Charlotte Nichols

A person is disqualified from being elected to a local authority in England and Wales if they are on the sex offenders register at the time of their nomination and on polling day.

The Scottish Government is consulting on introducing a similar disqualification for Scottish local government elections. There is not currently a similar disqualification in place in Northern Ireland, or for UK parliamentary candidates.

It is the candidate's responsibility, not the Returning Officer's, to ensure that the information they submit on their nomination papers is correct. If a candidate decides to stand despite not meeting the eligibility criteria, this would be a matter for the police.

This Government understands the impact of the rising cost of living on disabled people, which is why over 6 million people will receive the £150 disability cost of living payments, and 60% of these households will be entitled to additional means-tested cost of living payments worth up to £900.

My Department’s officials engage with the Society of Ticket Agents and Retailers (the self regulatory body for the entertainment ticketing industry in the United Kingdom) on a regular basis, as well as other organisations involved in the ticketing industry and consumer protection policy. In general, there are no limits on what service providers can charge for their services, but there are rules to prevent consumers from being misled as to the price of services. The Department for Business and Trade leads on policy relating to the primary ticketing market and my department continues to work closely with them on the issues in this area.

Consumer legislation requires information, such as price, to be upfront, where possible, and transparent. The transaction process should provide customers with details of the total price before the customer confirms the purchase. Alleged breaches of the legislation should be reported to the Citizens Advice consumer helpline on 03454 04 05 06 or via its website here. They are able to pass complaints onto Trading Standards for further enforcement action where appropriate.

The Government strongly supports editorial independence and does not interfere with what the press publishes. However, with freedom comes responsibility and the press is required to abide by the law of the land.

There is an independent self-regulatory regime to ensure that the press adheres to a wider set of clear and appropriate standards, and to offer individuals a means of redress where these are not met.

The majority of traditional publishers—including 95% of national newspapers by circulation—are members of IPSO. A small number of publishers have joined Impress, while others, including the Financial Times and the Guardian, have chosen to stay outside either self-regulator with their own detailed self-regulatory arrangements.

The regulators enforce codes of conduct that provide guidelines on a range of areas. If they find that a newspaper has broken the code of conduct, they can order corrections. IPSO can also order critical adjudications and Impress can levy fines. IPSO has produced guidance on researching and reporting stories involving transgender individuals. The guidance Impress has published on its standards code also includes information on this subject.

The Government is committed to independent self-regulation of the press, and does not intervene in or oversee the work of the press regulators.

The Speaker’s Committee has not had discussions with the Electoral Commission on the matter referred to.

The Electoral Commission has published guidance for Returning Officers on delivering the voter ID requirement, alongside a handbook and quick guide for polling station staff. These provide staff with support and guidance to implement the legislation on polling day and manage any issues which arise, including where a voter does not have an accepted form of ID.

Legislation requires polling station staff to collect data on the number of voters not issued with a ballot paper, whether because they have produced ID which is not on the list of accepted documents or have not produced any ID at all. This data will be anonymised and then provided to the Government and the Commission after polling day.

The Commission will report on how the May 2023 elections were delivered, including how voters found taking part, and what lessons can be learned for the future.

The Speaker’s Committee has not had discussions with the Electoral Commission on the matter referred to.

The Electoral Commission has published guidance for Returning Officers on delivering the voter ID requirement, alongside a handbook and quick guide for polling station staff. These provide staff with support and guidance to implement the legislation on polling day and manage any issues which arise, including where a voter does not have an accepted form of ID.

Legislation requires polling station staff to collect data on the number of voters not issued with a ballot paper, whether because they have produced ID which is not on the list of accepted documents or have not produced any ID at all. This data will be anonymised and then provided to the Government and the Commission after polling day.

The Commission will report on how the May 2023 elections were delivered, including how voters found taking part, and what lessons can be learned for the future.

We recognise the need for urgent action to safeguard the future of football clubs throughout the English football pyramid, so will legislate to put the regulator on a statutory footing as soon as Parliamentary time allows.

As the White Paper makes clear, the Government is actively exploring establishing a shadow regulator ahead of legislation, to ensure that both the statutory regulator and regulated clubs can hit the ground running.

