Product Regulation and Metrology Act
(4 days, 2 hours ago)
Written StatementsRead Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business and Trade (Justin Madders)
The Product Regulation and Metrology Act (the Act) received Royal Assent on 21 July 2025. The Act will preserve the UK’s status as a global leader in product regulation, supporting businesses and protecting consumers.
The powers set out in section 1(1)(a) of the Act allow the Secretary of State to make regulations that seek to reduce or mitigate the risks presented by products. Section 1(4) of the Act sets out that, for the purposes of the Act, a product presents a risk if, when used for the purpose for which it is intended or under conditions which can reasonably be foreseen, it could:
endanger the health or safety of persons;
endanger the health or safety of domestic animals;
endanger property (including the operability of other products); or
cause, or be susceptible to, electromagnetic disturbance.
Section 1(5) of the Act requires the Secretary of State to make a statement setting out the process relating to the identification and assessment of risks in products.
Today I have published an overview of the product risk identification and assessment process that I would expect to be followed. This can be found in the updated product safety code of conduct, which sets out the legislative and non-legislative safeguards around the UK’s product safety framework, including the use of the powers in the Act. The annex entitled “Risk identification, assessment, and response” explains the process of identifying and assessing risks, as well as consideration of regulatory and non-regulatory responses. The code of conduct will be kept under review and updated as appropriate to reflect any future changes or updates to the safeguards. The updated code of conduct is available on gov.uk and copies have been placed in the Libraries of both Houses.
[HCWS881]
National Security and Investment Act: Reforms
(4 days, 2 hours ago)
Written StatementsRead Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
The Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (Pat McFadden)
Security and prosperity go hand in hand—we need a strong economy to support our security, and the investment driving our economic growth needs to be secure.
With that in mind, I am today announcing my intention to make a series of reforms to the National Security and Investment (NSI) Act 2021. These reforms are intended to keep the system up to date and transparent, and to reduce business burdens without exposing the country to greater risk.
First, I intend to remove the requirement for business to have to notify certain internal reorganisations and the appointment of liquidators, special administrators, and official receivers. These have proven to be very unlikely to present risk, and so removing these notification requirements will reduce burdens on businesses and free up Government time to focus more closely on higher-risk transactions. I will seek to bring secondary legislation to Parliament in due course.
Secondly, I am today launching a 12-week consultation on proposed updates to the notifiable acquisition regulations (“the NARs”), which set out the areas of the economy subject to mandatory notification under the NSI Act. The launch of this consultation draws from the conclusions of the statutory report I published on 19 December 2024. In response to the feedback, I will then consider what updates to take forward.
The consultation seeks views on the following proposals:
Reorganising how the NARs categorise activities in particular sectors to improve clarity. This includes creating new areas for semiconductors and critical minerals and removing them from the existing advanced materials area. The activities covered by the computing hardware area will be added to the semiconductors area.
Updating the areas for advanced materials, artificial intelligence, communications, critical suppliers to Government, data infrastructure, energy, suppliers to the emergency services, and synthetic biology.
Creating a new area to cover acquisitions in the water sector.
I expect these changes to the scope of the regulations would have a minimal overall impact on notification volumes, detailed further in the consultation document. Implementing these changes will also require secondary legislation, which I will bring to Parliament in due course.
Thirdly, I am today publishing the 2024-25 annual report alongside this package of reforms, fulfilling the requirements under section 61 of the NSI Act. A copy of the report will also be published on gov.uk.
The report shows that the Government took a decision on whether to call-in or clear all notified acquisitions within the statutory 30 working days. Of the 1,079 notifications reviewed, 95.5% were notified that no further action would be taken, and 4.5% were called in. In this reporting period, 17 final orders were issued and five called-in acquisitions were withdrawn before a decision was made.
Finally, I plan to publish more guidance in due course based on stakeholder feedback and will continue to look for ways to increase transparency in the NSI system.
