Asked by: Philippa Whitford (Scottish National Party - Central Ayrshire)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what recent assessment she has made of the contribution of the space sector to (a) the economy and (b) upskilling the workforce.
Answered by George Freeman
The UK space sector is highly productive, employing almost 49,000 people. It is worth £17.5 billion in annual UK income with an average long-term growth rate of 6.4% since the turn of the millennium, outpacing growth of the wider UK economy (Size and Health of the UK Space Industry, 2022).
The recently announced Space Workforce Action Plan will build on findings of the Space Skills Survey to inform intervention by government, industry, and academia, in continuing to upskill the sector’s workforce. The UK Space Agency additionally plan to invest over £4m in the next two years, to enhance access to training for current and potential space sector workers. This supports the Department for Education’s ambition to produce 200,000 people with high quality technical skills by 2030.
Asked by: Philippa Whitford (Scottish National Party - Central Ayrshire)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what information his Department holds on the number of independent investigations that have been opened by Israeli authorities into attacks on emergency medics and ambulances by Israeli forces since 1 January 2023.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The work of healthcare workers across the globe is vital and they must be protected when carrying out their critical work. We recognise that under international humanitarian law, Israel, as the occupying power, has a duty of ensuring and maintaining public health to the fullest extent possible. The wounded and critically ill in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories should be able to access the urgent medical care they need. The British Embassy in Tel Aviv regularly raises the importance of regularised access to healthcare with the Israeli authorities. During his call on 4 July with the Israeli chargé d'affaires in London, the Minister of State for the Middle East, Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon, urged Israel to safeguard access to healthcare and take proactive steps to guarantee the safety of civilians during Israeli operations in the West Bank. The Foreign Secretary also emphasised the importance of the proactive protection of civilians during his call with Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen on 5 July.
Asked by: Philippa Whitford (Scottish National Party - Central Ayrshire)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what information his Department holds on the number of (a) obstructions and (b) physical assaults there have been on Palestinian health workers by Israeli forces since 1 January 2023.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The work of healthcare workers across the globe is vital and they must be protected when carrying out their critical work. We recognise that under international humanitarian law, Israel, as the occupying power, has a duty of ensuring and maintaining public health to the fullest extent possible. The wounded and critically ill in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories should be able to access the urgent medical care they need. The British Embassy in Tel Aviv regularly raises the importance of regularised access to healthcare with the Israeli authorities. During his call on 4 July with the Israeli chargé d'affaires in London, the Minister of State for the Middle East, Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon, urged Israel to safeguard access to healthcare and take proactive steps to guarantee the safety of civilians during Israeli operations in the West Bank. The Foreign Secretary also emphasised the importance of the proactive protection of civilians during his call with Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen on 5 July.
Asked by: Philippa Whitford (Scottish National Party - Central Ayrshire)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether any Departments are using artificial intelligence-based systems to make automated decisions.
Answered by Alex Burghart - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The Central Digital and Data Office (CDDO) in the Cabinet Office is working with departments to establish the frameworks and policies to guide the responsible adoption of new technologies, including artificial intelligence.
The requested information relating to specific departmental use of artificial intelligence systems to make automated decisions is not centrally held.
Asked by: Philippa Whitford (Scottish National Party - Central Ayrshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education,what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of tuition fees on the social mobility of young people.
Answered by Robert Halfon
The introduction of tuition fees has not resulted in fewer people going into Higher Education (HE). The 18-year-old entry rate for disadvantaged students from England increased from 14.4% in 2011 to 25.1% in 2022, and in 2022 we saw record numbers of disadvantaged 18-years-olds going to HE.
Disadvantaged entry rate - English 18-year-olds
| 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 |
Disadvantaged entry rate | 14.4% | 14.4% | 15.6% | 17.0% | 18.0% | 18.9% | 19.9% | 20.2% | 21.7% | 24.0% | 24.5% | 25.1% |
Notes: Disadvantage measured using POLAR, a measure of educational disadvantage.
Source: UCAS End of Cycle Resources, available at: https://www.ucas.com/data-and-analysis/undergraduate-statistics-and-reports/ucas-undergraduate-end-cycle-data-resources-2022.
From August 2023, interest rates for new student loan borrowers will be reduced to RPI only. Under these new terms, no one will repay more than they originally borrowed when adjusted for inflation.
Degree apprenticeships also offer a unique opportunity for people to earn while they learn, achieving degrees from some of our best universities without incurring tuition fees. We’ve seen year-on-year growth of degree-level apprenticeships (Levels 6 & 7) with over 185,000 starts since their introduction in 2014/15 academic year.
Asked by: Philippa Whitford (Scottish National Party - Central Ayrshire)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what support he plans to provide to rural households to help reduce the purchase and installation costs of heat pumps.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The Boiler Upgrade Scheme provides grants to encourage property owners to replace fossil fuel heating with more efficient, low carbon systems. This includes up to £6,000 off a heat pump, in addition to the 0% rate of VAT on these technologies.
For homes off the gas grid, funding is also available through the Home Upgrade Grant. These schemes are part of a comprehensive policy package to grow the heat pump market and work with industry to bring down costs to consumers. Further details are set out in the Powering Up Britain publications (2022) and Heat and Buildings Strategy (2021).
Asked by: Philippa Whitford (Scottish National Party - Central Ayrshire)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will make it his policy to provide incentives for rural households dependent on oil to heat their homes to change to a renewable liquid.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The Government has no current plans to provide incentives for the use of renewable liquid fuels in rural households. Sustainable biomass is a limited resource and must be prioritised for use where there are the fewest options to decarbonise and the potential emissions reductions are greatest. The Biomass Strategy, which will be published later this year, will improve the Government's understanding of the supply of renewable liquid fuels. Policy decisions on the role of renewable liquid fuels in heating will need to reflect this Strategy.
Asked by: Philippa Whitford (Scottish National Party - Central Ayrshire)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment she has made of the impact of the Misuse of Drug Act 1971 on the criminal justice system.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
No recent assessment has been made. Assessments are made on a case by case basis as individual drugs or drug harms are identified. Drug Legislation forms part of our wider approach to preventing drug misuse alongside prevention and education, supporting treatment and recovery, and tackling the supply of illicit drugs.
Asked by: Philippa Whitford (Scottish National Party - Central Ayrshire)
Question to the Scotland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, how much his Department spent on special advisers in (a) 2021-22, (b) 2022-23 and (c) 2023-24.
Answered by Alister Jack - Secretary of State for Scotland
Information on Special Adviser numbers and costs, including pay bands, is published annually in the Annual Report on Special Advisers as per the requirements of the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010. Special Adviser staff costs are paid by the Cabinet Office and the Office reimburses the Cabinet Office for these costs via a budget cover transfer.
Other than salary costs, the Scotland Office has spent the following on special advisers in financial years 2020-21 to 2022-23 (to date).
Financial Year | Travel & Subsistence £ |
2020-21 | 28,336 |
2021-22 | 39,766 |
2022-23 (April to February 2023) | 47,370 |
Asked by: Philippa Whitford (Scottish National Party - Central Ayrshire)
Question to the Scotland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, how much his Department has spent on public information campaigns to advise the public on Government policies in (a) 2022-23 and (b) 2023-2024.
Answered by Alister Jack - Secretary of State for Scotland
Departmental spend on public information campaigns for April 2022 to February 2023 was: £38,343.
The Department has not yet incurred any expenditure for public information campaigns for 2023/24.