Asked by: Marsha De Cordova (Labour - Battersea)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, if he will make it his policy to call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, in the context of potential famine.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
We want the fighting to stop now. We are calling for an immediate pause to get aid in and hostages out, then progress towards a sustainable, permanent ceasefire, without a return to destruction, fighting and loss of life.
The UK is also doing all it can to get as much food into Gaza as possible. We recently announced that more than 2,000 tonnes of UK-funded food aid are being distributed by the World Food Programme on the ground. This is our largest delivery of aid to Gaza in this crisis. This is in addition to the 150 tonnes of aid the Government announced 13 March.
Asked by: Marsha De Cordova (Labour - Battersea)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, if he will hold discussions with Cabinet colleagues on (a) suspending arms exports to and (b) reviewing trade agreements with Israel.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The Government operates a robust and thorough assessment of all licence applications against the Strategic Export Licensing Criteria.
The UK's strategic partnership with Israel includes trade. As the Secretary of State for Business and Trade told the House on 7 March, Israel remains a part of the FTA programme, negotiations continue, and she has recently discussed with the Israeli Minister of Economy our existing trading relationship as well as how Israel is managing the challenges of working on an FTA while fighting a war.
Asked by: Marsha De Cordova (Labour - Battersea)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether her Department has plans to upskill non-clinical eye health staff as part of the NHS Long Term Workforce Plan.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The department has an existing programme addressing the upskilling of this workforce. Ophthalmic Practitioner Training is a training programme for hospital-based ophthalmic nurses, optometrists, and orthoptists who wish to develop skills in one or more of four sub-specialty areas: medical retina; glaucoma; cataract; and emergency ophthalmology. The programme is a collaboration between the Royal College of Ophthalmologists, the Royal College of Nursing, the College of Optometrists, and the British and Irish Orthoptic Society. It offers a standardised and supportive platform for these healthcare professionals to learn new clinical skills, for the benefit of their patients. The programme trains postgraduate orthoptists, optometrists, ophthalmic nurses, and other eye care practitioners in secondary care, to develop their skills in eye care.
Asked by: Marsha De Cordova (Labour - Battersea)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to his Department's publication entitled Transforming Support: The Health and Disability White Paper, published on 16 March 2023, what progress his Department has made on the test of the feasibility of sharing assessment reports with Personal Independent Payment applicants before a decision is made; and when he plans to publish the findings.
Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
We are currently conducting a test to understand the impact of sharing assessment reports with PIP claimants by default. As part of the evaluation, we will gather insight from claimants to understand whether sharing the assessment report provides them with the opportunity to clarify evidence so that we can make the right decision as early as possible and improve trust and transparency in the decision-making process. Once the analysis of that insight is complete, we will consider next steps.
Asked by: Marsha De Cordova (Labour - Battersea)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential (a) economic and (b) environmental impact of mandatory food waste reporting in Battersea.
Answered by Robbie Moore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The 2022 public consultation on improved food waste reporting by large food businesses in England included an Impact Assessment which assessed the economic and environmental impacts of the of the voluntary and mandatory approaches to reporting. These assessments were made at the national level. No regional or local assessments have been made.
Asked by: Marsha De Cordova (Labour - Battersea)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will make an assessment of the (a) challenges faced by disabled renters in the private rented sector and (b) potential impact of the Renters (Reform) Bill on tackling those challenges.
Answered by Jacob Young - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
The Government is committed to helping disabled people to live independently and safely in their home. The Renters (Reform) Bill will help improve the quality of privately rented homes by introducing a Decent Homes Standard in the private rented sector for the first time. This will ensure tenants, including those with disabilities, benefit from homes that are safe and decent.
Through the abolition of Section 21 evictions, the Bill will give all tenants greater security in their home and will empower disabled tenants to challenge poor practice and request home adaptations where they are needed, without worrying about retaliatory eviction by their landlord. The Bill will also create a new PRS Landlord Ombudsman which tenants can complain to if they think their landlord unreasonably refused permission to make an adaptation to their home. The Bill will also make practices by landlords and/or those acting on their behalf which discriminate against those who receive benefits, including disability benefits, illegal.
We are working with a range of stakeholders to understand what information is important to tenants when using the property portal and will outline this in regulations.
Asked by: Marsha De Cordova (Labour - Battersea)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of using the Property Portal to record accessibility information on private sector dwellings.
Answered by Jacob Young - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
The Government is committed to helping disabled people to live independently and safely in their home. The Renters (Reform) Bill will help improve the quality of privately rented homes by introducing a Decent Homes Standard in the private rented sector for the first time. This will ensure tenants, including those with disabilities, benefit from homes that are safe and decent.
Through the abolition of Section 21 evictions, the Bill will give all tenants greater security in their home and will empower disabled tenants to challenge poor practice and request home adaptations where they are needed, without worrying about retaliatory eviction by their landlord. The Bill will also create a new PRS Landlord Ombudsman which tenants can complain to if they think their landlord unreasonably refused permission to make an adaptation to their home. The Bill will also make practices by landlords and/or those acting on their behalf which discriminate against those who receive benefits, including disability benefits, illegal.
We are working with a range of stakeholders to understand what information is important to tenants when using the property portal and will outline this in regulations.
Asked by: Marsha De Cordova (Labour - Battersea)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many special free schools had an inadequate Ofsted rating in the last three years.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
42 special free schools had an Ofsted inspection between 31 January 2021 and 31 January 2024. 5 special free schools had an Outstanding rating following an Ofsted inspection between 31 January 2021 and 31 January 2024. The proportion of Good special free schools is higher than the figure for all special schools. 62% of special free schools that were inspected in the last 3 years were Good in comparison to 53% of all special schools that were inspected in the last 3 years. 3 special free schools had an Inadequate rating following an Ofsted inspection between 31 January 2021 and 31 January 2024. 3 special free schools are in special measures as of 31 January 2024. Ofsted inspection data from 31 January 2024 is the most recent available.
Asked by: Marsha De Cordova (Labour - Battersea)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many special free schools had an outstanding Ofsted rating in the last three years.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
42 special free schools had an Ofsted inspection between 31 January 2021 and 31 January 2024. 5 special free schools had an Outstanding rating following an Ofsted inspection between 31 January 2021 and 31 January 2024. The proportion of Good special free schools is higher than the figure for all special schools. 62% of special free schools that were inspected in the last 3 years were Good in comparison to 53% of all special schools that were inspected in the last 3 years. 3 special free schools had an Inadequate rating following an Ofsted inspection between 31 January 2021 and 31 January 2024. 3 special free schools are in special measures as of 31 January 2024. Ofsted inspection data from 31 January 2024 is the most recent available.
Asked by: Marsha De Cordova (Labour - Battersea)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many special free schools had an Ofsted inspection in the last three years.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
42 special free schools had an Ofsted inspection between 31 January 2021 and 31 January 2024. 5 special free schools had an Outstanding rating following an Ofsted inspection between 31 January 2021 and 31 January 2024. The proportion of Good special free schools is higher than the figure for all special schools. 62% of special free schools that were inspected in the last 3 years were Good in comparison to 53% of all special schools that were inspected in the last 3 years. 3 special free schools had an Inadequate rating following an Ofsted inspection between 31 January 2021 and 31 January 2024. 3 special free schools are in special measures as of 31 January 2024. Ofsted inspection data from 31 January 2024 is the most recent available.