Henry Smith

The Government is committed to ensuring that elections are accessible for all those eligible to vote and has already been working with the RNIB to improve the voting process for voters with sight loss.

It is important for security purposes that a physical poll card is sent to every elector at the property where they are registered, but we have already considered how electoral information might additionally be made available in more accessible format for those who request it.

Returning Officers already publish details of candidates in the order they will appear on the ballot paper online. We will work with partners in the electoral sector to ensure this information is accessible.

The Government will continue to work with the RNIB, the Electoral Commission and other relevant organisations to make blind and partially sighted voters aware of the support available to them at the polling station, and to consider what additional support could be provided to help blind and partially sighted people to vote including by post.

The Government is committed to the development of alternatives to using animals in scientific procedures and through UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) continues to provide core funding for the National Centre for 3Rs (NC3Rs), which works nationally and internationally to drive the uptake of non-animal technologies.

UKRI funds a portfolio of research projects involving humans, human materials, animal models, and non-animal technologies, including a joint £4.7 million joint funding call with the NC3Rs launched last year, focussed on supporting next generation non-animal technologies, such as organ-on-a-chip.

In addition to this Department, the use of animals in science touches on a number of other departmental responsibilities, including the Home Office who administer and enforce The Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986. Officials within these departments continue to work together to support the delivery of important scientific research, including through the development of non-animal technologies, and the protection of animals.

The Government is committed to the development of alternatives to using animals in scientific procedures and through UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) funds the National Centre for the 3Rs, which works to drive the uptake of non-animal technologies.

The recommendations in the Non-Animal Technologies Roadmap continue to be delivered including a £1.6 million commitment for the development of a virtual dog to help reduce the use of dogs in the safety testing of new medicines and £4.7 million funding for next generation non-animal technologies that provide reliable, predictive and cost-effective alternatives to the use of animals. Scientists and representatives from regulatory bodies are involved in these efforts to accelerate the use of non-animal technologies.

The Government is committed to the development of alternatives to using animals in scientific procedures and through UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) funds the National Centre for the 3Rs, which works to drive the uptake of non-animal technologies.

The recommendations in the Non-Animal Technologies Roadmap continue to be delivered including a £1.6 million commitment for the development of a virtual dog to help reduce the use of dogs in the safety testing of new medicines and £4.7 million funding for next generation non-animal technologies that provide reliable, predictive and cost-effective alternatives to the use of animals. Scientists and representatives from regulatory bodies are involved in these efforts to accelerate the use of non-animal technologies.

The Government is committed to supporting UK businesses and academia to engage with any and all international collaborations that includes BGI in a way that reflects the UK’s values and takes account of national security concerns. We proactively engage with business and academia to make them aware of national security risks, including through the RCAT programme which supports universities with risk assessment.

The Government supports the academic sector to make informed decisions on international research collaboration through the Trusted Research campaign and supported Universities UK to develop guidelines, published in October 2020, to help universities tackle security risks related to international collaboration.

As part of the new UK Biological Security Strategy, which is due for publication in the coming months, the Government is currently undertaking a full programme of work to assess how we can minimise the risks from biological data to protect our burgeoning bioeconomy, shape global norms and standards, without stifling innovation, and build confidence in sharing personal data to improve health outcomes in the UK and across the world.

The Government is committed to supporting UK businesses and academia to engage with any and all international collaborations that includes BGI in a way that reflects the UK’s values and takes account of national security concerns. We proactively engage with business and academia to make them aware of national security risks, including through the RCAT programme which supports universities with risk assessment.

The Government supports the academic sector to make informed decisions on international research collaboration through the Trusted Research campaign and supported Universities UK to develop guidelines, published in October 2020, to help universities tackle security risks related to international collaboration.

As part of the new UK Biological Security Strategy, which is due for publication in the coming months, the government is currently undertaking a full programme of work to assess how we can minimise the risks from biological data to protect our burgeoning bioeconomy, shape global norms and standards, without stifling innovation, and build confidence in sharing personal data to improve health outcomes in the UK and across the world.

The Government is committed to the development of alternatives to using animals in scientific procedures and through UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) funds the National Centre for the 3Rs (NC3Rs), which works to drive the uptake of non-animal technologies.

The NC3Rs, UKRI and the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory have developed a Non-Animal Technologies Roadmap setting out a 2030 vision and strategy for how non-animal technologies could be used to replace the use of animals in research across a number of sectors. The NC3Rs also has set out its strategy to increase the focus on animal replacement technologies.

The Government is committed to the development of alternatives to using animals in scientific procedures and continues to actively support and fund the development and dissemination of the 3Rs (replacement, reduction and refinement) for the use of animals in scientific procedures. This is achieved through UK Research and Innovation’s funding of the National Centre for the 3Rs, which works nationally and internationally to drive the uptake of non-animal technologies, and through research into the development of alternatives by Innovate UK, the Medical Research Council, and the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council.

The Government is committed to the development of alternatives to using animals in scientific procedures and continues to actively support and fund the development and dissemination of the 3Rs (replacement, reduction and refinement) for the use of animals in scientific procedures. This is achieved through UK Research and Innovation’s funding of the National Centre for the 3Rs, which works nationally and internationally to drive the uptake of non-animal technologies, and through research into the development of alternatives by Innovate UK, the Medical Research Council, and the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council.

The Government is committed to the development of alternatives to using animals in scientific procedures and continues to actively support and fund the development and dissemination of the 3Rs (replacement, reduction and refinement) for the use of animals in scientific procedures. This is achieved through UK Research and Innovation’s funding of the National Centre for the 3Rs, which works nationally and internationally to drive the uptake of non-animal technologies, and through research into the development of alternatives by Innovate UK, the Medical Research Council, and the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council.

The Government recognised that the changes to red diesel entitlements announced at Budget 2020 would be a significant change for some businesses and ran a consultation to gather information from affected users on the expected impact of these tax changes. As part of this, the Government engaged directly with a wide variety of organisations from all parts of the UK and carefully analysed all consultation responses received, including from the British Metals Recycling Association.

The metals recycling sector is eligible for support through the £289 million Industrial Energy Transformation Fund (IETF) and the £34 million Scottish IETF. These programmes provide capital support to industrial sites, helping them to become more energy efficient and to switch away from fossil fuels to lower carbon alternatives. We have recently promoted this funding opportunity with the British Metals Recycling Association, welcoming applications from sites impacted by the removal of the red diesel rebate.

At the October Spending Review, my Rt. Hon. Friend Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer extended the £1.95 billion funding commitment to the Aerospace Technology Institute (ATI) Programme from 2026 to 2031. To date, £1.6 billion has been awarded to over 340 collaborative R&D projects spread across the UK. This activity will help to drive the development of new low and zero-carbon emission aircraft technology, which forms an important part of our Jet Zero ambition to decarbonise aviation.

We will work through the annual profile of funding for the ATI programme, including when the programme will re-open to new R&D grant applications, over the coming months. Further information on the programme will be provided following that work.

The Government remains committed to ensuring that improvements meet high standards and provide appropriate consumer protection.

The forthcoming Net Zero Strategy and Heat and Buildings Strategy will look to further address consumer protection.

UKRI is currently funding one study of direct relevance to these areas. UKRI has allocated an initial £1.8 million to the OCTAVE study, led by Professor Iain McInnes, University of Glasgow, for a twelve-month period, and is considering a case for additional funding beyond this. OCTAVE is supporting research on vaccine responses in groups of immune-supressed individuals, including those with inflammatory disorders, high risk cancer patient groups, and patients with severe kidney and liver disease. Cancer patient groups include chronic lymphocytic leukaemia, myeloma, acute leukaemia, and bone marrow transplants. As the OCTAVE study is being managed as a single project it is not possible to give costs for the individual groups.

In addition, there are proposals on vaccine responses in high-risk clinical groups under consideration as part of the UKRI COVID-19 Agile call, with announcements to be made shortly. Furthermore, UKRI continues to accept applications for COVID-19 related research, including on this topic, through its active calls, which can be found on the UKRI website.

The Department is in regular contact with the Department for Transport on the impacts of COVID-19 on the aerospace sector. Both BEIS and the Department for Transport (DfT) recognise the importance of the UK aerospace industry to the economy and the vital role it will play in the post-pandemic recovery.

DfT engages with the industry via multiple channels, focusing on a wide range of issues affecting the industry such as EU Exit transition, Covid-19 impact, technical certification and specification, and international cooperation.

Over the course of the pandemic, the Government has worked closely with the hospitality sector to understand the impact of COVID-19 on their businesses and has responded with a substantial package of business support. We keep all restrictions under constant review.

Each of the 314 billing authorities currently involved in the delivery of the Small Business Grants Fund and Retail, Hospitality & Leisure Fund will receive a fixed minimum allocation for the Local Authority Discretionary Grant Fund as a 5% uplift of the value of its in-scope hereditaments as identified at 3 May 2020. Individual letters were issued to all 314 Local Authorities on 20 May 2020 with a detailed explanation of their allocation.

The?Local Authority Discretionary Grants Fund is aimed at small businesses with ongoing fixed property-related costs that are not liable for business rates or rates reliefs.

Local authorities are responsible for defining the precise eligibility for this Fund?and?may choose to make payments to other businesses based on local economic need,?subject to those businesses meeting the specific eligibility criteria.

We are asking local authorities to prioritise the following types of businesses for grants from within this funding pot:

• Small businesses in shared offices or other flexible workspaces. Examples could include units in industrial parks, science parks, and incubators which do not have their own business rates assessment.
• Regular market traders with fixed building costs, such as rent, who do not have their own business rates assessment.
• Bed & breakfasts which pay Council Tax instead of business rates.
• Charity properties in receipt of Charitable Rate Relief, which would otherwise have been eligible for Small Business Rates Relief or Rural Rate Relief.

Businesses already in receipt of the Small Business grant or a Retail, Hospitality and Leisure grant are not eligible for this fund.?Businesses who are eligible for or in receipt of the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme are now eligible to apply for this scheme.

There is currently no plan to change eligibility criteria for this scheme. Officials are keeping in close contact with local authorities to monitor the progress of the scheme.

Guidance for Local Authorities was published 13 May: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-on-business-support-grant-funding.

The Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) opened for applications on 23 March. The Government has been working closely with the British Business Bank and financial sector to ensure businesses can access the support they need. We have made changes to widen the scheme’s eligibility so that more small businesses across the UK can benefit from the scheme, by extending loans to all viable small businesses affected by the Coronavirus, not just those unable to secure regular commercial financing. For facilities under £250,000, use of personal guarantees are not permitted under the scheme.

We work with the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), Department for International Development, and UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) to support research on platform vaccine technologies and diagnostic tools that can be utilised as a rapid response during a pandemic. These form a component of the current DHSC and UKRI COVID-19 rapid-response call for proposals to address the threat of this novel coronavirus. Platform vaccines and diagnostics are an integral part of UKRI’s current approach for the development and translation of research findings into tangible benefits, with research funded across UKRI councils

DHSC and UKRI lead the UK Vaccine Network which brings together funders, industry and academia to identify and target investment opportunities for the most promising vaccines and vaccine technologies, including platform vaccine and diagnostic tools to combat infectious diseases with epidemic potential and to address structural issues related to the UK’s vaccine infrastructure.

Through the Network two vaccine manufacturing hubs have been established to streamline vaccine manufacturing. A £10 million award to Professor Robin Shuttock at Imperial College London aims to revolutionise the vaccine manufacture, stabilisation and storage, reducing costs, increasing efficiency and improving prevention of existing and new diseases. A £7 million award to Professor Tarit Mukhopadhyay at University College London aims to establish the UK as a global centre for vaccine discovery, development and manufacture, while also ensuring that new vaccine manufacturing processes can be used in low and middle income countries.

Carbon capture, usage and storage (CCUS) will play a vital role in meeting our net zero greenhouse gas emissions target by 2050, supporting both our Industrial Strategy and the revitalisation of the economies of the UK’s industrial areas.

The CCUS Action Plan outlined that deploying CCUS in industrial clusters has the potential to allow a number of carbon capture applications – for industry, to hydrogen, to low carbon gas or bio-energy with CCS in power – to connect to shared carbon dioxide infrastructure.

That is why this Government has committed to invest £800 million to build the first fully deployed CCUS cluster by the mid-2020s and £500 million to help energy-intensive industries move to low-carbon techniques.

CCUS is also likely to play an important role in achieving our Industrial Clusters Mission, creating the world’s first net zero industrial cluster by 2040. This is supported by up to £170 million from the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund to support the deployment of low carbon technologies and enabling infrastructure in one or more clusters.

We remain in regular contact with stakeholders, including UKHospitality, UKInbound and the ABTA, to closely monitor COVID-19’s impact on the financial health of businesses in the travel sector. This includes holding discussions about the effect of the 14-day quarantine period.

The Home Office commissioned Her Majesty's Treasury to assess the economic impacts of the mandatory 14 day self-isolation requirement. The Department for Transport fed into this analysis and ensured that the significant impact of the policy on the transport sector was reflected.

We appreciate that the quarantine measures will present significant difficulties for the travel and tourism sectors. The quarantine policy will be reviewed regularly and the first review will take place in the week beginning 28 June. We are also working with the transport industry to see how we can introduce agreements with other countries when safe to do so, so people from the UK can go abroad and tourists can come here.

Travel businesses and workers can access the Government’s economic support package. These include the recently extended Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, generous loan schemes and VAT payment deferrals for firms.

The £750 million funding package announced by the Government on 8 April is to ensure charities providing frontline services to vulnerable people affected by the pandemic can continue their vital work. £360m is being distributed via individual government departments based on evidence of service need. Up to £200m of this will directly support hospices and be administered by the Department of Health and Social Care. Departments are using a range of approaches to allocating funding in order to meet identified needs quickly, including bidding processes and awarding funding directly. Applications are now open for funding for the distribution of food to vulnerable people, safe accommodation for survivors of domestic abuse, armed services charities, and charities working to tackle loneliness and homelessness. Further information has been released on gov.uk.

The criteria for each fund are determined by the department responsible for distributing the funding. Each department is also responsible for due diligence and monitoring of the grants. The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport will publish an online resource signposting charities to these funding opportunities available for applications through government departments.

HMT guidance on the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme confirms that furloughed employees can take part in volunteer work, provided that it does not provide services or generate revenue for their employer. The system has been carefully set up to encourage employees whose working is not required due to social distancing to take up a unique opportunity to support the frontline delivery of essential support services.

However, the scheme is not designed to help charities cut the costs of delivering vital services. Where staff are needed in organisations to provide vital services and help vulnerable people through the Covid-19 crisis, these organisations will be eligible to apply for the new £750m funding package that was recently announced.

The Government takes the issue of misinformation and disinformation very seriously. It is vitally important that the public has accurate information.

