Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to reduce the number of court phone numbers that, when called, tell you to call a different number.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
HM Courts & Tribunals Service (HMCTS) is committed to improving the experience of users contacting us by telephone. We have migrated call handling for a number of services from local courts and tribunals to centrally managed National Service Centres. Since migration telephony wait times continue to improve, for example, average call waiting times in our digital service centres have fallen year on year, from 17 minutes in December 2023, to 15 minutes in December 2024, and to 13 minutes in December 2025, against our 15-minutes target.
A proportion of callers continue to use older phone numbers that appear on historic paperwork or in third‑party online sources retained by citizens and professionals. To avoid leaving these callers without guidance, HMCTS maintains recorded messages on such lines to signpost to the correct, active number or service.
Asked by: Priti Patel (Conservative - Witham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if she will publish the sources she receives information from on the volume of trucks providing aid to Gaza in accordance with the 20-point plan for peace in Gaza.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the Rt Hon Member to: (a) the statement I made to the House on the Middle East on 5 January, (b) the joint statement on humanitarian access issued by the Foreign Secretary and nine of her international counterparts on 30 December, (c) the answers that the Foreign Secretary and I gave on these issues at oral questions on 2 December, (d) the statement that the Foreign Secretary made to the House on Gaza on 18 November, (e) my responses to her Urgent Question on 29 October, and (f) my responses to Questions 104985, 103247, 103245, 101358, 98592, and 906050, provided on 20 January, 12 January, 12 January, 6 January, 16 December, and 28 October respectively. We will continue to update the House on these issues on a similarly regular basis over the weeks and months to come.
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps he is able to take to encourage Ofcom to sanction Royal Mail if it fails to fulfil its Universal Service Obligation.
Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
It is for Ofcom, as the independent regulator of postal services, to decide how to use its powers to investigate and take enforcement action should Royal Mail fail to achieve its obligations without good justification.
In October last year, Ofcom fined Royal Mail £21 million for failing to meet its quality of service targets and has told Royal Mail it must urgently publish and implement a credible plan that delivers major and continuous improvement. This is the third consecutive fine issued by the regulator after Royal Mail failed to meet service levels in the 2022-23 and 2023-24 financial years.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what milestone dates have been set for the introduction of AI-powered disruption updates on LNER services.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
In the coming months London North Eastern Railway will begin introducing advanced AI‑powered tools designed to keep passengers better informed and in control when travelling. This new capability will enable instant travel updates and make it easier for customers to manage their journeys during disruption.
These improvements will be supported by enhanced, data‑driven systems that aim to reduce delays and help deliver a more reliable railway for passengers.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many Greater Anglia trains are expected to be fitted with physical advanced monitoring equipment by the end of 2026.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Projects are still in development, but Greater Anglia estimates that between eight and twelve units in total will have physical monitoring equipment installed by the end of this year.
Asked by: Wendy Morton (Conservative - Aldridge-Brownhills)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of restrictions on fuel entering Gaza on civilians in Gaza.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the Rt Hon Member to: (a) the statement I made to the House on the Middle East on 5 January, (b) the joint statement on humanitarian access issued by the Foreign Secretary and nine of her international counterparts on 30 December, (c) the answers that the Foreign Secretary and I gave on these issues at oral questions on 2 December, and (d) the statement that the Foreign Secretary made to the House on Gaza on 18 November. We will continue to update the House on these issues on a similarly regular basis over the weeks and months to come.
Asked by: Wendy Morton (Conservative - Aldridge-Brownhills)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what diplomatic steps she is taking with regional partners to prevent the re-armament of Hamas in Gaza.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the Rt Hon Member to: (a) the statement I made to the House on the Middle East on 5 January, (b) the joint statement on humanitarian access issued by the Foreign Secretary and nine of her international counterparts on 30 December, (c) the answers that the Foreign Secretary and I gave on these issues at oral questions on 2 December, and (d) the statement that the Foreign Secretary made to the House on Gaza on 18 November. We will continue to update the House on these issues on a similarly regular basis over the weeks and months to come.
Asked by: Nick Timothy (Conservative - West Suffolk)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much the British Army has spent on sponsorship of Premier League Football in 2025-26 financial year.
Answered by Louise Sandher-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
Whilst the financial aspects of the sponsorship of Premier League football on Sky Television are commercial in confidence, sponsorship of Premier League football by the Army is part of a wider Army Recruiting campaign. Other marketing events and activity are synchronised with matches to ensure they generate as much interest as possible and provide value for money. Armed Forces intake has increased by 13% when compared to previous 12 months. In the same period outflow reduced by 8%.
Asked by: Charlie Dewhirst (Conservative - Bridlington and The Wolds)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to Box 2.D of the Autumn Budget 2025, HC1492, published on 26 November 2025, what information will Departments’ published delivery plans include.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
Departmental Efficiency Plans were published alongside the Spending Review 2025 on 11 June 2025 and can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/departmental-efficiency-delivery-plans/departmental-efficiency-plans
Asked by: Charlie Dewhirst (Conservative - Bridlington and The Wolds)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 7 March 2025 to Question 86245 on Alex Chisholm and Simon Case, what was the business case for the approval of the severance payment for Simon Case in March 2025.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The severance payment for Simon Case was made in line with his contract of employment, and guidance concerning special severance payments as defined in HM Treasury’s Managing Public Money.