First elected: 12th December 2019
Left House: 30th May 2024 (Dissolution)
Speeches made during Parliamentary debates are recorded in Hansard. For ease of browsing we have grouped debates into individual, departmental and legislative categories.
These initiatives were driven by Neale Hanvey, 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.
Neale Hanvey has not been granted any Urgent Questions
A Bill to require the Secretary of State to report to Parliament on providing additional allowances to people in receipt of the state pension and other social security benefits in places with colder climates to reflect the increased cost of domestic heating; and for connected purposes.
A Bill to amend the Scotland Act 1998 to transfer the power to legislate for a Scottish independence referendum to the Scottish Parliament; to provide that that power may only be exercised where the Scottish public has demonstrated its support for the holding of such a referendum; to provide that no such referendum may be held sooner than seven years after the previous such referendum; and for connected purposes.
A Bill to amend the Scotland Act 1998 to transfer the power to legislate for a Scottish independence referendum to the Scottish Parliament; to provide that that power may only be exercised where the Scottish public has demonstrated its support for the holding of such a referendum; to provide that no such referendum may be held sooner than seven years after the previous such referendum; and for connected purposes.
Broadcasting (Listed Sporting Events) (Scotland) Bill 2023-24
Sponsor - Kenny MacAskill (Alba)
Energy Costs (Pre-payment Meters and Social Tariffs) Bill 2022-23
Sponsor - Kenny MacAskill (Alba)
Digitally Altered Body Images Bill 2021-22
Sponsor - Luke Evans (Con)
Digitally Altered Body Images Bill 2019-21
Sponsor - Luke Evans (Con)
Equality Hub Ministers regularly engage with their counterparts across Government on matters relating to LGB equality. This is because this Government is committed to improving the health and well-being of young people and we recognise that gay, lesbian and bisexual young people often face specific challenges.
This is why spending for children and young people’s mental health services has increased from £841 million in 2019/20 to just over £1 billion in 2022/23.
A further £3 million of funding has also been divided between five anti-bullying organisations to tackle bullying in schools. This includes projects that target homophobic and biphobic hate-related bullying.
In October 2022, we launched a Victim Support Service for anyone affected by or at risk of conversion practices, regardless of their sexual orientation, sex or transgender identity. The helpline can provide a safe, confidential listening and information service to anyone over the age of 13.
This Government is committed to improving the health and well-being of young people. We recognise that gay, lesbian and bisexual young people often face specific challenges.
We have ended the ban on blood donations from sexually active gay men, and are eliminating barriers for same sex couples to access IVF.
Spend for children and young people’s mental health services has increased from £841 million in 2019/20 to just over £1 billion in 2022/23.
And in 2021, we published our HIV Action Plan which sets our commitment to ending all new HIV transmissions, AIDS and HIV-related deaths within England by 2030.
Due to a change in IPSA’s financial systems, it is technically highly difficult for IPSA to provide the information in the detail requested for the previous five years. In its annual accounts, however, IPSA have presented annual expenditure on consultancy, including £55k for 2017-18 (Human Resources advice, reviews and surveys: £11,000, Information Technology projects: £37,000, and IPSA Online project: £7,000). For 2018-19, the figure was £315k (Human Resources advice, reviews and surveys: £18,000, Implementation of GDPR legislation: £40,000, Information Technology projects: £44,000, and IPSA Online project: £213,000). For 2019-20, the figure was £300k (Organisational improvements for the Chief Executive’s Office: £43,000, System maintenance and continuous improvement programme: £182,000, Organisational redesign by the HR department: £60,000, Business Support to MP Support and general professional advice: £15,000). For 2020-21, the figure was £530k (Organisational redesign work: £206,000, Business and technical support and general professional advice: £200,000, System maintenance and continuous improvement programme: £123,000, and Professional Advice to Compliance Office: £1,000). For 2021-22, the figure was £263k (Organisational redesign work: £161,000, Business and technical support and general professional advice: £39,000, System maintenance and continuous improvement programme: £56,000, and Governance: £7,000).
The delay in providing a response to this Question was due to an administrative error in the Speaker’s Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority.
Carbon capture, usage and storage (CCUS) will of course play a role in meeting the UK’s 2050 net zero commitment. As we announced in our Ten Point Plan in November 2020, our aim is to establish CCUS in at least two industrial clusters by the mid-2020s and a further two by 2030, subject to value for money and affordability considerations.