The Counter Disinformation Unit brings together cross-Government monitoring and analysis capabilities. The Unit’s primary function is to provide a comprehensive picture of the extent, scope and impact of disinformation and misinformation regarding Covid-19.

We are working closely with social media platforms to help them identify and remove incorrect claims about the virus, in line with their terms and conditions, as well as promote authoritative sources of information. We are also working with strategic communications experts to ensure that we are prepared to respond to disinformation campaigns where necessary.

The Government is also running a counter disinformation communications campaign, which aims to increase audience resilience by educating and empowering those who see, inadvertently share and are affected by false and misleading information.

The Secretary of State has met with the Chairman of the BBC Board and the Director-General of the BBC and asked them to do more to help those affected by its decision.

The Government is disappointed with the BBC's decision to restrict the over 75 licence fee concession to only those in receipt of pension credit.

We recognise the value of free TV licences for over 75s and believe they should be funded by the BBC.

Local libraries
Local authorities in England have a statutory duty to provide a comprehensive and efficient library service. It is for individual local authorities to decide how best to provide a public library service that meets local needs within their available resources. The net expenditure on the library service by local authorities in England increased in 2018/19 from 2017/18.

In October 2019, DCMS announced the £250 million Cultural Investment Fund, of which over £125 million will be invested in regional museums and libraries over five years from 2020/21. The funds will be used to upgrade buildings and technology so public libraries across England are better placed to respond to the changing ways people are using them.

West Sussex Council received £178,830 from Libraries: Opportunities for Everyone Innovation Fund in 2018 to ensure more people had access to digital technology by establishing a collection of tablets and laptops that could be loaned out to the local community. The emphasis of the project was on meeting the needs of disadvantaged groups within the council’s communities – such as older people or adults with learning disabilities.

Arts Council England, funded by DCMS, is the development agency for libraries, and also provides support to public libraries in England. Arts Council England is providing £1.6 million per annum to seven libraries’ organisations through its National Portfolio 2018 to 2022, including Libraries Connected, which is funded as the Sector Support Organisation for public libraries.

Regional Museums
In 2018, Crawley Museum reopened after an extensive, publicly funded renovation project. The project received £1.15m from the National Lottery Heritage Fund and £763,000 from Crawley Borough Council.

This independent local history museum puts community participation at its heart, including through its current exhibition in partnership with members of the Crawley Kashmiri community on the history, traditions and culture of Azad Kashmir.

Museums around the country are supported by Arts Council England as the development agency for the sector. Museums can contact area offices and Museum Development services to find out what support is available, such as National Lottery Project Grants which fund a range of activities such as developing collections, audiences, and skills. The South East Museum Development Programme is managed by a consortia of museums led by the Royal Pavilion & Museums, Brighton and Hove, and will receive £2m of funding from the Arts Council 2018-22.

It firmly remains a priority for my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, that local authorities and other providers fulfil their statutory duties in providing the right support at the right time for children and young people with SEND and their families. The Secretary of State is committed to holding them to account where these statutory obligations are not met.

From May 2016, Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission (CQC) began inspecting local areas (including local authorities and other commissioners and service providers) on their effectiveness in fulfilling their duties for children and young people who have SEND.

Under the current framework, Area SEND inspections consider how effectively the local area identifies and meets the needs of different groups of children and young people who have special educational needs or a disability, as defined in the Children and Families Act 2014 and set out in the SEND Code of Practice. The inspections also consider how effectively the local area improves the outcomes of these children and young people. They may also provide evidence for local areas to receive appropriate external support and intervention.

The department has commissioned CQC and Ofsted, with the support of the Department of Health and Social Care, to develop a new area SEND inspection framework to launch after the existing inspection cycle has finished. Taking account of learning from the first cycle, this framework will include a greater focus on the experience of children and young people with SEND and their families and give more prominence to the quality integration and commissioning of education, health, and care services.

The SEND and AP Green Paper proposes to strengthen accountability measures, including through Ofsted and CQC inspections and strengthened oversight via the department's new Regions Group.

I refer my hon. Friend, the Member for Crawley, to the answer I gave on 2 December 2021 to Question 79483.

Schools should reflect society and the communities they serve, and it is important to attract and retain high-skilled, talented men into teaching.

The department does this through effective pay structures and by ensuring teaching remains a financially rewarding career. We remain committed to increasing teacher starting salaries to £30,000 to make teaching an attractive graduate option. While the pay restraint in academic year 2021/22 means we are now delivering this commitment to a revised timescale, the 5.5% uplift to starting pay in September 2020 has already made a substantial difference to the competitiveness of the early career pay offer.

The department’s ‘Teaching – Every Lesson Shapes A Life’ recruitment campaign is targeted at audiences of students, recent graduates and potential career changers regardless of gender, and we take every effort to ensure that our advertising is fully reflective of this across the full range of marketing materials we use.

In October, Apply for Teacher Training (Apply), our new application service for initial teacher training (ITT) in England, was rolled out nationally. Apply has been designed to be user-friendly and has been extensively tested with a diverse range of potential applicants, including men, to ensure it helps remove barriers to great teachers applying for ITT courses. Apply will also allow us to collect more data, giving us greater insight into candidate behaviour and the behaviour of providers of teacher training so that the department can identify barriers and work closely with ITT providers to explore, design and test new interventions to recruit more candidates from under-represented backgrounds into the sector.

Alongside a focus on recruitment, it is important we retain male teachers. This will be supported by our work to ensure that all new entrants to teacher training have the best possible start to the early stage of their career, regardless of gender.

World-class programmes developed by the Department for Education to support the school workforce, including our Early Career Framework (ECF) reforms for those at the beginning of careers and National Professional Qualifications (NPQs) to develop our best teaching and leadership talent, is the best training for everyone whatever their background. The ECF reforms provide a funded entitlement for all early career teachers in England to access high quality professional development at the start of their careers. NPQs are now freely available to all teachers in state-funded schools, as well as state-funded 16-19 organisations.

Health services are accessed through the NHS and not funded by the Department for Education. Local authorities are responsible for providing respite care and short breaks for disabled children, these services are funded through the main local government settlement.

Helping children and young people to catch up on education missed due to the COVID-19 outbreak remains a top priority of this government. Our £1.8 billion investment announced as part of the Spending Review is targeted at those who most need help catching up. It includes over £800 million to provide a universal uplift with an additional 40 hours of education for students aged 16-19 who have the least time left to recover; and an additional £1 billion of catch up funding directly to schools so they can best decide how to support education recovery for the pupils that need it, focused on evidence-based approaches.

The department has consistently prioritised children with SEND in our recovery programmes, for example by providing additional uplifts for those who attend specialist education providers (including SEND units in mainstream schools) in both the catch-up premium in the 2020/21 academic year and the recovery premium for the 2021/22 academic year, and providing additional funding to special and alternative provision schools to provide one to one tutoring for their pupils, with greater flexibility to schools to make it easier for them to take on local tutors or use existing staff to supplement those employed through the existing National Tutoring Programme. The 16-19 tuition fund continues to support students with SEND as at present through small group tuition.

The department is providing over £42 million in the 2021-22 financial year to continue funding projects to support children with SEND. This investment will ensure that specialist organisations around the country can continue to help strengthen local area performance, support families and provide practical support to schools and colleges. It will strengthen participation of parents and young people in the SEND system, ensuring they have a voice in designing policies and services and have access to high quality information and support.

Alongside recovery funding, the department is investing £2.6 billion between the financial years 2022 and 2025 to deliver new places and improve existing provision for pupils with SEND or who require alternative provision. This funding represents a significant, transformational investment in new high needs provision and will help deliver tens of thousands of new places.

More widely, the department has continued to provide local authorities with their full high needs revenue funding allocations throughout the COVID-19 outbreak, including more than £1.5 billion of high needs funding over financial years 2020-21 and 2021-22, bringing the total high needs funding allocated this year to more than £8 billion. The department announced in summer 2021 that high needs funding will increase by a further £780 million, or 9.6%, in the next financial year, compared to this year. Through the Spending Review the department secured for schools and children and young people with high needs an increase of £4.7 billion by financial year 2024-25, compared to our original 2022-23 plans. This includes £1.6 billion in additional funding for 2022-23 budgets, on top of the year-on-year increase of £2.4 billion already confirmed at the 2019 Spending Review, and which is intended to help the sector respond to the pressures the department knows they are seeing: in overall costs, in national insurance, on high needs, in managing COVID-19 and in supporting children and young people to recover from the COVID-19 outbreak. The department will confirm in due course how this funding will be allocated in 2022-23 for schools and high needs.

The department does not design education policy that exclusively targets certain groups of pupils with characteristics that are protected by the Equality Act 2010, including policy based on gender. We are committed to providing high quality education and training for everyone, whatever their background or personal characteristics.

Since 2010, the government has pursued a reform agenda to drive up academic standards for all and level up for the most disadvantaged pupils. When it comes to raising standards, evidence shows that teachers are the most important in-school factor affecting pupils’ education. In June 2021, the department announced an investment of over £250 million in the National Professional Qualifications and Early Career Framework programmes which are based on the best available evidence and have been developed in partnership with the Education Endowment Foundation. In addition, in October the department announced a Levelling Up Premium worth up to £3,000 tax-free for maths, physics, chemistry and computing teachers in years 1 to 5 of their careers. This will support recruitment and retention of specialist teachers in these subjects and in the schools and areas that need them most. Through this, the department is committed to helping tackle the education gap for all pupils.

The special educational needs and disability (SEND) code of practice makes clear that local authorities must give their decision in response to any request for an education, health and care needs assessment within a maximum of 6 weeks from when the request was received or the point at which a child or young person was brought to the local authority’s attention.

We have been using data to provide challenge and support to those local authorities where there are long-standing delays. Additionally, because of circumstances relating to the COVID-19 outbreak, we are carrying out monthly surveys of local authority performance. Our teams of SEND Advisers, and colleagues in NHS England, are working with local authorities to help improve performance. Each year, we also deliver a training programme to local authorities, health, and social care staff on their statutory duties for education, health and care plans and reviews, and we have continued to do this on a virtual basis.

Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission (CQC) re-started their revisit programme to areas that received a Written Statement of Action in May, with the full inspection programme re-starting in June. We are continuing to provide support and challenge to individual local authorities with a Written Statement of Action. We have commissioned the CQC and Ofsted, with the support of the Department of Health and Social Care, to develop a new area SEND inspection framework to launch after the existing cycle has finished.

Furthermore, we are providing over £42 million in the 2021/22 financial year to continue funding projects to support children with SEND. This investment will ensure that specialist organisations around the country can continue to help strengthen local area performance, support families, and provide practical support to schools and colleges.

The Department recognises, and continues to monitor, the educational attainment gap between girls and boys. We do not design education policy that exclusively targets certain groups of pupils based on gender. The Department is focused on providing world class education and training for everyone, whatever their background.

The Government recognises that extended school and college restrictions have had a substantial impact on children and young people’s education and is committed to helping pupils catch up. The Department has announced over £3 billion to support education recovery and pupil premium is providing over £2.5 billion in the 2021/22 financial year targeted at disadvantaged pupils.

The Department recognises, and continues to monitor, the educational attainment gap between girls and boys. We have worked hard over the last decade to embed the reforms needed to raise standards for all children. Thanks to these efforts, the proportion of schools now rated by Ofsted as Good or Outstanding has risen from 68% in 2010 to 86% in 2020.

The Department does not design education policy that exclusively targets certain groups of pupils, including policy based on gender. We are committed to providing high quality education and training for everyone, regardless of their background.

When it comes to raising standards, evidence shows that teachers are the most important in-school factor affecting pupils’ education. The Department has recently announced an investment of over £250 million in our National Professional Qualifications and Early Career Framework programmes which are based on the best available evidence and have been developed in partnership with the Education Endowment Foundation. Through this, the Department is committed to helping tackle the educational attainment gap for all pupils.

On 8 January 2021, the department published updated guidance regarding the provision of remote education during national lockdown while attendance is restricted: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/952443/210114_School_national_restrictions_guidance_FINAL_14012021.pdf.

This includes guidance for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).

During the period of national lockdown, primary, secondary, alternative provision and special schools will remain open to vulnerable children and young people, including those with an education, health and care plan. For pupils with SEND, their teachers are best-placed to know how the pupil’s needs can be most effectively met to ensure they continue to make progress even if they are not able to be in school due to COVID-19. The requirement for schools to use their best endeavours to secure the special educational provision called for by the pupils’ special educational needs remains in place. Where possible, special schools should follow the age-related guidance for primary schools and secondary schools.

Schools should work collaboratively with families, putting in place reasonable adjustments as necessary, so that pupils with SEND can successfully access remote education alongside their peers. All further education (FE) providers should give particular consideration on how best to support vulnerable and disadvantaged students and students with special educational needs who may not be able to access remote education without support.

The government is investing over £400 million to support access to remote education and online social care, including securing 1.3 million laptops and tablets for disadvantaged children and young people. This includes over 800,000 laptops and tablets that were delivered to schools, academy trusts and local authorities by 17 January 2021.

In addition, the department has also made £4.84 million available for the Oak National Academy, both for the summer term of the academic year 2019-20, and then for the 2020-21 academic year, to provide video lessons in a broad range of subjects for Reception up to year 11. Specialist content for pupils with SEND is also available. This covers communication and language, numeracy, creative arts, independent living, physical development and early development learning. Additionally, the Oak National Academy offers therapy-based lessons and resources across occupational, physical, sensory and speech and language therapy.

We have provided additional funding to one of our Demonstrators, National Star College, to provide training in assistive technologies to school teachers, leaders and special educational needs coordinators (SENCo). This training can be accessed by all state-funded schools and is available via the SEND hub: https://www.nationalstar.org/products-services-facilities/star-technology/accessible-tech/send-support-hub/?doing_wp_cron=1610617013.4222929477691650390625. The training has been designed to help secure remote education arrangements for pupils with special educational needs, with advice and guidance is also available to support the development of an inclusive curriculum. Between now and 31 March 2021, National Star College will:

• Boost the support available through the Demonstrator Network, through training specifically targeted on SEND practice using accessible technology in order to ensure skills and knowledge sustainability within the Demonstrator network.
• Provide teacher and SENCo training through online learning covering teaching techniques, accessibility considerations and assessment methodologies.
• Offer leadership training focused on inclusive curriculum design.
• Pupil assessments, partnering with demonstrators and SENCos to guide them through an initial assessment of pupil need before any interventions take place.
• Weekly training webinars (between 20 to 40 mins every Thursday at 4:15pm) focusing on the best ways to integrate accessible technology into classrooms – enabling teachers to improve the outcomes for all of their pupils. The webinars can be found here: https://www.nationalstar.org/products-services-facilities/star-technology/accessible-tech/?doing_wp_cron=1610617612.5390760898590087890625.