[HCWS878]
Creator Remuneration from Music Streaming: Label-led Principles
(4 days, 2 hours ago)
Written StatementsRead Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
The Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (Lisa Nandy)
The UK’s music industry is a globally significant sector, recognised for its cultural and economic contribution. The UK is currently the third largest music market in the world and the second largest exporter of recorded music. This success is underpinned by the work of music creators, songwriters, composers, musicians, producers and performers, whose talent and dedication are fundamental to the strength and diversity of the sector.
In response to the 2021 Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee report on the economics of music streaming, the Government committed to addressing the concerns raised by creators and industry stakeholders about fairness, transparency and remuneration in the streaming economy.
Since then, the Government have led a comprehensive work programme that includes:
A market study conducted by the Competition and Markets Authority;
Research by the Intellectual Property Office into copyright reform; and
Workstreams focused on improving metadata and transparency.
These efforts have led to significant progress, including industry-led agreements aimed at fostering a fairer and more sustainable music ecosystem.
The final issue addressed was the remuneration of creators from music streaming. Since 2024, the Government have supported industry-led efforts to tackle concerns around low streaming royalties through the DCMS-led creator remuneration working group. This group served as a forum for constructive dialogue among key industry stakeholders. It involved representatives from the music creator community, record labels, music publishers, streaming platforms and collective management organisations, who met regularly to advance collaborative solutions and drive meaningful change.
Label-led Principles
Following a series of constructive discussions, UK record companies have now agreed to a set of voluntary measures that aim to improve remuneration outcomes for UK music creators. This includes bespoke commitments to deliver them made by the UK divisions of the world’s largest three labels, Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment and Warner Music Group, which are estimated to deliver tens of millions of pounds in new investment to support creators by 2030. These measures seek to support fair remuneration for our incredible creators, as well as enhancing the growth of our world-leading sector.
The principles announced today will complement the industry code of good practice on transparency and the industry agreement on metadata published in 2024, and mark a major milestone in the Government’s work with the music industry in response to the DCMS Committee’s 2021 report on the economics of music streaming. These principles have been developed by the British Phonographic Industry and the Association of Independent Music, and are recommended to their member organisations across the sector.
The principles include:
Support for legacy artists:
Disregarding unrecouped advances in defined circumstances;
Providing resources to promote catalogue music through streaming; and
Improving clarity on the process for contract renegotiation.
Support for songwriters:
The payment of per diems at label-organised sessions, with major labels Warner UK and Universal UK committing to a payment of £75 per day, in addition to expenses. Sony UK will fund a bespoke new songwriter support programme, in partnership with the Ivors Academy, to provide financial support and assistance to songwriters. These payments will not be charged as a recoupable cost to their advance.
Support for Session Musicians:
Increases to minimum session fees;
A review of income from broadcast and public performance; and
A commitment to convene a further meeting to address outstanding concerns.
I recognise that there are ongoing concerns, particularly in relation to session musicians. We therefore intend to convene further discussions with industry stakeholders to examine these matters in more detail.
The Government expect full delivery of these measures and will work with members of the creator remuneration working group, including the Council of Music Makers, to develop a robust monitoring process. This process will assess the extent to which the principles result in improved remuneration outcomes for creators. The Government will then consider whether further intervention is required to achieve its objective of a fair and sustainable music streaming ecosystem.
I am grateful to the BPI, the major labels and AIM for engaging constructively with this work. I want to applaud the dedication and engagement of the Council of Music Makers, including Featured Artists Coalition, the Ivors Academy, Music Managers Forum, the Music Producers Guild and the Musicians’ Union for their tireless commitment to the strength and success of their members.
Finally, I thank the Culture, Media and Sport Committee and its predecessor Committees for their role in bringing attention to this important issue. The Government remain committed to supporting a thriving UK music industry that fairly rewards its creators and continues to succeed at home and internationally.
