Asked by: Robert Buckland (Conservative - South Swindon)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she plans to take steps to increase the availability of Religious Education teacher training courses.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
Religious education (RE) is an essential part of a school’s curriculum and remains a compulsory subject in all state funded schools, including academies, to all pupils up to the age of 18. RE develops an individual’s knowledge and understanding of the religions and beliefs which form part of contemporary society, as well as serving to inform their own values and behaviour.
The department is offering a £10,000 bursary for RE trainee teachers starting Initial Teacher Training courses in the 2024/25 academic year. The department has published this information on the ‘Get Into Teaching’ website and will be marketing the offer to prospective teachers through other channels.
The mandatory Initial Teacher Training (ITT) Core Content Framework (CCF) sets out a core minimum entitlement for all trainees of what should be covered during their teacher training. While all ITT courses must encompass the CCF in full, it remains for accredited ITT providers to design their full course curricula in a way that is appropriate to the needs of trainees and for the subject, phase, and age range that the trainees will be teaching, which for some ITT courses, would include religious education training.
To be awarded Qualified Teacher Status, trainee teachers must demonstrate that they satisfy all of the Teaching Standards at the appropriate level, including Part Two of the standards, which requires all teachers to demonstrate consistently high standards of personal and professional behaviour.
The department has publicly committed to reviewing the ITT CCF and Early Career Framework (ECF) alongside each other. Building on lessons learned from the first few years of CCF implementation and ECF delivery, the department plans to revise the CCF and ECF into a more closely combined framework, or set of frameworks, which cover the first three years or more at the start of a teacher’s career articulating what trainee and new teachers need to know and need to know how to do.
This underpins a joined-up sequence of training and development over at least the first three years of new teachers’ careers to support them at the start of their new career. The department aims to ensure that what new teachers learn across these early years of their career delivers continuous, coherent and complementary learning for all trainees and new teachers, and provides the confidence and skills for a lifelong career in teaching.
Asked by: Robert Buckland (Conservative - South Swindon)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to her Department's publication entitled 2022 School Workforce Census, published 8 June 2023, whether her Department has had discussions with any of the secondary schools that reported zero hours of religious education in Year 11 in the 2022 census.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
The School Workforce Census collects information from a large sample of secondary schools in England for a typical week. This identifies hours taught of a subject, year group taught to, and the teacher. Data provided by schools is captured by their individual electronic timetabling systems. Results are weighted to produce national estimates but are not intended to be used as a means of monitoring compliance with the duty to teach religious education (RE), particularly as there may be other RE teaching time in schools that has not been recorded as schools may have allocated it under other subjects.
Following publication in June this year of 2022 census data, the department has not had discussion with schools that reported zero hours of religious education in Year 11 in the sample period.
Asked by: Robert Buckland (Conservative - South Swindon)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps she is taking to support sustainable investment in Southern Africa; and if she will publish a sustainable investment plan for Southern Africa.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The UK’s Economic Partnership Agreements with southern African countries and the UK Developing Countries Trading Scheme enable trade and promote development. UK Export Finance supports the region with billions of pounds of finance or insurance cover available for projects involving UK suppliers. The Prime Minister has announced that he will host the second UK-African Investment Summit in 2024, which will help UK businesses secure sustainable investment into the region and maintain the UK’s position as the leading investor in Africa.
The Government’s plans for sustainable investment in developing economies is set out in the International Development Strategy.
Asked by: Robert Buckland (Conservative - South Swindon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what support the Government has provided to partners in (a) South and (b) Central Asia since Pakistan's decision to repatriate Afghan nationals.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
We have committed £16 million since September to the International Organisation for Migration in Afghanistan to support vulnerable undocumented people returning from Pakistan and Iran. Turkmenistan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan have not reported any substantial cross-border movement following Pakistan's decision. We continue to monitor the situation for increased movement over the borders with Afghanistan, and for any indication others may also look to repatriate Afghans residing in Central Asia.
Asked by: Robert Buckland (Conservative - South Swindon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether Chagossians (a) in the UK and (b) on the islands have been given a role in negotiations with Mauritius over the sovereignty of the Chagos Islands.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Negotiations over the British Indian Ocean Territory/ Chagos Archipelago are between the UK and Mauritius. We recognise the future of the islands is an important issue for many Chagossians. UK Government ministers and officials met Chagossian groups representing communities in the UK, Mauritius and the Seychelles in February, May and October to update on the progress of negotiations, and hear their views.
