Higher Education: Financial Sustainability

Debate between Baroness Benjamin and Baroness Williams of Trafford

Monday 15th December 2014 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Benjamin (LD)]

My Lords, we need to bridge the social mobility gap. As the report states, universities will have to face huge cuts in the future. How will the Government ensure that spending on widening access to higher education is not the first place where savings will be found? I declare an interest as the chancellor of the University of Exeter.

[Baroness Williams of Trafford]

My Lords, the cap will be lifted in 2016, widening access as far as possible. In fact, disadvantaged students now make up 17% of the total, which is a record level.

Child Abuse: Police Investigations

Debate between Baroness Benjamin and Baroness Williams of Trafford

Wednesday 29th October 2014 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Williams of Trafford]

My Lords, Fiona Woolf stated to the Home Affairs Select Committee that she had no close association with the Brittans. I think that noble Lords would agree that it is time that we got on with this inquiry.

[Baroness Benjamin (LD)]

My Lords, can my noble friend the Minister tell the House what support is given to children who have been abused?

[Baroness Williams of Trafford]

My Lords, there is a wide range of support available to children who have been abused, but in the time that I have here I will not go through it all. I will write to the noble Baroness to outline some of the detail.

Immigration: Cedars Pre-departure Accommodation

Debate between Baroness Benjamin and Baroness Williams of Trafford

Wednesday 18th June 2014 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Williams of Trafford]

The noble Lord is undoubtedly right that this sort of separation—indeed, the whole situation—is very difficult and has to be handled very sensitively. The family escort teams have been set up in to provide support right from the beginning of the journey of return until the end. They went live on 19 May and I hope that whole family approach and whole journey approach will see an improvement in some of the distress that might be caused in these removals.

[Baroness Benjamin (LD)]

My Lords, I welcome the noble Baroness to the Dispatch Box. When do the Government intend to put in place the specialist family teams? Will Barnardo’s, which is the expert and has a vast amount of experience in this area, have an input in recruiting and training the teams? In asking that, I declare my interest as a vice-president of Barnardo’s.

[Baroness Williams of Trafford]

I thank the noble Baroness for her question. As I said earlier, the teams went live on 19 May, and I am very pleased about that. All people dealing with children have to be—it is almost obvious to say—CRB checked. All staff in Barnardo’s are trained in safeguarding and child-protection issues.