Apsana Begum

It is challenging to directly compare gas and heat network bills. This is because heat network bills tend to include additional system costs such as system maintenance, whereas these additional costs are typically paid by gas consumers through other means.

Whilst there is currently no requirement for heat networks owners or operators to formally report details on their pricing practices, studies have been carried out which provide useful insight into heat network pricing from a sample of the market, namely the 2017 Heat Networks Consumer Survey (HNCS) and the 2018 CMA heat networks market study (CMA).

Government is committed to implementing the Heat Networks Market Framework, which will introduce price transparency requirements on heat network operators. The future heat networks regulator will also have powers to protect consumers from disproportionately high pricing and monopoly power.

We do not hold data on the exact number of social homes under Section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 that are on a heat network. However, the results of the 2017 Heat Networks Consumer Survey (HNCS) found that heat network consumers were more likely to be renting from a housing association or local authority (32% and 34%) compared with the wider population (8% and 9%).

The ability for landlords to have control over the performance, reliability and pricing of a heat network will in part depend on the network’s delivery model. This is based on whether it is the leaseholder or the heat supplier who holds the right to use the network. The CMA heat networks study found that where the consumers have the right to use the network as part of their leaseholder or tenancy agreement, this provides them with more protection and control. In addition, leases can state that supply of heating and hot water is the responsibility of the landlord, and the Landlord and Tenant Act places requirements on landlords to maintain a property and its associated assets, such as heating. The CMA report found that the types of business models found in the heat networks market vary significantly.

Travel agents are eligible for strand 1 of Restart Grants as they are classified as non-essential retail.

Strand 2 of Restart Grants is for hospitality, leisure, accommodation, personal care and gym & sport businesses, most of which will not fully reopen until step 3 of the Roadmap out of lockdown and which are likely to continue to be most significantly affected by social distancing rules, cleaning protocols and other measures in place to tackle Covid-19.

There are currently no plans to change the eligibility criteria for the Restart Grant scheme.

As of 24 March 2021, 1,851 applications to the Future Fund had been received of which 100% had been processed. On that same date, 1,766 applicants (96% of the total) had been notified. ‘Processed’ in this context means that an application has been completed by a lead investor and the proposed investee company and has entered the next stage of checks.

The Government continues to monitor the impact of easing Covid-19 lockdown restrictions on Black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds, and other groups with protected characteristics.

Guidance to help employers, employees and the self-employed understand how to work safely during the coronavirus pandemic has been developed by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) with input from firms, unions and industry bodies, and in consultation with Public Health England (PHE) and the Health and Safety Executive (HSE): www.gov.uk/workingsafely

The Government has also developed a tool to help businesses in England to reopen safely during coronavirus. The tool encourages businesses to carry out a risk assessment and helps to identify the workplace adjustments that they should make. Employees can also use the tool to check what their workplace needs to do to keep people safe: https://www.gov.uk/coronavirus-business-reopening.

The Government continues to monitor the impact of easing Covid-19 lockdown restrictions on Black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds, and other groups with protected characteristics. The Race Disparity Unit’s Ethnicity Facts and Figures website publishes data on the percentage of workers in each ethnic group employed by different sectors.

This can be found at:

https://www.ethnicity-facts-figures.service.gov.uk/work-pay-and benefits/employment/employment-by-sector/latest.

The Government is closely monitoring the impacts on the UK economy, including on individuals, businesses, supply chains, and for consumers. We are working with key industry partners, employer organisations, and trade unions to understand the effect of Covid-19 on employees, employers, and businesses, and to share the latest guidance and information.

On 17 March, the Government announced an unprecedented package of Government-backed and guaranteed loans to support businesses,?making available an initial £330 billion of guarantees – equivalent to 15% of GDP.

In negotiations with the EU we fought for a great proposal for our world-leading creative industries. I deeply regret that the EU rejected our proposals. Our proposals remain on the table and our door is open if the EU is willing to reconsider its position.

DCMS has established a Working Group to bring together sector representatives and other key government departments to look at the issues facing the creative and cultural sectors when touring the EU. The group will work together to provide clarity regarding the practical steps that need to be taken by creative professionals when touring the EU, including around carnets and customs declarations, and it will explore how these sectors can be supported to work and tour in the EU with confidence.

In negotiations with the EU we fought for a great proposal for our world-leading creative industries. I deeply regret that the EU rejected our proposals. Our proposals remain on the table and our door is open if the EU is willing to reconsider its position.

DCMS has established a Working Group to bring together sector representatives and other key government departments to look at the issues facing the creative and cultural sectors when touring the EU. The group will work together to provide clarity regarding the practical steps that need to be taken by creative professionals when touring the EU, including around carnets and customs declarations, and it will explore how these sectors can be supported to work and tour in the EU with confidence.

According to Ofcom’s Connected Nations 2020 report, with data collected in September 2020,

1. Poplar and Limehouse constituency contains 459 premises which are unable to receive 10Mbps via a fixed line connection.

2. Tower Hamlets contains 723 premises which are unable to receive 10Mbps via a fixed line connection.

The average fixed line download speed is:

1. 59.3Mbps in Poplar and Limehouse and;

2. 53.7Mbps in Tower Hamlets.

This only accounts for the speeds premises receive via a fixed line broadband connection and therefore does not take into account those premises which are able to access a faster connection via a 4G or 5G mobile data service.

Most of these premises are likely to be able to access Superfast speeds via 4G (and some via 5G) with a mobile broadband data service.

According to Ofcom’s Connected Nations 2020 report with data collected in September 2020, accounting for mobile broadband data services,

1. Poplar and Limehouse constituency contains 134 premises which are unable to receive a connection that meets the requirements of the broadband Universal Service Obligation.

2. Tower Hamlets contains 335 premises which are unable to receive a connection that meets the requirements of the broadband Universal Service Obligation.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by the Minister of State at the Home Office, to PQ126154.

We recognise the crucial role that highly skilled workers play in making our creative industries world-leading, and the Government is providing extensive support to workers in these sectors. The £1.57 billion Culture Recovery Fund provides targeted support to critical cultural, arts and heritage organisations to help them, and the skilled workers that work in them, survive and recover from the Covid pandemic. In addition Arts Council England has made £119 million available to individuals (including freelancers) and in July, the Government also announced a UK-wide £500m Restart scheme to support film and TV production companies that have been unable to film due to the lack of insurance covering Covid-related risks. As of 19 November, the scheme is supporting over 4,500 jobs.

The Government also recently announced the extension of both the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme and the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme until March 31 2021. This support will help creative businesses across the country to protect their employees’ jobs during this difficult winter period.

Government continues to engage regularly with stakeholders such as the BFI, the Creative Industries Federation and the Creative Industries Council to ensure we understand the impact of Covid-19 on the skills and talent needed to keep the UK’s creative industries a global success.

The Government fully recognises the disruptive impact that Coronavirus and restrictions has on the performing arts sector and how devastating it will be where events are cancelled.

That is why we have already extended the Job Retention Scheme until March, alongside the unprecedented £1.57bn Culture Recovery package which has already benefited thousands of organisations and the individuals supported by them.

The Government continues to work with the performing arts sector to assess the impact of the tiers and to develop proposals for how venues can open for fuller audiences when it is safe to do so.

The government has the ambition of providing nationwide gigabit-capable connectivity as soon as possible, and will continue to take action to remove barriers to commercial network rollout.

Broadband rollout in Poplar and Limehouse has been undertaken commercially, with 63% of premises now able to access full fibre broadband - this is up from 1% in March 2016. This 63% figure is nearly four times the UK figure of 16%. Openreach are responsible for 12.5% of full fibre connections, and Hyperoptic are also playing a significant role in delivering full fibre connectivity across the constituency.

The government has the ambition of providing nationwide gigabit-capable connectivity as soon as possible, and will continue to take action to remove barriers to commercial network rollout.

Broadband rollout in Poplar and Limehouse has been undertaken commercially, with 63% of premises now able to access full fibre broadband - this is up from 1% in March 2016. This 63% figure is nearly four times the UK figure of 16%. Openreach are responsible for 12.5% of full fibre connections, and Hyperoptic are also playing a significant role in delivering full fibre connectivity across the constituency.

The government set out its high level strategy for delivering nationwide coverage of gigabit capable broadband in the Future Telecoms Infrastructure Review (FTIR), published in July 2018. As part of the review, the government commissioned an independent report by Frontier Economics to consider different competitive models for achieving these aims against a set of criteria including overall coverage, pace of deployment, quality of service delivered, total cost and feasibility.

The FTIR concluded that the best way to achieve the government’s aims was to promote competition and commercial investment where possible, and intervene where necessary. The review estimated that c.80% of the country could support competitive networks, and that the remaining c.20% may need further intervention to deliver gigabit-capable networks.

Since the FTIR, the government has supported measures to enhance competition in the telecoms market, including Ofcom regulations to open up access to Openreach’s ducts and poles network. The government has also focused on reducing barriers to commercial deployment, including through the Telecommunications Infrastructure (Leasehold Property) Bill currently before Parliament. In addition, we have committed a record £5 billion to support the deployment of gigabit-capable broadband in the hardest to reach 20% of the country.

We have seen a considerable increase in gigabit capable coverage since the FTIR was published. Full fibre coverage has increased from 5% of the UK in May 2018 to 14% as of May 2020, according to Ofcom’s latest Connected Nations figures. Gigabit-capable coverage is even higher as a result of Virgin Media’s upgrades to its cable network, with ThinkBroadband now reporting that over a quarter of the UK can access gigabit-capable broadband.

The Government recognises the important role out-of-school settings play in providing young people with enriching opportunities to support their wellbeing. DCMS and the Department for Education have supported local councils and the youth sector by publishing guidance on gov.uk about how to safely run activities for young people over the summer 2020 holidays.

The Government's £9m Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) programme has directly supported up to 50,000 disadvantaged children across 17 local authority areas to stay healthy and active over the summer.

In collaboration with the Department for Education, National Citizen Service is providing a further education support offer for 16-17 year olds over the summer. This is free to further education (FE) providers and will include sessions on ; employability, health and wellbeing, careers guidance, citizenship and skills for independent living.

We are continuing to work closely with other government departments and local authorities to secure the most effective approach to asymptomatic testing for the whole of the early years sector. This includes ongoing discussions about providing testing via the education testing programme, as well as encouraging local authorities to consider prioritising appropriate testing for early years staff via community testing programmes, which is now available to all local authorities.

We have urged all local authorities to consider prioritising early years staff in their community testing programme.

The Department for Education is rolling out our asymptomatic testing programme to primary schools, schools-based nurseries and maintained nursery schools. The asymptomatic testing programme will offer all primary school, schools-based nursery and maintained nursery school staff home lateral flow device test kits for twice-weekly testing. This will help to break the chains of transmission of COVID-19 in education settings by identifying asymptomatic positive cases. Those who test positive will then self-isolate, helping to reduce transmission of the virus.

Anyone who displays symptoms of COVID-19 can and should get a test. Tests can be booked online through the NHS website, or ordered by telephone via NHS 119 for those without access to the internet. All children can be tested if they have symptoms, including children under 5, but children under 11 will need to be helped by their parents or carers if using a home testing kit. Relevant guidance can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-getting-tested and https://www.gov.uk/get-coronavirus-test.

The Department for Education has published the ‘Actions for early years and childcare providers during the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak’ which provides further information about how early years staff and children can access testing, and on what to do when an individual develops COVID-19 symptoms or has a positive test. The guidance can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-early-years-and-childcare-closures/coronavirus-covid-19-early-years-and-childcare-closures#track.

The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) are the independent experts who advise the Government on which vaccine/s the UK should use and provide advice on who should be offered them.

JCVI advises that the first priorities for the COVID-19 vaccination programme should be the prevention of mortality and the maintenance of the health and social care systems. As the risk of mortality from COVID-19 increases with age, prioritisation is primarily based on age.

Regarding the next phase of vaccine rollout, JCVI have asked that the Department of Health and Social Care consider occupational vaccination in collaboration with other Government departments. The Department for Education will input into this cross governmental exercise, and I hope that educational staff, including in early years settings, will be vaccinated as soon as possible.

At the start of autumn term, each school was allocated a number of laptops and tablets based on the estimates of disadvantaged children in Years 3 to 11 without access to a suitable device. On 23rd October, the Department adjusted school allocations. Adjusting allocations ensured that devices reached as many children as possible when they needed them most, and as a result we have been able to continue delivering laptops and tablets to those young people throughout this term.

Schools, local authorities and academy trusts were able to request additional devices if their original allocation did not meet their needs.

During the period that device allocations have been adjusted, schools that fully close for a sustained period have been able to work with their Regional Schools Commissioner to ensure they receive enough devices to meet the needs of all disadvantaged children in Years 3 to 11 who do not already have one.

Now schools can order the number of devices they were originally allocated, where these have not already been ordered by the school.

The Department does not publish data on the number of devices allocated to schools, given that it is for the school to decide what proportion of their allocation they need.

Since 16 March 2020, 212 primary schools and 30 secondary schools have converted to academy status. In September, a further 23 primary and 13 secondary schools newly opened as Free Schools and University Technical Colleges (UTCs). Table 1 shows the breakdown of primary and secondary academy conversions (excluding Free Schools and UTCs) in the months following 16 March 2020.

Table 1: Breakdown of primary and secondary academy openers by month since 16 March 2020 (excluding Free Schools and UTCs)

Source: Get Information About Schools, taken from 1 December 2020.

