Asked by: Mary Kelly Foy (Labour - City of Durham)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 14 November 2023 to Question 1242 on Garth Prison: Education, how (a) many hours of teaching time were lost and (b) much money was recovered from education providers as a result of prison education classes not going ahead in HMP Garth in each of the last two quarters.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
We have introduced robust contractual levers into the current education contract which has seen a decrease in the teaching time lost through the education provider. The introduction at site level of Heads of Education, Skills and Work will increase the focus on ensure operational staff are able to ensure learners arrive in education.
The table below sets out the information requested for HMP Garth, HMP Bristol, HMP Pentonville, and HMP Ranby, for the first quarter of 2023-24. The data for Quarter 2 are in the process of quality assurance and validation, and are not currently available.
The education contract for HMP Five Wells is not managed by HMPPS. The information requested in relation to HMP Five Wells is therefore not available.
Quarter 1 2023-24
Prison | Education hours lost |
Garth | 397.5 |
Bristol | 187 |
Pentonville | 496 |
Ranby | 812 |
Prison | Amount recoverable from the provider (£) |
Garth | 4,998 |
Bristol | 1,681 |
Pentonville | 10,612 |
Ranby | 17,906 |
Asked by: Mary Kelly Foy (Labour - City of Durham)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 14 November 2023 to Question 1241 on Five Wells Prison: Education, how many staff of (a) HMPPS and (b) his Department's staff work on recovering money from education providers; and to what budget the money recovered is credited.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
We have introduced robust contractual levers into the current education contract which has seen a decrease in the teaching time lost through the education provider. The introduction at site level of Heads of Education, Skills and Work will increase the focus on ensure operational staff are able to ensure learners arrive in education.
The table below sets out the information requested for HMP Garth, HMP Bristol, HMP Pentonville, and HMP Ranby, for the first quarter of 2023-24. The data for Quarter 2 are in the process of quality assurance and validation, and are not currently available.
The education contract for HMP Five Wells is not managed by HMPPS. The information requested in relation to HMP Five Wells is therefore not available.
Quarter 1 2023-24
Prison | Education hours lost |
Garth | 397.5 |
Bristol | 187 |
Pentonville | 496 |
Ranby | 812 |
Prison | Amount recoverable from the provider (£) |
Garth | 4,998 |
Bristol | 1,681 |
Pentonville | 10,612 |
Ranby | 17,906 |
Asked by: Mary Kelly Foy (Labour - City of Durham)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 14 November 2023 to Question 1244 on Pentonville Prison: Education, how (a) many hours of teaching time were lost and (b) much money was recovered from education providers as a result of prison education classes not going ahead in HMP Pentonville in each of the last two quarters.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
We have introduced robust contractual levers into the current education contract which has seen a decrease in the teaching time lost through the education provider. The introduction at site level of Heads of Education, Skills and Work will increase the focus on ensure operational staff are able to ensure learners arrive in education.
The table below sets out the information requested for HMP Garth, HMP Bristol, HMP Pentonville, and HMP Ranby, for the first quarter of 2023-24. The data for Quarter 2 are in the process of quality assurance and validation, and are not currently available.
The education contract for HMP Five Wells is not managed by HMPPS. The information requested in relation to HMP Five Wells is therefore not available.
Quarter 1 2023-24
Prison | Education hours lost |
Garth | 397.5 |
Bristol | 187 |
Pentonville | 496 |
Ranby | 812 |
Prison | Amount recoverable from the provider (£) |
Garth | 4,998 |
Bristol | 1,681 |
Pentonville | 10,612 |
Ranby | 17,906 |
Asked by: Mary Kelly Foy (Labour - City of Durham)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 14 November 2023 to Question 1243 on Bristol Prison: Education, how (a) many hours of teaching time were lost and (b) much money was recovered from education providers as a result of prison education classes not going ahead in HMP Bristol in each of the last two quarters.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
We have introduced robust contractual levers into the current education contract which has seen a decrease in the teaching time lost through the education provider. The introduction at site level of Heads of Education, Skills and Work will increase the focus on ensure operational staff are able to ensure learners arrive in education.
