Andrew Lewer

The Infrastructure Levy will be a mandatory, non-negotiable charge, set and collected locally, to largely replace the complex and discretionary section 106 regime and CIL charge.

The Government is committed to the delivery of on-site affordable housing through the Levy, and to delivering at least as much, if not more, affordable housing than at present. We will introduce through regulations a new 'right to require'. Local authorities will be able to require that a proportion of the Levy liability to be paid as in-kind, onsite affordable housing.

We do not intend to charge the Levy on affordable housing, and will consult on the details of our proposed approach. Exemptions and reductions with regards to the Levy will be set out through regulations.

The Government is aware of the concerns raised by representatives of the parking industry in relation to the Code Enforcement Framework, including the proposed levels of private parking charges. My department has been engaging closely with the parking industry as part of the process to develop the Code. The parking industry also had the opportunity to comment on the proposals in the Private Parking Charges, Discount Rates, Debt Collection Fees and Appeals Charter: Further Technical Consultation, which closed on 27 August 2021.

We take the industry’s concerns seriously and are carefully considering all consultation responses and additional documentation provided, including the industry’s impact assessment, before making a final decision.

The 'Private parking charges, discount rates, debt collection fees and appeals charter: further technical consultation' was published on 30 July. It contained proposals to bring private parking charges into closer alignment with Local Authority Penalty Charge Notices, along with a number of other measures to improve the private parking sector. The consultation closed on 27 August and the department is now analysing the responses. We will consider the Housing, Communities and Local Government Select Committee hearings. However, our current intention is to publish the consultation response together with the new Code of Practice as soon as possible so that motorists can benefit and industry has time to adapt itself to the new requirements.

We ensured that civil society, businesses, cities and regions, Indigenous Peoples, youth, gender and frontline groups impacted by climate change could participate in Presidency events. This included contributing to the World Leaders Summit and side events, as well as to the UK Pavilion and the Green Zone for anyone who registered their interest. Non-party observer groups have been able to observe the negotiations and we have sought their views on a range of negotiations issues.

The Government recognises that it is important to tackle bias in workplaces and in wider society, and it is good practice to use a range of evidence based measures to achieve this, and evaluate their success. The request for a statement on this has been noted and the Government will provide an update, detailing its position on unconscious bias training, in due course.

The Government is aware that construction materials price inflation is creating liquidity challenges for some businesses in the sector. We are working closely with the Construction Leadership Council’s (CLC) Product Availability Group to monitor product and material availability and mitigate the impact of price increases and we would encourage any companies who are concerned about this to get in touch with the CLC so that their comments and views can be considered a part of that work.

Officials are working with industry representatives to better understand the global supply chain issues which are affecting various sectors.

This will allow continuity of support to installers, while also informing future Government energy efficiency schemes.

Following the closure of the Green Homes Grant Voucher scheme the Government is refocussing efforts and funding towards alternative approaches that will both maximise the delivery of home retrofits for consumers who are most in need, and support the supply chain to keep delivering.

Over the course of the pandemic the Government has provided an unprecedented package of financial support to businesses, including those in the wedding industry, which we keep under regular review.

My Rt hon Friend Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer announced in his Budget a raft of new measures to further support businesses, including those in the wedding industry. These include:

• Extension of the Coronavirus Job Support Scheme to the end of September 2021.

• £5 billion for new Restart Grants.

• The Government is also providing all Local Authorities in England with an additional £425 million of discretionary business grant funding, on top of the £1.6 billion already allocated.

• Eligible businesses in hospitality sector will benefit from business rates relief worth over £6 billion in 2021 to 2022.

My Rt hon Friend Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer also announced the launch of the Events Research Programme, to pilot events with larger crowd sizes, including weddings with the aim of removing restrictions on events in Step 4 of the roadmap.

Freedom of expression and the media are essential qualities of any functioning democracy. The Department is taking a number of steps to protect freedom of expression and democratic values online. This includes our Online Safety Bill, work on open societies with the G7, and our work on press freedom and sustainability.

