Written Statements

Thursday 28th November 2024 Written Statements

Thursday 28 November 2024

Republic of Korea Upgraded Free Trade Agreement: Round Three Negotiations

Thursday 28th November 2024 Written Statements

[The Minister for Trade Policy and Economic Security (Mr Douglas Alexander)]

The third round of negotiations on an upgraded free trade agreement (FTA) with the Republic of Korea (RoK) took place in Seoul between 5 and 14 November 2024.

The talks were the UK’s first with the RoK since the Secretary of State for Business and Trade announced the Government’s intention to deliver the UK’s FTA negotiations programme in July.

Economic growth is our first mission in Government and FTAs have an important role to play in achieving this. An upgraded FTA with the RoK will contribute to growth, jobs and prosperity in the UK, and provide long- term certainty to UK businesses. Improvements to the existing agreement will include a comprehensive chapter on digital trade, simplified rules of origin and a range of additional commitments that capture advancements in trade policy beyond our existing terms. Total trade between the UK and the RoK was worth £17 billion in the four quarters to the end of Q2 2024. An upgraded FTA is intended to support further growth in this trade.

Negotiators made good progress on a number of areas, including but not limited to:

Digital trade

Constructive discussions were held to build on the existing agreement’s limited digital provisions. Discussions during the round covered a range of areas, including data, trade digitalisation, and co-operation on emerging technologies.

Rules of origin

Good progress was achieved towards securing a new rules of origin chapter that supports current and future supply chains. Discussions covered the chapter’s general provisions and origin procedures text, as well as product specific rules.

Services and business mobility

Productive discussions were held across a range of areas including domestic regulation, financial services, business mobility and professional and business services. The UK is seeking commitments to open up new opportunities for services trade.

Customs and trade facilitation

Good progress was made, with sides agreeing a large part of the chapter. These commitments will make customs processes more predictable and facilitative.

Good regulatory practice

Negotiators made significant progress towards agreeing the RoK’s first good regulatory practice chapter, which will support companies to operate in a more transparent and predictable regulatory environment.

Other areas

Positive discussions were held across a range of areas of the FTA including supply chains, trade and gender equality, and anti-corruption.

The Government will only ever sign a trade agreement which aligns with the UK’s national interests, upholding our high standards across a range of sectors, including protections for the national health service.

The fourth round of negotiations is expected to take place in London in the spring of 2025. The Government will continue to work towards delivering outcomes in the FTA that secure economic growth for the UK and will update Parliament on the progress of discussions with the RoK as they continue to develop.

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COVID-19 Inquiry Response Costs: Quarter 2 2024-25

Thursday 28th November 2024 Written Statements

[The Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (Pat McFadden)]

The covid-19 pandemic impacted each and every person in the UK. The work of the UK covid-19 inquiry is crucial in examining the UK’s response to and impact of the covid-19 pandemic. There are evidently lessons to be learnt from the pandemic and the Government are committed to closely considering the covid-19 inquiry’s findings and recommendations, which will play a key role in informing the Government’s planning and preparations for the future.

The Government recognise the unprecedented and wholly exceptional circumstances of the pandemic, and the importance of examining as rigorously as possible the actions the state took in response, in order to learn lessons for the future. The inquiry is therefore unprecedented in its scope, complexity and profile, looking at recent events that have profoundly impacted everyone’s lives.

The independent UK covid-19 inquiry publishes its own running costs quarterly. Following the publication of the inquiry’s financial report for quarter 2 2024-25 on 24 October 2024, I would like to update colleagues on the costs to the UK Government associated with responding to the UK covid-19 inquiry.

Figures provided are based upon a selection of the most relevant Departments and are not based on a complete set of departmental figures and are not precise for accounting purposes. Ensuring a comprehensive and timely response to the inquiry requires significant input from a number of key Government Departments, including, but not limited to, the Cabinet Office, the Department for Health and Social Care, the UK Health Security Agency, the Home Office and HM Treasury, many of which are supported by the Government Legal Department. While every effort has been made to ensure a robust methodology, complexities remain in trying to quantify the time and costs dedicated to the inquiry alone.

