Asked by: Lord Hylton (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to help prevent the potential suspension from September of all United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) services to registered Palestinian refugees, because of financial pressures on its budget; and what is their assessment of the capacity of other United Nations agencies to sustain essential services.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is a longstanding supporter of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) voting to renew the agency's mandate until June 2026, providing essential humanitarian support to Palestinian refugees across its five zones of operation. Our annual contribution to their programme budget helps UNRWA provide education to over 533,000 children a year (half of them girls), and access to health services for 3.5 million Palestinian refugees. Given the impact of the global pandemic on the economy and public finances, the UK moved to a target of spending 0.5 per cent of GNI on Official Development Assistance (ODA) in 2021. This was a difficult - but temporary - decision and the then Chancellor indicated during his budget speech on 27th October 2021 that the UK is currently on track to return to 0.7 per cent of GNI spend on ODA by financial year 2024/25. We are aware of UNRWA's immediate financial challenges and have pledged £10 million to UNRWA for this financial year. I, Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon as The Minister of State for the Middle East, frequently raise UNRWA's financial situation with Middle East and North Africa regional partners at ministerial level, and the Minister of State for Development and Africa has also raised this with with Dr. Abdullah Al Rabeeah, Supervisor General of KSRelief at the Riyadh humanitarian forum in February. To that end, the UK government is working with UNRWA and other international donors to help ensure its continued financial viability.
Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of reductions to university mathematics departments budgets on the UK’s ambition to become a global science and technology superpower by 2030.
Answered by Robert Halfon
Higher education (HE) providers are independent, autonomous institutions, responsible for their own decisions on staffing issues, including how they structure themselves to deliver research and teaching priorities. Where it is necessary to reshape their activities, it is important that universities carefully consider the impact of job losses on staff and students, and the overall sustainability of teaching and research in this country.
The department will continue to work closely with the Office for Students (OfS) and various parties, including a variety of HE providers across the sector, mission groups and other government departments, to understand the ongoing impacts and changing landscape of financial sustainability in the HE sector.
We want to provide a ladder of opportunity for everyone to get the education and skills they need for job security and prosperity and to support levelling up across the country. Access to HE should be based on a student’s attainment and their ability to succeed, rather than background.
The government has issued guidance to the OfS, asking it to refocus the entire access and participation regime to create a system that supports young people from disadvantaged backgrounds by ensuring students are able to make the right choices and to access and succeed on high quality courses that are valued by employers and lead to good graduate employment.
John Blake, as the Director for Fair Access and Participation, is driving forward this important change. Using his experience and expertise from the schools’ sector, he is supporting and challenging HE providers to identify what will ultimately help students progress on their course and obtain good outcomes from their degree, such as programmes of intervention in schools, summer schools, and targeted bursaries to assist with living costs.
The government is committed to cementing the UK’s status as a science and technology superpower, levelling up across the country.
To achieve this, the UK needs talented people with the right knowledge, skills, and experience. The department is investing in programmes that do this at all levels of education.
The Prime Minister has set a new mission for all young people to study maths to age 18, equipping them with the skills they need for the modern economy. Our driving principle is to ensure that all young people are equipped with the right maths knowledge and skills to thrive, whatever their chosen pathway.
On 17 April 2023, the Prime Minister and Secretary of State for Education set out how we will take the next steps towards delivering this mission. This includes:
The department is investing an additional £750 million over the three year period from 2022/23 to 2024/25 to support high quality teaching and facilities including in science and engineering, subjects that support the NHS, and degree apprenticeships. This includes the largest increase in government funding for the HE sector to support students and teaching in over a decade.
Several government strategies are in place to support our science and technology superpower ambition, in specific areas including the 2023 Science and Technology Framework , which sets out our approach to making the UK a science and technology superpower by 2030. The 2021 National AI Strategy, and the 2022 UK Digital Strategy set out how we will strengthen our reserves of talent and skills in order to drive success.
Asked by: Lord Browne of Belmont (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that children from disadvantaged backgrounds have equal access to digital learning resources and technology.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Education is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only.
Schools are responsible for making decisions about what technology to buy to meet their pupils’ needs, and how best to use it support their teaching.
