Asked by: Yasmin Qureshi (Labour - Bolton South and Walkden)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will exempt payments from the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme as income when calculating means-tested benefits.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
I refer the honourable member to the answer given on 5 December 2024 to question UIN 16635.
Asked by: Yasmin Qureshi (Labour - Bolton South and Walkden)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has made an assessment of the potential implications for her policies of the report by Together Trust and National Star entitled What comes after education? Transitions to adulthood for disabled young people, published on 8 December 2023.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
The report raises concerns around the challenges young people face when transitioning from education into adulthood, including uncertainty around post-16 options, employment and transitions to adult services. The department will consider these themes and the issues raised in the report and discuss with stakeholders as we progress our special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) reform work.
The department knows that successful transitions must be well-planned. Preparing all children and young people with SEND for adulthood is a key part of the SEND system and should begin from the earliest point. All local authorities must set out the support available to help children and young people with SEND prepare for and transition to adulthood as part of their local offer. This includes support to help children and young people move between phases of education and preparation for adult life.
For those with an education, health and care (EHC) plan, there must be a focus from year 9 onwards on preparing the young person for adulthood as part of their plan’s annual review. This focus must continue until the young person’s EHC plan ceases. Planning for the transition to adulthood should result in clear outcomes being agreed that are ambitious and stretching, and which are tailored to the needs and interests of the young person.
Asked by: Yasmin Qureshi (Labour - Bolton South and Walkden)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of pursuing an international Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty.
Answered by Kerry McCarthy - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
To date, the UK has not endorsed any specific treaty on fossil fuels, but will keep this under review. We are committed to working with all international counterparts to transition away from fossil fuels, in line with the UK’s domestic and international commitments including from the COP28 Global Stocktake.
Asked by: Yasmin Qureshi (Labour - Bolton South and Walkden)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will publish a timetable for a public consultation on the use of (a) cages for laying hens and (b) farrowing crates for pigs.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
We remain firmly committed to maintaining and improving animal welfare and want to work closely with the farming sector to deliver high standards.
The use of cages and other closed confinement systems for farmed animals is an issue which we are currently considering very carefully.
Asked by: Yasmin Qureshi (Labour - Bolton South and Walkden)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has had discussions with Cabinet colleagues on the potential merits of introducing additional regulations on the advertisement of food and drink (a) outdoors and (b) on other media platforms.
Answered by Andrew Gwynne
My Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care discusses a range of diet and obesity-related issues with Government colleagues. Supporting people to stay healthier for longer is at the heart of the Government’s Health Mission, which aims to reduce the amount of time spent in ill health, tackle health inequalities, and drive economic growth. This includes taking bold action to tackle the childhood obesity crisis and create the healthiest generation of children ever.
The Government has committed to banning junk food advertising to children. The regulations introduce a 9:00pm watershed for the advertisement of less healthy food or drink products on television, and a total restriction of paid-for advertising of these products online.
The Government welcomes the recent action that has been taken at local level to ban junk food advertising across public transport networks and public spaces that are controlled by local authorities.
Asked by: Yasmin Qureshi (Labour - Bolton South and Walkden)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what options are available to people applying for a Schengen visa who do not have access to their e-Visa due to technical issues.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
It is important for all who are travelling to check the entry, exit and transit requirements of other countries, and they may be asked to show evidence of their UK immigration status to authorities in the country they are travelling to. It is a matter for individual countries to set their own policies on what evidence they will accept but we have extensively engaged with them, through FCDO, about what the transition to eVisas mean, and continue to do so. People should check what an individual country’s requirements are before travelling or applying for a visa.
We have advised other countries that there are multiple evidence sources that they may consider accepting as proof of a person’s UK immigration status, including:
As a temporary measure, to reassure people that they will be able
to travel without any issue during the transition period, we will allow carriers such as airlines to accept a BRP or BRC which expires on or after 31 December 2024 as valid evidence of permission to travel, provisionally until 31 March 2025. This will be kept under review. They should also keep their expired BRP as it may be helpful for future applications to stay in the UK. People can use their expired BRP to create their UKVI account and access their eVisa.
We are actively resolving any technical issues as and when they arise. If anyone does have issues accessing their eVisa or UKVI account and they need to prove their UK immigration status when applying for a Schengen visa, there are several options available to them. They should check that their eVisa is correct here: Check your eVisa is correct before you travel - GOV.UK and if not, they can report an error with their eVisa using the ‘Report an error with your eVisa - GOV.UK webform. Alternatively, they can contact the UKVI Resolution Centre for assistance with technical issues related to their online immigration status, and where necessary, to verify their status through alternative means if needed.
Asked by: Yasmin Qureshi (Labour - Bolton South and Walkden)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of amending the lifelong loan entitlement to offer maintenance loans for remote learners.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The Lifelong Learning Entitlement (LLE) will deliver a transformational change to the student finance system in England, by broadening access to high-quality, flexible education and training.
All courses and modules with in-person attendance that are eligible for LLE tuition funding will also be eligible for maintenance loans. This represents an expansion of the maintenance offer for part-time learners and those studying technical courses.
Eligibility and qualifying conditions for LLE funding will broadly mirror existing policy. As such, remote learners will continue to have access to tuition fee loan funding but be out of scope of the maintenance offer. However, it is government's intention that the existing exemptions will continue to apply, for example remote learners who qualify for maintenance support due to a disability.
Decisions on student finance have had to be taken alongside other spending priorities to ensure the system remains financially sustainable. The department has therefore decided to continue targeting living costs support at courses that require students to attend their institution.
The government, and the department, will keep this policy under review.
Asked by: Yasmin Qureshi (Labour - Bolton South and Walkden)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she plans to review the School Food Standards.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
It is important that children eat nutritious food at school and the department encourages schools to have a whole school approach to healthy eating. The School Food Standards regulate the food and drink provided at lunchtime and at other times of the school day, including, for example, breakfast clubs. The School Food Standards restrict foods high in fat, salt and sugar, as well as low quality reformed or reconstituted foods. They ensure that pupils always have healthy options for their school lunch.
School governors have a responsibility to ensure compliance and should provide appropriate challenge to ensure the school is meeting its obligations.
To support governors in their role around compliance, the department, along with the National Governance Association, is running a pilot online training course on school food for governors and trustees. This launched on 4 November 2024 and will run until 1 April 2025. This will help governors to improve their understanding of the standards and give governing boards confidence to hold their school leaders to account on their whole school approach to food. The department will evaluate the training programme’s reception and effectiveness in the short term.
The department’s aim is to deliver better life chances for all through a system which works for all. As part of this, as with all government programmes, we will keep our approach to school food under continued review.
Asked by: Yasmin Qureshi (Labour - Bolton South and Walkden)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has had recent discussions with local authorities on the future of the Holiday Activities and Food programme after March 2025.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department has received its overall budget and we are now working through the details of the budget settlement. Departmental budgets for 2025/26 will be confirmed in due course, including the exact funding available for this type of support for children, young people and families during the holidays.
Asked by: Yasmin Qureshi (Labour - Bolton South and Walkden)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the Prime Minister raised Myanmar with President Xi Jinping of China during their meeting on 18 November.
Answered by Abena Oppong-Asare - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The Prime Minister raised a range of domestic and foreign issues in his meeting with President Xi at the G20 on 18 November. A read-out of this meeting is available on the GOV.UK website.