Asked by: Neil Duncan-Jordan (Labour - Poole)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will take steps with Cabinet colleagues to ensure that UK (a) defence equipment supplied to and (b) trade with Israel is not used to support the continued presence of Israel in the Palestinian Occupied Territories.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK's robust export licensing criteria states that the Government will not issue export licences if there is a clear risk that the items might be used to commit or facilitate serious violations of International Humanitarian Law (IHL). In September 2024, following an IHL review, we have suspended certain export licences to Israel where we have assessed there is a clear risk that they might be used to commit or facilitate serious violations of IHL. We do not encourage or offer support to economic and financial activity in the settlements, and our commitment to a two-state solution is unwavering, as is our commitment to international law. We advise British businesses to consider the UK government's stance towards settlements when considering their investments and activities in the region.
Asked by: Neil Duncan-Jordan (Labour - Poole)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has made recent representations to his US counterparts on the case for an end to the economic blockade of Cuba.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Foreign Secretary had a call with his recently appointed US counterpart, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, on 27 January. The readout is available on gov.uk.
Asked by: Neil Duncan-Jordan (Labour - Poole)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has made recent representations to his US counterpart on removing Cuba from the State Sponsors of Terrorism list.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Foreign Secretary had a call with his recently appointed US counterpart, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, on 27 January. The readout is available on gov.uk.
Asked by: Neil Duncan-Jordan (Labour - Poole)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will re-establish the Department for International Development.
Answered by Anneliese Dodds - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
As set out in the 2024 Labour Party manifesto, the Government's plans are to strengthen international development work within the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.
Asked by: Neil Duncan-Jordan (Labour - Poole)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will update the School Food Standards and introduce compliance monitoring to (a) reflect the latest evidence based dietary guidelines on sugar and fibre (b) remove the requirement to offer meat and a dessert at every meal (c) introduce a requirement for meals to include at least two portions of vegetables and (d) include support for water only in schools.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
This government is committed to raising the healthiest generation ever. It is important that children eat nutritious food at school and the department encourages schools to have a whole school approach to healthy eating.
The School Food Standards (the Standards) regulate the food and drink provided at both lunchtime and at other times of the school day. They define the foods and drinks that must be provided, which foods are restricted and those which must not be provided.
Compliance with the Standards is mandatory for maintained schools, academies and free schools. Governing boards have a responsibility to ensure compliance and should appropriately challenge the headteacher and the senior leadership team to ensure the school is meeting its obligations.
The department’s aim is to deliver better life chances for all through a system which works for all. As part of this, as with all government programmes, we will keep our approach to the School Food Standards and compliance under continued review.
Asked by: Neil Duncan-Jordan (Labour - Poole)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an assessment of the potential implications for her policies of the report entitled Talking about School Transition, published by the University of Manchester in April 2020.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The primary-secondary school transition is a significant milestone in a child’s life and the government recognises the importance of supporting the emotional wellbeing of children and young people during these transition periods. This is critical to high and rising standards and helping pupils to achieve and thrive in school.
In health education, part of mandatory relationships, sex and health education, there is already a strong focus on mental wellbeing. The aim of teaching pupils about mental wellbeing and physical health is to give them the information they need to make good decisions about their own health and wellbeing, recognise issues in themselves and others and, when issues arise, how to seek support.
The department also encourages schools to embed an effective whole school approach to mental health and wellbeing, which includes considering stages during the academic year that provide opportunities for a specific curricular focus, such as learning skills for coping with transition periods. There are a number of approaches to do this, including those focused on in the Talking about School Transition report.
Beyond this, the government will expand Mental Health Support Teams (so every young person has access to early support to address problems before they escalate. We will also be putting in place new Young Futures hubs, including access to mental health support workers, and will recruit an additional 8,500 new mental health staff to treat children and adults.
Asked by: Neil Duncan-Jordan (Labour - Poole)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if she will make it her policy to introduce a moratorium on Section 21 eviction notices until Parliamentary consideration of the Renters' Reform Bill is concluded.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Renters’ Rights Bill had its second reading in the House of Lords on Tuesday 4 February. The Bill delivers the government’s manifesto commitment to overhaul the regulation of the private rented sector, including by abolishing Section 21 ‘no fault’ evictions.
We want to see tenants benefit from these reforms as quickly as possible. We have therefore determined to introduce the new tenancy system for the private rented sector in one stage. Upon the commencement date, the new tenancy system will apply to all private tenancies – existing tenancies will become periodic, and any new tenancies will be governed by the new rules.
Asked by: Neil Duncan-Jordan (Labour - Poole)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will take steps to ensure that a range of arts subjects are included in the national curriculum.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
The current national curriculum includes art and design, music, dance within physical education and drama within English.
The independent Curriculum and Assessment Review will seek to deliver a curriculum which is rich and broad, inclusive and innovative, considering how best to support a young person to develop the knowledge and skills needed to thrive. The interim report will be published in early spring and the final report will be published this autumn.
Asked by: Neil Duncan-Jordan (Labour - Poole)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what her Department's timetable is for introducing a statutory registration scheme for holiday lets.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Parliament legislated for a registration scheme for short-term lets in the Levelling Up and Regeneration Act 2023, and we are committed to introducing such a scheme as soon as possible. The initial phase of digital development is now complete, with public testing planned to start in the next 12 months. During this next phase, we will test a working interface with users to ensure our systems are robust and effective before launching a first version of the service.
Asked by: Neil Duncan-Jordan (Labour - Poole)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he expects ICBs to take to support people with long covid.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England’s commissioning guidance from December 2023 presents guidance for the commissioning and oversight of post-COVID services by integrated care boards (ICBs) in England for adults, and children and young people from April 2024. Since then, in line with the National Health Service operating framework and the establishment of integrated care systems, the commissioning of post-COVID services has been the responsibility of ICBs. This is being supported by ongoing funding, and the expectation is that dedicated services should continue to be offered to support people with long COVID. The Government is also currently developing a delivery plan for patients with myalgic encephalomyelitis and chronic fatigue syndrome.