Asked by: Robert Buckland (Conservative - South Swindon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to help reduce tensions on the border between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK is committed to supporting efforts to build stability and reduce violence in the Democractic Republic of Congo (DRC). We continue to monitor the concerning situation in the east closely and its grave humanitarian consequences. We regularly raise the conflict with the DRC, Rwanda, and the region, where we urge all parties to deliver on their commitments, agreed through the Nairobi and Luanda processes. This includes the cessation of hostilities, respect for sovereignty and agreed withdrawal by armed groups including M23. The UK firmly believes the regional peace processes provide the best means by which to achieve a lasting peace and offer them our full support. The UK is the current chair of the International Contact Group for the Great Lakes where we work with likeminded partners to support progress on the ground, and most recently met, at senior official level, on 8 November. I met with President Kagame and Foreign Minister Biruta during my visit to Rwanda in late August, where I encouraged de-escalation and emphasised the need for a peaceful political solution. I also met with DRC Vice Prime Minister Kamerhe in October where I delivered the same message.
Asked by: Robert Buckland (Conservative - South Swindon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the proposed cession of the Chagos Islands on (a) British regional interests and (b) wider regional security.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK and Mauritius are in ongoing negotiations on the exercise of sovereignty of the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT)/Chagos Archipelago. Maintaining the full and effective operation of the joint UK-US military base on Diego Garcia, which plays a crucial role in regional and global security, is essential. The UK and Mauritius have publicly committed to ensuring that any agreement reached between our two countries will do this.
Asked by: Robert Buckland (Conservative - South Swindon)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether British companies will have access to European Innovation Council funding for solutions to (a) bias and (b) discrimination in AI systems following the UK's re-admission to Horizon.
Answered by George Freeman
UK applicants will be able to participate in the full Horizon Europe programme and UK entities are eligible to receive grant funding through all instruments of the European Innovation Council. The UK is not part of the European Innovation Council (EIC) Fund – which provides equity finance support to EIC Accelerator projects.
Asked by: Robert Buckland (Conservative - South Swindon)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many people with (a) autism and (b) a learning disability reside in a mental health inpatient unit that has most recently been rated as inadequate by the CQC; and for how many of those people have additional (i) safeguards and (ii) mitigations been put in place to monitor their (A) safety, (B) wellbeing and (C) treatment.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
The latest published Assuring Transformation data shows that there are 80 people with a learning disability and autistic people reported in a mental health inpatient setting which the Care Quality Commission (CQC) rates as inadequate. This is based on inpatient data at the end of August 2023, and CQC inspection ratings as of 2 October 2023.
Where, by exception, a person with a learning disability or autistic person is admitted into a setting rated as inadequate at the point of admission, additional safeguards and mitigations should be put in place. NHS England has established a process whereby any such admission should be notified to the relevant integrated care bord (ICB) Chief Executive Officer, National Health Service regional team and Host Commissioner and reported as an exception to the ICB Quality Board or equivalent. Information on specific safeguards and mitigations for individuals is not held centrally.
Each person with a learning disability and autistic person in a mental health hospital should have regular Care (Education) and Treatment Reviews in line with national policy.
Commissioner Oversight Guidance was published in February 2021, which sets out that people with a learning disability and autistic people who are in hospital outside their local area will be visited by the commissioner of their care regularly every six weeks for children and every eight weeks for adults.
In June 2023, we updated the Host Commissioner Guidance, this guidance sets out expectations for ICBs to act as a ‘host’ commissioner to provide additional oversight of care in mental health hospitals in their geographical area, where people with a learning disability and autistic people are cared for.
Asked by: Robert Buckland (Conservative - South Swindon)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether representatives from (a) the Government and (b) British industry will attend the European AI, Data and Robotics Forum on 8 and 9 November 2023.
Answered by Paul Scully
Given the proximity of the Safety Summit to the European AI, Data and Robotics Forum on 8 and 9 of November, the Government will not be sending any Ministers or officials to the event. However, both UK Government Ministers and officials participate in European technology-focused events, with an SCS-led official delegation attending the IAPP (International Association of Privacy Professionals) Europe Data Protection Conference this November, which will seek to facilitate our EU data objectives.