Asked by: Kieran Mullan (Conservative - Bexhill and Battle)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what progress she has made towards a free trade agreement with the US.
Answered by Greg Hands
The Government has had five rounds of negotiations so far. Almost all chapter areas are now in the advanced stages of talks, and a significant proportion of legal text has been agreed across multiple chapters.
The US is currently reviewing the progress made in the Free Trade Agreement (FTA), so far, following the appointment of the United States Trade Representative, Katherine Tai. The Government has been engaging constructively on the way the FTA can align with both countries’ commitments to Building Back Better.
An ambitious UK-US FTA can support transatlantic collaboration rebuilding from Covid-19, promoting sustainable and clean growth and women’s economic empowerment, while setting global standards in digital trade and protecting intellectual property.
Asked by: Steve Baker (Conservative - Wycombe)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what plans he has to support the erection of a memorial to remember the victims of the Transatlantic slave trade and slavery.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Shadow Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
It is not normal practice for central Government to fund new memorials and it has no current plans to establish a national memorial to the victims of the slave trade. Many organisations – public and private – are rightly able (subject to the relevant permissions) to freely propose, fund and deliver memorials marking a variety of incidents and historical moments in a way that they are best-placed to deem appropriate and sensitive.
Many successful memorials are created by a wide-range of authorities and organisations, allowing each one to respond sensitively to the particular circumstances that it seeks to commemorate.
Given the wide range of people and organisations interested in establishing memorials, it is as a general rule, for them to work with the relevant local planning authority to identify a suitable site and obtain the necessary planning permissions
Asked by: Helen Hayes (Labour - Dulwich and West Norwood)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of the erection of a memorial to the victims of the transatlantic slave trade and slavery.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Shadow Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
May I apologise for the delay in answering this question. The UK deplores the human suffering caused by slavery and the slave trade. They are among the most dishonourable and abhorrent chapters in the history of humanity.
Public and private organisations are able to propose, fund, develop and deliver memorials marking incidents and historical moments.
Asked by: Stephen Farry (Alliance - North Down)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, what recent assessment he has made of the potential merits of commissioning a memorial to remember the victims of the Transatlantic slave trade and slavery.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Shadow Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
May I apologise for the delay in answering this question. The UK deplores the human suffering caused by slavery and the slave trade. They are among the most dishonourable and abhorrent chapters in the history of humanity.
Public and private organisations are able to propose, fund, develop and deliver memorials marking incidents and historical moments.
Asked by: Lord Boateng (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the role of examination boards in promoting a better understanding of British history; and which such boards examine modules that cover (1) the history of migration, (2) the Trans-Atlantic slave trade, (3) the contribution of Black people to British history from the Roman invasion to the end of the 20th century, and (4) race relations in the UK.
Answered by Baroness Berridge
The department sets the content requirements for GCSE and A level history. Within this subject content, there is significant scope for modules that cover the history of migration, the transatlantic slave trade, and the contribution of black people to British history and race relations in the UK.
It is for awarding organisations themselves to develop specifications for GCSE and A level history that meet those requirements and for Ofqual, the independent qualifications regulator, to ensure those requirements are correctly met. As such, the department does not make assessments of the modules or module content offered by awarding organisations.
Two of the three main awarding bodies in England, OCR and AQA, provide an option to undertake a thematic study on migration in Britain, and how this country’s history has been shaped by the black and minority ethnic communities in the past. The 3rd main awarding body, Pearson, is currently developing a thematic study option on migration in Britain. Subject to Ofqual approval, this will provide more choice for schools.
Asked by: Lilian Greenwood (Labour - Nottingham South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has made an assessment of the effect on levels of (a) pedestrian and cyclist safety and (b) passenger safety of vehicle construction standards in the (i) US and (ii) UK.
Answered by Baroness Maclean of Redditch
The Department for Transport has considered the differences in the technical standards designed to provide protection for both vulnerable road users, such as pedestrians and cyclists, and vehicle occupants in the USA and the UK.
In the UK, new passenger cars and light goods vehicles must meet minimum levels of protection for pedestrian leg and head impacts, but there are no equivalent tests in the USA.
Occupant safety is more complex as there are several standards in both countries designed to improve safety for those inside vehicles. Research carried out by the European Union in preparation for the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership negotiations suggests that occupant protection in both countries is broadly similar. However, differences in both the way vehicles are categorised and the make-up of the vehicle fleets make direct comparison difficult.
Asked by: Lord Storey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the national curriculum framework includes (1) black history, and (2) content on the UK’s colonial and imperial past.
Answered by Baroness Berridge
The department is committed to an inclusive education system which recognises and embraces diversity and supports all pupils and students to tackle racism and have the knowledge and tools to do so.
The national curriculum is a framework setting out the content of what the department expects schools to cover in each subject. The curriculum does not set out how curriculum subjects, or topics within the subjects, should be taught. The department believes teachers should be able to use their own knowledge and expertise to determine how they teach their pupils, and to make choices about what they teach.
