Paul Kohler MP: written questions 2025
116 published records · newest first.
Written questions
SlaveryHome OfficeTabled 16 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 100585More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many prosecutions for modern slavery offences have been brought in the past five years; and what measures are in place to improve victim identification and access to justice.
Answer: This Government is committed to tackling modern slavery, ensuring that victims are provided with the support they need to begin rebuilding their lives and that those responsible are prosecuted.The data on the number of modern slavery prosecutions is publi...
Answered 22 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordSlaveryDepartment for Business and TradeTabled 16 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 100584More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that companies operating in the UK are carrying out robust due diligence to identify and prevent modern slavery practices within their operations and suppl
Answer: The UK’s current approach to tackling forced labour in global supply chains is focused on driving transparency. Section 54 of the UK’s Modern Slavery Act 2015 requires businesses with a turnover of £36m or more to publish modern slavery statements. The Go...
Answered 24 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordHuman Trafficking: ProstitutionHome OfficeTabled 16 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 100583More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment she has made of the prevalence of human trafficking for the purposes of sexual exploitation in the UK; and what additional measures are being taken to strengthen protections for
Answer: The trafficking of women and girls for sexual exploitation is a truly horrific crime. This Government has set out a mission to halve violence against women and girls in a decade, and we will use all the levers available to us to deliver this ambition. Thi...
Answered 22 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordSlaveryHome OfficeTabled 16 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 100582More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 in preventing the exploitation of vulnerable individuals within large commercial organisations.
Answer: The government is committed to tackling modern slavery, ensuring that victims are provided with the support they need to begin rebuilding their lives and that those responsible are prosecuted.Section 54 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 established the UK as...
Answered 22 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordPolice: StandardsHome OfficeTabled 2 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 96468More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to help improve the ability of police forces to (a) investigate sexual offences, (b) fill gaps in data on violence against women and girls and (c) implement recomme
Answer: Tackling violence against women and girls (VAWG) is a top priority for this Government with a manifesto mission to halve VAWG in a decade. We will deliver a cross-government transformative approach to halving VAWG, underpinned by a new VAWG strategy, whic...
Answered 9 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordVisas: Skilled WorkersHome OfficeTabled 2 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 96461More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to address cases where DWP staff meet the annual Skilled Worker Visa salary threshold but are affected by the method used to calculate hourly pay.
Answer: When assessing salaries for visa purposes, our approach is consistent with that taken in national minimum wage guidance, which states:‘If you pay a salaried worker their normal salary while they are absent from work and this forms a part of their employme...
Answered 10 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordSmall Businesses: Northern IrelandDepartment for Business and TradeTabled 4 Nov 2025AnsweredUIN 88136More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps his Department is taking to support small businesses in Northern Ireland by (a) simplifying guidance, (b) reducing administrative burdens and (c) assisting firms trading under the Windsor Fr
Answer: The government is committed to supporting Small and Medium Sized Enterprises across the country with our Small Business Plan setting out the most comprehensive package of support for SMEs in a generation, including through the new Business Growth Service....
Answered 17 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordIndependent Review of the Windsor FrameworkNorthern Ireland OfficeTabled 4 Nov 2025AnsweredUIN 88135More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, whether his Department has a timetable for implementing the recommendations of the Independent Review of the Windsor Framework by the Rt Hon Lord Murphy, published on 4 September 2025.
Answer: The Government is considering Lord Murphy’s recommendations and will provide a response, including relevant timeframes, by January 2026, in line with our legal obligations.
Answered 12 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordCity Deals and Local Growth Deals: Northern IrelandNorthern Ireland OfficeTabled 4 Nov 2025AnsweredUIN 88134More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what steps he is taking to ensure that projects funded by the Government through the City and Growth Deals initiative in Northern Ireland are delivered effectively; how progress will be monitored; and wh
Answer: The UK Government is investing £617 million through the four City and Growth Deals which cover the whole of Northern Ireland. The four City and Growth Deals are: Belfast Region (£350m); Derry-Londonderry City and Strabane (£50m); Mid South West (£126m); a...
Answered 12 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordUK Internal Trade: Northern IrelandNorthern Ireland OfficeTabled 4 Nov 2025AnsweredUIN 88133More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what steps he is taking to (a) reduce the potential impact of the Not for EU labelling requirement on GB goods sold in Northern Ireland on costs for businesses and (b) ensure that the (i) Duty Reimbursem
Answer: The Northern Ireland Retail Movement Scheme simplifies the requirements for movement of goods from Great Britain to Northern Ireland. To be eligible, certain retail goods must be labelled as ‘Not for EU’. To ensure sufficient time for businesses to plan a...
Answered 12 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordChild Benefit: British Nationals AbroadTreasuryTabled 29 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 86557More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the Cabinet Office's press release entitled Child Benefit action to save £350 million from claimants abroad, published on 22 August 2025, what steps her Department is taking to identify people who
Answer: As part of its ongoing efforts to reduce error and fraud in the Child Benefit system, HMRC ran a pilot last year using data on international travel and UK employment for a random sample of 200,000 Child Benefit records. This was to identify and remove peo...
Answered 7 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordChild Benefit: British Nationals AbroadTreasuryTabled 29 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 86556More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether with reference to the Cabinet Office's press release her Department has carried out an assessment of the pilot scheme to stop Child Benefit payments where a claimant had been outside the UK for more than eig
Answer: As part of its ongoing efforts to reduce error and fraud in the Child Benefit system, HMRC ran a pilot last year using data on international travel and UK employment for a random sample of 200,000 Child Benefit records. This was to identify and remove peo...
