Every parliamentary written question tabled by John Hayes this session, with the full answer and department. See how every department answers, or back to the MP page.
Showing 401–420 of 1,760 · this parliament
How many and what proportion of immigrants detained following their arrival in the UK by small boats have been searched for drugs in each of the past five years.
I refer the Hon. Member to the answer given to questions 71052, 71053 and 71054 on 4th September.
If she will make it her policy to reduce rail fares after taking franchises into public ownership.
Decisions on fare changes are taken annually and agreed across government. We will always seek to strike a fair balance between passengers and taxpayers as we seek to return the railway to financial sustainability. In November, the Secretary of State confirmed that regulated rail fares will be frozen for one year from March 2026, saving passengers money as we rebuild a railway that Britain can rely on and be proud of. Looking forward, we are moving away from the outdated, privatisation-era view of rail fares. Instead, GBR will have commercial flexibility to manage its fares revenue in a more agile and efficient manner, allowing it to create a national fares policy which makes more sense to passengers – so that they can more easily understand what fare they should be paying and why. The Secretary of State will retain a role, in order to influence and manage the overall level of fares, balancing the interests of passengers and taxpayers.
What assessment has she made of the potential implications for her policies of the availability of crossbows through online purchases.
The Government is actively considering the introduction of further controls around crossbows. This follows a call for evidence on strengthening controls on crossbows on public safety grounds, which ran from 14 February to 9 April 2024, and tested ideas for whether there should be some form of licensing regime that would provide further controls on the use, ownership and supply of crossbows including whether sellers should be licensed in some way. We will publish the Government’s response to the call for evidence shortly, which will include what action we intend to take.Crossbows are age restricted items and it is an offence, under the Crossbows Act 1987, for anyone under the age of 18 to purchase a crossbow or parts of a crossbow. The Government is taking action to strengthen the law on age verification for the online sale and delivery of crossbows through measures currently in the Crime and Policing Bill.
How many new cars were registered in (a) South Holland and the Deepings constituency and (b) Lincolnshire in each of the last five years.
e do not readily hold new vehicle registration figures at the requested geographic levels. Information on licensed vehicles broken down by Upper and lower tier local authorities and lower super output areas (LSOA) are available at:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/vehicle-licensing-statistics-data-tables
What data her Department holds on the number of electric vehicles registered in (a) South Holland and the Deepings constituency and (b) Lincolnshire.
At the end of June 2025, the number of licensed vehicles that were battery electric was 10,789 in Lincolnshire. We do not readily hold the respective figure for South Holland and the Deepings constituency. It is important to note, vehicles are allocated to geographic location according to the postcode of the registered keeper. The address does not necessarily reflect where the vehicle is located. This is especially true for large fleets kept by companies involved with vehicle management, leasing or rentals.
Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to reduce water bills for (a) households and (b) businesses in South Holland and the Deepings constituency.
Bill payers are understandably concerned that bills have risen. For too long, investment has not kept pace with the challenges of an ageing infrastructure system, a rapidly growing population, and climate change. Over the next four years, water companies will deliver substantial and enduring improvements for customers and the environment through a £104 billion upgrade for the water sector. This investment will accelerate improvements in infrastructure to meet these challenges, secure our water supply, and to meet new environmental requirements. We are working to ensure that both business and household consumers can reduce their bills through decreasing their usage, including by pursuing a Mandatory Water Efficiency Label, smart meter rollout acceleration and a review of water efficiency standards in the Building Regulations. All companies have measures in place for customers struggling to pay for water and wastewater services, and the Government expects industry to keep support schemes under review to ensure customers across the country are supported. It is important that support is targeted at the most vulnerable. We have therefore acted decisively by consulting on reforms to WaterSure, which caps bills for low-income households in England with higher essential water use due to a medical condition or a large family. The Government also doubled compensation payments paid to consumers for service failures through the Guaranteed Standards Scheme.
How many asylum claims (a) approved and (b) rejected since July 2024 involved interviews over video calls.
The information requested is not currently available from published statistics, and the relevant data could only be collated and verified for the purpose of answering this question at disproportionate cost.
How many asylum claims (a) approved and (b) rejected since July 2024 involved face-to-face interviews.
The information requested is not currently available from published statistics, and the relevant data could only be collated and verified for the purpose of answering this question at disproportionate cost.
What steps his Department is taking to reduce energy bills for (a) households and (b) businesses in South Holland and the Deepings constituency.
