Written Statements

Monday 17th April 2023 Written Statements

Monday 17 April 2023

Canada Trade Negotiations: Update

Monday 17th April 2023 Written Statements

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

The fifth round of UK-Canada Free Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiations began on 20 March and concluded on 24 March. Similar to previous rounds, this was conducted in a hybrid fashion—Canadian officials travelled to London for negotiations and others attended virtually.

Technical discussions were held across 29 policy areas over 78 separate sessions. They included detailed discussions on treaty text.

Prior to the round, my counterpart Minister Mary Ng visited London, with a women-owned business delegation. We discussed the negotiations and the wider UK and Canada trade relationship, including the CPTPP negotiations. Discussions covered our respective ambitions for the deal, and we welcomed the progress made so far.

The negotiations continue to reflect our shared ambition to secure a progressive deal which strengthens our existing trading relationship, already worth over £24.8 billion in the year to Q3 of 2022.

The Government remain clear that any deal we sign will be in the best interests of the British people and the United Kingdom economy. We will not compromise on our high environmental, public health, animal welfare and food standards, and we will maintain our right to regulate in the public interest. We are also clear that during these negotiations, the national health service and the services it provides are not on the table.

The sixth round of official-level negotiations is due to take place in June 2023.

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

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Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership: Conclusion of Substantive Negotiations

Monday 17th April 2023 Written Statements

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

The Department for Business and Trade is delighted to announce the conclusion of substantive negotiations to accede to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).

After over 21 months of intense talks with members, the UK has successfully concluded negotiations to join CPTPP, including finalising bilateral market access negotiations with all ratified parties and successfully demonstrating our compliance with the agreement’s high standards. We have taken our time to negotiate a deal that will bring significant benefits to the UK, creating opportunities for our businesses while deepening our global trading links.

Geostrategic aspects of CPTPP

Joining will cement deeper multilateral relations with CPTPP parties while strengthening international trade. It will see us build closer ties with CPTPP nations as the world economy increasingly focuses on the dynamic Indo-Pacific region, taking the agreement from regional to truly global. This is a key aim of the Integrated Review of Security, Defence, Development and Foreign Policy and will help the UK engage further with the region, both on trade and from a wider foreign policy perspective.

CPTPP membership offers the opportunity to work with parties to advance our mutual ambitions. It will allow us to further promote the rules based international system and set high standards. The potential expansion of the agreement will increase the UK’s reach and influence on global trade.

Benefits for UK business

CPTPP membership will create exciting new opportunities for UK businesses in key sectors. UK companies will enjoy enhanced market access to a market of over 500 million people, with a GDP of £9 trillion.

More than 99% of current UK goods exports to CPTPP members will be eligible for tariff-free trade once we have joined. Our agricultural producers stand to benefit as joining could see the UK’s world class food and drink industry exporting more of its high-quality produce to some of the world’s biggest markets.

Our exporters will also benefit from customs facilitation provisions. These will enable closer co-operation between border authorities. This will result in faster and more efficient processes for moving goods between the UK and CPTPP members.

Beyond tariffs and customs procedures, CPTPP will offer opportunities to firms for the diversification of supply chains and allow them to trade more easily across the Indo-Pacific region. Provisions within the agreement rules will allow our companies to take advantage of ambitious commitments on tariff liberalisation.

It is not just goods exporters who will gain from CPTPP membership. The UK’s world-leading services firms will be able to make the most of CPTPP’s ambitious digital provisions. The modern rules in the agreement will ensure greater levels of transparency in the sector while reducing barriers for UK companies looking to maximise their opportunities for growth in the Indo-Pacific region.

Protecting UK interests

Over the course of negotiations, the Government have taken important steps to protect our key interests. The NHS, its services and the price it pays for medicines were never on the table at any point throughout talks. Protecting the NHS is a fundamental principle of UK trade policy to which the Government are committed throughout their programme of Free Trade Agreement negotiations.

The UK has also negotiated appropriate protections for our farmers. We have arranged staged tariff reductions over a significant period of time for sensitive agricultural goods to give producers time to adjust. We have also guaranteed permanent annual limits on tariff-free imports of beef, pork, chicken, sugar and milled rice.

