Written Statements

Tuesday 7th March 2023 Written Statements

Tuesday 7 March 2023

India Trade Negotiations

Tuesday 7th March 2023 Written Statements

[The Secretary of State for Business and Trade (Kemi Badenoch)]

The seventh round of UK-India free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations began on 6 February and concluded on 10 February. As with previous rounds, this was conducted in a hybrid fashion—Indian officials travelled to London for negotiations and others attended virtually.

Technical discussions were held across 11 policy areas over 43 separate sessions. They included detailed draft treaty text discussions in these chapters.

Both sides are working toward a balanced deal that will build on our enhanced trade partnership. The UK-India trade relationship was worth £34 billion in the year to quarter 3 of 2022. A balanced deal that respects the domestic sensitives of both sides will strengthen the economic links between the UK and India, boosting the UK economy and bringing benefits to UK businesses, families and consumers. In this negotiation, as with all our FTA negotiations, the NHS and the services it provides are not on the table.

The eighth round of negotiations is due to take place later this spring.

The Government will continue to keep Parliament updated as these negotiations progress.

[HCWS604]

Security and Intelligence Agencies: Contingencies Fund Advance

Tuesday 7th March 2023 Written Statements

[The Parliamentary Secretary, Cabinet Office (Alex Burghart)]

The security and intelligence agencies have presented a supplementary estimate for approval to Parliament in the central Government supply estimates booklet—HC 1133, published on 21 February). Full details can be found on www.gov.uk. As it will be some time before the associated legislation receives Royal Assent, the agencies are seeking an advance from the Contingencies Fund in order to meet contractual commitments.

Parliamentary approval for additional resource of £140,017,000 has been sought in a supplementary estimate for the security and intelligence agencies. Pending that approval, urgent expenditure estimated at £140,017,000 will be met by repayable cash advances from the Contingencies Fund.

As the security and intelligence agencies are non-ministerial departments, I am making this statement on behalf of their accounting officer to ensure that Parliament is informed of this advance from the Contingencies Fund.

[HCWS607]

HM Revenue and Customs Update

Tuesday 7th March 2023 Written Statements

[The Financial Secretary to the Treasury (Victoria Atkins)]

From April 2013, the Government permitted individuals to retrospectively build their April 2006 to April 2016 National Insurance (NICs) record through voluntary contributions as part of transitional arrangements introduced alongside the new state pension. The deadline for voluntary contributions was set for 5 April 2023.

His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs and the Department for Work and Pensions have experienced a recent surge in customer contact. To ensure that customers do not miss out, the Government intend to extend the 5 April deadline to pay voluntary NICs to 31 July this year. This applies to years that would otherwise have been out of time to pay after 5 April, up to and including the 2016-17 tax year. All voluntary NICs payments will be accepted at the existing 2022-23 rates until 31 July.

[HCWS608]

Consultation on the English Portion of Dormant Assets Funding: Government Response

Tuesday 7th March 2023 Written Statements

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (Stuart Andrew)]

Today, the Government have announced that community wealth funds will join youth, financial inclusion, and social investment wholesalers as the named purposes of the English portion of dormant assets funding. This follows a public consultation last year, where we heard views from over 3,300 people, organisations, and financial services industry participants. The responses were clear that we must build on the successes of the scheme so far and ensure it continues to deliver the greatest impact possible.

To date, the money has been put to work tackling barriers to employment for disadvantaged young people; supporting households to get out of problem debt; and investing in charities and social enterprises across the country. Soon, a community wealth fund will join these three causes and empower local people to make decisions on how best to improve their neighbourhoods.

We have chosen these causes because the consultation made clear the strength of support for each of them and because we believe they strike the right balance between amplifying the progress that has been made to date while driving forward new innovations. This will allow us to build upon the solid foundations to develop an expanded scheme that is not only right for now, but also for the years ahead.

The dormant assets scheme continues to be underpinned by the voluntary participation of financial services firms. Its expansion through primary legislation last year marked the beginning of a long-term programme of work to unlock an estimated £880 million more across the UK over time. With £738 million of this to be apportioned for England, now is the right time to ensure the current impact of the scheme is amplified and to focus on the careful design of a community wealth fund set to last decades.

A community wealth fund is a pot of money distributed to communities in deprived areas and released over a long time period. In line with the community wealth fund’s focus on giving more decision-making power to people, we will soon launch a technical consultation on the design of this important new initiative to ensure the public’s views are embedded into the way it will operate in practice. Once Parliament has passed secondary legislation to include this new cause, eligible communities will be empowered to make decisions on how best to use the money to improve their areas.

