Asked by: Lord Bishop of Newcastle (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they intend to announce whether they will provide the remaining £6.2 million necessary to restore the Tyne Bridge.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
All capital funding within the Department for Transport is subject to internal review which is feeding into the Comprehensive Spending Review; the outcome of which will be known later this year.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of Newcastle (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the condition of Redheugh Bridge; and whether they intend to provide funding for its restoration.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
Gateshead Council and Newcastle City Council, as local highway authorities, are responsible for the condition and maintenance of Redheugh Bridge through the Newcastle and Gateshead’s Joint Bridges Committee". Both Councils are members of the North-East Combined Authority (NECA).
The Department does not hold a central contingency fund to pay for repairs of this sort but is always willing to discuss with individual highway authorities what support might be available. At Budget 2024, the Chancellor announced an extra £500 million for local highway maintenance for the 2025/26 financial year, which will allow authorities to undertake more repairs of this sort. As part of the funding uplift, NECA will receive an additional £21.7 million, on top of its existing City Region Sustainable Transport Settlement. It is a matter for the Mayor to determine how to allocate this funding to NECA’s constituent authorities to allow them to maintain their highway networks, including bridges and other assets.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of Newcastle (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to make apprenticeships more financially viable for young people and their families.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Education)
I refer the noble Lord to the answer of 6 January 2025 to Question HL3616.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of Newcastle (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Centre for Social Justice report Lonely Nation - Part 4: Loneliness and food banks, published in December 2024, which found that over twice as many people who use food banks feel lonely most of the time compared to all adults, what steps they are taking to address loneliness and social isolation as a root cause of food bank usage.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) supports DCMS in their work to tackle Loneliness and social isolation through Jobcentres, who carry out an important role in identifying people at risk of loneliness, directing people to tailored support such as social prescribing, volunteering opportunities, befriending schemes and other local community opportunities and helping them to return to, or prepare to return to the labour market.
More specifically, the Jobcentre network promote local opportunities relevant to those at risk of Loneliness such as the Warm Welcome Spaces in the community.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of Newcastle (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of data published by the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities on 3 December 2024 showing that the number of alcohol-specific deaths in England in 2023 was the highest on record; and what steps are they taking to reduce this number, particularly in the region of the North East region.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
In 2023, there were 8,274 alcohol-specific deaths, namely deaths wholly due to alcohol, in England, which was an increase of 63.8% from 5,050 deaths in 2006 and a 4.6% increase since 2022. Most of these deaths are caused by alcohol-related liver disease. The North East of England has consistently seen the highest rate of alcohol deaths over the previous decade. Through our mission-driven Government, we will prioritise actions targeted at reversing this trend.
The Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID) has an action plan to reduce drug and alcohol-related deaths. Considering the recent data, this plan is being revised to ensure that it is grounded in the latest understanding of the drivers of drug and alcohol related deaths and responding to these. Last year the Department of Health and Social Care published guidance for local authorities and their partnerships on how to review adult drug and alcohol-related deaths to prevent future deaths. Additionally, OHID has published Commissioning Quality Standard: alcohol and drug services, providing guidance for local authorities to support them in commissioning effective alcohol and drug treatment and recovery services. This is available on GOV.UK in an online-only format.
In addition to the Public Health Grant, the Department of Health and Social Care allocated local authorities £267 million in 2024/25 to improve the quality and capacity of drug and alcohol treatment and recovery. An additional £105 million from the Department of Health and Social Care, the Department for Work and Pensions and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government is improving treatment pathways and recovery, housing and employment outcomes for people affected by drug and alcohol use. Future targeted funding for drug and alcohol treatment services beyond 2025 will be announced very shortly.
The Department of Health and Social Care will soon publish the clinical guidelines for the United Kingdom on alcohol treatment which will include recommendations on arranging access for appropriate testing for liver disease, providing health assessments and facilitating access to appropriate treatment for people with co-occurring alcohol problems and physical or mental health conditions, health promotion and harm reduction interventions. The Department of Health and Social Care continues to work with all local areas to address unmet need and drug and alcohol related deaths, and to drive improvements in continuity of care. This includes the Unmet Need Toolkit which can be used by local areas to assess local need and plan to meet it.
In 2024/25, North East local authorities (LA) received £25.5 million to improve drug and alcohol treatment, recovery and inpatient detox provision. OHID is supporting LAs to use this funding to develop and improve services, including for people living with alcohol issues. All North East LAs have targets to increase the number of people receiving support for alcohol dependency from community treatment and access is increasing. The North East & North Cumbria Integrated Care System is collaborating to improve health and reduce health inequalities, including those associated with alcohol harm. A regional action plan, co-produced with all 12 Las, is in place and includes activity to strengthen alcohol harm prevention, harm reduction and recovery support.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of Newcastle (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to make apprenticeships more financially viable for young people and their families.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Education)
This government has a driving mission to break down barriers to opportunity and we want to rebalance opportunities towards young people, who have the most to gain from apprenticeships.
