Neil Shastri-Hurst MP: written questions
148 published records · newest first.
Written questions
Attorney General's Office: Remote WorkingAttorney GeneralTabled 22 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 70040More
Question: To ask the Solicitor General, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of remote working in the Law Officers’ Department on (a) confidentiality, (b) secure communications and (c) data protection.
Answer: Confidentiality, secure communications and data protectionThe Law Officers’ Departments (LODs) – the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate (HMCPSI), Government Legal Department (GLD), and Serious Fraud Office (SFO) – a...
Answered 5 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordBusiness: ClosuresCabinet OfficeTabled 22 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 70039More
Question: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many businesses have ceased trading since 4 July 2024; and what proportion of these closures were in the (a) hospitality, (b) retail and (c) construction sectors.
Answer: The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority. A response to the Hon gentleman’s Parliamentary Question of 22nd July is attached.
Answered 2 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordUnemploymentDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 22 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 70038More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people have become unemployed in each region of the United Kingdom since 4 July 2024.
Answer: The number of people who have become unemployed in each region of the United Kingdom can be found here: HI00 Regional labour market: headline Labour Force Survey indicators for all regions - Office for National Statistics
Answered 1 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordProsecutionsMinistry of JusticeTabled 21 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 69697More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what data his Department holds on the proportion of Single Justice Procedure cases where the defendant did not respond to the notice and was convicted in absence.
Answer: The Ministry of Justice does not hold data on the number of defendants who failed to respond to a Single Justice Procedure (SJP) notice and were therefore convicted in absence. Information and statistics on plea response for SJP cases is published here: S...
Answered 1 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordProsecutionsMinistry of JusticeTabled 21 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 69696More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that Single Justice Procedure notices are (a) served effectively and (b) received by the intended recipient.
Answer: Prosecutors using the Single Justice Procedure (SJP) are responsible for the service of SJP notices and these are presently served by first class post or by email. The Ministry of Justice does not have supervisory functions over SJP prosecutors, and it is...
Answered 1 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordBailHome OfficeTabled 21 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 69667More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the report entitled Pre-charge bail and released under investigation: Striking a balance, published on 8 December 2020, what recent discussions she has had with police forces on the
Answer: HM Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services regularly inspects police forces on their use of tools such as pre-charge bail and released under investigation (RUI) to manage offenders and protect victims and the wider public from harm. The ...
Answered 3 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordEnergy: National SecurityDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 21 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 69590More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of large-scale energy grid failure scenarios on the resilience of the UK’s (a) critical infrastructure, (b) public services and
Answer: Large-scale energy grid failure has the potential to severely disrupt all other critical systems and cause widespread disruption to public services provisions, businesses and households. However, Great Britain has a highly resilient energy system. The Nat...
Answered 4 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordEnergy: ImportsDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 21 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 69589More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of dependence on imported energy on national security; and what steps he is taking to mitigate that impact.
Answer: In an unstable and uncertain world, there can be no national security without energy security. Delivering clean power by 2030 will boost energy security and protect consumers by reducing dependency on volatile fossil fuel markets and transitioning to a di...
Answered 5 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordEnergy: National SecurityDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 21 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 69588More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps his Department is taking to enhance the (a) physical and (b) cyber security of critical energy infrastructure sites that support national defence.
Answer: The Department works with the National Protective Security Authority, National Cyber Security Centre, the energy industry, regulators and other stakeholders to continually improve and maintain the resilience and security of energy infrastructure. We work ...
Answered 4 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordEnergy: National SecurityDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 21 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 69587More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment his Department has made of the potential vulnerability of the UK’s energy infrastructure to attack or sabotage by hostile states or their proxies.
Answer: National Security is a key priority for the Government. The Department is working with the National Protective Security Authority, the energy industry, regulators and other stakeholders to continually improve and maintain the security and resilience of en...
Answered 4 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordFood SupplyDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 21 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 69586More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions his Department has had with (a) supermarkets and (b) food producers to mitigate the risk of shortages in key food staples.
Answer: Defra works with industry and across Government to monitor risks that may arise and carries out extensive, regular and ongoing engagement with supermarkets and producers in preparedness for, and response to, issues with the potential to cause disruption t...
Answered 2 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordFood SupplyDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 21 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 69585More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department plans to mandate the update the UK Food Security Report annually.
Answer: The UK Food Security Report is published once every three years, fulfilling the duty in the Agriculture Act 2020. The next one will be published in 2027. On 15 July 2025 the Government announced that it is committing to a new annual food security statisti...
Answered 1 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordFood: Supply ChainsDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 21 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 69584More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure the long-term resilience of food supply chains.
Answer: The UK has a resilient food supply chain and is equipped to deal with situations with the potential to cause disruption. Defra and the Food Standards Agency have joint responsibility for food as a Critical National Infrastructure (CNI) sector. Defra asses...