The government delivered over 1.95 million laptops and tablets to schools, trusts, local authorities and further education (FE) providers for disadvantaged children and young people as part of a £520 million government investment to support access to remote education and online social care services. These laptops and tablets are now owned by schools, trusts, local authorities or FE providers, who can lend them to children and young people who need them the most. These laptops and tablets were an injection of support on top of the estimated 2.9 million that were already owned by schools before the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Building on its success in the pandemic, Oak National Academy was established as an arm’s length body on 1 September 2022, working independently of the government and collaboratively with the education sector. Oak aims to support teachers to improve curriculum delivery, reduce workload and support improved pupil outcomes, and continues to provide a remote education contingency. Oak will work with teachers across the country, giving them and their pupils access to free, optional, and adaptable high-quality digital curriculum resources.
The government has provided over £2.6 billion of pupil premium funding in the 2022/23 financial year to support pupils from lower income families. Rates will increase by 5% for 2023/24, taking total pupil premium funding to £2.9 billion. As set out in the menu of approaches, schools can use both pupil premium and recovery premium on technology and other resources that support high quality teaching.
Social tariffs offer low-cost landline and broadband services for those on certain means tested benefits. The government is encouraging those providers who do not currently offer social tariff packages, to do so. A range of affordable tariffs, designed specifically to support low-income families, are now available to 99% of UK households. BT, Virgin Media O2, Sky, Vodafone, and other providers offer broadband and mobile social tariffs for as little as £10 per month, representing a significant saving for households in receipt of Universal Credit and other means tested benefits.
In addition, the government secured a range of commitments from the UK’s major broadband and mobile providers to support families through the global rise in the cost of living. These commitments include more manageable payment plans, switching to a cheaper package free of charge, or taking a more affordable social tariff if the customer is eligible. The government encourages people to contact their provider to see what support is available. Awareness and take up of social tariffs need to improve. The Department for Culture, Media and Sport is working with the sector to urge those providers who have yet to offer a social tariff to do so, and for the industry to ensure that offers are publicised.
Asked by: Lord Boateng (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the economic and social impact of collaboration in scientific research between British and African universities and research institutes.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Scientific research collaborations between British and African research institutions make vital contributions to economic growth and the UK's wider development in Africa. Scientific collaborations are helping to overcome many of the most significant global challenges, from public health emergencies to climate change, to energy, education and more. HMG therefore invests in a wide range of UK-Africa scientific collaborations, including partnerships with the including the Science Foundation for Africa, the African Research Universities Alliance, and the Science Granting Councils Initiative.
Asked by: Navendu Mishra (Labour - Stockport)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what support her Department is providing to international students to meet the increased cost of living.
Answered by Robert Halfon
As set out in the Government's International Education Strategy, the department is committed to working with the higher education (HE) sector to enhance the international student experience to ensure they have an enjoyable and valuable experience whilst in the UK. The International Education Strategy can be accessed at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/international-education-strategy-global-potential-global-growth/international-education-strategy-global-potential-global-growth.
In addition, universities provide a range of dedicated support to their international students pre-arrival, on-arrival and during their studies.
As set out in Home Office guidance, international students who come to the UK on a student visa are required to have money to support themselves for the duration of their studies. Further information on student visa requirements can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/student-visa. Eligible international students can also access providers’ hardship funds, should they need to do so.
Generally, to qualify for HE student support from Student Finance England, a person resident in England must have settled status or a recognised connection to the UK. This includes persons who are covered by the European Union Withdrawal Agreement, have long residence in the UK or who have been granted international protection by the Home Office. There are also requirements associated with ordinary residence in the UK.
Asked by: Baroness Uddin (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Prime Minister's remarks on 12 June about the UK becoming a global leader in AI, what assessment they have made of whether there is a skills gap which might impede this; and if so, what steps they are taking to address that gap.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
In March 2023, the government published its plan to cement the UK’s position as a Science and Technology superpower. As part of this, the department identified five critical technologies to deliver prosperity and security for the UK, including artificial intelligence (AI). The plan can be found in the attached document.
To support this ambition, the department is working on a cross-government action plan on science and technology talent and skills with the Home Office, the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, the Department for Business and Trade and the Cabinet Office. In 2023, the department is developing a departmental Skills Dashboard to understand the supply and demand of science, technology, engineering and mathematics skills for critical technologies, including AI.