The Law Officers’ Convention prevents me from disclosing outside Government whether the Attorney General has been asked to provide advice or the contents of any such advice. This is a longstanding principle of Cabinet collective agreement. The Attorney General has not had any discussions with the Scottish Government on this topic.
The Procurement Act, which recently received Royal Assent, helps deliver this Government’s promise to grow the economy by creating a simpler and more transparent system that will deliver better value for money, reducing costs for business and the public sector.
The Act embeds transparency throughout the commercial lifecycle so that the spending of taxpayers’ money can be properly scrutinised.
HM Treasury announced £24.7m funding over three years to support the creation of the PSFA in the Spring Statement 2022. This was added to the £5.7m annual budget that the Centre of the Counter Fraud Function was provided by the Cabinet Office. The additional funding brought the PSFA budget in 2022/23 to £11.25m.
In 22/23 the PSFA set a target of delivering £180m of savings to the taxpayer. The PSFA far surpassed this within the first 12 months by preventing and recovering £311 million. As it enters its second year, the PSFA has a target of achieving £185 million of savings for the taxpayer.
The PSFA was established in August 2022 - as such we only have audited counter fraud savings up to March 2023 (FY 2022/23).
In 22/23 the PSFA set a target of delivering £180m of savings to the taxpayer. In fact the PSFA far surpassed this within the first 12 months by preventing and recovering £311 million. As it enters its second year, the PSFA has a target of achieving £185 million of savings for the taxpayer.
This shows the Government is delivering its mission to transform the way we fight fraud and safeguard taxpayers’ money. Every pound we save in taking action on fraud reduces the cost of public services and makes taxpayers’ money go further. Better use of data and technology has been key in achieving this.
During the pandemic, the Government delivered an unprecedented package of economic support to preserve livelihoods and save businesses across the whole United Kingdom.
The Government is committed to transparency in its efforts to tackle fraud against the public sector. The UK is one of the few countries to publish data on fraud and error within the public sector in the Fraud Landscape Report. The Government will continue to be transparent and prioritise its efforts in detecting, preventing and recovering fraud associated with the pandemic.
The Fraud Landscape Report showed that in 2020/21, across government and outside of tax and welfare (so, excluding COVID-19 expenditure in HMRC and DWP), departments reported £88m of recovered fraud and error related to COVID-19.
Since 2021, we have invested in taking action on fraud, to bolster the prevention and recovery of fraud losses in welfare, tax and COVID Business Loans, and prosecute those who have defrauded the public purse - this included the establishment of the Public Sector Fraud Authority (PSFA).
Fraud is a hidden crime and the Government’s focus remains on detecting and recovering as much of it as is possible. That is done by deploying cutting edge tools supported by world leading expertise to find and recover as much fraud as possible.
Ministers from the following departments have attended the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting with officials since 2018: Her Majesty’s Treasury (2020, 2019 and 2018); Cabinet Office (2022); and the Departments for International Trade (2022, 2019 and 2018); Health and Social Care (2019); Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (2019 and 2018); Culture, Media and Sport (2019 and 2018); and International Development (2019). The then Prime Minister also attended in 2018.
The Cabinet Office does not hold a centralised database of total Government spending on travel to the World Economic Forum’s annual meetings. However, Ministerial and senior official foreign travel transparency data is published on gov.uk.
The Government currently has no plans to introduce new travel restrictions at this time.
It is the responsibility of each individual department to ensure the proper and efficient use and spending of taxpayers money. All Cabinet Office employees that undertake cross-border travel must seek relevant approvals to do so and must book this travel through approved contractors.
When I stood on the steps of Downing Street one year ago, I pledged to be a Prime Minister for every corner of the United Kingdom. Whether you are from East Kilbride or Dumfries, Motherwell or Paisley, I promised to level up across Britain and close the opportunity gap.
The last six months have shown exactly why the historic and heartfelt bond that ties the four nations of our country together is so important and the sheer might of our union has been proven once again.
In Scotland, the UK’s magnificent armed forces have been on the ground doing vital work to support the NHS, from setting up and running mobile testing sites to airlifting critically ill patients to hospitals from some of Scotland’s most remote communities. And the UK Treasury stepped in to save the jobs of a third of Scotland’s entire workforce and kept the wolves at bay for tens of thousands of Scottish businesses.
More than ever, this shows what we can achieve when we stand together, as one United Kingdom.
