Special Envoy for Freedom of Religion or Belief Bill

Debate between Fiona Bruce and Vicky Ford

3rd reading
Friday 17th May 2024 Commons Chamber

[Fiona Bruce (Congleton) (Con)]

I beg to move, That the Bill be now read the Third time.

It has been a long journey to get this Special Envoy for Freedom of Religion or Belief Bill to this point. I am grateful for the cross-party and public efforts and acknowledge the international interest in it. At the outset, I particularly express my thanks to the Foreign Secretary, Lord Cameron of Chipping Norton, for his personal and vocal support for the Bill, including in the other place.

It is pertinent that this is a private Member’s Bill because, while it implements recommendation 6 of the Truro review and is therefore implementing a manifesto commitment, its origins are on the Back Benches of the Commons and the Lords. In 2013, the inaugural report of the all-party parliamentary group for international freedom of religion or belief recognised the challenge for attention and concern for the right to freedom of religion or belief—as in article 18 of the universal declaration of human rights—and described it as “an orphaned right”. This Bill will ensure that the office of the Prime Minister’s special envoy for freedom of religion or belief is secured as a permanent fixture in statute, and will embed the progress that the UK has made in promoting the fundamental and universal human right to freedom of religion or belief around the world.

Since the all-party parliamentary group first produced that report, it has grown in number to more than 180 parliamentarians. I believe it is the largest all-party group in this place. That reflects the increase in awareness and support for the right of freedom of religion or belief here in the UK, and I am very proud of that. Having worked internationally in this role as the Prime Minister’s special envoy for some three and a half years, I know that the parliamentary work on freedom of religion or belief stands out as a beacon across the world. It was with great delight that I heard one of my parliamentary colleagues from the Opposition Benches say, “In this work, there isn’t a piece of paper between us here in this House in what we believe in.”

However, the increase in awareness here for this work sadly reflects the reality that, across the world, the rights of religious minorities are under severe attack. Freedom of religion or belief has never been more important a cause to champion, for the simple reason that there have never been more people at risk—not just millions but hundreds of millions discriminated against and denied life’s chances, simply on account of what they believe.

Some may point out that having a special envoy in statute would be unprecedented, but if the objection to any change was simply that it was unprecedented, we would never make any progress. Indeed, that is why we are here in this place—to make legislative change. What is unprecedented is that people have never been more heinously and despicably denied their wish to live out their beliefs. They have never experienced, in the numbers they do today, more abuse, emotional or material hardship, incarceration, or even death, simply on account of what they believe. I hope to give some examples of that a little later in my speech.

In the time that I have been the UK’s Prime Minister’s special envoy—from late 2020—we have seen such an increase in instances of concern. There has not just been an increase in the number of authoritarian regimes; we have also seen new challenges to freedom of religion or belief through ever increasingly sophisticated technology used to oppress people, and the darkly sinister expansion of transnational repression.

Let me mention a few examples from countries around the world. We have seen, for example, the military coup in Myanmar exacerbating the persecution of religious minorities, not least the Rohingya Muslims. We have seen the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan, with every religious group there, other than those willing to succumb to the Taliban’s ways, now oppressed and living in fear. In Russia, Jehovah’s Witnesses, including the elderly, are now being imprisoned as criminals simply for being pacifists and being unwilling to serve in the army, and Putin is weaponising Orthodox Christianity in the war against Ukraine, with places of worship deliberately destroyed and reports of pastors disappearing.

We have seen daily disturbances in Iran, for which some have paid with their lives. At the core of those is the cry for every Iranian to be free to live in accordance with their individual beliefs. In Nigeria, thousands of Christians and some moderate Muslims are being massacred by Islamic extremists every year. Just on Tuesday this week, we commemorated the 21st birthday of Leah Sharibu, who was abducted by Boko Haram seven years ago and not released—as were other Chibok schoolgirls —because she refused to renounce her Christian faith. In Nicaragua, the Catholic Church is being particularly targeted. Many people have been expelled, including those running religious schools or medical centres. Even Mother Teresa’s nuns, who have been working there for over 30 years, were required with no notice at all to leave the country.