Digital and computing skills will play an important role in this work. The department has made progress in recent years, for example this year’s provisional entries for Computer Science GCSEs and A levels show 12% and 14% growth respectively, the highest of all sciences. However, we recognise that there is more work to be done.
This is why the department has overhauled the outdated Information and Communications Technology (ICT) curriculum and replaced it with computing. The department has also invested over £100 million in the National Centre for Computing Education to inspire the next generation of computer scientists.
The department is also investing more in technical skills and education, with courses and training in digital subjects often at the forefront of our reforms. Digital T Levels, Higher Technical Qualifications, Apprenticeships and Skills Bootcamps are ensuring we meet the skills needs for our priority technologies, including those increasingly needed for AI.
The department is building on these initiatives through the Digital and Computing Skills Education Taskforce which brings together government and external expertise to increase the numbers of individuals taking digital and computing qualifications in mainstream and tertiary education, and to attract individuals into digital jobs.
Asked by: Ben Bradshaw (Labour - Exeter)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what data her Department holds on the number of school rebuilding programme projects that have experienced construction delays of more than one month in each of the last five years.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Department is transforming buildings at 500 schools over the next decade as part of its School Rebuilding Programme. The construction programmes of building projects in all Department programmes is monitored by the Department through programme management and project delivery teams.
In the four school rebuilding projects which have been completed, three were delayed more than a month against initial forecasts. These initial programme forecasts were made ahead of the impact of significant events that could not have been reasonably predicted and that affected the global market.
The Department has continuously improved its approach to building schools since the Sebastian James’ review. This identified that the Building Schools for the Future programme, introduced under the last Government in 2004, was overly bureaucratic and not designed to target poor condition, did not support high and consistent quality, did not use standardised specifications that work for education, and did not deliver value for money and economies of scale from central procurement and delivery, which are all things that are now prioritised when building schools.
Under the Priority School Building Programme (PSBP) this Government launched in 2014, whole schools were built one third cheaper per square metre on average than schools built under the Building Schools for the Future Programme. The Department has further built on this success in its School Rebuilding Programme, which is exceeding delivery timescales compared to PSBP, while delivering schools that will be net zero in operation. The Infrastructure and Project Authority has highlighted that our progress is very good.
Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what estimate her Department has made of the (a) societal and (b) economic impact of scientific research collaborations between the UK and Africa.
Answered by George Freeman
While we do not set targets or estimate benefits, all UK development activity is governed by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) rules: that activity is targeted at the economic development and welfare of developing countries. The Independent Commission for Aid Impact (ICAI) audit the activity. The UK-Africa scientific partnership makes vital contributions to the UK’s development and diplomatic objectives in Africa. Scientific collaborations are helping to overcome many of the most significant global challenges, from public health emergencies to climate change, to energy, education and more.
Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether her Department has any targets on (a) the number and (b) the economic value of research collaborations with Africa.
Answered by George Freeman
While we do not set targets or estimate benefits, all UK development activity is governed by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) rules: that activity is targeted at the economic development and welfare of developing countries. The Independent Commission for Aid Impact (ICAI) audit the activity. The UK-Africa scientific partnership makes vital contributions to the UK’s development and diplomatic objectives in Africa. Scientific collaborations are helping to overcome many of the most significant global challenges, from public health emergencies to climate change, to energy, education and more.
Asked by: Lord Hylton (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the finding in the UNICEF reports (1) Fighting the Odds, Catalyzing Change: A Strategic Approach to Ending the Global Problem of Child Marriage, published in September 2022, and (2) Ending Child Marriage: A profile of progress in Bangladesh, published in October 2020, that 51 per cent of girls in Bangladesh marry before the age of 18; and what plans they have to provide funding to ensure that underage girls in that country are protected and able to complete their education.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
UK aid in Bangladesh tackles the root causes and consequences of child marriage. Through our recently concluded Excluded People's Rights in Bangladesh programme, we supported a range of civil society organisations that worked to raise awareness of child marriage to students, parents and communities. As a result of our support, 15,000 child marriages were stopped. The programme also helped enrol over 900 girls back to school. Going forward, through the UN Global Programme to End Child Marriage, the UK is also supporting girls at risk of child marriage in Bangladesh. We have helped 48,500 girls to continue their education and will invest up to £54.5 million over eight years (2022-2029) to improve girls' retention in education.