Answered 2 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordBus Services: West MidlandsDepartment for TransportTabled 16 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 68520More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of trends in the level of bus service provision per capita in (a) Solihull Metropolitan Borough, (b) Warwickshire, (c) Worcestershire and (d) Birmingham City Council area
Answer: The Department for Transport publishes statistics on vehicle distance travelled on local bus services, which can be used as a proxy for bus service provision. These figures have been combined with Office for National Statistics population estimates to ass...
Answered 24 Jul 2025
Original Parliament recordKnives: Crime PreventionHome OfficeTabled 16 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 68519More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what data her Department holds on the (a) delivery and (b) effectiveness of knife crime prevention training provided by police forces in schools.
Answer: The Youth Endowment Fund (YEF), the government-funded what works centre for protecting children from involvement in violence, provides detailed, practical and evidence-based guidance for schools and education settings on how best to protect children from ...
Answered 24 Jul 2025
Original Parliament recordArmed Forces: Health ServicesMinistry of DefenceTabled 16 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 68518More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help ensure that the training received by combat medical technicians who are not qualified paramedics is recognised by civilian health care employers
Answer: The training Combat Medical Technicians (CMTs) receive leads to Higher or Advanced Apprenticeship qualifications which are recognised by civilian healthcare employers. Initially, CMTs undertake a Foundation Medic course, followed by a Level 3 qualificatio...
Answered 23 Jul 2025
Original Parliament recordSpace Technology: FinanceMinistry of DefenceTabled 16 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 68517More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much additional funding his Department plans to provide for space technology within the remit of the National Armaments Director.
Answer: The Strategic Defence Review published earlier this year has recommended that Defence must urgently develop the resilience of its military space systems.The new Defence Investment Plan, which will be published in Autumn, will set out how we will deliver t...
Answered 23 Jul 2025
Original Parliament recordSpaceMinistry of DefenceTabled 16 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 68516More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to paragraph 9 of section 7.5 of the Strategic Defence Review 2025, published on 2 June 2025, what his planned timetable is for the Cabinet sub-Committee or equivalent Ministerial group to meet.
Answer: I welcome the hon. Gentleman’s interest in space. The Ministry of Defence along with the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology and other departments, is coordinating space activities across government. Ministers from across government met on t...
Answered 23 Jul 2025
Original Parliament recordArmed ForcesMinistry of DefenceTabled 16 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 68515More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what proportion of (a) Royal Navy, (b) British Army, and (c) RAF personnel are in frontline roles.
Answer: The Royal Navy, Army and Royal Air Force do not have a definition for ‘frontline roles’ and the figures below therefore reflect the current Full-Time Trained Strength: Royal Navy/Royal Marines – 28,040Army – 70,860Royal Air Force – 27,710
Answered 24 Jul 2025
Original Parliament recordArmoured Fighting Vehicles: Repairs and MaintenanceMinistry of DefenceTabled 16 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 68513More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the proportion of maintenance downtime is for (a) tanks, (b) armoured fighting vehicles and (c) armed personnel carriers across the armed forces.
Answer: It will take time to collate and review the information needed to answer the hon. Member’s question. I will write to him shortly and place a copy of my letter in the Library of the House.
Answered 25 Jul 2025
Original Parliament recordAutonomous WeaponsMinistry of DefenceTabled 14 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 67687More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Departments is taking to assess the feasibility of retrofitting existing platforms for autonomous capability.
Answer: The Strategic Defence Review recognised that the RAF must stay at the leading edge of combat air's evolution, through the transition from exclusively crewed combat air platforms to a Future Combat Air System (FCAS) with a mix of crewed, uncrewed, and incr...
Answered 21 Jul 2025
Original Parliament recordArmed Forces: General PractitionersMinistry of DefenceTabled 7 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 65595More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that armed forces GPs (a) maintain up-to-date skills in the delivery of emergency and urgent care and (b) have access to appropriate NHS (i) placements and (ii) train
Answer: Armed Forces GPs have a unique scope of practice and develop military and medical experience and skills throughout their career. The General Practice programme for the Armed Forces personnel includes ‘Operational Preparedness’ courses covering areas of pr...
Answered 14 Jul 2025
Original Parliament recordDefence Medical Services: TrainingMinistry of DefenceTabled 7 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 65590More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking with Cabinet colleagues to ensure that all Defence Medical Services medical officers undertaking Foundation Year (a) 1 and (b) 2 training within NHS hospitals receive (i) high-
Answer: Defence Medical Services (DMS) medical officers undertake Foundation Programme training within NHS hospitals as Phase 0 Trainees prior to initial (Phase 1 and 2) military training. This is to allow DMS medical officers to develop their clinical and profes...
Answered 14 Jul 2025
Original Parliament record
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