[HCWS887]
New Nuclear: Sizewell C Investment
(4 days, 2 hours ago)
Written StatementsRead Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
The Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero (Ed Miliband)
The Government clean energy superpower mission is about replacing the UK’s dependence on fossil fuel markets with clean homegrown power that we control, to bring down bills for good and protect household finances.
As we drive for a clean power system, new nuclear can provide a backbone of reliable low-carbon electricity, working alongside expanded renewables to achieve a lower-cost, low-carbon and more secure electricity system for the long term.
That is why at the spending review, the Government announced plans to usher in a new golden age of nuclear power, with new funding for full-scale nuclear, small modular reactors, and fusion.
Central to this vision is Sizewell C. The spending review provided a £14.2 billion funding allocation to support project construction to the end of the spending period, building on the investments made since 2022, which have made the Government the majority shareholder in Sizewell C during the project’s development.
I am pleased to confirm today that—following the conclusion of the capital raise process and required Government approval—the Government have confirmed its final investment decision, the first for a new nuclear power station in the UK since Hinkley Point C’s construction was approved in 2016.
The Government have reached a commercial deal with a group of experienced equity investors: EDF, La Caisse, Centrica and Amber Infrastructure Ltd. The Government will take an initial 44.9% equity stake in the project and will be the biggest single equity shareholder. La Caisse will take a 20% stake, Centrica 15%, EDF 12.5%, and Amber Infrastructure Ltd initially 7.6%.
Alongside this investment, the National Wealth Fund—the Government principal investor and policy bank—is making its first investment in nuclear energy. It will provide the majority of the project’s debt finance. The remainder is set to be provided by a number of commercial banks lending to Sizewell C, under a proposed £5 billion guarantee from the French export credit agency Bpifrance Assurance Export.
Sizewell C Ltd plan to achieve a final capital cost for the project construction of around £38 billion (2024 prices). This cost estimate has been rigorously assessed by incoming investors as part of the financing process, and follows negotiations with the project’s supply chain as well as detailed scrutiny by the company of Hinkley Point C, the design of which Sizewell C will replicate. Delivering Sizewell C at this cost estimate would represent a saving of c. 20% on the estimated cost of Hinkley Point C.
During construction, consumer payments through our new funding model, the nuclear regulated asset base, will be limited to an average of around £1 a month on a typical household bill. This is a good deal for consumers, as demonstrated by the value for money assessment that will be published today. Once operational Sizewell C could create savings of £2 billion a year across the future low-carbon electricity system with consumers then benefiting from cheaper, clean power for decades to come.
Sizewell C will deliver this cheaper clean electricity to power the equivalent of around 6 million of today’s homes for at least 60 years. Sizewell C will also deliver major economic benefits, supporting 10,000 jobs at peak construction—and thousands more in the wider supply chain—and as it is built will create 1,500 apprenticeships. Seventy per cent. of the value of construction is set to be awarded to British businesses. Sizewell C Ltd anticipates it will have 3,500 UK companies in its supply chain, from across the entire country.
As well as its nationwide benefits, Sizewell C stands to make a lasting positive contribution to the local and regional economy, with £4.4 billion invested in the east of England during construction, 2,600 local construction jobs created in Suffolk at peak construction, and over one third of the apprentices to come from the local area.
Further details of the terms of the deal, including the project’s economic licence with modifications to use the RAB model, details of the project’s funded decommissioning programme, and a value for money assessment, will be published as a suite of documents on gov.uk.
To highlight key aspects of the project and the deal for the attention of the House, the commercial structure outlined above consolidates the Government position as the main provider of finance to Sizewell C, alongside the investment of our private partners.
Working in partnership with other shareholders, the Government will oversee the project’s progress and work closely with all those involved to ensure successful delivery. The private equity and debt lenders also provide a wealth of experience in delivering other large-scale infrastructure projects and encouraging positive commercial behaviours on the part of the company.
As noted, the project’s capital structure will be backed by the RAB funding model; this is a tried and tested approach to funding large-scale infrastructure, and the first time this approach will be used for a UK nuclear project.
