Asked by: Baroness Kennedy of Cradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is their latest assessment of the opportunities for children to learn to play a musical instrument while at school.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The government has a long standing commitment to ensure that high quality music education is not the preserve of the wealthy, but the entitlement of every single child, and that this is reflected in the government’s refreshed National plan for music education, which was published in 2022. This plan sets out the department’s strategy up to 2030 and its vision to enable all children and young people to learn to sing, play an instrument and create music together, as well as to have the opportunity to progress their musical interests and talents, including professionally.
As part of the plan, schools are expected to teach music for at least one hour a week from Key Stages 1 to 3, to provide access to singing and instrument lessons and to offer a range of music experiences, such as music events and trips to professional concerts. The network of Music Hubs has a vital role to play in supporting schools to deliver this. Working together, schools and Music Hubs can ensure children have access to all the benefits of a wider musical education through instrumental lessons, loans and ensembles, as well as offering clear and affordable progression routes and continuing professional development to teachers around music.
The government values the many achievements that the existing Music Hub network has made since 2012, including the work they now do with around 90% of all schools. This is why the department has invested around £380 million of funding in Music Hubs between 2016 and 2021 to ensure all children, whatever their background, have access to a high quality music education. Since 2021, the department has continued to provide £79 million a year for Music Hubs, on average around 40% of their income, with the remaining funding coming mainly from parents and schools.
Further to this, as part of the plan published in 2022, the government announced a £25 million capital fund for musical instruments, which will be distributed across all Music Hubs from September 2024. This will allow schools and Music Hubs to continue to work together to ensure more children and young people have access to musical instruments, as well as access to a high quality music education and to develop their musical interests and potential.
Asked by: Baroness Kennedy of Cradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is their latest assessment of the value to communities of a Football Community Trust operating locally.
Answered by Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The community arms of local football clubs are instrumental in fostering more active and resilient communities. By harnessing the power of the sport, these trusts promote social cohesion, improve public health, and make a positive impact on people’s lives.
HM Government recognises and supports the contributions of these trusts in helping to strengthen communities and get more people active, in line with the. Government’s own priorities.
Asked by: Baroness Kennedy of Cradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is their latest estimate of the amount of income tax lost to fraud each year.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
HMRC does not publish a stand-alone estimate of the Income tax gap arising from fraud.
However, ‘Measuring tax gaps 2023 edition’, published in June 2023, shows a reduction in the Income Tax, National Insurance contributions and Capital Gains Tax gap as a percentage of the theoretical tax liability from 4.5% in 2005-2006 to 3.0% in 2021-2022. The publication also provides illustrative estimates for fraud that are included in the criminal attacks and evasion components, plus a proportion of hidden economy and non-payment.
Asked by: Baroness Kennedy of Cradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to help small businesses deal with late payments.
Answered by Lord Offord of Garvel - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
While the UK has a strong record of payment times, we are determined to see payment times fall to ensure that small businesses are given the best chance of succeeding. The Government set out policy actions in the Prompt Payment and Cash Flow which was published alongside the Autumn Statement in November 2023. These actions include extending Payment Performance Reporting Regulations with legislation being passed earlier this month, ensuring that large businesses are required to report their payment performance. The Review sets out other actions, including reforming the Prompt Payment Code and providing the Small Business Commissioner with broader powers.
Asked by: Baroness Kennedy of Cradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is the average time a business waits for the payment of an invoice from the Ministry of Defence.
Answered by Earl of Minto - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
As per Cabinet Office guidance, the Ministry of Defence aims to pay 90% of all undisputed and validated invoices for Small to Medium Enterprises within 5 days of receipt. Additionally, MoD is committed that 100% of all undisputed and validated invoices should be paid within 30 days.
Ministry of Defence reports its supplier payment performance, invoice processing and MoD contract payments in line with statutory requirements and reports its results quarterly at GOV.UK Ministry of Defence supplier invoicing and payment information - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Table below shows results for financial year 2023-2024 by quarter. Financial year runs from April 2023 to March 2024.
Ministry of Defence payment performance | ||
2023-2024 | ||
Financial year | Percentage of invoices paid | Percentage of invoices paid |
First Quarter | 94.13% | 99.24% |
Second Quarter | 94.08% | 99.29% |
Third Quarter | 87.35% | 99.25% |
[1] This includes all suppliers not just Small to Medium Enterprises
Asked by: Baroness Kennedy of Cradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is the average time a business waits for the payment of an invoice from the Department for Transport.
Answered by Lord Davies of Gower - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
For the 23-24 Financial Year thus far, the average time a business waits for the payment of a valid invoice from the Department for Transport is 3.41 working days.
Asked by: Baroness Kennedy of Cradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the African Union’s Agenda 2063 to deliver inclusive and sustainable development in Africa and transform it into "the global powerhouse of the future"; and what engagement they are having with partners to support the delivery of those aims.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
On 30 October, the UK and the African Union held our inaugural High Level Dialogue, hosted by the Deputy Prime Minister and the Minister for Africa. At the Dialogue, Minister Mitchell announced further UK funding in support of the African Union's 2063 Agenda, and for its flagship Silencing the Guns campaign. This includes £10 million in stipends to support troops in Somalia, bringing our total commitment to the AU Transition Mission in Somalia since 2022 to more than £57 million.
We are also providing £3 million through the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office's Tackling Deadly Diseases in African Programme, helping the Africa Centres for Disease Control and World Health Organisation address emergency preparedness and response in the continent.
Asked by: Baroness Kennedy of Cradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of tidal turbine technology to produce energy at a cost-effective level.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Tidal stream is a novel technology and so initial costs are high. Cost reductions are required to deliver the potential benefits cost-effectively. In 2023 DESNZ published research on ‘Levelised Costs of Electricity from Tidal Stream Energy’. It suggested there is potential for significant cost reductions, subject to deployment. 94MW of new tidal stream power was procured in Contracts for Difference Allocation Rounds 4 and 5. This will increase the UK’s installed capacity tenfold.
Asked by: Baroness Kennedy of Cradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the increased costs to British business resulting from the attacks to shipping in the Red Sea.
Answered by Lord Offord of Garvel - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Department of Business and Trade is in regular contact with key businesses and industries to understand the issues they may be facing as a result of the disturbance in the Red Sea. We have open channels of communication with key stakeholders to ensure the most effective mitigations are in place to support with any increased costs they are facing. Our Critical Imports and Supply Chains Strategy will help UK business build the secure and reliable supply chains vital to the UK’s economic prosperity, national security and essential services.
For exporters affected, UK businesses can access DBT’s wealth of export support via Great.gov.uk. This comprises a digital self-serve offer and our wider network of support, including trade advisors, export champions, the Export Academy, International Markets network, and UK Export Finance.
Asked by: Baroness Kennedy of Cradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of electricity grid miscalculations on housebuilding in England.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The calculation of electricity network capacity for new housing developments is a matter for housing developers and network companies. Guidance on network capacity requirements for housing developments has been published by the Independent Networks Association, whose members are responsible for the connection of around 80 percent of newbuild developments. Distribution Network Operators also offer online calculators for housebuilders to determine the network capacity they might require for their developments.