Written questions by Anderson.

Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to bring people into high streets.

This Government is taking several steps to regenerate high streets to make them attractive to businesses, communities and visitors. The Government has announced communities funding for up to 350 places, including the 75 places named in the Plan for Neighbourhoods in March 2025. The Plan for Neighbourhoods will provide £1.5bn to some of the most left-behind communities in the United Kingdom over ten years – including Kirkby-in-Ashfield. Places will be able to use their £20m to enrich their town centre offering and revive footfall in their high streets. Additionally, the Government is tackling vacancy with High Street Rental Auctions, giving local authorities the power to auction rental rights of persistently vacant commercial properties. We are also legislating through the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill for a new Community Right to Buy, enabling communities to acquire valued assets. These measures will help revive footfall, boost local economies, and empower communities.

What the estimated cost of (a) fraud and (b) error in Universal Credit claims was in each of the last five years.

Estimates of the overpayment cost of fraud and error in the benefit system for the past five financial years can be found at: Fraud and error in the benefit system - GOV.UK

What estimate her Department has made of the potential impact of traffic congestion on the economy.

The Department for Transport publishes transport analysis guidance to help assess the economic cost of congestion associated with different policy interventions. It also regularly publishes statistics on speeds, delay and reliability on different types of roads. However, it does not routinely assess the economic cost of congestion on the road network as a whole.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to help ensure British (a) embassies and (b) consulates are adequately resourced to support British citizens when abroad.

Ensuring that we have the right people in the right places to support those who require consular services is a top priority for the UK Government. We regularly review how we resource consular services to ensure we are providing the right support to British people overseas. Our Consular staff are contactable 24/7, 365 days a year, providing help to more than 25,000 British people a year around the globe, and issuing more than 30,000 emergency travel documents.

How many and what proportion of applicants for (a) asylum or (b) refugee status who have had their application refused have been granted humanitarian leave to remain in the last 2 years.

The Home Office publishes data on asylum in the ‘Immigration System Statistics Quarterly Release’. Data on outcomes of claims, including those granted humanitarian leave, is published in table Asy_D02 of the asylum detailed datasets. Information on how to use the dataset can be found in the ‘Notes’ page of the workbook. The latest data relates to 2025 Q2 (April to June).

What assessment she has made of the potential risk of Class A drug smuggling across the English Channel in migrant small boats.

All migrants arriving by small boats are subject to physical searches upon arrival, and clothing is removed and replaced as part of initial reception processing.Some small weapons – for example, knives – have occasionally been seized as a result of those searches over the past seven years, but we have no record of any attempts to struggle illicit drugs into the UK via this route or any firearms.

What information they hold on the number of workdays that were completed remotely in their Department in (a) 2024 and (b) 2025 to date.

The Northern Ireland Office follows the cross Civil Service expectation that everyone spend at least 60% of their time at a Government building or on official business, such as visiting stakeholders, unless they have an agreed adjustment or exception. Deputy Directors monitor records of team office attendance and therefore data is not held centrally.

What search procedures are conducted on migrants immediately upon arrival from a small boat.

All migrants arriving by small boats are subject to physical searches upon arrival, and clothing is removed and replaced as part of initial reception processing.Some small weapons – for example, knives – have occasionally been seized as a result of those searches over the past seven years, but we have no record of any attempts to struggle illicit drugs into the UK via this route or any firearms.

If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of releasing the location of asylum seeker accommodation at the local authority level.

The latest published Immigration Statistics detail the number of supported asylum seekers accommodated in each local authority area. These statistics can be found at Immigration system statistics data tables - GOV.UK.

What steps her Department is taking to support regional airports.

Regional airports are vital in addressing transport inequity by connecting all regions of the UK to national and international opportunities. They serve our local communities by supporting thousands of jobs while maintaining social and family ties and strengthening the bonds between the four nations. Government supports connectivity across the union through our joint funding of three Public Service Obligation (PSO) routes into London from Newquay, Dundee and Derry/Londonderry. The UK aviation market operates predominantly in the private sector. Airports invest in their infrastructure to attract passengers and airlines, while airlines are well placed to deliver services to their customers by responding to demand for different routes. Ministers and officials at the Department meet regularly with regional airports to discuss issues such as regional air connectivity.

What assessment her Department has made of trends in the level of regional differences in economic inactivity rates by (a) gender, (b) age, (c) ethnicity and (d) religion.

(a)(b)(c): The information requested is published and available at:https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/default.asp Guidance for users can be found at:https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/home/newuser.asp (d): The most recent data is published and available at: Economic activity status by religion - Office for National Statistics

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of the increasing number of people receiving Universal Credit to the British taxpayer.