The UK will not compromise its food standards by joining CPTPP. Our import requirements for food and drink will not be affected by joining the agreement and there will be no requirement to change our standards to accept products which do not conform to our current food standards, including chlorine-washed chicken or hormone-fed beef.

Next steps

The agreed text will now undergo legal review before signature of the agreement. Once the agreement is signed the Government will present an informational copy of the agreement to Parliament. As well as the text of the treaty, the Government will also provide explanatory material including an impact assessment of the deal. This approach is part of the extensive package of transparency and scrutiny measures that the Government have put in place for new trade agreements.

Once the treaty has been published, the independent Trade and Agriculture Commission will prepare its advice on the agreement.

After the Trade and Agriculture Commission report has been published, and the Government have published their own report under section 42 of the Agriculture Act 2020, the agreement will be laid before Parliament for 21 sitting days of formal scrutiny under the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010 (CRaG). There will be at least three months between publication of the agreement and the commencement of the scrutiny period under CRaG.

Any legislation required to implement the agreement will need to be scrutinised and passed by Parliament in the usual ways.

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Draft Border Target Operating Model

Monday 17th April 2023 Written Statements

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

The Minister of State, Baroness Neville-Rolfe DBE CMG, has today made the following statement:

An important follow-up to Brexit is border controls on goods, including sanitary and phytosanitary checks critical to the protection of animal and plant health and potentially even human health. On 28 April 2022, the right hon. Member for North East Somerset (Mr Rees-Mogg) announced that the UK Government decided to delay the introduction of the final set of planned controls on EU imports. We have instead worked with industry to develop a new model for imports into Great Britain. On Wednesday 5 April 2023 we published the draft “Border Target Operating Model”. We have also started a period of engagement with stakeholders across all affected sectors and all parts of the United Kingdom, and the EU, to ensure that they understand the coming changes and are ready to continue to move goods across the border on that basis.

The Model sets out the rules and processes that will apply to the importation of all goods into Great Britain. It will, for the first time, implement security and biosecurity controls on imports from the EU. These controls will ensure our environment is protected, deliver food that is safe to eat whilst maintaining security of supply for consumers, and disrupt criminal activity before it can harm our communities.

The Model will fulfil the UK’s domestic and international obligations with regard to biosecurity and public health, upholding our reputation for high regulatory standards that underpin our agri-food trading relationships. Through the UK single trade window, we will simplify the way importers provide information to Government. This is significantly less burdensome than our original plans, and it supports our wider efforts to drive UK exports.

The gradual roll-out of controls will ensure impacts and costs are managed: we will implement the Model through three major milestones, the first of which importers and their suppliers should begin to prepare for now:

31 October 2023 - The introduction of health certification on imports of medium risk animal products, plants, plant products and high risk food—and feed—of non-animal origin from the EU.

31 January 2024 - The introduction of documentary and risk-based identity and physical checks on medium risk animal products, plants, plant products and high risk food—and feed—of non-animal origin from the EU. At this point imports of sanitary and phytosanitary goods from the rest of the world will begin to benefit from the new risk based model.

31 October 2024 - Safety and security declarations for EU imports will come into force from 31 October 2024. Alongside this, we will introduce a reduced dataset for imports and use of the UK single trade window will remove duplication where possible across different pre-arrival datasets.

We will phase in controls on the west coast for Irish goods from October 2023, while ensuring that Northern Ireland businesses have unfettered access to their most important market in Great Britain, whether they move goods directly or indirectly through Ireland to Great Britain. Further to the Windsor Framework, this will entrench a significant competitive advantage for NI business on the island of Ireland, reflecting Northern Ireland’s integral place in the United Kingdom’s internal market.

Following the engagement period we will publish a final version of the Target Operating Model later this year.

