Asked by: Alice Macdonald (Labour (Co-op) - Norwich North)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what support she will provide to parents and carers ahead of the implementation of the social media ban for under 16 year-olds.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Minister of State (Cabinet Office) (Jointly with the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Technology)
The government recognises the vital role that parents and carers play in supporting children's online safety. Alongside the social media ban, the government will provide a package of support for parents and carers.
This includes an expanded media literacy campaign and Kids Online Safety Hub, providing advice, practical tools and support to help parents and carers support their children in navigating the online world safely and confidently.
We will also work closely with the Department for Education and the Department of Health and Social Care as they develop guidance on the safe and positive use of devices for parents of children aged 5 to 18.
Asked by: Alice Macdonald (Labour (Co-op) - Norwich North)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to support young people with SEND into work.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is taking action to support disabled young people and those with long-term health conditions into work, including young people with Special Educational Needs (SEND). Pathways to Work and the Youth Guarantee will provide disabled young people and young people with long-term health conditions tailored support that meets their needs, helping them to move into and stay in work.
Backed by £1 billion a year of new funding by the end of the decade, Pathways to Work is building towards a guaranteed offer of personalised work, health and skills support for all disabled people and those with health conditions on out of work benefits. Some Pathways to Work support is available irrespective of benefit entitlement.
Through Pathways to Work, disabled young people have access to tailored support, including help into supported employment through Connect to Work. Our Local Economic Inactivity and Youth Guarantee Trailblazers are also offering targeted support for disabled young people.
We know supported internships break down barriers to opportunity for disabled young people. Our recent investment has increased numbers and improved programme quality, supporting more young people to transition into employment. We are providing £9 million to continue our supported internship pilot reaching hundreds more young people without an Education, Health and Care plan, to support them into sustained employment.
Finally, the Access to Work Scheme can also provide grant funding to disabled young people. Access to Work is a demand-led, personalised discretionary grant which supports workplace adjustments that go beyond what would normally be expected from an employer through their duty to provide reasonable adjustments as outlined in the Equality Act 2010.
Asked by: Alice Macdonald (Labour (Co-op) - Norwich North)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether her Department is taking steps to regulate airport drop off charges.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The department has no plans to regulate car parking and drop-off charges at UK airports. Decisions on the provision and pricing of airport parking remain a commercial matter for individual operators.
Parking revenue, including that from drop-off charges, is an important source of income for airports, supporting investment in future infrastructure and upgrades, enhancing public transport options, and helping to manage congestion around airport sites.
Many airports across the UK offer free drop-off alternatives, either within walking distance of the airport or via a complementary shuttle bus service.
The department will continue to engage with operators to ensure that, where airports choose to charge, they are implemented in a way that is fair and transparent.
Asked by: Alice Macdonald (Labour (Co-op) - Norwich North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what his Department's planned timetable is for completing its assessment of the provision of NHS-commissioned fertility services currently in place across Integrated Care Boards.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson
The Government recognises that access to National Health Service funded fertility services is variable in England and is looking into achievable ambitions to improve access to fertility services. This includes understanding the offer made by fertility services across the country with a view to assess the data collected from integrated care boards to evaluate next steps in due course, working to ensure there is equitable access.
Asked by: Alice Macdonald (Labour (Co-op) - Norwich North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when his Department plans to complete the assessment of NHS commissioned fertility services announced in the Women’s health strategy.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson
The Government published the Women's Health Strategy on 15 April, which commits to ensuring that every woman can easily access fertility services, and we are currently working to assess the current provision of National Health Service commissioned fertility services as a baseline to inform supporting material for every integrated care board to implement the new National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guideline in full.
The Government recognises that access to NHS-funded fertility services is variable in England and is looking into achievable ambitions to improve access to fertility services. This includes understanding the offer made by fertility services across the country with a view to assess the data collected from integrated care boards to evaluate next steps in due course, working to ensure there is equitable access.
Asked by: Alice Macdonald (Labour (Co-op) - Norwich North)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether she has had recent discussions with stakeholders on steps to regulate airport drop off charges.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department regularly engages with airports and other stakeholders on a wide range of matters, such as surface access arrangements which includes parking and drop-off charges. Airports in the UK are managed and operated as private businesses. While the Government and the Civil Aviation Authority do not regulate drop-off charges, the Department expects parking at airports to be managed appropriately and consumers to be treated fairly.