The Government have also announced today that some of the most vulnerable people in society will be given additional support to deal with the cost of living, as £76 million from the current scheme is unlocked. Beneficiaries include no-interest loans for 69,000 individuals struggling with finances via a £45 million grant distributed by Fair4AII Finance, and £31 million of investment for hundreds of charities and social enterprises, distributed by social investors Access and Big Society Capital. This will be used to retrofit premises with cleaner, greener and more efficient energy systems, such as new boilers or heat pumps, solar panels, and new lighting.

The dormant assets scheme is a perfect example of what happens when the public, private, and civil society sectors come together, in partnership, to drive change and support those most in need. The Government look forward to continuing this important work to make a real difference to people’s lives across the country.

[HCWS611]

Lifelong Loan Entitlement Consultation: Government Response

Tuesday 7th March 2023 Written Statements

[The Minister for Skills, Apprenticeships and Higher Education (Robert Halfon)]

Today I am announcing the publication of the lifelong loan entitlement (LLE) Government consultation response.

In 2020, the Government announced that they would introduce a lifelong loan entitlement to give people the opportunity to study, train, retrain and upskill throughout their lives to respond to changing skills needs and employment patterns—which is key to breaking the cycle of lower skills and lack of opportunity which affects too many of our communities.

In February 2022, the Government launched the LLE consultation seeking views on the key design principles of the LLE and how this will mean the current system in England will need to change.

The LLE consultation and supporting engagement activity ended in May 2022 and the Department for Education has spent time analysing the considerable insight and rich data gathered during the consultation, which included extensive stakeholder engagement.

This consultation response puts in no doubt this Government’s intention to deliver a radical shift in our tertiary education system and sets out the policy design across a number of key areas. We will unify the student finance system for further and higher education across levels 4, 5 and 6, bringing them closer together, ensuring all higher education courses whether academic or technical will be funded in the same way and allowing for stronger partnership between further and higher education.

Under the LLE, eligible learners will be able to access an entitlement to the equivalent of four years’ post-18 education funding—£37,000 in today’s fees.

There will be a single student loan finance system for courses between levels 4 and 6. Learners will be able to use their LLE to access a wide range of courses including all courses previously funded under HE student finance, higher technical qualifications, and courses at levels 4 and 5 previously funded through advanced learner loans where there is clear learner demand and employer endorsement.

We also recognise that labour markets can change rapidly and we therefore want to ensure that learners can retrain, upskill or reskill at an equivalent qualification level. That is why we will be removing the restrictions on equivalent or lower qualification to provide increased flexibility to learners.

Furthermore, the Government want to make sure all learners receive the right amount of student support to complete their studies. That is why, from September 2025, maintenance will be available for all designated courses and modules with in-person attendance.

This represents a significant change from the current system: for the first time, we will expand access to the maintenance loan and targeted support grants for all designated courses and modules the LLE funds, including for part-time study. The availability of this support on a part-time basis will open up opportunities for learners for whom full-time study is not possible because of other commitments. The new budget for targeted grants will be agreed and set out at the next spending review, alongside further detail on the entitlements.

The Government will for the first time allow learners to access student finance for more flexible modules of higher and further education courses. This will enable lifelong learning by allowing individuals to build up to full qualifications over a longer time period, creating new retraining and upskilling opportunities, while retaining existing funding for those studying full courses. Like getting on and off a train, they will be able to alight and board their post-school education when it suits them, rather than being confined to a single ticket.

Making sure everyone can continue to access high-quality education and training in a way that works for them at any stage of their life or their career is of utmost importance for this Government. To ensure we get this right we will be taking a phased approach to introducing funding for modules, focusing initially on job-focused higher technical qualifications and some technical qualifications at levels 4 and 5, and extending to wider level 4, 5 and 6 courses at a later date. This offer will allow more people to climb the ladder of opportunity—for instance, by taking advantage of the in-demand skills provided by HTQs, in an even more flexible modular format.

And to further ensure quality, there will be clear criteria for modules to be eligible for funding, as set out in our response to the consultation. As previously announced and as set out in the Lifelong Learning (Higher Education Fee Limits) Bill, the LLE will introduce a system whereby fee limits are set using credits. This will provide consistency across the sector in the way fee caps are applied.

The Government have committed to making the student finance system fairer for learners and taxpayers. As announced in February 2022, for all new courses starting from 1 August 2023 onwards, student loans will be issued on new plan 5 terms and conditions, which will see learners benefit from a reduction in the interest rate to RPI only. Plan 5 terms also mean learners only repay when earning over £25,000 and have a loan term of 40 years, after which any outstanding debt, including interest accrued, will be written off at no detriment to the borrower. We will continue to keep the terms of the student finance system under review to ensure that it remains fair to students and fair to taxpayers.