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NatWest Group: Government Shares

Monday 17th April 2023 Written Statements

[The Economic Secretary to the Treasury (Andrew Griffith)]

Government’s shares in NatWest Group plc

I can inform the House that the Government have announced an extension to their existing trading plan to sell part of the Government’s shareholding in NatWest Group—NWG, formerly Royal Bank of Scotland, RBS. The current trading plan was due to end in August 2023. Following its strong progress to date in reducing the Government’s shareholding in NWG, the trading plan has been extended for a further two years, allowing sales to continue under the plan until August 2025. This announcement demonstrates continued progress towards the Government’s intention to return its NWG shareholding to private ownership by 2025-26.

Policy rationale

It is Government policy that, where a Government asset no longer serves a public policy purpose, the Government may choose to sell that asset, subject to being able to achieve value for money. This frees up public resource which can be deployed to achieve other public policy objectives.

The Government are committed to returning NWG to full private ownership, given that the original policy objective for the intervention in NWG—to preserve financial and economic stability at a time of crisis—has long been achieved. At spring Budget 2023, the Chancellor reiterated the Government’s intention to fully dispose of their NWG shareholding by 2025-26.

Trading plan detail

A trading plan involves selling shares in the market through an appointed broker at market value over the duration of the plan. Trading plans are an established method of returning Government-owned shares to private ownership, while protecting value for the taxpayer. This method was used in the sale of the Government’s stake in Lloyds Banking Group.

The trading plan for the Government’s NWG shareholding will be extended for two years, terminating no later than 11 August 2025. Shares are only sold at a price that represents fair value and delivers value for money for the taxpayer. The final number of shares sold will depend on, among other factors, the share price and market conditions throughout the duration of the trading plan. Since the NWG trading plan was established in August 2021 it has made significant progress in reducing the Government’s shareholding, with over £3.7 billion in proceeds raised from sales that have delivered value for money for the taxpayer.

UKGI and HMT will keep other disposal options under active consideration. The decision to extend the trading plan does not preclude the Government from using other disposal options to execute further transactions that achieve value for money for taxpayers.

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Consultation on a Registration Scheme for Short-term Lets in England

Monday 17th April 2023 Written Statements

[The Minister of State, Department for Culture, Media and Sport (Julia Lopez)]

The Government have published a consultation on a registration scheme for short-term lets in England, accompanied by the findings of a call for evidence held in 2022 on the development of a registration scheme.

The short-term let sector has grown significantly over the last 10 to 15 years, with the emergence of the sharing economy and the growth of digital platforms at the heart of this change. Short-term lets are now a significant part of the UK’s visitor economy. They provide increased choice and flexibility for tourists and business travellers, and also those attending major sporting and cultural events.

The Government recognise that this has brought a range of benefits, such as increased choice for consumers, and increased income for individual homeowners and to local economies through increased visitor spend.

The Government want to ensure the country reaps these benefits and supports the visitor economy, while also protecting local communities and ensuring the availability of affordable housing to rent or buy.

The Government have heard the concerns of local people in tourist hotspots that they are priced out of homes to rent or to buy and need housing that is more affordable so they can continue to work and live in the place they call home. The proposed planning changes would support sustainable communities, supporting local people and businesses and local services.

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) committed to consult on a registration scheme for tourist accommodation in “The Tourism Recovery Plan”, published in June 2021. However, given the lack of available data on short-term lets in England, it was decided to first carry out a call for evidence to gather more information on the growth of the market and its impact, in order to inform the development of options for a public consultation.

The call for evidence received almost 4,000 responses. Analysis of these responses showed that there is a need for a more consistent source of data on the number and location of short-term lets in England; and that while short-term lets create many benefits for a range of people and stakeholders, they also pose challenges for communities, particularly those located in tourism hotspots. The findings also indicated that there is broad support from across the sector for a registration scheme of short-term lets in England.

Therefore, in December 2022, the Government committed to introduce a registration scheme in England via an amendment to the Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill which is currently going through Parliament. This included holding a public consultation which would explore the options for how such a scheme would operate, which we have now published. Alongside the registration scheme, the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities has also published a separate consultation on the introduction of a planning use class for short-term lets and potential associated permitted development rights. We are also seeking views on whether it would be helpful to expressly provide a degree of flexibility for dwelling houses to be let out for 30, 60, or 90 nights in a calendar year before planning permission could be required. These changes will give local areas greater control where short-term lets are an issue and support sustainable communities. We have worked across government to ensure that the proposals are complementary and proportionate.

