Jill Mortimer

Further to my oral statement on Monday 31 January (column 46), crime, excluding fraud and computer misuse, is down by 17% since June 2019 according to the latest official statistics. That is why we are also determined to tackle the threat of fraud and economic crime. Action we have already taken includes: publishing a landmark Economic Crime Plan; creating a new National Economic Crime Centre; introducing new powers for law enforcement, such as unexplained wealth orders; committing £400 million over the next three years to crack down on economic crime; implementing a public register of overseas beneficial company ownership - the first major economy in the world to do so; and committing to a register of overseas beneficial property ownership – the first country in the world to do so. And, as I said, we are committed to bringing forward an Economic Crime Bill.

The Government expects landlords with a domestic electricity connection who charge ‘all inclusive’ rent, where tenants’ energy costs are included in their rental charges, to ensure that the £400 energy bill reduction is passed on to tenants.

The Government is aware that not all households have their electricity provided through a domestic electricity supply contract, and this includes park home residents. Households without a domestic electricity supply contract are not eligible for the scheme and the Government is exploring options for other ways in which they might receive similar support. Responses to the Technical Energy Bills Support Scheme consultation are being analysed and the Government response will be published later in the summer.

We have deployed specialist community perinatal mental health services in England. The NHS Long Term Plan committed to improve the safety, quality and continuity of care and allow an additional 24,000 women to access specialist perinatal mental health care by 2023/24. This will also be available from preconception to 24 months after birth to provide an additional year of support.

We are expanding access to psychological and talking therapies within specialist perinatal mental health services. A further 33 maternal mental health services will integrate psychological therapy, maternity services and reproductive health for women who have mental health needs following trauma or loss related to their maternity experience. These will be available in England by March 2024.

We have also invested £100 million in perinatal mental health and parent-infant relationship support, through the Start for Life and Family Hub programme for 75 upper tier local authorities in England. This will improve access to early intervention to support the wellbeing and mental health of parents and carers.

The government recognises that cash remains an important part of daily life for millions of people across the UK, and remains committed to legislating to protect access to cash.

From 1 July to 23 September last year, the government held the Access to Cash Consultation on proposals for new laws to make sure people only need to travel a reasonable distance to pay in or take out cash. The government’s proposals intend to support the continued use of cash in people’s daily lives and help to enable local businesses to continue accepting cash by ensuring they can access deposit facilities.

The government received responses to the consultation from a broad range of respondents, including individuals, businesses, and charities. The government has carefully considered responses to the consultation and will set out next steps in due course.

Domestic energy customers will receive the discount regardless of their type of payment method. There are a number of different options for those on pre-payment meters to receive the £200 reduction on their energy bills this autumn.

37 per cent of pre-payment customers have remotely accessible smart meters and therefore will be able to receive the smoothing reduction automatically. For the 63 per cent who do not have remotely accessible smart meters (2.6 million households, or less than 10 per cent of overall households), they can receive their reduction via either a voucher issued via email/post, a Special Action Message (SAM) to outlets where a customer normally tops up, or via a cheque in the post. The Coalition Government took the same approach with their Electricity Rebate Scheme in 2013.

The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) will work closely with industry and consumer groups on how best to deliver this policy, including through a public consultation in the Spring.