His Majesty’s Government is getting on with the job of delivering economic growth for the whole of the UK. Our trade strategy is to trade our way to prosperity. We are driving prosperity by seeking to strengthen the World Trade Organisation, reform the global rulebook, protect UK business, and open markets by signing high-quality trade deals and removing trade barriers.
The Government commissioned an independent review from the British Geological Survey, the National Oceanography Centre and Heriot-Watt University. The terms of reference included a review of minerals contained in seafloor deposits and how this compares to terrestrial resources, with discussion on future resource potential and knowledge gaps. The review was published in October 2022 and is available here:
https://www.bgs.ac.uk/news/deep-sea-mining-evidence-review-published/
The Government has committed £1.1bn for the Green Industries Growth Accelerator (GIGA) to support the expansion of domestic green manufacturing capacity and strengthen clean energy supply chains across the UK. No funding has been awarded to projects yet.
The Government has committed £1.1bn for the Green Industries Growth Accelerator (GIGA) to support the expansion of domestic green manufacturing capacity and strengthen clean energy supply chains across the UK. No funding has been awarded to projects yet.
£210 million (matched by £261 million from industry) has been allocated through the UKRI Industrial Decarbonisation Challenge (IDC) since 2019 to drive the decarbonisation of the UK’s six major industrial clusters, of which £150 million has been allocated to projects within HyNet, East Coast Cluster, Acorn and Viking CCS clusters. The breakdown of funding allocated (all funding will be allocated by the end of March 2024) and funding provided to date through the IDC to projects within the clusters mentioned are as follows:
The clusters have also received funding through other sources other than the IDC. Since 2019, a) the HyNet cluster was awarded £8.5m, b) East Coast Cluster was awarded £1.3m c) the Scottish cluster was awarded £9.3m and d) the Viking CCS was awarded £7.9m of innovation funding under the BEIS CCUS Innovation, Advancing CCS Technologies (ACT) and Hydrogen Supply programmes.
This information is being gathered. As soon as it is available, the information will be placed in the Libraries of the House.
This information is being gathered. As soon as it is available, the information will be placed in the Libraries of the House.
UK Research and Innovation has a list of research in carbon capture and storage by area. It is available at https://gow.epsrc.ukri.org/NGBOChooseTTS.aspx?Mode=ResearchArea&ItemDesc=Carbon+Capture+and+Storage
My Rt Hon. Friend the Secretary of State receives representations on a wide range of issues. Officials at the Department for Business have had a number of conversations with stakeholder groups, including those who represent park home residents, to discuss the alternative funding arrangements under the Energy Bills Support Scheme AF. The Energy Bills Support Scheme AF will provide a discount of £400 on energy bills for around 900,000 households without a relationship with a domestic electricity supplier, including park homes.
The Energy Bills Support Scheme Alternative Funding will be available to households without a direct relationship with a domestic electricity supplier. This will be a payment of £400 per eligible household and is expected to include park home residents. On 19 December, the Government announced that the application portal for this extension will open later in January. Further details will be published shortly.
The Government has launched Help for Households on GOV.UK, outlining the full range of support available to help with the cost of living, including detail on types of support to help with winter heating costs.
My Rt. Hon. Friend the Secretary of State has regular conversations with Cabinet and Devolved Administration colleagues on a range of issues.
The Government recently held a consultation on the UK’s future exhaustion of intellectual property rights regime. During the consultation period, the Intellectual Property Office held constructive discussions with stakeholders from multiple business sectors, including representatives of the publishing industry. The Government is currently assessing consultation responses and will provide an update in due course.
This Government has been consistently clear that we do not accept the inappropriate use by some employers of fire and rehire as a negotiation tactic.
My Rt. Hon. Friend the Secretary of State meets regularly with a diverse range of stakeholders including trade unions and employers to discuss various policy matters, across the sectors covered by the Department. The Department has also welcomed further evidence from trade unions and employers on the nature and scale of the issue.
This Government has been consistently clear that we do not accept the inappropriate use by some employers of fire and rehire as a negotiation tactic.
My Rt. Hon. Friend the Secretary of State meets regularly with a diverse range of stakeholders including trade unions and employers to discuss various policy matters, across the sectors covered by the Department. The Department has also welcomed further evidence from trade unions and employers on the nature and scale of the issue.
This Government has been consistently clear that we do not accept the inappropriate use by some employers of fire and rehire as a negotiation tactic.
