Asked by: Paul Foster (Labour - South Ribble)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will publish a ministerial attendance list for the meeting of the Domestic and Economic Affairs Committee of the Cabinet on 16 November 2023.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
It is a long-established precedent that information about the discussions that have taken place in Cabinet and its committees, including their attendance, is not normally shared publicly. The standing membership of the Domestic and Economic Affairs committee was placed in the Parliamentary library by the previous Government on 3rd November 2022.
Asked by: Paul Foster (Labour - South Ribble)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will publish a ministerial attendance list for the meeting of the Domestic and Economic Affairs Committee of the Cabinet on 22 January 2024.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
It is a long-established precedent that information about the discussions that have taken place in Cabinet and its committees, including their attendance, is not normally shared publicly. The standing membership of the Domestic and Economic Affairs committee was placed in the Parliamentary library by the previous Government on 3rd November 2022
Asked by: Paul Foster (Labour - South Ribble)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will publish a ministerial attendance list for the meeting of the Domestic and Economic Affairs Committee of the Cabinet on 19 December 2023.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
It is a long-established precedent that information about the discussions that have taken place in Cabinet and its committees, including their attendance, is not normally shared publicly. The standing membership of the Domestic and Economic Affairs committee was placed in the Parliamentary library by the previous Government on 3rd November 2022
Asked by: Paul Foster (Labour - South Ribble)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, which Ministers attended the meeting of the Domestic and Economic Affairs Committee on 25 March 2024.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
It is a long-established precedent that information about the discussions that have taken place in Cabinet and its committees, including their attendance, is not normally shared publicly. The standing membership of the Domestic and Economic Affairs committee was placed in the Parliamentary library by the previous Government on 3rd November 2022
Asked by: Paul Foster (Labour - South Ribble)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether a meeting of the Domestic and Economic Affairs Committee of the Cabinet relating to a data breach took place in October 2023,.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
It is a long-established precedent that information about the discussions that have taken place in Cabinet and its committees, including how often they have met, is not normally shared publicly.
Asked by: Paul Foster (Labour - South Ribble)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to improve SEND provision in South Ribble constituency.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell
The government’s ambition for all children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) is that they will achieve and thrive, and lead happy, healthy and productive lives. The department is working closely with experts on SEND reforms.
The department and NHS England have been supporting local areas to improve their SEND service delivery for several years. This includes a monitoring, support and challenge relationship following an inspection by Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission (CQC). Where a local authority does not meet its duties, we can take action that prioritises children’s needs and support local areas to bring about rapid improvement.
Ofsted and the CQC undertook a joint local area SEND inspection of Lancashire County Council in December 2024. The inspection found there are widespread and/or systemic failings leading to significant concerns about the experiences and outcomes of children and young people with SEND, which the local area partnership must address urgently. We expect a monitoring inspection will be carried out within approximately 18 months. The next full reinspection will be within approximately three years from December 2024.
Where a council does not meet its duties, we can take action that prioritises children’s needs and supports local areas to bring about rapid improvement. We offer a range of universal, targeted and intensive support through programmes managed by the department, such as our Sector Led Improvement Partners which provide peer-to-peer tailored support.
Asked by: Paul Foster (Labour - South Ribble)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department monitors the compliance of individual local authorities with statutory duties under the Children and Families Act 2014 in relation to the delivery of EHCP provision.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell
Local authorities identified as having issues with education, health and care (EHC) plan timeliness are subject to additional monitoring by the department, who work with the specific local authority. Where there are concerns about the local authority’s capacity to make the required improvements, the department can secure specialist advisor support to help identify the barriers to EHC plan timeliness and put in place practical plans for recovery.
When inspections indicate that there are significant concerns with local authority performance, the department will intervene directly. This may mean issuing an improvement notice, statutory direction and/or appointing a commissioner, deployment of which is considered on a case-by-case basis.
Asked by: Paul Foster (Labour - South Ribble)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many Education, Health and Care (a) requests and (b) needs assessments have been (i) completed and (ii) issued within the statutory 20-week timeframe by Lancashire County Council in the last 12 months.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell
Information on the number of requests for an education, health and care (EHC) needs assessment, the number of assessments carried out and the number of new plans issued within the statutory 20-week time, including at a local authority level, are published in the statistical release, accessible at: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/education-health-and-care-plans/2025.
Asked by: Paul Foster (Labour - South Ribble)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many cases the Independent Commission for Reconciliation and Information is investigating that relate to deaths of (a) armed forces personnel and (b) police officers.
Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The website of the Independent Commission for Reconciliation and Information Recovery sets out details of current cases, including those relating to the killings of armed forces personnel and police officers. It is noted that those details do not reflect every case that is being investigated, rather they reflect those which Requesting Individuals have agreed can be made public and which the Commission has assessed likewise.
This information can be found at:
https://icrir.independent-inquiry.uk/live-investigations-in-information-recovery/.
Asked by: Paul Foster (Labour - South Ribble)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether he plans to take steps to enable (a) constituents and (b) businesses in South Ribble constituency to become eligible Gigabit Broadband Voucher Scheme.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
As part of Project Gigabit, Building Digital UK (BDUK) identifies the most appropriate intervention to deliver gigabit-capable broadband in areas that are unlikely to be reached by suppliers’ commercial rollout. For most homes and businesses in the South Ribble constituency, this will be through the Project Gigabit contract being delivered by Openreach across Lancashire.
BDUK is currently exploring if additional premises can be added to the scope of this contract. For any homes or businesses that cannot be added, and remain outside of commercial plans, BDUK will consider alternative interventions, which may include the Gigabit Broadband Voucher Scheme.