The Government are consulting on three possible approaches for a registration scheme, as well as a range of more detailed questions on the design of the scheme:

An opt-in scheme for local authorities, with the framework set nationally: this option is a targeted approach, recognising that any negative housing and community effects of short-term lets are felt more in some localities than others;

an opt-in scheme for local authorities with the framework set nationally, and a review point to determine whether to expand the scheme to mandatory: as above, but with the flexibility to expand the scheme to cover all of England if there is a case to do so following an evaluation; and

a mandatory national scheme, administered by one of: the English Tourist Board (VisitEngland), local authorities, or another competent authority: this option recognises the need for a level playing field in the guest accommodation sector across England.

The registration scheme is intended to improve consistency in the application of health and safety regulations, helping to boost our international reputation and attract more international visitors by giving visible assurance that we have a high-quality and safe guest accommodation offer. It will also provide valuable data which will give local authorities information about which premises are being let out in their area, and help them to manage the housing market impact of high numbers of short-term lets, where this is an issue. This could help local authorities to apply and enforce the changes.

Subject to the outcome of the consultation, the planning changes would be introduced through secondary legislation later in the year and would apply in England only. Both of these measures are focused on short-term lets, and therefore the planning changes and the register would not impact on hotels, hostels or B&Bs.

The Government’s ambition has been, and will continue to be, to ensure that we reap the benefits of short-term and holiday lets sustainably, while also protecting the long-term interests of local communities and holidaymakers in England. The publication of the consultation on a registration scheme and the analysis of the call for evidence shows our commitment to this ambition, and our progress towards developing an effective and proportionate response to the sector’s concerns.

I will place a copy of the call for evidence report and the consultation document in the Libraries of both Houses.

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Maths Teaching

Monday 17th April 2023 Written Statements

[The Secretary of State for Education (Gillian Keegan)]

The Prime Minister has set out a campaign to transform our national approach to maths. We are one of the few countries in the OECD where young people do not routinely study some form of maths up to the age of 18. Without a solid foundation in this subject, our young people risk being left behind and shut out of the careers to which they aspire and the lives they want to lead. We plan to change the way our system works so that everyone will study some form of maths to 18.

So, today I am announcing an expert advisory group to advise the Prime Minister and me on the essential maths knowledge and skills that young people need to study. To support the group, the Government will commission research on post-16 maths provision around the world, ensuring the curriculum in this country rivals that of the highest performing countries. Alongside this, the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education will work with employers to review the maths content in apprenticeships.

Since 2010, the Government have transformed the way maths is taught in schools, based on the best available international evidence, including approaches from the highest performing countries in the world. Supported by 40 maths hubs—exemplary schools in the teaching of maths—and the National Centre for Excellence in the Teaching of Mathematics, mastery-based pedagogy from south-east Asia has been adopted by more than half of England’s primary schools. In the 2019 TIMSS international survey, year 5 pupils in England achieved their highest ever maths score.

To complement evidence-based approaches to maths teaching and content, the Government introduced more challenging assessments at both primary and secondary schools, including the times tables check in year 4, new key stage 2 maths tests, and reformed GCSEs and A-levels. These assessments ensure that children are taught and master the basics of mathematics, before tackling more demanding content. The success of these approaches was reflected in England’s highest mathematics PISA results for 15-year-olds in 2019.

To continue this progress, the Government are today also announcing:

An increase in the number of schools supported by the maths hubs Teaching for Mastery programme to reach 75% of primary schools and 65% of secondary schools by 2025. We will introduce intensive maths hubs support for the schools that need it most. We will also provide further support for teachers of 16 to 19-year-olds who are resitting their maths GCSE or functional skills qualifications.

An expansion of the Mastering Number programme, which helps children in the first years of primary school master the basics of arithmetic, including number bonds and times tables. This programme will be delivered by maths hubs, reaching over 8,000 schools by 2024. We will also expand the programme into years 4 and 5 to bolster fluency in times tables.

