Simon Clarke

An important part of the Electoral Commission’s remit is to investigate whether any offences have been committed in breach of the UK’s political finance rules. It is currently investigating whether Momentum, a registered non-party campaigner at the 2017 UK Parliamentary General Election, breached campaign finance rules in relation to spending.

The Commission does not comment on live investigations. The outcome will be published in due course in accordance with the Commission’s published Enforcement Policy.

In the Spring Budget of 2017, the Government committed £5 million to support people returning to work after time out for caring. We have announced programmes for returning allied health professionals, social workers and those that want to join the Civil Service. We are gathering evidence on what works in the private sector and in Spring will publish best practice guidance for large and small employers.

DSIT attaches great importance to providing timely responses to Members’ correspondence so we apologise for the delay in these cases. We replied to case reference SC3361 on 27 March and will ensure a response is issued to SC6612 as a matter of urgency.

We are considering options for small-scale low-carbon generation beyond 2019, and a consultation on the Feed-in-Tariffs scheme will be published in due course.

Network costs are now 17 per cent lower than at the time of privatisation (excluding inflation). Operating efficiency has increased, for example, real unit operating expenditure has fallen by approximately 5.5 per cent, per annum across the electricity distribution networks since privatisation. Capital investment in the electricity networks is higher on average than the period immediately prior to privatisation. The improvements this paid for have reduced power cuts by around 40 per cent since 2002. There are also record levels of customer satisfaction with local electricity and gas distribution networks.

Electricity and gas networks are the transportation systems which convey energy from where it is produced or imported to homes and businesses. Network costs make up around a quarter of the average dual fuel bill.

Network companies are regulated by Ofgem in order to ensure that companies deliver a safe, reliable network whilst investing for the future and providing value for money for customers.

The regulation process is a matter for the independent regulator Ofgem and, by law, must be administered independently of Government.

The department publishes information on the percentage of 15 year old pupils from state-funded and special schools who entered higher education by age 19 by free school meal status, local authority and region. Figures for Middlesbrough, and Redcar and Cleveland can be found in Table 2a of the following file:

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/635104/SFR39-2017-MainTables.xlsx.

As at 31 March 2018, Ofsted inspection data shows the proportion of schools in Middlesbrough, Redcar and Cleveland:

a) There were 84% of schools in Middlesbrough classified as Good or Outstanding, and

b) There were 86% of schools in Redcar and Cleveland classified as Good or Outstanding.

The attached table shows figures for apprenticeship starts in the Middleborough South and East Cleveland constituency since the 2009/10 academic year, including data for the first three quarters of the 2017/2018 academic year (August 2017 to April 2018) as published in the FE data library: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/fe-data-library.

Information on the proportion of pupils who achieved the English Baccalaureate in each year is published at local authority, regional and national level in the 'GCSE and equivalent results in England: statistical first release' series[1]; the English Baccalaureate was first available in 2009/10. The percentage of pupils, in state-funded schools, achieving the English Baccalaureate in each academic year is provided in the attached table.

[1] https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/statistics-gcses-key-stage-4.

School-level figures for spending per pupil by local authority are published annually. The Department publishes information on income and expenditure in schools on the Schools Financial Benchmarking website, available at:

https://schools-financial-benchmarking.service.gov.uk/Help/DataSources.

To download data for all schools click on the Data Sources link and then CFR data (Consistent Financial Reporting, covering local authority maintained schools) and AAR data (Academies Accounts Return, for academy schools).

Average spending per pupil (£’s) – Local Authority Maintained schools

Source: CFR data (Consistent Financial Reporting, covering local authority maintained schools) available at:

https://www.compare-school-performance.service.gov.uk/download-data?currentstep=datatypes&regiontype=all&la=0&downloadYear=2016-2017&datatypes=spendperpupilfull.

Average spending per pupil (£’s) – Academy schools

* : Data not available

Source: AAR data (Academies Accounts Return, for academy schools) available at:

https://sat1prsfb.blob.core.windows.net/sfb/SFB_Academies_2016-17_download.xlsx.

We have introduced new safeguarding standards for all DFID programmes. I have requested and received assurances from our partners on their safeguarding policies and procedures. Internationally, we are leading the charge to raise standards. I have ensured that Oxfam’s withdrawal from bidding for funding has not impacted on beneficiaries.

