Asked by: Caroline Ansell (Conservative - Eastbourne)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask to the Secretary of State for Justice, what progress he has made on the objective of ensuring the number of rape cases being referred by the police and going to court is on track to be at the level reached in 2016 by the end of the Parliament; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
In June 2021, we published the End-to-End Rape Review Report and Action Plan. During that review, we took a hard and honest look at how the entire criminal justice system deals with rape and in too many instances it simply has not been good enough. We apologised at the time for this and committed to delivering real improvements to transform support for victims, and working with the police and the CPS to more than double the number of adult rape cases being charged and reaching court by the end of this Parliament.
Since June 2021, we have made significant progress in delivering actions to change the system for the better. Whilst the majority of actions are on track and have been delivered in the timescales we intended, there is much work still to do to ensure that the actions are having the impact they need to.
We are committed to going further and pushing harder on our actions so that we can drive bigger impacts, deliver wider system change and crucially, deliver justice for victims of rape and sexual abuse. We are:
These actions are starting to have an impact on the system, though there is still more progress to be made:
The average number of days for adult rape from CPS charge to the case being completed continued to fall by 38 days – roughly 5 weeks - since the peak in June 2021 – down from 457 days to 419 in October - December 2021.
Asked by: Caroline Ansell (Conservative - Eastbourne)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 31 May 2022 to Question 8084, what the Government's position is on the findings of the EU review into Palestinian textbooks that the Palestinian Authority school curriculum features anti-Israel, antisemitic content; and if she will make a statement on her Department’s aid strategy to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency.
Answered by Amanda Milling - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
We have been clear that incitement to hatred or violence is unacceptable and has no place in education. The report commissioned by the EU into Palestinian textbooks highlights meaningful progress but also indicates that problematic content remains. We continue to raise our concerns to the highest level of the Palestinian Authority and urge removal of the content. The UK is a longstanding supporter of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA). We accompany our support for the UNRWA with stringent attention to implementation of their neutrality policy, including how they apply this to textbooks and other learning material to ensure they reflect UN values.
Asked by: Caroline Ansell (Conservative - Eastbourne)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to support the development of novel methods for the early diagnosis of dementia; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Gillian Keegan - Secretary of State for Education
We are investing in research on dementia diagnosis, such as a £9 million invitation for research proposals for submission to the National Institute for Health and Care Research on digital approaches for the early detection and diagnosis of dementia which was launched in November 2021.
NHS England and NHS Improvement have commissioned resources including an e-learning course developed by University College London to support memory services to manage a change in practice, ensuring the delivery of a personalised assessment and diagnosis via a blended service model; and a guide developed by Leeds Beckett University to support continuous development, improvement and innovation in memory services.
We will set out plans for dementia in England for the next 10 years later this year, which will include a focus on diagnosis, risk reduction and prevention and research.
Asked by: Caroline Ansell (Conservative - Eastbourne)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that people diagnosed with dementia have a sub-type specified; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Gillian Keegan - Secretary of State for Education
As there are over 200 subtypes of dementia, NHS England and NHS Improvement do not provide pathway guidance by subtype. However, best practice in delivering a dementia diagnosis should ensure that patients and their families are given the information they need, including the cause of the dementia syndrome.
Asked by: Caroline Ansell (Conservative - Eastbourne)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to work with private covid-19 lateral flow test providers to ensure that tests are affordable; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Maggie Throup
Manufacturers and retailers of devices have autonomy to determine the pricing of lateral flow device tests and the pack sizes available. However, the Government has engaged with manufacturers and retailers on setting affordable prices to ensure a private market exists and flourishes.
Asked by: Caroline Ansell (Conservative - Eastbourne)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment she has made of the implications for her Department’s stated zero tolerance approach to antisemitism of the UK’s financial support for the UN Relief and Works Agency which utilises the official Palestinian Authority school curriculum in its schools in the West Bank and Gaza; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Amanda Milling - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The UK is committed to combatting the rise of antisemitism in all its forms. We accompany our support for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) with stringent attention to implementation of their neutrality policy, including how they apply this to textbooks and other learning material to ensure they reflect UN values. In Gaza and the West Bank, UNRWA uses the Palestinian Authority's (PA's) curriculum in their schools after rigorously reviewing that it is in line with UN values. Officials from the British Consulate General Jerusalem regularly discuss the curriculum with counterparts in UNRWA and the PA.
Asked by: Caroline Ansell (Conservative - Eastbourne)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate she has made of how many Universal Credit claimants in Eastbourne constituency have been affected by the changes to the Taper Rate announced in the Autumn 2021 Budget; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Monthly statistics on the number of people who are on Universal Credit and are in employment, by parliamentary constituency, are published and can be found at:
https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/
Guidance on how to extract the information required can be found at:
https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/online-help/Getting-Started.html
Asked by: Caroline Ansell (Conservative - Eastbourne)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions she has had with representatives of the Palestinian Authority (PA) on the removal of material reportedly inciting violence and antisemitism and the inclusion of material promoting peace in the PA school curriculum; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Amanda Milling - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
We strongly condemn all forms of violence and incitement to violence. We accompany our support for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) with stringent attention to implementation of their neutrality policy, including how they apply this to textbooks and other learning material to ensure they reflect UN values. In Gaza and the West Bank, UNRWA uses the Palestinian Authority's (PA's) curriculum in their schools after rigorously reviewing that it is in line with UN values. Our partnership with the PA includes a commitment from the Palestinian leadership to adhere to the principle of non-violence and to tackle any language and actions that could incite violence or hatred. Officials from the British Consulate General Jerusalem regularly discuss the curriculum with counterparts in UNRWA and the PA.
Asked by: Caroline Ansell (Conservative - Eastbourne)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent assessment she has made of the implications for her policies of the UN Relief and Works Agency’s use of the Palestinian Authority school curriculum in its schools in the West Bank and Gaza; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Amanda Milling - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
We strongly condemn all forms of violence and incitement to violence. We accompany our support for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) with stringent attention to implementation of their neutrality policy, including how they apply this to textbooks and other learning material to ensure they reflect UN values. In Gaza and the West Bank, UNRWA uses the Palestinian Authority's (PA's) curriculum in their schools after rigorously reviewing that it is in line with UN values. Our partnership with the PA includes a commitment from the Palestinian leadership to adhere to the principle of non-violence and to tackle any language and actions that could incite violence or hatred. Officials from the British Consulate General Jerusalem regularly discuss the curriculum with counterparts in UNRWA and the PA.
Asked by: Caroline Ansell (Conservative - Eastbourne)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether his Department will publish further guidance for public and private providers of English language learning on how they can supply their services to local authorities to support Ukrainian refugees; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Eddie Hughes
English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) is funded through the Adult Education Budget (AEB) and the Skills Funding Agency (ESFA). Authorities, colleges and training providers have the flexibility to use their AEB/ESFA to meet the needs of their communities.