Every parliamentary written question tabled by Andrew Rosindell this session, with the full answer and department. See how every department answers, or back to the MP page.
Showing 1,081–1,100 of 1,630 · this parliament
Whether he is taking steps to increase the presence of the Royal Navy in the Indo-Pacific region.
In 2025, our maritime presence in the Indo Pacific will increase through Operation HIGHMAST, an eight-month multi-national UK-led carrier strike deployment comprising four Royal Navy platforms and an air wing. Op HIGHMAST will complement the Royal Navy's persistent maritime presence, which since 2021 has retained two Offshore Patrol Vessels in the region.
What steps he has taken to with relevant authorities to support Northern Ireland’s tourism industry.
Northern Ireland remains a highly popular destination for both UK and international visitors. In 2023, the tourism sector contributed approximately £1.2 billion to Northern Ireland’s economy, with 5.4 million visitors. In March, I met with representatives of the Northern Ireland Tourism Alliance to discuss the opportunities and challenges that its members are facing. The Northern Ireland Executive is ultimately responsible for tourism in Northern Ireland. I welcome the Department for the Economy’s efforts to boost the impact of tourism across Northern Ireland through its 10-year Tourism Vision and Action Plan.
What steps he is taking to ensure that the UK’s financial contributions to the Commonwealth War Graves Commission are sufficient to maintain the graves of UK military personnel.
The annual funding for the Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC’s) is split between the six member countries, in proportion to the number of war dead from each nation. The United Kingdom is by far the largest contributor at 78.4%. Defence officials work very closely with the CWGC each year to set the annual budget, and therefore funding, for the following year. This work takes account of any specific requirements or projects that may be forecast, whilst also ensuring that the Commission works effectively and efficiently. On that basis, the Ministry of Defence will continue to provide adequate funding going forwards.
Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department plans to publish best practice guidance for local authorities on enforcing the requirement for all cats and dogs to be microchipped.
Under the Microchipping of Cats and Dogs (England) Regulations 2023, both cats and dogs are required to be microchipped. There are no current plans to publish best practice guidance on enforcing the requirement for all cats and dogs to be microchipped and we will continue to keep this under review. Local authorities and police have powers to enforce breaches of the Regulation. It will be for each local authority to determine on a case-by-case basis whether enforcement action is proportionate.
Food and Rural Affairs, whether he plans to bring forward legislative proposals to grant local authorities the power to issue conditional fixed penalty notices for non-compliance with microchipping regulations for dogs and cats.
We will keep under review whether to grant local authorities the power to issue conditional fixed penalty notices for non-compliance with microchipping regulations for dogs and cats.
Food and Rural Affairs, if his Department will (a) provide local authorities with sufficient resources and (b) create a legal duty for local authorities to enforce requirements for all cats and dogs to be microchipped.
Under the Microchipping of Cats and Dogs (England) Regulations 2023, both cats and dogs are required to be microchipped. There are no current plans to publish best practice guidance on enforcing the requirement for all cats and dogs to be microchipped and we will continue to keep this under review. Local authorities and police have powers to enforce breaches of the Regulation. It will be for each local authority to determine on a case-by-case basis whether enforcement action is proportionate.
Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking with relevant authorities to protect the ecosystems of mountain ranges.
Mountain ranges, and specifically the montane habitats they contain, can support a unique flora and fauna. They receive the same statutory protection as other nationally important sites in England. The Cumbria High Fells for example has 110 Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) that cover about 18 per cent or 35,852 hectares (ha) of the area. The majority of this SSSI area (31,286 ha) is also designated under the Habitats Regulations as ‘Special Areas of Conservation’ (SAC).
Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions he has had with local authorities on access to affordable glass recycling services by pubs.
Local authorities have a duty to arrange the collection of commercial waste when requested to by an occupier of a premise in its area. This may mean providing a service or entering into a contract with a private waste collector. There is no requirement for waste collection authorities to begin offering collection services to premises where they do not already have a service in place, unless a request is made by any such premises. All services arranged by the local authority to collect commercial waste must be compliant with Simpler Recycling from 31 March 2025, unless the micro-firm exemption applies (which allows workplaces with less than 10 full-time equivalent employees an additional 2 years to comply, until 31 March 2027). Simpler Recycling requires collection of glass, either as part of a dry mixed recycling service, or through a dedicated glass collection (depending on the preference of the local authority). It also requires the collection of the other core materials: plastic, metal, paper and card, and food waste.
