Cat Smith

On 13 July, the Government published the Border Operating Model, which details the approach to UK border controls after the end of the Transition Period. As my Rt Hon Friend, the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster set out in his statement of 13 July, the Government will provide a breakdown of spend on ports by region and by port in due course. Further to the answer given on 1 September (UIN78765), the Government continues to review proportionate contingency plans for potential disruption and works with the Kent Resilience Forum to revise traffic management contingency plans, to deal with the potential congestion. Future announcements will be made in the usual way.

This Government is determined to strengthen the integrity of our electoral system and give the public confidence that our elections are secure and fit for the 21st century. To that end we are committed to introducing identification to vote at polling stations in Great Britain. In Northern Ireland, voters are already required to produce photographic identification.

The voter ID pilots were a success and the overwhelming majority of electors cast their vote without a problem. There was no indication that any consistent demographic was adversely affected by the use of voter ID.

We will continue to work with the Electoral Commission and other stakeholders, including charities and civil society organisations, to make sure that voter ID works for all voters. For any voter who does not have one of the required forms of photographic ID, a local elector ID will be available, free of charge, from their local authority.

Companies based in the United Kingdom and which recruit here are subject to British laws, including those which protect people from discrimination because of their sex or any other protected characteristic. Conversely, employers based overseas who recruit British workers for overseas work are subject to the laws of the country in which they are based, and similar arrangements apply to work on ships where the ship’s ownership is outside the UK and the ship is to operate outside UK territorial waters.

This general legal position in no way excuses companies, as recently reported, which deny British women job opportunities on ships registered or owned abroad, especially where the company in question is seeking to recruit in this country. It is unacceptable to see this sort of blatant sex discrimination in 2020 if there is no genuine occupational requirement for a position to be filled by a man. The Department for Transport will be reviewing regulations on the treatment of seafarers and will be looking at this issue as part of the review.

An Equality Impact Assessment was published alongside the Elections Bill: https://bills.parliament.uk/bills/3020/publications

The Cabinet Office will continue the detailed planning ahead of implementation nationally, working closely with those who will be responsible for delivery including Local Authorities, the Electoral Commission, Association of Electoral Administrators and Society of Local Authority Chief Executives.

I refer the hon. Member to my answer given to PQ21237 on 28 June 2021.

I refer the hon. Member to the answers given to PQ7856 on 7 June 2021 and PQ HL14191 on 23 April 2021.

The Elections Bill will deliver this Government's manifesto commitments to strengthen the integrity of our elections and ensure that our democracy remains secure, fair, modern and transparent. It also delivers on Government commitments made in response to consultations and Select Committee recommendations.

The legislation has benefitted from extensive engagement with the Devolved Administrations as well as the input and expertise of those working in the electoral sector.

We will continue to work with the Electoral Commission and other stakeholders, including charities and civil society organisations to make sure that voter identification works for all voters.

The proposal to introduce voter identification is for reserved elections only.

The Elections Bill will deliver this Government's manifesto commitments to strengthen the integrity of our elections and ensure that our democracy remains secure, fair, modern and transparent. It also delivers on Government commitments made in response to consultations and Select Committee recommendations.

The legislation has benefitted from extensive engagement with the Devolved Administrations as well as the input and expertise of those working in the electoral sector.

We will continue to work with the Electoral Commission and other stakeholders, including charities and civil society organisations to make sure that voter identification works for all voters.

The proposal to introduce voter identification is for reserved elections only.

I refer the hon. Member to my response on 28 June 2021.

I refer the hon. Member to my response on 28 June 2021.

Everyone who is eligible to vote will have the opportunity to do so.

Those whose appearance has significantly changed in comparison to their existing identification documents can apply for a free, local Voter Card that matches their current appearance.

Polling station staff will be given appropriate training and there will be a requirement for privacy screens to allow electors who wish to have their form of identification viewed in private able to do so.

Everyone who is eligible to vote will have the opportunity to do so.

Those whose appearance has significantly changed in comparison to their existing identification documents can apply for a free, local Voter Card that matches their current appearance.

Polling station staff will be given appropriate training and there will be a requirement for privacy screens to allow electors who wish to have their form of identification viewed in private able to do so.

The Clearing House function does not have full time members of staff, and its work is done by a small team of people in the FOI team, including the Deputy Director of Freedom of Information and Transparency, alongside their other day to day responsibilities. There is no separate budget for the Clearing House.

The Cabinet Office does not routinely capture data on the number of requests which are referred to the Clearing House. However, in 2020, Clearing House gave advice on 516 aggregated ‘round robins’ (requests made to more than one department and that have repeat characteristics); a small proportion of over 30,000 requests received by government departments in the same time period.

The Cabinet Office has referred requests to the Clearing House where appropriate and in line with the published criteria, which is available on gov.uk here - https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cabinet-office-and-freedom-of-information.

Information on Freedom of Information statistics is also published on gov.uk here - https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/government-foi-statistics.

Details of official Ministerial meetings with external organisations are published on gov.uk.

More generally, I refer the hon. Member to the answer by my noble friend, Lord True (Minister of State at the Cabinet Office), to PQHL14191 on 23 April 2021.

I refer the Hon. Member to the answer by my noble friend, Lord True (Minister of State at the Cabinet Office), to PQHL14191 on 23 April 2021.

I refer the Hon. Member to the answer by my noble friend, Lord True (Minister of State at the Cabinet Office), to PQHL14191 on 23 April 2021.

Showing proof of identification is something people of all walks of life already do everyday. It is a reasonable and proportionate approach to extend this practice to voting and give the public confidence that their vote is theirs, and theirs alone.

Of the broad range of documents that will be accepted, including, for example, various concessionary travel passes, Proof of Age Standards Scheme (PASS) cards, and photocard parking permits issued as part of the Blue Badge scheme, many do not contain a voter’s address. An address will not need to be included on identification in order to vote. In addition, expired photographic identification will be accepted as long as the photograph is of a good enough likeness to allow polling station staff to confirm the identity of the holder.

Works funded personally by the Prime Minister were contracted privately; there has been no cost to taxpayers.

Under successive administrations, it has been the case that spending funded personally by the incumbent Prime Minister is a private matter.

In the same way, MPs’ expenses which are funded by taxpayers are made public and rightly subject to public scrutiny; however, how Hon. Members spend their earned income is a private matter for them.

Works funded by the Cabinet Office have been undertaken by Mitie. Mitie has a framework agreement with the Cabinet Office for works on the Downing Street estate.

Works funded personally by the Prime Minister were contracted privately.

I refer the Hon. Member to the answer by my noble friend, Lord True (Minister of State at the Cabinet Office), of PQ HL14191, on 23 April 2021.

I refer the Hon. Member to the answer by my noble friend, Lord True (Minister of State at the Cabinet Office), of PQ HL14191, on 23 April 2021.

I refer the Hon. Member to the answer by my noble friend, Lord True (Minister of State at the Cabinet Office), of PQ HL14191, on 23 April 2021.

As legislation is brought forward to enable the national roll out of voter identification, appropriate impact assessments, which include information on costs, will be provided for Parliament in the normal way.

Showing identification to prove who they are is something people of all walks of life already do everyday. It is a reasonable and proportionate approach to extend this practice to voting and give the public confidence that their vote is theirs, and theirs alone.

As legislation is brought forward to enable the national roll out of voter identification, appropriate impact assessments, which include information on costs, will be provided for Parliament in the normal way.

Showing identification to prove who they are is something people of all walks of life already do everyday. It is a reasonable and proportionate approach to extend this practice to voting and give the public confidence that their vote is theirs, and theirs alone.

As legislation is brought forward to enable the national roll out of voter identification, appropriate impact assessments, which include information on costs, will be provided for Parliament in the normal way.

Showing identification to prove who they are is something people of all walks of life already do everyday. It is a reasonable and proportionate approach to extend this practice to voting and give the public confidence that their vote is theirs, and theirs alone.

The evaluations of the 2018 and 2019 Voter Identification pilot, which include information on locally issued elector cards, can be found at:

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/733128/Electoral_Integrity_Project_-_Local_Elections_2018_-_Evaluation.pdf

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/819404/2019_Voter_ID_Pilots_Evaluation.pdf

https://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/who-we-are-and-what-we-do/our-views-and-research/our-research/voter-identification-pilots

The list of approved photo ID will not be limited to UK passports or driving licences. A broad range of documents already in use will be accepted, including, for example, various concessionary travel passes, Proof of Age Standards Scheme (PASS) cards, and photocard parking permits issued as part of the Blue Badge scheme. In addition, expired photographic ID will be accepted as long as the photograph is of a good enough likeness to allow polling station staff to confirm the identity of the holder.

For any voter who does not have one of the required forms of photographic ID, a free, local Voter Card will be available from their local authority.

We will continue to work with the Electoral Commission and other stakeholders, including the Equalities and Human Rights Commission and a wide range of charities and civil society organisations, to make sure that Voter ID is rolled out in a way that is inclusive for all eligible voters.

Everyone who is eligible to vote will have the opportunity to do so.

As legislation is brought forward to enable the national roll out of Voter ID, appropriate impact assessments will be provided for Parliament in the normal way.

I refer the hon. Member to Lord True, Minister of State at the Cabinet Office’s response of 23 April 2021, PQHL14191.

Arrangements will be put in place by statutorily independent Returning Officers and their teams to allow the effective scrutiny of the counts while ensuring each count is COVID-secure for everyone present. The pandemic means that the arrangements for these polls will be necessarily different from those normally in place.

The Electoral Commission, in consultation with public health bodies, has provided guidance for Returning Officers on the organisation and conduct of the polls, including the count, in the context of the pandemic. We are aware that discussions on arrangements have taken place at local level and that Returning Officers are working with candidates and political parties to set out what is practicable within relevant legislation and with due regard to the need to ensure that count processes can be, and can be seen to be effectively conducted.

I have the utmost confidence in the ability of the Returning Officers to run these polls in a way that meets the highest standards of both public safety and democratic integrity.

Arrangements will be put in place by statutorily independent Returning Officers and their teams to allow the effective scrutiny of the counts while ensuring each count is COVID-secure for everyone present. The pandemic means that the arrangements for these polls will be necessarily different from those normally in place.

The Electoral Commission, in consultation with public health bodies, has provided guidance for Returning Officers on the organisation and conduct of the polls, including the count, in the context of the pandemic. We are aware that discussions on arrangements have taken place at local level and that Returning Officers are working with candidates and political parties to set out what is practicable within relevant legislation and with due regard to the need to ensure that count processes can be, and can be seen to be effectively conducted.

I have the utmost confidence in the ability of the Returning Officers to run these polls in a way that meets the highest standards of both public safety and democratic integrity.

Ministerial meetings are published regularly. Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) have the statutory responsibility for maintaining complete and accurate electoral registers for their areas. They are required to consider the presence of any gypsy or travelling communities in their area and to decide on the best approach to take locally. The Electoral Commission runs campaigns to raise awareness of how people can register to vote, and how to cast their vote.

This Government is determined to strengthen the integrity of our electoral system and give the public confidence that our elections are modern, fair and secure.

Electors will be required to show an approved form of photographic ID before casting their vote in a polling station across Great Britain at national UK-wide elections, and at local elections in England.

The Government does not have plans, as part of the national rollout of Voter ID, to require applicants to supply photo identification along with their application for a postal or proxy vote.

As detailed in response to previous questions on the topic, the Government is conducting localised testing with the RNIB to inform policy development and to improve the voting process for blind and partially sighted people. These are not ‘pilot schemes’ under section 10 of the Representation of the People Act 2000.

The results of the Ipsos Mori research conducted in 2019 were published alongside the Cabinet Office evaluation of the 2019 pilots:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/evaluation-of-voter-id-pilots-2019

The Government has been considering the most appropriate approach to further evidence gathering in this area. We are keen to understand how an accessible audio device would in principle operate in a 'live' poll when used in conjunction with the tactile voting device and are therefore working with the RNIB and one local authority to test that during the forthcoming polls. The decision to test with one local authority has been informed by the need to progress this work with the need to respect public health regulations, the significant workload that a difficult combination of polls has created in some areas and to ensure any testing does not create additional risk, particularly to a group of potentially vulnerable people.

This work will allow us to build on previous evidence gathering we have undertaken with both people with sight loss and electoral administrators. We are grateful to the RNIB and local authority for their hard work and commitment, noting the operational challenges more generally with these polls.

Details of Government contracts, and Cabinet Office spend data are published on gov.uk.

Local authorities are required to publish annual accounts outlining their income and expenditure.

Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) have the statutory responsibility for compiling and maintaining complete and accurate registers for their local areas. The Electoral Commission (EC) is responsible for providing guidance and resources to help EROs and their staff in running electoral registration, for setting standards, and for monitoring the performance of EROs. The Commission runs campaigns to raise awareness of how people can register to vote, and how to cast their vote.

The Government ensures that EROs have the tools that they need to do their job efficiently. For example, changes to the annual canvass in Great Britain has provided EROs with greater flexibility to target their resources where they are needed, rather than on the majority of properties, where nothing has changed.

The Government is committed to encouraging democratic engagement amongst all electors, including underrepresented groups. Since 2013, the Government has provided more than £27m to fund activities to promote electoral registration and democratic engagement more widely.

Third-party organisations delivered events and activities during National Democracy Week (NDW), and the Government facilitated workshops with Democratic Engagement Champions in preparation for the week. The Government has no plans to run NDW in 2021. Instead, the Government will focus on its unique responsibilities as legislator, funder and promoter of good practice.

Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) have the statutory responsibility for compiling and maintaining complete and accurate registers for their local areas. The Electoral Commission (EC) is responsible for providing guidance and resources to help EROs and their staff in running electoral registration, for setting standards, and for monitoring the performance of EROs. The Commission runs campaigns to raise awareness of how people can register to vote, and how to cast their vote.

The Government ensures that EROs have the tools that they need to do their job efficiently. For example, changes to the annual canvass in Great Britain has provided EROs with greater flexibility to target their resources where they are needed, rather than on the majority of properties, where nothing has changed.