There is a wide range of resources available to support schools and FE providers to meet the expectations we have set. The Get Help with Remote Education page on gov.uk provides a one-stop-shop for teachers and leaders, signposting the support package available: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/get-help-with-remote-education. This includes helping schools and colleges to access technology that supports remote education, as well as peer-to-peer training and guidance on how to use technology effectively. It also includes practical tools, a good practice guide and school-led webinars to support effective delivery of the curriculum, information on issues such as safeguarding and statutory duties and expectations information for supporting pupils and students with SEND, as well as signposting support for recovery and catch up.

The government is committed to supporting young carers so that they are properly protected from excessive or inappropriate caring responsibilities and are supported to achieve their full potential. Consistent identification remains challenging, with many being ‘hidden’ and therefore unrecognised and/or unsupported.

Changes through the Children and Families Act 2014 simplified the legislation relating to young adult carers’ assessments, making rights and duties clearer to both young people and practitioners. This included promoting whole family approaches which triggers both and adult support services into action – assessing why a child is caring, what needs to change and what would help the family to prevent children or young people from taking on this responsibility in the first place.

The Department for Education also provides schools with £2.4 billion each year in additional funding through the pupil premium to support disadvantaged pupils. We expect schools to make effective use of their pupil premium budgets. Schools know their pupils best and will spend the grant accordingly to meet pupil needs, which includes where needs are based on a parent’s health issues or disability.

We published the Children in Need Review conclusion in 2019. This sets out our approach to helping schools and children’s social care improve the educational outcomes of children in need, including those young carers assessed as being in need of help and protection.

The Government recognises that accidental bycatch in fisheries is one of the greatest threats faced by sensitive marine species such as cetaceans, and we remain fully committed to tackling this issue.

The UK introduced new rules in 2021 making it a mandatory requirement under fishing vessel licence conditions for fishers, including non-UK-flagged large pelagic trawlers, to report any marine mammal bycatch to the Marine Management Organisation (MMO). The UK notified the European Commission that this requirement would be coming into force and is a licence condition for all vessels fishing in our waters.

Defra has made no assessment of the standards set by seafood certification schemes, which are voluntary and operate independently of Government. The Government remains fully committed to sustainable fishing, and Fisheries Management Plans will be a key tool through which we will work with industry to improve the sustainability and management of our fisheries.

Defra has made no assessment of the standards set by seafood certification schemes, which are voluntary and operate independently of Government. The Government remains fully committed to sustainable fishing, and Fisheries Management Plans will be a key tool through which we will work with industry to improve the sustainability and management of our fisheries.

The Plan for Water outlined our position that we will expect industry to develop low cost, effective microfibre filters on washing machine and encourage their effective use. With the plan being published only just last month, we are now considering the best actions for its implementation. As a first step, we will look to manufacturers to reduce costs and to provide appropriate evidence of the value of microfibre filters to persuade consumers to invest in them and use them correctly.

Defra funds Textiles 2030, a voluntary initiative with over 110 signatories from the fashion manufacturing industry covering 62% by sales of the UK clothing market. Signatories are committed to circular economy principles such as agreeing good design principles so that their products are durable and recyclable.

Our landmark Environment Act 2021 also provides general powers on design standards and requiring information on the resource efficiency of products. We are, therefore, exploring the best mix of policy measures to tackle the environmental impact of textiles.

Defra supports a range of research including the UK Water Industry Research project (performed by UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology) which reported in April 2022 that wastewater treatment plants remove 99% of microplastics by number and 99.5% by mass. The Water Industry National Environment Programme (WINEP) includes over £7.39 million of commitment from the water industry to further research microplastics removal through wastewater treatment processes to sludge, which may be a source of microplastics to final effluent discharges.

Technical experts from the Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (Cefas) have been leading the Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment to develop a new indicator for microlitter (including microplastics) in seafloor sediments. This will help us to track progress in reducing plastics in the environment at a regional scale.

We will be taking forward measures in the Animal Welfare (Kept Animals) Bill individually through other means during the remainder of this Parliament. This includes the manifesto commitments to ban live exports for fattening and slaughter and to crack down on puppy smuggling. We will also deliver the manifesto commitment to ban the keeping of primates as pets, which will be implemented via a statutory instrument to be laid this year.

In 2021, Defra ran a call for evidence to gather data on the potential impacts of different types of labelling reform for animal welfare. We received over 1,600 responses and a summary of these responses is available on GOV.UK.

Based on the evidence provided, Defra committed in the Government’s Food Strategy to consult on improving and expanding mandatory animal welfare labelling, covering both domestic and imported products, in 2023.

We plan to take forward our ambitious agenda of animal welfare and conservation reforms, as outlined in the 2021 Action Plan for Animal Welfare, during the current Parliamentary session and beyond. We will continue to introduce and support legislative and non-legislative reforms when we can.

All livestock are protected by comprehensive and robust animal health and welfare legislation: the Animal Welfare Act 2006 makes it an offence either to cause any captive animal unnecessary suffering or to fail to provide for the welfare needs of the animal; and The Welfare of Farmed Animals (England) Regulations 2007 set down detailed requirements on how farmed livestock should be kept. Breaches of animal welfare legislation are taken very seriously and every allegation that is reported to us is investigated.

Appropriate action is taken where welfare regulations are breached. It is imperative that any suspicion of animal cruelty is alerted to the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) in the first instance, so that timely investigations can take place and the welfare of animals can be safeguarded.

We are providing a range of financial incentives for improving animal health and welfare to farmers through the new Animal Health and Welfare Pathway. These incentives focus on published health and welfare priorities for each sector and will include support for farmers wishing to transition away from the use of enriched ‘colony’ cages for laying hens.

Specifically, we are exploring options for large infrastructure grants, building on the animal health and welfare grants already available towards the cost of equipment and technology which offer improvements in the health and welfare of livestock.

We are providing a range of financial incentives for improving animal health and welfare to farmers through the new Animal Health and Welfare Pathway. These incentives focus on published health and welfare priorities for each sector and will include support for farmers wishing to transition away from the use of enriched ‘colony’ cages for laying hens and farrowing crates for pigs.

Specifically, we are exploring options for large infrastructure grants, building on the animal health and welfare grants already available towards the cost of equipment and technology which offer improvements in the health and welfare of livestock.

There are no current plans to estimate the cost to industry of a ban on the use of cages for laying hens.

The UK introduced new rules in 2021 making it a mandatory requirement under fishing vessel licence conditions for fishers to report any marine mammal bycatch to the MMO. On the introduction of this requirement, communications were sent out by Defra, the Devolved Administrations and the MMO to ensure that industry understood the new obligations. Responsibility for enforcing licence conditions in Scotland and Northern Ireland is a matter for the Devolved Administrations.

The Sea Mammal Research Unit have carried out monitoring of pelagic trawlers targeting herring and mackerel for a number of years and reported no bycatch of marine mammals in these fisheries in recent years, whilst other sections of the UK pelagic fleet are working on bycatch mitigation projects to reduce the likelihood of these events occurring more broadly.

For the 2021-22 reporting period, my Department received returns from 233 local authorities in England, which represents a doubling of the response rate from the previous year.

My Department asks all local authorities to complete their returns in full. The 2022-23 data return opened on 1st April and will run until 31st May. This year, my officials have used multiple platforms to remind local authorities of their obligation to provide their returns and of the benefits of doing so.

For the 2021-22 reporting period, my Department received returns from 233 local authorities in England, which represents a doubling of the response rate from the previous year.

My Department asks all local authorities to complete their returns in full. The 2022-23 data return opened on 1st April and will run until 31st May. This year, my officials have used multiple platforms to remind local authorities of their obligation to provide their returns and of the benefits of doing so.

For the 2021-22 reporting period, my Department received returns from 233 local authorities in England, which represents a doubling of the response rate from the previous year.

My Department asks all local authorities to complete their returns in full. The 2022-23 data return opened on 1st April and will run until 31st May. This year, my officials have used multiple platforms to remind local authorities of their obligation to provide their returns and of the benefits of doing so.

The UK maintains high standards on the information that is provided on food labels so that consumers can have confidence in the food that they buy. The Government is committed to optimising the information that is available to consumers.

For example, in 2021 Defra ran a call for evidence to gather data on the potential impacts of different types of labelling reform for animal welfare. A summary of these responses is available on GOV.UK. Based on the evidence provided, Defra committed in the Government’s Food Strategy to consult on improving and expanding mandatory animal welfare labelling in 2023.

Defra recently announced that it intends to designate the first three Highly Protected Marine Areas in English Waters. These HPMAs would be designated before 6th July 2023. Currently there are no targets set or planned for Highly Protected Marine Are-as, however Defra will explore additional sites this year. Any future sites will also be subject to consultation.

Defra recently announced that it intends to designate the first three Highly Protected Marine Areas in English Waters. These HPMAs would be designated before 6th July 2023. Currently there are no targets set or planned for Highly Protected Marine Areas, however Defra will explore additional sites this year. Any future sites will also be subject to consultation.

Under the Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations 2018, local authorities are required to provide an annual return detailing the number of licences in force on 1^st April each year, and the average fees associated with the grant or renewal of each licence. There is no requirement for local authorities to provide information on licence holders’ commercial activities, such as the number of litters bred by a licenced dog breeder. Under the 2018 Regulations, local authorities have until 31^st May each year to provide their returns. Data from 2022 is published by Defra and can be found here: Local Authority Licensing of Activities involving Animals returns - data.gov.uk

We plan to introduce regulations soon which will prohibit the use of remote controlled electronic training collars that deliver an electric shock to cats and dogs.

On 31^st January 2023, as part of the Environment Improvement Plan, we published our roadmap for water efficiency in new developments and retrofits. Here we set out 10 actions we are taking on water efficiency in new developments and retrofits, including reviewing building regulations and working across government to integrate water efficiency into energy efficiency advice and retrofit programmes. The actions can be found in further detail here: Environmental Improvement Plan (publishing.service.gov.uk)

We are not currently considering a numerical target for HPMAs in English waters. We recently consulted on five candidate pilot HPMAs and our current focus is designating sites using the views and evidence gathered during the consultation. Any pilot HPMAs would be designated through the Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009 by 6 July 2023. This would be a year from the start of the consultation as required by the Act.

Defra recently consulted on five candidate pilot Highly Protected Marine Areas (HPMAs). The consultation closed on 28 September. The responses and further evidence received are currently being analysed, and will inform the Secretary of State’s decision on whether pilot sites should be designated and if so, what their final site boundaries should be. Any pilot HPMAs would be designated through the Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009 by 6 July 2023. This would be a year from the start of the consultation as required by the Act.

At the end of 2021, the Government ran a call for evidence to gather data on the impacts, cost and deliverability of different types of labelling reforms for animal welfare.

Building on this call for evidence, the Government announced in the recent Food Strategy that we will consult on mandatory animal welfare labelling reforms in 2023. Consultation proposals are being co-developed with stakeholders across the supply chain.

The Animal Health and Welfare Pathway maps out how farmers and government will work together to continually improve the health and welfare of our farmed animals, supported by the best science and evidence. It involves three mutually reinforcing pillars in making this change: financial incentives to help farmers deliver on-farm improvements; stimulating market demand through labelling and mandatory public disclosure to improve the accessibility, availability and affordability of higher welfare products; and, where needed, strengthening regulation to ensure the changes made endure. Following the post-implementation review of our welfare at killing legislation, and as part of our Action Plan for Animal Welfare, we are looking at a wide range of welfare at slaughter improvements that could be made to strengthen the regulatory baseline in slaughterhouses. Welfare at slaughter is a devolved matter, and the Government remains committed to working closely with the devolved administrations on our shared aims for animal welfare.

There has only been one export of reindeer in 2021, this was exported from the United Kingdom to Northern Ireland and the consignment contained two reindeers.

There were no Exports of reindeer in 2020.

The information that we have provided is a true reflection of the information that we have access to. We cannot guarantee the accuracy of this data, as we can only rely on the information that has been input into external customer facing systems by third parties.

There were no reindeer imports into Great Britain during 2020.

During 2021, there were two imports of reindeer (two consignments of two animals, a total of 4 animals). Both of these consignments came from Northern Ireland.

The information that we have provided is a true reflection of the information that we have access to. We cannot guarantee the accuracy of this data, as we can only rely on the information that has been input into external customer facing systems by third parties.

Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) are a devolved matter and the information provided therefore relates to England only

We have built a comprehensive network of MPAs covering 40% of English waters and are now focusing on making sure they are properly protected. Nearly 60% of our 178 English MPAs are already protected from damaging fishing activity, including byelaws this year in the first four offshore sites, which ban bottom towed gear over sensitive habitats. We are aiming to have all MPAs in English waters protected from damaging fishing activity by 2024. Only fishing activities which could damage the protected features of an MPA require management, such as trawling on the seabed

We are reviewing our policy on industrial fishing, and we will continue to engage with stakeholders about our future approach over the next few months, particularly towards industrial fishing of sandeel and Norway pout within our waters. The UK advocates an approach towards setting Total Allowable Catches which is founded on the best available scientific advice and that will maintain or rebuild sustainable fish stocks and fisheries.

Antimicrobial usage (AMU) is a key driver influencing the occurrence and emergence of antimicrobial resistance (AMR). The degree of intensification of farm production systems can have a bearing on AMU, but that is not necessarily the case. Intensive production systems can involve high health status livestock with high biosecurity to prevent entry of disease and consequently can have low AMU. We are researching the pathways for AMR transmission in the environment to inform future monitoring. A cross-departmental project called Pathogen Surveillance in Agriculture, Food and the Environment (PATH-SAFE) was established in 2021. It brings together the Food Standards Agency, Food Standards Scotland, the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, the Environment Agency, the Department of Health and Social Care, and the UK Health Security Agency (formerly Public Health England) to understand how pathogens and 'Superbugs' - or Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) - is spread. PATH-SAFE contains a workstream focused on AMR prevalence in three river catchments and this work will strengthen our understanding of AMR in the environment, including the relative importance of different sources, transmission routes and, the implications for people, animals, food and ecosystems. This will enable us to increase public awareness and inform effective control measures to protect human and animal health and the ecosystem, through a better understanding of the transmission pathway by which resistance develops and  spreads.

The UK Government is committed to reducing unnecessary use of antibiotics in animals while safeguarding animal welfare. Antibiotics are an essential part of veterinary medicine. Failing to use antibiotics in animals which need them compromises animal health and welfare. It has been our position for many years that we do not support the routine or predictable use of antibiotics, including where antibiotics are used to compensate for inadequate farming practices.

The Veterinary Medicines Directorate annually record the sales and usage of antibiotics in food producing animals, and have surveillance programmes in place which test for antimicrobial resistance in bacteria from animals. In the UK, the use of antibiotics in food producing animals has reduced by 55% between 2014 and 2021, and in 2021 we recorded the lowest antibiotic use to date.