What steps he has taken to increase defence co-operation between the United Kingdom and Italy.
Italy remains one of the UK's most critical partners for European defence and security. The UK has a valuable and longstanding partnership with Italy built on deep tri-service links and historic cooperation in the combat air and weapons sectors. Through annual 2+2 meetings between our Foreign and Defence Secretaries, our bilateral High-Level Military Dialogue, and regular interaction through other groupings such as NATO and E5 Defence Ministers Group, we continuously explore how our nations can better work together to address issues of shared strategic interest. The closeness of our relationship is exemplified by our commitment to the Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP). Alongside Italy and Japan, we have made great progress delivering GCAP, achieving Treaty Ratification between all partner nations in December 2024 and establishing the GCAP Headquarters, based in Reading. This programme will not only deliver a cutting-edge combat aircraft but will foster closer defence cooperation between the three nations while also strengthening each country's defence industry, creating jobs and fostering economic growth. Outside of GCAP, the bi-annual Senior Armaments Export Group meeting brings together government and industry to understand how we can best work together to pursue opportunities for deeper collaboration on defence programmes and exports. In February 2025, British and Italian capability directors signed a Statement of Intent focusing on complex weapons cooperation, adding more structure to this relationship.Operationally our relationship is strong. We continue to deepen interoperability between our Carrier Strike Groups. As the only other European nation with carrier-capable F-35B aircraft, the Italian Armed Forces are providing a crucial contribution to the UK's 2025 Carrier Strike Group deployment, Op HIGHMAST.
How many incidents of car theft were reported to the Metropolitan Police in the London Borough of Havering in the last six months.
The Home Office collects and publishes information on the number of notifiable offences, including the number of theft of motor vehicles, recorded by the police in England and Wales. This information is published as official statistics each quarter at both the Police Force Area and Community Safety Partnership level, including Havering Crime Safety Partnership area. The latest information, to the year ending September 2024, can be accessed here:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/police-recorded-crime-open-data-tablesInformation for the year to December 2024 is due to be published on 24th April 2025.
What estimate she has made of total revenue generated by Air Passenger Duty from children aged under 16 years old who travelled in Premium Economy in each of the last three years.
Air Passenger Duty (APD) applies to airlines, not individual passengers, and is the principal tax on the aviation sector. It is expected to raise £4.2 billion in 2024-25 and it aims to ensure that airlines make a fair contribution to the public finances, particularly given that tickets are VAT free and aviation fuel incurs no duty. The distance-based band structure ensures that those who travel furthest, and in the greatest comfort, incur a greater tax liability. Children under 16 years old on the date of the flight, and in the lowest class of travel, are exempt from APD. This means that no APD will be paid on that passenger by the airline to the UK government. If children under 16 years old are travelling in any other class (such as premium economy) or in business jets, they are not exempt. Children under 2 years old without a seat are exempt from Air Passenger Duty for all classes of travel. Airline operators declare the number of chargeable passengers by destination band and by rate. They do not break down chargeable passengers by age, and therefore this is not information that HMRC collects. The government has published annual statistics and analysis on airline passenger numbers and Air Passenger Duty (APD) receipts in the UK which are administered by HM Revenue and Customs. It is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/air-passenger-duty-bulletin.
Communities and Local Government, how much funding was allocated by her Department for infrastructure improvements in Romford constituency in the last two years.
There have been no funds allocated to Romford over the last 2 years from the Housing Infrastructure Fund or from other MHCLG Land and Infrastructure funds. The Greater London Authority was awarded a £63 million grant through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund for the 2025-26 financial year to support London's economic development, with a focus on supporting local businesses and improving communities and skills. The GLA is working with London Councils and other partners to allocate these funds.
Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of granting RSPCA investigators statutory powers to gather evidence.
There are no current plans to expand statutory powers in the Animal Welfare Act 2006 to include RSPCA inspectors. The RSPCA has strong working relationships with the Police and Local Authorities who support them in protecting animals where needed. The Government recognises the valuable work the RSPCA does to improve the welfare of animals and remains committed to working with the RSPCA, and other organisations involved in enforcement activities, so that our high animal welfare standards are maintained and offenders are subject to appropriate penalties.
