Asked by: Seema Malhotra (Labour (Co-op) - Feltham and Heston)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what proportion of people claiming Personal Independence Payments with covid-19 classified as their primary reason for claiming that benefit are awaiting a tribunal hearing.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
As of March 2021, a new code, ‘Coronavirus Covid-19’, has been added to the Personal Independence Payment (PIP) disability coding system in the Infectious disease, Viral disease B01-B10 section with other viral diseases.
Claimants under ‘Coronavirus Covid-19’ are a group of people who remain unwell at 12 weeks, with a wide variety of symptoms whose long-term prognosis is unknown. These people meet the diagnostic criteria for post Covid-19 syndrome. Some may recover in a few more months, some may recover over a longer time period. Others may remain unwell or become more unwell over time. Fluctuating functional impairment and wide-ranging symptoms that change over time seem to be a feature of the condition. It is those claimants who have significant functional impairment at 12 weeks who do not seem to be recovering, who may have entitlement to PIP. Claimants do not have to have had a positive test result to be diagnosed with the syndrome. Testing has not always been easily available.
For Personal Independence Payment (PIP) initial decisions made up to 30th June 2022, where ‘Coronavirus Covid-19’ was recorded as a claimant’s primary condition, there were 290 lodged appeals (8% of initial decisions) with no appeal outcome recorded by 30th September 2022.
Please note:
Asked by: Lord Kilclooney (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Common Travel Area, what is the estimated number of (1) UK citizens in the Republic of Ireland, and (2) Irish citizens in Great Britain.
Answered by Baroness Neville-Rolfe - Minister of State (Cabinet Office)
The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.
A response to the Hon. Member's Parliamentary Question of 25 January is attached.
The Rt Hon the Lord of Kilclooney
House of Lords
London
SW1A 0PW
1 February 2023
Dear Lord Kilclooney,
As National Statistician and Chief Executive of the UK Statistics Authority, I am responding to your Parliamentary Question asking further to the Common Travel Area, what is the estimated number of (1) UK citizens in the Republic of Ireland, and (2) Irish citizens in Great Britain (HL5084).
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) does not produce estimates of the number of UK citizens living in Ireland. That country’s Central Statistics Office estimated that 103,113 UK citizens were living in Ireland in April 2016 (1). Population by nationality estimates based on the Annual Population Survey (APS) show that there were an estimated 330,000 Irish nationals resident in Great Britain in June 2021 (2).
The 2021 Census for England and Wales and the corresponding Census for Scotland, which due to the Covid pandemic was delayed until 2022, asked respondents about passports held which can be used as some proxy for citizenship. The relevant Census figures have not yet been published, though the first release of data on this topic for England and Wales showed that an estimated 364,726 residents of these countries held an Irish passport but not a UK passport (3).
Yours sincerely,
Professor Sir Ian Diamond
1 https://www.cso.ie/en/releasesandpublications/ep/p-cpnin/cpnin/uk/
2 Table 2.4, https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/populationandmigration/internationalmigration/datasets/populationoftheunitedkingdombycountryofbirthandnationality
Note that data from this source below UK, EU and non-EU level should be treated with caution and not be compared with previous years due to the introduction of a new weighting methodology to reflect the change in survey operations during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. These statistics were discontinued in October 2022
3 Table TS005, https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/sources/census_2021_ts
Asked by: Toby Perkins (Labour - Chesterfield)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, if she will make an estimate of the (a) number of vacancies and (b) level of skill shortages in (i) broadcast and print media, (ii) theatres, (iii) graphic design, (iv) tourism and (v) sport and leisure.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
While DCMS does not have any estimates on the number of vacancies, the Department has published Experimental Official Statistics for skills shortages (%) in DCMS sectors and sub-sectors. These are for the year 2019, using data from the Employer Skills Survey, carried out by the Department for Education that covers England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The ESS is a biennial survey, which was delayed by a further year during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, with 2022-23 data expected to be published later this year (also currently scheduled to include Scotland).
