Marie Goldman

The Government recognises the vital role nightlife venues play in supporting local economies and community cohesion. We also recognise the pressures they are operating under.

That's why we set up the Licensing Taskforce last April, which involved representatives from the nightlife sector to help shape reforms to the licensing system. I published the Government's response on 31st July, outlining a clear plan to support businesses, including the introduction of a new National Licensing Policy Framework to simplify outdated rules, making it quicker, easier, and more affordable to open and run hospitality venues, while helping small businesses grow and communities thrive.

We have no current plans to introduce country-of-origin marking requirements on non-food products and it is a commercial matter for business to decide where they source their products and to assess to what extent the origin might affect the potential market for those products.

More broadly, the government encourages traders to include helpful information on goods on a voluntary basis, particularly where this may be in the best interests of the consumer or represents a unique selling point for a business, as long as the additional information is true and not misleading in any way.

It is for Ofcom, as the independent regulator of postal services, to set and monitor Royal Mail’s service standards, and to decide how to use its powers to investigate and take enforcement action. In December 2024, following its investigation of Royal Mail’s performance in the 2023-24 financial year, Ofcom fined the company £10.5m because of its failure to significantly improve service levels.

Ofcom is currently considering the future of the universal postal service and published a consultation in January proposing a package of reforms to better reflect people’s usage of postal services and support financial sustainability.

The Government has no current plans to change the approach to Daylight Savings.

We know that too much of the burden of the bill is placed on standing charges. We are committed to lowering the cost of standing charges and have worked constructively with the regulator, Ofgem, on this issue.

On 20 February, Ofgem launched a consultation ‘Introducing a zero standing charge energy price cap variant’ - https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/consultation/introducing-zero-standing-charge-energy-price-cap-variant.

The consultation seeks views on the introduction of an option - within the price cap – for a tariff that does not have a standing charge, providing households with more choice over how they pay for their energy.

It also explores different ways a zero standing charge tariff could work, with options on a single unit rate, as well as block tariff options where the unit rates go up or down once a certain amount of energy is consumed.

The consultation closed on 20 March and we stand ready to continue work with Ofgem on this matter.

Copying protected material in the UK will infringe copyright unless it is licensed, or an exception to copyright applies.

The Government published a consultation on Copyright and AI in December 2024 seeking views on proposals for a new regulatory model for text and data mining.

An initial assessment of the options under consideration and their impacts can be found in the summary assessment published alongside the consultation. The Government intends to update its assessment in light of evidence received through the consultation process.

The consultation closed on 25 February and the Government will respond in due course.

Educational psychologists play a critical role in the support available to children and young people. The department is investing over £21 million to train 400 more educational psychologists from September 2024. This is in addition to the £10 million currently supporting the training of over 200 educational psychologists who began their training in September 2023.

To support retention, trainees starting from 2024 who have had their training funded by the department will be required to remain in local authority employment for a minimum period of three years after graduation.

The department does not hold information on what proportion of assistant educational psychologists left the profession before becoming fully qualified educational psychologists.

Educational psychologists play a critical role in the support available to children and young people. The department is investing over £21 million to train 400 more educational psychologists from September 2024. This is in addition to the £10 million currently supporting the training of over 200 educational psychologists who began their training in September 2023.

To support retention, trainees starting from 2024 who have had their training funded by the department will be required to remain in local authority employment for a minimum period of three years after graduation.

The department does not hold information on what proportion of assistant educational psychologists left the profession before becoming fully qualified educational psychologists.

Educational psychologists play a critical role in the support available to children and young people. The department is investing over £21 million to train 400 more educational psychologists from September 2024. This is in addition to the £10 million currently supporting the training of over 200 educational psychologists who began their training in September 2023.

To support retention, trainees starting from 2024 who have had their training funded by the department will be required to remain in local authority employment for a minimum period of three years after graduation.

The department does not hold information on what proportion of assistant educational psychologists left the profession before becoming fully qualified educational psychologists.

Apprenticeships are a great way for individuals to begin, or progress in, a successful career in hairdressing. Employers in the sector have developed a level 2 Hairdressing Professional apprenticeship and a level 2 Barbering Professional apprenticeship to help them develop their workforces.

The department continues to promote the benefits that apprenticeships offer, to students in schools and colleges through the Apprenticeship Support and Knowledge programme, as part of the Skills for Life campaign.

