First elected: 12th December 2019
Speeches made during Parliamentary debates are recorded in Hansard. For ease of browsing we have grouped debates into individual, departmental and legislative categories.
e-Petitions are administered by Parliament and allow members of the public to express support for a particular issue.
If an e-petition reaches 10,000 signatures the Government will issue a written response.
If an e-petition reaches 100,000 signatures the petition becomes eligible for a Parliamentary debate (usually Monday 4.30pm in Westminster Hall).
These initiatives were driven by Charlotte Nichols, and are more likely to reflect personal policy preferences.
MPs who are act as Ministers or Shadow Ministers are generally restricted from performing Commons initiatives other than Urgent Questions.
Charlotte Nichols has not been granted any Urgent Questions
Charlotte Nichols has not been granted any Adjournment Debates
A Bill to establish a passenger charter for disabled land transport passengers setting out their rights, the legal obligations of transport operators, complaints procedures, passenger assistance schemes and accessibility requirements; and for connected purposes.
Dentists (Indemnity Arrangements) Bill 2024-26
Sponsor - Chris Vince (LAB)
Registration of Births (Inclusion of Deceased Parents) Bill 2024-26
Sponsor - Jen Craft (Lab)
Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (Review) Bill 2024-26
Sponsor - Laurence Turner (Lab)
Sun Protection Products (Value Added Tax) Bill 2022-23
Sponsor - Amy Callaghan (SNP)
Fertility Treatment (Transparency) Bill 2022-23
Sponsor - Alex Davies-Jones (Lab)
Quad Bikes Bill 2021-22
Sponsor - Judith Cummins (Lab)
United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority Pension Transfers (Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman Investigation) Bill Bill 2021-22
Sponsor - David Johnston (Con)
Child Criminal Exploitation Bill 2021-22
Sponsor - Baroness Brown of Silvertown (Lab)
The Cabinet Office recognises the valuable role that the voluntary and community sector can play in all aspects of resilience. The Civil Contingencies Act 2004 requires those responders most likely to be involved in emergencies (Category 1 responders) ‘to have regard’ to the activities of voluntary organisations in the course of carrying out their duties. This is further reinforced in guidance and standards highlighting the benefits which the voluntary and community sector can bring to local partners and Local Resilience Forums.
The voluntary sector is also being included in the reinvigorated National Exercising Programme (NEP) to test our readiness to respond to risks set out in the National Security Risk Assessment (NSRA) through the participation of Local Resilience Forums. This programme complements existing emergency response exercises being led by and involving Government Departments, Local Government, the Devolved Administrations and industry organisations.
To further develop and support engagement, the Head of Resilience in the Cabinet Office chairs the Voluntary and Community Sector Strategic Discussion Forum every six months, with key voluntary sector organisations. Cabinet Office will continue to explore opportunities to further strengthen voluntary sector engagement to build national resilience.
Through the recently introduced Employment Rights Bill, we are amending existing legislation to ensure employers accept flexible working requests, except where they are not reasonably feasible. These changes will support employees to access flexible working, including women. We know flexible working is particularly important supporting women who combine work with caring responsibilities.
We understand that this will be a concerning time for workers at TGI Fridays, and we stand ready to support those impacted. Affected employees will be able to access Government support, including Universal Credit and Job Centre Plus to help them find new jobs, through its Rapid Response Service. DBT officials are monitoring developments and are in touch with administrators.
There have been no changes to the licence agreements issued to UK Seabed Resources Limited since January 2021.
The Department for Business and Trade has considered the potential future impacts to the UK in holding two Deep Sea Mining exploration licences and have found there is an opportunity for the UK to take a lead in this emerging market with potential for growth and revenue through taxation. This is subject to the establishment of strong, enforceable environmental regulations, standards and guidelines adopted by the International Seabed Authority (ISA) and where there is sufficient scientific evidence available to assess the potential impact of deep-sea mining activities on marine ecosystems.