We are all aware of the situation in China, where over 1 million Uyghurs and, reportedly, increasingly more are egregiously incarcerated in 20th-century concentration camps. Many have disappeared forever, and many are reported as having died. The allegations of forced organ harvesting against Falun Gong practitioners would simply defy belief had those allegations not been persistently made by so many. In Tibet, according to recent UN reports, up to 1 million children as young as two are being sent away to boarding schools, alienated from their families, cultures and beliefs. The world should not stand silent about such things.

[Vicky Ford (Chelmsford) (Con)]

Before my hon. Friend moves on, I would like to thank her specifically for her work as envoy. As she has just shown, she has used her voice endlessly to shine a light on some of the darkest corners of the world. I know that she will want me to mention Sudan, where we have seen systemic ethnic cleansing of non-Arabs, perhaps more on the grounds of race than religion, and that she will also want me to mention the fact that religious leaders can be a force for good in trying to stop violence. In particular, in South Sudan, we saw the Pope, the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Moderator of the Church of Scotland work together to call for an end to violence. I would like to say a massive thank you to my hon. Friend for her work as envoy, which shows why this role is so important.

[Fiona Bruce]

I thank my right hon. Friend for her intervention, and even more so for her work as chair of the all-party parliamentary group on Sudan and South Sudan, as well as for her acknowledgment of the importance of freedom of religion or belief when she was a Minister in the Foreign Office. She is absolutely right: the influence that religious leaders can have in bringing communities together and preventing the kinds of atrocities I have referred to cannot be overstated. This year, it has been my privilege to have collaborated with the Archbishop of Canterbury to highlight and focus on this issue, including at an event at the Foreign Office attended by over 100 of those engaged on the issue here in the UK and internationally, among them several parliamentarians —I remember that my right hon. Friend the Member for Suffolk Coastal (Dr Coffey) was there.

The role I have gives the UK an additional privilege: that of holding out the importance of freedom of religion or belief across the world. However, the men, women and children around the world who suffer—whether under the hard arm of authoritarian regimes or at the ruthless whim of militant mobs—need not just our voices, but our partnership. They need not just our words, but our actions; not just our intentions, but our effective help. That is why the role of envoy, the office that I have the privilege of holding at present, needs securing and resourcing over the long term, beyond the term of any particular Government or party in power. Of course, this Bill intends to do just that.

As I say, the Bill fulfils the Government’s manifesto commitment to act on their words and fully implement the Truro review, which included a recommendation to make the special envoy role permanent, with the requisite authority and resources. There is only one other country in the world with a similar office. The US has had a permanent office promoting and protecting freedom of religion or belief for over 25 years. The stability of that office over time has ensured a build-up of resources, expertise and research capabilities that enable it to make a significant contribution towards combating FORB abuses across the world.

The UK may be smaller, but if we had such an office, and secured and resourced it as a continuation of the office that I have the privilege of holding at present, it would enable us to speak across the world with a powerful voice for good. We have seen the good influence that the current Foreign Secretary is having as he speaks out across the world. Having represented three Prime Ministers now, I have been so encouraged by the respect in which the UK is held as we speak out internationally. We sometimes underplay that here, to our detriment.

It was noted in Committee that although, of course, the Prime Minister will personally appoint their special envoy, the legislative description in the Bill is of a “Minister of the Crown.” The title of “Prime Minister’s special envoy” provides the vital authority internationally to advocate of behalf of the UK, as I have just touched on. Clause 1 reflects the current purposes of the envoy and the requirement to report directly to the Prime Minister. That direct accountability is so important, and I have found it so helpful under each of the Prime Ministers I have served. I thank them all for their active support for my role.

Clause 1(6) provides for the continued office of the special envoy and resources to fulfil the role. I say to my hon. Friends, across the House, that we are all on the same side when it comes to advocating for freedom of religion or belief. In fact, I do not know of a single Member in this House who opposes the Bill. Why? Because we recognise that it will provide an opportunity to do good—real good—and to change lives. We recognise that anyone who opposes the Bill, or seeks to prevent its passage in any way, is in effect opposing the opportunity to do good.

