1 Former APPG membership
Brazilvoted No - in line with the party majority
One of 294 Conservative No votes vs 0 Conservative Aye votes
Tally: Ayes - 181 Noes - 301
Now then: the Health Secretary will be aware that King’s Mill Hospital in Ashfield was built under a disastrous private …
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, at what stage in the process is the post-implementation …
Payment of £1,000 expected from the Mail on Sunday, Northcliffe House, 2 Derry Street, London W8 5TT, for an article …
That this House notes the ongoing refurbishment works on the Elizabeth Tower and the fact that during this period Big …
Division Voting information
Lee Anderson voted No - against a party majority and against the House
One of 43 Conservative No votes vs 56 Conservative Aye votes
Tally: Ayes - 213 Noes - 47
Lee Anderson voted Aye - against a party majority and in line with the House
One of 104 Conservative Aye votes vs 124 Conservative No votes
Tally: Ayes - 253 Noes - 136
Lee Anderson voted No - against a party majority and against the House
One of 38 Conservative No votes vs 271 Conservative Aye votes
Tally: Ayes - 441 Noes - 41
Lee Anderson voted No - against a party majority and against the House
One of 97 Conservative No votes vs 224 Conservative Aye votes
Tally: Ayes - 369 Noes - 126
Lee Anderson voted No - against a party majority and against the House
One of 60 Conservative No votes vs 258 Conservative Aye votes
Tally: Ayes - 385 Noes - 100
Debates during the 2019 Parliament
Speeches made during Parliamentary debates are recorded in Hansard. For ease of browsing we have grouped debates into individual, departmental and legislative categories.
Sparring Partners
Lord President of the Council and Leader of the House of Commons
(32 debate interactions)
(23 debate interactions)
Shadow Minister (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs)
(21 debate interactions)
Department Debates
(30 debate contributions)
(23 debate contributions)
(23 debate contributions)
(16 debate contributions)
Legislation Debates
(1,434 words contributed)
(1,306 words contributed)
(772 words contributed)
(621 words contributed)
Ashfield Petitions
e-Petitions are administered by Parliament and allow members of the public to express support for a particular issue.
If an e-petition reaches 10,000 signatures the Government will issue a written response.
If an e-petition reaches 100,000 signatures the petition becomes eligible for a Parliamentary debate (usually Monday 4.30pm in Westminster Hall).
of 105,501 signatures (0.88%)
of 174,136 signatures (0.38%)
of 31,657 signatures (0.33%)
of 110,132 signatures (0.25%)
of 101,124 signatures (0.24%)
of 105,501 signatures (0.88%)
of 174,136 signatures (0.38%)
of 207,763 signatures (0.16%)
of 127,492 signatures (0.22%)
of 110,132 signatures (0.25%)
Latest EDMs signed by Lee Anderson
Big Ben chiming on the day of Brexit
Tabled by: Mark Francois (Conservative - Rayleigh and Wickford)That this House notes the ongoing refurbishment works on the Elizabeth Tower and the fact that during this period Big Ben currently only chimes for Remembrance Sunday and New Year's Eve; further notes that the United Kingdom will now leave the European Union at 11.00pm GMT on 31 January 2020; …
(Most recent: 7 Jan 2020)
Signatures by party:
Conservative: 47
Democratic Unionist Party: 5
Labour: 1
Commons initiatives
These initiatives were driven by Lee Anderson, and are more likely to reflect personal policy preferences.
MPs who are act as Ministers or Shadow Ministers are generally restricted from performing Commons initiatives other than Urgent Questions.
166 Written Questions in the current parliament
(View all written questions)3 Other Department Questions
My Department has been implementing the Parking (Code of Practice) Act 2019 which requires the Secretary of State to prepare a Code of Practice containing guidance about the operation and management of private parking facilities. The Code is currently being finalised and, as part of that, we are considering any equalities impacts it may have. The Code will be published along with Private Parking Charges, Discount Rates, Debt Collection Fees and Appeals Charter: Further Technical Consultation Response in due course.
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
Levelling up is at the heart of the Government’s agenda to build back better after the pandemic. The Government will publish a landmark Levelling Up White Paper later this year, setting out bold new policy interventions to improve livelihoods and opportunity in all parts of the UK.
To support this, the Minister for Women and Equalities announced the Equality Data Programme in December, to ensure that geographic and socio-economic inequality is taken into account, alongside other factors, when identifying barriers to opportunity.
We also moved the sponsorship of the Social Mobility Commission across to the Equality Hub in April, so that it can play a crucial role in tackling regional inequalities.
Minister for Equalities
The Government is currently developing the plan for those who will be included under the COP26 UK delegation.
COP26 President (Cabinet Office)
The Unduly Lenient Sentence scheme is a vital safeguard in our criminal justice system. It permits the Law Officers to intervene personally in a case where a sentencing judge has fallen into gross error and imposed a sentence which is outside the reasonable range.
Sentencing judges get it right in the vast majority of cases. In those rare cases where they get it wrong, the scheme ensures that justice is served.
I recently argued in person before the Court of Appeal that the dangerous and depraved serial rapists Joseph McCann and Reynhard Sinaga should have received whole life sentences. The Court of Appeal did not impose whole life sentences, but it did increase their minimum terms from 30 to 40 years to properly reflect the truly heinous nature of their offending and protect the public from them.
Paymaster General
The Attorney General’s Office is not currently undertaking any statutory or non-statutory public inquiries.
Paymaster General
Leaving the EU and the agreement of the Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) means that the UK has full political and economic independence. The Government is using this opportunity to show what Global Britain means to the rest of the world and play our part as a global leader. We shall do so by advancing UK policies internationally, including through Conferences of Parties within the UN treaty system.
Paymaster General
The Cabinet Office is responsible for two independent statutory public inquiries; the Grenfell Tower Inquiry and the Infected Blood Inquiry. The department has no non-statutory inquiries currently underway.
Minister of State (Department for International Trade)
13 Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Questions
(View all Lee Anderson's BEIS questions)This Government is committed to supporting new businesses and entrepreneurs as we come out of the pandemic.
Our network of 38 Growth Hubs across England, provides key services to new businesses offering free information and 1-1 advice, alongside our free Business Support Helpline. Growth Hubs offer triage, diagnostic and signposting services to make sure that all businesses know what support is available and know how to apply.
We are also committed to supporting new businesses to access the finance they need, through working with the British Business Bank (BBB). The Start Up Loans programme, part of the BBB, has delivered 82,797 loans across the UK with a value of more than £722.3 million since the programme’s launch in 2012 to the end of March 2021.
The Government’s business advice pages on GOV.UK also provide information and guidance relevant to starting, growing and maintaining a business, as well as their statutory rights and obligations, and links to support provided by devolved administrations in Scotland , Wales, and Northern Ireland. All details can be found online: www.gov.uk/browse/business.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy)
The guidance on working from home will be reviewed ahead of Step 4 subject to the review on social distancing. People should continue to work from home where they can and minimise travel wherever possible as stated in the Government’s roadmap. Employers should ensure that workplaces are safe for anyone who cannot work from home.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy)
UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) has invested nearly £500 million towards 2,200 new research and innovation initiatives, both in the UK and globally. These initiatives are diverse and include research into Covid-19 immunity.
UKRI and the National Institute for Health Research have announced a joint £8.4 million investment towards three studies, which investigate major unanswered questions related to Covid-19 immunity.
Led by the University of Birmingham, the UK Coronavirus Immunology Consortium will receive £6.5 million to investigate key questions, such as how long Covid-19 immunity lasts, why some people’s immune systems are better able to fight off the virus, and why some immune responses cause damage.
The Humoral Immune Correlates of Covid-19 consortium, led by the University of Cambridge and Royal Papworth Hospital, will receive £1.5 million to study molecules produced by the immune system to fight infection.
A third study, led by the University of Edinburgh, will receive £394,000 to investigate key features of fatal Covid-19 and the impact the virus has on the lungs and other vital organs.
The current overall UKRI portfolio of Covid-19-related grants, including awards supported by Innovate UK, involves vaccine projects that provide greater diversity of approaches than for the first generation of vaccines developed. More details can be found on the UKRI website.
Secretary of State for Education
As part of the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) published on 24 December, the UK has agreed to associate to Horizon Europe which represents a valuable collaboration on science and research to tackle global challenges, and in fields that will benefit the British people. The government is committed to establishing the UK as a science and research global superpower, and this deal fulfils our manifesto commitment to collaborate internationally in this regard. As a responsible government, we were also prepared for a scenario where we did not agree to participate in Horizon Europe and were ready to implement a suite of domestic alternative schemes to support international research and innovation collaboration if required.
Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Government has invested over £300 million to secure and scale-up the UK’s manufacturing capabilities to be able to respond to the pandemic, including:
a) Facilities that have come online:
- £4.7 million for skills training through the Advanced Therapies Skills Training Network, which will be delivered through both virtual and physical centres;
- £8.75 million for the set-up of the rapid deployment facility at Oxford Biomedica in Oxfordshire;
- £65.5 million for the early manufacture of the University of Oxford / AstraZeneca vaccine;
- Fill and finish through a contract with Wockhardt in Wrexham, North Wales which is currently providing fill-finish capabilities to the University of Oxford / AstraZeneca vaccine; and
- The expansion of the Valneva factory in Livingston, Scotland, which will also provide longer-term UK capacity.
b) Facilities that will come online later this year, to help provide longer term UK capacity:
- £93 million to accelerate the completion and expanded role of the Vaccines Manufacturing Innovation Centre in Oxfordshire; and
- £127 million for the Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult in Braintree, Essex.
Secretary of State for Education
As part of the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) published on 24 December, the UK has agreed to associate to Horizon Europe which represents a valuable collaboration on science and research to tackle global challenges, and in fields that will benefit the British people. The government is committed to establishing the UK as a science and research global superpower, and this deal fulfils our manifesto commitment to collaborate internationally in this regard. As a responsible government, we were also prepared for a scenario where we did not agree to participate in Horizon Europe and were ready to implement a suite of domestic alternative schemes to support international research and innovation collaboration if required.
Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The flexibility and pragmatism of the MHRA has been instrumental to our COVID response, including enabling us to approve the COVID-19 vaccine before any other country. The MHRA will continue to pioneer innovative regulatory approaches to the most ground-breaking treatments, from the latest AI-enabled technologies to the best new precision therapies, benefiting both patients and the sector.
Secretary of State for Education
The low carbon economy is a success story, supporting hundreds of thousands of jobs, and it will continue to grow as we deliver net zero. The Government has not estimated the volume of jobs, investment and GVA that could directly be created or stimulated as a result of the Contracts for Difference Allocation Round 4. Auction outcomes are dependent on many factors including the auction parameters, which are yet to be set. However, we work closely with industry to maximise the opportunities for UK suppliers from projects with approved Supply Chain Plans.
Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
Whilst there are no predetermined limits on the volume of sites permitted to secure contracts through an allocation round, the Government has discretion to apply a capacity cap to an allocation round in order to limit the total capacity of projects awarded contracts in a round. Capacity caps can be used to drive competition in auctions and deliver value for money for consumers. We will publish allocation round parameters in advance of the next auction in 2021, taking into account a range of factors including the anticipated pipeline of eligible projects.
Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
The non-statutory Magnox Inquiry is currently underway, which is an independent inquiry into the award of the Magnox decommissioning contract by the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority and its subsequent termination.
Once convened, public inquiries are run independently of the Government. The Department supports and cooperates fully with all public inquiries as required.
Secretary of State for Education
The Government remains committed to tackling consumer rip-offs and bad business practices, including profiteering.
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has written to firms suspected of profiteering to challenge unjustifiable price increases. To date, the CMA has written to 264 firms, accounting for over 3,100 complaints, about price rises for essential products.
The Government continues to monitor the extent of profiteering and will update the law if it is proportionate to do so.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy)
The British Business Bank does not provide a breakdown on the issuance of loans under the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) to social enterprises.
As of 29 April, in total over £4.1 billion worth of loans have been issues under the CBILS across all sectors, to over 25,262 businesses. We are working with the British Business Bank, HM Treasury and the lenders on providing transparent and regular data publication going forward.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy)
14 Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Questions
(View all Lee Anderson's DCMS questions)Gigabit coverage in Ashfield has increased significantly in the past 12 months, with 15.33% of premises able to access a gigabit-capable broadband service, compared with 1.8% in September 2020. Additionally, 99.1% of premises in Ashfield have access to superfast broadband (>30Mbps) in Ashfield, which exceeds the national average of 96.9%
To date, the Better Broadband for Nottinghamshire (BBfN) scheme has delivered 378 gigabit-capable FTTP connections across the constituency. The Hucknall exchange has also been included with Openreach’s latest commercial announcement, with delivery expected to be completed between now and April 2024.
We are backing Project Gigabit with £5 billion so hard to reach communities are not left out. Nottinghamshire falls within Phase 2 (Lot 10) of Project Gigabit. Preparations for Phase 2 are already well underway and following the Open Market Review and Public Review, formal procurement should start in November 2022 in Nottinghamshire.
Concurrently, premises in rural areas may also be in line for funding through the Gigabit Broadband Voucher Scheme, with up to £210m allocated to the scheme over the next four years to support hard to reach communities. The voucher scheme offers up to £1,500 for homes and £3,500 for businesses to help to cover the costs of installing gigabit broadband to people’s doorsteps when used as part of a group scheme. Home and business owners can check the eligibility of their address and then look up suppliers in their area by going to https://gigabitvoucher.culture.gov.uk/.
Nottinghamshire has made good use of the scheme so far, seeing 135 voucher connections worth £340,030, with a further 372 vouchers to be connected, totalling £948,290.
Minister of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
The Fan Led Review of Football Governance is moving at pace to reform our national game for the better.
The Review has heard over 100 hours of evidence from fan groups, clubs, and stakeholders - including from supporters representing over 130 football clubs; received over 170 submissions from groups, organisations and individuals; and over 20,000 responses from fans to an online survey seeking their views on what needs to change
The Review published its interim findings in July, and will publish its final report in the autumn.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government recognises the invaluable work of the charity sector for communities across the UK.
There are generous tax reliefs already available for the whole charity sector, including more than £1.3 billion a year in respect of Gift Aid on donations. Increasing the value of Gift Aid would break the link with tax that has been paid; this means it would no longer be a tax relief, but a grant to charities which is based solely on the amount of Gift Aid that they claim. The Government is not convinced this is the most appropriate or practical way to provide support to charities at this time.
We will continue to work with the sector to assess their emerging needs and understand how we can best support them during the current period.
The Government has made available an unprecedented £750 million package of support, specifically for charities, social enterprises and the voluntary sector. This will ensure charities at risk of financial hardship can continue their vital work supporting the country during the coronavirus outbreak.
The Government has also made available a package of support across the economy, designed to enable organisations to get through the months ahead. Businesses that are mandated to close by law due to the current national restrictions can access grants of up to £4,500 per 6 weeks of closure through the Local Restrictions Support Grant (Closed) Addendum.
In addition, closed businesses may be eligible for a one-off payment of up to £9,000 to help them through spring, through the Closed Business Lockdown Payment. Where the business in question, e.g. a charity shop, is mandated to close in the regulations and they meet the other eligibility criteria laid out in scheme guidance, then they would be eligible for the Local Restrictions Support Grant (Closed) and variations of that scheme. Local authorities are responsible for determining eligibility for this grant funding on the basis of legislation, guidance and other information submitted by applicants.
We will continue to work with the sector to assess their emerging needs and understand how we can best support them during the current period.
The Review of the Gambling Act 2005 was launched on 8 December 2020. As set out in the Terms of Reference, the Review is wide-ranging in scope and will be evidence-led. The Call for Evidence will run until 31 March 2021, and we are seeking evidence from a broad range of interested groups and stakeholders.
The Review aims to ensure that the Gambling Act is fit for the digital age, and offers an opportunity to make sure that we have the balance right between protecting vulnerable people from gambling related harm, and respecting the freedom of adults to choose how they spend their money and leisure time.
The Gambling Commission’s consultation and call for evidence on Remote Customer Interaction discusses the important issues of identifying consumers in vulnerable situations and assessing affordability. The consultation and call for evidence responses will inform the Commission’s next steps for setting Licence Conditions and Codes of Practice. It may also inform the Gambling Commission’s advice to government on the Review of the Gambling Act 2005.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
The Review of the Gambling Act 2005 was launched on 8 December 2020. As set out in the Terms of Reference, the Review is wide-ranging in scope and will be evidence-led. The Call for Evidence will run until 31 March 2021, and we are seeking evidence from a broad range of interested groups and stakeholders.
The Review aims to ensure that the Gambling Act is fit for the digital age, and offers an opportunity to make sure that we have the balance right between protecting vulnerable people from gambling related harm, and respecting the freedom of adults to choose how they spend their money and leisure time.
The Gambling Commission’s consultation and call for evidence on Remote Customer Interaction discusses the important issues of identifying consumers in vulnerable situations and assessing affordability. The consultation and call for evidence responses will inform the Commission’s next steps for setting Licence Conditions and Codes of Practice. It may also inform the Gambling Commission’s advice to government on the Review of the Gambling Act 2005.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
The UK is committed to upholding freedom of expression online. Our new online safety laws will safeguard pluralism and ensure internet users can continue to engage in robust debate online.
Under the new regulatory framework, both Ofcom and in-scope companies will have duties relating to freedom of expression, for which they can be held to account. The largest social media platforms will be required to have clear and accessible terms and conditions, and to enforce their terms and conditions consistently and transparently. Furthermore, new obligations for transparency and user reporting will enable users to more effectively understand and appeal content removal. This will both empower adult users to keep themselves safe online, and protect freedom of expression by preventing companies from arbitrarily removing content.
The government has announced a review of the Gambling Act 2005 to ensure it is fit for the digital age. As set out in the Call for Evidence which launched on December 8, technology can play a role in helping operators identify customers at risk of harm and targeting interventions. While many online operators already use technology for this purpose, we are calling for evidence on the effectiveness of existing online protections in preventing gambling harms, and this will include a consideration of whether and how technology can be better used to that end.
The Call for Evidence will be open until 31 March 2021, and further details, including how to make a contribution, can be found at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/review-of-the-gambling-act-2005-terms-of-reference-and-call-for-evidence/review-of-the-gambling-act-2005-terms-of-reference-and-call-for-evidence.
The work of the Gambling Commission as industry regulator continues alongside the Review. Its consultation and call for evidence on Remote Customer Interaction covers issues of identifying consumers in vulnerable situations and assessing affordability, and calls for views on how to balance consumer protections and consumer freedom. The consultation and call for evidence responses will inform the Commission’s next steps for setting Licence Conditions and Codes of Practice and may also inform its advice to government on the Review of the Gambling Act 2005.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
The government has announced a review of the Gambling Act 2005 to ensure it is fit for the digital age. As set out in the Call for Evidence which launched on December 8, technology can play a role in helping operators identify customers at risk of harm and targeting interventions. While many online operators already use technology for this purpose, we are calling for evidence on the effectiveness of existing online protections in preventing gambling harms, and this will include a consideration of whether and how technology can be better used to that end.
The Call for Evidence will be open until 31 March 2021, and further details, including how to make a contribution, can be found at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/review-of-the-gambling-act-2005-terms-of-reference-and-call-for-evidence/review-of-the-gambling-act-2005-terms-of-reference-and-call-for-evidence.
The work of the Gambling Commission as industry regulator continues alongside the Review. Its consultation and call for evidence on Remote Customer Interaction covers issues of identifying consumers in vulnerable situations and assessing affordability, and calls for views on how to balance consumer protections and consumer freedom. The consultation and call for evidence responses will inform the Commission’s next steps for setting Licence Conditions and Codes of Practice and may also inform its advice to government on the Review of the Gambling Act 2005.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
Combined Health Survey data for 2016 estimated the rate of problem gambling amongst adults in Britain who had gambled in the past year to be 1.2%. The 2018 Health Survey for England estimated a problem gambling rate of 1% amongst adult past-year gamblers.
Gambling operators licensed by the Gambling Commission are required to make a contribution to fund research, prevention or treatment of problem gambling. The Gambling Commission publishes a list of approved recipients of these donations, and will soon publish its first set of annual data detailing the value of donations each has received. Most operators choose to give to the charity GambleAware, which received more than £10 million in donations during the 2019/20 financial year.
In July 2019, the government secured a commitment from five large operators for a tenfold increase in their contributions to the research, prevention and treatment of problem gambling over four years, rising from 0.1% to 1% of gross gambling yield. This included a commitment to spend £100 million on treatment over this period. In June 2020 it was announced that GambleAware would use these funds to expand existing treatment services. Industry body the Betting and Gaming Council has set out a planned schedule for donations which will see combined contributions from those operators involved in the commitment rise to £5 million in the financial year 2020/21, £10 million in 2021/22, £25 million in 2022/23, and £35 million in 2023/24, with an additional £25 million to be spread across the financial years 2021-23.
GambleAware is an independent charity which commissions a wide network of gambling-specific treatment services including a specialist NHS gambling clinic in London and the NHS Northern Gambling Service. Its forthcoming Strategic Commissioning Plan, due to be published in April 2021, will set out its objectives for commissioning treatment services over the next five years. It will commision additional treatment provision to complement NHS services, which are also being scaled up as part of the NHS Long-Term Plan. Up to 14 new specialist NHS gambling clinics are planned to open by 2024, with three already accepting patients. The Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC) remains committed to the expansion and alignment of existing treatment provision for gambling-related harms, and continues to work collaboratively with the NHS and GambleAware to ensure effective use of the additional £100 million of industry funding allocated for treatment over the next 4 years.
The government launched its Review of the Gambling Act 2005 on 8 December with the publication of a Call for Evidence. As part of the wide scope of that Review, the government has called for evidence on the most effective means of recouping the regulatory and societal costs of gambling from operators.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
The government monitors trends and developments in gambling markets in other jurisdictions where they might be relevant for the regulation of gambling in Great Britain, and is aware of reports claiming an increase in gambling participation with unlicensed operators in Sweden. Our Review of the Gambling Act 2005 was launched last month and issues around black market gambling are included in its wide scope. The Review will be evidence led, and we have called for evidence on the extent of the black market and its accessibility to consumers, as well as whether the Gambling Commission has the powers and resources it needs to continue to tackle the black market effectively. We welcome evidence from other jurisdictions.
