Show Search Form

Search Results

registered interest	true false
date	exactly: or between: and
answering body
answering dept id
answering dept short name
answering dept sort name
hansard heading
house id
legislature	pref label
question text
tabling member constituency
tabling member printed
uin
answer	is ministerial correction true false date of answer exactly: or between: and answer text answering member constituency answering member printed question first answered answering member label
tabling member	label

Search

1652200

registered interest
date	06/07/2023
answering body	Women and Equalities
answering dept id	31
answering dept short name	Women and Equalities
answering dept sort name	Women and Equalities
hansard heading	Disability: Cost of Living
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what recent estimate the Government has made of the additional costs of living with a disability.
tabling member constituency	Newcastle upon Tyne Central
tabling member printed	Chi Onwurah
uin	905957
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/07/2023 answer text <p>The Government understands the pressures people are currently facing, including those with disabilities and health conditions. As a Government we are providing total support of over £94bn from 2022 to 2024 to help all households and individuals with the cost of living, this includes an additional £150 for disabled people. The Disability Cost of Living Payment should be seen as only one part of the overall package of support, 85% of those who qualify for it, will also receive the means-tested or the pensioner cost of living payment.</p> answering member constituency Mid Sussex answering member printed Mims Davies question first answered 12/07/2023 15:50:42 answering member 4513 label Biography information for Mims Davies
tabling member	4124 label Biography information for Chi Onwurah

1641966

registered interest
date	05/06/2023
answering body	Women and Equalities
answering dept id	31
answering dept short name	Women and Equalities
answering dept sort name	Women and Equalities
hansard heading	Employment: Equality
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what recent progress she has made in establishing an Inclusion at Work panel.
tabling member constituency	Newcastle upon Tyne Central
tabling member printed	Chi Onwurah
uin	187648
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/06/2023 answer text <p>Work is well underway to establish the Inclusion at Work panel. Pamela Dow, who founded and formerly led the Government Skills Campus, was appointed as Chair in March 2023. Invitations to officially join the panel have now been issued to experts from a range of backgrounds, including academia, business, and human resources. More information about Panel members will be made available in due course.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>We look forward to the Panel’s first meeting in due course and seeing their work in improving fairness in the workplace develop.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Lewes answering member printed Maria Caulfield question first answered 13/06/2023 14:19:58 answering member 4492 label Biography information for Maria Caulfield
tabling member	4124 label Biography information for Chi Onwurah

1623943

registered interest
date	20/04/2023
answering body	Women and Equalities
answering dept id	31
answering dept short name	Women and Equalities
answering dept sort name	Women and Equalities
hansard heading	Artificial Intelligence: Equality
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	Whether she is taking steps to help ensure that the use of artificial intelligence systems does not increase the risk of discrimination against people with protected characteristics.
tabling member constituency	Newcastle upon Tyne Central
tabling member printed	Chi Onwurah
uin	904649
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/04/2023 answer text <p>We are committed to harnessing the huge potential of artificial intelligence (AI) to improve people’s lives. That’s why we’re making sure British values, rules and know-how are at the heart of safe AI that will benefit us all.</p><p>Our AI White Paper set out that:</p><ul><li>all uses of AI in the UK must comply with the Equality Act;</li><li>regulators should look to key principles such as fairness, accountability, contestability and redress when making sure that the use of AI is safe.</li></ul><p>I am also continuing to drive implementation of the Inclusive Britain Action Plan’s commitments to guard against bias in AI.</p> answering member constituency Saffron Walden answering member printed Kemi Badenoch question first answered 26/04/2023 16:53:13 answering member 4597 label Biography information for Kemi Badenoch
tabling member	4124 label Biography information for Chi Onwurah

1568341

registered interest
date	18/01/2023
answering body	Women and Equalities
answering dept id	31
answering dept short name	Women and Equalities
answering dept sort name	Women and Equalities
hansard heading	Foreign Investment in UK: India
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of racial and accent prejudices towards Indian nationals and people of Indian heritage on the (a) investment of Indian tech firms into the UK and (b) ability of Indian tech firms to locate their businesses in the UK.
tabling member constituency	Newcastle upon Tyne Central
tabling member printed	Chi Onwurah
uin	126641
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/02/2023 answer text <p>India remains the UK’s second largest foreign direct investment (FDI) market of origin, second after only the US. In 2021/22, the Department for International Trade supported 98 FDI investments originating from India, creating almost 8,300 jobs across the UK. In the 3 years to March 2021, on average households in the Indian ethnic group were the most likely to have a weekly income of £2,000 or more.</p><p>The Government is committed to making Britain a fairer place for all, and for delivering equality of opportunity for everyone. This includes tackling all types of discrimination, including on grounds of race, wherever it arises.</p><p>It is unlawful to discriminate, harass or victimise a person because of their race, ethnicity, nationality or colour. The Equality Act 2010 (the Act) provides legal protection for the protected characteristic of race, which includes colour, nationality, and ethnic or national origins. This means the Act provides protection against unlawful racial or ethnic discrimination in employment and in other areas covered by the Act such as services, transport, education and housing.</p><p>A person's voice/accent can sometimes be an indicator of a protected characteristic (in particular race). So although accent is not a protected characteristic, it is possible that discriminating against a person because of their accent will amount to unlawful discrimination under the Act, depending on the circumstances.</p> answering member constituency Lewes answering member printed Maria Caulfield question first answered 02/02/2023 09:53:29 answering member 4492 label Biography information for Maria Caulfield
tabling member	4124 label Biography information for Chi Onwurah

