Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Education on the skills and workforce required to support the transition to a more circular economy.

Answered by Emma Hardy - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The Government is committed to transitioning towards a circular economy where resources are kept in use for longer and waste is designed out. Defra recognises that skills will be an important enabler of this transition and is considering the evidence for appropriate action right across the economy.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will publish quarterly data on substantiated abuse cases in the adult social care sector, broken down by employer, visa route, and care setting.

Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

On 29 July, the Prime Minister set out his objectives to reform the social care system, and brought forward the timetable for Baroness Casey’s commission to inform that reform programme. Further information is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/pm-sets-out-new-path-to-fix-social-care-together-29-july-2026

As part of its work, the Casey Commission has been considering the best way to provide safeguards against abuse and neglect. In response to its initial recommendations on safeguarding in March, we have set up a new National Adult Safeguarding Board. The board will work to strengthen national accountability for safeguarding and will also look at how data can be used to inform action at local and national level. Further information about the board’s work is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/groups/national-adult-safeguarding-board

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many incidents of abuse or neglect involving care workers sponsored under the Health and Care visa route have been recorded since January 2023, and what steps her Department is taking to ensure robust safeguarding for elderly citizens receiving domiciliary care.

Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

On 29 July, the Prime Minister set out his objectives to reform the social care system, and brought forward the timetable for Baroness Casey’s commission to inform that reform programme. Further information is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/pm-sets-out-new-path-to-fix-social-care-together-29-july-2026

As part of its work, the Casey Commission has been considering the best way to provide safeguards against abuse and neglect. In response to its initial recommendations on safeguarding in March, we have set up a new National Adult Safeguarding Board. The board will work to strengthen national accountability for safeguarding and will also look at how data can be used to inform action at local and national level. Further information about the board’s work is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/groups/national-adult-safeguarding-board

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment she has made of the level of supervision and oversight for domiciliary care workers recruited from overseas, and whether she plans to introduce minimum supervision standards for providers employing large numbers of recently‑sponsored staff.

Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

On 29 July, the Prime Minister set out his objectives to reform the social care system, and brought forward the timetable for Baroness Casey’s commission to inform that reform programme. Further information is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/pm-sets-out-new-path-to-fix-social-care-together-29-july-2026

As part of its work, the Casey Commission has been considering the best way to provide safeguards against abuse and neglect. In response to its initial recommendations on safeguarding in March, we have set up a new National Adult Safeguarding Board. The board will work to strengthen national accountability for safeguarding and will also look at how data can be used to inform action at local and national level. Further information about the board’s work is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/groups/national-adult-safeguarding-board

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether she plans to introduce enhanced safeguarding or compliance requirements for care providers issuing more than 50 Health and Care visa sponsorships per year, in the context of recent cases involving alleged mistreatment of elderly residents.

Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

On 29 July, the Prime Minister set out his objectives to reform the social care system, and brought forward the timetable for Baroness Casey’s commission to inform that reform programme. Further information is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/pm-sets-out-new-path-to-fix-social-care-together-29-july-2026

As part of its work, the Casey Commission has been considering the best way to provide safeguards against abuse and neglect. In response to its initial recommendations on safeguarding in March, we have set up a new National Adult Safeguarding Board. The board will work to strengthen national accountability for safeguarding and will also look at how data can be used to inform action at local and national level. Further information about the board’s work is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/groups/national-adult-safeguarding-board

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he is taking to reduce administration for employers seeking to access apprenticeship and skills funding.

Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

This government continues to cut red tape so that employers and apprenticeship training providers can focus even more of their time on delivering high-quality training for learners.

To support employers to use the apprenticeship service, we have introduced a supportive onboarding process which enables training providers to complete the initial account setup for an employer. We have enhanced the ability for employers to give their provider permission to undertake most of the administrative tasks on their behalf. As a result, we have seen significant reductions to the on-boarding time for new employers, supporting apprentices to begin their training more quickly.

We are also making significant changes to the apprenticeship payment system, by removing the need for providers to submit the same data into multiple systems and removing the need for employers to manually input data. Employers will be able to approve their apprentices’ data in a single step.

In addition, the department is working with the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade to help SMEs navigate the skills system, providing SMEs with a single front door through which they can access information on the Growth and Skills Levy and SME support. We will also establish an SME forum to gather feedback and ensure these improvements continue to meet employers' needs.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure that employers are involved in the design of technical and vocational training to ensure that provision reflects workforce needs.

Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

The department is working closely with employers, providers, awarding organisations and higher education institutions to design high-quality technical and vocational qualifications that reflect workforce needs. These new qualifications will be based on occupational standards, developed by Skills England and co-created by employers, helping to define the content that students need to become competent in their chosen sector.

New V Levels and Foundation Certificates will be aligned with these occupational standards creating clear progression pathways into further study or work-based training, including apprenticeships.

T Levels and Occupational Certificates will be directly aligned to occupational standards and will support greater specialisation. They will enable students to develop the knowledge, skills and behaviours required for skilled employment in their chosen sector, and in the case of T Levels, progression to higher education.

