Written questions by O'Brien.

Pursuant to the Answer of 29 October 2024 to Question 11035, on Social Security Benefits, for which benefit lines the Department holds data on the nationality of claimants at the point of National Insurance number registration.

Information on the nationality of claimants at the point of National Insurance number (NINo) registration is not used for benefit purposes so is not held on any benefit lines. As detailed in the background information and methodology, the administrative data generated from the Adult NINo Allocation and Registration service is analysed to produce the quarterly statistical publication on ‘National Insurance number allocations to adult overseas nationals entering the UK’. The administrative data which underpins this publication is the Migrant Workers Scan (MWS) and it is sourced from the HMRC National Insurance and PAYE Service (NPS) which is not used for benefit purposes.DWP policy responsibility lies in establishing the eligibility of non-UK / Irish claimants to claim benefits. An individual’s specific nationality, either at the time of NINo registration or at the time of benefit claim, does not play a role in this. Eligibility differs by benefit but is usually determined by an individual’s immigration status, alongside their ability to meet the requirements of the Habitual Residence Test (for income-related benefits), the Past Presence Test (for disability benefits), and / or having the necessary National Insurance contributions (for contributions-based benefits).

What the cost to the public purse was of the Army Cadet force in each year since 2019; and what estimate he has made of the potential cost to the public purse of the Army Cadet force in 2024-2025 and 2025-2026.

Due to the way financial data for the Army Cadet Force is captured and managed, it is taking time to collate all the relevant information. I will write to the hon. Member as soon as practical and will place a copy of my letter in the Library of the House.

What recent assessment the Government has made of the potential impact of the ending of support payments on the provision of combined cadet forces in state schools.

The government, through the Ministry of Defence, provides in the region of £180 million to support cadets schemes. The Department for Education has contributed up to £1.1 million annually since the academic year 2021/22. This has provided some additional funding to support cadet expansion in the form of the school staff instructor (SSI) grant. This has been distributed to 230 state schools.Due to the current challenging fiscal context the government is having to take difficult decisions to ensure the stability of the economy and, while the importance of cadets is being recognised by continued support for cadet units through core funding provided by the Ministry of Defence, the department has had to take the difficult decision to not extend the additional SSI grant into this academic year. All schools in receipt of the SSI grant have been informed. The cadet expansion programme will continue to be delivered and receive £3.6 million in government funding for this academic year. This £3.6 million per year funding is within the Ministry of Defence’s annual budget cycle settlement showing a profile out to financial year 2033/2034. This funding goes to the single Service (Royal Navy, Army and Royal Air Force) cadet organisations to provide funding for cadet expansion in schools.

How many and what proportion of people claiming Universal Credit were (a) born and (b) not born in the UK.

The Department does not routinely collect data on the country of birth of individuals claiming any benefits. DWP policy responsibility lies in establishing a customer’s eligibility to claim benefits. An individual’s specific country of birth does not play a role in this and the Department therefore does not collect the country of birth information at the point of benefit claim.

How many and what proportion of people claiming Housing Benefit were (a) born and (b) not born in the UK.

The Department does not routinely collect data on the country of birth of individuals claiming any benefits. DWP policy responsibility lies in establishing a customer’s eligibility to claim benefits. An individual’s specific country of birth does not play a role in this and the Department therefore does not collect the country of birth information at the point of benefit claim.

Pursuant to the Answer of 23 October 2024 to Question 9771 on Social Security Benefits, for which benefit lines the Department records data on the birthplace of people claiming (a) out of work and (b) other benefits.

The Department does not routinely collect data on the country of birth of individuals claiming any benefits. DWP policy responsibility lies in establishing a customer’s eligibility to claim benefits. An individual’s specific country of birth does not play a role in this and the Department therefore does not collect the country of birth information at the point of benefit claim.

How many and what proportion of people claiming Jobseekers Allowance were (a) born and (b) not born in the UK.

The Department does not routinely collect data on the country of birth of individuals claiming any benefits. DWP policy responsibility lies in establishing a customer’s eligibility to claim benefits. An individual’s specific country of birth does not play a role in this and the Department therefore does not collect the country of birth information at the point of benefit claim.

How many and what proportion of people claiming Employment and Support Allowance were (a) born and (b) not born in the UK.

The Department does not routinely collect data on the country of birth of individuals claiming any benefits. DWP policy responsibility lies in establishing a customer’s eligibility to claim benefits. An individual’s specific country of birth does not play a role in this and the Department therefore does not collect the country of birth information at the point of benefit claim.