The Government is committed to encouraging democratic engagement amongst all electors, including underrepresented groups. Since 2013, the Government has provided more than £27m to fund activities to promote electoral registration and democratic engagement more widely.

Third-party organisations delivered events and activities during National Democracy Week (NDW), and the Government facilitated workshops with Democratic Engagement Champions in preparation for the week. The Government has no plans to run NDW in 2021. Instead, the Government will focus on its unique responsibilities as legislator, funder and promoter of good practice.

Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) have the statutory responsibility for compiling and maintaining complete and accurate registers for their local areas. The Electoral Commission (EC) is responsible for providing guidance and resources to help EROs and their staff in running electoral registration, for setting standards, and for monitoring the performance of EROs. The Commission runs campaigns to raise awareness of how people can register to vote, and how to cast their vote.

The Government ensures that EROs have the tools that they need to do their job efficiently. For example, changes to the annual canvass in Great Britain has provided EROs with greater flexibility to target their resources where they are needed, rather than on the majority of properties, where nothing has changed.

The Government is committed to encouraging democratic engagement amongst all electors, including underrepresented groups. Since 2013, the Government has provided more than £27m to fund activities to promote electoral registration and democratic engagement more widely.

Third-party organisations delivered events and activities during National Democracy Week (NDW), and the Government facilitated workshops with Democratic Engagement Champions in preparation for the week. The Government has no plans to run NDW in 2021. Instead, the Government will focus on its unique responsibilities as legislator, funder and promoter of good practice.

Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) have the statutory responsibility for compiling and maintaining complete and accurate registers for their local areas. The Electoral Commission (EC) is responsible for providing guidance and resources to help EROs and their staff in running electoral registration, for setting standards, and for monitoring the performance of EROs. The Commission runs campaigns to raise awareness of how people can register to vote, and how to cast their vote.

The Government ensures that EROs have the tools that they need to do their job efficiently. For example, changes to the annual canvass in Great Britain has provided EROs with greater flexibility to target their resources where they are needed, rather than on the majority of properties, where nothing has changed.

The Government is committed to encouraging democratic engagement amongst all electors, including underrepresented groups. Since 2013, the Government has provided more than £27m to fund activities to promote electoral registration and democratic engagement more widely.

Third-party organisations delivered events and activities during National Democracy Week (NDW), and the Government facilitated workshops with Democratic Engagement Champions in preparation for the week. The Government has no plans to run NDW in 2021. Instead, the Government will focus on its unique responsibilities as legislator, funder and promoter of good practice.

Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) have the statutory responsibility for compiling and maintaining complete and accurate registers for their local areas. The Electoral Commission (EC) is responsible for providing guidance and resources to help EROs and their staff in running electoral registration, for setting standards, and for monitoring the performance of EROs. The Commission runs campaigns to raise awareness of how people can register to vote, and how to cast their vote.

The Government ensures that EROs have the tools that they need to do their job efficiently. For example, changes to the annual canvass in Great Britain has provided EROs with greater flexibility to target their resources where they are needed, rather than on the majority of properties, where nothing has changed.

The Government is committed to encouraging democratic engagement amongst all electors, including underrepresented groups. Since 2013, the Government has provided more than £27m to fund activities to promote electoral registration and democratic engagement more widely.

Third-party organisations delivered events and activities during National Democracy Week (NDW), and the Government facilitated workshops with Democratic Engagement Champions in preparation for the week. The Government has no plans to run NDW in 2021. Instead, the Government will focus on its unique responsibilities as legislator, funder and promoter of good practice.

Local authorities will be responsible for issuing local elector identity documents. Further details will be set out in due course.

We will continue to work with local authorities, the Electoral Commission, charities and civil society organisations to make sure that reforms, including the provision of a local elector identity document, are delivered in a way that is inclusive for all voters.

The Government is committed to ensuring elections are accessible for all those eligible to vote and has been working with the RNIB to improve the voting process for blind and partially sighted people. We are currently exploring ways in which the May elections could be used to advance this work, particularly recognising the pandemic context.

The Government is committed to ensuring elections are accessible for all those eligible to vote and has been working with the RNIB to improve the voting process for blind and partially sighted people. We are currently exploring ways in which the May elections could be used to advance this work, particularly recognising the pandemic context.

Local authorities will be responsible for issuing local elector identity documents.

We will continue to work with local authorities, the Electoral Commission, charities and civil society organisations to make sure that reforms, including the provision of a local elector identity document, are delivered in a way that is inclusive for all voters.

Further details will be set out in due course.

Democracy should not be cancelled because of covid. The Government has confirmed that the set of local and PCC elections scheduled for May will go ahead, and made a firm commitment that the Government will support the sector to deliver them.

The Government has published a clear Delivery Plan for the May elections, setting out how the Government will support local elections teams to deliver effective polls that are covid-secure for voters and staff.

Further guidance for all those involved in the elections will be available in due course and well in advance of the polls.

As has been the case under successive administrations, details of internal discussions are not usually disclosed. Details of ministers' meetings with external organisations and individuals are published on gov.uk periodically.

Democracy should not be cancelled because of covid. The Government has confirmed that the set of local and PCC elections scheduled for May will go ahead, and made a firm commitment that the Government will support the sector to deliver them.

The Government has published a clear Delivery Plan for the May elections, setting out how the Government will support local elections teams to deliver effective polls that are covid-secure for voters and staff.

Further guidance for all those involved in the elections will be available in due course and well in advance of the polls.

As has been the case under successive administrations, details of internal discussions are not usually disclosed. Details of ministers' meetings with external organisations and individuals are published on gov.uk periodically.

As legislation is brought forward to enable the national roll out of voter ID, appropriate impact assessments will be provided for Parliament in the normal way.

As legislation is brought forward to enable the national roll out of voter ID, appropriate impact assessments will be provided for Parliament in the normal way.

Any elector is able to register to vote by post on demand, if they wish. We understand that the pandemic may change voters’ needs and preferences, and encourage anyone who is shielding, or who does not wish to visit a polling station, to apply for a postal or proxy vote and to do so early. We are working with postal vote suppliers, electoral sector partners and election teams.

Details of Government contracts are published on gov.uk.

We have received representations from Parliamentarians on this issue, and we are currently considering the matter.

As stated in the House by the Minister for the Constitution and Devolution, we will keep Parliament updated on the election preparations, will engage with political parties and will publish detailed guidance in due course.

As legislation is brought forward to enable the national roll out of voter ID, appropriate impact assessments will be provided for Parliament in the normal way. Details about the full list of approved photographic ID will be set out in due course. As we have set out, for any voter who does not have one of the required forms of photographic ID, a local elector ID will be available, free of charge, from their local authority. Local authorities will be responsible for issuing local elector identity documents. Further details will be set out in due course.

As I explained to the House on 13 January, we are looking at this but the Government will not introduce digital postal vote applications ahead of the May 2021 local election.

As legislation is brought forward to enable the national roll out of voter ID, appropriate impact assessments will be provided for Parliament in the normal way. Details about the full list of approved photographic ID will be set out in due course. As we have set out, for any voter who does not have one of the required forms of photographic ID, a local elector ID will be available, free of charge, from their local authority. Local authorities will be responsible for issuing local elector identity documents. Further details will be set out in due course.

As legislation is brought forward to enable the national roll out of voter ID, appropriate impact assessments will be provided for Parliament in the normal way. Details about the full list of approved photographic ID will be set out in due course. As we have set out, for any voter who does not have one of the required forms of photographic ID, a local elector ID will be available, free of charge, from their local authority. Local authorities will be responsible for issuing local elector identity documents. Further details will be set out in due course.

I refer the hon. Member to my answer to the question on 13 January 2021.

Our democracy is based on integrity and the potential for voter fraud in our electoral system undermines this. We will continue to work with the Electoral Commission, charities and civil society organisations to make sure that reforms, including the provision of a local elector identity document, are delivered in a way that is inclusive for all voters.

Everyone who is eligible to vote will have the opportunity to do so.

Primary legislation states that the elections will go ahead in May 2021.

We continue to work closely with the electoral community, including electoral suppliers, and public health bodies to resolve challenges and ensure everyone will be able to cast their vote safely and securely - and in a way of their choosing.

Measures are planned to support absent voting at short notice. Guidance will be published in good time ahead of the polls and this matter will be kept under review. The House will be kept updated.

The Government has also engaged with the Parliamentary Parties Panel to ensure that views from political parties are taken on board.

Primary legislation states that the elections will go ahead in May 2021.

We continue to work closely with the electoral community, including electoral suppliers, and public health bodies to resolve challenges and ensure everyone will be able to cast their vote safely and securely - and in a way of their choosing.

Measures are planned to support absent voting at short notice. Guidance will be published in good time ahead of the polls and this matter will be kept under review. The House will be kept updated.

The Government has also engaged with the Parliamentary Parties Panel to ensure that views from political parties are taken on board.

Primary legislation states that the elections will go ahead in May 2021.

We continue to work closely with the electoral community, including electoral suppliers, and public health bodies to resolve challenges and ensure everyone will be able to cast their vote safely and securely - and in a way of their choosing.

Measures are planned to support absent voting at short notice. Guidance will be published in good time ahead of the polls and this matter will be kept under review. The House will be kept updated.

The Government has also engaged with the Parliamentary Parties Panel to ensure that views from political parties are taken on board.

Primary legislation states that the elections will go ahead in May 2021.

We continue to work closely with the electoral community, including electoral suppliers, and public health bodies to resolve challenges and ensure everyone will be able to cast their vote safely and securely - and in a way of their choosing.

Measures are planned to support absent voting at short notice. Guidance will be published in good time ahead of the polls and this matter will be kept under review. The House will be kept updated.

The Government has also engaged with the Parliamentary Parties Panel to ensure that views from political parties are taken on board.

Primary legislation states that the elections will go ahead in May 2021.

We continue to work closely with the electoral community, including electoral suppliers, and public health bodies to resolve challenges and ensure everyone will be able to cast their vote safely and securely - and in a way of their choosing.

Measures are planned to support absent voting at short notice. Guidance will be published in good time ahead of the polls and this matter will be kept under review. The House will be kept updated.

The Government has also engaged with the Parliamentary Parties Panel to ensure that views from political parties are taken on board.

Primary legislation states that the elections will go ahead in May 2021.

We continue to work closely with the electoral community, including electoral suppliers, and public health bodies to resolve challenges and ensure everyone will be able to cast their vote safely and securely - and in a way of their choosing.

Measures are planned to support absent voting at short notice. Guidance will be published in good time ahead of the polls and this matter will be kept under review. The House will be kept updated.

The Government has also engaged with the Parliamentary Parties Panel to ensure that views from political parties are taken on board.

Primary legislation states that the elections will go ahead in May 2021.

We continue to work closely with the electoral community, including electoral suppliers, and public health bodies to resolve challenges and ensure everyone will be able to cast their vote safely and securely - and in a way of their choosing.

Measures are planned to support absent voting at short notice. Guidance will be published in good time ahead of the polls and this matter will be kept under review. The House will be kept updated.

The Government has also engaged with the Parliamentary Parties Panel to ensure that views from political parties are taken on board.

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority. I have therefore asked the Authority to respond.

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority. I have therefore asked the Authority to respond.

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority. I have therefore asked the Authority to respond.

Electors will be required to show an approved form of photographic ID before casting their vote in a polling station across Great Britain at national UK-wide elections, and at local elections in England.

As set out in my answer of 18 December 2020 (PQ 128204), everyone who is eligible to vote will have the opportunity to do so. The list of approved photographic ID will not be limited to UK passports, a broad range of documents already in use will be accepted, including, for example, concessionary travel passes, PASS scheme cards, Ministry of Defence identity cards and photocard parking permits issued as part of the Blue Badge scheme.

We will continue to work with the Electoral Commission and other stakeholders including charities and civil society organisations to make sure that reforms are delivered in a way that is inclusive for all voters.

Electors will be required to show an approved form of photographic ID before casting their vote in a polling station across Great Britain at national UK-wide elections, and at local elections in England.

As set out in my answer of 18 December 2020 (PQ 128204), everyone who is eligible to vote will have the opportunity to do so. The list of approved photographic ID will not be limited to UK passports, a broad range of documents already in use will be accepted, including, for example, concessionary travel passes, PASS scheme cards, Ministry of Defence identity cards and photocard parking permits issued as part of the Blue Badge scheme.

We will continue to work with the Electoral Commission and other stakeholders including charities and civil society organisations to make sure that reforms are delivered in a way that is inclusive for all voters.

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority. I have therefore asked the Authority to respond.

Further to my answers to PQs 104752 and 100442, the Government is committed to ensuring that everyone who is eligible can participate in our democracy.

The impact of voter ID on voters, including by proxy, was the subject of the independent Electoral Commission’s evaluations of the 2018 and 2019 voter ID pilots. These evaluations continue to inform planning for the implementation of voter ID.

Local authorities are responsible for designating polling places and the law requires them to make sure that, as far as is practicable, these are accessible to the local community, including those voters with a disability. Voters with disabilities are also able to get assistance in casting their vote from polling station staff or from a companion. The Government is intending to bring forward legislation to support voters with disabilities by increasing the range of support provided in polling stations and by removing restrictions on who can act as a companion.

We will continue to work with the Electoral Commission and other stakeholders including charities and civil society organisations to make sure that reforms are delivered in a way that is inclusive for all voters.

Further to my answers to PQs 104752 and 100442, the Government is committed to ensuring that everyone who is eligible can participate in our democracy.

The impact of voter ID on voters, including by proxy, was the subject of the independent Electoral Commission’s evaluations of the 2018 and 2019 voter ID pilots. These evaluations continue to inform planning for the implementation of voter ID.

Local authorities are responsible for designating polling places and the law requires them to make sure that, as far as is practicable, these are accessible to the local community, including those voters with a disability. Voters with disabilities are also able to get assistance in casting their vote from polling station staff or from a companion. The Government is intending to bring forward legislation to support voters with disabilities by increasing the range of support provided in polling stations and by removing restrictions on who can act as a companion.