To ensure learners can easily navigate the courses that will be eligible for funding under the LLE, anyone who applies for funding will get an LLE personal account. This will be an online digital platform where learners will be able to view their entitlement, access information about courses to help them make informed choices about their learning pathways, and apply for loans and grants for fees, maintenance, and additional support.

Finally, I can confirm that the Government remain committed to delivering an alternative student finance (ASF) product compatible with Islamic finance principles. Our aim is that students will be able to access ASF as soon as possible after 2025.

The changes which I have set out today will have long-lasting, systematic impacts on the landscape of post-18 education affecting future generations of learners for years to come. Learners and employers alike will reap the rewards of a more flexible system that reflects and can adapt to changes in personal circumstances and the economy.

I believe that this package of measures is essential to deliver the transformation of student finance that this we need. Together they will create a fundamental shift in the way higher education is accessed, making it easier for people to train or retrain in a way that works for them and get the job they want.

More work is needed to make the LLE a reality, and this will need effort from both Government, providers and industry, but our Government response to this consultation is a major milestone toward this vision for a more dynamic and growing economy.

I want to thank all those who took their time to respond to this consultation and engage with the Department on an ongoing basis; their contributions will have a lasting impact in delivering the LLE. I look forward to continuing the hard work required to allow the launch of the new system in 2025, and to support learners to continue to acquire the skills they need to succeed in life.

Further details and the full Government consultation response can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/lifelong-loan-entitlement.

[HCWS605]

Covid-19 Vaccine Update

Tuesday 7th March 2023 Written Statements

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health and Social Care (Maria Caulfield)]

His Majesty’s Government are committed to protecting people most vulnerable to covid-19 through vaccination as guided by the independent Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation.

On the 25 January 2023, the JCVI published interim advice on the covid-19 vaccination programme for 2023. The JCVI has now provided final advice for a covid-19 vaccination booster programme in spring 2023. HMG has accepted this advice and I am informed that all four parts of the UK intend to follow the JCVI’s advice.

Covid-19 spring booster programme

The JCVI advises that a covid-19 vaccine spring booster dose should be offered to:

adults aged 75 years and over;

residents in a care home for older adults; and

individuals aged five years and over who are immunosuppressed, as defined in tables 3 or 4 in chapter 14a of the UK Health Security Agency’s (UKHSA) Green Book.

NHS England has asked covid-19 vaccination providers in England to begin the main spring 2023 booster campaign vaccinations from 17 April, with the national booking system opening beforehand. Vaccination of residents in older adult care homes will start ahead of this from 3 April. Eligible individuals will be offered the vaccine around six months after their previous dose.

The JCVI has advised the following vaccines may be used in the 2023 spring programme:

Pfizer-BioNTech bivalent;

Moderna bivalent;

Sanofi/GSK monovalent—beta variant;

Novavax monovalent—wild-type variant—only for use when alternative products are not considered clinically suitable.

The vaccine offered will depend on a person’s age and local supply considerations. Children under 12 years of age will be offered a children’s formulation of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine.

In addition, the JCVI’s interim advice remains that individuals at higher risk of severe covid-19 are expected to be offered a booster vaccine dose in autumn 2023 in preparation for winter 2023 to 2024.

Moving primary course covid-19 vaccine to a targeted offer

Currently the covid-19 vaccine primary course offer—first two doses—is available in the UK to everyone aged five and over. The JCVI’s interim advice in January set out that this offer, should move over the course of 2023 towards a more targeted offer during vaccination campaigns to protect those persons at higher risk of severe covid-19. This would include:

residents in a care home for older adults and staff working in care homes for older adults;

frontline health and social care workers;

all adults aged 50 years and over;

persons aged five to 49 years in a clinical risk group, as set out in chapter 14a of the UKHSA’s Green Book;

persons aged 12 to 49 years who are household contacts of people with immunosuppression;

persons aged 16 to 49 years who are carers, as set out in out in chapter 14a of the UKHSA’s Green Book.

I am now updating the House that the ongoing primary course vaccination offer will be moving to a more targeted offer available during campaign periods only for those at higher risk of severe covid-19 from July. Otherwise healthy five to 49-year-olds who have not come forward for their primary course covid-19 vaccination will no longer be able to access this offer following the close of the 2023 spring booster programme, planned to end 30 June 2023.1 would encourage those who have not taken up the offer to come forward in good time to access it before the offer ends.

