Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to provide support to those whose livelihoods previously relied on employment at the Port Talbot steel works.
Answered by Viscount Younger of Leckie - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) stands ready to support anyone affected by redundancy with our Rapid Response Service offer. This is a service designed to give support and advice to employers and their employees when faced with redundancy.
This service is co-ordinated nationally by the National Employer and Partnership Team and is managed by Jobcentre Plus. Delivery partners include Careers Wales, local training providers, Money Helper and ReAct Plus in Wales.
The Rapid Response Service offer is flexible and can include a range of options (see below) that can be pulled together into an appropriate support package. This package will be tailored to meet the needs of the employer, the individuals affected and the local community.
The range of support available from Jobcentre Plus and partners may include:
DWP are also working closely with the Transition Board that was established to support the people, businesses and communities affected by the proposals for Tata Steel in Port Talbot.
Asked by: Sally-Ann Hart (Conservative - Hastings and Rye)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what protection beyond saltmarsh and seagrass is in place for blue carbon habitats; and whether he is taking steps to encourage private sector investment in (a) ocean-based regenerative farming and (b) other initiatives to support those ecosystems.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government recognises the important role that blue carbon habitats can play in climate change mitigation, adaptation and resilience. These richly biodiverse habitats also provide a crucial buffer from coastal flooding, benefit fish stocks and improve local water quality.
The UK is a global leader in ocean protection and we have taken a number of steps to support blue carbon habitats. 40% of UK waters are in Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) which cover the majority of our saltmarsh and seagrass habitats. Our focus is now on ensuring that these MPAs are effectively protected. The first three Highly Protected Marine Area designations in English waters recently came into force, two of which include further blue carbon habitats such as sub-littoral biogenic reefs and sub-littoral mud.
The Environment Agency’s Restoring Meadow, Marsh and Reef initiative is working to restore native oyster reef, as well as seagrass meadows and saltmarsh. Working in partnership with environmental non-government organisations, industry, community groups and academia, the initiative aims to identify innovative funding opportunities, streamline regulatory processes, build capacity and share knowledge with partners to facilitate a larger programme of restoration.
Defra has set up the UK Blue Carbon Evidence Partnership in partnership with the Devolved Administrations to address evidence gaps that currently prevent the inclusion of blue carbon habitats in the UK Greenhouse Gas Inventory (GHGI). Inclusion of these habitats in the GHGI will allow blue carbon to be marketed and traded as a carbon offset, leveraging private investment into these vital natural carbon stores.
Increased private sector investment into nature-based solutions will be crucial to protect 30% of the worlds ocean by 2030 and limit global warming to 1.5 degrees. Our Green Finance Strategy sets out how the Government will mobilise public and private financial flows to meet climate and environmental targets and our Nature Markets Framework sets out the Government’s aim to raise at least £500 million in private finance to support nature’s recovery every year by 2027 in England, rising to more than £1 billion per year by 2030.
The UK is also leading the way in developing Marine Net Gain in English waters, which will require developers to leave the environment in a better state than before new development, targeting biodiversity decline while securing potential blue carbon benefits.
Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, in which prisons are prisoners eligible to undertake apprenticeships in England and Wales.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
Apprenticeships are one of our initiatives to drive up skills, qualifications and employment across the estate, filling key gaps in the economy, and ultimately reducing reoffending.
In September 2022, the Government changed legislation to allow serving prisoners to undertake apprenticeships. Since then, my officials have been working closely with their counterparts in the Department for Education to engage employers in key skills sectors such as hospitality and construction to sponsor and support apprentice placements.
In England, all appropriately risk-assessed prisoners in the open estate and certain women’s prisons can undertake apprenticeships in the community, as long as they are eligible for ROTL and within a year of release. Apprenticeships are now being tested in the closed Category C estate, offering the chance for high quality training leading to sustainable employment outcomes.
As skills and education are devolved in Wales, the Welsh Government is responsible for provision of education and training in Welsh prisons.
Asked by: Munira Wilson (Liberal Democrat - Twickenham)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate she has made of how many additional SEND places have been opened in each of the local authorities that have a Dedicated schools grant: very high deficit intervention since the agreement was put in place.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
The Safety Valve programme targets the local authorities with the highest Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) deficits. The programme requires the local authorities involved to develop substantial plans for reform to their high needs systems, with support and challenge from the department, to rapidly place them on a sustainable footing. If the local authorities can demonstrate sufficiently that their DSG management plans create lasting sustainability and are effective for children and young people, including reaching an in-year balance as quickly as possible, then the department will enter into an agreement to hold the authority to account for delivery.