This Government is committed to a social security system which raises employment and living standards by supporting and incentivising people into work and to work more, reduces poverty by supporting people at times of higher cost and dependency, and promotes fairness and controls overall spending to ensure the long-term sustainability of the system for future generations. The Government’s welfare cap rule also helps ensure the long-term sustainability of the welfare system. A new welfare cap covering the current parliament was introduced at Autumn Budget 2024. The financial sustainability of the benefit system is considered in the round as part of the forecasts for annually managed expenditure which are produced twice yearly as part of the Office for Budget Responsibility forecast process. At Spring Statement 2025 the OBR forecast that expenditure on Universal Credit is forecast to increase from £75.8billion in 2025/26 to £88.9billion in 2029/30 – with Universal Credit expenditure representing a similar share of GDP in 2029/30 as in 2025/26. The number of households on Universal Credit is forecast to increase from 6.3million in 2025/26 to 6.8million over that time period. The OBR will provide a further update as part of the Autumn Budget.

If her Department will consider the potential merits of extending the validity period for driving theory tests to three years.

The maximum duration of two years between passing the theory test and a subsequent practical test is in place to ensure a customer’s road safety knowledge and ability to identify developing hazards is current. This validity period is set in legislation, and the Government has no current plans to lay further legislation to extend it. It is important road safety knowledge and hazard perception skills are up to date at the critical point a person drives unsupervised for the first time. Ensuring learner drivers have current relevant knowledge and skills is a vital part of the learning to drive process as new drivers are disproportionately casualties on our roads. Learners therefore need to pass another theory test if their two-year theory test certificate expires.

What information they hold on the number of workdays that were completed remotely in their Department in (a) 2024 and (b) 2025 to date.

Following a search of our paper and electronic records, we have established that information on the number of workdays completed remotely in 2024 and 2025 is not held by the Wales Office.

What information they hold on the number of workdays that were completed remotely in their Department in (a) 2024 and (b) 2025 to date.

The information requested is not available.

What information they hold on the number of workdays that were completed remotely in their Department in (a) 2024 and (b) 2025 to date.

The number of workdays spent working remotely is not recorded centrally and can only be obtained at disproportionate cost. Local leadership is actively managing engagement and compliance on office attendance/ working remotely and has reported that compliance with the 60 percent attendance target is being met or exceeded where impediments such as restrictions on car parking and desk space are not prevalent; this has been done in line with, and supported by, HR policy, guidance, and management communications. MOD Main Building (MOD’s HQ) is routinely published in Civil Service HQ occupancy data on GOV.UK.  Main Building total occupancy for June 2025 was 87%.

What recent assessment she has made of trends in the level of economic inactivity rates amongst (a) foreign and (b) UK nationals.

The latest inactivity rates for UK and non-UK nationals are published and available at:A12: Employment, unemployment and economic inactivity by nationality and country of birth - Office for National Statistics

What steps she is taking to (a) make work pay and (b) stop long term dependency on Universal Credit.

Through our Make Work Pay reforms – and the increases we made in April to the National Living and Minimum Wages – we are working to put more money into the pockets of working people and ensure that work remains a reliable route to financial security. Our Universal Credit Bill also tackles the perverse incentives in the UC system that drive people into dependency by rebalancing the core payment and health top up to better encourage those who can work to enter or return to employment.

Whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of reforming the (a) structure or (b) allocation of the welfare budget.

This Government is committed to a social security system which raises employment and living standards by supporting and incentivising people into work and to work more, reduces poverty by supporting people at times of higher cost and dependency, and promotes fairness and controls overall spending to ensure the long-term sustainability of the system for future generations. The Government’s welfare cap rule also helps ensure the long-term sustainability of the welfare system. A new welfare cap covering the current parliament was introduced at Autumn Budget 2024. The financial sustainability of the benefit system is considered in the round as part of the forecasts for annually managed expenditure which are produced twice yearly as part of the Office for Budget Responsibility forecast process. At Spring Statement 2025 the OBR forecast that expenditure on Universal Credit is forecast to increase from £75.8billion in 2025/26 to £88.9billion in 2029/30 – with Universal Credit expenditure representing a similar share of GDP in 2029/30 as in 2025/26. The number of households on Universal Credit is forecast to increase from 6.3million in 2025/26 to 6.8million over that time period. The OBR will provide a further update as part of the Autumn Budget.

What assessment she has made of the adequacy of the Work Capability Assessment.

As we outlined in our Pathways to Work Green Paper, we are scrapping the controversial Work Capability Assessment (WCA) to end the dysfunctional process which drives people into dependency, delivering on the Government’s commitment to reform or replace it, and removing the ‘can or can’t work flaw’ at the heart of our social security system. Going through the WCA is complex, time consuming and stressful for customers, especially if they also have to go through the Personal Independence Payment (PIP) process. Therefore, it is right that we move to one assessment and do not put millions of people through two, similar and lengthy functional assessments.