We are committed to protecting UK industry where it is suffering injury as a result of dumped imports. Secondary legislation will introduce provisions to tackle those cases concerning countries where there are particular market situations. Those situations occur when it is not possible to use the domestic prices in the exporting country to calculate the dumping margin, because prices and input costs do not reflect competitive market conditions. In such cases the Trade Remedies Authority (TRA) will be able to use alternative methodologies. These alternative methodologies will include the use of export prices to an appropriate third country, provided they are representative, and will enable the TRA to construct the prices on the basis of cost of production, selling, general and admin costs and profit. Secondary legislation will also provide that the exporter’s cost data may be adjusted, where justified on a case by case basis, based on among other things prices from a representative country.

We will set out in secondary legislation examples of situations, such as where prices are artificially low, for example as a result of government intervention, where significant barter trade exists, or where non-commercial processing arrangements occur. Other economies, such as the EU and the US, have similar mechanisms in place to protect the domestic industry from unfair trade practices and the UK will be no different.

Last December the Department launched a consultation on ‘Proposals for the creation of a Major Road Network’ which closed on 19th March.

A formal consultation response will be published during summer 2018 prior to the expected launch of the Major Road Network (MRN) programme before the end of the year.

In total, it is estimated that Universal Credit will help around 250,000 people move into employment. We have not modelled the effect of Universal Credit at constituency level. On average, it works out at around 400 extra people in work in each parliamentary constituency, but UC will have a larger impact in areas with higher proportions of benefit claimants or a higher prevalence of single parents and out-of-work families.

This Government is committed to supporting the National Health Service and wider social care sector this winter, as it has throughout this year. In July, the Government announced £3 billion in additional funding, alongside £450 million for accident and emergency department upgrades and expansions. Similarly, we are supporting adult social care with a further £546 million of infection control funding over this winter. Where health policy is devolved, the devolved nations have benefitted from the appropriate Barnett consequentials.

The change in the level of National Health Service funding between 2017-18 and 2020-21 is presented in the table below.

The table below sets out National Health Service funding and real terms increases from 2013-14, when NHS England was established.

Prior to 2013-14, NHS funding was measured only through the Department’s total departmental expenditure limit (TDEL). The table below sets out TDEL from 2010-11 – 2013-14.

Notes:

- Expenditure figures from 2010-11 are on an aligned basis following the Government's Clear Line of Sight programme.

- Total expenditure is the sum of revenue + capital expenditure net of non-trust depreciation.

The funding outlined in the 2017-18 NHS Mandate represents a £8.479 billion (8.3%) real terms increase on that set out in the 2013-14 Mandate.

Iran is now one of Russia's top military backers. The Iranian regime has sent hundreds of drones to Moscow, in violation of UNSCR 2231, which have been used to attack Ukraine's critical infrastructure and kill civilians. The UK has raised this issue alongside partners at the UN Security Council on 19 October and 19 December 2022. The UK adopted new sanctions against Iranian individuals and entities involved in these transfers in October and December. The FCDO will continue to work with partners to hold Iran to account for all of its malign activity.

This Government is firmly committed to promoting and protecting the right to freedom of religion or belief around the world. Religious freedom is protected by the Nigerian Constitution and we regularly discuss with the Nigerian government, at the highest levels, our concern about threats to this right in Nigeria.

The UK fully supports the territorial integrity of Nigeria and we are committed to working with Nigeria to help tackle threats to national security. We are concerned about violent clashes in Nigeria but we do not assess that there is institutionalised persecution of the Igbo or any other peoples by the Nigerian authorities. We will continue to underline the importance of freedom of expression and the rule of law with all parties, including the Nigerian government.

The Government remains committed to levelling up opportunity across the UK, including in the Tees Valley.

At the Budget I confirmed a series of measures to level up Tees Valley’s economy:

• New investment in offshore wind ports infrastructure;
• the Teesside Freeport, which I visited with the Prime Minster on Thursday;
• and the new Treasury economic campus in Darlington.

The Tees Valley will also benefit from two new Towns Fund Deals, in Middlesbrough and Thornaby.

The government plans to establish Freeports across the UK. These will be national hubs for trade, innovation and commerce, regenerating communities across the UK. They can attract new businesses, spreading jobs, investment and opportunity to towns and cities up and down the country.