We will continue to work with the Electoral Commission and other stakeholders including charities and civil society organisations to make sure that reforms are delivered in a way that is inclusive for all voters.

Further to my answers to PQs 104752 and 100442, the Government is committed to ensuring that everyone who is eligible can participate in our democracy.

The impact of voter ID on voters, including by proxy, was the subject of the independent Electoral Commission’s evaluations of the 2018 and 2019 voter ID pilots. These evaluations continue to inform planning for the implementation of voter ID.

Local authorities are responsible for designating polling places and the law requires them to make sure that, as far as is practicable, these are accessible to the local community, including those voters with a disability. Voters with disabilities are also able to get assistance in casting their vote from polling station staff or from a companion. The Government is intending to bring forward legislation to support voters with disabilities by increasing the range of support provided in polling stations and by removing restrictions on who can act as a companion.

We will continue to work with the Electoral Commission and other stakeholders including charities and civil society organisations to make sure that reforms are delivered in a way that is inclusive for all voters.

Further to my answers to PQs 104752 and 100442, the Government is committed to ensuring that everyone who is eligible can participate in our democracy.

The impact of voter ID on voters, including by proxy, was the subject of the independent Electoral Commission’s evaluations of the 2018 and 2019 voter ID pilots. These evaluations continue to inform planning for the implementation of voter ID.

Local authorities are responsible for designating polling places and the law requires them to make sure that, as far as is practicable, these are accessible to the local community, including those voters with a disability. Voters with disabilities are also able to get assistance in casting their vote from polling station staff or from a companion. The Government is intending to bring forward legislation to support voters with disabilities by increasing the range of support provided in polling stations and by removing restrictions on who can act as a companion.

We will continue to work with the Electoral Commission and other stakeholders including charities and civil society organisations to make sure that reforms are delivered in a way that is inclusive for all voters.

Further to the answers to PQs 104752 and 100442, we will continue to work with the Electoral Commission and other stakeholders including charities and civil society organisations to make sure that reforms are delivered in a way that is inclusive for all voters. The list of approved photographic ID will not be limited to passports and driving licences. For any voter who does not have one of the required forms of photographic ID, a local elector ID will be available, free of charge.

Everyone who is eligible to vote will have the opportunity to do so.

I refer the hon. Member to my answers to PQs 104752, 100442, and 100441.

I refer the hon. Member to the answers given to PQs 104752 and 100441.

Electoral Registration Officers have statutory responsibility for maintaining complete and accurate electoral registers for their areas. The Government seeks to make registration as easy as possible and to work with many others to reduce any barriers to registration. We encourage everyone who is eligible to register to vote, and registering to vote has never been easier or more convenient.

The Government opposes automatic registration as it contradicts the principle that individuals are responsible for registering and that this should be done at a time and place of their choosing. Automatic registration would raise privacy and security concerns. It would also risk introducing errors and inaccuracies to the registers, creating unwarranted opportunities for fraud.

Electoral Registration Officers have statutory responsibility for maintaining complete and accurate electoral registers for their areas. The Government seeks to make registration as easy as possible and to work with many others to reduce any barriers to registration. We encourage everyone who is eligible to register to vote, and registering to vote has never been easier or more convenient.

The Government opposes automatic registration as it contradicts the principle that individuals are responsible for registering and that this should be done at a time and place of their choosing. Automatic registration would raise privacy and security concerns. It would also risk introducing errors and inaccuracies to the registers, creating unwarranted opportunities for fraud.

I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 22 October.

Further to the answers to PQs 104752 and 100441 the Government will work with the Electoral Commission, charities and appropriate civil society organisations. The Government has launched a national strategy to improve the lives of Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities, and the ONS will include specific recognition of these communities in the forthcoming Census.

Further to the answer to PQ104226, announcements will be made in the usual way.

Each pilot authority implemented an equality impact assessment, and our Public Sector Equality Duty was fulfilled. We will continue to work with the Electoral Commission and other stakeholders, including charities and civil society organisations, to make sure that reforms are delivered in a way that is inclusive for all voters. The list of approved photographic ID will not be limited to passports and driving licences. For any voter who does not have one of the required forms of photographic ID, a local elector ID will be available, free of charge.

Each pilot authority implemented an equality impact assessment, and our Public Sector Equality Duty was fulfilled. We will continue to work with the Electoral Commission and other stakeholders, including charities and civil society organisations, to make sure that reforms are delivered in a way that is inclusive for all voters. The list of approved photographic ID will not be limited to passports and driving licences. For any voter who does not have one of the required forms of photographic ID, a local elector ID will be available, free of charge.

Each pilot authority implemented an equality impact assessment, and our Public Sector Equality Duty was fulfilled. We will continue to work with the Electoral Commission and other stakeholders, including charities and civil society organisations, to make sure that reforms are delivered in a way that is inclusive for all voters. The list of approved photographic ID will not be limited to passports and driving licences. For any voter who does not have one of the required forms of photographic ID, a local elector ID will be available, free of charge.

Each pilot authority implemented an equality impact assessment, and our Public Sector Equality Duty was fulfilled. We will continue to work with the Electoral Commission and other stakeholders, including charities and civil society organisations, to make sure that reforms are delivered in a way that is inclusive for all voters. The list of approved photographic ID will not be limited to passports and driving licences. For any voter who does not have one of the required forms of photographic ID, a local elector ID will be available, free of charge.

As I noted in my answer to Question 104752, the Government has taken due regard to the public sector equality duty throughout the planning for implementation. Each pilot authority implemented an equality impact assessment, and our Public Sector Equality Duty was correctly fulfilled. We will continue to work with the Electoral Commission and other stakeholders including charities and civil society organisations to make sure that reforms are delivered in a way that is inclusive for all voters. As the legislation is brought forward the appropriate impact assessments will be provided for Parliament in the normal way.

As I noted in my answer of 14 October, the Government has taken due regard to the public sector equality duty throughout the planning for implementation. Each pilot authority implemented an equality impact assessment, and our Public Sector Equality Duty was correctly fulfilled. We will continue to work with the Electoral Commission and other stakeholders including charities and civil society organisations to make sure that reforms are delivered in a way that is inclusive for all voters. As the legislation is brought forward the appropriate impact assessments will be provided for Parliament in the normal way.

The Government is committed to ensuring that elections are accessible for all those eligible to vote and has already been working with the RNIB to improve the voting process for voters with sight loss.

It is important for security purposes that a physical poll card is sent to every elector at the property where they are registered, but we have already considered how electoral information might additionally be made available in more accessible format for those who request it.

Returning Officers already publish details of candidates in the order they will appear on the ballot paper online. We will work with partners in the electoral sector to ensure this information is accessible.

The Government will continue to work with the RNIB, the Electoral Commission and other relevant organisations to make blind and partially sighted voters aware of the support available to them at the polling station, and to consider what additional support could be provided to help blind and partially sighted people to vote including by post.

The Government is committed to ensuring that elections are accessible for all those eligible to vote and has already been working with the RNIB to improve the voting process for voters with sight loss.

It is important for security purposes that a physical poll card is sent to every elector at the property where they are registered, but we have already considered how electoral information might additionally be made available in more accessible format for those who request it.

Returning Officers already publish details of candidates in the order they will appear on the ballot paper online. We will work with partners in the electoral sector to ensure this information is accessible.

The Government will continue to work with the RNIB, the Electoral Commission and other relevant organisations to make blind and partially sighted voters aware of the support available to them at the polling station, and to consider what additional support could be provided to help blind and partially sighted people to vote including by post.

Further to my detailed answer of 1 October 2020, showing ID is something people of all backgrounds already do every day, for example to take out a library book, claim benefits or pick up a parcel from the post office. Proving who you are before you make a decision of huge importance at the ballot box should be no different. As I noted, ID is required already in many different areas of life, including by many constituency Labour parties.

The list of approved photographic ID will not be limited to passports and driving licences. For any voter who does not have one of the required forms of photographic ID, a local elector ID will be available, free of charge. Everyone who is eligible to vote will have the opportunity to do so.

The Government has taken due regard to the public sector equality duty throughout the process to date. We will continue to work with the Electoral Commission and other stakeholders including charities and civil society organisations to make sure that such reforms are inclusive for all voters.

Further to my detailed answer of 1 October 2020, showing ID is something people of all backgrounds already do every day, for example to take out a library book, claim benefits or pick up a parcel from the post office. Proving who you are before you make a decision of huge importance at the ballot box should be no different. As I noted, ID is required already in many different areas of life, including by many constituency Labour parties.

The list of approved photographic ID will not be limited to passports and driving licences. For any voter who does not have one of the required forms of photographic ID, a local elector ID will be available, free of charge. Everyone who is eligible to vote will have the opportunity to do so.

The Government has taken due regard to the public sector equality duty throughout the process to date. We will continue to work with the Electoral Commission and other stakeholders including charities and civil society organisations to make sure that such reforms are inclusive for all voters.

Requiring proof of identity to vote in a polling station will strengthen the integrity of our electoral system, and give the public confidence that our elections are secure and fit for the 21st century.

Both Electoral Commission and Cabinet Office evaluations show that the voter identification pilots were a success and the overwhelming majority of electors cast their vote without a problem. There was no indication that any consistent demographic was adversely affected by asking for identification to vote.

Photo identification has been required in Northern Ireland since 2003, when introduced by the last Labour Government. Labour Ministers told Parliament: “The measures will tackle electoral abuse effectively without disadvantaging honest voters.... [ensuring that] no one is disfranchised because of them ” (Hansard, 10 July 2001, Col. 739) and “the Government have no intention of taking away people’s democratic right to vote. If we believed that thousands of voters would not be able to vote because of this measure, we would not be introducing it at this time” (Lords Hansard, 1 April 2003, Col. 1247). There has been no adverse effect on turnout or participation by such groups since then.

The Government has taken due regard to the public sector equality duty. We will continue to work with the Electoral Commission and other stakeholders including charities and civil society organisations to make sure that such reforms are inclusive for all voters. I have met with charities representing those who are elderly, suffer from dementia, are LGBTQ+, are BAME and other groups. For any voter who does not have one of the required forms of photographic ID, a local elector ID will be available, free of charge, from their local authority.

ID is already requested normally and reasonably in many areas of life, including by many constituency Labour parties, who require voter identification to vote in Labour Party selection meetings. The Labour Party’s NEC also mandates two forms of ID for any members joining an association which is in special measures.

The Government is committed to ensuring that everyone who is eligible can participate in our democracy. Local authorities are responsible for designating polling places and the law requires them to make sure that, as far as is practicable, these are accessible to the local community, including those voters with a disability.

Requiring proof of identity to vote in a polling station will strengthen the integrity of our electoral system, and give the public confidence that our elections are secure and fit for the 21st century.

Both Electoral Commission and Cabinet Office evaluations show that the voter identification pilots were a success and the overwhelming majority of electors cast their vote without a problem. There was no indication that any consistent demographic was adversely affected by asking for identification to vote.

Photo identification has been required in Northern Ireland since 2003, when introduced by the last Labour Government. Labour Ministers told Parliament: “The measures will tackle electoral abuse effectively without disadvantaging honest voters.... [ensuring that] no one is disfranchised because of them ” (Hansard, 10 July 2001, Col. 739) and “the Government have no intention of taking away people’s democratic right to vote. If we believed that thousands of voters would not be able to vote because of this measure, we would not be introducing it at this time” (Lords Hansard, 1 April 2003, Col. 1247). There has been no adverse effect on turnout or participation by such groups since then.

The Government has taken due regard to the public sector equality duty. We will continue to work with the Electoral Commission and other stakeholders including charities and civil society organisations to make sure that such reforms are inclusive for all voters. I have met with charities representing those who are elderly, suffer from dementia, are LGBTQ+, are BAME and other groups. For any voter who does not have one of the required forms of photographic ID, a local elector ID will be available, free of charge, from their local authority.

ID is already requested normally and reasonably in many areas of life, including by many constituency Labour parties, who require voter identification to vote in Labour Party selection meetings. The Labour Party’s NEC also mandates two forms of ID for any members joining an association which is in special measures.

I refer to the oral statement made by the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster on 13 July 2020. Details of internal discussions are not normally disclosed, in line with the practice of successive administrations.

The Government keeps campaign spending limits under close review.

The Government recognises that some campaigning methods for the May 2021 local elections could be affected by COVID-19.

The Government continues to engage with the electoral community and local government organisations regarding the delivery of the May 2021 local elections.

The UK Government is working with the Electoral Commission, Association of Electoral Administrators, and Society of Local Government Chief Executives, and with the Scottish and Welsh Governments to consider measures to support the effective delivery of all the elections now scheduled for May 2021, including registration services.

Based on the independent Electoral Commission’s evaluations of the 2018 and 2019 voter ID pilots, there is no indication that any consistent demographic was adversely affected by the use of voter ID.

The evaluation shows that the pilots were a success and the overwhelming majority of people cast their vote without a problem.

The Government is committed to introducing Voter ID to strengthen the integrity of our electoral system and give the public confidence that our elections are secure and fit for the 21st century.

We will bring forward legislation enabling the implementation of Voter ID and wider electoral integrity measures as stated in the Queen’s Speech. Further announcements will be made in the usual way.

I refer the Hon. Member to the answer given to PQs 1274, 1275, 1276,1277, 1278 and 1279 on 13 January 2020.

The UK Government is working with the Electoral Commission, Association of Electoral Administrators and Society of Local Government Chief Executives, and with the Scottish and Welsh Governments, to consider measures to support the effective delivery of all the elections now scheduled for May 2021, including registration services.

Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) are appointed by individual local authorities and Valuation Joint Boards under the Representation of the People Act 1983. The Cabinet Office does not hold records of the number of EROs employed.

The UK Government is working with the Electoral Commission, Association of Electoral Administrators and Society of Local Government Chief Executives, and with the Scottish and Welsh Governments, to consider measures to support the effective delivery of all the elections now scheduled for May 2021, including registration services.

Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) are appointed by individual local authorities and Valuation Joint Boards under the Representation of the People Act 1983. The Cabinet Office does not hold records of the number of EROs employed.

Figures for expenditure over each financial year are published by the Boundary Commissions for England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland as part of their annual reports. These are available online.

