Asked by: Sarah Green (Liberal Democrat - Chesham and Amersham)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if she will make an assessment of the potential implications for her policies of the recommendations on upgrading the electricity grid in the report by Electricity Systems Operators entitled Beyond 2030, published on 19 March 2024.
Answered by Justin Tomlinson - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The network build proposed in ‘Beyond 2030’ supports the connection of 21GW of offshore wind and other low carbon generation, covering £58 billion estimated investment into the electricity network.
Network expansion will support energy security and decarbonisation goals including connecting renewable energy to the grid, and the electrification of industry, heat and transport. The proposals will accelerate delivery of low-cost, homegrown energy to homes and businesses and reduce curtailment of renewable energy resulting from network constraints.
National Grid ESO estimates the proposals could add £15 billion to the UK economy and support over 20,000 jobs annually.
Asked by: Sarah Green (Liberal Democrat - Chesham and Amersham)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she plans to review her Department's decision to end funding for employer contributions to the teachers' pension scheme for music teachers employed by non-local authority music hubs.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
As part of the competition of the Music Hubs programme, Arts Council England informed potential bidders on 15 June 2023 that department funding would be made up of the revenue and capital grants only, and that there would not be additional funding to contribute to the cost of the Teachers’ Pension Scheme (TPS) for Music Hub lead organisations that are not local authorities from September 2024. The Arts Council also published indicative allocations for the 43 new Music Hub areas.
In light of the increase in employer contributions to TPS from April 2024, the department will take steps to determine the level of employer liability across all the newly appointed Hub Lead Organisations from September 2024. This has not been possible until recently, as applicants were informed of the outcome of the Music Hubs Investment Programme on 8 April 2024. The department will then work with Arts Council England to set final Music Hub grant allocations for the 2024/25 academic year and, as part of this work, due consideration will be given to additional pension pressures due to the increase in employer contribution to the TPS.
Asked by: Sarah Green (Liberal Democrat - Chesham and Amersham)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
What steps she is taking to increase grid capacity.
Answered by Justin Tomlinson - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Through the Transmission Acceleration Action Plan, we are halving the construction time of new transmission infrastructure from 14 years to 7, delivering the grid capacity needed for a decarbonised energy system and meet a doubling of electricity demand by 2050.
Asked by: Sarah Green (Liberal Democrat - Chesham and Amersham)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has had discussions with the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors on allegations in relation to agents working on behalf of HS2's property acquisition team.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
Officials in the Department engaged on HS2-related land and property matters meet periodically with their counterparts in RICS to update each other and to discuss issues of mutual interest. The conduct of RICS members generally and the oversight of professional standards by RICS is one issue that has been discussed, although those discussions have not narrowed to consider specifically the conduct of RICS members employed by or otherwise contracted to HS2 Ltd. Neither the Department nor HS2 Ltd has received any notification of an investigation by RICS into HS2 Ltd or its suppliers. The Department and HS2 Ltd would always give RICS their full support in the event of any allegations being raised.
Asked by: Sarah Green (Liberal Democrat - Chesham and Amersham)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to ensure good practice by agents working for HS2's property acquisition team.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The Department expects any agent contracted to HS2 Ltd to maintain high professional standards. As members of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), HS2 Ltd’s suppliers must adhere to the RICS rules of conduct and any RICS professional statements relevant to the advice they provide. HS2 Ltd continuously monitors supplier performance through regular case review meetings and supplier relationship management meetings.
Asked by: Sarah Green (Liberal Democrat - Chesham and Amersham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether he is taking steps to help support children in Gaza who have been orphaned in the conflict.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
We have been clear that there must be a reduction in civilian casualties. All parties must act within International Humanitarian Law. We want to see Israel take greater care to limit its operations to military targets and avoid harming civilians, in particular children, and destroying homes. We are calling for an immediate pause to get aid in and hostages out, then progress towards a sustainable, permanent ceasefire, without a return to destruction, fighting and loss of life.
We are directly funding UNICEF and the Red Cross to provide vital support for children's health in Gaza and the Occupied Palestinian Territories, including mental health services, medical care, essential supplies, food security, nutrition, clean water, shelter and other humanitarian assistance.
