Rupa Huq

The Equality Act 2010 is clear that disabled people should not be refused access to businesses or services because they have a guide dog. Any such refusals are likely to be unlawful.

The Equality and Human Rights Commission has published a range of guidance on this matter to ensure that businesses and service providers are aware of their legal responsibilities towards customers with guide dogs and are equipped with the knowledge to ensure the Equality Act 2010 is complied with.

I refer the hon. Member to my response to Question 39563: Written questions and answers - Written questions, answers and statements - UK Parliament

This Government is committed to transitioning towards a circular economy. The Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs has convened a Circular Economy Taskforce of experts to help develop the first ever Circular Economy Strategy for England, which we plan to publish for consultation in the coming autumn. We will consider the evidence for sector-specific interventions from right across the economy, including in reducing waste in the construction industry, as we develop our strategy.

Should the developers of the Jackdaw and Rosebank fields choose to re-submit applications for consent they will need to undertake a comprehensive assessment of scope 3 emissions, drawing on appropriate sources of information as referenced in the guidance that we have published. As these projects may be subject to future regulatory decisions, it would be inappropriate to comment further.

All organisations in the UK that process personal data must comply with the requirements of the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA).

The legislation sets out a series of principles with which organisations must comply. These include the need to process personal data lawfully, fairly, transparently and securely, unless certain limited exemptions apply. The legislation also gives people rights in relation to their personal data, such as the right to seek access to it, object to its processing or seek its erasure.

The legislation does not prevent individuals posting personal data online if it is done for domestic purposes, such as messaging friends, or sharing photos with their social networks, but the platforms that host the data will be subject to the legislation.

If individuals are concerned that organisations are processing their personal data unlawfully, they can complain to the Information Commissioner's Office which is responsible for regulating the legislation.

The Government’s consultation on AI and Copyright sets out its goal of strengthening right holders’ control of their material and ability to be renumerated for its use through licensing. This would help deliver a balanced copyright framework for AI, alongside increased transparency and enhanced access to material for AI training.

The Government is committed to the rollout of fast, reliable broadband to all parts of the UK. As of February 2024, over 1 million premises had been upgraded to gigabit-capable broadband through government-funded programmes. In total, 36 Project Gigabit contracts have now been signed, to connect over 1 million more homes and businesses, with more contracts to be awarded in the coming months.

Higher education institutions in England are autonomous bodies and it is for them to assess whether the fees for students who do not meet the criteria for automatic home fee status should be reduced or waived in line with individual circumstances.

To qualify for automatic home fee status in England, a person must have settled status or a ‘recognised connection’ to the UK. A recognised connection includes persons who are covered by the EU Withdrawal Agreement, have long residence in this country, or who have been granted international protection by the Home Office. There are also requirements associated with ordinary residence in the UK.

The British National (Overseas) immigration route reflects the UK’s historic and moral commitment to those people of Hong Kong. Subject to meeting the normal eligibility requirements, Hong Kong British National (Overseas) status holders will be able to qualify for student finance and home fee status once they have acquired settled status in the UK.

There are no plans to amend the eligibility requirements for Hong Kong British National (Overseas) status holders as these are in line with those that apply to most other persons on routes to settlement.

The adoption and special guardianship support fund (ASGSF) provides funds to local authorities and regional adoption agencies to pay for essential therapeutic services for adoptive, special guardianship order and child arrangement order children who were previously in care. It is not available for children who remain in care. This year the £50 million fund will enable eligible adoptive and kinship families to access a significant package of therapeutic support, tailored to meet their individual needs, including for those children who have experienced abuse, amounting to £3,000 per child. Where needed, local authorities and regional adoption agencies can use their own funding to increase the amount of therapy.

While the department does collect and publish annual data on the demand for ASGSF services, no wider information about demand for adoption services is currently collected. The latest publicly available ASGSF data covering the period 2023/24 can be found here: https://www.coram.org.uk/resource/asgsf_2024_data_insights/.

The adoption and special guardianship support fund (ASGSF) provides funds to local authorities and regional adoption agencies to pay for essential therapeutic services for adoptive, special guardianship order and child arrangement order children who were previously in care. It is not available for children who remain in care. This year the £50 million fund will enable eligible adoptive and kinship families to access a significant package of therapeutic support, tailored to meet their individual needs, including for those children who have experienced abuse, amounting to £3,000 per child. Where needed, local authorities and regional adoption agencies can use their own funding to increase the amount of therapy.

While the department does collect and publish annual data on the demand for ASGSF services, no wider information about demand for adoption services is currently collected. The latest publicly available ASGSF data covering the period 2023/24 can be found here: https://www.coram.org.uk/resource/asgsf_2024_data_insights/.

On 2 April, the department confirmed funding of £8.8 million for Adoption England to improve the recruitment of adopters, matching of children, and family support during the 2025/26 financial year.

This includes funding to develop more Centres of Excellence as multidisciplinary teams across the country to provide specialist and therapeutic support to families and the development of national standards for adoption support. It also includes a new framework for an early support core offer, ‘Becoming a Family’, for the first twelve to eighteen months of placement and an Adoption Support Plan to guide assessments of a family’s support needs. All are designed to improve support and reduce the risk of an adoption breakdown.