Figures for expenditure over each financial year are published by the Boundary Commissions for England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland as part of their annual reports. These are available online.

Core participant numbers reflect the young people who took part in the part-residential NCS programme during the relevant seasons. Participation numbers in other NCS activities are not counted towards this figure.

For section (b) of this Question, please refer to my answer to Question 184499.

The total number of core National Citizen Service participants across the Spring, Summer and Autumn programmes in 2019 was 92,041. The figure of 91,489 participants referred to in the National Citizen Service Trust’s Annual Report 2019/20 is on a financial year basis and thus covers the Summer and Autumn programmes only, excluding 552 participants in the Spring 2019 programme.

The participation numbers were reported on a calendar year basis in the 2018/19 Annual Report but reporting practices changed when the NCS became a Royal Charter Body in December 2019. Accordingly, participation KPIs for the 2019/20 Annual Report were reported on a financial year basis.

As per National Citizen Service Trust’s 2018/19 Annual Report, 99,674 young people took part in the NCS programme in the 2018 calendar year (England only) with a completion rate of 93%. This compares to a target of 100,000 young people for the calendar year 2018.

In the 2019 calendar year, 92,041 young people took part in the NCS programme. This figure includes 552 young people who participated in the Spring 2019 cohort but were excluded from NCST’s 2019/20 Annual Report (which covers the April 2019 to March 2020 financial year). The target for 2019/20 was set for the financial, rather than calendar year and was for at least 100,000 young people to take part in NCS.

The completion rate for 2019 was 88% for the calendar year. Two key factors contributed to this lower participation rate in comparison to 2018:

• Significant underperformance of one of the largest providers of NCS at the time - they exited the network at the end of 2019.

• A tightening of criteria around what constitutes a "graduate" from the NCS programmes on the back of process reviews and systems changes that took effect from Spring 2019.

The NCS programme is delivered by the National Citizen Service Trust, whose annual report and financial statements for the financial year 2019/20 are publicly available. NCST received a £158.6m grant-in-aid from DCMS in 2019/20. Other income amounted to £3.54m and total expenditure for the year was £156.4m.

As noted in NCST’s 2019/20 Annual Report, the Summer 2020 NCS Programme was officially cancelled because of Covid-19 on 7 April 2020, by which point NCST had paid out £3.6m worth of non-refundable deposits to 44 accommodation venues. A further three accommodation suppliers were further due £3.8m in non-refundable deposits.

These payments were disclosed as events after the reporting date in NCST’s 2019/20 accounts but will be accounted for in 2020-21 accounts because accommodation costs are treated as prepayments. As well as settling contractual commitments for 2020 accommodation, NCST was also able to negotiate, at no additional cost, a break from the second and third year of multi-year accommodation contracts, thereby reducing the future accommodation costs for NCST and the taxpayer.

Covid-19 restrictions meant that NCST was unable to offer its usual residential programme in 2020 but NCST worked with its core programme providers to repurpose the funds already committed to deliver an alternative programme, including digital content, volunteering opportunities and support within schools and colleges. Additionally, service user contributions received by NCST for young people to attend the Summer 2020 programme were refunded.

As detailed in the National Citizen Service Trust’s Annual Report for the financial year 2019/20, the impact of Covid-19 has meant that NCST are unable to calculate standard value for money metrics on a financial year basis due to the cancellation of the Summer 2020 programme. Instead, NCST measured their performance on cost of unfilled places on a calendar year basis.

As stated in NCST’s Annual Report 2019/20, costs of unfilled places fell year on year from £9.5m in 2018 to £5.0m in 2019. This spend went to NCST’s network of Delivery Partners (mostly made up of non-profit youth sector organisations), who the Trust gives part of their revenue upfront to support preparatory activities such as running recruitment events and hiring programme staff.

The revised supplier contracts from 2020 onwards have been designed to minimise the risks of the Trust paying for places which are not filled in future. Furthermore, centralised booking of accommodation will enable the Trust to improve payment terms and minimise unfilled bed costs.

As detailed in the National Citizen Service Trust’s Annual Report 2019/20, ‘Communication, Marketing and Media Costs’ totalled £7,099,000. This accounts for circa 4.5% of the total expenditure of the National Citizen Service Trust for 2019/20, which was £156,384,000.

The total number of core NCS participants in 2018/19 was 99,674 (NCST Annual Report, 2018/19). The total number of core NCS participants in 2019/20 was 92,041 (NCST Annual Report, 2019/20).

DCMS did not seek commercial sponsorship for the UK Youth Parliament. The grant competition for the 2021/22 UK Youth Parliament programme was open to charitable, benevolent and philanthropic organisations.

For DCMS grant competitions, an organisation's ability to bring in additional resources, for example by creating delivery efficiencies with partner organisations or through match funding may be considered as part of the assessment criteria. In the 2021/22 UK Youth Parliament grant competition, an organisation’s ability to bring in additional resource was considered. Applicants to the grant competition were invited to demonstrate how they would be able to secure external funding and partnerships to supplement the DCMS grant.

HM Government’s core funding for the UK Youth Parliament in 2021/22 remains at the same level as the previous two years. Additional funding has been made available in 2021/22 to continue enabling UK-wide participation in this programme.

The £500 million Youth Investment Fund remains a manifesto commitment for transformative levelling up across the country over the course of the parliament.

£30 million of the fund was committed at the Spending Review as capital investment in youth services for 2021-22, which is on top of the £750 million charity funding package. This will provide an investment in new and refurbished spaces for young people, so they can access positive activities and support from youth workers.

Further details of the timetable for allocation will be announced in due course, following a review of youth funding.

Government recognises that it is important to listen to young people and ensure they have a voice on issues that matter to them. Since the start of the pandemic Ministers have committed to attending monthly youth-led roundtable discussions with members of the DCMS Youth Steering Group, who oversee the development of policies and programmes across government that affect young people.

Additionally, Ministers have taken up a range of opportunities to speak to young people through events hosted by youth sector organisations, including the Jewish Lads and Girls Brigade Live event, UK Youth’s panel on youth loneliness and a roundtable with representatives involved in the national #YoungAndBlack campaign.

Ministers will continue to meet regularly with youth representatives to consider the impact of Covid-19 and engage them in recovery planning.

We recognise that waterways businesses have been severely impacted by the current situation. My Department will continue to work closely with the Department for Food, Environment and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) to assess the impact on tourism businesses on inland waterways following Covid-19.

The Government has provided wide-ranging financial support across the whole economy, particularly focussing on small and medium-sized businesses. These include several loan schemes, such as the 100% Government-guaranteed Bounce Back Loan; support for self-employed people; the Local Authority Discretionary Grant Fund to accommodate small businesses previously outside the scope of the business grant funds scheme; a £10 million tourism ‘kick-start’ package to help small businesses in our tourist destinations, along with a reduced 5% VAT rate for many tourism and hospitality activities for six months.

Through the Cultural Renewal Taskforce and its working groups, we have developed Covid-19 Secure guidance which will help heritage and tourism businesses reopen safely for both visitors and workers. Further significant easing of Covid-19 restrictions from 4 July should now allow many waterways businesses to reopen to take advantage of coming summer demand.

We recognise that waterways businesses have been severely impacted by the current situation. My Department will continue to work closely with the Department for Food, Environment and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) to assess the impact on tourism businesses on inland waterways following Covid-19.

The Government has provided wide-ranging financial support across the whole economy, particularly focussing on small and medium-sized businesses. These include several loan schemes, such as the 100% Government-guaranteed Bounce Back Loan; support for self-employed people; the Local Authority Discretionary Grant Fund to accommodate small businesses previously outside the scope of the business grant funds scheme; a £10 million tourism ‘kick-start’ package to help small businesses in our tourist destinations, along with a reduced 5% VAT rate for many tourism and hospitality activities for six months.

Through the Cultural Renewal Taskforce and its working groups, we have developed Covid-19 Secure guidance which will help heritage and tourism businesses reopen safely for both visitors and workers. Further significant easing of Covid-19 restrictions from 4 July should now allow many waterways businesses to reopen to take advantage of coming summer demand.

The Government welcomes the positive impact of international tourism, including from China, on the UK economy. We look forward to welcoming Chinese visitors back to all parts of the UK as soon as practicably possible. We will continue to support the recovery of the tourism and hospitality sectors, as well as the countryside, culture and heritage assets which we know are so greatly appreciated by visitors both from China and from around the world.

Following the review into when the remaining higher education students can return to in-person teaching and learning, the government has announced that the remaining students should return to in-person teaching no earlier than 17 May 2021, alongside Step 3 of the roadmap. Students and institutions will be given at least a week’s notice of any further return in accordance with the timing of Step 3 of the roadmap.

The government roadmap is designed to maintain a cautious approach to the easing of restrictions to reduce public health risks and ensure that we can maintain progress towards full reopening. However, the government recognises the difficulties and disruption that this may cause for many students and their families and that is why the government is making a further £15 million of additional student hardship funding available for this academic year 2020/21. In total we have made an additional £85 million of funding available for student hardship.

We are supporting universities to provide regular twice weekly asymptomatic testing for all students and staff on-site and, from May, at home. This will help break chains of transmission of the virus.

The Turing scheme will be backed by at least £100 million, providing funding for around 35,000 students in universities, colleges, and schools to go on placements and exchanges overseas, starting in September 2021 and replaces funding previously available through the education mobility element of Erasmus+. The scheme will be global and not be limited to the EU. Further details of the scheme will be published shortly.

Universities and private accommodation providers are autonomous and responsible for setting their own rent agreements. The government plays no direct role in the provision of student accommodation. However, the government encourages all providers of student accommodation to review their accommodation policies to ensure that they have students best interests at heart. We also urge them to communicate their policy clearly and be fair.

We recognise that in these exceptional circumstances some students may face financial hardship. The department has worked with the Office for Students to clarify that providers are able to draw on existing funds, worth around £256 million for academic year 2020/21, towards hardship support. The government is making available up to a further £20 million on a one-off basis to support those that need it most, particularly disadvantaged students.

Maintenance loans are available as a contribution towards a student’s living costs while attending university. The system targets the most living cost support at those from the lowest income families, who need it most.

Maximum living costs support increased by 10.3% in cash terms for eligible new students on the lowest incomes in 2016/17 compared to the maximum support available for new starters in 2015/16 under the previous system. Further inflationary increases in living costs support have been made in each academic year since, with an increase of 2.9% announced for the 2020/21 academic year and 3.1% for the 2021/22 academic year, taking the support available for the lowest income students to record levels in cash terms.

Students who have applied for a loan for living costs for 2020/21 and have been awarded a lower amount than the maximum and believe their household income for the current tax year (2020-21) will drop by at least 15% compared to the household income they provided when they were initially assessed, can apply for their entitlement to be reassessed.

If students have concerns about their accommodation fees, they should first raise their concerns with their accommodation provider. If their concerns remain unresolved, and their higher education provider is involved in the provision of the accommodation, students at providers in England or Wales can ask the Office of the Independent Adjudicator for Higher Education to consider their complaint.

If a student thinks their accommodation provider is treating them unfairly, they can raise a complaint under the accommodation codes of practice as long as their provider is a code member. The codes can be found at: https://www.thesac.org.uk/, https://www.unipol.org.uk/the-code/how-to-complain and https://www.rla.org.uk/about/nrla-code-of-practice.shtml.

In October 2019, during care leavers week, my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, announced £19 million additional funding in financial year 2020-21 to support care leavers.

Of the additional funding, £10 million was allocated to local authorities to increase the resources available to them to implement Staying Put, which enables young people in foster care at age 18 to remain with their former foster carers until age 21. In total, £33 million will be allocated to local authorities to implement Staying Put this financial year.

Although Staying Close supports both young men and young women, some of the pilots are working with particular cohorts. For example, one of the pilots is supporting young women leaving a specialist children’s home that accommodates young women who have been victims of child sexual exploitation, and a number of Staying Close participants are young parents. As well as the core Staying Close offer, a number of pilots also provide access to specialist mental health services.

The final £3 million funding was to provide extra funding for Virtual School Heads to enable them to provide additional support to care leavers in further education. Again, this funding will support all care leavers in further education and is not targeted at young women specifically.

The government is committed to ensuring that looked-after and previously looked-after children are supported to succeed in education. Being at an early years setting, school or college is vital to prevent vulnerable children from falling behind in their education, and as a protective factor from harm. Educational settings remained open to vulnerable children, including children in care, during the lockdown period. We expect educational providers, local authorities, social workers and other professionals to continue to work together to support families and pupils, including those in vulnerable groups, to return to schools, colleges and early years settings.

During lockdown, we prioritised vulnerable children and young people’s attendance. This included raising vulnerable children and young people’s attendance from around 5% in early April to over 25% by the end of June through consistent communications, guidance and local-level support, including working with schools and Virtual School Heads to encourage attendance. The department is continuing to publish data on attendance, including the attendance of vulnerable children, on a regular basis and the latest figures are available here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/attendance-in-education-and-early-years-settings-during-the-coronavirus-covid-19-outbreak.

Where a pupil is unable to attend school because they are complying with clinical or public health advice, we expect schools to be able to immediately offer them access to remote education. Schools should monitor engagement with this activity. We have also invested over £100 million to support remote education and have delivered over 220,000 laptops and tablets to children who would not otherwise have access. In the summer term, we provided over 50,000 4G wireless routers to local authorities and academy trusts for care leavers, children with a social worker at secondary school, and disadvantaged children in year 10 who did not have internet connections to support remote education. We are now supplementing this support by making an initial 150,000 additional devices available in the event face-to-face schooling is disrupted as a result of local COVID-19 restrictions.

The department has delivered over 220,000 laptops and tablets and over 50,000 4G wireless routers to children and young people, as part of a £100 million investment to support remote education for disadvantaged students and to allow children with a social worker and care leavers to access support and services online. This includes over 148,000 devices for children with a social worker and care leavers.

Guidance to local authorities identified care leavers as one of three priority groups for receipt of the laptops and routers. Local authorities are responsible for the distribution of devices, as they are best placed to identify which young people need one. The guidance is available here:
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/laptops-tablets-and-4g-wireless-routers-provided-during-coronavirus-covid-19.

