John McNally

The Government is committed to ensuring fair energy prices for consumers. The Government introduced the Domestic Gas and Electricity (Tariff Cap) Act, which requires the energy regulator Ofgem to cap standard variable and default energy tariffs in 2019. The Energy Price Cap will remain in place at least till the end of 2022 to protect millions of customers and ensure they pay a fair price for their energy.

Storage plays an important role in providing system flexibility in responding to short-term changes in supply and demand. The purpose of storage is to top-up supply when demand is high.

Norway is a significant, longstanding and reliable gas supplier to the UK with supply based on commercial arrangements between buyers and sellers. Current gas prices are high for many reasons including rebounding global demand as COVID-19 lockdowns ease; greater LNG demand in Asia; upstream maintenance affecting supply capacity over summer, and higher demand for gas in electricity generation on the Continent as coal is disincentivised.

The Department regularly engages with the devolved administrations and officials on a variety of issues.

Achieving our net zero target must be a shared endeavour. As we work to kickstart our economy and building back greener from the pandemic, we are setting out bold policies in place. For instance, my Rt. Hon. Friend the Prime Minister’s Ten Point Plan brings together £12 billion of government investment to support up to 250,000 green jobs by 2030. It is green jobs such as these, that many young people have expressed a preference to work in.

Global appetite for climate action has never been bigger and young people play a vital role in harnessing this appetite to drive forward real-world action. This is why we have set up an International COP26 Civil Society and Youth Advisory Council, so that we can hear the views of young people. In addition, our dedicated COP26 youth engagement team continue to meet with diverse young climate leaders to involve them in our planning for COP26.

I regularly meet with representatives from those industries, as part of my frequent engagement with stakeholders from across the retail and consumer goods sectors. The last such meeting took place on 9 February where both the economic recovery from Covid-19 and the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement were discussed.

The Government recognises the significant contribution of the UK’s world-leading fashion and textiles sector to the UK economy, and is committed to supporting it.

I last spoke with various representatives from the UK fashion industry, including the UK Fashion and Textiles Association (UKFT), on the effect of the Trade and Cooperation agreement on 9 February.

Across Government, we have recently held specific workshops for Retail & Consumer Goods stakeholders as well as a webinar with the British Fashion Council (BFC) on key Trade and Cooperation Agreement issues including Rules of Origin.

We are also working closely with UKFT on guidance and case study examples for businesses to help them understand and adapt to new requirements.

The Government has already legislated to deliver net zero emissions in the UK, becoming the first major economy to do so, and is working closely with Ofgem, the independent energy regulator, and industry to support the transition to a smarter, more flexible energy system. In April 2019, National Grid Electricity System Operator (ESO) announced it will be able to fully operate Great Britain’s electricity system with zero carbon by 2025. The ability to operate a zero-carbon electricity system in 2025 is a major stepping stone to full decarbonisation of the entire electricity system in 2050.

Following the power disruption that occurred on 9^th August 2019, the Energy Emergencies Executive Committee (E3C) conducted a review of the incident to identify lessons learnt and put in place a robust action plan for the prevention of similar disruptions occurring and the management of future power disruptions.

The E3C’s report and 10 recommendations were published on 03 January, alongside the finding from Ofgem’s investigation, and work continues at pace to implement the action plan in full.

On completion of these actions, any significant changes to improve the resilience of the network will be agreed by Ofgem and factored into industry price controls to ensure they are allocated sufficient funding and resources.

Network charging is a matter for Ofgem as the independent regulator. Ofgem is leading two major charging reforms: the Targeted Charging Review; and Access and Forward Looking Charges Significant Code Review (Access SCR). Collectively, this programme of work seeks to ensure that regulatory and market arrangements reflect and enable the energy system transition, as we move towards net zero emissions, and that consumers benefit from the changes.

The Access SCR is most relevant to localised electricity grids. It seeks to ensure electricity networks are used efficiently and flexibly, reflecting users’ needs and allowing consumers to benefit from new technologies and services while avoiding unnecessary costs on energy bills. Ofgem published illustrative examples to help explain the potential benefits of its reforms to different users, including a wind generator and local energy scheme (available at: https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/system/files/docs/2019/12/winter_2019_-_working_paper_-_illustrative_examples_note_publish.pdf). It will be publishing a full impact assessment, alongside its minded-to decision on its proposed changes under the Access SCR, later this year.

In his speech of June 30, the Prime Minister made clear that in recovering from COVID-19, we must build back better, build back greener, build back faster, and to do that at the pace that this moment requires. Our economy must be greener, more sustainable, and more resilient.

The UK has shown that growing our economy and cutting emissions can be achieved at the same time. We have grown our economy by 75% while cutting emissions by 43% over the past three decades. The UK has over 460,000 jobs in low carbon businesses and their supply chains and many of the actions we need to take to reach our target of net zero emissions by 2050 will support jobs and growth across the UK.

The Government announced an ambitious support package for our low carbon economy at the Spring budget, including £800m fund for Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) and £1bn in support for ultra-low emission vehicles infrastructure. In his 30 June speech, my Rt. Hon. Friend the Prime Minister announced further measures including up to £100m of new funding to research and develop Direct Air Capture (DAC) technology; a Green Recovery Challenge Fund of up to £40m to kick start a programme of nature-based projects to address the twin challenges of halting biodiversity loss and tackling climate change; and, recommitting to planting 30,000 hectares of trees every year by 2025.

On July 8, my Rt. Hon. Friend Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer delivered an economic update setting out the next stage in our plan to support the UK’s recovery from the pandemic. The Government announced an additional £3 billion green investment to create thousands of green jobs and upgrade buildings. This includes £50m to demonstrate innovative approaches to retrofitting social housing at scale, to start the decarbonisation of social housing over 20/21; a £2 billion ‘Green Homes Grant’ to help people improve the efficiency of their homes accelerating progress towards net zero, while supporting jobs and reducing energy bills; and, £1 billion investment over the next year in a new Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme to upgrade public sector buildings, including schools and hospitals, making them fit to help meet net zero with energy efficiency and low carbon heat measures.

We will continue to build on this even further and deliver a stronger, greener, more sustainable economy after this pandemic. The Government will continue to set out further measures as part of its green agenda in the run up to COP26 in November 2021.

Energy network companies, which transport energy to homes and businesses, are regulated by the independent energy regulator, Ofgem, to ensure that they adequately maintain a safe and secure network whilst investing for the future and ensuring a fair price for consumers. In order to do this, Ofgem uses price controls to determine the revenues network companies may recover, the investment they may make and the performance standards they must deliver. Energy network companies are subject to price controls because they are regional monopolies and customers do not generally have a choice of provider.

Energy suppliers are charged by network companies for the costs they incur in building, maintaining and operating the energy network, and suppliers pass on these costs to their customers. Ofgem will ensure – through its regulatory framework – that energy networks will be able to deliver our net zero target, while keeping costs down for consumers. Government will continue to engage with Ofgem on these issues.

Defra plans to consult on potential reforms to the batteries regulations to help address this issue by the end of the year.

Waste regulation is a devolved matter. Following our consultation on reform of the waste exemptions regime in England and Wales we plan to remove the T9 exemption for the recovery of scrap metal and the U16 exemption for using vehicle parts dismantled from end-of life vehicles. These operations will now require an environmental permit.