Through the agreements, the authorities are subsequently held to account for their reform and savings targets via regular reporting to the department. The department will help the local authorities with additional revenue funding over time to contribute to their historic deficits, but this is contingent on delivery of the reforms in the agreements.
Capital funding is a necessary feature of many local authorities’ DSG management plans, in cases where investment in local infrastructure will result in the availability of more appropriate provision and subsequent revenue savings. Local authorities with Safety Valve agreements are therefore invited to apply for additional high needs capital funding, to be provided as a one-off ‘top-up’ to their high needs provision capital allocations (HNPCA).
Out of the 34 local authorities that currently have Safety Valve agreements, we have allocated additional capital funding to 22. The funding allocated to these local authorities is set out below:
Local Authority | Additional capital funding allocated through the Safety Valve programme |
Bury | £3,780,514 |
Hammersmith and Fulham | £1,220,814 |
Kingston upon Thames | £3,616,603 |
Richmond upon Thames | £3,851,165 |
Stoke-on-Trent | £7,530,904 |
Hillingdon | £6,962,000 |
Kirklees | £8,200,000 |
Merton | £8,270,367 |
Rotherham | £4,323,436 |
Surrey | £8,558,437 |
York | £3,000,000 |
Bolton | £9,903,319 |
Cambridgeshire | £11,290,000 |
Haringey | £7,000,000 |
Medway | £7,188,479 |
Southwark | £3,000,000 |
Bath and North East Somerset | £4,000,000 |
Bexley | £9,500,000 |
Blackpool | £6,153,346 |
North Somerset | £2,918,000 |
North Tyneside | £4,681,000 |
Wokingham | £6,332,300 |
Total | £131,280,684 |
The 12 local authorities that did not receive additional capital either did not apply or did not successfully demonstrate to the department that capital support was necessary to support their DSG management plans.
In order to receive additional capital funding, local authorities’ proposals must demonstrate how investment would align to the reform plans and savings targets in their Safety Valve agreements. Proposals also need to show how capital plans will meet identified gaps in provision and improve the local provision offer. Once funding is allocated, local authorities have appropriate flexibility to make sensible adjustments to their plans, reflecting that the statutory duty to provide sufficient school places remains with the local authority.
6 local authorities are currently in Safety Valve negotiations with the department and have also been invited to apply for capital funding. The outcome of those negotiations and any additional capital funding being allocated will be communicated to local authorities shortly, and additional capital funding will be paid to local authorities as part of their 2024/25 HNPCA allocations later this year.
Asked by: Munira Wilson (Liberal Democrat - Twickenham)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much additional capital funding has been spent in each of the local authorities with a Dedicated schools grant: very high deficit intervention to support delivery of the agreement where this forms part of the agreement.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
The Safety Valve programme targets the local authorities with the highest Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) deficits. The programme requires the local authorities involved to develop substantial plans for reform to their high needs systems, with support and challenge from the department, to rapidly place them on a sustainable footing. If the local authorities can demonstrate sufficiently that their DSG management plans create lasting sustainability and are effective for children and young people, including reaching an in-year balance as quickly as possible, then the department will enter into an agreement to hold the authority to account for delivery.
Through the agreements, the authorities are subsequently held to account for their reform and savings targets via regular reporting to the department. The department will help the local authorities with additional revenue funding over time to contribute to their historic deficits, but this is contingent on delivery of the reforms in the agreements.
Capital funding is a necessary feature of many local authorities’ DSG management plans, in cases where investment in local infrastructure will result in the availability of more appropriate provision and subsequent revenue savings. Local authorities with Safety Valve agreements are therefore invited to apply for additional high needs capital funding, to be provided as a one-off ‘top-up’ to their high needs provision capital allocations (HNPCA).
Out of the 34 local authorities that currently have Safety Valve agreements, we have allocated additional capital funding to 22. The funding allocated to these local authorities is set out below:
Local Authority | Additional capital funding allocated through the Safety Valve programme |
Bury | £3,780,514 |
Hammersmith and Fulham | £1,220,814 |
Kingston upon Thames | £3,616,603 |
Richmond upon Thames | £3,851,165 |
Stoke-on-Trent | £7,530,904 |
Hillingdon | £6,962,000 |
Kirklees | £8,200,000 |
Merton | £8,270,367 |
Rotherham | £4,323,436 |
Surrey | £8,558,437 |
York | £3,000,000 |
Bolton | £9,903,319 |
Cambridgeshire | £11,290,000 |
Haringey | £7,000,000 |
Medway | £7,188,479 |
Southwark | £3,000,000 |
Bath and North East Somerset | £4,000,000 |
Bexley | £9,500,000 |
Blackpool | £6,153,346 |
North Somerset | £2,918,000 |
North Tyneside | £4,681,000 |
Wokingham | £6,332,300 |
Total | £131,280,684 |
The 12 local authorities that did not receive additional capital either did not apply or did not successfully demonstrate to the department that capital support was necessary to support their DSG management plans.
