Claire Young

We want all children and young people with SEND or in alternative provision to receive the support they need. This government will listen to and work with families and the sector to deliver reform, improving inclusivity in mainstream schools, and ensuring special schools help those with the most complex needs.

We know that experiencing a TB incident (or breakdown) in a cattle herd can be particularly stressful. To help cattle keepers in this situation, comprehensive guidance on how TB breakdowns are monitored and dealt with can be found on the TB Hub website: (https://tbhub.co.uk/advice-during-a-tb-breakdown/).

The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) follow well-established protocols in all herds affected by a TB breakdown, working closely with the affected herd keeper to contain and eradicate the infection, enabling the herd to regain its Officially TB Free (OTF) status. Several steps are taken, including:

• Immediate application of herd movement restrictions. Only limited and controlled movements of TB-restricted cattle are permitted. Cattle from TB-restricted holdings can only move to slaughter and certain other limited destinations under a licence issued by APHA.
• All animals over 42 days old in the affected herd are tested at 60-day intervals (often using a more severe interpretation of the tuberculin skin test), until two consecutive test results are achieved.
• Supplementary interferon-gamma blood testing is used alongside the skin test in some TB breakdown herds.
• All TB test reactors (and, in some cases, non-reactor animals in direct contact with known infected cattle) are rapidly removed to designated slaughterhouses, triggering statutory compensation payments to the keeper. Alternatively, keepers can opt for private slaughter of their TB reactors if they prefer.

Defra recognises the impact that movement controls can have on animal keepers and other affected businesses and seeks to minimise burdens as far as practically possible, while maintaining the integrity of measures to mitigate risk of spread. To that end, movements from restricted zones to designated slaughterhouses are permitted under a general licence, and keepers can apply to move animals to live outside restricted zones under individual licences if pre/post movement tests indicate these moves are safe.

The situation, including the need for and size of movement controls, remains under continuous review.

Since August 2023, cattle brought into herds in the annual testing part of the Edge Area from higher-risk areas in England (and from Wales) have been subject to post-movement TB testing. This measure has strengthened the mandatory TB post-movement testing regime for cattle in England, originally introduced in April 2016 for animals joining herds in the Low Risk Area (LRA) of England from other parts of England or Wales.

Between September 2020 and July 2021, the default frequency of mandatory TB surveillance testing throughout the High Risk Area (HRA) of England was increased from annual to every six-months, with some exceptions for lower-risk cattle herds (whose owners would have the option to remain on annual TB testing). In March 2024, the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) introduced two relatively minor changes to the process used to identify herds in the HRA that are eligible for annual TB testing:

• the regular review of the eligibility lists switched from six-monthly to quarterly.
• keepers of herds newly qualifying for annual testing were given the opportunity to delay their next scheduled TB tests as long as the window for completion of the next routine herd test had not started.

We recognise the serious impacts that bovine TB (bTB) breakdowns can have on the affected farm businesses and on local rural communities. In addition to statutory payments to compensate farmers for the loss of any animals removed for TB control reasons, Defra provides support and help to affected livestock keepers (and their families) in different ways:

The Defra-funded TB Advisory Service (TBAS) (https://www.tbas.org.uk/) offers free, bespoke, practical and cost-effective advice to all livestock keepers in England. This can be provided by way of farm visits by qualified specialists, over-the phone advice and badger sett surveys to help reduce the risks associated with TB.

Grant funding for the Farming Community Network (FCN), which provides an on-demand support service for those impacted by a TB breakdown, with specially trained volunteers providing business as well as emotional and pastoral support.

ibTB (https://www.ibtb.co.uk/) is a free-to-access, online interactive mapping tool set up to help cattle farmers and their vets to understand the level of bTB in their area and to manage the risks when purchasing cattle. IbTB is updated on a regular basis to enhance its functionality and the quality of information it offers to users.

The TB Hub (https://tbhub.co.uk/) is a joint industry-government initiative, also provides cattle farmers with practical advice and information on dealing with bTB on their farm, covering everything from biosecurity measures to TB testing.

The Five Point Plan (https://tbhub.co.uk/preventing-tb-breakdowns/protect-your-herd-from-bovine-tb/), developed in partnership by industry and Defra, provides clear and practical guidance on good practice for bTB biosecurity.

The government knows that Britain needs a modern transport network to help kickstart economic growth. Good local bus services are an essential part of prosperous and sustainable communities. As announced in the King’s Speech, the government will introduce the Better Buses Bill to put the power over local bus services back in the hands of local leaders right across England, to ensure networks can meet the needs to the communities who rely on them, including in rural areas. We plan to empower local transport authorities through reforming bus funding and introducing local network safeguards, giving local transport authorities enhanced accountability over bus operators.

