Written Statements

Tuesday 18th July 2023 Written Statements

Tuesday 18 July 2023

UK-Türkiye: Free Trade Agreement

Tuesday 18th July 2023 Written Statements

[The Minister for International Trade (Nigel Huddleston)]

The United Kingdom and the Republic of Türkiye are significant and close trading partners. We have a bilateral trading relationship that is going from strength to strength, worth £23.5 billion in 2022, up more than 30% from the previous year. The Government intend to build upon this success and are today confirming their intention to begin talks towards an enhanced free trade agreement.

The current agreement was signed in December 2020, and is based on the EU’s trade agreement with Türkiye. It predominantly covers industrial goods and has provided continuity to businesses and safeguarded supply chains since our departure from the European Union.

A review clause in the current agreement committed the UK and Türkiye to review the trade relationship. That review began ahead of schedule last year and has now been completed, with both the UK and Türkiye concluding that there is value to our economies in broadening and deepening the trade relationship. The UK and Türkiye will today hold an officials-level Joint Committee, responsible for overseeing implementation of the current agreement and any other matter under the agreement to formally conclude the review and move towards renegotiation of the free trade agreement. The UK expects to launch a call for input in the autumn and, following consultation, we expect to start renegotiations next year.

An improved agreement with Türkiye is a key part of the UK’s strategy to secure advanced modern agreements with international partners and upgrade existing continuity agreements. The Government are clear that any deal with Türkiye should be in the best interests of the British people and the UK economy. We will not compromise on our high environmental and labour protections, 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 NHS, and the services it provides are not on the table. This is an opportunity to work towards an agreement that is fit for the 21st century and suited to the modern UK economy.

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Afghan Resettlement Update

Tuesday 18th July 2023 Written Statements

[The Minister for Veterans’ Affairs (Johnny Mercer)]

To date, the Government have resettled around 12,200 people through the Afghan relocations and assistance policy (ARAP), and over 9,100 through the Afghan citizens resettlement scheme (ACRS). All those resettled through ARAP and ACRS are granted indefinite leave to enter or remain, meaning they have the immediate right to work, as well as access to the benefits system.

Given the unprecedented speed and scale of the evacuation from Afghanistan during Operation Pitting and the following months, we welcomed those eligible into bridging hotels and serviced apartments as a temporary solution until settled accommodation could be found. On Tuesday 28 March, I made it clear in my update to Parliament that the Government did not consider it acceptable that over 18 months after Operation Pitting, around 8,000 people remained in temporary bridging accommodation, over half of whom had been there for over one year. I announced our intention to step up our support, backed by £285 million of funding for local authorities, to help families make arrangements to leave their bridging hotels and serviced apartments, and to move into settled accommodation where they can put down roots and integrate into communities across the country.

Since my last update, we have issued legal notices to quit and individualised communications to households living in bridging accommodation, setting out when their access to that accommodation will end. Residents received at least three months’ notice to leave their bridging accommodation, as well as clear guidance on the support they can access through local authorities to help them find their own accommodation. We have also ensured that enhanced, multidisciplinary case working teams have been present in every bridging hotel and serviced apartment, working closely with households to support them through the process. For local authorities, we have made £7,100 per person of flexible funding available to support move-on, including through providing deposits, furniture, rental top-ups and rent advances.

This Government remain committed to ending access to costly hotels and serviced apartments at the end of the notice periods that we have issued to Afghan households. However, as a final measure of goodwill, there will be a small number for whom time-limited interim accommodation will be provided, including where they have been pre-matched to settled accommodation and there is a need to bridge a short gap between the end of a notice period and that confirmed accommodation being ready for them to move into. Interim accommodation will also be provided in cases of medical need where a family member requires continued attendance at a specific hospital. Everyone else will be expected to have left bridging accommodation by the time their notice period expires. For some this will be at the end of this month.

Today I am writing again to all local authorities, reminding them of the extensive funding available from central Government to help find settled housing solutions, and strongly encouraging them to draw on these to support and match as many households as possible into settled accommodation.