Earlier this year we asked Acas to produce more comprehensive, clearer guidance to help all employers explore all the options before considering ‘fire and rehire’ and encourage good employment relations practice. Acas will publish the guidance shortly.
The Government has made clear to all employers, including those in the private and public sector, that using threats to ‘fire and rehire’ as a tactic to pressure workers during negotiations is unacceptable. We have been consistent in telling employers that the use of firing and rehiring tactics in negotiations is unacceptable. I made a statement in the House in June urging employers to negotiate fairly and openly.
Earlier this year we asked Acas to produce more comprehensive, clearer guidance to help make our expectations clearer. It will set out the ways employers can explore all the options before considering ‘fire and rehire’ and encourage good employment relations practice.
This Government has been consistently clear that we do not accept the inappropriate use by some employers of fire and rehire as a negotiation tactic. The valid variation of contractually binding terms and conditions usually depends upon mutual agreement between the employer and worker as parties to the contract. Should an employer seek to enforce contractual variation without agreement, there are a number of legal obligations and protections they will need to comply with, depending on the circumstances. Where a business feels that redundancies must be made, they must follow the rules which include giving a notice period and consulting staff before a final decision is reached.
The Department asked Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (Acas) to conduct an evidence gathering exercise to learn more about the use of fire and rehire practices. This report was published on 8 June and is available from https://www.acas.org.uk/fire-and-rehire-report. In addition, the Department has also welcomed further evidence from trade unions and employers on the nature and scale of the issue.
The Government has been consistently clear that we do not accept the inappropriate use by some employers of fire and rehire as a negotiation tactic. Earlier this year we asked Acas to produce more comprehensive, clearer guidance to help all employers explore all the options before considering ‘fire and rehire’ and encourage good employment relations practice. Acas will publish the guidance shortly.
The Department asked Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (Acas) to conduct an evidence gathering exercise to learn more about the use of fire and rehire practices. This report was published on 8 June and is available from https://www.acas.org.uk/fire-and-rehire-report. In addition, the Department has also welcomed further evidence from trade unions and employers on the nature and scale of the issue.
The Government has been consistently clear that we do not accept the inappropriate use by some employers of fire and rehire as a negotiation tactic. Earlier this year we asked Acas to produce more comprehensive, clearer guidance to help all employers explore all the options before considering ‘fire and rehire’ and encourage good employment relations practice. Acas will publish the guidance shortly.
Transmission charging is a matter for Ofgem as the independent regulator, and it published a call for evidence on 1 October 2021 on possible transmission charging reforms. The call for evidence is available at: https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/publications/tnuos-reform-call-evidence. BEIS is engaging with Ofgem as it progresses this work.
When it was established in 2011, the Warm Home Discount scheme rebates were set at £120 per household. Since then, the rebates have been increased to £140, and this winter around 2.2 million low-income and vulnerable households will receive rebates off their electricity bills.
Over the summer, the Government consulted on extending and expanding the Warm Home Discount scheme from next year until 2026 at least. This included an expansion of the overall spending envelope from around £350 million to £475 million (in 2020 prices) and setting the rebates at £150. These proposals would mean around 3 million households every year would receive a rebate. The Government will publish its response to the consultation in the coming months.
In the summer, the Government consulted on extending, expanding, and reforming the Warm Home Discount scheme from 2022 until 2026 at least. The measures included expanding the overall spending envelope from around £350 million to £475 million (in 2020 prices) and increasing the value of the rebates to households to £150, which would mean 3 million low-income and vulnerable households each winter would receive a rebate. We also proposed reforming the scheme to better target those in fuel poverty and enabling the vast majority of households to receive their rebates automatically without having to apply, as around half of recipients currently do.
The consultation received responses from a large cross-section of stakeholders, including from energy suppliers. We will publish the Government’s response to the consultation in the coming months.
In addition, officials from BEIS, the Department for Work and Pensions, and Ofgem continue to engage regularly with energy suppliers on the functioning of the scheme.
This winter, the energy price cap will continue to protect around 15 million British households on default tariffs, saving them between £75 and £100 a year on dual fuel bills. A £500 million Household Support Fund has also been announced by the Department for Work and Pensions to help vulnerable people with essential household costs over this winter.
The Winter Fuel Payment provides pensioners with support for their energy bills over winter. The Government has committed to keeping the winter fuel payment and will continue to pay £200 to eligible households with those aged between state pension age and 79, and £300 to a household with those aged 80 or over.