The death of Shukri Abdi was a tragedy. On 4 December 2020, the Coroner concluded that Shukri’s death was an accident. Public bodies and their staff will have their own responsibilities for undertaking processes in response to recommendations made from the Coroner’s Report and indeed any other recommendations from any review into Shukri’s death. If this report finds recommendations for my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, or the Department, we will of course respond appropriately.

The safety and wellbeing of staff and students in higher education is always our priority. The government is doing all it can to minimise the risks to those working and studying in our higher education institutions during this unprecedented situation, whilst mitigating the impact on education.

As my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, announced to the House on Tuesday 29 September, the department is working with universities to make sure that all students are supported to return home safely and spend Christmas with their loved ones, if they choose to do so.

We are working through measures to mitigate transmission risks and we are planning to publish guidance on students returning home safely at Christmas shortly.

The safety and wellbeing of staff and students in higher education (HE) is always our priority. The government is doing all it can to minimise the risks to those working and studying in our HE institutions in this unprecedented situation, whilst mitigating the impact on education.

The department is working with universities to make sure that all students are supported to return home safely and spend Christmas with their loved ones, if they choose to do so. Where students choose to stay in their university accommodation over Christmas, universities should continue making sure that they are well looked after. The department is working with the sector to publish guidance on students returning home safely at Christmas.

The government has worked closely with the Office for Students (OfS) to help clarify that providers can draw upon existing funding to provide hardship funds and support disadvantaged students impacted by the COVID-19 outbreaks. Providers can use OfS Student Premium funding, worth around £256 million for academic year 2020/21, towards student hardship funds, including the purchase of IT equipment and mental health support, as well as to support providers’ access and participation plans.

I wrote to Vice Chancellors in October outlining that student welfare should remain a priority and have convened a taskforce on mental health and wellbeing to address the current and pressing issues that students are facing during the COVID-19 outbreak.

The OfS funded Student Space platform bridges gaps in support for students arising from this unprecedented situation and is designed to work alongside existing services.

Students struggling with their mental health at this time can also access support via the NHS and online resources from Public Health England, along with support from mental health charity Mind. NHS mental health support is available here: https://www.nhs.uk/apps-library/category/mental-health/.

Online resources from Public Health England are available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-guidance-for-the-public-on-mental-health-and-wellbeing.

Support from mental health charity Mind is available here: https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/tips-for-everyday-living/student-life/about-student-mental-health/.

Many mature students need to study flexibly and we have taken a number of steps over recent years to encourage more flexible learning. These include greater support for part-time learners through maintenance support, and removing restrictions which had prevented students getting loan funding for part-time science, technology, mathematics and engineering undergraduate degrees if they were equivalent or lower qualifications.

The number of part-time students undertaking full undergraduate degrees has increased in recent years, but the numbers of part-time students overall (including those taking shorter courses) has declined. Therefore, we need to take much more radical steps to support lifelong learning. This is why my right hon. Friend, the Prime Minister, announced that we will introduce a flexible lifelong loan entitlement to 4 years of post-18 education, providing incentives for people to build the skills the economy needs. This will provide finance for shorter-term studies, rather than people having to study in 1, 3 or 4-year blocks. People will be able to break up their study into segments, transfer credits between colleges and universities, and take on more part-time study.

As the economy recovers from the COVID-19 outbreak, it will be even more important that individuals have opportunities to develop their skills over the course of their lifetimes. We will be consulting on the introduction of a lifelong loan entitlement in due course. This will set out proposals for how and when we will be introducing it. Where necessary, we will bring forward legislation in this Parliament.

During and after the COVID-19 outbreak, our aim is for higher education (HE) providers to continue to deliver HE provision and support the needs of students, both on and off campus.

Since my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, announced this government’s unprecedented package of support to help keep staff employed and support businesses, the department has provided guidance for HE providers so that they are aware of the support that is available to them. This includes guidance on how they may access the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS).

On 24 September the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced additional government support to provide certainty to businesses and workers impacted by the COVID-19 outbreak. This package includes the new Job Support Scheme (JSS). This is designed to protect viable jobs in businesses which are facing lower demand over the winter months due to COVID-19. Like the CJRS, the government expects that the JSS will not be used by many public sector organisations. Where employers receive public funding for staff costs, and that funding is continuing, we expect employers to use that money to continue to pay staff in the usual fashion. This also applies to non-public sector employers that receive public funding for staff costs.

We recognise that many students are facing additional challenges due to the disruption and uncertainty caused by the COVID-19 outbreak. Protecting students’ health and wellbeing is a priority and we expect providers to ensure that students are well looked after by staff with the right skills and experience to deliver the support they need. This includes the cleaning and security staff keeping campus safe and the catering staff providing meals, particularly for students self-isolating in halls, as well as staff providing mental health, wellbeing and pastoral support. However, HE providers are independent institutions and are responsible for their own decisions on staffing and employment issues. They should make employment decisions according to their own operational needs and the needs of their wider staff and student community.

COVID-19 has had a significant impact on both students and higher education (HE) providers, and we welcome the resilience, innovation and dedication from staff and students over these months.

It is our aim for HE providers to continue to deliver HE provision and support the needs of students, both on and off campus. We have also committed to work with HE providers to help them access the range of measures on offer to support jobs and financial sustainability.

The government is clear that we do not want to see any students miss out on the opportunity to benefit from our excellent HE system as a result of COVID-19. We expect that access to the business support schemes and the reprofiling of public funding should help stabilise most providers’ finances, and that should certainly be the first port of call for providers.

The department provided sector-specific guidance in April to help providers understand and access the range of government support on offer. This guidance confirmed that HE providers could access the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) to help safeguard jobs.

Furthermore, on 4 May, we announced a package of measures to give further support to HE providers at this time of financial pressure. This included pulling forward an estimated £2.6 billion worth of forecast tuition fee payments to ease cashflow pressures and bringing forward quality-related research funding for HE providers in England in the current academic year by £100 million.

My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, announced further information about the Higher Education Restructuring Regime on 16 July. This may be deployed as a last resort, if a decision has been made to support a provider in England, when other steps to preserve a provider’s viability and mitigate the risks of financial failure have not proved sufficient. The overarching objectives, which will guide the department’s assessment of cases, will be protecting the welfare of current students, preserving the sector’s internationally outstanding science base and supporting the role that HE providers play in regional and local economies, through the provision of high-quality courses aligned with economic and societal needs.

We will consider HE providers’ circumstances on a case-by-case basis, supported by expert advice, to ensure there is a robust value-for-money case for intervention, with support for restructuring in the form of repayable loans coming from public funds as a last resort, and with strict conditions attached that align with wider government objectives.

On 24 September, my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, announced additional government support to provide certainty to businesses and workers impacted by the COVID-19 outbreak. This package includes the new Job Support Scheme? (JSS). This is designed to protect viable jobs in businesses which are facing lower demand over the winter months due to COVID-19. Like the CJRS, the government expects that the JSS will not be used by many public sector organisations. Where employers receive public funding for staff costs, and that funding is continuing, we expect employers to use that money to continue to pay staff in the usual fashion. This also applies to non-public sector employers that receive public funding for staff costs.

However, regardless of the unprecedented levels of government support available, HE providers are autonomous of government and they are ultimately responsible for their own staffing decisions, which we expect them to make according to their own operational needs.

The government recognises that the COVID-19 outbreak is bringing significant financial challenges to the higher education (HE) sector and we have been working closely with the sector, including with smaller specialist providers, the Office for Students (OfS), and other government departments to monitor the likely impacts.

The OfS as the independent regulator of HE in England monitors their financial sustainability. The OfS provides targeted allocations for world-leading specialist providers, which was £43 million for 2020/21. The OfS hopes to undertake a review of the current specialist provider funding arrangements later this year and will release further details at the earliest opportunity.

The government has also announced a package of measures which combines different ways to give further support to providers at this time of financial pressure. We have pulled forward an estimated £2.6 billion worth of forecast tuition fee payments to ease cashflow pressure this autumn. In the last academic year, we also brought forward £100 million quality-related research funding support for HE providers in England.

This is on top of the unprecedented package of support for businesses already announced by my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, including the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme and a range of business loan schemes, to help pay wages, keep staff employed and support businesses whose viability is threatened by the outbreak. HE providers are eligible to apply for these schemes.

The government has also announced a further package of support to universities, and other research organisations, to enable them to continue their research and innovation activities. This includes £280 million of government funding as well as a package of low-interest loans with long pay-back periods, supplemented by a small amount of government grants. In sharing responsibility for the future of science and research with our world-leading university system, from the autumn, the government will cover up to 80% of a university’s income losses from international students for the academic year 2020/21, up to the value of their non-publicly funded research activity.

My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, announced further information about the Higher Education Restructuring Regime on 16 July. This may be deployed as a last resort, if a decision has been made to support a provider in England, when other steps to preserve a provider’s viability and mitigate the risks of financial failure have not proved sufficient. The overarching objectives, which will guide the department’s assessment of cases, will be protecting the welfare of current students, preserving the sector’s internationally outstanding science base and supporting the role that HE providers play in regional and local economies by offering high quality courses aligned with economic and societal needs. We will consider providers’ circumstances on a case-by-case basis, supported by expert advice, to ensure there is a robust value for money case for intervention. Public funds in the form of repayable loans to support restructuring will be as a last resort with strict conditions that align with wider government objectives.

The government recognises that the COVID-19 outbreak is bringing significant financial challenges to the higher education (HE) sector and we have been working closely with the sector, including with smaller specialist providers, the Office for Students (OfS), and other government departments to monitor the likely impacts.

The OfS as the independent regulator of HE in England monitors their financial sustainability. The OfS provides targeted allocations for world-leading specialist providers, which was £43 million for 2020/21. The OfS hopes to undertake a review of the current specialist provider funding arrangements later this year and will release further details at the earliest opportunity.

The government has also announced a package of measures which combines different ways to give further support to providers at this time of financial pressure. We have pulled forward an estimated £2.6 billion worth of forecast tuition fee payments to ease cashflow pressure this autumn. In the last academic year, we also brought forward £100 million quality-related research funding support for HE providers in England.

This is on top of the unprecedented package of support for businesses already announced by my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, including the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme and a range of business loan schemes, to help pay wages, keep staff employed and support businesses whose viability is threatened by the outbreak. HE providers are eligible to apply for these schemes.

The government has also announced a further package of support to universities, and other research organisations, to enable them to continue their research and innovation activities. This includes £280 million of government funding as well as a package of low-interest loans with long pay-back periods, supplemented by a small amount of government grants. In sharing responsibility for the future of science and research with our world-leading university system, from the autumn, the government will cover up to 80% of a university’s income losses from international students for the academic year 2020/21, up to the value of their non-publicly funded research activity.

My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, announced further information about the Higher Education Restructuring Regime on 16 July. This may be deployed as a last resort, if a decision has been made to support a provider in England, when other steps to preserve a provider’s viability and mitigate the risks of financial failure have not proved sufficient. The overarching objectives, which will guide the department’s assessment of cases, will be protecting the welfare of current students, preserving the sector’s internationally outstanding science base and supporting the role that HE providers play in regional and local economies by offering high quality courses aligned with economic and societal needs. We will consider providers’ circumstances on a case-by-case basis, supported by expert advice, to ensure there is a robust value for money case for intervention. Public funds in the form of repayable loans to support restructuring will be as a last resort with strict conditions that align with wider government objectives.

The government recognises that the COVID-19 outbreak is bringing significant financial challenges to the higher education (HE) sector and we have been working closely with the sector, including with smaller specialist providers, the Office for Students (OfS), and other government departments to monitor the likely impacts.

The OfS as the independent regulator of HE in England monitors their financial sustainability. The OfS provides targeted allocations for world-leading specialist providers, which was £43 million for 2020/21. The OfS hopes to undertake a review of the current specialist provider funding arrangements later this year and will release further details at the earliest opportunity.

The government has also announced a package of measures which combines different ways to give further support to providers at this time of financial pressure. We have pulled forward an estimated £2.6 billion worth of forecast tuition fee payments to ease cashflow pressure this autumn. In the last academic year, we also brought forward £100 million quality-related research funding support for HE providers in England.

This is on top of the unprecedented package of support for businesses already announced by my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, including the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme and a range of business loan schemes, to help pay wages, keep staff employed and support businesses whose viability is threatened by the outbreak. HE providers are eligible to apply for these schemes.

The government has also announced a further package of support to universities, and other research organisations, to enable them to continue their research and innovation activities. This includes £280 million of government funding as well as a package of low-interest loans with long pay-back periods, supplemented by a small amount of government grants. In sharing responsibility for the future of science and research with our world-leading university system, from the autumn, the government will cover up to 80% of a university’s income losses from international students for the academic year 2020/21, up to the value of their non-publicly funded research activity.

My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, announced further information about the Higher Education Restructuring Regime on 16 July. This may be deployed as a last resort, if a decision has been made to support a provider in England, when other steps to preserve a provider’s viability and mitigate the risks of financial failure have not proved sufficient. The overarching objectives, which will guide the department’s assessment of cases, will be protecting the welfare of current students, preserving the sector’s internationally outstanding science base and supporting the role that HE providers play in regional and local economies by offering high quality courses aligned with economic and societal needs. We will consider providers’ circumstances on a case-by-case basis, supported by expert advice, to ensure there is a robust value for money case for intervention. Public funds in the form of repayable loans to support restructuring will be as a last resort with strict conditions that align with wider government objectives.

The government recognises that the COVID-19 outbreak is bringing significant financial challenges to the higher education (HE) sector and we have been working closely with the sector, including with smaller specialist providers, the Office for Students (OfS), and other government departments to monitor the likely impacts.