The Call for Evidence will be open until 31 March 2021, and further details, including how to make a contribution, can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/review-of-the-gambling-act-2005-terms-of-reference-and-call-for-evidence/review-of-the-gambling-act-2005-terms-of-reference-and-call-for-evidence.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport has no statutory or non-statutory public inquiries being undertaken at present.
The Online Harms White Paper set out government’s plans to establish in law a new duty of care on companies towards their users, enforced by an independent regulator. As part of our plans, companies will be required to take action to address harmful suicide and self-harm content that provides graphic details of suicide methods and self-harming, including encouragement of self-harm and suicide.
There are already arrangements between companies and charities to improve the identification and removal of content when it is reported, and services that signpost help and supportive content to users. The Samaritans has a strategic partnership with social media companies and the Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC). The partnership works together to set guidance on moderating suicide and self-harm content, and supporting users to stay safe online.
The School Rebuilding Programme was announced in 2020 with a commitment to deliver 500 rebuilding and refurbishment projects over the next decade. The department announced the first 100 projects this year at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-rebuilding-programme. The most advanced projects started construction in September 2021.
A consultation on the approach to prioritising schools for future places in the programme closed on 8 October 2021. We plan to publish the response and details of the future prioritisation process in early 2022.
Minister of State (Education)
The Department’s priority is for schools to deliver face to face, high quality education to all pupils. The evidence is clear that being out of education can cause significant harm to educational attainment, life chances, and mental and physical health.
To reduce transmission, the Department is keeping some measures in place across nurseries, schools and colleges to enable us to provide as normal an experience as possible as schools welcome pupils back in larger numbers. This will be supported by our ability to respond swiftly and consistently to any exceptional circumstances should it prove necessary and may include reintroducing additional control measures for a limited period to deal with outbreaks. These are set out in the contingency framework: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-local-restrictions-in-education-and-childcare-settings.
The Department has worked closely with the Department of Health and Social Care and Public Health England to revise guidance for schools from Step 4: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/actions-for-schools-during-the-coronavirus-outbreak. The Department’s aim is to balance the risks associated with COVID-19 whilst moving to a position that minimises both the burden of implementing a system of controls on schools and the impact those measures have on young people’s educational experience.
Schools are no longer asked to keep children and young people in consistent groups (‘bubbles’). As well as enabling flexibility in curriculum delivery, this means that assemblies can resume, and schools and colleges no longer need to make alternative arrangements to avoid mixing at lunch. Nurseries, schools and colleges should continue to ensure good hygiene for everyone, maintain appropriate cleaning regimes, keep occupied spaces well ventilated and follow public health advice on testing, self isolation, and managing confirmed cases of COVID-19.
Face coverings are no longer advised for pupils, staff, and visitors either in classrooms or in communal areas. The Government has removed the requirement to wear face coverings but expects and recommends that they are worn in enclosed and crowded spaces where pupils or staff may come into contact with people they do not normally meet. This includes public transport and dedicated transport to school or college.
The Department will continue to keep these measures under review, in partnership with health experts and informed by the latest scientific evidence and advice.
Education on financial matters helps to ensure that young people are prepared to manage their money well, make sound financial decisions and know where to seek further information when needed. In 2014, for the first time, financial literacy was made statutory within the National Curriculum as part of the citizenship curriculum for 11 to 16 year olds.
We also introduced a rigorous Mathematics curriculum, which provides young people with the knowledge and financial skills to make important financial decisions. The Government has published statutory programmes of study for mathematics and citizenship that outline what pupils should learn about financial education from Key Stages 1 to 4.
In the primary Mathematics curriculum, there is a strong emphasis on the essential arithmetic knowledge that pupils should have. This knowledge is vital, as a strong understanding of numeracy and numbers will underpin the pupils’ ability to manage budgets and money, including, for example, percentages. There is also some specific content about financial education such as calculations with money.
Finance education forms part of the citizenship curriculum which can be taught at all key stages and is compulsory at Key Stages 3 and 4: https://www.gov.uk/national-curriculum. Financial education ensures that pupils are taught the functions and uses of money, the importance of personal budgeting, money management and managing financial risk. At secondary school, pupils are taught about income and expenditure, credit and debt, insurance, savings and pensions, financial products and services, and how public money is raised and spent.
The Department works closely with the Money and Pensions Service and other stakeholders such as Her Majesty’s Treasury, to consider what can be discovered from other sector initiatives and whether there is scope to provide further support for the teaching of financial education in schools.
The Children and Families Act 2014 provides a framework for ensuring that autistic children are identified early and that they receive the support they need. The upcoming Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) Review will look at how the system has evolved since 2014, and how it can be made to work best for all children and young people and their families.
The department is also working closely with the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) to develop a refreshed cross-government autism strategy. This recognises the progress that has been made, as well as the challenges and priorities for reducing inequalities, and enabling autistic people of all ages to have the same opportunities as everyone else to lead healthy, happy and fulfilling lives. DHSC aims to publish the refreshed autism strategy, subject to COVID-19 pressures, this spring.
We also know how important expertise and training is for the workforce to give children with SEND, including autistic children, the best experiences in education. The department has funded the Autism Education Trust since 2011 to deliver autism awareness training in order to best support autistic students to education staff in early years, schools and further education settings.
The Children Act 1989 places a general duty on local authorities to provide services to safeguard and promote the welfare of children within their area who are in need, including the provision of social care services for disabled children, as some autistic children would be considered disabled. The Equality Act 2010 carried forward existing protections against discrimination and extended a duty on schools to supply auxiliary aids and services to disabled pupils as reasonable adjustments, where these children are not being supplied through education, health and care plans or other sources.
The Children and Families Act 2014 (Section 97) requires local authorities to assess and support the needs of parents and carers as well as those of children with SEND. Assessments are based on individual needs but should include parents’ wellbeing and ‘control over day-to-day life’. Further information is available here: http://www.councilfordisabledchildren.org.uk/media/948959/socialcare_implementationofcfa2014_online.pdf.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
In light of the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak, the Government considers that examinations cannot be held in a way which is fair. The Department has announced that GCSE, AS and A level examinations will not go ahead this summer as planned. In his statement to the House on 6 January 2021, my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education confirmed proposals that pupils taking GCSE, AS and A levels this summer should be awarded grades based on an assessment by their teachers.
The Department and Ofqual have launched a joint consultation on how to fairly award all pupils, including private candidates and students taking vocational qualifications, with a grade that supports them to progress to the next stage of their lives. We are consulting on the evidence needed to inform teachers’ assessments of their students’ grades, including providing externally set papers to support their assessments. Teachers will be provided with training and guidance to support them.
The consultation proposes that examination boards should both provide information for schools and colleges to inform their own quality assurance, and that they themselves should undertake checks of schools’ and colleges’ processes and the evidence for the grades submitted.
The consultation also proposes that there must be provision for pupils to appeal their grades or the process by which they were assessed, and we welcome all views from schools, colleges, students and their parents and carers on the proposed arrangements for the appeals process next year. The Department will provide further details on the appeals process for 2021 when the consultation has closed, and the approach has been finalised.
Education on financial matters helps to ensure that young people are prepared to manage their money well, make sound financial decisions, and know where to seek further information when needed. In 2014, for the first time, financial literacy was made statutory within the National Curriculum as part of the citizenship curriculum for 11 to 16 year olds.
The Department also introduced a rigorous mathematics curriculum, which provides young people with the knowledge and financial skills to make important financial decisions. The Government has published statutory programmes of study for mathematics and citizenship that outline what pupils should learn about financial education from key stages one to four.
In the primary mathematics curriculum, there is a strong emphasis on the essential arithmetic that pupils should have. This knowledge is vital, as a strong understanding of numeracy and numbers will underpin the pupils’ ability to manage budgets and money, including, for example, percentages. There is also some specific content about financial education, such as calculations with money.
Schools should use their professional judgement and understanding of their pupils to develop the right teaching approach for their particular school, drawing on the expertise of subject associations and organisations such as Young Money.
Schools should have resumed teaching an ambitious and broad curriculum in all subjects from the start of the autumn term. This means that all pupils will be taught a wide range of subjects so they can maintain their choices for further study and employment. Our latest guidance on teaching to support children is set out here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/actions-for-schools-during-the-coronavirus-outbreak/guidance-for-full-opening-schools.
Over the longer term, the Department will continue to work closely with The Money and Pension Service and HM Treasury to consider how to provide further support for the teaching of financial education in schools.
Financial education is taught within the national curriculum in mathematics and citizenship. At present, due to the unprecedented challenges for schools caused by the COVID-19 outbreak, the Government understands that schools will need flexibility around the education they are providing to their pupils. We expect schools and teachers to use their professional judgement, knowledge of their pupils’ educational needs and home circumstances, to plan appropriate content that enables education to continue.
Our latest guidance on teaching to support children is set out here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/remote-education-during-coronavirus-covid-19.
Longer term, the Department will continue to work closely with The Money and Pension Service and HM Treasury to consider how to provide further support for the teaching of financial education in schools.
Degree apprenticeships offer people of all ages and from all backgrounds the chance to earn while they learn and access a range of professions. We are committed to continuing to raise the profile of higher and degree apprenticeships as a genuine, high-quality alternative to traditional academic study, and want to make sure we reach those from disadvantaged areas and backgrounds who might not otherwise have considered higher education as an option.
In addition to our awareness-raising work through the Fire it Up marketing campaign, National Apprenticeship Week, and in conjunction with the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS), we have introduced a range of targeted programmes to widen participation in apprenticeships, with a particular focus on higher and degree apprenticeships.
Our Apprenticeships Support and Knowledge (ASK) programme continues to work in schools and colleges in disadvantaged areas, providing free resources to support teachers to inform and inspire young people and introduce them to the range of apprenticeship opportunities available. Within the ASK programme, a Priority Schools pilot project supports 40 schools across England to provide disadvantaged students with information on apprenticeships.
‘Opportunities through Apprenticeships’, a pilot project launched in November 2018, seeks to encourage apprenticeship starts in sectors that offer higher wage-earning potential and progression opportunities. Four local authorities involved in this pilot – Portsmouth, Nottingham, South Tyneside, and Torbay – are leading local projects to identify skills gaps, encourage new training provision, and promote apprenticeships to people from disadvantaged backgrounds.
Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
4 Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Questions
(View all Lee Anderson's Defra questions)Ofwat, the independent economic regulator for water and wastewater services in England and Wales, holds all water companies to account for the delivery of secure and resilient water services.
Through its price review process, Ofwat has set improvement targets for all companies to reduce main bursts by 12% and supply interruptions by 41% between 2020 and 2025. Companies must publish their performance annually against key targets.
Customers of water and sewerage companies are entitled to guaranteed minimum standards of service under the guaranteed standards scheme. Where a company fails to meet any of these standards of service then it is required to make a specified payment to the affected customer.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
There are no statutory or non-statutory public inquiries currently being undertaken by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is the independent non-Ministerial department responsible for investigating competition issues in the UK. The Government has ensured that the CMA has significant powers to investigate and act if it finds that companies are behaving anti-competitively in a market. Individuals can report anti-competitive behaviour by emailing the CMA at general.enquiries@cma.gov.uk.
Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government’s message to the public is clear: stay at home, in order to protect the NHS and save lives. To reduce social contact, the Government has ordered certain businesses and venues to close. A full list of those businesses required to close, and exemptions, can be found at:
Dog walking businesses are not explicitly referred to as businesses that are required to close. Indeed, dog walking businesses play a key role in ensuring the welfare of the nation’s pets and can operate within the strict advice on social distancing and hygiene. Businesses that own private fields for dog walking are allowed to continue to operate.
The Canine and Feline Sector Group, which advises both the Animal Health and Welfare Board for England and Defra Ministers, has issued its own guidance to pet businesses on how they can continue to operate under current restrictions and in line with guidance around social distancing and hygiene.
Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
DFID are not currently sponsoring any public inquiries.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Nearly 1,200 East Midlands business exported goods to Australia last year. East Midlands business exported goods worth more than £200m to Australia in 2020. The world-famous East Midlands shoemaking industry, the region’s manufacturers and high-quality food exporters could all be big winners from an Australia free trade deal. The deal will cut tariffs on key UK exports, while removing red tape and aligning regulations would make exporting easier for East Midland industries such as machinery and chemicals, which exported £130m worth of goods to Australia last year.
Minister of State (Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy)
Safeguard measures exist under the World Trade Organisation (WTO) Agreements to allow countries to put measures in place to protect domestic industries against serious damage caused or threatened to be caused by unforeseen surges in imports. There are strict evidential requirements and processes that must be followed in order to put safeguard measures in place.
The United Kingdom’s steel safeguard measures were established by the EU when the United Kingdom was a member state. They followed the processes and were on the basis of the criteria provided for in the WTO Agreements. The United Kingdom’s Tariff Rate Quotas (TRQs) reflect the British portion of the original EU safeguard measure, based on British import data from the original period of investigation under which the measure was imposed.
The Department for International Trade did not conduct an economic impact assessment when transitioning the measures as these were established measures already in effect, not new measures being implemented. However, the Trade Remedies Investigations Directorate (TRID) initiated a review of the current safeguard measures on 1st October 2020. In most circumstances, subject to what it determines as a result of any review, TRID will make a recommendation to the Secretary of State. This specific review will include consideration of the economic impacts of continuation, variation or termination of the measures, except where particular products are not being imported in increased quantities or are not being produced in the United Kingdom. As a part of this evidence-based review, TRID will evaluate the risk of serious injury.
My Hon. Friend is a great champion of British industry, and he will understand that the Secretary of State cannot pre-empt TRID’s recommendation by considering the future of the measures before such a review is complete and the recommendation is received.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for International Trade)
Safeguard measures exist under the World Trade Organisation (WTO) Agreements to allow countries to put measures in place to protect domestic industries against serious damage caused or threatened to be caused by unforeseen surges in imports. There are strict evidential requirements and processes that must be followed in order to put safeguard measures in place.
The United Kingdom’s steel safeguard measures were established by the EU when the United Kingdom was a member state. They followed the processes and were on the basis of the criteria provided for in the WTO Agreements. The United Kingdom’s Tariff Rate Quotas (TRQs) reflect the British portion of the original EU safeguard measure, based on British import data from the original period of investigation under which the measure was imposed.
The Department for International Trade did not conduct an economic impact assessment when transitioning the measures as these were established measures already in effect, not new measures being implemented. However, the Trade Remedies Investigations Directorate (TRID) initiated a review of the current safeguard measures on 1st October 2020. In most circumstances, subject to what it determines as a result of any review, TRID will make a recommendation to the Secretary of State. This specific review will include consideration of the economic impacts of continuation, variation or termination of the measures, except where particular products are not being imported in increased quantities or are not being produced in the United Kingdom. As a part of this evidence-based review, TRID will evaluate the risk of serious injury.
My Hon. Friend is a great champion of British industry, and he will understand that the Secretary of State cannot pre-empt TRID’s recommendation by considering the future of the measures before such a review is complete and the recommendation is received.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for International Trade)
Safeguard measures exist under the World Trade Organisation (WTO) Agreements to allow countries to put measures in place to protect domestic industries against serious damage caused or threatened to be caused by unforeseen surges in imports. There are strict evidential requirements and processes that must be followed in order to put safeguard measures in place.
The United Kingdom’s steel safeguard measures were established by the EU when the United Kingdom was a member state. They followed the processes and were on the basis of the criteria provided for in the WTO Agreements. The United Kingdom’s Tariff Rate Quotas (TRQs) reflect the British portion of the original EU safeguard measure, based on British import data from the original period of investigation under which the measure was imposed.
The Department for International Trade did not conduct an economic impact assessment when transitioning the measures as these were established measures already in effect, not new measures being implemented. However, the Trade Remedies Investigations Directorate (TRID) initiated a review of the current safeguard measures on 1st October 2020. In most circumstances, subject to what it determines as a result of any review, TRID will make a recommendation to the Secretary of State. This specific review will include consideration of the economic impacts of continuation, variation or termination of the measures, except where particular products are not being imported in increased quantities or are not being produced in the United Kingdom. As a part of this evidence-based review, TRID will evaluate the risk of serious injury.
My Hon. Friend is a great champion of British industry, and he will understand that the Secretary of State cannot pre-empt TRID’s recommendation by considering the future of the measures before such a review is complete and the recommendation is received.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for International Trade)
The Department for International Trade came into existence in 2016 and since this time there have been no statutory and non-statutory public inquiries.
Minister of State (Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy)
In January 2020 the Government pledged £500 million for the Restoring Your Railway programme to deliver on our manifesto commitment to start reopening lines and stations. The Secretary of State for Transport and I will be considering next steps for projects, including the Maid Marian Line, with a decision on the next tranche to progress anticipated in the coming months.
Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Department will soon publish its Integrated Rail Plan (IRP) which will look at how best to deliver major rail investments in the North and Midlands including HS2 Phase 2b, Northern Powerhouse Rail and other major Network Rail schemes, so that the benefits of these investments are delivered to passengers and communities more quickly.
Minister of State (Department for Transport)
In March the Government published England’s long-term National Bus Strategy, setting out its plans to deliver better bus services across the country. At the Budget we announced that there will be £1.2 billion of new dedicated funding for bus transformation deals to deliver services, fares and infrastructure improvements.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department does not have any statutory or non-statutory inquiries presently taking place.
Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Government announced the outcome of the consultation in the PM’s Ten Point Plan. We are going further and faster to decarbonise transport by phasing out the sale of new petrol and diesel cars and vans by 2030, and, from 2035, all new cars and vans must be zero emissions at the tailpipe. Between 2030 and 2035, new cars and vans can be sold if they have the capability to drive a significant distance with zero emissions [for example plug-in or full hybrids]. The meaning of ‘significant zero emission capability’ will be defined by consultation in 2021. Alongside the new phase out dates government has pledged a further £2.8 billion package of measures to support industry and consumers to make the switch to cleaner vehicles. The Government’s written response to the consultation will be published in due course. We will publish a clear delivery plan in 2021.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The Department will, as a matter of course, publish any inquiries it is required to do so as part of the terms of reference for that inquiry. For those where publication is not a requirement, Ministers will take a decision to publish on a case-by-case basis.
Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I can confirm that the Department for Transport has received the expression of interest for the Maid Marian line for the Restoring Your Railway Ideas fund. Full applications now need to be submitted by the deadline of 19 June 2020. All bids will be assessed on their merit.
Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The question of workplace safety and wellbeing is a matter for rail employers to address with their staff. However, the Department works with the British Transport Police (BTP), including on joint initiatives such as the secure stations scheme, to tackle crime on the railways in Great Britain.
As part of its work to tackle violent crime, BTP also undertakes activity to address violence against staff specifically and holds a work place violence group with industry representative to identify and share best practice on a national basis. This includes supporting the use of Body-Worn Video (BWV) by front line staff and establishing consistent conflict awareness training for staff.
Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The bus market outside London is deregulated and decisions regarding service provision are primarily a commercial matter for bus operators. However, the Bus Services Act 2017 provides the tools local authorities need to improve local bus services and increase passenger numbers.
The Government provided £1,002,539 for Nottinghamshire County Council during 2018/19 to support vulnerable services.
In addition, we have announced a further £30 million for less commercial services. Nottinghamshire County Council has been allocated £648,608 which will be available from April 2020 if the funding requirements are met. This is from the £220 million Better Deal for Bus Users package to transform bus services. The Government’s ambition is to secure a long term, sustained improvement in bus services underpinned by a National Bus Strategy for England which will be accompanied by a long-term funding settlement.
www.gov.uk/government/publications/a-better-deal-for-bus-users/a-better-deal-for-bus-users
On 11 February 2020, the Prime Minister announced there will be £5 billion of new funding to overhaul bus and cycle links for every region outside London which may benefit bus services serving Ashfield.
Through our Plan for Jobs, we are targeting tailored support schemes to people of all ages to help them prepare for, get into and progress in work. These include Kickstart where we have delivered tens of thousands of six-month work placements for Universal Credit claimants aged 16-24 at risk of unemployment, and; Restart which provides 12 months’ intensive employment support to Universal Credit claimants who are unemployed for a year. Our Plan for Jobs interventions will support more than two million people. We have also recruited an additional 13,500 Work Coaches to provide support to unemployed people to find a job.
We continue to ensure that provision is available to support people to move into and progress in jobs in local growing sectors.
This includes Ashfield where the Jobcentre has been working with employers from the transport and distribution sectors delivering Sector Work based Academy Programmes, in the wider East Midlands Kickstart has provided 13,040 job opportunities for young people aged 18-24.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
DWP has a variety of provision to support people of all ages into job opportunities in a range of roles and sectors, including into high-skilled roles. Individual Work Coaches will work with claimants to understand their skills, experience and interests as they support them to find work.
For young people specifically, the DWP Youth Offer provides wrap-around support to those aged 18-24 who are in the intensive work search regime of Universal Credit. It was introduced as part of the wider UK Government Plan for Jobs package.
Throughout the programme, every young person is encouraged to take part in a wide range of work-based opportunities. Work coaches will identify and promote the most appropriate provision for the young person, including Kickstart, Sector-based Work Academy Programmes, traineeships, work experience, Mentoring Circles, or apprenticeships. Young people can be referred to a Youth Hub to address skills gaps, or a Youth Employability Coach if there are key barriers or complex needs preventing them from finding or keeping employment.
The Ashfield area feeds into the wider travel to work areas of Mansfield and Nottingham, with numerous opportunities for young people to access high level construction jobs, for example with green energy employer Cobalt Energy Free. There is access to highly paid and skilled careers within the rail industry through Trackworks, and there are local opportunities for funding through DWP’s Flexible Support Fund, for example LVG/HGV licences into the logistics sector.
The D2N2 (Derby, Derbyshire, Nottingham and Nottinghamshire) Local Enterprise Partnership has supported the local skills offer through Local Growth Fund investments in skills facilities, including a £0.67m contribution to the establishment of an Automation and Robotics Training Centre at the West Nottinghamshire College Sutton-in-Ashfield campus. They also offer digital boot camps, providing support in Coding & Software development, Cyber & System Security, Digital Marketing and IT, Networking and Infrastructure.
