Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester, Gorton)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether he plans to develop a definition of anti-Muslim hatred.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
Anti-Muslim hatred is abhorrent and has no place in our society. No one should ever be a victim of hatred because of their religion or belief and the Government continues to work with police and community partners to monitor and combat it. We have funded Tell MAMA, a service that supports victims of anti-Muslim hatred, with over £6 million since their inception in 2012.
In light of the rise in anti-Muslim hate incidents being reported, the Government has increased Tell MAMA’s funding to £1 million this year. This funding will provide additional resource to the service they are providing to support victims of anti-Muslim hatred.
The department has given careful consideration to the use of language and definitions. The definition of Islamophobia as proposed by the APPG is not in line with the Equality Act 2010, which defines race in terms of colour, nationality and national or ethnic origins. The term anti-Muslim hatred is a more precise term which better reflects UK hate crime legislation.
The department is seeking the views and perspectives of domestic and international leaders and experts in this field to explore how religious hatred is experienced by British communities.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester, Gorton)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when his Department plans to make a decision on the non-charging proposal for the Greater Manchester clean air zone.
Answered by Robbie Moore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
We requested further evidence from the Greater Manchester authorities to enable us to consider their plans and they have recently provided further information. We will respond to Greater Manchester in due course.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester, Gorton)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of how many families have received funding from the Household Support Fund in (a) Manchester, Gorton constituency and (b) Greater Manchester since October 2021.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
There have been four Household Support Fund (HSF) schemes to date, with the current iteration running until the end of March 2024. Management Information (MI) was published for HSF1-3 following the completion of each scheme and can be found here.
Household Support Fund management information: 6 October 2021 to 31 March 2022 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
The latest MI covering HSF3 was published in August 2023. We will similarly look to publish MI for the entirety of HSF4 following scheme completion and subject to quality assurance processes. An evaluation of the current HSF4 scheme is underway. This will seek to understand the delivery and impacts of scheme funding.
The number of awards is reported by Authorities, and so data at a constituency level is not available. A total of 1.8m HSF awards were provided to residents in the Local Authorities that make up Greater Manchester (Manchester, Stockport, Tameside, Oldham, Rochdale, Bury, Bolton, Wigan, Salford and Trafford) during HSF1-3,including 420,000 in Manchester City Council. The number of awards, as reported by Authorities, may not represent the number of people helped as some may have received multiple awards.
No assessment has been made of the impact of the Household Support Fund on child poverty. The HSF is an intentionally flexible scheme designed to enable Local Authorities to respond to local need. Local Authorities are encouraged through our scheme guidance to consider the needs of households including families with children of all ages.
A total of £80.7m has been spent in the Local Authorities that make up Greater Manchester during HSF1-3 of which an average 69% has been spent on families with children. This includes 19.4m spent in the Manchester Local Authority of which 52% has been spent on families with children. Overall, Greater Manchester has been allocated £134.6m over all 4 rounds of the Household Support Fund including £32.3m for the Manchester Local Authority. Information regarding HSF4 funding allocations can be found here.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester, Gorton)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the Household Support Fund on levels of child poverty in Manchester, Gorton constituency since October 2021.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
There have been four Household Support Fund (HSF) schemes to date, with the current iteration running until the end of March 2024. Management Information (MI) was published for HSF1-3 following the completion of each scheme and can be found here.
Household Support Fund management information: 6 October 2021 to 31 March 2022 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
The latest MI covering HSF3 was published in August 2023. We will similarly look to publish MI for the entirety of HSF4 following scheme completion and subject to quality assurance processes. An evaluation of the current HSF4 scheme is underway. This will seek to understand the delivery and impacts of scheme funding.
The number of awards is reported by Authorities, and so data at a constituency level is not available. A total of 1.8m HSF awards were provided to residents in the Local Authorities that make up Greater Manchester (Manchester, Stockport, Tameside, Oldham, Rochdale, Bury, Bolton, Wigan, Salford and Trafford) during HSF1-3,including 420,000 in Manchester City Council. The number of awards, as reported by Authorities, may not represent the number of people helped as some may have received multiple awards.
No assessment has been made of the impact of the Household Support Fund on child poverty. The HSF is an intentionally flexible scheme designed to enable Local Authorities to respond to local need. Local Authorities are encouraged through our scheme guidance to consider the needs of households including families with children of all ages.
A total of £80.7m has been spent in the Local Authorities that make up Greater Manchester during HSF1-3 of which an average 69% has been spent on families with children. This includes 19.4m spent in the Manchester Local Authority of which 52% has been spent on families with children. Overall, Greater Manchester has been allocated £134.6m over all 4 rounds of the Household Support Fund including £32.3m for the Manchester Local Authority. Information regarding HSF4 funding allocations can be found here.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester, Gorton)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many awards have been made through the Household Support Fund in (a) Manchester, Gorton constituency and (b) Greater Manchester since October 2021.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
There have been four Household Support Fund (HSF) schemes to date, with the current iteration running until the end of March 2024. Management Information (MI) was published for HSF1-3 following the completion of each scheme and can be found here.
