Written questions by Obese-Jecty.

Which occupations have been (a) added and (b) removed from the shortage occupation list since 5 July 2024.

The Government's Immigration White Paper set out how we will phase out the Immigration Salary List (ISL, formerly the Shortage Occupation List), and introduce a new Temporary Shortage List (TSL) , where entries will be genuinely temporary and linked to workforce plans to tackle the root causes of workforce shortages.As interim measures, we applied end dates to the ISL and added two occupations (“1232 Residential, day and domiciliary care managers and proprietors” and “6131 Nursing auxiliaries and assistants”) on 22 July 2025. We also introduced the interim TSL at this time.The ISL can be found here: www.gov.uk/government/publications/skilled-worker-visa-immigration-salary-list/skilled-worker-visa-immigration-salary-listThe interim TSL can be found here: www.gov.uk/government/publications/skilled-worker-visa-temporary-shortage-list/skilled-worker-visa-temporary-shortage-listThe Migration Advisory Committee are currently reviewing the TSL and are due to report in July this year.

With reference to page 10 of the Police reform white paper From Local to National: A New Model for Policing (CP1489), by what date will the independent review of police force structures report its findings.

The Police Reform White Paper, published on 26 January 2026, set out an ambitious package of reform, including an ambition to significantly reduce the number of police forces across England and Wales by the end of next Parliament.We will shortly launch an Independent Review of Police Force Structures, which will make recommendations on the optimum number and configuration of forces. It will be led by an independent Chair and will consider a wide range of evidence in making its recommendations by Summer.We will announce the Chair and publish the full Terms of Reference for the Review shortly.

With reference to page 9 of her Department's White Paper, entitled From Local to National: A New Model for Policing, published on 26 January 2026, CP1489, what is her planned timetable to take legislative steps to modernise the Public Order Act 1986.

The Home Secretary launched an independent review of public order and hate crime legislation on 5 October 2025.The review will address whether the existing legislation, including the Public Order Act 1986, is effective and proportionate, whether it adequately protects communities from intimidation and hate and whether it strikes a fair and sustainable balance between the right to freedom of expression and peaceful protest, and the need to prevent disorder and keep communities safe.To lead this vital work, the Home Secretary has appointed Lord Ken Macdonald of River Glaven KC, former Director of Public Prosecutions and one of the UK’s most respected legal authorities. His independence and expertise will ensure a rigorous and impartial review.The review is underway and will report its findings to the Home Secretary by spring 2026.

Pursuant to the answer of 13 January 2026, to question 101929 on Police and Crime Commissioners, what is the composition of the £100m the Government expects to save in this Parliament as a result of abolishing Police and Crime Commissioners.

The Government expects to save at least £100m from abolishing the PCC model this Parliament. This includes savings from cancelling future PCC elections, with the last elections in 2024 costing approximately £87m.In addition, we expect to generate efficiency savings of at least £20m per annum from office support arrangements which can be reinvested in frontline policing.

When does she intend to launch the consultation on changes to firearms licensing.

We intend to publish this consultation shortly.

How many firearms offences have been committed with 3D-printed guns in each of the last five years.

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.

Which force has the lead on shotgun licence renewals within the Cambridgeshire, Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire tri-force area.

Cambridgeshire Constabulary, Bedfordshire Police and Hertfordshire Constabulary work together as part of a tripartite arrangement intended to provide a consistent firearms licensing service across the three police force areas.The arrangements are led by Hertfordshire Constabulary and report to the Chief Constables of all three forces.

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.

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.

When was the last inspection of MBR Acres under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986.

The last audit at MBR Acres occurred in November 2025.The Animals in Science Regulation Unit conducts both announced and unannounced audits to assure establishments are compliant with the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986, the terms of their licences and the Code of Practice.

What is the approval rate percentage of shotgun licence renewals within the target timeframe for Cambridgeshire Constabulary compared to the national average.