As the Minister responsible for biosecurity, London Benyon regularly raises the risks of antimicrobial resistance in the relevant cross-Whitehall settings, including with counterparts at the Department of Health and Social Care.

The Government remains committed to reducing the unnecessary use of antibiotics in animals while safeguarding animal welfare.

Changes to the law on veterinary medicines is one of the tools which can be used to reduce unnecessary antibiotic prescribing in animals and, as one element of a programme of interventions to help deliver the UK's 5-year national action plan on antimicrobial resistance, it is our intention to strengthen our national law in this area

Over the past year the Veterinary Medicines Directorate has engaged in a comprehensive dialogue with stakeholders about a broad range of changes that we propose to the Veterinary Medicines Regulations 2013, which set out controls on marketing, manufacturing, supply and use of veterinary medicines. Proposed changes include new measures to help tackle antimicrobial resistance

We are now preparing to publish a formal consultation paper setting out our proposals which will provide the opportunity for all affected stakeholders to express their views. Following the public consultation, we anticipate laying new legislation in 2023.

In England, we have already committed to setting a target to halt the decline in species by 2030, in addition to at least one long-term target for biodiversity. Following agreement of the Global Biodiversity Framework at CBD COP 15 we will be setting out our approach to implementing the framework domestically in our Environmental Improvement Plan, due to be published in 2023. The Plan will set out our ambitions and approach to nature recovery, including our legally binding targets and the actions that will drive us towards reaching them.

On Wednesday 30^th November we announced we will be channelling money from water company fines into schemes to improve the environment. The announcement is available on gov.uk at the webpage here:

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/water-company-fines-to-be-channelled-into-environmental-improvements

Under our new plans, money from fines handed out to water companies that pollute our rivers and seas will be re-invested in schemes that benefit our natural environment.

Since 2015, the Environment Agency has concluded 56 prosecutions against water and sewerage companies securing fines of over £141 million.

The UK Government and Devolved Administrations remain committed to reducing unnecessary use of antibiotics in animals.

Over the past year the Veterinary Medicines Directorate has engaged in a comprehensive dialogue with stakeholders about a broad range of changes that we propose to the Veterinary Medicines Regulations 2013 as they apply in Great Britain. These changes will help us to improve the operating environment for industry, improve prescription and supply of veterinary medicines and ensure safe and effective medicines continue to be available, including by reducing the development and spread of antimicrobial resistance.

As required by the Medicines and Medical Devices Act 2021, we are preparing to publish a consultation paper setting out our proposals for changes to the Regulations. This will provide the opportunity for all affected stakeholders to express their views on the proposed changes. Following the mandatory consultation period, we anticipate laying new legislation in 2023.

Defra’s Action Plan for Animal Welfare, published last year, outlined that we would be examining the confinement of farm animals, including the use of farrowing crates for pigs. As part of this examination, we are considering the many different pig production systems, used both in the United Kingdom and in other countries.

The Government are committed to phasing out confinement systems and supporting the industry to do so, not least to underpin UK food security. However, as reiterated by the Minister for Farming, Fisheries and Food at the ‘End the Cage Age’ debate held in June, we do need to work carefully and sensitively with the pig and poultry sectors as any transition must be done with, rather than against, these industries.

This is an extremely challenging time for Britain’s farmers, with enormously increased input costs — of food, fuel and fertiliser — affecting almost all production systems to a greater or lesser extent, and of course for the general public who are faced with significant challenges around the cost of living.

So, any decisions by Government on this issue, including timing of consultations, must be carefully considered in light of these wider, and clearly highly important, priorities. We have a course of action in play and will progress with our plans to transition away from use of cages in farming systems as soon as the time is right.

This Government takes the welfare of all animals seriously and the Government has been made aware that animals including Asian elephants, that are part of tourist attractions, can be subjected to cruel and brutal training practices to ensure their compliance.

As set out in our Action Plan for Animal Welfare, we are committed to promoting high animal welfare standards, both at home and abroad. We have engaged with the travel industry and other stakeholder organisations, and we support measures which ensure that money from tourists from this country is not channelled towards animal experiences abroad that involve the unacceptable treatment of animals.

The Government is committed to exploring available options to deliver the action plan, including to limit the advertising and offering for sale of these experiences.

The Government has made no formal assessment of the role cultivated meats might play in reducing intensive farming levels or supporting animal welfare objectives

The cultivated meat sector probably presents great potential though we will only be able to fully understand the likely impact on greenhouse gas emissions when the specifics of the industry are more clearly identified and the evidence base is better established.

Defra officials and others from across Whitehall will continue to work together to assess the analysis of the cultivated meat sector as the industry develops, to understand the potential of this novel technology.

The recently published Government Food Strategy identifies new opportunities to make the food system healthier, more sustainable, more resilient, and more accessible for everyone across England. It sets out how we will deliver a sustainable, nature-positive food system that provides choice and access to high quality products supporting healthier and home-grown diets for all.

The Government is also making significant investments to unlock innovation and translate our world leading research into practical, farmer-led solutions that improve productivity, environmental sustainability and resilience, and which move towards net zero emission farming systems.

The Government has made no formal assessment of the role cultivated meats might play in reducing intensive farming levels or supporting animal welfare objectives

The cultivated meat sector probably presents great potential though we will only be able to fully understand the likely impact on greenhouse gas emissions when the specifics of the industry are more clearly identified and the evidence base is better established.

Defra officials and others from across Whitehall will continue to work together to assess the analysis of the cultivated meat sector as the industry develops, to understand the potential of this novel technology.

The recently published Government Food Strategy identifies new opportunities to make the food system healthier, more sustainable, more resilient, and more accessible for everyone across England. It sets out how we will deliver a sustainable, nature-positive food system that provides choice and access to high quality products supporting healthier and home-grown diets for all.

The Government is also making significant investments to unlock innovation and translate our world leading research into practical, farmer-led solutions that improve productivity, environmental sustainability and resilience, and which move towards net zero emission farming systems.

The Mandatory Use of Closed Circuit Television in Slaughterhouses (England) Regulations 2018 requires slaughterhouses to provide official veterinarians with access to CCTV footage. Official veterinarians will view CCTV footage daily. As there are no official veterinarians or routine animal welfare inspection programmes in farmed fish processing premises CCTV footage, were it to be mandated, would not be viewed.

Any allegations of welfare or health issues are investigated by the Animal and Plant Health Agency and Cefas, and where there are non-compliances with the regulations, appropriate action is taken.

As part of the Action Plan on Animal Welfare we are considering general improvements that could be made to the welfare of farmed fish at the time of killing. We have also asked the Animal Welfare Committee (AWC) to update its 2014 Opinion on the welfare of farmed fish at the time of killing and look forward to receiving AWC’s updated advice later this year.

This is a devolved matter and the information provided therefore relates to England only.

We have designated over 100 Marine Protected Areas since 2010, so that now 40% of English waters are within the protected area network. We have already committed that the next step is to ensure all of our MPAs are properly protected, supported by our proposed legally binding target under the Environment Act which we are consulting on at present. We have already introduced byelaws in the first four sites which ban bottom towed gear over sensitive habitats and published a call for evidence relating to the next thirteen sites. We are aiming to have all Marine Protected Areas in English offshore waters protected from damaging fishing activity by 2024.

This is a devolved matter and the information provided therefore relates to England only.

We are aiming to have all Marine Protected Area seabed features in English offshore waters protected from damaging fishing activity by 2024. Byelaws for the first four sites were announced in April and a call for evidence relating to the next thirteen sites was launched on 14 May. This is further supported by the legally binding target under the Environment Act that we are proposing to set for marine protected areas.

Carriers work closely with operational colleagues at the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) and Border Force, and they are committed to preventing illegal imports of pet animals. Authorised pet checkers are trained by APHA prior to being granted approval and receive annual audits of their checking and processing to ensure they uphold our requirements. APHA regularly reviews its border enforcement work against known travel trends of those that seek to illegally import puppies to the UK, to keep pace with this rapidly evolving criminal activity. Part of this work includes intelligence-led targeting of suspected smugglers, alongside partner agencies, including Border Force. Border Force operates a 24-hour service, seven days per week and alerts APHA to suspected non-compliant dogs and puppies. Targeted intelligence-led work often takes place outside of normal working hours as needed. The Government is satisfied with the workings of these current arrangements.

As set out in the Government’s Action Plan for Animal Welfare, we are committed to promoting high animal welfare standards both at home and abroad. This includes delivering a range of measures to promote the welfare of animals beyond UK borders, setting a global example for high welfare and conservation standards.

We are moving forward with our plans to deliver one of the toughest bans in the world on the import of hunting trophies from thousands of endangered and threatened species. We are firmly committed to the ban, and this will be brought forward as soon as parliamentary time allows. We are also looking at further measures to protect animals abroad, including banning the import and export of detached fins, and taking action against low welfare animal experiences.

We operate one of the most rigorous and robust pet travel checking regimes in Europe. All non-commercial dogs, cats and ferrets entering Great Britain on approved routes (every route other than Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland and the Crown Dependencies) under the Pet Travel rules undergo 100% documentary and identity checks by authorised pet checkers at the point of entry. Carriers can refer suspected non-compliances to the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA).

Animal welfare legislation requires that when animals are transported their transportation must comply fully with legal requirements aimed at protecting their welfare, such as, they must be fit for the intended journey; transported in the appropriate conditions; and, when transportation is for a commercial purpose, the transporter must hold a GB authorisation. APHA works collaboratively with Border Force and other operational partners at ports, airports and inland, sharing intelligence to enforce the Pet Travel rules, disrupt illegal imports, safeguard the welfare of animals and seize non-compliant animals.

The Animal Welfare (Kept Animals) Bill was introduced in Parliament on 8 June 2021 and completed committee on 18 November 2021. The Bill allows us to further protect the welfare of pets by introducing restrictions to crack down on the low welfare movements of pets into Great Britain and includes powers to introduce new restrictions on pet travel and the commercial import of pets on welfare grounds, via secondary legislation. In August 2021, the Government launched an eight-week consultation on our proposed restrictions to the commercial and non-commercial movement of pets, including rescue pets, into Great Britain. This included proposals to ban the commercial and non-commercial movement into Great Britain of puppies under the age of six months, heavily pregnant dogs and dogs which have been subjected to low welfare practices such as ear cropping or tail docking. We are currently analysing the responses to the consultation and will publish a summary response in due course. This will allow us to take onboard the views of the public and interested groups on puppy smuggling and low welfare imports in order to shape our future policy.

The Government gathers and coordinates data and statistics to monitor food purchasing and eating habits to understand consumption trends. This includes the National Diet and Nutrition Survey, designed to collect detailed, quantitative information on the food consumption, nutrient intake and nutritional status of the general population in the UK and the Food Family Survey with detailed statistical information on purchased quantities, expenditure and nutrient intakes by UK households.

The Government's advice on consumption and diet is set out in the Eatwell Guide - which provides advice on how to obtain a balance of healthier and more sustainable food and includes recommendations such as to have a diet that includes more fibre, fruit and vegetables.

The Government gathers and coordinates data and statistics to monitor food purchasing and eating habits to understand consumption trends. This includes the National Diet and Nutrition Survey, designed to collect detailed, quantitative information on the food consumption, nutrient intake and nutritional status of the general population in the UK and the Food Family Survey with detailed statistical information on purchased quantities, expenditure and nutrient intakes by UK households.

The Government's advice on consumption and diet is set out in the Eatwell Guide - which provides advice on how to obtain a balance of healthier and more sustainable food and includes recommendations such as to have a diet that includes more fibre, fruit and vegetables.

Defra is fully committed to supporting the cross Government and cross societal work to reach net zero emissions by 2050. We set out our work in this area as part of the Government’s Net Zero Strategy, and have regular conversations with BEIS at all levels, including between Secretaries of State, on net zero. Our UK Food Security report also highlighted the importance of tackling climate change to support a resilient food supply and the future resilience of farming businesses.

Our future farming environmental land management schemes will be crucial to delivering our goals to decarbonise agriculture and land use in England. In January the department published a target to decarbonise agricultural emissions by a total of up to 6 million tonnes CO2 equivalent per annum in Carbon Budget 6 (2033-37). We will pursue further opportunities to support farmers and land managers' contribution to delivering our Carbon Budgets, including through investment in innovation.

The Environment Act introduced statutory Environmental Improvement Plans (EIP) and Local Nature Recovery Strategies with strong land use elements. Together with our planning system they will help to maximise the benefits of any land use change. As part of our next EIP, the review of the 25 Year Environment Plan due in 2023, we will be setting out our policy pathways to reach our legally binding targets under the Environment Act, including to halt the decline in nature by 2030.

Defra is fully committed to supporting the cross Government and cross societal work to reach net zero emissions by 2050. We set out our work in this area as part of the Government’s Net Zero Strategy, and have regular conversations with BEIS at all levels, including between Secretaries of State, on net zero. Our UK Food Security report also highlighted the importance of tackling climate change to support a resilient food supply and the future resilience of farming businesses.

Our future farming environmental land management schemes will be crucial to delivering our goals to decarbonise agriculture and land use in England. In January the department published a target to decarbonise agricultural emissions by a total of up to 6 million tonnes CO2 equivalent per annum in Carbon Budget 6 (2033-37). We will pursue further opportunities to support farmers and land managers' contribution to delivering our Carbon Budgets, including through investment in innovation.

The Environment Act introduced statutory Environmental Improvement Plans (EIP) and Local Nature Recovery Strategies with strong land use elements. Together with our planning system they will help to maximise the benefits of any land use change. As part of our next EIP, the review of the 25 Year Environment Plan due in 2023, we will be setting out our policy pathways to reach our legally binding targets under the Environment Act, including to halt the decline in nature by 2030.

Defra is fully committed to supporting the cross Government and cross societal work to reach net zero emissions by 2050. We set out our work in this area as part of the Government’s Net Zero Strategy, and have regular conversations with BEIS at all levels, including between Secretaries of State, on net zero. Our UK Food Security report also highlighted the importance of tackling climate change to support a resilient food supply and the future resilience of farming businesses.

Our future farming environmental land management schemes will be crucial to delivering our goals to decarbonise agriculture and land use in England. In January the department published a target to decarbonise agricultural emissions by a total of up to 6 million tonnes CO2 equivalent per annum in Carbon Budget 6 (2033-37). We will pursue further opportunities to support farmers and land managers' contribution to delivering our Carbon Budgets, including through investment in innovation.

The Environment Act introduced statutory Environmental Improvement Plans (EIP) and Local Nature Recovery Strategies with strong land use elements. Together with our planning system they will help to maximise the benefits of any land use change. As part of our next EIP, the review of the 25 Year Environment Plan due in 2023, we will be setting out our policy pathways to reach our legally binding targets under the Environment Act, including to halt the decline in nature by 2030.

