Asked by: James Wild (Conservative - North West Norfolk)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, with reference to the Written Ministerial Statement of 24 January 2024 on Local Government Finance Update, HCWS206, when he plans to announce the allocation of funding for local authorities with the highest internal drainage board levies.
Answered by Simon Hoare - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
On 24 January the Government announced that having listened to authorities who continue to face sustained increases in their internal drainage board (IDB) special levies, we would again provide £3 million outside of the 24/25 Local Government Finance Settlement to support those experiencing the biggest pressures. We will confirm the distribution of this funding shortly, when data on projected special levies becomes available.
Separately, at the National Farmers Union Conference in February the Prime Minister and Defra Ministers announced a new one-off grant, up to £75 million, for IDBs in 2024/25. This fund will help IDBs recover from the recent flooding and contribute towards modernising IDB infrastructure, to lower costs and increase resilience to climate change.
Asked by: James Wild (Conservative - North West Norfolk)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to her Oral Statement of 7 February 2024 on NHS Dentistry: Recovery and Reform, Official Report, columns 251-253, what her planned timetable is for the deployment of dental vans in (a) Norfolk and (b) North West Norfolk constituency.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
We will deploy dental vans offering appointments to patients in targeted rural and coastal communities who have the most limited access to dentistry, including Norfolk. We are currently working with NHS England and the integrated care boards to agree where the vans will be deployed. Dental vans will begin to be implemented later this year.
Asked by: James Wild (Conservative - North West Norfolk)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to her Oral Statement of 7 February 2024 on NHS Dentistry: Recovery and Reform, Official Report, columns 251-253, what her planned timetable is for the deployment of mobile dental teams in schools; and what criteria she plans to use to determine their locations.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Our plan to recover and reform the National Health Service will ensure that children can access preventative care. We will be deploying dental teams to bring preventative dental services such as fluoride varnish directly to children. Dental teams will visit state primary schools in the most need, with higher levels of child tooth decay, and provide fluoride varnish treatments and advice. Starting later this year, we will deploy mobile dental teams into schools in under-served areas, to provide advice and deliver preventative fluoride varnish treatments to more than 165,000 children, strengthening their teeth and preventing tooth decay.
Asked by: James Wild (Conservative - North West Norfolk)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to her Oral Statement of 7 February 2024 on NHS Dentistry: Recovery and Reform, Official Report, columns 251-253, which areas will be included in the first cohort to offer golden hello payments to dentists.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
To support practices in areas where recruitment is particularly challenging, we will launch a new Golden Hello scheme. We will implement schemes working with integrated care boards that are struggling to recover their activity levels, and would significantly benefit. A Golden Hello of £20,000 will be offered per dentist for up to 240 dentists. Payments will be phased over three years, requiring a commitment from the dentist to stay in that area delivering National Health Service work for at least three years. We will decide on locations in the coming months.
Asked by: James Wild (Conservative - North West Norfolk)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what progress her Department has made on establishing an ombudsman for the gambling sector since publication of the Gambling Review in April 2023.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
We are working at pace with industry and all stakeholders in the sector, including the Ombudsman Association, to ensure customers have access to an ombudsman that is fully operationally independent in line with Ombudsman Association standards, and is fully credible in the eyes of customers. As set out in the white paper, it is important that the body adjudicates fairly and transparently all complaints regarding social responsibility or gambling harm issues where an operator is not able to resolve these.
We remain clear that if this approach does not deliver as we expect, or shortcomings emerge regarding the ombudsman’s remit, powers or relationship with industry, the government will actively explore the full range of options to legislate to create a statutory ombudsman.
Asked by: James Wild (Conservative - North West Norfolk)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the number of offenders refusing to attend sentencing hearings who were convicted of an offence where (a) a life sentence must or may be imposed and (b) where the maximum sentence does not permit a life sentence to be imposed in each of the last three years.
Answered by Gareth Bacon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
The information requested is not held centrally. However, our data shows that from January 2021 to June 2023, 182 cases in the Crown Court were sentenced in absence of the defendant where the defendant was remanded in custody. However, the data does not provide the reason for non-attendance and therefore includes non-attendance due to reasons other than refusal, such as transportation issues or legitimate illness.
We are introducing legislation to compel offenders to attend their sentencing hearings to meet the growing public concern relating to offenders who have committed the most serious of offences, including Koci Selamaj, Thomas Cashman and Lucy Letby, who refuse to face up to their crimes and hear how they have impacted the victims and their families.
An offender’s refusal to attend their hearing can cause anger and upset for victims and their families - offenders should attend court to face the consequences of their crimes.
The legislation makes it clear in law that a court can order the production of any offender in the Crown Court to attend their sentencing hearing and that reasonable force can be used to secure their attendance where necessary and proportionate.
In addition, we want courts to have the powers to punish offenders convicted of the most serious offences who do not attend their sentencing hearing without good reason, to ensure that they face up to their crimes and hear how they have impacted the victims and their families. This measure will capture offences such as murder, manslaughter, rape and robbery.
Asked by: James Wild (Conservative - North West Norfolk)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to support the development of alternatives to peat-based soils for the professional horticulture sector.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government is supporting the transition to peat-free horticulture, through research & development, and the removal of regulatory barriers. Officials are also exploring how to deliver financial support to the sector to help with the capital costs of new machinery or infrastructure.
Asked by: James Wild (Conservative - North West Norfolk)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions officials in his Department have had with representatives of the professional horticulture sector on plans to ban the sale of horticultural peat.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Ministers and officials have met with the Horticulture Trades Association (HTA) and Royal Horticultural Society in recent months. Further engagement between officials and a range of stakeholders is planned for this month.
Asked by: James Wild (Conservative - North West Norfolk)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what peat-free working exemptions will be in place in the professional horticulture sector from 2026.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Our proposals for time limited technical exemptions were set out in the Defra Media blog on 24 March 2023. We also propose a conservation exemption which will not be time limited. Officials are in ongoing discussions with stakeholders about what other possible technical exemptions may be required.
Asked by: James Wild (Conservative - North West Norfolk)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has made an estimate of the average cost to farmers of switching agricultural machinery from using existing plant plugs to non-peat alternatives.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Officials are currently updating our economic Impact Assessment which examines the cost differences in moving away from peat. This includes inputs such as water and fertiliser as well as the capital costs of altering machinery.