Skills shortage vacancies are defined as vacancies unfilled because applicants did not have the necessary skills. Two measures for skills shortages are published:
Percentage of vacancies that are unfilled due to skills shortages
Percentage of businesses with at least one skills shortage vacancy
The “Percentage of businesses with at least one skills shortage vacancy” estimates are impacted by the fact that some businesses will not have had a vacancy. Therefore the “% of businesses with at least one vacancy” figure was also published to help provide context.
Sector/subsector | % of vacancies unfilled due to skills shortages | % of businesses with at least one skills shortage vacancy | % of businesses with at least one vacancy |
Audio Visual (i - Broadcast Media) | 19.2 | 2.1 | 12.0 |
Publishing (excluding translation & interpretation activities) (i - Print Media) | 10.9 | 3.2 | 11.4 |
Arts (ii) | 10.1 | 2.3 | 12.7 |
Design and designer fashion (iii) | 36.8 | 2.9 | 11.4 |
Tourism Industries (iv) | 21.2 | 6.0 | 21.9 |
Sport (v) | 30.1 | 4.4 | 17.2 |
Table 1 - Skills shortages in selected sectors. Estimates are not available directly measuring the areas requested. The sectors presented here have been provided as the closest to the requested sectors, for which DCMS have skills shortages data.
Source: DCMS Sectors Skills Shortages and Skills Gaps: 2019
Asked by: Richard Thomson (Scottish National Party - Gordon)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will take fiscal steps to support regional airports including Aberdeen Airport.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The aviation sector is an important part of the UK’s economy, and we are committed to supporting and restarting it.
At Autumn Budget 2021, the Government announced reforms to Air Passenger Duty (APD) on domestic flights in order to support UK-wide connectivity. To support connectivity, the new domestic rate will apply to all flights between airports in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland (excluding private jets) and will be set at £6.50 for economy passengers, benefitting around 9 million passengers in 2023/24.
The air transport sector has benefitted from significant pandemic related Government support. This includes support through loan guarantees, support for exporters, the Bank of England’s Covid Corporate Financing Facility and the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme. In addition, we supported regional airports through our Airports and Ground Operations Support Scheme.
Asked by: Charlotte Nichols (Labour - Warrington North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether lateral flow tests carried out at home and reported to the NHS are included in the total daily covid-19 infections statistics; and whether those test results are included on the figures given for people tested positive data section on the UK’s Summary on Coronavirus on GOV.UK.
Answered by Maggie Throup
Lateral flow device (LFD) tests reported through the National Testing Programme digital infrastructure are included in the daily statistics. If a LFD test is not registered digitally, it is not included. The data presented on the dashboard includes all de-duplicated polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test results; in England, positive rapid LFD tests that are not followed by a negative PCR test taken within 72 hours; and in Northern Ireland, all positive rapid LFD tests.
Cases for Scotland and Wales do not include those identified by LFD tests at present. Public Health Scotland is planning to incorporate this data. There are no plans to include this data in Wales.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of state for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy on the introduction of additional measures to support (a) small- and medium-sized businesses and (b) the hospitality sector following the Government's updates on the spread of the omicron covid-19 variant on 15 December 2021; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Helen Whately - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
On 21st December, the government announced £1 billion of new grant support for the hospitality, leisure and cultural sectors in England to protect jobs and businesses from the adverse impacts of the Omicron variant.
The package of support announced includes the reintroduction of the Statutory Sick Pay Rebate Scheme to help small and medium-sized employers cover the cost of Covid-related sick absences, covering up to two weeks per employee. This applies UK-wide.
The hospitality sector in England will benefit from:
The government has also announced that the devolved administrations will receive £860 million of up-front funding, to help them continue their response to Omicron. As the new cash grants are England-only, Barnett consequentials will lead to a total of around £150 million for the devolved administrations: £80 million for Scotland, £50 million for Wales, and £25 million for Northern Ireland.
HMRC also stand ready to support any business affected by the coronavirus pandemic through its Time to Pay arrangement. As part of this, businesses in the hospitality and leisure sectors in particular will be offered the option of a short delay, and payment in instalments, on a case by case basis.
The government is also waiving late filing and late payment penalties for Income Tax Self-Assessment (ITSA) taxpayers, including those in the hospitality sector, to support cashflow and ease administrative burdens. Taxpayers will not receive a late filing penalty if they file online by 28 February, and will not receive a late payment penalty if they pay their tax in full or set up a payment plan by 1 April.