My Department has made no assessment of the potential impact of waste crime on the waste and recycling sector or the UK economy. Research for the Environmental Services Association (Counting the Cost of UK Waste Crime, 2021) estimated that waste crime costs the economy in England £924 million in 2018/19.

The Government has provided an additional £10 million per year for the Environment Agency to tackle waste crime. This additional funding has been invested into three key areas of waste crime – tackling illegal waste sites, illegal dumping and illegal exports.

Waste regulation is a devolved matter. Following our consultation on reform of the waste exemptions regime in England and Wales we plan to remove the T9 exemption for the recovery of scrap metal and the U16 exemption for using vehicle parts dismantled from end-of life vehicles. These operations will now require an environmental permit.

My Department has made no assessment of the potential impact of waste crime on the waste and recycling sector or the UK economy. Research for the Environmental Services Association (Counting the Cost of UK Waste Crime, 2021) estimated that waste crime costs the economy in England £924 million in 2018/19.

The Government has provided an additional £10 million per year for the Environment Agency to tackle waste crime. This additional funding has been invested into three key areas of waste crime – tackling illegal waste sites, illegal dumping and illegal exports.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Crawley, on 16 January 2023, PQ UIN 110660.

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.

The Commission announced their intention to propose harmonised EU Extended Producer Responsibility rules for textiles as part of the revision of the Waste Framework Directive and we look forward to seeing these final proposals and will consider how they might fit with our own independent regulatory framework.

The Government’s 2018 Resources & Waste Strategy for England identified textiles as a priority sector for action. A key part of this strategy is working with the textiles industry to reduce their environmental impact. We have brought major retailers together to commit to reducing carbon and water footprints through our Textiles 2030 programme and we are currently looking into both near and longer-term policies to reduce textiles waste.

The Government has made it clear that water companies must urgently tackle sewage overflows. This is set out in the Storm Overflows Reduction Plan, which represents the largest investment programme in water company history. Through increased monitoring and reporting requirements introduced in the Environment Act 2021, and priorities set through Ofwat as part of the Strategic Policy Statement to Ofwat, regulators and government will hold water companies to account. The Environment Agency and Ofwat have recently launched the largest criminal and civil investigations into water company sewage discharges ever, at over 2200 treatment works, following new data coming to light as a result of increased monitoring. Since 2015, the Environment Agency and Ofwat have brought 59 prosecutions against water companies, securing fines of over £144 million.

Water companies have performance commitments set by Ofwat that they need to meet. These include leakage and wastewater treatment work compliance. They face automatic financial penalties when these are missed. In November, Ofwat announced that almost £135 million would be returned to customers as a result of companies underperforming against their performance commitments.

The Government is committed to ensuring that the water industry offers a stable, predictable and transparent charging regime for bulk supply and discharge.

We updated our charging guidance to Ofwat in 2016 and provided further supplementary guidance to the regulator in 2018. It can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/water-industry-charging-guidance-to-ofwat

Ofwat, the independent economic regulator for the water industry in England and Wales, must have regard to our guidance in their regulation of water companies in England. They set out how they regulate bulk supply and discharge charges in their charging rules. Ofwat's charging rules were updated last year, taking effect in April 2022. These updates simplified the publishing deadlines for charges and introduced a new requirement on English water companies to use standardised terms and worked examples in their charging arrangements for developer services.

Bulk supply and discharge charging guidance is a devolved matter in Wales and Scotland. Welsh government’s charging guidance to Ofwat can be found at Water charging guidance | GOV.WALES

Scottish government’s charging guidance is issued directly by Scottish Water, and can be found at Microsoft Word - Part 1 Wholesale Charges Scheme 2022-23 - Non TC - Jan 4.2% (scottishwater.co.uk)

The UK's International Climate Finance delivered by BEIS, FCDO, and Defra, supports developing nations to adapt and build resilience to the effects of climate change including through improved protecting and restoring nature, improving food security, water management and preparedness against climate-related disasters. At COP27 the Prime Minister announced the UK will triple our funding on adaptation from £500 million in 2019 to £1.5 billion in 2025. In addition, in partnership with the Champions Group of Adaptation Finance, the UK and other climate finance providers are collaborating with low income climate vulnerable countries, to address barriers to increasing flows, quality, effectiveness and accessibility of adaptation finance, including to the poorest people and communities who are already suffering the most from climate change.

We will capture glass under Extended Producer Responsibility for packaging and continue to collect and recycle high levels from the kerbside. We assess this will deliver a UK recycling rate for all glass packaging of 84% by 2033.

Ministers and officials have been engaging with industry groups and interested stakeholders - and continue to do so - on many of the measures set out in the Action Plan for Animal Welfare, including reforms relating to not advertising or offering for sale, here, activities involving unacceptable practices abroad.

The Government considers that reputable and responsible tour operators here should not be advertising or offering attractions, activities, or experiences abroad that involve the unacceptable treatment of animals. The Association of British Travel Agents has published guidelines and lists activities which have been classified as unacceptable.

In addition, the Advertising Standards Association regulates online advertising in the UK and has issued advice about featuring animals in marketing communications.

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 Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) label is a voluntary initiative and operates independently of the Government. Defra has no plans to take forward an assessment of the accessibility of the MSC label to small-scale fisheries.

Further to the Government's response to the Environmental Audit Committee's 'Sustainable Seas' report of 2019, Defra continues to encourage non-governmental organisations and individuals to participate in the frequent stakeholder consultations that MSC holds. The MSC standard has evolved positively over time and constructive comments will help ensure this continues to happen.

The Government is fully committed to sustainable fishing. Fisheries Management Plans will be a key tool through which we will work with industry to improve the sustainability and management of our fisheries, making it easier for the fishing sector then to secure independent accreditation if they wish to do so. We are actively discussing this issue with stakeholders across the seafood sector as part of the public consultation on the draft Joint Fisheries Statement.

The Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) label is a voluntary initiative and operates independently of the Government. Defra has no plans to take forward an assessment of the accessibility of the MSC label to small-scale fisheries.

Further to the Government's response to the Environmental Audit Committee's 'Sustainable Seas' report of 2019, Defra continues to encourage non-governmental organisations and individuals to participate in the frequent stakeholder consultations that MSC holds. The MSC standard has evolved positively over time and constructive comments will help ensure this continues to happen.

The Government is fully committed to sustainable fishing. Fisheries Management Plans will be a key tool through which we will work with industry to improve the sustainability and management of our fisheries, making it easier for the fishing sector then to secure independent accreditation if they wish to do so. We are actively discussing this issue with stakeholders across the seafood sector as part of the public consultation on the draft Joint Fisheries Statement.

We recognise that accidental bycatch in fisheries is one of the greatest threats faced by sensitive marine species such as dolphins and seabirds, and we remain fully committed to tackling this issue. The Fisheries Act 2020 and Joint Fisheries Statement have an “ecosystem objective” which includes an objective to minimise and, where possible, eliminate incidental catches of sensitive marine species.

Since 2020, Defra has funded Clean Catch UK, a research programme which is developing and trialling a range of bycatch monitoring and mitigation measures in Cornwall (a known high-risk area for sensitive species bycatch). This programme has developed a bycatch self-reporting mobile application validated by observers and electronic monitoring and an online ‘Bycatch Mitigation Hub’ with information on different approaches to reduce bycatch. In addition, we are working with the fishing industry to trial various innovative technologies to reduce cetacean bycatch.