The OfS as the independent regulator of HE in England monitors their financial sustainability. The OfS provides targeted allocations for world-leading specialist providers, which was £43 million for 2020/21. The OfS hopes to undertake a review of the current specialist provider funding arrangements later this year and will release further details at the earliest opportunity.

The government has also announced a package of measures which combines different ways to give further support to providers at this time of financial pressure. We have pulled forward an estimated £2.6 billion worth of forecast tuition fee payments to ease cashflow pressure this autumn. In the last academic year, we also brought forward £100 million quality-related research funding support for HE providers in England.

This is on top of the unprecedented package of support for businesses already announced by my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, including the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme and a range of business loan schemes, to help pay wages, keep staff employed and support businesses whose viability is threatened by the outbreak. HE providers are eligible to apply for these schemes.

The government has also announced a further package of support to universities, and other research organisations, to enable them to continue their research and innovation activities. This includes £280 million of government funding as well as a package of low-interest loans with long pay-back periods, supplemented by a small amount of government grants. In sharing responsibility for the future of science and research with our world-leading university system, from the autumn, the government will cover up to 80% of a university’s income losses from international students for the academic year 2020/21, up to the value of their non-publicly funded research activity.

My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, announced further information about the Higher Education Restructuring Regime on 16 July. This may be deployed as a last resort, if a decision has been made to support a provider in England, when other steps to preserve a provider’s viability and mitigate the risks of financial failure have not proved sufficient. The overarching objectives, which will guide the department’s assessment of cases, will be protecting the welfare of current students, preserving the sector’s internationally outstanding science base and supporting the role that HE providers play in regional and local economies by offering high quality courses aligned with economic and societal needs. We will consider providers’ circumstances on a case-by-case basis, supported by expert advice, to ensure there is a robust value for money case for intervention. Public funds in the form of repayable loans to support restructuring will be as a last resort with strict conditions that align with wider government objectives.

The Government recognises that pupils will have missed a critical period of their education in the 2019/20 academic year due to the COVID-19 outbreak. The Government has announced a catch-up package worth £1 billion, including a £650 million ‘Catch Up Premium’ to support schools to make up for lost teaching time. The expectation is that this funding will be spent on the additional activities required to support children and young people to catch up after a period of disruption to their education.

To support schools to make the best use of this funding, the Education Endowment Foundation published a support guide for schools with evidence-based approaches to catch up for all students, including summer support: https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/covid-19-resources/national-tutoring-programme/covid-19-support-guide-for-schools/#nav-covid-19-support-guide-for-schools1.

Alongside this, the Government is launching a new £350 million National Tutoring Programme for disadvantaged pupils. This will increase access to high-quality tuition during the 2020/21 academic year for the most disadvantaged young people, helping to accelerate their academic progress and tackling the attainment gap between them and their peers.

Oak National Academy continued to make available all of their lessons, Oak Activity Clubs and assemblies from the summer term on their website over the school holidays. Parents and pupils were able to access these, and Oak National Academy also developed an 'Oak Acorn Chart' to help pupils record their progress over the summer. Further information about Oak National Academy can be found at: https://www.thenational.academy/.

The BBC also developed a comprehensive new education package, which was available during the summer holiday on TV (via the red button), BBC iPlayer, and online at BBC Bitesize. The BBC has since adapted their education support with a new BBC Bitesize package for the academic year 2020/21. In addition, the Department published a list of high-quality online resources, which have been assessed with support from some of the country’s leading educational experts and could be used during the summer: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-online-education-resources.

We are aware that local authorities have experienced pressures on their high needs budgets. That is why we are putting £730 million of additional funding into high needs next year, which represents a 10% increase. Coming on top of the additional £780 million in 2020-21, that means that high needs budgets will have grown by over £1.5 billion, or 24%, in just two years.

The London Borough of Tower Hamlets has a provisional high needs funding allocation of £66 million next year, which is a £6.3 million increase compared to this year. Provisional allocations for every local authority can be found at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-funding-formula-tables-for-schools-and-high-needs-2021-to-2022.

Alongside additional funding, we are continuing the review of the system of support for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities to see what improvements are needed. We are also working with local authorities that have the largest deficits to make sure that they have realistic recovery plans and the support they need to implement them.

Supporting the most vulnerable children, young people and adults is a priority for us, especially at this time. This is a challenge unlike any we have faced in our lifetimes. We know that this period is particularly hard for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), their families and those who support them. Co-production with families, partnership and communication remain critical.

Short breaks (or ‘respite care’) are funded opportunities for disabled children and young people to be cared for away from the family homes, which local authorities have a statutory duty to provide. Local authorities are best placed to understand the needs of their local area and to commission provision appropriately. We have published guidance to support providers in operating safely and emphasised the importance of prioritising the delivery of service which support disabled children and young people.

On 2 July 2020, the government announced that an additional £500 million funding will be available for additional expenditure across local government services, taking the total additional funding made available to local authorities to £3.7 billion. This can support local authorities to deliver their respite offers (in line with their existing duties) and to address increased costs.

On 19 May 2020, the department announced that the family fund will receive funding of £37.3 million in 2020-21 to help low income families with seriously ill or disabled children (over 75,000 families). £10 million of the total has been committed specifically in response to the COVID-19 outbreak.

Our Holiday Activities and Food Programme is integral to our approach to provide healthy food and activities to children over the summer. On 22 June, we announced 17 local authority areas that will benefit from our holiday activities and food programme this summer 2020, providing thousands of children with access to healthy meals and enriching activities, building on the success of the 2018 and 2019 programmes. This programme is open all children eligible for free school meals in those areas, including those with SEND.

Supporting the most vulnerable children, young people and adults is a priority for us, especially at this time. This is a challenge unlike any we have faced in our lifetimes. We know that this period is particularly hard for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), their families and those who support them. Co-production with families, partnership and communication remain critical.

Short breaks (or ‘respite care’) are funded opportunities for disabled children and young people to be cared for away from the family homes, which local authorities have a statutory duty to provide. Local authorities are best placed to understand the needs of their local area and to commission provision appropriately. We have published guidance to support providers in operating safely and emphasised the importance of prioritising the delivery of service which support disabled children and young people.

On 2 July 2020, the government announced that an additional £500 million funding will be available for additional expenditure across local government services, taking the total additional funding made available to local authorities to £3.7 billion. This can support local authorities to deliver their respite offers (in line with their existing duties) and to address increased costs.

On 19 May 2020, the department announced that the family fund will receive funding of £37.3 million in 2020-21 to help low income families with seriously ill or disabled children (over 75,000 families). £10 million of the total has been committed specifically in response to the COVID-19 outbreak.

Our Holiday Activities and Food Programme is integral to our approach to provide healthy food and activities to children over the summer. On 22 June, we announced 17 local authority areas that will benefit from our holiday activities and food programme this summer 2020, providing thousands of children with access to healthy meals and enriching activities, building on the success of the 2018 and 2019 programmes. This programme is open all children eligible for free school meals in those areas, including those with SEND.

When making decisions about asking schools to welcome back more children, Ministers have had due regard to the need to eliminate discrimination and to advance equality of opportunities and foster good relations between people who share a protected characteristic and people who do not, as required by section 149 of the Equality Act 2010.

We continue to keep our assessment of those matters under review. This has been an in depth and ongoing assessment of the impacts of the Government’s policy, including on groups with protected characteristics such as race. The assessments continue to form an active part of the decision-making process.

Importantly, we know that some staff, parents and pupils may be anxious about returning to school. Where individuals are concerned about their comparatively increased risk from coronavirus, due to factors including ethnicity, age, sex and comorbidities, we are asking school leaders to discuss concerns and provide reassurance of the measures they are putting in place to reduce the risk, in line with our guidance.

When making decisions about asking schools to welcome back more children, Ministers have had due regard to the need to eliminate discrimination and to advance equality of opportunities and foster good relations between people who share a protected characteristic and people who do not, as required by section 149 of the Equality Act 2010.

We continue to keep our assessment of those matters under review. This has been an in depth and ongoing assessment of the impacts of the Government’s policy, including on groups with protected characteristics such as race. The assessments continue to form an active part of the decision-making process.

Importantly, we know that some staff, parents and pupils may be anxious about returning to school. Where individuals are concerned about their comparatively increased risk from coronavirus, due to factors including ethnicity, age, sex and comorbidities, we are asking school leaders to discuss concerns and provide reassurance of the measures they are putting in place to reduce the risk, in line with our guidance.

When making decisions about asking schools to welcome back more children, we have had due regard to the need to eliminate discrimination and to advance equality of opportunities and foster good relations between people who share a protected characteristic and people who do not as required by section 149 of the Equality Act 2010. We continue to keep our assessment of those matters under review.

In respect of BAME children and adults specifically, we continue to assess the emerging evidence, including Public Health England’s review into disparities in COVID-19 outcomes and the report on the impact of COVID-19 on BAME groups, and consider what this means for the education system.

There is further work to do to understand the key drivers of these disparities and the relationships between the different risk factors. In the meantime, we continue to encourage schools to be particularly sensitive to the needs and concerns of BAME pupils, parents and carers, and staff, considering if any additional measure or reasonable adjustments may need to be put in place to mitigate those concerns.

The information requested is not held centrally.

The information requested is not held centrally.

The information requested is not held centrally.

The information requested is not held centrally.

Owing to the COVID-19 outbreak, the government understands that children and parents face an entirely unprecedented situation over the summer. To reflect this, we will be providing additional funding for a Covid Summer Food Fund that will enable families with children who are eligible for free school meals to receive food vouchers covering the six-week holiday period. This is a specific measure to reflect the unique circumstances of the outbreak. As we have announced this provision will take place, we will not publish an assessment of any alternative scenarios.

In its weekly coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) surveillance report, Public Health England (PHE) provides information on the number of acute respiratory outbreaks in schools. The Department continues to engage with PHE and other organisations to ensure our guidance reflects the most up to date scientific advice.

We want to get all children and young people back into education as soon as the scientific advice allows because it is the best place for them to learn, and because we know how important it is for their mental wellbeing to have social interactions with their peers, carers and teachers. Children returning to educational and childcare settings in greater numbers will also allow more families to return to work.

In all schools and nurseries, preventing the spread of COVID-19 involves dealing with direct and indirect transmission. Our guidance sets out a range of approaches and actions to do this. These can be seen as a hierarchy of controls that, when implemented, creates an inherently safer system, where the risk of transmission of infection is substantially reduced.

In its weekly coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) surveillance report, Public Health England provides information on the number of acute respiratory outbreaks in schools. They do not have detail on the proportion of this number who are from BAME backgrounds.

The government announced at the Local Government Finance Settlement that English councils' core spending power is rising by over £2.9 billion this financial year. This includes £1 billion of new grant funding that can be used flexibly by local authorities to deliver adult and children’s social care services. Further to this, the government has provided over £3.2 billion of additional funding to support local authorities in meeting COVID-19 related pressures including on children’s services. We will keep this under very close review over the coming weeks and months.

Longer term funding considerations are a matter for the next Spending Review.

The Mayor of London is responsible for air quality in the capital and has reserve powers under the Environment Act 1995 to reflect this.

The UK is compliant with our air quality obligations for all pollutants with the exception of nitrogen dioxide concentrations at roadside locations, and we have put in place a £3.8 billion plan to tackle this issue. More widely, the Government’s Clean Air Strategy sets out an ambitious programme of action to reduce air pollution from a wide range of sources. Our Environment Bill delivers key parts of this Strategy, makes a clear commitment to set a legally binding target to reduce fine particulate matter and enables local authorities to take more effective action to tackle air pollution in their areas.

The Department has not made any assessment of these factors in either Poplar and Limehouse or England.

It is for local authorities to ensure that any changes they propose to make to road layouts are delivered in line with relevant legislation, consultation and noticing requirements. The Department recommends they carry out monitoring and evaluation of schemes but it is for them to determine how to do so, in line with relevant good practice.

To support the Active Travel Fund, the Government has published additional Network Management Duty guidance which clearly set out what the Government expects local authorities to do in making changes to their road layouts to encourage cycling and walking in response to Covid-19 and to support a green restart and recovery.

The guidance is clear that the Public Sector Equality Duty still applies and in making any changes to their road networks, authorities must consider the needs of disabled people and those with other protected characteristics, for example by carrying out Equality Impact Assessments on proposed schemes.

The Department for Transport promotes road safety messaging through the THINK! campaign. While we are not directly running a campaign on rule 170 of The Highway Code, THINK! has incorporated messaging around taking extra care at junctions in its recent campaigns. In March 2019, THINK! ran a campaign for new drivers, which featured a short film on looking out for cyclists, motorcyclists, and horse riders at junctions. This summer, with the increase in cycling and walking, THINK! collaborated with the Department’s Safer Transport campaign to promote cycle safety tips, including advice for drivers to check for cyclists when pulling out at junctions.

We are analysing consultation responses following a review of The Highway Code which aims to improve safety for cyclists and pedestrians, particularly at road junctions. THINK! continues to review its campaign priorities and will ensure that communications on changes to The Highway Code, including key messaging on how to behave at junctions, will be incorporated into future campaigns.

Diversity and Inclusion is at the heart of resourcing across the Department for Transport (DfT); developing and testing innovative new approaches to attract and hire a more diverse candidate pool. We have clear objectives to increase representation rates to reflect the proportion of BAME individuals in the local working-age population, strengthen our BAME talent pipeline (grades 6 and 7) and our leadership cadre (SCS) as well as increase diversity in roles and professions where BAME staff are underrepresented.

The data provided relates to roles advertised by the Department for Transport on the Civil Service Jobs recruitment platform. Any permanent promotion opportunities within the department would be advertised on the platform to allow fair and open competition with an appointment being made on merit in line with the Civil Service Commissioners principles.