The department does not collect data on the number of care leavers who do not have internet access. However, research published by Coram Voice in 2019 identified that 80% of care leavers had internet access at home, compared to 91% of young people aged 16-24 in the general population. A summary of the report is available here:
https://coramvoice.org.uk/sites/default/files/cv-olbc-snapshot-a2-poster_1.4.19.pdf.

The department has delivered over 220,000 laptops and tablets and over 50,000 4G wireless routers to children and young people, as part of a £100 million investment to support remote education for disadvantaged students and to allow children with a social worker and care leavers to access support and services online. This includes over 148,000 devices for children with a social worker and care leavers.

Guidance to local authorities identified care leavers as one of three priority groups for receipt of the laptops and routers. Local authorities are responsible for the distribution of devices, as they are best placed to identify which young people need one. The guidance is available here:
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/laptops-tablets-and-4g-wireless-routers-provided-during-coronavirus-covid-19.

The department does not collect data on the number of care leavers who do not have internet access. However, research published by Coram Voice in 2019 identified that 80% of care leavers had internet access at home, compared to 91% of young people aged 16-24 in the general population. A summary of the report is available here:
https://coramvoice.org.uk/sites/default/files/cv-olbc-snapshot-a2-poster_1.4.19.pdf.

The government has taken unprecedented and substantial action to ensure that no child should go hungry as we take measures to tackle COVID-19, including in relation to free school meals.

In the first instance, we asked schools to support eligible pupils by providing meals or food parcels through their existing food providers wherever possible. We also established a national voucher scheme to support schools and families where required.

Schools were best placed to decide how to support families eligible for free school meals in their areas, and this includes considerations over access to the internet. Where parents were not able to access the national voucher scheme, we recommended that the school print and post the voucher to families. If there were issues with postal deliveries, we advised schools to consider a safe collection point for families to collect their vouchers.

All young people are now required to continue in education or training until their 18th birthday. Local authorities have a statutory duty to identify and track the participation of 16 and 17-year-olds. This includes supporting those who are not participating to do so and making sure that there is sufficient and suitable education and training provision to meet their needs.

During the COVID-19 outbreak, colleges and providers have moved more learning online to allow students to continue with studies remotely. We have provided advice and signposted to support to help with this.

We know that remote learning has been working well for many students in post-16 education. We will continue to work with the sector to establish the best way to support students to make up for the disruption due to COVID-19.

Although online education should remain the predominant way of learning for now, further education providers are re-opening for 16-19 learners on the first year of a 2-year study programme (this also includes apprentices). In addition, all learners under 19 years old can be offered a face-to-face meeting before the end of the summer term, subject to the required safety measures being met.

We are currently reviewing options for the autumn term. We would like to see as full a return as soon as possible in order to support young people and make up for time spent out of education.

Over the course of this Parliament, the government are providing £2.5 billion (£3 billion when including Barnett funding for devolved administrations) for a new National Skills Fund to help adults learn new skills and prepare for the economy of the future.

The National Skills Fund will re-energise the adult skills landscape and help to ensure that businesses can find and hire the workers they need and help people fulfil their potential.

Work is progressing to develop detailed plans for the National Skills Fund, and a consultation will be launched at a time when all those who have an interest will be better able to engage actively in it. We will continue to engage closely with users, employers and stakeholders throughout the process, before setting out more detailed plans after the consultation.

The insights gained will help to build an understanding of how best to target the fund and which groups will benefit and what types of training it should cover, to ensure we can provide the best return on investment.

Marine protection is a devolved matter and the information provided relates to England only.

One of Defra’s biggest challenges in seeking to ensure effective management of offshore Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) has been the need to secure the agreement of other countries through the Common Fisheries Policy process. This requirement will end when the Transition Period has finished.

The Fisheries Bill proposes a new power enabling the Marine Management Organisation (MMO) to implement fisheries management measures for conservation purposes both within our MPAs and more widely across English waters. The MMO will be able to use this power after the expiry of the Transition Period.

Activities within MPAs that require planning or licensing consent are assessed by the relevant regulator, including the MMO, to prevent damage to these designated areas.

Marine protection is a devolved matter and the information provided relates to England only.

The Common Fisheries Policy has restricted our ability to implement fisheries management measures within offshore Marine Protected Areas (MPAs). The Fisheries Bill proposes a new power to allow the introduction of measures for conservation purposes, both within our MPAs and more widely across English waters.

Not all fishing activities within MPAs will require management, only those likely to damage the designated features, such as trawling on the seabed. The Marine Management Organisation monitors activity to ensure fishing boats are complying with current rules, and will ensure compliance with new measures as they are introduced.

The Government’s priority in relation to annual negotiations on fishing opportunities is to ensure that the total allowable catch for each fish stock that we have an interest in is set within sustainable limits taking account of scientific advice. Management measures, both technical and control based, are in place throughout the year to ensure monitoring and compliance of agreed catch limits and methods of capture. Enforcement of management measures is carried out through physical and electronic means as appropriate. The Fisheries Bill will put in place Fisheries Management Plans to help deliver and maintain stocks at sustainable levels into the future.

The terms and conditions of the COVID-19 Bus Services Support Grant does not require operators to seek consent from the Department to change ticket validity times. However, payment of the grant is based on the operator’s original fare structures.

The terms and conditions of the COVID-19 Bus Services Support Grant does not define an amendment to ticket validity times as a fare price increase. However, payment of the grant is based on the operator’s original fare structures, and operators are not permitted to increase or decrease the price of tickets.

The Equality Act 2010 (Work on Ships and Hovercraft) Regulations 2011 provides protection for EEA seafarers and those from designated States. These Regulations will be reviewed later this year.

Approval of recruitment & placement agencies is the responsibility of the State in whose territory the agency is located. Wallem Ship Management is not located in the UK; hence they are not approved by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency.

The Equality Act 2010 (Work on Ships and Hovercraft) Regulations 2011 were designed to harmonise legislation as well as provide full protection to the individual. We are currently considering necessary amendments to the Regulations.

As part of that review we will consider all the Regulations therein. In undertaking such a review, we will of course work with our social partners, including the relevant trade unions.

We are committed to develop the concept of a social framework, as referred to in the Maritime 2050 strategy. The aspiration is to provide clarity on the standards of welfare expected for our maritime workforce, regardless of whether they are working on land or at sea. This could include a review of all employment legislation explicitly pertaining to seafarers’ work and social protection, ensuring close alignment with the protections available to those working in land-based roles.

As a coastal and flag State, international law generally restricts the UK applying its domestic legislation to vessels operating outside its territorial waters and not registered in the UK.

I have not had any recent discussions with the Minister for Women and Equalities on employer discrimination against seafarers on the grounds of protected characteristics. However, officials from my Department have been liaising with counterparts in the Government Equalities Office (GEO). Furthermore, officials have also been working with the International Maritime Organization and the International Labour Organization as part of the international work on women in maritime which has included discussions on how to prevent discrimination on the grounds of protected characteristics

Any seafarer of an EEA country working in Great Britain is currently able to bring a discrimination claim against their GB-based employer to employment tribunal under the Equality Act 2010 (Work on Ships and Hovercraft) Regulations 2011. The UK’s departure from the EU will not change this in any way.

The Department remains committed to ensuring that motorists comply with motoring laws, including the compulsory requirement for motor insurance.

Since 2011 Continuous Insurance Enforcement (CIE) has enabled action to be taken against those who keep a vehicle without insurance. The scheme allows uninsured vehicles to be identified from a comparison of the DVLA’s vehicle register and the Motor Insurance Database managed by the Motor Insurers’ Bureau.

Keepers of vehicles which appear uninsured are sent advisory letters. Those who take no action receive a fixed penalty of £100, followed by enforcement action including prosecution if they remain uninsured.

CIE supplements police powers to seize an uninsured vehicle being used on the road. Police records show that 133,000 vehicles were seized in 2018. Since 2010, Motor Insurers’ Bureau figures show uninsured vehicles had fallen from 1.4 million in 2010 to 1 million by 2016.

An Order in Council making the legislative changes is expected to be laid in draft before Parliament next month. This will be subject to the affirmative process and debates will be scheduled as the parliamentary timetable permits before final approval is sought from the Privy Council.

The Department does not operate any rating system for categorising Freedom of Information requests according to their presentational sensitivity.

We respond to all Freedom of Information requests under our obligations as set out in the Freedom of Information Act 2000.

All Freedom of Information requests are judged purpose-blind and presentational sensitivity has no bearing on whether we should release information under the Freedom of Information Act or not.

No assessment of the potential effect of youth unemployment on the level of national output in 2021 has been made.

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is committed to supporting everyone who has been affected by the unprecedented impact of COVID-19 on the economy and the labour market. We want everyone to be able to find a job, progress in work and thrive in the labour market, whoever they are and wherever they live.

Through Plan for Jobs, the government invested £30bn in measures to create, support and protect jobs. This included over £3bn investment in the Kickstart programme for young people and an additional 13,500 Work Coaches in our Jobcentres, as well as other measures focussed on boosting work search, skills and apprenticeships.

We have reviewed the report to which the Honourable Lady refers. DWP has made no assessment of the fiscal cost of unemployment outlined in the report.

We recognise that younger people have been some of the hardest hit by the pandemic. Our DWP Youth Offer provides the wrap-around support to help this group access so much of the positive provision stood up as part of the Plan for Jobs. Our Youth Employment Programme is complemented by joined-up local delivery through Youth Hubs, as well as specialist Youth Employability Coaches for those with complex needs. Our £2bn Kickstart programme is helping young people into jobs and opportunities which will enhance their future employment prospects and help the economy to recover.

The Department for Work and Pensions plans to publish the Equality Impact Assessment on the Kickstart Scheme in due course.

Data from the Annual Population Survey shows a rise of 5.2 percentage points year on year in the unemployment rate for BAME young people. It also suggests they are over-represented in sectors such as Accommodation and Food Services and Wholesale and Retail which have been particularly affected by the pandemic.

The Government is committed to levelling up and uniting the country, including improving the employment outcomes of people from ethnic minority backgrounds. Throughout these unprecedented times the Government has provided a crucial safety net to record levels of claimants, ensuring all our customers receive the support they need, when they need it.

There are currently no plans to extend the Kickstart Scheme. Eligible young people will be able to start new Kickstart jobs until December 2021, meaning the final cohort of six-month jobs will end in Summer 2022.

This Government is committed to providing support to help all young people move into work and avoid the scarring effects of unemployment, as we recover from the Covid pandemic.

Youth Employability Coaches are providing flexible support to young people with significant complex needs and barriers to help them move into employment and offering six weeks of in-work support when they start work. This support is one element of the DWP Youth Offer, alongside the Youth Employment Programme and Youth Hubs designed to support young people enter the labour market.

In addition, the Kickstart scheme is available for young people aged 16-24, on Universal Credit and at risk of long term unemployment. Work Coaches refer eligible young people to Kickstart jobs and support them through the application process.

DWP also have a national programme of mentoring circles, involving employers offering specialised support to young (16-24 years old), unemployed, ethnic minority jobseekers. These provide customers with an opportunity to build confidence and job search skills, whilst at the same time helping employers understand and revise their recruitment practices. As a result of Covid-19, we are additionally delivering virtual Mentoring Circles sessions to comply with national lockdown and social distancing guidelines.

Young people identified as being involved or at risk of being involved in gangs or serious violence are recognised as a priority group and eligible for early entry to the Work and Health Programme in England and Wales. In addition, Jobcentres work with local partners to provide local support to suit individuals' needs.

The Government has put in place a range of measures to support disabled people and people with long term health conditions, including those with epilepsy, to enter and stay in work. During the Covid-19 outbreak, we have made changes to ensure disabled people have still been able to access specialist employment support.

We have two large-scale nationally contracted programmes that support disabled people:

• The Work and Health Programme was launched in 2017 throughout England and Wales for people who expect to find work within 12 months. It enables participants to receive coordinated and person-centred support from local services, and provides targeted support for disabled people, as defined in the Equality Act 2010, who can volunteer to join the programme at any time. It also provides extra tailored support to find employment for other groups, including long term unemployed people.

• IPES launched with the first referrals on 2 December 2019 and is now in place across England and Wales. It is a voluntary programme designed to help disabled people with more complex needs or barriers, who want to work but also require specialist support to achieve their goal of sustained employment. This includes people with Autistic Spectrum conditions, mental health issues, substance abuse, or history of sensory impairments, learning difficulties or recurring and fluctuating health conditions. IPES is expected to provide support for around 2,500 starts a year for four years, totalling 10,000 on the programme.

During the Covid-19 pandemic, we provided this support remotely and made these programmes easier to access by allowing self-referrals as well as referrals through work coaches.

Additionally, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we introduced the Work and Health Programme Job Entry: Targeted Support (JETS) which went live across Wales and England this Autumn and provides light touch employment support which will complement the provision already available for disabled people under the Work and Health Programme. We will protect funding and capacity for helping disabled people and priority disadvantaged groups.

Alongside provision aimed at individuals, we continue to support employers to attract, recruit, retain and develop disabled people in the workplace through the Disability Confident scheme. The scheme was designed as a journey with three levels. All employers start at Level 1, progressing through the scheme at their own pace.

Guidance for what the employability support should include can be found on the Kickstart gov.uk pages. We carefully assess each bid to ensure Kickstart jobs also support young people to develop basic work skills and build their experience.

The £1500 grant for support can be spent in any way that makes a young person more employable but must be detailed in their bid; this could include payment for equipment, training and/or uniform. Full details of this can be found on the Kickstart gov.uk site.

The Enhanced Checking Service currently carry out a pre-payment spot check on all Kickstart jobs as agreed by the grant funding agreement. Where required, deeper investigation is conducted into the quality of the job placement and young person’s experience.

As of 04/02/2021 there were around 15,000 jobs uploaded to Job Centre Plus provision service.