The UK Government funds a comprehensive and well-respected bycatch monitoring programme which provides essential observer data on incidents of sensitive species bycatch. The programme focusses primarily on gear types with a high expected or known risk of sensitive species bycatch. A new contract for the bycatch monitoring programme is expected to begin in April 2022.

We recognise that accidental bycatch in fisheries is one of the greatest threats faced by sensitive marine species such as dolphins and seabirds, and we remain fully committed to tackling this issue. The Fisheries Act 2020 and Joint Fisheries Statement (JFS) have an “ecosystem objective” which includes an objective to minimise and, where possible, eliminate incidental catches of sensitive marine species.

The JFS is out to consultation until 12 April 2022. After the consultation, we will summarise the responses and place this summary on the UK Government and all devolved administrations’ websites.

In the Government’s Resources & Waste Strategy we committed to provide consumers with better information on products when they purchase items, such as textiles and clothing. Our draft Waste Prevention Programme for England published in March 2021 identified textiles as one of seven key sectors for action and outlined the steps we are taking to improve information.

Through our landmark Environment Act 2021 we have powers to require better information on the resource efficiency of products to enable informed consumer choice.

We will be assessing options this year on what type of information would best support more sustainable purchasing decisions for textiles products, before making decisions. We are also providing funding to the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) to update their environmental footprint modelling tool later this year, working with industry signatories to the Textiles 2030 scheme. This will increase the level, availability and transparency of data relating to carbon emissions across the life cycle of garments.

Approximately 921,000 tonnes of used textiles are disposed of in household residual waste in the UK each year, with a further 620,000 tonnes sent for reuse and recycling.

These figures do not include commercial textiles waste from brands/retailers UK operations.

The Government's Resources & Waste Strategy identified textiles as a priority for consideration for an Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) scheme. EPR works to ensure producers, rather than taxpayers, pay the costs of their products when they become waste – and incentivise them to cut waste and make their products more sustainable and easier to recycle. Research is underway and we will engage stakeholders on options by the end of 2022.

Government worked closely with WRAP on the Sustainable Clothing Action Plan (SCAP) 2020 and to develop and launch the ambitious new voluntary agreement, Textiles 2030

Building on the success of SCAP, Textiles 2030 was launched in April 2021 and we are pleased that within six months 92 signatories have joined, including ASOS, Boohoo, Dunelm, John Lewis, M&S, New Look, Next, Primark, Sainsbury’s, Ted Baker and Tesco. 62% of all clothing put on the UK market is represented by Textiles 2030 members. The new initiative is underpinned by ambitious targets including halving the carbon footprint of new products by 50% and reducing the water footprint by 30%, both by 2030.

Defra ministers have been proactively engaging with industry to drive participation in both SCAP (now closed) and now Textiles 2030. This included chairing a roundtable with industry in February 2021 ahead of the launch of Textiles 2030 and events to mark the 6-month celebration of Textiles 2030 and closing of SCAP in October last year.

We are now working closely with Textiles 2030 to support our policy development.

The Climate Change Objective in the Fisheries Act ensures that future fisheries management policy will mitigate against the effects of fishing on climate change, as well as adapting to any future impacts of climate change. Fisheries administrations will introduce legally binding policies, for example, to mitigate and reduce emissions, to achieve this objective in the Joint Fisheries Statement.

In addition, UK Fisheries Authorities will develop Fisheries Management Plans (FMPs) which will set out in detail the management measures needed for sustainable harvesting and measures to minimise the impact of fishing activity on the environment. Plans will be regularly reviewed against indicators to monitor the FMPs effectiveness in meeting its goals and targets against stock health and sustainability, levels of compliance and wider ecosystem health.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Belfast South on 6 November 2020, PQ UIN 107768.

[questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-questions/detail/2020-10-22/107768]

Holders of driving licences issued outside of the European Union who become resident in Great Britain can drive small vehicles (motorcars and motorcycles) for up one year from the date they become resident.

To continue driving after this period the driver must either exchange their licence, if it was issued by a country which has been designated for licence exchange purposes, or apply for a provisional driving licence and pass both a theory and practical driving test. There are no plans to review these arrangements.

An analysis of the temporary change which allows lorry and bus drivers to renew their licences for one year without the requirement for a medical report was published as part of the legislative changes made to support the scheme in the Business and Planning Act 2020. The analysis is available on the Parliament UK website and the specific provisions relating to bus and lorry driving licences starts on page 33.

Drivers renewing their licence without a medical report remain legally obliged to notify the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) of the onset or worsening of any medical conditions that may affect their driving. If a medical condition is declared, a licence will not be issued unless an investigation by the DVLA confirms that the relevant medical standards are met.

To assess the impact of 4,000 Zero-Emission Buses (ZEBs) on air quality, the Department has analysed how various factors of air quality would change with changing the fleet. Using data from the TAG Databook, factors such as the cost of carbon, CO2, NOx and PM2.5 emissions have been considered. It must be noted that the change in air quality depends on numerous factors such as the model and age of the vehicle being replaced and the average speed of the vehicles. Definitive changes in air quality will depend on where the buses are deployed.

The Department is in regular dialogue with bus operators and manufacturers. The Minister responsible for Buses, Baroness Vere, recently chaired a roundtable which was attended by the Chief Executives of the largest UK bus manufacturers, bus trade associations and operators, and this topic was on the agenda.

The Ultra Low Emission Bus Scheme (ULEBS) awarded £48 million across 19 local authorities and bus operators, and will support 263 zero emission buses and infrastructure. To release the funding to operators, government must be presented with evidence of purchase of the vehicles.

More recently the Government has announced £5 billion of new funding to overhaul bus and cycling links across England outside of London, which includes funding for at least 4,000 new zero-emission buses.

At the end of 2019, there were 107 battery electric vehicles licensed to an address in the Falkirk constituency, which comprised of 104 cars and 3 other vehicles.

Universal Credit claimants entitled to at least 1p during assessment periods ending between 26 April 2022 to 25 May 2022 will be eligible for the £326 Cost of Living Payment.

Those entitled to a payment of income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance, income-related Employment and Support Allowance and Income Support on any day in the period 26 April 2022 to 25 May 2022 will be eligible for the first Cost of Living payment.

Finally, tax credit customers who have received a payment, or an annual award of at least £26, of tax credits for any day in the period 26 April 2022 to 25 May 2022 are eligible for the first Cost of Living payment.

This ensures that any legacy benefit customer who met the above qualifying criteria and transferred to Universal Credit during the qualifying period would receive a Cost-of-Living payment through their passporting legacy benefit.

DWP staff should not advise claimants what to do in terms of whether to submit a claim to benefit, nor if a claimant would be ‘better off’ moving to Universal Credit or remaining on legacy benefits. However, staff will signpost claimants to information available via the Understanding UC website and independent benefit calculators for further information.

The replacement of six legacy benefits by UC is a large and complex undertaking, introduced in a controlled and phased manner. It is therefore as a matter of fundamental policy design that once a claimant makes a claim for Universal Credit their existing legacy benefits will come to an end; this includes Tax Credits.