An expansion of the Taking Teaching Further programme, delivering funding for further education (FE) colleges to recruit and offer early career support to those with the relevant knowledge and industry experience to retrain as FE teachers. We will launch a financial incentive pilot this year for up to 355 teachers, targeted at some of the hardest-to-fill subjects, including maths.

A new fully funded maths National Professional Qualification for those leading maths in primary schools, teaching participants how to train other teachers to embed mastery pedagogy. We expect to make this available to all primary schools from February 2024. We will offer an updated targeted support fund for the 2023-24 academic year, providing additional funding to incentivise primary school teachers and leaders, including in the smallest schools.

Today’s announcement sets out how we will deliver the Prime Minister’s ambition to see all young people study maths to the age of 18 and ensure they are equipped with the knowledge and skills needed to succeed in the modern economy.

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Achieving Smokefree 2030: Cutting Smoking and Stopping Kids Vaping

Monday 17th April 2023 Written Statements

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health and Social Care (Neil O’Brien)]

In 2019, this Government set the bold ambition for England to be smokefree by 2030—reducing smoking rates to 5% or less. To support this, the Government commissioned Dr Javed Khan OBE to undertake an independent review which was published in June 2022.

As I set out in a letter to colleagues on 11 April, I am pleased to be able to update the House on new action we have announced to help more people in England to quit smoking in order to meet our Smokefree 2030 ambition. We also announced further measures to protect children from the use of vaping products, in recognition of the sharp increase in vaping among children in recent years.

One in seven adults—5.4 million people—still smoke in England, and tobacco remains the single biggest cause of preventable illness and death. Up to two out of three lifelong smokers will die from smoking, and smoking substantially increases the risk of heart disease, heart attack and stroke. Smoking also causes seven out of 10 cases of lung cancer. Tackling smoking is one of the most evidence-based and effective interventions that we can take to prevent ill health. It will improve public health, reduce the burden on the NHS, and provides substantial benefits to our workforce and the economy.

Across the country, people are concerned by the increases in youth vaping among children. It is illegal to sell vapes to under 18s and this Government want to clamp down on those businesses that rely on children buying vapes and getting them hooked on nicotine. To help combat rising levels of youth vaping, the Government have now published a youth vaping call for evidence. The call for evidence aims to identify opportunities to reduce the number of children accessing and using vapes, exploring issues such as regulatory compliance, the marketing and promotion of vape products and the environmental impact of disposable vapes. We will explore where the Government can go further, beyond what the EU’s tobacco products directive allowed us to. I encourage colleagues from across the House to contribute and help inform our next steps. The call for evidence is available here:

https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/youth-vaping-call-for-evidence/youth-vaping-call-for-evidence.

While we want to ensure children do not take up vaping, we would also like to exploit the potential of vaping as a powerful tool to stop adults smoking. Vaping is substantially less harmful than smoking and our most effective quit aid—particularly when provided alongside behavioural support. That is why last week I announced that we will be supporting a million smokers to “swap to stop”, with free vaping kit—the first national scheme of its kind in the world. The scheme will run over two years initially and be targeted at the most at-risk communities first—focusing on settings such as jobcentres, homeless centres and social housing providers.

I was also pleased to announce new action to tackle illicit tobacco and vaping, as well as underage sales. Later this year, His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs and Border Force will publish an updated strategy to tackle illicit tobacco. It will set out how we will continue to target, catch and punish those involved in the illicit market. This Government have also committed £3 million of new funding to create a specialised “illicit vapes enforcement squad” to enforce the rules on the sale of vapes, tackling illicit vapes and underage sales. This national programme will gather intelligence, co-ordinate efforts across the country, undertake test purchasing and develop guidance to build regulatory compliance.

Across England, nearly 9% of women still smoke in pregnancy. To tackle this, by next year we will offer a financial incentive to all pregnant women who smoke to support them to quit. In pilot projects these evidence-based schemes have already proven their value with a return on investment of £4 for every £1 invested. Most importantly, they unlock a lifetime of benefits for the child and their mother.

