Asked by: Jo White (Labour - Bassetlaw)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what information her Department holds on Serco’s compliance with Asylum Accommodation and Support Contracts requirements for each of the last five years.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office holds detailed information on the compliance of its contractors with the requirements set out in Schedule 2 of the Asylum Accommodation and Support Contracts (AASC). The Home Office monitors Serco’s performance through a robust performance management framework. Performance data is published periodically and includes performance against key contractual obligations and key performance indicators.
Asked by: Jo White (Labour - Bassetlaw)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many financial penalties her Department has applied to Serco for underperformance on its Asylum Accommodation and Support Contracts in each of the last five years.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office applies Service Credits as per the contracts performance management framework, but disclosure of this information is commercially sensitive.
Asked by: Jo White (Labour - Bassetlaw)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of providing temporary blue badges to people recovering from operations.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Blue Badge scheme is primarily about helping people with a long-term disability, that affects their capacity to access the goods and services they need to use. Anyone may be entitled to a badge if they meet the eligibility criteria.
The Department has issued local authorities with advice on how they could use existing powers to provide locally determined parking concessions within their areas. For example, some local authorities grant parking concessions to assist their elderly residents. The same powers could be used to help those with temporary disabilities.
Asked by: Jo White (Labour - Bassetlaw)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, with reference to paragraph 3.71 of the Autumn Budget 2024, published on 30 October 2024, HC 295, what support will be provided for fusion energy research in financial year 2025-26.
Answered by Kerry McCarthy - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
On 16th January 2025, the Government announced £410 million investment to accelerate development of fusion energy and kickstart economic growth as part of its Plan for Change. The funding will support the rapid development of the UK fusion energy sector over 2025 to 2026 with investment in the skills needed for scientists, engineers, welders and programme managers to enter the cutting-edge industry. Fusion already supports thousands of jobs in the UK, with thousands more to follow as the technology advances.
Asked by: Jo White (Labour - Bassetlaw)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what progress she has made on introducing tooth brushing lessons in primary schools.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department is working with the Department of Health and Social Care to help promote and deliver supervised toothbrushing programmes for 3 to 5-year-olds in the most deprived communities.
The department recognises that prevention is better than cure. For this reason, we will be targeting the areas of highest need to have the greatest impact on young children’s oral health.
Further information on the implementation timetable will be confirmed in due course.
Currently all state-funded schools in England are required to teach about good oral hygiene as part of the statutory health education set out within relationships, sex and health education statutory guidance. Independent schools are required to cover health education as part of their responsibility to provide personal, social, health and economic education.
Asked by: Jo White (Labour - Bassetlaw)
Question
To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what steps the Government is taking to help tackle misogyny on social media platforms.
Answered by Anneliese Dodds - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Online Safety Act requires services to protect all users from illegal misogynistic content, and children from harmful misogynistic content including content which is violent, hateful or abusive.
The largest services (category 1) will also need to remove misogynistic content prohibited in their terms of service and have effective, accessible mechanisms to report abuse.
Asked by: Jo White (Labour - Bassetlaw)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many employers who (a) pay and (b) do not pay the apprenticeship levy started new learners on apprenticeship programmes in the 2023-24 financial year.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The below table shows the number of apprenticeship service employers accounts with apprenticeship starts in the 2023/24 academic year.
Employer Type | 2023/24 |
Levy | 13,157 |
Non-levy | 57,017 |
Total | 70,174 |
The figures are for the number of employer accounts instead of employers. An employer may have more than one apprenticeship service employer account.
Asked by: Jo White (Labour - Bassetlaw)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to encourage the public to buy British produce.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This Government will always back British farmers who produce some of the highest quality food in the world, contribute billions to our economy, and are the custodians of our countryside. We want more people to be able to access nutritious, and locally sourced food.
Our ambition, set out in our election manifesto, is for half of all food supplied into the public sector to be from local British producers, or certified to higher environmental standards whilst being in line with World Trade Organisation and domestic procurement obligations.
The department strongly supports retailer efforts to promote British food. Defra officials regularly engage with major supermarkets to understand their work to promote British produce.
In addition, the Government currently protects 93 British food and drink product names through its Geographical Indications schemes and welcomes further applications from British producers. Consumers can find these products with unique links to Britain’s gastronomic heritage by looking out for the black and gold ‘Protected Designation of Origin’, ‘Protected Geographical Origin,’ and ‘Traditional Specialty Guaranteed’ logos.
Asked by: Jo White (Labour - Bassetlaw)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, which integrated care boards have reimbursed dental practices for up to 110% of General Dental Services contracts.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
In the 2023/24 financial year, 37 integrated care boards (ICBs) reimbursed at least one dental practice for over 100%, and up to 110%, of their General Dental Services contract value. These ICBs are as follows:
Asked by: Jo White (Labour - Bassetlaw)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what guidance her Department provides on the potential sanctions available to local authorities in instances when councillors are found to have breached an authority's code of conduct; and whether she plans to re-establish the Standards Board for England with sanction powers in including (a) suspension and (b) disqualification from office for serious breaches.
Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government considers that the current local government standards regime is broadly ineffectual, inconsistently applied, and lacking in adequate powers to effectively sanction members found in serious breach of their codes of conduct.
We are actively considering options to strengthen the standards regime for local government and provide councils with more effective means to address serious misconduct by elected members, including a proposal to allow for the suspension of members who violate codes of conduct. We will be consulting with local authorities, sector representative bodies, and other key stakeholders in due course to ensure a wide range of views are heard.