The framework includes robust incentives and penalties for shareholders to ensure the project stays on track and mitigates the risk of significant overruns. These incentives include reducing investor returns if the project overruns cost thresholds set out in the economic licence. Lenders will also have levers to incentivise good governance and cost control by the shareholders, such as the ability to “lock up” shareholder dividends in certain scenarios. The company’s supply chain is also strongly incentivised to deliver to this cost estimate.
The RAB structure will be regulated by the UK’s independent energy regulator, Ofgem. Revenues will be collected from electricity suppliers by the Low Carbon Contracts Company, previously designated as the counterparty for revenue collection contracts for the purposes of the nuclear RAB model.
The outcome of the capital raise follows a competitive process involving a wide range of potential investors, and we are grateful to all parties who participated. The high level of interest demonstrates confidence in both the Government vision for nuclear power and in UK nuclear projects as an investable asset class, as well as confidence in the Government as a credible partner for delivering key infrastructure.
The deal confirmed today ends an era of delay to give Sizewell C the go-ahead. It will help secure Britain’s homegrown nuclear supply far beyond 2030, and marks a major step in the Government mission to take back control of the country’s energy supply, reduce dependence on global fossil fuel markets and protect household finances.
[HCWS880]
Prax Lindsey Oil Refinery
(4 days, 2 hours ago)
Written StatementsRead Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero (Michael Shanks)
On Monday 30 June, I made a written ministerial statement and gave an oral statement regarding the deeply disappointing news that Prax Lindsey oil refinery had entered insolvency. Today, I am updating the House on the urgent work undertaken by the official receiver to manage the situation on the Prax Lindsey site and determine next steps.
Since the refinery entered insolvency, we have worked urgently to ensure the safety of the refinery site and the security of fuel supplies, and to protect workers. This has also allowed time for bidders to express an interest in the site.
The official receiver has rigorously assessed all the bids received and concluded that sale of the business as a whole is not a credible option. Having visited some of the workers on site on 17 July, I know this will be hugely disappointing news for them, their families and the local community.
A package has been offered to all those directly employed at the refinery which guarantees jobs and pay over the coming months. The Government will also immediately fund a comprehensive training guarantee for these refinery workers, to ensure they have the skills they need, and that they are supported to find jobs—for example, in the growing clean energy workforce.
Furthermore, we understand that the official receiver continues to explore various proposals for assets. I therefore remain hopeful that a solution will be found that creates future employment opportunities at the Immingham site.
The refinery will continue to process crude for the rest of the month, and the official receiver will continue selling refined products for a number of weeks, giving buyers time to adjust their supply chains.
The former owners left the company in a poor state and gave the Government very little time to act. That is why the Energy Secretary immediately demanded that the Insolvency Service launches an investigation into their conduct and the circumstances surrounding insolvency, which is now under way, and I have repeatedly called on the owners do the right thing and provide financial support to the workforce.
[HCWS882]
River Basin Management Plans: Next Steps
(4 days, 2 hours ago)
Written StatementsRead Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Emma Hardy)
The water industry is failing. Our rivers, lakes and seas are polluted with record levels of sewage. Water pipes have been left to crumble into disrepair. We share customers’ fury at rising bills. The lack of water infrastructure is blocking economic growth and a broken regulatory system has failed customers and failed the environment.
This Government are committed to delivering the bold and necessary reforms needed to fix our water sector. Our priority is to restore our rivers, lakes and seas to good ecological health, and to put in place a planning framework that works for the environment, the public, and future generations. This Government was elected to clean up water pollution and ensure unacceptable water bill hikes can never happen again. The report of the Independent Water Commission published yesterday proposes how to do this, and the Government will set out our response in the next parliamentary Session.
In May, I confirmed that the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs will work together with the Environment Agency on how to deliver improved river basin management planning consistently with the Court of Appeal’s conclusions in Pickering Fishery Association v. Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, and committed to setting out more information in due course.