This additional support is on top of the generous and wide-ranging support package already in place, which the Chancellor announced at the Spring and Autumn Budgets last year. Small and medium-sized businesses can access Government-guaranteed finance through the extended Recovery Loans scheme until June.
Businesses in the hospitality, retail and leisure sectors continue to benefit from capped business rates relief at 66% until the next financial year, when a new capped relief of 50% takes effect. Hospitality and tourism businesses also benefit from reduced VAT at 12.5% until the end of March.
Businesses will also be protected from eviction if they are behind on rent on their premises, thanks to the moratorium in place until March.
As we have done throughout the pandemic, we are closely monitoring the impact of COVID-19 on the economy. We will continue to respond appropriately and proportionately to the changing path of the virus.
Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the support required by the hospitality sector in response to the rise in the number of positive omicron covid-19 cases.
Answered by Helen Whately - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
On 21st December, the government announced £1 billion of new grant support to protect jobs and businesses in England from the adverse economic impacts of the Omicron variant. This includes targeted support for the hospitality, leisure and cultural sectors in the form of:
The government has also announced that the devolved administrations will receive £860 million of up-front funding, to help them continue their response to Omicron. As the new cash grants are England-only, Barnett consequentials will lead to a total of around £150 million for the devolved administrations: £80 million for Scotland, £50 million for Wales, and £25 million for Northern Ireland.
The government also announced that it is reintroducing the Statutory Sick Pay Rebate Scheme to help small and medium-sized employers cover the cost of Covid-related sick absences, covering up to two weeks per employee. This applies UK-wide.
HMRC also stand ready to support any business affected by the coronavirus pandemic through its Time to Pay arrangement. As part of this, businesses in the hospitality and leisure sectors in particular will be offered the option of a short delay, and payment in instalments, on a case by case basis.
The government is also waiving late filing and late payment penalties for Income Tax Self-Assessment taxpayers, including those in the hospitality and cultural sectors, to support cashflow and ease administrative burdens. Taxpayers will not receive a late filing penalty if they file online by 28 February, and will not receive a late payment penalty if they pay their tax in full or set up a payment plan by 1 April.
The additional funding announced in December is on top of the generous and wide-ranging support package already in place. Businesses in the hospitality, retail and leisure sectors continue to benefit from capped business rates relief at 66% until the next financial year, when a new capped relief of 50% takes effect. Hospitality and tourism businesses also benefit from reduced VAT at 12.5% until the end of March. Businesses in these sectors may also benefit from access to wider economic support, including the Recovery Loans Scheme and protection from eviction if they are behind on rent on their premises.
As we have done throughout the pandemic, we are closely monitoring the impact of COVID-19 on the economy. We will continue to respond appropriately and proportionately to the changing path of the virus.
Asked by: Stephanie Peacock (Labour - Barnsley East)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if the Government will provide financial support to the (a) hospitality and (b) culture sectors as levels of covid-19 infection rise.
Answered by Helen Whately - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
On 21st December, the government announced £1 billion of new grant support to protect jobs and businesses in England from the adverse economic impacts of the Omicron variant. This includes targeted support for the hospitality, leisure and cultural sectors in the form of:
The government has also announced that the devolved administrations will receive £860 million of up-front funding, to help them continue their response to Omicron. As the new cash grants are England-only, Barnett consequentials will lead to a total of around £150 million for the devolved administrations: £80 million for Scotland, £50 million for Wales, and £25 million for Northern Ireland.
The government also announced that it is reintroducing the Statutory Sick Pay Rebate Scheme to help small and medium-sized employers cover the cost of Covid-related sick absences, covering up to two weeks per employee. This applies UK-wide.
HMRC also stand ready to support any business affected by the coronavirus pandemic through its Time to Pay arrangement. As part of this, businesses in the hospitality and leisure sectors in particular will be offered the option of a short delay, and payment in instalments, on a case by case basis.