Under the Equality Act 2010, businesses and service providers, including restaurants, already have an anticipatory duty to make reasonable adjustments for disabled people.

The anticipatory duty requires them to consider the disadvantage(s) that may be experienced by a group of disabled people - for example, those who are blind - rather than an individual disabled person and ensure that relevant adjustments are put in place before they might actually be needed, so that people with such disabilities would not be put at a substantial disadvantage compared to non-disabled service users when using facilities or services.

Such adjustments should address the communication needs of deaf and blind customers and could include the provision of auxiliary aids, such as menus made available in Braille. We believe that a reasonableness test is appropriate, as individual circumstances will differ.

The Government has engaged with a wide range of international counterparts including Canada, Australia, New Zealand, France, and Malta, to understand the approaches they have taken to ban conversion therapy. We will continue to engage with counterparts around the world that are committed to protecting everyone from conversion practices to share insight and develop our approach.

The Government has been liaising with territorial offices and the devolved administrations including the Scottish Government, Welsh Government and the Northern Ireland Executive on this important issue.

Officials will continue to work with their counterparts across the devolved administrations to discuss the UK Government’s approach to protecting everyone in England and Wales from conversion therapy practices.

The Government has been liaising with territorial offices and the devolved administrations including the Scottish Government, Welsh Government and the Northern Ireland Executive on this important issue.

Officials will continue to work with their counterparts across the devolved administrations to discuss the UK Government’s approach to protecting everyone in England and Wales from conversion therapy practices.

Since May 2022, the Government has launched a support service open to all victims or those at risk of conversion practices regardless of their background or circumstances. The Government has committed up to £360,000 over three years to this service. The service includes a helpline, instant messaging service, and website to enable people to get the support they need.

More widely, the Government remains committed to protecting everyone from these practices. We are carefully considering the responses to the public consultation which closed earlier this year and will respond in due course.

The Equality Hub Ministers and officials have met with healthcare professionals in developing the policy approach to protecting all individuals from conversion practices. Many such organisations responded to the public consultation that closed in February 2022.

We will continue to meet with healthcare professionals to inform our approach and will respond to the consultation in due course.

The Equality Hub Ministers and officials have met with healthcare professionals in developing the policy approach to protecting all individuals from conversion practices. Many such organisations responded to the public consultation that closed in February 2022.

We will continue to meet with healthcare professionals to inform our approach and will respond to the consultation in due course.

This government believes the circumstances of one's birth should not determine life outcomes. The Social Mobility Commission (SMC), an independent body sponsored by the Equality Hub in the Cabinet Office, works to achieve this aim.

The Commission’s employer engagement team works with employers of varying size, across multiple sectors, to create more inclusive and diverse socio-economic workforces. Through their research and engagement with industry trade bodies and employers, and external diversity and inclusion research, they have produced guidance for employers that offers practical help and ideas. This includes guidance on how employers can collect the socio-economic background data of their workforce alongside other diversity data, which can be used by them to measure the socio-economic background of their employees and potential recruits in order to understand if their hiring or progression practices are as fair and meritocratic as they can be.

The SMC's advice is for employers to collect anonymous data from their workforce, apprentices and applicants using the key question "What was the occupation of your main household earner when you were about aged 14?" Optional supplementary questions include the type of school attended for ages 11-16 and eligibility for Free School Meals. Further information is available in their employers' toolkit.

The current approach encourages the collection of data on a voluntary basis, as a mandatory approach would represent a significant burden on employers.

This government believes the circumstances of one's birth should not determine life outcomes. The Social Mobility Commission (SMC), an independent body sponsored by the Equality Hub in the Cabinet Office, works to achieve this aim.

The Commission’s employer engagement team works with employers of varying size, across multiple sectors, to create more inclusive and diverse socio-economic workforces. Through their research and engagement with industry trade bodies and employers, and external diversity and inclusion research, they have produced guidance for employers that offers practical help and ideas. This includes guidance on how employers can collect the socio-economic background data of their workforce alongside other diversity data, which can be used by them to measure the socio-economic background of their employees and potential recruits in order to understand if their hiring or progression practices are as fair and meritocratic as they can be.