Notification of liabilities

I am now updating the House on the liabilities HMG have taken on in relation to further vaccine deployment via this statement and accompanying Departmental Minutes laid in Parliament containing a description of the liability undertaken. The agreement to provide indemnity with deployment of further doses increases the contingent liability of the covid-19 vaccination programme.

On 20 December 2022, the Sanofi/GSK covid-19 vaccine, VidPrevtyn Beta, was authorised by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). The JCVI has provided deployment advice on VidPrevtyn Beta as part of its advice on the spring programme.

The agreement to provide an indemnity as part of the contract between HMG and Sanofi/GSK creates a new contingent liability on the covid-19 vaccination programme. Deployment of effective vaccines to targeted groups has been and remains a key part of the Government’s strategy to manage covid-19.

I will update the House in a similar manner as and when other covid-19 vaccines or additional doses of vaccines already in use in the UK are deployed.

[HCWS612]

Independent Review into Maternity and Neonatal Services in East Kent: Government’s Initial Response

Tuesday 7th March 2023 Written Statements

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health and Social Care (Maria Caulfield)]

I wish to inform the House of the Government’s initial response to the report of the independent review into the maternity and neonatal services at East Kent University NHS Foundation Trust that was published on the 19 October 2022. NHS England commissioned Dr Bill Kirkup CBE to undertake this review following concerns about the quality and outcomes of care.

I would like to place on the record my gratitude to the families who came forward to contribute to this review, and to express my deepest sympathies for the loss and harm that Dr Kirkup discovered in the maternity and neonatal services at East Kent. I am also grateful for Dr Kirkup and his review team for his report. Taking each of the recommendations in turn:

The Government already has work underway to establish a taskforce with appropriate membership to drive the introduction of valid maternity and neonatal outcome measures capable of differentiating signals among noise to display significant trends and outliers, for mandatory national use.

Those responsible for undergraduate, postgraduate and continuing clinical education will be commissioned to report on how compassionate care can best be embedded into practice and sustained through lifelong learning.

Relevant bodies, including royal colleges, professional regulators and employers, will be commissioned to report on how the oversight and direction of clinicians can be improved, with nationally agreed standards of professional behaviour and appropriate sanctions for non- compliance.

Relevant bodies, including the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, the Royal College of Midwives and the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, will be charged with reporting on how teamworking in maternity and neonatal care can be improved, with particular reference to establishing common purpose, objectives and training from the outset.

Relevant bodies, including Health Education England, royal colleges and employers, will be commissioned to report on the employment and training of junior doctors to improve support, teamworking and development.

The Government will consider in parallel with other relevant inquiries the duties placed on public bodies to share information with families.

Trusts will be required to review their approach to reputation management and to ensuring there is proper representation of maternity care on their boards.

The Government will continue to work with NHSE on its approach to poorly performing trusts and their leadership.

The trust has already made a statement accepting the reality of these findings; acknowledging in full the unnecessary harm that has been caused; and embarking on a restorative process addressing the problems identified, in partnership with families, publicly and with external input.

We continue to work with NHS England and the Care Quality Commission regarding patient safety concerns at the Trust. Further information on how the recommendations are being implemented will be outlined in spring 2023. The Department of Health and Social Care will also closely monitor progress on these recommendations alongside the recommendations of other maternity and neonatal service inquiries to improve standards of care for mothers and babies.

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Home Office Funding 2022-23

Tuesday 7th March 2023 Written Statements

[The Secretary of State for the Home Department (Suella Braverman)]

The Home Office net cash requirement for the year exceeds that provided by the main estimate 2022-23 and is within that provided by the supplementary estimate to support related resource expenditure. The supplementary estimate has not yet received Royal Assent.

The Contingencies Fund advance is required to meet commitments until the supplementary estimate receives Royal Assent, at which point the Home Office will be able to draw down the cash from the Consolidated Fund in the usual way, to repay the Contingencies Fund advance.

Parliamentary approval for additional resources of £1,000,000,000 will be sought in a supplementary estimate for the Home Office. Pending that approval, urgent expenditure estimated at £1,000,000,000 will be met by repayable cash advances from the Contingencies Fund.

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Report of the Independent Reviewer of Terrorism Legislation on the operation in 2021 of the Terroris

Tuesday 7th March 2023 Written Statements

[The Secretary of State for the Home Department (Suella Braverman)]

Jonathan Hall KC, the independent reviewer of terrorism legislation, has prepared a report on the operation of the Terrorism Acts in 2021.

In accordance with section 36(5) of the Terrorism Act 2006, I am today laying this report before the House, and copies will be available in the Vote Office. It will also be published on gov.uk.

I am grateful to Mr Hall for his report. I will carefully consider its contents and the recommendations he makes and will respond formally in due course.

[HCWS609]