Asked by: Laura Kyrke-Smith (Labour - Aylesbury)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the level of funding available for Music Hubs.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
The government has committed £79 million per year for the Music Hubs programme, inclusive of the 2024/25 academic year. The 43 Music Hubs partnerships across England offer a range of services, including musical instrument tuition, instrument loaning and whole-class ensemble teaching. To widen access to musical instruments, the government is investing £25 million in capital funding for musical instruments, equipment and technology from the 2024/25 academic year. This funding enables Music Hubs partnerships to better cater to the needs of the children and young people they work with.
The government believes creative subjects like music, art and drama are important elements of the rounded and enriching education every child deserves. Future programme budgets will be considered as part of the spending review and subsequent business planning process.
Asked by: Laura Kyrke-Smith (Labour - Aylesbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of his Department's consultation on The licensing of non-surgical cosmetic procedures in England, published on 2 September 2023.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to taking action to address longstanding concerns about the safety of the cosmetics sector and is exploring options for further regulation in this area. This includes considering the proposals that the Department previously consulted on for the introduction of a licensing scheme for non-surgical cosmetic procedures in England. We will set out the details of our approach at the earliest opportunity.
Asked by: Laura Kyrke-Smith (Labour - Aylesbury)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment she has made of the prevalence of incidents relating to dysphagia in SEND settings; and what steps she is taking to manage dysphagia safely in those settings.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
Section 100 of the Children and Families Act 2014 places a duty on maintained schools, academies and pupil referral units to make arrangements for supporting pupils with medical conditions. Some children with medical conditions may be considered to be disabled under the definition set out in the Equality Act 2010. Where this is the case, governing bodies must comply with their duties under that Act.
Governing bodies should ensure that all schools develop a policy for supporting pupils with medical conditions that is reviewed regularly and is readily accessible to parents and school staff. They must ensure that the arrangements they put in place are sufficient to meet their statutory responsibilities and should ensure that policies, plans, procedures and systems are properly and effectively implemented.
Asked by: Laura Kyrke-Smith (Labour - Aylesbury)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of ensuring all (a) teachers and (b) support staff in SEND settings receive training on dysphagia.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
Section 100 of the Children and Families Act 2014 places a duty on maintained schools, academies and pupil referral units to make arrangements for supporting pupils with medical conditions. Some children with medical conditions may be considered to be disabled under the definition set out in the Equality Act 2010. Where this is the case, governing bodies must comply with their duties under that Act.
Governing bodies should ensure that all schools develop a policy for supporting pupils with medical conditions that is reviewed regularly and is readily accessible to parents and school staff. They must ensure that the arrangements they put in place are sufficient to meet their statutory responsibilities and should ensure that policies, plans, procedures and systems are properly and effectively implemented.
Asked by: Laura Kyrke-Smith (Labour - Aylesbury)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of changes made to her Department's guidance entitled Nationality: good character requirement, published on 10 February 2025, on (a) refugees already granted indefinite leave to remain and (b) the integration of people with refugee status.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The previous government's Illegal Migration Act introduced a statutory ban on granting citizenship to anyone who has arrived in the country through irregular routes, a measure that proved completely unworkable, contained minimal discretion to recognise exceptional circumstances, and was never properly implemented. That measure is being repealed, and replaced with clearer rules in the caseworker guidance, including provision to exercise discretion where appropriate.
For many generations refugees who have arrived on resettlement and who have settled in the UK have been able to apply for British citizenship if they meet the conditions, and that continues to be the case. The UK must always do its bit to support those fleeing persecution. But we are also clear that we must also do all we can to prevent people making dangerous small boat crossings, risking their lives in the arms of criminal gangs.
This government is absolutely committed to fostering and supporting integration; that will be an important area of focus for the White Paper currently under development.
Asked by: Laura Kyrke-Smith (Labour - Aylesbury)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with his international counterparts on tackling irregular migration to the UK.
