Asked by: Peter Aldous (Conservative - Waveney)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what plans he has for the Household Support Fund beyond the 2023-24 financial year.
Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
There are currently no plans to extend the Household Support Fund which runs to the end of March 2024. As with all policies, this is kept under continuous review.
We are proud that, the Household Support Fund has been used to support many households in need in England with the cost of essentials. For example, over 10 million awards were made between 1 October 2022 to 31 March 2023.
The government continues to focus on the Prime Minister’s priority to halve inflation by the end of the year. Through the ambitious package announced at the Spring budget we are also delivering measures that are designed to support people to enter work, increase their working hours and extend their working lives.
Asked by: Peter Aldous (Conservative - Waveney)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of trends in the number of pharmacy closures since 1 January 2023.
Answered by Neil O'Brien
Pharmacy openings and closures in England are published by NHS Business Services Authority. Between 31 December 2022 and 30 June 2023, the number of pharmacies reduced by 222. This reduction was mainly driven by the large multiples reducing their portfolios. To address the disproportionately high rate of closures of 100-hour pharmacies, legislation was amended in April to allow those pharmacies to reduce their hours to a minimum of 72. The Department is monitoring the market and access to pharmaceutical services remains good, with 80% of people in England living within 20 minutes walking distance of a community pharmacy and twice as many pharmacies in the more deprived areas.
Asked by: Peter Aldous (Conservative - Waveney)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps he is taking to support the offshore wind sector.
Answered by Graham Stuart
We are supporting our world leading offshore wind sector through our Contract for Difference scheme and have increased the frequency of auctions.
Allocation Round 5 is currently underway and will bring forward new projects.
Asked by: Peter Aldous (Conservative - Waveney)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps he is taking to encourage the installation of smart-enabled hot water cylinders.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The Government intends to introduce a smart mandate, which will require heat pumps, storage heaters and heat batteries to have smart functionality, from the mid 2020s. The Government is also considering whether to extend the scope of the mandate to include other appliances, such as hot water cylinders.
The Government is also seeking to improve standards regarding hot water cylinder efficiency and has sought feedback on possible options for achieving this in the recent consultation “Improving Boiler Standards and Efficiency.”
Asked by: Peter Aldous (Conservative - Waveney)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, with reference to the report from the Heating and Hotwater Industry Council entitled Skills, Training and the Future of Heat, published in January 2023, whether his Department has conducted any further research into the conclusion that the industry will need 150,000 trained installers to meet this Government target of 600,000 heat pumps by 2028.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The Government notes that different industry organisations have varying estimates for the number of heat pump installers needed by 2028, with the Heat Pump Association estimating this to be 33,700. The Government is taking steps to ensure that there will be sufficient installers to meet demand through schemes such as the Heat Training Grant as well as the Low Carbon Heating Technician Apprenticeship.
Asked by: Peter Aldous (Conservative - Waveney)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment he has made as to the adequacy of the performance of the Boiler Upgrade Scheme since its introduction.
Answered by Graham Stuart
Up to the end of April 2023 the Boiler Upgrade Scheme received 17,001 voucher applications and paid out on 10,847 to the cost of £54.5 million.
Industry has reacted positively to the scheme during its first year, with suppliers developing competitive offers alongside the grant.
Government announced that the BUS will be extended until 2028, with an additional budget allocation for each year.
Asked by: Peter Aldous (Conservative - Waveney)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
What steps her Department is taking to support the provision of youth services.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
This Government knows the importance of youth services.
We have guaranteed that by 2025, every young person in England will have access to regular clubs and activities, adventures away from home and volunteering opportunities.
This is supported by over £500 million of investment in youth services.
The National Youth Guarantee has already supported over 100,000 young people to develop skills for life and work and support their mental and physical wellbeing.
Asked by: Peter Aldous (Conservative - Waveney)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she is taking steps with Cabinet colleagues to support farmers importing plant protection products that require parallel trade permits.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The parallel trade arrangements set out in EU legislation were based on information sharing between the Member States. Parallel trade permits that were in place when the UK left the EU have been continued for a time. Defra is aware that sales of these parallel products end on 30 June 2023, and the final date for use is 30 June 2024. Secretary of State is committed to supporting farmers with appropriate use of plant protection products, within the context of securing a thriving, environmentally sustainable farming sector, engaging with Cabinet colleagues as appropriate. DEFRA is aware of farmer concerns about parallel trade permits and, together with the Health and Safety Executive, we are monitoring the situation.
Asked by: Peter Aldous (Conservative - Waveney)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment she has made of the potential impact of the Government's decision to withdraw parallel trade permits for plant protection products on the agriculture industry.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The parallel trade arrangements set out in EU legislation were based on information sharing between the Member States. Parallel trade permits that were in place when the UK left the EU have been continued for a time. Defra is aware that sales of these parallel products end on 30 June 2023, and the final date for use is 30 June 2024 and, with the Health and Safety Executive, we are monitoring the situation.
Asked by: Peter Aldous (Conservative - Waveney)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she has had recent discussions with the Health and Safety Executive on the potential impact of parallel trade permits for plant protection products on (a) competitiveness and (b) productivity in the agriculture industry.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The parallel trade arrangements set out in EU legislation were based on information sharing between the Member States. Parallel trade permits that were in place when the UK left the EU have been continued for a time. Defra is aware that sales of these parallel products end on 30 June 2023, and the final date for use is 30 June 2024, and we are monitoring the situation.