Juliet Campbell

Ofcom are due to publish a report on age assurance by July 2026, which will assess the effectiveness of age assurance technologies for compliance with the child safety duties of the Online Safety Act.

Age assurance technologies play an important role in supporting the duties and ensuring that platforms are providing an age-appropriate experience for children on their services. Over 6,000 services are now using highly effective age assurance, and Ofcom’s analysis shows that, on average, 7.8 million UK visitors per day are accessing adult services who have deployed age assurance.

The government is committed to delivering nationwide gigabit coverage by 2032. Full-fibre technology will provide consumers with a faster but also more stable and reliable connection. People in the Bramcote area rightly expect to have the broadband connectivity they need to participate in the modern digital economy.

All communication providers, including those who operate in Bramcote, are subject to statutory obligations to ensure their networks and services remain available. They must take appropriate and proportionate measures to prepare for and reduce the risks of disruption occurring and report significant incidents to Ofcom, who have powers to investigate, enforce remedial measures and fine communications providers.

The early years foundation stage (EYFS) statutory framework, which early years providers are required to follow, includes a requirement for babies to be placed down to sleep in line with the latest government safety guidance here: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/sudden-infant-death-syndrome-sids/.

To make the existing requirements clearer for all, the department plans to add in more detail to the EYFS frameworks. We have worked with safe sleep experts including the Lullaby Trust on proposed new wording. We plan to make these changes as soon as possible.

The ‘Early years qualification requirements and standards’ document sets out the minimum qualification requirements, including the qualifications criteria at levels 2 and 3, that staff must meet to be recognised as level 2, level 3 or level 6 members of staff for the purpose of working within the EYFS staff:child ratios. The document is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/early-years-qualification-requirements-and-standards.

Both the level 2 and level 3 criteria include knowledge of rest and sleep provision, with level 3 also including use of equipment, furniture and materials safely with regard for sleep safety.

On 16 January we announced plans for a new expectation on schools and other settings to ensure staff receive training on SEND and inclusion, supported by £200m investment during this Parliament into government-backed training courses and materials.

The department recently introduced a new training framework for trainee and early career teachers. The initial teacher training and early career framework (ITTECF), which became mandatory from September 2025, sets out the minimum entitlement to training for all new teachers. This framework includes more content on adaptive teaching and supporting pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). For example, developing an understanding of different pupil needs and learning how to provide opportunities for success for all pupils, including those with dyslexia. We are committed to continuous improvement and will be reviewing the ITTECF in 2027, which will focus on the support we provide trainees and early career teachers in teaching pupils with SEND.

The Postgraduate Doctoral Loan provides up to £30,301 for courses starting on or after 1 August 2025 and is intended as a contribution to the costs of PhD study.

Students who already have a doctoral degree, or a qualification that’s equivalent or higher, are not eligible for the Postgraduate Doctoral Loan.

There are no plans to change the eligibility criteria of Postgraduate Doctoral Loans.

The government has been clear that we welcome international students who meet the requirements to study in the UK. International students come from all over the world and benefit UK higher education (HE) and our society, boosting our economy by more than £21 billion a year.

The government expects the UK’s HE sector to remain highly attractive. We have four UK universities in the world’s top 10 and 17 in the top 100, alongside a wide array of other high-quality institutions.

The system must, however, ensure that international students make a positive contribution to the communities in which they study. We will not permit anyone who seeks to exploit the system.

The Immigration White Paper, published in May, sets out a balanced approach which helps the government achieve our manifesto commitment of reducing net migration while maintaining the UK’s global competitiveness.

Full-time undergraduate students who are estranged from their parents or who are care leavers qualify for a long courses loan in the same way as other full-time undergraduate students.

Full-time students who attend their courses for more than 30 weeks and three days in an academic year qualify for additional means-tested long courses loan to help them with their living costs. This is paid for each week or part-week from 30 weeks and three days up to 45 weeks’ attendance. Students attending their courses for 45 weeks or more in any 52 week period are paid as if they are studying for the full 52 weeks, meaning that they qualify for 22 weeks additional living costs support. The weekly rates of long courses loan vary depending on where a student is living and studying during an academic year.

The government has increased maximum loans for living costs, including long courses loans, by forecast inflation (3.1%), for the 2025/26 academic year.

The UK maintains high standards on the information that is provided on food labels so that consumers can have confidence in the food that they buy. All food sold on the UK market, whether produced domestically or imported, must comply with food labelling rules, which include the requirement for specific information to be presented in a specific way.

As set out in the Government’s animal welfare strategy, we are committed to ensuring that consumers have access to clear information on how their food was produced. To support this, we will continue working with relevant stakeholders, including the farming and food industry, scientists and NGOs to explore how improved animal welfare food labelling could provide greater consumer transparency, support farmers and promote better animal welfare.

The Environment Agency (EA) advises and regulates businesses across the energy, agriculture, and waste sectors. They are the environmental regulator for water companies, prosecute and act against those who pollute the environment, and they reduce and protect against flood risk. As a Category 1 Responder (with the emergency services) under the Civil Contingencies Act 2004 they have a duty to warn, inform, and respond to flood incidents and prevent environmental damage.

The EA advises on planning applications within their statutory remit for all local planning authorities, including assessing flood risk and potential impacts to main rivers or controlled waters. They also work with local planning authorities ensuring flood risk, climate change, land contamination, and the water environment are included in their evidence base and policies for local plans.

In addition, they partner with the Joint Unit for Waste Crime, local authorities, and local police forces, to tackle environmental waste crime.

We are firmly committed to maintaining and improving animal welfare and want to work closely with the farming sector to deliver high standards. The UK banned gestation crates (also known as sow stalls) in 1999.

The use of farrowing crates for pigs is an issue we are currently considering very carefully.

The UK maintains high standards on food that is offered to consumers. For example, all food sold in the UK must comply with food compositional standards and labelling legislation whether it is produced domestically or imported into the UK. These rules protect consumers from lower quality products and enable them to make informed choices.

Defra periodically reviews and updates food compositional standards regulations to ensure they remain fit for purpose and reflect innovation in food production and changing consumer preferences.

The Environment Agency (EA) is making plans to allocate £20 million to schemes in Nottinghamshire.

This includes:

• £10 million for ‘Cocker Beck, Lowdham’, aiming to better protect 191 properties.
• £8 million for ‘Holme Sluices Urgent Works’, repairs to gates to improve functionality and extend the asset life.
• £0.7 million for ‘Property Flood Resilience Nottinghamshire Post Winter 2023 Storms’, aiming to use property flood resilience measures to better protect more than 40 properties.
• Approx. £10 – 20,000 inspecting seals on the Attenborough flood gates, replacing them if damaged, and repairing a flap valve in Toton.

The EA is also working with other Risk Management Authorities to deliver:

• Woodborough Natural Flood Management (NFM): a £197,000 project aiming to better protect 6 properties through natural flood management (NFM) measures.
• Gotham Lead Local Flooding Authorities NFM: a £35,000 project aiming to better protect 15 properties through NFM.
• Southwell Flood Alleviation Scheme: the final phase of this scheme aims to better protect another 120 properties with a 250m bund across parkland near Southwell Minster.
• Updating hydraulic models for the Erewash. This will improve flood outlines, increase accuracy of flood warnings, and increase accuracy of the floodmap for planning. It will also allow for investigations into future flood alleviation measures.