Violence against Religious Groups: Nigeria

Debate between Fiona Bruce and Vicky Ford

Monday 6th June 2022 Commons Chamber

[Fiona Bruce (Congleton) (Con)]

(Urgent Question): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs if she will make a statement on the killing of church worshippers in Ondo state, Nigeria yesterday, and on wider issues of violence against religious groups in Nigeria.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs (Vicky Ford)]

I am horrified by the attack that took place against a church in Ondo state, south-west Nigeria yesterday. I publicly express the UK Government’s condemnation of this heinous act and stress the importance of those responsible being brought to justice in accordance with the law. The high commission in Nigeria has also expressed our condolences to the governor of Ondo state and offered our support. I know that the House will join me in sending our condolences to the families and communities of those killed.

Rising conflict and insecurity across Nigeria are having a devastating impact on affected communities. I have raised this issue with the Nigerian authorities on several occasions, including in conversations with Nigeria’s vice-president and Foreign Minister during my visit in February. During that visit, I also met regional governors, religious leaders and non-governmental organisations to discuss intercommunal violence and freedom of religion or belief.

It is clear that religious identity can be a factor in incidents of violence in Nigeria and that Christian communities have been victims, but the root causes are often complex and frequently also relate to competition over resources, historical grievances and criminality, so the UK Government are committed to working with Nigeria to respond to insecurity. At our security and defence dialogue with Nigeria in February, we committed to work together to respond to the conflict. We are supporting local and national peacebuilding efforts in Nigeria, including through the Nigeria Governors’ Forum and National Peace Committee. We provide mentoring and capacity building to support Nigerian police force units, to improve their anti-kidnap capacity, and we support efforts to address the drivers and enablers of serious and organised crime in Nigeria. At our security and defence dialogue, we reiterated our shared understanding and commitment to protecting human rights for all.

We are committed to defending freedom of religion or belief for all, and to promoting respect between different religious and non-religious communities. I discussed FoRB with the Nigerian Foreign Minister only last month, and we look forward to hosting an international conference on FoRB in July. We will continue to encourage the Nigerian Government to take urgent action to implement long-term solutions that address the root causes of such violence.

[Fiona Bruce]

Thank you, Mr Speaker, for granting this urgent question, following the tragic news of the latest killings in Nigeria—a targeted attack, not on warring militias as part of armed conflict, nor even on farmers or villagers over land; no, this was a brutal attack on a place of worship, St Francis Xavier Catholic Church in Owo, and on worshippers gathering on Pentecost Sunday. A time of celebration turned into a time of carnage. Why? That is the really urgent question.

The governor of Ondo state, Governor Akeredolu, condemned the attack as “vile and satanic”. Reverend Augustine Ikwu, Secretary of the Catholic Church in Ondo, said:

“We turn to God to console the families of those whose lives were lost”.

The whole House will join in those words of condemnation and of consolation for the victims and their families, and I thank the Minister for her words in that connection. However, as the urgent question implies, this latest atrocity is a far from isolated incident: religious minorities, particularly Christians, are targeted. Bandits, predominantly militant Fulani herdsmen, have killed 3,000 people in 2022 alone. Most of those horrendous attacks in recent times have been in the middle belt region, and have affected adversely the practice of Christianity in the region. The hon. Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon) led an all-party parliamentary group delegation to Nigeria last week, alongside my deputy special envoy, David Burrowes. They heard evidence from Benue, Enugu, Plateau, Southern Kaduna, Adamawa and Taraba states. All those people said that the attackers of their communities were militant Fulani herdsmen whose targets—whose victims—were profiled based on their religious identity.

I have a number of questions for the Minister. While the causes of violence and conflict in Nigeria are complex, does she agree, following this latest attack, not in the middle belt or the north, but in the relatively safe south-west, that this is a FoRB issue, as the attacks are mainly on largely Christian communities? Will she agree to meet the APPG delegation and me to hear how local faith actors and non-governmental organisations need more support to bring faith communities together? What can the Government do to support the Nigerian constitutional guarantee of freedom of religion and of freedom from discrimination? How does the Government’s partnership with Nigerian security forces and legal services support the apprehension of perpetrators and prevent increasing acts of impunity across Nigeria? Finally, will the Government support NGO calls for the establishment of special courts for the speedy prosecution of perpetrators of violence in affected states to discourage impunity, and will they support NGOs in providing better research and monitoring of such grievous religious and human rights violations?