The D2N2 Skills Access Hub aims to be a ‘one stop shop’ for local businesses wishing to close skills gaps through training, recruitment, apprenticeships and placements, activities that can all help support young people into higher skill jobs. West Nottinghamshire College (whose campus extends across the Ashfield and Mansfield area) is a partner in the Access Hub.
In addition to this, the DWP Youth Hub in Nottingham is delivered in partnership with DBC Training and local employers who regularly visit the hub. The Youth Hub is accessible to all surrounding jobcentres to give young people access to skills, training and employment support, and connects them with the D2N2 Skills Access Hub to deliver opportunities to develop their careers.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department prioritises resource to our telephony services according to forecast demand. In periods of unexpected high demand (such as experienced through the pandemic) waiting times may vary while the Department rebalances across services, or secures external resource. The Department also continues to progress automation of services for those citizens able to self-serve to reduce demand and therefore wait times.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
DWP is aware that a small number of new State Pension claims have been subject to delays in receiving payment.
The Department is working hard to clear the current backlog, many of which have accrued since the Covid Pandemic.
We are prioritising overdue payments and payments that are imminent within the next few weeks. Normal service will be resumed by the end of October 2021.
Claimants don’t need to act, we have identified the cases and will process them as soon as possible.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department has taken huge steps to reduce and minimise fraud and error during the last 16 months – at a time where the Department processed 4.3 million new Universal Credit claims, with the vast majority of benefits paid remaining genuine.
Without the interventions we introduced, the overall Fraud and Error rate would have been notably higher.
Our Integrated Risk and Intelligence Service coordinates the detection of, and response to, fraud risks from organised crime groups seeking to exploit COVID-19. In May 2020, cyber colleagues prevented a large attack on our systems by organised criminals. This prevented substantial sums being paid out to scammers.
We continue to invest in our digital capability and organisational design, with the Chancellor announcing £44m at the Spring Budget for the development of this prevent approach. This funding has enabled us to expand our Integrated Risk and Intelligence Service, develop pre-payment ‘risking’ techniques and maintain our new Enhanced Checking Service for high risk claims.
We are currently revisiting any high risks claims that were paid during the early period of COVID-19.
We take any abuse of taxpayers’ money very seriously. Where fraud does occur, we will investigate it and where fraud is established, we are committed to the use of appropriate penalties and to recovering monies from the perpetrators.
We also continue to work with Other Government Departments and Law Enforcement Agencies nationally and across borders to ensure appropriate intelligence and resources are shared, enabling the totality of any criminality to be identified and investigated.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The requested information is not available. No information is held because there have been no inquiries that the Department has sponsored.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
Last year, we announced an additional £5.4 billion over three years to begin a comprehensive social care reform programme.
This includes £3.6 billion to reform the social care charging system protecting everybody from unlimited and unfair costs and £1.7 billion to begin major improvements across the social care system.
In December we published a white paper that set out our 10-year vision for reforming adult social care and our priorities for that investment.
This includes at least £500 million investment to support the development and wellbeing of the social care workforce, a £300 million investment in increasing the range of supported housing and £150 million to improve technology and digital records.
Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department will publish its response to the post implementation review of the Tobacco and Related Products Regulations 2016, as well as the Standardised Packaging of Tobacco Products 2015, early this year. The review reports are currently with the Regulatory Policy Committee and we await the conclusion of their process. Following these reviews, the Department will consider the need for any regulatory changes.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
We currently have no plans to review or extend the prescription charge medical exemptions list to include rheumatoid arthritis. Approximately 89% of prescriptions are already dispensed free of charge and extensive arrangements are in place to help those most in need. To support those who do not qualify for an exemption, the cost of prescriptions can be spread by purchasing a prescription pre-payment certificate. A holder of a 12-month certificate can get all the prescriptions they need for just over £2 per week.
Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The National Health Service is focusing on reducing the number of people waiting over 62 days on cancer pathways, particularly rescheduling diagnostic procedures or treatments for those whose care was delayed by the pandemic. An additional £1 billion has been made available to the NHS in 2021/22 to support the recovery of elective activity and cancer services.
The NHS is supporting adults experiencing cancer with access to Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) mental health services, which provide evidence-based therapies for people with anxiety disorders and depression. The implementation of IAPT-Long Term Condition pathways has been identified as a priority to support integration of mental health and physical health services for people with co-morbid long-term conditions, such as cancer.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department has no current plans to increase the rates charged to overseas visitors for National Health Service care. However, we continue to work with NHS England and NHS Improvement to help trusts improve overseas charging processes and increase debt recovery.
Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We are on target to deliver 50,000 more nurses by the end of this Parliament which will be achieved through increased domestic recruitment, increased international recruitment and improved retention.
Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before prorogation.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
We are on target to deliver 50,000 more nurses by the end of this Parliament. The latest published NHS Digital statistics show the number of nurses has increased by almost 10,900 between January 2020 and January 2021, excluding health visitors and midwives.
Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government is committed to supporting the elderly and the vulnerable in society ahead of winter through offering a free seasonal flu vaccination to those over 65 years old and increased funding for National Health Service and adult social care services. We announced a further £6.6 billion funding for NHS services on 18 March 2021 and councils have access to £1 billion of additional funding for social care in 2021-22.
This year there is continued risk from COVID-19. Everybody in cohorts one to nine, which includes those aged 50 years old and over and the clinically vulnerable, have now been offered a COVID-19 vaccine and the Government has published guidance on shielding and protecting people who are clinically extremely vulnerable.
Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government launched a consultation on the Tobacco and Related Products Regulations 2016 and the Standardised Packaging of Tobacco Products Regulations 2015 as part of our statutory obligation to conduct post implementation reviews on the legislation. It is a public consultation and open to any individual or any organisation wishing to submit a response.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Office for National Statistics’ ‘Adult smoking habits in the UK: 2019’ shows that smoking prevalence in England has decreased from 17.8% in 2014 to 13.9% in 2019. The percentage of adults using e-cigarettes in England has increased from 3.7% in 2014 to 5.5% in 2019. Of those who use e-cigarettes daily, 42% also smoke cigarettes. Among smokers and vapers, greater use of e-cigarettes is associated with lower use of smoked tobacco.
Public Health England closely monitors trends in tobacco and nicotine products and will publish its next Vaping in England report later this month. A range of data sources are used including official and academic surveys. Use of heated tobacco products has consistently remained at rates of less than 1% of the adult population in England.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government will review whether COVID-19 status certification could play a role in reopening the economy, reducing restrictions on social contact and improving safety. This will include assessing to what extent certification would be effective in reducing risk and the potential uses to enable access to settings or a relaxation of COVID-19 secure mitigations. The Government will also consider the ethical, equalities, privacy, legal and operational aspects of this approach and what limits, if any, should be placed on organisations using certification. It will draw on external advice to develop recommendations that take into account any social and economic impacts and implications for disproportionately impacted groups and individuals’ privacy and security. The review will also include consideration of potential solutions for people to access their COVID-19 vaccination status.
Secretary of State for Education
Public Heath England’s surveillance strategy monitor how effective the vaccine is at protecting against a range of outcomes, including infection, symptomatic disease, hospitalisations, mortality, and onwards transmission. The surveillance strategy is available at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-vaccine-surveillance-strategy
The National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) and the UK Research and Innovation are jointly funding the UK Coronavirus Immunology Consortium to address key questions around the immune system’s response to COVID-19. The NIHR’s Health Protection Research Unit in Respiratory Infections is also looking at the size and longevity of the immune response.
Secretary of State for Education
Public Health England is leading on the surveillance of the COVID-19 vaccine programme and has developed a surveillance strategy to monitor the effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines against mortality, hospitalisations, confirmed infections, markers of infectiousness and the impact on transmission.
Whilst phase three clinical trials provided evidence of vaccine effectiveness against symptomatic disease, further evidence is needed on how effectiveness varies by subgroup, including by age. This will be done using advanced surveillance techniques once the earliest eligible cohorts have been offered a full course of vaccination.
Secretary of State for Education
NHS England and NHS Improvement, NHS Blood and Transplant and transplant teams have been working closely together throughout the pandemic to ensure that donation and transplant activity can safely continue for very urgent lifesaving transplants. Transplant teams have kept in close contact with patients on the lung transplant waiting list to discuss transplant options and ensure the right decisions are taken based on the patient’s clinical condition.
The national position is reviewed weekly and is highly co-ordinated to ensure all capacity for transplantation is optimised. This is despite the major impact on hospital capacity due to COVID-19. A patient’s position on the lung transplant waiting list is determined by their overall clinical status and if a lung transplant becomes available, the highest priority patient will be selected.
Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
We recognise the vital role that unpaid carers play and the Government is developing bespoke guidance for this group, set out in a Standard Operating Protocol (SOP) which has been developed in close cooperation with carers organisations and local authorities. This guidance will be published in due course. The SOP will provide guidance on the process to support the identification and vaccination of adult unpaid carers as part of the COVID-19 vaccination programme. It is intended to support local authorities, the vaccination programme, carers organisations and unpaid carers themselves to understand the actions they should take to ensure equitable access to and uptake of vaccination by eligible unpaid carers as per the advice of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation.
Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
At the request of Public Health England, an independent and regularly updated rapid review of the international evidence on smoking and COVID-19 has been made and is available at the following link:
https://www.qeios.com/read/UJR2AW.11
The evidence on smoking and COVID-19 is mixed and developing. We do not yet have a clear picture on the impact of smoking on COVID-19 risks. There is strong evidence that smoking tobacco is generally associated with an increased risk of developing respiratory viral infections.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
NHS Test and Trace will work with each local authority on an expanded community testing plan appropriate for them. This support will be rolled out during national lockdown restrictions, being kept closely under review. It will be for local authorities in partnership with their directors of public health and with the support of NHS Test and Trace to design a programme that maximises accessibility to, and take-up of, asymptomatic testing in their area. Support for the programme will be provided until at least the end of March 2021.
Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
We are committed to improving the mental health provision for 16-18-year olds. We are implementing the three core proposals in the green paper on children and young people’s mental health, which will incentivise all schools and colleges to identify and train a senior lead for mental health; create new school and college-based mental health support teams supervised by trained children and young people’s mental health staff; and pilot a four-week waiting time for access to specialist children and young people’s mental health services.
Under the NHS Long Term Plan, at least an additional 345,000 children and young people aged 0-25 years old will be able to access support via National Health Service-funded mental health services and school or college-based mental health support teams by 2023/24 and we will extend current service models to create a comprehensive offer for 0-25 year olds that reaches across mental health services for children, young people and adults.
Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
The Government continues to review the evidence of reduced risk products such as e-cigarettes, including their harms and usefulness as an aid to stop smoking. Although not risk free, current evidence suggests e-cigarettes are far less harmful to health than smoking and help people quit. There are already 2.5 million e-cigarettes users in England, which suggests that these products are widely accessible.
Public Health England, through their stop smoking campaigns, provides information, advice and support on using e-cigarettes to help smokers quit. Some local stop smoking services offer vouchers which can be exchanged for e-cigarettes to help smokers to switch.
