Vikki Slade

The statutory relationships, sex and health education (RSHE) guidance, which sets out the specific topics pupils should be taught, makes clear that teachers should be aware of common adverse childhood experiences and understand when and how these may be affecting their pupils. This will help teachers to tailor their lessons accordingly, taking decisions on appropriate resources and support to enable them to teach the curriculum effectively. Teachers are free to draw on the support and expertise of subject associations and other providers of curriculum support. The RSHE statutory guidance can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/relationships-education-relationships-and-sex-education-rse-and-health-education.

The RSHE statutory guidance is currently under review. The department is looking carefully at responses to the public consultation conducted last year, considering the relevant evidence and discussing with stakeholders before setting out next steps to make sure the guidance draws from the best available evidence. As part of this process, the department will explore whether additional content is required, including on grief education and bereavement.

The government is committed to 1.5 million homes being built across this Parliament while spreading opportunities and economic growth supported by a strong skills system.

The department is working closely with industry and across Whitehall on this ambition, including with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, the Department for Business and Trade and the Department for Work and Pensions to understand skill needs and how to address them.

The department has made early progress on expanding the skills offer with the announcement of Construction and Industry Training Board and National Housebuilding Council funding worth £140 million, to deliver up to 32 Homebuilding Skills Hubs and to make 5,000 more construction apprenticeships available, making use of existing flexibilities in our apprenticeships system to help businesses get the skilled workers they need more quickly.

There are 96 high quality apprenticeship standards in the construction and the built environment sector approved for delivery across levels 2 to 6 to support employers and apprentices to develop the skills they need, with three apprenticeship standards in the sector approved for delivery at level 7.

This government had a dire fiscal inheritance with a £22 billion blackhole in the nation’s finances. We are taking difficult decisions to fix the foundations of our economy and prioritise government spending where it can be most impactful, including in order to generate opportunities for young people that enable them to make a start in good, fulfilling careers. The department will therefore be asking more employers to step forward and fund a significant number of level 7 apprenticeships themselves outside of the levy-funded growth and skills offer.

The department is taking advice from Skills England, who have been engaging with employers and sector-representative organisations, including in construction, and expects to make a final decision on affected apprenticeships shortly. Learners who have started these apprenticeships will be funded through to completion and employers will continue to be able to offer these apprenticeships where they choose to do so.

This government will build a modern childcare system that supports families from the end of parental leave, right through to the end of primary school.

Childcare needs do not stop when children start school. To support parents the government will deliver free, universal breakfast clubs in every primary school in England. Free breakfast clubs will be available in up to 750 early adopter schools from April 2025 as part of a ‘test and learn’ phase in advance of a national roll out.

The government is additionally delivering the national wraparound childcare programme which has provided local authorities with more than £160 million to deliver the expansion of new before and after school places for primary school-aged children. The government’s ambition is that, by 2026, all parents and carers of primary school-aged children who need it will be able to access term-time childcare in their local area from 8am to 6pm.

The programme is designed to support local authorities to deliver their statutory duty to ensure there are sufficient wraparound childcare places and remove the additional challenges faced in local areas with shortages. Where local wraparound provision is not available, parents can request that the school their child attends considers establishing wraparound or holiday childcare through the long-standing ‘right to request’ process.

The Government is committed to transitioning to a circular economy, which will support economic growth, deliver green jobs, promote efficient and productive use of resources, minimise negative environmental impacts and help us accelerate to Net Zero. There will however still be a need for the safe and sanitary management of residual waste. In accordance with the Waste Hierarchy, sending residual waste that cannot currently be prevented, prepared for reuse, or recycled to Energy from Waste plants is preferable to disposal in landfill. We are clear however that we do not support incineration overcapacity.

Before the end of this year, the Government will publish an analysis of residual waste treatment capacity, including waste incineration, in England setting out our future capacity needs to inform future policy directions.

This is a devolved matter with regard to Scotland and Northern Ireland; hunting with dogs is a reserved matter with respect to Wales and therefore, the information provided relates to England and Wales only.

The Hunting Act 2004 makes it an offence to hunt a wild mammal with dogs except where it is carried out in accordance with the exemptions in the Act. This includes Fox Hunting.

In addition, the Government made a manifesto commitment to ban Trail Hunting as part of a set of measures to improve animal welfare. Work to determine the best approach for doing so is ongoing. Further announcements will be made in due course.

The Animal Welfare Committee’s updated Opinion on the welfare of farmed fish at the time of killing was published last year. A GB-wide farmed trout joint Government and industry working group is now examining the issues raised in the report to explore the potential options for more detailed welfare at killing requirements. The Scottish Government are also working closely with the salmon industry.

The Department has no record of meetings on this matter during the last Parliament.

