Asked by: Ian Sollom (Liberal Democrat - St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, for each of the 16 apprenticeship standards being defunded, how many starts in 2024-25 were by people aged under 25.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
Apprenticeship starts for the 2024/25 academic year by standard and age are published here: Apprenticeships, Academic year 2024/25 - Explore education statistics - GOV.UK.
Over the past 10 years, apprenticeship starts among young people have fallen sharply. Starts for 16–24-year-olds have declined by 40%, and over half of all apprenticeship starts are now by learners aged over 25, many of which are at higher levels. This has happened at a time when we have seen the number of young people who are NEET (not in education, employment or training) increase to nearly one million.
The changes to streamline the apprenticeship offer will help to create headroom to invest in opportunities for young people and new apprenticeship units. An equalities impact assessment was undertaken and concluded that any potential negative impacts that could arise were proportionate to our legitimate aim of rebalancing funding towards young people, delivering growth, and better aligning the programme with the Youth Guarantee and the Industrial Strategy.
Asked by: Ian Sollom (Liberal Democrat - St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether an impact assessment was carried out before the decision to defund 16 apprenticeship standards.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
Apprenticeship starts for the 2024/25 academic year by standard and age are published here: Apprenticeships, Academic year 2024/25 - Explore education statistics - GOV.UK.
Over the past 10 years, apprenticeship starts among young people have fallen sharply. Starts for 16–24-year-olds have declined by 40%, and over half of all apprenticeship starts are now by learners aged over 25, many of which are at higher levels. This has happened at a time when we have seen the number of young people who are NEET (not in education, employment or training) increase to nearly one million.
The changes to streamline the apprenticeship offer will help to create headroom to invest in opportunities for young people and new apprenticeship units. An equalities impact assessment was undertaken and concluded that any potential negative impacts that could arise were proportionate to our legitimate aim of rebalancing funding towards young people, delivering growth, and better aligning the programme with the Youth Guarantee and the Industrial Strategy.
Asked by: Ian Sollom (Liberal Democrat - St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many of the 500,000 opportunities announced on 16 March 2026 comprise (a) apprenticeships, (b) subsidised jobs, (c) work experience placements and (d) sector-based work academy programmes.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
This Government will not leave an entire generation of young people behind. For many years our young people have not had the opportunity and support they deserve. Under the last government, between 2021 and 2024, the number of young people not in education, employment or training increased by 250,000.
The Government has recently announced a further £1 billion investment in young people, taking the total investment to £2.5 billion over the next three years though the Youth Guarantee and additional investment in the Growth and Skills Levy. This investment will support almost one million young people and create up to 500,000 opportunities to earn and learn.
The more detailed breakdown of the 500,000 opportunities have been published on GOV.UK, as follows:
Together these measures demonstrate the Government’s commitment to backing young people, supporting employers, and working with partners across Great Britain to create clear pathways into employment and education for young people.
Asked by: Ian Sollom (Liberal Democrat - St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when is his estimated date for publishing publish funding rates, duration and assessment arrangements for each of the seven apprenticeship units due to launch in April 2026.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
Following the announcement we will be carrying out further testing with critical stakeholders to confirm details, including funding rates and delivery hours, are set at the right level. We want to ensure the final figures are robust and reflect sector needs.
The details will be made available on the Skills England website in April 2026.
Asked by: Ian Sollom (Liberal Democrat - St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he is taking to ensure that the public have adequate routes of appeal to raise complaints about their pensions.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
Members of the public have access to independent routes of appeal regarding pension maladministration through the Pensions Ombudsman (TPO). TPO operates independently to deliver its statutory responsibilities. The Department works closely with TPO to support the effective delivery of its functions and to ensure individuals can access appropriate routes of redress.
Determinations made by the Pensions Ombudsman are legally binding. Parties may appeal to the High Court on a point of law. Complaints about the Ombudsman’s service, as distinct from case determinations, can be made through its internal complaints process and, if unresolved, referred to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman through a Member of Parliament.
Consumers wishing to raise complaints regarding financial services firms, including pension providers, that are regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority can do so via the Financial Ombudsman Service.
Asked by: Ian Sollom (Liberal Democrat - St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent assessment he has made of the implications of his policies of recommendation 3a of the Public Administration Committee's fifty-seventh Report of Session 2022-23 on reviewing ombudsman arrangements to ensure that all aspects of people's interactions with their pensions have an adequate route of appeal.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Department’s view remains that the Pensions Ombudsman has acted within his statutory remit in considering complaints related to the AEA Technology (AEAT) pension scheme.
These matters have been subject to extensive scrutiny over the past decade, including debates in Parliament. Considering that scrutiny, the Government will not be proceeding with a review of the Pensions Ombudsman at this time.
Asked by: Ian Sollom (Liberal Democrat - St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what her Department's proposed timetable is for responding to the A Fairer Pathway to Settlement consultation.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The consultation for the earned settlement model, as proposed in ‘A Fairer Pathway to Settlement’, was open to the public between 20 November 2025 and 12 February 2026. Working at pace, the contributions will now be analysed, and the findings will support the development of the final model. The public will be informed when a response is produced.
Economic and equality impact assessments will be conducted on the final model and published in due course.
Asked by: Ian Sollom (Liberal Democrat - St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of the availability of Communication Support Workers for deaf (a) school, (b) college and (c) university students.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The department does not hold information or data on the availability of Communication Support Workers, or their qualification levels in British Sign Language.
However, all education and training providers, as well as other related service providers, have duties under the Equality Act 2010 towards individual disabled children and young people. They must make reasonable adjustments, including the provision of auxiliary aids and services for disabled children, to prevent them being put at a substantial disadvantage.
Asked by: Ian Sollom (Liberal Democrat - St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what information her Department holds on the qualification levels in British Sign Language of Communication Support Workers working with deaf (a) school, (b) college and (c) university students.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The department does not hold information or data on the availability of Communication Support Workers, or their qualification levels in British Sign Language.
However, all education and training providers, as well as other related service providers, have duties under the Equality Act 2010 towards individual disabled children and young people. They must make reasonable adjustments, including the provision of auxiliary aids and services for disabled children, to prevent them being put at a substantial disadvantage.
Asked by: Ian Sollom (Liberal Democrat - St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what progress his department has made on the implementation of the Child Support (Enforcement) Act 2023 in England and Wales.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
Work is ongoing to implement Administrative Liability Orders (ALO).
While Child Maintenance is reserved, enforcement of CM arrears in Scotland requires using the Scottish judicial system, which is devolved.
We are working closely with HM Courts and Tribunals Service and the Scottish Government to ensure enforcement action resulting from ALOs operates effectively across the UK, and plan to introduce regulations to Parliament to implement the measures across England, Scotland and Wales, as soon as possible.