The Government will consider in its next Tobacco Control Plan for England what further steps are required to provide smokers with more information about and access to reduced risk smoking-related products, including an assessment of how far these diverse products reduce risk.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
A new Tobacco Control Plan for England will be published later this summer to outline the Government’s plans to achieve its ambition to be smokefree by 2030.
The Government has made the necessary legislative amendments to ensure robust tobacco control regulation continues throughout the United Kingdom after the 1 January 2021 and give effect to the Northern Ireland Protocol.
Great Britain no longer has to comply with the European Union’s Tobacco Products Directive and, as part of the development of the Tobacco Control Plan for England, there will be opportunity to consider whether any regulatory changes are required to help people quit smoking and address the harms from tobacco. Any changes will be based on robust international evidence and be in the interests of public health.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government is committed to addressing the harms from smoking. The Department held a public consultation on its Smokefree 2030 ambition as part of the prevention green paper consultation which was published in July 2019. The Department, working with Public Health England and NHS England, will engage key stakeholders about potential proposals to include in the new plan, and this will include consideration of legislative proposals. The new tobacco control plan is expected in July 2021. No timetable has been set for any legislative changes.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government is committed to addressing the harms from smoking. The Department held a public consultation on its Smokefree 2030 ambition as part of the prevention green paper consultation which was published in July 2019. The Department, working with Public Health England and NHS England, will engage key stakeholders about potential proposals to include in the new plan, and this will include consideration of legislative proposals. The new tobacco control plan is expected in July 2021. No timetable has been set for any legislative changes.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government has accepted the recommendations from the independent Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) to authorise three COVID-19 vaccines for use - Pfizer/BioNTech, Oxford/AstraZeneca and Moderna. While this approval is not specifically on the basis of economic and societal benefits, it is on the grounds of patient safety. No vaccine would be deployed in the United Kingdom unless the expected standards of safety, quality and efficacy are met.
Secretary of State for Education
Section 233 of the Health and Social Care Act 2012 provides that the National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE) must have regard to the broad balance between benefits and costs and the desirability of promoting innovation. NICE is an independent organisation and is responsible for its consultation processes.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
During the COVID-19 pandemic, NHS England and NHS Improvement have worked with the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) and the cystic fibrosis (CF) clinical community to ensure additional guidance has been available to support care for patients with CF, both in hospital and away from hospital when appropriate. NICE published the ‘COVID-19 Rapid Guideline: Cystic Fibrosis’ in April 2020, which was updated in October 2020. This sets out guidance for clinicians and commissioners to maximise the safety of patients with CF and make the best use of National Health Service resources, while protecting staff from infection. The guidance is available at the following link:
Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Through its communication to general practitioner practices and commissioners on 31 July 2020, NHS England and NHS Improvement asked general practice to restore activity to usual levels where clinically appropriate and reach out proactively to clinically vulnerable patients and those whose care may have been delayed.
The new Respiratory Clinical Networks bring together leaders from the National Health Service and other health and social care organisations, to transform the diagnosis, treatment and care for respiratory patients in their local area, focusing on reducing inequalities.
Public Health England continue to provide advice for people with long term health conditions during COVID-19.
Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Solid organ transplant recipients were identified at the start of the pandemic as one of the groups of patients at highest clinical risk of COVID-19 and therefore were included in the agreed list of clinically extremely vulnerable patients. Throughout the pandemic, healthcare providers were asked to ensure care for these patients is personalised and takes account of individual circumstances such as COVID-19 risk and the impact of shielding on health and wellbeing. Such patients were able to access government support, including delivery of food and medicines and clinical advice through various routes.
Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s guidance NG161 was published in April 2020 to support clinicians in the management of patients requiring systemic treatment through the pandemic. The guidance, developed by clinicians, provides advice on alternative chemotherapy treatment approaches to reduce the risk of infection to patients and avoid unnecessary admissions and visits to hospital where possible.
On 3 August 2020, NHS England and NHS Improvement announced that ‘COVID-19 friendly’ cancer treatments that are safe for patients during the pandemic will be expanded and extended through a £160 million initiative. The funding will pay for drugs that treat patients without having such a big impact on their immune system or offer other benefits such as fewer hospital visits.
Thousands of patients have already benefitted from 50 treatments approved for use as ‘swaps’ for existing drugs and more have become available thanks to a series of deals struck between the National Health Service and pharmaceutical companies.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
In 2020/21 the Quality and Outcomes Framework has continued to incentivise general practice to undertake cholesterol checks on individuals prescribed a statin and those with diabetes. There has not been any recommendation that general practice should not undertake a cholesterol check where it is clinically indicated.
The NHS Health Check prevention programme has resumed in many areas. Between July and September 2020, 41,525 people had a NHS Health Check, which includes a cholesterol test.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Terms of Reference for the review of the NHS Health Check programme were published on 11 November 2020 and are available at the following link:
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Prevention Green Paper, ‘Advancing our health: Prevention in the 2020s’ outlined commitments with varying timelines, regarding the services we receive, the choices we make and the conditions in which we live. The Government response to the consultation has been delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Following the announcement of the National Institute for Health Protection in August, we are also considering the best future arrangements for the wide range of Public Health England’s non-health protection functions that are vital to support health improvement, prevention and delivery of health services and we will be setting out further details of our approach in due course.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Prevention Green Paper, ‘Advancing our health: Prevention in the 2020s’ outlined commitments with varying timelines, regarding the services we receive, the choices we make and the conditions in which we live. The Government response to the consultation has been delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Following the announcement of the National Institute for Health Protection in August, we are also considering the best future arrangements for the wide range of Public Health England’s non-health protection functions that are vital to support health improvement, prevention and delivery of health services and we will be setting out further details of our approach in due course.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The NHS is investing £9 million to fund a demonstrator project to test out new ways of providing treatment to people with Atrial Fibrillation using virtual clinics. NHSX continues to support and encourage emerging innovative diagnostic tools, for example through the Artificial Intelligence Health and Care Awards.
Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
The information is not available in the format requested. The Quality Outcomes Framework reports annually for atrial fibrillation and it is not possible to break down into monthly data.
A register of patients with atrial fibrillation is used to monitor cumulative recorded prevalence year-on-year. Recorded prevalence of atrial fibrillation increased from 1.98% in 2018/19 to 2.05% in 2019/20. Data for 2020/21 will be published during 2021.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The information is not held in the format requested. NHS Digital collects the number of finished admissions episodes which do not represent the number of patients, as a person may have more than one admission within the period.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Department with the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) has established a single United Kingdom-wide process which labels COVID-19 research with the most potential with Urgent Public Health (UPH) status. Any trials evaluating the effectiveness of inhaled treatments are subject to this same process.
National and international trials are monitored by the RAPID-C19 initiative, which aims to get treatments for COVID-19 to National Health Service patients quickly and safely. This process begins with scanning all trials for COVID-19 treatments. Any promising drugs will be identified for further review.
Synairgen have been requested to submit a formal submission to UK-CTAP and NIHR UPH for review, where the inhaled interferon beta-1, SGN001 will be reviewed by a panel of independent experts to assess if it will be suitable to be incorporated into the RECOVERY+ trial or an independent trial, for Phase III.
UK-CTAP is an independent COVID-19 Therapeutics Advisory Panel, which will advise on what treatments should be proposed for testing through RECOVERY+. As with all other therapeutic compounds in trial, progress of the effectiveness will continue to be monitored by the Chief Medical Officer, NIHR UPH and RAPID C-19.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Public Health England (PHE) published the latest review of the evidence on e-cigarettes and vaping in England in March this year. The review provides a full analysis of trends in behaviours and attitudes relating to the use of nicotine vaping products among young people and adults. It found that prevalence of e-cigarette use has remained stable since the 2019 review.
This review can be found at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/vaping-in-england-evidence-update-march-2020
Data for 2020 will be published in early 2021 in PHE’s next e-cigarette evidence update.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
One of the main aims of the Government’s Tobacco Control Plan for England is to reduce the regional and socio-economic variations in smoking rates, by achieving system-wide
change and targeting actions at the right groups.
Actions include promoting links to smoking cessation services across the whole health and care system and full implementation of relevant National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines by 2022.
‘Smoke-free generation: tobacco control plan for England’ can be viewed at the following link:
Local authorities are responsible for commissioning a range of stop smoking support to meet the needs of their local population. Public Health England supports local authorities to do this by providing a range of data and guidance.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The smoking rate for adults in Ashfield has seen an overall decline, from 27.8% in 2011 to 19.8% in 2019. The following table shows the trends in smoking rates for adults in Ashfield, the East Midlands and England since 2011.
Smoking trends in Ashfield, East Midlands and England, 2011 - 2019
Period | Ashfield | East Midlands | England | |
Count | Value | |||
2011 | 26,090 | 27.8% | 20.2% | 19.8% |
2012 | 24,063 | 25.5% | 19.7% | 19.3% |
2013 | 18,077 | 18.9% | 18.9% | 18.4% |
2014 | 18,953 | 19.7% | 18.2% | 17.8% |
2015 | 16,955 | 17.4% | 18.0% | 16.9% |
2016 | 20,744 | 21.1% | 16.1% | 15.5% |
2017 | 15,680 | 15.7% | 15.7% | 14.9% |
2018 | 16,636 | 16.6% | 15.8% | 14.4% |
2019 | 19,893 | 19.8% | 14.8% | 13.9% |
While this is a decrease overall, rates have increased slightly in the past three years and the current rate is higher than the average for adults in England, 13.9%.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
On 31 July, further guidance was issued to local National Health Service providers and commissioners on outlining the next phase of the NHS response to COVID-19 and concurrent non- COVID-19 activity. Focus is on accelerating the return of non- COVID-19 health services to near-normal levels, including making full use of available capacity between now and winter, whilst also preparing for winter demand pressures. This will be done alongside continued vigilance in light of any further COVID-19 surges. The guidance sets out that trusts and systems are now expected to re-establish (and where necessary redesign) services to deliver through their own local NHS (non-independent sector) capacity the following elective activity levels:
- In September, delivering at least 80% of last year’s activity for both overnight electives and for outpatient/daycase procedures, rising to 90% in October;
- Return to at least 90% of their last year’s levels of MRI/CT and endoscopy procedures, with the goal to reach 100% by October; and
- 100% of last year’s activity for first outpatient attendances and follow-ups (face to face or virtually) from September through the balance of the year (and aiming for 90% in August).
Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidance, ‘Stop smoking interventions and services’, describes best practice, and, general practitioners are expected to take the guidance fully into account. The guidance recommends that for patients interested in using a nicotine-containing e-cigarette to quit smoking, the practitioner should explain that many people have found them helpful to quit smoking cigarettes and the evidence suggests e-cigarettes are substantially less harmful to health than smoking, but are not risk free, and that the evidence in this area is still developing, including evidence on the long-term health impacts.
Public Health England provides advice, information and resources for healthcare professionals on stop smoking support options, including e-cigarettes, and the evidence for their effectiveness.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidance, ‘Stop smoking interventions and services’, describes best practice, and, general practitioners are expected to take the guidance fully into account. The guidance recommends that for patients interested in using a nicotine-containing e-cigarette to quit smoking, the practitioner should explain that many people have found them helpful to quit smoking cigarettes and the evidence suggests e-cigarettes are substantially less harmful to health than smoking, but are not risk free, and that the evidence in this area is still developing, including evidence on the long-term health impacts.
