Asked by: Luke Charters (Labour - York Outer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to improve access to education, health and care plans for children with cerebral palsy in education settings.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
This government is committed to strengthening the special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) system for all children and young people, including those with cerebral palsy, to ensure they receive the right support to succeed in their education and as they move into adult life.
For too long the education system has not met the needs of all children, particularly children and young people with SEND, with parents struggling to get their children the support they need and deserve, particularly through long and difficult education, health and care (EHC) plan processes.
The department is aware that local authorities have experienced increased demand for EHC plans and the subsequent demands on workforce capacity. This government wants to ensure that EHC needs assessments are progressed promptly and plans are issued quickly in order to provide children and young people with the support they need to help them achieve positive outcomes.
Where there are concerns about a local authority’s capacity to make the required improvements, the department helps the local authority to identify the barriers and put in place an effective recovery plan.
The department is providing almost £1 billion more for high needs budgets in the 2025/26 financial year, bringing total high needs funding to £11.9 billion. This funding will help local authorities and schools with the increasing costs of supporting children and young people with complex SEND. The department has also announced £740 million of high needs capital funding for the 2025/26 financial year to invest in places for children and young people with SEND or who require alternative provision.
The department is working closely with experts on reform, recently appointing a strategic advisor for SEND, who will play a key role in convening and engaging with the sector, including leaders, practitioners, children and families as we consider next steps.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Reform UK - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the press release entitled £23 million government package to support restoration of thousands of listed places of worship, published on 22 January 2024, what the average amount claimed was for claims over £25,000 in each of the last three years.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
94% of applications between 2022-2024 have been under £25,000, and most claims are for under £5,000. In 2022/23, 2.7% of claims made to the Listed Places of Worship Scheme were over £25,000. These had a mean average claim of £49,235. In 2023/24, 2.3% of claims were over £25,000, with a mean average of £47,534. In 2024/25, 2.2% of claims were over £25,000, with a mean average of £55,119.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Reform UK - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of changes to the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme on religious buildings in South Basildon and East Thurrock constituency.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme was established to provide grants towards VAT paid on repairs and maintenance to the nation's listed places of worship. 94% of applications have been under £25,000, and most claims are for under £5,000. A total of 7 claims have been paid out to listed places of worship in South Basildon and East Thurrock, totalling £10,789, since August 2022.
Asked by: Charlie Dewhirst (Conservative - Bridlington and The Wolds)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will make it his policy to remain outside the jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice in the context of his negotiations with the EU.
Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
There has been no change in the jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice rulings in relation to the UK. We are also clear that we will not be re-joining the Single Market, the Customs Union or Freedom of Movement.
Asked by: Mark Francois (Conservative - Rayleigh and Wickford)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 12 December 2024 to Question 17774 on Ministry of Defence: Capita, whether his Department plans to conduct performance reviews of Capita’s contract in 2025.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
The Army continues to monitor Capita’s performance through the various contract management measures as set out in the Recruitment Partnering Programme contract.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what the closest island to the Chagos archipelago is that is not part of the UK deal with Mauritius.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The closest land to the Chagos group is the Maldives islands with Gan, part of Addu atoll (also known as Seenu Atoll) as the most southerly point.
Asked by: Edward Morello (Liberal Democrat - West Dorset)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to support councils (a) in West Dorset and (b) nationally to increase local special school places to reduce reliance on out-of-county placements for children with Education, Health and Care Plans.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
The department knows that many children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) struggle to find a suitable school placement that is close to their home and meets their needs. This government is committed to addressing this by improving inclusivity and expertise in mainstream schools, as well as ensuring special schools cater to children and young people with the most complex needs.
The department wants more children and young people to receive the support they need to thrive in their local mainstream school, reducing the need for pupils to travel a long way to access a specialist placement. Many mainstream settings are already going above and beyond to deliver specialist provision locally, including through resourced provision and special educational needs units.
The department is committed to ensuring special schools play a vital role in supporting those pupils with the most complex needs. The Children and Families Act 2014 requires local authorities to ensure there are sufficient school places for all pupils, including those with SEND. If a local authority identifies a shortage of special school places, resulting in a significant number of pupils needing to travel a long way to access a placement, they could consider creating or expanding provision.
My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education announced £740 million for high needs capital in 2025/26 to support children and young people with SEND or who require alternative provision. This new funding can be used to adapt classrooms to be more accessible for children with SEND, create specialist facilities within mainstream schools that can deliver more intensive support adapted to suit the pupils’ needs, alongside continuing to provide places to support pupils in special schools with the most complex needs.
Departmental officials work closely with Dorset Council to strategically oversee SEND place planning and to see what support we can provide to ensure there are sufficient high-quality SEND places in the system. We will confirm local authority allocations to West Dorset for high needs capital funding in the spring.
Asked by: Preet Kaur Gill (Labour (Co-op) - Birmingham Edgbaston)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will take steps to reduce transfer fees on family remittances.
Answered by Anneliese Dodds - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) co-convene, with Save the Children, a UK-based Remittances Working Group which works with key partners including remittance service providers, diaspora communities, NGOs, and other UK government departments to seek solutions that can drive down costs associated with sending and receiving remittances. The FCDO also supports a remittances project trialling new ways to reduce remittance transfer fees for individuals, working with East African diaspora members in the UK who are sending money back to Kenya.
Asked by: Charlie Dewhirst (Conservative - Bridlington and The Wolds)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 12 December 2024 to Question 18216 on Senior Civil Servants: Training, where the two SCS Leadership Conferences took place; and what the cost was of each event.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The two SCS Leadership Conferences were delivered as part of a wider leadership development programme. The SCS Conference (Summer 2024) took place at the DeVere Grand Connaught Room, London. The venue hire and catering for this event cost £12,520.42.
The SCS Conference (Autumn 2024) took place at The Royal Horseguards Hotel, & One Whitehall Place, London. The venue hire and catering for this event cost £11,250.00.
Asked by: Charlie Dewhirst (Conservative - Bridlington and The Wolds)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 14 January 2025 to Question 22360 on Intelligence Services: Unpaid Work, which internship schemes for (a) MI5 and (b) MI6 were open to people from white British backgrounds in 2025.
Answered by Abena Oppong-Asare - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
Details of MI5 and SIS internship schemes running in 2025 and their eligibility criteria are publicly available on Agency websites.
Across Government, individual Departments and Agencies are responsible for recruitment decisions and required to meet all obligations of relevant legislation, including the Equality Act 2010.