In order to receive additional capital funding, local authorities’ proposals must demonstrate how investment would align to the reform plans and savings targets in their Safety Valve agreements. Proposals also need to show how capital plans will meet identified gaps in provision and improve the local provision offer. Once funding is allocated, local authorities have appropriate flexibility to make sensible adjustments to their plans, reflecting that the statutory duty to provide sufficient school places remains with the local authority.
6 local authorities are currently in Safety Valve negotiations with the department and have also been invited to apply for capital funding. The outcome of those negotiations and any additional capital funding being allocated will be communicated to local authorities shortly, and additional capital funding will be paid to local authorities as part of their 2024/25 HNPCA allocations later this year.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to help close skills gaps in the (a) public and (b) private sector.
Answered by Robert Halfon
The government is committed to creating a world-leading skills system which is employer-focused, high-quality and fit for the future. The department’s reforms are strengthening higher and further education to help more people get good jobs and upskill and retrain throughout their lives, as well as to improve national productivity and economic growth. These reforms are backed with an additional investment of £3.8 billion over the course of this Parliament to strengthen higher and further education. The department’s reforms will help equip people with the education, training and skills that employers demand both in the public and private sector.
The department has established the Unit for Future Skills (UFS), which provides decision makers in skills system with information they need to invest in the right skills to meet national and local employer needs and support economic growth. The work of the UFS aims to improve data and evidence to support a better understanding of current skill mismatches and future demand throughout the country.
Apprenticeships are crucial in driving growth and social mobility as they boost skills across the economy and improve people's earnings and career opportunities nationwide. To support growth, the department is increasing investment in apprenticeships to £2.7 billion by 2024/25, which will encourage more employers across the country to recruit new apprentices.
The department has introduced employer-designed T levels which are equipping thousands of young people with the skills, knowledge, and experience to access employment or further study in some of the most in-demand skills areas. 18 T levels are now available, being delivered through over 250 providers across all regions of the country.
The department has invested £300 million to establish 21 Institutes of Technology (IoT) across England to significantly increase the number of learners with higher level technical skills and offering an alternative route to high paid jobs. IoTs bring education and industry together to deliver world class technical education and training in key STEM subjects aligned to the skills needs of the local economy they serve.
The department is delivering reforms to increase the profile, prestige, and uptake of higher technical education. Central to these reforms is the introduction of Higher Technical Qualifications (HTQs), which are Level 4/5 qualifications approved against employer-developed standard and quality marked by the Institute for Apprenticeships & Technical Education. This means students and employers can have the confidence that HTQs provide skills employers need. To date, 172 qualifications have been approved as HTQs across seven occupational routes and over 140 providers are approved to deliver HTQs.
The department has introduced the Free Courses for Jobs scheme which enables eligible adults to gain a high value qualification for free. In addition, the department has also introduced Skills Bootcamps, which are free, flexible courses of up to 16 weeks, giving people the opportunity to build up sector-specific skills and fast-track to an interview with an employer.
The department has established Local Skills Improvement Plans across the country, which are employer-led, locally owned plans. They have galvanised and brought together businesses, providers, local leaders and stakeholders to help better align provision of post-16 technical education and training with local labour market needs.
Asked by: Janet Daby (Labour - Lewisham East)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 14 February 2024 to Question 13404 on Prison Officers: Youth Custody, what his planned timetable is for completing the development of the bespoke training for staff working with girls in Young Offender Institution and Secure Training Centre sectors.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The Youth Custody Service (YCS) recognises that staff need additional training and support to work effectively with girls in custody. YCS Psychology Services conducted a staff training and development needs analysis which identified various gaps and made associated recommendations. As a result, a programme of additional training for working with girls in custody has been developed which incorporates various modules to meet the identified learning gaps.
Reflecting our commitment to integrated care set out in the YCS and NHS England Framework for Integrated Care (‘SECURE STAIRS’), delivery of the programme is cross-departmental and involves a number of agencies. Implementation has commenced, and the programme will remain in place to ensure the continuous upskilling of new staff. The training needs analysis will be continuously reviewed and updated as this programme proceeds, to ensure any emerging needs are addressed.
Asked by: Baroness Hamwee (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to raise awareness of the benefits to business of employing prison-leavers and to support businesses to do so.