The affordability crisis is the biggest issue facing this country. That is why the Autumn Budget acted to take £150 of costs off people’s energy bills. This support comes on top of the £150 off energy bills provided for around 6 million families under the Warm Home Discount this winter, cutting fuel poverty. We’re also driving forward with home upgrades, with £1.5 billion increased capital in this Budget for our Warm Homes Plan. This Government is tackling energy costs at every avenue, to drive growth. This builds on our Modern Industrial Strategy, which is slashing industrial energy bills by up to £420million for electricity-intensive businesses and will cut costs for 7,000 more businesses in 2027. We are repairing a broken energy system. Funding more of the investment we need from public spending is the right and progressive thing to do and takes pressure off bills.
Media and Sport, what discussions her Department has had with stakeholders to improve tennis facilities in (a) South Holland and the Deepings constituency and (b) Lincolnshire.
The Government is determined to ensure that everyone has access to quality sport and physical activity opportunities. That is why we have committed £400 million to transform facilities across the whole of the UK following the Spending Review. We are now working closely with sporting bodies and local leaders to establish what communities need and will then set out further plans. I have met with the Lawn Tennis Association, the National Governing Body for tennis, along with representatives from other other sports, to discuss this.The Government provides the majority of support for grassroots sport in England through Sport England, which annually invests over £250 million in Exchequer and Lottery funding. This includes long term investment in the Lawn Tennis Association which will receive up to £14.5 million for seven years from 2022 to 2029 to invest in community tennis initiatives that will benefit as many people as possible.
If she will publish the nationalities of people detained for removal caught working illegally as delivery drivers.
The Home Office takes the issue of illegal working seriously and continues to take robust enforcement action against those who breach immigration laws.Official statistics published by the Home Office are kept under review in line with the Code of Practice for Statistics, taking into account a number of factors including user needs, the resources required to compile the statistics, as well as quality and availability of data. These reviews allow us to balance the production of our regular statistics whilst developing new statistics for future release.
If he will publish all document titles from the Merlin database that have been declassified by the Atomic Weapons Establishment.
All document titles from the Merlin database that have been declassified will be published. Over 4,700 records from the Merlin database are currently listed and accessible on The National Archives (TNA) website. Records are being regularly transferred from AWE to TNA who will make them available at the earliest opportunity. Guidance on accessing these records can be found at: https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/help-with-your-research/research-guides/records-of-veterans-of-nuclear-testing-the-contents-of-the-merlin-database/
What steps she is taking to prevent immigration rules abuse where people on tourist visas claim asylum.
All visitors must be able to demonstrate that they are genuine and will leave the UK at the end of their visit. The Visitor route is not intended to facilitate individuals travelling to the UK with the intention of claiming asylum. Visitor visa applications are rigorously assessed against the Immigration Rules. We are committed to further strengthening the integrity of visa decision making by continuing to apply greater scrutiny to those where there is evidence to demonstrate a greater risk of an asylum claim once in the UK — ensuring that visas are only issued to genuine visitors. This government has also taken decisive action to address instances of individuals using visa-free travel to reach the UK and claim asylum. As a result, we have introduced visa requirements for Jordan, Colombia, Trinidad and Tobago, and Botswana. Where we have data available (the requirement for Botswana was only introduced on 14 October 2025) this action has been extremely effective: asylum seekers from Jordan, Colombia and Trinidad and Tobago have fallen by 93% and asylum seekers at port have fallen by 99% from their peak prior to the introduction of a visa requirement compared to Q3 2025. Where countries are not cooperating on the return of their nationals who have no right to be in the UK, including failed asylum seekers, we will not hesitate to use the visa system (particularly visit visas) to bring about better cooperation. As announced on 17 November, we have told Angola, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Namibia that if they do not comply with international rules and norms, we will impose visa penalties on them.Unless other countries heed this lesson, further sanctions will follow. Any asylum claim that is then subsequently lodged from within the UK and admitted to the UK asylum system, is given full and careful consideration. Our approach is to promptly consider asylum claims, with a rapid appeals process, so that claims from genuine asylum seekers can be accepted, and those that are not, can be rejected. The Government’s recently published Asylum Policy Statement sets out significant reforms to the UK’s asylum and illegal migration system. The Statement outlines the current challenges, the Government’s objectives, and a comprehensive package of measures to restore order, control, fairness and public confidence in the system.
How many and what proportion of cameras used in facial recognition technology are made in the UK.