The government is also waiving late filing and late payment penalties for Income Tax Self-Assessment taxpayers, including those in the hospitality and cultural sectors, to support cashflow and ease administrative burdens. Taxpayers will not receive a late filing penalty if they file online by 28 February, and will not receive a late payment penalty if they pay their tax in full or set up a payment plan by 1 April.
The additional funding announced in December is on top of the generous and wide-ranging support package already in place. Businesses in the hospitality, retail and leisure sectors continue to benefit from capped business rates relief at 66% until the next financial year, when a new capped relief of 50% takes effect. Hospitality and tourism businesses also benefit from reduced VAT at 12.5% until the end of March. Businesses in these sectors may also benefit from access to wider economic support, including the Recovery Loans Scheme and protection from eviction if they are behind on rent on their premises.
As we have done throughout the pandemic, we are closely monitoring the impact of COVID-19 on the economy. We will continue to respond appropriately and proportionately to the changing path of the virus.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he plans to provide additional support to the hospitality sector during the most recent covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Helen Whately - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
On 21st December, the government announced £1 billion of new grant support to protect jobs and businesses in England from the adverse economic impacts of the Omicron variant. This includes targeted support for the hospitality, leisure and cultural sectors in the form of:
The government has also announced that the devolved administrations will receive £860 million of up-front funding, to help them continue their response to Omicron. As the new cash grants are England-only, Barnett consequentials will lead to a total of around £150 million for the devolved administrations: £80 million for Scotland, £50 million for Wales, and £25 million for Northern Ireland.
The government also announced that it is reintroducing the Statutory Sick Pay Rebate Scheme to help small and medium-sized employers cover the cost of Covid-related sick absences, covering up to two weeks per employee. This applies UK-wide.
HMRC also stand ready to support any business affected by the coronavirus pandemic through its Time to Pay arrangement. As part of this, businesses in the hospitality and leisure sectors in particular will be offered the option of a short delay, and payment in instalments, on a case by case basis.
The government is also waiving late filing and late payment penalties for Income Tax Self-Assessment taxpayers, including those in the hospitality and cultural sectors, to support cashflow and ease administrative burdens. Taxpayers will not receive a late filing penalty if they file online by 28 February, and will not receive a late payment penalty if they pay their tax in full or set up a payment plan by 1 April.
The additional funding announced in December is on top of the generous and wide-ranging support package already in place. Businesses in the hospitality, retail and leisure sectors continue to benefit from capped business rates relief at 66% until the next financial year, when a new capped relief of 50% takes effect. Hospitality and tourism businesses also benefit from reduced VAT at 12.5% until the end of March. Businesses in these sectors may also benefit from access to wider economic support, including the Recovery Loans Scheme and protection from eviction if they are behind on rent on their premises.
As we have done throughout the pandemic, we are closely monitoring the impact of COVID-19 on the economy. We will continue to respond appropriately and proportionately to the changing path of the virus.
Asked by: Ian Murray (Labour - Edinburgh South)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to page 49 of Scotland’s Economic and Fiscal Forecasts, published by the Scottish Fiscal Commission in December 2021, what assessment his Department has made of the implications for its policies of the increase in PAYE employees between February 2020 and October 2021 being substantially lower in Scotland than other regions and nations in the UK.
Answered by Simon Clarke
In July 2020, the Government launched the Plan for Jobs to protect, support and create jobs across the country. As demonstrated in the Plan for Jobs Progress Update, it is clear that the plan is working.
This includes the Kickstart Scheme, which funds jobs for young people at risk of long-term unemployment, to improve their chances of progressing into long-term and sustainable work. As of 5th December, around 112,000 Kickstart jobs have been started by young people across Great Britain, of which 9,730 were in Scotland.
In addition to Kickstart, the Youth Offer provides a guaranteed foundation of support to 16- and 17-year-olds on in the Intensive Work Search group on Universal Credit in Great Britain.
The Job Entry Targeted Support Scheme (JETS) provides personalised support to those in Great Britain who have been unemployed for 3-12 months. So far, JETS has supported over 176,000 jobseekers across England, Scotland and Wales, with over 43,000 job outcomes achieved.
JETS support is worth around £1,000 per claimant.
Additionally, over 910,000 jobs have been protected by the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) in Scotland since March 2020.