Written questions by McMurdock.

What steps she is taking to support Essex County Fire and Rescue Service's capital investment in its (a) estate, (b) fleet and (c) equipment.

On 3 February 2025, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government published the Final Local Government Finance Settlement 2025/26 which sets out grant allocations for all local authorities including fire and rescue.The Home Office will continue to work closely with stakeholders across the sector to ensure fire and rescue services have the resources they need to protect communities.

What assessment she has made of the potential merits of (a) continuing existing government grants for the Essex County Fire and Rescue Service and (b) uplifting such grants by inflation.

On 3 February 2025, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government published the Final Local Government Finance Settlement 2025/26 which sets out grant allocations for all local authorities including fire and rescue.The Home Office will continue to work closely with stakeholders across the sector to ensure fire and rescue services have the resources they need to protect communities.

What steps she is taking to provide funding for infrastructure for fire and rescue services to help mitigate risks in relation to contaminants.

On 3 February 2025, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government published the Final Local Government Finance Settlement 2025/26 which sets out grant allocations for all local authorities including fire and rescue.The Home Office will continue to work closely with stakeholders across the sector to ensure fire and rescue services have the resources they need to protect communities.

What proportion of reported retail crime cases resulted in prosecution in each of the last three years.

The Home Office collects and publishes information on the number of shoplifting offences, and their investigative outcomes (including those resulting in charged/summons), on a quarterly basis. The latest information, to the year ending September 2024, were on published Thursday 30 January 2025 and can be accessed here:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/police-recorded-crime-open-data-tablesProsecutions are the responsibility of the Ministry of Justice. Statistics on prosecutions at court are published by the MoJ and can be accessed via their outcomes by offence data tool, available here:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/criminal-justice-system-statistics-quarterly-june-2024

What plans she has to reduce retail crime.

Shop theft soared to unacceptable levels under the previous government, with more and more offenders using violence and abuse against shopworkers. We will not stand for this. Everybody has a right to feel safe at their place of work.The Government is committed to tackling retail crime. We will end the effective immunity, introduced by the previous Government, granted to shop theft of goods of £200 and under. This will remove any perception that offenders will escape punishment.We will also introduce a new offence of assaulting a retail worker to protect the hardworking and dedicated staff that work in stores.As set out in the Autumn budget 2024, we will provide over £7 million over the next three financial years to help support police in tackling retail crime.I am committed to chairing the newly established Retail Crime Forum to ensure we understand the needs of all retailers and to promote collaboration between the retail sector, security providers and law enforcement.

What plans she has to help reduce financial loss to retailers caused by customer theft.

Shop theft soared to unacceptable levels under the previous government, with more and more offenders using violence and abuse against shopworkers. We will not stand for this. Everybody has a right to feel safe at their place of work.The Government is committed to tackling retail crime. We will end the effective immunity, introduced by the previous Government, granted to shop theft of goods of £200 and under. This will remove any perception that offenders will escape punishment.We will also introduce a new offence of assaulting a retail worker to protect the hardworking and dedicated staff that work in stores.As set out in the Autumn budget 2024, we will provide over £7 million over the next three financial years to help support police in tackling retail crime.I am committed to chairing the newly established Retail Crime Forum to ensure we understand the needs of all retailers and to promote collaboration between the retail sector, security providers and law enforcement.

What assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of levels of (a) violence and (b) abuse faced by retail workers.

Shop theft soared to unacceptable levels under the previous government, with more and more offenders using violence and abuse against shopworkers. We will not stand for this. Everybody has a right to feel safe at their place of work.The Government is committed to tackling retail crime. We will end the effective immunity, introduced by the previous Government, granted to shop theft of goods of £200 and under. This will remove any perception that offenders will escape punishment.We will also introduce a new offence of assaulting a retail worker to protect the hardworking and dedicated staff that work in stores.As set out in the Autumn budget 2024, we will provide over £7 million over the next three financial years to help support police in tackling retail crime.I am committed to chairing the newly established Retail Crime Forum to ensure we understand the needs of all retailers and to promote collaboration between the retail sector, security providers and law enforcement.

What steps she is taking to support retailers to improve security measures in their stores to prevent crime.

Shop theft soared to unacceptable levels under the previous government, with more and more offenders using violence and abuse against shopworkers. We will not stand for this. Everybody has a right to feel safe at their place of work.The Government is committed to tackling retail crime. We will end the effective immunity, introduced by the previous Government, granted to shop theft of goods of £200 and under. This will remove any perception that offenders will escape punishment.We will also introduce a new offence of assaulting a retail worker to protect the hardworking and dedicated staff that work in stores.As set out in the Autumn budget 2024, we will provide over £7 million over the next three financial years to help support police in tackling retail crime.I am committed to chairing the newly established Retail Crime Forum to ensure we understand the needs of all retailers and to promote collaboration between the retail sector, security providers and law enforcement.