Self-employed pregnant women who have paid the required Class 2 National Insurance contributions are entitled to Maternity Allowance.

As a general rule, maternity pay is primarily a health and safety provision relating specifically to pregnancy, childbirth and breastfeeding. As there is no associated period of pregnancy for adopters, they are unable to make a claim for maternity pay regardless of their employment status.

The Government very much values self-employed people who come forward to take on the challenging but rewarding role of being an adoptive parent, that is why there is provision for Local Authorities to make discretionary payments, equivalent to Maternity Allowance, to self-employed adopters who do not qualify for Statutory Adoption Pay and where they satisfy the relevant criteria. This payment is means-tested and ensures that resources are targeted at those adopters who need it most, as part of a package of post-adoption support.

Prospective adopters and the child or children that they intend to adopt are also entitled to an assessment of their family’s needs. This includes a whole host of support including discretionary means-tested financial support, advice, information and counselling, and support services.

Depending on individual circumstances, additional financial support, for example, Universal Credit, Child Benefit and the Sure Start Maternity Grant (a lump sum payment of £500) may also be available to new parents.

The Government has committed to a review of parental leave to ensure that it best supports working families. Work is already underway on planning for its delivery.

This Government is committed to pensioners – everyone in our society, no matter their working history or savings deserves a comfortable and dignified retirement.

The State Pension is the foundation of income in retirement and will remain so protecting 12 million pensioners through the triple lock. Based on current forecasts, the full rate of the new state pension is set to increase by around £1,700 over the course of this Parliament.

We are also providing support for pensioners through our Warm Homes Plan which will transform homes across the country by making them cleaner and cheaper to run. We will offer grants and low interest loans to support investment in insulation, low carbon heating and other home improvements to cut bills. We have also announced a new Warm Homes: Local Grant to help low-income homeowners and private tenants with energy performance upgrades and cleaner heating.

The Warm Home Discount scheme in England and Wales provides eligible low-income households across Great Britain with a £150 rebate on their electricity bill. This winter, we expect over three million households, including over one million pensioners, to benefit under the scheme.

The Household Support Fund is also being extended for a further six months, from 1 October 2024 until 31 March 2025. An additional £421 million will be provided to enable the extension of the Household Support Fund in England, plus funding for the Devolved Governments through the Barnett formula to be spent at their discretion, as usual.

For those with long-term illnesses, the “extra costs” disability benefits, namely Personal Independence Payment (PIP), Disability Living Allowance (DLA) and Attendance Allowance (AA), provide a tax free, non-income-related contribution towards the extra costs people with a long-term health condition can face, such as additional heating costs. They are paid monthly throughout the year. AA can be worth up to £5,600 a year and recipients are free to use their benefit according to their own priorities.

Receipt of AA can provide a passport to additional amounts in means-tested benefits (notably Pension Credit and Housing Benefit) for those on low incomes providing they meet the other eligibility criteria.

A previous consultation on pharmacy supervision was published earlier this year. The Government and devolved administrations will set out plans for the policy when it responds to that consultation, in due course.

There are currently no plans to review the list of items that formed part of the NHS England review into medicines that cannot be routinely supplied. Prescribers are free to make their own decisions on which medicines to prescribe, unless they are banned or restricted, and are held accountable for their prescribing decisions by their employer, and professional regulator. A range of prescription charge exemptions are already in place to help people on low incomes and those aged 60 years old and over.

There are no plans to review the list of medical conditions that entitle someone to apply for a medical exemption certificate to exempt people from the prescription charge.

Approximately 89% of prescription items are dispensed free of charge in the community in England, and there are a wide range of exemptions from prescription charges already in place, for which those with the greatest need may be eligible. Eligibility depends on the patient’s age, whether they are in qualifying full-time education, whether they are pregnant or have recently given birth, whether they have a qualifying medical condition, or whether they are in receipt of certain benefits or a war pension.

People on low incomes can apply for help with their health costs through the NHS Low Income Scheme. Prescription prepayment certificates (PPCs) are also available. PPCs allow people to claim as many prescriptions as they need for a set cost, with three-month and 12-month certificates available. The 12-month PPC can be paid for in instalments.

In December 2023, the Home Office published their estimated immigration impacts of the announced legal migration changes, including the restriction on bringing dependants for care workers and senior care workers. These are available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/legal-migration-statement-estimated-immigration-impacts/legal-migration-statement-estimated-immigration-impacts-accessible

This was followed by the 2024 spring Immigration Rules: impact assessment published in September 2024, which is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/changes-to-immigration-rules-impact-assessments/2024-spring-immigration-rules-impact-assessment-accessible

The Government is completely committed to ratification of the Agreement under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea on the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Marine Biological Diversity of Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ Agreement, also known as the Global Oceans Treaty or the High Seas Treaty), which is in line with our determination to reinvigorate the UK's wider international leadership on climate and nature. Work is in hand on the measures needed to implement the detailed and complex provisions of the Agreement before the UK can ratify.