Winter Fuel Payments are an age-related payment payable to those who have reached state pension age. The payment provides reassurance to older customers that Government help is available during the winter months to help with their energy bills. This winter 2022/23 winter fuel payments will be increased by £300 and households with someone of state pension age and under 80 will receive £500 and households with someone aged 80 or over will receive £600.

Cold Weather Payments are made to people in receipt of certain income-related benefits. People who receive contribution-based benefits, such as contribution-based Employment and Support Allowance, are not eligible for Cold Weather Payments. This is because the Cold Weather Payment scheme was specifically designed to target the most vulnerable people in society, by providing help with additional heating costs during periods of severe weather. The Government firmly believes that the fairest way of managing this is by linking eligibility to income-related benefits, as this ensures that public funds are used in the most effective way possible.

The uplift to Universal Credit was a temporary measure. We have no plans to complete an assessment of backdating it.

We are committed to supporting disabled people and people with health conditions to realise their potential and live independently. Dedicated financial support for equipment at home is available to some disabled people and can be explored through Apply for equipment for your home if you're disabled - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) or Financial help if you're disabled - GOV.UK.

The Department recognises the extra costs disabled people can face in their everyday lives. Attendance Allowance, Disability Living Allowance and Personal Independence Payment are intended to help with these extra costs. Claimants are able to use their benefit according to their own priorities. These benefits are tax-free, non-contributory and are uprated annually in line with inflation. They are paid in addition to other benefits which someone may be able to receive.

A response was sent to the Hon Member on the 23 July 2021.

A reply was sent to the hon. Member on behalf of the Minister for Disabled People on 18 June.

We believe that both parents have a financial responsibility to contribute towards the cost of bringing up their child. The calculation represents an amount of money that is broadly similar to the amount that a paying parent would spend on the child if they were still living with them.

Variations of a Child Maintenance calculation can be requested on grounds of unearned income; such as rental income from property or land, where the paying parent receives unearned income of at least £2,500 a year. This amount is then included in the gross income figure used to calculate the amount of maintenance owed.

As landlords can claim tax relief for certain costs linked to their properties, the rental income used in the calculation is usually net of HMRC allowable expenses (i.e. mortgages, maintenance of the property, rent, ground rent and service charges).

The Service runs through broad rules set out in child support legislation. The statutory scheme aims to provide the best overall outcome and protect the welfare of all of its clients.

The Child Maintenance Service's responsibility is limited to maintenance payments. There are no plans for the Child Maintenance Service to provide additional financial support to people affected by parental alienation as a form of domestic abuse.

The Government takes the issue of domestic abuse seriously. The Child Maintenance Service will continue to monitor the service offered to clients who have experienced domestic abuse.

The government is committed to ensuring that the services and benefits it offers works for everyone including women, as we tackle the Covid 19 crisis. This Government has invested over £6.5bn in strengthening the safety net overall, including making changes to the benefits system to ensure claimants receive the support they need. Notably Universal Credit claimants, and people receiving Working Tax Credits, are receiving an increase in the standard rate of up to £1040 per year for the next 12 months, additional to the uprating announced in November 2019.

Local Housing Allowance rates for Universal Credit and Housing Benefit claimants have also been increased.

The UK is steadfast in our commitment to upholding Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity within its internationally recognised borders. Any referendum that takes place on sovereign Ukrainian territory without the consent of the Government of Ukraine would be a further violation of Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity and we would not recognise it. Our position remains clear: Russia must withdraw its forces and military equipment from the entirety of Ukraine and cease its illegal war.

President Zelenskyy has stated that the only way to halt the war is through diplomacy. The UK supports this view and Ukraine's desire for a just negotiated outcome that ensures a full Russian withdrawal, respects Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity and deters Russia from future aggression. The UK calls upon Russia to halt its illegal war and to engage in genuine and meaningful negotiations. The Foreign Secretary continues to lead the diplomatic effort, regularly meeting and speaking with Foreign Minister counterparts, including the Ukrainian Foreign Minister, G7 and NATO Foreign Ministers.

The UK welcomes Ukraine's ongoing commitment to a diplomatic path to de-escalate, and we will continue to support them in achieving an outcome that delivers for Ukraine and its people. President Putin seems determined to pursue his path of violence and aggression, as evidenced by his increased military action in the Donbas and continued barbaric assault of Mariupol. We are therefore continuing to increase our economic pressure on him through sanctions, as well as providing the military assistance Ukraine needs to defend itself.

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

I [Minister Cleverly] responded to the referenced correspondence from the hon. Member of Falkirk dated 1 March 2022 on 14 April 2022.

We continue to discuss border issues with the Canadian government, and appreciate the personal impact this has on many people. As I am sure you will understand, Canadian border restrictions, and any associated exemptions, including temporary passes, are a matter for Canadian authorities alone.

On 7 September, the Canadian government eased restrictions, allowing double-vaccinated travellers to enter for non-essential reasons. Enquires related to travel exemptions and timelines on Mr Roberston's application can be sent to the Canadian High Commission in London at LDNImmigration@international.gc.ca.

A response was sent on 25 May 2021, and an additional copy has been sent to the Member's office.

At Spring Statement 2022, in response to high fuel prices, the Government announced a temporary 12 month cut to duty on petrol and diesel of 5 pence per litre. This represents a tax cut worth around £2.4 billion in 2022-23, benefiting anyone who consumes fuel across the UK.

All taxes, including fuel duty, remain under review.

The Government sets the Approved Mileage Allowance Payments (AMAP) rates to minimise administrative burdens. As set out in the answer to Question 17079, the AMAP rates are advisory and therefore employers are not required to use them.

AMAPs are reimbursed free from Income Tax and National Insurance Contributions. This is also the case when an employer chooses to reimburse the actual mileage cost or pay another rate where there is no profit element for the employee. These payments are not declared to HMRC. The Government does not have an estimate of the number of employers reimbursing the actual cost.

The Government is strongly committed to tackle financial exclusion and discrimination and aims for everyone, whatever their background or income, to be able to access useful and affordable financial products and services. The Government works closely together with regulators, the financial services industry and other stakeholders, to ensure that all consumers of financial services are appropriately protected.

Industry-agreed principles, rather than government policy, determine what and how information is shared between organisations and Credit Reference Agencies (CRAs). CRAs then hold this information on individuals’ credit files and use it to create a credit score.

Consumers can add a Notice (of up to 200 words) to their credit file explaining any circumstances, such as being a victim of financial abuse, that may impact decisions made about their applications for credit, including mortgages. Lenders should take the content of this Notice into account alongside the other information on the credit file. In addition, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is currently undertaking a Credit Information Market Study which is assessing how the sector is working now and how it may develop in the future. The FCA will publish an interim report in summer 2022.

The FCA is also currently developing a new Consumer Duty, which would require firms to place more emphasis on the needs of all customers, including those who are vulnerable or at risk of being financially excluded. The FCA is required to publish its final rules before the end of July.

Prior to this, in February 2021, the FCA also published its finalised guidance for firms on the fair treatment of vulnerable customers, setting out a number of best practices (https://www.fca.org.uk/publications/finalised-guidance/guidance-firms-fair-treatment-vulnerable-customers).

This applies to all firms where the FCA Principles for Business apply, regardless of sector and in respect of the supply of products or services to retail customers.

