Richard Holden

The Government will shortly consult on proposed changes to the Energy Company Obligation scheme, including any changes to first time central heating.

The modelled impacts of the successor scheme will be set out in the accompanying Impact Assessment. This will include the associated carbon savings and the number of homes that are expected to be treated through the scheme.

Parents who are eligible for Shared Parental Leave and Statutory Shared Parental Pay have the flexibility to share up to 50 weeks of Leave and 37 weeks of Statutory Pay between them, as they see fit. Both parents can use Shared Parental Leave to take leave in blocks separated by periods of work, or take it all in one go. They can also choose to be off work together or to stagger the leave and pay. For both parents, Shared Parental Pay is paid at the rate of £151.20 a week or 90% of their average weekly earnings, whichever is lower.

Some employers may wish to offer occupational parental schemes for men and women taking shared parental leave, beyond the statutory requirements. The Shared Parental Leave and Pay: Employer’s technical guide published on gov.uk (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/shared-parental-leave-and-pay-employers-technical-guide) clearly states that it if an occupational scheme is offered to a mother on Shared Parental Leave, it could constitute sex discrimination if such an occupational scheme were not offered to fathers/a mother’s partner.

The Government has run significant communications campaigns to promote Shared Parental Leave to parents and employers. We are also currently developing a new online tool to help parents plan Shared Parental Leave and Pay. The tool will be available in the coming months and will make it easier for parents to access the scheme.

In addition, the Government is currently evaluating the Shared Parental Leave and Pay scheme in order to better understand the barriers and enablers to parents taking Shared Parental Leave. This evaluation has included commissioning and interrogating information collected through large scale, representative, surveys of employers and parents and a qualitative study of parents who have used the scheme. We intend to publish our findings later this year.

The Government is currently conducting an evaluation of the Shared Parental Leave and Pay scheme which has included commissioning and interrogating information collected through large scale, representative, surveys of employers and parents and a qualitative study of parents who have used the scheme. We intend to publish our findings later this year and will then be in a position to share detailed data on the scheme.

The On-Street Residential Chargepoint Scheme is available to all local authorities in the UK, including town and parish councils, who can apply directly for funding.

The On-street Residential Chargepoint Scheme guidance for local authorities can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/grants-for-local-authorities-to-provide-residential-on-street-chargepoints/grants-to-provide-residential-on-street-chargepoints-for-plug-in-electric-vehicles-guidance-for-local-authorities.

Individuals with certain medical conditions are not specific trial groups, but safety data will be coming from all trials to set out how the COVID-19 vaccines work in different types of people.

The NHS Covid-19 vaccine research registry, developed in partnership with NHS Digital, will help facilitate the rapid recruitment of large numbers of people into trials. The Government has been encouraging a diverse pool of people to volunteer to help researchers better understand the effectiveness of each vaccine candidate.

BEIS does not hold data linking the source of coal to its final use. Overall volumes are published in the Digest of UK Energy Statistics and Energy Trends.

The table below shows the volumes of coal imported from Russia, Columbia and produced by the UK and the total supply and demand for 2015 to 2019.

Thousand tonnes

Source: Digest of UK Energy Statistics 2020, table 2.4:

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/solid-fuels-and-derived-gases-chapter-2-digest-of-united-kingdom-energy-statistics-dukes

Energy Trends table 2.4:

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/solid-fuels-and-derived-gases-section-2-energy-trends

All pubs, restaurants, bars, and cafes in England can begin to offer on-site services to customers from Saturday 4 July, as long as they follow the COVID-secure guidelines, found at https://www.gov.uk/guidance/working-safely-during-coronavirus-covid-19/updates. This includes both outdoor and indoor spaces.

The Government has also announced measures to ease pavement licensing as part of the Business and Planning Bill, which will allow businesses to provide outdoor seating in order to serve more customers while following the COVID-secure guidelines.

The Department continues to engage with businesses and their representatives from across the hospitality sector and the support available is kept under review.

Information on UK coal trade is published in the Digest of UK Energy Statistics (DUKES) table G.2.

Source: H.M. Revenue and Customs

In this table coal includes steam coal, coking coal, coke and anthracite. Data for 2019 will be published on 30 July 2020.

Employees who are dismissed due to redundancy and who satisfy certain qualifying conditions are statutorily entitled to a lump sum from their employer, based on their age, length of service and contractual weekly earnings, subject to a statutory upper limit.

As per the latest updates to the guidance for the Coronavirus Job Retention scheme, grants cannot be used to substitute redundancy payments. Please visit the GOV.UK page for updates to the scheme: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/claim-for-wage-costs-through-the-coronavirus-job-retention-scheme.

The Department does not hold information by Parliamentary constituency as the entitlement management database used by the Department’s contractor does not hold beneficiary information in this format as it is not required for operational delivery of the scheme.

Below is a table of concessionary scheme numbers by Postcode Area:

Of the total of C40,000 current beneficiaries under the National Concessionary Fuel Scheme at 31 March 2020, 34,800 have opted for the cash alternative at an average cost per beneficiary of £779 per annum; the average annual cost of solid fuel for the remaining 5,200 is £1,147 per beneficiary excluding delivery costs and VAT.

In 2019/20 the National Concessionary Fuel Scheme outturn was c.£36.6m including administrative cost.

The scheme is forecast to run to 2062 with a total cost of c.£326m.

On 11th May the Government published its COVID-19 recovery strategy, which sets out a roadmap to a phased recovery. This included the setting up of five ministerial-led taskforces. The taskforces will help oversee the development of guidance for reopening businesses, to ensure they can operate in a safe way for employees and customers, as long as the evidence shows it is safe to do so.

In step two of the roadmap, the Government has considered the reopening of non-essential retail. Updated guidance for shops and branches was published on 25 May after consultation with businesses, unions leaders, Public Health England and the Health and Safety Executive. The updated guidance takes into account the best practice demonstrated by the many retailers which have been allowed to remain open and have applied social distancing measures in store.

Showrooms are now able to reopen from 1 June as long as they can adhere to the social distancing guidelines.

Manufacturing is a critical part of our economy?and?we are engaging with the industry and its suppliers to ensure that we can support them?during and after the Covid-19 pandemic.

We have created an unprecedented package of Government support to help, including:

- £330 billion of Government-backed and guaranteed loans to support UK businesses.

- The Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme to help small and medium-sized businesses to access vital financial support.

- Our new Coronavirus Large Business Interruption Loan Scheme to allow more firms to benefit from Government-backed support during this difficult time.

- Deferring VAT payments for firms to the next quarter, until the end of June 2020, which represents a £30 billion injection into the economy.

- Our Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, where small and large employers will be eligible to apply for a Government grant of 80% of workers’ salaries up to £2,500 a month, backdated to 1 March 2020 and available for at least three months.

Ensuring free trade and resilient supply chains through open markets will be crucial to the global economic recovery as the crisis passes. We are working with the Devolved Administrations to support the manufacturing industry by continuing the flow of critical freight for the whole of the UK.

The Government is also supporting industry-led research to map UK supply chain capability, which creates substantial new opportunities for UK suppliers.

The regulation of the liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) supply market for domestic suppliers is a matter for the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) exercising its role as an independent competition authority.

Domestic bulk LPG providers are subject to regulation under the CMA Statutory Orders: The Domestic Bulk Liquefied Petroleum Gas Market Investigation Order, 13 October 2008 and The Domestic Bulk Liquefied Petroleum Gas Market Investigation (Metered Estates), Order 6 May 2009. The CMA continues to monitor compliance with these Orders.

More information is available at www.gov.uk/government/publications/liquefied-petroleum-gas-lpg-market-orders-and-calculator

Separately, customers supplied by member companies of Liquid Gas UK (the trade association for LPG suppliers) have access to free independent arbitration as a route to dispute resolution (see https://www.liquidgasuk.org/advice/ombudsman-scheme).

The UK Greenhouse Gas Inventory publishes an annual assessment of greenhouse gas emissions by source. It includes estimates of greenhouse gas emissions from domestic combustion of coal and oil, of which the vast majority will be used for heating. In 2018, the most recent year for which we have published data, the estimated level of carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions was (a) 1.5 MtCO₂ from domestic combustion of coal and (b) 6.1 MtCO₂ from domestic combustion of oil.

It is in both the UK and the EU’s interests to have a future relationship which maintains the flow of goods, the provision of services, and the continuity of business.

We are committed to levelling up access to opportunity across the country, investing in the infrastructure, skills, and technology we need to improve economic performance in all parts of the UK.

We will continue to work with companies over the next 9 months to ensure they are well prepared for the end of the Transition Period.

Electricity network companies provide information and advice to support those seeking a connection to their networks including guidance documents, connection surgeries and online connection applications. When connecting to the electricity distribution network, customers (including commercial businesses), are required to pay the costs of connecting to the existing network. However, any further network reinforcement costs to accommodate the connection are shared with all network users in the area. Further information is available at https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/publications-and-updates/guide-electricity-distribution-connections-policy.

Annual good cause income has generally increased since the National Lottery began in 1994, although there have been fluctuations year on year during that period. DCMS reports annually on the level of good cause income in the National Lottery Distribution Fund Annual Report and Accounts.

The Government and the Gambling Commission share a statutory duty to maximise returns to good causes, subject to ensuring that the National Lottery is run with all due propriety and that the interests of players are protected. In fulfilling its statutory objectives, following a competitive bidding process, the Gambling Commission issues a licence, which sets out the basis for allocating funds to good causes and profit to the operator.

The Gambling Commission is currently running the competition to award the fourth licence to operate the National Lottery. As with the current licence, the fourth licence will require the operator to maximise good cause returns, and the alignment between good causes and operator profit reinforces this.

Annual good cause income has generally increased since the National Lottery began in 1994, although there have been fluctuations year on year during that period. DCMS reports annually on the level of good cause income in the National Lottery Distribution Fund Annual Report and Accounts.

The Government and the Gambling Commission share a statutory duty to maximise returns to good causes, subject to ensuring that the National Lottery is run with all due propriety and that the interests of players are protected. In fulfilling its statutory objectives, following a competitive bidding process, the Gambling Commission issues a licence, which sets out the basis for allocating funds to good causes and profit to the operator.

The Gambling Commission is currently running the competition to award the fourth licence to operate the National Lottery. As with the current licence, the fourth licence will require the operator to maximise good cause returns, and the alignment between good causes and operator profit reinforces this.

The Third National Lottery licence started in February 2009. Data collected by the Gambling Commission shows the percentage of regular National Lottery draw-based game players, aged 16+ in Great Britain, since 2012. This data does not include instant win games (Scratchcards or Online Instant Win Games), sales of which have increased since the licence began.

As the independent regulator of the National Lottery, the Gambling Commission has a statutory responsibility to ensure that the interests of all National Lottery players are protected and that the National Lottery is run with all due propriety. Under the terms of the current National Lottery Licence the operator is required to implement player protection strategies to prevent underage and excessive play, which must be approved by the Gambling Commission.

In addition, the Gambling Commission conducts regular, detailed monitoring to identify risks to players, and where appropriate, undertakes strategic reviews of areas of the portfolio which are identified as higher (but not necessarily high) risk. Where evidence does emerge of an increased risk of problem play on National Lottery products, the Gambling Commission is quick to take action. In July 2020, the Gambling Commission removed all National Lottery Online Instant Win Games at the £10 price point, following the emergence of evidence showing an association between them and some problem gambling behaviours.

The Gambling Commission and the operator have been closely monitoring the developing trends during Covid-19. Data published by the Gambling Commission in February 2021, shows that online participation for National Lottery draws in the past four weeks, was 13.1% in the year to December 2020, up from 10.5% in the year to December 2019. Analysis indicates that the risk profile of online players has not increased over recent months. This continues to be kept under review.

As the independent regulator of the National Lottery, the Gambling Commission has a statutory responsibility to ensure that the interests of all National Lottery players are protected and that the National Lottery is run with all due propriety. Under the terms of the current National Lottery Licence the operator is required to implement player protection strategies to prevent underage and excessive play, which must be approved by the Gambling Commission.