The data provided is based on identifications of applicants who are currently Civil Servants in any government department or agency, and is not restricted to promotions just from the DfT workforce and covers the Department and its four executive agencies. It does not include the diversity of applicants or successful applicants who were applying from outside the Civil Service. The data can be found in the attached table.

The completeness and accuracy of the data above is influenced by the following factors.

For vacancies advertised across government, individuals need to have a verified account to confirm their eligibility as existing Civil Servants. As part of their personal profile, Civil Servants are requested to provide their current substantive grade. If individuals have not completed their personal profile we would be unable to identify whether they were promoted.

For vacancies advertised externally, individuals have the option to use a privately registered account as there is no requirement for them to confirm that they are existing Civil Servants. This means that in the instance that an existing Civil Servant applies for an externally advertised vacancy using a private account, then we cannot identify whether or not the successful individual is being promoted.

In light of this, the data provided may not be comprehensive and would only be indicative of ‘how many and what proportion of Civil Service staff who applied for promotion within his Department between 1 September 2019 and 31 August 2020 and identified as (a) BAME and (b) White were successful at each grade’.

As a driving licence is not a travel document, an out of date licence should not prevent a UK citizen from returning to the UK. There is no facility to issue temporary emergency driving licences.

UK citizens with an urgent need to travel who do not have a valid passport may be able to apply for an emergency travel document. Information on how to how to apply for an emergency travel document can be found at https://www.gov.uk/emergency-travel-document

As a driving licence is not a travel document, an out of date licence should not prevent a UK citizen from returning to the UK. There is no facility to issue temporary emergency driving licences.

UK citizens with an urgent need to travel who do not have a valid passport may be able to apply for an emergency travel document. Information on how to how to apply for an emergency travel document can be found at https://www.gov.uk/emergency-travel-document

To help tackle the spread of coronavirus, rail operators and Network Rail are doing more to ensure our trains and stations are clean. The kinds of steps being taken include a greater focus on cleaning high-touch areas in trains and at stations (such as hand rails and ticket machine screens), more intensive cleaning and ensuring toilets are well stocked with soap.

In addition, they are also ensuring their staff are kept aware of the latest advice to maintain good hand hygiene. They are also promoting the public health advice for everyone to wash their hands regularly and to ‘catch it, bin it, kill it’ when they cough or sneeze.

Customers who fail to satisfy the Habitual Residence Test are advised of appeal rights within the decision notification letter they receive. The letter also reminds them of their right to submit a Mandatory Reconsideration, which will be reviewed by another Decision Maker in our Disputes Resolution Team.

Customers who contact the Department or Jobcentres for further assistance are directed to local support services available. If they are deemed to be extremely vulnerable, a referral is made to our local Advanced Customer Service Senior Leaders team, who have greater local knowledge of support available for customers in need.

All complex decisions for the Habitual Residence Test will be escalated to specialist Decision Makers, who go through specific training on making Habitual Residence Test decisions. These decisions are subject to rigorous quality standards.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 19^th January to question number 104377.

The new site is located near to Poplar Jobcentre and has excellent transport links.

Work Coaches can advise claimants in such circumstances.

If an individual has a disability, caring responsibilities, children or any other reason for needing support Jobcentre Work Coaches will discuss and offer support to people based on their individual circumstances this also includes limited or no access to the internet at home, for which claimants can request to attend a local Jobcentre. Work Coaches will continue to offer employment support to people in Poplar and Limehouse.

The new site is located near to Poplar Jobcentre and has excellent transport links.

Work Coaches can advise claimants in such circumstances.

If an individual has a disability, caring responsibilities, children or any other reason for needing support Jobcentre Work Coaches will discuss and offer support to people based on their individual circumstances this also includes limited or no access to the internet at home, for which claimants can request to attend a local Jobcentre. Work Coaches will continue to offer employment support to people in Poplar and Limehouse.

The new site is located near to Poplar Jobcentre and has excellent transport links.

Work Coaches can advise claimants in such circumstances.

If an individual has a disability, caring responsibilities, children or any other reason for needing support Jobcentre Work Coaches will discuss and offer support to people based on their individual circumstances this also includes limited or no access to the internet at home, for which claimants can request to attend a local Jobcentre. Work Coaches will continue to offer employment support to people in Poplar and Limehouse.

The new site is located near to Poplar Jobcentre and has excellent transport links.

Work Coaches can advise claimants in such circumstances.

If an individual has a disability, caring responsibilities, children or any other reason for needing support Jobcentre Work Coaches will discuss and offer support to people based on their individual circumstances this also includes limited or no access to the internet at home, for which claimants can request to attend a local Jobcentre. Work Coaches will continue to offer employment support to people in Poplar and Limehouse.

The Department is able to confirm that employees from Poplar Jobcentre will remain in employment under the same terms and conditions following the closure of Poplar Jobcentre.

The closure of Poplar Jobcentre is as a result of the landlord’s plans to redevelop the site. Consultation has taken place in confidence with the Tower Hamlets Council. The Department undertook an independent and extensive property search and opted for the most suitable replacement building in the local area.

The closure of Poplar Jobcentre is as a result of the landlord’s plans to redevelop the site. Consultation has taken place in confidence with the Tower Hamlets Council. The Department undertook an independent and extensive property search and opted for the most suitable replacement building in the local area.

As has always been the case, we will continue to assess new claims to Personal Independence Payment (PIP), and reviews of existing PIP awards, on the basis of the paper-based evidence whenever possible. While telephone, paper-based and a limited number of video assessments will continue to be appropriate for many of our claimants, for others it might be more appropriate to conduct a face-to-face assessment in order to collect sufficient evidence and make a robust recommendation. These might include claimants without access to a telephone or a reliable telephone signal, claimants who lack insight into their condition, those with speech or hearing impairments (who cannot use the text relay service), and claimants who, due to their condition, feel unable to communicate via telephone. We will be identifying the most appropriate assessment type for individual claimants.

The information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

Award reviews, whether following an extension to the award or not, are initiated within the 12 months prior to the award ending.

To ensure continuity of payments to our customers in receipt of PIP [during the coronavirus pandemic], we have extended awards with a review date to ensure that a review can take place before the end of the award.

The information requested for both Employment and Support Allowance and Personal Independence Payment is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

Sanctions statistics on those people claiming Universal Credit are published quarterly and can be found at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/jobseekers-allowance-sanctions

The latest statistics are to July 2020 and the statistics from November 2020 to January 2021 are expected to be published in May 2021.

The information requested on sanctions incurred whilst waiting for a work capability assessment is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

The Department does not record this information.

In respect to Personal Independence Payment (PIP), I would like to refer you to the detailed statistics that can be found in Stat-Xplore: https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/.

The latest available data on PIP includes clearances split by geographical area (local authority and parliamentary constituency) and by type of clearance (i.e. whether the claim was awarded, disallowed or withdrawn) for both new claims and reassessed claims.

Clearance type details can be broken down by Awarded and Disallowed which includes ‘Disallowed post-referral to the AP due to failing to attend assessment appointment’.

Guidance on how to use Stat-Xplore can be found here: https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/online-help/index.html

In respect of Employment and Support Allowance, the information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

No assessment has been made.

Throughout this pandemic, this Government has delivered an unprecedented package of support to protect jobs and businesses and, for those in most need, injected billions into the welfare system. The new Covid Winter Grant Scheme builds on that support with an additional £170m for local authorities in England, to support families with children and other vulnerable people with the cost of food and essential utilities this winter.

Plans for the publication of ethnicity data can be found in the background information section of the Universal Credit Statistics Background Information & Methodology document.

No such estimate has been made. The Department has automatically extended awards of Personal Independence Payment (PIP) where needed, and have issued notifications to all customers whose awards have been extended as part of this exercise.

Where claimants have been affected by accidental cessation of the severe disability premium as part of their Employment and Support Allowance, we are taking swift action to rectify the mistake. The Department’s position on compensation is that each case must be considered on its own merits, taking into account the particular circumstances of that case.

Specific information on the waiting times for reinstatement of the premium is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

The Department has been automatically applying extension of awards of Personal Independence Payment (PIP) and have issued around 756,000 notifications to date. We still have c850,000 notifications to issue and remaining customers will be notified of their new award end date early 2021, the planned completion date for all extension activity.

The £20 per week uplift to Universal Credit and Working Tax Credit was announced by the Chancellor as a temporary measure in March 2020 to support those facing the most financial disruption as a result of the public health emergency. This measure remains in place until April 2021. As the Government has done throughout this crisis, it will continue to assess how best to support low-income families, which is why we will look at the economic and health context in the new year.

The Department has been automatically applying extension of awards of Personal Independence Payment (PIP) for all claims due for review in 2021-22. This does not include cases with a new decision from July, when review and reassessment activity resumed, as they are not part of the Covid-19 easements exercise.

Once someone has been awarded Personal Independence Payment (PIP), which can be paid at one of eight rates, that award will be usually be reviewed. Regular reviews are a key feature of the benefit and ensure that payments accurately match the current needs of claimants. Shorter term awards without a review can also be made where there is an expectation that a claimant’s condition will not give rise to a further award. Claimants given a fixed term award with no review are free to apply for PIP before their existing award ends and will be treated as a new claim.

Advice is available to Case Managers on the appropriate award length and was deposited in the House Library on 10 October 2018 [http://data.parliament.uk/DepositedPapers/Files/DEP2018-1113/UIN_174062_-_Award_period_guidance_10.10.18.pdf]. The guidance has since been updated to include guidance about awarding ongoing awards for PIP recipients of State Pension age.

The specific information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

We are aware of the impact that extending PIP award end dates has had on the Severe Disability Premiums of a number of ESA claimants, between April and July 2020. Work is being undertaken to correct this issue and an alternative procedure has been put in place.

The Department has been automatically applying extension of awards of Personal Independence Payment (PIP) for all decisions in scope of the Covid-19 easements including those decisions first instated at First Tier Tribunals. All customers receiving an extension will be notified of their new award end date early 2021, the planned completion date for all extension activity.

The available information on the number of Universal Credit households by parliamentary constituency is published and can be found at:

https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/

Guidance on how to extract the information required can be found at:

https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/online-help/Getting-Started.html

DWP, through their Jobcentre network, do not refer claimants to food banks or issue food banks vouchers. The Department has long-standing guidance in place which allows staff to signpost customers in writing to a food bank where they have asked for details, and if all sources of statutory support have been exhausted.

No estimate has been made.

The Department has not been approached by either Gateway Housing, Tower Hamlets Council or Swan Housing Association regarding localised support for displaced residents. We will provide support to any residents who have been affected and are working with local agencies to coordinate our services and ensure people are able to access the help they need.

This is a live and developing investigation and the well-established work-related death protocol for England and Wales is being followed. The Metropolitan Police are therefore leading at present, supported by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).

HSE will keep the department informed as appropriate, and work to prevent further incident and effectively secure justice. No Prohibition Notice has been issued but that will be considered if the investigation reveals circumstances requiring it. For the present, a Notice to Leave Undisturbed is in place across the site.

Under the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998 (LOLER), the Principal Contractor at the site is responsible for having the crane thoroughly examined before it can be brought into use. HSE had not inspected the crane that collapsed and there are no further cranes on this site.

The collapsed crane and damaged homes are deemed to be dangerous structures. The immediate surroundings have therefore been evacuated, while the crane is safely removed, and dangerous structures made safe.

This is a live and developing investigation and the well-established work-related death protocol for England and Wales is being followed. The Metropolitan Police are therefore leading at present, supported by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).

HSE will keep the department informed as appropriate, and work to prevent further incident and effectively secure justice. No Prohibition Notice has been issued but that will be considered if the investigation reveals circumstances requiring it. For the present, a Notice to Leave Undisturbed is in place across the site.

Under the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998 (LOLER), the Principal Contractor at the site is responsible for having the crane thoroughly examined before it can be brought into use. HSE had not inspected the crane that collapsed and there are no further cranes on this site.

The collapsed crane and damaged homes are deemed to be dangerous structures. The immediate surroundings have therefore been evacuated, while the crane is safely removed, and dangerous structures made safe.

This is a live and developing investigation and the well-established work-related death protocol for England and Wales is being followed. The Metropolitan Police are therefore leading at present, supported by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).

HSE will keep the department informed as appropriate, and work to prevent further incident and effectively secure justice. No Prohibition Notice has been issued but that will be considered if the investigation reveals circumstances requiring it. For the present, a Notice to Leave Undisturbed is in place across the site.

Under the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998 (LOLER), the Principal Contractor at the site is responsible for having the crane thoroughly examined before it can be brought into use. HSE had not inspected the crane that collapsed and there are no further cranes on this site.

The collapsed crane and damaged homes are deemed to be dangerous structures. The immediate surroundings have therefore been evacuated, while the crane is safely removed, and dangerous structures made safe.

This is a live and developing investigation and the well-established work-related death protocol for England and Wales is being followed. The Metropolitan Police are therefore leading at present, supported by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).

HSE will keep the department informed as appropriate, and work to prevent further incident and effectively secure justice. No Prohibition Notice has been issued but that will be considered if the investigation reveals circumstances requiring it. For the present, a Notice to Leave Undisturbed is in place across the site.

Under the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998 (LOLER), the Principal Contractor at the site is responsible for having the crane thoroughly examined before it can be brought into use. HSE had not inspected the crane that collapsed and there are no further cranes on this site.

The collapsed crane and damaged homes are deemed to be dangerous structures. The immediate surroundings have therefore been evacuated, while the crane is safely removed, and dangerous structures made safe.

This is a live and developing investigation and the well-established work-related death protocol for England and Wales is being followed. The Metropolitan Police are therefore leading at present, supported by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).