Our Freeports consultation response, published on Wednesday 7 October, sets out in more detail how Freeports will unleash the potential of ports across the country.

A free port is an area located at a port which is designated as a free zone. Section 100A of the Customs and Excise Management Act 1979 (CEMA) currently provides the legal basis for the designation of free zones by HM Treasury and will continue to do so following UK withdrawal from the EU. Applying for designation as a free zone will be a commercial decision to be taken by private operators.

Schedule 2 Part 2 Paragraph 2 of the Taxation (Cross-border Trade) Act 2018 makes provision to enable HMRC to make regulations imposing requirements in respect of goods kept in free zones designated under CEMA 1979.

A free port is an area located at a port which is designated as a free zone. Section 100A of the Customs and Excise Management Act 1979 (CEMA) currently provides the legal basis for the designation of free zones by HM Treasury and will continue to do so following UK withdrawal from the EU. Applying for designation as a free zone will be a commercial decision to be taken by private operators.

Schedule 2 Part 2 Paragraph 2 of the Taxation (Cross-border Trade) Act 2018 makes provision to enable HMRC to make regulations imposing requirements in respect of goods kept in free zones designated under CEMA 1979.

We do not routinely comment on operational or intelligence matters, however the UK will always stand up to threats from foreign nations.

Any threat made by a foreign state against individuals in the UK will not be tolerated and will be thoroughly investigated. On 16^th November, Ken McCallum, Director General of MI5, explained in his annual threat address that since January, there have been at least ten threats to kidnap or even kill UK-based individuals. Iran has established a pattern of this type of behaviour which is totally unacceptable, yet sadly typical of the regime and its lack of respect for basic rights.

Working with a range of partners, the UK government will continue to use all tools at its disposal to protect individuals in the UK against any threats from the Iranian state.

The information requested is not available from published statistics.

I note the Honourable Member references previous questions, but they are not identical. As such the information requested is not available in a reportable format and would require a manual check of individual records which could only be done at disproportionate cost.

Any foreign national who is convicted of a crime and given a prison sentence is considered for deportation at the earliest opportunity.

Section 32 of the UK Borders Act 2007 provides a statutory duty to deport a foreign national if they have been convicted of an offence in the UK and sentenced to a period of imprisonment of at least 12 months. This is subject to several exceptions, including where to do so would be a breach of a person’s ECHR rights or the UK’s obligations under the Refugee Convention.

Where a decision is made to deport, and representations are raised against that decision, an FNO is likely to be granted a right of appeal. This may be exercised in or out of country depending on the circumstances of the case.

The Home Office publishes data on Returns in the ‘Immigration Statistics Quarterly Release(opens in a new tab)’. Data on the number of Returns from the UK by return type (including enforced returns) are published in table Ret_01 of the Returns ‘summary tables(opens in a new tab)’.

The term 'deportations' refers to a legally-defined subset of returns which are enforced either following a criminal conviction or when it is judged that a person’s removal from the UK is conducive to the public good. Information on those deported is not separately available and therefore the published statistics refer to all enforced returns.

The MoJ publishes data on Appeals in the following statistical quarterly release, https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/tribunal-statistics-quarterly-july-to-september-2020(opens in a new tab).

This Government’s priority is keeping the people of this country safe and we are clear that foreign criminals should be deported from the UK wherever it is legal and practical to do so.

The information requested above is not available in a reportable format and would require a manual check of individual records which could only be done at disproportionate cost.

Any foreign national who is convicted of a crime and given a prison sentence is considered for deportation at the earliest opportunity.

Section 32 of the UK Borders Act 2007 provides a statutory duty to deport a foreign national if they have been convicted of an offence in the UK and sentenced to a period of imprisonment of at least 12 months. This is subject to several exceptions, including where to do so would be a breach of a person’s ECHR rights or the UK’s obligations under the Refugee Convention.

Where a decision is made to deport, and representations are raised against that decision, an FNO is likely to be granted a right of appeal. This may be exercised in or out of country depending on the circumstances of the case.

The Home Office publishes data on Returns in the ‘Immigration Statistics Quarterly Release’. Data on the number of Returns from the UK by return type (including enforced returns) are published in table Ret_01 of the Returns ‘summary tables’.