It should be noted that alongside full-time resource within Departments, inquiry response teams draw on expertise from across their organisations. The staff costs associated with appearing as witnesses, preparing witnesses and associated policy development work on the UK covid-19 inquiry are not included in the costs below.

Breakdown of staff and costs

The Government’s response to the UK covid-19 inquiry is led by inquiry response units across Departments.

Number of UK covid-19 inquiry response unit staff: 284 full time equivalents.

Cost of UK covid-19 inquiry response unit staff: £5,303,000 (including contingent labour costs).

Financial year 2024-25 (Q1 and Q2), total cost of UK covid-19 inquiry response unit staff: £10,352,000 (including contingent labour costs).

School Funding: Provisional 2025-26 Allocations

Thursday 28th November 2024 Written Statements

[The Minister for School Standards (Catherine McKinnell)]

Today we are confirming provisional funding allocations for 2025-26 through the schools, high needs and central school services national funding formulae (NFFs). Overall, core schools funding (including funding for both mainstream schools and high needs) is increasing by £2.3 billion in 2025-26 compared with the previous year.

Within this £2.3 billion, high needs funding is increasing by a further £1 billion in 2025-26 to help local authorities and schools with the increasing costs of supporting children and young people with SEND. The majority of this increase will be allocated through the high needs NFF. Through this formula, local authorities will receive at least a 7% increase per head of their population aged two to 18, compared with their 2024-25 allocations, with some authorities seeing gains of up to 10%.

The overall high needs funding increase of £1 billion includes over £90 million to increase the high needs element of the 2024-25 core schools budget grant (CSBG) to a full-year equivalent of over £230 million. This will be incorporated with the other teachers’ pay and pensions grants into a single CSBG (totalling £480 million) for special schools and alternative provision in 2025-26.

Funding for mainstream schools through the schools NFF is increasing by 2.23% per pupil compared with 2024-25. This includes a 1.28% increase to ensure that the 2024 teachers and support staff pay awards continue to be fully funded at national level in 2025-26. The 2025-26 schools NFF includes funding for pay and pensions costs that was previously allocated outside of the NFF, but is now being rolled into the formula—the 2024 to 2025 teachers’ pay additional grant (TPAG), teachers’ pension employer contribution grant (TPECG) and core schools budget grant (CSBG). This ensures that this additional funding forms an ongoing part of schools’ core budgets.

On top of this rolled-in funding, the core factor values in the schools NFF are rising, to increase the funding available to schools. Through the minimum per pupil funding levels, every primary school will attract at least £4,955 per pupil, and every secondary school at least £6,465 per pupil.

Central school services funding funds local authorities for the ongoing responsibilities they continue to have for all schools, and some historic commitments that local authorities face. The total provisional funding for ongoing responsibilities is £342 million in 2025-26, which includes £4 million for additional costs of copyright licences for schools.

Across the schools, high needs, and central services NFFs, we have kept the structure of the formulae largely unchanged from 2024-25. This is to minimise disruption for schools and local authorities due to the shorter than usual timescales for the 2025-26 funding cycle, given the timing of the general election. For 2026-27 and beyond, we will consider changes to various funding formulae, recognising the importance of a fair funding system that directs funding where it is needed.

Updated allocations of schools, high needs and central schools services funding for 2025-26 will be published to the usual timescale in December through the dedicated schools grant allocations, taking account of the latest pupil data at that point.

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Counter-terrorism Disruptive Powers Report 2023

Thursday 28th November 2024 Written Statements

[The Minister for Security (Dan Jarvis)]

I have today published the counter-terrorism disruptive powers report 2023 (CP 1212). The report has been laid before Parliament and will be available in the Vote Office and online on gov.uk.

It is important that there is transparency in the use of our counter-terrorism tools. Publishing this report ensures that the public can access data and information on the range of powers used to combat terrorist threats to the United Kingdom, the extent of their use and the safeguards and oversight in place to ensure that they are used properly.

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Independent Reviewer of Terrorism Legislation: 2022 Report and Government Response

Thursday 28th November 2024 Written Statements

[The Secretary of State for the Home Department (Yvette Cooper)]

In accordance with section 36 of the Terrorism Act 2006, Jonathan Hall KC, the independent reviewer of terrorism legislation, has prepared a report on the operation of the Terrorism Acts in 2022, which is being laid before the House today.

