Patrick Hurley

Under the Online Safety Act, all services in scope must tackle illegal content and activity which is harmful to children, including activity through fake and anonymous accounts. The illegal harms duties will come into force in Spring 2025, followed by the child safety duties in Summer 2025.

Ofcom’s draft codes include proposed measures to allow children to block accounts, and to reject unwanted invitations to group chats. The Act also requires Category 1 providers to offer user verification options, enabling users to filter out non-verified users and their content. Ofcom expects to consult on these duties in late 2025.

DSIT defines clear policies and procedures for identifying, disclosing, and managing conflicts of interest. This includes a comprehensive disclosure process set out in Terms and Conditions documents and encourages proactive disclosure by employees. Non-Executive Directors are required to disclose any potential conflicts of interest upon appointment and as soon as they become aware of them. Civil Servants and appointed board members must also adhere to a code of conduct that outlines the principles and standards expected of them. This includes maintaining integrity and professionalism and ensuring that private interests do not adversely impact their official duties.

As an arm Arms’ Length Body (ALB), BDUK may be subject to ALB review by the Cabinet Office, which involve independent parties to review the organisation in full and oversee conflict of interest situations to ensure impartiality and fairness.

BDUK Non-Executive Directors support business performance and provide strategic guidance to the executive team, Non-Executive Directors are not involved in any commercial contract awarding decisions.

To identify intervention areas for Project Gigabit interventions, the government conducts regular market reviews to collect data on suppliers’ commercial plans to define the premises that are eligible for Project Gigabit subsidy. Using this information, the government then conducts a transparent, fair, and robust procurement process to award contracts to any Project Gigabit suppliers.

We understand concerns about the deployment of telegraph poles. We want operators to share infrastructure and use existing underground ducts, wherever possible.

Where the original infrastructure was buried without ducts, or existing infrastructure is not useable, new infrastructure must be built, and underground ducts are significantly more expensive than poles.

On 16 August, I wrote to broadband operators asking them to share infrastructure wherever possible and expressing support for their work revising the Cabinet and Pole Siting Code of Practice. I will shortly be meeting them to understand their infrastructure sharing plan, to express our concerns and to ensure community views are taken into account.

The Department for Culture, Media, and Sport does not hold this information centrally. The National Piers Society can be contacted for further information on this matter at https://piers.org.uk/

This government is determined to break down barriers to opportunity for all children and young people, ensuring they have access to the brilliant education and care they need to achieve and thrive. This includes ensuring that wraparound care is available and accessible. The government is improving access to before and after school care through the National Wraparound Childcare Programme.

The programme is being delivered through local authorities, given their existing sufficiency duty. The Childcare Act 2006 places a legal duty on local authorities to make sure that there are enough childcare places within its locality for working parents or parents who are studying or training for employment, for children aged 0 to 14, or up to 18 for disabled children. All local authorities should be able to demonstrate how they have discharged this duty and should include specific reference to how they are ensuring there is sufficient childcare to meet the needs of children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), as per the statutory guidance. This should be available from the local authority.

The department has also taken decisive action by announcing in the King’s Speech that, under the Children’s Wellbeing Bill, every state-funded school in England with primary aged pupils will offer a breakfast club. Departmental officials are working closely with schools and sector experts to develop a breakfast club programme that meets the needs of all children, including those with SEND.

On 23 September 2024, my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, announced that up to 750 state-funded schools with primary aged pupils will begin delivering free breakfast clubs from April 2025. The funding will allow these schools to run free breakfast clubs for their pupils starting in the summer term as part of a ‘test and learn’ phase to inform delivery of a national rollout, this will include testing approaches to supporting children with SEND.

This government’s ambition is that all children and young people with SEND or in alternative provision receive the right support to succeed in their education and as they move into adult life. The department is committed to improving inclusivity and expertise in mainstream schools, as well as ensuring special schools cater to those with the most complex needs, restoring parents’ trust that their child will get the support they need.

We are committed to tackling the increased costs of motor insurance to deliver on our manifesto commitment, including how this impacts different demographics, geographies, and communities.

The cross-government Motor Insurance Taskforce, including the stakeholder panel, met for the first time on 16 October 2024. The Taskforce is currently exploring short- and long-term actions for departments that may contribute to stabilising or reducing premiums, while maintaining appropriate levels of cover.

As it takes this work forwards, the Taskforce will continue to work closely with the independent Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the Competition and Markets Authority. The FCA has launched a market study into the premium finance market and is undertaking work to analyse the cause of increased claims costs in the motor insurance market.

As of 10 July 2024, there were 12 open dentistry practices in the Southport constituency, four of which were showing as ‘accepting new adult patients when availability allows’. This data is sourced from the Find a Dentist website, and is matched to constituencies based on the postcode data shown on the website, which is available at the following link:

https://www.nhs.uk/service-search/find-a-Dentist

In chairing the UN Security Council on 18 November, the Foreign Secretary made clear that UK support for Ukraine is ironclad. We have stepped up the delivery of vital military equipment, led the way in investing in Ukraine’s defence industrial base, and imposed major new sanctions upon Russia. As the Prime Minister has said, we must double down and give Ukraine the support it needs for as long as it needs.

This Government is determined to drive down vehicle crime and we are working with the automotive industry and law enforcement to ensure our response is as strong as it can be – including recruiting thousands of additional neighbourhood police officers, PCSOs and Special Constables to provide a visible and effective response to car crime in local communities.

We continue to work closely with the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) lead for vehicle crime, through the National Vehicle Crime Working Group, to take forward a programme of work, focusing on prevention and deterrence of theft of and from vehicles. Through the Working Group, a network of vehicle crime specialists has been established, involving every police force in England and Wales, to ensure forces can share information about emerging trends in vehicle crime and better tackle regional issues.

There are also a number of specialist teams that support work to tackle vehicle crime, including Opal, the police’s national intelligence unit for serious acquisitive crime, and the National Vehicle Intelligence Service (NaVCIS), a national policing unit funded by industry, including finance and leasing companies, insurers and hauliers, to provide dedicated specialist intelligence and enforcement.

Last autumn, driven by the NPCC lead for vehicle crime and supported by the Home Office, the National Vehicle Crime Reduction Partnership was established, bringing together the police, Home Office and manufacturers.

We are also providing £250,000 this financial year to help support enforcement at the ports to prevent stolen vehicles and vehicle parts being shipped abroad, including additional staff and specialist equipment.

Offenders who refuse to attend their sentencing hearings deny victims and their families the opportunity to explain how their crimes have impacted their lives. This Government wants victims to have faith that justice will be delivered and to see criminals face the consequences of their actions.

The Government is committed to legislating to enhance court powers to require offenders to attend their sentencing hearings. This measure will be included in the Victims, Courts and Public Protection Bill which is due to be introduced as soon as parliamentary time allows.