In addition, the Gambling Commission conducts regular, detailed monitoring to identify risks to players, and where appropriate, undertakes strategic reviews of areas of the portfolio which are identified as higher (but not necessarily high) risk. Where evidence does emerge of an increased risk of problem play on National Lottery products, the Gambling Commission is quick to take action. In July 2020, the Gambling Commission removed all National Lottery Online Instant Win Games at the £10 price point, following the emergence of evidence showing an association between them and some problem gambling behaviours.

The Gambling Commission and the operator have been closely monitoring the developing trends during Covid-19. Data published by the Gambling Commission in February 2021, shows that online participation for National Lottery draws in the past four weeks, was 13.1% in the year to December 2020, up from 10.5% in the year to December 2019. Analysis indicates that the risk profile of online players has not increased over recent months. This continues to be kept under review.

As the independent regulator of the National Lottery, the Gambling Commission has a statutory responsibility to ensure that the interests of all National Lottery players are protected and that the National Lottery is run with all due propriety. Under the terms of the current National Lottery Licence the operator is required to implement player protection strategies to prevent underage and excessive play, which must be approved by the Gambling Commission.

In addition, the Gambling Commission conducts regular, detailed monitoring to identify risks to players, and where appropriate, undertakes strategic reviews of areas of the portfolio which are identified as higher (but not necessarily high) risk. Where evidence does emerge of an increased risk of problem play on National Lottery products, the Gambling Commission is quick to take action. In July 2020, the Gambling Commission removed all National Lottery Online Instant Win Games at the £10 price point, following the emergence of evidence showing an association between them and some problem gambling behaviours.

The Gambling Commission and the operator have been closely monitoring the developing trends during Covid-19. Data published by the Gambling Commission in February 2021, shows that online participation for National Lottery draws in the past four weeks, was 13.1% in the year to December 2020, up from 10.5% in the year to December 2019. Analysis indicates that the risk profile of online players has not increased over recent months. This continues to be kept under review.

Evidence from the 2018 Health Survey for England showed that National Lottery games are associated with the lowest levels of problem gambling across all gambling products. Problem gambling rates for National Lottery draw-based games were 0.9% while the figure for Scratchcards was 1.4%. By comparison, the problem gambling rates for other activities covered by the survey ranged from 2.7% to 12.7%.

The attached table shows levels of problem gambling broken down by women, men and 16-19 year olds.

The Health survey does not provide data at a category level for Online Instant Win Games, and does not break down levels of problem gambling by activity and demographic group.

The government recently legislated to increase the minimum age to purchase and sell all National Lottery products from 16 to 18. We are working with the current operator, Camelot, and the Gambling Commission to ensure a smooth implementation, acting sooner where possible. Camelot has already announced plans to increase the online age limit in April 2021 and also anticipates being able to introduce the change in retail premises in good time before the legislation takes effect in October 2021.

The Gambling Commission is responsible for designing the fourth National Lottery Licence, running the competition, selecting the winning application, and managing the operator in-licence.

DCMS and the Gambling Commission share three statutory duties: to ensure that the National Lottery is run with all due propriety, to protect players’ interests, and - subject to those - to maximise returns to good causes. It is upon these duties that the Commission has designed the evaluation criteria for the Fourth Licence competition. Applicants are free to innovate within the legal framework. The next licence will give the operator greater autonomy to make strategic decisions, providing the licensee with the flexibility to innovate while ensuring they meet high standards of player protection and propriety.

The winning applicant will be required to sign a number of agreements with the Gambling Commission to ensure that they deliver on the proposals in their bid.

The Gambling Commission is responsible for designing the fourth National Lottery Licence, running the competition, selecting the winning application, and managing the operator in-licence.

DCMS and the Gambling Commission share three statutory duties: to ensure that the National Lottery is run with all due propriety, to protect players’ interests, and - subject to those - to maximise returns to good causes. It is upon these duties that the Commission has designed the evaluation criteria for the Fourth Licence competition. Applicants are free to innovate within the legal framework. The next licence will give the operator greater autonomy to make strategic decisions, providing the licensee with the flexibility to innovate while ensuring they meet high standards of player protection and propriety.

The winning applicant will be required to sign a number of agreements with the Gambling Commission to ensure that they deliver on the proposals in their bid.

Problem gambling is a complex issue and there are multiple and varied factors which contribute to its development in individuals, even within demographic groups. The government launched its Review of the Gambling Act 2005 on 8 December with the publication of a Call for Evidence. The Review will be wide-ranging and evidence led and aims to make sure we have the right protections in place to make gambling safer for all.

While all forms of gambling carry risk, the National Lottery is associated with the lowest rates of problem gambling of all products. Evidence from the 2018 Health Survey for England showed that problem gambling rates for National Lottery draw-based games were 0.9% while the figure for Scratchcards was 1.4%.

Problem gambling is a complex issue and there are multiple and varied factors which contribute to its development in individuals, even within demographic groups. The government launched its Review of the Gambling Act 2005 on 8 December with the publication of a Call for Evidence. The Review will be wide-ranging and evidence led and aims to make sure we have the right protections in place to make gambling safer for all.

While all forms of gambling carry risk, the National Lottery is associated with the lowest rates of problem gambling of all products. Evidence from the 2018 Health Survey for England showed that problem gambling rates for National Lottery draw-based games were 0.9% while the figure for Scratchcards was 1.4%.

All gambling companies providing gambling facilities to consumers in Great Britain, wherever they are based, must be licensed by the Gambling Commission and comply with the conditions and codes of practice of their operating licences. Operators who provide services marketed under a different brand as part of a ‘white label’ agreement are held accountable for the actions of their commercial partners, and are expected to carry out all necessary due diligence to satisfy themselves that the relationship will not compromise their own regulatory compliance. Further detail about the Gambling Commission’s compliance and enforcement work in this area can be found in the relevant section of its Compliance and Enforcement Report for 2019 to 2020 and its Reminder to licensees regarding white label gambling websites. These can be accessed at: https://beta.gamblingcommission.gov.uk/strategy/raising-standards-for-consumers-compliance-and-enforcement-report-2019-20/white-label-partnerships

Licensed gambling operators and their white label partners are entitled to enter into commercial arrangements with sporting bodies, as long as any sponsorship activities are carried out in a socially responsible way. The Commission expects licensees to ensure that all parties are aware of, and compliant with, the relevant advertising and sponsorship rules and regulations. The government and the Gambling Commission do not hold information on exposure to gambling advertising and marketing in other jurisdictions.

The government launched its Review of the Gambling Act 2005 on 8 December with the publication of a Call for Evidence. As part of the wide scope of that Review, we have called for evidence on whether white label agreements pose a risk to consumers in Great Britain, and on the impact of gambling sponsorship arrangements across sport, esport and other areas.

The £1.57bn Culture Recovery Fund is an unprecedented support package for culture and heritage. Where outdoor educational centres have extensive public outreach; run professional arts programmes; or own, work with or manage heritage, they may be eligible for support and could apply to the Culture Recovery Fund.

However, please note that the application portals for the second round of the Culture Recovery Fund have now closed.

Under the current national restrictions, accommodation providers must close, whether in: a hotel, hostel, B&B, holiday apartment, home, cottage or bungalow, campsite, caravan park or boarding house, canal boat or any other vessel. However, there are a limited number of exemptions to this set out in law. As such, accommodation providers have not been required to stop advertising their services.

When travel is necessary and staying in hotels and other guest accommodation required, we expect people to act responsibly, in line with government regulations and guidance.

Accommodation providers should take all reasonable steps to encourage guests to adhere to government restrictions, including informing guests of restrictions when taking bookings and communicating to all customers, including those with existing bookings, reminding them not to travel unless it is essential (such as for work purposes or attending a funeral).

Accommodation providers should not intentionally facilitate bookings that do not adhere to government restrictions. Those not complying with these responsibilities may be at risk of the premises being closed.

The Rethink, Reskill, Reboot recruitment campaign began on Friday 9 October 2020.

Since 1999 rates of problem gambling have been measured through the three British Gambling Prevalence Surveys and subsequently in the Health Surveys for Scotland and England and the Gambling Commission’s survey of gambling behaviour in Wales. The proportion of the adult population of Great Britain who are considered to be problem gamblers has remained stable at below 1% since the first survey in 1999. The government has committed to review the Gambling Act 2005 to make sure it is fit for the digital age and more details will be announced in due course.

As set out in answer to Question 82541, there has been no assessment of the longer term trends in rates of gambling related suicide. Determining factors related to individual deaths by suicide is difficult and complicated, but we know that there may be wider lifestyle factors associated with problem gambling that may link to poor mental health, and that problem gambling can create a cycle of debt that can also have a significant impact on mental health and wellbeing. In extreme cases it may lead to thoughts of suicide.

The Government committed to addressing suicide risk and gambling in the latest progress report to the National Suicide Prevention Strategy and the Cross-Government Suicide Prevention Workplan, which were published in January 2019.

The government launched a call for evidence on loot boxes on 23 September 2020 to seek detailed information on the impact of loot boxes on players, particularly children and young people. The call for evidence will run until 22 November 2020 and will examine concerns that loot boxes may encourage gambling-like behaviour and lead to problem gambling, as well as examining the size and scale of the loot box market in the UK, and the impact of current voluntary and statutory protections.

The government stands ready to take action should the outcomes of the call for evidence support taking a new approach to ensure users, and particularly young people, are better protected.

Ministers are not currently planning on attending the Non-League Finals day later this month. The ministerial team have attended pilot events and will attend others where possible, and are close to the pilot programme.

The Government is keen to see the safe return of spectators to live sports events. A programme of pilot events is being carried out to allow venues and operators to test their covid-secure arrangements in line with the Government's guidance on the return of fans to elite sports events.

Subject to public health conditions, the pilots will build up throughout September with a view to a full reopening for fans under Covid-secure conditions from 1 October.

Operators offering gambling facilities to people in Great Britain must have a licence from the Gambling Commission and have procedures in place to prevent underage gambling. The Gambling Commission has a range of powers to act in the case of failure, including the power to suspend or revoke a licence, impose financial penalties or prosecute criminal offences. In May 2019 the Gambling Commission introduced new rules that require online gambling businesses to verify the age of customers before they can deposit money, gamble, or access play-for-free versions of gambling games. The Gambling Commission is also working with local authorities and the hospitality sector to improve the enforcement of legal age requirements on the use of gaming machines in pubs.

The Department for Digital, Culture Media and Sport and the Department for Health and Social Care work closely together on matters related to gambling harm, and share regular updates including on the forthcoming evidence review being carried out by Public Health England.

Operators offering gambling facilities to people in Great Britain must have a licence from the Gambling Commission and have procedures in place to prevent underage gambling. The Gambling Commission has a range of powers to act in the case of failure, including the power to suspend or revoke a licence, impose financial penalties or prosecute criminal offences. In May 2019 the Gambling Commission introduced new rules that require online gambling businesses to verify the age of customers before they can deposit money, gamble, or access play-for-free versions of gambling games. The Gambling Commission is also working with local authorities and the hospitality sector to improve the enforcement of legal age requirements on the use of gaming machines in pubs.

The Department for Digital, Culture Media and Sport and the Department for Health and Social Care work closely together on matters related to gambling harm, and share regular updates including on the forthcoming evidence review being carried out by Public Health England.

As detailed in the Government's roadmap “Our Plan to Rebuild” the next phase of easing Covid-19 lockdown restrictions will begin no earlier than 4 July, subject to public health advice. My Department is working through the next steps with the arcades sector in line with further announcements on the roadmap.

Information on National Lottery income derived from players aged 16 and 17 is provided in the Consultation document dated 16 July 2019 on the minimum age for playing National Lottery games.

Sales revenue derived from players aged 16 and 17 is estimated due to the complexities involved in collating data from retail sales.

