Asked by: Lord Lee of Trafford (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government to list the restrictive practices they believe exist in the railway industry which hinder its efficiency and modernisation.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Williams-Shapps Plan for Rail, published May 2021, identified six key problems with our railways:
There are outdated working practices preventing passengers getting the service they pay for and deserve and making the railway cost more than it should to run. To provide funding for an affordable pay rise, we need to leave these outdated working practices in the past and create a railway fit for the future.
For instance, under an agreement dating back to 1919, Sunday working is voluntary for most of the railway, leaving operators short staffed and unable to cope with the surge in popularity for weekend travel post-pandemic. Whilst working practices in track maintenance are years behind other sectors and prevents us running the best possible train service.
Asked by: Lord Lee of Trafford (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the non-disclosure of the details of a meeting between Lord Brownlow of Shurlock Row and Oliver Dowden on the grounds that releasing the information would not be in the public interest, what are the criteria for deciding whether or not something meets the public interest test; who is responsible for that decision; and who took the decision not to release the information in this particular case.
Answered by Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport’s Freedom of Information team assess requests and undertake the relevant public interest test on a case-by-case basis, aligned to the guidance set out by the Information Commissioner’s Office. This request was withheld under Section 36 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000, and therefore requires a “qualified person” to provide their “reasonable opinion” on its publication. In this instance, the qualified person was the Secretary of State. Whilst the Secretary of State as the qualified person must give the required opinion, in line with the ICO guidance, DCMS civil servants carried out the preparatory work leading up to this decision.
Asked by: Lord Lee of Trafford (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, following the reduction in VAT on solar batteries, what plans they have to rectify the current shortage of such batteries.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Smart Systems and Flexibility Plan, published in July 2021 by government, jointly with Ofgem, outlines how the Government will deliver the flexibility technologies needed for a net zero system, including actions for removing barriers to the deployment of storage.
Asked by: Lord Lee of Trafford (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will make targeted hypothecated funds available to keep heated public swimming pools open.
Answered by Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
We recognise the importance of ensuring public access to indoor and outdoor pools and that swimming is a great way for people of all ages to stay fit and healthy. The responsibility of providing this access lies at local authority level, and Her Majesty’s Government continues to encourage local authorities to invest in good swimming facilities.
We also recognise the impact rising energy prices will have on businesses of all sizes. Ofgem and Her Majesty’s Government are in regular contact with business groups and suppliers to understand the challenges they face and explore ways to protect consumers and businesses.
Sport England has invested £25,027,478 in swimming and diving projects since January 2017, which includes £15,724,500 to Swim England. This is in addition to the £100 million National Leisure Recovery Fund which supported the reopening of local authority swimming pools throughout the country after the pandemic, with 1,176 separate pools supported across 701 sites.
Asked by: Lord Lee of Trafford (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Penn on 28 February (HL6497), what assessment they have made of whether giving grandparents with written parental approval the ability to open a junior ISA on behalf of a grandchild would significantly increase the number of such ISAs taken out, in line with their policy objective.
Answered by Baroness Penn - Minister on Leave (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State)
Junior ISAs (JISAs) form a key part of the Government’s commitment to ensuring that young people are supported to save from an early age and into adulthood. Since the launch of the JISA in 2011, the number of accounts being subscribed to each year has increased significantly. In 2019-20, over 1 million JISAs were subscribed to on behalf of children across the UK.
The Government wishes to ensure that the ISA regime remains simple and sustainable for both savers and providers. Placing a restriction on who can open and manage a Junior ISA (JISA) helps to prevent more than one account of each type (cash or stocks and shares) being opened in error and ensures that there is a single point of contact for the giving of instructions. Removing this restriction would increase the risk of multiple accounts being opened and subsequently needing to be made void. A grandparent who does not have parental responsibility is therefore unable to open or manage a Junior ISA on behalf of their grandchild.
While only parents or legal guardians can open a JISA on behalf of their children, grandparents can add funds to the account, up to the subscription limit of £9,000 per year. Grandparents may also open an adult ISA in their own name to save and invest for their grandchildren, which can later be gifted outside of an ISA.
The Government continues to keep all aspects of savings policy under review.
Asked by: Lord Lee of Trafford (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what are their reasons for preventing grandparents from opening Junior ISAs for their grandchildren; and what assessment they have made of the compatibility of this prohibition with their policy of encouraging people to save more.
