Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by the Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport) on 18 March (HC17308), what assessment they have made of the Motorcycle Industry Association’s proposals to reform compulsory basic training.
Answered by Lord Davies of Gower - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) is committed to reviewing all aspects of motorcycle training and testing, and is in the process of assessing the Motorcycle Industry Association’s proposals to reform compulsory basic training (CBT).
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Motorcycle Industry Association and Zemo Partnership report Realising the Full Potential of Zero Emission Powered Light Vehicles: A Joint Action Plan for Government and Industry, published in February 2022, what steps they are taking to simplify the licensing regime for mopeds and motorcycles.
Answered by Lord Davies of Gower - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Government welcomes and is open to discussing ideas for reform of the existing licensing regime for powered light vehicles known as L category vehicles where they do not compromise safety standards.
While there are not currently any plans to reform L category licenses, Ministers and officials have met with motorcycle stakeholder representatives to listen to and discuss various motorcycle initiatives, including ideas for reform. The Minister for Road Transport will meet with the MCIA and other motorcycle stakeholders in a roundtable format on 8 May to this and other issues.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the proposals to simplify the licensing regime for powered light vehicles contained in the Motorcycle Industry Association report A Licence to Net Zero: Unleashing Our Potential, License Reform Essential: L-Category Licensing Reform Proposals, published in October 2023.
Answered by Lord Davies of Gower - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Government welcomes and is open to discussing ideas for reform of the existing licensing regime for powered light vehicles known as L category vehicles where they do not compromise safety standards.
While there are not currently any plans to reform L category licenses, Ministers and officials have met with motorcycle stakeholder representatives to listen to and discuss various motorcycle initiatives, including ideas for reform. The Minister for Road Transport will meet with the MCIA and other motorcycle stakeholders in a roundtable format on 8 May to this and other issues.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will announce a timeline for a full-scale licensing review for mopeds, motorcycles and other powered light vehicles, and if so when, .
Answered by Lord Davies of Gower - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Government welcomes and is open to discussing ideas for reform of the existing licensing regime for powered light vehicles known as L category vehicles where they do not compromise safety standards.
While there are not currently any plans to reform L category licenses, Ministers and officials have met with motorcycle stakeholder representatives to listen to and discuss various motorcycle initiatives, including ideas for reform. The Minister for Road Transport will meet with the MCIA and other motorcycle stakeholders in a roundtable format on 8 May to this and other issues.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the report by the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman, Women’s State Pension age: our findings on injustice and associated issues, published on 21 March.
Answered by Viscount Younger of Leckie - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
We are considering the Ombudsman’s report and will respond in due course.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to provide (1) an apology, and (2) compensation, to women born in the 1950s, as recommended by the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman in its report, Women’s State Pension age: our findings on injustice and associated issues, published on 21 March.
Answered by Viscount Younger of Leckie - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
We are considering the Ombudsman’s report and will respond in due course.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they will decide on the tender for the Respiratory Syncytial Virus immunisation for infants and young adults.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government has engaged the market on its requirements for products that would enable respiratory syncytial virus vaccination programmes to be implemented for infants and older adults, as advised by the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation. Final decisions on these programmes have not yet been taken. There are no plans for a respiratory syncytial virus vaccination programme for young adults.
The Invitation to Offer was published on 24 January 2024, and closed on 29 February. Bids received will now be evaluated based on cost-effectiveness. Following this, a full business case will be developed for the Government’s approval this spring.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the remarks by Lord Cameron of Chipping Norton on 5 March (HL Deb col 1544), whether they have received the interim report of the UN concerning allegations surrounding UNRWA staff members' involvement in the 7 October 2023 Hamas attack on Israel; whether they have any plans to reinstate funding to UNRWA; and what assessment they have made of the effectiveness of UNRWA in delivering aid in Gaza.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We are aware that the UN Office of Internal Oversight Services has released an interim report to the UN Secretary-General. We are pressing Catherine Colonna to produce a rapid interim report on the investigation into UNRWA's neutrality.
We want UNRWA to give detailed undertakings about changes in personnel, policy and precedents to ensure this can never happen again. We are working with allies to try to bring this situation to a rapid conclusion - not least because UNRWA have a vital role to play in providing aid and services in Gaza, and the wider region.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the finding by the NHS Confederation that there has been a 26 per cent cut to the public health grant per person in real terms since 2015–16; and what plans they have to ensure that every baby and young child in England can receive the full Healthy Child Programme.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
At the 2021 Spending Review, we considered the need for local government public health funding, and have provided cash growth in the Public Health Grant to local authorities each year over the settlement period. In 2024/25 the total Public Health Grant to local authorities will be £3.603 billion, providing local authorities with an average 2.1% cash increase compared to 2023/24.
In addition to the Public Health Grant, we have provided additional targeted investment to local authorities in England for drug and alcohol addiction treatment and recovery, and services that support the best start in life. From April 2024 we will also double current spend on stop smoking services, in support of our commitment to deliver a smoke-free generation. This overall funding package will deliver a real term increase of more than 4%, over the two years 2023/24 and 2024/25, in Department funding allocated for local authority public health functions.
Local authorities are responsible for using their Public Health Grant to provide a Healthy Child Programme that best meet the needs of their local populations. In addition, the health visiting workforce is fundamental to enabling successful delivery of this programme, and as part of the NHS Long Term Workforce Plan, we will be expanding training places by 74% to over 1,300 by 2031/32. To support progress towards this expansion, training places for health visitors will grow by 17% by 2028/29.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Neville-Rolfe on 5 January (HL1358), whether they plan to publish (1) the questions posed in the business readiness survey, and (2) a detailed summary of the responses from businesses, for the implementation of the Border Target Operating Model.
Answered by Baroness Neville-Rolfe - Minister of State (Cabinet Office)
In the Draft Border Target Operating Model (BTOM), published in April 2023 the UK Government asked industry to provide information on their readiness for the proposed regime. The questions included:
What challenges exist for the private sector in meeting the proposed timeline for introducing the new model and how can specific business models for importing be further supported to prepare?
What further detail is needed in order for businesses to prepare for and implement the new Border Target Operating Model?
A summary of responses from stakeholders can be found in the Final BTOM, published in August 2023. In response to stakeholder feedback on the Draft BTOM, we made a change to the timeline for the introduction of Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) controls to give more businesses time to prepare. The Government is delivering a programme of engagement with stakeholders across all sectors in all parts of the country and with key European Union trading partners to ensure readiness. There are no current plans for further publications on industry readiness as such, although discussions with stakeholders continue.
However, we expect to publish the Government Response to the charging arrangements at government-run border control posts consultation in the coming weeks. Arrangements for physical checks for goods from the island of Ireland will be announced in due course - the UK Government is continuing to work with the Scottish and Welsh Government as well as the newly restored Northern Ireland Executive on this issue. We aim shortly to publish revised rules for importing animal products, plants and plant products into Great Britain for personal use, including those sent as post and parcels. All other supplementary guidance outlined in Annex H of the Final BTOM that was due to be published by end February 2024 has been released, and technical information surrounding the BTOM was issued in mid-February here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/border-target-operating-model-information-leaflets-for-businesses.
With regards to live testing, traders, carriers and hauliers have been selected to take part in operational testing in conjunction with Defra and local Port Health Authorities and include a mix of large and smaller traders where possible. The tests vary according to route route, mode and commodity. Onboarding of traders into the testing regime, including some smaller businesses, is ongoing at this time with operational testing continuing in March and April.
Estimates for the Common User Charge were included in the modelling of the inflationary impact of the Border Target Operating Model. The government used a wide array of data to input into the peer-reviewed model, including commercially sensitive data sources. To publish only a partial picture would not be in keeping with statistical propriety.