Graham Leadbitter

The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency’s response reflects the view of the Department and there are no plans for any further responses.

The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency has responded to the Determination following the Fatal Accident Inquiry into the death of Alexander Irvine. This response can be viewed in full at www.scotcourts.gov.uk/fatal-accident-inquiries/fatal-accident-inquiries-and-determinations/fai-alexander-irvine-response/.

We recognise the importance of audible and visible route and destination information in helping disabled people and other passengers to use bus services with confidence. On 1^st October 2024 the first phase of the Public Service Vehicles (Accessible Information) Regulations 2023 (“Accessible Information Regulations”) came into force, requiring vehicles first used on local services since October 2019 to comply. The majority of local services should be compliant by October 2026.

The most recent annual bus statistics indicate that 37.2% of buses in Great Britain incorporated audible and visible route and next stop information provision as at 31^st March 2024, but these statistics do not yet reflect the implementation of the Accessible Information Regulations.

The Government is committed to accelerating the roll-out of charging infrastructure so that everyone, no matter where they live or work, can make the transition to an electric vehicle (EV). As of 1 November, there are over 71,000 publicly available charging devices in the UK, supporting drivers to switch to EVs.

Alongside support for public charging, for those without off-street parking, the Government offers the Electric Vehicle Chargepoint Grant for Households with On-Street Parking. Eligible applicants can get up to £350 off the cost of installing a domestic chargepoint, when paired with a cross-pavement solution.

The Government is committed to making EV charging infrastructure more affordable and accessible, particularly for those without off-street parking. The Government confirmed in the October 2024 Budget that it will continue to support the uptake of EVs by investing over £200 million in 2025/26 to further accelerate chargepoint rollout.

Alongside support for public charging, the Department is also supporting the installation of cross-pavement charging solutions through the Electric Vehicle Chargepoint Grant for Households with On-Street Parking. Eligible applicants can receive 75% off the cost of purchasing and installing a socket, up to a maximum of £350 when installed alongside a cross-pavement solution.

The Department undertook a Regulatory Impact Assessment covering the measures in the Employment Rights Bill to strengthen Statutory Sick Pay: removing the Lower Earnings Limit and the waiting period. This can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/employment-rights-bill-impact-assessments.

No one should be forced to choose between their health and financial hardship. Through the Employment Rights Bill we are strengthening Statutory Sick Pay. Up to 1.3 million low-paid employees will now be entitled to Statutory Sick Pay and all eligible employees will be paid from the first day of sickness absence irrespective of their income, benefiting millions of employees.

While the Department has not assessed the adequacy of the rate of Statutory Sick Pay, a Regulatory Impact Assessment and an Equality Impact Assessment of the Statutory Sick Pay measures in the Employment Rights Bill have been undertaken.

The existing rate of Statutory Sick Pay is designed to balance providing support for employees, whilst helping to manage the costs to employers.

DWP reviews forecasted telephony demand and plans resourcing accordingly to keep wait times down. Wait time performance is frequently reviewed and where DWP’s telephony is delivered by an outsourced provider we use the Key Performance Indicator of percentage of calls answered. All DWP customer telephone lines are Freephone numbers.

The Department is investing in a new capability that aims to better route customers to the right offer at the right time. This will help to reduce waiting times by supporting customers to utilise digital alternatives where appropriate, which enables telephony agents to speak to our customers that really need to speak to someone. If a customer indicates they may be at risk of physical or mental harm e.g. suicide, terminal illness, homelessness, and clinical mental health, they will be routed to a telephony agent in as short a journey as possible.

The Department offers a wide range of reasonable adjustments for customers, including production of communications in a range of alternative formats. We are currently testing further digital solutions for British Sign Language interpreter connectivity within our jobcentre environment.

The UK government considers Israeli settlements illegal under international law and goods produced in these settlements are not entitled to benefit from tariff and trade preferences under the UK's current trade agreements with the Palestinian Authority and Israel. We support accurate labelling of settlement goods, so as not to mislead the consumer. We routinely update our guidance to British businesses on the Overseas Business Risk website and do not encourage or offer support to economic and financial activity in the settlements.

The Foreign Secretary raised the need for de-escalation of violence in the West Bank when he spoke with Israeli Foreign Minister Sa'ar on 22 January. Stability in the West Bank is crucial to ensure the fragile ceasefire in Gaza can last. All sides should work to ensure a lowering of tension in the West Bank at this time.

The Government's view is that Israel's presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territories is governed by the provisions of the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949, to which Israel is a state party. The Government is also clear that Israeli settlements are illegal under international law and harm prospects for a two-state solution. We stand opposed to expansion, to settler violence, and to any talk of annexation, which would breach international UN resolutions that successive UK Governments have supported. Annexation only undermines the prospects for peace, would lead to greater instability and would be illegal under international law.