The information requested is not held by the Home Office. Decisions on the procurement of cameras used in facial recognition technology are for individual police forces and other relevant authorities. Procurement decisions by police forces must comply with UK procurement law, including the Public Contracts Regulations 2015, Procurement Act 2023, and relevant Cabinet Office guidance on supply chain risk. They are also expected to follow the Surveillance Camera Code of Practice issued under the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012. In addition, forces have been advised to consider supply chain security and have received guidance from the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) and the Cabinet Office on the use of Chinese-manufactured surveillance equipment.
Innovation and Technology, how many firms have been fined for not complying with age verification rules in the Online Safety Act 2023.
Ofcom is the independent regulator for online safety and is responsible for enforcing the Online Safety Act 2023.On 4 December, Ofcom announced its largest online safety fine to date, a penalty of £1 million issued to a pornography provider for failing to have robust age verification checks in place. Further details on enforcement action are available on Ofcom’s website.
How many schools in (a) South Holland and the Deepings constituency and (b) Lincolnshire are able to offer swimming lessons to pupils.
It is a requirement of the PE national curriculum that schools must provide swimming and water safety lessons to pupils in either key stage 1 or 2. Whilst academies are not required to follow the national curriculum, they must provide a broad and balanced curriculum. The department is processing information gathered on swimming and water safety through the Digital Expenditure Reporting Return and will publish a summary of quality assured data in the new year.
How many people resident in the UK are recorded on the National DNA Database.
As of 30 September 2025, a total of 7,490,730 subject samples were retained on the National DNA Database. It is estimated that these samples correspond to 6,210,328 individuals.The Home Office is unable to confirm how many of these records pertain specifically to individual’s resident in the United Kingdom as the National DNA Database does not hold address details.
Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to help reduce levels of food waste in Lincolnshire.
Defra funds the groundbreaking UK Food and Drink Pact, a voluntary agreement with industry to tackle food waste in the supply chain. We also fund a programme of action delivered by the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) to tackle household food waste and help people buy what they need and use what they buy. Through our Tackling Food Surplus at the Farm Gate fund, we have allocated £13.5 million to food redistribution charities in England to ensure more surplus fresh produce is redistributed to those who need it most. By 31 March 2026, local authorities will be required to collect the core recyclable waste streams from all households in England. This includes introducing weekly food waste collections for all homes, unless a transitional arrangement applies.
What steps his Department is taking to increase the number of community diagnostic hubs in South Holland and the Deepings constituency.
Community diagnostic centres (CDCs) are delivering additional, digitally connected diagnostic capacity in England, providing patients with a co-ordinated set of tests in the community in as few visits as possible, to enable fast and accurate diagnoses.There are no CDCs in the South Holland and the Deepings constituency. However, there are three CDCs located within the NHS Lincolnshire Integrated Care Board, including the Grantham CDC in Grantham. CDCs, even if not local to a constituent, will add capacity to the wider integrated care system and will benefit more than just those patients immediately close to them. Diagnostic services can also be accessed across existing acute capacity, such as at Peterborough City Hospital.CDCs are now delivering additional tests and checks in 170 sites across the country and have delivered over 9.4 million tests, checks, and scans, including large, standard, and hub and spoke models, since July 2024.The Elective Reform Plan sets out that the Government will deliver additional CDC capacity in 2025/26 by expanding a number of existing CDCs and building up to five new CDCs. This is funded as part of the £600 million of capital investment for diagnostics in 2025/26, which my Rt. Hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer set out in the June 2025 statement.NHS England is working with local National Health Service systems to identify the most appropriate locations for additional investment, including new CDCs. New CDCs should be positioned in a location which addresses local need and address health inequalities. Details of future sites will be set out in due course. The locations of both new and expanded CDC schemes will be confirmed in due course.Over the longer term, as set out in our 10-Year Health Plan, we expect more care to be delivered in community settings, and nearer to patients’ home by default, for example through greater use of point of care tests.
What steps her Department is taking to help improve the accessibility of pavements for (a) blind and (b) visually impaired people in South Holland and the Deepings constituency.
It is the responsibility of local authorities to manage their roads, including pavements, and to ensure this is done in a way which allows them to comply with the Public Sector Equality Duty. The Department provides good practice guidance on designing accessible pavements in Inclusive Mobility: A Guide to Best Practice on Access to Pedestrian and Transport Infrastructure.This is available at:www.gov.uk/government/publications/inclusive-mobility-making-transport-accessible-for-passengers-and-pedestrians.