Asked by: Chris Hinchliff (Labour - North East Hertfordshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment her Department has made of the potential economic impact of differences in the cost per mile of domestic (a) plane and (b) train travel; and if her Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of taking steps to equalise costs to ensure it is never cheaper to travel by plane than train for domestic purposes.
Answered by Mike Kane - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The UK aviation market operates predominantly in the private sector. Airlines’ business models can at times accommodate more flexible pricing than the railway.
The Government sets the percentage that regulated rail fares can be increased each year. Regulated fares make up around 45 per cent of rail fares and include commuter fares, such as season ticket and shorter-distance peak return, alongside longer-distance off-peak returns. The increase in regulated fares for 2025 will be the lowest absolute increase in three years and delivers a fair balance between passengers and taxpayers.
Asked by: Chris Hinchliff (Labour - North East Hertfordshire)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will conduct a review on insourcing public sector language services.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The Government will always aim to secure value for money and social value. As part of this, contracting authorities are required to take an analytical evidenced based approach on each contract and undertake a Delivery Model Assessment when making decisions about the right model for delivering public services.
This assessment is the responsibility of the relevant individual contracting authority.
Asked by: Chris Hinchliff (Labour - North East Hertfordshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he plans to review the provisions for dairy free options for children with dairy (a) allergies and (b) intolerances in the school milk subsidy scheme.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This is a devolved matter, and I am answering with responsibility for the school milk scheme in England.
Only milk and relevant dairy products are currently eligible for subsidy in the school milk scheme and there are no plans to subsidise dairy-free beverages.
The Government recognises that some children with clinical and dietary needs are unable to consume milk and expects schools to make reasonable adjustments for those with particular needs. The School Food Standards require milk to be available, but also enable schools in England to provide a variety of other products to meet pupils’ particular dietary needs. Further information is available on gov.uk at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-food-standards-resources-for-schools
A joint working group of the Committee on Toxicity and the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition was established in Autumn 2021 to conduct a risk-benefit- analysis considering both nutritional and toxicological aspects associated with the consumption of plant-based drinks by the UK population. This work is ongoing, and the Government will continue to monitor developments. These committees separately provide advice on food safety and nutrition issues to the UK Governments.
Asked by: Chris Hinchliff (Labour - North East Hertfordshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 7 October 2024 to Question 5661 on Private Education: VAT, whether her Department has made a specific assessment of the potential impact of the policy on children with special educational needs in the independent sector.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
This government is committed to ending the VAT exemption that private schools enjoy and will confirm the introduction of these changes at the Budget on 30 October. The Office for Budget Responsibility will also certify the government’s costings for these measures at that time.
Children with education, health and care plans that provide a necessary local authority funded place at a private school, will not be impacted by this policy. This is because local authorities can reclaim VAT on service expenditure through existing routes.
Analysis by the Institute for Fiscal Studies assumes a net gain to the public finances of £1.3 to 1.5 billion per year in the medium to long run as a result of removing tax exemptions from private schools. This would allow for about a 2% increase in state school spending in England. This analysis can be found here: https://ifs.org.uk/publications/tax-private-school-fees-and-state-school-spending.
Asked by: Chris Hinchliff (Labour - North East Hertfordshire)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of the level of draught duty relief for (a) beer and (b) cider.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The current alcohol duty system supports the industry through Draught Relief, which ensures eligible products served on draught pay less duty. Draught Relief helps to level the playing field between pubs and supermarkets, allowing pubs and brewers to price their on-trade products more competitively.
The Government is closely monitoring the impact of the recent reforms and rates that took effect on 1 August 2023. As with all taxes, the Government keeps the alcohol duty system under review during its yearly Budget process.
Asked by: Chris Hinchliff (Labour - North East Hertfordshire)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether she has made an assessment of the (a) potential merits and (b) viability of auto enrolment for pension credit.
Answered by Emma Reynolds - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
It is not currently possible to accurately identify people who may be entitled to Pension Credit nor to determine how much they may be entitled to on the basis of the data which DWP holds. Like all means-tested benefits, a person’s eligibility for Pension Credit depends on their financial and personal household circumstances - information which, in most cases, DWP does not hold. Entitlement to Pension Credit is only established once a claim is made and award decisions often require the judgment of a decision maker weighing up evidence which cannot be done automatically.
It is however possible to identify certain households as highly likely to be entitled to Pension Credit on the basis of Housing Benefit data which DWP holds. This means we can scale-up last year’s ‘Invitation to Claim’ trial by targeting approximately 120,000 pensioner households who are in receipt of Housing Benefit and who may also be eligible for, but not currently claiming, Pension Credit. We will be inviting these households to apply for Pension Credit by 21 December, which is the latest date for making a successful backdated claim and still qualify for a Winter Fuel Payment.
Asked by: Chris Hinchliff (Labour - North East Hertfordshire)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of moving the qualifying week for Pension Credit to (a) 30 September, (b) 31 October and (c) 30 November 2024 on the number of eligible claimants.
Answered by Emma Reynolds - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
There is no qualifying week for Pension Credit. A claim for Pension Credit may be made at any time and may be backdated for up to three months as long as the entitlement conditions are met during that period. This means that a pensioner who was eligible for, but had not claimed, Pension Credit during the qualifying week for the Winter Fuel Payment for winter 2024-25 (16 to 22 September 2024) can still qualify for the payment if they make a successful backdated application for Pension Credit by 21 December 2024.
Asked by: Chris Hinchliff (Labour - North East Hertfordshire)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she is taking to ensure adequate resources to support the surge in applications for pension credit.
Answered by Emma Reynolds - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
Prior to the Winter Fuel announcement, Retirement Services Directorate (RSD) had 352 Full Time Equivalent (FTE) staff deployed on Pension Credit claims. Since the announcement, a deployment plan has been agreed to deploy an additional 537 FTE into RSD to support Pension Credit. With a further 156 FTE planned to onboard from recruitment between November 2024 and January 2025.
Asked by: Chris Hinchliff (Labour - North East Hertfordshire)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will ensure that Departments only use (a) regulated, (b) registered and (c) qualified interpreters.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
Government departments can access interpreters through the Crown Commercial Service’s RM6141 Language Services agreement, which offers innovative language solutions tailored to meet the core needs of the public sector.
To secure a place on the RM6141 Language Services framework, all suppliers must be prepared to provide proof of their interpreters’ qualifications upon request. The specific level of qualification required will depend on the services being procured. Additionally, when purchasing through this agreement, buyers may request the following information:
list of qualifications including supporting evidence
list of security clearances held including supporting evidence
list of previous experience and supporting evidence
evidence of Continuous Professional Development (CPD)
Asked by: Chris Hinchliff (Labour - North East Hertfordshire)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he plans to appoint a Special Envoy on Freedom of Religion and Belief.
Answered by Anneliese Dodds - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
This Government will champion freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) for all. No one should live in fear because of what they do, or do not believe in. Envoy roles are under Ministerial consideration and will be decided upon in due course. In the meantime, we will continue to use the strength of our global diplomatic network, including dedicated staff within the FCDO, to promote and protect FoRB around the world.