This Government is committed to delivering the Plan to Make Work Pay in full and updating Britain's employment protections, so they are fit for our modern economy and the future of work. As set out in the Plan to Make to Work Pay we are committed to strengthen Statutory Sick Pay (SSP), so it provides a safety net for those who need it most. We will remove the Lower Earnings Limit to make it available to all workers and remove the waiting period so that SSP is paid from the first day of sickness absence. Ministers are identifying the most appropriate delivery mechanisms for the commitments in the Plan, including an Employment Rights Bill that will be introduced to Parliament within 100 days of taking office.
The Warm Homes Plan will help upgrade homes across the country, including those occupied by tenants and leaseholders, by making them cleaner and cheaper to run, from installing new insulation to rolling out solar and heat pumps.
The Government is helping make heat pumps more efficient and easier to install, through increasing funding for the Boiler Upgrade Scheme to £295 million for this financial year, ensuring more families can benefit from £7,500 off the cost of a heat pump. The Government has also allowed heat pumps to be installed within 1m of the property boundary without applying for planning permission.
The Levelised Cost of Electricity (LCOE) provides a simple, high-level metric to compare the cost of building and operating different generation technologies. While valuable for comparing the relative cost of technologies to each other, LCOE does not include wider system impacts such as flexibility, integration, or transmission costs which occur within an operational system. To fully capture these factors and assess the true cost to consumers, the Department and the independent National Energy System Operator (NESO) use detailed power sector modelling.
Great British Nuclear is driving forward its SMR competition for UK deployment and, following conclusion of detailed negotiations, has invited the four shortlisted companies to submit final tenders. GBN will evaluate these, with final decisions on technology selection to be taken in the Spring. Further updates will follow in due course.
This Government is committed to nuclear power, which, as set out in the Clean Power 2030 Action Plan, will play an important role in delivering clean power by 2030, and crucially in the period beyond that, providing clean, stable and reliable power. No decision has yet been taken on whether to pursue a future large-scale project beyond Sizewell C.
The Great British Insulation Scheme (GBIS) is not a government grant, rather it is an obligation on larger energy suppliers to deliver the most cost-effective single insulation measures to eligible households across Great Britain.
Information on the number of measures installed and the number of households that have received measures under GBIS since it launched in 2023 can be found in Tables 1 and 2 of the latest GBIS Statistics Release.
It is crucial that AI systems are developed and deployed in a fair, inclusive and responsible way. That is why we have designated AI assurance as a key pillar of support for meeting the commitments made in government’s response to the AI Opportunities Action Plan.
As part of our work on AI assurance, we recently concluded our Fairness Innovation Challenge, which provided over £465,000 to fund the development of novel solutions to address bias and discrimination – including gender bias – in AI systems across four different sectors.
The Secretary of State and his department will continue to engage with AI developers on a range of matters related to model development and deployment.
The Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology is carefully considering Ofcom’s categorisation research and advice and will make Regulations as soon as reasonably practicable.
Under the Lifelong Learning Entitlement, additional entitlement may be available for priority subjects or longer courses in addition to an individual’s core 4-year entitlement. Details of these additional entitlements will be announced in due course.
The new British Sign Language (BSL) GCSE is a key feature of our commitment to enhancing the status of BSL in education and society.
The department published subject content for the BSL GCSE in December 2023.
As is the usual process for introducing a qualification, the independent qualifications regulator, Ofqual, is currently running a public consultation on its proposed assessment arrangements and expects to confirm its decision on the qualification rules in autumn 2025. At this point, any exam board that chooses to offer the GCSE will be able to start developing specifications.
I refer my hon. Friend, the member for Warrington North, to my written statement of 22 April 2025, which is available here: https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-statements/detail/2025-04-22/hcws589.
In my role as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Children and Families, I have recently met with Adoption UK and other representative organisations to discuss the Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund (ASGSF) and other issues during the adoption sector roundtable on 21 May 2025.