How many and what proportion of people claiming Income Support were (a) born and (b) not born in the UK.

The Department does not routinely collect data on the country of birth of individuals claiming any benefits. DWP policy responsibility lies in establishing a customer’s eligibility to claim benefits. An individual’s specific country of birth does not play a role in this and the Department therefore does not collect the country of birth information at the point of benefit claim.

How many and what proportion of people claiming the Personal Independence Payment were (a) born and (b) not born in the UK.

The Department does not routinely collect data on the country of birth of individuals claiming any benefits. DWP policy responsibility lies in establishing a customer’s eligibility to claim benefits. An individual’s specific country of birth does not play a role in this and the Department therefore does not collect the country of birth information at the point of benefit claim.

How many people there were in each region with a newly diagnosed HIV infection whose country of birth was (a) in the UK and (b) not in the UK in each year since 2014.

The number of new diagnoses for each year between 2014 and 2023, presented by region of residence and by whether country of birth was UK or not, is publicly available from the following GOV.UK link: https://view.officeapps.live.com/op/view

Pursuant to the Answer of 22 October 2024 to Question 9646 on HIV Infection: Diagnosis, how many people living with diagnosed HIV infection there were whose country of birth was (a) in the UK and (b) not in the UK by region in each year since 2014.

The information is not available in the format requested, however HIV data are publicly accessible from the HIV data tables published on GOV.UK at https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/hiv-annual-data-tables.

Which countries do not accept the return of people with identity documentation issued by the UK.

We do not expect that anyone being returned from the UK would still hold valid UK documentation. A person being removed from the UK has, by definition, no right to be in the UK.

If he will increase the fines available through section 38 of the London Local Authorities Act 1990.

Local Authorities are responsible for enforcement and central Government has no current plans for legislation that can be used to amend these fees.

Whether she plans to take steps to (a) allow local authorities with civil parking enforcement powers to enforce against unnecessary obstruction of the pavement and (b) enable highways authorities outside London to introduce a pavement parking prohibition.

In 2020, the Department undertook a public consultation on options for changing the way pavement parking is managed outside London. We are considering the views received to inform the Government’s next steps for pavement parking policy. The formal consultation response will be available to view in due course at: www.gov.uk/government/consultations/managing-pavement-parking.

Whether she plans to bring forward legislative reforms to zig zag markings outside schools to enable enforcement even where cars are partially on the pavement.

Local authorities in England with designated civil parking enforcement powers already have the option to use existing traffic order-making powers to take civil enforcement action against vehicles which are stationary, whether fully or partially, on zigzag markings outside schools. Civil parking enforcement powers have been designated in 98 percent of local authority areas in England. Elsewhere enforcement remains a police matter.

Whether she plans to extend the scheme making church repairs exempt from VAT beyond March 2025.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer will soon set out the details of the government’s spending priorities for 25/26 in the usual way at the Spending Review on the 30 October.

How many people claiming out of work benefits were (a) born in the UK and (b) not born in the UK.

The Department does not consistently record data on the birthplace of those claiming out of work benefits across all benefit lines. DWP policy responsibility lies in establishing a customer’s eligibility to claim benefits. An individual’s place of birth does not play a role in this. The Department therefore does not consistently collect information on place of birth at the point of benefit claim.

Pursuant to the Answer of 16 October 2024 to Question 8672 on Immigration: Appeals, for what reason she has no plans to legislate to change the current arrangements on publication of decisions of the First-tier Tribunal Immigration and Asylum Chamber.

I am satisfied that the question of whether, and in what form, to publish judgments is properly a judicial function. The judge is best placed to determine these matters in individual cases.

Pursuant to the Answer of 14 October 2024 to Question 6948 on Offenders: Foreign Nationals, if she will publish a breakdown of foreign national offenders by detailed offence type.

We recently provided information on the offence group of foreign national offenders (FNOs) in prison on 30 June 2024, in answer to PQ 6948. This can be found in the attached table.The Department currently has no plans to publish a breakdown of foreign national offenders by detailed offence type.The removal of FNOs is an important priority of this Government. FNOs who commit crime should be in no doubt that the law will be enforced and, where appropriate, we will work with the Home Office to pursue their deportation. We are exploring the ways that we can accelerate that further, including working with the Home Office to make the early removal scheme for foreign offenders more effective.