Asked by: Rachel Taylor (Labour - North Warwickshire and Bedworth)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 27 November 2024 to Question 15335 on High Speed 2 Line: Complaints, how HS2 Ltd differentiates between enquiries and complaints; and how enquiries are escalated to complaints.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
There is a dedicated HS2 Helpdesk which is available 24 hours a day, every day of the year, to help with any questions or concerns anyone may have about HS2 or work being carried out. It is available via freephone, email, minicom and through the HS2 website. HS2’s Helpdesk team receive, log and track enquiries and complaints through to resolution.
HS2 Ltd defines an enquiry as a question or a request for information about the project, whereas a complaint is where a stakeholder is unhappy about anything HS2 Ltd does, or about anything another company does on their behalf. If a stakeholder makes an enquiry but is unhappy with the outcome, they can request that it is treated as a complaint by contacting the HS2 Helpdesk. If the complaint needs immediate attention (for instance, if it involves a risk to safety, HS2 will always deal with it straight away. In any case, an acknowledgement of the complaint will be issued within two working days of receiving it and HS2 Ltd aim to provide a substantive response within 20 working days.
HS2 Ltd’s complaints process which includes independent reviews from the HS2 Construction Commissioner, DfT Independent Complaints Assessors and the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO). The full details of the HS2 complaints process are publicly available at https://www.hs2.org.uk/contact-us/how-to-complain/.
Asked by: Rachel Taylor (Labour - North Warwickshire and Bedworth)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to support the National Vehicle Crime Intelligence Service.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Home Office)
The National Vehicle Intelligence Service (NaVCIS) is a national policing unit funded by industry, including finance and leasing companies, insurers and hauliers, to provide dedicated specialist intelligence and enforcement.
We are 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.
Asked by: Rachel Taylor (Labour - North Warwickshire and Bedworth)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to reduce the number of asylum seekers being housed in hotels in the West Midlands.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office has a statutory obligation to provide destitute asylum seekers with accommodation and subsistence support whilst their application for asylum is being considered.
This Government inherited an asylum system under unprecedented strain, with thousands stuck in a backlog without their claims being processed.
The Home Secretary took immediate action by restarting asylum processing and scrapping the unworkable Rwanda policy. This will save an estimated £4 billion for the taxpayer over the next two years. We are delivering a major uplift in returns to remove people with no right to be in the UK. Over the long term this will reduce our reliance on hotels and costs of accommodation.
We remain absolutely committed to ending the use of hotels to accommodate asylum seekers as part of this programme to reduce overall asylum costs.
Asked by: Rachel Taylor (Labour - North Warwickshire and Bedworth)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many (a) educational spaces for children and (b) youth centres have closed in North Warwickshire and Bedworth constituency since 2010.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
Information on mainstream primary and secondary school places is published annually in the School Capacity publication, which is accessible here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-capacity. Time series data are not published at constituency level, which is difficult to track over time due to changing boundaries and school-reorganisations. School capacity data is published at school level and can be combined with information from ‘Get information about schools’ to identify the number of places based on the current parliamentary constituency.
The latest data at local authority level shows that between 2009/10 and 2022/23, the number of school places in Warwickshire increased by 14,143. This data is available here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/33b1bea3-efe4-4b37-f914-08dd0adc50ad. This represents an increase of 7,634 primary and 6,509 secondary places.
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) do not collect individualised data on youth centre closure. As set out in section 507B of the Education Act 1996, local authorities have a statutory duty to secure, so far as is reasonably practicable, sufficient provision of educational and recreational leisure-time activities for young people in their area.
In September 2023, DCMS published updated statutory guidance to support local authorities’ understanding of the existing duty and how to deliver it. The statutory duty, and therefore local authorities’ responsibilities, have not changed.
Alongside this, DCMS funds a peer review programme for local authorities to learn from each other about the best approaches to youth service provision.
In 2025/26, the department will also be launching the Local Youth Transformation pilot, which will support local authorities to build back capacity in the youth space and improve local youth offers.
Asked by: Rachel Taylor (Labour - North Warwickshire and Bedworth)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps he is taking to ensure adequate funding for (a) innovation and (b) development in technology in Warwickshire.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
UKRI invested £43 million in Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire in 2021-22.
This included core funding for the Warwick Manufacturing Group (WMG), which is a centre of the High Value Manufacturing Catapult. WMG is a world-leading industrial research and education group that works with companies to boost the UK’s manufacturing performance and sustainability.