I also met with adopters at the Adoption Reference Group meeting on 6 May 2025, which again discussed the ASGSF, as well as other adoption support issues.
The department is intending further engagement with sector bodies on the approach to managing the ASGSF in future years.
The department knows that parents of children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) need childcare provision that meets their and their children’s needs. This government is determined to help these parents and has funded the national wraparound programme to support working families and improve the availability of before and after school childcare, to ensure that parents have the flexibility they need to care for their children.
Wraparound programme funding includes resource for additional staffing to support inclusive provision, including for pupils with particular needs. Local authority allocations are varied to take account of regional differences in the number of pupils with SEND.
The Childcare Act 2006 places a legal duty on local authorities to ensure there are enough childcare places within its locality for working parents or parents who are studying or training for employment, for children aged 0 to 14, or up to age 18 for disabled children. All local authorities should be able to demonstrate how they have discharged this duty and should include specific reference to how they are ensuring there is sufficient childcare to meet the needs of children with SEND, as per the statutory guidance. This should be available from the local authority.
The wraparound programme is helping local authorities discharge this duty, by distributing funding to ensure that local areas can increase the supply of wraparound places. Local authorities across England can decide how best to use the funding to set up or expand wraparound childcare in their area to meet the needs of their local community, including children with SEND.
The government is also committed to making quick progress to deliver on our commitment to offer breakfast clubs in every primary school. Departmental officials are working closely with schools and sector experts to develop a programme that meets the needs of all children, including those with SEND.
In order to test and learn about how best to support schools in implementing new free universal breakfast clubs, we have selected 750 early adopter schools to deliver from April 2025, ahead of the national roll out to all schools with primary aged children. This includes 50 special schools and alternative provision settings. These settings will receive a higher funding rate, in addition to the fixed termly payments and set up cost funding, in recognition of the need for higher staff to pupil ratios.
This government is committed to ensuring there is a thriving further education (FE) sector, which is vital to our missions to break down the barriers to opportunity and boost economic growth.
FE colleges, rather than government, are responsible for setting and negotiating pay within colleges. Colleges are not bound by the national pay and conditions framework for school teachers, but are free to implement their own pay arrangements in line with their own local circumstances. FE colleges were incorporated under the terms of the 1992 Further and Higher Education Act, which gave them autonomy over the pay and contractual terms and conditions of their staff.
At the Autumn Budget 2024, my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer set out an additional £300 million of revenue funding for FE in the 2025/26 financial year to ensure young people are developing the skills this country needs. The department has recently announced that we are making approximately £50 million of that available to sixth-form colleges and FE Colleges for April to July 2025. This one-off grant will enable colleges to respond to current priorities and challenges, including workforce recruitment and retention. It is up to colleges how they use this funding to best meet priorities.
This builds on our investment to extend targeted retention incentive payments of up to £6,000 after tax to eligible early career FE teachers in key subject areas. The department is also delivering funding to support those young people who do not pass mathematics and English GCSE at 16 who are predominantly studying in FE.
The department will continue to offer financial incentives for those undertaking teacher training for the FE sector in priority subject areas. For the 2024/25 academic year, FE training bursaries are worth up to £30,000 each, tax free. Additionally, we are supporting industry professionals to enter the teaching workforce through our ‘Taking Teaching Further’ programme.
In making their recommendations for 2025/26 school teacher pay, the School Teachers' Review Body's (STRB) have been asked to consider the impact of their recommendations on the FE teaching workforce in England. This does not change how pay is set in FE, but as the FE and school workforces are closely related, it’s important that the STRB consider the totality of the workforce when they look at the evidence.
Nuclear power production is making a crucial contribution to the UK’s Clean Energy Superpower Mission. This contribution relies on a highly skilled workforce. The government and industry are working together to increase the number of students across academic and technical education that enter the nuclear sector. The government’s reforms of England’s skills system, including through the Growth and Skills Levy, the work of Skills England and the Post-16 Strategy, will support the sector’s access to the talent that it needs.