Total estimated sales revenue from 16 and 17 year olds in 2017/18 was £47m of which 32% was for draw-based games, 68% for scratchards and less than 1% for online instant win games (inclusive of online scratchcards).

This below data is from page 24 of the consultation document.

Figures rounded to the nearest £0.1m

* Over 99% of draw-based game sales to 16 and 17 year olds would have taken place in retail.

My Department has not held any discussions with sports national governing bodies or sports rights holders on the potential sale of Newcastle United Football Club. Any such sale is a matter for the parties concerned, and for the Premier League to assess under its Owners’ and Directors’ Test.

Football clubs are the heart of local communities, they have unique social value and many with a great history. It is vital they are protected which is why the government has given as much support as possible to support football clubs during these difficult times.

The government is committed to setting up a fan led review of football governance at an appropriate time, which will include consideration of the Owners’ and Directors’ test. We will continue to liaise closely with the football authorities as we develop the scope and structure of the review.

My officials work closely with their counterparts in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Department for International Trade and Intellectual Property Office on matters relating to the protection of intellectual property rights around the world.

Our understanding is that beoutQ has ceased broadcasting, but we will remain vigilant in respect of any further instances of illegal broadcasting of Premier League football and other UK-owned intellectual property rights, at home and abroad.

The government recognises the valuable contribution of UK broadcasting and of domestic and international sporting events to the UK economy, as well as to the lives and wellbeing of its citizens. In 2018, the UK exported over £10bn of audiovisual services in total. The government has not made any specific estimate of the economic value of international sport broadcasting revenues to the UK economy.

The dormant assets scheme enables money from dormant bank and building society accounts to be used for good causes. The government has recently launched a consultation on expanding the scheme to include a wider range of assets in the insurance and pensions, investment and wealth management, and securities sectors. Dormant betting accounts are not currently being considered as part of the expansion. The consultation invites comment on the government's proposals, including the range of assets proposed for inclusion. The consultation closes on 16 April and can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/consultation-on-expanding-the-dormant-assets-scheme

Under the Gaming Act 1968, 186 casino licences were created in 53 permitted areas, generally the areas of former county boroughs with populations of over 125,000 at that time. These licences were preserved by transitional arrangements in the Gambling Act 2005 and the majority of casinos in Great Britain still operate by virtue of one of these converted licences. The local authority in which each casino is located is now the licensing authority under section 2 of the 2005 Act. 144 of the licences are currently in use.

There is no maximum size, but 1968 Act casinos which have a gambling area of 200m2 or more must offer a minimum non-gambling area equivalent to at least 10% of their total gambling area. The permitted areas, and the number of licences allocated to each, are as follows:

England

Birkenhead (1)

Birmingham (8)

Blackpool (4)

Bolton (2)

Bournemouth (3)

Bradford (3)

Brighton (3)

Bristol (5)

Coventry (4)

Derby (2)

Dudley (1)

Great Yarmouth (3)

Hove (1)

Huddersfield (2)

Kingston upon Hull (3)

Leeds (5)

Leicester (3)

Liverpool (7)

London (The area which is within the area specified in the licensing (Metropolitan Special Hours Area) Order 1961 - plus Westminster and the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea) (28)

Luton (3)

Lytham St Annes (1)

Manchester (9)

Margate (3)

Newcastle upon Tyne (3)

Northampton (4)

Nottingham (6)

Plymouth (2)

Portsmouth (3)

Ramsgate (1)

Reading (3)

Ryde (0)

Salford (2)

Sandown/Shanklin (0)

Scarborough (2)

Sheffield (5)

Southampton (3)

Southend-on-Sea (4)

Southport (1)

Stockport (2)

Stoke-on-Trent (2)

Sunderland (1)

Teeside/Middlesborough (3)

Torbay (1)

Walsall (3)

Warley (1)

West Bromwich (1)

Wolverhampton (3)

Scotland

Aberdeen (3)

Dundee (2)

Edinburgh (5)

Glasgow (9)

Wales

Cardiff (3)

Swansea (4)

There are no statutory price or volume limits on the online purchase of lottery products.

The National Lottery operator has voluntarily set limits on both draw-based and instant-win games for players using its online services. It has set a spend limit of £750 per week and an account deposit limit of £350 per week. An account can play up to 75 instant win games per day. Players are also able to set personal, tighter limits if they so wish.

The People’s Postcode Lottery does not sell instant win games. It voluntarily limits on the online purchase of Lottery tickets to three entries per month, totaling £30.

The Health Lottery’s instant win games have a spend limit of £500 per day. Their draw-based game has a limit of £80 per person for any single lottery. Their QuickWin online game has a limit of £400 per week with a day cap of £75. All their online games have a deposit limit of £500 per day, and a restriction on deposits where the account balance exceeds £2000.

The Government does not have any plans to impose a maximum purchase price for scratchcards.

The 2016 Health Survey found that lottery products are low risk, with scratchcards having a problem gambling rate of 1.8%.

The Secretary of State’s directions to the Gambling Commission state that National Lottery games should have sufficient controls to prevent excessive play. They also require the Commission to ensure that the price of games, in the opinion of the Commission, are not unreasonably high.

The National Lottery’s player protection policies can be found in the Consumer Protection Strategy. Some society lottery operators also offer scratchcards, either physically through retailers or online. Society lottery operators are required to have and put into effect policies and procedures to promote socially responsible gambling.

The Gambling Commission is the UK’s independent statutory body responsible for awarding the licence to run the National Lottery. The current National Lottery licence expires in 2023, and the Commission remains on track to appoint an operator to take on the new licence from this date. The competition is expected to commence in the first half of 2020, with the successful applicant being announced in 2021.

The Commission is encouraged by the healthy level of market interest, from a wide range of interested parties, and will welcome as many applications as possible to the competition, including not-for-profit enterprises. I am looking forward to a robust competition that draws in a wide range of applicants to ensure the continued success of our National Lottery for the next 25 years and beyond.

The Gambling Commission is the UK’s independent statutory body responsible for awarding the licence to run the National Lottery. The current National Lottery licence expires in 2023, and the Commission remains on track to appoint an operator to take on the new licence from this date. The competition is expected to commence in the first half of 2020, with the successful applicant being announced in 2021.

The Commission is encouraged by the healthy level of market interest, from a wide range of interested parties, and will welcome as many applications as possible to the competition, including not-for-profit enterprises. I am looking forward to a robust competition that draws in a wide range of applicants to ensure the continued success of our National Lottery for the next 25 years and beyond.

The Gambling Commission is the UK’s independent statutory body responsible for awarding the licence to run the National Lottery. The current National Lottery licence expires in 2023, and the Commission remains on track to appoint an operator to take on the new licence from this date. The competition is expected to commence in the first half of 2020, with the successful applicant being announced in 2021.

The Commission is encouraged by the healthy level of market interest, from a wide range of interested parties, and will welcome as many applications as possible to the competition, including not-for-profit enterprises. I am looking forward to a robust competition that draws in a wide range of applicants to ensure the continued success of our National Lottery for the next 25 years and beyond.

The National Lottery Distribution Fund (NLDF) receives and distributes monies generated by the National Lottery for good causes. Information on good cause money that has been pledged (also known as grant liabilities and commitments) and distributed (drawdown) by Lottery Distributing Bodies (LDBs) can be found in the NLDF Annual Report and Accounts.

The NLDF always holds a balance to cover future grant commitments made by LDBs and to mitigate any risk of good cause income falling. Lottery distributors receive money from the NLDF on a weekly or monthly basis to enable them to meet their grant commitments.

The current operator of the National Lottery, Camelot, publish National Lottery sales data three months in arrears broken down by game type on their website. Sales data broken down to regional or constituency level is not published due to commercial sensitivities.

Information on National Lottery funding awards up to January 2018 is held on a publicly available database which allows searches to be made for good cause grants in each region and constituency within specific timeframes.

We expect to update the database with grant information from January 2018 to March 2020 later this Spring.

The National Lottery is made up of several organisations working together with specific individual roles. The main organisations that make up the National Lottery are the Government, regulator, private sector operator and 12 Lottery Distributing Bodies.

Many of the the Lottery Distributing Bodies have regional offices. For example, 90% of staff at the National Lottery Community Fund, the largest distributing body, work outside Central London in regional hubs across the country. Over 30% of its staff who work in England are based in the North East.

I refer the Hon. Member to my answer to question 21948 on 6 March 2020.

Ministers and officials have regular meetings with stakeholders on a range of issues. Details of Ministerial meetings are published quarterly on the government’s website at: https://www.gov.uk/search/transparency-and-freedom-of-information-releases?content_store_document_type=transparency&organisations%5B%5D=department-for-digital-culture-media-sport

DCMS held a consultation seeking views on the minimum age for playing National Lottery games only, from July to October 2019. The responses are currently being analysed and I will formally respond in due course.

The government has committed to a review of the Gambling Act 2005 to make sure it is fit for the digital age. Further details will be announced in due course.

All operators providing gambling facilities to customers in Great Britain must be licensed by the Gambling Commission and comply with licence conditions, which include requirements to protect vulnerable people from being harmed by gambling. Operators are required to use the data at their disposal to identify and intervene when a customer shows signs of being at risk of harm.

The Gambling Commission is currently gathering data on online play and what that means for stakes limits, including looking closely at the case for introducing further protections for consumers online as a means of further reducing the risk of harm. Any changes they introduce with regards to online gambling will apply to all forms of remote gambling, including television.

The government has committed to a review of the Gambling Act 2005 to make sure it is fit for the digital age. Further details will be announced in due course.

All operators providing gambling facilities to customers in Great Britain must be licensed by the Gambling Commission and comply with licence conditions, which include requirements to protect vulnerable people from being harmed by gambling. Operators are required to use the data at their disposal to identify and intervene when a customer shows signs of being at risk of harm.

The Gambling Commission is currently gathering data on online play and what that means for stakes limits, including looking closely at the case for introducing further protections for consumers online as a means of further reducing the risk of harm. Any changes they introduce with regards to online gambling will apply to all forms of remote gambling, including television.

The department-funded holiday activities and food (HAF) programme, which has provided healthy food and enriching activities to disadvantaged children, has been expanded to every local authority across England this year and is backed by up to £220 million of funding. It builds on previous programmes, including last summer’s, which supported around 50,000 children across 17 local authorities.

Durham County Council has been allocated a maximum of £2,532,180 to deliver HAF programmes over Easter, summer, and Christmas 2021.

The maximum allocations for the other councils in the North East are as follows:

Darlington - £519,040

Gateshead - £902,440

Hartlepool - £664,030

Middlesbrough - £1,143,010

Newcastle upon Tyne - £1,846,420

North Tyneside - £896,960

Northumberland - £1,128,130

Redcar and Cleveland - £743,920

South Tyneside - £831,630

Stockton-on-Tees - £980,900

Sunderland - £1,491,000

Further to this, the Department for Work and Pensions has extended the COVID Local Support Scheme (previously the COVID Winter Grant Scheme) for every English council, to the 30 September, with an additional £160 million.

This is a matter for the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education. I have asked its Chief Executive, Jennifer Coupland, to write to the honourable member and a copy of her reply will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

The Department has issued guidance which covers how to manage cases of COVID-19 amongst the school community. This recommends that schools keep a record of pupils and staff in each group, and any close contact that takes places between pupils and staff in different groups, to help identify close contacts.

Schools may receive support through the dedicated advice service introduced by Public Health England (PHE), which can be reached through the Department’s helpline on 0800 046 8687 or their PHE local health protection team if the case is escalated.

We are lowering the reconciliation threshold for the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) grant funded adult education budget (AEB) adult skills, including non-formula funded community learning and 19-24 traineeships, and Advanced Learner Loan Bursary (ALLB) fund providers for the 2020-21 academic year, from 97% and 100% respectively, to 90%.

Our primary aim is to support providers to continue to deliver as much quality provision as possible, including above the 90% threshold, whether that be face-to-face where permitted, online or otherwise remotely, and including through subcontracting (for AEB-funded provision only) where that is in line with our subcontracting conditions set out in the rules and contracts.

