Asked by: Priti Patel (Conservative - Witham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how many asylum seekers in the British Indian Ocean Territory have received medical treatment in the last three years; in what countries that treatment was provided; and at what cost.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The FCDO provides funding to the BIOT Administration for the good governance of the Territory, which includes the costs of supporting the migrants there, whose welfare and safety is paramount, as well as their rights to patient confidentiality. They have access to 24/7 medical care from a team of doctors, paramedics, registered nurses and mental health practitioners, contracted by the BIOT Administration. Where treatment cannot be provided in the BIOT, urgent medical transfers organised or specialists can be brought to the island. Given the broad range of medical services provided in a number of different locations over a three-year period, the detailed information requested cannot be provided except at a disproportionate cost.
Asked by: Priti Patel (Conservative - Witham)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the Autumn Budget 2024, published on 30 October 2024, HC 295, how much SEND funding she plans to allocate to local authorities to (a) cover existing DSG deficits and (b) for future spending pressures.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
This government’s ambition is that all children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) or in alternative provision receive the right support to succeed in their education and as they move into adult life.
The department is providing an increase of almost £1 billion for high needs budgets in the 2025/26 financial year, bringing total high needs funding for children and young people with complex SEND to £11.9 billion.
The department is providing this increase to high needs funding to help meet the increase in costs local authorities will be facing next year, as they in turn provide support to schools and pupils with SEND. The impact on individual local authorities’ deficits will be variable, and it remains important that every local authority looks at what it can do within the current system to manage its high needs budget while continuing to provide the support that children with SEND need.
The department is now in the process of calculating local authorities’ indicative high needs funding allocations for the 2025/26 financial year, which it expects to publish before the end of November.
High needs budgets beyond the 2025/26 financial year are a matter for the next stage of the multi-year spending review.
Asked by: Priti Patel (Conservative - Witham)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much funding will be allocated to support pupils with SEND in Essex in each of the next five years.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
This government’s ambition is that all children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) or in alternative provision receive the right support to succeed in their education and as they move into adult life.
The department is providing an increase of almost £1 billion for high needs budgets in the 2025/26 financial year, bringing total high needs funding for children and young people with complex SEND to £11.9 billion.
The department is providing this increase to high needs funding to help meet the increase in costs local authorities will be facing next year, as they in turn provide support to schools and pupils with SEND. The impact on individual local authorities’ deficits will be variable, and it remains important that every local authority looks at what it can do within the current system to manage its high needs budget while continuing to provide the support that children with SEND need.
The department is now in the process of calculating local authorities’ indicative high needs funding allocations for the 2025/26 financial year, which it expects to publish before the end of November.
High needs budgets beyond the 2025/26 financial year are a matter for the next stage of the multi-year spending review.
Asked by: Priti Patel (Conservative - Witham)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an estimate of the number of Education and Health Care Plans that will be issued for qualifying young people (a) nationwide and (b) in Essex in each of the next five years.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
The number of education, health and care (EHC) plans issued in each local authority area per year is set out in published statistics on GOV.UK and is available here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/150da0a4-2fef-4836-8c12-08dbe514ee42.
The department does not make estimates of the number of EHC plans to be issued in each local authority in future years. However, as noted in the recent National Audit Office (NAO) report into special educational needs and disabilities, the department does make estimates at a national level. Page 35 of the NAO report notes that the department’s central estimate is that, without policy interventions, the number of EHC plans will nearly double from approximately 518,000 in 2022/23 to just over one million in 2032/33.
Asked by: Priti Patel (Conservative - Witham)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the Autumn Budget 2024, published on 30 October 2024, HC 295, what estimate she has made of the cost to the public purse through (a) third party spend and (b) contracts as a result of changes to employers National Insurance Contributions in each of the next five years; and if she will publish any modelling undertaken on this.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Chancellor made an announcement at the Autumn Budget setting out that the rate of Employer National Insurance Contributions will increase from 13.8% to 15% from 6 April 2025. Raising the revenue required to fund public services and restore economic stability requires difficult decisions on tax, which is why the Government is asking employers to contribute more. At the Autumn Budget, the Chancellor also agreed departmental spending allocations for 2024-25 and 2025-26. It is the responsibility of contracting authorities to prioritise these budgets effectively and make assessments on the costs of procurement.
Asked by: Priti Patel (Conservative - Witham)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to line 26 of Table 5.1 of the Autumn Budget 2024, published on 30 October 2024, HC 295, which public sector organisations will be funded to cover the additional costs of the changes to employers National Insurance Contributions; and how much funding will be provided to each of them in the next five years.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government will provide support for departments and other public sector employers for additional Employer National Insurance Contributions costs only. This funding will be allocated to departments, with the Barnett formula applying in the usual way.
This is in line with the approach taken under the previous Government’s Health and Social Care Levy.
The Government plans to update Parliament on allocations by department in the usual way as soon as possible.
Asked by: Priti Patel (Conservative - Witham)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the Autumn Budget 2024, published on 30 October 2024, HC 295, what the Resource DEL provided to each Department in respect of the impact of the changes to employers National Insurance Contributions will be.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government will provide support for departments and other public sector employers for additional Employer National Insurance Contributions costs only. This funding will be allocated to departments, with the Barnett formula applying in the usual way.
This is in line with the approach taken under the previous Government’s Health and Social Care Levy.
The Government plans to update Parliament on allocations by department in the usual way as soon as possible.
Asked by: Priti Patel (Conservative - Witham)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate she has made of the revenue raised as a result of the OECD Pillar 2 measures in each of the next five years.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The UK’s implementation of the Multinational Top-up Tax and Domestic Top-up Tax was scored at Autumn Statement 2022, and updated Spring Budget 2023 in ‘table 4.2’. This can be found on gov.uk at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/spring-budget-2023.
The UK’s implementation of the Undertaxed Profits Rule was scored at Autumn Statement 2023, and updated at Autumn Budget 2024 in ‘table 5.2’. This can be found on gov.uk at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/autumn-budget-2024.
Taken together, the latest estimate is that all three rules will raise more than £15bn over the upcoming scorecard period.
Asked by: Priti Patel (Conservative - Witham)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she plans to extend the statutory override on the treatment of deficits to the dedicated schools grant after the 2025-26 financial year.
Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
We will work with the sector when considering how we can help councils manage the impacts of Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) deficits on their finances.
This Government recognises the vital work that local councils do for their communities, and we stand ready to speak to any council that is experiencing financial difficulties.
Asked by: Priti Patel (Conservative - Witham)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the OECD Pillar 2 measures on businesses.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
Pillar 2 is a significant reform to international corporate tax rules that will impact large multinational enterprises headquartered around the globe.
Following the implementation of Pillar 2, the government is committed to considering opportunities for simplification or rationalisation of the UK’s rules for taxing cross-border activities.
A Tax Information and Impact note for the Multinational Top-up Tax and Domestic Minimum Tax was published in March 2023, and a Tax Information and Impact note on the Undertaxed Profits rule was published in October 2024. These notes include detail on expected business impact and can be accessed on gov.uk at https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/tax-information-and-impact-notes-tiins.