The standard minimum income guarantee for a single person and couples in Pension Credit rises in line with average earnings to ensure that it maintains its relative value over time to ensure that Pension Credit (Guarantee Credit) will continue to provide a safety net for those who find themselves without an adequate income in retirement.

The government wants to ensure that individuals receive the support that they are eligible for, and we have already seen a greater than 152% increase in Pension Credit claims since the July Statement.

The previous government announced the Personal Allowance (PA) would be maintained at its current level of £12,570 until April 2028. The PA —the amount of income someone can earn before paying income tax—is currently set high enough to ensure that those pensioners whose sole income is the new State Pension or basic State Pension, and who have not deferred and do not receive protected payments, do not have to pay any income tax.

The Terrorism Protection of Premises Bill does not include a specific requirement relating to the provision of medical treatment and associated equipment.

Wider work is ongoing to strengthen Healthcare Standards. The Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC) is working with partners to put in place updated guidance for health care at events.

DHSC has also undertaken work with the National Counter Terrorism Security Office (NaCTSO) and health sector partners to help improve and standardise the contents of Public Access Trauma (PAcT) kits.

The police are able to pursue off road bikes and electric scooters when they are used anti-socially or dangerously. Any decision on whether to undertake a pursuit is an operational one for the police and should take account of the risk factors and proportionality in each situation.

The Home Office works closely with the NPCC to understand how the safety of police pursuits can be improved.

There are no plans currently to make all wildlife crimes notifiable and consequentially to include in the national crime statistics. Any non-notifiable wildlife crime reported to police can still be investigated where appropriate, as Chief Constables have operational independence to tackle the crimes that matter most to their communities.

This Government recognises the importance of tackling wildlife crime, which is why, along with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, the Home Office directly funds the National Wildlife Crime Unit to help tackle these crimes.

The National Wildlife Crime Unit (NWCU) provides intelligence, analysis and investigative assistance to the police and other law enforcement agencies across the UK to support them in investigating wildlife crime. This includes supporting cases referred by Border Force to the National Crime Agency or to individual forces. The NWCU is also the UK policing focal point for EUROPOL and INTERPOL wildlife crime activity. The NWCU uses this information to produce strategic and tactical assessments of wildlife crime across the UK.

The War Pension Scheme (WPS) compensates for any injury, illness or death which was caused by service before 6 April 2005. There are two main types of WPS awards depending on the level of disablement:

1. A gratuity is a tax free lump sum payment for disablement less than 20%
2. A war disablement pension is an ongoing tax free payment paid weekly or monthly for disablement more than 20%

Further information can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/war-pension-scheme-wps

The government is absolutely committed to tackling the issues that matter to rural communities. Places with a significant rural population will on average receive around a 5% increase in their Core Spending Power next year, which is a real terms increase. No council will see a reduction – and new funding will be available to rural areas in 2025-26 through guaranteed EPR payments.

The Rural Services Delivery Grant does not properly account for need and a large number of predominantly rural councils receive nothing from it – that’s clearly not right and a sign we need to allocate funding more effectively. The government is keen to hear from councils about how best to consider the impact of rurality on the costs of service delivery, and demand, as part of our longer term consultations on local authority funding reform.

The Government has no intention of changing local authorities’ democratic accountability for provision of social care. As set out in the English Devolution White Paper, we will reset the relationship with local government, to give the sector more autonomy and put councils on the road to recovery.

We recognise the challenges that local authorities are facing. We have listened to voices across the sector and we prioritised local government at the Budget, where we announced over £4 billion in additional funding for local government services, including £1.3 billion which will go through the Settlement.

Overall, the provisional Settlement will mean local government receives an around 3.2% increase overall in Core Spending Power. This is a real terms increase. The government has committed to provide support for departments and other public sector employers for additional employer NICs costs. This applies to those directly employed by the public sector, including local government.

We will set out further details at the provisional Settlement in December.

The Government is committed to supporting landlords to tackle the small minority of social tenants who, by cheating the system, deprive those in need of a social home.

Under existing legislation, it is a criminal offence to sub-let social housing without the landlord’s permission. The courts are also able to award the social landlord the profit the tenant has made from their unlawful sub-letting.

Social landlords are encouraged to take a proactive approach to tackling fraud in their stock. If the tenant no longer occupies the property as their only or principal home, they also risk losing their secure or assured status as a tenant and their home.

I refer the Hon Member to my answer to Question UIN 6686 on 14 October 2024.