Employers and sector experts are helping to shape nationally set qualification content through ongoing engagement as part of our subject stakeholder groups and responding to our content consultations.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he is taking to ensure that apprenticeship and skills funding provides employers with adequate flexibility to fund training to address sector-specific skills shortages.

Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

This government is transforming the Apprenticeships Levy into a new Growth and Skills Levy in England, giving employers greater flexibility, creating more opportunities for young people, and directly supporting the Industrial Strategy.

To give businesses greater flexibility and help them quickly respond to emerging skills gaps, we have launched new apprenticeship units in priority sectors such as artificial intelligence, digital, and engineering. We have also reduced the apprenticeship minimum duration to 8 months and made the English and maths requirements more flexible for adult apprentices.

We are giving businesses the stability they need to invest and create high-quality jobs across the UK through our Industrial Strategy, including investing over £1 billion for tailored sector skills packages.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what analysis he has undertaken of future skills requirements in the waste and resource management sector.

Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

The Government's latest analysis of future skills needs is set out in the Skills England annual skills report and Sectoral Skills Needs Assessments 2026, which provides an assessment of current and future skills demand and supply across ten priority sectors.

The report is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/skills-england-annual-skills-report-and-sectoral-skills-needs-assessments-2026

Skills England has not undertaken a dedicated assessment of future skills requirements in the waste and resource management sector.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of the three‑year UK residency requirement for apprenticeships on British citizens who have lived overseas due to parental employment, and whether she plans to review this policy.

Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

This Government is transforming the Apprenticeships Levy into a new Growth and Skills Levy in England, backed by £1 billion of additional investment, which will support 50,000 more young people into apprenticeships, give employers greater flexibility to develop the workforce they need, and support the industrial strategy.

The three-year residency requirement forms part of the eligibility criteria for government funded apprenticeships and is consistent with longstanding residency requirements used elsewhere in publicly funded education programmes. The apprenticeship funding rules provide that learners who are temporarily outside the UK for reasons such as employment should be considered ordinarily resident in the UK for the purposes of assessing eligibility for apprenticeship funding on their return. In addition, those aged 16 to 18 may be eligible for apprenticeship funding where they are accompanying a parent who has the right of abode. The Department keeps apprenticeship funding rules under review.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many British citizens born in the UK have not been able to access apprenticeship programmes in each of the last five years due to the three‑year residency rule, and what steps she is taking to address this.

Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

This Government is transforming the Apprenticeships Levy into a new Growth and Skills Levy in England, backed by £1 billion of additional investment, which will support 50,000 more young people into apprenticeships, give employers greater flexibility to develop the workforce they need, and support the industrial strategy.

The three-year residency requirement forms part of the eligibility criteria for government funded apprenticeships and is consistent with longstanding residency requirements used elsewhere in publicly funded education programmes. The apprenticeship funding rules provide that learners who are temporarily outside the UK for reasons such as employment should be considered ordinarily resident in the UK for the purposes of assessing eligibility for apprenticeship funding on their return. In addition, those aged 16 to 18 may be eligible for apprenticeship funding where they are accompanying a parent who has the right of abode. The Department keeps apprenticeship funding rules under review.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he plans to review apprenticeship funding rules to ensure that British citizens who did not choose to live abroad, but did so due to parental employment, have adequate access to training opportunities.

Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

This Government is transforming the Apprenticeships Levy into a new Growth and Skills Levy in England, backed by £1 billion of additional investment, which will support 50,000 more young people into apprenticeships, give employers greater flexibility to develop the workforce they need, and support the industrial strategy.

The three-year residency requirement forms part of the eligibility criteria for government funded apprenticeships and is consistent with longstanding residency requirements used elsewhere in publicly funded education programmes. The apprenticeship funding rules provide that learners who are temporarily outside the UK for reasons such as employment should be considered ordinarily resident in the UK for the purposes of assessing eligibility for apprenticeship funding on their return. In addition, those aged 16 to 18 may be eligible for apprenticeship funding where they are accompanying a parent who has the right of abode. The Department keeps apprenticeship funding rules under review.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, for what reason the Care Quality Commission took action against Radis Community Care nearly a year after the reported incident of June 2024, and whether she has made an assessment of the effectiveness of current CQC escalation procedures in cases involving alleged abuse of elderly residents.

Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Safeguarding investigations are led by local authorities. The role of the Care Quality Commission (CQC) is to share relevant information, monitor risks to people using services, and determine whether regulatory action is required within its remit.

In June 2024, following concerns raised by relatives, the CQC followed its escalation procedures by raising a safeguarding alert with the local authority. The CQC met regularly with the provider and local authority to monitor the situation, sought updates on the outcome of the safeguarding investigation, and carried out internal risk reviews to monitor and oversee the provider's four services in Portsmouth. The CQC also considered whether the matter met the threshold for criminal enforcement action against Radis Community Care (Milton Village) but concluded that it did not.