Employers who do not pay the apprenticeship levy, that are usually small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), are important to the economy and to apprenticeships. SMEs are more likely to employ younger apprentices and apprentices from disadvantaged areas.

To support non-levy paying employers to access apprenticeships, the government pays full training costs for young apprentices aged 16 to 21, and for apprentices aged 22 to 24 who have an education, health and care (EHC) plan or have been in local authority care. Employers of all sizes, including SMEs, can also benefit from £1000 payments when they take on apprentices aged 16 to 18, or apprentices aged 19 to 24 who have an EHC plan or have been in local authority care.

Employers also benefit from not being required to pay anything towards employees’ National Insurance for all apprentices aged up to age 25 where they earn less than £967 a week, or £50,270 a year.

The government is committed to ensuring that every child has the best start in life. This includes all children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). We are committed to improving inclusivity and expertise in mainstream schools.

The department regularly consults with various experts, stakeholders and stakeholder groups, including the Royal College of Occupational Therapists. We will continue to work with the sector as essential and valued partners to deliver our shared mission.

The department is working closely with NHS England to improve access to community health services, including occupational therapy, for children and young people with SEND. NHS England continues to monitor community services waiting lists to assess the number of people on them and the length of time they wait for services, and continues to look at actions to reduce waiting times for these services.

The Department of Health and Social Care have launched a 10 Year Health Plan to reform the NHS. A central part of this will be workforce and how they ensure they train and provide the staff the NHS needs to care for patients across our communities.

Defra and PackUK have engaged extensively with waste management experts and the packaging industry across all materials, to ensure that the modelling of local authority costs underpinning the pEPR scheme fairly reflects the on-the-ground reality of waste management operations. As a result, even though packaging weight is generally a key driver of waste management costs in the model, estimated packaging volume, rather than packaging weight, is used to calculate kerbside dry recycling collections costs, to best reflect practical limitations with waste collection systems. This is especially important for heavier materials, which would otherwise incur higher base fees under a modelling of costs solely based on weight. The introduction of base fees from 2025 is designed to incentivise a reduction in the weight of packaging placed on the market in the UK.

Defra and PackUK also engaged extensively across the waste and packaging sectors to agree modulation rates that will be introduce from 2026 to incentivise the use of most recyclable materials by reducing their fees when compared to unrecyclable alternatives.

PackUK will continue monitor the impact of these financial incentives, to ensure they deliver the intended outcomes.

The Government is working together with the devolved Governments to understand the issue, with a view to legislate to ban wet wipes containing plastic across the UK.

Blue Badge holders generally must reapply for a Blue Badge every three years; this gives local authorities the opportunity to ensure that they continue to meet the criteria which make them eligible for a badge. It also helps ensure that the details local authorities hold about the badge holder remain correct and that the details displayed on the badge itself remain legible. Depending on the circumstances an authority may choose not to reassess.

In cases where a person's disability or condition is unlikely to change, local authorities will generally process applications as quickly and efficiently as possible. Once a person’s data is captured on the system it should become easier and less time-consuming for them to reapply for a new badge ahead of their current one expiring.

I recognise the importance of aligning rural transport with housing and wider spatial planning ambitions. I am working closely with my counterparts in the Ministry for Housing, Communities on Local Government on this important issue. As part of our commitment to deliver 1.5 million homes, and under the revised National Planning Policy Framework, local planning authorities must take a vision-led approach and consider transport issues, particularly public and active transport, at the earliest stages of plan-making.

The review of the role of statutory consultee system is a further opportunity to focus on swifter provision of expert advice to inform development, including in rural areas.

The government has committed to reforming bus funding and moving away from competitive allocations processes. Every Local Transport Authority in England outside of London, will receive an allocation from the Local Authority Bus Grant without having to apply to the Department. Local leaders will decide how to use this funding to improve bus services and ensure services meet the needs of local communities. The allocation system used in 2025/26 marks the first step towards a reformed allocation process.

The aviation sector, including Gliding, offers many unique opportunities and experiences for young people, supporting their development and helping to provide pathways to exciting new careers.

We continue to work with industry, associations and other partners to encourage young people to explore what the sector has to offer.

Whilst it is a commercial decision for Eurostar to make on the reinstatement of these services, I recognise the continued disappointment felt by local communities and businesses and I too am keen to see the reinstatement of these services. Officials regularly engage with Kent stakeholders, including MPs, councillors and representatives to discuss this and are committed to continue explore potential solutions.