Answered by Anneliese Dodds - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Foreign Secretary has made migration a top Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office priority. On 31 January, the Foreign Secretary travelled to Tunisia to see UK programming addressing the upstream drivers of migration. On 15 February, the Foreign Secretary met key European partners at the Munich Security Conference to discuss how to use sanctions to tackle people smuggling and Organised Immigration Crime.
Asked by: Laura Kyrke-Smith (Labour - Aylesbury)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he is taking to provide military support to Ukraine.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
As we approach the third anniversary of this unprovoked attack, our commitment to stand with the Ukrainian people is absolute.
This year the UK will give more military support to Ukraine than ever before, with a £4.5 billion boost. This will see the UK procure hundreds more air defence systems, drones and essential equipment support to sustain Ukrainian forces on the front line.
This week the Secretary of State will host the Ukraine Defence Contact Group in Brussels, galvanising international support to Ukraine.
Asked by: Laura Kyrke-Smith (Labour - Aylesbury)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps she is taking to help support grassroots football.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government is investing £123 million this year to deliver pitches for grassroots football across the UK.
Alongside this, Sport England has a Movement Fund, which offers crowdfunding pledges, grants and resources to support grassroots sport, including football.
Asked by: Laura Kyrke-Smith (Labour - Aylesbury)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 17 October 2024 to Question 8936 on Religion: Education, whether locally agreed syllabuses on religious education must also take into account the teaching and practices of (a) humanism and (b) other principal non-religious worldviews.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
Following the ruling in the Bowen vs Kent County Council case, the department published additional guidance for local authorities regarding the membership of Standing Advisory Councils for Religious Education (SACREs). The guidance sets out the department’s view on the ruling and makes clear that, where an application has been received, representatives from non-religious belief systems may be appointed to Group A of a SACRE and/or to an Agreed Syllabus Conference (ASC). The non-religious beliefs adhered to by the person/s to be appointed must be analogous to a religious belief, in accordance with case law under the European Convention of Human Rights and the Human Rights Act 1998, and attain the necessary level cogency, seriousness, cohesion, and importance to attract protection under the Convention Rights. The final decision on appointment of persons to a SACRE or ASC, however, is a matter for local authorities.
Locally agreed syllabuses should take account of non-religious worldviews. As referenced in the department’s 2010 guidance, religious education (RE) should encourage pupils to explore their own beliefs, whether they are religious or non-religious. Inclusion of non-religious worldviews should be seen as part of a well-rounded RE curriculum.
Asked by: Laura Kyrke-Smith (Labour - Aylesbury)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 17 October 2024 to Question 8936 on Religion: Education and with reference to her Department's Guidance for local authorities about membership of Standing Advisory Councils for Religious Education, published in September 2023, whether membership of (a) Standing Advisory Councils on Religious Education and (b) Agreed Syllabus Conferences must also be drawn from non-religious worldviews analogous to a religious belief.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
Following the ruling in the Bowen vs Kent County Council case, the department published additional guidance for local authorities regarding the membership of Standing Advisory Councils for Religious Education (SACREs). The guidance sets out the department’s view on the ruling and makes clear that, where an application has been received, representatives from non-religious belief systems may be appointed to Group A of a SACRE and/or to an Agreed Syllabus Conference (ASC). The non-religious beliefs adhered to by the person/s to be appointed must be analogous to a religious belief, in accordance with case law under the European Convention of Human Rights and the Human Rights Act 1998, and attain the necessary level cogency, seriousness, cohesion, and importance to attract protection under the Convention Rights. The final decision on appointment of persons to a SACRE or ASC, however, is a matter for local authorities.
Locally agreed syllabuses should take account of non-religious worldviews. As referenced in the department’s 2010 guidance, religious education (RE) should encourage pupils to explore their own beliefs, whether they are religious or non-religious. Inclusion of non-religious worldviews should be seen as part of a well-rounded RE curriculum.