Laura Kyrke-Smith

Public libraries are funded by local authorities and each local authority is responsible for assessing the needs of their local communities and designing a library service to meet those needs within available resources.

DCMS is aware of the current consultation on proposed changes to opening hours at a number of libraries in Buckinghamshire, including Aylesbury. DCMS officials have met with Buckinghamshire County Council officers to ensure that they are aware of the Council's statutory duty under the Public Libraries and Museums Act 1964 to provide a comprehensive and efficient library service, and to advise officers on the Secretary of State's duty of superintendence, which includes the consideration of formal complaints that a library authority is not carrying out their duties under the 1964 Act.

The department is continuing to support and challenge Buckinghamshire to improve delivery of special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) services.

The last local area SEND inspection by Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission (CQC) for Buckinghamshire was in March 2022, during which inspectors identified three areas of significant weakness. A written statement of action to address these areas of weakness was accepted by Ofsted and CQC. The department’s regional team has put in place systems to track outcomes against these areas of weakness and the progress made by children and young people with SEND, including regular review meetings. Buckinghamshire Council are committed to working closely with the department to improve services.

Buckinghamshire is taking part in the Delivering Better Value (DBV) in SEND Programme. The DBV in SEND Programme, established under the previous government, aims to help local authorities provide more effective SEND services by meeting the needs of children and young people at an early stage and with the right level of support.

Buckinghamshire is part of the most recent national competition to find multi-academy trusts to run 18 additional special schools. The competition was launched before the election and the window for application has just closed.

This government’s ambition is that all children and young people with SEND or in alternative provision receive the right support to succeed in their education and as they move into adult life. The department will be focusing on a community-wide approach to improve inclusivity and expertise in mainstream schools as well as to ensure that special schools cater to those with the most complex needs.

The Secretary of State recently met with water company bosses, including Thames Water, to make it clear that water firms will be held accountable for their performance for customers and the environment. During the meeting, water bosses signed up to the Government’s initial package of reforms to cut sewage dumping and attract investment to upgrade infrastructure.

The Government also announced a new Water (Special Measures) Bill, which will turn around the performance of water companies, in the King’s Speech. The Bill will strengthen regulation, give the water regulator new powers to ban the payment of bonuses if environmental standards are not met and increase accountability for water executives. These are the first critical steps in enabling a long-term and transformative reset of the entire water sector.

The Department and I are working closely with HS2 Ltd to ensure that, as we deliver the railway, local communities are involved, informed, and treated with the respect they deserve. Construction of a project on the scale of HS2 will inevitably affect many people, including residents of Aylesbury, but a wide range of controls are in place, including a comprehensive Code of Construction Practice, and independent Commissioners, to minimise disruption as far as possible and to respond to any concerns raised. In recognition of those impacts that remain, however, local people may be interested in applying to the HS2 Community and Environment Fund, which provides grant funding for beneficial projects along the line of the route, and to mitigate the impact of HS2 works.

The latest available Pension Credit take-up statistics, which includes estimates of the number of households eligible for but not claiming Pension Credit, cover the financial year 2021 to 2022 and are available at: Income-related benefits: estimates of take-up: financial year ending 2022 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk). However, these statistics are only available at Great Britain level and cannot be broken down to smaller geographical areas.

Last week we held a Pension Credit Awareness Week of Action – joining forces with a range of partners such as Age UK, Citizens Advice, local authorities and organisations such as British Gas to promote Pension Credit and encourage take-up. The “Week of Action” had widespread national and regional media coverage.

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 campaign messaging will also focus on encouraging pensioners to apply for Pension Credit before 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 are working with external partners, local authorities, and the Devolved Governments to boost the take-up of Pension Credit.

The State Pension is the foundation of income in retirement and will remain so, protecting 12 million pensioners through the triple lock. Based on current forecasts, the full rate of the new state pension is set to increase by £1,700 over the course of this Parliament.

The Warm Home Discount scheme in England and Wales provides eligible low-income households across Great Britain with a £150 rebate on their electricity bill. This winter, we expect over three million households, including over one million pensioners, to benefit under the scheme.

We are also providing support for pensioners through our Warm Homes Plan which will support investment in insulation and low carbon heating – upgrading millions of homes over this Parliament. Our long-term plan will protect billpayers permanently, reduce fuel poverty, and get the UK back on track to meet our climate goals.

