Question to the Northern Ireland Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many investigations are being carried out by the Independent Commission for Reconciliation and Information Recovery; and how many of those investigations relate to the deaths of (a) members of the Armed Forces and (b) police officers.

Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland

We understand that there are currently 113 live investigations under the remit of the Independent Commission for Reconciliation and Information Recovery.

Within those 113 investigations, there were 35 victims who were military personnel and 16 police officers. This accounts for 44 of the 113 cases as some of these relate to multi-fatality incidents.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he is taking to support SMEs in the West Midlands to access the Growth and Skills Levy.

Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

To support SMEs to access apprenticeships, the government will fully fund apprenticeship training for non-levy paying employers (essentially SMEs) for all eligible people aged under 25 from the next academic year. This change will make it easier for those employers to engage with apprenticeships across the country, including in the West Midlands, by cutting costs and reducing bureaucracy for both them and their training providers.

At the moment, this only happens for apprentices aged 16 to 21 and apprentices aged 22-24 who have an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) or have been, or are, in local authority care. We also provide £1,000 to both employers and training providers when they take on apprentices aged under 19, or 19-to-24-year-old apprentices who have an EHCP or have been, or are, in care.

The government also facilitates and funds the Apprenticeship Ambassador Network (AAN) which comprises 2,500 employers and apprentices who volunteer to promote the benefits of apprenticeships. It operates across all parts of England, including the West Midlands, through nine regional networks. These networks provide buddying and mentoring support to small businesses to help them recruit and retain apprentices.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of nationalising the M6 Toll road.

Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

There are currently no discussions underway about nationalising the M6 Toll. The M6 Toll sits outside of the Strategic Road Network managed by National Highways and is owned and operated by private entity Midland Expressway Ltd (MEL).

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of financial penalties for social responsibility failings in acting as a deterrent.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

Financial penalties are one element of the Gambling Commission’s regulatory toolkit. Action taken by the Gambling Commission is based on the need to gain compliance from gambling operators with the Licence Conditions and Codes of Practice at the earliest opportunity. If breaches occur, financial penalties may be imposed.

Since 2016/17, the Commission’s enforcement action has resulted in over £215 million in fines and regulatory settlements. As a result of the Commission’s compliance and enforcement work, in the last three years there have been fewer instances of extreme failings at gambling operators. However, the Commission continues to address any non-compliance through use of its enforcement powers and will continue to do so wherever necessary.

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of gambling advertisements on children and young people; and whether she plans to introduce legislative measures to restrict or ban gambling marketing and sponsorship.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

All operators advertising in the UK must comply with robust advertising codes, which are enforced by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) independently of Government. These codes are regularly reviewed and updated and include a wide range of provisions designed to protect children and vulnerable adults from harm.

The Government does not currently have plans to ban gambling advertising. However, we recognise that children and young people’s exposure to gambling advertising is an important issue and we continue to work closely with the gambling industry to further strengthen protections.

We have welcomed the Premier League’s voluntary front of shirt ban on gambling advertisements from next season, which will reduce gambling exposure for children and young people. Additionally, we will redouble our efforts to work cross-government and with tech platforms to address illegal gambling advertising, which poses the most risk for children and young people.

Phenylketonuria awareness and access to treatment (No. 2)

Found: Questions 1-12 Representations made I: Daniel Francis II: Phil Brickell III: Cameron Thomas IV: Alex Ballinger

Found: Watch the meeting Members present: Emily Thornberry (Chair); Fleur Anderson; Alex Ballinger; Aphra Brandreth

Found: Watch the meeting Members present: Emily Thornberry (Chair); Fleur Anderson; Alex Ballinger; Aphra Brandreth