Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Julie Elliott and Caroline Dinenage

Monday 25th April 2022 Commons Chamber

[Julie Elliott (Sunderland Central) (Lab)]

6. What recent assessment she has made of the extent of delays at passport control in UK airports.

[Dame Caroline Dinenage (Gosport) (Con)]

24. What plans she has to improve airport immigration wait times.

[The Minister for Security and Borders (Damian Hinds)]

Easter saw Border Force maintain a secure and effective border, with minor inbound border control disruption, in a period with one of the highest levels of international travel in the past two years. Before Easter, in February and March 2022, more than 85% of queue measurements were under 45 minutes for non-EU passengers.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Julie Elliott and Caroline Dinenage

Thursday 1st July 2021 Commons Chamber

[Julie Elliott (Sunderland Central) (Lab) [V]]

May I take this opportunity to wish the Sunderland Empire in my constituency a happy 114th birthday? The Government boast free trade deals with 17 countries, each having different rules, making the situation almost as hard as it is with countries with which we do not have trade deals. When are the Government going to sort this out and get a deal to allow our artists, musicians, truckers and support staff to tour across Europe properly, and save this industry before it is too late?

[The Minister for Digital and Culture (Caroline Dinenage)]

We are 100% aware of the importance of the UK’s creative and cultural industries, and the importance of musicians and performers being able to tour easily abroad. We have moved with great urgency to provide the clarity that they need about the current position. Through our engagement with member states, we have established that at least 17 of the 27, including France, Germany and Italy—some of the biggest economic contributors—do allow visa and permit-free touring. We continue to talk to the others.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Julie Elliott and Caroline Dinenage

Thursday 2nd February 2017 Commons Chamber

[Julie Elliott (Sunderland Central) (Lab)]

8. What steps the Government are taking to tackle the gender pay gap for women in their 30s and 40s.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Women and Equalities (Caroline Dinenage)]

The gender pay gap is now the lowest on record, at 18.1%, but that is still too high and eliminating it altogether is one of the key targets of this Government. That is why we have extended the right to request flexible working and introduced shared parental leave, and it is why, from September, we are rolling out 30 hours of childcare to the working parents of all three and four-year-olds.

[Caroline Dinenage]

The Government take that very seriously, and my right hon. and learned Friend the Minister for Courts and Justice will be coming forward with more information shortly. The Government are committed to ensuring that people from all backgrounds can access justice. Although we are very keen to see much more in the way of mediation, and ACAS has dealt successfully with more than 80,000 cases without having to go to tribunal, on Tuesday we launched a consultation on proposals to widen the support available to people under the help with fees scheme, following the completion of the fees review.

[Julie Elliott]

The gender pay gap in the north-east is 28%, some 10 percentage points higher than the national average. What is the Minister and the Government doing to address those very stark regional variations?

[Caroline Dinenage]

It is vital, now more than ever, that our economy is able to benefit from everybody’s skills. We simply cannot afford to waste the talents of a single person. That is why, from April this year, we are requiring all employers with more than 250 staff to publish those gender pay gap figures. We are great believers in what gets measured gets managed, but what gets published gets managed even better.