I am grateful to Mr Hall KC for his thorough report and have carefully considered the recommendations and observations included within. I am today also laying before the House the Government’s response to the report (CP 1211). Copies of the report and the Government’s response will be available in the Vote Office and will also be published on gov.uk.

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Serious Crime Prevention Orders in Terrorism Cases: Review of Police Powers

Thursday 28th November 2024 Written Statements

[The Minister for Security (Dan Jarvis)]

I have today published the review of police powers to apply for serious crime prevention orders in terrorism cases. The report has been laid before Parliament and it will be available in the Vote Office and online on gov.uk.

This report is published and laid before Parliament to discharge the statutory duty under section 44 of the Counter-Terrorism and Sentencing Act 2021.

[HCWS260]

Visa Sponsorship

Thursday 28th November 2024 Written Statements

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department (Seema Malhotra)]

The Home Office is committed to minimising abuse of the visa and immigration system by unscrupulous employers. We are now setting out our first steps to deliver on our manifesto commitment to ban rogue employers from sponsoring overseas workers. We are setting out stronger controls to prevent employers who flout UK employment laws from sponsoring overseas workers, alongside going after those who show signs of non-compliance. No organisation is above the law or too big to fail.

For the first time, visa and employment laws will be brought into close alignment, to ensure strong protections for those who come to work in the UK, especially in important areas of our economy such as adult social care.

The Government will deliver legislation for the flagship Fair Work Agency, ensuring fair and strong employment rights for all. Through this legislation, we will ensure that any business found guilty of serious employment law breaches, such as failing to comply with the national minimum wage, will have robust action taken against them—up to and including having their visa sponsorship licences refused or revoked. Alongside this, we are strengthening powers to ensure the compliance of those on the register of licensed sponsors.

Over the last two years, there have been a growing number of allegations about sponsors seeking to charge workers for sponsoring them, particularly in the care sector. Where these charges are inappropriate, individuals can fall into work-related debt and experience a significant amount of harm. To combat this, we are now taking action to ensure that if a business wishes to recruit internationally, they will be required to pay for certificates of sponsorship, sponsor licences and the associated administration themselves. This will end the intolerable practice of recovering these costs from workers, which has led to the exploitation and unfair treatment of staff, particularly care workers who have been left in debt to their employers. These rules will apply to the skilled worker route first and will be in force by the end of the year. We intend to build on this in due course, widening it to other sponsored employment routes.

This Government are also taking robust action against businesses that show signs of non-compliance such as committing minor visa rule breaches. Current rules impose action plans on businesses for only three months, but today we are committing to extending this to up to 12 months. While these longer action plans are in place, employers will be restricted in how they can use their licence, including limiting or removing the ability to sponsor overseas workers. If they do not comply with the action plan, fail to pay for the plan or make the necessary improvements by the end of their action plan, their sponsorship licence will be revoked.

We will take strong action against employers who do not comply with the rules, where necessary revoking their sponsor licence. We will strengthen this by making it harder for those with a long-term record of non-compliance to return to the sponsor register. The current penalties for breaking visa rules are too weak, with all revoked businesses facing only 12 months of sanctions—regardless of their track record. That is why we will be introducing longer cooling-off periods for businesses that repeatedly flout these rules or commit serious immigration breaches, barring them from applying for a sponsorship licence over this period and therefore hiring overseas workers.

This set of new measures shows how seriously the Government take maintaining the integrity of the visa and immigration system, ensuring that those who would seek to abuse the system face strong consequences. These measures are part of wider efforts to tackle the root causes behind the UK’s long-term reliance on international workers and wider action to link migration policy with skills and wider labour market policy. All those who work in the UK deserve decent employment with decent employers—this Government are working to ensure that happens.

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Local Government Finance

Thursday 28th November 2024 Written Statements

[The Minister for Local Government and English Devolution (Jim McMahon)]

Today, the Government have published details of the local government finance settlement for the next year for councils across England, and our wider ambitions for the sector over the course of this Parliament.