I can now set out the next phase of work to take steps consistent with the Court of Appeal judgment and provide a strong foundation for long-term reform. I am pleased to announce that DEFRA and the Environment Agency are working closely towards updating programmes of measures consistent with the judgment. The Environment Agency has already begun work to review and improve a water body level programme of measures across the country to support nationwide action to improve water quality.
To support this work, DEFRA and the Environment Agency also intend to develop a targeted, “ground up” approach to reviewing and identifying new programmes of measures in a small number of catchments. The EA plans to work with local stakeholders with knowledge of the local issues affecting their catchments and test new approaches in identifying the actions needed to improve water quality.
This represents a first step in developing an approach towards improving planning for the water environment, and will help identify where further action or reform may be required.
These steps reflect the Government’s commitment to taking forward action to improve water quality, while work proceeds on broader regulatory reforms to implement the recommendations of the Independent Water Commission.
[HCWS886]
ODA Target 2024
(4 days, 2 hours ago)
Written StatementsRead Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
The Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (Stephen Doughty)
My noble Friend the Minister of State for International Development, Latin America and Caribbean, the right hon. Baroness Chapman of Darlington, has today made the following statement:
The FCDO’s annual report and accounts 2024-25, published today, reports that in 2024, on a provisional basis, the United Kingdom did not meet its target to spend the equivalent of 0.7% of gross national income on official development assistance.
The International Development (Official Development Assistance Target) Act 2015 envisages situations in which a departure from meeting the target of spending 0.7% of GNI on ODA may be necessary, including due to economic circumstances, fiscal circumstances and circumstances arising outside the UK. The fiscal circumstances did not allow for ODA spending to be returned to 0.7% of GNI in 2024.
This Government are committed to restoring ODA spending at the level of 0.7% of GNI as soon as fiscal circumstances allow. The principles for a return will be met when, on a sustainable basis, the Government are not borrowing for day-to-day spending and underlying debt is falling. We will monitor future forecasts closely against these tests. The latest forecast from the Office for Budget Responsibility indicates that the tests will not be met in this Parliament. The Government are working hard to create the conditions to enable the ODA fiscal tests to be met by prioritising growth—stronger growth will help in time to get underlying debt down.
As required by section 2 of the 2015 Act, an unnumbered Act paper has been laid before Parliament and is in the same terms as this statement.
[HCWS888]
Overseas Territories: Illicit Finance Dialogue and Beneficial Ownership Registers
(4 days, 2 hours ago)
Written StatementsRead Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
The Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (Stephen Doughty)
In my statement of 3 July, I provided an update on progress made by our overseas territories on delivering on commitments at the Joint Ministerial Council in November 2024 on corporate transparency and beneficial ownership registers.
On 15 July, I convened a virtual illicit finance ministerial dialogue with elected leaders of the overseas territories, Ministers and senior officials and was pleased to be joined by Baroness Hodge, the Prime Minister’s anti-corruption champion.
We discussed the importance of working together to tackle the threats of illicit finance and the important role that beneficial ownership registers play as part of our toolkit.
In line with my previous statement of 3 July, we reviewed progress made in each overseas territory, and I have asked Baroness Hodge, in her capacity as the Prime Minister’s anti-corruption champion, to support me and other Ministers in working with the overseas territories to help deliver progress. As an immediate next step, Baroness Hodge will visit the British Virgin Islands to assess progress in implementing their commitments on beneficial ownership registers. She will report back to me after the summer. I will carefully consider what further steps to take in the light of this report.
Our next formal review of progress will be at the next Joint Ministerial Council scheduled in November. I and my officials will remain in close contact with the overseas territories prior to that to support completion of the commitments made previously.
I also updated overseas territory leaders and other delegates about the opportunity to work together in support of the Foreign Secretary’s illicit finance campaign and ahead of the countering illicit finance summit that is being planned in 2026.
I welcome the work of the overseas territories to implement international standards, including the Cayman Islands, which have been appointed by the Financial Action Task Force as guest members under the new regional bodies’ guest initiative.