The National Nuclear Strategic Plan for Skills, which the government developed in partnership with industry, will also help address the workforce needs of the civil and defence nuclear sectors. The Plan, published by the Nuclear Skills Delivery Group, is available here: https://nuclearskillsdeliverygroup.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/NSDG-National-Nuclear-Strategic-Plan-For-Skills.pdf.
The government’s current skills offer in England is already helping meet the needs of the nuclear sector. There are seven nuclear-specific occupational standards which underpin apprenticeships. Other apprenticeships are also crucial to the construction and operation of nuclear power plants, including project manager (level 6), and maintenance and operations engineering technician (level 3).
The ‘Free Courses for Jobs’ offer includes two nuclear sector-specific qualifications: the ECITB level 3 Certificate and Diploma in Nuclear Engineering and Science.
A range of Skills Bootcamps are available in nuclear specific and nuclear supportive courses.
Higher education plays a key role in supplying the civil nuclear sector with the skills it needs. Sector specific provision is important, particularly at postgraduate level, but more general courses are also vital to a healthy skills supply for the sector.
All state-funded schools in England are required to teach first aid as part of statutory health education, which is taught as part of relationships, sex and health education (RSHE). It includes basic first aid and dealing with common injuries. Pupils in secondary schools are taught further first aid, for example how to administer CPR and the purpose of defibrillators.
The government is committed to improving mental health outcomes for all children and young people, as this is critical to breaking down barriers to opportunity and learning.
The department, along with the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities, provides guidance to schools and colleges on a whole school or college approach to promoting and supporting mental health and wellbeing, which can be found here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/614cc965d3bf7f718518029c/Promoting_children_and_young_people_s_mental_health_and_wellbeing.pdf. The department has also provided a free to access resource hub for mental health leads, which can be found here: https://www.mentallyhealthyschools.org.uk/whole-school-or-college-resources/.
Over 70% of all schools and colleges have accessed grants from the department to train a senior mental health lead, who develops their knowledge and skills to embed a whole school or college approach to mental health and wellbeing. Information is available here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/senior-mental-health-lead-training. In addition, as of April 2024, Mental Health Support Teams (MHSTs) cover 44% (4.2 million) of pupils in schools and learners in further education (FE) in England. Coverage of MHSTs is expected to cover at least 50% by the end of March 2025.
A key part of our approach is ensuring the right support is available to every young person that needs it, which is why we have committed to provide access to specialist mental health professionals in every school. The government will also be putting in place new Young Futures hubs, including access to mental health support workers, and will recruit an additional 8,500 new mental health staff to treat children and adults.
For early years settings, the early years foundation stage (EYFS) statutory framework sets the standards and requirements that all early years providers must meet to ensure that children have the best start in life and are kept healthy and safe. The EYFS statutory framework can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/early-years-foundation-stage-framework--2.
The department works closely with the FE sector to support providers to develop and implement a whole college approach to mental health and wellbeing. This is supported by the Association of Colleges refreshed Mental Health and Wellbeing Charter, which was published in March 2024.
To raise standards in the higher education sector, the Office for Students has provided £400,000 of funding to the student mental health charity, Student Minds. This has enabled significant expansion of the University Mental Health Charter Programme, with 113 universities now signed up. The programme helps universities to adopt a whole institution approach to mental health.
The government does not set or recommend pay in further education (FE). This remains the responsibility of individual colleges who are free to implement pay arrangements in line with their local needs.
The government recognises the vital role that FE teachers play in developing the skills needed to drive our missions to improve opportunity and economic growth. That is why the department is investing around £600 million in FE across the financial years 2024/25 and 2025/26. This includes extending retention payments of up to £6,000 after tax to eligible early career FE teachers in key subject areas. The department also continues to support recruitment and retention with teacher training bursaries worth up to £30,000 tax-free in certain key subject areas and with support for industry professionals to enter the teaching workforce through our Taking Teaching Further programme.