What plans she has to improve the safety of retail workers from (a) violence and (b) abuse.

Shop theft soared to unacceptable levels under the previous government, with more and more offenders using violence and abuse against shopworkers. We will not stand for this. Everybody has a right to feel safe at their place of work.The Government is committed to tackling retail crime. We will end the effective immunity, introduced by the previous Government, granted to shop theft of goods of £200 and under. This will remove any perception that offenders will escape punishment.We will also introduce a new offence of assaulting a retail worker to protect the hardworking and dedicated staff that work in stores.As set out in the Autumn budget 2024, we will provide over £7 million over the next three financial years to help support police in tackling retail crime.I am committed to chairing the newly established Retail Crime Forum to ensure we understand the needs of all retailers and to promote collaboration between the retail sector, security providers and law enforcement.

How many and what proportion of people on the terrorist watch list are dual nationals.

It is longstanding policy not to discuss either the specific information held on any security-related watchlist, the source of the information or how it is used.To do so would be counterproductive and harmful to the national security of the UK.

How many and what proportion of people on the terrorist watch list are foreign nationals.

It is longstanding policy not to discuss either the specific information held on any security-related watchlist, the source of the information or how it is used.To do so would be counterproductive and harmful to the national security of the UK.

If she will list the number of people on the terrorist watch list by (a) nationality, (b) sex, (c) religion and (d) immigration status.

It is longstanding policy not to discuss either the specific information held on any security-related watchlist, the source of the information or how it is used.To do so would be counterproductive and harmful to the national security of the UK.

What steps she is taking to improve the sharing of real-time information about criminal investigations with overseas authorities.

His Majesty's Government has committed to resetting the UK’s relationship with the EU. As set out in the Government’s manifesto, this includes seeking a new security agreement with the EU on access to real-time intelligence sharing. Having left the Schengen Information System following the UK’s departure from the EU, the UK now uses INTERPOL to exchange real time alerts with EU countries, as well as the rest of the world.We are rolling out the International Law Enforcement Alerts Platform (I-LEAP) to frontline UK law enforcement and border officers to provide real-time access to INTERPOL nominal data, stolen-lost travel documents and stolen motor vehicles; phase 2 of I-LEAP will strengthen alert-sharing capabilities with international partners.

How much funding the National Economic Crime Victim Care Unit has received in each of the last three years.

Home Office investment in the National Economic Crime Victim Care Unit (NECVCU) for each of the last three financial years (FY) is set out below.The table sets out actual spend in financial years 2022/23 and 2023/24, and the indicative budget allocation for financial year 2024/25. All figures are provided to 1 decimal place: FY 2022/23 Actual SpendFY 2023/24 Actual SpendFY 2024/25 Indicative BudgetHome Office Investment£2.2m£3.2m£3.5m

How many cases of child sex trafficking have been identified in the UK in each of the last five years; and what steps she is taking to ensure (a) accurate and (b) transparent data collection for those crimes.

The trafficking of children for sexual exploitation is a truly horrific crime. This Government has set out an unprecedented mission to halve violence against women and girls in a decade, and we will use all the levers available to us to deliver this. This will include working closely with law enforcement partners, such as the Tackling Organised Exploitation Programme (TOEX), which continues work to develop a whole system approach to improving intelligence, analysis, and tasking to enhance law enforcement response to the exploitation of vulnerable people, including victims of trafficking, sexual exploitation, and abuse.The following table shows the number of referrals to the National Referral Mechanism (NRM, the framework for identifying and referring potential victims of modern slavery to appropriate support) for (partial or whole) sexual exploitation for children, at age of exploitation.YearNRM referrals for (either partial or whole) sexual exploitation for children at age of exploitation2020824202194320221115202311182024 (up to Q3)1036In addition to the statutory support local authorities provide to victims of modern slavery, for potential child victims, the Government has rolled out the Independent Child Trafficking Guardian (ICTG) service to two thirds of local authorities in England and Wales. The ICTG service is currently delivered by Barnardo’s.

What discussions she has had with her international counterparts about (a) policing fraud and (b) convicting perpetrators of fraud.

The Home Office continues to work closely with a range of partners, both bilaterally and through a range of multilateral fora, to tackle the fraud threat following the UK hosted Global Fraud Summit.We also work closely with key overseas partners to target fraud at its source. By collaborating with governments across the world, we are making it harder for organised crime groups to operate across borders and to target prospective victims in the UK.