For UNICEF specifically, we have provided targeted support for children through a £5.75 million contribution, part of our wider £60 million humanitarian uplift. This is supporting their work to assist over 5,800 children with severe malnourishment and 853,000 children, adolescents and caregivers affected by the conflict, to receive emergency and child protection services, including mental health and psychosocial support.
Asked by: Sarah Green (Liberal Democrat - Chesham and Amersham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether he is taking steps to help ensure that civilians in Gaza receive medical aid.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
We remain committed to getting humanitarian aid to the people in Gaza who desperately need it, with a focus on practical solutions that save lives. We have trebled our aid commitment this financial year and are supporting NGO and UN partners to deliver medical aid and care in the Gaza Strip. This includes support for primary healthcare, trauma and emergency care services, disease surveillance and outbreak response, and deployment of Emergency Medical Teams.
We have provided targeted support for children through a £5.75 million contribution. This is supporting work to assist over 5,800 children with severe malnourishment and 853,000 children, adolescents and caregivers affected by the conflict, to receive emergency and child protection services, including mental health and psychosocial support. At the end of February, we announced £4.25 million to the United Nations Population Fund, the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency. This support is expected to reach about 111,500 women, around 1 in 5 of the adult women in Gaza. It will support up to 100 community midwives, the distribution of around 20,000 menstrual hygiene management kits and 45,000 clean delivery kits. On 21 February, the UK and Jordan air-dropped life-saving aid to the Tal Al-Hawa hospital in northern Gaza. Four tonnes of vital supplies were provided, including medicines, fuel, and food for hospital patients and staff. We are also exploring further options to help meet the medical needs of Palestinians.
Asked by: Sarah Green (Liberal Democrat - Chesham and Amersham)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to NHS England's guidance entitled Annual assessment of integrated care boards 2022-23: supporting guidance, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of requiring (a) ICBs and (b) NHS England to consult (i) patient support groups and (ii) other stakeholders before publishing their annual report.
Answered by Helen Whately - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England conducted its first annual performance assessment of the integrated care boards (ICBs) for the 2022/23 financial year, from July 2022 to March 2023, and published supporting guidance for the ICBs. The guidance is available at the following link:
As set out in the National Health Service Act 2006 and amended by the Health and Care Act 2022, while conducting the assessments, NHS England must consult with Health and Wellbeing Boards as to how effectively the ICB has contributed to the ambitions set out in the Joint Local Health and Wellbeing Strategy. The guidance also indicates NHS England and ICBs should gather feedback from a range of relevant stakeholders, which may include:
- NHS trusts and foundation trusts;
- primary care providers;
- clinical networks and alliances;
- local Healthwatch; and
- voluntary and community sector organisations.
Asked by: Sarah Green (Liberal Democrat - Chesham and Amersham)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of requiring NHS England to provide a point of contact to receive public feedback about integrated care boards as part of the annual performance assessment process.
Answered by Helen Whately - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England conducted its first annual performance assessment of the integrated care boards (ICBs) for the 2022/23 financial year, from July 2022 to March 2023, and published supporting guidance for the ICBs. The guidance is available at the following link:
As set out in the National Health Service Act 2006 and amended by the Health and Care Act 2022, while conducting the assessments, NHS England must consult with Health and Wellbeing Boards as to how effectively the ICB has contributed to the ambitions set out in the Joint Local Health and Wellbeing Strategy. The guidance also indicates NHS England and ICBs should gather feedback from a range of relevant stakeholders, which may include:
- NHS trusts and foundation trusts;
- primary care providers;
- clinical networks and alliances;
- local Healthwatch; and
- voluntary and community sector organisations.
Asked by: Sarah Green (Liberal Democrat - Chesham and Amersham)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he has had recent discussions with his Czech counterpart on that country's initiative to procure artillery ammunition for Ukraine.
Answered by James Heappey
The UK and Czechia are closely coordinated in providing military equipment to Ukraine. UK officials are in contact with Czech colleagues on their latest proposal concerning artillery procurement, while continuing UK-led artillery ammunition procurement initiatives.