The Government introduced the Online Safety Bill on 17 March 2021. This legislation will usher in a new era of accountability for tech companies, and uphold free expression and pluralism online.

As part of its broad scope, our Gambling Act Review call for evidence included questions on the rules governing land based gambling and the need to ensure an equitable approach to the regulation of the online and the land based industries.

We are carefully considering all the evidence submitted and a white paper setting out our next steps and proposals for reform will be published in due course.

As part of its broad scope, our Gambling Act Review call for evidence included questions on the rules governing land based gambling and the need to ensure an equitable approach to the regulation of the online and the land based industries.

We are carefully considering all the evidence submitted and a white paper setting out our next steps and proposals for reform will be published in due course.

As part of its broad scope, our Gambling Act Review call for evidence included questions on the rules governing land based gambling and the need to ensure an equitable approach to the regulation of the online and the land based industries.

We are carefully considering all the evidence submitted and a white paper setting out our next steps and proposals for reform will be published in due course.

As announced in the Schools White Paper, the department will establish a new arm’s length curriculum body, building on the success of Oak National Academy’s work during the COVID-19 pandemic. It will work with thousands of teachers to co-design, create, and continually improve packages of optional, free, adaptable digital curriculum resources and video lessons. These optional resources will be available across the UK, helping teachers deliver a high-quality curriculum.

Teachers in the UK benefit from a diverse commercial education resources market that offers a range of materials to support high-quality planning and teaching. The curriculum body will work with the market, leading a broad and inclusive national process that will involve commercial education resource suppliers as well as teachers, schools, school trusts, Subject Associations, National Centres of Excellence, and many others, as it develops and delivers its support offer for schools.

Building on our existing understanding, the department is currently working with commercial organisations to gather further information that will help us to understand the potential effect on the market. It is important to us that areas of the market that offer high-quality, carefully sequenced resources that meet teachers’ needs can continue doing so. Opportunities for educational publishers and other partners to work with the curriculum body will be open to all across the sector.

While the department considers religious education (RE) to be an important subject, we respect parental rights and have no plans to change the right of withdrawal. Legislation gives parents the right to request withdrawing their child from all or part of a school’s RE. Parents are not required to give a reason for their requests, which must be complied with. The right of withdrawal from RE does not extend to other areas of the curriculum where religious matters are spontaneously raised by pupils or arise in other subjects such as history or citizenship.

The department believes that the current position is correct, as it balances the rights of parents and of children.

It is, of course, important that schools promote mutual respect and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs. The Education Act 2002 requires schools to ensure the Spiritual, Moral, Social, and Cultural (SMSC) development of all their pupils. There are many opportunities within the curriculum for schools to promote SMSC, including through RE, history, and citizenship. State-funded schools are also required to actively promote the fundamental British values of democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty, and mutual respect and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs.

Local authorities have a statutory duty to promote the educational achievement of looked-after children, including those placed outside of their authority. They are required to appoint an officer, the local authority Virtual School Head, to ensure this duty is properly discharged.

Statutory guidance on the implementation of these duties can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/promoting-the-education-of-looked-after-children.

This requires Directors of Children’ Services and Lead Members for Children’s Services to ensure that the authority’s Children in Care Council regularly considers educational experiences, as reported by looked-after children, and is able to respond effectively to any issues.

Further, the guidance is clear that the Virtual School Head should ensure that the educational attainment and progress of children looked after by the local authority is monitored and evaluated as if those children attended a single school. It is also clear that there are systems in place to report regularly through the authority’s corporate parenting structures. It requires Virtual School Heads to publish an annual report, which should include details of how they have managed the Pupil Premium Plus and Early Years Pupil Premium for looked-after children, and evidence of how the funding has supported the achievement of the children looked after by their authority. Ofsted inspectors are required to ask for the Virtual School Annual Report as part of the framework for Inspections of Local Authority’s Children’s Services.

The government recognises the important role that non-levy paying employers play in creating high-quality apprenticeship opportunities, particularly for young people and those in disadvantaged areas.