Food and Rural Affairs, what recent steps his Department has taken to help promote the purchase of British food.
The cross-Government food strategy will restore pride in British food by ensuring a food system that backs British food, grows the economy, feeds the nation, nourishes individuals, and protects the planet, now and in the future.
Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to work with relevant authorities to prevent wildfires.
Each fire and rescue authority is required to plan for the foreseeable risks in their area (including wildfire), through their Community Risk Management Plan (CRMP), and having regard to the views of other key local responders.The Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) is the lead government department for wildfire response (from 1 April 2025) and owns the National Risk Register (NRR) wildfire risk, however a coordinated approach is essential to mitigate the impact on people, property, habitats, livestock, natural capital and wildlife, and to plan the most effective response to incidents. MHCLG maintains regular engagement with other government departments including the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and Cabinet Office, along with National Bodies including the National Fire Chiefs Council and England and Wales Wildfire Forum to monitor and review sector led improvements and mitigations. Since 2024 the government has funded a National Resilience Wildfire Advisor to assess what additional wildfire national capabilities might be needed to increase resilience to the wildfire risk and to ensure coordination of approaches across the sector. In December 2021 the Home Office, as the former lead government department for wildfire, published the Wildfire Framework for England. The framework identifies responsibilities, clarifies relationships, and facilitates coordination at the government level and between key wildfire stakeholders, in England. As outlined in the Wildfire Framework for England, Defra maintain responsibility for the review of land management inputs for fuel load management, and for the promotion of wildfire mitigation and adaptation planning to land managers. Landowners and land managers are encouraged to adopt good quality wildfire management plans, use sustainable methods to manage habitat and restore their peatland – wetter, healthy-functioning peatlands are more resilient to the risk of wildfire.
Food and Rural Affairs, if he will bring forward legislative proposals to require all (a) dogs and (b) cats to be treated against tick borne diseases prior to entering the UK.
The Government takes biosecurity very seriously. Disease risk is monitored carefully and is kept under constant review. Where necessary we have the powers in legislation to introduce preventive health measures to protect animal or public health by controlling diseases or infections that are likely to be spread due to the movement of pet animals into Great Britain. We will continue to monitor and consider any further actions that may be necessary to prevent tick borne diseases as appropriate.
Food and Rural Affairs, what comparative assessment he has made of the potential impact of extended producer responsibility schemes on the finances of pubs in (a) the UK and (b) other European countries with similar schemes.
In October 2024, the Government published an updated assessment of the impact of introducing the pEPR scheme on packaging producers as a whole. This impact assessment did not compare the impact of fees to international schemes. Illustrative base fee estimates for the UK are in the same order of magnitude of other countries’ fees. However, comparisons are not straightforward because of differences in waste infrastructure and waste management approaches.
Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to help support (a) subsistence and (b) commercial agriculture on St Helena.
The St Helena Government is responsible for its agricultural policy. The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office is providing £30 million between 2019-2028 in support to St Helena, including funding for agricultural initiatives. This contributed to an increase in agricultural production of £380,000 from Financial Year 2020/21 to Financial Year 2023/24.
What recent assessment he has made of the role of Commonwealth trade agreements in increasing the UK’s export growth rate in the services sector.
UK exports in services to Commonwealth countries rose in current prices from £36.4 billion in 2019 to £58.1 billion in the 12 months to September 2024 and represents 61.5% of UK exports to Commonwealth countries in the latest period. The UK increases services exports and removes barriers to services trade through many of our trade agreements covering 35 Commonwealth countries. For example, the UK’s accession to CPTPP provided UK and Malaysian firms and professionals with certainty when looking to deliver services in their respective territories.
Whether he has had discussions with his Commonwealth counterparts on the potential for mutual recognition agreements on professional qualifications.
The Department for Business and Trade recognises the importance of mutual recognition of professional qualifications (RPQ) to support services trade and domestic labour market outcomes. International agreements provide mechanisms for officials to regularly engage with their Commonwealth counterparts on RPQ. Officials engage frequently with counterparts in Australia, New Zealand and the CARIFORUM states through Professional Services Working Groups, joint and specialised committee structures. Independent UK regulators set standards, assess professional qualifications and are responsible for agreeing Mutual Recognition Agreements on RPQ. DBT is committed to promoting RPQ opportunities and supporting regulators in their discussions with Commonwealth counterparts.