Asked by: Calum Miller (Liberal Democrat - Bicester and Woodstock)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discussions she has had with her US counterpart on the security of the proposed embassy.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The government regularly engages with representatives of foreign governments, including the United States government, to discuss a broad range of issues. The details of these discussions are not made public.
In dealing with any planning application, Ministers act in accordance with published propriety guidance on planning casework decisions. More information can be found on gov.uk here.
Asked by: Calum Miller (Liberal Democrat - Bicester and Woodstock)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many meetings she has held with activist groups who have registered concerns about the proposed Chinese embassy since July 2024.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
In line with published propriety guidance on planning casework decisions, Planning Ministers do not hold meetings with parties where cases are before the Department for determination. More information can be found on gov.uk here.
Asked by: Calum Miller (Liberal Democrat - Bicester and Woodstock)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many meetings she has had with representatives of the Chinese Government about the proposed embassy since July 2024..
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
In line with published propriety guidance on planning casework decisions, Planning Ministers do not hold meetings with parties where cases are before the Department for determination. More information can be found on gov.uk here.
Asked by: Calum Miller (Liberal Democrat - Bicester and Woodstock)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department has had discussions with the Oxford-Cambridge Partnership on ensuring that business needs are met through the delivery of (a) apprenticeships and (b) technical skills by further education institutions.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department, through Skills England, is actively engaged in the Oxford-Cambridge growth corridor. This engagement is supported by local skills improvement plans (LSIPs), which cover all the areas within the Oxford-Cambridge corridor. LSIPs are overseen by Skills England, helping to ensure all parties play their part.
Skills England works closely with employer representative bodies who develop LSIPs to ensure that local technical skills priorities support employers, empower learners and enable regions to respond to future workforce needs.
Employers have consistently engaged with and contributed to the development of LSIPs to articulate skills needs, outline issues faced and establish solutions to tackle these.
Asked by: Calum Miller (Liberal Democrat - Bicester and Woodstock)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the press notice entitled £740 million allocated for 10,000 new places for pupils with SEND, published on 25 March 2025, what steps her Department has taken to establish the criteria for prioritising spending for Special Educational Needs and Disabilities capital investment.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department has published allocations for £740 million high needs capital funding in 2025/26 to support children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) or who require alternative provision.
Of this funding, Oxfordshire Council has been allocated just under £8 million.
This funding is intended to support local authorities to adapt or create specialist facilities within mainstream schools that can deliver more intensive support adapted to suit pupils’ needs, and to create high quality special school places for pupils with the most complex needs.
The statutory duty to provide sufficient school places including for pupils with SEND, sits with local authorities. It is ultimately up to local authorities to determine how to best prioritise their high needs capital funding to address local priorities.
Asked by: Calum Miller (Liberal Democrat - Bicester and Woodstock)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the press notice entitled £740 million allocated for 10,000 new places for pupils with SEND, published on 25 March 2025, what proportion of the £740 million has been allocated for building new special schools.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department has published allocations for £740 million high needs capital funding in 2025/26 to support children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) or who require alternative provision.
Of this funding, Oxfordshire Council has been allocated just under £8 million.
This funding is intended to support local authorities to adapt or create specialist facilities within mainstream schools that can deliver more intensive support adapted to suit pupils’ needs, and to create high quality special school places for pupils with the most complex needs.
The statutory duty to provide sufficient school places including for pupils with SEND, sits with local authorities. It is ultimately up to local authorities to determine how to best prioritise their high needs capital funding to address local priorities.
Asked by: Calum Miller (Liberal Democrat - Bicester and Woodstock)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, when his Department plans to appoint a Special Envoy with responsibility for (a) advocating for and (b) securing the release from detention of British nationals arbitrarily held abroad.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
This Government condemns the practice of detaining British Nationals for political leverage. We take all allegations of human rights violations, and opinions of the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, seriously. The Government is committed to strengthening consular services, including introducing a right to consular assistance in cases of human rights violations, and through the appointment of an Envoy for complex detention cases. Further details will be announced in due course.
Asked by: Calum Miller (Liberal Democrat - Bicester and Woodstock)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if his Department will consider laying an annual report before Parliament on the status of British nationals arbitrarily detained abroad.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
This Government condemns the practice of detaining British Nationals for political leverage. We take all allegations of human rights violations, and opinions of the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, seriously. The Government is committed to strengthening consular services, including introducing a right to consular assistance in cases of human rights violations, and through the appointment of an Envoy for complex detention cases. Further details will be announced in due course.
Asked by: Calum Miller (Liberal Democrat - Bicester and Woodstock)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of reports of Gaza Humanitarian Fund contractors opening fire on civilians queuing for food.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Reports of mass casualty incidents at and near the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) sites are horrifying. Over 600 people have been killed since the GHF began operations.
We regularly engage with Israeli counterparts to urge them to improve the situation on the ground. On 22 June the Foreign Secretary spoke to Minister of Foreign Affairs Sa'ar to express his horror at the mass casualty incidents at GHF sites. He stressed the need to deliver aid at pace and scale.
Humanitarian aid should never be used as a political tool. The UN and trusted partners must be able to operate in line with humanitarian principles and deliver lifesaving aid.
Working closely with the US and our allies, we will continue to support calls for a lasting ceasefire that can end the war, ensure the release of all hostages and a surge of aid into Gaza.
Asked by: Calum Miller (Liberal Democrat - Bicester and Woodstock)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has made representations to his Israeli counterpart on reports of deaths of civilians queuing for food at Gaza Humanitarian Fund distribution centres.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Reports of mass casualty incidents at and near the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) sites are horrifying. Over 600 people have been killed since the GHF began operations.
We regularly engage with Israeli counterparts to urge them to improve the situation on the ground. On 22 June the Foreign Secretary spoke to Minister of Foreign Affairs Sa'ar to express his horror at the mass casualty incidents at GHF sites. He stressed the need to deliver aid at pace and scale.
Humanitarian aid should never be used as a political tool. The UN and trusted partners must be able to operate in line with humanitarian principles and deliver lifesaving aid.
Working closely with the US and our allies, we will continue to support calls for a lasting ceasefire that can end the war, ensure the release of all hostages and a surge of aid into Gaza.