In terms of the Department’s policy on rechargeable hearing aids on the National Health Service, audiology services are locally commissioned and as such the responsibility for meeting the needs of non-hearing adults lies with local NHS commissioners. In July 2016, NHS England published a framework which supports clinical commissioning groups and assists integrated care boards (ICBs) to make informed decisions about what is good value for the populations they serve, and to provide more consistent, high quality, integrated care. The Framework for Clinical Commissioning Groups is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/HLCF.pdf

NHS England supports ICBs to make informed decisions about the provision of hearing services so that they can provide consistent, high quality, and integrated care to adults with hearing loss.

ICBs commission services to provide hearing aids, and service specification indicates that the NHS will provide up to two packets of hearing aid batteries per hearing aid at a time. If an individual has to have an NHS hearing aid, they can get free batteries and repairs from the NHS hearing aid service who fitted the hearing aids. Both rechargeable and battery powered devices are available on the NHS Supply Chain Framework Agreement, as are the batteries, and over the last 12 months, approximately £4.63 million was spent on batteries by trusts via NHS Supply Chain Framework Agreements, although this may not include all spend by the NHS.

Regarding an assessment of the potential risk to vulnerable people of the accidental ingestion of hearing aid batteries, all users of hearing aids should be provided with the manufacturer’s user guide and appropriate guidance on hearing aid and batteries management. Guidance on hearing aid and battery management based on the national safety alert is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/NatPSA_hearing_aid_batteries_December_2019_FINAL.pdf

There is a known risk to paediatric and vulnerable patients of accidentally ingesting hearing aid batteries, but in the case of paediatric patients, there has to be a tamperproof battery door on the device to meet the product specification. These devices are physically evaluated by a team of audiologists, ahead of being available through the framework agreement. There are also adult devices that have this same provision, so again this mitigates the risk.

Any button and coin batteries can pose a severe health risk, particularly to children, if inserted, swallowed, or ingested. All consumer products must be safe before they can be placed on the market, and the Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS) published guidance for businesses on the steps to take to mitigate potential battery-related risks in products that incorporate or are powered by button and coin batteries. The guidance for businesses on the use of button and coin batteries, published by the OPSS, is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/using-button-and-coin-batteries

In terms of the Department’s policy on rechargeable hearing aids on the National Health Service, audiology services are locally commissioned and as such the responsibility for meeting the needs of non-hearing adults lies with local NHS commissioners. In July 2016, NHS England published a framework which supports clinical commissioning groups and assists integrated care boards (ICBs) to make informed decisions about what is good value for the populations they serve, and to provide more consistent, high quality, integrated care. The Framework for Clinical Commissioning Groups is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/HLCF.pdf

NHS England supports ICBs to make informed decisions about the provision of hearing services so that they can provide consistent, high quality, and integrated care to adults with hearing loss.

ICBs commission services to provide hearing aids, and service specification indicates that the NHS will provide up to two packets of hearing aid batteries per hearing aid at a time. If an individual has to have an NHS hearing aid, they can get free batteries and repairs from the NHS hearing aid service who fitted the hearing aids. Both rechargeable and battery powered devices are available on the NHS Supply Chain Framework Agreement, as are the batteries, and over the last 12 months, approximately £4.63 million was spent on batteries by trusts via NHS Supply Chain Framework Agreements, although this may not include all spend by the NHS.

Regarding an assessment of the potential risk to vulnerable people of the accidental ingestion of hearing aid batteries, all users of hearing aids should be provided with the manufacturer’s user guide and appropriate guidance on hearing aid and batteries management. Guidance on hearing aid and battery management based on the national safety alert is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/NatPSA_hearing_aid_batteries_December_2019_FINAL.pdf

There is a known risk to paediatric and vulnerable patients of accidentally ingesting hearing aid batteries, but in the case of paediatric patients, there has to be a tamperproof battery door on the device to meet the product specification. These devices are physically evaluated by a team of audiologists, ahead of being available through the framework agreement. There are also adult devices that have this same provision, so again this mitigates the risk.

