Asked by: Alex Mayer (Labour - Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions she has had with TFL on the location of the bus station at Euston station.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department for Transport is working with key partners, including Transport for London, to develop affordable plans for the Euston Station Campus.
Asked by: Lord Johnson of Marylebone (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the financial impact of the increase in employer National Insurance contributions announced in the Autumn Budget on higher education providers.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Education)
The government recognises that UK higher education (HE) creates opportunity, is an engine for growth in our economy and supports local communities. The 3.1% increase to tuition fee limits for the 2025/26 academic year will provide additional financial help for HE providers after seven years of no increases to maximum tuition fees, which has meant that fees have not kept pace with inflation. The department plans to publish an assessment of impacts, including on equality, of the planned tuition fee and student finance changes shortly.
The department is aware that HE providers will have to pay increased National Insurance contributions. As my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer set out in the Autumn Budget 2024 statement, raising the revenue required to fund public services and restore economic stability requires difficult decisions, which is why the government has asked employers to contribute more.
The Office for Students (OfS) is responsible for monitoring and reporting on the financial sustainability of the HE sector. The OfS has made its own estimate of the impacts in their update published on 15 November 2024, and the update is attached.
The department also understands the financial pressures that the sector is currently facing, which is why my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education has already taken the first step of appointing Sir David Behan as interim Chair of the OfS to oversee the important work of refocussing the OfS’s role to concentrate on key priorities, including the HE sector’s financial sustainability. The department continues to work closely with the OfS as the independent regulator of HE in England to understand the changing financial landscape.
The department knows how vital securing a sustainable future for the HE sector is for the success of students. We will set out our longer term plans for HE reform by next summer.
Asked by: Shaun Davies (Labour - Telford)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what data her Department holds on the number of (a) criminal legal aid firms and (b) duty solicitors contracted to provide legal aid in (i) Shropshire and (ii) Telford constituency for each year data is available.
Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Legal Aid Agency (LAA) is responsible for commissioning legal aid services in England and Wales.
The commissioning and monitoring of criminal legal aid services are undertaken at a national level.
Information about the number of legal aid providers contracted to provide services are published as part of the LAA’s statistics [see tables 9.1-9.8]. These statistics are used by the LAA as management information to monitor the supply of legal aid services over time, in different areas of law and different regions of England Wales.
The duty schemes serving the Shropshire and Telford constituency are the Shrewsbury and Telford schemes. There are currently 13 duty solicitors (members) in the Shrewsbury scheme, 8 duty solicitors in the Telford scheme and a total of 7 criminal legal providers across Shropshire.
The LAA is satisfied that there is adequate provision of criminal legal aid services in Telford and Shropshire, including under the relevant duty solicitor schemes operating in the area.
Asked by: Tonia Antoniazzi (Labour - Gower)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the merits of the application of the Barnett formula in Wales, in the context of HS2 spending.
Answered by Darren Jones - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The Barnett formula is simple, efficient and provides a clear and certain outcome. This is why it has stood the test of time.
The result of Barnett formula is that the Welsh Government is receiving at least 20% more funding per person than equivalent UK Government spending in the rest of the UK. That translates into over £4 billion more in 2025-26.
HS2 is a heavy rail programme. The UK Government is responsible for heavy rail infrastructure across England and Wales, so spends money on this in Wales rather than funding the Welsh Government to do so through the Barnett formula. This approach is consistent with the funding arrangements for all other policy areas reserved in Wales, as set out in the Statement of Funding Policy.
The Government remains committed to heavy rail schemes in Wales, by providing funding for both operations, maintenance and infrastructure, and enhancement schemes such as modernising Cardiff Central Station.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of increasing the funding her Department provides Visit Britain.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Funding allocations for VisitBritain are reviewed as part of the comprehensive spending review process, which in turn depends on the recent Budget. I note the Honorable Member’s bid for additional funding - and his opposition to the Budget. It is difficult to see how one can will the ends but not the means.
Asked by: Adam Jogee (Labour - Newcastle-under-Lyme)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of an international strategy for science and innovation.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Science and innovation are fundamentally international endeavours, and the Government has an open-arms approach to international science. The Government’s strategy is to strengthen ties with international partners and rebuild the UK’s reputation as a strong, reliable partner, while harnessing the power of science and technology for global benefit. This includes making the most of the UK’s association to Horizon Europe, as well as continuing to build wider international partnerships including through the International Science Partnerships Fund. The Government is also fully committed to attracting and retaining the very best scientists, innovators and entrepreneurs globally.
Asked by: Laurence Turner (Labour - Birmingham Northfield)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to page 8 of the Network Rail publication entitled 2022 Delivery Plan Update: North West and Central, published in May 2022, what was the outturn proportion of investment milestones that were missed in that region in (a) 2022-23 and (b) 2023-24; and what were the investment milestones that were missed in that region by each item in (i) 2022-23 and (ii) 2023-24.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
There were no milestones missed for (a) Financial Year 22/23. For (b) 23/24, the outturn as a percentage for missed milestones was 2%. The two missed milestones were:
· Worcester Shrub Hill Canopies, which was the delivery of the scope of buildings work
The programme was delayed by site access and safety issues, including visibility of signals and the scope of works was increased as the assets were in a worse condition than anticipated.
· The Three Arch bridge between Cuddington and Delamere stations, which was a renewal of a 3-span bridge.
Further inspection of the asset showed that it was not in as bad condition as expected and it was deemed an inefficient use of public funds to progress with the work.
Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool Walton)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, how much his Department has spent on consultancy fees in each year since 2021.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Department for Business and Trade is a newly formed Department established in February 2023. The new department absorbed the functions of the former Department for International Trade (DIT) and some of the functions of the former Department for Business, Energy, and Industrial Strategy (BEIS).
The amount spent on consultancy by both departments are as follows:
Year | DIT | BEIS |
2021 | £5,782 | £636,000 |
2022 | £380,000 | £587,000 |
2023 | £865,000 | £649,000 |
The Department publishes its annual expenditure on consultancy in its Annual Report and Accounts.
Asked by: Jess Brown-Fuller (Liberal Democrat - Chichester)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of limiting the use of limonene in commercial aerosol products.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The safety of commercial aerosols is regulated by the General Product Safety Regulation (GPSR), and other sector specific regulations. GPSR provides a baseline of safety for applicable products, requiring that only safe products, can be sold. Additionally, limonene is also used in cosmetics and is included in the list of restricted ingredients under the UK Cosmetic Regulation.
The government is confident that the current restrictions on limonene are sufficient to ensure that products are safe. However, to ensure that products remain safe, the government keeps the regulatory framework under constant review, including the use of specific chemicals in particular products.
Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is the policy of the Pensions Regulator for using the term "gender" in place of the Equality Act 2010's terms of (1) "sex", and (2) "gender reassignment" in its Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Pensions Regulator’s (TPR’s) strategy is wide-ranging, to ensure that it is fully inclusive and includes groups beyond the nine protected characteristics under the Equality Act 2010, that encompass sex and gender reassignment. TPR uses ‘gender’ as was defined by the Office of National Statistics at the time the strategy was published, and will review their EDI Policy at the point of strategy refresh or when ONS issue new guidance, if earlier.