Asked by: Harriet Harman (Labour - Camberwell and Peckham)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, if she will reintroduce section 138 of the Equality Act 2010 setting out the discrimination and equal pay questionnaire procedure for the collection of information by someone who thinks they may have been unlawfully discriminated against from the person or provider who is thought to be responsible for the unlawful treatment.
Answered by Elizabeth Truss
Section 138 of the Equality Act 2010 was repealed in the Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Act 2013. The government has no plans to reinstate these provisions. Employees can still put questions to their employer or former employer concerning a claim under the Act if they wish. A Court or Tribunal may consider any relevant questions and answers as part of the evidence of the case, and may draw inferences if questions are not answered. At the time of the repeal ACAS produced a good practice guide with advice on how to do this, which can be found here: https://archive.acas.org.uk/index.aspx?articleid=4971
Asked by: Mark Menzies (Independent - Fylde)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to improve recruitment in the Armed Forces.
Answered by Lord Lancaster of Kimbolton
We are committed to maintaining the overall size of the Armed Forces. The Services are meeting all their current commitments. To help address Armed Forces manning challenges the Ministry of Defence has introduced its Armed Forces People Programme to modernise the employment offer including scope for flexible working and a new Forces' Accommodation Model. The individual Services have also implemented a wide range of programmes including:
Asked by: Jim Cunningham (Labour - Coventry South)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what recent assessment his Department has made of levels of gender diversity within the UK tech industry; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Margot James
The UK Digital Strategy set out our commitment to enabling a more diverse digital workforce. As the digital revolution progresses, many more jobs will require digital skills and many more tech roles will be created, both in technology companies and in the general economy. We cannot afford for women, who we know only make up 19% of the tech workforce (Tech Nation Report 2018), to be excluded from or unable to progress within these roles.
While there is substantial progress that still needs to be made, there are also significant initiatives aiming to solve the issue.
For example, over 270 companies, from international tech giants right through to start-ups, SMEs and charities, have already signed the Tech Talent Charter (TTC) - an industry led initiative, supported by Government. The TTC gives organisations tangible actions and principles they can adopt to change their hiring and retention practices to become more gender-diverse and commits signatories to measuring the diversity profile of their UK employees and to share this data for (anonymous) collective publication in an annual report.
There are also other industry-led programmes, across the tech ecosystem, doing valuable and innovative work to help make tech more diverse. These include the #SheMeansBusiness initiative (by Facebook in collaboration with Enterprise Nation and FSB); PWC’s Tech She Can charter, focused on getting more school-age girls to choose STEM subject and see a career in tech as a viable option for them; and Backstage Capital, which is an investment fund committed to investing in start-ups with diverse founders.
The West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) Local Digital Skills Partnership (LDSP), launched in Coventry this month, has increasing diversity built in from the start. The PWC-led Tech She Can project mentioned above has piloted their Tech We Can lesson plans in 4 schools in the Coventry area (all with very diverse and different pupil-bases), with a view to replicating and scaling the programme nationally after the pilot phase. In a similar vein, TTC has created regional ‘communities’ of tech employers to share best practice on regional diversity, with the WMCA LDSP a future regional focus for this work.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the efforts of technology companies to improve the gender and racial diversity of their staff.
Answered by Lord Ashton of Hyde
The UK Digital Strategy set out our commitment to enabling a more diverse digital workforce. As the digital revolution progresses, many more jobs will require digital skills and many more tech roles will be created, both in technology companies and in the general economy. We cannot afford for certain groups of people, including women and people from ethnic minority backgrounds, to be excluded from or unable to progress within these roles.
While there is substantial progress that still needs to be made by technology companies to improve the gender and racial diversity of their staff, there are also significant industry-led initiatives aiming to solve the issue.
Over 290 companies, from international tech giants right through to start-ups, SMEs and charities have already signed the Tech Talent Charter - an industry led initiative, supported by Government. The Charter gives organisations tangible actions and principles they can adopt to change their hiring and retention practices to become more gender-diverse and commits signatories to measuring the diversity profile of their UK employees and to share this data for (anonymous) collective publication in an annual report.
There are also other industry-led programmes doing valuable and innovative work to help more women, ethnic minorities and other under-represented groups into tech, such as the #SheMeansBusiness initiative (by Facebook in collaboration with Enterprise Nation and FSB); the FDM Getting Back to Business programme; Fujitsu UK’s work on developing diverse role models within their workforce, and Backstage Capital, which is committed to investing in start-ups with diverse founders.
We are also engaging with the work of organisations such as UK Black Tech and other organisations active in improving ethnic diversity in tech, and have recently convened an industry round table on inclusive technology in partnership with the Royal Academy of Engineers.
Under new Government legislation over 10,000 employers reported their gender pay gaps this year. We are now working with employers to help them understand their gender pay gaps, and support them to put plans in place to tackle gaps. Government is also currently consulting on the Ethnic Pay Gap and consultation responses will inform future government policy on ethnicity pay reporting.
Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what progress Tech City has made in funding tech start-ups led by (a) women and (b) BAME people.
