Asked by: Marsha De Cordova (Labour - Battersea)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent discussions she has had with the Metropolitan Police on the case of Ali Kololo.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Home Office)
The operationally independent Metropolitan Police continue to progress matters relating to this case. It would not be appropriate for Home Office Ministers to comment on any discussions concerning the individual.
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, what information her Department holds on the number of Employment and Support Allowance claimants who were (a) overpaid and (b) underpaid due to (i) claimant error and (ii) government error in 2024.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The last time the Department reviewed fraud and error levels in Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) was in 2022/23, which is reported here: Fraud and error in the benefit system: financial year 2022 to 2023 estimates - GOV.UK. Table 11 demonstrates that 10.1% of the caseload was overpaid and 7.0% was underpaid. We did not review ESA in our fraud and error measurement exercise in 2023/24, but have assumed that those same rates will have continued.
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, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of making the NHS Accessible Information Standard mandatory in all NHS England health and social care settings on the ability of (a) deaf and (b) visually impaired people to access healthcare.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Following commencement of the regulations made under the Health and Care Act 2022, new arrangements will come into effect to make information standards mandatory. Existing standards will need to go through a new process to become mandatory, and once a standard becomes mandatory, organisations will be expected to comply. The timing for the Accessible Information Standard will be considered along with those of the other existing standards. These arrangements are expected to happen this year, once the regulations have been approved by Parliament.
The intent of making information standards mandatory is to improve the rigour of standards, and the consistency of their application. The implementation of Section 95 should have a beneficial impact on those using services, by contributing to the effective operation of the health and care sector. The Accessible Information Standard is intended to improve the accessibility of information, while other standards often specify the technical basis for ensuring that data flows through the system in a usable and standardised form, improving the quality of care and patient outcomes. Information standards do not affect people’s rights.
NHS England commissioned the North of England Commissioning Support Unit to review compliance with the Accessible Information Standard, prior to reviewing the standard. Their findings matched the independent reviews undertaken by Sign Health and Healthwatch, that implementation was inconsistent. NHS England has considered how to strengthen compliance with the standard, including the requirement to identify local implementation leads, and the development and testing of a self-assessment framework.
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, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of expediting the implementation of section 95 of the Health and Care Act 2022 on the rights of disabled people.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Following commencement of the regulations made under the Health and Care Act 2022, new arrangements will come into effect to make information standards mandatory. Existing standards will need to go through a new process to become mandatory, and once a standard becomes mandatory, organisations will be expected to comply. The timing for the Accessible Information Standard will be considered along with those of the other existing standards. These arrangements are expected to happen this year, once the regulations have been approved by Parliament.
The intent of making information standards mandatory is to improve the rigour of standards, and the consistency of their application. The implementation of Section 95 should have a beneficial impact on those using services, by contributing to the effective operation of the health and care sector. The Accessible Information Standard is intended to improve the accessibility of information, while other standards often specify the technical basis for ensuring that data flows through the system in a usable and standardised form, improving the quality of care and patient outcomes. Information standards do not affect people’s rights.
NHS England commissioned the North of England Commissioning Support Unit to review compliance with the Accessible Information Standard, prior to reviewing the standard. Their findings matched the independent reviews undertaken by Sign Health and Healthwatch, that implementation was inconsistent. NHS England has considered how to strengthen compliance with the standard, including the requirement to identify local implementation leads, and the development and testing of a self-assessment framework.
Asked by: Marsha De Cordova (Labour - Battersea)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of reductions to overseas aid on the levels of resilience to (a) conflict and (b) climate shocks among civilian populations in recipient countries.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Prime Minister has set out a new strategic vision for government spending on defence and security, and Official Development Assistance (ODA). Detailed decisions on how the ODA budget will be used will be worked through as part of the ongoing Spending Review on the basis of various factors including impact assessments.
Asked by: Marsha De Cordova (Labour - Battersea)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of proposed reductions in official development assistance on future trends in the level of preventable sight loss in recipient countries.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Prime Minister has set out a new strategic vision for government spending on defence and security, and Official Development Assistance. Detailed decisions on how the ODA budget will be used will be worked through as part of the ongoing Spending Review on the basis of various factors including impact assessments.
Asked by: Marsha De Cordova (Labour - Battersea)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he makes of the potential impact of proposed reductions in official development assistance on future trends in the levels of (a) violence against women and girls and (b) preventable deaths among infants in recipient countries.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Prime Minister has set out a new strategic vision for government spending on defence and security, and Official Development Assistance (ODA). Detailed decisions on how the ODA budget will be used will be worked through as part of the ongoing Spending Review.
The UK has placed empowering women and girls at the centre of our international work. We remain committed to tackling violence against women and girls around the world, and to supporting global efforts to end preventable maternal, child and newborn deaths in line with Sustainable Development Goal targets.
Asked by: Marsha De Cordova (Labour - Battersea)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his Israeli counterparts on Israeli settler attacks on (a) schools, (b) higher education facilities and (c) cultural institutions in the West Bank.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We remain very concerned at the disproportionate impact of violence on children, including in the West Bank: education is a priority sector. Any destruction of cultural facilities is also highly concerning. We engage regularly with non-governmental organizations and civil society, who are best placed to communicate needs and rebuild their communities. The Foreign Secretary and I have emphasised the importance of stability throughout all the Occupied Territories to our Israeli counterparts. The Foreign Secretary raised Israel's ongoing operation in Jenin and highlighted the risk that this undermines the Palestinian Authority when he spoke to Foreign Minister Sa'ar on 22 January. The Foreign Secretary also noted the need for violent settlers to be held accountable.
Asked by: Marsha De Cordova (Labour - Battersea)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to her Oral Statement of 26 February 2025 on Grenfell Tower Inquiry: Phase 2 Report, Official Report, whether she plans to take steps to enforce personal emergency evacuation plans for disabled residents living in high-rise (a) social housing and (b) privately rented accommodation.
Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Residential personal emergency evacuation plans (PEEPs) for which my Rt Hon Friend the Home Secretary currently retains responsibility until the Machinery of Government change comes into effect on 1 April will be introduced through legislation yet to be laid before Parliament. We expect that enforcing authorities under the Fire Safety Order, including Fire and Rescue Authorities, who have a duty to enforce Responsible Persons’ compliance with their duties will also enforce duties in relation to Residential PEEPs.
Under the Building Safety Act, Accountable Persons are required to assess and manage the building safety risks in their building. In doing this they are required to consider the impacts on residents, carry out engagement with residents, and set out in the Residents’ Engagement Strategy and Safety Case report the arrangements for how residents will respond to emergency situations, which can be expected to include the arrangements for putting in place and managing Residential PEEPs once required.
Asked by: Marsha De Cordova (Labour - Battersea)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of right to rent checks on non-UK passport holders on (a) the private rental sector and (b) levels of homelessness in Battersea.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The Right to Rent Scheme was introduced to ensure only those lawfully in the United Kingdom can access the private rented sector, and to tackle unscrupulous landlords who exploit vulnerable migrants, sometimes in very poor living conditions.
The Scheme applies equally to everyone, including British and Irish citizens seeking accommodation in the private rented sector in England. There is an extensive list of documents that tenants can use to prove their right to rent. The Scheme has been independently evaluated twice.
Statistics on levels of homelessness are overseen by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government. The latest official data on statutory homelessness in England can be found at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/statutory-homelessness-in-england-july-to-september-2024.