I also announced that the Government will consult this year on introducing mandatory cigarette pack inserts, to refresh the health messaging on cigarette packets with positive messages and information to help people to quit smoking. We are exploring how best we can use modern approaches within this, such as the use of QR codes, to make it as easy as possible to get help to quit.

On 24 January, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care (Steve Barclay) announced our intention to develop a major conditions strategy plan to tackle preventable ill health and mortality in England. It will focus on tackling the most prevalent conditions that contribute to morbidity and mortality in our population—cancers, cardiovascular disease, stroke and diabetes, chronic respiratory diseases, dementia, mental ill health, and musculoskeletal conditions. Tackling smoking will be central to this strategy.

Through these actions, we have set out the Government plan to meeting our bold ambition to be smokefree by 2030 and respond to the Khan review. We are committed to doing all we can to give people the support they need to quit smoking, tackling the damage from the illicit market and minimising the growing threat of vaping by children.

However, we cannot do this alone. A close collaboration is needed right across the health system—including the NHS, local authorities and a range of public health stakeholders. We hope that together our efforts will act as a powerful catalyst to reduce health disparities and prevent smoking-related death, disease and despair.

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Correction to Written Parliamentary Questions

Monday 17th April 2023 Written Statements

[The Minister for Health and Secondary Care (Will Quince)]

Between May and June 2022, 13 parliamentary questions (PQs) were answered regarding the UK Health Security Agency testing covid-19 variants for a pre-exposure prophylaxis antibody therapy (tixagevimab and cilgavimab), known by the brand name Evusheld. The PQs are: PQ3627; PQ2654; HL215; HL219; PQ1507; PQ3710; PQ11547; PQ14599; HL157; PQ17128; PQ15321; HL653; and PQ691.

In simplifying the technical language, the responses to these PQs incorrectly indicated that testing was ongoing. During June, the UK Health Security Agency carried out isolation and characterisation of the BA.4 omicron variant in preparation for testing it against various compounds, which could potentially have included Evusheld. However, in the PQ responses, these activities were incorrectly interpreted as testing and the language was simplified. No further testing of Evusheld including against BA.4 omicron variant took place after 26 May 2022.

The table below summarises the testing UKHSA carried out on Evusheld.

Covid-19 Vaccine Update

Monday 17th April 2023 Written Statements

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

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

On 6 April 2023, HMG accepted advice from the JCVI that clinically vulnerable children in England aged 6 months to 4 years should be offered a covid-19 vaccine. I am informed that all four parts of the UK intend to follow the JCVI’s advice.

Although young children are generally at low risk of developing severe illness from covid-19, infants and young children who have underlying medical conditions are over seven times more likely to be admitted to paediatric intensive care units compared to those without underlying medical conditions.

Over 1 million children aged 6 months to 4 years in the US have received at least one dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech covid-19 vaccine since June 2022. Data from the US showed no new safety concerns and the most common side effects reported were similar to those seen with other vaccines given in this age group, such as irritability or crying, sleepiness, and fever.

The UK’s independent medicines regulator, the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), approved the Pfizer-BioNTech infant vaccine for children aged 6 months to 4 years on 6 December 2022 after assessing the safety, quality, and effectiveness of the vaccine against MHRA’s robust standards.

Following this authorisation, the JCVI advised that children aged 6 months to 4 years who are in a clinical risk group (as defined in the UK Health Security Agency Green Book, which sets out information for public health professionals on immunisation) should be offered the vaccine. The JCVI does not currently advise offering covid-19 vaccination to children aged 6 months to 4 years who are not in a clinical risk group.

The JCVI has advised that eligible children should be offered two doses of the vaccine, with an interval of 8 to 12 weeks between the first and second doses. The NHS in England will begin offering vaccinations to those eligible in England from mid-June.

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.

The extension to this cohort of children aged 6 months to 4 years creates a new contingent liability under the indemnities in the existing vaccine supply agreement between HMG and Pfizer.