Finally, we discussed the important role of the overseas territories in implementing and enforcing UK sanctions. I commended the efforts of the overseas territories to implement UK sanctions effectively and acknowledged the excellent progress that the overseas territories are making on building their sanctions capabilities.
I encouraged the overseas territories to strengthen their enforcement frameworks, in line with the outcomes of the UK’s own sanctions enforcement review, including by exploring introduction of civil monetary penalties for sanctions breaches in overseas territory jurisdictions and increasing information sharing on sanctions wherever possible. I underlined the ongoing Government commitment to support the overseas territories in this vital work.
[HCWS877]
Global Irregular Migration and Trafficking in Persons Sanctions Regulations 2025
(4 days, 2 hours ago)
Written StatementsRead Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
The Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (Stephen Doughty)
Today I am updating the House on the introduction of “The Global Irregular Migration and Trafficking in Persons Sanction Regulations 2025” which will be laid before Parliament in due course and will be debated after the summer recess. These regulations are subject to the made affirmative procedure for secondary legislation.
This new sanctions regime is the first of its kind anywhere in the world and aims to tackle people smuggling and human trafficking and those that enable, facilitate, promote and profit from these vile trades. It is made under powers provided to the Government by the Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act 2018 and delivers on the commitment made in my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary’s speech in the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office’s Locarno room of 9 January to bring forward legalisation to tackle this evil trade as quickly as possible.
This regime will stop criminal gangs exploiting some of the most vulnerable, to prevent them profiting from risking the lives of innocent human beings, and to stop them getting rich and committing more crime on Britain’s streets.
The regulations provide extensive new powers enabling the Government to designate persons who are involved in people smuggling, trafficking in persons and the instrumentalisation of migration for the purpose of destabilisation. Those sanctioned under the regime face being banned from entering the UK, prevented from being a UK company director, and having any assets held in the UK frozen. These powers will complement our wider efforts to break the business model of those profiting from the misery of others in this way.
This regime delivers on the Government’s commitment to use every tool available to crack down on the abominable people smugglers risking people’s lives, including in the English channel. It gives the Government new powers to take direct action against them and their enablers in the way we can already against terrorists, cybercriminals and corrupt kleptocrats.
Sanctions experts from across Government have worked in close collaboration with the Home Office and law enforcement authorities to deliver an effective and targeted sanctions regime that will help stem the finance flows of people smugglers at source and deter them from taking part in this inhuman trade.
As the world’s first sanctions regime dedicated to targeting irregular migration and organised immigration crime, it will target individuals and entities wherever they are—from countries of origin to those who smuggle migrants across borders or enable and facilitate these dangerous journeys. It will allow the Government to sanction targets along the entire smuggling and trafficking chain, including companies involved in small boat supply chains and organised immigration criminals and their enablers.
While we are proud to be leading the way on this issue, people smuggling and human trafficking are not problems the UK faces alone, but shared global challenges. We will continue to play a leading role with our international partners to combat these joint challenges, including to strengthen our sanctions co-ordination.
This is part of the Government’s resolute mission to secure our borders and crack down on irregular migration. This Government have made irregular migration a priority from the outset, and we are continuing to break new ground on innovative approaches to address the challenge, including the recently agreed groundbreaking pilot with France to detain and return migrants who arrive via small boat. The Germans have also committed to amend their criminal legislation this year to explicitly cover facilitating irregular migration to the UK. This will save lives by disrupting the dangerous small boat supply chains of criminal networks.
The sanctions regime forms part of these wider efforts to secure our borders and disrupt and deter dangerous irregular migration, complementing new powers for law enforcement, including those introduced in the Border, Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill. In the last year, this Government have more than doubled asylum decision making—a 116% increase since the election. We have also made over 35,000 returns since the election—a 13% increase compared with the same period 12 months ago. We have increased illegal working raids and arrests by 50% in the last year, with 7,130 arrests and over 10,000 raids—the first time in a 12-month period where more than 10,000 raids have taken place.