While some people consider snares to be an inhumane and unnecessary means of trapping wild animals, others maintain they are an essential tool in controlling foxes and rabbits.

There is a code of practice for the use of snares to control foxes in England which sets out clear principles for the legal and humane use of snares, using evidence from snare-use research to improve their deployment and design. The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 also prohibits the use of self-locking snares and the setting of any type of snare in places where they are likely to catch certain non-target animals such as badgers. It also requires snares to be inspected on a daily basis.

However, when used improperly, snares can cause immense suffering to both target and non-target animals including pet cats and dogs. The use of snares is therefore an issue we are looking at closely as part of our continued drive to maintain the highest animal welfare standards in the world.

Through the Government’s Animal Action for Welfare Plan, published in May of this year, we are looking at whether changes need to be made to reflect concerns raised.

The Government is committed to the highest standards of animal welfare during transport.

We consulted earlier this year on a wide range of proposals to improve how animals are transported in England and Wales, including reduced journey times for horses. In August we published a joint response, with the Welsh Government, to the consultation[1] outlining how we will be taking reforms forward.

[1] Improvements to animal welfare in transport: summary of responses and government response (publishing.service.gov.uk)

Non-human primates are only used in research where absolutely necessary and where they are considered the most appropriate and scientifically justified species. They play an important role in the public safety testing of novel pharmaceuticals prior to human trials, fulfilling international guidelines and national regulatory requirements.

The import of non-human primates is controlled by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). Captive-bred specimens may be traded under CITES rules, including first generation offspring bred in a controlled environment where at least one parent was sourced from the wild.

CITES allows for the introduction of wild sourced specimens into captive breeding facilities to reduce the effects of inbreeding in the captive population. Any introduction must be in line with CITES requirements, including having no detrimental impact on the species survival in the wild and being in line with any domestic laws. Where the UK Government is confident that these conditions have been met, imports will be permitted.

Non-human primates are only used in scientific research where absolutely necessary. Non-human primates play an important role in the public safety testing of novel pharmaceuticals prior to human trials, fulfilling international guidelines and national regulatory requirements. All imports of long-tailed macaques (Macaca fascicularis) into the UK are controlled by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), by way of their listing on CITES Appendix II. To meet our obligations under CITES, all applications for import are reviewed on a case-by-case basis and only allowed for scientific research purposes where we are confident the imports will not have a harmful effect on conservation status of the species. The UK Government has no plans under CITES to end the import of long-tailed macaques for scientific research where they are the most appropriate and scientifically justified species.

Between 1 January 2020 and 31 December 2020, the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) recorded 1142 live long-tailed macaques (Macaca fascicularis) as being imported into the UK from Mauritius. All were captive-bred (Source C) and were imported using purpose code M (bio-medical research).

APHA did not issue any import permits for wild (source W) or first-generation captive bred (source F) specimens in 2020.

A further 122 captive-bred live macaques were imported in early 2021 using Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species permits issued in 2020.

We have committed to bringing in new laws on animal sentience. Any necessary changes required to domestic legislation will be made in an effective and credible way and will be brought forward when parliamentary time allows.

Now that the transition period has ended, we are reviewing our policy on access for supertrawlers. This review will be driven by evidence. Under the Fisheries Act we have the powers to choose which vessels we license but our measures must comply with the UK/EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement which prohibits discrimination against individual vessels. Supertrawlers are mostly pelagic, operating mid-water, and do not make contact with the seabed.

Vessels permitted to fish in UK waters will have to be licensed and comply with UK rules and regulations including those on sustainability. Licence conditions set by UK Sea Fisheries Authorities will apply to both UK and foreign vessels alike.

The Government made a manifesto commitment to ban the import of hunting trophies from endangered animals, and held a consultation on the issue between 2 November 2019 and 25 February 2020.

The COVID-19 outbreak set the timetable back, as many of our officials formed part of the response to the pandemic. However, we are continuing to work on this important area and will publish a response as soon as we can on GOV.UK. The outcome of the consultation and the call for evidence will inform our next steps.

We know that potential zoonotic pathogens transfer from the environment, wildlife and livestock to humans. Research so far indicates that global changes in land use are disrupting the balance of wild animal communities and the beneficiaries appear to be species that carry diseases known to infect humans. It is estimated that 60% of all human diseases originate in animals. More intensive farming may expedite the spread of the pathogens.

The Department's Veterinary Risk Group and the Human Animal Infections Risk and Surveillance Group carry out horizon scanning and risk assessment for emerging threats associated with livestock farming and wildlife, internationally and domestically.

The Defra agency Cefas is currently working on a review of risks of zoonotic pathogens arising from aquaculture settings globally.

We routinely carry out surveillance on farms for zoonotic pathogens. We have significant surveillance programmes testing for TB, avian influenza, salmonella, AMR and brucelloses. We work closely with the Food Standards Agency on detecting food borne pathogens and with local health protection teams and environmental health officers to control any outbreaks of zoonotic disease associated with livestock farming, consumption of products of animal origin or exposure to livestock.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the Rt Hon Member for Chipping Barnet on 11 June 2020, PQ UIN 55899.

https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-questions/detail/2020-06-08/55899

The Government is taking action to prevent the killing of seals in English, Welsh and Northern Irish waters as a result of commercial fishing. The Marine Management Organisation has not issued licences to kill or take seals in the last ten years under the Conservation of Seals Act for the purpose of preventing damage to fisheries. However, the ‘netsman’s defence’ provision in the Act allows the unlicensed shooting of seals to prevent damage to equipment, or fish within it, and where specific firearms and ammunition are used. We have tabled amendments to the Fisheries Bill that will, if passed, make it illegal to kill seals intentionally or recklessly. These amendments aim to ensure that UK fisheries exports are compliant with the US Marine Mammal Protection Act. The Scottish Parliament recently passed similar legislative changes via the Animals and Wildlife (Penalties, Protections and Powers) (Scotland) Act 2020.

Defra has provided over £4.2 million in funding for Asian elephants living in the wild since 2015 through the Darwin Initiative and the Illegal Wildlife Trade (IWT) Challenge Fund. These are competitive Defra grant schemes funded entirely through Official Development Assistance (ODA).

The IWT Challenge Fund and the Darwin Initiative have committed £2.9 million and £1.3 million respectively for Asian elephants since 2015 through 14 separate projects. These include a project seeking to reduce the illegal ivory trade in Cambodia, and a project supporting Nepal’s world-leading community anti-poaching efforts.

The UK is a Party to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), which places strict controls on international trade in tigers. We are aware of concerns raised in relation to the illegal trade in tigers and tiger farms and remain fully committed to working with our international partners, including through CITES, to ensure strong protection is in place and to bring an end to the illegal trade in wildlife.

A consultation on controls on the import and export of hunting trophies to and from the UK was undertaken between 2 November 2019 and 25 February 2020. The outcome of the consultation, and the accompanying call for evidence, will inform our next steps and we are continuing to work on this important area.

While allowed under EU law, the Government has made clear that the production of foie gras from ducks or geese using force feeding raises serious welfare concerns. The production of foie gras by force feeding is banned in the UK as it is incompatible with our domestic legislation.

After the transition period, there will be an opportunity to consider whether the UK can adopt a different approach to foie gras imports and sales in the UK.

Waste crime damages the environment, is a blight on local communities and the Government is committed to tackling this criminal activity. We have given the Environment Agency (EA) an extra £60 million to tackle waste crime since 2014 and have also made a range of legislative changes. In addition, the Resource and Waste Strategy sets out an ambitious package of further reforms to modernise the way waste is regulated, clamping down on illegal operators and improving performance across the sector. Some of these commitments are being taken forward in the Environment Bill, including measures to further strengthen EA powers when dealing with criminal operators.

The new Joint Unit for Waste Crime (JUWC), a taskforce dedicated to tackling serious and organised criminality in the waste sector was launched last month. The JUWC will tackle criminal activity including the large-scale illegal dumping, or false labelling of waste so it can be exported abroad to unsuspecting countries. It brings together the EA, the National Crime Agency, the police, HMRC, Natural Resources Wales and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency in a concerted UK-wide effort to share intelligence and resources to tackle crime which costs the economy at least £600 million every year.

Fly-tipping is unacceptable whether it occurs on public or private land and tackling this crime is a priority for the Government. In recent years we have bolstered local authorities’ powers to tackle fly-tipping. As well as enhanced powers to search and seize vehicles of suspected fly-tippers, we have given them the power to issue fixed penalty notices (FPNs) of up to £400 for fly-tipping offences, including to those caught fly-tipping and householders who pass their waste to a fly-tipper. FPNs provide local authorities with an efficient mechanism to hold fly-tipping perpetrators to account without having to go to court, which can be a time consuming, resource-intensive and expensive process.

If a prosecution is taken, then a fly-tipper can receive a fine of up to £50,000, or 12 months imprisonment if convicted in a Magistrates' Court. The offence can attract an unlimited fine and up to 5 years imprisonment if convicted in a Crown Court. Defra has worked with the Sentencing Council to amend sentencing guidance for magistrates to ensure that they are aware of local fixed penalty levels for these offences, but will continue this work to help to secure tougher penalties in line with our manifesto commitment.

We have also committed to the development of a fly-tipping toolkit, hosted by the National Fly Tipping Prevention Group (NFTPG). This will be a web-based tool to help local authorities and others work in partnership to tackle fly-tipping. It will cover, for example, the use of new technology to report fly-tipping, sharing of intelligence within and between partnerships, dealing with unauthorised encampments and promoting the duty of care to individuals and businesses. The Government is also consulting at the moment about strengthening police powers to tackle unauthorised encampments. The NFTPG has also published a Fly-tipping Partnership Framework outlining best practice for the prevention, reporting, investigation and clearance of fly-tipping and a series of fly-tipping prevention guides for householders, businesses and landowners.

The information regarding reindeer imports is based on Trade Control and Expert System (TRACES) data. This data is provided by third parties.

There have been no recorded imports of reindeer into the United Kingdom from the EU in 2019.

The Animal and Plant Health Agency are not able to provide any data regarding the number of imports from third countries. This is because they are covered by a commodity code in TRACES which does not allow a breakdown by species.

The number of reindeer and the number of consignments exported from the UK to the EU in 2018 is as follows:

There were no exports of reindeer to third countries recorded in 2018.

There were no recorded exports of reindeer from the United Kingdom to third countries or EU Member States in 2019.

The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) can access information using Trade Control and Expert System (TRACES) for species of animals that require a health certificate for movement to the EU.

APHA does record Export Health Certificates issued for animals to third countries that do not use the TRACES system.

The Department has no plans to ask National Highways to implement historic county boundary signs on the Strategic Road Network (SRN).

The Department understands the important role that resilience plays in the aviation sector and continues to encourage the sector to work together on this.

The Department’s officials and ministers are working closely with the aviation industry on a host of resilience topics to ensure that the UK Government and the UK aviation sector are adequately prepared to meet challenges should they arise.

However, it is ultimately the responsibility of industry to ensure adequate preparations are in place, with the Government supporting where appropriate.

The aviation industry has a wide range of well-established resilience forums, chaired and attended by all parts of the aviation industry, as well as the Department for Transport and where appropriate other government departments. Where appropriate the Department supports industry but ultimately it is for industry to build resilience into their organisation and as an eco-system.

The Department announced on 22 December 2022 that five sustainable aviation fuel projects would receive a share of the £165m Advanced Fuels Fund. The aim is to take as many of these as possible through to commercial scale production.

Timelines differ between projects, but the funding is being used for feasibility studies; pre-front engineering and design; front end engineering and design; and parts of engineering, procurement and construction. The Department for Transport cannot comment on the progress of individual projects due to commercial sensitivity. The Department for Transport remains on track to achieve its wider aim of at least five commercial-scale SAF plants under construction in the UK by 2025.

The Government launched the second round of the Advanced Fuels Fund on 30 March 2023.

The Department commissioned an independent review, undertaken by Philip New, on the barriers to investment in sustainable aviation fuel in the UK and further measures industry or the Government might take. The Government will respond to the review in due course.

Ministers and officials at the Department for Transport engage regularly with the Home Office on a range of topics, including border resourcing. The Department supports Border Force’s work to keep UK borders safe and secure and will assist Government partners to work with industry and provide expertise.  During recent industrial action at UK airports in December, the Government ensured that all ports remained open. There was minimal disruption to operations and passengers as a result.

The UK Climate Change Risk Assessment 2022 identified ‘Risks to business from disruption to supply chains and distribution networks’. The Department for Transport is considering action against relevant risks identified by the Climate Change Committee.

We are actively considering the options for pavement parking policy (including parking on grass verges) in light of the consultation findings. The Department will publish the formal consultation response and announce next steps as soon as possible.

The Jet Zero Consultation closed on September 2021 and we received over 1400 responses. This was followed by a short, further technical consultation, which closed on April and received over 100 responses. We are carefully considering responses to both consultations, alongside the very latest technological developments and wider government policy, in the development of the final Jet Zero Strategy, which we are aiming to publish later this year. A summary of responses and the Government response to those consultations will be published alongside the Jet Zero Strategy.

We also published the Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAF) mandate consultation in July 2021, which set out our intention to mandate SAF supply in the UK from 2025. In March 2022, we published a summary of responses to the consultation and will be publishing the Government response shortly, which alongside the Jet Zero Strategy, will set out the Government’s position on the introduction of a SAF mandate.

The Jet Zero Consultation closed on September 2021 and we received over 1400 responses. This was followed by a short, further technical consultation, which closed on April and received over 100 responses. We are carefully considering responses to both consultations, alongside the very latest technological developments and wider government policy, in the development of the final Jet Zero Strategy, which we are aiming to publish later this year. A summary of responses and the Government response to those consultations will be published alongside the Jet Zero Strategy.

We also published the Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAF) mandate consultation in July 2021, which set out our intention to mandate SAF supply in the UK from 2025. In March 2022, we published a summary of responses to the consultation and will be publishing the Government response shortly, which alongside the Jet Zero Strategy, will set out the Government’s position on the introduction of a SAF mandate.

The Jet Zero Consultation closed on September 2021 and we received over 1400 responses. This was followed by a short, further technical consultation, which closed on April and received over 100 responses. We are carefully considering responses to both consultations, alongside the very latest technological developments and wider government policy, in the development of the final Jet Zero Strategy, which we are aiming to publish later this year. A summary of responses and the Government response to those consultations will be published alongside the Jet Zero Strategy.

We also published the Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAF) mandate consultation in July 2021, which set out our intention to mandate SAF supply in the UK from 2025. In March 2022, we published a summary of responses to the consultation and will be publishing the Government response shortly, which alongside the Jet Zero Strategy, will set out the Government’s position on the introduction of a SAF mandate.