Public Health England provides advice, information and resources for healthcare professionals on stop smoking support options, including e-cigarettes, and the evidence for their effectiveness.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government has a legal commitment to undertake a Post Implementation Review of the Tobacco and Related Product Regulations 2016 (TRPR) and The Standardised Packaging of Tobacco Products Regulations 2015. This will be completed by May 2021. The TRPR regulates both tobacco products and e-cigarettes. A response to the Post Implementation Reviews undertaken on tobacco legislation, implemented from 2010-2016, will be published later this year.
We continue to monitor the evidence base on the latest developments in the reduced-risk products market, including e-cigarettes, to assess their risks and evidence on how effective they are in helping smokers to quit smoking.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Public Health England will publish an evaluation of the 2019 Stoptober campaign in autumn 2020.
The 2018 Stoptober evaluation is available to view at the following link:
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
NHS England and NHS Improvement have invested £9 million in an atrial fibrillation programme to test optimal care models and the role of the wider general practice workforce including practice pharmacists and nurses.
The learning from this programme will be included in the development of the Primary Care Network cardiovascular disease prevention direct enhanced service specification and rolled out in 2021-22 to include patients with high cholesterol. This work will also support the NHS Long Term Plan ambition to improve identification of familial hypercholesterolaemia from 7% to 25%.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
As we moved into the second phase of the National Health Service response to COVID-19, NHS England wrote to the service on 29 April to ask NHS local systems and organisations to step up non-COVID-19 urgent services as soon as possible. The reset of these services will be gradual, with full attention to infection prevention and control as the guiding principle. NHSE/I are working with regional systems, and have provided national advice on restoration of cardiac services. They will also monitor their capacity going forward through this next stage of restoration and recovery.
The full letter to the system can be found at the following link:
Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
As we moved into the second phase of the National Health Service response to COVID-19, NHS England wrote to the service on 29 April to ask NHS local systems and organisations to step up non-COVID-19 urgent services as soon as possible. The reset of these services will be gradual, with full attention to infection prevention and control as the guiding principle. NHSE/I are working with regional systems, and have provided national advice on restoration of cardiac services. They will also monitor their capacity going forward through this next stage of restoration and recovery.
The full letter to the system can be found at the following link:
Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The CVDPREVENT data extraction will occur in autumn 2020 with the initial reporting outputs from Public Health England expected in spring 2021. NHS England and NHS Improvement have published further information on CVDPREVENT at the following link:
www.england.nhs.uk/ourwork/clinical-policy/cvd/cvdprevent/
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
As part of their public health role, it is for local authorities to determine from whom they commission NHS Health Checks, including from community pharmacies.
The Government has commissioned an evidence-based review of the NHS Health Check programme from Public Health England with a view to maximising its benefits, and this is expected to consider and make recommendations on issues such as mode of delivery and clinical follow-up.
The NHS Long Term Plan recognised that “cardiovascular disease is the single biggest area where the NHS can save lives over the next 10 years”, principally through secondary prevention of heart attacks and strokes. NHS England is testing the most promising approaches, including through local pharmacies, for detecting hitherto undiagnosed high-risk conditions such as high blood pressure, raised cholesterol, and atrial fibrillation.
The Healthy Living Pharmacy concept has provided an opportunity for community pharmacy teams, who represent the communities they serve, to focus on consistently delivering high quality health improvement interventions, including NHS Health Checks.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
An evidence synthesis commissioned by Public Health England in 2017 shows that higher levels of chronic kidney disease, hypertension, familial hypercholesterolaemia, peripheral vascular disease and type 2 diabetes are detected among people having an NHS Health Check compared to standard care. A small but significant subsequent decrease in stroke was also reported among NHS Health Check attendees as well as favourable changes in blood pressure, body mass index, and modelled cardiovascular risk.
The report can be accessed at the following link:
http://www.healthcheck.nhs.uk/seecmsfile/?id=306%5d
PHE have been commissioned by the Department to deliver an evidence-based review of the NHS Health Check programme, to inform action which will ensure it remains fit for purpose for the next 10 years and beyond.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Cholesterol is tested as part of the NHS Health Check programme and will be available to eligible people once service delivery resumes.
In addition to the NHS Health Check programme, those patients with medical conditions that require monitoring of cholesterol will have this done in the usual way through primary medical care services.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The NHS Health Check programme is playing an important role in tackling the burden of preventable diseases. Building on 10 years’ experience of the programme, the Government has commissioned Public Health England to undertake an evidence-based review of the NHS Health Check programme, in light of advances in medical and behavioural science; new digital technology, and opportunities for more innovative implementation.
The Review is being led by University College London’s Professor John Deanfield, advised by an expert panel and informed by UK and international evidence. It will build on gains delivered so far and consider what action is needed to maximise impact over the next 10 years and beyond. The Review is expected to report by spring 2021.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Prevention Green Paper ‘Advancing our health: prevention in the 2020s’ consultation closed on 14 October 2019 and attracted over 1,600 responses. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic the response has been delayed. We intend to publish the Government response in due course.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
NHS England and NHS Improvement expect that the outcome of the review into making high dose statins available direct from pharmacies will be made available later in the year.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Department is sponsoring the following current inquiries - The Independent Medicines and Medical Devices Safety Review and the Linden Centre (North Essex Partnership Trust).
Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
As of 15 May, over 13,000 businesses have contacted the Government with offers of help on supplying personal protective equipment (PPE). Many are related to the manufacture of PPE for the National Health Service and care sectors, a vast majority of which we are taking forward, predominantly from United Kingdom-based companies but also including multinational companies. Some offers were not progressed due to financial and capability considerations.
The Department engages directly with potential manufacturers to qualify and prioritise the opportunity, based on availability of/access to raw supplies, lead-times to manufacture, and other commercial considerations. Product prototypes are submitted to a Technical Product Review process, to ensure they meet essential health, safety and quality standards for PPE. Financial due diligence and fraud prevention measures are also undertaken, after which the Department can contract with the manufacturer.
Lord Deighton is leading the Government’s efforts to secure sufficient PPE and ensure this gets to where it is needed. He is also driving forward coordination of the end-to-end process design and manufacture of new domestic PPE supplies. As at 15 May, the Department has entered into contract and placed orders with 8 manufacturers to provide millions of items of PPE products to the National Health Service and carers. Details of this work can be found in the links below. The volumes will increase in the coming weeks.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The FCDO has close and productive relationships with a range of multilateral bodies and we make regular assessments of their effectiveness and efficiency through all of our delegations and missions. Reviews of Overseas Development Assistance (ODA) programmes delivered through multilateral partners are undertaken annually and published on Dev Tracker (https://devtracker.fcdo.gov.uk).
Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We have been clear that incitement to hatred or violence is unacceptable from all parties and should have no place in education. This report on Palestinian textbooks highlights progress in key areas, but also indicates that anti-Israel content remains. We will continue to raise concerns about this with the Palestinian Authority, and continue to urge all parties to condemn incitement wherever and whenever it occurs.
Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Georg Eckert Institute, who were commissioned by the EU to undertake a review into Palestinian textbooks published the final report on 18 June 2021. The UK engaged closely with our European partners to urge publication. The review is publicly accessible on their website: www.gei.de/en/departments/knowledge-in-transition/analysis-of-palestinian-textbooks-paltex.html
Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
There are numerous international Conferences of the Parties and Meetings of the Parties organised on both environmental and non-environmental issues (e.g. Biodiversity COP, Desertification, Chemical Weapons).
Our attendance at these spans several government departments across Whitehall and the aim of the UK Government is to attend all it is permitted to join.
Minister of State (Cabinet Office) (Minister without Portfolio)
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office do not currently have sponsorship responsibilities for any public inquiries.
Minister of State (Cabinet Office) (Minister without Portfolio)
Environmental and social policy costs represent around 12% of the average dual energy bill, however over the past 10 years their net effect has been to reduce consumer energy bills. Investment in renewables and energy efficiency has reduced UK demand for natural gas by 26% since 2010. This has helped reduce our exposure to global price volatility.
While the majority of these costs represent contractual obligations to fund previous investments in renewables, we need to ensure our green policies are fit for the future, and Government keeps all costs on bills under review.
Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
We recognise the recent increase in wholesale global gas prices will be a cause of concern for consumers, businesses, and energy suppliers across the UK.
Consumers have been shielded from price volatility this winter by the Energy Price Cap. The Government is also supporting low income and fuel poor households with their energy bills in a number of ways, including:
- Consulting on expanding The Warm Home Discount, which currently provides eligible households with a £140 discount.
- Winter Fuel Payments and Cold Weather Payments, which help ensure those most vulnerable are better able to heat their homes over the colder months.
- The £500m Household Support Fund, which helps those in greatest need with the cost of essentials over the coming months.
- The Government has allocated over £500 million to help households improve energy efficiency this year through the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund and the Sustainable Warmth programmes.
The increase in the price of wholesale gas is a global issue. We will continue to keep options to further support households under review. In the longer term, Government will look to reduce our reliance on global gas prices by moving to a cleaner, more resilient energy system and improve energy efficiency to help keep bills down.
Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
Although the Government keeps all taxes under review, going further would impose additional pressure on the public finances, to which VAT makes a significant contribution. VAT raised around £130 billion in the year 2019-20, and helps to fund key spending priorities, including on health, education, and defence.
Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government understands that this is a very challenging time for the UK’s retail and hospitality sector and recognises that these sectors have been significantly impacted by the pandemic.
The Government will continue to monitor developments, engage with the sector and keep under review the case for further interventions, to support business growth and employment in the retail and hospitality sectors. The best way we can support consumers and businesses is by reopening businesses when it is safe to do so.
The Government has already acted to deliver support to these sectors through the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) which has been extended until April; and is protecting businesses with cash grants, Government backed finance through loan schemes, ‘Pay as You Grow’ long-term repayments options, a VAT cut, a VAT deferral for up to 12 months, a 12-month business rates holiday; and a moratorium on evictions to protect commercial tenants.
Minister for Equalities
Medical research charities are an integral part of the United Kingdom’s world-leading life sciences sector and we welcome the interest of honourable members in this area. The government is monitoring the impact of Covid-19 on the work of medical research charities. To this effect, the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy and the Department of Health and Social Care is closely liaising with the Association of Medical Research Charities, as well as individual charities, to understand the impact of the pandemic on this sector and identify how best the Government and charities can work together to ensure that patients continue benefiting from charity funded research.
Minister for Equalities
Nottinghamshire police has been allocated a total of 212 additional officers for years one and two of the uplift combined, to be recruited by March 2022.
As at 30 September 2021, Nottinghamshire police has recruited 243 additional officers counting towards uplift. Allocations for year three are yet to be announced.
Newly recruited officers typically compete initial training of between 12-18 weeks, following which, new officers will be out on the beat.
The deployment of officers in the force area is an operational matter for the Chief Constable.
The Home Office collects and publishes data on the number of officers recruited as part of the Police Officer Uplift Programme on a quarterly basis. The latest data, covering the situation to 30 September 2021, are available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/police-officer-uplift-statistics. These data are published at Police Force Area level in the supplementary tables accompanying the bulletin.
