Asked by: Josh Babarinde (Liberal Democrat - Eastbourne)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to ensure pupils are able to access high quality meals in schools in (a) Eastbourne and (b) the South East.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
To ensure quality and nutrition in meals for the future, the department is acting quickly with experts across the sector to revise the school food standards, so every school is supported with the latest nutrition guidance.
School governors and trustees have a statutory duty to ensure compliance with these school food standards. To improve understanding of the school food standards and give governing boards confidence to hold their school leaders to account, the department, along with National Governance Association, developed an online training course on school food for governors and trustees.
Additionally, the department has announced that we are extending free school meals to all children from households in receipt of Universal Credit from September 2026. Giving half a million more children access to a nutritious meal during the school day will lift 100,000 out of poverty and lead to higher attainment, improved behaviour and better outcomes, meaning they get the best possible education and chance to succeed in work and life.
Asked by: Josh Babarinde (Liberal Democrat - Eastbourne)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to support local media in(a) Eastbourne constituency and (b) East Sussex.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Sustainability of local journalism across the country is an area of particular concern for this Government, including in Eastbourne and East Sussex. Government understands the important work that local news does across the UK, including outlets such as the Argus, the Eastbourne Reporter and the Eastbourne Herald. We are developing a Local Media Strategy, in recognition of the importance of this vital sector. Our vision is a thriving local media that can continue to play an invaluable role as a key channel of trustworthy information at local level, reporting on the issues that matter to communities, reflecting their contributions and perspectives, and helping to foster a self-confident nation in which everyone feels that their contribution is part of an inclusive national story.
We are working across Government and with other stakeholders as the Strategy develops, and we recently held a roundtable discussion with local news editors to discuss our planned approach and collaboration with industry on the Strategy. An industry working group has now been set up to consider the issues in more detail and we will announce more in the coming months.
Asked by: Josh Babarinde (Liberal Democrat - Eastbourne)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what proportion of the increased funding for employment support will be allocated to the hospitality sector in coastal towns.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Pathways to Work Green Paper made clear that the additional funding for employment support is aimed at all disabled people and people with health conditions claiming out of work benefits, who want help to get into or return to work.