The term 'deportations' refers to a legally-defined subset of returns which are enforced either following a criminal conviction or when it is judged that a person’s removal from the UK is conducive to the public good. Information on those deported is not separately available and therefore the published statistics refer to all enforced returns.

The MoJ publishes data on Appeals in the following statistical quarterly release, https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/tribunal-statistics-quarterly-july-to-september-2020.

The information requested above is not available in a reportable format and would require a manual check of individual records which could only be done at disproportionate cost.

Any foreign national who is convicted of a crime and given a prison sentence is considered for deportation at the earliest opportunity.

Section 32 of the UK Borders Act 2007 provides a statutory duty to deport a foreign national if they have been convicted of an offence in the UK and sentenced to a period of imprisonment of at least 12 months. This is subject to several exceptions, including where to do so would be a breach of a person’s ECHR rights or the UK’s obligations under the Refugee Convention.

Where a decision is made to deport, and representations are raised against that decision, an FNO is likely to be granted a right of appeal. This may be exercised in or out of country depending on the circumstances of the case.

The Home Office publishes data on Returns in the ‘Immigration Statistics Quarterly Release’. Data on the number of Returns from the UK by return type (including enforced returns) are published in table Ret_01 of the Returns ‘summary tables’.

The term 'deportations' refers to a legally-defined subset of returns which are enforced either following a criminal conviction or when it is judged that a person’s removal from the UK is conducive to the public good. Information on those deported is not separately available and therefore the published statistics refer to all enforced returns.

The MoJ publishes data on Appeals in the following statistical quarterly release, https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/tribunal-statistics-quarterly-july-to-september-2020.

The information requested above is not available in a reportable format and would require a manual check of individual records which could only be done at disproportionate cost.

Any foreign national who is convicted of a crime and given a prison sentence is considered for deportation at the earliest opportunity.

Section 32 of the UK Borders Act 2007 provides a statutory duty to deport a foreign national if they have been convicted of an offence in the UK and sentenced to a period of imprisonment of at least 12 months. This is subject to several exceptions, including where to do so would be a breach of a person’s ECHR rights or the UK’s obligations under the Refugee Convention.

Where a decision is made to deport, and representations are raised against that decision, an FNO is likely to be granted a right of appeal. This may be exercised in or out of country depending on the circumstances of the case.

The Home Office publishes data on Returns in the ‘Immigration Statistics Quarterly Release’. Data on the number of Returns from the UK by return type (including enforced returns) are published in table Ret_01 of the Returns ‘summary tables’.

The term 'deportations' refers to a legally-defined subset of returns which are enforced either following a criminal conviction or when it is judged that a person’s removal from the UK is conducive to the public good. Information on those deported is not separately available and therefore the published statistics refer to all enforced returns.

The MoJ publishes data on Appeals in the following statistical quarterly release, https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/tribunal-statistics-quarterly-july-to-september-2020.

Given the seriousness of allegations made in this House, it was only right that we answered the Mayor's calls to establish a review. This was a thorough review undertaken by qualified individuals, which does result in costs to the taxpayer. When this is finalised we will make it publicly available.

It is unacceptable for leaseholders, including those in shared ownership, to have to worry about the cost of fixing historic safety defects in their buildings that they did not cause.

Where developers or building owners have been unable or unwilling to pay, we have introduced funding schemes providing £1.6 billion to accelerate the pace of work and meet the costs of remediating the highest risk and most expensive defects – ACM cladding and other unsafe cladding systems like High Pressure Laminates.

The Government is determined to remove barriers to fixing historic defects and identify financing solutions that help to protect leaseholders, including those participating in shared ownership schemes, whilst also helping to protect the taxpayer. The Government has asked Michael Wade to accelerate work on a long-term solution. We will provide an update as soon as we are in a position to do so.

As part of the Government’s commitment to tackling and preventing anti-social behaviour (ASB), the Government provided the police, local authorities and other local agencies with a range of flexible tools and powers that they can use to respond quickly and effectively to ASB through the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014.

The Ministry of Justice publishes information on prosecutions, convictions and sentencing outcomes for various criminal offences in the following data tool: Outcomes by Offence data tool: June 2022 (July 2017 to June 2022).

ASB can encompass a wide variety of behaviour and is not a specific criminal offence but can be prosecuted under a range of different offences.