Answered by Lord Bellamy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
We remain committed in increasing the number of prison leavers securing employment on release. The proportion of prison leavers who were employed six months after release more than doubled in the two years to March 2023, from 14% to over 30%. Meanwhile, the proportion who were in employment six weeks after their release almost doubled in the same period, from 9.8% to 19.4%
We know that supporting businesses and raising awareness around the benefits of employing prison leavers are integral in continuing this upward trend.
New Futures Network is the prison service’s specialist employment team that supports businesses to fill skills gaps and prisoners to find employment on release. They use a dedicated website and social media pages to inform the public, including employers, about the opportunities to recruit from prisons. New Futures Network brokers three main types of partnership between prisons and employers:
To increase awareness across sectors facing labour market shortages, in October 2022 New Futures Network began running a series of ‘Unlocking Potential’ recruitment drives in prisons. The most recent event in October 2023, Unlocking Hospitality, saw around 65 events held across 40 sites, attended by 40 employers and 885 prisoners. This resulted in 184 interviews and 45 job offers to date.
We also know that employers want to hear from other employers when talking about the benefits of employing prison leavers. Employment Advisory Boards bring together experienced professionals across the private and third sectors and have been established across 93 prisons. Chaired by business leaders, these are a forum to collaborate with leadership teams within prisons, to support them in creating a positive culture of employment.
Similarly, we continue to work with the Employers Forum for Reducing Re-offending (EFFRR), an HMPPS-led group currently chaired by Greggs. This is a collective of local and national employers that provide training and employment opportunities for ex-offenders, including Greene King, Timpson, Marks & Spencer, Willmott Dixon and many more.
New Futures Network have also partnered with the Department for Education to raise awareness by featuring an employing prison leavers item on their business webpages: Find training and employment schemes for your business (education.gov.uk).
Asked by: Nick Fletcher (Conservative - Don Valley)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has taken steps to implement recommendation 27 on page 260 of the Equality and Human Rights Commission's report entitled Equality and Human Rights Monitor, published in November 2023, on the under-performance of boys relative to girls in primary and secondary education.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
Raising attainment for all pupils, no matter their gender or background is at the heart of this government’s agenda and the government is committed to providing a world-class education system for all.
The latest data shows that, while girls continue to outperform boys across most headline measures, the gender gap between boys and girls is narrowing.
At key stage 2 in 2022/23, the gender gap between boys and girls at the expected standard in reading, writing and mathematics has decreased since 2022 and is the lowest it has been since 2016. Key stage 4 results show the gender gap has narrowed across all headline measures when comparing 2022/23 with both 2018/19 and 2021/22.
The Schools White Paper, published in March 2022, was clear about the direction of travel needed to improve attainment. It set out the department’s long-term vision for a school system that helps every child to fulfil their potential by ensuring that they receive the right support, in the right place, at the right time – founded on achieving world-class literacy and numeracy.
This is supported by significant investment in education with the overall core school budget totalling over £59.6 billion in 2024/25 which is the highest ever level in real terms per pupil. This will help schools in their vital work to close attainment gaps, and level up educational opportunities.
Alongside this, the department takes a range of steps to improve attainment and outcomes for all pupils, including improving the quality of teaching and curriculum resources, strengthening the school system, increasing attendance, and providing targeted support where needed.
The department is aware that disadvantaged pupils and those with additional needs are more likely to fall behind and need extra support to reach their full potential. This is why the department has provided additional funding to support disadvantaged pupils through the pupil premium, which will rise to over £2.9 billion in 2024/25, an increase of £80 million from 2023/24.
Programmes such as free school meals that support 2 million children, the Holiday Activities and Food programme, and support for up to 2,700 breakfast clubs also support disadvantaged pupils.
The department continues to collaborate with other government departments to address out-of-school factors that we know have a significant impact on attainment outcomes.
Asked by: Carolyn Harris (Labour - Swansea East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will make an assessment of the potential implications for her policies of the study by Gabriel A. Brooks and Luke Clark entitled, The gamblers of the future? Migration from loot boxes to gambling in a longitudinal study of young adults, published in Computers in Human Behaviour, volume 141, in April 2023.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
His Majesty’s Government struck a balanced and evidence-led approach in our review of gambling regulation. We continue to monitor research, and have carefully considered the findings in this study. We recognise that there is a growing body of research that provides evidence of an association between loot box purchases and gambling activity, as well as evidence of a link with a variety of harms, including harmful gambling. However, research has not established whether a causal relationship exists, and there are a range of plausible explanations.
In order to address gaps in research around these and similar areas, we have developed and published the Video Games Research Framework to support high quality independent research into video games, including loot boxes. We are also introducing a statutory levy charged to gambling operators which will raise trusted, long-term funding for gambling research. We are clear that we will continue to look carefully at any further research that results from that and take action if necessary.