This is the right thing to do—both for the taxpayer and for the Afghans we have welcomed to this country and who deserve the opportunity to live self-sufficiently here in the UK.

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Finance Bill: Draft Legislation and Tax Documents

Tuesday 18th July 2023 Written Statements

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

In line with the tax policy making framework, the Government are publishing draft legislation ahead of potential inclusion in the next Finance Bill. This allows for technical consultation and provides taxpayers with predictability over future tax policy changes. Alongside this, the Government are making announcements in a small number of technical areas of tax policy to support the operation of the tax system. Draft legislation is being published to seek stakeholder views at this stage. The final contents of the next Finance Bill will be a decision for the Chancellor. The Government are also publishing a number of tax-related consultations and summaries of responses to consultations that have already been conducted.

Publication of draft legislation

The Government are publishing draft legislation and associated documents, further to previous announcements, including at Budget or on Tax Administration and Maintenance Day.

Additional tax relief for R&D intensive SMEs: The Government are publishing draft legislation that will introduce a new permanent rate of relief for the most R&D intensive loss-making SMEs from 1 April 2023. This additional support will be worth over £1.8 billion over the next five years, and will provide eligible R&D intensive loss-making SMEs with support worth £27 per £100 of R&D expenditure. The scheme would continue to operate alongside any merged scheme.

R&D: Merging RDEC and SME relief: The Government are publishing draft legislation on the proposed design of a merged scheme, alongside a summary of responses to the consultation. This would combine the SME and RDEC schemes into a single, simplified above-the-line tax credit. This legislation will keep open the option of implementing a merged scheme from April 2024. A final decision on whether to merge schemes will be taken at a future fiscal event.

Reform of audio-visual creative tax reliefs: The Government are publishing draft legislation to implement the modernisation and reform of the audio-visual tax reliefs into expenditure credits. The reforms include a higher rate of relief for animation and children’s TV to provide additional support for this burgeoning sector. This higher rate of relief will also be extended to animated films.

Administrative changes to creative industry tax reliefs: The Government are publishing draft legislation to make a number of administrative improvements to the creative industry tax reliefs, alongside the introduction of the new expenditure credit regimes.

Technical clarifications to the cultural tax reliefs: As announced at spring Budget 2023, alongside the two-year extension to the higher rates, the Government are publishing draft legislation to make several changes to clarify what is eligible for the three cultural tax reliefs: theatre, orchestra, and museums and galleries exhibition tax relief.

Lifetime Allowance abolition: As announced at spring Budget 2023, the Government are publishing draft legislation to abolish the pensions lifetime allowance, following the removal of the lifetime allowance charge from 6 April 2023.

Pensions schemes relief at source: The Government are publishing draft legislation that will ensure that the legislative framework supports the modernisation of the relief at source (RAS).

Doubling maximum sentences for tax fraud: The Government are publishing draft legislation to double maximum sentences for the most egregious cases of tax fraud from seven to 14 years. This demonstrates the Government’s intent to crack down on tax fraud and deter criminal actions, which reduce the amount of money available to fund vital public services.

Tonnage Tax: The Government are publishing draft legislation to permit third-party ship management companies to join the tonnage tax regime and to raise the limit on capital allowances to £200 million for lessors of ships into the regime. These measures will help to keep the UK tonnage tax regime competitive internationally.

Geographical scope of agricultural property relief and woodlands relief: The Government are publishing draft legislation that will restrict the scope of agricultural property relief and woodlands relief from inheritance tax to property located in the UK only.

Enterprise Management Incentives: This measure extends the time limit for a company to notify HMRC of a grant of an enterprise management incentives (EMI) share scheme option.

Improving the data HMRC collects from its customers: The Government are publishing draft legislation to improve the quality of data collected by HMRC. This will provide better outcomes for taxpayers and businesses, improving compliance and resulting in a more resilient tax system.