Minister of State (Ministry of Justice) (jointly with Home Office)
The Government does not routinely comment on intelligence matters.
Minister of State (Home Office) (Security)
The Government is clear foreign nationals who abuse our hospitality by committing crimes should be in no doubt of our determination to deport them.
Any foreign national who is convicted of a crime and given a prison sentence is considered for deportation at the earliest opportunity and since January 2019 we have removed 7,985.
For non-European Economic Area (EEA) nationals, deportation will be pursued where it is conducive to the public good including where a person receives a custodial sentence of 12 months or more, commits an offence that caused serious harm or is a persistent offender. European Economic Area (EEA) and Swiss citizens, and their family members, who are protected by the EU Withdrawal Agreement Act 2020 are considered for deportation on public policy and public security grounds where it concerns conduct (including any criminal convictions relating to it) committed on or before 31 December 2020.
Our New Plan for Immigration will make it easier to deport foreign criminals with no right to be in the UK and keep our citizens safe. Further information can be found in New Plan for Immigration: policy statement (accessible) - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
The Home Office currently sponsors five statutory inquiries, established or converted under the Inquiries Act 2005, and one non-statutory inquiry:
a) Statutory inquiries:
- Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse
- Undercover Policing Inquiry
- Manchester Arena Inquiry
- Brook House Inquiry
- Jermaine Baker Inquiry
b) Non-statutory inquiry:
- Daniel Morgan Independent Panel
From 8 June, all passengers arriving in the UK without having travelled through another part of the Common Travel Area are required to self-isolate for 14 days, apart from those on a short list of exemptions. This applies to arrivals from all countries outside of the Common Travel Area. These public health measure will be kept under review.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
We have accelerated work to establish a Police Covenant, recognising the bravery and commitment of our police who work night and day to keep us safe. One of the key areas of focus will be the health and wellbeing of our police, along with physical protection and support for families.
The wellbeing of our police is a key priority for this Government and we have invested in programmes which offer help directly to officers. This included £7.5 million to fund the development of the National Police Wellbeing Service (NPWS), which was launched in April 2019. The NPWS has developed evidence-based guidance, advice, tools and resources which can be accessed by forces, as well as individual officers and staff. There is an emphasis on prevention, for example by helping forces to identify mental health issues early through pyschological screening, helping officers to access support earlier. This helps Chief Constables in their duty to ensure the wellbeing of all officers and staff, which includes supporting officers with specific welfare needs by signposting to relevant services and additional support.
Minister of State (Ministry of Justice) (jointly with Home Office)
9 Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities Questions
(View all Lee Anderson's DLUHC questions)The National Planning Policy Framework acknowledges the importance of green and open space and makes clear that where new development is proposed an appropriate amount of public space should be provided. It is also set out that existing open space should not be built on unless there is evidence to demonstrate that it is no longer required, or it will be replaced by equivalent or better provision at a suitable location.
The Framework also sets out how both local and neighbourhood plans allow communities to identify and protect green areas which they consider to be of particular importance, by formally designating these as Local Green Space.
In addition, the National Model Design Code, which we have recently consulted on, sets out proposals for how nature and green spaces should be woven into the fabric of our villages, towns and cities, providing benefits in terms of health and wellbeing, biodiversity, climate and flood mitigation.
Minister of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
Government recognises that this is a challenging time for everyone in the country and COVID-19 is having a significant impact on our communities, businesses and town centres.
The Government is investing in our high streets and town centres, to help local communities to create high streets and town centres where people want to spend their time and money in. On 20 March we announced a new £56 million Welcome Back Fund (WBF), building on the Reopening High Streets Safely Fund (RHSSF) announced in 2020 to support a safe and successful reopening of our high streets and seaside resorts, giving people the reassurance that they can shop and socialise in a COVID-secure way. We were encouraged to see the rise in footfall following the opening of non-essential retail in April and continue to work with the retail sector on continuing to build consumer confidence.
This builds on our longer-term investment in high streets. On 26 December 2020, the Communities Secretary announced that up to £830 million has been allocated from the Future High Streets Fund. 15 areas have been awarded £255 million, with a further 57 areas to receive provisional funding of £576 million. This is a major boost for local high streets. The investment will support areas to recover from the pandemic and help transform underused town centres into vibrant places to live, work and shop.
The Government is also providing support to local leadership with a High Streets Task Force, giving high streets and town centres expert advice to adapt and thrive. On 20 March, MHCLG announced the next 70 local authorities, including Ashfield, that will receive targeted, in-person support from high street experts. This support will include a one-day diagnostic visit by a Task Force expert and, depending on the result of this diagnostic, may then include further support through expert advice on a specific issue, such as planning or design, workshops to develop a high street’s vision, and mentoring or training.
The Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government has a quasi-judicial role in the planning system, and a duty of impartiality is in place. This means that I cannot comment on local policies or decisions regarding the protection of green spaces in Ashfield. It is for each local authority to plan for its area in consultation with local people, and apply policies in its development plan and national planning policy to local places and circumstances.
The National Planning Policy Framework recognises that access to a network of high-quality open spaces is important for the health and well-being of communities. Local authorities should assess the need for open space, and opportunities for new provision, and accommodate these in their plans. The Framework also states that such open space should not be built on unless an assessment shows that the land is surplus to requirements, the loss resulting from the proposed development would be replaced by equivalent or better provision in a sustainable location, or the development is for alternative sport and recreational provision, the benefits of which clearly outweigh the loss.
In response to the Building Better, Building Beautiful Commission’s recommendations, we are giving every local authority the ability to create, in consultation with local people, its own design code to help secure more beautiful development, including the provision of green space and other green infrastructure. Local authorities are already empowered to designate Local Green Space, to protect land of importance to local people from inappropriate development.
There are also strong protections for Green Belt land in the Framework. The Government is committed to protecting and enhancing the Green Belt, and to making the most of brownfield land for development. Local authorities are expected to seek opportunities to enhance beneficial uses of Green Belt, including better access and opportunities for outdoor sport and recreation.
Minister of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
The Levelling Up Fund will be open to all local areas and allocated competitively. In order to level up places across the country, we will prioritise bids to drive growth and regeneration in places in need, those facing particular local challenges, and areas that have received less Government investment in recent years. We will publish a prospectus for the fund and launch early this year.
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
The constituency of Ashfield is benefitting from a range of Government investment. Kirby-in-Ashfield, Sutton-in-Ashfield and Eastwood are continuing to receive funding from the D2N2 Local Enterprise Partnership’s £257.5 million allocation of the Government’s Local Growth Fund. Sutton-in-Ashfield and Kirkby-in-Ashfield were both invited to develop proposals for up to £25 million each from the Towns Fund and we were delighted to receive a joint Town Investment Plan from the two towns recently.
Ashfield District Council has also been awarded an in-principle offer of over £6.2 million from the Future High Streets Fund to help implement transformative high street plans and bring a much needed boost for the people of Sutton-in-Ashfield.
Investments like this will be built upon by our new £4 billion Levelling Up Fund which will be open to all local areas and allocated competitively. We will prioritise bids to drive growth and regeneration for places in need, those facing particular local challenges, and areas that have potentially benefitted less from Government investment in previous years. We will publish a prospectus for the fund and launch early this year.
Under the Local Government Finance Act 1988, there is statutory duty placed on the chief finance officer of local authorities to issue a Section 114 if they judge that the Council is unable to set or maintain a balanced budget. This decision rests at the local level and it is for the Council to make. Government has no role to play in the issuing of a Section 114 notice. All councils have a legal duty to balance their budgets and it is right that Nottingham Council takes the decisions it considers necessary to manage its own finances.
Social landlords have the power to seek the re-possession of a tenant’s home where they can demonstrate to the court that the tenant concerned is in breach of the terms of their tenancy agreement
Landlords can rely on the further remedies available through the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 ('the 2014 Act') which provides the police, local authorities and other local agencies with a range of flexible tools and powers that they can use to respond quickly and effectively to anti-social behaviour.
In response to the Covid-19 emergency, all possession cases before the courts, including possession action against tenants for anti-social behaviour, have been suspended for 3 months. This reflects Public Health England’s advice that moving home at the moment is strongly advised against.
Minister of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
Community Payback is the term used to describe any work done as part of an unpaid work requirement made by the Courts. Unpaid work is the main punitive disposal for community-based sentences, its purpose is to punish offenders for breaking the law whilst also allowing individuals to make reparations to their local communities for their crimes.
This Government is investing £93m so that communities can benefit from a record-breaking 8 million hours of impactful and demanding unpaid work each year. This funding will allow us to rejuvenate our unpaid work offer, by recruiting additional staff and refreshing and expanding our transport fleet. We are working with large charities and organisations, Police and Crime Commissioners and local authorities to make sure that communities have their say in how unpaid work should be used in their area. This includes placements with organisations such as the Canal and River Trust and Forestry England. Other national initiatives will include a tree planting project, helping to support the Government’s wider sustainability objectives.
As part of this we are consulting a range of further potential voluntary sector partners to identify unpaid work placements that will develop work ready skills and offer vocational training, helping offenders to integrate into society and promote future desistance from crime.
Minister of State (Ministry of Justice) (jointly with Home Office)
All terrorist offenders are subject to specialist multi-agency case management which utilises our network of counter-terrorism specialists. We use tailored interventions to facilitate disengagement and share risk assessment with security partners.
Since the latest terror attacks we have acted swiftly and decisively to review those multi-agency arrangements, and significantly invested in CT capability in the sector.
We have already taken an emergency Act through Parliament to end automatic early release of terrorists and we will introduce tougher sentencing and release measures through the Counter-Terrorism and Sentencing Bill.
Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Ministry of Justice is not conducting any inquires at this time. All previous public inquiries carried out by the Ministry of Justice, whether statutory or non-statutory, have concluded and the reports have been published.
Solicitor General (Attorney General's Office)
Our National Framework, which sets out how we will take decisions about easing coronavirus-related restrictions in prisons, has been published on gov.uk.
Social distancing and hygiene are the most effective means to reduce transmission and we are providing access to the right cleaning and hygiene products in prisons. Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) is critical to protect staff and those in our care where close contact is necessary and unavoidable. Our current PPE supplies are good, and we are making preparations and keeping demand for PPE under regular review as we progress our plans. We are consulting with unions and stakeholders on our strategy to ensure staff are confident in our gradual easing of restrictions and to keep prisoners informed.
For visits specifically, we are developing safe working practices that adhere to public health guidance. This is challenging but as with the adaptations being made in society we will need to consider safe distancing, separation between those that should not have contact, temperature testing of visitors prior to entry and effective hygiene arrangements.
Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
Restricted regimes are currently in place in prisons, meaning that prisoners are spending more of their time in their cells to support social distancing as recommended by Public Health England guidance. When allowed out of their cells, for example for exercise or showering, it is on a rota basis in small manageable groups, supervised by officers, allowing for social distancing to be maintained.
These measures are essential for protecting prisoners and all staff working in prisons.
Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Department is not currently undertaking any statutory or non-statutory public inquiries.
Minister of State (Education)
The Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland is not undertaking any (a) statutory or (b) non-statutory public inquiries.
Secretary of State for Scotland
The Office of the Secretary of State for Wales is not currently undertaking any public inquiries.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Wales Office)