Councillors, officers and frontline staff are due our respect and appreciation for the work they have done to keep services going through very difficult times. This Government are under no illusion about the scale of the issues facing local government. We know that the demand for, and cost of, services has increased significantly— and that this has made the job for councils in recent years much harder. After a decade of cuts and fiscal mismanagement inflicted by the last Government, compounded by spiralling inflation and a failure to grow our economy, councils of all political stripes are in crisis. Our fiscal inheritance means that there will be tough choices on all sides to get us back on the path to recovery, and it will take time.

We are taking immediate action to address these challenges. The autumn Budget announced over £4 billion in additional funding for local government services, £1.3 billion of which will go through the local government finance settlement. Outside the settlement, the Government have also announced additional funding to support local government across a range of priorities, including special educational needs and disabilities and homelessness services, a guarantee for income from the extended producer responsibility for packaging scheme, as well as funding for local roads maintenance.

However, fixing the foundations of local government requires a programme of reform over the course of this Parliament. After years of delays, we will update the local government finance system. The current funding system is fundamentally broken, wasting taxpayers’ money and starving authorities of the funding needed to provide the services we all rely on. The previous Government agreed with us on the need to reform the system, proposing a similar approach in its fair funding review, but where they were unable to, we will finish the job by consulting on and implementing an up-to-date assessment of needs and resources, starting in 2026-27. This will be the first multi-year funding settlement in 10 years.

Reform of local public services, so that they focus on prevention, is also critical if we are to end the cycle of system failure and cost escalation. We will reform services that have for too long been overlooked by the previous Government to improve outcomes for the most vulnerable residents who rely on them—particularly children’s social care, homelessness and rough sleeping, special educational needs and disabilities, and adult social care services.

We will reset the relationship with local government, working as equal partners to ensure that the sector delivers continuous improvement for its communities, operates at the highest standards of probity, and provides value for money, all while giving the sector greater autonomy, certainty and flexibility. We will rebuild the system of accountability and oversight in local government, including through an overhaul of local audit, scrutiny and standards, and will consult on strengthening the standards and conduct framework for local authorities in England.

Our upcoming English devolution White Paper will set out plans for a new governing settlement for England. This includes our landmark programme of devolution and reorganisation, which will give local leaders with skin in the game powers to generate new jobs, skills and, ultimately, the growth that our public services rely on, and to create more efficient and accountable local authority structures, moving towards suitably sized unitary councils.

There is no magic wand. It will be a long, hard slog, working with councils, to rebuild from the ground up, in order to deliver the services that taxpayers need and deserve. Together, this year’s settlement and our programme of reform mark the first steps towards stabilising and rebuilding local Government.

Local Government Finance Settlement 2025-26

This year’s settlement will begin to put us on the right course, spending taxpayers’ money efficiently, and ensuring that funding goes to the places that need it most. The autumn Budget announced over £4 billion in additional funding for local government services, £1.3 billion of which will go through the settlement. Overall, the provisional settlement will ensure that local government receives a real-terms increase in core spending power of around 3.2%.

In addition, the Government announced at the autumn Budget that they will guarantee that local authorities in England will receive at least £1.1 billion in total from the extended producer responsibility for packaging scheme in 2025-26.

In 2025-26, the settlement will target additional funding at the places that need it most. We will deliver additional funding for a number of priorities, including an additional £680 million via the social care grant; a new children’s social care prevention grant, worth £250 million; and a new recovery grant, worth £600 million, for places with greater need and demand for services (we have used deprivation as a proxy for this) and less ability to raise income locally. This tackles head-on the combination of rocketing demand, low tax bases that restrict the ability of local areas to raise income locally, and weakened resilience in many of these councils after substantial central Government funding cuts during the 2010s. Alongside this, our commitment can be judged against a guarantee that no local authority will see a reduction in their core spending power in 2025-26, after taking account of any increase in council tax levels. This will provide the protections required for all authorities, including district councils, to sustain their services. Taking into account both money allocated to councils through the settlement and the pEPR guarantee, every planning and social care council will have more to spend on services in 2025-26 than in 2024-25; and for almost all authorities we expect this to be an increase in real terms.