The Government are also publishing draft legislation and associated documents in the following areas that have not been previously announced:

Ukraine vehicle excise duty exemption: The Government are also publishing draft legislation to enable a vehicle excise duty (VED) exemption for Ukraine visa holders. Individuals in the UK under the family, sponsor and extension Ukrainian visa schemes, driving vehicles with Ukrainian number plates, will be exempt from VED and registration requirements for a period of 36 months (in line with the length of their visas). This will ensure that individuals fleeing the war in Ukraine who have not yet registered their vehicles in the UK do not have to face the costs associated with VED and registering their vehicles while they are temporarily in the UK.

Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs): The Government are publishing draft legislation to make further improvements to the operation of the tax rules for real estate investment trusts. As well as engaging on the detail of these provisions, the Government will continue to consider the case for other reform options.

OECD Pillar 2: The Government are publishing amendments to the pillar 2 rules to ensure that it functions as intended and reflects the latest internationally agreed guidance. Alongside this, the Government are setting out the draft legislation of the structure of the undertaxed profits rule (UTPR).

Post Office compensation schemes—corporate entities: The Government are publishing draft legislation that will provide an exemption from corporation tax on compensation payments made to corporate entities from the Horizon shortfall scheme or group litigation order compensation schemes.

Tougher consequences on promoters of tax avoidance: The Government are publishing draft legislation that creates a new criminal offence that will apply to promoters of tax avoidance schemes who fail to comply with an HMRC legal notice requiring them to stop promoting an avoidance scheme. The Government are also publishing draft legislation that will enable HMRC to apply to the court for a disqualification order against directors of companies involved in promoting tax avoidance.

All draft legislation is accompanied by a tax information and impact note (TIIN), an explanatory note (EN) and, where applicable, a summary of consultation responses document.

Policy announcements

Administrative Changes to the High-income Child Benefit Charge: The Government want to simplify the process for customers who become liable to the high-income child benefit charge, particularly for those who currently need to register for self-assessment to pay the charge. The Government will provide details in due course on how they will enable employed customers to pay through their tax code, without the need to register for self-assessment.

Exempting Payments Under the Department for Education’s Family Network Support Package: The Government will legislate to ensure that payments made under the family network support package trialled in the family network pilot by the Department for Education will be exempt from income tax. This legislation will apply retrospectively from 31 July 2023, when payments start. HMRC will exercise its collection and management discretion and will not collect any income tax that may have been due on payments made from 31 July 2023 to the date the legislation takes effect.

Other publications

The Government are also publishing the following consultations:

Plastic Packaging Tax—mass balance approach: The Government are consulting on how a mass balance approach can be used for calculating the recycled content in packaging made from chemically recycled plastic for the purposes of plastic packaging tax.

Energy Profits Levy Energy Security Investment Mechanism: The Government are publishing a discussion paper to support engagement with the sector on the technical details of the ESIM’s application.

Taxation of employee ownership trusts and employee benefit trusts: The Government are consulting on proposals to reform the tax treatment of two types of employee trusts: employee ownership trusts (EOTs) and employee benefit trusts (EBTs). These reforms ensure that the favourable tax treatment remains available to those who use EOTs and EBTs for the intended policy purposes, while preventing tax advantages being obtained through use of these trusts outside of these intended purposes.

Updating the VAT Terminal Markets Order legislation: As announced at Tax Administration and Maintenance Day, the Government are consulting on proposals to update the terminal markets order legislation to clarify the VAT treatment of exchange traded commodity transactions, ensuring the legislation reflects how the markets operate today and provides greater certainty in relation to the VAT treatment.

All publications can be found on the gov.uk website. The Government’s tax consultation tracker has also been updated.

[HCWS972]

Video Game Loot Boxes: Improvements to Industry-led Protections

Tuesday 18th July 2023 Written Statements

[The Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (Lucy Frazer)]

The Government have today published an update on improvements to industry-led protections for loot boxes in video games. Loot boxes are features in some video games that contain apparently randomised items. They may be purchased with money—including via virtual currencies—or accessed via gameplay.

The Government response to the call for evidence on loot boxes in video games—July 2022—found an association between loot box purchases and problem gambling, but evidence has not established whether a causal relationship exists. The Government response set out the view that:

Purchases of loot boxes should be unavailable to all children and young people unless and until they are enabled by a parent or guardian.