What steps she is taking to protect vulnerable people from falling victim to fraud.

The Home Office has supported the rollout of the National Economic Crime Victim Care Unit (NECVCU) to all 43 forces in England and Wales. The aim of NECVCU is to support victims by building their confidence, helping them recover finances, and significantly reducing the likelihood of repeat victimisation. Since its inception in 2018, NECVCU has supported 440,994 victims of fraud and since January 2021, NECVCU has also helped victims recover £3,685,201.Additionally, the Home Office has provided funding to City of London Police to create a coordinated police Fraud Protect Network. The network is made up of local, regional and national law enforcement officers and is designed to reduce the threat of fraud and revictimisation by providing consistent fraud prevention advice to the public.The Home Office continues to engage with banks, trade organisations and third sector organisations to ensure proper advice and support for victims of fraud. Our “Stop! Think Fraud” campaign helps people spot and avoid fraud, and provides fraud prevention and recovery advice. Stop! Think Fraud - How to stay safe from scams.We are also continuing to work with individual sectors to support industry in disrupting attempts at fraud before they reach the public.We launched the Insurance Fraud Charter in November 2024 with key insurance firms to reduce insurance fraud.We are also developing a second telecommunications Charter to ensure the telecommunications sector takes additional steps to identify, prevent and disrupt fraud. Additionally, we are considering legislative action to ban “SIM farms”, technical devices that allow criminals to send scam texts to thousands of people at the same time.The Online Safety Act codes of practice, which will require social media companies to take proactive measures to stop fraud originating on their platforms, will come into effect in March. The Chancellor and the Hom eSecretary have made clear that if insufficient action is taken in this area bu those companies, the Government will consider what further steps need to be taken Later this year, we will also publish an expanded Fraud Strategy that covers the full range of threats that our society faces from this crime.

How many passports were revoked due to links to terrorist activity in each month since January 2023.

Since the beginning of 2023, one British passport has been revoked due to links to terrorist activity. This occurred in January 2024.

What preventative steps she is taking to reduce the number of fraud cases.

The Home Office has supported the rollout of the National Economic Crime Victim Care Unit (NECVCU) to all 43 forces in England and Wales. The aim of NECVCU is to support victims by building their confidence, helping them recover finances, and significantly reducing the likelihood of repeat victimisation. Since its inception in 2018, NECVCU has supported 440,994 victims of fraud and since January 2021, NECVCU has also helped victims recover £3,685,201.Additionally, the Home Office has provided funding to City of London Police to create a coordinated police Fraud Protect Network. The network is made up of local, regional and national law enforcement officers and is designed to reduce the threat of fraud and revictimisation by providing consistent fraud prevention advice to the public.The Home Office continues to engage with banks, trade organisations and third sector organisations to ensure proper advice and support for victims of fraud. Our “Stop! Think Fraud” campaign helps people spot and avoid fraud, and provides fraud prevention and recovery advice. Stop! Think Fraud - How to stay safe from scams.We are also continuing to work with individual sectors to support industry in disrupting attempts at fraud before they reach the public.We launched the Insurance Fraud Charter in November 2024 with key insurance firms to reduce insurance fraud.We are also developing a second telecommunications Charter to ensure the telecommunications sector takes additional steps to identify, prevent and disrupt fraud. Additionally, we are considering legislative action to ban “SIM farms”, technical devices that allow criminals to send scam texts to thousands of people at the same time.The Online Safety Act codes of practice, which will require social media companies to take proactive measures to stop fraud originating on their platforms, will come into effect in March. The Chancellor and the Home Secretary have made clear that if insufficient action is taken in this area but those companies, the Government will consider what further steps need to be takenLater this year, we will also publish an expanded Fraud Strategy that covers the full range of threats that our society faces from this crime.

What recent assessment she has made with Cabinet colleagues of the UK's vulnerability to cyber-terrorism.

The UK is becoming increasingly digital, connected and online. This increases our exposure to a range of cyber threats from a variety of actors.As set out in the UK’s counter-terrorism strategy, CONTEST 2023, the threat from terrorism is enduring and evolving, with the threat we see today and in the coming years becoming more diverse, dynamic and complex.Cyber terrorism was part of the threat landscape used to inform the CONTEST 2023 strategy and we remain constantly vigilant to new terrorist and cyber tactics.This government is committed to maintaining investment in critical threat assessment capabilities, including through the world-class Joint Terrorism Analysis Centre (JTAC) and the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC).We continue to use all of HMG’s available levers to disrupt cyber threats and to keep the public safe.