Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Justine Greening and Rosie Cooper

Monday 11th December 2017 Commons Chamber

[Rosie Cooper (West Lancashire) (Lab)]

T3. The parents of a child who has Asperger’s contacted me recently and explained in depth how their son’s school failed to consider his needs, and the great stress that that caused them as a family. As a signatory to the Ambitious about Autism pledge in the last Parliament, may I ask the Secretary of State what action her Department is taking to ensure that school staff are properly trained and have adequate resources?

[Justine Greening]

This is important. We have introduced the much broader education, health and care plans to make sure that young people get a much better assessment of their overall needs. I am very happy, though, to look at the particular case the hon. Lady mentions.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Justine Greening and Rosie Cooper

Monday 6th February 2017 Commons Chamber

[Justine Greening]

We have been clear that we want to see existing grammars take more free-school-meals and disadvantaged children. The right way to go about getting no progress is to have no consultation and no policy development in this area, which is apparently the Labour party’s position.

[Rosie Cooper (West Lancashire) (Lab)]

If the Department for Education is as committed to social mobility through education as it claims, will the Secretary of State explain why cuts to the early years funding formula and to local authorities have actually weakened outstanding early years education, which is the foundation of social mobility?

[Justine Greening]

Record levels of funding are going into early years. We are now extending the 15 hours of free childcare to 30. It is simply wrong to characterise this Government as doing anything other than pumping record amounts of money into both early years and indeed the school system.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Justine Greening and Rosie Cooper

Wednesday 18th March 2015 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

Order. It would help the House and people attending to our proceedings if the answers could be heard.

[Rosie Cooper (West Lancashire) (Lab)]

T3. What is the Secretary of State’s assessment of the strength of the Commission on the Status of Women’s political declaration and its implications for women’s rights?

[Justine Greening]

As the hon. Lady will know, this year’s CSW was a vital discussion in order to make sure that we do not slide backwards on women’s rights, but position ourselves to get a stand-alone gender goal and mainstreamed improvements on tackling women’s rights across the new post-2015 framework. As it was hard for me to hear the whole of the hon. Lady’s question, I will check Hansard and write to her with a fuller response.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Justine Greening and Rosie Cooper

Wednesday 31st October 2012 Commons Chamber

[Justine Greening]

I can give my hon. Friend that assurance. My predecessor had already overhauled our development programme in India so that it was more targeted on not only the poorest states, but the poorest communities in those states. However, as India continues to develop, it is right that we continue to examine that programme, which is what I am doing right now.

[Rosie Cooper (West Lancashire) (Lab)]

T4. Following the success in meeting millennium development goal 4 on clean drinking water, the then Secretary of State committed to doubling the number of people with access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation, but we have yet to see any new plans. Will the Secretary of State update the House on what progress has been made on that objective?

[Justine Greening]

We have focused a lot of our development aid on making sure that there is access to clean water and sanitation, as some of the starkest statistics are in that area. Just one in 20 people in Afghanistan has access to a pit latrine, which tells us the scale of the problem we are seeking to address. The hon. Lady is absolutely right about this, and I assure her that my Department carefully focuses on clean water provision. I will write to her with more details.