All players should have access to, and be aware of, spending controls and transparent information to support safe and responsible gameplay.

Better evidence and research, enabled by improved access to data, should be developed to inform future policy making on loot boxes and video games more broadly.

Since then, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) has convened a technical working group of games industry representatives tasked with improving industry-led protections with regards to loot boxes. The output of the working group is industry-led guidance on paid loot boxes, co-ordinated and published by video games trade body Ukie. Academics, the Games Rating Authority (GRA), the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) and the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) have participated in the group, and DCMS has facilitated engagement with Ukie on its proposal, including through a players and parents panel.

The Government welcome this new guidance published by Ukie which, if fully implemented, has the potential to enhance player protections in line with the objectives set out in the Government response.

We are now calling on the games industry to work closely with players, parents, academics, consumer groups and Government authorities to adopt and implement the guidance in full, and continue to improve protections for players.

To meet the objective of improving the evidence base on loot boxes and video games more broadly, DCMS has collaborated with academics, industry, other Government Departments and Research Councils to develop a video games research framework, which was published in May. The Government welcome independent academic scrutiny, facilitated by the research framework, to assess the effectiveness and implementation of industry-led protections and, more broadly, how best to ensure player safety with regards to loot boxes.

The Government will keep their position on possible future legislative options under review, informed by the effectiveness of implementation of industry-led measures and academic scrutiny. We will provide further updates in due course, following a 12-month implementation period for this new industry guidance.

[HCWS964]

Nuclear Power: Technology Selection Process Launch

Tuesday 18th July 2023 Written Statements

[The Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero (Grant Shapps)]

In March this year, as part of the Powering Up Britain strategy, the Government set up Great British Nuclear (GBN). GBN will deliver the Government’s long-term nuclear programme, driving forward nuclear projects in the UK. The organisation’s first priority is to administer a competitive process to select the best small modular reactor (SMR) technologies from around the world.

This SMR Technology Selection Process (TSP) will underpin the Government’s commitment to two nuclear Project Final Investment Decisions (FIDs) during the next Parliament. It will support the Government’s ambition to deliver up to 24GW of nuclear power in the UK by 2050. This would mean nearly a quarter of Great Britain’s total power demands being met by low-carbon, secure nuclear energy, supporting the UK’s energy security, and contributing to our net zero targets. It would rebuild a UK industry that was the envy of the world following the opening of the world’s first commercial nuclear plant at Calder Hall, Cumbria, in 1956, and can be again.

Nuclear power as a share of the UK energy mix has been reducing as older plants naturally retire. However, we are acting to reverse this trend. As a major first milestone, the Government invested £700 million in Sizewell C last year, representing the first state backing of a major new nuclear project in over 30 years This builds on the significant EDF investment in Hinkley Point C since 2016 and the Government are now working in partnership with EDF to develop Sizewell C, towards our objective of achieving a FID this Parliament.

Beyond Sizewell, GBN will promote a programmatic approach both to nuclear technology selection and project deployment to drive further progress. This will not only give the supply chain the long-term certainty it needs to invest in homegrown capability and skills, it will in time offset plant retirements and strengthen UK energy independence. GBN now has in place an experienced interim executive team, including Simon Bowen as Chair and Gwen Parry-Jones as Chief Executive Officer. Since April, swift progress has been made on the Powering Up Britain commitment to gather market intelligence to inform GBN planning.

Today GBN launches the next phase of the SMR TSP and invites SMR vendors to register their interest. This is an important next step in identifying those companies best able to reach a project FID by the end of 2029, which could result in billions of pounds of public and private investment in SMR projects. It demonstrates that the Government are delivering on their priorities to partner with the nuclear industry and jointly spearhead the future of nuclear technologies, to secure decarbonised and domestically-generated electricity to power the economy. The Government recognise the importance of moving quickly to uphold our energy security and net zero ambitions, and are seeking to deliver the fastest competition of its kind in the world.