Answered 7 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordChild Benefit: British Nationals AbroadTreasuryTabled 29 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 86555More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps, with reference to the Cabinet Office's press release her Department is taking to rectify data on people erroneously identified as having been outside of the UK for more than eight weeks for Child Benefit
Answer: As part of its ongoing efforts to reduce error and fraud in the Child Benefit system, HMRC ran a pilot last year using data on international travel and UK employment for a random sample of 200,000 Child Benefit records. This was to identify and remove peo...
Answered 7 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordChild Benefit: British Nationals AbroadTreasuryTabled 29 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 86554More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the Cabinet Office's press release entitled Child Benefit action to save £350 million from claimants abroad, published on 22 August 2025, how many Child Benefit claimants were erroneously identifie
Answer: As part of its ongoing efforts to reduce error and fraud in the Child Benefit system, HMRC ran a pilot last year using data on international travel and UK employment for a random sample of 200,000 Child Benefit records. This was to identify and remove peo...
Answered 7 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordChild Benefit: British Nationals AbroadTreasuryTabled 29 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 86553More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the Cabinet Office's press release entitled Child Benefit action to save £350 million from claimants abroad, published on 22 August 2025, for what reason her Department chose international travel d
Answer: As part of its ongoing efforts to reduce error and fraud in the Child Benefit system, HMRC ran a pilot last year using data on international travel and UK employment for a random sample of 200,000 Child Benefit records. This was to identify and remove peo...
Answered 7 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordNHS South West London: Redundancy PayDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 15 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 82598More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of redundancy payments associated with the planned redundancies in the South West London Integrated Care Board under the new NHS 10-Year He
Answer: Following the Prime Minister’s announcement of the abolition of NHS England, we are clear on the need for a smaller centre, as well as scaling back integrated care board running costs and NHS provider corporate cost reductions in order to reduce waste and...
Answered 4 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordAnimal Products: LabellingDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 13 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 81697More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of method-of-production labelling on UK animal products on (a) the economy and (b) export growth opportunities.
Answer: We are considering the potential role of method of production labelling reform as part of the ongoing development of the Government’s wider animal welfare strategy.
Answered 21 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordAnimal Welfare: LabellingDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 13 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 81696More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of mandatory method-of-production labelling on (a) animal welfare and (b) consumer transparency.
Answer: We are considering the potential role of method of production labelling reform as part of the ongoing development of the Government’s wider animal welfare strategy.
Answered 21 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordRailway Stations: AccessDepartment for TransportTabled 13 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 81695More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions she has had with train operators on the adequacy of criteria used to determine the provision of step-free access upgrades at train stations.
Answer: The criteria used to select existing projects for delivery under the Access for All were determined by the previous government.The transition to Great British Railways will remove artificial industry separations and result in the integrated planning and d...
Answered 20 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordYoung Offenders: RehabilitationMinistry of JusticeTabled 10 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 80791More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of rehabilitation programmes on reoffending rates by young adults.
Answer: We take an evidence-based approach to reducing reoffending, investing in a wide range of programmes that address offenders’ underlying criminogenic needs and support their rehabilitation. The pathway an individual takes - including young adults - is deter...
Answered 20 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordCourts: StandardsMinistry of JusticeTabled 10 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 80790More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of court backlogs on levels of access to justice for (a) victims and (b) defendants.
Answer: This Government inherited a record and rising courts backlog. As of June 2025, the open caseload reached 78,329. It is unacceptable that some victims, witnesses and defendants are waiting years for justice. This has left tens of thousands of victims facin...
Answered 20 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordSocial Services: Older PeopleDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 10 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 80789More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of workforce shortages on the delivery of social care services to older people.
Answer: The Department monitors workforce levels in the adult social care sector in England at a national and local level. As part of this monitoring, the Department considers Skills for Care estimates on the number of filled posts in residential and domiciliary ...
Answered 20 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordManufacturing Industries: Environment ProtectionDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 10 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 80788More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what discussions he has had with manufacturing firms on (a) their progress in adopting and (b) the barriers to the implementation of green technologies.
Answer: The Government is engaging with a wide range of stakeholders, including manufacturers, through expert working groups and workshops to inform policy on Net Zero technologies in industry. In 2023, a call for evidence on industrial electrification was held, ...
Answered 20 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordUK Trade with EU: ExportsDepartment for Business and TradeTabled 10 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 80787More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the level of support provided by his Department to help small and medium-sized enterprises increase their exports to EU markets.
Answer: DBT offers a range of support for SMEs, with our Small Business Plan setting out the most comprehensive package of support for SMEs in a generation. This includes Unlock Europe, a programme from UK Export Academy designed to help businesses build relation...
Answered 17 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordLifelong Education and TrainingDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 10 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 80786More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of levels of access to (a) lifelong learning and (b) reskilling opportunities for adults seeking employment in emerging industries.
Answer: We are continuing to invest in education and skills training for adults (19 and over) through the Adult Skills Fund (ASF), spending £1.4 billion in the 2025/26 academic year, ensuring that adults can access the education and training they need to get into...
Answered 28 Oct 2025
Original Parliament record
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