Asked by: Lord Rose of Monewden (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they will publish the NHS workforce plan; whether it will include specific numbers for the (1) recruitment, and (2) training, of additional (a) doctors, (b) nurses, and (c) allied medical staff, needed.
Answered by Lord Markham - Shadow Minister (Science, Innovation and Technology)
To support the overall workforce, we have commissioned NHS England to develop a Long-Term Workforce Plan for the National Health Service workforce to help recruit and retain more staff and will include independently verified projections for the number of doctors, nurses and other professionals that will be needed in five, 10 and 15 years’ time. This plan is in development and we have committed to publishing it shortly.
Asked by: Lord Rose of Monewden (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Murray of Blidworth on 8 November (HL3116), whether they have since asked the Migration Advisory Committee to pause their review; and if so, (1) when, and (2) for what purpose; and when they expect completion of the review.
Answered by Lord Murray of Blidworth
The Government agreed the MAC should pause the SOL review while we consider the position on the topic of legal migration following the Office for National Statistics’ November publication of net migration estimates and in line with its manifesto commitments to bring overall numbers down. We will be setting out information on the Shortage Occupation List review shortly.
Asked by: Lord Rose of Monewden (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government why they have reduced the number of funded university places for trainee doctors from 10,000 to 7,500 per annum in England.
Answered by Lord Markham - Shadow Minister (Science, Innovation and Technology)
There has been no reduction of the number of funded university places from 10,000 to 7,500 per annum in England. In 2020 and 2021, due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the need to adjust school A-Level exams, the Government temporarily lifted the cap on medical school places for students obtaining the required A-Level grades and holding an offer from a Medical School in England resulting in intakes of 8,405 and 8,460 respectively.
Asked by: Lord Rose of Monewden (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government which universities are offering medical school places to overseas students only; and how many students are enrolled on those courses in the current academic year.
Answered by Lord Markham - Shadow Minister (Science, Innovation and Technology)
Brunel University is the only university which exclusively offers medical places to overseas students. The information requested on enrolment is not collected centrally. The medical school at Brunel University is not required to report the intake data as it is a private and independent provider of undergraduate medical education and does not receive any funding from the Office for Students or Health Education England.
Asked by: Lord Rose of Monewden (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the effectiveness of the Temporary Worker Seasonal Worker visa; and what plans they have, if any, to revise the scheme.
Answered by Lord Murray of Blidworth
The Home Office keeps all aspects of the Seasonal Worker route under close and ongoing review. There are no current plans to make substantive revisions to this route.
Asked by: Lord Rose of Monewden (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will ask the Migration Advisory Committee (1) to review skills shortages in the retail and hospitality sectors, and (2) to make recommendations to Government about potential visa routes for overseas workers to fill vacancies in those sectors.
Answered by Lord Murray of Blidworth
The Government commissioned the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) to review the Shortage Occupation List (SOL). We therefore expect the MAC to launch its call for evidence shortly for all sectors- including retail and hospitality – to engage with and respond to.
Asked by: Lord Rose of Monewden (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they will next ask the Migration Advisory Committee to update the Shortage Occupation List.
Answered by Lord Murray of Blidworth
The Government commissioned the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) to review the Shortage Occupation List (SOL). We therefore expect the MAC to launch its call for evidence shortly for all sectors- including retail and hospitality – to engage with and respond to.
Asked by: Lord Rose of Monewden (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to assist families further in relation to the rise in the cost of living; and whether any such plans include (1) introducing a lower rate of VAT for fuel, and (2) reducing the general rate of VAT.
Answered by Baroness Penn
To support households with the rising cost of living, the Government is providing over £15 billion of additional support, targeted particularly on those with the greatest need. This package builds on the over £22 billion announced previously, with Government support for the cost of living now totaling over £37 billion this year.
The Government intends VAT to remain a broad-based tax on consumption where the standard rate of 20 per cent applies to most goods and services, including road fuel. While there are exceptions to the standard rate, these have always been strictly limited by both legal and fiscal considerations.
Reducing VAT would impose additional pressure on the public finances, to which VAT makes a significant contribution. VAT raised around £130 billion in 2019-20 and, according to OBR forecasts, will have raised approximately £135 billion in 2021-22, helping to fund key spending priorities. Any reduction in tax paid is a reduction in the money available to support important public services, including the NHS and policing.
Asked by: Lord Rose of Monewden (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to review the effectiveness of the Education and Skills Funding Agency in supporting the UK's recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic; and what plans they have to bring the work of the Education and Skills Funding Agency back under direct ministerial control.
Answered by Baroness Berridge
The Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) is an arm’s length body (ALB) of the Department for Education, responsible for administering and distributing funding of over £61 billion to deliver education and skills, from early years through to adulthood. It is accountable to ministers who make key decisions on the ESFA’s business, and it has played a key role in supporting the department’s response to COVID-19.
The COVID-19 outbreak has highlighted the importance of all government departments and ALBs being set up in the most efficient and effective way, ensuring the delivery of high-quality outcomes for all. In line with this, the department, including the ESFA, keep under constant review how the best possible outcomes for all learners can be ensured.
Asked by: Lord Rose of Monewden (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of (1) the benefits, and (2) the disadvantages, of the Education and Skills Funding Agency’s lagged funding mechanism in assisting businesses to have a pipeline of employees with the skills they need to help the economy to build back better after the COVID-19 pandemic.
Answered by Baroness Berridge
The skills for jobs white paper sets out how the department would place employers at the heart of local skills systems by leading the development of new Local Skills Improvement Plans. Through this, employers will be able to articulate their skills needs, and colleges and other providers will be able to reshape their provision in response.
We have recently launched an extensive government consultation on reforms to the further education funding and accountability system, including how funding is calculated. This consultation is a first step for a funding and accountability system that will maximise the potential of further education and help us build back better. We want to use the consultation to open a dialogue with the sector, employers, and other interested parties on how government funding can be administered more simply and effectively, so that colleges and other providers can focus on supporting students to develop the skills needed by employers and local labour markets. The consultation will run up to 7 October 2021.