The Contract Notice, published today, sets out an intention to enter into a development contract with those successful bidders, with the option of pursuing a project through FID to construction and subsequently operations, providing a route to market for successful bidders. In practice, this means offering chosen technologies an unprecedented level of support: funding to support technology development and site-specific design; a close partnership with GBN, which will be ready and able to provide developer capability; and support in accessing sites.

As a first step in this process, interested parties will be required to respond to a selection questionnaire. Once this stage is complete, GBN will down-select those technologies which have met the criteria, and then enter into detailed discussions with those companies as part of an invitation to negotiate phase. The Government will seek to decide as soon as possible which technology or technologies to support. This process is designed to afford Government flexibility in the number of projects they choose to support, and the ability to support successful projects through the construction phase subject to approvals and if this proves value for money.

This SMR TSP is a further significant step in the revival of nuclear power in this country. The Government remain strongly committed to the full spectrum of nuclear technologies and are continuing to consider how all technologies could further contribute to UK energy security and meeting climate change targets.

As we seek to increase diversity across the pool of nuclear technologies available in the UK and to strengthen our nuclear sector supply chain, I can announce today up to £157 million of grant funding awards across three existing nuclear programmes:

Up to £77.1 million from the Future Nuclear Enabling Fund, subject to due diligence of short-listed applicants, with details to follow shortly.

Up to £58 million to National Nuclear Laboratory, Ultra Safe Nuclear Corporation and the UK’s Nuclear Regulators for the development and design of a form of Advanced Modular Reactors (AMRs) and their fuels; and

£22.3 million from the Nuclear Fuel Fund which will enable eight projects to develop new fuel production and manufacturing capabilities in the UK. The successful companies are Westinghouse, Urenco UK, Nuclear Transport Solutions, and MoltexFLEX.

The Government are going further by today committing to consult in the autumn on alternative routes to market for new nuclear projects, in addition to that provided by the TSP. Government are particularly keen to understand where GBN and the Government could support the private sector to bring forward projects, and to further explore the role of nuclear energy in industrial decarbonisation as well as low-carbon heat and hydrogen production. The evidence received will help shape future policy and ensure that the UK’s nuclear programme is as comprehensive and inclusive as possible. Further details will follow on both this and the nuclear roadmap, which we have committed to publish by the end of the year and which aims to set out further next steps for civil nuclear.

[HCWS965]

Climate Adaptation Reporting: Third National Adaptation Programme and Fourth Strategy

Tuesday 18th July 2023 Written Statements

[The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Dr Thérèse Coffey)]

Yesterday I laid the Third National Adaptation Programme and Fourth Strategy for Climate Adaptation Reporting before the House. The document is available on www.gov.uk.

We are feeling the impact of a changing climate in our everyday lives in the UK, as well as witnessing its effects around the world. We are observing increases in the frequency and intensity of heatwaves, flooding, drought and wildfires. Even with successful actions in place to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions, we still need to prepare for the way the climate is changing. This report sets out how we are strengthening our national security and resilience, from producing food and securing water supplies to maintaining critical infrastructure and supply chains.

The Third National Adaptation Programme (NAP3), laid before Parliament yesterday, outlines the UK Government’s vision and programme of action for the NAP3 period—2023-2028—to respond to the impacts of climate change, safeguarding long-term investments and supporting Government priorities from energy and food security to economic growth and public health. The report addresses all 61 climate risks and opportunities identified in our Third Climate Change Risk Assessment.

As part of this, we have announced a brand new £15 million joint research initiative between DEFRA and UKRI to ensure research and innovation are informing action on adaptation across all areas of Government policy. Working together, researchers, policymakers and practitioners will be equipped with the data, skills and incentives needed to effectively adapt to a changing climate.

We are also establishing a new local authority climate service pilot scheme which will provide easy access to localised climate data.

The Third National Adaptation Programme will extend our existing action on climate adaptation. This includes our environmental land management farming schemes, protecting hundreds of thousands of homes with a record £5.2 billion investment in flood and coastal schemes, and safeguarding future water supplies through greater efficiency and new supply infrastructure outlined in our ambitious Plan for Water.