The Government understands the pressures that people across the UK are facing with the cost of living. This is why the Government is providing over £15 billion in further support targeted towards those with the greatest need. From the Autumn, over eight million pensioner households who receive the winter fuel payment, will receive an extra one-off pensioner cost-of-living payment of £300 this year to help cover the rising cost of energy this winter.

Local authorities in England have received £144 million of discretionary funding to support households that are not eligible for the council tax rebate, including households in bands E-H. Local authorities are best-placed to determine how this support should be targeted, informed by guidance from the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities.

Devolved governments in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are receiving Barnett funding as a result of the council tax rebate and associated discretionary funding in England.

The UK is committed to working with partners, including the EU, as well as humanitarian agencies to ensure a well-coordinated and well-funded response to the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine and the surrounding region.

We have initiated a number of conversations with the EU and its Member States to understand their plans to ease the movement of humanitarian supplies. The EU has been working with Member States on this issue and several of them have eased their entry and exit regime to support the humanitarian effort for Ukraine.

The UK Government has also introduced a simplified customs process to support the export of aid goods destined for victims of the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine. More information about this can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/taking-humanitarian-aid-out-of-great-britain-to-support-ukraine.

The Government is committed to ensuring that older people are able to live with the dignity and respect they deserve, and the State Pension is the foundation of state support for older people.

Over the last two years, the basic and new State Pension have increased by more than 5.6%. This means that from April, the full yearly amount of the basic State Pension will be around £720 more in 2022/23 than if it had been up-rated by prices since 2010. That’s a rise of over £2,300 in cash terms.

The overall trend in the percentage of pensioners living in poverty is a dramatic fall over recent decades. There are 200,000 fewer pensioners in absolute poverty, both before and after housing costs, than in 2009/10.

The Government is providing support worth over £20 billion across this financial year and next that will help households, including pensioners, with the cost of living. This includes the £9.1 billion package announced this February to help with rising energy bills.

Our generous package includes a non-repayable £150 council tax rebate from April and a further reduction of £200 on energy bills in October. The £200 reduction in households’ energy bills from October will help people manage the increase in energy bills by spreading the increased costs over a few years, so they are more manageable for households.

This is on top of existing support available through Pension Credit, Winter Fuel Payments for households with people over State Pension age, the Warm Home Discount Scheme, and Cold Weather Payments.

The Covid-19 support funds and the Loan Charge are two distinct polices.

In relation to the Covid-19 support funds, throughout the pandemic, the Government’s number one priority has been to protect jobs and livelihoods while also supporting businesses and public services across the UK.

The overwhelming majority of people that claimed Covid-19 support did so legitimately. However, HMRC are aware that mistakes can happen, which is why they are supporting people who made a mistake to correct it. Those who keep money claimed from any of the Covid-19 support schemes despite knowing they were not entitled to it face having to repay up to double the amount they received, plus interest, and potentially criminal prosecution in the most serious of cases.

The Loan Charge was announced at Budget 2016 and was a new tax charge on disguised remuneration loan balances outstanding on 5 April 2019. The Government recognises the Loan Charge can have a significant impact. Anyone who is worried about being able to pay their Loan Charge liability should contact HMRC. They may be able to agree an instalment arrangement based on their financial circumstances.

No comparative assessment of the recovery of Covid-19 support and liabilities related to the Loan Charge has been made, as they are not directly comparable.

Following the Withdrawal Agreement, the UK agreed the Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) with the EU – the first free trade agreement the EU has ever reached based on zero tariffs and zero quotas, helping to support businesses.

The TCA means that the UK can now regulate in a way that suits the UK economy and UK businesses – doing things in a more innovative way, without being bound by EU rules. We are ensuring businesses continue to get the support they need to trade effectively with the EU, and to seize new opportunities as we strike trade deals with the world’s fastest growing markets.

The Government is in negotiations with the EU to address issues in the Northern Ireland Protocol, to ensure businesses that move goods between Great Britain and Northern Ireland face minimal burdens.

The Chancellor confirmed at Spring Budget 2021 that the Government will remove the entitlement to use red diesel from most sectors from April 2022, other than for agriculture and a limited number of other users. This will help to ensure fairness between the different users of diesel fuels and that the tax system incentivises the development and adoption of greener alternative technologies.

Agricultural vehicles will be entitled to run on rebated fuel after April 2022 for purposes relating to agriculture, horticulture, forestry and fish farming. They will also be able to use rebated fuel when cutting verges and hedges that border a road, clearing snow, gritting, and clearing or otherwise dealing with flooding.

The activities accepted as falling within the definition of agriculture, horticulture and forestry are defined in HMRC Excise Notice 75. As agricultural shows and ploughing matches provide information and education that benefits agricultural purposes, the Government considers that running or participating in these activities are purposes relating to agriculture, for which rebated fuel may be used in qualifying vehicles and machines, and will be updating Excise Notice 75 accordingly. Rebated fuel can also be used to travel to and from where the vehicles or machines are to be used for these activities.

This question is answered on the basis that your question is about HMRC’s Disguised Remuneration (DR) Repayment Scheme 2020. Following Lord Morse’s Independent Loan Charge Review in 2019, the Government introduced legislation requiring HMRC to establish a scheme to repay relevant Voluntary Restitution elements of DR settlements.

These amounts were voluntary payments that taxpayers had agreed to make as part of settlements concluded before changes were made to the scope of the Loan Charge. Individuals and employers had until 30 September 2021 to apply to HMRC for a refund or waiver.

HMRC repays amounts that were paid in DR scheme settlements, and/or waives amounts of instalments due that have not yet been paid if certain conditions are met.

As of 28 January 2022, HMRC had processed approximately 1500 applications, of which approximately 1000 had received either a repayment, a waiver, or both. Approximately 500 of the applications processed at that date were either invalid or ineligible.

An independent review of the Loan Charge has already taken place. The 2019 Review, conducted by Lord Morse, concluded that it was right for the Loan Charge to remain in force and for the Government to collect the tax due. The Government accepted all but one of the 20 recommendations in the Review.

The charge on Disguised Remuneration loans is targeted at contrived tax avoidance schemes which seek to avoid Income Tax and National Insurance contributions by paying users their income in the form of loans, usually via an offshore trust. This kind of tax avoidance deprives the Exchequer of funds to deliver vital public services.

The Tax Information and Impact Note published in March 2021 set out the expected impacts of the April 2021 reform of the off-payroll working rules, which can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/off-payroll-working-rules-from-april-2021/off-payroll-working-rules-from-april-2021

Research into the effects of the off-payroll working rules reforms on employment agencies was published in March 2021, and can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/effects-of-the-off-payroll-working-reforms-on-employment-agencies

During the debate on the Finance Bill 2020, the Government committed to commission independent research into the short-term impacts of the reform by October 2021. That research has been commissioned. The Government will publish its findings once complete.

The Government has consistently stated that fraud is totally unacceptable. We are taking action on multiple fronts to recover money lost to error and fraud and, where necessary, taking legal action against those who have sought to exploit our schemes.