As the Prime Minister said in the House on 22 January, we are deeply concerned by what is happening in the West Bank. We have raised this a number of times in the various exchanges that we have had with Israel at both ministerial and official level. It is in no one's interest for further conflict and instability to spread in the West Bank. The risk of instability is serious and the need for de-escalation urgent. We continue to call on Israeli authorities to exercise restraint, adhere to international law, and clamp down on the actions of those who seek to inflame tensions. We are clear that Israeli settlements are illegal under international law and harm prospects for a two-state solution. The UK strongly condemns settler violence. On 15 October, the Foreign Secretary announced new sanctions targeting three illegal settler outposts and four organisations that have supported and sponsored violence against communities in the West Bank. These measures will help bring accountability to those who have supported and perpetrated such heinous abuses of human rights.

Stability in the West Bank and East Jerusalem is crucial to ensure that the fragile ceasefire in Gaza can last. The UK will continue to work with Israel, the Palestinian Authority, the US and regional partners to build consensus for a post-conflict Gaza governance and security framework that supports conditions for a permanent and sustainable peace.

The ceasefire marks the first step in ensuring long-term peace and security for Israelis, Palestinians and the wider region, bringing much-needed stability. Our attention must turn to how we secure a permanently better future for the Israeli and Palestinian people - grounded in a two-state solution that will guarantee security and stability for Israel, alongside a sovereign and viable Palestine state.

At Autumn Budget 2024, the Government took a number of difficult but necessary decisions on tax, welfare, and spending to restore economic stability, fix the public finances, and support public services. These were tough decisions given the situation we inherited from the previous administration, but the Government has done so in a way that makes the tax system fairer and more sustainable.

The Government published information about the reforms to agricultural property relief and business property relief at www.gov.uk/government/publications/agricultural-property-relief-and-business-property-relief-reforms.

In accordance with standard practice, a tax information and impact note will be published alongside the draft legislation before the relevant Finance Bill.

The installation of qualifying energy-saving materials (ESMs) in residential accommodation and buildings used solely for a relevant charitable purpose benefits from a temporary VAT zero rate until March 2027. Following a Call for Evidence (CfE) last year, electrical storage batteries were one of the technologies added to the relief. However, as set out in the Government response to the CfE, at that time, the Government was unable to identify sufficient independent data regarding the efficiency of heat batteries. As such, they do not currently qualify for VAT relief.

EV charge points were also proposed to be added to the ESMs VAT relief by CfE respondents. However, they were not added to the relief, because their primary purpose is not to save energy or reduce carbon emissions, meaning EV charge points don’t meet the objectives of the relief.

The Government currently has no plans to add further technologies to this VAT relief. Nevertheless, the Government keeps all taxes under review as part of the policy making process. Changes to the tax system are announced at fiscal events in the usual way.

The government recognises the vital role charities plays in supporting individuals and communities, delivering a huge range of services up and down the country.

The government continues to support the sector and encourages people to volunteer. However, introducing a new tax code and tax incentives, or increasing the Personal Allowance to incentivise individuals to volunteer would make the system more complicated and difficult for taxpayers to navigate.

The government must prioritise ensuring the tax system supports strong public finances. Given the current state of the public spending inheritance, difficult choices are necessary. The Chancellor of the Exchequer has emphasised that sound fiscal policy is crucial for economic stability and growth, which are essential for keeping taxes as low as possible, while continuing to deliver high-quality public services.

The government is working to improve living standards for everyone across the country, which is why growth is a key priority. This is why we have got to work straightaway implementing planning reform and establishing the National Wealth Fund and Great British Energy.

The approach of this government will centre on fostering good work. This government will reform employment support to offer more people the dignity and purpose of meaningful employment.

We have begun supporting households with the cost of living by launching a Ministerial Taskforce on child poverty and updating the Low Pay Commission's remit to reflect the cost of living when making recommendations on the National Living Wage.

Any further steps will be set out in due course.

The Chancellor’s July ‘Public Spending: Inheritance’ speech forecasted an overspend of £21.9 billion above limits set by the Treasury in the Spring. We understand that will have caused uncertainty about the status of some projects and the challenge that presents locally. We must, however, ensure that we are making responsible decisions on public spending. Decisions that have fallen on this government to take. In this context, the Chancellor has set out a path to confirming plans for this year and next at the forthcoming Budget on October 30th.

This Government is committed to delivering growth in every corner of the country, by empowering communities to find local solutions to national priorities. However, as you will appreciate, the Government has inherited an extremely difficult fiscal environment and has a responsibility to fix the foundations of our economy, to ensure economic stability.

The department will set out further details on funding, next steps, and confirmation of the revised timelines in due course.

The Radio Teleswitching Service (RTS) will continue until the end of June this year.

My colleagues in the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero are in close contact with the regulator and suppliers to make the transition as smooth as possible.

Smart meters are an opportunity to upgrade people’s homes, and critically, for them to access smart tariffs that will give them greater control and reduce bills.