The report also includes the Fourth Strategy for Climate Adaptation Reporting, through which infra-structure providers and bodies with functions ‘of a public nature’ report on their plans to manage climate risk. The strategy, which follows a statutory consultation, includes reforms to make reporting more effective, address gaps, and expand its scope.

Together, the Third National Adaptation Programme and Fourth Strategy for Climate Adaptation Reporting mark a step-change in the UK Government’s approach to climate adaptation, putting in place an ambitious programme of decisive action for the next five years.

[HCWS966]

International Development White Paper

Tuesday 18th July 2023 Written Statements

[The Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (Mr Andrew Mitchell)]

The Government will publish an International Development White Paper later this year. It will set out how the UK will lead the charge against extreme poverty and climate change in a changing world.

Yesterday, I updated the House on the FCDO’s ODA allocations for 2023-24 and 2024-25, showing a sharp increase, including a near doubling of the bilateral aid budget, and demonstrating our commitment to transparency.

As set out in my speech at Chatham House on 27 April, the White Paper will make the case for international action on development, and outline our plans for the next seven years. Therefore, it will chart the long-term direction for UK international development up to 2030.

In the month that the world recorded its hottest day, the White Paper must address the intertwined challenges of climate, nature and extreme poverty.

We need to find an approach fit for the 21st century, which understands that development and geopolitics go hand in hand, and that development is long term. Where development is dynamic and forward looking, and readily adapts to the pace and scale of global change. We need new solutions—that can drive more resources—whether sweating the assets of the international financial institutions further, as the Bridgetown initiative has called on us to do, or drawing in more private finance. The White Paper will consider how to use all the levers at our disposal—in government but also outside it: diplomacy to strengthen international relations and regulation; trade and investment fostering prosperity and resilience; new technology, science and innovation; research and knowledge.

The White Paper will be built on extensive consultation. Here, in the UK with assistance across the House of Commons and the House of Lords, the International Development Committee and the many all-party parliamentary groups working on international development issues; with our charity sector, but also with academia, with business, and with ordinary people. This must be about listening to and drawing on the voices of our friends and partners all around the world, drawing their evidence and perspectives in. Even where they are critical, or difficult to hear. Only by listening and acting can we strengthen trust.

The Government will be launching a call for evidence, opening soon and closing in mid-September to which we invite a broad range of response. My officials will be happy to engage with those who have a contribution to make. I look forward also to engaging with the Opposition Front Bench. I firmly believe that we must work together to bring the sustainable development goals back on track.

This approach—founded on partnerships—is what will secure progress and build shared prosperity. There are no quick fixes in development, we are in it for the long haul. The challenge is formidable, but the need is immense.

[HCWS969]

CONTEST: United Kingdom's Strategy for Countering Terrorism 2023

Tuesday 18th July 2023 Written Statements

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

The first duty of this Government is to keep the United Kingdom and its people safe. I am therefore pleased to today publish an updated version of CONTEST, the United Kingdom’s Strategy for Countering Terrorism. The strategy has been laid before Parliament as a Command Paper (CP 903), and copies are available in the Vote Office and on www.gov.uk.

This year marks 20 years since we launched CONTEST. The core framework that underpins the strategy—Prevent, Pursue, Protect and Prepare—has stood the test of time and remains a strong foundation on which to base our counter-terrorism efforts.

However, the threat we face from terrorism is enduring and evolving and it is right that we update our strategy to stay ahead. I have already announced an overhaul of the Prevent pillar in response to the Independent Review of Prevent, to ensure that it recognises the central role of ideology in encouraging people to turn towards extremism and that Islamism remains our greatest threat. Since the last version of CONTEST was published in 2018, nine terrorist attacks have been declared in the UK, in which six people died and 20 people were injured. Overseas, 24 UK nationals have been killed in 11 terrorist attacks. The majority of these attacks were Islamist in nature. We judge that the risk from terrorism is rising, and we must do everything within our power to reduce it.