Deployment of effective vaccines to eligible groups has been and remains a key part of the Government strategy to manage covid-19. Given the terms on which developers have been willing to supply a covid-19 vaccine, we, along with other nations have taken a broad approach to indemnification proportionate to the situation we are in.

Even though the covid-19 vaccines have been developed at pace, at no point and at no stage of development has safety been bypassed. These vaccines have satisfied, in full, all the necessary requirements for safety, effectiveness, and quality.

We are providing indemnities in the very unexpected event of any adverse reactions that could not have been foreseen through the robust checks and procedures that have been put in place.

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.

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Reforms to the Process of Certifying Claims as Clearly Unfounded

Monday 17th April 2023 Written Statements

[The Minister for Immigration (Robert Jenrick)]

On 13 December 2022, my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister made a statement on tackling illegal migration and a clear plan to bring the system back into balance.

Under our immigration system, where we refuse an asylum or human rights claim which is so clearly without substance that it is bound to fail, we can certify it as clearly unfounded under section 94 of the Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002. Where the claimant is from a designated safe country the claim must be certified as clearly unfounded unless the decision maker is satisfied it is not clearly unfounded. Following the Nationality and Borders Act 2022, cases certified as clearly unfounded do not have a right of appeal.

When the power under section 94 was introduced in 2002, the then Labour Government gave an undertaking to Parliament that every case certified as clearly unfounded would be looked at by two specially trained officials, with additional quality checks on top of that.

This Government believe it is important to have procedures in place to ensure that those who make clearly unfounded human rights and asylum claims are quickly removed from the UK. That is why only specially trained caseworkers can decide that a claim should be certified. However, the current requirement for a second check to be conducted by a different Home Office official on every certified decision is delaying the conclusion of claims which are bound to fail. We must maximise our capacity to progress clearly unfounded cases in a more efficient way.

For these reasons, protection and human rights claims which are certified under section 94 as clearly unfounded will no longer have to be checked by a second specially trained official. This change will help ensure that the Home Office can certify unfounded cases more efficiently under section 94, so that those who have no basis to be in the UK can be swiftly removed.

The Home Office already operates a robust quality assurance framework for non-certified decisions which helps to maintain the quality of casework decisions and expertise. The specific quality check undertaken for section 94 decisions is no longer necessary, therefore we are improving the assurance process and aligning it with checks adopted on other decisions. Claims certified under section 94 will be regularly reviewed which will ensure that the certification process continues to be applied with careful scrutiny.

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UK Shared Prosperity Fund: Tackling Economic Inactivity in Northern Ireland

Monday 17th April 2023 Written Statements

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (Dehenna Davison)]

On 31 March, my Department announced the outcome of the UK Shared Prosperity Fund to Tackle Economic Inactivity in Northern Ireland, which ran from December 2022 to January 2023.

This competition is a cornerstone of the £127 million UK Shared Prosperity Fund Northern Ireland Investment Plan, launched in December 2022, in which my Department outlined the ambition of the fund to invest in Northern Ireland’s priorities, target funding where it is needed most: building pride in place; supporting pay, employment and productivity growth; supporting high quality skills training; and increasing life chances.

I am pleased to confirm that we have committed over £57 million to projects over the next two years from the Northern Ireland allocation, in excess of the £42 million set out in December, reflecting this Government’s commitment to support many more people to move from economic inactivity into sustainable employment.

My Department has recognised the high prevalence of economic inactivity in Northern Ireland compared with other parts of the UK. It is a significant barrier to a well-functioning labour market; it dampens growth, aggravates the shortage of workers in key sectors, and negatively impacts the quality of life of those who are economically inactive. That is why we made the Tackling Economic Inactivity competition our leading priority.

This funding from the UK Government will support 18 projects to provide specialist support to over 25,000 people right across Northern Ireland to help them address their barriers and move closer to securing sustainable and life-enhancing employment.

This will include bespoke support for people with disabilities, young people who are not in education, employment, or training, and others from all walks of life, who want to return to the labour market but have barriers preventing them from doing so.

By providing holistic support for the hardest to reach in the Northern Ireland labour market, the successful projects announced today will help tackle some of the most intractable barriers to finding a job and sustaining employment, and encourage growth in local economies right across Northern Ireland.