The Government takes the issue of potential fraud relating to covid support schemes extremely seriously. Robust measures were put in place to control error and fraud in the key covid support schemes from their inception. For instance, to minimise the risk of fraud and error and unverified claims, the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) and Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) were designed in a way to prevent ineligible claims being made up front, and made payments for employees and businesses using existing data held on HMRC’s systems. That included cut-off dates around scheme eligibility and the need for customers to be registered for pay-as-you-earn online or self-assessment.

To further bolster anti-fraud measures, at the Spring Budget last year, the Government invested more than £100 million in a Taxpayer Protection Taskforce of more than 1,200 HMRC staff to combat Covid-related fraud. This Taskforce is expected to recover between £800 million and £1 billion from fraudulent or incorrect payments during 2021-22 and 2022-23. In addition, HMRC has so far stopped or recovered £743 million of overclaimed grants in 2020/21.

Local authorities are responsible for ensuring the safe administration of Covid support grants to businesses and that appropriate measures are put in place to mitigate against the increased risks of both fraud and payment error. Guidance for the grant schemes requires that local authorities have assurance plans in place which set out the steps they would take to minimise fraud. Government has mandated pre-payment checks (company and bank account searches) as well as post-event assurance, and a Fraud Risk Assessment, as standard elements of this plan.

Where grants have been paid in error, non-compliantly or to a fraudster, local authorities must seek to recover these funds and return them to BEIS. If local authorities have been unable to reclaim the grant, the case may be referred to BEIS under the Debt Recovery Policy to establish the next steps. Local Authorities are required to demonstrate that they have taken all reasonable and practicable steps to reclaim incorrectly paid grant funds. 93 cases are currently being triaged and debts assigned to BEIS for referral to Indesser, a Cabinet Office procured debt recovery service, to action.

I know that this has been a very difficult time for LCF bondholders. The Government has announced that it will establish a compensation scheme that will provide 80% of LCF bondholders’ principle investment up to a maximum of £68,000. The scheme will be available to all LCF bondholders who have not already received compensation from the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS).

The FSCS will administer the scheme. They are committed to ensuring that payments are made to all eligible LCF bondholders within 6 months of the Compensation (London Capital & Finance plc and Fraud Compensation Fund) Bill securing Royal Assent. This Bill was brought forward by the Government at the earliest possible opportunity and was introduced on 12 May 2021.

I hope that the compensation offered by the Government scheme will offer some relief to the distress and hardship suffered and provide closure on this difficult matter.

Since the beginning of this crisis, the Government has put in place an unprecedented package of support for businesses worth over £280 billion. These schemes were designed with two principles in mind: the need to target support at those who need it most, and the need to protect the exchequer against error, fraud, and abuse. This is because the Government needs to balance its commitment to support people through the pandemic, with its duty to protect the taxpayer to ensure that public funds are managed responsibly.

The Government has acknowledged that it has not been possible to support everyone in the way they might want. However, businesses not eligible for certain forms of support may still be able to benefit from government-backed loans and general and sector-specific grants.

In January, all local authorities in England received a top-up worth a total of £500m to their allocation from the Additional Restrictions Grant (ARG), which has already provided local authorities with £1.1 billion. This funding will ensure that local authorities can make discretionary grants to businesses which are not eligible for other forms of support, but which are nonetheless experiencing a severe impact on their business due to the national lockdown. We encourage businesses in this position to contact their local authority to discuss what support may be available.

The Treasury is working intensively with employers, delivery partners, industry groups and other Government departments to understand the impacts of COVID-19 and specific challenges in the economy. We will continue to take a flexible approach and keep all policies under review to explore how we can better support different groups and ensure that the support provided is right for the economy as a whole over the coming months.

The Financial Conduct Authority has advised that all deductions from business interruption insurance settlements should be assessed on a case-by-case basis. The individual policy wording generally sets out the basis on which the sum due to the policyholder following an insured event will be calculated. Insurers should therefore calculate claims payments in accordance with the terms and conditions of the relevant policy.

The Government is in continual dialogue with the insurance sector regarding its response to this unprecedented situation, and is encouraging insurers to do all they can to support customers during this difficult period.

The objective of the Job Retention Bonus (JRB) was to incentivise employers to retain employees between November and the end of January through a £1,000 bonus paid to the employer. The extension of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) allows employers to do that until the end of April by covering 80% of the furloughed employees’ wages. The policy intent of the JRB therefore fell away with the extension of the CJRS. The Government will set out details of how a revised retention incentive will work in due course.

Online purchases by payment card from EU retailers are still possible now that the UK has left the Transition Period of EU Withdrawal. Whether a retailer accepts credit or debit cards as a payment method is a commercial decision for individual retailers.

Furthermore, the UK has maintained its participation in the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA), enabling continued Euro credit transfers and direct debits through the SEPA payment schemes.

HMRC are responsible for the collection and publication of data on UK imports and exports of goods to and from the UK. HMRC release this information monthly as a National Statistic: the Overseas Trade in Goods Statistics.

However, the trade data collected does not enable HMRC to determine the ultimate end use of exported goods, and so cannot be used to confirm whether fabric is exported for use in personal protective equipment.

There is aggregated trade data available for fabrics on HMRC’s uktradeinfo.com website, under ‘Build your own data tables’. The site also contains a ‘Help’ function with information on how to extract trade data.

Trade data relating to the value of textiles and textile articles, including fabrics, can be searched for using commodity codes in chapters 50 to 63 of the Trade Tariff: https://www.trade-tariff.service.gov.uk/sections.

The UK is committed to continued cooperation with European partners on tackling illicit trade. As part of negotiations with the EU, the UK has proposed provisions for customs cooperation and mutual administrative assistance. This would enable the parties to work together while upholding their respective customs regimes, to protect revenue and combat criminality through efficient and reciprocal exchange of information and mutual assistance across customs matters.

The Government is clear that everyone must pay tax that is legally due, no matter who they are. The Government has a strong record in tackling tax avoidance, evasion and non-compliance. With regard to collaboration with private prosecutors, the information that HMRC can lawfully share with third parties is restricted by the Commissioners for Revenue and Customs Act 2005 (CRCA). However, HMRC have existing structures in place to allow for the receipt, management and exploitation of information and intelligence from individuals and private sector sources.

The UK is committed to continued cooperation with European partners on tackling illicit trade. As part of negotiations with the EU, the UK has proposed provisions for customs cooperation and mutual administrative assistance. This would enable the parties to work together while upholding their respective customs regimes, to protect revenue and combat criminality through efficient and reciprocal exchange of information and mutual assistance across customs matters.

The Government is clear that everyone must pay tax that is legally due, no matter who they are. The Government has a strong record in tackling tax avoidance, evasion and non-compliance. With regard to collaboration with private prosecutors, the information that HMRC can lawfully share with third parties is restricted by the Commissioners for Revenue and Customs Act 2005 (CRCA). However, HMRC have existing structures in place to allow for the receipt, management and exploitation of information and intelligence from individuals and private sector sources.

The temporary VAT reduction is designed to support businesses and jobs in the tourism and hospitality industry. In light of the COVID-19 outbreak, the Chancellor has announced a range of measures to help individuals and businesses through the crisis, including grants, loans and relief from business rates worth more than £300 billion.

All eligible businesses in the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors will pay no business rates in England for 12 months from 1 April 2020 and the Government deferred Value Added Tax (VAT) payments so UK VAT-registered businesses did not need to pay any VAT due with VAT returns from 20 March through to the end of June 2020, until 31 March 2021.