We must also review our counter-terrorism efforts in response to external scrutiny: since 2018 there have been numerous inquests, inquiries, reviews, and exercises which have helped us learn lessons and improve our counter-terrorism system. Most recently we have received and are implementing recommendations from the Independent Review of Prevent and the Manchester Arena Inquiry.

The Home Office has updated CONTEST via comprehensive evidence-gathering and thorough consultation. This has included input and challenge from other Government Departments, devolved administrations, the police, the security and intelligence agencies, frontline practitioners, independent advisers and commissioners including the Commission for Countering Extremism, victims of terrorism and their families, the private sector, academia, and our international partners and allies.

The strategy sets out a need to respond to a domestic terrorist threat which is less predictable and harder to detect and investigate, a persistent and evolving threat from Islamist groups overseas, and an operating environment where accelerating advances in technology provide both opportunity and risk to our counter-terrorism efforts. It also includes a greater focus on the pivotal role of ideology in encouraging extremism.

In response, building on its established foundations, the updated version of CONTEST sets out how we will place greater focus on using all the levers of the state to identify and intervene against terrorists, build critical partnerships with the private sector and international allies to keep the public safe, and harness the opportunities presented by new technology.

Through this updated strategy, and by taking a more agile, integrated and aligned approach, we will do everything within our power to keep the public safe.

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Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme Review: Additional Consultation 2023

Tuesday 18th July 2023 Written Statements

[The Minister of State, Ministry of Justice (Edward Argar)]

Today I have laid before Parliament a public consultation on two elements of the statutory Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme 2012 (the scheme). This consultation follows through on the Government’s commitment in response to the final report of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (the inquiry) to consult on two of the inquiry’s recommendations for changes to the scheme.

The scheme exists to compensate victims of violent crime in England, Scotland and Wales, with the core purpose of recognising, through compensation, the harm experienced by victims injured by violent crime, including sexual assault. The scheme focuses on compensating those most seriously injured, providing awards for physical and mental injury, as well as loss of earnings, bereavement and funeral payments. In 2021-22 the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA) paid out £158 million in compensation.

In October 2022, the inquiry published its final report —a landmark moment in the Government’s efforts to tackle child sexual abuse. The report made two new recommendations for the scheme: that its scope be amended

“to include other forms of child sexual abuse, including online-facilitated sexual abuse”;

and that the time limit be increased to seven years (from the current two) for applications relating to child sexual abuse.

In the Government response to the inquiry, we committed to consult on these recommendations. This will allow us to give due consideration to the important work of the inquiry and to consider whether or not to make changes to the scheme as a result. This builds on our consultations in 2020 which sought views on proposals to make the scheme simpler and easier for people to understand and engage with following a review of the scheme, and in 2022 when we considered the scheme’s unspent convictions rule in the light of another of the inquiry’s recommendations.

We are consulting on the following two options for changes to the scheme’s scope:

Amending the definition of a “crime of violence” to include other forms of child sexual abuse, including online-facilitated sexual abuse, as recommended by the inquiry.

Amending the eligibility criteria to also bring serious non-contact offences, such as grooming, coercive control, revenge porn and stalking within scope of the scheme.

We are also consulting on the following four options for changes to the scheme’s time limits:

Amending the time limit to seven years for child sexual abuse applicants, as recommended by the inquiry.

Amending the time limit to seven years for all applicants to the scheme.

Amending the time limit to three years for all applicants who were children under the age of 18 on the date of the incident giving rise to the injury.

Amending the time limit to three years for all applicants to the scheme.

We will consider carefully all views and representations made by respondents, in order to inform our conclusions. Ministers will decide if any changes should be made to the scheme and set these out in a single response covering all three consultations on the scheme that we have held since 2020.

The consultation is available in full at: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/criminal-injuries-compensation-scheme-review-additional-consultation-2023. The consultation will close on Friday 15 September.

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Intergovernmental Relations Quarterly Transparency Report: 1 January-31 March 2023

Tuesday 18th July 2023 Written Statements

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

Today, the Government published the first quarterly report for 2023 of our engagement with the devolved Administrations on gov.uk. The quarter 1 report follows on from the most recent annual report published on gov.uk in March 2023.