The issuing of firearms certificates, resourcing of firearms licensing teams and the efficiency of police forces, including the timeframe taken for processing shotgun licence renewals, is a matter for individual Chief Officers of Police and Police and Crime Commissioners. Cambridgeshire Constabulary, Bedfordshire Police and Hertfordshire Constabulary work together on firearms licensing as part of a tripartite arrangement between the forces and report to each of the relevant Chief Officers.The Home Office does not routinely collect data on the percentage of shotgun licence renewal applications that are approved within the target time of four months for each police force.However, the National Policing Chiefs Council (NPCC) lead for Firearms Licensing now publishes quarterly performance data for firearms licensing in all police forces in England and Wales. The data is published on the NPCC website at firearms-licensing-2526-q2-headlines.pdf and includes a combined percentage figure for the number of applications for the grant and renewal of licensing applications completed within four months of their receipt, including for Cambridgeshire Constabulary.

Pursuant to the answer of 13 March 2025, to question 35843 on Marshall Bioresources: Audit, when was the last a) announced and b) unannounced audit of MBR Acres in the Huntingdon constituency.

The last announced audit at MBR Acres occurred in November 2025. The last unannounced audit occurred in April 2024.The Animals in Science Regulation Unit conducts both announced and unannounced audits to assure establishments are compliant with the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986, the terms of their licences and the Code of Practice.

What is the projected overall financial saving from abolishing the role of Police and Crime Commissioners.

The Government expects to save at least £100m in this Parliament as a result of abolishing Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs).At least £20m per annum will be reinvested back into policing from 28/29, in addition to savings from cancelling future PCC elections which will be retained by the exchequer.

What is the size of the processing backlog for firearms licensing applications in Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire.

The issuing of firearms certificates, resourcing of firearms licensing teams and the efficiency of police forces, including tackling any backlogs, is a matter for individual Chief Officers of Police and Police and Crime Commissioners. Cambridgeshire Constabulary, Bedfordshire Police and Hertfordshire Constabulary, work together on firearms licensing as part of a tripartite arrangement between the forces and reports to each of the relevant Chief Officers.However, with the agreement of Chief Officers, and in the interests of greater transparency, the National Policing Chiefs Council (NPCC) Lead for Firearms Licensing has since 2025 been publishing quarterly performance data for firearms licensing in all police forces in England and Wales. The data is published on the NPCC website at firearms-licensing-2526-q2-headlines.pdf. This data includes a new performance target for forces to complete applications for the grant or renewal of firearm and shotgun certificates within four months of receipt. We welcome this greater transparency and forces making improvements in performance, subject to ensuring public safety remains the priority and suitability checks are carried out properly.There is also an ongoing firearms licensing thematic inspection by His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) that will report later this year. The thematic inspection is looking at a number of forces, and this includes the firearms licensing arrangements and performance in Cambridgeshire, Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire.

Whether the draft Public Order Act 2023 (Interference With Use or Operation of Key National Infrastructure) Regulations 2025 covers online activity.

On Thursday 27 November 2025, the Home Office laid an affirmative Statutory Instrument in Parliament to amend Section 7 and Section 8 of the Public Order Act 2023 (“POA”). This will amend the list of key national infrastructure within Section 7 of the POA, to add the life sciences sector and define the life sciences sector in Section 8 of the POA.Under Section 7 POA, a person commits an offence if:They do an act which interferes with the use or operation of any key national infrastructure in England and Wales, andThey intend that act to interfere with the use or operation of such infrastructure or are reckless as to whether it will do so.Whether an activity, online or otherwise, meets the criminal threshold within section 7 POA will be fact specific and is an operational matter for the police, the Crown Prosecution Service and the courts, who are all operationally independent from the government.

With reference to the contribution of the Minister for Policing and Crime during the Third Delegated Legislation Committee on 17 December 2025, when she plans to send a command paper to the Home Affairs Select Committee on the use of public order legislation.

The government has committed to undertake post legislative scrutiny of the Public Order Act 2023. This process began in May.When complete, we will send the command paper to the Home Affairs Select Committee as is routine and in line with the guidance on completing post legislative scrutiny.

What steps she has taken to help tackle the use of AI in proliferating indecent images of children.