We acknowledge the situation is still difficult for providers but equally we know that many providers have been able to deliver very successfully remotely during lockdown and the return to face-to-face learning should enhance further providers’ ability to deliver.

We are monitoring the situation carefully and, in particular, if there are providers that may need further support.

All further education (FE) colleges and designated institutions in England were invited to apply to stage 1 of the two stage FE Capital Transformation Fund in January 2021, by setting out proposals for investment to tackle poor condition across their estates.

Stage 1 of the bidding process closed on 22 March and the department is assessing bid applications. All applications will be assessed on their own merits against the criteria and process set out in the published stage 1 guidance. Applications which meet the funds criteria will be prioritised for invitation to stage 2 of the bidding process based on the level of condition need addressed. The methodology used for prioritising applications at stage 1 was developed so that all colleges, regardless of size, are treated equitably.

Pause have so far been awarded £29,000 in the 2021-22 financial year. This covered a data analyst to gather the evidence base for and demonstrate the impact of the new regional approach in the North of England.

The department has awarded Pause a total of £7.8 million in the last three financial years.

In the 2018-19 financial year, Pause were awarded £2.2 million. This was to roll out the model and implement a care leaver pilot that targeted young women (aged 16-25) who have been in care and have experienced one or more children being removed.

In the 2019-20 financial year, Pause were awarded £2 million to continue expansion of the model and open new practices.

In the 2020-21 financial year, Pause were allocated £3.6 million to test a regional approach to the North West and North East regions and implement a single Pause practice in six individual local authorities.

The Government is investing over £300 million to support access to remote education and online social care services, including securing over one million laptops and tablets for disadvantaged children and young people. This includes over 560,000 laptops and tablets that have already been delivered to schools, academy trusts and local authorities in 2020.

As of 18 December 2020, 1,808 devices have been delivered directly to Durham Local Authority. Devices have also been delivered to academy trusts that have schools located in Durham Local Authority, which are not included in this figure. This is because it is for academy trusts, which may have schools in several Local Authorities, to determine how best to distribute the devices they have received. It is not possible to provide figures on the number of devices received specifically by schools in the North West Durham constituency, because schools in a specific constituency will have received devices from their Local Authority or, if they are an academy, from the trust of which they are part.

More information on the number of devices delivered as of the 18 December can be viewed here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/946954/Devices_and_4G_wireless_routers_data_as_of_December.pdf.

The Government has introduced an unprecedented and comprehensive package of support, worth more than £200 billion, to help as many individuals and businesses as possible during this difficult period. This includes small business grants, the coronavirus loan guarantee schemes, the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS), the deferral of VAT and income tax payments, and more. The measures introduced have been designed to be accessible to businesses in most sectors and across the UK.

Further measures have been announced by my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, that build on the significant support already available and set out how current support will evolve and adapt. These measures include the extension of the CJRS until the end of March 2021, the extension of the deadline for applications for the Bounce Back Loan scheme and other loan schemes until 31 January 2021, and increased support for the self-employed through the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) grants. Further guidance about how the Government is supporting businesses during the COVID-19 outbreak is available here: https://www.gov.uk/coronavirus/business-support.

Furthermore, businesses in England that are forced to close due to national or local restrictions will receive up to £3,000 per month. Local authorities in England will also receive one-off funding of £1.1 billion to support businesses more broadly over the coming months as a key part of local economies.

The Government will continue to work closely with local authorities, businesses, business representative organisations, and the financial services sector to monitor the implementation of current support and understand whether there is additional need. Businesses can also access tailored advice through the Freephone Business Support Helpline, online via the Business Support website or through their local Growth Hubs in England.

The Pause scheme received £4.2 million in round one of the department’s Children’s Social Care Innovation Programme (2014-2016) to pilot the programme in 7 sites.

The Pause scheme was then funded a further £6.8 million in round two of the programme (2017-2020) to scale and spread the Pause model to 9 new local authority areas, including to develop and implement a care leaver pilot for young women (aged 16-25) who have been in care and who have experienced one or more children being removed.

In 2020-21, Pause was funded £3.6 million by the department to test a regional approach to the scheme in the North West and North East regions and to implement a single Pause practice in 6 individual local authorities.

The National Tutoring Programme (NTP) for 5-16 year olds is an ambitious scheme that will provide additional, targeted support for disadvantaged and vulnerable pupils who need the most help to catch up. The NTP has two pillars which can be accessed by schools. Firstly, schools will be able to access high quality, subsidised tuition from a selection of approved Tuition Partners. The partners will offer a variety of tuition models for schools to choose from, including online and face-to-face, and the cost of tutoring will be subsidised by the Department by 75%. The NTP went live on 2 November 2020 and we will have further information about participating schools as they begin to request tutoring support over the coming weeks. Schools can access Tuition Partner support here: https://nationaltutoring.org.uk/ntp-tuition-partners.

The second pillar of the NTP supports schools in the most disadvantaged areas to employ in-house academic mentors who can provide small group and one-to-one tuition to selected pupils. Eligible schools can request academic mentors. The first cohort saw 188 mentors start in schools on 2 November 2020, and a further two cohorts will follow in January and February 2021. If schools in North West Durham would like to register interest for a mentor, they can do so here: https://www.teachfirst.org.uk/hire-academic-mentors.

Alongside the NTP, the catch-up premium, worth £650 million, provides universal funding to support schools to help all pupils make up for lost teaching time during the 2020/21 academic year. Schools should use their catch-up premium funding as a single total from which to prioritise support for all pupils, guided by the level of individual need. The attached table shows that £916,880 worth of catch-up premium funding has been provisionally allocated to the North West Durham parliamentary constituency for the 2020/21 academic year. These allocations are based on the published rates and school census data from October 2019. The final allocations will be re-calculated once the October 2020 school census data is available.

The attached table shows the allocations and payments to schools in the North West Durham parliamentary constituency for the COVID-19 catch-up premium.

The values represented in the attached table are the initial payments made in the autumn based on a proportion of a provisional allocation calculated using the published rates and school census data from October 2019. The final allocations will be re-calculated once the October 2020 school census data is available and a further payment made in early 2021. The remaining allocation will then be paid in a final instalment later in 2021.

There is no data currently available for the National Tutoring Programme (NTP). The NTP is not yet live and so we do not have any information about participants. We expect our first group of tutors to be working with schools from November with provision ramping up into the Spring Term. Next month, we will announce a list of approved Tuition Partners. Schools will be able to approach these partners to access subsidised tuition. We will also be appointing our first wave of academic mentors, matching suitable candidates to schools that have expressed an interest in working with a mentor.

Grant funding for learners aged 24 and over studying a first full level 3 qualification was replaced with support through Advanced Learner Loans and the loans Bursary Fund in 2013/14.

My right hon. Friend, the Prime Minister, recently announced a targeted expansion of the level 3 entitlement, through the National Skills Fund. We are now extending the offer eligibility for a first full level 3 so that adults who are above the age of 23 can also benefit from courses that have the best possible returns for individuals, employers, and the nation.

The attached document contains local authority and parliamentary constituency level data showing the proportion of the population aged 16-64 without an A level or equivalent qualification, according to Annual Population Survey estimates.

State funded schools continued to receive their budgets as usual last academic year, regardless of any periods of partial or complete closure. This ensured that they were able to continue to pay their staff and meet their other regular financial commitments.

During the COVID-19 outbreak, the guidance made clear that schools should continue to pay any directly hired staff, including supply staff, as normal.

Schools were also advised to support financially at-risk employment agencies, with whom they had existing agreements, to ensure these agencies could continue to pay their workers where assignments had been curtailed. Supply teachers employed by private agencies who were not on a live assignment, or who were unable to source new assignments, were able to access financial support through the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme.

Now that schools are?fully reopen?for?all pupils, we?anticipate the demand for supply teachers?to?return to normal.

Local authorities have a statutory duty to provide free home to school transport for eligible children. A child is eligible if they are of compulsory school age, attend their nearest suitable school and it is more than the statutory walking distance from their home. The statutory walking distance is 2 miles for children under the age of 8 and 3 miles for children aged 8 and over. A child is also eligible if they live within the statutory walking distance but could not reasonably be expected to walk to school because of their special educational needs, disability or mobility problems, or because the nature of the route means it would be unsafe for them to do so. There are additional entitlements to free home to school transport for those children who are eligible for free school meals, or if a parent they live with receives the maximum amount of Working Tax Credit.

The duty applies even if the school an eligible child attends is in the area of another local authority.

The Department is providing additional funding to schools, on top of existing budgets, to cover unavoidable costs incurred between March and July due to the COVID-19 outbreak that cannot be met from their existing resources.

Schools have been eligible to claim for: increased premises related costs associated with keeping schools open over the Easter and summer half term holidays; support for free school meals for eligible children who are not in school, where schools are not using the national voucher scheme; and additional cleaning costs required due to confirmed or suspected COVID-19 cases, over and above the cost of existing cleaning arrangements. We have published detailed guidance on the fund at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-financial-support-for-schools.

As explained in the guidance, schools can claim for reimbursement of their costs, up to a maximum amount that will depend on their size, and will be no more than £75,000 per school. We expect the funding limits which have been set by the size of the school are sufficient to cover additional costs in most cases. The Department understands that there may be exceptional circumstances which mean that costs are higher than this, so schools have been able to submit claims that are more than the funding limit.

The first claims window for the fund closed on 21 July. All claims for funding within the specified cost categories and maximum limit have already been paid. The Department is assessing all other claims, which will be paid later in the autumn if approved.

There will also be a further opportunity in autumn for schools to claim for exceptional costs they faced between March and July. This second claims window will be for available for schools who were unable to claim in the summer, and will be for the same eligible cost categories.

Nurseries and childminders cannot claim for specific costs incurred due to increased premises costs needed to keep schools open during school holidays, or over and above the cost of existing cleaning arrangements as a result of confirmed or suspected COVID-19 cases. The Department continues to look at the costs associated with COVID-19 and to secure the best and most appropriate support for nurseries and childminders.

The Department also expects universities and other higher education providers to prioritise the health and safety of their staff and students and put in place measures that apply to their individual circumstances. To help universities make informed decisions about their provision, we have updated our guidance on reopening university buildings and campuses to reflect the latest public health advice, including on face coverings, local lockdowns and test and trace. Everyone should be following basic guidance on COVID-19, including social distancing and maintaining good hand and respiratory hygiene.

Special and alternative provision providers are funded through the high needs block of the Dedicated Schools Grant. We will provide an additional £730 million of high needs funding next year, coming on top of the additional £780 million in 2020-21, which means high needs budgets will have grown by over £1.5 billion, or 24%, in just 2 years.

We have also announced an additional package worth £1 billion to ensure that schools have the resources they need to help all pupils make up for lost teaching time, with extra support for those who need it most. £650 million will be spent on ensuring all pupils have the chance to catch up and supporting schools to rise to the challenge. This funding will be paid as a one-off grant to all state-funded primary, secondary and special schools in the 2020-21 academic year. Mainstream schools will receive £80 per place, while each special, alternative provision and hospital school will receive £240 for each place, across the 2020-21 academic year. We have applied this additional weighting to specialist settings in recognition of the significantly higher per-pupil costs they face. Further information can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-catch-up-premium.

Special schools are funded through a combination of place funding and top-up funding from a local authority’s high needs budget. The high needs budget is allocated to each local authority who determine funding for special schools in their area. Local authorities also use their high needs budgets to pay top-up funding for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities in mainstream schools, and to fund alternative provision. Consequently, the department does not hold data on the level of per pupil funding for pupils in special schools in Durham.

The total high needs allocations for Durham for the past 3 years are as follows:

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FDCO) do not make a judgement on whether any travel is essential. Their guidance is that: “Whether travel is essential or not is your own decision”. This guidance is available at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/about-foreign-commonwealth-development-office-travel-advice.

