Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds Central and Headingley)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will meet with representatives from the National Education Union to discuss the 2024-2025 further education pay award for teachers.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
As part of this government’s commitment to working closely with stakeholders, my Ministerial colleagues and departmental officials meet regularly with representatives of all the education unions, including the National Education Union, to discuss a range of issues.
Further education (FE) providers are responsible for setting the pay of their teachers and government plays no role in this process.
The Autumn Budget 2024 set out the government’s commitment to skills by providing an additional £300 million revenue funding for FE to ensure young people are developing the skills this country needs. The department will set out in due course how this funding will be distributed.
Asked by: Richard Tice (Reform UK - Boston and Skegness)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of illegal immigration on (a) local law enforcement and (b) levels of police (i) funding and (ii) manpower required to tackle illegal entry-related cases.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Home Office)
This Government recognises that irregular migration is too high and that is why we are committed to restoring order to the system so that it is faster, fairer, and the rules are properly enforced.
Other Border Security partners, including Border Force, Immigration Enforcement and the National Crime Agency, lead on tackling illegal migration. As such, no specific assessment is made regarding the impact illegal migration has on law enforcement.
Asked by: Ashley Fox (Conservative - Bridgwater)
Question
To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, how much was spent on (a) new furniture and fittings and (b) other refurbishment of Ministerial offices in her Department since the dissolution of the last Parliament; and on what items this was spent.
Answered by Anneliese Dodds - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The data requested is not held centrally. The Office for Equality and Opportunity is not a standalone department, and Ministerial offices are located across various Government departments.
Asked by: Chris Vince (Labour (Co-op) - Harlow)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps she is taking to ensure that victims of (a) violence against women and girls and (b) rape (i) receive adequate access to justice and (ii) do not have long waits for court dates.
Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
The Government was elected with a landmark mission to halve violence against women and girls (VAWG) within a decade. Timely and effective justice are central to this mission and to increasing victim confidence in the justice system.
We have announced that we will be piloting Domestic Abuse Protection Orders from November, and in the family court we will further expand the Pathfinder courts model and ensure that children and families are better supported with access to domestic abuse specialists. We have also committed to banning the creation of sexually explicit deepfakes, as well as strengthening the law to help the police better respond to the crime of spiking. These are just some of the early steps we are taking to ensure more victims see justice for these crimes. I am also working closely with my cross-government colleagues to ensure every department is focused on tackling VAWG.
For victims of rape, we have committed to fast-track rape cases through the criminal justice system, driving down waiting times for this abhorrent offence. In addition, we have announced that we plan to roll out free, independent legal advocates for victims of adult rape, ensuring that they have support to enforce their legal rights, for example in relation to use of their personal records during an investigation or in court.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool Riverside)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of changes to employer National Insurance contribution rates on third sector organisations; and whether she plans to provide further funding to support charities with these costs.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government recognises the important role charities play in our society, and has made it a priority to reset the relationship with civil society and build a new partnership to harness their full potential by developing a Civil Society Covenant recognising the sector as a trusted and independent partner.
Within the tax system, we provide support to charities through a range of reliefs and exemptions, including reliefs for charitable giving. The tax reliefs available to charities are a vital element in supporting charitable causes across the UK, with more than £6 billion in charitable reliefs provided to charities, CASCs and their donors in 2023 to 2024.
To repair the public finances and help raise the revenue required to increase funding for public services, the government has taken the difficult decision to increase employer National Insurance.
The Government recognises the need to protect the smallest businesses and charities, which is why we have more than doubled the Employment Allowance to £10,500, meaning more than half of employers with NICs liabilities either gain or see no change next year. Charities will still be able to claim employer NICs reliefs including those for under 21s and under 25 apprentices, where eligible.
The Government has committed to provide support for departments and other public sector employers for additional Employer NICs costs only. This is the usual approach the Government takes to supporting the public sector with additional Employer NICs costs, as was the case with the previous Government’s Health and Social Care Levy.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the risks associated with importing electricity from Europe.
Answered by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Electricity imports enhance security of supply by providing access to a more diverse generation pool that complements our domestic energy mix. They provide system flexibility by responding to changes in supply and demand, which is vital as we continue to integrate more renewable energy sources with intermittent generation.
In their Winter Outlook, the National Energy System Operator expects full interconnector availability for most of this winter, with 6.6GW of capacity obliged to import if needed through the Capacity Market. This is up 1.5GW from last winter and underpinned by comprehensive legal and treaty protections to ensure the market remains open.
Winter Outlook | National Energy System Operator
Asked by: Chris Hinchliff (Labour - North East Hertfordshire)
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 expanding free school transport access to include students between 16 and 19 years old.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
The department recognises that the cost and availability of public transport can be an issue for some 16 to 19 year olds when travelling to their college or sixth form, particularly for those with special educational needs (SEN) or those living in rural areas.
It is the responsibility of local authorities to put in place transport arrangements to help young people aged 16 to 19 to access education or training, as well as those aged 19 to 24 with SEN, using funds they have available locally. All local authorities have to prioritise their spending carefully.
Many local authorities do offer some form of subsidised transport. For example, in North East Hertfordshire, Hertfordshire County Council offer discounted fares to all young people, and free transport for eligible young people from low-income backgrounds, or those with education, health and care plans, to access relevant learning.
The 16 to 19 Bursary Fund can also be used for transport costs to support young people to access education and training. Schools and colleges are responsible for deciding how to distribute their bursary allocations to students and for establishing what criteria to use.
Asked by: John Glen (Conservative - Salisbury)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether the Government plans to allocate additional funding to social care organisations outside the NHS to cover proposed increases in employers national insurance contributions.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Budget will provide support for government departments and other public sector employers for additional Employer NICs costs. Private sector firms or charities, including social care providers, that are contracted by central or local Government will not be exempt from these changes.
This is consistent with the approach to previous Employer NICs changes, as was the case with the previous Government’s Health and Social Care Levy.
The government has protected the smallest businesses from the impact of the increase to employers’ National Insurance by increasing the Employment Allowance from £5,000 to £10,500, which means that 865,000 employers will pay no employer NICs at all next year.
The government will support local authority services through a real terms increase in core local government spending power of around 3.2%, including at least £600 million of new grant funding to support social care.
Asked by: Caroline Dinenage (Conservative - Gosport)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to Table 5.2 of the Autumn Budget 2024, published on 30 October 2024, for what reason the estimated revenue from the abolition of the Furnished Holiday Lettings tax regime in the 2026-27, 2027-28 and 2028-29 financial years is lower than was set out in her Department’s Tax Information and Impact Note published on 29 July 2024.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The estimated revenue from the abolition of the Furnished Holiday Lettings tax regime has been updated to reflect latest economic forecasts from the Office for Budget Responsibility and latest tax return data.
Asked by: Freddie van Mierlo (Liberal Democrat - Henley and Thame)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of the implementation of restorative justice in the criminal justice system.
Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
This Government supports the use of restorative justice, which is why, under the Code of Practice for Victims of Crime (‘the Victims’ Code’), all adult victims must be told about the option of restorative justice and how to access it. We also provide Police and Crime Commissioners with grant funding for victim support services, including restorative justice services. They are best placed to assess local need and commission services based on the needs of the population in the local area. Restorative justice can also be used as part of out of court resolutions, depending on the circumstances of the case.
We know that restorative justice can improve victim satisfaction and reduce reoffending when delivered in the right circumstances. This not only benefits the victims and the offender but also their community.