The SMC's advice is for employers to collect anonymous data from their workforce, apprentices and applicants using the key question "What was the occupation of your main household earner when you were about aged 14?" Optional supplementary questions include the type of school attended for ages 11-16 and eligibility for Free School Meals. Further information is available in their employers' toolkit.

The current approach encourages the collection of data on a voluntary basis, as a mandatory approach would represent a significant burden on employers.

This Government is committed to supporting LGBT people, tackling discrimination and improving the lives of all citizens.

In September 2020, we announced our response to the Gender Recognition Act (GRA) consultation. We concluded that the current provisions within the GRA allow for those that wish to legally change their gender to do so and that the balance struck in this legislation is correct. There are no plans to make changes to the 2004 Act.

In our response, we also committed to making the process of applying for a Gender Recognition Certificate (GRC) as straightforward and dignified as possible. We have already delivered on our promise to reduce the fee of applying for a GRC to £5, making the process more affordable. We are also progressing work to move the process online, to reduce the administrative burden and streamline the overall experience for applicants.

The Government is working at pace to deliver on our commitment to ban conversion therapy. As previously stated, we will also ensure there is support available for victims of conversion therapy; the first time the UK Government has offered this. The support will be available to whoever considers themselves to be at risk of - or has undergone - conversion therapy, whatever the circumstances.

The importance of developing a quality service is of central importance, and we are working at pace to explore delivery options available to realise this commitment. An announcement with more details on the service and how it will be delivered will be made in due course.

The Government has made clear its commitment to banning conversion therapy and will set out proposals shortly. To ensure we get our proposals right, we have undertaken research to understand the prevalence of practices and experiences of those impacted. Furthermore, officials have been speaking with a range of organisations who hold diverse views, to fully inform our next steps.

I will look carefully at the findings of the King’s College study, ‘Unequal Britain: attitudes to inequality in light of Covid’, as part of the government’s commitments to levelling up and to tackling prejudice, racism and discrimination.

This work will also take account of the findings of the Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities, which has been carrying out a deeper examination of the causes of disparities and which reported to the Prime Minister on 31 March.

The Social Value Model launched in January 2021 (PPN 06/20) by this Conservative Government, standardises the assessment of bidder’s proposals for delivering social value outcomes, including tackling economic inequality, creating new businesses, jobs and skills, as well as increasing supply chain resilience and fighting climate change. The Model takes into account factors such as the number of local jobs or apprenticeships a contractor will provide, or the number of SMEs involved in their wider supply chain.

At the same time, the Procurement Bill we are introducing also confirms that while value for money remains paramount during contracting, buyers should take into account other relevant wider social and environmental considerations the supplier may bring.

The Government is fully committed to constructive engagement with the Covid-19 Inquiry and has been since its establishment.

Government officials and lawyers meet with the Inquiry on a regular basis, both as part of a regular series of meetings and on an ad hoc basis to discuss specific issues. We have disclosed over 55,000 documents to the Inquiry to date.

Veterans employment in this country is strong, with 87% securing employment in 6 months after service, helping to deliver on the Government’s priority to grow the economy.

DWP’s 50 Armed Forces Champions across the JobCentre Plus network, a 12-month National Insurance Relief for employers recruiting veterans into their first civilian role, and recruitment pathways for veterans into Civil Service careers, such as Going Forward into Employment and a Great Place to Work, are all making a difference to veterans across the country.

The government’s work on the Inquiry requires legal support which departments will procure at their own discretion from approved internal and external sources. The Judicial Review is ongoing, and as such the Cabinet Office does not yet have an estimate of the cost of the judicial review in this case.

The Ministerial Code is clear that graduated sanctions are in place for breaches of the Code; this is set out in paragraph 1.7. This has formally been part of the Code since May 2022 when the Code was amended, but this approach has just reflected actual practice from previous Administrations under successive Prime Ministers.