HSE will keep the department informed as appropriate, and work to prevent further incident and effectively secure justice. No Prohibition Notice has been issued but that will be considered if the investigation reveals circumstances requiring it. For the present, a Notice to Leave Undisturbed is in place across the site.

Under the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998 (LOLER), the Principal Contractor at the site is responsible for having the crane thoroughly examined before it can be brought into use. HSE had not inspected the crane that collapsed and there are no further cranes on this site.

The collapsed crane and damaged homes are deemed to be dangerous structures. The immediate surroundings have therefore been evacuated, while the crane is safely removed, and dangerous structures made safe.

The Department first consulted with the Cabinet Office on revising the ESA65B letter in November 2014.

Personal Independence Payment (PIP) and Employment Support Allowance (ESA) do not have a specific definition for seriously unwell or disabled.

The latest available data on Mandatory Reconsideration (MR) clearances for PIP, Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) Work Capability Assessments and ESA sanctions by outcome is available on Stat-Xplore at:

https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/

Guidance for users is available at:

https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/online-help/Getting-Started.html

For clarity, and following checks with the Table Office, it appears question UIN 155401 referenced in part (b) of the question was answered on 3 July 2018.

The relevant Parliamentary Questions were corrected with a letter to the Member for Kensington which was issued on 3 May 2019 and a copy placed in the House Library.

It was decided to make the correction this way because of the time that had elapsed since the original answers were given, and to provide a correction to all of the answers at once to avoid potential confusion. They cannot now be amended on the Parliament Q&A System because we are now in a different Parliamentary session.

Universal Credit (UC) is a modern, flexible, personalised benefit reflecting the rapidly changing world of work and replaces six outdated and complex benefits with one. It is simplifying the benefits system and making work pay. Monthly assessment periods align to the way the majority of people are paid and also allows UC to be adjusted each month. This means that if a claimant’s income falls, they will not have to wait several months for a rise in their UC.

In the recent budget announcement on the 11 March 2020, the Chancellor announced the following changes to welfare provisions, in light of the fact not everyone will be eligible for Statutory Sick Pay (SSP): Rules will be relaxed for self-employed UC claimants whose earnings are affected by self-isolating due to the coronavirus so they are not financially worse off; Gainfully Self Employed claimants on UC, who are required to self-isolate or are ill as a result of Covid 19, will not have a Minimum Income floor (an assumed level of income) applied for a period of time while affected.

In addition, to better support the needs of people, particularly the self-employed and those not eligible for SSP, and/or not entitled to UC, we are removing the seven waiting days that currently apply to Employment Support Allowance (ESA). This means that everyone who makes a new claim for ESA and is entitled to the benefit, who are infected with COVID-19 or required to self-isolate, will be paid from day one of their claim.

Last year we implemented a new approach to handling applications for Mandatory Reconsideration (MR) in PIP which includes contacting claimants, where appropriate, to see if there is information that would enable us to change the decision. To support this, we are investing additional time for communication, evidence gather and review. This approach supports our aim - to make the right decision as early as possible - so claimants don’t need to progress to the appeal stage. Early results have been positive and the same approach has now been adopted in ESA and UC. We continue to engage with stakeholders to explore how we can further improve the effectiveness of the MR process.

Providers have a legal duty to notify the Care Quality Commission (CQC) of deaths of people detained, or liable to be detained, under the Mental Health Act 1983.

In the twelve months up to March 2021, the CQC were notified that there were 363 such deaths, including 268 from natural causes, of which 114 were identified as caused by COVID-19. In the previous twelve months to March 2020, the number of deaths notified to the CQC was 240, of which 143 were from natural causes. The data therefore suggests that COVID-19 has been a significant factor in the increase of natural cause deaths in 2020/21.

We are unable to provide the information requested as it could lead to the identification of individuals. Data held by NHS England and NHS Improvement relates to a small patient count of fewer than five cases.

All deaths of patients under the care of Tier 4 Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services are routinely reported to the Department via NHS England and NHS Improvement. Such deaths are also notified to the Care Quality Commission and the National Confidential Inquiry into Suicide and Safety in Mental Health.

No specific assessment has been made. We expect local National Health Service commissioning bodies to commission fertility services in line with the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s (NICE) guidelines, to ensure equitable access in England. NICE guidelines were updated in 2013 to include provision for female same-sex couples. However, the Department has agreed with NICE that the fertility guidelines should be reviewed and scoping for the review has started.

The Department also undertook an internal policy review of the variation in access to NHS fertility services in 2021. The review will inform the Women’s Health Strategy, which is due to be published in spring 2022.

The Antivirals Taskforce has secured 480,000 patient courses of Molnupiravir and 250,000 courses of PF-07321332 from Pfizer. These novel treatments may be used to treat individuals who do not respond to the vaccine, such as immunocompromised groups, as well as those who are unable to take the vaccine due to allergies. Molnupiravir is now available to clinically eligible patients through a new national study. Participants will be randomly selected and will still be able to access any other National Health Service care. In addition, patients in the highest-risk group will be able to access antiviral treatments directly, without the need to enrol in the study.

The UK Health Security Agency’s Green Book provides advice for clinicians to assess individuals with a history of allergies who may suffer an allergic reaction to a COVID-19 vaccine. It also sets out how second dose vaccinations may be considered for those who experienced a reaction to the first dose. The advice has been developed with the British Society for Allergy and Clinical Immunology (BSACI).

Anyone with a history of allergic reaction to an ingredient in a COVID-19 vaccine should not receive that vaccine, except with expert advice and should be offered an alternative if appropriate. Those with any other allergies, including those with prior anaphylaxis, can receive the vaccine. If an individual has an allergic reaction to a first dose of vaccine, the BSACI has advised that these individuals may be able to receive a second dose of vaccine. Many individuals have tolerated subsequent doses of the same vaccine and this is preferred as it avoids an individual being wrongly labelled as allergic for life. Individuals with non-allergic reactions to the first dose can receive the second dose in any vaccination setting.

No estimate has been made.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is the independent body that makes evidence-based recommendations for the National Health Service on whether new medicines should be routinely funded based on an assessment of their clinical and cost effectiveness. NICE published guidance in May 2021 that does not recommend tafamidis for the treatment of wild-type or hereditary transthyretin amyloidosis with cardiomyopathy in adults. NHS England and NHS Improvement do not therefore routinely commission tafamidis for NHS patients in England. Where a treatment is not routinely commissioned by the NHS, a patient’s clinician may submit an individual funding request if they consider it is in their patient’s best interests to have that treatment.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is the independent body that makes evidence-based recommendations for the National Health Service on whether new medicines should be routinely funded based on an assessment of their clinical and cost effectiveness. NICE published guidance in May 2021 that does not recommend tafamidis for the treatment of wild-type or hereditary transthyretin amyloidosis with cardiomyopathy in adults. NHS England and NHS Improvement do not therefore routinely commission tafamidis for NHS patients in England. Where a treatment is not routinely commissioned by the NHS, a patient’s clinician may submit an individual funding request if they consider it is in their patient’s best interests to have that treatment.

Individuals who have received a vaccine approved by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency administered overseas and reside in England can record their vaccination on the National Immunisation Management System (NIMS). Those individuals are now able to book a face-to-face appointment at a specific vaccination centre to verify and record these doses in NIMS, which will then be displayed in the NHS COVID Pass.

Further expansion of the service to include additional vaccines in the NHS COVID Pass is planned in due course. People with a vaccine from Hong Kong will also be able to show their record of this vaccination where certification is required. Once an overseas vaccine is recorded in NIMS, they will automatically be invited for a booster dose, when eligible. For those whose vaccinations are not recorded in NIMS in England, they will be unable to book an appointment through the National Booking System. However, individuals can access a booster vaccination at a walk-in centre without needing their record to be updated in advance.

Whether to prescribe any medicine is a clinical decision.

The licensed cannabis-based medicine Epidyolex is prescribed and routinely funded on the National Health Service (NHS) for Dravet syndrome and Lennox-Gastaut syndrome (two forms of epilepsy).

However, the latest National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines demonstrate a clear need for more evidence to support routine prescribing and funding decisions for unlicensed cannabis-based products on the NHS.

If an NHS clinician wishes to prescribe these unlicensed products an individual funding request can be made based on whether there is evidence of exceptionality to justify funding the treatment. A request is made for an individual patient whose clinical circumstances are clearly different to other patients with the same condition, and there is a reason why the individual patient would respond differently to other patients and therefore gain more clinical benefit from the proposed treatment.

The Department does not make provision for the funding of medicines outside of the National Health Service (NHS) commissioning systems. NHS funding decisions follow clearly developed procedures that ensure equitable distribution of funding, prioritising those medicines that have proved their safety, quality, and clinical and cost effectiveness.

The licensed cannabis-based medicine Epidyolex is prescribed routinely on the NHS for Dravet syndrome and Lennox-Gastaut syndrome (two forms of epilepsy). The cost of treatments, that have not been assessed for their quality, safety, clinical and cost effectiveness, sought privately, remains the responsibility of patients.

We continue to work closely with the National Health Service, Public Health England and the profession to safely increase levels of service, taking into account the ongoing infection prevention and control and social distancing requirements. This includes prioritising existing and additional funding provided to NHS England to tackle backlogs in care.

We know that long waiting times for care is negative on patient’s mental health and wellbeing. We are improving access to gender identity services with the opening of four new clinics, in London, Manchester, Cheshire and Merseyside and the East of England. These clinics are now all open and receiving patients. A further new clinic is planned in Sussex due to open in 2022. These clinics are expected to reduce the waiting list by a third.

We have had no recent discussions with the European Medicines Agency (EMA). The EMA is an independent regulatory body which makes decisions on the vaccines approved for use in the European Union. The EU Digital COVID Certificate is a matter for the European Commission and individual Member States. The Government continues to engage the European Commission on certification to ensure that travel is unhindered and supported by a common approach. People vaccinated in the United Kingdom can use the NHS COVID Pass to demonstrate their vaccination status for international travel.

No waiting list data is held centrally on adults or children wishing to access National Health Service (NHS) dental services in Tower Hamlets, or in London. Patients are not required to register with a dental practice to access NHS services.

The Government is taking a phased approach to amending border requirements, firstly for inbound arrivals from ‘amber list’ countries who have been fully vaccinated under the United Kingdom programme. Work is ongoing to determine which non-UK vaccines could be recognised in this country.

The contract for phalloplasty services is currently out for tender with a view for rapid award.

No formal assessment of the unavailability of genital surgery has been undertaken.

There are no current plans for patients to be sent abroad for phalloplasty services. The contract for phalloplasty services is currently out for tender with a view for rapid award in the near future.

No formal assessment has been made as waiting time information is not collected centrally.

Corporate Travel Management (CTM) are responsible for identifying and contracting with the individual hotels. CTM contacted the main hotel chains to determine whether any properties in the area that meet our specification. A site visit is conducted to ensure the hotel meets the specifications of the Managed Quarantine Service, including sufficient space for exercise away from the public and for coaches to relay guests to and from the hotel. The transit time by coach from the airport is also considered.

All hotels are responsible for their own staff training and should comply with standards of operation regarding COVID-19 health and safety protocols. This includes physical distancing measures, hand hygiene and the wearing of face masks and gloves if mandated.

The cost for providing managed quarantine facilities is largely met by charging those having to quarantine, which includes paying for COVID-19 tests and managed quarantine to ensure the protection of themselves and the public.

The rate for one adult in one room for 10 days and 11 nights is £1,750. The normalised cost per person of managed quarantine is composed of 49% for the hotel, 2% for transport, 32% for security, 4% for testing and 13% for other costs.

It is specified at the induction stage for managed quarantine hotels that the catering requirements must include the delivery of menus to rooms and an understanding of individual needs for each meal; a variety of meals to meet nutritional, dietary, religious, and cultural needs; and the ability for guests to order additional food and beverage from a 24-hour room service menu.

A review is carried out with hotels at two and 21 days following the induction process. Each hotel has a liaison officer available 24 hours a day, seven days a week to escalate any issues, in addition to the hotel’s own customer service channels.

In the first instance, guests should raise any concerns directly with hotel or security staff, who can address practical issues about the hotel room and services. Hotel staff can also escalate concerns if necessary. Where the hotel is unable to resolve the complaint, Corporate Travel Management (CTM), who hold the hotel contracts, will raise issues with the hotel manager. Complaints are investigated by the hotel and processes changed if so required. If necessary, CTM will require the hotel to make improvements within a given time period.

Since February 2021, approximately 60 people have been granted exemptions from COVID-19 managed quarantine facilities on medical grounds.

Due to potential COVID-19 infection risks, the cleaning of rooms is not undertaken by hotel staff in managed quarantine facilities while they are occupied. Guests are provided with suitable disposable cleaning products and equipment to clean their rooms. Fresh linen and towels are left outside of the room door every third day.

Hotel staff and security do not enter the guest rooms, therefore ensuring privacy throughout the stay.

Singing is considered a high-risk activity, compared with other large group activities, because it significantly increases the risk of transmission through small viral particles in the air and droplets. As outlined in the Government’s safer singing guidance, there is evidence that shouting or singing loudly can produce 20 times the mass of aerosol than speaking at a normal level of loudness. Several outbreaks of COVID-19 have been associated with adult choir rehearsals and performances and in church congregations across the world. The safer singing guidance is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-suggested-principles-of-safer-singing

All such activity should follow the principles set out in the guidance to reduce the risk of transmission, including ensuring that singing takes place only in larger well-ventilated spaces or outdoors and limited number of people sing together.

The Department has made no such assessment.

