Asked by: Samantha Niblett (Labour - South Derbyshire)
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 implications for his policies of the human rights situation of women in Afghanistan; what his policy is on the concept of gender apartheid in that country; and what representations he has made to Afghanistan's geographical neighbours on gender inequality in the region.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We have repeatedly condemned Taliban restrictions on women and girls' rights, including through UN Security Council and Human Rights Council resolutions. As the Foreign Secretary has said, exclusion of women from all aspects of public life is another tragic setback for Afghanistan. We engage with regional and international partners on human rights and security among other priority issues.
The FCDO is aware of calls for the inclusion of 'gender apartheid' as a new crime against humanity. We are actively considering the complex legal and policy questions raised by this proposal.
Asked by: Samantha Niblett (Labour - South Derbyshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the availability of mental health services for (a) young and (b) older people in rural areas.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Waiting lists for those referred for support are too high, and especially so for young people. People with mental health issues are not getting the support or care they deserve or need, which is why we will fix the broken system to ensure we give mental health the same attention and focus as physical health, so that people can be confident in accessing high quality mental health support when they need it.
Nationally, we plan to recruit an additional 8,500 mental health workers across child and adult mental health services in England to reduce delays and provide faster treatment. We will also introduce access to a specialist mental health professional in every school and roll out Young Futures hubs in every community.
The Suicide Prevention Strategy for England 2023-2028, published September 2023, sets out an ambition to conduct and commission research and data linkage projects, and includes supporting the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to look at agricultural workers to understand the unique challenges in that occupational group and respond appropriately.
In addition, people of all ages who are in crisis or who are concerned about a family or loved one can now call 111, select the mental health option, and speak to a trained mental health professional. National Health Service staff can guide callers with next steps such as organising face-to-face community support or facilitating access to alternative services, like crisis cafés or safe havens, which provide a place for people to stay as an alternative to accident and emergency or a hospital admission.
Asked by: Samantha Niblett (Labour - South Derbyshire)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps his Department is taking to help support women into leadership positions in small and medium-sized businesses.
Answered by Gareth Thomas - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Department for Business and Trade works with the private sector led Invest in Women, with the shared ambition to make the UK a great place to be a female business founder. On Monday 25th November, the Taskforce celebrated successfully raising over £250 million for its funding pool for women-led businesses.
The Government is determined to harness the talent and creativity of every woman in the country. The plan to 'Make Work Pay' will transform the lives of working women, including by strengthening rights to equal pay and providing protections from maternity and menopause discrimination and sexual harassment.
Asked by: Samantha Niblett (Labour - South Derbyshire)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she is taking steps to increase the number of grassroots community (a) arts and (b) music venues in rural areas.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government recognises the value of the grassroots music and arts sectors - they provide the foundation for both industries, fostering creativity, innovation and cultural expression.
The Government response to the Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee's report on grassroots music venues, published 14 November, sets out our commitment to working with the sector to support the sustainability of the entire music ecosystem. In particular, the Government is urging the live music industry to introduce a voluntary levy on tickets for stadium and arena shows, to help safeguard the future of the grassroots music sector.
Following the Autumn Budget, we are continuing to support Arts Council England’s (ACE’s) successful Supporting Grassroots Music Fund which provides grants to grassroots music venues, recording studios, promoters and festivals across England.
More generally, ACE plays an important role in supporting grassroots community arts venues through the National Portfolio and other funding schemes such as Creative People and Places and National Lottery Project Grants. ACE also has a national dialogue with rural stakeholders from across England, and uses this to inform their policy and work. ACE is committed to responding to the specific needs of rural areas, supporting artists working in rural areas, improving access for rural audiences and building partnerships for growth.
Asked by: Samantha Niblett (Labour - South Derbyshire)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what plans she has to ensure that new developments in rural areas are (a) sustainable and (b) environmentally friendly.
Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
We fully support the need for all new homes to be well designed, sustainable and environmentally friendly, including those in rural areas.
Future standards next year will set our new homes on a path that moves away from relying on volatile fossil fuels and ensures they are fit for a net zero future. These homes will be future proofed with low carbon heating and high levels of energy efficiency. No further energy efficiency retrofit work will be necessary to enable them to become zero-carbon over time as the electricity grid continues to decarbonise.
Of course, the construction of new homes also results in the release of embodied carbon emissions, which come from producing, transporting, and using building materials. My department is considering the best approach to measuring and reducing these emissions.
Asked by: Samantha Niblett (Labour - South Derbyshire)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether he has had discussions with Cabinet colleagues on support for female-led spin-out tech start-ups at UK Universities.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Innovate UK are currently running an all-women cohort of their Innovation to commercialisation of university research (ICURe) programme, which will identify and support women researchers to explore commercialisation pathways that can lead to spinouts.
Supporting female tech founders and spin-out companies from our universities are important issues that I and colleagues across government are working on.
I am pleased that over time there are more female-led spin-outs, with 32% of spin-outs in 2022 having a female founder, up from 25% in 2017. However, with 68% still having all-male founders, there is still room for improvement.
Asked by: Samantha Niblett (Labour - South Derbyshire)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether he has plans to (a) identify and (b) support female-led spin-out tech start-ups in UK Universities.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Innovate UK are currently running an all-women cohort of their Innovation to commercialisation of university research (ICURe) programme, which will identify and support women researchers to explore commercialisation pathways that can lead to spinouts.
Supporting female tech founders and spin-out companies from our universities are important issues that I and colleagues across government are working on.
I am pleased that over time there are more female-led spin-outs, with 32% of spin-outs in 2022 having a female founder, up from 25% in 2017. However, with 68% still having all-male founders, there is still room for improvement.
Asked by: Samantha Niblett (Labour - South Derbyshire)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she has had recent discussions with the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government on the safety of public spaces for runners.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport regularly engages with the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government on a range of issues.
Sport and physical activity are incredibly important for our physical and mental health and this Government is committed to ensuring that everyone, regardless of background, should have access to and benefit from quality sport and physical activity opportunities in safe environments including open spaces such as parks and streets.
Asked by: Samantha Niblett (Labour - South Derbyshire)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she plans to help increase diversity in sports coaching.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government is committed to promoting diversity and inclusion in sport at all levels. We will continue to work with the sport sector to help it be inclusive and welcoming to its spectators, participants and workforce. Coaches play a hugely important role in facilitating sporting activity and acting as a source of inspiration and encouragement for people to remain active.
Sport England’s ten year strategy, Uniting the Movement, reinforces their commitment to tackling inequalities faced in sport by underrepresented groups. Sport England is investing £120 million to increase participation in sport and boost diversity at the grassroots level to give more and better opportunities to all.
Additionally, the updated Code for Sports Governance requires sports that receive substantial public funding from either UK Sport or Sport England to have detailed and ambitious diversity and inclusion action plans in place, which are published and updated annually.
Asked by: Samantha Niblett (Labour - South Derbyshire)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether he has had discussions with Cabinet colleagues on the potential merits of supporting Ukraine through the use of joint (a) technology, (b) funding and (c) research initiatives.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government recognises the key role that science, technology, and innovation will play in Ukraine’s recovery, reconstruction and future economy. The department fosters collaboration between researchers and innovators in both countries to our mutual benefit, working closely with other departments, such as Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office and Department for Business and Trade. For example, providing financial support to the UK-Ukraine Techbridge and supporting Ukrainian researchers through the Researchers at Risk Programme. We are continuing to work with partners to identify areas for future collaboration and support.