Asked by: Blake Stephenson (Conservative - Mid Bedfordshire)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of moving to digital by default on the security of English language testing.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
We have engaged the market to understand what capability is available to maintain the high standards of security and integrity of the test and have developed a robust security schedule and solution requirements to ensure this remains at the heart of the digital by default solution. Security measures will be assessed as part of the procurement process and assured during implementation.
Asked by: Blake Stephenson (Conservative - Mid Bedfordshire)
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 move to remote and digital by default English language testing for UK visas on the public purse.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
Today’s Secure English Language Testing concessions collect all applicants’ fees with no return to the department to cover the costs of managing and overseeing delivery. There will be a net positive benefit to the public purse for this new HO ELT service.
Asked by: Sarah Pochin (Reform UK - Runcorn and Helsby)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the evidence underpinning the proposal to merge Section 1 and Section 2 firearms licensing systems; and whether the Department has evaluated the current rate of serious incidents involving legally held shotguns.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Government has committed to publishing a public consultation on strengthening the licensing controls on shotguns. This was set out in the Government response to the 2023 firearms licensing consultation, published on 13 February 2025.
Recommendations to strengthen the controls on shotguns had been made to Government by the Coroner following the inquest into the deaths of those who were shot and killed in Keyham, Plymouth in August 2021. Similar recommendations had also been made by the Independent Office for Police Conduct following its investigation into the Plymouth shootings, and by the Scottish Affairs Committee following a fatal shooting with a shotgun in Skye in August 2022.
We intend to publish the consultation shortly and we will carefully consider all of the views put forward in response to it, before taking any decision on whether and what changes may be necessary in the interests of public safety. The Government will also provide an assessment of the impact of any changes that we intend to bring forward, including to policing and to the business community in rural areas, at the relevant time.
Asked by: Sarah Pochin (Reform UK - Runcorn and Helsby)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate her Department has made of the additional workload that would fall on police firearms licensing units if Section 1 licence conditions were applied to Section 2 shotgun certificates.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Government has committed to publishing a public consultation on strengthening the licensing controls on shotguns. This was set out in the Government response to the 2023 firearms licensing consultation, published on 13 February 2025.
Recommendations to strengthen the controls on shotguns had been made to Government by the Coroner following the inquest into the deaths of those who were shot and killed in Keyham, Plymouth in August 2021. Similar recommendations had also been made by the Independent Office for Police Conduct following its investigation into the Plymouth shootings, and by the Scottish Affairs Committee following a fatal shooting with a shotgun in Skye in August 2022.
We intend to publish the consultation shortly and we will carefully consider all of the views put forward in response to it, before taking any decision on whether and what changes may be necessary in the interests of public safety. The Government will also provide an assessment of the impact of any changes that we intend to bring forward, including to policing and to the business community in rural areas, at the relevant time.
Asked by: Sarah Pochin (Reform UK - Runcorn and Helsby)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she has assessed the potential economic impact on (a) rural communities, (b) sporting shooting activities and (c) conservation work of merging shotgun and rifle licensing regimes.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Government has committed to publishing a public consultation on strengthening the licensing controls on shotguns. This was set out in the Government response to the 2023 firearms licensing consultation, published on 13 February 2025.
Recommendations to strengthen the controls on shotguns had been made to Government by the Coroner following the inquest into the deaths of those who were shot and killed in Keyham, Plymouth in August 2021. Similar recommendations had also been made by the Independent Office for Police Conduct following its investigation into the Plymouth shootings, and by the Scottish Affairs Committee following a fatal shooting with a shotgun in Skye in August 2022.
We intend to publish the consultation shortly and we will carefully consider all of the views put forward in response to it, before taking any decision on whether and what changes may be necessary in the interests of public safety. The Government will also provide an assessment of the impact of any changes that we intend to bring forward, including to policing and to the business community in rural areas, at the relevant time.
Asked by: Sarah Pochin (Reform UK - Runcorn and Helsby)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the effect of merging Section 1 and Section 2 licensing on existing waiting times for firearms licensing; and whether the merger could exacerbate current delays.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Government has committed to publishing a public consultation on strengthening the licensing controls on shotguns. This was set out in the Government response to the 2023 firearms licensing consultation, published on 13 February 2025.
Recommendations to strengthen the controls on shotguns had been made to Government by the Coroner following the inquest into the deaths of those who were shot and killed in Keyham, Plymouth in August 2021. Similar recommendations had also been made by the Independent Office for Police Conduct following its investigation into the Plymouth shootings, and by the Scottish Affairs Committee following a fatal shooting with a shotgun in Skye in August 2022.
We intend to publish the consultation shortly and we will carefully consider all of the views put forward in response to it, before taking any decision on whether and what changes may be necessary in the interests of public safety. The Government will also provide an assessment of the impact of any changes that we intend to bring forward, including to policing and to the business community in rural areas, at the relevant time.
Asked by: Lee Anderson (Reform UK - Ashfield)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what data her Department holds on trends in the level of drug misuse crime.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
The ONS publishes data from Crime Survey in England and Wales on the extent and trends of illicit drug use and it can be found here:
The Home Office publishes police recorded crime data for trafficking of drugs and possession of drugs and it can be found here:
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many firearms offences have been committed with 3D-printed guns in each of the last five years.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
Offences involving the use of 3D printed firearms offences are not recorded separately within the crime statistics published by the Office for National Statistics. A firearm manufactured using 3D printing technology is regarded as a firearm under the Firearms Act 1968 and the controls set out in that Act apply. The overall number of offences involving firearms offences decreased by 16%, to 5,053 offences in the year ending June 2025 compared to the year ending June 2024.
The Government works closely with the police and the National Crime Agency to ensure that we have the right laws, intelligence, detection and enforcement capabilities to tackle the threat posed by the unlawful possession and use of firearms, including firearms manufactured in full, or in part, using 3D printing technology. This includes the measures in the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Act 2025 which, when commenced, will make it an offence to possess or supply templates for the 3D printing of firearms.
Asked by: Jo Platt (Labour (Co-op) - Leigh and Atherton)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of expanding the definition of assault of a retail worker to include workers in other high street outlets serving customers.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
Through our Crime and Policing Bill, this Government has introduced a new specific standalone offence of assaulting a retail worker to help tackle the epidemic of shop theft and violence towards shop workers that we have seen in recent years, and protect the hardworking and dedicated staff that work in stores.
For the purposes of this new offence, our definition of a ‘retail worker’ is intentionally narrow given the vital need to provide legal clarity and ensure there is no ambiguity for courts in identifying whether an individual is a retail worker, and the assault took place in the course of their work.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many police officers hired in the last ten years in England underwent standard vetting procedures prior to their hiring.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office does not hold data centrally on the vetting of new recruits over the last ten years. This information is held by each individual police force.
Following the Metropolitan Police Service’s (MPS) Operation Jorica review, the Home Secretary has commissioned His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) to inspect them on their recruitment and vetting practices and asked them to provide an assessment in relation to other forces in England and Wales.