At this time international travel is limited to reduce the risk of the virus spreading, including variants of concern. However some of the reasonable excuses for international travel will enable people to visit relatives where essential, such as where it is reasonably necessary to provide care and assistance to a vulnerable person.

All local test sites are provided by the relevant local authority as they are best placed to make considerations upon where testing would be most beneficial. The local authority is responsible for engaging with all local residents and businesses.

All local authorities utilising local test sites are provided with a National Health Service Test and Trace site criteria guide to consider the location of the site, the demand, ownership, the duration that the site might be in use for and surrounding uses.

The Department and NHS England recognise that waiting times for gender identity clinics are unacceptably long. To address this, a new service specification has been developed to deliver services in local health settings. Three new clinics, operating as a pilot scheme for this specification, have been established in London, Manchester and Cheshire and Merseyside. These clinics are subject to ongoing evaluation with the ambition of further clinics being established.

All local test sites are provided by the relevant local authority as they are best placed to make considerations upon where testing would be most beneficial. The local authority is responsible for engaging with all local residents and businesses.

All local authorities utilising local test sites are provided with a National Health Service Test and Trace site criteria guide to consider the location of the site, the demand, ownership, the duration that the site might be in use for and surrounding uses.

All local test sites are provided by the relevant local authority as they are best placed to make considerations upon where testing would be most beneficial. The local authority is responsible for engaging with all local residents and businesses.

All local authorities utilising local test sites are provided with a National Health Service Test and Trace site criteria guide to consider the location of the site, the demand, ownership, the duration that the site might be in use for and surrounding uses.

All local test sites are provided by the relevant local authority as they are best placed to make considerations upon where testing would be most beneficial. The local authority is responsible for engaging with all local residents and businesses.

All local authorities utilising local test sites are provided with a National Health Service Test and Trace site criteria guide to consider the location of the site, the demand, ownership, the duration that the site might be in use for and surrounding uses.

All local test sites are provided by the relevant local authority as they are best placed to make considerations upon where testing would be most beneficial. The local authority is responsible for engaging with all local residents and businesses.

All local authorities utilising local test sites are provided with a National Health Service Test and Trace site criteria guide to consider the location of the site, the demand, ownership, the duration that the site might be in use for and surrounding uses.

As at 1^st March 2021, there were 92,470 patients registered at the ‘GP at Hand’ practice.

Data on how many of those patients have been unable to access COVID-19 vaccines in their local area, how far they have had to travel, or the average wait between being offered a vaccine and attending to receive, is not collected centrally. Individuals eligible for vaccination have a choice on where they can book their COVID-19 vaccination. More than 98% of the country is now within 10 miles of a vaccination site.

As at 1^st March 2021, there were 92,470 patients registered at the ‘GP at Hand’ practice.

Data on how many of those patients have been unable to access COVID-19 vaccines in their local area, how far they have had to travel, or the average wait between being offered a vaccine and attending to receive, is not collected centrally. Individuals eligible for vaccination have a choice on where they can book their COVID-19 vaccination. More than 98% of the country is now within 10 miles of a vaccination site.

As at 1^st March 2021, there were 92,470 patients registered at the ‘GP at Hand’ practice.

Data on how many of those patients have been unable to access COVID-19 vaccines in their local area, how far they have had to travel, or the average wait between being offered a vaccine and attending to receive, is not collected centrally. Individuals eligible for vaccination have a choice on where they can book their COVID-19 vaccination. More than 98% of the country is now within 10 miles of a vaccination site.

As at 1^st March 2021, there were 92,470 patients registered at the ‘GP at Hand’ practice.

Data on how many of those patients have been unable to access COVID-19 vaccines in their local area, how far they have had to travel, or the average wait between being offered a vaccine and attending to receive, is not collected centrally. Individuals eligible for vaccination have a choice on where they can book their COVID-19 vaccination. More than 98% of the country is now within 10 miles of a vaccination site.

The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation concluded that only a subset of those with asthma are at clinically higher risk from COVID-19. This group is defined as adults with asthma who require continuous or repeated use of systemic steroids or with previous exacerbations requiring hospital admission and will be vaccinated in priority group six. An individual with a more severe case of asthma may have been included in the clinically extremely vulnerable group, in which case they will be vaccinated in priority group four.

For those facing significant financial hardship as a result of the managed quarantine charge, there is an opportunity to apply for a deferred repayment plan when booking. This is available for individuals who receive income-related benefits and they will be required to pay back the charge in 12 monthly instalments.

Those who are eligible for a carer’s allowance, or those who are the sole or primary carer of an elderly or disabled person who is at increased risk of COVID-19 mortality and therefore clinically vulnerable, should be offered vaccination in priority group six. This group includes unpaid carers. In addition, consideration has been given by the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) to vaccination of household contacts of immunosuppressed individuals. However, at this time there is insufficient data on the size of the effect of COVID-19 vaccines on transmission. Further evidence is expected to accrue on transmission during the course of the vaccine programme but currently the JCVI is not in a position to advise vaccination solely on the basis of indirect protection.

No such estimate has been made.

We will continue to monitor prevalence and treat musculoskeletal conditions, taking into account long standing best practice guidance in this area, including from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence.

Patients diagnosed with ‘long’ COVID-19 will be directed into multi-system care pathways, which will be tailored to their specific needs. These care pathways are still in early stages of development and it is unknown whether specific osteopathic units will form a part of this.

National Health Service regional teams are working with appropriate local systems to reach out to unregistered people so as to ensure that all their health needs are met and that they are offered the COVID-19 vaccine in line with Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation priorities. NHS England and NHS Improvement recently launched a general practitioner (GP) registration campaign alongside the voluntary sector. To support this, NHS England and NHS Improvement are providing materials, such as training for practice staff and access cards which support the message that everyone is entitled to register with a GP and give the NHS England and NHS Improvement Customer Contact Centre number for people to use if they have been refused registration.

National Health Service regional teams are working with appropriate local systems to reach out to unregistered people so as to ensure that all their health needs are met and that they are offered the COVID-19 vaccine in line with Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation priorities. NHS England and NHS Improvement recently launched a general practitioner (GP) registration campaign alongside the voluntary sector. To support this, NHS England and NHS Improvement are providing materials, such as training for practice staff and access cards which support the message that everyone is entitled to register with a GP and give the NHS England and NHS Improvement Customer Contact Centre number for people to use if they have been refused registration.

NHS Digital does not have a mechanism for recording people who are not on National Health Service systems.

We do not hold this information.

There are no plans to suspend the limited data sharing arrangements between the National Health Service and the Home Office at this time.

The Department has published a message on the relevant NHS website pages stating that overseas visitors to England, including anyone living in the United Kingdom without permission, will not be charged for testing or treatment for or vaccination against COVID-19. The message also states that no immigration checks are needed to receive these services. Because there is no charge for the vaccine for people living in the UK, the immigration status of a patient is not relevant.

If an individual in prison or an immigration detention centre is over 65 years old, they will be prioritised for vaccination in line with the rest of the population.

Updating the dosing interval is in line with the advice of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation and is the right thing to do to maximise the impact of the programme and save lives. The Medicines Healthcare products Regulatory Agency has also clarified that for the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine, the interval between doses must be at least three weeks.

Whilst the National Health Service across the United Kingdom will prioritise giving the first dose of the vaccine to those in the most high-risk groups, everyone will still receive their second dose and this will be within 12 weeks of their first.

Overall responsibility for the site sits with the Home Office who provide the services available on site.

Kent and Medway Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) is the delegated CCG which has responsibility for healthcare for the vulnerable group of residents. All residents are registered with one general practitioner (GP) practice and there is an agency nurse on site. The residents can access mental health services through the GP practice. The nurse provides an outreach primary care service on site. Translation services are provided to make sure residents can access the care they need, if they cannot speak English.

The public health grant to local authorities in England was £3.279 billion in 2020/21. Local authority funding, through the public health grant for 2021/22 will be maintained, meaning local authorities can continue to invest in prevention and essential frontline health services, including services that support public mental health. It is for local authorities to make funding decisions for public health services based on local population priorities, in line with the conditions attached to the grant including having regard to reducing health inequalities.

The Department is working with Public Health England, NHS England and NHS Improvement and key stakeholders to encourage uptake of the COVID-19 vaccine among black, Asian and minority ethnic communities. The Department is also working with community press, TV and radio stations to deliver information on vaccination in over a dozen languages.

Activity is also focusing on working with trusted voices such as healthcare personnel, faith leaders, community influencers and community organisations for priority multicultural audiences, with a particular focus on Muslim, Polish, black African and Caribbean and Jewish communities. The Department is building on pre-existing relationships and established channels as well as reaching out to more influencers through virtual sessions.

There has been significant effort to understand the causes of race disparities in COVID-19 infection and to bring the research into policy making to mitigate the disproportionate effects. The direct impacts of COVID-19 improved for ethnic minorities as a whole during the early second wave, suggesting that race disparities in COVID-19 outcomes are driven by risk of infection rather than ethnicity itself being a risk factor for severe illness or death.

Data shows deprivation to be a major driver of the disparities in COVID-19 infection rates for all ethnic groups. Whilst mortality rates in black African men and women have significantly decreased between the first and second waves, the findings that the impact has been greater in South Asian groups indicate the role of wider social determinants in the unequal impact of COVID-19. Tackling deprivation will be a particular focus of the Government work.

No assessment has been made for people affected by the benefits cap. There is no direct evidence concerning overcrowded accommodation, but there is some related evidence of a positive association between household size and composition and COVID-19 deaths. The evidence is summarised in a recent report by the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies on housing, household transmission and ethnicity, which is available at the following link:

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/943178/S0923_housing_household_transmission_and_ethnicity.pdf

The Department, together with the National Health Service (NHS) and Public Health England, is providing advice and information at every opportunity to support uptake in individuals who are prioritised for the COVID-19 vaccine. This includes providing advice to groups who may have questions about the vaccination process, including members from the Asian communities.

The Department, alongside the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government and NHS England are holding regular meetings with local authorities, faith leaders, and black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) organisations to answer questions and provide advice and information about COVID-19 vaccines and how they will be made available.

The Test and Trace Support Payment scheme is for people who have been told to self-isolate by NHS Test and Trace, either because they have tested positive for COVID-19 or have recently been in close contact with someone who has tested positive. If a child is self-isolating because they have tested positive, other household members will also need to self-isolate and will be able to claim under the scheme, provided they meet the other eligibility criteria.

Parents or guardians of children who have to self-isolate because of contact with someone outside their household who has tested positive are not eligible. If a parent and/or guardian needs support because a child has to self-isolate, the NHS Test and Trace service can provide guidance on how to access local support provided by their local authority or by NHS Volunteer Responders.

We take parliamentary scrutiny incredibly seriously and it is fundamentally important that hon. Members are provided with accurate and timely information to enable them to hold the Government to account. We are working rapidly to provide all Members with accurate answers to their questions, as well as supporting the Government’s response to the unprecedented challenge of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The hon. Member’s question will be answered as soon as possible.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 5 November 2020 to Question 108296.

The information is not available in the format requested. The National Health Service publishes weekly statistics on the deaths of patients who have died in hospitals in England and have tested positive for COVID-19.

The information is not available in the format requested.

Public Health England publishes COVID-19 incidence per 100,000 population by ethnicity in the national flu and COVID-19 surveillance report on a weekly basis which is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/national-flu-and-covid-19-surveillance-reports

All Care Quality Commission-registered adult care homes, including those in Poplar and Limehouse, are receiving lateral flow device (LFD) test kits to enable safe visits, where permitted.

From 8 March, care home residents will be able to be visited indoors by a single, named individual who will be required to have a test beforehand, wear personal protective equipment during the visit and avoid close contact. All visitors will receive a lateral flow test and be required to follow all infection prevention and control measures.

The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) consists of independent experts who advise the Government on which vaccine/s the United Kingdom should use and provide advice on prioritisation at a population level. The JCVI has advised that the first priorities for any COVID-19 vaccination programme should be the prevention of COVID-19 mortality and the protection of health and social care staff and systems.

The JCVI notes that while there is clear evidence that certain black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) groups have higher rates of infection, and higher rates of serious disease, morbidity and mortality, there is no strong evidence that ethnicity by itself or genetics is the sole explanation for observed differences in rates of severe illness and deaths.

Public Health England (PHE) publishes weekly provisional flu vaccine uptake reports, which give the proportions of those eligible who have been vaccinated and is available at the following link:

www.gov.uk/government/statistics/national-flu-and-covid-19-surveillance-reports.

Data for week ending 1 November 2020 shows vaccine coverage is the highest it has ever been at this stage of the season for those aged 65 years and over and for two and three year olds. In at risk groups, flu vaccination coverage is higher than this time last year but at comparable levels to previous seasons. For pregnant women it is lower than in previous seasons.

The following table shows vaccine uptake data in September and October in each flu season between 2018/19 and 2020/21, in England.

Source: www.gov.uk/government/statistics/national-flu-and-covid-19-surveillance-reports

Notes:

1. Data is provisional and from a sample of 87.6% of all automated general practitioner (GP) practices participating in the 2020/21 sentinel survey.
2. Data for two and three-year olds is from a sample of 97.1% of all automated GP practices participating in the 2020/21 sentinel Childhood flu GP survey.

Monthly flu vaccine uptake data, which includes estimates of the numbers vaccinated, is produced by PHE. The first monthly data will be published on 26 November and will include clinical commissioning group and local authority level data. Monthly uptake data will also be published for frontline healthcare workers and school-aged children.