Any button and coin batteries can pose a severe health risk, particularly to children, if inserted, swallowed, or ingested. All consumer products must be safe before they can be placed on the market, and the Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS) published guidance for businesses on the steps to take to mitigate potential battery-related risks in products that incorporate or are powered by button and coin batteries. The guidance for businesses on the use of button and coin batteries, published by the OPSS, is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/using-button-and-coin-batteries

In terms of the Department’s policy on rechargeable hearing aids on the National Health Service, audiology services are locally commissioned and as such the responsibility for meeting the needs of non-hearing adults lies with local NHS commissioners. In July 2016, NHS England published a framework which supports clinical commissioning groups and assists integrated care boards (ICBs) to make informed decisions about what is good value for the populations they serve, and to provide more consistent, high quality, integrated care. The Framework for Clinical Commissioning Groups is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/HLCF.pdf

NHS England supports ICBs to make informed decisions about the provision of hearing services so that they can provide consistent, high quality, and integrated care to adults with hearing loss.

ICBs commission services to provide hearing aids, and service specification indicates that the NHS will provide up to two packets of hearing aid batteries per hearing aid at a time. If an individual has to have an NHS hearing aid, they can get free batteries and repairs from the NHS hearing aid service who fitted the hearing aids. Both rechargeable and battery powered devices are available on the NHS Supply Chain Framework Agreement, as are the batteries, and over the last 12 months, approximately £4.63 million was spent on batteries by trusts via NHS Supply Chain Framework Agreements, although this may not include all spend by the NHS.

Regarding an assessment of the potential risk to vulnerable people of the accidental ingestion of hearing aid batteries, all users of hearing aids should be provided with the manufacturer’s user guide and appropriate guidance on hearing aid and batteries management. Guidance on hearing aid and battery management based on the national safety alert is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/NatPSA_hearing_aid_batteries_December_2019_FINAL.pdf

There is a known risk to paediatric and vulnerable patients of accidentally ingesting hearing aid batteries, but in the case of paediatric patients, there has to be a tamperproof battery door on the device to meet the product specification. These devices are physically evaluated by a team of audiologists, ahead of being available through the framework agreement. There are also adult devices that have this same provision, so again this mitigates the risk.

Any button and coin batteries can pose a severe health risk, particularly to children, if inserted, swallowed, or ingested. All consumer products must be safe before they can be placed on the market, and the Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS) published guidance for businesses on the steps to take to mitigate potential battery-related risks in products that incorporate or are powered by button and coin batteries. The guidance for businesses on the use of button and coin batteries, published by the OPSS, is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/using-button-and-coin-batteries

The Department and the National Health Service continue to support the work of air ambulance charities, including through the NHS ambulance trusts’ provision of key clinical staff and medical equipment, which supports the operation of air ambulances.

The Department and the National Health Service continue to support the work of air ambulance charities, including through the NHS ambulance trusts’ provision of key clinical staff and medical equipment, which supports the operation of air ambulances.

The government will consider police funding, including the allocation of funding to forces including, in the round as part of phase 2 of the Spending Review.

The Home Office recognises the significant delays in the courts system and the impact that this has on victims. The Home Office works closely with the Ministry of Justice and other criminal justice partners to deliver improvements and build a criminal justice system the public can have confidence in.

The Ministry of Justice has overall responsibility for the courts, but we will continue to work collaboratively to support the Ministry of Justice in ensuring that justice can be delivered in a timely manner for all involved.

Staff must be able to expect a safe and decent work environment. We will not tolerate any violence against prison officers and prisoners who are violent towards staff will face the full consequences of their actions.

The Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 doubled the maximum penalty to up to two years’ imprisonment for those who assault emergency workers, including prison officers. There are higher maximum penalties in place for more serious offences, including ABH, GBH and sexual assault.

We are providing targeted support to adult male prisons with the highest assault rates to tackle local drivers of violence.

We are continuing with plans for a phased removal of wet-shave razors in up to 30 prisons in the adult male estate in 2024/25.

To protect staff from serious assaults, prison officers in the adult male estate are provided with PAVA, a synthetic pepper spray. Every prison officer across public sector prisons can wear a Body Worn Video Camera whilst on shift, providing high-quality evidence to support prosecutions against those who commit assaults against staff.

We are implementing measures to ease prison crowding as we know that crowded conditions can increase violent incidents in prisons.

The Ministry of Justice has a comprehensive whistleblowing policy which all staff can access via the intranet. The policy sets out the protections and support available to a whistleblower. Protections include protection under the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998 (PIDA) and the assurance that the Department will take disciplinary action if a whistleblower is subject to detrimental treatment as a result of having raised a concern.

Sources of support include Nominated Officers, who can advise on how to raise a concern, and specialist teams including Counter Corruption, the HM Prison and Probation Service Tackling Unacceptable Behaviours Unit, and the Department’s employee assistance provider.