A range of further measures has been made available. This includes the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme and the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme to help firms keep people in employment. The Bounce Back Loan Scheme has also been launched to help small businesses during the COVID-19 outbreak.

The Government will continue to consider how best to support the economic recovery.

The temporary VAT reduction is designed to support businesses and jobs in the tourism and hospitality industry. In light of the COVID-19 outbreak, the Chancellor has announced a range of measures to help individuals and businesses through the crisis, including grants, loans and relief from business rates worth more than £300 billion.

All eligible businesses in the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors will pay no business rates in England for 12 months from 1 April 2020 and the Government deferred Value Added Tax (VAT) payments so UK VAT-registered businesses did not need to pay any VAT due with VAT returns from 20 March through to the end of June 2020, until 31 March 2021.

A range of further measures has been made available. This includes the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme and the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme to help firms keep people in employment. The Bounce Back Loan Scheme has also been launched to help small businesses during the COVID-19 outbreak.

The Government will continue to consider how best to support the economic recovery.

The temporary VAT reduction is designed to support businesses and jobs in the tourism and hospitality industry. In light of the COVID-19 outbreak, the Chancellor has announced a range of measures to help individuals and businesses through the crisis, including grants, loans and relief from business rates worth more than £300 billion.

All eligible businesses in the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors will pay no business rates in England for 12 months from 1 April 2020 and the Government deferred Value Added Tax (VAT) payments so UK VAT-registered businesses did not need to pay any VAT due with VAT returns from 20 March through to the end of June 2020, until 31 March 2021.

A range of further measures has been made available. This includes the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme and the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme to help firms keep people in employment. The Bounce Back Loan Scheme has also been launched to help small businesses during the COVID-19 outbreak.

The Government will continue to consider how best to support the economic recovery.

The temporary VAT reduction is designed to support businesses and jobs in the tourism and hospitality industry. In light of the COVID-19 outbreak, the Chancellor has announced a range of measures to help individuals and businesses through the crisis, including grants, loans and relief from business rates worth more than £300 billion.

All eligible businesses in the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors will pay no business rates in England for 12 months from 1 April 2020 and the Government deferred Value Added Tax (VAT) payments so UK VAT-registered businesses did not need to pay any VAT due with VAT returns from 20 March through to the end of June 2020, until 31 March 2021.

A range of further measures has been made available. This includes the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme and the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme to help firms keep people in employment. The Bounce Back Loan Scheme has also been launched to help small businesses during the COVID-19 outbreak.

The Government will continue to consider how best to support the economic recovery.

The temporary VAT reduction is designed to support businesses and jobs in the tourism and hospitality industry. In light of the COVID-19 outbreak, the Chancellor has announced a range of measures to help individuals and businesses through the crisis, including grants, loans and relief from business rates worth more than £300 billion.

All eligible businesses in the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors will pay no business rates in England for 12 months from 1 April 2020 and the Government deferred Value Added Tax (VAT) payments so UK VAT-registered businesses did not need to pay any VAT due with VAT returns from 20 March through to the end of June 2020, until 31 March 2021.

A range of further measures has been made available. This includes the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme and the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme to help firms keep people in employment. The Bounce Back Loan Scheme has also been launched to help small businesses during the COVID-19 outbreak.

The Government will continue to consider how best to support the economic recovery.

Business rates are devolved in Scotland, and so are a matter for the Scottish Government.

In England, the Government has provided enhanced support through business rates relief to businesses occupying properties used for retail, hospitality and leisure given the direct and acute impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on those sectors.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has published guidance for local authorities on eligible properties. As set out in the guidance, support is targeted at premises that are wholly or mainly being used as shops, restaurants, cafes, drinking establishments, cinemas and live music venues; for assembly and leisure; or as hotels, guest and boarding premises and self-catering accommodation. It is for local authorities to determine eligibility for reliefs, having regard to guidance issued by the Government.

A range of further measures to support all businesses, including those not eligible for the business rates holiday, such as wholesalers, has also been made available.

The Government is committed to protecting as many jobs as possible and the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme is one of the ways it is doing so.

Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) grants cannot be used to substitute redundancy payments.

Comprehensive guidance on eligibility for and the purpose of the scheme can be found on the GOV.UK Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme page: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/claim-for-wage-costs-through-the-coronavirus-job-retention-scheme

Falkirk benefits from UK-wide spending by the UK Government in reserved policy areas, but this is not generally managed on a constituency basis.

Falkirk will also benefit from a Growth Deal which builds on the UK Government’s commitment for 100% coverage of City and Growth deals across Scotland.

In devolved policy areas the UK Government funds the Scottish Government via the Barnett formula. It is for the Scottish Government to allocate its funding on devolved public services and infrastructure across Scotland, including Falkirk.

In the February 2019 consultation on the plastic packaging tax, the Government proposed that the tax would apply to plastic packaging in the same way as in the Packaging Producer Responsibility scheme, in order to ensure that the tax is clear and simple. This would mean that the tax would include both recyclable and single use packaging. The vast majority of respondents to the consultation agreed with this approach. The Government is considering the most appropriate definitions for plastic packaging and will set out next steps in due course.

The Government is also developing a reformed Packaging Producer Responsibility scheme to encourage businesses to design and use plastic packaging that is easier to recycle.

Asylum seekers have full access to the NHS upon arrival in the UK.

All Home Office staff and contractors engaging with asylum seekers are trained to adopt a risk-based approach towards potential indications of vulnerability and to refer relevant cases onto the Safeguarding Hub, a dedicated resource assigned to identifying and safeguarding vulnerable asylum seekers.

The Safeguarding Hub works closely with the statutory agencies to signpost vulnerable customers for support with their health and social care needs.

The Government is planning to provide an additional £2.3 billion a year for mental health services by 2023/24, the largest increase in mental health funding in NHS history.

For those claiming asylum in the UK, we support and house those would otherwise be destitute whilst they await a decision on their claim.

We have no plans to house those who require our accommodation in this way with members of the public. Where someone is then subsequently granted refugee status, whilst in the United Kingdom, we would provide advice to them on onward accommodation and Local Authorities would provide housing advice and support.

For those who are granted refugee status abroad and then resettled in the UK, our Community Sponsorship Scheme enables civil society - including friends, charities and faith groups - to directly support families through both our UK Resettlement Scheme and now the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme. Those brought to the UK under Community Sponsorship must have accommodation arranged in advance.

Protecting women and girls from violence and supporting victims and survivors of sexual violence is a key priority for this Government.

In June 2021, we published the End-to-End Rape Review Report and Action Plan. The action plan outlined a robust programme of work to achieve a significant improvement in the way the criminal justice system responds to rape and sexual offences against adults.

Our stated ambition in the Rape Review is to more than double the volume of adult rape cases reaching court over the Parliament, and we are using the Criminal Justice System (CJS) Delivery Dashboards to monitor progress towards this ambition.

On 16 June, we published our second six-monthly Rape Review Progress Update and third national CJS Delivery Dashboard. There are no set targets for the police on timeliness, but the Dashboard showed that in the year to December 2021 the median days from offence recording to the police charging an offender was 374, which was a reduction of 29 from 403 days in the years to June and September 2021.