My right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, has announced a Budget on 30 October, to be followed by a multi-year Spending Review in the spring of next year. Decisions about future post-16 funding and capital programmes will be subject to the outcomes of these fiscal events.
This government’s vision for children and young people with special educational needs, including those with speech, language and communication needs, is the same as it is for all children and young people. We want them to achieve well in their early years, at school and in further education; to find employment; to lead happy and fulfilled lives; and to experience choice and control.
In July, the department announced that funded support would continue in the 2024/25 academic year for 11,100 schools registered to the Nuffield early language intervention programme. This will help pupils who need extra support with speech and language development to find their voice. The department is also funding the Early Language and Support For Every Child pathfinders, in partnership with NHS England. This will fund nine Integrated Care Boards and will fund one of the local areas within each of the nine Regional Expert Partnerships to trial new ways of working to better identify and support children with speech, language and communication needs in early years and primary schools. Alongside this, we know that continuing to build the pipeline of speech and language therapists is essential. That is why the department introduced the speech and language degree apprenticeship, which is now in its third year of delivery and offers an alternative pathway into a successful career as a speech and language therapist.
This government’s vision for children and young people with special educational needs, including those with speech, language and communication needs, is the same as it is for all children and young people. We want them to achieve well in their early years, at school and in further education; to find employment; to lead happy and fulfilled lives; and to experience choice and control.
In July, the department announced that funded support would continue in the 2024/25 academic year for 11,100 schools registered to the Nuffield early language intervention programme. This will help pupils who need extra support with speech and language development to find their voice. The department is also funding the Early Language and Support For Every Child pathfinders, in partnership with NHS England. This will fund nine Integrated Care Boards and will fund one of the local areas within each of the nine Regional Expert Partnerships to trial new ways of working to better identify and support children with speech, language and communication needs in early years and primary schools. Alongside this, we know that continuing to build the pipeline of speech and language therapists is essential. That is why the department introduced the speech and language degree apprenticeship, which is now in its third year of delivery and offers an alternative pathway into a successful career as a speech and language therapist.
This government’s vision for children and young people with special educational needs, including those with speech, language and communication needs, is the same as it is for all children and young people. We want them to achieve well in their early years, at school and in further education; to find employment; to lead happy and fulfilled lives; and to experience choice and control.
In July, the department announced that funded support would continue in the 2024/25 academic year for 11,100 schools registered to the Nuffield early language intervention programme. This will help pupils who need extra support with speech and language development to find their voice. The department is also funding the Early Language and Support For Every Child pathfinders, in partnership with NHS England. This will fund nine Integrated Care Boards and will fund one of the local areas within each of the nine Regional Expert Partnerships to trial new ways of working to better identify and support children with speech, language and communication needs in early years and primary schools. Alongside this, we know that continuing to build the pipeline of speech and language therapists is essential. That is why the department introduced the speech and language degree apprenticeship, which is now in its third year of delivery and offers an alternative pathway into a successful career as a speech and language therapist.
Early language skills are vital in enabling children to thrive in the early years and later life, as well as for all aspects of later attainment in school.
The early years foundation stage (EYFS) statutory framework sets the standards and requirements that all early years providers must follow to ensure every child has the best start in life and is prepared for school. The three prime areas of learning and development within the EYFS are particularly important for building a strong foundation, with communication and language being one of the prime areas.
Assessment plays an important part in helping parents, carers and practitioners to recognise children’s progress, understand their needs and to plan activities and support. The assessment requirements in the EYFS include a progress check at age two and the EYFS Profile, both of which involve reviewing a child’s development in communication and language.
However, the department knows that when it comes to referrals for additional support, too many children are waiting too long for speech and language therapy. NHS planning guidance asks local systems to reduce overall waiting times for community services, with a particular focus on reducing the longest waits. Community health services, including speech and language therapy, will be key in delivering this government’s commitment to shift to a neighbourhood health service and provide more care in the community. Full details of the NHS operational planning and contracting guidance can be found on this website: https://www.england.nhs.uk/operational-planning-and-contracting/.