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Fiona Bruce and Vicky Ford

Tuesday 26th April 2022 Commons Chamber

[Fiona Bruce (Congleton) (Con)]

11. What steps she is taking to ensure that freedom of religion or belief remains a key strategic priority for her Department.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs (Vicky Ford)]

Promoting freedom of religion or belief is one of the UK’s longest-standing human rights priorities. We are making good progress on implementing the Bishop of Truro’s recommendations to support everyone persecuted for their religion or belief. We are looking forward to hosting an international ministerial conference on freedom of religion or belief in July to drive forward international efforts to promote openness and freedom.

[Fiona Bruce]

I thank the Foreign Secretary for her strong support for the international conference on freedom of religion or belief, which the UK Government will host in July. Do Ministers agree that that would be an excellent opportunity to showcase how FORB is a priority for the UK Government to many Government Ministers from across the world, whom we hope to welcome to that event, which we expect will be the largest UK-hosted international event of 2022?

[Vicky Ford]

I thank my hon. Friend for her outstanding work across the world on the Prime Minister’s behalf as his envoy on freedom of religion or belief. She is right to be really concerned about the increasing attacks and the increased severity of attacks on freedom of religion or belief. The conference that the UK is going to lead in July will be enormously important; we will welcome partner countries and stakeholders from all across the world. The Foreign Secretary is very much looking forward to attending it and taking part.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Fiona Bruce and Vicky Ford

Tuesday 30th November 2021 Commons Chamber

[Vicky Ford]

We are deeply concerned about the civil rights situation and about the reports of the recent death of the opposition MDC Alliance supporter Nyasha Zhambe Mawere on 26 November. We continue to urge the Government to carry out proper investigations and to ensure that those responsible are held to account. Our sanctions designations are holding to account those individuals who we believe to be responsible for human rights violations, and these include those responsible for the deaths of demonstrators in August 2018 and January 2019. Those restrictive measures are not targeted at or intended to impact the wider economy or the people of Zimbabwe; they are targeted at those who commit these atrocities.

[Fiona Bruce (Congleton) (Con)]

T1. If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Fiona Bruce and Vicky Ford

Tuesday 26th October 2021 Commons Chamber

[Vicky Ford]

We absolutely condemn violence across Nigeria. These attacks have devastating effects on all communities. Religious identity is a factor in some incidents of intercommunal violence, but the root causes are very complex. When I met African heads of mission in London on 21 September, I emphasised that democracy, human rights and the rule of law are all core UK values and that those values also include the freedom of religion or belief.

[Fiona Bruce (Congleton) (Con)]

We know that 2,763 Yazidi women, girls and children are still missing, seven years after they were abducted by Daesh in Iraq. Many were taken as sexual slaves and child soldiers. Will the Minister meet me and members of the all-party parliamentary group for international freedom of religion or belief to review what action the UK can take to support the call to assist those people by members of the International Religious Freedom or Belief Alliance this week?

[Vicky Ford]

I thank my hon. Friend for her important question and for all the work she does in this area. This Government and I are committed to freedom of religion or belief and to the protection of women and girls, and I would be happy to discuss with her this issue and the wider issues of concern in this area.

Violence against Christians: Central African Countries

Debate between Fiona Bruce and Vicky Ford

Thursday 23rd September 2021 Westminster Hall

[Vicky Ford]

Let me deal with the first of those points, as clearly we can scrutinise arrangements in many different ways in this place, including being able to intervene in Westminster Hall debates on the newly appointed Minister for Africa on a Thursday afternoon. As we all know, there are many ways to ask questions of the Government. I also point the hon. Lady to the integrated review, which is worth reading, because it sets out in great detail how different Departments will work together not only to support British interests across the globe, but to help build partnerships with other countries.