The Rape Review Progress Update also outlined progress that has been made on key actions to improve the police’s response to adult rape in the year since the Rape Review, including:

• The Home Office is providing £6.65m in 2021-3 to support the expansion into a further 14 police forces of Operation Soteria, which will develop a new national operating model for the investigation of rape for police forces to adopt by June 2023. The Crown Prosecution Service will also expand Operation Soteria into the corresponding areas to those 14 police force areas.
• Running a public consultation on police requests for third-party material, which can sometimes be unnecessary and disproportionate; and

Continuing to make progress towards the target of recruiting 20,000 additional police officers by March 2023. As of March 2022, the Home Office had supported the recruitment of 13,578 police officers, and in 2022/3 we have allocated £550m to achieve the target of 20,000 officers by March 2023.

The Home Office do not make an assessment of the location or cost of temporary accommodation when determining the order in which asylum seekers are given interviews; our usual tasking priorities are followed.

We are currently concentrating on deciding older claims, cases with acute vulnerability and those in receipt of the greatest level of support, including Unaccompanied Asylum-Seeking Children. Additionally, we are prioritising cases where an individual has already received a decision, but a reconsideration is required.

Asylum Operations have also introduced a digital interviewing capability as part of the wider Home Office digital transformation programme. This enables us to maximise our capacity to conduct interviews in locations across the UK and progress cases in a more efficient and cost-effective way.

The Home Office does not have a target for the number of asylum seekers who should be housed in hotels.

Our aim is to eliminate the use of hotel accommodation as contingency accommodation and we are working with Local Authorities and our Commercial Partners to do so.

This includes moving to a system of full dispersal covering all local authority areas in England, Wales and Scotland, as opposed to the previous position where many, including 31 out of 32 local authority areas in Scotland, did not take part in the dispersal accommodation system.

On 13 April the Minister for Safe and Legal Migration announced the Home Office would move, with immediate effect, to a policy of full dispersal for the procurement asylum accommodation. We are working in partnership with local authorities to develop full dispersal plans down to a region/nation level. Whilst these plans are being developed procurement under this policy has commenced and any properties procured during the interim period will be accounted for in region/nations plans. This process is being informed by the informal consultation which was launched on 9 May and closes on 1 July.

To help reduce the amount of time it takes to process asylum applications we are investing in a programme of transformation and business improvement initiatives to speed up and simplify our processes, reduce the time people spend in the asylum system and decrease the number of people who are awaiting an interview or decision.

These initiatives include conducting shorter, more focused interviews or omitting interviews where it is appropriate to do so, streamlining decision templates and focusing on improving quality to ensure decisions are right first time. We have introduced specialist Decision Making Units, providing greater ownership and management of cohorts of asylum cases. Additionally, we have extensive ongoing recruitment and training plans in place, including career progression options to aid the retention of staff.

We are continuing to develop existing and new technology to help build on recent improvements such as digital interviewing and move away from a paper-based system. We are streamlining and digitising the case working process to enable more effective workflow, appointment booking and decision-making.

The Home Office has not made a comparative assessment of the cost of housing asylum seekers in either hotels or in rented accommodation on the basis that hotel accommodation is and always has been contingency accommodation where we are unable to procure sufficient Dispersed Accommodation to meet our statutory obligation. Whilst we are working to reduce our use of hotels, we must continue to ensure there is sufficient capacity in the system to meet our obligations.

That is why we wrote to all Local Authorities on 13 April 2022 to set out plans for Full Dispersal. This will reduce and then eliminate the use of hotels for asylum seekers by moving to a full dispersal model for asylum accommodation.

We will achieve this through three key interventions:

1. To reduce and eliminate the use of hotels for asylum seekers by moving to a full dispersal model for asylum accommodation. This will mean expanding our existing approach of using private rental sector housing to all local authority areas across England, Scotland and Wales.

2. We are committed to working with local authorities to move to a fairer distribution of asylum seekers and have launched an informal consultation with local government to inform how this model will work across England, Scotland and Wales and within regions and nations. The consultation will explore how asylum dispersal can better take account of the impact of other protection based immigration on local authorities, including resettlement and the care of unaccompanied asylum-seeking children.

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3. Providing specific funding to recognise the existing contribution of local authorities and for new dispersed accommodation. We will continue to work with local government to capture and evaluate data to understand the impact of asylum dispersal on local authorities going forward.

Part of the government’s response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine has been to issue more than 107,000 visas to Ukrainians seeking to come to the UK under the Ukraine Family Scheme and the Ukraine Sponsorship Scheme. This has inevitably had an impact on visa applications from other nationalities coming through normal visa routes.

As a result of the current conflict in Ukraine, applications from Russian nationals to enter the United Kingdom are subject to additional checks. Russia is also subject to sanctions which may impact on the ability of individuals to pay for certain services and a visa will not be granted if the purpose of the travel to the UK would be in breach of them.

The government has no plans to expedite visas for Russian nationals subject to conscription in the military.

Due to differences in some of the work undertaken at individual passport offices, such as more complex international work, productivity will vary at a local level. However, Her Majesty’s Passport Office has a range of tried and tested arrangements in place to monitor performance at local and national level, which helps to ensure that there is no disparity in the handling of like-for-like cases across each site.

There is an existing exemption in our attendance management policy covering the acute phase of Covid infection.

For absences relating to reactions to, or side effects from, Covid vaccination (which are likely to be of short duration), managers are encouraged to take a sympathetic approach under the normal provisions of our attendance management policy. We have no plans to introduce an exemption covering reactions to Covid vaccinations.

All decisions to grant indefinite leave to those evacuated from Afghanistan, including the spouses of British citizens, are taken on an individual basis and with consideration to the specific circumstances of the case.

These cohorts are treated more generously than other family members of British citizens because of the unique circumstances of the evacuation, alongside the need to quickly move people to safety without being able to assess their ability to meet the normal Immigration Rules.

The Skilled Worker route already contains several eligible occupations from this sector, such as weavers, upholsterers, tailors and dressmakers subject to salary and language requirements being met. An occupation at RQF3 or above does not need to be on the Shortage Occupation List to qualify for recruitment under the Skilled Worker Route.

In their last call for evidence the independent Migration Advisory Committee received evidence from several stakeholders from the garment industry, but they concluded this evidence did not warrant occupations from this sector being added onto the SOL. We will also not be creating more general routes allowing recruitment at or near the minimum wage into this sector via immigration as an alternative to investing in UK based staff and offering them rewarding packages of terms and conditions.

More generally those business facing recruitment issues should, in the first instance, engage with the Department for Work and Pensions about the support they can offer in seeking recruits and supporting training.

Victims of fraud and cyber-crime in England, Wales and Northern Ireland are encouraged to report these crimes directly to a centralised reporting centre called Action Fraud. Fraud victims in Scotland also reported crimes directly into Action Fraud until December 2019, when Police Scotland decided that victims should report incidents directly to them, via their 101 service. These reports are now recorded separately from Action Fraud data.

Action Fraud does not categorise fraud reports by the mode in which the fraud was conducted. Fraud can often encompass several different methods of communication, so it may not necessarily be clear to the victim what the primary vector for this kind of criminal attack was. Victim locations are only recorded when sufficient information is provided. For these reasons, the data requested is not held centrally.