Adoption England are also planning work to develop a national protocol on how children’s services, front door services and adoption support teams work together to better support families at risk of adoption disruption.

Adoption England and regional adoption agencies work closely with adopters to improve adoption support services. This includes considering the latest evidence of why adoption disruptions have occurred in their agencies and across the country.

Since its inception in 2015, the department has provided over £400 million through the adoption and special guardianship support fund (ASGSF) to provide therapeutic interventions for around 52,700 children who have left care under an adoption, special guardianship or child arrangements order. The interventions are designed to help children and their families to deal with their trauma and attachment difficulties and have been independently assessed to have helped prevent adoption breakdowns.

On 1 April, it was announced that the ASGSF would continue into 2025/26, with a budget of £50 million. A further announcement about arrangements for applications will be made as soon as possible. We remain committed to supporting families, who play an essential role in providing stable and loving homes for children in need.

It is the department’s ambition that parents have access to high quality, affordable and flexible early education and childcare.

Next year alone, the department plans to provide over £8 billion for the early years entitlements, a more than 30% increase compared to 2024/25, as we roll out the expansion of the entitlements, so eligible working parents of children aged from nine months can access 30 hours of funded childcare.

From the start of September 2024, eligible working parents have been entitled to 15 hours a week of early education and care from the term after their child turns nine months old. So far, over 320,000 additional parents are now accessing a place.

The department is expanding the childcare entitlements so that from September 2025, eligible working parents can access 30 hours of early education and childcare a week, over 38 weeks of the year, from the term after their child turns nine months old until they start school.

As we grow the childcare system, it is important it remains fair and accessible to all parents. We have taken action to protect parents from reported instances of very high additional charges or ‘top-up fees’ on top of their entitlement, ensuring the funded hours remain accessible and affordable for families, particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds where it makes the biggest difference. We have updated the statutory guidance on government-funded entitlements that relates to additional charges, helping local authorities ensure there is clarity and consistency for parents and providers.

Parents may also be eligible for childcare support through Tax-Free Childcare or Universal Credit Childcare.

The department wants to ensure that parents are aware of and accessing all government funded childcare support they are eligible for. The department is raising awareness of the government funded childcare support available via the Childcare Choices website to stimulate increased take-up by eligible families.

Students who are parents are eligible for the universal 15 hours of free early education which is available to all three and four year-olds, regardless of family circumstances. Students who work in addition to studying are eligible for the working parent entitlement if they meet the income requirements. If they meet the eligibility criteria, students can apply for the Childcare Grant and Parental Learning Allowance.

Additionally, the Care to Learn scheme provides funding for childcare to help young parents, defined as those aged under 20, continue in education after the birth of a child. The scheme provides funding for childcare while the young parent is engaged in a study programme and is not able to provide care for their child. It can also help the young parent with any additional travel costs involved in taking the child to the childcare provider.

The Government is committed to protecting human health and the environment from the risks posed by PFAS. We are working across Government to assess levels of PFAS in the environment, their sources and potential risks to inform our approach to policy and regulation. This includes a multi-year programme run by the Environment Agency (EA) to better understand sources of PFAS pollution in England. Part of the programme is to identify and assess the most significant sites of PFAS contamination. We are developing strategies for managing risks to the environment, and where appropriate working with partner authorities to assess and manage risk to the public.

We are supporting investments in UK sustainable aviation fuel “SAF” production facilities through the Advanced Fuels Fund (AFF). We extended this funding for a further year through the Autumn Budget, investing an additional £63 million, and the Spending Review 2025 will continue support for SAF production in the UK to 2029/30.

In addition to providing grant funding under the AFF our SAF Bill, currently before the House, will deliver a SAF Revenue Certainty Mechanism. This mechanism will help unlock investment in UK SAF production and grow this emerging sector.

We are also encouraging the production and use of sustainable aviation fuels in the UK through a SAF Mandate. The mandate, one of the first pioneering policies of its kind, came into force on 1st January 2025 and increases investor certainty by building domestic demand for SAF.

In the UK, there are well-established legal requirements to support medical training for transport staff and those in safety-critical roles. These statutory duties apply to all employers and include the provision of appropriate training to staff to manage the risks associated with the environment and operations in which they work. My Department will keep these legal requirements under review to ensure they remain fit for purpose. The transport industry will also continue to produce and update guidance to inform the training needs of its workforce including on medical matters.

Delivering reliable and affordable public transport services is one of the government’s top priorities and we know how important this is for passengers and for local growth.

The government is investing over £150 million to deliver a new £3 cap on single bus fares in England outside London from 1 January until 31 December 2025 to help millions access better opportunities and promote greater bus use by passengers. In addition, the government has confirmed £955 million for the 2025 to 2026 financial year to support and improve bus services in England outside London. This includes £243 million for bus operators and £712 million allocated to local authorities. Local authorities can use this funding to introduce new fares initiatives, introduce new bus routes, make services more frequent and protect crucial bus routes for local communities.

Network Rail reported that in 2013/14 it spent £4.2 million maintaining 1127 lift assets, compared to £8.3 million in 2023/24 to maintain 1516 lift assets.

The Department does not hold this information as transport in London is devolved to the Mayor, and TfL is responsible for managing the London Underground and the London Overground.