Asked by: Baroness Greengross (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what progress they have made towards the formation of the cross-departmental task force on older people’s housing announced in their Levelling Up White Paper, published on 2 February.
Answered by Lord Greenhalgh
This Government is committed to further improving the diversity of housing options available to older people and boosting the supply of specialist elderly accommodation.
The Older People's Housing taskforce will look at ways we can provide greater choice, quality and security of housing for older people, and support the growth of a thriving older people's housing sector in this country. This work will be taken forward in partnership with the Department of Health and Social Care. Further details about the taskforce including panel membership and scope will be confirmed in due course.
Asked by: Baroness Greengross (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of (1) whether capital funding is an effective way to incentivise the supply of housing for older people, and (2) how capital funding interacts with other factors such as planning legislation in this context.
Answered by Lord Greenhalgh
Boosting the supply of a range of specialist housing across the country is key to our aim of ensuring older people can access the right homes to suit their needs. We work closely with the Department of Health and Social Care to provide capital funding to incentivise supply.
Since 2010, we have delivered over 574,100 new affordable homes, including specialist housing for older people, through our investment in affordable housing.
We know that communities would welcome more homes, so long as they are the right sort of homes, are well designed and have the right supporting infrastructure. The Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill centres these interests, and will change the plan-making system, creating incentives to have a plan in place, with this plan having more weight in planning decisions. This will give certainty to communities and applicants about what can be built and where, supporting more permissions for development communities want.
Asked by: Baroness Greengross (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they will take to ensure that (1) older people, and (2) people with disabilities, can live in suitable housing.
Answered by Lord Greenhalgh
This Government is committed to ensuring older and disabled people can access homes that best suits their needs.
We work closely with the Department of Health and Social Care to provide capital funding to incentivise supply. This includes investing £11.5 billion in the new Affordable Homes Programme, which includes delivery of new specialist or supported housing for older, disabled and other vulnerable people. We have also committed £573 million for the Disabled Facilities Grant each year from 2022-23 to 2024-25 to support eligible older and disabled people to adapt their homes to suit their needs.
As announced in the Levelling Up White Paper, we will shortly launch a new government taskforce to look at ways we can provide better choice, quality and security of housing for older people.
Asked by: Baroness Greengross (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what consultation they had, if any, with survivors of modern slavery prior to the (1) design, and (2) implementation, of the Recovery Needs Assessment, published on 8 November 2021.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
The Government is committed to delivering tailored, needs-based support to assist victims of modern slavery in their recovery.
The Recovery Needs Assessment (RNA) was introduced on 27 September 2019. Throughout the design and implementation of the Recovery Needs Assessment we engaged with our primary support provider, The Salvation Army, and our network of specialist support providers who work closely with victims on a daily basis.
We are committed to embedding survivor voice in our policy development. In 2020 we undertook work engaging with survivors directly, to better understand their recovery needs and their experiences of the National Referral Mechanism.
We are engaging with survivors, as well as the broader sector, on a new government strategy to tackle modern slavery, alongside ongoing work to improve the victim journey through the RNA process.
Asked by: Baroness Greengross (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what consultations they had, if any, with survivors of modern slavery prior to the (1) design, and (2) implementation, of the Recovery Needs Assessment, published on 8 November 2021.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.
Asked by: Baroness Greengross (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many schools in England offered Citizenship as a standalone subject in 2009; and how many students were entered into (1) GCSE, and (2) A Level, examinations for Citizenship in that year.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department does not hold information on the subjects offered by individual schools and colleges. However, the department does publish the number of entries into GCSE Citizenship and A level Citizenship Studies, which can be used as a guide to how many schools and colleges offer these qualifications.
GCSE Citizenship was first introduced as a full course in academic year 2010/11 and the earliest national data held by the department is available for academic year 2011/12. In 2011/12, 10,474 pupils at the end of key stage 4 were entered for GCSE Citizenship and 237 schools entered pupils. In 2018/19, 18,098 pupils at the end of key stage 4 were entered for GCSE Citizenship and 570 schools entered pupils.
A level Citizenship studies became operational in September 2008 and this qualification ended operation in July 2019. There were no pupils aged 16 to 18 who were entered for A level Citizenship studies in academic years 2008/09 or 2018/19. The 2008/09 figure is not published separately but has been included as part of ‘other social studies’ up until and including 2017/18.
Asked by: Baroness Greengross (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many schools in England offered Citizenship as a standalone subject in 2019; and how many students were entered into (1) GCSE, and (2) A Level, examinations for Citizenship in that year.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department does not hold information on the subjects offered by individual schools and colleges. However, the department does publish the number of entries into GCSE Citizenship and A level Citizenship Studies, which can be used as a guide to how many schools and colleges offer these qualifications.
GCSE Citizenship was first introduced as a full course in academic year 2010/11 and the earliest national data held by the department is available for academic year 2011/12. In 2011/12, 10,474 pupils at the end of key stage 4 were entered for GCSE Citizenship and 237 schools entered pupils. In 2018/19, 18,098 pupils at the end of key stage 4 were entered for GCSE Citizenship and 570 schools entered pupils.
A level Citizenship studies became operational in September 2008 and this qualification ended operation in July 2019. There were no pupils aged 16 to 18 who were entered for A level Citizenship studies in academic years 2008/09 or 2018/19. The 2008/09 figure is not published separately but has been included as part of ‘other social studies’ up until and including 2017/18.
Asked by: Baroness Greengross (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government which Minister has responsibility for inclusive societies.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The FCDO Minister responsible for gender and equalities is Vicky Ford. I am the Minister responsible for open societies and human rights.
Asked by: Baroness Greengross (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports of the use of chemical weapons in Northern Iraq by the government of Turkey.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The United Kingdom opposes the use of chemical weapons in all circumstances. We take seriously any credible evidence of the use of chemical weapons. We monitor closely allegations of chemical weapons use in northern Iraq. These remain unsubstantiated. Evidence of chemical weapons use should be provided through appropriate channels to the Technical Secretariat Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW).
Asked by: Baroness Greengross (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made as to whether the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) poses a terrorist threat to the UK; and what assessment they have made of the ruling by the Court of Cassation in Belgium that the PKK is not a terrorist organisation.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
Partiya Karkeren Kurdistani (PKK) has been proscribed as a terrorist organisation in the UK since 2001. The Government does not routinely comment on intelligence matters, including the threat posed by specific proscribed organisations.
The Terrorism Act 2000 allows the Home Secretary to proscribe a group if she has a reasonable belief that it is currently concerned in terrorism and proscription is proportionate action to take. It is this statutory test which the Government applies when considering whether to proscribe an organisation or maintain an extant listing.