There have been over 100,000 job placements approved and offers made for funding from the Department for Work and Pensions’ Kickstart Scheme. A Kickstart employer receives funding when a young person starts their placement and periodically through the length of their placement.

The Department of Work and Pensions will track the success of Kickstart amongst young people on the scheme who have a disability or health condition and will aim to do this as part of the evaluation. We plan to do this using a combination of evidence sources including management information (Universal Credit claimants are asked if they have an illness, disability or health condition and we can link to other datasets to see if they are on any kind of disability benefits) and survey data.

Work Coach Recruitment is separate to the Kickstart Scheme but both are key tools to help people into the labour market. All Job Centre Plus Work Coaches are able to refer young people to the Kickstart scheme. As at 22 January, 8,685 new work coaches have started since March 2020. Work Coaches are employed in the Executive Officer grade for which DWP applies a spot rate, which is currently £27,565.

As of 19/01/2021 there have been over 110,000 jobs approved by the Department for Work and Pensions’ Kickstart Scheme.

The location of Kickstart jobs is not known until bidders have signed their grant agreement and provided full details of the role in the format which enables us to make it available for work coaches to refer suitable young people. We are not currently able to provide regional breakdowns of data.

The location of Kickstart jobs is not known until bidders have signed their grant agreement and provided full details of the role in the format which enables us to make it available for work coaches to refer suitable young people. We are not currently able to provide regional breakdowns of data.

As of 19/01/2021 there have been over 100,000 job placements approved by the Department for Work and Pensions’ Kickstart Scheme. Of these, we are only able to collect data on those jobs that have been confirmed through grant agreements with the employer and then uploaded as a vacancy through our jobcentres.

The sector information for each job is not categorised by ‘industry’.

The Department for Work and Pensions’ (DWP) Kickstart Scheme is available across Great Britain. All Job Centre Plus Work Coaches are able to refer young people to the scheme. A number of other local staff have also been involved throughout the development and implementation of the scheme to bring local knowledge and expertise to the programme.

As part of the Government’s Plan for Jobs, the DWP is recruiting an extra 13,500 new Work Coaches, and this process is underway. This recruitment is separate to the Kickstart Scheme.

A young person is eligible for a job on the Kickstart Scheme if they are aged 16-24, on Universal Credit (UC), and considered to be at risk of long term unemployment by their work coach. The Department of Work and Pensions has no current plans to extend the eligibility for the scheme beyond UC claimants, but we will keep that under review. If a young person is deaf or has hearing difficulties this would not prevent them from being referred to a Kickstart Scheme job as it is open to all young people who are on UC as long as they meet the eligibility/suitability criteria.

The department (DWP) provides a range of support to the different vulnerable groups who may live in supported accommodation.

For people at risk of homelessness, we help them to make Universal Credit claims, provide tailored support through Jobcentre Plus and priority access to the Work and Health Programme.

DWP has also put into place a range of measures to support disabled people and their employers, including specialised employment support programmes such as Access to Work and Disability Confident. During the Covid-19 outbreak, we have made changes to ensure disabled people have still been able to access this specialist employment support.

The Department for Work and Pensions’ Kickstart Scheme is providing job placements for 16-24 year olds at risk of long term unemployment. Young people will be directed to the scheme through a Job Centre by a Work Coach. This will ensure that those who need support the most are able to benefit, regardless of ethnicity, disability or any disadvantage.

Some personal information, including ethnicity of participants, is voluntarily provided when a young person applies for a placement. This means that any information might not be a fully accurate representation of demographics.

Our data gathering is still in its early stages but we have plans for a wider evaluation of Kickstart that will draw on available data and insights (such as case studies from young people, participant surveys and feedback from Work Coaches) where possible showing outcomes and effects for different groups, including by gender, ethnicity and those facing additional barriers to employment. We will feed this insight into the programme as we continue to roll it out. No information is currently available but we will consider how this might be published in due course.

Data gathering is in its early phase and as such we are not able to reliably break Kickstart participant data down by ethnicity, disability or other disadvantaged group.

Data gathering is in its early phase and as such we are not able to reliably break Kickstart participant data down by ethnicity, disability or other disadvantaged group.

The Kickstart Scheme is a £2 Billion programme, planning to create thousands of new jobs for young people aged 16-24 at risk of long term unemployment. Whilst we will not limit our ambitions, our first priority is to ensure the quality of experiences created for young people.

Jobcentre Plus provides a range of support to people with multiple barriers to employment. Work Coaches provide support tailored to the individual, referring as appropriate to specialist provision such as the Work and Health Programme and local partner support, often funded by the department’s Flexible Support Fund. This support is being strengthen further by the Chancellor’s Plan for Jobs package, including the Kickstart Scheme, and the new Youth Offer.

Kickstart scheme funding does not include covering the costs of childcare. Universal Credit allows for up to 85% of childcare costs to be claimed back, and young people with dependent children considering a Kickstart opportunity should speak with their Work Coach for further information.

The Chancellor’s Plan for Jobs announcement in July outlined a comprehensive package of support for young people. As part of this, our new Youth Offer will provide a guaranteed foundation of support to all 18-24 year olds in the Intensive Worksearch group on Universal Credit. This includes our new 13-week Youth Employment Programme, the national expansion of the Youth Employability Coaches initiative and the Youth Hubs being rolled out nationally to help young people access wider support. These will be co-located and co-delivered with our network of external partners. Young people can be attached to a Youth Hub for up to 6 months to help them move either into work or onto appropriate training.

In addition, the Kickstart Scheme was launched on 2 September 2020 and will create hundreds of thousands of high quality, 6-month work placements aimed at young people aged 16-24.

We also continue to deliver our Mentoring Circles programme. This aims to increase the confidence, motivation and job search skills of the participants and will help them move closer to employment.

The Chancellor’s Plan for Jobs announcement in July outlined a comprehensive package of support for young people. As part of this, our new Youth Offer will provide a guaranteed foundation of support to all 18-24 year olds in the Intensive Worksearch group on Universal Credit. This includes our new 13-week Youth Employment Programme, the national expansion of the Youth Employability Coaches initiative and the Youth Hubs being rolled out nationally to help young people access wider support. These will be co-located and co-delivered with our network of external partners. Young people can be attached to a Youth Hub for up to 6 months to help them move either into work or onto appropriate training.

In addition, the Kickstart Scheme was launched on 2 September 2020 and will create hundreds of thousands of high quality, 6-month work placements aimed at young people aged 16-24.

We also continue to deliver our Mentoring Circles programme. This aims to increase the confidence, motivation and job search skills of the participants and will help them move closer to employment.

The Chancellor’s Plan for Jobs announcement in July outlined a comprehensive package of support for young people. The Kickstart programme was launched on 2 September and our new Youth Offer will provide a guaranteed foundation of support for 18-24 year olds in the Intensive Work Search Regime of Universal Credit.

A key part of the Youth Offer will be the national introduction of Youth Hubs, which will be co-located and co-delivered with local partners. Two Youth Hubs are now open in the North West of England and (subject to local COVID-19 restrictions) we expect a further four to open by the end of October. We are also introducing two demonstrator Youth Hubs where we can test our approach and share good practice with other areas.

We will build on the learning from these demonstrator sites with further expansion and additional Youth Hubs planned. In addition, all our Work Coaches – including those in the North West – will continue to signpost young people to the most appropriate local or national provision and ensure that no young person falls through the cracks.

DWP is engaging cross-government to understand supply & demand across the labour market throughout and beyond the COVID-19 crisis. We are in discussions with other Government Departments and a range of stakeholders to explore all options. This is to ensure the right support is in place for individuals who have been adversely impacted by COVID-19 that will meet the needs of both the individuals, as well as local priorities. This engagement includes the Youth Employment Group, which includes Prince’s Trust, Youth Employment UK, Institute for Employment Studies, Youth Futures Foundation and Impetus.

We acknowledge that it is important that Jobcentres continue to support young people through the economic recovery. They have already started to re-engage with new and existing claimants.

DWP is also engaging with a number of external organisations including the Youth Employment Group (set up by Prince’s Trust, Youth Employment UK, Institute for Employment Studies, Youth Futures Foundation and Impetus) as well as continuing to work across Whitehall to ensure a range of appropriate support aimed at young people including those from more complex backgrounds.

The Department for Work and Pensions is working at a district, regional and national level with Disability Confident employers, encouraging them to pro-actively attract, recruit and retain disabled people, offering help and support at every stage of the journey. The department provides employers with a range of material, videos and toolkits, to help them to develop best practice.

We are working closely with our stakeholders, including all main government departments, the Local Government Association, and Councils. The DWP Business Leaders Group, consisting of corporate influencers, is also helping to promote the benefits of employing a diverse range of employees, including disabled people.

Last year, we made a number of improvements to the scheme, including adding the requirement for Disability Confident Leader employers to use the Voluntary Reporting Framework (VRF) to publicly report on how they encourage and support disabled staff. Although there is flexibility in how employers can use the VRF, we expect that most would choose to combine it with their annual report and accounts.

In November 2018, we published the results of survey research commissioned from Ipsos MORI, which explored the effect that signing up to the Disability Confident scheme had on recruitment and retention attitudes towards disabled people. Half of all employers interviewed for the study said they had recruited at least one person with a disability, long-term health or mental health condition as a result of joining the scheme. Among larger employers, nearly two thirds reported the same. Eight in ten (80%) of employers interviewed had adopted at least one disability-related retention practice as a result of joining the scheme.

Training and guidance is provided for work coaches to support customers with fluctuating health conditions to find and stay in work.

They receive health and complex needs learning that provides them with the skills and knowledge to:

• coach claimants to equip them with the tools and skills they need to progress towards or into work
• invest in knowing the claimants they coach by asking the right questions to establish their needs
• know how they can support claimants with complex needs in specific areas
• state where they can find assistance and refer claimants to personalised provision for themselves with regard to their health condition
• challenge claimants by setting and agreeing personalised, achievable steps that are reviewed at every attendance.

In addition, support is also provided for the work coach by the Disability Employment Advisers and Work Psychologists. Work Coaches can refer individuals to personalised provision and support such as the Work and Health Programme (available in England and Wales) or Fair Start Scotland (devolved programme available in Scotland).

Work Coaches have access to further learning in the form of ‘bitesize’ learning and guidance spotlights to refresh and support them. For example:

• Health and Work Conversation Techniques ‘bitesize’ – this provides learning on how to keep claimants engaged with the world of work and to keep thinking about the work they could do now or in the future, if not possible now. The Health and Work Conversation techniques have been specifically designed to enable the work coach to support a claimant who has:

- a health condition

- become disengaged with the labour market, perhaps, because they have been long term unemployed

• Spotlight: Work and Health Programme (WHP) published November 2019

- Spotlight: Universal Credit Health Offer published April 2019 – This provides guidance on what is available for customers to support them to and in work. For example, Access to Work, Specialist Employability Support

Discussions are ongoing with other countries, including through groups such as the G7, the European Union and the World Health Organization to shape the approach taken around the world to sharing health status for travel, including vaccination status. The Chief Medical Officer for England has written to his counterparts in the EU on this matter.

The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) published interim advice on a potential COVID-19 booster vaccination programme on 30 June, which is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/jcvi-interim-advice-on-a-potential-coronavirus-covid-19-booster-vaccine-programme-for-winter-2021-to-2022

However, based on the JCVI’s interim advice, those eligible for phase one of the COVID-19 vaccination programme are likely to be offered a booster, including people experiencing homelessness and rough sleeping. Decisions on the timing, scope and cohort eligibility of any booster programme will be confirmed once the JCVI has provided their final advice.

People who are experiencing homelessness were prioritised for vaccination in phase one of the programme alongside those with underlying health conditions, as advised by the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI). To ensure access, we have followed the JCVI recommendation that this group should be offered the vaccine without the need for a National Health Service number or general practitioner registration.

Vaccination rates amongst the homeless population is monitored at a regional level within England and is used to inform deployment decisions so that uptake is maximised where possible. Data on vaccination uptake is not currently available as it has not been centrally validated. This is because data provides a snapshot of homelessness rates and as such, any vaccine uptake data relating to homeless people and COVID-19 vaccination uptake is also an estimate that cannot currently be validated. NHS England and NHS Improvement continue to work with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to support outreach services and further work is being done to explore the availability of effective on-street models. Local vaccination services also play a vital role in reaching vulnerable groups, including people experiencing homelessness.

The exact topics that will be addressed by the Women’s Health Strategy have not yet been decided. The evidence gathered through the call for evidence will inform the priorities, content and actions in the new Strategy.

Decisions over which individual research projects or programmes to support are made through independent evaluation by experts, based on the quality and likely impact of that research.

Since 17 May, individuals in England can demonstrate their COVID-19 vaccination status for the purposes of outbound travel via the NHS App, the National Health Service website or by requesting a letter through 119, for those countries where they are accepted. The Government is working on an upgrade to the App to allow residents in England who have taken part or are participating in a clinical trial to demonstrate their COVID-19 vaccine status.

The Department does not operate a red, amber and green rating system for categorising Freedom of Information requests. All requests for information are treated equally.

Once appointed, it will be for the Patient Safety Commissioner to determine what they review within their remit of medicines and medical devices.

There is a cross-system working group which meets to discuss the Independent Medicines and Medical Devices Safety Review. There are no formal terms of reference as the working group is not a decision-making forum and is focused on monitoring progress towards delivering the Government’s response to the recommendations in the Review.

Phase two of the vaccination programme, which will cover those aged 18 to 49 years old not already included in phase one, commenced on 13 April with the vaccine being offered first to those aged 45 to 49 years old. It is not possible to say how many of the remaining age cohorts will have been offered a first dose vaccination by 6 May as operational factors influence decisions on the exact date when each cohort is opened. However, the programme is on track to offer a first dose of the vaccine to all those aged 18 years old or over in England by 31 July.

The information requested is not held centrally.

The criteria for membership was set out in a recruitment pack made available to all applicants and included:

- Have a personal experience or understand the context of the Review and the content of the report from the perspective of patients, carers or families;

- Are committed to improving the experience of patients;

- Want to engage with others on the group and representatives of the Department to support the implementation of the Review;

- Can consider complex and emotive issues in a balanced and sensitive way; and

- Have good communication skills and want to build strong working relationships with the rest of the group.