To further support early language skills, the department is also:
Providing funding for settings to undertake evidence-based continuous professional development programmes, including those focussed on speech, language and communication, via a national network of early years stronger practice hubs.
Training through the ‘professional development programme’ and the online early years child development training, both of which include a specific module focused on early language.
Training for up to 7,000 special educational needs co-ordinators to help children with speech, language and communication needs and support earlier identification of needs.
I refer the Honourable Member to the answer given by the Home Office on 9 May 2025 to PQ 49048.
Recyclable plastic film and flexible packaging is to be collected for recycling from both households and businesses across the UK by 31 March 2027.
Waste is a devolved policy area. This will be implemented as part of Simpler Recycling in England, and the devolved administrations will have similar arrangements.
In the lead up to this requirement, existing kerbside, front of store and postal take back collections of plastic films for recycling will continue and are expected to increase in response to certainty over the timing of the introduction of this new collection requirement. Investment in new UK plastic reprocessing facilities is also expected.
To support our ambitious goals to recycle plastic film, Defra alongside the Flexible Plastic Fund, UK Research and Innovation and Zero Waste Scotland, is funding a multi-million-pound pilot project on flexible plastic kerbside collections.
The Simpler Recycling reforms will make recycling easier and ensure there is a comprehensive, consistent service across England, so that all households and workplaces can recycle plastic, metal, glass, paper & card and food waste, with garden waste for households upon request. Simpler Recycling is estimated to increase the municipal recycling rate from around 42% to around 56% between 2024 and 2035. This project is one of the three core pillars of the Government’s ambitious Collection and Packaging Reforms, alongside the forthcoming Deposit Return Scheme and the Extended Producer Responsibility scheme for packaging.
Littering is a crime that blights communities and the environment. Local authorities are generally best placed to respond to issues such as littering and this Government is considering what further steps are needed to help local authorities reduce litter and keep their streets clean.
The leading causes of red squirrel decline in England include competition from non-native grey squirrels, squirrel pox virus, and habitat availability. Conservation of red squirrels is therefore targeted to red squirrel stronghold areas in the north of England. All reintroductions in England are expected to follow the Code for Reintroductions and other Conservation Translocations.
The UK Squirrel Accord, to which Defra, Natural England, and the Forestry Commission are signatories, is working to better understand the appropriate strategies for conserving the red squirrel. This work includes identifying, protecting, and strengthening existing red squirrel populations, expanding their current range, and promoting better understanding and support for their conservation. Future conservation actions will be informed by this work. Once the work of the strategy has concluded and its recommendations set out, we will consider whether red squirrels should be reintroduced. In the meantime, the red squirrel action plan contains actions that could improve their habitats.
The latest international vehicle regulations covering frontal impact protection developed under the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) currently use a crash test dummy representative of a female occupant in the front passenger seat. The Government is currently considering mandating this regulation in Great Britain as part of an extensive package of vehicle safety measures.
The UNECE has also established a group of experts, in which the Department for Transport is an active member, which is reviewing its Regulations to ensure all vehicle occupants benefit from comparable levels of protection irrespective of their sex, age or stature. This is likely to require testing with a greater number of female occupant locations.
The Department for Transport remains a member of the European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP). This programme is complementary to regulation and includes impact tests using crash test dummies representative of a female occupant in the driver and opposite rear passenger seating positions.
