Question to the Department for Education:

To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to improve foreign language teaching in schools and colleges, in particular the practical experience of speaking a foreign language in the host country, following the decision not to continue the UK's participation in the Erasmus Programme.

Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Education)

Having the opportunity to study a modern foreign language should be part of the broad and rich education that every child in this country deserves.

Languages provide an insight into other cultures and can open the door to travel and employment opportunities. They also broaden pupils’ horizons, helping them flourish in new environments.

The government is committed to providing enriching opportunities for students and young people to experience other countries and cultures, including through school trips and exchanges. We also recognise the difficulties that schools have faced in recent years when it comes to organising visits. The UK has agreed measures with France which make school trip travel between the UK and France easier.

The Turing Scheme is the UK government’s global programme for students to study and work abroad. Students can develop new skills, including language skills, gain international experience and boost their employability. The scheme has been helping tens of thousands of UK students to study and work abroad for four years and we have recently announced that the scheme will be running for a fifth year.

The UK has a bilateral student exchange programme with Germany, the UK German Connection (UKGC), which provides opportunities for children, young people, and a limited number of language teachers in the UK and Germany to engage in a range of activities, including seminars, exchanges, visits and study courses. UKGC seeks to support current German learners in the UK and encourage more to learn the language.

The department also has a long-standing Language Assistants Programme, delivered by the British Council, to improve modern foreign language skills through direct interaction with native speakers from around the world. This includes arranging placements in the UK for non-UK residents to assist with teaching French, Spanish, Mandarin, German and Italian (as Modern Language Assistants). In the 2024/25 academic year, there are 700 Modern Language Assistants allocated to UK schools.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of withdrawing telephone landlines on elderly and vulnerable customers, and whether they have made representations to telecommunications companies in this regard.

Answered by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

This is a very important issue which the government has been closely engaged with since it took office. It is important to note that landlines are not being withdrawn, but their underlying technology is being moved from Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) to Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP).

The switchover is an industry led programme. The Government is determined to ensure that any and all risks of the industry-led migration from PSTN to VoIP are mitigated. Communication providers and network operators signed voluntary charters in December 2023 and March 2024, ensuring their commitment to protect vulnerable consumers during the PSTN migration. On 18 November 2024, the major communication providers agreed to adhere to further safeguards set out in the non-voluntary migrations checklist before restarting non-voluntary migration of customers from PSTN to VoIP.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the report from the Office for Environmental Protection, Progress in improving the natural environment in England 2023/2024, published on 16 January, that they may not meet environmental standards for maritime areas.

Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

My department welcomes the Office for Environmental Protection’s report reviewing “Progress in improving the natural environment in England 2023/2024”. We will respond in full to this report in due course.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Hayman of Ullock on 10 December 2024 (HL3098), whether their policy on energy from waste has changed; and if so how, following the publication of the Residual waste infrastructure capacity note on 30 December 2024.

Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The Residual Waste Infrastructure Capacity Note assesses our residual waste treatment capacity need to 2035, as well as giving consideration to the long-term residual waste reduction target. The Capacity Note shows that, as of 2022-23, there were certain areas in England where significant volumes of non-recyclable household waste are sent to landfill. There is also a need to divert non-household wastes away from landfill.

The Capacity Note was published which set out that the Government will only back new energy from waste projects that meet strict conditions. Proposals for new facilities will have to demonstrate a clearly defined domestic residual waste treatment capacity need to facilitate the diversion of residual waste away from landfill, or enable the replacement of older, less-efficient facilities. Additionally, new facilities will have to maximise efficiency and support the delivery of economic growth, net zero and the move to a circular economy.

The Government encourages those developing energy from waste facilities (at all stages in the process) to consider forecast changes to future capacity, demand, and the Government’s circular economy opportunities, in light of the evidence published in the Capacity Note.

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