The Household Support Fund is also being extended for a further six months, from 1 October 2024 until 31 March 2025.   An additional £421 million will be provided to enable the extension of the HSF in England, plus funding for the Devolved Governments through the Barnett formula to be spent at their discretion, as usual.

Winter Fuel Payments will continue to be paid to pensioner households with someone receiving Pension Credit or certain other income-related benefits. They will continue to be worth £200 for eligible households, or £300 for eligible households with someone aged 80 and over.

We know there are low-income pensioners who aren’t claiming Pension Credit, and we urge those people to apply. This will passport them to receive Winter Fuel Payment alongside other benefits – hundreds of pounds that could really help them. We will ensure that the poorest pensioners get the support they need.

The Foreign Secretary has raised the UK's concerns about settlement expansion and settlers with Israeli Ministers. The UK's position is clear. Settlements are illegal under international law, present an obstacle to peace, and threaten the physical viability of a two-state solution. During his visit in July, the Foreign Secretary met Palestinians displaced in the West Bank. He was horrified to hear of acts of violence carried out by settlers. The UK strongly condemns settler violence and provocative remarks such as those made by Israel's National Security Minister Ben-Gvir, which threaten the status quo of the Holy Sites in Jerusalem.

The UK's position is clear. Settlements are illegal under international law, present an obstacle to peace, and threaten the physical viability of a two-state solution. We recognise settlements have reached record levels in the past year and there has been an increase in settler violence. We urge Israel to take greater action to hold violent settlers to account. During his visit in July, the Foreign Secretary met Palestinians displaced in the West Bank. He was horrified to hear of acts of violence carried out by settlers. The Israeli Government has seized more of the West Bank in 2024 than in the past 20 years. This is completely unacceptable. The UK strongly condemns settler violence and provocative remarks such as those made by Israel's National Security Minister Ben-Gvir, which threaten the status quo of the Holy Sites in Jerusalem. The UK has sanctioned eight people and two entities responsible for perpetrating, inciting, and promoting human rights abuses against Palestinian communities in the West Bank. We keep all these issues under review, and we discuss them with our closest allies.

The UK's position is clear. Settlements are illegal under international law, present an obstacle to peace, and threaten the physical viability of a two-state solution. We recognise settlements have reached record levels in the past year and there has been an increase in settler violence. We urge Israel to take greater action to hold violent settlers to account. The UK strongly condemns settler violence and provocative remarks such as those made by Israel's National Security Minister Ben-Gvir which threaten the status quo of the Holy Sites in Jerusalem. The UK has sanctioned eight people and two entities responsible for perpetrating, inciting, and promoting human rights abuses against Palestinian communities in the West Bank. We keep all these issues under review and we discuss them with our closest allies.

The UK's position is clear. Settlements are illegal under international law, present an obstacle to peace, and threaten the physical viability of a two-state solution. We recognise settlements have reached record levels in the past year and have been accompanied by an increase in settler violence. We urge Israel to take greater action to hold violent settlers to account. During his visit in July, the Foreign Secretary met Palestinians displaced in the West Bank. He was horrified to hear of acts of violence carried out by settlers. The UK has sanctioned eight people and two entities responsible for perpetrating, inciting, and promoting human rights abuses against Palestinian communities in the West Bank. While we do not comment on specific cases, we keep all these issues under review, and we discuss them with our closest allies. The Foreign Secretary was clear with PM Netanyahu on his visit to Israel and the OPTs (July 2024) that the Israeli government must clamp down on settler violence and end settlement expansion.

We are clear that International Humanitarian Law must be upheld, and we are following the necessary processes.

As soon as the Foreign Secretary took office, he tasked officials with a comprehensive review of Israel's compliance with International Humanitarian Law, and that process is now under way. We will update the House again once the process is complete.

The financial requirements for the Family Immigration Rules include the Minimum Income Requirement (MIR) which is currently set at £29,000 and is intended to maintain the economic wellbeing of the UK whilst respecting family life.

The Home Secretary has announced her intention to commission the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) to review the financial requirements in the Family Immigration Rules. Conducting a review of the financial requirements across the family routes will ensure we have a clear and consistent system.

There will be no changes to the current threshold of £29,000, or the ways in which the MIR can be met, until the MAC review is complete.