Asked by: Lilian Greenwood (Labour - Nottingham South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when she plans to implement section 95 of the Health and Care Act 2022.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
The Department plans to implement Section 95 later this year. This will be subject to Parliament’s approval of the regulations setting out the procedure for preparing and publishing mandatory information standards, on which the Department has recently consulted.
Once Section 95 is in force and compliance with information standards becomes mandatory, the Department will use section 251ZA, where appropriate, to monitor compliance with information standards, including by requiring National Health Service providers and others to whom information standards apply, to provide information for this purpose.
NHS England is responsible for the Accessible Information Standard (AIS), and plans to update the AIS to take account of the statutory approach to information standards in due course. NHS England has also completed a review of the AIS to help ensure that the communication needs of people with a disability, impairment, or sensory loss are met in health and care provision. One of the aims of the review was to strengthen assurance of implementation of the AIS, and a self-assessment framework has been developed to support providers of NHS and social care services to measure their performance against the AIS, and develop improvement action plans to address gaps in implementation.
NHS England will publish a revised AIS in due course. Following publication, NHS England will continue work to support its implementation with awareness raising, communication and engagement, and updated e-learning modules on the AIS, to ensure NHS staff are better aware of the standard, and their roles and responsibilities in implementing it.
Asked by: Lilian Greenwood (Labour - Nottingham South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how her Department plans to use Section 95 (3) 251ZA Information Standards (Compliance) of the Health and Care Act 2022 to ensure that NHS providers meet the communication needs of patients set out in the Accessible Information Standard.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
The Department plans to implement Section 95 later this year. This will be subject to Parliament’s approval of the regulations setting out the procedure for preparing and publishing mandatory information standards, on which the Department has recently consulted.
Once Section 95 is in force and compliance with information standards becomes mandatory, the Department will use section 251ZA, where appropriate, to monitor compliance with information standards, including by requiring National Health Service providers and others to whom information standards apply, to provide information for this purpose.
NHS England is responsible for the Accessible Information Standard (AIS), and plans to update the AIS to take account of the statutory approach to information standards in due course. NHS England has also completed a review of the AIS to help ensure that the communication needs of people with a disability, impairment, or sensory loss are met in health and care provision. One of the aims of the review was to strengthen assurance of implementation of the AIS, and a self-assessment framework has been developed to support providers of NHS and social care services to measure their performance against the AIS, and develop improvement action plans to address gaps in implementation.
NHS England will publish a revised AIS in due course. Following publication, NHS England will continue work to support its implementation with awareness raising, communication and engagement, and updated e-learning modules on the AIS, to ensure NHS staff are better aware of the standard, and their roles and responsibilities in implementing it.
Asked by: Lilian Greenwood (Labour - Nottingham South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of the Care Quality Commission in enforcement of the Accessible Information Standard across the NHS.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
Compliance with the Accessible Information Standard (AIS) is not directly assured by the Care Quality Commission (CQC). However, the performance of organisations in meeting people’s needs is considered in CQC assessment and ratings. Where the CQC has information through NHS England’s AIS self-assessment framework, or other sources, that an organisation is not meeting accessible communication needs, it can use its regulatory powers.
NHS England has completed a review of the AIS to help ensure that everyone’s communications needs are met in health and care provision. An AIS self-assessment framework has been developed to support providers of National Health Service and social care services, to measure their performance against the AIS and develop improvement action plans to address gaps in implementation. The AIS self-assessment framework is designed to enable enhancements around assurance and allows organisations, commissioners, and the CQC to judge performance and compliance.
Asked by: Lilian Greenwood (Labour - Nottingham South)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to provide adequate funding for the youth sector (a) workforce and (b) infrastructure needed to deliver the National Youth Guarantee.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government recognises the vital role that youth services and activities, and the workforce that delivers them, play in improving the life chances and wellbeing of young people.
While local authorities are responsible for delivering youth provision, the Government has worked closely with local authorities to update statutory guidance to support this delivery. The Government additionally provides significant funding to support youth services, with over £1.1 billion provided to the youth sector from DCMS In England between 2015 and 2021.
Furthermore, over this Spending Review Period, DCMS is investing over £500 million in youth services to deliver the National Youth Guarantee, a government commitment that by 2025, every young person will have access to regular clubs and activities, adventures away from home and opportunities to volunteer. This includes a significant number of interventions. For example, the Youth Investment Fund is delivering grants to build, renovate and expand youth centres, and the Million Hours Fund has created more than a million hours of youth activities in antisocial behaviour hotspots.