Data from regulatory testing is recorded by the Type Approval Authority responsible for approval, but the data is highly technical and not routinely published. Summarised data from Euro NCAP testing is translated into easily understood safety information and is always published on its website - www.euroncap.com
In the Autumn Budget the Government announced over £2bn of capital and R&D funding to 2030 that will support the latest research and development, accelerate commercial scale up, and unlock capital investment in zero emission vehicles, batteries and the wider supply chain. In addition, in 2025-26 Government is investing £200m to expand electric vehicle (EV) chargepoints, providing £120m for new electric van grants, and strengthening consumer incentives by widening the differentials in Vehicle Excise Duty First Year Rates between EVs and hybrids vs. internal combustion engine cars. EVs continue to get the best rates available for salary sacrifice schemes, which strongly incentivises the uptake of EVs.
The Government recognises that the economic and environmental potential of rail freight is significant and is committed to supporting its growth.
There will be a statutory duty on Great British Railways to promote the use of rail freight and there will be an overall rail freight growth target set by the Secretary of State, with clear and meaningful targets for rail freight growth within pre-defined periods.
The delivery of High Speed Two (HS2) is expected to nearly double seat capacity between London and Birmingham, which is the most congested section of the West Coast Main Line. We are taking into consideration the recent proposal from the Mayors of Greater Manchester and the West Midlands for enhancing rail connectivity between the Midlands and the North West, and will set out a clear plan to address capacity and connectivity issues in due course.
Once Great British Railways is established then it will be making integrated decisions on Rolling Stock, bringing together track and train. This will include a Rolling Stock Strategy which will include considerations around the timelines for new build, refurbishments, and provide more visibility to the rolling stock market.
National Highways was established in 2015 with a requirement to have regard to the Civil Service Pay Remit Guidance when setting pay awards for its staff. National Highways must also ensure its pay deals are affordable and in line with its budget and pay control envelope agreed with the Department for Transport and His Majesty’s Treasury.
Collecting data on individual cases of asbestos-related ovarian cancer is not feasible due to difficulties attributing them to historic exposure with confidence. Significant resource would be needed to produce estimates based on epidemiological evidence. These are likely to be small in comparison to other asbestos-related diseases such as mesothelioma (which is more clearly linked to past exposure) and would have considerable associated uncertainty.
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is responsible for collection of data of workplace injury and illness. Under Regulation 9 of the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013 (RIDDOR), it requires the responsible person to report a diagnosis of any cancer attributed to an occupational exposure to a known human carcinogen in their current job. When reporting, the responsible person must provide details on the affected person's occupation or job title and a description of the work that led to the disease.
Estimated numbers of cases of certain kinds of cancer other than mesothelioma and lung cancer that are attributable to past exposure to asbestos are available from previous HSE sponsored research into the burden of occupational cancer in Great Britain. However, ovarian cancer in relation to asbestos was not considered at the time this research was carried out, and so estimates are not currently available and HSE has no plans to collect this data.
It is estimated that at the financial year ending 2023, there are 2.4 million separated families in Great Britain and 3.8 million children in those families. 41% of these did not have either a statutory arrangement with the Child Maintenance Service or a private arrangement.
At the end of June 2024, the Child Maintenance Service was managing 744,000 arrangements for 675,000 Paying Parents, the number of arrangements has increased by 10% since the end of June 2023.
Legislation to remove the £20 application fee was introduced in February 2024, removing a financial barrier to parents wishing to access the CMS.
Get Help Arranging Child Maintenance is an online service that provides free information and support to help parents make decisions about CM and make a CMS application if they choose to.
The Department is not currently undertaking a review of the fairness of Personal Independence Payment (PIP) assessments.
PIP is designed to treat all claimants fairly, focusing on the needs arising from a long-term health condition or disability, rather than the condition itself. Individuals can be impacted by their health conditions in different ways, so the PIP assessment considers the needs of each individual claimant against the assessment criteria set out in legislation, regardless of whether those needs relate to a physical or non-physical impairment.
DWP has set standards for the quality of assessments and closely monitors all aspects of the process including the performance of the assessment suppliers. Our audit process considers the initial review, evidence collection, further evidence provided, and the advice within the assessment report completed by a health professional (HP). The check is completed against a set of guidelines to ensure a consistent approach is taken. This ensures that assessment reports are fit for purpose, clinically justified and sound, and provide sufficient information for the department to make an informed decision on entitlement to benefit.
