Asked by: Josh MacAlister (Labour - Whitehaven and Workington)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether (a) his Department and (b) each of its arms length bodies offers employees who are foster carers (i) flexible working, (ii) paid time off for (A) training and (B) settling a new child into their home and (iii) other support.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Employees have a statutory right to request flexible working which applies from the first day of employment. Employees can make two statutory requests for flexible working in any 12-month period. This will include requests to support employees who undertake foster caring outside of their employment. In addition, foster carers may apply for flexible working when settling a new child into their home.
We do not have a policy which explicitly covers paid time off for foster carers for (A) training and/or (B) settling a new child into their home. Employees are able to take annual and flexi leave (if eligible) as required and request flexible working. In addition to the statutory right to reasonable unpaid time off work to deal with an emergency involving a dependant, and the statutory right to 5 days unpaid leave for those with caring responsibilities, the Department and its arm’s length bodies offer
If the fostering arrangement leads to Adoption (Fostering to Adopt), both Adoption Leave and Parental Leave may be applied for.
Other Support
Parental Network: Defra’s Parental Network is a staff-led, informal group. It provides support and information for want-to-be, soon-to-be and current parents, as well as line managers or those supporting parents as part of their role.
Carers Network: The Defra Carers’ Network is a staff-led group providing support for carers who work at Defra. A carer is anyone who cares for a friend or family member who, because of an illness, a disability, a mental health problem, or an addiction, cannot cope without their support.
Asked by: Josh MacAlister (Labour - Whitehaven and Workington)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of issuing a Regulation 12 determination under the Justification of Practices Involving Ionising Radiation Regulations 2004 confirming that the use of ionising radiation for the generation of electricity from nuclear energy using oxide fuel of low enrichment in fissile content in light water cooled, water moderated thermal reactors is considered an Existing Practice for projects such as those proposed by Great British Nuclear.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
In his role as Justifying Authority for nuclear energy, the Secretary of State can consider a broad class or type of practice under Regulation 12 of the Justification of Practices Involving Ionising Radiation Regulations 2004. A determination to justify a broad class or type of practice would assume that all potential nuclear reactor designs in scope of that class or type of practice would result in a similar balance of benefits and detriments. Where there is sufficient evidence to make such an assessment, the Justifying Authority remains open to the possibility of accommodating a broader range of designs in a class or type of practice when assessing justification applications.