Household Support Fund management information: 6 October 2021 to 31 March 2022 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
The latest MI covering HSF3 was published in August 2023. We will similarly look to publish MI for the entirety of HSF4 following scheme completion and subject to quality assurance processes. An evaluation of the current HSF4 scheme is underway. This will seek to understand the delivery and impacts of scheme funding.
The number of awards is reported by Authorities, and so data at a constituency level is not available. A total of 1.8m HSF awards were provided to residents in the Local Authorities that make up Greater Manchester (Manchester, Stockport, Tameside, Oldham, Rochdale, Bury, Bolton, Wigan, Salford and Trafford) during HSF1-3,including 420,000 in Manchester City Council. The number of awards, as reported by Authorities, may not represent the number of people helped as some may have received multiple awards.
No assessment has been made of the impact of the Household Support Fund on child poverty. The HSF is an intentionally flexible scheme designed to enable Local Authorities to respond to local need. Local Authorities are encouraged through our scheme guidance to consider the needs of households including families with children of all ages.
A total of £80.7m has been spent in the Local Authorities that make up Greater Manchester during HSF1-3 of which an average 69% has been spent on families with children. This includes 19.4m spent in the Manchester Local Authority of which 52% has been spent on families with children. Overall, Greater Manchester has been allocated £134.6m over all 4 rounds of the Household Support Fund including £32.3m for the Manchester Local Authority. Information regarding HSF4 funding allocations can be found here.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester, Gorton)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will make an assessment of the implications for her policies of trends in the level of the availability of Elvanse medication.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
It is the responsibility of integrated care boards (ICBs) to make available appropriate provision, including for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) assessment and support, to meet the health and care needs of their local population, in line with relevant National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines. NICE guidelines for ADHD diagnosis and management aim to improve the diagnosis of ADHD and the quality of care and support people receive. The Department is looking into options for improving data collection and reporting on ADHD assessment waiting times, to help improve access to ADHD assessments in a timely way and in line with the NICE guidelines.
Disruptions to the supply of medicines used for the management of ADHD, including Lisdexamfetamine (Elvanse), have been primarily driven by issues which have resulted in capacity constraints at key manufacturing sites. The Department has been working closely with the respective manufacturers and some issues have now been resolved. However, we know that there continue to be disruptions to the supply of some other medicines, which should resolve by April 2024.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester, Gorton)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when he plans to respond to the correspondence of 16 August 2023 and 25 October 2023 from the hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton, reference number MC2023/16104.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
A reply was sent to the hon. Member on 14 December 2023. I apologise for the delay in responding to the hon. Member.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester, Gorton)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what guidance his Department issues to British nationals that plan to volunteer to assist the Israeli Defence Forces with the conflict in Gaza.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
FCDO travel advice provides British nationals with information on the risks of travelling or living abroad. The FCDO provides advice to British nationals on the risks of travelling to Israel and Occupied Palestinian Territories.
This guidance can be found on Gov.uk.
The UK recognises the right of British nationals with additional nationalities to serve in the legitimately recognised armed forces of the country of their other nationalities. The Israel Defence Force is a recognised armed force and British nationals are both able to volunteer into the Israel Defence Force and eligible for national service. For Israel, one does not have to be Israeli to serve in the Israel Defence Force.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester, Gorton)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether he has made an estimate of the number of British nationals that have fought alongside the Israeli Defence Force in each of the last ten years.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
We are aware of reports of UK citizens travelling to fight for the Israel Defence Force (IDF), but the Government does not estimate the numbers of those who have done so. The UK recognises the right of British nationals with additional nationalities to serve in the legitimately recognised armed forces of the country of their other nationalities. The IDF is a recognised armed force and British nationals are both able to volunteer into the IDF and eligible for national service. For Israel, one does not have to be Israeli to serve in the IDF.
FCDO travel advice provides British nationals with information on the risks of travelling or living abroad, including in Israel and Occupied Palestinian Territories, and this guidance can be found on Gov.uk via the below links;
Israel: https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/israel/safety-and-security
Occupied Palestinian Territories: https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/the-occupied-palestinian-territories/safety-and-security
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester, Gorton)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether he has made an estimate of the number of British nationals fighting alongside the Israeli Defence Force since 7 October 2023.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
We are aware of reports of UK citizens travelling to fight for the Israel Defence Force (IDF), but the Government does not estimate the numbers of those who have done so. The UK recognises the right of British nationals with additional nationalities to serve in the legitimately recognised armed forces of the country of their other nationalities. The IDF is a recognised armed force and British nationals are both able to volunteer into the IDF and eligible for national service. For Israel, one does not have to be Israeli to serve in the IDF.
FCDO travel advice provides British nationals with information on the risks of travelling or living abroad, including in Israel and Occupied Palestinian Territories, and this guidance can be found on Gov.uk via the below links;
Israel: https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/israel/safety-and-security
Occupied Palestinian Territories: https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/the-occupied-palestinian-territories/safety-and-security