Rupert Lowe MP: written questions
2617 published records · newest first.
Written questions
Universal Credit: OverpaymentsDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 20 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 83656More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much was overpaid to Universal Credit recipients in each of the last ten financial years.
Answer: This information was published earlier this year and can be found via the following link:Fraud and error in the benefit system: financial year 2024 to 2025 estimates - GOV.UK.
Answered 28 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordUniversal Credit: DeathDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 20 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 83655More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the total amount of Universal Credit was paid to deceased recipients in each of the last ten financial years.
Answer: DWP does not hold this information over the requested period. DWP has operational data used to identify and recover UC overpayments from deceased recipients, although this does not cover the full time period requested and is not considered to be of suitab...
Answered 28 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordPolice: Political ImpartialityHome OfficeTabled 20 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 83653More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what guidance her Department has issued to police forces on maintaining political neutrality whilst on duty.
Answer: All police officers are required by law to act with impartiality in discharging their duties, under the Police Regulations 2003. This is underlined in the oath of attestation that all police officers personally take on appointment and the Policing Protoco...
Answered 28 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordUndocumented Migrants: HotelsHome OfficeTabled 20 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 83631More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, How many hotels are being used as contingency accommodation for irregular migrants as at 20 October 2025.
Answer: The Home Office has been clear that the use of hotels is a temporary and short-term measure to ensure we meet our statutory obligation to accommodate destitute asylum seekers, while we tackle the systemic challenges due to the previous government’s decisi...
Answered 28 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordFarms: Domestic VisitsDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 20 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 83629More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many visits to farms have been undertaken by (a) the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (b) the Minister of State for Food Security and Rural Affairs since
Answer: Defra Ministers regularly visit a range of farms across the UK, and meet with farming stakeholders in London and on site to hear directly from industry.
Answered 2 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordRefugees: Social Rented HousingMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 20 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 83627More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many people with refugee status are resident in (a) council and (b) social housing by local authority.
Answer: My Department does not hold information on people claiming council or social housing who were formally granted refugee status and/or settlement. Our social housing lettings in England statistical series, which can be found on gov.uk here, includes informa...
Answered 28 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordUniversal Credit: RefugeesDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 20 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 83626More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the cost to the public purse was of Universal Credit payments made to people with refugee status in each of the last ten financial years.
Answer: The information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.
Answered 27 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordFood: Carbon EmissionsDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 20 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 83625More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions (a) his Department and (b) the Food Standards Agency have had since January 2023 with (a) the Carbon Trust and (b) major food retailers on the introduction of carbon r
Answer: Eco-labels on food are used by some businesses on a voluntary basis to help consumers make more sustainable choices. Eco-labels based on robust environmental impact data could support informed consumer choices and business competition based on sustainabil...
Answered 24 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordSlaughterhouses: Animal WelfareDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 20 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 83623More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many slaughterhouses were (a) suspended and (b) permanently closed due to breaches of animal welfare regulations in each calendar year from 2015 to 2025; how many (i) improvement notices, (ii)
Answer: In 2015, two slaughterhouses had approval withdrawn. In 2016, one slaughterhouse had approval withdrawn. In 2017, one slaughterhouse had approval withdrawn and two had approval suspended.The reasons for the withdrawals and suspensions between 2015 and 201...
Answered 19 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordOffences against Children: InquiriesHome OfficeTabled 20 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 83605More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department has had (a) discussions and (b) correspondence with Oldham Council on the proposed grooming gang inquiry since January 2024; and whether her Department has issued any guidance t
Answer: In June this year, Baroness Casey published her independent audit into group-based child sexual exploitation and abuse, and the Government accepted every recommendation it made, including establishing a new national inquiry. The national inquiry, equipped...
Answered 28 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordRight to Buy Scheme: Foreign NationalsMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 20 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 83604More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether his Department records the (a) nationality and (b) immigration status of tenants who purchase their homes under the Right to Buy scheme; and how many Right to Buy sales h
Answer: My Department does not record the nationality or immigration status of tenants who have purchased their homes under the Right to Buy scheme, nor how many Right to Buy sales have been made to non-British nationals. Eligibility for social housing is already...
Answered 28 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordRadicalism and TerrorismHome OfficeTabled 20 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 83603More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what information her Department holds on the (a) age, (b) religion, (c) ethnicity and (d) country of birth of people (i) referred to the Prevent programme and (ii) convicted of terrorism-related offen
Answer: Prevent aims to stop people from becoming terrorists or supporting terrorism. It works to ensure that people who are susceptible to radicalisation are offered appropriate interventions and support, and that communities areWe have provided data for the fin...