To support apprenticeships for all employers, the department is increasing funding for apprenticeships in England to £2.7 billion by the 2024/25 financial year. Non-levy paying employers can continue to reserve funding for 95% of apprenticeship training and assessment costs.

Since 1 April 2021, all small-medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have been able to reserve funding for up to 10 new apprenticeship starts. Employers can continue to make reservations into the 2022/23 financial year up to the maximum of 10.

Reservations levels for employers who do not pay the apprenticeship levy are kept under review to ensure that this level is still sufficient to allow SMEs to use apprenticeships to support their business.

Non-levy paying employers can also access apprenticeship funding via transferred funds from levy-paying organisations. The department has made it easier for employers to benefit from levy transfers through a new ‘pledge and transfer’ online service. It is encouraging to see that over 145 employers, including Amazon UK, DPD and HomeServe, have pledged to transfer almost £9 million to support new apprenticeship starts in businesses of all sizes.

The Department has invested around £380 million of funding in music education hubs between 2016 and 2021, to ensure all children, whatever their background, have access to a high-quality music education. This has been followed by a commitment of £79 million in the 2021/22 financial year for music education hubs, and £1 million for charities focused on teaching music.

Decisions regarding future funding are subject to outcome of the next Spending Review. As announced on 7 September, the Spending Review will set Departmental budgets for the 2022/23 to 2024/25 financial years and concludes on 27 October 2021, alongside Autumn Budget 2021. Future funding for hubs will be confirmed subsequently.

The forthcoming Government Food Strategy White Paper is a once in a generation opportunity to create a food system that feeds our nation today and protects it for tomorrow. The Government will consider the contents of Henry Dimbleby’s independent review when developing the Food Strategy White Paper including the recommendation for legislative measures.

We are committed to listening to opinions from stakeholders across the entirety of the food system and will encourage dialogue with a wide range of external and internal stakeholders to identify any policy gaps or potential options to transform the food system.

The Food Strategy White Paper will build upon work already underway in the Agriculture Act, Fisheries Act, and Environment Bill as well as docking into wider Government priorities, including Net Zero, 25 Year Environment Plan, and Build Back Greener. We will consider the need for mandatory or voluntary policy interventions as part of the White Paper and evaluate the need for additional primary and secondary legislation throughout its development.

We are providing an additional £500 million from April to help households with the cost of essentials, bringing the total funding for this support to £1 billion. In England, £421 million will be provided to extend the existing Household Support Fund from 1 April to 30 September inclusive, following directly on from the £421 million previously provided from 6 October 2021 to 31 March 2022 bringing the total funding for England to £842 million. This funding will continue to help people who are struggling to afford energy and water bills, food, and other essentials.

Local Authorities have been issued with the fund guidance and the accompanying grant determination for the extended funding. Local Authorities have discretion on exactly how this funding is used within the scope set out. It is for Local Authorities, using their local ties and knowledge, to design local schemes that best meet the needs of local people. We expect local schemes to be available shortly.

The Office for National Statistics’ data shows that in England in 2020, 6.2% of those aged 16 years old and over or approximately 2.8 million people were current vape users, compared with 4.5% or 2 million users in 2015. In 2020, 17.4% of cigarette smokers were also current vape or dual users, compared with 14.3% in 2015 and 12% of ex-smokers were current vape users in 2020 compared with 8% in 2015. Approximately 1.1% of adults who had never smoked were current vape users in 2020, compared with 0.2% in 2015.

The operational cost of each Category Tower of NHS Supply Chain was £60 million in 2020/21 and £61 million in 2021/22. An estimated £390 million to £400 million has been spent on services provided by Unipart Logistics in each year since the start of the contract.

The Department has spent an estimated £13 billion through the Category Tower Model by NHS Supply Chain, with an estimated £1.4 billion in savings.

The operational cost of each Category Tower of NHS Supply Chain was £60 million in 2020/21 and £61 million in 2021/22. An estimated £390 million to £400 million has been spent on services provided by Unipart Logistics in each year since the start of the contract.