Before starting a placement, students, including Erasmus+ participants, should consult with their provider to confirm details and check the living in country guide
(https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/overseas-living-in-guides) and travel advice for the country they will be visiting, being conscious that their placement may not be able to continue as originally planned. To undertake a placement, participants should seek the agreement of their home provider and their host. There may be opportunities for it to start at a later date if the situation changes and this is feasible. Participants should be ready to comply with local isolation, testing or quarantine requirements, and will need to rely on the local health system.

We expect all higher education providers to explore alternative options for mobilities and study, whether blended or fully virtual, if appropriate, and to be flexible in their approach and be conscious of the potentially rapidly changing situation on a country by country basis. They should be ready to make quick changes to projects and mobilities, consider delaying mobilities and amending start and end dates, if feasible, as restrictions may change over time. We expect all universities, colleges, schools and other organisers managing international educational mobilities, to follow the relevant FDCO travel advice for the destination country and highlight this to their participants, being aware the situation can change rapidly.

While the government is in continual dialogue with the insurance sector, on its response to COVID-19, and is encouraging insurers to do all they can to support customers during this period, the position on the provision of COVID-19 insurance is that it is largely a commercial judgement for insurers. Cover for COVID-19 related cancellation is unlikely to be included in travel insurance policies bought or renewed after the pandemic was declared, e.g. in the event of the FCDO travel advice changing, as it is a known risk. This is in contrast to policies sold before the outbreak of COVID-19, which typically covered changes in FCDO advice.

To support early years providers during the COVID-19 outbreak, and to allow them greater flexibility to respond to changes in workforce availability and potential fluctuations in demand, the government has temporarily disapplied and modified certain elements of the Early Years Foundation Stage statutory framework including on staff qualifications and ratios.

The disapplications are intended to remain in effect throughout the COVID-19 outbreak or until the government stipulates otherwise. The changes set out in the disapplications, including the requirements relating to staff ratios and qualifications, are reviewed on a monthly basis to ensure they remain appropriate and are consistent with wider government advice.

The Government has committed over £100 million to support vulnerable and disadvantaged children in England to access remote education and social care services, including by providing laptops, tablets and 4G wireless routers.

We are providing laptops and tablets to disadvantaged children who would otherwise not have access and are preparing for examinations in Year 10, receiving support from a social worker or are a care leaver. Where care leavers, children with a social worker at secondary school and children in Year 10 do not have internet connections, we are providing 4G wireless routers.

The Department of Education has ordered over 200,000 laptops and tablets and allocated devices to local authorities and academy trusts based on its estimates of the number of eligible children that do not have access to a device. Local authorities and academy trusts are best place to identify and prioritise children and young people who need devices. The Department is working to provide these devices in the shortest possible timeframe; deliveries to local authorities began in May and has continued throughout June.

The Department has published information about how many laptops, tablets and 4G wireless routers we have delivered or dispatched to local authorities and academy trusts as of 14 June, which can be viewed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/laptops-tablets-and-4g-wireless-routers-progress-data. This includes 1,424 devices to Durham County Council and 410 devices to Darlington Borough Council for children with a social worker and care leavers.

Local authorities have a statutory duty to provide free home to school transport for eligible children. A child is eligible if they are of compulsory school age, attend their nearest suitable school and it is more than the statutory walking distance from their home. The statutory walking distance is 2 miles for children under the age of 8 and 3 miles for children aged 8 and over. A child is also eligible if they live within the statutory walking distance but could not reasonably be expected to walk to school because of their special educational needs, disability or mobility problems, or because the nature of the route means it would be unsafe for them to do so.

There are additional entitlements to free home to school transport for those children who are eligible for free school meals, or if a parent they live with receives the maximum amount of Working Tax Credit. These are known as extended rights and are intended to support low income families in exercising school choice. Under the extended rights criteria, a child is eligible if they are aged 8 to 10 years, attend their nearest suitable school and it is more than 2 miles from their home, they are aged 11 to 16 years, and attend one of their three nearest suitable schools which is between 2 and 6 miles from their home; or they are aged 11 to 16 years, attend a school that is between 2 and 15 miles from their home that their parents have chosen on the grounds of their religion or belief and, having regard to that religion or belief, there is no suitable school nearer to their home.

The duty applies even if the school an eligible child attends is in the area of another local authority.

There is no intention to change these requirements.

As my right hon. Friends, the Prime Minister and Chancellor of the Exchequer, have both made clear, the government will do whatever it takes to support people affected by COVID-19.

Our latest guidance for schools is set out below:
https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-for-schools-and-other-educational-settings.

Alongside our national approach to supporting pupils claiming free school meals, we are committed to supporting schools and children who benefit from our breakfast club programme. This programme operates during term-time periods.

Our suppliers Family Action, along with Magic Breakfast, are in contact with schools on the programme where possible. They are working closely with them to target the children most in need to continue to provide them with a healthy breakfast.

Family Action have reported that over 1000 schools in disadvantaged areas are registered to receive breakfast deliveries from this programme during the COVID-19 outbreak. These schools are located nationwide across England.

Schools on the programme can choose to support children in the way which works best for them. This may include parents collecting food parcels from open schools or breakfast food ‘drop offs’ to families. This should be arranged alongside the school’s wider support for children on free school meals. Schools must follow Public Health England’s advice on social distancing at all times.

These are rapidly developing circumstances. We will continue to keep the situation under review and to keep Parliament updated accordingly.

The government is doing all it can to keep staff and students at our universities safe in this unprecedented situation, while mitigating the impact on education. I have written to students to outline the support available and we continue to work closely with the sector, putting student wellbeing at the heart of these discussions. The letter to students is available here: https://www.officeforstudents.org.uk/media/7becd51c-f4a5-486d-a2b6-9d43c0042ba8/minister-donelan_message-to-students.pdf.

My clear expectation is that universities should make all reasonable efforts to enable students to continue and complete their studies; for their achievements to be reliably assessed; and for qualifications to be awarded securely. Despite the significant disruption being felt across the higher education sector, students deserve appropriate support and recognition for their hard work and dedication - many universities and colleges have moved rapidly to develop new ways of delivering courses through online teaching and alternatives to traditional end-of-course exams. The Office for Students has also recently confirmed that providers are able to use the student premium to support students to access IT equipment and internet connectivity where needed.

Students will continue to receive scheduled payments of loans towards their living costs for 2019/20. Both tuition and living costs payments will continue irrespective of closures or whether learning has moved online.

Many students will be feeling uncertain and anxious and it is vital that students can still access the mental health support that they need. Many providers are bolstering their existing mental health services and adapting the delivery of these services to means other than face-to-face. These services are likely to be an important source of support to students during this period of isolation.

It is important that young people are taught about the issues addressed by the Environment Bill, including protecting the environment, climate change, and sustainability. Relevant topics are already included in both the science and geography curricula and qualifications.

In primary school science, pupils are taught about how environments can change as a result of human actions. They will learn about animals’ habitats, including that changes to the environment may pose dangers to living things. In secondary school science, pupils are taught about the production of carbon dioxide by human activity and the effect this has on the climate. They will also learn about the efficacy of recycling and the importance of biodiversity. In GCSE science, pupils will consider the evidence for anthropogenic causes of climate change. They will study the impact of increased levels of carbon dioxide and methane and how this can be mitigated, alongside other pollutant gases. Pupils will also learn about renewable and non-renewable energy sources.

In secondary school geography, pupils will be taught about how human and physical processes interact to influence and change landscapes, environments and the climate, and how human activity relies on the effective functioning of natural systems. As part of GCSE geography, pupils will look at the causes, consequences of and responses to extreme weather conditions and natural weather hazards. In 2017, the Department introduced a new environmental science A Level. This will enable students to further study topics that will support their understanding of climate change and how it can be tackled.

Sustainability content will also be included in T Levels – the new post-16 technical study programmes. In setting the content, the T Level panels of employers and industry experts must consider the inclusion of sustainability as relevant to their sector. In construction, T Level students will be required to learn about renewable energy and emerging technologies to support energy efficiency.

This is a matter for Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector, Amanda Spielman. I have asked her to write to my hon. Friend and a copy of her reply will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

The Department wants to equip young people for adult life in Britain and for them to make a positive contribution to society. From September 2020, relationships education will be compulsory for all primary school-aged pupils, relationships and sex education will be compulsory for all secondary school-aged pupils, and health education will be compulsory for all pupils in state-funded schools.

The subjects will support all young people in terms of managing risk and making informed decisions, as well as in key aspects such as mental wellbeing and online behaviour. Under the topic of internet safety and harms, the statutory guidance sets out that young people should be taught about the risks related to online gambling, including the accumulation of debt, how advertising and information is targeted at them, and how to be a discerning consumer of information online. The statutory guidance is available here:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/relationships-education-relationships-and-sex-education-rse-and-health-education.

Schools have the flexibility to cover content on loot boxes and gambling within computer games, when teaching these subjects. Similarly, such topics can be covered within e-safety teaching as part of the computing curriculum.

Local authorities (LAs) have a statutory duty to provide free home to school transport for all eligible children. A child is eligible for free home to school transport if they are of compulsory school age and:

• They attend their nearest suitable school and it is more than the statutory walking distance from their home. The statutory walking distance is 2 miles for children under the age of 8 and 3 miles for children aged 8 and over, or;

• They attend their nearest suitable school and cannot reasonably be expected to walk there because of their special educational needs, disability or mobility problem, or because the route is unsafe.

Transport is provided to the nearest suitable school, regardless of whether that school is in a different LA.

There are additional rights to free home to school transport for children from low income households. These are known as ‘extended rights’ and are intended to help low income families exercise school choice in circumstances where transport may otherwise be a barrier. A local authority is required to provide free transport to pupils eligible for free school meals or whose parents are in receipt of maximum working tax credit, and:

• The nearest suitable school is beyond 2 miles (for children over the age of 8 and under 11), or;

• The suitable school is between 2 and 6 miles (if aged between 11 and 16, and there are not three or more suitable nearer schools), or;

• The school is between 2 and 15 miles and is the nearest school preferred on the grounds of religion or belief (aged 11 to 16).

No school uniform should be so expensive as to leave pupils or their families feeling unable to apply to a school. The Government is pleased to support the Private Member’s Bill to ‘Make provision for guidance about the cost aspects of school uniform policies’, which was recently introduced to Parliament on 5 February 2020. This demonstrates the Government’s commitment to ensuring that school uniform costs are reasonable.

The scheme provides a wide range of period products for schools and 16-19 organisations to choose from. This includes environmentally friendly pads, reusable pads, organic non-applicator tampons and menstrual cups. The ingredients for each product are provided on the ordering portal and in the scheme’s guidance.

Schools and colleges know their learners best and have the freedom to select the most suitable products for their learners, considering cost and type of product. We are monitoring product choice closely and will continue to seek opportunities to encourage the use of sustainable products as the scheme develops.

The Department introduced the phonics screening check for Year 1 pupils in 2012. The latest available figures are for the academic year 2018-19. Figures for the proportion of children in state-funded schools in North West Durham who met the expected standard in phonics in Year 1 are set out in the table below. As shown, 60% of pupils in state-funded schools in the parliamentary constituency met the expected standard in 2012, compared to 83% in 2019.

Equivalent figures for England and the local authority of County Durham are provided for context.

The number and proportion of apprenticeship starts at level 2 and level 3 + in each year since 2008/09 are shown in the attached table.

Pause was successful in receiving funding through round 1 of the Children’s Social Care Innovation Programme to pilot the programme in 7 sites, then in round 2 to scale and spread the programme to 9 new local authority areas.

Evaluation of round 1 of the programme was completed in 2017 and estimated that the yearly cost savings attributed to each child removal that had been avoided were £57,102. The report is published at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/social-care-pause-programme.

Evaluation of round 2 ends in March 2020 and is due to be published in the summer. Studies of both rounds use a before and after impact evaluation design to understand women’s outcomes at the start and throughout the programme. These findings will inform further decisions about continued scaling up of Pause both within the pilot local authorities and nationwide.