Full details of the successful projects can be found here:

https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/uk-shared-prosperity-fund-northern-ireland.

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Smart Motorway Schemes: Cancellation

Monday 17th April 2023 Written Statements

[The Secretary of State for Transport (Mr Mark Harper)]

The Government have announced that all plans for new smart motorways have been cancelled.

This will mean that the 11 schemes already paused from the second road investment strategy (2020-25) and the three earmarked for construction during the third road investment strategy (2025-30) will be removed from the Government’s road building plans in recognition of the current lack of public confidence felt by drivers and cost pressures.

While no new stretches will be converted, work on the M56 J6-8 and M6 J21a-26 will go ahead as planned given they are already over three quarters constructed.

The Government and National Highways will continue to invest £900 million in further safety improvements on existing smart motorways. This includes installing stopped vehicle detection technology on every all lane running smart motorway which has now been completed, adding an additional 150 emergency areas across the network by 2025, and investing in giving motorists clear advice when using existing smart motorways.

The Government will also continue to deliver against their other commitments as set out in their response to the Transport Select Committee in January 2022.

This Government will continue to ensure that our roads remain among the safest in the world—helping drivers not just to be safe, but crucially, to feel safe and confident when driving.

The following schemes have been cancelled.

RIS2 (2020-2025) paused schemes

New all lane running smart motorways:

M3 J9-14

M40/M42 interchange M62 J20-25 M25 J10-16

Dynamic hard shoulder to all lane running conversions:

M1 Junction 10 -13

M4-M5 interchange (M4 Junction 19-20 and M5 Junction 15-17)

M6 Junction 4-5

M6 Junction 5-8

M6 Junction 8-10a

M42 Junction 3a-7

M62 Junction 25-30

RIS3 (2025-30) pipeline schemes

M1 North Leicestershire

M1 junctions 35A-39 Sheffield to Wakefield

M6 junctions 19-21A Knutsford to Croft

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Inclusive Britain Progress Report

Monday 17th April 2023 Written Statements

[The Minister for Women and Equalities (Kemi Badenoch)]

On 17 March 2022 we published “Inclusive Britain”, our response to the report by the Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities. It sets out a groundbreaking two-year plan to tackle entrenched disparities, level up communities and promote unity. It contains 74 tailored actions to tackle long-standing disparities in education, health, criminal justice and the workplace. I committed to reporting back to Parliament on progress after 12 months.

I am today publishing an update on the substantial progress we have made in delivering the Inclusive Britain action plan. This report is based around the three ambitious aims of Inclusive Britain: building a stronger sense of trust and fairness in our institutions; promoting equality of opportunity, encouraging aspiration and empowering individuals; and fostering and instilling a sense of belonging in the UK.

I am pleased to report that we have, to date, completed 32 of the actions and continue to make good progress in delivering the remainder. Particular highlights include:

Publishing today new guidance for employers on how to measure, report on and address any ethnicity pay gaps within their workforce;

Funding a national recruitment campaign to find more adoptive parents, including those from an ethnic minority background, to improve adoption rates for ethnic minority children;

Supporting a number of police forces to trial the effect of an automatic opt-in for young people to receive independent legal advice in police custody, which we hope will lead to better outcomes for young people;

Publishing our ambitious schools White Paper and providing targeted support for those pupils who need it, especially the most vulnerable and disadvantaged; and

Publishing today updated guidance on positive action so that employers who use this measure to widen opportunities can do so in a way that is consistent with equalities legislation.

The recent Casey review and the Children’s Commissioner’s report on the strip-search of children have shown that there is more to be done to tackle disparities and to build trust in our institutions. We will continue our work to deliver the remaining actions in Inclusive Britain over the next 12 months. We will also tie this into some major landmarks this year, including the 75th anniversary of the arrival of the Empire Windrush, in order to further promote and celebrate our diversity as a nation.

A copy of the report will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses and I will report back to Parliament in 12 months’ time on the further progress we have made in implementing this ambitious action plan and our work to build a stronger, fairer and more united society.

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