We are engaging with the aviation industry and are looking for ways to help the industry to recover quickly as we emerge from the COVID pandemic and travel restarts. Security continues to be paramount and we will not allow people to work airside when they have not been subject to the appropriate enquiries. The travelling public must have confidence that appropriate security measures are in place at airports. They would expect nothing less of government.

There are two categories of checks. The first are industry security checks. These include checks on an individual’s employment and education history over five years. These checks are the responsibility of the industry – they can take time and we continue to engage with them to understand any challenges. The second category are checks by Government. These are being processed in a timely manner. There are no delays, and the aviation industry is fully aware of the time these important checks take.

Thanks to our successful vaccine rollout, the government has made international travel easier and cheaper for fully vaccinated passengers from the UK and over 135 countries and territories covered by our inbound vaccination policy.

Eligible fully vaccinated passengers and most under 18s arriving in the UK now only require a lateral flow test on arrival. From 1 November, we removed the last 7 countries from the red list.

The government will continue to keep travel under review and ensure that health measures for international travel remain proportionate and necessary.

Decisions on red, amber and green list countries are taken by Ministers, who take into account risk assessments produced by the Joint Biosecurity Centre (JBC), alongside wider public health factors. Risk assessments are based on factors such as the level of community transmission of variants of concern or variant under investigation, levels of testing, genomic sequencing and reporting. Details of the in-country and territory vaccination profile are included as contextual information in the assessment.

A summary of the JBC methodology has been published on GOV.UK, alongside key data that supports ministers’ decisions.

Decisions on red, amber and green list countries are taken by Ministers, who take into account risk assessments produced by the Joint Biosecurity Centre (JBC), alongside wider public health factors. Risk assessments are based on factors such as the level of community transmission of variants of concern or variant under investigation, levels of testing, genomic sequencing and reporting. Details of the in-country and territory vaccination profile are included as contextual information in the assessment.

A summary of the JBC methodology has been published on GOV.UK, alongside key data that supports ministers’ decisions.

The Secretary of State for Transport met with G7 Transport Leaders on 5 May to begin setting out a strategy for the safe reopening of international travel.

This will focus on the need for a coordinated and sustainable reopening of travel through a number of aligned international measures including best practice for sharing scientific data and promoting coordination on universally recognised travel certificates.

As set out in the Global Travel Taskforce recommendations, we are engaging bilaterally with international partners to explore how we can open international travel safely, including the potential piloting of digital and non-digital COVID-19 certification. We continue to work with a range of international partners to look at the technology and evidence as it emerges, assessing if it could be applicable to international travel in the future.

These are diplomatically sensitive discussions, and we cannot comment further at this stage. However, the Department for Transport, with colleagues from across UK Government, is now working at all levels to continue dialogue with the US on the specifics of our future travel arrangements.

Payments are not limited to use on business rates cost only.

The Airport and Ground Operations Support Scheme (AGOSS) opened for applications on 29 January to provide support for eligible commercial airports and ground handlers in England. It will provide support up to the equivalent of their business rates liabilities in the 2020/21 financial year, subject to certain conditions and a cap per claimant of £8m.

Grant payments made to successful applicants can be applied toward costs which are essential to enable the operation of a commercial airport or ground handling operations and falls within the list of eligible expenditure.

The Secretary of State for Transport jointly chairs the Global Travel Taskforce with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care. They and other Ministers have very regular discussions about its work with officials and industry partners.

The Taskforce has undertaken extensive consultation with the transport industry, international partners, the tourism sector, business leaders, and the private testing sector, and invited submissions from all of these partners on its work.

The Taskforce will submit its recommendations to the Prime Minister in November.

The Department recognises the importance of maintaining a thriving and competitive aviation sector in the UK to deliver connectivity.

Air Passenger Duty is led by HM Treasury. The Department for Transport works closely with HM Treasury and both Departments have engaged closely with the aviation sector to understand their assessment of the outlook for the sector and implications of any sector specific support measures.

In recognition of the challenging times that the aviation sector continues to face due to Covid-19, the Secretary of State has kept an open dialogue with UK airports. Engagement has included regular structured round tables with the Minister for Aviation as well as one-to-one calls, considered on a case by case basis. It would not be appropriate to comment on individual engagements or their frequency.

The Government is actively considering the concept of international travel corridors, including air bridges, and how they could be implemented in practice along with other measures.

Ultimately, we will be guided by the science, and the health of the public will always come first.

The Government recognises the challenging times facing the aviation sector as a result of COVID-19, and has been engaging regularly with airports throughout the UK to understand the impact that COVID-19 is having on their financial position. The Government continues to do so.

Businesses across the industry, including airports, have drawn on the unprecedented package of economic measures we have put in place during this time.

The Government has now made £3.2 billion available to local authorities, through an un-ringfenced grant, so they can address pressures they are facing in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government will continue to work with local government over the coming weeks to develop a collective understanding of the costs that local authorities are facing, and to ensure that they are managing as the pandemic progresses.

The Department has been closely monitoring developments in the global aviation sector and how the international community has responded to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Chancellor has announced an unprecedented package of measures which the aviation sector has made extensive use of, including a Bank of England scheme for firms to raise capital, Time to Pay flexibilities with tax bills, financial support for employees and VAT deferrals. Additionally, Government remain open to discussions about bespoke financial support, but only as a last resort. The Department has been in close contact with key industry stakeholders to understand more about their position and the support they need. Calls with the industry are continuing in parallel to our work to progress potential support measures.

I refer the hon. Member to the reply previously given to the hon. Member for Cardiff South and Penarth on 20 May 2020, PQ UIN 43656.

The Department has been closely monitoring developments in the global aviation sector and how the international community has responded to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The UK has been working with a range of international partners to drive forward a shared agenda on public health and aviation through regular meetings and correspondence. The UK is a member of the governing Council of ICAO and has played a leading role in the ICAO Civil Aviation Recovery Taskforce (CART), which was set up specifically to address the aviation industry’s recovery from the crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

In terms of maritime port entry requirements, pre-existing control of infectious diseases is already in place through the Public Health (Ships) Regulations 1979.

I refer the hon. Member to the reply previously given to the hon. Member for Cardiff South and Penarth on 20 May 2020, PQ UIN 43656.

The Government’s approach to tackling coronavirus has always been guided by science. Testing will not identify everyone who is infected with coronavirus when they enter the UK – especially as some people might be asymptomatic. That is why we will be asking all travellers to self-isolate for 14 days.

The Government will continue to review whether and when additional measures are needed to slow the spread of coronavirus and we are monitoring the decision for some airports to trial temperature screening.

I refer the hon. Member to the reply previously given to the hon. Member for Cardiff South and Penarth on 20 May 2020, PQ UIN 43656.

The Government recognises the challenging times facing the aviation sector as a result of COVID-19.

Businesses across the industry have been able to draw on the unprecedented package of economic measures put in place during this time by the Government. In addition the sector has been able to apply for the Bank of England’s Covid Corporate Finance Facility. However, if businesses across the sector find themselves in trouble as a result of coronavirus even following the Government’s cross-economy wage and financial interventions, the Transport Secretary and Chancellor have confirmed that the Government is prepared to enter discussions with individual companies seeking bespoke support as a last resort, having exhausted all other options. Any intervention would need to represent value for money for taxpayers.

Businesses across the sector are eligible and have accessed these schemes which has protected a number of jobs across the industry. We do not comment on the commercial or financial matters of private firms and are therefore unable to say anything further at this stage.

Before the impact of COVID-19, the UK aviation sector directly employed around 230,000 jobs (130,000 in air transport and 100,000 in aerospace). Following the sharp contraction in aviation demand as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, employment in the UK aviation sector has been significantly impacted.

Workers in the aviation sector are being supported by the unprecedented economic measures we have put in place, including the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme. At least 50,000 airline and aerospace employees have been furloughed using the scheme. However, British Airways, Virgin Atlantic, easyJet, Rolls Royce and John Menzies are among UK aviation companies that have announced plans for tens of thousands of redundancies.

Government is continuing to monitor the impact on employment within the UK aviation sector, and as we now begin to re-open the economy, it is right that state support is slowly reduced and the focus shifts to getting furloughed employees back to work.

The Home Office will be introducing new health protection measures at the border, and details will be published soon. Further queries should be directed to the Home Office.

The UK is engaging with a number of key international organisations (including ICAO and IATA), and we are working with our international partners to drive forward a shared agenda on public health measures for international travel.

The Government has also established five ministerial-led taskforces to develop plans for reopening sectors which have been heavily impacted by COVID-19, including a taskforce on international aviation.

The Government aims to support industry in developing guidance on a baseline set of measures, based on the available evidence, and for these to become widespread and well-understood, thereby avoiding confusion and uncertainty for both industry and passengers.

The Home Office will be introducing new health protection measures at the border, and details will be published soon. Further queries should be directed to the Home Office.

All season ticket holders are entitled to claim a refund for time unused on their tickets in accordance with the National Rail Conditions of Travel.

We have worked with the rail industry to make the process for claiming season ticket refunds easier during this crisis, for example by allowing passengers to claim refunds remotely rather than returning their ticket to a ticket office. We have also allowed passengers to backdate their season ticket refund claim to 17th March, when ‘do not travel’ advice was first introduced, or the date their ticket was last used, whichever is later. The refund acceptance period for passengers has also been extended from 28 to 56 days.

The Chancellor has set out unprecedented support for workers - including those in the travel sector - to protect them against the current economic emergency. This includes the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme and the Self-Employed Income Support Scheme.

These measures, and others available through the Government’s comprehensive support package, have been designed to ensure that companies of any size receive the help they need to get through this difficult time. Government is committed to helping the travel industry through this crisis and beyond.

No estimate has yet been made on the number of jobs at risk in the travel industry as a result of the coronavirus outbreak.

We are aware that the coronavirus outbreak and related travel advice is significantly impacting all aspects of the travel industry. We are in close contact with stakeholders to monitor the situation. Our national priority is containing the spread of the virus. As soon as it is safe to do so, we will be encouraging people to book holidays and support travel companies once again.

The Chancellor has set out unprecedented support for business and workers - including those in the travel sector - to protect them against the current economic emergency.

The Secretary of State for Transport heard the concerns about smart motorways and asked the Department to carry out, at pace, an evidence stocktake to gather the facts quickly and make recommendations.

While I would not want to pre-judge the results of that work, what I can say is that we will continue to prioritise improving safety – making conditions safer for everyone on our roads.

The Secretary of State confirmed at Transport Parliamentary Questions on 30 January that all stretches of Smart Motorway that are currently being worked on will not be opened until we have the outcome of the stocktake.

We cannot commit to a formal review of the licensing of pilots over the age of 65 at this stage. However, we continually review matters of aviation safety, and are working closely with the CAA to fully understand the evidence base around this issue. This includes, but is not limited to, the EASA report referred to in the response to Question 2479.

We understand that the upper age limit restrictions on pilots can be a frustration and the DfT and CAA have worked closely with EASA to understand the evidence on what the upper age limits should be. At present, the UK continues with its policy of regulatory alignment with Europe, and EASA is still considering its position. EASA has recently asked for views from the European Aviation Medical Assessors Council, and it is expected that EASA will consult on any formal proposals developed. We will of course continue to contribute actively, and keep the situation under review when further evidence and/or proposals become available.

The Department for Work and Pensions is boosting households with £500m funding this winter, with £421m dedicated to the Household Support Fund in England, which will help vulnerable people in England with essential household costs. The funding is being made available to County Councils and Unitary Authorities in England. West Sussex will receive £4,870,362.11. County Councils are expected to work together with District Councils to provide support and to ensure the funding meets its objectives by identifying those most in need.

Between 1 March 2020 and 22 September 2020, the following number of Pension Wise appointments were held:

• Total combined complete/incomplete telephone appointments: 53,370
• Fully completed telephone appointments: 46,928
• Incomplete telephone appointments: 6,442
• Digital appointments (self-service): 30,443

An incomplete appointment is where a customer attended an appointment, but it was not completed fully due to a variety of reasons.

Between March 1^st and September 9^th 2020, the number of Pension Wise guidance sessions booked totalled 64,221.

The Government continues to work with Regulators and the Police to prevent scams and this has continued during Covid-19. In the period March – July 2020, 116 reports of pension fraud were received by Action Fraud, compared to 179 for the same period in 2019.

In recognition of the potential impact of Covid-19 on individual’s pensions savings the Department convened a cross-government and regulator group, to closely monitor and respond to any increase in transfers and scams. Regulators, Police and Action Fraud have confirmed that to date no evidence has emerged to demonstrate an increase in either transfers or scams, based on their internal monitoring of the industry. Although this is encouraging Government recognises it needs to continue to monitor and react to the changing environment.

Tax liabilities relating to unauthorised payments and HMRC’s investigation of tax rules arising from pension scams are the responsibility of HMT. DWP will continue to work closely with HMRC to understand their position and how these may impact the Pensions Schemes Bill and savers.

Government continues to work with regulators and industry to protect consumers and find the best ways of preventing pension scams. HMRC and DWP have held regular discussions relating to the enhanced protection measures in the Pension Scheme Bill 2020.

Through Project Bloom, DWP works with other government departments, regulators, enforcement agencies and the pensions industry to monitor the evolution of scam typology and respond with a collective and coordinated response. Project Bloom is examining the range of measures that all agencies including providers and financial professionals could take to help prevent scams.

At the onset of the covid-19 pandemic, the Department convened a cross-government and regulator group to closely monitor and respond to any increase in transfers and scams. The group includes DWP, HMT, both the Pensions Regulator and the FCA as well as the Money and Pensions Service and the Pension Ombudsman. This is supported by cross government and regulator gathering, monitoring and evaluating of data in order to develop as complete and robust a picture as possible. At this point the Department doesn’t yet have any robust evidence showing an increase in pension scams activity but will continue to monitor across the industry.

In addition to active monitoring, the Government, working with the regulators and the Money and Pension Service has been communicating with pension savers to alert them to the risk of scams in the current climate. DWP continues to communicate regularly on social media out the warning signs of a scam. A joint statement was issued by The Pension Regulator, Financial Conduct Authority, and Money Advice and Pension Service on 7 April pointing to the actions members should seek to take to safeguard against becoming victims of scams. Additional guidance was issued to trustees, and providers from both The Financial Conduct Authority and the Pensions Regulator to support them to produce suitable communications during the Covid-19 outbreak.

Please see links below for more information about the joint statement from Regulators and the Money Advice Service, and help available, produced by the Pension Protection Fund and supported by government.

https://www.fca.org.uk/news/press-releases/covid-19-savers-stay-calm-dont-rush-financial-decisions

https://www.ppf.co.uk/sites/default/files/file-2020-05/COVID-19-and-your-pension.pdf

The Government is committed to working closely with industry, regulators and pension scheme providers to help identify and prevent scams, it is working with Project Bloom, the Pension Regulator led taskforce, to stop scams and co-ordinate action against offenders.