The Government are clear in their commitment to tackling the issues that matter most to rural communities. We are focusing on the services that people rely on, such as social care, where pressures have grown across the country in recent years. This will deliver for rural areas, just as it will for the whole country. In this context, funding from the rural services delivery grant will be repurposed, through improved methods for targeting areas with greater need and demand for services, while we invest in the priority services that people care about, such as adult and children’s social care. The Government believe that the rural services delivery grant is outdated and does not properly assess rural need. A large share of predominantly rural councils receive nothing from the rural services delivery grant. Put simply, it does not do as it claims. This is clearly not right, and the Government are keen to hear from councils about how best to consider both the impact of rurality on the costs of service delivery, and demand, as part of our longer-term consultations on local authority funding reform.

Further support for local government

The Government are under no illusions about the scale of the issues facing local government, and this settlement will begin to address the pressures that councils are under. We recognise, however, that we may see some continued instability as we adjust to the new system. Any council concerned about its financial position or its ability to set or maintain a balanced budget should contact the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government. The Government have a framework in place to support councils in the most difficult positions. We will not seek to replicate conditions that made borrowing more expensive. Where a council in need of exceptional financial support views additional council tax increases as critical to maintaining their financial sustainability, the Government will continue to consider requests for bespoke referendum principles. In considering requests, the Government will take account of councils’ specific circumstances, including the potential impact on local taxpayers.

The Government have committed to providing support to Departments and other public sector employers for additional employer national insurance contribution costs. This applies to those directly employed by local government. More information will be provided at the provisional settlement.

Supporting households

Many households are still feeling the impact of the prolonged cost of living crisis, and the Government are committed to protecting local taxpayers from excessive council tax increases. The previous Government, and the Office for Budget Responsibility in March 2024, both assumed core council tax and adult social care precept referendum principles of 3% and 2% respectively. The Government are now formally confirming that they will maintain the proposed core (3%) and adult social care precept (2%) referendum principles for next year. These strike the balance between protecting taxpayers and providing funding for local authorities.

We are ensuring that households receive the support that they need from programmes outside the settlement. The autumn Budget confirmed the extension of the household support fund for a further year, from 1 April 2025 until 31 March 2026. This will ensure that low-income households can continue to access support towards the cost of essentials, such as food, energy and water. Funding of £742 million will be provided to enable the HSF extension in England, plus additional funding for the devolved Governments through the Barnett formula, to be spent at their discretion, as usual.

Proposals in the policy statement for the 2025-26 settlement will be subject to the usual consultation process at the provisional local government finance settlement in December 2024.

This written ministerial statement covers England only. The policy statement will be deposited in the Libraries of both Houses, and has been published on gov.uk: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/local-government-finance-policy-statement-2025-to-2026

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Integrated National Transport Strategy

Thursday 28th November 2024 Written Statements

[The Secretary of State for Transport (Louise Haigh)]

The Government have today set out our vision for the first integrated national transport strategy in over two decades, delivering on the commitment made in our manifesto.

For too long there has been no national plan for how transport should be designed and delivered in England, which has led to a fragmented and inefficient system that lacks join-up and cohesion. As a result, many of the people in our cities, towns and rural areas are poorly connected, with transport systems that do not work for them.

The strategy will drive a cultural change where people are put at the heart of how we design, build and operate transport. At its core will be a single national vision for how transport systems should work together, empowering local leaders to deliver integrated local transport that meets the needs of their local community.

The transport system should be safe, reliable and accessible for everyone—improving passenger experience and unlocking equal access to opportunities across England. Walking and cycling should be the best choice for shorter journeys and, where driving is the right choice, these journeys should be smoother and more predictable. I want public transport to be a more attractive option and for people to experience a seamlessly integrated transport network that works for them.

Today, I have announced my vision for this strategy and launched a public call for ideas, which gives everyone the chance to share views about their own transport experiences and what could be done to improve them.

In the new year, my Department will host a series of regional roadshows around the country, giving local leaders, transport operators and passengers the opportunity to help shape the way we deliver a truly integrated transport network.

This Government are committed to ensuring that transport works for everyone, and this strategy will set the framework for how we meet people’s needs today and in the future.

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