Answered 31 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordMigrants: FinanceHome OfficeTabled 20 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 83601More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department has provided any (a) grants, (b) contracts and (c) other funding to (i) Stand Up to Racism, (ii) Unite the Union,(ii) Migrants Organise, (iv) the Joint Council for the Welfare o
Answer: Home Office made grant payments to the Refugee Council totalling £ 3.2m for the purpose of Children’s Advisory Projects to support Unaccompanied Asylum-Seeking Children (UASC) through the asylum process., with a further £ 215,244 for Asylum Seeker Mental ...
Answered 13 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordPersonal Care Services: Tax EvasionTreasuryTabled 20 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 83600More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many compliance investigations were (a) opened and (b) closed by HM Revenue and Customs on businesses classified under Standard Industrial Classification codes (a) 96020 (hairdressing and barbering) and (b) 9609
Answer: HMRC does not hold specific data showing the number of hairdressers and nail salons investigated for tax non-compliance. HMRC’s approach to tax compliance includes a range of activities that aim to both detect and tackle current non-compliance and change ...
Answered 28 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordGenetics: Health ServicesDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 20 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 83597More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether any NHS Trusts (a) employ specialist staff or (b) operate dedicated services to address genetic disorders associated with consanguinity.
Answer: The National Health Service in England supports patients with a variety of conditions related to genetics. NHS England is piloting and evaluating new models of care to improve the equity of access to genetic services for the small proportion of couples at...
Answered 22 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordRitual SlaughterDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 20 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 83596More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many and what proportion of animals were slaughtered without being stunned for the production of Halal meat in the UK in each year since 2005.
Answer: UK data regarding the number or proportion of animals slaughtered using the halal method without prior stunning is not collected. The Food Standards Agency carries out a periodic slaughter sector survey in England and Wales, which started in 2011. The lat...
Answered 24 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordUniversal CreditDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 17 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 83176More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people are claiming Universal Credit by their preferred language.
Answer: The information is not held. Universal Credit claims can only be made in English and Welsh.
Answered 24 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordHome Office: SercoHome OfficeTabled 17 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 83175More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much her Department has paid to Serco in each of the last ten years.
Answer: I refer the Honourable Member to the answer provided in PQ 15558.
Answered 27 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordNHS: StaffDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 17 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 83174More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many and what proportion of NHS staff were non-patient facing in each of the last ten years.
Answer: The following table shows the number and percentage of the full time equivalent (FTE) workforce employed by National Health Service trusts and other core NHS organisations in England that are in NHS infrastructure support roles, which represents a proxy f...
Answered 20 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordYellow Card SchemeDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 17 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 83173More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many yellow card reports there have been on covid-19 vaccines.
Answer: The number of Yellow Card reports received by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) for COVID-19 vaccines can be found in the Interactive Drug Analysis Profiles on the Yellow Card website, which is available at the following link:...
Answered 17 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordUniversal Credit: Habitual Residence TestDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 17 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 83172More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many habitual residence tests related to Universal Credit assessments have been granted in each of the last five years.
Answer: The table below gives the number of Universal Credit (UC) Habitual Residence Test (HRT) assessments that resulted in a ‘pass’ decision in the past five years. Date Decision Entered on Admin SystemNumber of UC HRT 'Pass' DecisionsApril 2020 to March 202191...
Answered 29 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: FoodDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 17 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 83171More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will make an estimate of the proportion of food served in his Department that is British.
Answer: The Government, in line with manifesto commitments, is considering all lawful means of achieving its ambition that half of all food purchased across the public sector should be locally produced or certified to higher environmental standards. In order to u...
Answered 17 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordPersonal Independence Payment: Telephone ServicesDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 17 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 83170More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the average (a) waiting time for people calling and (b) time spent on hold to the Personal Independence Payment helpline was in the last year.
Answer: The table below shows the Average Time to Answer and the Average Hold Time, in an hours, minutes and seconds (hh:mm:ss) format, for all people calling Personal Independence Payment lines for each of the last twelve complete reporting months. Month / Year...
Answered 24 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordUniversal Credit: Telephone ServicesDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 17 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 83169More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the average (a) waiting time for people calling and (b) time spent on hold to the Universal Credit helpline was in the last year.
Answer: The table below shows the Average Time to Answer and the Average Hold Time, in an hours, minutes and seconds (hh:mm:ss) format, for all people calling Universal Credit for each of the last twelve complete reporting months. Month / YearDirectorateAverage T...
Answered 27 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordDepartment for Work and Pensions: Telephone ServicesDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 17 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 83168More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the (a) average waiting time for people calling and (b) time people spent on hold for her Department was in each of the last five years.
Answer: The table below shows the Average Time to Answer and the Average Hold Time, in an hours, minutes and seconds (hh:mm:ss) format, for all people calling DWP for the last 5 business years, with 2025 to 2026 being to 12th Oct’ 2025* only, that being the last ...
Answered 27 Oct 2025
Original Parliament record
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