In keeping with a previous written statement on transparency reporting commitments, we have evolved the way in which we demonstrate the engagements between the Government and devolved Administrations by publishing a dashboard of infographics and executive summary highlighting key engagements from quarter 1. We will continue to publish our transparency reports in this format going forward with the exception of the annual report, which will be of a similar structure to previous years.

The report continues to show that across the UK we share the same challenges and are working towards the same goals for the future. This report covers a period of engagement between the Government, Scottish Government, Welsh Government, and Northern Ireland civil service between 1 January to 31 March 2023. During this reporting period the Administrations worked together on a number of key areas, such as ways to tackle the cost of living, NHS capacity and other issues such as the deposit return scheme. The report highlights that our collective strength is why we are able to face and tackle big changes and challenges.

The report is part of the Government’s ongoing commitment to transparency of intergovernmental relations to Parliament and the public. The Government will continue with publications to demonstrate transparency in intergovernmental relations.

[HCWS970]

Disability Action Plan: Consultation Publication

Tuesday 18th July 2023 Written Statements

[The Minister for Disabled People, Health and Work (Tom Pursglove)]

This Government set out in their manifesto a commitment to transform the everyday lives of disabled people across the country, working to make this country the most accessible place in the world for disabled people to live, work and thrive. We remain committed to this goal, and today I am proud to announce another important step in this direction: the launch of our disability action plan consultation.

The launch of the disability action plan consultation marks a significant milestone, further demonstrating this Government’s ongoing commitment to implementing changes that will make real, tangible improvements to the lives of disabled people.

Ensuring that the voices of disabled people are properly heard is a priority for this Government. The disability action plan will set out the immediate action the UK Government will take in 2023 and 2024 to improve disabled people’s lives and lay the foundations for longer-term change. But this consultation is not meant to be the end of a journey. Rather, it is a first step—and a chance to make sure that we are heading in the right direction.

The disability action plan consultation document brings much of the Government’s work to better support disabled people together into one place, highlighting what has been achieved in recent times and what we plan to do in the coming years. To this end, chapter 2 highlights the Government’s achievements over the last year. Chapter 3 builds on this, setting out what more the Government plan to undertake in 2023 and 2024. Chapter 4 proposes new areas for action, with proposals for work that would be led or co-ordinated by the disability unit. Finally, chapter 5 asks some overarching questions about the proposed disability action plan as a whole, and sets out our next steps following the consultation period.

Proposals in the disability action plan consultation document cover a variety of issues, ranging from access to elected office; the wellbeing of, and opportunities for, disabled children; raising the profile of assistive technology; and exploring and promoting disability inclusion in climate adaptations and mitigations. Proposed actions focus on areas that would benefit significantly from targeted cross-governmental collaboration, where meaningful changes can be delivered quickly in 2023 and 2024.

Proposed actions complement significant reforms being undertaken in other Government Departments, in areas that we know disabled people care about deeply—for example, the Department for Work and Pensions’ “Transforming Support: The Health and Disability White Paper”; strategies to improve health and social care via the Department of Health and Social Care’s “People at the Heart of Care White Paper”; and bold proposals to deliver a more inclusive education system via the Department for Education and the Department of Health and Social Care’s “Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and Alternative Provision (AP) Improvement Plan”.

Throughout and beyond the development of the disability action plan, we will continue to listen to, and work with, disabled people, organisations, charities and experts, to ensure that the voices of disabled people remain at the heart of our work.

This Government are fully committed to implementing change that supports our goal of improving the lives and inclusion of disabled people—and the disability action plan will be complementary to, and sit alongside, the longer-term national disability strategy, which will be progressed in parallel. I look forward to seeing the results of the consultation and then moving forward into delivery of the actions within the final disability action plan.

I encourage all those who may be interested—disabled people themselves, their families and carers, disabled people’s organisations and disability stakeholders—to contribute to this important consultation. Together, we can change disabled people’s lives for the better.

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