Through Project Bloom, DWP works with other government departments, regulators, enforcement agencies and the pensions industry to monitor the evolution of scam typology and respond with a collective and coordinated response. Project Bloom is examining the range of measures that all agencies including providers and financial professionals could take to help prevent scams.

DWP will consider with Project Bloom, industry and the regulators the feasibility of how a training programme could be developed. This would build on training individual providers already provide for their people.

Through Project Bloom, DWP works with other government departments, regulators, enforcement agencies and the pensions industry to monitor the evolution of scam typology and respond with a collective and coordinated response. Project Bloom is examining the range of measures that all agencies including providers and financial professionals could take to help prevent scams.

DWP consistently works with other organisations to raise awareness of pension scams and encourage reporting, including regular campaigns, from the Financial Conduct Authority and the Pensions Regulator, conducted through the ScamSmart branding. Alongside promoting what to look out for to recognise a pension scam, the ScamSmart campaigns and website encourage people to report when they think they have been scammed. These messages are proving effective, in the most recent campaign prior to Covid-19, June to September 2019 over 222,000 visited the ScamSmart website to find out how to identify a scam scheme and report a scam.

The Government, working with the regulators and the Money and Pension Service communicates with pension savers to alert them to the risk of scams in the current climate. DWP continues to communicate regularly on social media to set out the warning signs of a scam and has made 18 posts referencing Pension Scams and ScamSmart in total across Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn in the period March to September 2020.

A joint statement was issued by The Pension Regulator, Financial Conduct Authority, and Money Advice and Pension Service on 7 April pointing to the actions members should take to help safeguard against scams. Additional guidance was issued to trustees, and providers from both The Financial Conduct Authority and the Pensions Regulator to support them to produce suitable communications during the Covid-19 outbreak.

Please see links below for more information about the joint statement from Regulators and the Money Advice Service, and help available, produced by the Pension Protection Fund and supported by government.

https://www.fca.org.uk/news/press-releases/covid-19-savers-stay-calm-dont-rush-financial-decisions

https://www.ppf.co.uk/sites/default/files/file-2020-05/COVID-19-and-your-pension.pdf

The Department and its Ministers work in partnership with a variety of stakeholders, including local authorities, charities and employer groups, and listens directly to their feedback about Universal Credit. At its core, Universal Credit is about ensuring we deliver a service which is tailored to individual claimant circumstances and abilities. Following the outbreak of COVID-19, we adapted many of our services to be delivered remotely, and we will consider if changes can be retained longer term. But, many claimants benefit from having face to face contact with Work Coaches to overcome barriers and we will ensure this method of contact continues to be used where appropriate.

Measures, such as identity verification, are key components of the Universal Credit claim process to confirm the accuracy of information supplied, allowing us to make timely and accurate decisions. In addition to our usual online verification, since early June we have been trialling the online identity service, Confirm Your Identity. This has enabled a higher number of claimants to verify their identity online, and we are continually monitoring and testing the impact this has on a claimant’s ability to verify remotely.

Data on radiotherapy linear accelerator (LINAC) machines is not held at constituency level. Since April 2022, the responsibility for investing in new radiotherapy machines sits with local systems. This is supported by the 2021 Spending Review, which set aside £12 billion in operational capital for the National Health Service between 2022 and 2025.

Recent Capital Planning Guidance sets out the expectation that the majority of radiotherapy equipment, particularly LINAC machines, will need to be replaced at ten years of age, to make progress on Long Term Plan priorities. The guidance states that integrated care systems (ICSs) need to develop replacement plans as part of their multi-year capital plans, in partnership with specialised commissioners, Cancer Alliances and Radiotherapy Operational Delivery Networks, based on an assessment of equipment age, capacity and demand, opportunities to improve access, and service risk.

The Government has agreed to provide funding of £1 million to design a grant scheme for the expansion of automated external defibrillators (AEDs) that expands the number and accessibility of publicly supported access to defibrillators.

Applicants will be asked to demonstrate that defibrillators will be placed in areas where they are most needed, such as places with high footfall, longer emergency medical response times and deprived areas

No assessment has been made of the potential fiscal impact of increasing the number of AEDs available to the public on healthcare services. The number of instances of sudden cardiac arrest that have occurred outside of hospitals in the last five years is not available centrally.

The Government has agreed to provide funding of £1 million to design a grant scheme for the expansion of automated external defibrillators (AEDs) that expands the number and accessibility of publicly supported access to defibrillators.

Applicants will be asked to demonstrate that defibrillators will be placed in areas where they are most needed, such as places with high footfall, longer emergency medical response times and deprived areas

No assessment has been made of the potential fiscal impact of increasing the number of AEDs available to the public on healthcare services. The number of instances of sudden cardiac arrest that have occurred outside of hospitals in the last five years is not available centrally.

The Government has agreed to provide funding of £1 million to design a grant scheme for the expansion of automated external defibrillators (AEDs) that expands the number and accessibility of publicly supported access to defibrillators.

Applicants will be asked to demonstrate that defibrillators will be placed in areas where they are most needed, such as places with high footfall, longer emergency medical response times and deprived areas

No assessment has been made of the potential fiscal impact of increasing the number of AEDs available to the public on healthcare services. The number of instances of sudden cardiac arrest that have occurred outside of hospitals in the last five years is not available centrally.

The Secretary of State for Health and Social Care meets regularly with other Cabinet colleagues and with NHS England to discuss issues relating to the National Health Service workforce.

The Department recognises that advanced cell and gene therapies will be an important part of the future of healthcare and the life sciences industry. We have been considering the recommendations of the Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult’s ‘National Cell and Gene Therapy Vision for the UK’, a report published by the Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult in March 2022 and the UK Strategic Stem Cell Forum’s latest report ‘A 10-year vision for stem cell transplantation and cellular therapies’ published in July 2022.

As part of this, we have been conducting stakeholder engagement to further understand the challenges raised and whether there is a role for the Department in coordinating activity in this area.

The National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE) recently carried out a comprehensive review of its methods and processes for health technology evaluation to ensure that they were appropriate to emerging new technologies such as advanced therapeutic medicinal products (ATMPs). NICE published its updated health technology evaluation manual in January 2022 and has introduced a number of changes that ensure that its appraisal processes are suitable for emerging new medicines, including a broader severity modifier and changes to better respond to uncertainty. There are no plans for a further assessment of NICE’s processes for evaluating ATMPs.

NICE’s methods and processes have been proven to be suitable for ATMPs where companies are willing to price their products in a way that represents value to the taxpayer. NICE has recommended 80% of the ATMPs it has evaluated for use by the National Health Service and they are now available for the treatment of NHS patients, including through the Cancer Drugs Fund and managed access agreements negotiated between the NHS and the manufacturer.

NHS Supply Chain (NHSSC) has robust measures in place to monitor supply chains and works closely with markets to ensure continuity of supply, so that the National Health Service has the medical devices and clinical consumables it needs to deliver care. Given the economic environment and global inflationary pressures, NHS Supply Chain recognises the challenges that suppliers are facing and is committed to working with them within the bounds of contractual agreements, to secure value for money for taxpayers and maintain availability.

An established process exists for all price increase requests. These are evaluated by NHSSC on a case-by-case basis in line with the terms and conditions of awarded framework agreements. In order for an increase to be accepted, it needs to be justified and evidenced, and suppliers are expected to play their part in mitigating their cost pressures.

With specific reference to energy costs, the Government remains committed to supporting businesses via the Energy Bill Relief Scheme which provides a discount on the wholesale element of gas and electricity bills to ensure that eligible non-domestic customers are protected from excessively high energy costs over the winter period. Following an HM Treasury led review, the new Energy Bill Discount Scheme will run from April until March 2024 and continue to provide a discount to eligible non-domestic customers.

NHS Supply Chain (NHSSC) has robust measures in place to monitor supply chains and works closely with markets to ensure continuity of supply, so that the National Health Service has the medical devices and clinical consumables it needs to deliver care. Given the economic environment and global inflationary pressures, NHS Supply Chain recognises the challenges that suppliers are facing and is committed to working with them within the bounds of contractual agreements, to secure value for money for taxpayers and maintain availability.

An established process exists for all price increase requests. These are evaluated by NHSSC on a case-by-case basis in line with the terms and conditions of awarded framework agreements. In order for an increase to be accepted, it needs to be justified and evidenced, and suppliers are expected to play their part in mitigating their cost pressures.

With specific reference to energy costs, the Government remains committed to supporting businesses via the Energy Bill Relief Scheme which provides a discount on the wholesale element of gas and electricity bills to ensure that eligible non-domestic customers are protected from excessively high energy costs over the winter period. Following an HM Treasury led review, the new Energy Bill Discount Scheme will run from April until March 2024 and continue to provide a discount to eligible non-domestic customers.

NHS Supply Chain (NHSSC) has robust measures in place to monitor supply chains and works closely with markets to ensure continuity of supply, so that the National Health Service has the medical devices and clinical consumables it needs to deliver care. Given the economic environment and global inflationary pressures, NHS Supply Chain recognises the challenges that suppliers are facing and is committed to working with them within the bounds of contractual agreements, to secure value for money for taxpayers and maintain availability.

An established process exists for all price increase requests. These are evaluated by NHSSC on a case-by-case basis in line with the terms and conditions of awarded framework agreements. In order for an increase to be accepted, it needs to be justified and evidenced, and suppliers are expected to play their part in mitigating their cost pressures.

With specific reference to energy costs, the Government remains committed to supporting businesses via the Energy Bill Relief Scheme which provides a discount on the wholesale element of gas and electricity bills to ensure that eligible non-domestic customers are protected from excessively high energy costs over the winter period. Following an HM Treasury led review, the new Energy Bill Discount Scheme will run from April until March 2024 and continue to provide a discount to eligible non-domestic customers.

The Department and NHS Supply Chain (NHSSC) recognise challenges faced by suppliers relating to the economic environment and global inflationary pressures. The Government and NHSSC remain committed to working with suppliers within the bounds of contractual agreements, to secure value for money for taxpayers and maintain availability.

With specific reference to energy costs, the Government is dedicated to supporting businesses via the Energy Bill Relief Scheme which provides a discount on the wholesale element of gas and electricity bills to ensure that eligible non-domestic customers are protected from excessively high energy costs over the winter period. Following an HM Treasury led review, the new Energy Bill Discount Scheme will run from April until March 2024 and continue to provide a discount to eligible non-domestic customers.

Progress against cardiovascular disease (CVD) commitments in 2021-22 includes 56,000 more patients identified as having a 20% or greater 10-year risk of developing CVD being treated with lipid lowering therapies; 1.1 million more people had their hypertension controlled; and 46,000 more people with atrial fibrillation were treated with an anti-coagulant compared to 2020-21.

The National Health Service’s priorities for 2023-24 are set out in the NHS operational planning guidance, detailing an ongoing commitment to the goals of the NHS Long Term Plan, including those on cardiovascular disease. There are specific objectives in the guidance for improving the management of people with hypertension and high cholesterol.

The Hewitt review is currently looking at the scope and options for national targets and how to empower local leaders to improve outcomes for their populations and the Department looks forward to considering its conclusions.

As the Secretary of State announced on 24 January, the Department is developing a strategy for major conditions, including cardiovascular disease, with an interim report due summer 2023. This will build on the commitments already made in the NHS Long Term Plan.

The Department is taking steps to prevent high cholesterol and cardiovascular disease (CVD) by taking forward a programme of work to modernise the NHS Health Check and ensure that as many people as possible benefit from this prevention programme. This includes developing a national digital NHS Health Check to complement the in-person service and enable people to self-check at home.

The National Health Service’s priorities for 2023/24 are set out in the NHS operational planning guidance. This includes objectives on preventing CVD by improving the management of hypertension and CVD risk. Primary Care Networks’ service requirements also include objectives to improve hypertension case-finding and diagnosis, diagnosis of familial hypercholesterolaemia and cholesterol management.

The Department has not assessed the potential impact of inflation on the prevalence and treatment of CVD.

The Office for Health Improvement and Disparities produces a monthly update of excess mortality statistics, which have been used to monitor excess deaths since July 2020 and adjust for age and size of the population. There are a range of different organisations producing different estimates based on different methodologies.

It is likely that a combination of factors has contributed to excess deaths over winter 2022/23, including high flu prevalence, cold, the ongoing challenges of COVID-19 and health conditions such as heart disease and diabetes.

We are taking steps to help reduce excess deaths, including those which involve COVID-19, and those due to other factors.

NHS England will be completing the capacity and demand review of external beam radiotherapy capacity in 2022/23. This will support local systems to plan radiotherapy provision and allocate system capital allocations appropriately, based on an assessment of equipment age, capacity and demand, opportunities to improve access and service risk.

Since 2016, approximately £162 million has been invested to replace or upgrade 100 radiotherapy machines, in addition to funding for National Health Service trusts to maintain existing infrastructure. In 2019/20, 11 radiotherapy networks were established in England to improve workforce resilience and increase access to specialist skills and knowledge.

In 2022/23, NHS England is undertaking a review of external beam radiotherapy capacity. This will support local systems to plan radiotherapy provision and allocate system capital allocations appropriately, based on an assessment of equipment age, capacity and demand, opportunities to improve access and service risk.

A search of the Department’s records showed that there had been 34 correspondence cases from the radiotherapy industry, including from charities and parliamentary groups, received within the last 12 months. Ministers within the Department have met with representatives of Radiotherapy UK, along with members of the All Party Parliamentary Group for Radiotherapy, on several occasions within the last 12 months.

We continue to work with local authorities to ensure that suicide prevention action plans remain effective and include at-risk groups, such as veterans.

Local authorities are encouraged to receive updates from the National Health Service which outline initiatives in support of the armed forces community, including information on Op COURAGE. Bereavement support is commissioned locally to meet the need of the local population. NHS England has developed guidance for integrated care boards which requires commissioners to ensure there is sufficient access to bereavement support services.

The ‘Delivery plan for tackling the COVID-19 backlog of elective care’ sets out how the National Health Service will recover and expand elective services over the next three years, including in echocardiography. To increase diagnostic activity and reduce patient waiting times, the Department has committed £2.3 billion for up to 160 community diagnostic centres (CDCs). As of 23 October 2022, CDCs have now completed 54,759 additional echocardiography checks since 13 July 2021.

Following a call for evidence for a new cancer plan held earlier this year, we received approximately 5,000 responses. Further information will be available in due course.