That formal amendment to the Code followed recommendations from the Committee on Standards in Public Life in 2021. The Chair of the Committee noted: “The current expectation that any breach of the Ministerial Code should lead to resignation is disproportionate. We recommend that there should be a proportionate range of sanctions” (Lord Evans correspondence to the Prime Minister, 15 April 2021).

The (then) Prime Minister agreed with this recommendation in his reply of 28 April 2021, explaining: “I agree with your recommendation... this has always been the case, but over time, an expectation has arisen that any breach should lead automatically to resignation, which I agree is disproportionate.”

The (then) Independent Adviser on Ministerial Interests, Lord Geidt, also concurred in his Annual Report of May 2021, noting: "I believe its [the Code’s] status is likely to be enhanced by a more proportionate approach to sanctions”.

The Committee repeated this recommendation in their ‘Standards Matter 2’ final report published in September 2021.

I would also observe that both Houses of Parliament takes a similar approach to breaches of the Code of Conduct by Parliamentarians, as do employers in their HR processes across the public and private sector.

The Cabinet Office publishes expenditure, including on the GREAT campaign, on a rolling monthly basis on gov.uk as part of routine government transparency arrangements. This can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cabinet-office-spend-data.

The Cabinet Office publishes expenditure, including on the GREAT campaign, on a rolling monthly basis on gov.uk as part of routine government transparency arrangements. This can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cabinet-office-spend-data.

Public sector contracting authorities are required to purchase products and services through competitive tender in accordance with public procurement legislation, and are responsible for their own commercial decisions, including the award of contracts.

The Ministerial Code was last updated on 22 December 2022. There are no plans for any further updates.

In submitting their ministerial interest form Ministers are asked to declare their relevant interests in a number of categories. One such area on which information is required is Ministers’ tax affairs. The Prime Minister has recently re-affirmed the importance of ensuring this duty is undertaken conscientiously.

As stated in the answer of 2 February 2023, Official Report, PQ 135428, the Prime Minister has stated his intention to publish his own tax return, which will be published in due course.

However, as has been the case under successive administrations, it is not the intention of the Government to require all Ministers to publish their tax returns. In public life, a balance must be struck between reasonable expectations of privacy and accountability. This reflects that Parliament has previously legislated to maintain the principle of taxpayer confidentiality.

I refer the hon. Member to the answers given by the Prime Minister at Prime Minister’s Questions on 1 February 2023, Official Report, Columns 335-336.

I refer the Hon Member to the Prime Minister's comments to the House on 25 January (https://hansard.parliament.uk/commons/2023-01-25/debates/CC1C6066-E0E7-4BF6-84D4-BB5C11BC1EBA/Engagements#contribution-2261E821-4652-4AE6-A3D4-43A2323BE174 )

As the Hon Member will be aware, the Independent Adviser on Ministers’ Interests provided his findings to the Prime Minister in a letter sent on 29 January 2023. The findings detail the relevant facts in relation to the disclosures made by the Rt Hon Member for Stratford-on-Avon. The advice was published in full on GOV.UK on the day it was received by the Prime Minister, and a copy has been placed in the Library of the House. Correspondence relating to the tax affairs of individual taxpayers is subject to statutory requirements on taxpayer confidentiality.

All Ministerial travel is undertaken using efficient and cost-effective travel arrangements.

As a whole, domestic flights within the United Kingdom allow Ministers to visit more parts of the United Kingdom in the time available, particularly areas further away from London, and reduce the need for overnight accommodation for Ministers and accompanying staff. Security considerations are also taken into account.

Details of departmental business travel are published in the Cabinet Office audited annual report and accounts.

The List of Ministerial Responsibilities has been published and placed in the Libraries of both Houses. It can also be found on GOV.UK at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/government-ministers-and-responsibilities.

I recognise the importance of the issue and the desire of the honourable lady to receive an update on Government work in relation to Sir Robert Francis’ recommendation.

It is my intention to provide an update to the House as soon as possible.

The government remains committed to launching the emergency alerts capability this winter and is in the final stages of validating it is ready for this to happen. The initial focus will be on extreme weather scenarios and, subject to a review of the trial period, we will look to expand its use in the spring of 2023.