The Department has spent an estimated £13 billion through the Category Tower Model by NHS Supply Chain, with an estimated £1.4 billion in savings.

The operational cost of each Category Tower of NHS Supply Chain was £60 million in 2020/21 and £61 million in 2021/22. An estimated £390 million to £400 million has been spent on services provided by Unipart Logistics in each year since the start of the contract.

The Department has spent an estimated £13 billion through the Category Tower Model by NHS Supply Chain, with an estimated £1.4 billion in savings.

The impact assessment for location promotions shows the placement of products within stores significantly affects household spending, with end of aisle displays increasing sales of soft drinks by over 50%.

The UK supports the implementation of Iraq's Yazidi Survivors' law of March 2021 and we engage regularly with partner governments, NGOs, survivor networks and Iraqi Government ministries to advocate for full financial provision of the law. Through UK support to the International Organisation for Migration, we provide technical and practical assistance to the Directorate of Yazidi Survivor Affairs, whose mandate includes searching for missing survivors. UK programme funding also supports psycho-social care for female survivors of conflict-related sexual violence. We have contributed £2 million to the UN Investigative Team to Promote Accountability for Crimes Committed by Daesh (UNITAD), whose work in gathering evidence of crimes, including against minority communities, we continue to champion.

The UK strongly condemns forced marriage and the forced conversion of women and girls. We regularly raise our concerns about Freedom of Religion or Belief and women and girls' rights at a senior level with the Government of Pakistan. During his visit to Pakistan on 23 and 24 June 2021, Lord Ahmad met the then Prime Minister, as well as other senior government ministers, and discussed our concerns. He met interfaith leaders to understand the situation of Pakistani minorities, particularly the issue of forced conversion and marriage. Most recently, he discussed the need to promote respect for all religions with the then Governor of Punjab on 28 November 2021. The FCDO funds programmes in Pakistan that directly address early and forced marriages and gender-based violence. The UK government has supported the Government of Pakistan in setting up eight child courts to provide child-sensitive justice to children who come in contact with the law, including victims of child abuse, trafficking and child marriage.

Audiobooks, in both physical and digital format, are subject to VAT at the standard rate.

VAT has been designed as a broad-based tax on consumption, and the 20 per cent standard rate applies to the vast majority of goods and services, including audiobooks. VAT raised around £130 billion in 2019-20 and helps to fund key spending priorities.

VAT, as a matter of tax policy, is overseen by the HM Treasury. There are no planned discussions between the Chancellor of the Exchequer and the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport on the merits of levying VAT on audiobooks.

The Government keeps all taxes under review, including VAT.

Guidance setting out eligibility for the 2022-23 retail, hospitality and leisure relief will be published by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities in due course.

Throughout a compliance check HMRC will provide accurate, consistent and clear information to the taxpayer, including details of any assessments raised and explanations for any decisions HMRC make during the check. Should a taxpayer have any questions about the compliance check or an assessment, they should write to HMRC who will seek to clarify anything that is unclear. However, HMRC’s approach also relies on a shared understanding of the full facts so that they can understand the full nature of the tax risk and deal with it appropriately.

It is generally only when an impasse is reached between HMRC and the taxpayer that Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) is considered. In some cases the full facts will have been established and the mediation will focus on the consequent tax analysis. But in some, the value of ADR will be to seek through mediation, a shared understanding of the facts and help the case progress on that basis.

Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) is a voluntary, informal process in which an impartial HMRC mediator actively assists parties to work towards agreement of a tax dispute. ADR is one facet of HMRC’s overall approach to dispute resolution, which is wherever possible to reach agreement with taxpayers through collaboration. The following is specific information relating to the ADR function only and therefore only forms part of the dispute resolution landscape in HMRC. HMRC do not currently offer arbitration as a means to resolve disputes.

For the period 1 April 2015–31 March 2020 there have been 5,467 applications for ADR. Of these, 2,641 were suitable for mediation and accepted into the ADR process with an average resolution rate of 86.8% across all years.