Local test sites, such as those situated in the Watney Market Ideal store in Shadwell are deployed at the direction of Local Resilience Forums and Recovery Coordination Groups and decisions are centrally executed at their direction. This co-design approach between local and national teams has been key in achieving the pace at which these sites have been set up.

Weekly data for pillar 2 COVID-19 testing for every lower tier local authority in England is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/nhs-test-and-trace-statistics-england-weekly-reports

The Government is committed to rapid and accessible testing for everyone who needs one. We are working with private sector partners to establish local test sites, such as the one at the Watney Market Ideal store, in metropolitan areas across the country. These local test sites are being used to test eligible individuals who may not have access to a car and are set up in places where there is space and local demand for testing. Local test sites are deployed at the direction of Local Resilience Forums and Recovery Coordination Groups and decisions are centrally executed at their direction. This co-design approach between local and national teams has been key in achieving the pace at which these sites have been stood up. To monitor cases we are working closely with local authorities and local Directors of Public Health, sharing highly localised case data on a daily basis to understand and tackle local outbreaks.

On 22 October, the Race Disparity Unit at the Cabinet Office published ‘Quarterly report on progress to address COVID-19 health inequalities’, which made three recommendations.

This includes reviewing the effectiveness and impact of current actions being undertaken by relevant Government Departments to directly lessen disparities in infection and death rates of COVID-19 and taking action to modify existing policy, and policy in development, to address these disparities. The Prime Minister has accepted these recommendations. These measures apply to the black, Asian and minority ethnic population, including those of Bangladeshi background.

The report is available at the following link:

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/928646/First_Covid_Disparities_report_to_PM___Health_Secretary_Final_22-10-20.pdf

The Government is committed to rapid and accessible testing for everyone who needs one. We are working with private sector partners to establish local test sites, such as the one at the Watney Market Ideal store, in metropolitan areas across the country. These local test sites are being used to test eligible individuals who may not have access to a car and are set up in places where there is space and local demand for testing. Local test sites are deployed at the direction of Local Resilience Forums and Recovery Coordination Groups and decisions are centrally executed at their direction. This co-design approach between local and national teams has been key in achieving the pace at which these sites have been stood up. To monitor cases we are working closely with local authorities and local Directors of Public Health, sharing highly localised case data on a daily basis to understand and tackle local outbreaks.

We do not publish data in the format requested.

The Government is committed to rapid and accessible testing for everyone who needs one. We are working with private sector partners to establish local test sites, such as the one at the Watney Market Ideal store, in metropolitan areas across the country. These local test sites are being used to test eligible individuals who may not have access to a car and are set up in places where there is space and local demand for testing. Local test sites are deployed at the direction of Local Resilience Forums and Recovery Coordination Groups and decisions are centrally executed at their direction. This co-design approach between local and national teams has been key in achieving the pace at which these sites have been stood up. To monitor cases, we are working closely with local authorities and local Directors of Public Health, sharing highly localised case data on a daily basis to understand and tackle local outbreaks.

In line with the national Public Health England guidance, there are different personal protective equipment (PPE) requirements dependent on the role test site staff take within the testing sites. In the case of the walk-in local testing sites, the PPE requirements are set out in the local testing sites’ Standard Operating Procedure. Test operatives, for tester assisted testing, are required to wear disposable gloves; a disposable plastic apron; a fluid-resistant (Type IIR) surgical mask; and reusable eye protection.

We publish data on the number of pillar 2 tests processed in each local authority weekly alongside the Test and Trace statistics publication on GOV.UK. The total number of pillar 2 tests processed in Tower Hamlets between 28 May and 14 October was 38,272.

The Government is committed to rapid and accessible testing for everyone who needs one. We are working with private sector partners to establish local test sites, such as the one at the Watney Market Ideal store, in metropolitan areas across the country. These local test sites are being used to test eligible individuals who may not have access to a car and are set up in places where there is space and local demand for testing. Local test sites are deployed at the direction of Local Resilience Forums and Recovery Coordination Groups and decisions are centrally executed at their direction. This co-design approach between local and national teams has been key in achieving the pace at which these sites have been stood up. To monitor cases, we are working closely with local authorities and local Directors of Public Health, sharing highly localised case data on a daily basis to understand and tackle local outbreaks.

The Government is committed to rapid and accessible testing for everyone who needs one. We are working with private sector partners to establish local test sites, such as the one at the Watney Market Ideal store, in metropolitan areas across the country. These local test sites are being used to test eligible individuals who may not have access to a car and are set up in places where there is space and local demand for testing. Local test sites are deployed at the direction of Local Resilience Forums and Recovery Coordination Groups and decisions are centrally executed at their direction. This co-design approach between local and national teams has been key in achieving the pace at which these sites have been stood up. To monitor cases, we are working closely with local authorities and local Directors of Public Health, sharing highly localised case data on a daily basis to understand and tackle local outbreaks.

National contracts were awarded to commercial providers Serco and Sitel to provide call handling services for the contact track and trace initiative. The contracts have been published and are available at the following links:

https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/c23fdfaf-d1f2-4d8c-a0cd-6b6f35793ccd

https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/7645e3ef-ce16-4cae-8932-1eb6521a50cb

The Government is committed to rapid and accessible testing for everyone who needs one. We are working with private sector partners to establish local test sites, such as the one at the Watney Market Ideal store, in metropolitan areas across the country. These local test sites are being used to test eligible individuals who may not have access to a car and are set up in places where there is space and local demand for testing. Local test sites are deployed at the direction of Local Resilience Forums and Recovery Coordination Groups and decisions are centrally executed at their direction. This co-design approach between local and national teams has been key in achieving the pace at which these sites have been stood up. To monitor cases, we are working closely with local authorities and local Directors of Public Health, sharing highly localised case data on a daily basis to understand and tackle local outbreaks.

The Government is committed to rapid and accessible testing for everyone who needs one. We are working with private sector partners to establish local test sites, such as the one at the Watney Market Ideal store, in metropolitan areas across the country. These local test sites are being used to test eligible individuals who may not have access to a car and are set up in places where there is space and local demand for testing. Local test sites are deployed at the direction of Local Resilience Forums and Recovery Coordination Groups and decisions are centrally executed at their direction. This co-design approach between local and national teams has been key in achieving the pace at which these sites have been stood up. To monitor cases, we are working closely with local authorities and local Directors of Public Health, sharing highly localised case data on a daily basis to understand and tackle local outbreaks.

The Government is committed to rapid and accessible testing for everyone who needs one. We are working with private sector partners to establish local test sites, such as the one at the Watney Market Ideal store, in metropolitan areas across the country. These local test sites are being used to test eligible individuals who may not have access to a car and are set up in places where there is space and local demand for testing. Local test sites are deployed at the direction of Local Resilience Forums and Recovery Coordination Groups and decisions are centrally executed at their direction. This co-design approach between local and national teams has been key in achieving the pace at which these sites have been stood up. To monitor cases, we are working closely with local authorities and local Directors of Public Health, sharing highly localised case data on a daily basis to understand and tackle local outbreaks.

The Government recognises that day services are an important form of support for people with disabilities and those that care for them. We have worked with the Social Care Institute for Excellence to publish guidance to help make decisions on restarting services and to provide quality care safely which is available at the following link:

https://www.scie.org.uk/care-providers/coronavirus-covid-19/day-care/safe-delivery

Ensuring the care and support needs of their populations are met is the responsibility of local authorities. No central assessment has been made of the adequacy of provision of social day care for people with disabilities in Poplar and Limehouse constituency and the United Kingdom.

However, on 17 September 2020, the Government announced that it would provide a further £546 million to Adult Social Care through the Infection Control Fund, alongside the Adult Social Care Winter Plan. Up to 20% of this fund can be allocated by local authorities for COVID-19 infection control measures outside of care homes and community care provision. This includes implementing infection control measures to support the resumption of community and day services. In total the Government has provided over £1.1 billion in funding for infection control measures. This is in addition to making £3.7 billion available to local authorities to address pressures on local services caused by COVID-19, including adult social care.

The Government recognises that day services are an important form of support for people with disabilities and those that care for them. We have worked with the Social Care Institute for Excellence to publish guidance to help make decisions on restarting services and to provide quality care safely which is available at the following link:

https://www.scie.org.uk/care-providers/coronavirus-covid-19/day-care/safe-delivery

Ensuring the care and support needs of their populations are met is the responsibility of local authorities. No central assessment has been made of the adequacy of provision of social day care for people with disabilities in Poplar and Limehouse constituency and the United Kingdom.

However, on 17 September 2020, the Government announced that it would provide a further £546 million to Adult Social Care through the Infection Control Fund, alongside the Adult Social Care Winter Plan. Up to 20% of this fund can be allocated by local authorities for COVID-19 infection control measures outside of care homes and community care provision. This includes implementing infection control measures to support the resumption of community and day services. In total the Government has provided over £1.1 billion in funding for infection control measures. This is in addition to making £3.7 billion available to local authorities to address pressures on local services caused by COVID-19, including adult social care.

The Government recognises that day services are an important form of support for people with disabilities and those that care for them. We have worked with the Social Care Institute for Excellence to publish guidance to help make decisions on restarting services and to provide quality care safely which is available at the following link:

https://www.scie.org.uk/care-providers/coronavirus-covid-19/day-care/safe-delivery

Ensuring the care and support needs of their populations are met is the responsibility of local authorities. No central assessment has been made of the adequacy of provision of social day care for people with disabilities in Poplar and Limehouse constituency and the United Kingdom.

However, on 17 September 2020, the Government announced that it would provide a further £546 million to Adult Social Care through the Infection Control Fund, alongside the Adult Social Care Winter Plan. Up to 20% of this fund can be allocated by local authorities for COVID-19 infection control measures outside of care homes and community care provision. This includes implementing infection control measures to support the resumption of community and day services. In total the Government has provided over £1.1 billion in funding for infection control measures. This is in addition to making £3.7 billion available to local authorities to address pressures on local services caused by COVID-19, including adult social care.

The Government recognises that day services are an important form of support for people with disabilities and those that care for them. We have worked with the Social Care Institute for Excellence to publish guidance to help make decisions on restarting services and to provide quality care safely which is available at the following link:

https://www.scie.org.uk/care-providers/coronavirus-covid-19/day-care/safe-delivery

Ensuring the care and support needs of their populations are met is the responsibility of local authorities. No central assessment has been made of the adequacy of provision of social day care for people with disabilities in Poplar and Limehouse constituency and the United Kingdom.

However, on 17 September 2020, the Government announced that it would provide a further £546 million to Adult Social Care through the Infection Control Fund, alongside the Adult Social Care Winter Plan. Up to 20% of this fund can be allocated by local authorities for COVID-19 infection control measures outside of care homes and community care provision. This includes implementing infection control measures to support the resumption of community and day services. In total the Government has provided over £1.1 billion in funding for infection control measures. This is in addition to making £3.7 billion available to local authorities to address pressures on local services caused by COVID-19, including adult social care.

The Government recognises that day services are an important form of support for people with disabilities and those that care for them. We have worked with the Social Care Institute for Excellence to publish guidance to help make decisions on restarting services and to provide quality care safely which is available at the following link:

https://www.scie.org.uk/care-providers/coronavirus-covid-19/day-care/safe-delivery

Ensuring the care and support needs of their populations are met is the responsibility of local authorities. No central assessment has been made of the adequacy of provision of social day care for people with disabilities in Poplar and Limehouse constituency and the United Kingdom.

However, on 17 September 2020, the Government announced that it would provide a further £546 million to Adult Social Care through the Infection Control Fund, alongside the Adult Social Care Winter Plan. Up to 20% of this fund can be allocated by local authorities for COVID-19 infection control measures outside of care homes and community care provision. This includes implementing infection control measures to support the resumption of community and day services. In total the Government has provided over £1.1 billion in funding for infection control measures. This is in addition to making £3.7 billion available to local authorities to address pressures on local services caused by COVID-19, including adult social care.

On 17 September 2020, the Government announced that it would provide a further £546 million to adult social care through the Infection Control Fund, alongside the Adult Social Care Winter Plan. Whilst the majority of this funding is for regulated care homes and community care provision, local authorities may allocate 20% for other COVID-19 infection control measures. This may include expenditure on infection control measures to support the resumption of day services. This is in addition to the £600million Infection Control Fund and £3.7 billion already provided to local authorities to address pressures on local services caused by COVID-19, including adult social care.

Health is a devolved matter. The United Kingdom Government will co-ordinate with partners across the devolved administrations to ensure equitable access and successful delivery of vaccines across the UK. This includes considerations of planning and key decisions, which will need to be aligned across the devolved administrations.

Whilst there is a desire for as many people in the United Kingdom to be vaccinated as possible, there may need to be an element of prioritisation, based on availability of vaccine supply and evidence on safety and efficacy in different population groups.

The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation will provide advice to Ministers on clinical prioritisation of any vaccine based on the best available clinical, modelling and epidemiological data. This will depend on the properties of the vaccine, information about those most at need, and the unique medical circumstances of individuals. However, there are no plans at present to target local areas with higher incidence of COVID-19.

Data on the number and proportion of people recorded within acute respiratory outbreaks in schools are not available in the format requested.

Public Health England provides information on the number of acute respiratory outbreaks in schools in its weekly coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) surveillance report, available to view at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/weekly-covid-19-surveillance-report-published

Public Health England’s (PHE) review ‘Disparities in the risk and outcomes of COVID-19’ presented an analysis of survival among people with confirmed COVID-19 by sex, age group, ethnicity, deprivation and region. It showed that, after taking these factors into account, some ethnic groups still had a higher risk of death than others.

This analysis adjusts for important factors such as age and deprivation, but not for factors such as comorbidities and obesity, which are likely to have an impact on the different risks of dying between ethnic groups.