Asked by: Alice Macdonald (Labour (Co-op) - Norwich North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of (a) new product labelling standards, including the proportion by weight of dominant food compounds such as salt and sugar and (b) developing new guidance to ensure that product descriptions, advertising and presentation on packaging give an accurate impression of ingredient balance on consumers.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson
Food labelling legislation requires that pre-packaged food and drinks include a nutrition declaration, which provides information on key nutrients, including salt and sugar. In addition, voluntary front-of-pack nutrition labelling, most commonly the multiple traffic light scheme, is widely used in the United Kingdom and provides clear, at-a-glance information on levels of energy, fat, saturates, sugar, and salt to support consumer understanding.
Ingredients must also be listed on the label in descending order by weight, giving consumers an indication of the relative proportion of ingredients in a product. There are currently no plans to introduce new labelling standards related to the proportion by weight of specific ingredients such as salt or sugar beyond existing requirements, but the Government keeps the evidence on how food labelling impacts the choices and consumption habits of consumers under review.
Legislation already requires that food labelling must not be misleading, particularly as to the nature, composition or characteristics of the food. This applies to product descriptions, advertising and presentation on packaging, and is intended to ensure consumers are not given an inaccurate impression of a product’s composition or ingredient balance. Separate legislation covers the use of nutrition and health claims, requiring that any such claims are substantiated, clear, and not misleading.
The Government has guidance in place to support compliance with food labelling requirements, including on nutrition and health claims, and keeps this under review.
Asked by: Alice Macdonald (Labour (Co-op) - Norwich North)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to (a) support and (b) promote UNESCO Cities of Literature in the UK.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
DCMS supports the UK’s UNESCO designations through its relationship with the UK National Commission for UNESCO (UKNC), which collaborates closely with the UK UNESCO Creative Cities across the UK, including Cities of Literature.
UKNC promotes the UK’s UNESCO Creative Cities through its public network platform, through accrediting new Cities of Literature, through its convening role and through wider programmes, including activity developed through the National Lottery Heritage Fund-supported Local to Global programme.
DCMS is also supporting a project between the National Library of Wales (in Aberystwyth - a UNESCO city of literature), the National Library of Scotland (in Edinburgh - also a UNESCO city of literature), the British Library, and the National Library of Ireland through the Cultural Cooperation Programme in partnership with the Irish Government.
Asked by: Alice Macdonald (Labour (Co-op) - Norwich North)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to support creative industries in Norwich.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
Creative industries clusters across the UK, including in Norwich, are crucial to the delivery of our Growth Mission.
Our Creative Industries Sector Plan published last year includes a strong universal offer to drive growth in the creative industries in every place in the UK, including Norwich and the wider East of England region. It outlines new measures to break down barriers such as access to finance, supply of skills, and new support to kickstart innovation.
In addition, Arts Council England (ACE) focuses funding on the areas of the cultural sector most at risk, using both dedicated funds and wider investment. Its £1.5 billion Arts Everywhere Fund is focused on supporting organisations, particularly in underserved areas, to protect vulnerable cultural infrastructure and local venues, ensuring access nationwide. This includes a flagship Norwich investment in ‘Creative Arts East'.
Asked by: Alice Macdonald (Labour (Co-op) - Norwich North)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made on the potential impact of increasing the frequency of Antilock Breaking Systems (ABS) for large vehicles, including large estate cars and SUVs, on road safety; and what assessment she has made of the potential impact of doubling the frequency at which ABS begins to operate in these vehicles from every 1/4 of a wheel turn to every 1/8.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The department has not made any assessment of the impact of increasing the frequency at which Anti-Lock Braking Systems (ABS) operate or start to operate as this does not reflect how these systems are regulated in practice.
The requirements for ABS have been developed by experts at an international level under the UN’s World Forum for Harmonisation of Vehicle Regulations (WP.29). These requirements are performance‑based; manufacturers must demonstrate compliance (i.e. wheels do not lock) across a range of relevant conditions and are therefore responsible for determining the appropriate control strategies to meet them.