Throughout a compliance check HMRC will provide accurate, consistent and clear information to the taxpayer, including details of any assessments raised and explanations for any decisions HMRC make during the check. Should a taxpayer have any questions about the compliance check or an assessment, they should write to HMRC who will seek to clarify anything that is unclear. However, HMRC’s approach also relies on a shared understanding of the full facts so that they can understand the full nature of the tax risk and deal with it appropriately.

It is generally only when an impasse is reached between HMRC and the taxpayer that Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) is considered. In some cases the full facts will have been established and the mediation will focus on the consequent tax analysis. But in some, the value of ADR will be to seek through mediation, a shared understanding of the facts and help the case progress on that basis.

Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) is a voluntary, informal process in which an impartial HMRC mediator actively assists parties to work towards agreement of a tax dispute. ADR is one facet of HMRC’s overall approach to dispute resolution, which is wherever possible to reach agreement with taxpayers through collaboration. The following is specific information relating to the ADR function only and therefore only forms part of the dispute resolution landscape in HMRC. HMRC do not currently offer arbitration as a means to resolve disputes.

For the period 1 April 2015–31 March 2020 there have been 5,467 applications for ADR. Of these, 2,641 were suitable for mediation and accepted into the ADR process with an average resolution rate of 86.8% across all years.

The ARAP Scheme has been one of the most generous relocation programmes in the world facilitating the relocation of eligible Afghan and their families. The ACRS will also prioritise the relocation of vulnerable Afghans.

We continue to work at pace with international partners to safely evacuate British Nationals and eligible Afghans through third countries.

This Government cares deeply about building more homes. Since 2010, we have delivered over 1.8 million new homes, including 542,400 new affordable homes, so homes are there where people need them.

We are investing in supply, with over £12 billion in affordable housing over five years, the largest investment in a decade, and £7.1 billion in the National Home Building Fund, to unlock up to 860,000 homes over the lifetime of the projects, including much-needed new homes on brownfield land.

As set out in the Planning for the Future White Paper, the Government will speed up the planning system, enabling us to build homes more quickly.

The Government understands that those involved in the construction industry are struggling to obtain adequate professional indemnity insurance (PII) for fire safety work.

We have been engaging with industry to investigate these challenges and those arising from the increased obligations outlined in the Building Safety Bill. This includes developing an industry survey with the Construction Leadership Council to provide a robust evidence base on the construction PII market.

We are working across Government and with industry to find possible solutions that may improve the availability of PII for construction professionals.

The Help to Buy expenditure (equity loans made), redemptions (equity loans repaid) and value of the loan portfolio (loan book) are published each year in Homes England's Annual Report & Financial Statements and are summarised below for the financial years 2017-18 through to 2019-20 expressed in £000’s:

2017/18

Expenditure: £3,048,679 Valuation of assets: £8,314,304

Redemptions: (£492,394)

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/homes-england-annual-report-and-financial-statements

2018/19

Expenditure: £3,530,582 Valuation of assets: £11,083,941

Redemptions: (£714,925)

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/homes-england-annual-report-financial-statements-201819

2019/20

Expenditure: £3,592,940 Valuation of assets: £14,016,314

Redemptions: (£919,840)

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/homes-england-annual-report-financial-statements-201920

We are working to improve the regulation of the private parking industry. This year we launched consultations on our proposals for the new Parking Code of Practice and Enforcement Framework, designed to crack down on rogue car parking firms. The consultations closed on 12 October. We are now considering the feedback and will publish our response in due course.

Emergency services infrastructure is usually consented under the relevant town and country planning legislation. My Department is currently consulting on a new vision for the planning system, which proposes significant changes to the planning process, aiming to offer greater certainty and speed to those who use the planning system, including emergency services.

The Planning Act 2008 established the Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects planning regime. This is a separate consenting regime for nationally significant infrastructure projects in the fields of energy, transport, water, waste water and waste.