The Government recognises the serious and evolving threat posed by AI being misused to create child sexual abuse material. We know offenders will seek to exploit emerging technologies for their own sexual gratification.AI-generated child sexual abuse is not a victimless crime. The material often includes depictions of real children, escalating the risk of contact abuse. The volume and realism of this material can make it increasingly challenging for safeguarding partners to identify and protect children. Offenders can also use these images to groom and blackmail children.The Government announced in the Violence Against Women and Girls strategy that we will ban nudification apps and other tools designed to create synthetic non-consensual intimate images (NCII) to stop women and girls’ images being tampered with and exploited without their consent.This Government is also introducing specific measures within the Crime and Policing Bill to tackle AI driven child sexual abuse. These include:Criminalising AI models that have been developed to create child sexual abuse material (CSAM). These optimised models produce hyper-realistic indecent images that often contains the likeness of real children. This offence will carry a sentence of up to five yearsUpdating the existing law criminalising ‘paedophile manuals’ to cover AI as well. Manuals which provide guidance on how to use AI to create CSAM will be punishable by up to three years in prison.A new criminal offence to target moderators and administrators who run sites dedicated to child sexual abuse, including where these horrific images are created or advice is shared using AI. These crimes will now carry a sentence of up to 10 years in prison.A further amendment to empower authorised bodies- including AI developers and child protection organisations- to scrutinise AI systems to help improve safeguards and prevent them generating harmful content in the first place.These measures are part of this Government’s ongoing efforts to make sure offenders are held accountable for their actions and have no safe place to hide online.UK law is crystal clear: child sexual abuse material is illegal, whether AI generated or not. Producing, storing, sharing or searching for any content depicting child sexual abuse is a criminal offence.

What steps she plans to take to help tackle the use of end-to-end encryption in proliferating indecent images of children.

The implementation of E2EE without safety mitigations has catastrophic consequences. In 2024, tech companies reported 7 million fewer incidents of suspected child sexual abuse exploitation to NCMEC compared to 2023. This decline is linked to reduced detection capabilities due to E2EE and platform design choices. Offenders deliberately migrate to encrypted platforms to evade detection, using E2EE as a safe haven for grooming, sextortion, and CSAM distribution.Technology exists to detect and prevent the abhorrent abuse of children, including in end-to-end encryption (E2EE). Platform design cannot be used as an excuse to avoid detection and reporting obligations. Under the Online Safety Act, in-scope services must assess and act on risks regardless of their technical architecture – including the risk of child sexual exploitation and abuse on public and private parts of their service. Section 121 of the Act gives Ofcom the power to issue a Technology Notice requiring a service to deploy accredited technology – or use best endeavours to develop or source technology – to detect and remove child sexual exploitation and abuse across public and private parts of the service, including encrypted environments, where necessary and proportionate. Where companies fail to protect users, the regulator, Ofcom, can issue fines of up to £18 million or 10% of a company's global revenue, whichever is greater.The Government announced further work to protect children from sexual abuse online in the Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy. Government will work constructively with companies to make it impossible for children in the UK to take, share or view a nude image. This is about prevention. Preventing the harm from happening in the first place whilst avoiding the need for data collection, data sharing or reporting. The technology exists. Now the government wants to work with tech companies to go further.

Which of the 43 police forces in England and Wales do not currently have specialist rape and sexual offence investigation teams.

Rape and sexual offences are amongst the most harmful crimes in society and can have a devastating impact on victims, their loved ones and our communities. Therefore, it is essential that every police force has the right specialist capability to properly investigate these crimes and to deliver justice for victims.The Home Office’s assessment is that half of the forces in England and Wales do not have a specialist rape and sexual offence team. However, we are committed to ensuring that by the end of this parliament every police force has one.

What steps does she plan to take to amend the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011 to reflect the absorption of the Police and Crime Commissioner role into that of metro mayors.

The Government committed in the English Devolution White Paper to transfer Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) functions to mayors of strategic authorities by default, wherever possible.The English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill, currently before Parliament, contains provisions that amend relevant primary legislation, including the Police Reform and Social Responsibility 2011 Act, to achieve this aim. Subject to the Bill receiving Royal Assent, transfers of functions to mayors will take place in areas where the boundaries of the mayoral strategic authority and policing area align, at a date set by the Secretary of State by Order.

When she plans to publish the police reform white paper.

A Police Reform White Paper is being developed in partnership with policing. This is a comprehensive package of reform to policing in England and Wales that will strip out duplication and waste and ensure policing can keep up with the fast-changing nature of crime.This is a once-in-a-generation moment for policing, and it is important that the reforms reflect the Home Secretary’s ambition. We will publish the White Paper in early 2026.