexible tools and powers that they can use to respond to anti-social behaviour, including drug misuse. This includes the powers provided by the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014, such as the Closure Power, which the police and councils can use to close premises which are being used, or are likely to be used, to commit nuisance or disorder, and the power provided under Section 17 (1) (b) of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act (1984) for police officers to enter a property without a warrant to arrest a person for an indictable offence, where there are reasonable grounds for believing the person is on the premises.
It is unlawful to possess or supply controlled drugs without a Home Office licence and we expect the police to enforce the law, but the use of such powers is an operational decision and, as with all intrusive police powers, must be exercised in a lawful, necessary, proportionate and accountable way, in accordance with the PACE Codes of Practice.
Drug Testing on Arrest (DToA) is another key tool that helps the police to identify individuals who have been using illicit drugs and support them to change their behaviour and reduce future offending. Through the Crime and Policing Bill we are expanding the offences which can trigger a test and enhancing powers to widen the range of drugs that can be tested for.
Tacking anti-social behaviour, including dug misuse, is a top priority for this Government and a key part of our Safer Streets Mission. We have committed to adding 13,000 neighbourhood police and community support officers into local communities and ensuring residents have a named officer they can turn to when things go wrong, and we remain committed to working across public health, education, policing and wider public services on prevention to drive down drug use and ensure more people receive timely intervention and support.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of current enforcement measures against the illegal use of e-scooters.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
Tackling anti-social behaviour and the harm it causes is a top priority for this Government and a key part of our Safer Streets Mission.
The police have a suite of powers available to them to tackle the illegal use of e-scooters, including in residential areas, and we expect police to deploy them appropriately.
The Crime and Policing Bill will give police greater powers to clamp down on anti-social behaviour involving vehicles including e-scooters, with officers no longer required to issue a warning before they are able to seize a vehicle. This will allow police to put an immediate stop to offending.
The Government also recently consulted on proposals to allow the police to dispose of seized vehicles more quickly, including e-bikes and privately owned e-scooters, which have been used anti-socially or illegally.
These combined measures will help tackle the scourge of e-bikes and e-scooters ridden anti-socially or illegally and will send a clear message to would-be offenders and local communities that this behaviour will not be tolerated.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to support police forces to tackle the illegal use of e-scooters in residential areas.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
Tackling anti-social behaviour and the harm it causes is a top priority for this Government and a key part of our Safer Streets Mission.
The police have a suite of powers available to them to tackle the illegal use of e-scooters, including in residential areas, and we expect police to deploy them appropriately.
The Crime and Policing Bill will give police greater powers to clamp down on anti-social behaviour involving vehicles including e-scooters, with officers no longer required to issue a warning before they are able to seize a vehicle. This will allow police to put an immediate stop to offending.
The Government also recently consulted on proposals to allow the police to dispose of seized vehicles more quickly, including e-bikes and privately owned e-scooters, which have been used anti-socially or illegally.
These combined measures will help tackle the scourge of e-bikes and e-scooters ridden anti-socially or illegally and will send a clear message to would-be offenders and local communities that this behaviour will not be tolerated.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to address inconsistencies between police forces in their interpretation and application of escort requirements for lawful abnormal load movements.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
The police are best placed to determine police escort requirements for abnormal loads, based on a thorough assessment of local risk, which can include consideration of the risks to road users and the potential for congestion. A decision should take account of the force’s local geography, traffic conditions and events taking place. Forces should take account of the National Police Chiefs’ Council guidance to ensure decisions are safe, practical and effective.
The National Police Chiefs’ Council Guidance on the management of abnormal loads was last updated in May 2025. It sets out consistent principles to guide force’s decision based on local circumstances.
There are no plans to introduce a national regulatory framework governing the movement of abnormal loads. The government is satisfied that decisions are best handled by individual police forces to ensure decisions reflect local conditions.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department plans to introduce a national regulatory framework governing when police forces may require escorts for abnormal load movements.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
The police are best placed to determine police escort requirements for abnormal loads, based on a thorough assessment of local risk, which can include consideration of the risks to road users and the potential for congestion. A decision should take account of the force’s local geography, traffic conditions and events taking place. Forces should take account of the National Police Chiefs’ Council guidance to ensure decisions are safe, practical and effective.
The National Police Chiefs’ Council Guidance on the management of abnormal loads was last updated in May 2025. It sets out consistent principles to guide force’s decision based on local circumstances.
There are no plans to introduce a national regulatory framework governing the movement of abnormal loads. The government is satisfied that decisions are best handled by individual police forces to ensure decisions reflect local conditions.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool Riverside)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 5 January 2026 to Question 100020, Serious Violence Reduction Orders, how many weapons were found as a result of the stops during the pilot.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
Serious Violence Reduction Orders (SVROs) were piloted for two years throughout Merseyside, Sussex, Thames Valley and West Midlands police force areas. The pilot took place between 19 April 2023 and 18 April 2025.
The pilot has been independently evaluated and looks at the effectiveness of SVROs, including the use of the SVRO stop and search power and the effectiveness of SVROs in reducing reoffending and knife carrying.
The evaluation and its findings are currently being considered.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool Riverside)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 5 January 2026 to Question 100020, Serious Violence Reduction Orders, what assessment was made by the independent evaluation of (a) the use of the SVRO stop and search power, (b) the effectiveness of SVROs in reducing reoffending, and (c) the effectiveness of SVROs in reducing knife carrying.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
Serious Violence Reduction Orders (SVROs) were piloted for two years throughout Merseyside, Sussex, Thames Valley and West Midlands police force areas. The pilot took place between 19 April 2023 and 18 April 2025.
The pilot has been independently evaluated and looks at the effectiveness of SVROs, including the use of the SVRO stop and search power and the effectiveness of SVROs in reducing reoffending and knife carrying.
The evaluation and its findings are currently being considered.