Answered by Margot James
Tech Nation (formerly Tech City UK) does not directly fund tech start-ups, though they do run programmes such as Rising Stars, Upscale, and Future Fifty, that help start-ups access funding. They have published a report that highlights the state of diversity in the UK tech sector, and the need to do more especially for female founders. The report is available at https://technation.io/insights/diversity-and-inclusion-in-uk-tech-companies/
They have also joined a consortium with Capital Enterprise, Your Startup, Your Story (YSYS) and Diversity VC, funded by JP Morgan, that aims to double the number of female and ethnic minority founders in three London boroughs by 2020.
Meanwhile, as part of the Government’s work to increase diversity and build a Britain in which small businesses continue to thrive, Alison Rose will lead a review into barriers to female entrepreneurship, and exploring what can be done to overcome them. The review will bolster the Government’s work to make it easier for women to access the support they need to get their ideas off the ground and grow their businesses. The government will consider and respond to the findings of the review when it is published in the Spring.
Asked by: Ben Bradley (Conservative - Mansfield)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of Growth Hubs in supporting women in the East Midlands who want to (a) start and (b) grow a business.
Answered by Kelly Tolhurst
The network of 38 Growth Hubs across England provides free and impartial advice to anyone wishing to start and a grow a business. At March 2018, Local Enterprise Partnerships in the East Midlands reported that since launch their Growth Hubs have supported over 36,500 businesses; of which 3,835 received intensive support. Furthermore, East Midlands Growth Hubs have helped over 2,000 entrepreneurs start their own business since launch.
Across the UK, there are now 1.1 million women-led small and medium-sized businesses and I want to see that number grow. Access to finance is key area that can support that aim and I am pleased to report that the government-supported Start-Up Loans Company has provided loans worth nearly £436 million to those wishing to start a business, of which nearly 40% have been given to female entrepreneurs at March 2018.
Asked by: Giles Watling (Conservative - Clacton)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether he has made an assessment of the effectiveness of Growth Hubs in supporting women who want to start and grow a business; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Kelly Tolhurst
There are currently 38 Growth Hubs across England, led and governed by Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs), providing free and impartial advice and support to anyone wishing to start and a grow a business. At March 2018, Local Enterprise Partnerships have self-reported that since 2015 their Growth Hubs have helped over 26,000 entrepreneurs start their own business.
There are now 1.1 million women-led small and medium-sized businesses in the UK and I want to see that number grow. Access to finance is key area that can support that aim and I am pleased to report that the government-supported Start-Up Loans Company has provided loans worth nearly £436 million to those wishing to start a business, of which nearly 40% have been given to female entrepreneurs at March 2018.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to make it easier for female entrepreneurs to secure capital.
Answered by Lord Henley
This Government is committed to ensuring that all businesses and business owners have the right support. There are now approximately 1.2 million women-led small and medium-sized businesses in the UK.
The Government-backed British Business Bank’s Start-Up Loans provide funding and support to new entrepreneurs, of which 39% have been issued to women. The British Business Bank is also conducting research to identify ways to overcome the specific barriers faced by female-led businesses in accessing venture capital. In collaboration with the Enterprise Research Centre they are gathering data from over 50 VC firms, and are now commissioning behavioural research in this area.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the availability of funding for female entrepreneurs.
Answered by Lord Henley
This Government is committed to ensuring that all businesses and business owners have the right support. There are now approximately 1.2 million women-led small and medium-sized businesses in the UK.
The Government’s assessment is that funding, both equity and debt, is widely available to support entrepreneurs regardless of their gender. The report Small Business Finance Markets 2017/18 published by the British Business Bank notes that the value of equity investment (up 79%), asset finance (up 12%) and peer-to-peer business lending (up 51%) used by smaller businesses all showed significant growth in 2017.
There are 38 Growth Hubs across England providing support to help businesses start-up and grow. The Business Support Helpline also provides information and guidance to people across England - 45% of users in 2015/16 were women.
The Government-backed British Business Bank’s Start-Up Loans provide funding and support to new entrepreneurs, of which 39% have been issued to women. The British Business Bank is also conducting research to identify ways to overcome the specific barriers faced by female-led Businesses in accessing Venture Capital. In collaboration with the Enterprise Research Centre they are gathering data from over 50 VC firms and are now commissioning behavioural research in this area.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what funding her Department provides to support programmes to improve the economy of Egypt.
Answered by Alistair Burt
The UK is helping to address Egypt’s economic and demographic challenges as part of our support for the transition to long-term stability in North Africa. The DFID/FCO North Africa Joint Unit is responsible for assistance provided through the Conflict, Security and Stability Fund. This includes a £15 million partnership with the World Bank from 2016-2020 to create jobs and promote social inclusion; and a £2 million partnership with the International Finance Corporation over 2017-2020 to help support Egyptian start-ups and entrepreneurs. We are providing technical assistance to the Ministry of Finance and other parts of the Egyptian Government to help implement economic reforms. We are also planning to fund research into economic reform policy in Egypt.
In 2017 DFID provided a $150 million guarantee to the World Bank for a $1.15bn Development Policy Loan to Egypt, focused on supporting economic reform and promoting jobs and inclusive growth in Egypt. DFID also funds the Arab Women’s Enterprise Fund (AWEF) in partnership with the Islamic Development Bank (each providing £10 million for the region). Over five years (2015-2020), AWEF’s goal is to improve the income and well-being of 150,000 women across Egypt and Jordan by addressing systematic barriers facing different sectors of the economy. The fund has a target of 120,000 direct and indirect women beneficiaries in Egypt.