We recognise that women and girls from religious minorities can often suffer because of both their gender and their faith. That is why our human rights policy looks at the intersectionality of human rights: for example, the importance of addressing specific interests such as gender-based violence, which may be experienced by women from religious minority communities. The Prime Minister’s special envoy for freedom of religion and belief, my fantastic hon. Friend the Member for Congleton, has spoken about that double vulnerability that many women from religious minorities face, including at an International Women’s Day event organised by the UK Freedom of Religion or Belief Forum this March. I thank her for the effort that she puts into this work, because having that additional voice on those sorts of platforms really helps in continuing to reiterate these important messages.

The hon. Member for Strangford spoke very powerfully about incidents of violence and abuse in the DRC. The UK is deeply concerned about the violence against civilians in the DRC, including the recent attacks by the armed group Allied Democratic Forces. Back in April, the British embassy in Kinshasa issued a joint statement with international partners condemning the attacks perpetrated by the ADF in Beni and North Kivu, and we continue to urge the DRC Government and the UN to work together to protect civilians from ongoing violence and address the root causes of conflict. The previous Minister for Africa, my hon. Friend the Member for Rochford and Southend East, raised this issue with the President on multiple occasions. We are committed to ensuring that the UN peacekeeping mission MONUSCO remains focused on delivering its mandate to protect civilians, and that vulnerable communities remain central to the UN’s work in the DRC.

In the Central African Republic, there are long-standing concerns about violence along religious lines. I am grateful for the APPG’s explorations of the nuances of the conflict and the religious tensions in that country, which will further enrich the Government’s understanding and help to inform our approach. Sadly, hate speech and inter-communal tensions remain prominent in the CAR, and disinformation can be used to drive divisions for political and economic gain, so while the current conflict is not predominantly religious in nature, the lack of formal justice and reconciliation mechanisms mean that tensions could become defined along religious and ideological lines. We will continue to monitor this issue very closely, and FCDO officials are working with researchers in the CAR to understand more about the role that disinformation is playing in fuelling this conflict. We continue to shape the peacekeeping mission mandate in both countries to protect vulnerable communities and promote inclusive dialogue.

Turning to Nigeria, my hon. Friend the Member for Congleton and many others spoke passionately about the violence and, indeed, the increase in violence in Nigeria. We are very troubled by the rising insecurity in that country, including terrorism in the north-east, where insurgents from Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa Province are responsible for regular attacks on both Christians and Muslims. Both groups regularly attack Nigerians of all faiths who do not subscribe to their extremist views, causing immense suffering in both Christian and Muslim communities. Separately, there is inter-communal conflict and banditry occurring across multiple states; again, that continues to blight both Christian and Muslim groups. The drivers of those conflicts are deeply complex; they can be highly localised and relate to a number of different factors.

We really welcome the APPG report on Nigeria. It analysed inter-communal violence in the middle belt, and acts of terrorism committed by Boko Haram and ISWA in the northeast. A full response was issued by my predecessor as Minister for Africa, my hon. Friend the Member for Rochford and Southend East, which emphasised our support for solutions that get to the root causes of the conflict—addressing the root cause is so important if the violence is to be reduced. My predecessor visited Nigeria in April, and discussed the increasing of security across the country with the Government and community leaders. During the Nigerian delegation’s visit to the Global Education Summit in London in July, he also discussed the impact of insecurity, potential religious dynamics, and issues such as school kidnapping with the Nigerian Minister for Foreign Affairs and the Minister of State for Education.

We totally condemn the devasting impact that this violence has had, and is having, on people in Nigeria. We continue to make clear to the Nigerian authorities, at the highest levels, the importance of protecting civilians—including all ethnic and religious groups—and protecting human rights for all.

[Fiona Bruce]

I have been listening very carefully to the Minister, and I thank her for much of what she has said. However, when a Minister talks about the fact that they have mentioned something when visiting a country, it is often the case that that has been done quietly and in private. What many of us are now sensing is that there needs to be a clear and public calling out of what is happening in Nigeria, and a call to the Nigerian Government to tackle it in the way that I have previously spoken about. Private discussions will no longer cut it.

[Vicky Ford]

I know that my hon. Friend thinks about this matter very deeply, and I am looking forward to discussing it with her in more detail. What I am hearing from groups that are expert in this area is that it is really important that we look at the different things that are happening in different parts of the country, and that we try to avoid conflating the north-east conflicts with the inter-communal violence that is occurring, for example, between farmers and herders. We do not want to risk exacerbating ethnic tensions. These are incredibly complex matters, but I hear what my hon. Friend is saying. We do not want the ideology that can be seen in the north-east extending into broader inter-communal violence. These are complicated issues, but issues that we are right to discuss and to tackle.