Each mental health support team is expected to advise schools and colleges on the mental health and wellbeing of children and young people, including for those with epilepsy. They work alongside pre-existing mental health services and liaise with external specialist services to help children and young people receive the right support and stay in education.

The 2019 Clinical Audit on Paediatric Epilepsy recommended that integrated services should be designed around paediatric epilepsy patients, so their physical and mental health needs are diagnosed and treated together in a holistic approach. NHS England and NHS Improvement are supporting the Organisation of Paediatric Epilepsy Networks and the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health in the implementation of these recommendations.

The Registry is being built around routinely collected data of all women in England who are taking National Health Service-prescribed valproate and identifies when they are pregnant and accessing NHS care for that pregnancy. Work is now ongoing to extend the Registry to include women in the devolved administrations. In the next phase of development, the Registry will be extended to include all girls and women prescribed an antiepileptic drug.

The conclusions of the Commission on Human Medicines’ safety review of the risk of physical and neurodevelopmental harm in children of mothers who took epilepsy medicines in pregnancy were communicated publicly to support decisions around the best treatment options for girls and women. These communications were via the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency’s (MHRA) Drug Safety Update bulletin, an accompanying public assessment report and a patient safety leaflet. A news release and social media accompanied the publication alongside email alerts that targeted relevant healthcare professionals, prescribing publications and professional organisations. The MHRA is also working with the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, the Royal College of General Practitioners and the Association of British Neurologists to update relevant clinical guidance to reflect the findings of the review. The impact of this review and the uptake of communications will be monitored.

The Registry is being built around routinely collected data of all women in England who are taking National Health Service-prescribed valproate and identifies when they are pregnant and accessing NHS care for that pregnancy. Work is now ongoing to extend the Registry to include women in the devolved administrations. In the next phase of development, the Registry will be extended to include all girls and women prescribed an antiepileptic drug.

The conclusions of the Commission on Human Medicines’ safety review of the risk of physical and neurodevelopmental harm in children of mothers who took epilepsy medicines in pregnancy were communicated publicly to support decisions around the best treatment options for girls and women. These communications were via the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency’s (MHRA) Drug Safety Update bulletin, an accompanying public assessment report and a patient safety leaflet. A news release and social media accompanied the publication alongside email alerts that targeted relevant healthcare professionals, prescribing publications and professional organisations. The MHRA is also working with the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, the Royal College of General Practitioners and the Association of British Neurologists to update relevant clinical guidance to reflect the findings of the review. The impact of this review and the uptake of communications will be monitored.

The National Institute for Health Research has funded three studies on anti-epilepsy medication use during pregnancy.

My Written Ministerial Statement of 11 January 2021 (HCWS692) updated hon. Members on current progress on each of the nine recommendations. The Government will respond in full to the report later this year.

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency is exploring how mandation of inclusion in the valproate registry can be implemented and will hold discussions with relevant stakeholders.

The Commissioner’s core role will be to promote the safety of patients and the importance of the views of patients in relation to medicines and medical devices.

The Commissioner’s statutory functions include the power to make reports or recommendations and the power to request and share information with relevant persons, either in the National Health Service or independent sector.

We have no current plans to establish a redress agency. The Government is able to establish redress schemes on individual issues without the need for a new organisation and has done so several times. Our primary focus is on improving medicines and medical devices safety, setting high standards for industry to market and manufacture products, with the aim of reducing harm in the future.

The National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) has funded three studies on anti-epilepsy medication use during pregnancy, one study on blood pressure medication for pregnant women and one study on antidepressant use during pregnancy. The NIHR welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including safer medicines research for drugs taken by pregnant and postnatal women.

The Department awarded the contract through an open and competitive tender process. The criteria for award were as follows:

- Excellent communication skills, including a proven ability to work and communicate with a diverse range of stakeholders and maintain good working relationships;

- Excellent knowledge of the English healthcare system;

- Strong facilitation skills in order to empower the group to effectively feed in strategic views to Departmental stakeholders;

- Previous experience (minimum of five years) of working at the interface between patient engagement and high profile and high priority national policy relating to the health service;

- A clear understanding of the context surrounding the Review and the content of the report;

- Experience of working on highly sensitive issues, some of which are of a distressing and emotive in nature; and

- Awareness of any potential conflicts of interest that may arise in accepting a contract, and where necessary a plan for managing these.

The Most Economically Advantageous Tender criteria was also applied to award the contract with a quality/price weighting set at 80:20.

The membership of the Patient Reference Group is available at the following link:

https://traverse.ltd/application/files/4416/1538/1520/IMMDS_Patient_Reference_Group_members.pdf

Baroness Cumberlege was asked by the Secretary of State to chair the Independent Medicines and Medical Devices Safety Review. The review is independent and members were selected by Baroness Cumberlege.

The Government is following the independent advice of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI), which agrees priority groupings for vaccine. Anyone who is homeless and falls into these groups is eligible for the vaccine and we are working closely with partners to ensure they can access it. NHS England and NHS Improvement are working with voluntary community and social enterprise partners, inclusion health providers and others to develop an accessible model for delivery of the vaccine to people from inclusion health populations. As a result of having two vaccines now deployable, we are considering a number of options and will co-design these with partners based on the different local and logistical considerations.

In the immediate period we are asking partners to support their clients and service users to register with a general practice, where they are not already and if they have health conditions that would make them clinically vulnerable/clinically extremely vulnerable that this is recorded to ensure they receive the vaccine in line with the JCVI’s advice on prioritisation. Over the coming weeks we will consider a range of possible delivery models, including mobile models, to ensure all those prioritised in accordance with the JCVI’s advice receive the vaccine at the appropriate time regardless of their circumstance.

Approximately 2,500 consultants and suppliers have been employed by NHS Test and Trace. £438 million is budgeted to Professional Services which includes management consultants and suppliers.

An oversight group has been established by NHS England and NHS Improvement to oversee the recommendations of the Public Health England Review on prescribed medicines.

The group is focusing on the implementation of the recommendations, ensuring alignment with other relevant programmes already underway in the National Health Service and overseeing any new policy initiatives being taken forward in in response to the review.

This work is a priority and implementation of the recommendations is being taken forward as quickly as possible, taking into account other pressures on healthcare professionals and the NHS. With progress having been initially delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic, an update on the programme is expected later this year or early in 2022.

The following table shows the number of unique patients that were prescribed for benzodiazepines including clonazepam, z-drugs, antidepressants and opioids on a National Health Service prescription and dispensed in the community in England in each of the last three calendar years. Data up to and including October 2020 is the latest available data.

Source:

NHS Business Services Authority Information Services ePACT2 system.

Phase two of Dame Carol Black’s review covering treatment services will be published later this year and will be made available to the National Oversight Group overseeing the National Health Service’s implementation of recommendations from Public Health England’s prescribed medicines review alongside other relevant materials.

Medicines optimisation is defined in the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s guidelines as ‘a person-centred approach to safe and effective medicines use, to ensure people obtain the best possible outcomes from their medicines’. This includes prescription of medicines which may give rise to dependency when these are clinically justified.

Phase two of Dame Carol Black’s review covering treatment services will be published later this year and will be made available to the National Oversight Group overseeing the National Health Service’s implementation of recommendations from Public Health England’s prescribed medicines review alongside other relevant materials.

Medicines optimisation is defined in the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s guidelines as ‘a person-centred approach to safe and effective medicines use, to ensure people obtain the best possible outcomes from their medicines’. This includes prescription of medicines which may give rise to dependency when these are clinically justified.

The Secretary of State for Health and Social Care asked Dr Keith Ridge, Chief Pharmaceutical Officer for England, to lead a review of overprescribing in December 2018. The work was paused due to the COVID-19 pandemic because the majority of the participants have National Health Service clinical roles but has now resumed. The report will be finalised in the coming weeks.

The following table shows the number of items that were prescribed in England for benzodiazepines including clonazepam, z-drugs, antidepressants and opioids in the latest two full years of available data.

Source:

NHS Business Service Authority Information Services ePACT2 system.

NHS England and NHS Improvement have been coordinating implementation of the recommendations of the Public Health England review, ‘Dependence and withdrawal associated with some prescribed medicines: An evidence review’. This includes developing a framework to support commissioners to optimise prescribing of dependence forming medicines.

To support the development of the framework, a call for case studies was issued on 15 December 2020. The call was aimed primarily at commissioners, providers and other appropriate organisations such as those in the third sector. The deadline for submissions has recently been extended to the 29 January 2021 to allow stakeholders more time to respond.

It was not possible to secure a date to update Parliament before Christmas due to parliamentary timetabling. However, I refer the hon. Member to my Written Ministerial Statement (HCWS692) of 11 January 2021.

We recognise the need to ensure professionals are able to visit care homes safely. Our Visiting Professionals pilot ended in November 2020.

We provided further guidance on 14 December for professionals, such as adult social care staff providing essential in-person rehabilitation in care homes, who are not covered by an existing testing regime, to be tested using lateral flow devices at the care home door.

There is regular testing of National Health Service staff, some of whom may be visiting care homes. Further information is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/coronavirus/asymptomatic-staff-testing-for-covid-19/

NHS England and NHS Improvement are working with voluntary community and social enterprise partners, inclusion health providers and others to develop an accessible model for delivery of the vaccine to people from inclusion health populations. We are considering a number of options and will co-design these with partners.

In the immediate period we are asking partners to support their clients and service users to register with a general practice, where they are not already and if they have health conditions that would make them clinically vulnerable/clinically extremely vulnerable, that this is recorded to ensure they receive the vaccine in line with the Joint Committee on Vaccinations and Immunisation’s advice on prioritisation.

The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation’s (JCVI) advice on prioritisation for phase one included frontline health and social care workers as a part of cohort two. Cohorts one to four have now all been offered the vaccine by our target date of 15 February. Frontline healthcare workers who have not received their vaccination can arrange this through the National Booking System or by calling 119.

For phase two of the vaccination programme, the JCVI published its interim advice on 26 February setting out that the most effective way to minimise hospitalisations and deaths is to continue to prioritise people by age and not occupation.

The Joint Committee on Vaccines and Immunisation’s (JCVI) advice has stated that Phase 1 of the vaccine roll out should have the prevention of mortality at the forefront of its objectives, as well as to support the National Health Service and social care system. For the first phase, the JVCI have therefore advised that the vaccine be given to care home residents and staff, as well as frontline health and social care workers, then to the rest of the population in order of age and clinical risk factors. Included in this are those with underlying health conditions, which put them at higher risk of serious disease and mortality.

Phase 2 of the roll out may include further reduction in hospitalisation and targeted vaccination of those at high risk of exposure and/or those delivering key public services.

Frontline healthcare staff includes those staff involved in direct patient care, as well as non-clinical staff in secondary or primary care/community healthcare settings.

The definition of front line social care workers includes those working in long-stay residential and nursing care homes, or other long-stay care facilities where rapid spread is likely to follow introduction of infection and cause high morbidity and mortality,. This definition also includes social care staff directly involved in the care of their patients or clients and others involved directly in delivering social care such that they and vulnerable patients and clients are at increased risk of exposure.

NHS Test and Trace has worked with and sought feedback from a number of charities, including the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB), the Macular Society, Thomas Pocklington Trust and Visionary. We have worked particularly closely with the RNIB to introduce a range of service improvements including alternative formats of instructions in Braille; audio CD; large print; and an RNIB information line to hear a recorded version of the instructions. ‘Be My Eyes’ live video assistance will also be launched shortly.

The 119 booking service now enables people without access to the internet or an active email address, to book a polymerase chain reaction test and receive their results by phone. Hearing-impaired people can use their computer and webcam, or the ‘InterpreterNow’ app on a smartphone or tablet to make a three-way video call to a British Sign Language interpreter. COVID-19 test kit instructions can be accessed via GOV.UK in easy read, plain text, large print and accessible format for use via assistive technology. By the end of February translated versions of the easy read instructions in the 12 most common foreign languages used in the United Kingdom will also be available.

There are a number of ways individuals can access testing without a mobile phone number or email address. Individuals can ask someone they trust who has a mobile number or email address, for example a family member, to book a test or receive their results. If this is not possible, individuals can contact 119 in England, Wales and Northern Ireland and 0300 303 2713 in Scotland to book a test at their nearest test site and to receive their results, either via a call back to a landline or by contacting 119 once the results are available. We are working to further improve the accessibility of testing via non digital routes.

We recognise the need to ensure professionals are able to visit care homes safely. Regular asymptomatic testing is currently being rolled out to all patient-facing National Health Service staff.

While this will cover the majority of professionals visiting care homes, we recognise the important role played by professionals who visit care homes who are not included in the NHS staff testing, such as adult social care staff who provide different forms of rehabilitation. We are using our learning from our previous ‘Visiting Professionals’ pilot to determine the best approach for asymptomatic testing professionals who are not NHS staff.

All recommendations of the Independent Medicines and Medical Devices Safety Review are being considered carefully. We will update Parliament before the end of the year.

We welcome the report and we are considering Baroness Cumberlege’s recommendations carefully.

There are currently no plans to publish a timescale for the implementation of the recommendations.

The report took over two years to compile and we therefore consider it vitally important – for the sake of patients and especially those who have suffered greatly – that we give this independent report the full consideration it deserves.

We will update hon. Members before the end of the year.

Recommendation one of the Independent Medicines and Medical Devices Safety Review has been implemented.

In my statement to the House of Commons on 9 July following the publication of the Independent Medicines and medical Devices Safety Review, (Official Report, vol. 678, cols 1147-1148), I apologised on behalf of the health and care sector to the patients and families affected by Primodos, sodium valproate and pelvic mesh for the time the system took to listen and respond.

Recommendation one of the Independent Medicines and Medical Devices Safety Review has been implemented.

In my statement to the House of Commons on 9 July following the publication of the Independent Medicines and medical Devices Safety Review, (Official Report, vol. 678, cols 1147-1148), I apologised on behalf of the health and care sector to the patients and families affected by Primodos, sodium valproate and pelvic mesh for the time the system took to listen and respond.