The Department’s clinical advisors have recommended that a clinical trial of Evusheld should be considered to understand the connection between in vitro tests and clinical outcomes for current and future variants and evaluate the effectiveness and safety of a dose of 600 milligrams, which was not tested in randomised controlled trials. We are currently exploring options for such a trial.

The National Health Service cancer programme commissioned an external evaluation of the faster diagnosis programme, including rapid diagnostic centres, for the period until March 2024. The final report will be considered for publication in 2024.

No specific assessment has been made. Further work is required on the safe delivery of the service with an appropriate number of providers to balance patient access with available specialist expertise and infrastructure.

I refer the hon. Members to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for St Albans (Daisy Cooper MP) on 19 July 2022 to Question 33937.

No formal assessment has been made. However, as of 12 June 2022, community diagnostic centres have completed 29,153 additional echocardiography scans.

Cultivated meat is considered a novel food and is therefore subject to an approval process. When a food business submits a novel food application, it will be assessed by the Food Standards Agency (FSA), with Food Standards Scotland (FSS). If the FSA, FSS and Ministers are satisfied the food is safe and appropriate for the market in Great Britain, the food will be approved. At this stage, the FSA and FSS have not received any applications for cultured meat products.

Officials are currently analysing the responses received in the call for evidence to develop the 10 Year Cancer Plan. The Plan will address cancer treatments, including radiotherapy.

The UK Health Security Agency has yet to complete testing on Evusheld’s efficacy against the Omicron variant. The timing of these results is dependent on the testing assays being completed successfully, which will inform any decisions on potential deployment.

The UK Health Security Agency has yet to complete testing on Evusheld’s efficacy against the Omicron variant. The timing of these results is dependent on the testing assays being completed successfully, which will inform any decisions on potential deployment.

This information is not held centrally in the format requested.

In England, 95% of eligible non-hospitalised patients who received an antiviral treatment were treated within five days from the start of COVID-19 symptoms. One such treatment, remdesivir, can be provided within seven days of symptom onset.

The UK Health Security Agency continues to undertake further testing on Evusheld’s effectiveness against the Omicron variants. However, we are currently unable to confirm a timeframe for this process.

The information requested is not held centrally.

On 17 March 2022, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency granted a conditional marketing authorisation for Evusheld. However, this authorisation outlined uncertainties for the treatment, including the length of protection and the dose required for efficacy against the Omicron variant.

It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Any public announcement on the procurement of therapeutics would be made after an agreement is reached with companies, as this information is commercially sensitive. The Department continues to examine the potential introduction of prophylaxis, which includes deployment and administration processes. Any such therapeutic treatment must provide evidence that it is clinically cost-effective, does not contribute to the generation of new variants and demonstrate sufficient efficacy against Omicron and new variants.

The Therapeutics Clinical Review Panel is providing advice on the most appropriate patient cohorts for new COVID-19 therapeutics, including preventive treatments such as Evusheld. Final clinical policies and eligibility would be determined by the National Health Service and the devolved administrations.

Any public announcement on the procurement of therapeutics would be made after an agreement is reached with companies, as this information is commercially sensitive. The Department continues to examine the potential introduction of prophylaxis, which includes deployment and administration processes. Any such therapeutic treatment must provide evidence that it is clinically cost-effective, does not contribute to the generation of new variants and demonstrate sufficient efficacy against Omicron and new variants.

The Therapeutics Clinical Review Panel is providing advice on the most appropriate patient cohorts for new COVID-19 therapeutics, including preventive treatments such as Evusheld. Final clinical policies and eligibility would be determined by the National Health Service and the devolved administrations.

It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

The information requested is not held centrally as the shielding programme ended in September 2021. The Office for National Statistics’ ‘Coronavirus and clinically extremely vulnerable people in England’ survey includes information on the behaviours of clinically extremely vulnerable people and their health and wellbeing, which is available at the following link:

https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/healthandsocialcare/conditionsanddiseases/datasets/coronavirusandclinicallyextremelyvulnerablepeopleinengland

It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

The National Health Service will continue to ensure cardiovascular disease services remain a priority in the updated NHS Long Term Plan, including diagnostic and treatment services for patients with heart failure and heart valve disease. The NHS is investing in cardiac networks to support whole pathway improvements, from prevention, diagnosis, treatment through to end of life care.

No specific assessment has been made.

We are unable to provide the information requested as this is commercially sensitive. Any public announcement would be made after an agreement is reached with companies.

We are unable to provide the information requested as this is commercially sensitive. Any public announcement would be made after an agreement is reached with companies.

The Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) (Amendment) Regulations 2022 will be debated on 8 February 2022. We are reviewing the 2014 Regulations with the Care Quality Commission to identify areas of activity that either need to be brought into or out of scope of Regulations with a view to a further amendment. Once proposals have been finalised, the Department will publish a public consultation asking for views on the proposed amendments to the scope of the 2014 Regulations.

Local authorities should facilitate personalised care in line with their legal duties. The white paper states that personalised care should be the norm, allowing choice, control and support to live independent lives. This includes dietary requirements and preferences where appropriate.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is the independent regulator of health and adult social care providers in England and acts to ensure that providers take account of preferences and religious and cultural backgrounds when providing food and drink. Under Regulation 14 of The Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014, providers must meet any reasonable requirement for people with nutrition and hydration needs arising from their preferences and religious or cultural background. The CQC’s Assessment Framework takes into account the personalisation of care with regards to nutrition where providers are inspected and rated. The CQC has a range or enforcement options it can take against providers who do not comply with the regulations.

Local authorities should facilitate personalised care in line with their legal duties. The white paper sets out that personalised care should be the norm, where people have the choice, control and support they need to live independent lives, can access outstanding quality and tailored care and support and find adult social care fair and accessible.

We expect care providers to be encouraged to allow individuals to take control over the way their care is planned and delivered, which includes dietary requirements and preferences where appropriate. We have no plans to assess the regulatory framework or review the regulations and guidance relating to diet in care.

The Secretary of State for Health and Social Care and the Secretary of State for Education discuss a range of issues related to health and care services. We are working with the Department for Education on the health and care system’s role in the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) system through the SEND Review. We are also looking at how we can improve the provision of and access to health and care services for disabled children.

To ensure that the needs of people with a learning disability have been met during the winter, we have worked with the National Health Service to ensure that the COVID-19 booster and flu vaccination programmes provides appropriate adjustments to encourage uptake. This includes accessible information such as an easy-read vaccination invitation letter and vaccination consent form and a film about the vaccine to support those with a learning disability and autistic people.

NHS England and NHS Improvement continue to support the health and wellbeing of people with a learning disability as part of the national Learning Disability and Autism programme. This includes continuing the provision of annual health checks to people with a learning disability.

General practices will remain open but have been asked to prioritise vaccinations and emergency care for the rest of the year. General practitioners will still be able to refer patients with a heart condition to one of 40 new diagnostic centres to access detection and diagnostic checks closer to home.

General practices will remain open but have been asked to prioritise vaccinations and emergency care for the rest of the year. General practitioners will still be able to refer patients with a heart condition to one of 40 new diagnostic centres to access detection and diagnostic checks closer to home.

Ipsos MORI, in collaboration with the Midlands and Lancashire Commissioning Support Unit and York Health Economics Consortium, have been commissioned to undertake a four year evaluation of the rapid diagnostic centre programme until the end of 2023/24. Throughout the evaluation, Ipsos MORI and their partners will produce quarterly and annual reports. The first annual report will be published shortly. The final report is due in March 2024.

The UK Health Security Agency have noted that B.1.1.529, or Omicron, could potentially have an impact on neutralising monoclonal antibody treatments. However, there is currently no confirmed evidence of reduced efficacy.

Regeneron is evaluating Ronapreve against the Omicron variant. Preliminary analyses from the company suggest that the antibodies in the cocktail may have the potential to retain activity against the Omicron variant, as well as the other existing variants of concern. Further in vitro data is expected over the next month.

On 17 September, Ronapreve was made available to treat the most vulnerable hospital patients in the United Kingdom through an interim clinical policy. This treatment will continue to be available this winter for hospitalised patients.

There will be ongoing monitoring (involving sample collection) of selected patients treated with nMABs (led by UK Health Security Agency). This will include monitoring the efficacy of the treatments against variants. The Therapeutics and Antivirals Taskforce will also keep the evidence under review, including how this could affect immunocompromised patients.

The information is not held in the format requested. Whilst data for Moderna vaccine administrations is collected, information by clinical risk groups is not held centrally.

For those who are severely immunosuppressed, the third primary COVID-19 vaccine dose is recorded as a booster vaccinations. A subsequent booster or fourth dose for eligible severely immunosuppressed patients after a further three months will be recorded as a second booster. Existing data systems support the recording of multiple boosters. All doses administered appear in an individual’s vaccination history and are recorded in the National Immunisation Management System and general practitioner record. An assessment determined that retrospectively updating or amending patient records in the immediate term could risk creating a data quality issue.

For those who are severely immunosuppressed, the third primary COVID-19 vaccine dose is recorded as a booster vaccinations. A subsequent booster or fourth dose for eligible severely immunosuppressed patients after a further three months will be recorded as a second booster. Existing data systems support the recording of multiple boosters. All doses administered appear in an individual’s vaccination history and are recorded in the National Immunisation Management System and general practitioner record. An assessment determined that retrospectively updating or amending patient records in the immediate term could risk creating a data quality issue.

Whether to prescribe any medicine is a clinical decision and the Government has enabled the prescription of cannabis-based products for medicinal use where it is clinically appropriate. The Chief Medical Officer and NHS England have written to doctors and pharmacists to highlight the available guidance on the prescribing and use of unlicensed medicines and to clarify the procedure for prescribing and supplying cannabis-based products for medicinal use. Health Education England has also published an e-learning module on medicinal cannabis.

The licensed cannabis-based medicine Epidyolex is prescribed and routinely funded by the National Health Service for Dravet syndrome and Lennox-Gastaut syndrome. The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency has recently approved Epidyolex for a third form of epilepsy and it is now being assessed by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) for this indication. The licensed medicine Sativex is also routinely funded to treat moderate to severe spasticity in adults with multiple sclerosis. On 6 September, NHS England issued a reminder to clinical commissioning groups of NICE’s guidance relating to Sativex and will be monitoring its uptake.

The latest NICE guidelines demonstrate a clear need for more evidence to support routine prescribing and funding decisions for unlicensed cannabis-based products on the NHS. The Government continues to support the establishment of clinical trials with NHS England and NHS Improvement and the National Institute for Health Research and from 1 April introduced a national patient registry to record patient outcomes. Since January 2020, the Refractory Epilepsy Specialist Clinical Advisory Service has been in place to provide advice and support for doctors to optimise the treatment of refractory epilepsy.

I have responsibility for policy relating to people who are immunosuppressed during the COVID-19 outbreak. For NHS England and NHS Improvement, the Chief Executive has this responsibility.

The data requested is not available in the format requested. Daily data currently combines the total number of booster vaccinations and third primary doses, which is available at the following link:

https://coronavirus.data.gov.uk/details/vaccinations

There are currently no plans to publish this data in a daily format. All individuals who have severe immunosuppression, including as a result of blood cancer, are eligible for their third primary dose of COVID-19 vaccine.

An interim clinical policy for Ronapreve (casirivimab and imdevimab) was published on 17 September 2021 and updated on 4 November. Since September 2021, over 1,200 patients in England have received this treatment.

NHS England and NHS Improvement collect information from trusts on usage based on the criteria set out in the policy for treatment of patients hospitalised due to COVID-19. The data collection is not designed to identify the number of such patients who have blood cancer. The information on the number of patients treated in each clinical commissioning group area and in each week is not currently available.

All those with immunosuppression aged 16 years old and over living in the United Kingdom have been offered a second primary dose of COVID-19 vaccine. Immunosuppressed children aged 12 to 15 years old have also now been offered a second primary dose. The offer of first primary doses to immunosuppressed children aged five to 11 years old commenced on 31 January 2022. Vaccination data for those with blood cancer is not held in the format requested.

As of 20 February 2022, data for those formerly regarded as clinically extremely vulnerable, which includes the immunosuppressed and those with blood cancer, shows an uptake rate of over 93.9% for a second primary dose.

All people with a cancer diagnosis, including those with a less survivable cancer, are invited to complete the Cancer Quality of Life Survey. This is an initiative aimed specifically at supporting long term survivorship. For cancer patients who sadly do not survive for 18 months from diagnosis other approaches to assessing their experience, such as the Cancer Patient Experience Survey, will be more appropriate.

The Cancer Patient Experience Survey captures experiences from people treated for cancer, including those with less survivable cancers. Due to the need for statistical robustness, there is a time lag between the experience of treatment and the issue of the survey questionnaires. The Picker Institute reviewed the survey in 2018 and revised guidance to trusts to streamline preparations for the survey, ensured consistency in fieldwork across trusts to reduce delays in data collection and centralised checks on survey samples.

The national cancer quality of life survey in England was launched in September 2020 to introduce an innovative quality of life metric to track and respond to the long-term impact of cancer. The first report of the survey was published on 26 October 2021 and is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/cancer-quality-of-life-survey-summary-report-first-data-release-october-2021/

The Cancer Patient Experience Survey captures experiences from people treated for cancer, including those with less survivable cancers. Due to the need for statistical robustness, there is a time lag between the experience of treatment and the issue of the survey questionnaires. The Picker Institute reviewed the survey in 2018 and revised guidance to trusts to streamline preparations for the survey, ensured consistency in fieldwork across trusts to reduce delays in data collection and centralised checks on survey samples.

The national cancer quality of life survey in England was launched in September 2020 to introduce an innovative quality of life metric to track and respond to the long-term impact of cancer. The first report of the survey was published on 26 October 2021 and is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/cancer-quality-of-life-survey-summary-report-first-data-release-october-2021/

Immunocompromised individuals are a priority cohort for research into therapeutic and prophylaxis treatments, such as monoclonal antibody therapies and repurposed compounds. The Antivirals Taskforce is also identifying potential effective treatments for patients who have been exposed to the virus to stop the infection spreading and speed up recovery time. The National Health Service is also developing plans to deploy monoclonal antibody therapies if these become available in coming months.

As of 17 September, Ronapreve was made available to treat the most vulnerable hospital patients through an interim clinical policy. We anticipate that further monoclonal antibodies will be submitted for evaluation for a marketing authorisation by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency in the next few months. If approved, these could become available for community treatment or prevention use. On 20 October the Department announced the procurement of two promising new antivirals, with the intention to make these available to patients as part of a national study.

The National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) has supported 15 studies on monoclonal antibodies and other therapies for immunocompromised and immunosuppressed groups, including cell therapy and the use of probiotics. Twelve of these studies are now complete and three are ongoing. All NIHR-funded research is expected to be published in peer-reviewed, open access journals once completed to promote translation into patient care where appropriate.