The hon. Member for Strangford outlined the UK’s support for the Lake Chad basin regional stabilisation facility. I can confirm that the UK is committed to security and stability in the wider Sahel region. We have currently deployed 300 troops to the UN peacekeeping mission in Mali, as part of a long-range reconnaissance group. We are providing further conflict, security and stability programming to support the reduction of violent conflict and promote long-term stability in the region. There is an investment of approximately £12 million a year in that programme. It includes local stabilisation projects in Mali, strengthening civilian-military co-ordination to facilitate humanitarian access, for example, and improving the participation of women from all communities in stabilisation projects and the peace process in Mali.

Support for Children and Families: Covid-19

Debate between Fiona Bruce and Vicky Ford

Tuesday 20th October 2020 Westminster Hall

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Education (Vicky Ford)]

Thank you for your excellent chairing of this debate, Sir Christopher. I start by congratulating my hon. Friend the Member for Devizes (Danny Kruger) on securing this important debate. It is good to have so many different hon. Members present.

I will use this opportunity to update the House on what the Department for Education has been doing to support children, young people and their families during this time. The Government are dedicated to supporting children and families, and the Secretary of State for Education has been entrusted with the family policy brief by the Prime Minister, to ensure that there is a Cabinet-level Minister with oversight of the issue. The Secretary of State is very clear that the two core aims are the protection of vulnerable children and ensuring that every child has the best start in life. He recently made a speech outlining the improvements needed to the adoption system in this country, aiming to close the gap between the number of adopter families and the number of children looking for those loving-forever homes.

We are soon to announce the independent review on children’s social care with the aim to reform and improve an incredible service that plays a vital role in the lives of our most vulnerable children. We continue to work on the SEN review for children with special educational needs and disabilities. We work with Departments across Government on a range of policies to support all children to grow up in happy and loving environments.

[Fiona Bruce]

Will the Minister give way?

[Vicky Ford]

No, because there is a lot that I want to update hon. Members on. As the hon. Member for Walthamstow (Stella Creasy) said, supporting a family starts even before a child is born. My hon. Friend the Member for East Worthing and Shoreham (Tim Loughton) pointed out how important health visitors are, so I was really pleased this month when the chief nursing officer made it absolutely clear that health visitors must not be redeployed from their frontline support for families, even as cases of covid rise further.

Early education and experience set up a child for life and support parents with childcare. Since 2013, the proportion of children who are at a good level of development by the time they end their reception year has gone up from one in two to three out of four. This is why the Government continue to invest and support early years education. We introduced the 15 hours free childcare for disadvantaged two-year-olds and then 30 hours for three and four-year-olds. We prioritised the early years sector for reopening from 1 June and out-of-school clubs and provision for reopening on 4 July. We have continued to support the sector by paying for those Government hours of entitlement at pre-covid levels of attendance, even if the providers had to close. Attendance is now around 85% of the usual pre-covid levels.

We also know that grandparents and other family members often provide crucial informal childcare. The good news is that those childcare bubbles can still be formed even in higher lockdown areas.

The hon. Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon), who was born in a wonderful part of the world, spoke about mental health. On World Mental Health Day, we published a state of the nation report which looks at research into children’s and young people’s mental health at this time. Levels of happiness among all children have remained stable, compared to previous years, but children have been anxious about missing education and social contact, which is why it has been so important to get them back to schools.

Levels of anxiety have increased for certain cohorts of children and young people, especially disabled children, BAME children, disadvantaged groups and those with previous mental health conditions. This is why we introduced the Wellbeing for Education Return project, which gives support for schools and colleges, delivered in their local area by local mental health experts. Over 97% of local authorities have signed up to that. We must continue our Green Paper commitment to introduce new mental health support teams in all schools and colleges and training for senior mental health leads and faster access to specialist support.