Answered by Baroness Penn - Minister on Leave (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State)
The Government is committed to ensuring that young people are supported to save from an early age and into adulthood. Junior ISAs (JISAs) form a key part of this commitment.
Where a JISA is opened on behalf of a child, the account must be set up and managed by an individual with parental responsibility for that child, or the child itself if over 16. To ensure that the ISA regime remains simple and sustainable, placing a restriction on who can open and manage an account prevents more than one Junior ISA of each type (cash or stocks and shares) being opened in error and ensures that there is a single point of contact for the giving of instructions. A grandparent who does not have parental responsibility is therefore unable to open or manage a Junior ISA on behalf of their grandchild.
However, the Government recognises the important role that grandparents can play in building a savings pot for their grandchildren. While parents or legal guardians must open a JISA on behalf of their children, grandparents and others can then add funds to the account, up to the value of £9,000 a year.
The Government continues to keep all aspects of savings policy under review.
Asked by: Lord Lee of Trafford (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the decision of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales to retain the fine money levied on KPMG and one of its then partners by the Financial Reporting Council, rather than paying it to the Silentnight pension scheme which lost out as a result of KPMG’s actions.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) undertook the investigation into Silentnight under its accountancy scheme as the Silentnight investigation was into KPMG’s accounting services. This requires fines and any costs recovered to be paid to the chartered accountancy body that funded the investigation and sanctions process.
In this case the fines and costs were paid to the Institute for Chartered Accountants in England and Wales. The same would be true if ICAEW had taken forward the investigation and sanctions process itself.
Accountancy bodies may make private arrangements as to the use of fine income for the benefit of groups that have suffered losses as a result of an insolvency.
Asked by: Lord Lee of Trafford (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the (1) risks, and (2) potential legal consequences, for individuals who intervene to try to stop an assault or similar violent crime.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
The Home Office is not aware of any assessment to have taken place within Her Majesty’s Government regarding the (1) risks and (2) potential legal consequences for individuals who intervene to try to stop an assault or similar violent crime.
Asked by: Lord Lee of Trafford (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the Evening Standard and Independent's £1 million Skill Up Step Up campaign to help address youth joblessness; and what plans they have, if any, to match-fund the newspapers' campaign.
Answered by Baroness Stedman-Scott
Campaigns that encourage employers to create more opportunities and to invest in the skills of their future workforce, can make an important contribution to helping young people thrive in the labour market. The Government welcomes the opportunity to work with partners (existing and new) who share our commitment to supporting young people to fulfil their potential for their benefit, as well as that of wider society.
The Government’s Plan for Jobs offers a strong foundation of employment and skills support so young unemployed people can move in to work. Through the face to face support offered in our jobcentres and Youth Hubs, we see the potential of young Londoners every day and it’s vital for business to be a partner in opening up opportunities for them. We know it changes lives, with 21,000 young people in the city having secured jobs for employers of all sizes through our Kickstart Scheme. There is huge strength in coming together as we unleash the talent of the next generation.
Asked by: Lord Lee of Trafford (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to provide (1) training, and (2) job opportunities, for members of the black community in London, aged 16–24, who are currently unemployed.
Answered by Baroness Stedman-Scott
The Government is committed to levelling up and building back better by helping our young people from all backgrounds to boost their skills and get into work. There were a record high 4.22 million individuals from an ethnic minority background in employment in September 2021, an increase of 110,000 on the year.
We continue to support young people from all backgrounds through our Youth Offer which is now available for all 16 to 24-year olds making a claim for Universal Credit and in the intensive work search group. It provides wrap-around support through the 13-week Youth Employment Programme, Youth Hubs where young people can access a range of services in one location, and specialist Youth Employability Coaches. These are helping all young people move into work-related provision such as access to education, training or employment programmes that will ultimately lead to sustained employment opportunities and career progression.
For example, The Department for Work and Pensions are working with the Black Training Enterprise Group in Brent and Newham, improving opportunities for young black men to secure skilled jobs in higher-earning sectors including Construction, Financial Services, and Information Technology.
The largest ever expansion of traineeships, and extension of the apprenticeship and traineeship incentive payments to employers in England, will also help young people from all backgrounds to access high quality training and apprenticeship opportunities.
The Youth Offer, and other support such as our Kickstart programme, is part of our £2 billion Plan for Jobs, which was boosted by a further £500 million in October 2021. This is giving all young people the right support that will ultimately lead to sustained employment opportunities and career progression.