NHS England and NHS Improvement encourages National Health Service 24 hours per day, seven days a week mental health support line services to be universal and inclusive of people with co-existing conditions, including by making appropriate adjustments to support autistic people. This message has been reinforced through a series of webinars and various tools aimed at newly established local open-access crisis services.

In addition to existing training, the NHS England and NHS Improvement Learning Disability and Autism Programme commissioned Autistica to prepare a resource to help new crisis lines adapt to the needs of autistic children and young people, as well as the needs of parents. The resource is being finalised and there will shortly be two webinars to brief and support crisis line staff, managers and commissioners.

The data is not available in the format requested.

We have not yet been able to assess the impact of COVID-19 on autism diagnosis waiting times. NHS Digital started collecting and reporting on diagnosis waiting times in November 2019. These are experimental statistics and NHS Digital is working to improve the data quality and completeness of these statistics for future use.

Supporting everyone’s mental wellbeing, including girls and young women, is a priority for this Government. National Health Service mental health services have remained open for business throughout this time, including delivering support digitally and by phone. For those with severe needs or in crisis, NHS mental health providers have established all-age 24 hours per day, seven days a week mental health crisis lines.

We have launched a mental wellbeing campaign for children and young people, extending Public Health England’s Every Mind Matters webpage with content specifically for young people.

Public Health England and NHS England follow the Information Commissioner’s Office’s guidance whereby website visitors are opted out from being tracked unless they accept the analytics cookie set on the NHS.UK domain which delivers the Better Health-Every Mind Matters website. In the absence of a clear picture from web analytics data, the number of website visits can be estimated based on paid media reports. These indicate 208,020 visits or an average of 6,303 per day since the launch of the new Every Mind Matters parent and youth focused-content on 8 September 2020.

Since the launch of Every Mind Matters the site has received 7.15 million visits (subject to the above caveat around data opt in) and 2.4 million mental health action plans have been completed.

£20,000 was invested in using 32 influencers to promote mental health self-care messages to young people as part of the Better Health-Every Mind Matters campaign. So far there have been 1.9 million views of this influencer content.

No recent comparative assessment has been made on the number of prescriptions for benzodiazepines, z drugs, and antidepressants.

Information on hospital admissions and deaths in hospital settings only related to benzodiazepines and antidepressants is shown in the following tables. We are unable to provide data for Z drugs in the format requested. It should be noted that this is not a count of people, as an individual may have more than one admission in any given period.

The following table shows a count of finished admission episodes (FAEs) in 2019/20 with primary diagnosis of benzodiazepines and antidepressants and a count of FAEs in 2019/20 with any diagnosis of benzodiazepines and antidepressants. Activity in English National Service hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector.

The following table shows a count of finished discharge episodes in 2019/20 with primary diagnosis of benzodiazepines and antidepressants who passed away. Activity in English NHS hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector.

NHS England and NHS Improvement have established an oversight group to oversee the NHS recommendations from Public Health England (PHE)’s prescribed medicines review. The oversight group is jointly chaired by Dr Keith Ridge, Chief Pharmaceutical Officer, and Dr Nikiita Kanani, Primary Care Medical Director for NHS England and NHS Improvement.

The membership of the group includes:

- NHS England and NHS Improvement

- The Department of Health and Social Care

- Public Health England

- The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence

- The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency

- NHS Clinical Commissioners

- NHSX

Further consideration is being given on wider engagement with patient groups, charities and people with lived experience, alongside clinical experts, professional bodies and Royal Colleges, including the potential for a separate advisory stakeholder group to support development and implementation.

The remit of the group is dependence forming prescription medicines, as this is the scope of the PHE review. However, the group will be considering relevant evidence and reviews from a range of sources, including the independent review by Professor Dame Carol Black into illicit drug use.

The following table shows the number of prescription items prescribed in England in the last year for benzodiazepines, z drugs and antidepressants.

We are committed through our NHS Long Term Plan to investing at least £2.3 billion of extra funding a year into mental health services by 2023-24. This will see an additional 345,000 children and young people able to access support through National Health Service-funded services or school- and college-based mental health support teams.

On the 8 September, Public Health England (PHE) launched a mental wellbeing campaign for children and young people. This involves an expansion of PHE’s Better Health-Every Mind Matters website with content specifically for children and young people and their parents and carers. The Every Mind Matters campaign also targets university students with content on dealing with change, promoted via Snapchat influencers, and signposting them to resources from charity partner The Mix, which offers free information and support for under 25s on mental health, as well as relationships, sex, drugs, money and jobs.

Supporting children and young people's mental health, including the most vulnerable, is a priority for the Government. We know that mental health needs are more prevalent among looked after children which is why we are working with the Department for Education to develop and trial new high-quality mental health assessments for looked after children. These pilots ensure that young people are assessed at the right time, with a focus on their individual needs as they enter care. The Department for Education has awarded £240,000 to a group of organisations, led by the Anna Freud Centre, to deliver up to nine local pilots over two years.

Our £8 million Wellbeing for Education Return programme will provide schools and colleges all over England with the knowledge and access to resources they need to support children and young people.

The NHS Long Term Plan will see an expansion of specialist services, including crisis care, as part of a comprehensive offer that reaches across mental health services for children, young people and adults.

The National Health Service COVID-19 app requires users to be owners of smartphones that can install Apple iOS 13.5 and above and Android Marshmallow and above. This is related to the hardware needed for this Bluetooth technology to work effectively and is the same in all countries with apps using the Google and Apple exposure notification API for contact tracing.

People who do not have a compatible smartphone will still benefit from other people downloading the app. This is because people who use the app will help to break chains of transmission.

As I have stated in my response to Question 82079, the recommendations of the Independent Medicines and Medical Devices Safety Review are being considered carefully.

We do not consider it appropriate to commit to a specific timeframe for a response while these recommendations are being considered. While this report was published on 8 July, it took over two years to compile and we therefore consider it vitally important that it is given full consideration.

National Health Service mental health services have remained open and, in his letter to local NHS organisations setting out the third phase of the NHS response to COVID-19, Simon Stevens, Chief Executive of NHS England, has asked that local areas maintain the growth in the number of children and young people accessing care mental health care, as set out in the NHS Long Term Plan.

We are also taking action to ensure that children and young people have access to support in schools. Our £8 million Wellbeing for Education Return programme will support staff to respond to the emotional and mental health pressures some children and young people may be feeling. We also continue to establish mental health support teams in and around schools and colleges.

This complements the new Relationships, Sex and Health Education curriculum, which makes mental health a key part of primary- and secondary-school education.

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has been monitoring trends in the prescribing of sodium valproate in women and girls to assess the impact of regulatory restrictions including the introduction of the Pregnancy Prevention Programme in April 2018.

The number of pregnancies estimated to have been exposed to valproate in the United Kingdom during 2018 and 2019 were 370 and 190 respectively. These estimates are extrapolated from data from the Clinical Practice Research Datalink as national data are not collected. No data are available on the number of children harmed by valproate or the number of diagnoses with Fetal Valproate Spectrum Disorder since 2018.

Data from the NHS Business Services Authority show that in the second quarter (April-June) of 2020 13,574 women of child-bearing age (14-45 years) were dispensed with a prescription for valproate in England.

The MHRA is working on developing a valproate registry, the main aims of which would be to monitor the use of valproate in girls and women in the UK and compliance with the current regulatory requirements, and to identify and monitor outcomes in any children born to women on valproate.

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has been monitoring trends in the prescribing of sodium valproate in women and girls to assess the impact of regulatory restrictions including the introduction of the Pregnancy Prevention Programme in April 2018.

The number of pregnancies estimated to have been exposed to valproate in the United Kingdom during 2018 and 2019 were 370 and 190 respectively. These estimates are extrapolated from data from the Clinical Practice Research Datalink as national data are not collected. No data are available on the number of children harmed by valproate or the number of diagnoses with Fetal Valproate Spectrum Disorder since 2018.

Data from the NHS Business Services Authority show that in the second quarter (April-June) of 2020 13,574 women of child-bearing age (14-45 years) were dispensed with a prescription for valproate in England.

The MHRA is working on developing a valproate registry, the main aims of which would be to monitor the use of valproate in girls and women in the UK and compliance with the current regulatory requirements, and to identify and monitor outcomes in any children born to women on valproate.

As I have stated in my response to Question 74648, the recommendations of the Independent Medicines and Medical Devices Safety Review are being considered carefully.

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is working with stakeholders to improve compliance with the valproate Pregnancy Prevention Programme which aims to rapidly reduce and eventually eliminate pregnancies exposed to valproate. The MHRA is also working on developing a valproate registry, the main aims of which would be to monitor the use of valproate in girls and women in the United Kingdom and compliance with the current regulatory position, and to identify and monitor any children born to women on valproate.

The Department is carefully considering the recommendations of the Independent Medicines and Medical Devices Safety Review and will respond in due course.

The Department is currently considering the Independent Medicines and Medical Devices Safety Review and the independent findings in respect of sodium valproate and will respond to the review and the recommendations of Baroness Cumberlege in due course.

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is working with the Valproate Stakeholder Network (which is composed of over 40 representatives including Epilepsy Action, other charities and patient groups) to improve compliance with the valproate Pregnancy Prevention Programme which aims to rapidly reduce and eventually eliminate pregnancies exposed to valproate. The MHRA is also working on developing a valproate registry, the main aims of which would be to monitor the use of valproate in girls and women in the United Kingdom and compliance with the current regulatory position, and to identify and monitor any children born to women on valproate.

Baroness Cumberlege was asked to review what happened in the three cases and we will consider her recommendations carefully.

Due to the pressures of the Covid-19 pandemic on departmental resources, the Addiction Strategy is likely to be published early next year. The development of a time-limited national helpline and associated website was recommended in Public Health England’s review of dependency-forming prescription medicines, published in September 2019. The Department of Health and Social Care is working with NHS England and NHS Improvement to oversee the implementation of the relevant recommendations of the review. This includes considering a number of evidence-based interventions to support patients and reduce dependency on prescription medicines, with an initial focus on opioids. The second part of a major independent review by Professor Dame Carol Black into the misuse of illegal drugs in England was launched on 2 July. The Review findings will inform the development of the Strategy.

We are publishing a new United Kingdom-wide cross-Government addiction strategy in 2020. We will be establishing clear ambitions for reducing drug deaths and including problem gambling for the first time. More detail on the strategy will be announced later this year.

We are publishing a new United Kingdom-wide cross-Government addiction strategy in 2020. We will be establishing clear ambitions for reducing drug deaths and including problem gambling for the first time. More detail on the strategy will be announced later this year.

Changes to the Quality and Outcomes Framework (QOF)- including allocation of points- are agreed as part of wider amendments to the General Medical Services (GMS) Contract. These changes are negotiated by NHS England and the British Medical Association’s (BMA) General Practitioners Committee England. Guidance on the 2019/20 GMS Contract concerning the QOF was published by the BMA and NHS England in April 2019. This guidance includes an epilepsy indicator which states that ‘the contractor establishes and maintains a register of patients aged 18 or over receiving drug treatment for epilepsy’. QOF points are generally weighted to the estimated workload associated with an indicator. Registers generally incur a lower workload than other indicators and therefore tend to attract a lower points value than other types of indicators.

Care of patients with long term conditions in general practice is described in the essential services element of the contract and funded through the global sum payment. Patients should expect to receive high quality care irrespective of whether or not their condition is included in the QOF. The QOF indicators will continued to be reviewed going forward.

It is a Care Quality Commission regulatory requirement for general practitioners (GPs) to follow the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency’s (MHRA) guidance on valproate prescribing. The MHRA advises that ‘Valproate medicines must no longer be used in women or girls of childbearing potential unless a Pregnancy Prevention Programme is in place’.

NHS England are also taking broader action to support implementation of the MHRA pregnancy prevention guidelines. In April 2019, they introduced a new Quality Improvement module on prescribing safety into the QOF. As part of this module they expect practices to audit three measures, one of which is that girls and women of childbearing potential currently being prescribed valproate have had an annual specialist medication review and are taking this in compliance with the pregnancy prevention programme as documented by a specialist in the annual risk acknowledgement form. It is the responsibility of every healthcare professional involved in the prescribing and dispensing of valproate medicines to make sure women are aware of the risks and are on the pregnancy prevention programme.

Changes to the Quality and Outcomes Framework (QOF)- including allocation of points- are agreed as part of wider amendments to the General Medical Services (GMS) Contract. These changes are negotiated by NHS England and the British Medical Association’s (BMA) General Practitioners Committee England. Guidance on the 2019/20 GMS Contract concerning the QOF was published by the BMA and NHS England in April 2019. This guidance includes an epilepsy indicator which states that ‘the contractor establishes and maintains a register of patients aged 18 or over receiving drug treatment for epilepsy’. QOF points are generally weighted to the estimated workload associated with an indicator. Registers generally incur a lower workload than other indicators and therefore tend to attract a lower points value than other types of indicators.

Care of patients with long term conditions in general practice is described in the essential services element of the contract and funded through the global sum payment. Patients should expect to receive high quality care irrespective of whether or not their condition is included in the QOF. The QOF indicators will continued to be reviewed going forward.

It is a Care Quality Commission regulatory requirement for general practitioners (GPs) to follow the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency’s (MHRA) guidance on valproate prescribing. The MHRA advises that ‘Valproate medicines must no longer be used in women or girls of childbearing potential unless a Pregnancy Prevention Programme is in place’.

NHS England are also taking broader action to support implementation of the MHRA pregnancy prevention guidelines. In April 2019, they introduced a new Quality Improvement module on prescribing safety into the QOF. As part of this module they expect practices to audit three measures, one of which is that girls and women of childbearing potential currently being prescribed valproate have had an annual specialist medication review and are taking this in compliance with the pregnancy prevention programme as documented by a specialist in the annual risk acknowledgement form. It is the responsibility of every healthcare professional involved in the prescribing and dispensing of valproate medicines to make sure women are aware of the risks and are on the pregnancy prevention programme.