To support the workforce, DCMS funds the National Youth Agency (NYA) to set professional standards, qualifications and a curriculum for youth work. In addition, over the past three years we have worked with the NYA to provide bursaries to help more than 2000 youth workers access training and qualifications. DCMS also provides funding to the Regional Youth Work Units to ensure a consistent minimum level of regional leadership, as well as funding to create new Local Youth Partnerships and support existing ones to encourage and build local coordination.
Asked by: Lilian Greenwood (Labour - Nottingham South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the bi-mode trains on air quality in (a) Nottingham Railway station and (b) the surrounding area.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
East Midlands Railway is replacing its diesel-only Class 222 trains with bi-mode Class 810s as part of the East Midlands franchise award. These new bi-mode trains will gradually be introduced into service starting in early 2025 and are anticipated to significantly reduce air pollution emissions at Nottingham station and in the surrounding areas. The impact of these changes will be monitored by the Department for Transport's £4.5 million Air Quality Monitoring Network, which measures air pollution at selected stations across Great Britain, including Nottingham Station.
Asked by: Lilian Greenwood (Labour - Nottingham South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress his Department has made on the (a) planning and (b) programming for the electrification of the Midland Main Line to Nottingham.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
Work is already underway to electrify the Midland Main Line (MML) with progress being made to install overhead line equipment between Kettering and Wigston, as well as upgrades south of Bedford to be completed in 2025. During 2024 Network Rail are continuing currently funded design and pre-construction between Wigston Junction north towards Trent Junction, a further 28.4 miles (45.7 route kilometres) of electrification on the MML. Recent plans from Network Rail indicate that electrification of the Midlands Main Line route to Sheffield and Nottingham could be completed in the early 2030s.
Asked by: Lilian Greenwood (Labour - Nottingham South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what his planned timetable is for the publication of guidance for employers on the operation of the Immigration Salary List.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
The Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) published its rapid review on 23 February. The Government intends to lay rules in Parliament on 14 March to enact changes to the Immigration Salary List, along with the other changes announced by the Government on 4 December 2023 to reduce net migration.
Guidance relating to these changes will be published when the rules come into force on 4 April.
Asked by: Lilian Greenwood (Labour - Nottingham South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what his planned timetable is for the Migration Advisory Committee to complete the rapid review of the Immigration Salary List.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
The Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) published its rapid review on 23 February. The Government intends to lay rules in Parliament on 14 March to enact changes to the Immigration Salary List, along with the other changes announced by the Government on 4 December 2023 to reduce net migration.
Guidance relating to these changes will be published when the rules come into force on 4 April.
Asked by: Lilian Greenwood (Labour - Nottingham South)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of funding provided by Arts Council England for cultural activities in the East Midlands.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
His Majesty’s Government is deeply committed to supporting access to high-quality arts and culture across the country, including through public funding to organisations in the East Midlands via Arts Council England.
Through Arts Council England’s 2023–26 National Portfolio, public funding is being provided to 72 organisations (an increase from 54 in the 2018–22 portfolio) in the East Midlands, encompassing theatre, dance, museums, visual arts, literature and libraries. The total investment in the East Midlands through the national portfolio is currently £22.6 million per year – an increase of more than £5.4 million per year compared to the last portfolio.
Between 2020/21 and 2023/24, Arts Council England will have invested over £198 million in arts and cultural organisations in the East Midlands. This includes £8.7 million of public funding through the Government’s Cultural Development Fund, Libraries Improvement Fund and Museum Estate and Development Fund, administered by Arts Council England. Arts and cultural organisations in the East Midlands also benefited from over £43 million through the Culture Recovery Fund during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Asked by: Lilian Greenwood (Labour - Nottingham South)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of funding provided by Arts Council England for cultural activities in the North East.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
His Majesty’s Government is deeply committed to supporting access to high-quality arts and culture across the country, including through public funding to organisations across the North East via Arts Council England.
Through Arts Council England’s 2023–26 National Portfolio, public funding is being provided to 56 organisations (an increase from 47 in the 2018–22 portfolio) in the North East, encompassing theatre, dance, museums, visual arts, literature and libraries. The total investment in the North East through the national portfolio is currently £24.4 million per year – an increase of more than £2.5 million per year compared to the last portfolio.
Between 2020/21 and 2023/24, Arts Council England will have invested over £181 million in arts and cultural organisations in the North East. This includes £8.5 million of public funding through the Government’s Cultural Development Fund, Libraries Improvement Fund, and Museum Estate and Development Fund, administered by Arts Council England. Arts and cultural organisations across the North East also benefited from over £36 million through the Culture Recovery Fund during the COVID-19 pandemic.