The table below sets out the information requested for HMP Garth, HMP Bristol, HMP Pentonville, and HMP Ranby, for the first quarter of 2023-24. The data for Quarter 2 are in the process of quality assurance and validation, and are not currently available.
The education contract for HMP Five Wells is not managed by HMPPS. The information requested in relation to HMP Five Wells is therefore not available.
Quarter 1 2023-24
Prison | Education hours lost |
Garth | 397.5 |
Bristol | 187 |
Pentonville | 496 |
Ranby | 812 |
Prison | Amount recoverable from the provider (£) |
Garth | 4,998 |
Bristol | 1,681 |
Pentonville | 10,612 |
Ranby | 17,906 |
Asked by: Mary Kelly Foy (Labour - City of Durham)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 14 November 2023 to Question 1245 on Ranby Prison: Education, how (a) many hours of teaching time were lost and (b) much money was recovered from education providers as a result of prison education classes not going ahead in HMP Ranby in each of the last two quarters.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
We have introduced robust contractual levers into the current education contract which has seen a decrease in the teaching time lost through the education provider. The introduction at site level of Heads of Education, Skills and Work will increase the focus on ensure operational staff are able to ensure learners arrive in education.
The table below sets out the information requested for HMP Garth, HMP Bristol, HMP Pentonville, and HMP Ranby, for the first quarter of 2023-24. The data for Quarter 2 are in the process of quality assurance and validation, and are not currently available.
The education contract for HMP Five Wells is not managed by HMPPS. The information requested in relation to HMP Five Wells is therefore not available.
Quarter 1 2023-24
Prison | Education hours lost |
Garth | 397.5 |
Bristol | 187 |
Pentonville | 496 |
Ranby | 812 |
Prison | Amount recoverable from the provider (£) |
Garth | 4,998 |
Bristol | 1,681 |
Pentonville | 10,612 |
Ranby | 17,906 |
Asked by: Mary Kelly Foy (Labour - City of Durham)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, by what metrics his Department assesses the effectiveness of the two-child limit in meeting its policy objectives.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
No such assessment has been made.
Asked by: Mary Kelly Foy (Labour - City of Durham)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment his Department has made of the potential barriers to work faced by people who are (a) affected by the two-child limit and (b) not in employment.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
No such assessment has been made.
However, we are aware that many claimants have barriers that prevent them from taking up employment. For this reason, our Work Coaches are available to give tailored support for claimants to help them to access skills and training opportunities, and career advice.
Asked by: Mary Kelly Foy (Labour - City of Durham)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 6 December 2023 to Question 4272 on Ministers: Science and Statistics, whether the eight masterclasses are mandatory; and how many Ministers have enrolled to these courses as of 7 December 2023.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
The masterclass programme is not mandatory. The programme is delivered with recognition that there are multiple competing demands on ministers' time. To date 39 ministers have attended one or more sessions.
Asked by: Mary Kelly Foy (Labour - City of Durham)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department has made an estimate of the number of (a) households and (b) children in those households that will be affected by the two-child limit in each of the next five years.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The information requested is not available. The Government publishes annual statistics related to the operation of the policy to provide support for a maximum of two children. Statistics related to the period up to April 2023 were published in July 2023 and can be accessed at Universal Credit and Child Tax Credit claimants: statistics related to the policy to provide support for a maximum of 2 children, April 2023 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Asked by: Mary Kelly Foy (Labour - City of Durham)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the Pension Schemes Act 2015 (Transitional Provisions and Appropriate Independent Advice) 2015 Post Implementation Review, published on 4 April 2023, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his Department's policies of the conclusions of that review.
Answered by Paul Maynard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The underpinning policy intent behind these regulations and objectives was to ensure members with safeguarded benefits understood the level of security in retirement provided by such benefits and what the member would lose if they were to exchange them for benefits that can be accessed flexibly.
The Post Implementation Review highlighted that the existing measures remain appropriate and effective. We have however identified that there may be issues with the structure and application of the regulations.
We are currently conducting further work with the Pensions Regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority, and His Majesty’s Treasury to consider if there are possible changes that maintain protection for members and continue to ensure that the intent of the policy is not undermined.
We will be sharing the outcome of this work in due course.