As part of a broad and balanced curriculum, pupils should be taught about different societies, and how different groups have contributed to the development of Britain, and this can include the voices and experience of Black people. The flexibility within the history curriculum means that there is the opportunity for teachers to teach about Black history across the spectrum of themes and eras set out in the curriculum. For example, at key stage 1, schools can teach about the lives of key Black historical figures such as Mary Seacole and Rosa Parks or others; and at key stage 3, cover the development and end of the British Empire and Britain’s transatlantic slave trade, its effects and its eventual abolition. The teaching of Black history need not be limited to these examples
It is important that pupils are taught how Britain has influenced and been influenced by the wider world. A balanced history curriculum equips pupils to ask perceptive questions, to think critically, to weigh evidence, sift arguments, and develop perspective and judgement. Fundamentally, it supports pupils to understand how Britain became the country it is today.
There is also scope to include Black and minority ethnic history and experience in other curriculums, such as in:
Citizenship: At key stage 4, students should be taught about the diverse national, regional, religious and ethnic identities in the United Kingdom and the need for mutual respect and understanding.
PSHE: Schools have flexibility to teach topics such as Black history as part of their Personal, Social, Health and Economic education (PSHE) programme and through the introduction of Relationships Education, Relationships and Sex Education and Health Education students will be taught the importance of respectful relationships in particular how stereotypes, based on sex, gender, race, religion, sexual orientation or disability, can cause damage.
Asked by: Darren Henry (Conservative - Broxtowe)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department has taken to include Black British history in the national curriculum for primary and secondary school pupils.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Department is committed to an inclusive education system which recognises and embraces diversity and supports all pupils and students to tackle racism and have the knowledge and tools to do so.
The national curriculum is a framework setting out the content of what the Department expects schools to cover in each subject. The curriculum does not set out how curriculum subjects, or topics within the subjects, should be taught. The Department believes teachers should be able to use their own knowledge and expertise to determine how they teach their pupils, and to make choices about what they teach.
As part of a broad and balanced curriculum, pupils should be taught about different societies, and how different groups have contributed to the development of Britain, and this can include the voices and experience of Black people. The flexibility within the history curriculum means that Black British history can already be included in the teaching of the curriculum. For example, at key stage 1, schools can teach about the lives of key Black historical figures such as Mary Seacole or others; at key stage 2, pupils can be taught about Black Romans, as part of teaching that era in history or Black history within the requirement for a study of an aspect or theme in British history that extends pupils’ chronological knowledge beyond 1066; and at key stage 3, we give an example for a more in-depth study on the topic of the impact through time of the migration of people to, from and within the British Isles, and this key stage can include the development and end of the British Empire and Britain’s transatlantic slave trade, its effects and its eventual abolition. Additionally, local history is an element across key stages. The teaching of Black history need not be limited to these examples.
Asked by: Lord Storey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to review the National Curriculum to ensure that it (1) better reflects black history, and (2) gives a more balanced view of the UK’s colonial and imperial past.
Answered by Baroness Berridge
The department is committed to an inclusive education system which recognises and embraces diversity and supports all pupils and students to tackle racism and have the knowledge and tools to do so.
The national curriculum is a framework setting out the content of what the department expects schools to cover in each subject. The curriculum does not set out how curriculum subjects, or topics within the subjects, should be taught. The department believes teachers should be able to use their own knowledge and expertise to determine how they teach their pupils, and to make choices about what they teach.
As part of a broad and balanced curriculum, pupils should be taught about different societies, and how different groups have contributed to the development of Britain, and this can include the voices and experience of Black people. The flexibility within the history curriculum means that there is the opportunity for teachers to teach about Black history across the spectrum of themes and eras set out in the curriculum. For example, at key stage 1, schools can teach about the lives of key Black historical figures such as Mary Seacole and Rosa Parks or others; and at key stage 3, cover the development and end of the British Empire and Britain’s transatlantic slave trade, its effects and its eventual abolition. The teaching of Black history need not be limited to these examples.
Asked by: Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to add the history of the slave trade to the school curriculum.
Answered by Baroness Berridge
The history curriculum gives teachers and schools the freedom and flexibility to use specific examples from history to teach pupils about the history of Britain and the wider world. Schools and teachers can determine which examples, topics and resources to use to stimulate and challenge pupils and reflect key points in history.
There are opportunities within the themes and eras of the history curriculum for teachers and schools to teach the history of the slave trade at key stages 1 to 3. Schools can teach it at key stage 1, when teaching about events beyond living memory that are significant nationally or globally or the lives of significant individuals in the past who have contributed to national and international achievements; at key stage 2, when teaching about the Roman Empire and its impact on Britain, or a study of an aspect or theme in British history that extends pupils’ chronological knowledge beyond 1066 ; and at key stage 3, where within the theme “ideas, political power, industry and empire: Britain, 1745-1901” a specific example is given of “Britain’s transatlantic slave trade: its effects and its eventual abolition”. The local history study element within each key stage offers opportunities to teach about the slave trade in relation to Britain. The slave trade also falls within the scope of the subject content set out for GCSE History.