Asked by: Paul Holmes (Conservative - Eastleigh)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what proportion of the child and adolescent mental health services budget was allocated for service provision for (a) children under the age of 10 (b) children under the age of 5 in each year since 2015-16; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Nadine Dorries
This information is not held at this level of granularity. National Health Service commissioning organisations are responsible for deciding what funding is allocated to specific services.
Asked by: Paul Holmes (Conservative - Eastleigh)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the number of limited companies that (a) operate an annual payroll for the tax year 2019-2020 and (b) qualify for the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme.
Answered by Jesse Norman
No such estimates have been made.Asked by: Paul Holmes (Conservative - Eastleigh)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the number of limited companies that operate an annual payroll system that made an RTI notification of payment to HMRC after 20 March 2020.
Answered by Jesse Norman
No such estimates have been made.Asked by: Paul Holmes (Conservative - Eastleigh)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent discussions she has has with her EU counterparts on tackling Hezbollah fundraising efforts within the EU.
Answered by James Brokenshire
The UK has a strong reputation for tackling terrorist financing and we work very closely with international partners and financial institutions to exchange and analyse information. This ensures we are better able to detect, prevent and disrupt the movement of global terrorist funds. Our EU cooperation is part of a wider landscape of international counter terrorism work, which includes cooperation through relationships such as Interpol, the Five Eyes, and bilateral work with individual countries.
The entirety of Hizballah is proscribed and designated under the UK’s domestic counter terrorism sanctions regime (the Terrorist Asset-Freezing etc. Act 2010 (TAFA)). Hizballah’s Military Wing is also designated along with two named individuals associated with the group under the EU CP931 regime. The investigation and prosecution of offences relating to proscribed organisations is a matter for the police and the Crown Prosecution Service.
Asked by: Paul Holmes (Conservative - Eastleigh)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department is taking to (a) encourage young people to read and (b) promote reading for pleasure in (i) Eastleigh constituency, (ii) England and (iii) the UK.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Department is committed to continuing to raise literacy standards – ensuring all children can read fluently and with understanding.
Literacy skills are underpinned by communication and language skills developed in the early years. Our proposed reforms to the Early Years Foundation Stage, including revisions to the curriculum activities and assessment goals under the seven areas of learning, are intended to improve early language and literacy outcomes for all children. We have also launched Hungry Little Minds – a three-year campaign to encourage parents to engage in activities that support their child’s language and literacy. The Hungry Little Minds website gives parents access to video tips, advice and suggested apps and games to help with early learning for their children from age 0 to 5.
Evidence has shown that phonics is a highly effective component in the development of early reading skills, particularly for children from disadvantaged backgrounds. Our phonics performance is improving. In 2019, 82% of pupils in Year 1 met the expected standard in the phonics screening check, compared to just 58% when the check was introduced in 2012.
Reflecting our commitment to encouraging early reading, in 2018 we launched the £26.3 million English Hubs Programme. We have appointed 34 primary schools across England as English Hubs. The English Hubs programme is supporting nearly 3,000 schools across England to improve their teaching of reading through systematic synthetic phonics, early language development, and reading for pleasure. The English Hubs are focused on improving educational outcomes for the most disadvantaged pupils in Reception and Year 1. To note, Springhill Catholic Primary School in Southampton is an English Hub, and covers Eastleigh and other constituencies.
Education is a devolved matter and the Department is only responsible for policy in England. The Scottish and Welsh Governments are responsible for education policy in Scotland and Wales.
Asked by: Paul Holmes (Conservative - Eastleigh)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of e-reading in different mediums on children’s literacy.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Department wants children to develop the habit of reading widely and often, for both pleasure and information, whatever the format. Research suggests that reading for pleasure is more important for children’s educational development than their parents’ level of education. We have not undertaken research on the specific effect of e-reading, but the Department is committed to continuing to raise literacy standards – ensuring all children can read fluently and with understanding.
In 2018, we launched the £26.3 million English Hubs Programme. We have appointed 34 primary schools across England as English Hubs. The English Hubs programme is supporting nearly 3,000 schools across England to improve their teaching of reading through systematic synthetic phonics, early language development, and reading for pleasure. The English Hubs are focused on improving educational outcomes for the most disadvantaged pupils in Reception and Year 1.