By helping to smash the people smuggling gangs and tackle irregular migration flows upstream, this regime will play an important role in delivering the Government’s plan for change on behalf of the British people.
[HCWS879]
ME/CFS Final Delivery Plan
(4 days, 2 hours ago)
Written StatementsRead Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health and Social Care (Ashley Dalton)
I am pleased to announce to the House that today the Government have published their final delivery plan for myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome.
This Government have a clear commitment to ensure that people with long-term conditions like ME/CFS can live as independently as possible and see their overall quality of life enhanced. This plan will help us take an important step towards achieving this.
ME/CFS can be an incredibly disabling condition to live with, for as many as 390,000 people living in the UK. Its fluctuating symptoms can make it difficult for those affected to take part in everyday activities, enjoy a family or social life, access services they need and engage in work or education. Those with severe or very severe ME/CFS face particular challenges, finding even the most basic daily tasks or activities impossible.
The aim of the final delivery plan for ME/CFS is to improve the experiences of those affected, with a focus on boosting research, improving attitudes and education, and enhancing care and support. The plan sets out a series of actions, which will help address the key challenges and drive forward improvements to outcomes and quality of life for people living with ME/CFS in England.
People living with ME/CFS often face stigma and misunderstanding, stemming from a lack of awareness and education about the condition. This lack of awareness and understanding can significantly impact the quality and availability of services and support for those affected.
Research too will be particularly important in helping to improve understanding of the condition, informing improved diagnosis, the development of new effective treatments and better support for patients.
In this respect, the plan sets out a long-term vision for a co-ordinated, well-funded, and inclusive research environment that reflects the complexity and severity of ME/CFS. As part of this, we will launch a new funding opportunity with a National Institute for Health and Care Research application development award focused on evaluating repurposed pharmaceutical inventions for post-acute infection syndromes and associated conditions, including ME/CFS.
On education and awareness, the plan commits to increasing knowledge of ME/CFS among public sector professionals, as well as the wider public, by ensuring that information and learning resources are up to date, publicised and signposted.
Through a range of measures, the plan also commits to: improving the quality and accessibility of health services and adult social care; appropriate and timely support for children and young people in education; and helping people with ME/CFS to find and maintain employment.
While many actions in the plan are specific to ME/CFS, others relate to wider initiatives that will benefit people with long-term conditions, including those with ME/CFS. The recently published 10-year health plan set out the three big shifts our NHS needs to be fit for the future: from hospital to community; from analogue to digital; and from sickness to prevention. Services will be moved closer to, and into, people’s homes, providing faster diagnosis and faster access to treatment for patients with long-term conditions like ME/CFS. By 2028-29, neighbourhood health teams will be organised around the needs of their patients. Joined-up working across hospitals and into community settings will be created, with multidisciplinary teams, which can provide wrap around support services.
I would like to thank the many people with ME/CFS, carers, health and care professionals, researchers and research funders, charities and patient groups, and other interested organisations and individuals who contributed to the public consultation on the interim delivery plan. Their insights into the realities of living with the condition will help ensure that the agreed actions will meet real needs and help address the health and care inequalities people living with ME/CFS can experience.
I would also like to thank members of the ME/CFS task and finish group, who so generously gave their time to contribute to the development of the plan, and for their continued support in agreeing further actions where these will be required. We have listened very carefully to group members and recognise that further work will be needed, and we will continue to build on the foundations of these actions well beyond the publication of this plan.
While the final delivery plan covers England, the devolved Governments have considered the policy implications arising from the consultation on the interim delivery plan and discussions within the task and finish group for their own nations.
A copy of the final delivery plan will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.