From April 2025, the Apprentice Minimum Wage will increase by 18% from £6.40 to £7.55. This welcome increase will boost the hourly wage for thousands of young apprentices across a range of sectors, and those in their first year of an apprenticeship. We also know that many employers pay their apprentices more than the minimum. Latest data shows that the median gross hourly pay for apprentices in 2023 was £11.63 an hour.
The department continues to provide employers and providers with additional funding to support more apprenticeship opportunities for young people. The department provides £1,000 to both employers and training providers when they take on apprentices aged 16 to 18, and up to age 24 for apprentices with an education, health and care plan, or who have been in local authority care. These payments can be used to support costs such as work equipment, uniforms or travel.
Apprentices aged under 25 who have been in local authority care may be eligible for a £3,000 bursary, as well as wages from their employer. The bursary is not subject to tax and is not treated as income for benefits purposes.
Apprentices may also be eligible for local discounted travel schemes. For example, apprentices over 18, living in a London borough and in the first year of an apprenticeship, can get discounted travel with an Oyster photocard.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of Newcastle (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to address loneliness and social isolation as a root cause of foodbank usage following a recent report published by the Centre for Social Justice which found that over twice as many people who use foodbanks feel lonely most of the time compared to other adults.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The government’s current work to tackle loneliness includes the Know Your Neighbourhood Fund, a grant fund designed to widen participation in volunteering and tackle loneliness in 27 disadvantaged areas across England.
Jobcentres carry out an important role in identifying people at risk of loneliness by directing people to tailored support such as social prescribing, volunteering opportunities, befriending schemes and other local community opportunities and helping them to return to or prepare to return to the labour market. Good work is also a key element in our approach to tackle poverty and reduce mass dependence on emergency food parcels.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of Newcastle (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government with which external experts from the region of the North East they plan to engage as part of their child poverty taskforce.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Education)
Tackling child poverty is at the heart of this government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity.
The Child Poverty Taskforce, co-chaired by my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education and my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, has started urgent work to develop the Child Poverty Strategy, setting out the plan to reduce child poverty and deal with impacts that poverty has on children’s lives.
The Taskforce held its second meeting on 19 September and heard from local leaders, including the North East Mayor, about the challenges faced in different communities and how the Taskforce can best work with mayors, local authorities and other bodies to develop innovative solutions to tackle child poverty. This marked the first of a series of thematic sessions with key organisations, charities and experts on specific topics that will help to shape the government’s ambitious Strategy.
The government also recognises the importance of capturing the experiences of those living in poverty, which is why the Taskforce will also draw on findings from wider external engagement events in all regions and nations of the UK. These events will convene a broader range of voices, including front line staff and the perspectives of families and children themselves.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of Newcastle (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government how they plan to consult and engage with local groups and schools as part of the child poverty taskforce.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Education)
Tackling child poverty is at the heart of this government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity.
The Child Poverty Taskforce, co-chaired by my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education and my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, has started urgent work to develop the Child Poverty Strategy, setting out the plan to reduce child poverty and deal with impacts that poverty has on children’s lives.
The Taskforce held its second meeting on 19 September and heard from local leaders, including the North East Mayor, about the challenges faced in different communities and how the Taskforce can best work with mayors, local authorities and other bodies to develop innovative solutions to tackle child poverty. This marked the first of a series of thematic sessions with key organisations, charities and experts on specific topics that will help to shape the government’s ambitious Strategy.
The government also recognises the importance of capturing the experiences of those living in poverty, which is why the Taskforce will also draw on findings from wider external engagement events in all regions and nations of the UK. These events will convene a broader range of voices, including front line staff and the perspectives of families and children themselves.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of Newcastle (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to extend the provision of free school meals to all children living in households in receipt of Universal Credit.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Education)
The government is driving an agenda of change through working across local and national government to break down the barriers of opportunity and reduce child poverty.
Child poverty has increased by 700,000 since 2010, with over four million children now growing up in a low-income family. That is why the government is committed to delivering an ambitious strategy to reduce child poverty by tackling the root causes and giving every child the best start at life. To support this, a new Ministerial taskforce has been set up to begin work on a Child Poverty Strategy, co-chaired by my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education and my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions.
To set children up for the day and ensure they are ready to learn, while also supporting parents and carers to work, the government is committed to introducing free breakfast clubs in every primary school.
Disadvantaged pupils in state-funded schools, as well as 16 to 18 year old students in further education, are entitled to receive free meals on the basis of low income. 2.1 million disadvantaged pupils are registered to receive free school meals (FSM) and a further 90,000 are registered to receive further education free meals. In addition, all children in reception, year 1 and year 2 in England's state-funded schools are entitled to Universal Infant Free School Meals, which benefits around 1.3 million pupils. As with all government programmes, we will keep our approach to FSM under review.