The review did not aim to determine root causes of findings that are likely to be driven by complex interactions, as the terms of reference shows.

PHE’s report ‘Beyond the data: understanding the impact of COVID-19 on BAME groups’ contains a literature review that highlights issues which can be a factor in some ethnic groups being more likely to suffer from COVID-19, including Bangladeshi communities. The report is available to view at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-understanding-the-impact-on-bame-communities

Anyone in England can register and consult with a general practitioner (GP) without charge. The GP practice must accept a patient wishing to register, unless there are reasonable grounds to refuse. These must not relate to race, gender, social class, age, religion, sexual orientation, appearance, disability or a medical condition. National Health Service guidance clearly outlines that a practice cannot refuse a patient because they do not have identification or proof of address.

Primary Care Networks (PCNs) build on the core of current primary care services and enable greater provision of proactive, personalised, coordinated and more integrated health and social care for our communities. One of the PCN service specifications is to ‘Tackle Health Inequalities’ which will be introduced in 2021/22 following negotiation with the General Practitioners Committee, England.

Under the National Health Service (Charges to Overseas Visitors) Regulations 2015, as amended, overseas visitors are exempt from charge for the diagnostic test and treatment for COVID-19. Some overseas visitor children with multisystem inflammatory syndrome test negative for COVID-19, but are treated as being COVID-19 patients based on a clinical diagnosis, meaning that their parents will not be charged.

Patient safety remains a priority for the National Health Service and has been a key element of the Government response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Regulations came into force on 29 January 2020 to add Novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) (now known as COVID-19) to the list of infectious diseases within Schedule 1 of the National Health Service (Charges to Overseas Visitors) Regulations 2015. This means everyone, including all overseas visitors and migrants, can already access testing and treatment for COVID-19 without charge.

To help ensure that no one is deterred from safely accessing healthcare for COVID-19, this information has been widely communicated to NHS staff and the public and has been translated into 40 languages.

Regulations came into force on 29 January 2020 to add Novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) (now known as COVID-19) to Schedule 1 of the National Health Service (Charges to Overseas Visitors) Regulations 2015. This means there can be no charge made to an overseas visitor for the diagnosis, or, if positive, treatment, of COVID-19.

In addition, migrants who are ordinarily resident in the United Kingdom, or exempt from charge under the Charging Regulations, such as those covered under the Immigration Health Surcharge, those seeking asylum in the UK and those who are victims of modern slavery are not subject to charges for most NHS care. The Government does not intend to suspend the NHS (Charges to Overseas Visitors) Regulations 2015.

The Government is responding to the COVID-19 Pandemic as a national concern and has not therefore been providing any localised information.

The Department is working closely with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, local authorities and providers to make sure that all sectors across all communities are prepared to reduce the risk of COVID-19 spreading.

The Government is responding to the COVID-19 Pandemic as a national concern and has not therefore been providing any localised information.

The Department is working closely with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, local authorities and providers to make sure that all sectors across all communities are prepared to reduce the risk of COVID-19 spreading.

The Government is responding to the COVID-19 Pandemic as a national concern and has not therefore been providing any localised information.

The Department is working closely with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, local authorities and providers to make sure that all sectors across all communities are prepared to reduce the risk of COVID-19 spreading.

The Government is responding to the COVID-19 Pandemic as a national concern and has not therefore been providing any localised information.

The Department is working closely with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, local authorities and providers to make sure that all sectors across all communities are prepared to reduce the risk of COVID-19 spreading.

The Government has announced that the United Kingdom are moving out of the contain phase and into delay, in response to the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak. As the response is at national level there are currently no localised plans.

A series of new measures have been introduced to reduce and delay transmission and delay the peak. This includes a ‘staying at home’ measure for seven days if any symptoms of coronavirus infection, however mild are experienced. The most common symptoms of coronavirus are recent onset of a new continuous cough and/or a high temperature. During isolation councils are activating Local Resilience Forums in order to co-ordinate action in local areas to assist effective isolation. The full announcements of these plans are available at the following link:

www.gov.uk/government/news/covid-19-government-announces-moving-out-of-contain-phase-and-into-delay

We engage with India on the full range of human rights matters. On his visit to India 14-17 December, The Foreign Secretary discussed human rights with the Minister of External Affairs Dr Subrahmanyam Jaishankar. Our High Commission in Delhi works with Union and State Governments and Non-Governmental Organisations to promote human rights by building capacity and sharing expertise. Our projects tackle the drivers of human rights violations in regards to gender equality, media freedom and other FCDO priorities, and encourage the empowerment of minority groups.

We engage with India on the full range of human rights matters. On his visit to India 14-17 December, The Foreign Secretary discussed human rights with the Minister of External Affairs Dr Subrahmanyam Jaishankar. Our High Commission in Delhi works with Union and State Governments and Non-Governmental Organisations to promote human rights by building capacity and sharing expertise. Our projects tackle the drivers of human rights violations in regards to gender equality, media freedom and other FCDO priorities, and encourage the empowerment of minority groups.

We engage with India on the full range of human rights matters. We oppose discrimination against minorities because of religion, caste, or belief. On his visit to India 14-17 December, The Foreign Secretary discussed human rights with the Minister of External Affairs Dr Subrahmanyam Jaishankar.

Through our overseas business risk guidance, regular engagement with business and clear statements to Parliament we have urged all businesses involved in investing in Xinjiang, or with parts of their supply chains in the region, to conduct appropriate due diligence to satisfy themselves that their activities do not support, or risk being seen to be supporting, any human rights violations or abuses. In addition, FCDO-funded research into forced labour in Xinjiang has been crucial to raising business awareness of this issue.

The UK has taken a leading international role in holding China to account for its gross human rights abuses in Xinjiang. On 6 October, alongside Germany, we brought together a total of 39 countries to express grave concern at the situation in Xinjiang in a joint statement at the UN General Assembly Third Committee. This growing international pressure on China reflects UK diplomatic leadership, including intensive diplomacy by the FCDO's diplomatic network and the personal involvement of the Foreign Secretary in raising the issue with a wide range of partners.

We remain deeply concerned about the persecution of Christians, Muslims, Buddhists, Falun Gong practitioners and others on the grounds of their religion or belief in China. The freedom to practise, change or share ones faith or belief without discrimination or violent opposition is a human right that all people should enjoy. The UK regularly raises freedom of religion or belief directly with the Chinese authorities and via multilateral action at the UN. On 6 October, the UK and 38 other countries joined a statement at the UN Third Committee in New York calling on China to respect human rights, particularly the rights of persons belonging to religious and ethnic minorities, including in Xinjiang and Tibet.

As employees are and will remain Crown employees, there is technically no change of employer due to the merger. However, all staff affected by the merger have been advised that they transferred into the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office on 2 September.

The UK is in regular contact at the highest levels with our US partners on our joint response to the global COVID-19 pandemic. British nationals abroad are encouraged to sign up for travel advice alerts which will be updated with new information as it becomes available. Anyone who needs some support can contact the FCDO 24/7 for advice. Information on the consular assistance the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office can provide to British nationals overseas can be found at
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/support-for-british-nationals-abroad-a-guide

We are aware of the footage, which was initially published online in September 2019. Open source analysis indicates the people shown in the footage are Uyghur or other minorities in Xinjiang. We judge this analysis to be credible. The footage adds to the growing body of evidence on the disturbing situation that Uyghurs and other minorities are facing in Xinjiang.

On 6 July, the UK Government established the Global Human Rights sanctions regime. It is not appropriate to speculate who may be designated in the future, as to do so could reduce the impact of the designations. We will keep all evidence and potential listings under close review.

These reports are concerning and we continue to monitor allegations of harassment of Uyghurs outside of China. We regularly raise our concerns about the treatment of Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities in Xinjiang directly with the Chinese Government and at the UN.

On 9 March, the Foreign Secretary directly raised his serious concerns about the human rights situation in Xinjiang and the treatment of Uyghur Muslims with his Chinese counterpart, Foreign Minister and State Councillor Wang Yi.

Our concerns include the extra-judicial detention of over a million Uyghur Muslims and other minorities in "political re-education camps", systematic restrictions on Uyghur culture and the practice of Islam, and extensive and invasive surveillance targeting minorities.

We regularly make representations to the Chinese Government on the treatment of Uyghurs. Most recently, on 9 March the Foreign Secretary raised our concerns about the human rights situation in Xinjiang with his Chinese counterpart, Foreign Minister and State Councillor Wang Yi. On 5 March I did the same with the Chinese Ambassador to the UK, Liu Xiaoming. On 24 December, the UK Ambassador to China raised our concerns with Vice Foreign Minister Qin Gang.

The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) is an unprecedented scheme that was designed to be in place only as a temporary measure while businesses regrouped and responded to the crisis. Building on the action taken in the face of the immediate threat posed by the virus, the government is now proceeding with the second phase of its response with a targeted Plan for Jobs which will support the UK’s economic recovery while continuing to prioritise people’s health.

The Home Office leads on policy towards those with no recourse to public funds (NRPF) and is working closely with the Treasury and other government departments, including the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government and the Department of Health and Social Care to support people, including migrants with NRPF, through this crisis. Departments are sharing what they are learning from other bodies and charities with each other to ensure that the government continues to take a compassionate and pragmatic approach to an unprecedented situation.

HMRC do not hold information on the immigration status of migrants supported by the furlough scheme, and are therefore unable to provide the requested data.

As a department HMRC have an obligation to provide reasonable paid time off to recognised trade union representatives to undertake trade union duties. This will include paid time off as necessary for safety representatives as set out in section 3.1.8 of the Civil Service Management Code.

HMRC have a legislative obligation, set out in the Trade Union Act (2016), that information relating to facility time for relevant union officials is published annually, with facility time defined by that Act as including time off taken by a relevant union official that is permitted by the official’s employer, including where this arises under “regulations made under section 2(4) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974”.

Business rates relief is provided to the relevant ratepayer. In cases where the ratepayer is the landlord, it is for them and their tenants to resolve how that is distributed.

The Government is aware that some small businesses have found themselves excluded from the existing business rates relief and grants schemes because of the way they interact with the business rates system. That is why the Government has allocated up to an additional £617 million to Local Authorities to enable them to give discretionary grants to businesses in this situation.

Market traders are eligible for a £10,000 grant from the Small Business Grant Fund if they occupied a business property that was in receipt of Small Business Rates Relief on 11^th March 2020.

In addition, market traders may also be eligible for a grant worth £10,000 or £25,000 from the Retail, Hospitality, and Leisure Grant Fund, even if they were not in receipt of Small Business Rates Relief. They will be eligible if they have their own business rates assessment, if they occupy a property used for the sale of goods to visiting members of the public (or for other purposes listed in the published guidance on the expanded retail discount for business rates), and if their property has a rateable value of under £51,000.

For market traders without their own business rates assessment, the Discretionary Grants Fund, launched on 1^st May 2020, provided up to an additional £617m to allow Local Authorities to make grants to businesses in this situation (alongside other types of business).

Market traders may also be eligible to receive income support via a grant from the Self-Employed Income Support Scheme, or be able to access support from the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, depending on their personal circumstances.

During this period, we are asking schools to support pupils eligible for benefits-related free school meals by providing meals or food parcels through their existing food providers wherever possible. The national voucher scheme provides an alternative with costs covered by the Department for Education. Schools are able to order a single voucher to the value of £15 each week for every child eligible for benefits-related free school meals who is not attending school. This is more generous than the weekly amount provided to schools for provision of free school meals, recognising that families will not buy in bulk and therefore will not be able to achieve the same economies of scale.

Voucher codes are being processed and many thousands of families are redeeming them. As of Tuesday 12 May, Edenred reported that more than £70 million worth of voucher codes have been redeemed into supermarket e-gift cards by schools and families.

This Government recognises that tackling serious violence is not only a law enforcement issue, it needs a multi-agency approach involving a range of partners with a focus on prevention and early intervention. That is why we continue to take a whole system approach to violence prevention, exemplified by our £105.5m investment to date in Violence Reduction Units that co-ordinate the partnership response to violence in their areas, and by implementing the Serious Violence Duty that will ensure that serious violence is made a focus within existing multi-agency arrangements across England and Wales, allowing for greater collaboration between a wider set of partners.

Following the recent outcome of the Spending Review, we have committed to investing £150 million a year to continue and expand programmes that prevent crime and keep our communities safe. We will provide greater detail on the funding allocations later this year.

Tackling serious violence is not only an issue for law enforcement, it needs a multi-agency approach involving a range of partners and agencies such as education, health, social services, housing, youth and victim services with a focus on prevention and early intervention.

Through the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill we are creating a new duty on a range of specified agencies, to work collaboratively, share data and information and put in place plans to prevent and reduce serious violence within their local communities.

The legislation does not specify particular types of data or cohorts of individuals whose data must be shared as part of this process. This will be for local partnerships to determine based on local circumstances.

The Bill also specifies that authorities will need to comply with relevant data protection legislation when sharing data, personal or otherwise, under the Serious Violence Duty.

Tackling serious violence is not only an issue for law enforcement, it needs a multi-agency approach involving a range of partners and agencies such as education, health, social services, housing, youth and victim services with a focus on prevention and early intervention.

Through the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill we are creating a new duty on a range of specified agencies, to work collaboratively, share data and information and put in place plans to prevent and reduce serious violence within their local communities.

The legislation does not specify particular types of data or cohorts of individuals whose data must be shared as part of this process. This will be for local partnerships to determine based on local circumstances.

The Bill also specifies that authorities will need to comply with relevant data protection legislation when sharing data, personal or otherwise, under the Serious Violence Duty.