[HCWS884]
Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration Report: Age Assessment Checks
(4 days, 2 hours ago)
Written StatementsRead Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
The Minister for Border Security and Asylum (Dame Angela Eagle)
In the immigration White Paper, published on 12 May, we undertook to improve the robustness of the age assessment process, including exploring scientific and technological methods to ensure that adults entering the asylum or immigration system are not wrongly identified as children, or vice versa. I wish to update the House on that work today.
Accurately assessing the age of individuals is an incredibly complex and difficult task, and the Home Office has spent a number of years analysing which scientific and technological methods would best assist the current process, including looking at the role that artificial intelligence technology can play. Since coming into office, this Government have commissioned further tests and analysis to determine the most promising methods to pursue further.
Based on this work, we have concluded that the most cost-effective option to pursue is likely to be facial age estimation, whereby AI technology trained on millions of images where an individual’s age is verifiable is able to produce an age estimate with a known degree of accuracy for an individual whose age is unknown or disputed.
In a situation where those involved in the age assessment process are unsure whether an individual is aged over or under 18, or do not accept the age an individual is claiming to be, facial age estimation offers a potentially rapid and simple means to test their judgments against the estimates produced by the technology. The quality of this technology has improved rapidly, and is continuing to evolve and improve as it becomes more widely adopted by online retailers, social media websites and other companies to conduct online age verification tests.
Early assessments suggest that facial age estimation could produce workable results much quicker than other potential methods of scientific or technological age assessment, such as bone X-rays or MRI scans, but at a fraction of the cost, and with no requirement for a physical medical procedure or accompanying medical supervision.
I have therefore commissioned further work to test and trial this technology, with testing due to begin later this year, and I have commenced a procurement process, which has involved market engagement, with an invite to tender to be launched in early August, so that—subject to the results of further testing and assurance—facial age estimation could be fully integrated into the current age assessment system over the course of 2026.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Age Estimation Science Advisory Committee for the work it has carried out since 2021 to support the development and analysis of options in this area. The Home Office will continue to consult closely with experts in the field as we pursue the facial age estimation method, and will also maintain an open mind as other techniques emerge or evolve that could provide an alternative in the future.
I am also today publishing the report of the independent chief inspector of borders and immigration into the Home Office’s use of age assessments, along with the Home Office’s response to the recommendations the inspector has made. This inspection was carried out prior to the Home Office reaching its conclusions on scientific and technological methods to support the age assessment process, as set out above, and does not therefore take into account either those conclusions, or the decisions I have announced today.
[HCWS885]
Combating Ransomware
(4 days, 2 hours ago)
Written StatementsRead Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
The Minister for Security (Dan Jarvis)
Today the Government have published their response to the public consultation on our proposed measures to combat ransomware. Ransomware is the most significant cyber-crime threat of our time. I would like to thank all who responded to the consultation, the Government value the feedback.
We have seen the devastating impact that ransomware has on our businesses and society, demonstrated through the recent spate of attacks on our retail sector and healthcare providers.
During the consultation, officials held several stakeholder engagement sessions and consulted across a range of industries. There were 273 responses from critical national infrastructure, industry, academia and individuals with an interest in cyber-security who wanted to have their say on the changes we proposed.
The three measures we consulted on are:
a targeted ban on ransomware payments for the public sector and critical national infrastructure—making the essential services the country relies on the most unattractive targets for ransomware criminals;
a ransomware payment prevention regime—to increase transparency of criminal demands, and provide an opportunity to give victims not covered by the ban guidance before they decide how to respond;
and a mandatory reporting regime for all ransomware incidents—bringing ransomware out of the shadows and affording law enforcement greater intelligence on criminal activity.
We received clear support from the public to continue to develop our measures, to harden our economy from these attacks and protect our critical and essential services. They will provide our operational partners with vital intelligence to expose, detect and disrupt these criminal networks. To defend the economy and our business, we need to break the ransomware business model.
We will continue listening to and engaging with organisations from all sectors and civil society, to help develop these proposals further and to ensure they are as robust, streamlined, and effective as possible.
A copy of the Government response will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses and made available on gov.uk.
[HCWS883]