All assessment suppliers work with the department on plans to continuously improve assessment quality through a range of measures including audit procedures, clinical observations, tailored training and development plans, providing feedback and in the support available to HPs.
All claimants have the right to request a Mandatory Reconsideration (MR) if they disagree with their PIP decision. If they disagree with the outcome of their MR, they are able to appeal to an independent tribunal.
We are exploring potential changes to modernise the PIP service to improve claimants’ experience and trust in our services and decisions. We will set out the detail of any changes in due course.
The Government believes in the vital importance of equality of opportunity and of treatment in the workplace. The plan to Make Work Pay includes clear action to place equality, diversity and inclusion issues on a statutory footing. This includes requiring large employers to publish plans detailing the action they're taking to improve gender equality and support employees during the menopause. Alongside this, the Government has appointed a Menopause Employment Ambassador who will work with employers to improve the support for women experiencing menopause symptoms at work.
No one should be forced to choose between their health and financial hardship, which is why we plan to strengthen Statutory Sick Pay (SSP), so it provides a safety net for those who need it most. The Plan to Make Work Pay commits to remove the Lower Earnings Limit to make it available to all workers and remove the waiting period so that SSP is paid from the first day of sickness absence. Together these changes will ensure everyone receives fair earnings replacement when they have to take time off work.
Paying SSP for all days of work missed because of sickness will help support employees who have fluctuating conditions who may take frequent, shorter absences from work as part of managing their health condition, such as multiple sclerosis.
No one should be forced to choose between their health and financial hardship, which is why we plan to strengthen Statutory Sick Pay (SSP), so it provides a safety net for those who need it most. The Plan to Make Work Pay commits to remove the Lower Earnings Limit to make it available to all workers and remove the waiting period so that SSP is paid from the first day of sickness absence. Together these changes will ensure everyone receives fair earnings replacement when they have to take time off work.
As part of these changes consideration will be given as to how to best structure the payment rate for individuals earning below the flat weekly rate of SSP.
No one should be forced to choose between their health and financial hardship, which is why we plan to strengthen Statutory Sick Pay (SSP), so it provides a safety net for those who need it most. The Plan to Make Work Pay commits to remove the Lower Earnings Limit to make it available to all workers and remove the waiting period so that SSP is paid from the first day of sickness absence. Together these changes will ensure everyone receives fair earnings replacement when they have to take time off work.
The Government will continue to keep the rate of SSP under review as part of the annual uprating process.
The Government is determined to ensure that the poorest pensioners get the support they need.
As part of the current Pension Credit Week of Action, we have joined forces with national charities, broadcasters and local authorities to encourage pensioners to check their eligibility and make a claim.
From 16 September, we will be running a national marketing campaign on a range of channels. The campaign will target potential pension-age customers, as well as friends and family who can encourage and support them to apply.
Our future campaign messaging will also focus on encouraging pensioners to apply for Pension Credit before the 21 December 2024, which is the last date for making a successful backdated claim for Pension Credit in order to receive a Winter Fuel Payment.
We will work with external partners, local authorities and the Devolved Governments to boost the take-up of Pension Credit.
The Department does not collect information on the impact of diamorphine assisted therapy (DAT), safe consumption rooms and needle and exchange services on rates of soft skin tissue infections (SSTI). The Department is aware of the dangers of SSTI to people who inject drugs and in 2021 issued guidance for commissioners and providers of drugs services on being ‘wound aware’. This recommends that a range of local services can help prevent SSTIs and stop them getting worse through early identification and treatment.
DAT is an option that remains open to local areas under the existing legal framework, where the relevant licences are obtained from the Home Office. There is good evidence that needle and syringe programmes alongside opioid substitution treatment are associated with reduced rates of HIV and hepatitis C infection in the target population. The review of the evidence is available at the following link: