Asked by: David Evennett (Conservative - Bexleyheath and Crayford)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to help pensioners with the rising cost of living.
Answered by Laura Trott - Shadow Secretary of State for Education
The Government understands the pressures people are facing with the cost of living and that pensioners are more likely to suffer disproportionately from adverse health effects from living in a cold home and many low-income pensioner households do not claim the means tested benefits they are entitled to. That is why, in addition to the £37 billion of support we have provided for cost of living pressures in 2022/23, we are acting now to ensure support continues throughout 2023/24.
There are currently around 1.4 million pensioners claiming Pension Credit, through which they will be entitled to receive up to £650 in Cost of Living Payments in 2022/23. These payments are targeted at low income households in receipt of an eligible means-tested benefit.
Eight million pensioner households are receiving a £300 Pensioner Cost of Living Payment as a top-up to their Winter Fuel Payment, and pensioners in receipt of an eligible disability benefit should have received the £150 Disability Cost of Living Payment
All pensioners in England who pay Council Tax in bands A to D should have received a £150 rebate.
The Secretary of State announced on 17 November that State pensions and benefits will be up-rated from April 2023 by 10.1%, in line with the increase in the Consumer Prices Index in the year to September 2022.
To ensure stability and certainty for households, in the Autumn Statement the Government announced £26 billion in cost of living support for 2023/24. This includes Cost of Living Payments for the most vulnerable households, an additional £1 billion to help with the cost of household essentials next year and the amended Energy Price Guarantee, which will save the average UK household £500 in 2023-24.
For those who require extra support, the Government is providing an additional £1 billion of funding, including Barnett impact, to enable the extension of the Household Support Fund in England in the next financial year. This is on top of what we have already provided since October 2021, bringing total funding to £2.5 billion. In England this will be delivered through an extension to the Household Support Fund backed by £842 million, running from 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024, which local authorities use to help households with the cost of essentials. It will be for the devolved administrations to decide how to allocate their additional Barnett funding.
Asked by: David Evennett (Conservative - Bexleyheath and Crayford)
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 reduce levels of childhood obesity.
Answered by Neil O'Brien - Shadow Minister (Policy Renewal and Development)
New Regulations on out of home calorie labelling for food sold in large businesses, including restaurants, cafes and takeaways, came into force in April 2022. Restrictions on the promotion by location of products high in fat, salt or sugar came into force on 1 October 2022. We are also working with the food industry to ensure it is easier for the public to make healthier choices and make further progress on reformulation.
Asked by: David Evennett (Conservative - Bexleyheath and Crayford)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many people have received the Warm Homes Discount in Bexleyheath and Crayford constituency as of 30 November 2022.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The Government does not hold data on the number of rebate recipients by constituency. Energy suppliers are responsible for providing rebates to eligible households and are only required to report on the number of rebates provided in England, Scotland and Wales.
Asked by: David Evennett (Conservative - Bexleyheath and Crayford)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of the Mayor of London’s 2023 ULEZ expansion.
Answered by Richard Holden - Shadow Secretary of State for Transport
Transport in London is devolved to the Mayor of London. There is no legal requirement for the Mayor to consult either central or local Government on the decision to expand the Ultra-Low Emission Zone. However, we have been clear that Government grant funding, via the longer-term funding settlement, cannot be used to cover the estimated £250 million cost of implementation. Therefore, the Mayor and TfL must cover this cost through alternative sources available to them. If Members are unhappy with the decisions that the Mayor has been making, they should make this known at the next London mayoral election in 2024.
Asked by: David Evennett (Conservative - Bexleyheath and Crayford)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she has taken to (a) recruit and (b) retain more male primary school teachers.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Department wants to attract and retain diverse, talented teachers from all backgrounds, including male teachers.
In 2021, the Department’s new application service for initial teacher training (ITT) in England, ‘Apply for teacher training’, was rolled out nationally. It has been designed to be as user friendly as possible and has been extensively tested with a diverse range of potential applicants to ensure it helps remove barriers to great teachers applying for ITT courses.
The Department’s recruitment campaigns are targeted at audiences of students, recent graduates, and potential career changers, regardless of their identity or background. The Department takes every effort to ensure that advertising is fully reflective of this across the full range of marketing materials used.
The reforms outlined in the Government’s response to the ITT market review will help meet the commitment made in the teacher recruitment and retention strategy to create a world class teacher development system by transforming the training and support teachers receive at every stage of their career.
To ensure that all children and young people get the best education, it is essential that the Department has a workforce of well trained and well supported teachers, with the expertise needed to deliver great teaching every day.
Asked by: David Evennett (Conservative - Bexleyheath and Crayford)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much the average funding per pupil in mainstream schools was in (a) Bexleyheath and Crayford constituency, (b) the London Borough of Bexley, (c) Greater London and (d) England in each of the last three years.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The schools National Funding Formula (NFF) calculates an allocation for every school, based on their individual pupil and school characteristics. Schools’ allocations under the NFF for the 2022/23 financial year can be viewed at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-funding-formula-tables-for-schools-and-high-needs-2022-to-2023. Schools’ allocations under the NFF for the 2021/22 financial year can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-funding-formula-tables-for-schools-and-high-needs-2021-to-2022. Schools’ allocations under the NFF for the 2020/21 financial year can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-funding-formula-tables-for-schools-and-high-needs-2020-to-2021.
The below table shows the average funding per pupil allocated through the NFF for Bexleyheath and Crayford, Bexley, London and England over the past three years. Per pupil funding excludes growth funding and individual schools’ actual allocations are based on local authorities’ local funding formulae.
| Average per pupil funding through the Schools NFF | |||
Financial year | Bexleyheath and Crayford (Constituency) | Bexley (Local Authority) | London (Region) | England |
2022/23 | £5,435 | £5,543 | £6,240 | £5,358 |
2021/22 | £5,285 | £5,211 | £5,914 | £5,212 |
2020/21 | £4,889 | £4,825 | £5,529 | £4,828 |
Asked by: David Evennett (Conservative - Bexleyheath and Crayford)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many children in Bexleyheath and Crayford constituency have received free school meals in each of the last five years.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Department publishes annual figures on the number of pupils who are eligible for free school meals, based on school census data.
The most recently published figures are for January 2022. The full collection of publications can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/statistics-school-and-pupil-numbers. The attached table provides information for Bexleyheath and Crayford from the 2017/18 to 2021/22 academic years.
Asked by: David Evennett (Conservative - Bexleyheath and Crayford)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the average class size in secondary schools was in (a) Bexleyheath and Crayford constituency, (b) the London Borough of Bexley, (c) Greater London and (d) England on 4 July 2022.
Answered by Will Quince
The department does not hold figures on class sizes for dates throughout the year. Class size is recorded annually on the January school census day and is regarded as a representative sample of class size. The figures are published here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-pupils-and-their-characteristics.
The table below shows the average primary and secondary class sizes for the Bexleyheath and Crayford constituency, the London Borough of Bexley, Greater London and England and for the 2021/22 academic year.
Location | Class Type | Average class size in the 2021/22 academic year |
Bexleyheath and Crayford | Primary | 27.9 |
| Secondary | 24.4 |
London Borough of Bexley | Primary | 27.5 |
| Secondary | 22.3 |
Greater London | Primary | 26.4 |
| Secondary | 22.1 |
England | Primary | 26.6 |
| Secondary | 23.4 |
Asked by: David Evennett (Conservative - Bexleyheath and Crayford)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the average class size in primary schools was in (a) Bexleyheath and Crayford constituency, (b) the London Borough of Bexley, (c) Greater London and (d) England on 4 July 2022.
Answered by Will Quince
The department does not hold figures on class sizes for dates throughout the year. Class size is recorded annually on the January school census day and is regarded as a representative sample of class size. The figures are published here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-pupils-and-their-characteristics.
The table below shows the average primary and secondary class sizes for the Bexleyheath and Crayford constituency, the London Borough of Bexley, Greater London and England and for the 2021/22 academic year.
Location | Class Type | Average class size in the 2021/22 academic year |
Bexleyheath and Crayford | Primary | 27.9 |
| Secondary | 24.4 |
London Borough of Bexley | Primary | 27.5 |
| Secondary | 22.3 |
Greater London | Primary | 26.4 |
| Secondary | 22.1 |
England | Primary | 26.6 |
| Secondary | 23.4 |
Asked by: David Evennett (Conservative - Bexleyheath and Crayford)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people have arrived in (a) Bexley Borough and (b) Greater London through the Ukraine Family Scheme as of 16 June 2022.
Answered by Kevin Foster
Applicants to the Family Scheme are not required to provide their address/location where they will stay in the UK, hence this data in not available.