The Warm Home Discount scheme, worth £354 million this year, further provides eligible low-income and vulnerable households with £140 off their fuel bill over winter. Around one million low-income pensioner households – in receipt of the Guarantee Credit element of the Pension Credit – will receive a rebate this winter. The scheme will be extended to 2026 and continue to support low-income pensioners with their energy bills.
In 2011, the Warm Home Discount scheme rebates were set at £120 per household. The rebates were subsequently increased in 2012 to £130, in 2013 to £135, and in 2014 to £140.
The rebate for winter 2021/22 is worth £140. The Government has proposed to increase the value of the rebate to £150 for winter 2022/23.
Ministers regularly discuss COVID-19 vaccine matters with the Scottish Government and other devolved administrations.
My Rt. Hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health has discussed the termination of our supply agreement with Valneva with his counterpart in the Scottish Government and the UK Government will maintain dialogue with the Scottish Government on this matter.
Ministers regularly discuss COVID-19 vaccine matters with the Scottish Government and other devolved administrations.
My Rt. Hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health has discussed the termination of our supply agreement with Valneva with his counterpart in the Scottish Government and the UK Government will maintain dialogue with the Scottish Government on this matter.
Ministers regularly discuss COVID-19 vaccine matters with the Scottish Government and other devolved administrations.
My Rt. Hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health has discussed the termination of our supply agreement with Valneva with his counterpart in the Scottish Government and the UK Government will maintain dialogue with the Scottish Government on this matter.
The UK has contracted for a portfolio of vaccines from a number of developers, and we have sufficient contracted supply for the expected booster campaign as well as to complete the first round of vaccinations.
Ministers regularly discuss COVID-19 vaccine matters with the Scottish Government and other devolved administrations.
My Rt. Hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health has discussed the termination of our supply agreement with Valneva with his counterpart in the Scottish Government and the UK Government will maintain dialogue with the Scottish Government on this matter.
The Government’s approach to seeking a vaccine for COVID-19 has, from the outset, been to secure access to a portfolio of candidate vaccines from a range of developers. This has resulted in four regulated COVID-19 vaccines within the portfolio to date providing both diversity of supply and diversity of vaccine type.
The Government has secured early access to 332 million COVID-19 vaccines doses through supply agreements with five separate vaccine developers. This includes agreements with:
Of these COVID-19 vaccines, the AstraZeneca vaccine is manufactured in the UK and Novavax has a UK supply chain subject to regulatory approval. Vaccine manufacture is a global business, and the response to COVID-19 a global effort, and we are proud of AstraZeneca’s contribution to that from the UK.
The Government’s approach to seeking a vaccine for COVID-19 has, from the outset, been to secure access to a portfolio of candidate vaccines from a range of developers. This has resulted in four regulated COVID-19 vaccines within the portfolio to date providing both diversity of supply and diversity of vaccine type.
The Government has secured early access to 332 million COVID-19 vaccines doses through supply agreements with five separate vaccine developers. This includes agreements with:
Of these COVID-19 vaccines, the AstraZeneca vaccine is manufactured in the UK and Novavax has a UK supply chain subject to regulatory approval. Vaccine manufacture is a global business, and the response to COVID-19 a global effort, and we are proud of AstraZeneca’s contribution to that from the UK.
Our vaccination programme is continuing to make phenomenal progress, with four out of every five adults now fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
I cannot comment on commercial decisions, the termination of our supply agreement with Valneva will have no impact on our vaccine supplies for autumn.
The UK has contracted for a portfolio of vaccines from a number of developers, and we have sufficient contracted supply for the expected booster campaign as well as to complete the first round of vaccinations.
Our vaccination programme is continuing to make phenomenal progress, with four out of every five adults now fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
I cannot comment on commercial decisions, the termination of our supply agreement with Valneva will have no impact on our vaccine supplies for autumn.
The UK has contracted for a portfolio of vaccines from a number of developers, and we have sufficient contracted supply for the expected booster campaign as well as to complete the first round of vaccinations.
I refer the Hon. Member to the answer I gave the Hon. Member for Central Ayrshire on 1st December 2020 to Question 121276.
The Coronation of Their Majesties King Charles III and Queen Camilla was a moment of celebration for the UK and my department was privileged to play its part in this historic occasion.
The Government contributes funding to national state occasions. As with all events of this kind, we will publish costs in due course once all spend has been reconciled.