Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to provide more capital via the Dormant Assets Act 2022.
Answered by Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Dormant Assets Act 2022 delivers on Her Majesty’s Government's commitment to expand the scheme. Over time, this will unlock an estimated £880 million for good causes across the UK.
Her Majesty’s Government will launch a public consultation this summer on the social and/or environmental focus of the English portion. This is an opportunity to consider how future funds can be distributed in England.
The Act provides the power to expand the scheme without the need for primary legislation. This will enable Her Majesty’s Government to respond more rapidly to opportunities to broaden the pool of eligible assets as they arise, alongside experience of managing dormant assets which will build over time.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to support seriously mentally ill people so that they avoid going to prison.
Answered by Lord Kamall - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Liaison and Diversion services operate at police stations and criminal courts in England to identify and assess people with vulnerabilities, such as substance misuse and mental ill-health, to refer them to services and, where appropriate, away from the justice system. Liaison and Diversion services have covered 100% of the population of England since April 2020.
The Ministry of Justice, the Department of Health and Social Care, NHS England and NHS Improvement and the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities have developed a new protocol to increase the use of community sentence treatment requirements in courts to reduce reoffending. The use of short-term custodial sentences may address the health and social issues of the offender. We have provided £12 million to establish 21 programme sites for mental health treatment requirements.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to create a cross-industry and government-backed task force to assess the resilience of the UK's supply chains.
Answered by Lord Grimstone of Boscobel - Minister of State (Department for International Trade)
Supply chain resilience is a priority for HM Government. In October, the Prime Minister appointed Sir Dave Lewis to advise on supply chains and identify both immediate improvements and any necessary long-term changes. We are working to secure the supply chains of the future already, including for critical minerals, by working with like-minded nations around the world.
Industry involvement is crucial to enhancing our understanding and the visibility of critical supply chains, and in working to take action to strengthen their resilience. We regularly engage with businesses to better understand vulnerabilities, risks, business impacts and the adaption measures being taken to improve the resilience of supply chains.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to require that companies spend over half of their apprenticeship levy on young people.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
It is important that employers have access to training to meet their skills needs and the apprenticeships programme is delivering that. Requiring employers to spend half of their levy funds on young people would restrict employer choice and may reduce opportunities for older workers who may want to re-train, up-skill or re-enter the workforce. Employers are best placed to determine the apprenticeships they need; the government, therefore, have no plans to restrict apprenticeship funding in this way.
The government want more young people to benefit from the high-quality training and opportunities for progression that apprenticeships bring and have a range of work underway to ensure that young people can access apprenticeships more easily. This includes working on new ways to connect young people in schools and colleges with employers and providers much earlier in their final academic year when they are considering their options and working with the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education to identify and promote standards most suitable for those starting their careers. We are also working with employers and providers to highlight the benefits of hiring young apprentices and increase their use of our free recruitment tools so that vacancies are accessible through our Find an Apprenticeship service.
The government also continues to offer £1,000 payments to employers when they hire apprentices aged 16 to 18, or those aged 19 to 24 who are care leavers or have an Education, Health and Care Plan.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to introduce checks on EU agri-food products imported to the UK.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Biosecurity remains a top priority for the Government, not only to protect consumers, but also to ensure that trading partners and industry have strong assurance of the UK’s standards of food safety, animal and plant health.
Since 1 January 2021, the UK has put in place strict biosecurity controls on the highest risk imports of animals, animal products, plants and plant products from the EU. These controls on the highest risk goods will remain in place. We constantly review whether further safeguards are needed and have a scientific process to assess and respond to changing biosecurity threats.
Existing pre-notification requirements and the four-hour derogation for pre-notification will continue for all products of animal origin. Traders must continue to pre-notify to maintain traceability of imports and to allow UK authorities to collect essential data to inform design decisions. Traceability is vital for identifying consignments posing potential risk and allows us properly to manage any biosecurity incidents.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to include the lifetime deposit scheme in the Renters' Reform Bill.
Answered by Lord Greenhalgh - Minister of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
The Government's approach to ‘lifetime deposits’ will be set out in the Private Rented Sector White Paper which will be published shortly.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to replace the fuel duty with a levy that charges motorists based on the miles they drive.
Answered by Baroness Penn - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The government has committed to ensuring that motoring tax revenues keep pace with the changes brought about by the switch to electric vehicles, whilst keeping the transition affordable for consumers.
All taxes are kept under review.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to lay regulations that (1) define what a stable coin is, and (2) require particular (a) forms, and (b) levels, of collateral for such coins.
Answered by Baroness Penn - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The legislation to bring stablecoins, where used as a means of payment, within the regulatory perimeter is expected to be part of the forthcoming Financial Services and Markets Bill announced in the Queen’s Speech on 10 May. The Bill will be introduced later in the session when parliamentary time allows.
As set out in the Government’s response document, with respect to stablecoins used as a means of payment, the government proposes that regulation should capture all stablecoins that reference fiat currencies, including a single currency stablecoin or stablecoin based on a basket of currencies.
The financial services regulators will be required to consult on rules associated with this legislation in due course, including on assets or funds backing the stablecoin where relevant.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to review the Warm Home Discount Scheme to help families with higher than average bills due to disabilities.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy)
Introducing non-means-tested benefits, such as Personal Independence Payment (PIP), Disability Living Allowance (DLA) and Attendance Allowance (AA), into the eligibility criteria would mean that many households on lower incomes and in deeper fuel poverty would be disadvantaged.
Around 62% of PIP and DLA recipients also receive one of the qualifying means-tested benefits and so would be considered low-income under the Core Group 2 criteria. Those households with high energy costs would be eligible for a rebate. Recipients of AA, a pension-age benefit, who claim Pension Credit Guarantee Credit will, in most cases, qualify for a rebate through Core Group 1.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to extend the apprenticeship levy to include more qualifications.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The apprenticeship levy is an important part of the department’s reforms, supporting employers of all sizes to invest in high-quality apprenticeship training.
Employers can already choose from over 640 high-quality employer-designed apprenticeship standards, at all levels and in all sectors of the economy, to meet their skills needs. Employers can hire apprentices at any age and at any stage in their career, whether that’s a new recruit, or an existing employee being retrained or upskilled. Apprenticeships are designed to support an apprentice to achieve occupational competence. They may include a mandatory qualification, such as a degree or professional accreditation.
The Institute for Apprenticeships & Technical Education continues to work with employers to develop new apprenticeship standards to support businesses to build the workforce of the future.
We are also supporting employers to make greater use of their levy funds by helping them to choose more flexible training models, and making it easier for levy-paying employers to transfer funds to support apprenticeships in their supply chains or to meet local or sectorial skills needs.
Employers can continue to benefit from a range of other high-quality government funded skills programmes, including Skills Bootcamps and traineeships, to recruit new talent or train current staff.
The department currently has no plans to broaden the scope of what apprenticeship levy funds can be spent on.