To support dairy farmers who have been significantly impacted by covid-19, Defra ran a Dairy Response Fund which closed for applications on 11 September. This has provided financial support to those eligible dairy farmers who suffered a reduction in the average price paid for their milk of 25% or more in April 2020, compared with February 2020. More detail can be found at the link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dairy-response-fund-2020

The passing of the spring production peak, combined with measures taken by the government on competition easements and promotion campaigns, alongside the partial re-opening of hospitality has seen the dairy market recover and commodity prices have largely recovered to their pre-covid-19 levels.

We will continue to work very closely with all agricultural industry stakeholders and the Devolved Administrations to assess and monitor UK agricultural markets including price, supply, and trade information. This will enable us to identify, and respond as appropriate to the impacts of the covid-19 outbreak across all of our agricultural sectors.

British dairy and other agricultural products are renowned around the world for their high standards of animal welfare, traceability and sustainability. Dairy is the UK's largest agricultural sector and, alongside our other agricultural sectors, the Government is determined to see the sector become more productive and competitive.

Through measures in our Agriculture Bill we will offer financial assistance to enable dairy and other farmers to invest in the equipment, technology, and infrastructure that they need to improve their productivity, provide more home-grown healthy high-quality produce, and manage the environment sustainably. Productivity improvements can help drive added value in the dairy supply chain.

We will also make use of the opportunities provided by our new independent trade policy to grow new and existing export markets around the world. The strong reputation of our products provides an excellent platform on which to further increase overseas demand and secure maximum value for British dairy products.

In June we announced a 'bounce back package' of trade support for food and drink exporters. This joint Defra and Department for International Trade package of short-term practical measures will support businesses to get their products back in front of international buyers and grow their exports. More information can be found on the GOV.UK website: www.gov.uk/government/news/bounce-back-plan-for-agriculture-food-and-drink-industry-launched.

Significant progress continues to be made on the actions set out in the hen harrier action plan. This includes Natural England carrying out an extensive nest and winter roost monitoring programme using a mix of staff and volunteers. Natural England and Forest Enterprise monitored 14 nests in 2020, all of which were successful. Another ten nests were monitored by the RSPB. In 2019 under the brood management trial one nest was brood managed and in 2020 two nests. To date, 13 birds have been reared in captivity and re-released back into the wild. Natural England has also fitted tags to 23 hen harrier chicks this year.

This year Natural England has recorded the best year for hen harrier breeding in England since Natural England’s hen harrier action plan was launched in 2016 with 19 successful nests and 60 chicks fledged.

The results from the most recent UK national survey in 2016 (Wotton, S. et al 2018) showed that in England, the hen harrier population was at least four recorded pairs. However, data on nesting attempts from recent years suggests a higher breeding population. The table below shows data on hen harrier breeding success in England from 2011 to 2020.

Hen harrier numbers are normally monitored through breeding data. Obtaining a figure for non-breeding and over winter numbers would be very difficult and there is no centrally coordinated monitoring of non-breeding numbers.

The results from the most recent UK national survey in 2016 (Wotton, S. et al 2018) showed that in England, the hen harrier population was at least four recorded pairs. However, data on nesting attempts from recent years suggests a higher breeding population. The table below shows data on hen harrier breeding success in England from 2011 to 2020.

Hen harrier numbers are normally monitored through breeding data. Obtaining a figure for non-breeding and over winter numbers would be very difficult and there is no centrally coordinated monitoring of non-breeding numbers.

Defra takes the illegal importation of pets seriously. It is an abhorrent trade which causes suffering to animals and puts the health of pets and people in the UK at risk.

In terms of the regulation and enforcement of non-commercial pet travel movements, we operate one of the most rigorous and robust pet travel checking regimes in the world. All pet animals entering Great Britain on approved routes under the EU Pet Travel Scheme undergo documentary and identity checks, and the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) works collaboratively with Border Force and other operational partners at ports, airports and inland, sharing intelligence to enforce the Pet Travel Scheme, disrupt illegal imports and seize non-compliant animals. Any animals found to be non-compliant with the Pet Travel Scheme rules may be refused entry or detained until compliant.

Regarding changing levels of pet imports (both commercial and non-commercial) during the COVID-19 lockdown, APHA has confirmed that during the initial period of lockdown (March-April 2020), we saw a reduction of pet movements. This increased to relatively routine figures as COVID-19 movement restrictions were eased. On non-commercial pet travel, 14,718 pets were moved into Great Britain in March 2020. Numbers of movements then fell to 1,834 in April 2020 and rose to 4,810 in May 2020. On the commercial imports of cats, dogs and ferrets under the Balai Directive, 2,506 animals were imported into the UK in March 2020, falling to 1,114 in April 2020. Numbers of commercial imports are steadily rising again and now sit at 6,741 for the month of August 2020.

The end of the Transition Period may open up new opportunities for managing our own commercial and non-commercial import and pet travel arrangements. The Government will be considering our pet travel and import arrangements (including for puppies and kittens) as part of cracking down on puppy smuggling in line with our manifesto commitment.

Rescue and rehoming centres in this country carry out important work to ensure that unwanted and abandoned animals in the UK are offered the opportunity of a forever home. We advise people seeking to acquire a new pet to first consider adopting from a reputable UK-based pet rescue and rehoming centre.

Defra has been engaging with rescue and rehoming centres to understand their views on, and the possible impacts of, regulating the sector. This follows calls for more transparency for prospective pet owners where there are concerns that pet dealers may masquerade as rehoming centres to circumvent the ban on third-party sales of puppies and kittens. Any proposal to bring forward regulations will be subject to a consultation.

The end of the Transition Period opens up new opportunities for managing our own pet travel and pet import arrangements, including ensuring that there are robust controls on disease and animal welfare.

It is possible that reductions in import volumes may generate increased demand from domestic sources, including from domestic pet rescue facilities. The Government encourages people to source pets responsibly, and our current Petfished campaign is raising the public’s awareness of the consequences of buying from a low-welfare seller and challenging the assumption that it is easy to spot bad practice. The campaign also signposts to resources available to help people make a good decision.

The Government greatly appreciates the important work that animal rescue and rehoming organisations do, often on a voluntary basis, to ensure that unwanted and abandoned animals in the UK are offered the opportunity of a forever home.

Evidence provided by respondents to the 2019 consultation on commercial third-party sales of puppies and kittens reflected concerns about profit-driven activity and variations in standards of animal welfare across this sector.

Defra has been engaging with rescue and rehoming organisations to understand their views and the possible impacts of regulating the sector. Any proposal to bring forward regulations, including for the introduction of any registration and licensing system, will be subject to a consultation and will reflect an awareness of the more recent impact that coronavirus has had on the sector.

Defra has been kept regularly updated on the sector’s analysis of the developing situation. It has been encouraging to see the sector working collaboratively to safeguard the welfare of animals in their care in the face of real financial hardship and uncertainty.

Organisations have been able to apply for the full range of coronavirus support measures that the government made available to businesses and charities: www.gov.uk/coronavirus/business-support. The Charity Commission has also issued comprehensive guidance on running a charity during this period of economic uncertainty: www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-for-the-charity-sector.

Defra has worked closely with the sector through the Canine and Feline Sector Group and National Equine Welfare Council to agree and update guidance to animal rescue and rehoming organisations to enable them to undertake core operations as far as possible, while maintaining compliance with the social distancing rules and need for hygiene precautions to help prevent the spread of coronavirus.

The Government remains committed to continued engagement with the sector to understand the longer-term impacts of the coronavirus pandemic, monitor the animal welfare implications of this and offer appropriate advice.

The Government greatly appreciates the important work that animal rescue and rehoming organisations do, often on a voluntary basis, to ensure that unwanted and abandoned animals in the UK are offered the opportunity of a forever home.

Evidence provided by respondents to the 2019 consultation on commercial third-party sales of puppies and kittens reflected concerns about profit-driven activity and variations in standards of animal welfare across this sector.

Defra has been engaging with rescue and rehoming organisations to understand their views and the possible impacts of regulating the sector. Any proposal to bring forward regulations, including for the introduction of any registration and licensing system, will be subject to a consultation and will reflect an awareness of the more recent impact that coronavirus has had on the sector.

Defra has been kept regularly updated on the sector’s analysis of the developing situation. It has been encouraging to see the sector working collaboratively to safeguard the welfare of animals in their care in the face of real financial hardship and uncertainty.

Organisations have been able to apply for the full range of coronavirus support measures that the government made available to businesses and charities: www.gov.uk/coronavirus/business-support. The Charity Commission has also issued comprehensive guidance on running a charity during this period of economic uncertainty: www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-for-the-charity-sector.

Defra has worked closely with the sector through the Canine and Feline Sector Group and National Equine Welfare Council to agree and update guidance to animal rescue and rehoming organisations to enable them to undertake core operations as far as possible, while maintaining compliance with the social distancing rules and need for hygiene precautions to help prevent the spread of coronavirus.

The Government remains committed to continued engagement with the sector to understand the longer-term impacts of the coronavirus pandemic, monitor the animal welfare implications of this and offer appropriate advice.

The Government greatly appreciates the important work that animal rescue and rehoming organisations do, often on a voluntary basis, to ensure that unwanted and abandoned animals in the UK are offered the opportunity of a forever home.

Evidence provided by respondents to the 2019 consultation on commercial third-party sales of puppies and kittens reflected concerns about profit-driven activity and variations in standards of animal welfare across this sector.

Defra has been engaging with rescue and rehoming organisations to understand their views and the possible impacts of regulating the sector. Any proposal to bring forward regulations, including for the introduction of any registration and licensing system, will be subject to a consultation and will reflect an awareness of the more recent impact that coronavirus has had on the sector.

Defra has been kept regularly updated on the sector’s analysis of the developing situation. It has been encouraging to see the sector working collaboratively to safeguard the welfare of animals in their care in the face of real financial hardship and uncertainty.

Organisations have been able to apply for the full range of coronavirus support measures that the government made available to businesses and charities: www.gov.uk/coronavirus/business-support. The Charity Commission has also issued comprehensive guidance on running a charity during this period of economic uncertainty: www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-for-the-charity-sector.

Defra has worked closely with the sector through the Canine and Feline Sector Group and National Equine Welfare Council to agree and update guidance to animal rescue and rehoming organisations to enable them to undertake core operations as far as possible, while maintaining compliance with the social distancing rules and need for hygiene precautions to help prevent the spread of coronavirus.

The Government remains committed to continued engagement with the sector to understand the longer-term impacts of the coronavirus pandemic, monitor the animal welfare implications of this and offer appropriate advice.

No official reports of such activity have been brought to Defra’s attention since the introduction of Lucy’s Law, but anecdotal information provided by respondents to the consultation on commercial third-party sales of puppies and kittens (held in 2019) reflected concerns about profit-driven activity in the rescue and rehoming sector. Defra has been engaging with the sector directly to understand their views and the possible impacts of regulating the sector to improve transparency and accountability. Any proposal to bring forward regulations in England will be subject to a consultation.

Any cases of pet dealers attempting to circumvent the recent ban on third-party sales should be reported to the relevant local authorities, as enforcers of the legislation.

The Government's policy is that individuals should be free to manage wildlife within the law. Some predatory species, such as raptors, are afforded legal protection to help ensure that management does not impact on their conservation status. The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 permits the granting of licences to control wild birds but only for certain limited purposes, which are set out in section 16 of the Act. There are currently no provisions in the Act to permit licences to be granted to protect racing pigeons from predation by raptors or other avian predators.

Individuals are advised to deter predators, for example by using mesh to disrupt flight lines and to fly birds at times when predators are least likely to be present. Those who are concerned about the effects of raptors on racing pigeons can seek advice from local Natural England officers, who offer free advice to those experiencing problems.

The Government wants a profitable and resilient farming sector. We will always champion our farmers and growers by supporting them to produce more of our great British food and drink, providing a reliable and sustainable food supply to the British public. The Agriculture Bill provides the legislative basis for a transition from old-style subsidies to investment in a more productive and sustainable farming sector.

The Bill will allow us to introduce ambitious new land management schemes in England, based on the principle of “public money for public goods”, so that we can reward farmers and land managers who protect our environment, improve animal welfare and produce high quality food in a more sustainable way. It will also help farmers to stay competitive, with measures to increase productivity and invest in new technology.

The dairy response fund is a temporary measure introduced to deal with COVID-19 and is not meant as a long-term solution. We have also announced other measures to support the farming sector during COVID-19, including relaxation of driver’s hours, competition easements in the sector and promotion campaigns for beef and dairy.

We remain in regular contact and continue to work with our food and farming sector to ensure that they have the support they need. This includes working closely with farmers and processor representatives to understand specific challenges sectors are facing.

In 2012, the Government and UK industry established a UK Roundtable on Sourcing Sustainable Palm Oil, to support efforts to increase the use of certified palm oil in the UK market. Figures from the UK Roundtable indicate that the UK's imports of certified sustainable palm oil rose from 16% in 2010 to 77% in 2018. The roundtable tracks only aggregate figures and does not report on behalf of individual companies or industry associations.

The new labelling of the country of origin of primary ingredients rules apply across the EU and the UK. However, legislation enabling the rules to be enforced must be made through domestic regulations and, as food labelling is a devolved matter, will be introduced by separate statutory instruments in England and the devolved administrations.

The rules came into force less than 3 months ago (on 1 April). The enforcement legislation for England, following a statutory obligation to consult on food matters like these, was laid in Parliament in May and will come into force on 18 June.

We do not yet have any data on compliance with these new rules.

The Government remains committed to developing a new agricultural policy now we have left the EU. This includes moving to a system that rewards farmers and land managers for delivering public goods with public money, while ensuring we can continue to produce food in an environmentally sustainable way. The new scheme will be launched in England in 2024 and will be tested and refined through a National Pilot which will begin in 2021.

In the UK we maintain high standards on the provision of information to consumers on food labels. Food is a devolved matter so I am replying in respect of England. However, the same rules currently apply across all of the UK.

Our current laws require origin labelling for foods where the consumer would be misled if the origin of the food were not given. This might happen on the label of, for example, a food clearly identified as ‘British’ by words or symbols but that was made elsewhere.

In addition there are rules for compulsory origin labelling of single ingredient foods including beef, veal, lamb, mutton, pork, goat and poultry meat, fish and shellfish, honey, olive oil, wine and most fruit and vegetables.

As of April this year the country of origin or place of provenance of a primary ingredient which is not the same as that given or indicated on a food as a whole must also be included on the label. For example, if a steak and ale pie is made by the English Pie Company but its main ingredient (beef) is from Argentina, the label must make that clear to the consumer.

Where origin information is not required but a producer wishes to provide it, it can still be on the label as long as it does not mislead the consumer.

We believe these measures together ensure that UK consumers are well informed about the true origin of the food they are eating.

Food security is not deemed to be a public good that necessitates public provision. A public good refers to a good or service that when consumed does not reduce its availability to others, and of which no one can be deprived.

The resilience of food supply lies with the food industry. The Government's role is to regulate and support the industry, including on contingency planning and in the event of an incident that has the potential to disrupt supply.

We are including a new requirement in the Agriculture Bill for the UK Government to report on food security to Parliament at least once every five years, demonstrating the importance we place on this subject. The report will contain information on food supply including the role of strong domestic production alongside diverse sources of supply.

The Agriculture Bill provides powers for the Government to act in a crisis related to severe market disturbance.

As we are doing now, we will be closely monitoring all agricultural sectors. We have developed the UK Agricultural Market Monitoring Group which is meeting in shadow form during the transition period. This allows officials in Defra and the Devolved Administrations to monitor UK agricultural markets, to share the latest stakeholder information and to provide warning of atypical market movements. This will help prepare the evidence base for the cause and possible range of interventions that may be needed in specific markets.

It is in everyone's interests to secure a good trade deal with the EU and that is exactly what the Government is committed to doing.

The Government has always been clear of the need to end burning of protected blanket bog to conserve these vulnerable habitats. We are looking at how legislation could achieve this and considering next steps.

The Resources and Waste Strategy, published in December 2018, sets out the Government’s plans to reduce, reuse and recycle more plastic than we do now and to move towards a more circular economy. Our target is to eliminate all avoidable plastic waste throughout the lifetime of the 25 Year Environment Plan.

Households can sign up to services to stop receiving unsolicited mail, such as those provided by the Direct Marketing Association or Royal Mail. A “no junk mail” notice may also be effective.

Charity textile collections offer a convenient way for people to reduce their environmental impact, reusing or recycling around 650,000 tonnes of clothing which might otherwise be sent to landfill.

In 2017, following a public consultation, the Fundraising Regulator strengthened its Code of Fundraising Practice to require charitable house to house collectors not to post collection bags to properties that indicate they should not do so by way of a notice, for example “no charity bags”. People can complain to the local council and provide feedback directly to charities. The bags can be reused for other purposes or recycled.

The Government recognises that innovation into biodegradable plastics could help reduce the environmental impact of plastic, if they are disposed of in the right way. We therefore published a call for evidence last year to help us consider the development of standards or certification criteria for bio-based, biodegradable and compostable plastics and to better understand their effects on the environment and our current waste system. We are currently analysing the responses received to inform future policy.

The Government Response to the consultation on cleaner domestic burning of solid fuels and wood was published on 21 February this year. The accompanying Impact Assessment includes a table which provides a regional, energy efficiency adjusted cost analysis for coal and smokeless fuels. This indicates that savings will be made in all the regions considered if households switch from coal to the cheapest smokeless fuel.

The Impact Assessment can be viewed at:

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/867428/burning-wood-consult-ia.pdf

As outlined in our written ministerial statement of 24 February 2020 the purpose of our policy is to reduce people’s exposure to the most harmful pollutant to human health (PM2.5). While defined by its size, fine particulate matter in smoke from domestic combustion contains a wide range of chemical compounds, depending on what is being burnt. In developing this policy we have taken into account the clear advice of the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer, which has stated that emissions from coal combustion is a known carcinogen to humans. There is also strong evidence that burning coal can release elements and compounds into the indoor environment that are particularly harmful to human health. Based on this evidence, the World Health Organization has strongly recommended against the residential use of coal for heating.

The Government is committed to protecting human health, and the environment from the impacts of air pollutants. Based on the advice from the World Health Organization that emissions from coal combustion is a known human carcinogen, and that it should not be used for residential heating, we intend to continue including bituminous (house) coal in the proposed regulation of the sales, distribution and marketing of bituminous (house) coal and wet wood.

Defra commissioned analysis of heat output from a range of fuels to determine fuel efficiency and costs to consumers. The costs of fuels were investigated across six regions in England (North East, North West, Midlands, South East including East of England, and South West) which showed that manufactured solid fuels were, in general, cheaper when heat output was taken into consideration on an open fire.

The data is provided as grams per kilogram (rather than grams per tonne) due to the scale of the data, for example for PM_2.5 emissions from coal, 8.7g/kg would become 8700g/tonne)

The PM_2.5 emissions in grams per kilogram of fuel used are:

(a) Household coal: 8.7g/kg

(b) Wet Wood: 28g/kg

(c) Dry wood: 7.2g/kg

(d) Oil for households (referred to as 'burning oil’ in the National Atmospheric Emissions Inventory): 0.083g/kg

The data is provided as grams per kilogram (rather than grams per tonne) due to the scale of the data. It should be noted that harvested wood for bioenergy is considered to be carbon neutral, with the carbon dioxide (CO₂) absorbed as young trees grow compensating for that released by burning.

The CO₂ emissions in grams per kilogram of fuel used are:

(a) Household coal: 683g/kg

(b) Wet Wood: 0g/kg

(c) Dry wood: 0g/kg

(d) Oil for households (referred to as 'burning oil’ in the National Atmospheric Emissions Inventory): 859g/kg

The Government advises against purchasing or acquiring imported dogs for rehoming, as they may carry serious diseases or have behavioural and welfare issues due to poor breeding. The Government’s recently launched “Petfished” campaign, which aims to warn people about deceitful sellers including those importing puppies and kittens includes advice on this. Rescue and rehoming centres in this country carry out important work to ensure that unwanted and abandoned animals in the UK are offered the opportunity of a forever home. We advise those seeking to acquire a new dog to first consider adopting from a reputable UK based dog rescue and rehoming centre.

Dogs for rehoming are imported under the Balai Directive, alongside all other commercial movements of dogs. As such a ban would not be appropriate as it may inhibit other commercial movements of animals.

We have world class animal welfare standards in the UK and we will continue to be a world leader in animal welfare, maintaining and strengthening our standards now that we have left the EU. This will be reflected in our approach to future trading arrangements.

The Government will stand firm in trade negotiations to ensure that future trade deals live up to the values of farmers and consumers across the UK. We will not dilute our high standards of animal welfare, including import requirements.

Bollihope Common have received increased payments as a result of the Judicial Review case brought by the Commons Committees for Minchinhampton and Rodborough Commons. No grazier has received a reduced payment as a consequence of the case.

The impact assessment published alongside the Government response to the consultation on cleaner domestic burning of solid fuels and wood included an assessment of the number of people who use coal as a primary heat source across England. The impact assessment can be viewed at:

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/867428/burning-wood-consult-ia.pdf

The proposals included in the Government response outline our intention to rollout the policy in a phased approach, this is to ensure that those reliant on coal or wood as a primary heat source have time and support they need to transition to the cleanest alternative fuel types, whilst minimising any associated costs. We do not have any plans to introduce a stove scrappage scheme.

Local authorities are responsible for serving abatement notices where appropriate for noise nuisances deemed a statutory nuisance under the Environmental Protection Act 1990. An abatement notice will operate according to the conditions contained within it, which may require it to be indefinite, and which are set by the local authority serving the notice.

A person served with an abatement notice can appeal to a magistrate’s court within 21 days of the date on which the notice was served. Grounds for appeal include:

• legal tests haven’t been met to show that the issue is a statutory nuisance
• the notice was served on the wrong person
• the notice is defective

Industrial, trade and business premises can claim the use of “best practicable means” in their defence. This may be used as grounds for appeal against the abatement notice or a defence (if prosecuted) for not complying with the abatement notice. Only the courts can determine what the best practicable means are in each case, taking into account, among other things, the local conditions and circumstances, the current state of technical knowledge and the financial implications.

The impacts of the Minchinhampton and Rodborough Commons case and how payments are made to Commoners are being considered by Defra officials.

Commons frequently provide some of the richest opportunities for the provision of environmental public goods and are a unique part of British farming heritage.

In 2024 we will be launching the Government’s Environmental Land Management scheme. This will be cornerstone of our new agricultural policy. It will pay public money for public goods, such as those set out in the 25-year environment plan. We are working with our stakeholders including those farming on common land to design it. This includes through a programme of Tests and Trials, a recently launched Policy Discussion Document and a national pilot which will start in 2021.

The Government plans to phase out Direct Payments to farmers in England over a seven year agricultural transition period. For the first year of the transition, 2021, we will reduce Direct Payments by up to an already announced set of percentages, which could free up to around £150 million to reinvest into the delivery of public goods and providing support for farmers during the transition. We will set the reduction percentages for the later years of the transition taking account of our detailed plans for future schemes and wider discussions about Government spending.

The Government’s election manifesto guaranteed the current annual budget in every year of the new Parliament, giving significant certainty on funding for the coming years. In England this will enable the Government to provide financial support for the purposes set out in the Agriculture Bill.

Flood Re is a flood reinsurance scheme designed to improve the availability and affordability of flood insurance for households at high flood risk. Flood Re does not deal directly with homeowners, but instead allows insurance companies to pass on the high flood risk element of household insurance policies to them for a below market rate set premium. Flood Re is available through more than 85 insurance brands representing 94% of the home insurance market. We encourage homeowners to shop around to get the best deal for their home insurance.

The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) does not capture whether imported animals are rescue animals and so is unable to provide this data.

Furthermore, APHA’s data retention period for import data is 3 years and so we can only provide data for the last 3 years on matters relating to imports.

Pesticides are subject to strict regulation and are only permitted for use where a comprehensive scientific assessment finds that this will not harm people or have unacceptable effects on the environment. The assessment first considers the active substance. If this is approved for use, each product containing that active substance is assessed and is only authorised, subject to any necessary conditions, if the risks are acceptably low. If necessary, specific conditions of authorisation are set and are communicated to users through the product label. Approvals and authorisations are reviewed regularly to make sure that pesticides continue to meet the latest safety standards.

Roundup is subject to this process. The active substance, glyphosate is approved until 15 December 2022 and Roundup products are authorised following scientific assessment by the Health and Safety Executive. When the approval of glyphosate and the product authorisations are reviewed, we will again consider our position based on a careful scientific assessment of the evidence and risks at that time.

Decision-making on the use of pesticides after the UK leaves the EU will continue to be based on careful scientific assessment of the risks. Our highest priority will continue to be the protection of people and the environment.

The Department publishes National Statistics on Road Length in Great Britain. Data is available by (a) dual carriageway and (b) motorway in each (ii) local authority area in (C) 2010 and 2020. Data for (D) 2021 will be published in Spring 2022. Data for the above can be found in the attached Annex A.

Data is not held by (i) parliamentary constituency or for (A) 1979 and (B) 1997. Statistics on Road Length are not available prior to 2005.

The Office for Rail and Road (ORR) publish National Statistics on track length covering recent years. In 2020, total mainline track length was 19,398 miles (31,218 kilometres). The Department nor ORR publish statistics relating to track length at parliamentary constituency or local authority level. Nor does the ORR publish data for 1950.

ORR publish National Statistics on railway stations, but the data only goes back to 1985. In 2020, there were 2,567 total railway stations in Great Britain. Table 1410 provides a list of stations by parliamentary constituency and local authority in 2020:

https://dataportal.orr.gov.uk/statistics/usage/estimates-of-station-usage

The Department for Transport publish National Statistics on track length and stations by system for the tram and tube. In 2020/21, there were 228 miles of tram track and 264 miles of underground track in Great Britain. There were 426 tram stations and 285 underground stations. This data is published in Tables LRT0204 and LRT0201 respectively:

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/light-rail-and-tram-statistics-lrt#light-rail-and-tram-fleet-and-infrastructure-lrt02

The Department does not hold this data for 1950.

As part of Highways England’s 5-year plan for its management of over 3,000 Historical Railways Estate structures it has developed a programme of works to maintain safety. These works include repair, strengthening and refurbishment of structures, which can also include infilling or demolition where necessary.

This programme is under internal review and works are only taking place on structures that are unsafe.

The Government is continuing to provide grants to encourage people to charge at home overnight, and it is our intention that all new homes, where appropriate, should have a chargepoint available. Through the Electric Vehicle Homecharge Scheme (EVHS) the Government provides a grant of up to £350 towards the installation of domestic chargers. To date over 130,000 domestic chargepoint installations have benefited from HMG grants.

The Department published a detailed funding summary report alongside the CWIS statutory report to Parliament in February 2020. Around £2.4 billion of funding has been provided to support active travel schemes since 2016/17. The majority of funding has gone to combined and local authorities for cycling and walking schemes. The Department does not provide active travel funding direct to parish councils.

The report provided to Parliament is available online here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/936926/cycling-and-walking-investment-strategy-report-to-parliament-document.pdf

The On-Street Residential Chargepoint Scheme (ORCS), which local authorities can apply to for funding chargepoints for their residents without off-street parking, is still available. This year funding has been doubled twice, to £20 million. Durham County Council have been allocated funding for two ORCS projects this financial year, which will see 60 chargepoints installed across the County’s parish councils. As the Highways Authority for the area, Durham County Council have applied and will manage the projects on behalf of, and in collaboration with, the parish councils. We encourage any local authorities who have not yet taken advantage of the scheme to do so.

Government has committed over £40m to the North East of England to date. £22,312,105 has been provided from the Coronavirus Bus Services Support Grant, including payments of £20,589,277 to commercial operators and £1,722,829 to the Tees Valley Combined Authority and North East Combined Authority. £20,228,359 has been provided for the Tyne and Wear Metro from the Coronavirus Support Grants scheme. Over £1.5m has been provided to the North East Joint Transport Committee for additional transport for schools and colleges up to the Autumn half term.

Local traffic authorities already have powers to allow motorcycles to use bus lanes in their areas, and to provide dedicated parking facilities for them. It is for them to decide what is appropriate for roads in their area. In making these decisions they will need to consider how to balance the needs of local residents, emergency services, local business and those who work in and visit the area.

The Department’s guidance issued on 12 May refers to “Private cars and other vehicles” as an alternative to using public transport, and encourages the public to “consider all other forms of transport before using public transport”. This would include private vehicles such as motorcycles and mopeds where the journey to be made is appropriate.

British Transport Police officers and staff have carried out an internal search but there is no record of this form. It is possible that the form may belong to the Metropolitan Police or other Home Office territorial forces.

On the 4^th February the Prime Minister announced that we are consulting on bringing forward the end to the sale of new petrol, diesel and hybrid cars and vans to 2035, or earlier if a faster transition appears feasible.

We are consulting on the Committee on Climate Change recommendation that any new vehicles sold after the phase out date must be zero emission at the tailpipe. The proposals relate to new cars and vans - owners of existing petrol, diesel and hybrid cars and vans will still be able to use these vehicles and buy and sell them on the used market.

The technologies on sale, and the market share of those technologies, must be compatible with achieving our 2050 net zero climate change target and our long-term air quality goals.

The Government’s long-term goal is the development and deployment of zero emission Heavy Goods Vehicles (HGVs). While the pathway to achieving this is not as clear as for cars and vans, technologies are starting to emerge even for the largest vehicles. Zero emission technologies are at different stages of development for different segments of the HGV sector, with solutions more advanced for zero emission smaller, shorter-haul HGVs than for larger, long-haul HGVs. However, zero emission technologies exist and are technically proven for all types of HGVs and operations. For example, electrification of large and long-haul HGVs is possible. Manufacturers have produced large electric HGVs and there have been several successful trials of dynamic charging technologies for HGVs internationally.

Government-supported research will evaluate the potential costs, benefits and opportunities associated with various technologies, as well as their suitability for different types of HGVs and duty cycles across different parts of the network. This research will be conducted with a view to ultimately performing full-scale demonstrator trials on the UK road network, if appropriate technologies are identified. The research will be valuable in identifying the most promising solutions for the UK network and how best to develop them.

The Government will also continue to pursue regulatory opportunities to support the road freight sector in switching to lower emission commercial vehicles and are working with industry to develop an ultra low emission truck (ULET) standard to provide certainty on emission standards and encourage industry R&D in this area.

The respective owners of private roads are responsible under legislation for ensuring that these roads are brought up to the required standard before local highway authorities can ‘adopt’ them and then maintain them at public expense. In cases where there are large areas of unadopted roads due to the closure of large industries, these may be improved by new developers as part of their development projects or the local authority can bid for Government funds through various programmes like the Local Growth Fund.

The Major Road Network was developed in 2017. At the time the A68 did not meet the qualifying criteria used. However, the roads which comprise the Major Road Network are reviewed periodically.

To help communities across the country, the Government has pledged £500m to start reopening lines closed following the Beeching report, reconnecting smaller towns, regenerating local economies and improving accessibility to jobs, homes and education. Further details about this funding will be announced in due course.

I can confirm that my Department has not received any representations from Durham County Council in the period between April 2017 and 14 November 2019 on the subject of re-opening a rail link to Consett. My predecessor responded to a written question from the previous Member for North West Durham on this subject on 22 November 2017 (Hansard Ref:113009).

The A68 is part of the Local Road Network and therefore it is for the relevant local highways authorities to plan and bring forward improvements for the route. The Government recognises the importance of local roads for businesses and communities. We are providing over £5.8 billion to local highways authorities outside London from 2015 to 2020, to help improve the condition of roads and reduce congestion.

Collection charges apply when a case is being managed in the Collect and Pay service. The Direct Pay service does not incur any on-going collection charges. Charges have not been paused as a result of the covid-19 outbreak. We expect paying parents to do the right thing and continue to pay child maintenance due. Where paying parents experience a change in income, the Child Maintenance Service (CMS) can review their case and check if the amount paid should change. To help reduce the short-term financial pressure that may be experienced by many paying parents whose income has been affected by the Covid 19 outbreak, the time period over which that change in income is assessed has been reduced from 12 to 2 weeks.

The Government has been clear in its commitment to support paying parents who have experienced a drop in income as a result of the public health emergency. Where paying parents experience a change in income, the Child Maintenance Service (CMS) can review their case and check if the amount paid should change. For paying parents who are experiencing financial difficulties as a result of COVID-19, the time period over which that change in income is assessed has been reduced from 12 to 2 weeks. In the short-term, paying parents may be advised to reduce their payments.

We know the majority of parents take their responsibilities extremely seriously and will do what is needed to ensure their children are supported.

Grants to local authorities will be made under section 31 of the Local Government Act 2003 and will be subject to conditions and reporting requirements to ensure that the primary focus of the scheme is on supporting vulnerable families with children and other vulnerable people. Detailed guidance is being developed in consultation with local authorities and will be published shortly on gov.uk.

The cost will be dependent on the volumes anticipated to claim Universal Credit during the period to March 21. The Office for Budget Responsibility will be publishing its assessment of this in due course as part of its Autumn forecast.

Statistics on economic activity for constituencies are published by the independent Office for National Statistics (ONS) and come from the Annual Population Survey (APS).

As the figures below are estimates from survey data, of different-sized sub-groups of the population at a local level they are subject to varying levels of uncertainty due to small sample sizes – which we describe alongside the estimates.

For North West Durham, in the year July 2009 to June 2010 (including the month April 2010), there were:

a) 45,000 estimated economically active people. The ONS are 95% confident that the economic activity rate lies between 69.7% and 81.9%, with a central estimate of 75.8%. The economic activity rate is the proportion of the working age population (aged 16-64; 59,400 people in 2010) who are economically active.

b) Due to the very small number of people in this local area with these characteristics in the APS sample, these estimates are highly uncertain:

i) This data is not available, please see the section below.

ii) ONS estimates that 4,200 were inactive due to long-term sickness. The ONS are 95% confident that it lies between 16.5% and 41.7% of the inactive working age population, with a central estimate of 29.1%.

iii) Other reasons for inactivity: 3,800 people are estimated to be inactive due to retirement. The ONS are 95% confident that this estimate lies between 14.1% and 38.5% of the inactive working age population, with a central estimate of 26.3%.

c) 42,500 people were estimated to be employed. The ONS are 95% confident that the employment rate lies between 65.2% and 78%, with a central estimate of 71.6%.

For North West Durham, in the year July 2018 to June 2019 (including the month April 2019), there were:

a) 44,300 estimated economically active people. The ONS are 95% confident that the economic activity rate lies between 72.7% and 85.1%, with a central estimate of 78.9%. The working age population in this period is 56,200 people.

b) Due to the very small number of people in this local area with these characteristics in the APS sample, these estimates are highly uncertain:

i) This data is not made available by the ONS, due to extreme unreliability of estimates based on a very small sample of people with these characteristics in this year’s APS.

ii) 5,700 who were inactive due to long-term sickness, the ONS are 95% confident that this lies between 31.7% and 64.9% of the working age inactive population, with a central estimate of 48.3%.

c) 43,300 people were estimated to be employed. The ONS are 95% confident that the employment rate lies between 70.6% and 83.4%, with a central estimate of 77%.