Innovate UK’s Launchpad programme is also allocating up to £7.5 million for the immersive and creative industries cluster centred on Coventry and Warwickshire. This is supporting thirteen projects, eleven of which are with small and medium sized business, to progress their ideas toward commercialisation and contribute to local economic growth.
Asked by: Rachel Taylor (Labour - North Warwickshire and Bedworth)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she has had discussions with (a) banks and (b) building societies on steps to help keep high-street branches of banks and building societies open.
Answered by Tulip Siddiq - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
Treasury Ministers regularly meet representatives from the banking and building society sectors to discuss a wide range of issues.
The Government understands the importance of face-to-face banking to communities and high streets and is committed to championing sufficient access for all as a priority. This is why the Government is working closely with banks to roll out 350 banking hubs, which will provide individuals and businesses up and down the country with critical cash and banking services. Following a meeting with the Economic Secretary in September, the UK banking sector has committed to deliver these hubs by the end of this parliament.
The Government also recognises the value that building societies bring to their members in local communities across the country, and that they have a 28% share of the UK’s branch network.
While branch closures are commercial decisions for banks and building societies, FCA guidance expects firms to carefully consider the impact of planned branch closures on their customers’ everyday banking and cash access needs and put in place alternatives where reasonable. This seeks to ensure that branch closures are implemented in a way that treats customers fairly. Where firms fall short of expectations, the FCA may ask for closures to be paused or other options to be put in place.
Asked by: Rachel Taylor (Labour - North Warwickshire and Bedworth)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to tackle serious organised freight crime.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Home Office)
Freight crime can have significant impacts on businesses and drivers.
We are working with the National Vehicle Crime Working Group, led by the National Police Chiefs’ Council, which has established a network of vehicle crime specialists, involving every police force in England and Wales, to help share information about emerging trends in vehicle crime and better tackle regional issues.
We are also continuing to work closely with Opal, the police’s national intelligence unit focused on serious organised acquisitive crime, which has multiple thematic desks, including a vehicle crime intelligence desk which covers freight crime.
Asked by: Rachel Taylor (Labour - North Warwickshire and Bedworth)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to ensure councils have appropriate funding for (a) grassroots sports and (b) leisure facilities; and if she will take steps to support the renovation of Atherstone Leisure Centre.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government recognises that grassroots sports facilities are at the beating heart of communities up and down the country and is acting to support more people to get active wherever they live. We are doing this via the Multi-Sport Grassroots Facilities Programme, which will invest £123 million UK-wide throughout 2024/25.
The Government encourages local leaders to prioritise access to sport and physical activity wherever possible. Local Authorities are responsible for decisions regarding sport and leisure provision in their area.
Asked by: Rachel Taylor (Labour - North Warwickshire and Bedworth)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will take steps to ensure that complaints about ongoing HS2 works are dealt with effectively.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
HS2 Ltd is committed to proactively communicating with communities impacted by the construction of the new railway, to keep them informed about disruptive works and to respond promptly and respectfully to concerns raised by members of the public.
HS2 Ltd has put in place a freephone helpdesk, which is available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, and has a longstanding commitment to respond to all enquiries and complaints within 20 working days and to respond to all urgent enquiries and complaints within 2 working days.
This year so far (April to September 2024), HS2 Ltd received 17938 enquires and 576 complaints, and has maintained its performance with 100% of urgent complaints resolved within two working days, and 95% of all other complaints responded to within 20 working days or less.
Asked by: Rachel Taylor (Labour - North Warwickshire and Bedworth)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, how many small and medium-sized businesses in North Warwickshire and Bedworth constituency closed between 2010 and 2024; and what steps he is taking to ensure small and medium sized businesses in North Warwickshire and Bedworth constituency receive support.
Answered by Gareth Thomas - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
This Government remains committed to helping small businesses thrive and will be publishing our Small Business Strategy next year. This will set out our vision for all small businesses, from boosting scale-ups to growing the co-operative economy. Support is also available via the Business Support Service, Gov.uk and the network of local Growth Hubs across England.
ONS does not provide business demography data at the parliamentary constituency level. Therefore, the most relevant data is from two lower tier local authorities, North Warwickshire, and Nuneaton and Bedworth.
Within North Warwickshire, Nuneaton and Bedworth, according to data from ONS, there were 4,855 registered business births and 4,665 registered businesses which ceased to trade between 2017 and 2022. There was an overall gain of 190 businesses within this five-year period. (Source: ONS Business demography)