My hon. Friend the Member for Penistone and Stocksbridge (Miriam Cates) spoke of a heart-breaking story about families of children with special educational needs. They have faced enormous challenges. The Government have provided over £37 million to the Family Fund to help over 75,000 of those families, including an extra £10 million specifically for the pandemic. As she knows, we are also increasing the high-needs budget by nearly a quarter over a two-year period. In our £1 billion catch-up premium for schools we have ensured that specialist settings and alternative provision will get three times more per pupil than those in mainstream schools.

Fundamentally, it has been so important to make sure that all children can get back to school and get back their support, especially those with special educational needs and disabilities. Over 80% of those children and young people are back in their educational settings now.

The shadow Minister, the hon. Member for Hampstead and Kilburn (Tulip Siddiq), mentioned that children in care and those children who have a social worker are especially vulnerable, which is why we kept schools open for them at the height of the pandemic. I am enormously proud that we were one of the few countries in the world that did that. Yes, attendance was low, because parents were rightly concerned at the beginning of the pandemic, but it grew over the summer and now 85% of children with a social worker are now back at- school.

We also invested another £360 million in frontline charities supporting vulnerable people during the crisis and worked hand in hand with the NSPCC to make sure that people could report—and knew where to report—a child at risk of harm.

We have provided another £4.7 billion to local authorities to help them respond to the pandemic. We know that some local authority children’s services are stronger than others, so we have supported those who need extra help by deploying our new react teams across the regions and Ofsted inspectors have come back to the frontline.

Family hubs were mentioned with great passion by my hon. Friends the Members for Congleton (Fiona Bruce) and for Don Valley (Nick Fletcher) and I share their passion. I have an excellent family hub in my constituency that offers early support to families who need advice or help. Co-locating such services supports families and providers.

[Fiona Bruce]

To inform Members, what is happening to the £2.5 million which the Chancellor allocated in the Budget several months ago and which I understand was passed to the Minister’s Department to champion family hubs?

[Vicky Ford]

I will make announcements on that very shortly. I want it to be spent on research and development.

Regarding adoption, data was published last week showing a gap of about 600 children between those waiting for adoption and those waiting for a child. The gap has narrowed, but we must narrow it further. We need to encourage more families to come forward to provide those loving forever homes.

We are investing £1 million in a national adoption recruitment scheme and another £2.8 million supporting the voluntary adoption agencies. Courts have prioritised adoption. Flexibility to the adoption support fund during covid has helped another 60,000 families. The changes we made to social care regulations—incidentally, the Opposition tried to throw them out—were specifically to make sure that adoption could continue while not being delayed for medical reports. However, I take the important point made by the hon. Member for York Central (Rachael Maskell).

We have put in more support to those who are leaving care to make sure that they do not need to leave care at this time. On the very important point on child poverty and food, we have injected more than £9 million into the welfare system over this period and given support to income protection schemes, mortgage holidays, additional support for rent, and we have done other things to support family income.

When schools were closed to the majority of pupils, we launched the national voucher scheme. It was challenging, but it meant that 1.4 million children who normally received free school meals could still be supported. We also extended free school meals to the children of those families who have no recourse to public funds. Some £380 million was spent on supermarket vouchers, but now that schools have reopened, kitchens have reopened and children are being provided with food, which is so much more important than a paper voucher.

Schools up and down the country are also providing food parcels to those who are self-isolating. In the summer, children from more than 1,800 schools received healthy breakfasts through the breakfast club programme. Our holiday activities and food programme was absolutely remarkable in the 17 local authorities where it was run. We have also announced £63 million for local authorities to provide discretionary financial help to those in need in schools.

My right hon. Friend the Member for Chingford and Woodford Green (Sir Iain Duncan Smith), who has now left, mentioned that schools sometimes sent home whole bubbles. We have set up a new Department for Education helpline to help schools with bespoke advice when they have cases.

Finally, the hon. Member for Loughborough (Jane Hunt) spoke about the outstanding work that schools and school staff have done to bring children back to school. She is absolutely right, and I agree with every word she said about how fabulous school staff up and down the country have been. We will continue to work with other Departments to put in place significant amounts of wider support. As we know, providing a child with the best start in life means that they can grow up in a loving, happy, stable home environment. That is what we are committed to do.