1551843

registered interest
date	14/12/2022
answering body	Women and Equalities
answering dept id	31
answering dept short name	Women and Equalities
answering dept sort name	Women and Equalities
hansard heading	Regional Accents: Discrimination
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, if she will make an assessment of the implications for her policies of the findings of the Speaking Up report published by the Sutton Trust in November 2022; and if she will take steps to (a) assess the prevalence of and (b) help prevent workplace discrimination relating to accent.
tabling member constituency	Newcastle upon Tyne Central
tabling member printed	Chi Onwurah
uin	110700
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/12/2022 answer text <p>Advancing fairness and equality of opportunity in the workplace is a key priority for this Government. Everyone should be treated fairly as an employee or job applicant so that they can thrive and reach their full potential. A diverse workforce is good for business and we recognise that employers stand the best chance of achieving this when they focus their efforts on effective actions which have a proven track record of improving diversity and inclusion.</p><p>The Government’s approach is to progress specific policies and practical actions that will deliver real change. Our agenda set out in the White Paper ‘Levelling Up the United Kingdom’ is key to this and we are promoting social mobility and tackling inequality through a range of initiatives – for example in education, through reforms to the welfare system, by giving greater developmental devolution in England and rebalancing the economy through schemes such as the Towns Fund.</p><p>We welcome the Sutton Trust’s Speaking Up report and note it recognises that accent is a key facet of several protected characteristics in the Equality Act 2010 – for example, sex, race, age and sexual orientation ­­– this may offer some protection, depending on the particular circumstances of the case.</p><p>We have taken on board the Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities (CRED) recommendations, and as part of the UK Government’s response ‘Inclusive Britain’, Action 69 is the commitment to establish an Inclusion at Work Panel to examine the evidence to understand what actually works to improve inclusion in the workplace and to share that information with employers so they can take action.</p><p>Made up of a panel of academics and practitioners in business it will develop and disseminate effective resources to help employers drive fairness across organisations. This will go beyond just race and ethnicity to identify actions to promote fairness for all in the workplace. It will include a programme of research and workplace trials to provide a robust evidence base and root out poor quality training.</p><p>In addition, we have published guidance that sets out the steps that employees can take if they are experiencing bullying or harassment at work, which is available at: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/workplace-bullying-and-harassment" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/workplace-bullying-and-harassment</a>.</p><p>Acas provides free and impartial advice for employers and employees, and has also published useful guidance on how to deal with bullying in the workplace that we encourage individuals and employers to consider when dealing with such matters. This is available at: <a href="https://www.acas.org.uk/if-youre-treated-unfairly-at-work/being-bullied" target="_blank">https://www.acas.org.uk/if-youre-treated-unfairly-at-work/being-bullied</a>.</p> answering member constituency Pudsey answering member printed Stuart Andrew question first answered 20/12/2022 16:14:26 answering member 4032 label Biography information for Stuart Andrew
tabling member	4124 label Biography information for Chi Onwurah

1507827

registered interest
date	23/09/2022
answering body	Women and Equalities
answering dept id	31
answering dept short name	Women and Equalities
answering dept sort name	Women and Equalities
hansard heading	Women and Equalities: Departmental Responsibilities
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of the change in ministerial title from Minister for Women and Equalities to Minister for Equalities on (a) the scope of his ministerial brief, (b) his ministerial objectives and (c) future Government policy.
tabling member constituency	Newcastle upon Tyne Central
tabling member printed	Chi Onwurah
uin	55113
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/10/2022 answer text <p>The Minister for Equalities’ role represents all aspects of the women and equalities portfolio in Cabinet. This portfolio has not changed. The Cabinet role will be supported by the Minister for Women and the equalities Lords Minister.</p><p>The regular Women and Equalities Questions session in the Commons also retains that name, to reflect its scope including women’s issues. Details of Ministerial priorities will be shared in due course.</p> answering member constituency Stratford-on-Avon answering member printed Nadhim Zahawi question first answered 12/10/2022 09:32:11 answering member 4113 label Biography information for Nadhim Zahawi
tabling member	4124 label Biography information for Chi Onwurah

1488610

registered interest
date	13/07/2022
answering body	Women and Equalities
answering dept id	31
answering dept short name	Women and Equalities
answering dept sort name	Women and Equalities
hansard heading	Equality: Technology
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what steps she is taking to ensure that new technologies are deployed in accordance with equalities legislation.
tabling member constituency	Newcastle upon Tyne Central
tabling member printed	Chi Onwurah
uin	901089
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/07/2022 answer text <p>In its recently published Strategic Plan 2022 to 2025, the Equality and Human Rights Commission singled out digital services and artificial intelligence as one of its strategic priorities. The Commission intends to intervene where necessary to ensure that people are protected from discrimination online, just as they must be in more traditional settings.</p> answering member constituency Derby North answering member printed Amanda Solloway question first answered 13/07/2022 13:53:05 answering member 4372 label Biography information for Amanda Solloway
tabling member	4124 label Biography information for Chi Onwurah

1486314

registered interest
date	04/07/2022
answering body	Women and Equalities
answering dept id	31
answering dept short name	Women and Equalities
answering dept sort name	Women and Equalities
hansard heading	STEM Subjects: Equality and Social Mobility
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what assessment she has made of (a) the contribution of STEM careers to social mobility and (b) the adequacy of the Social Mobility Commission's new Social Mobility Index to (i) assess and (ii) improve diversity in STEM careers.
tabling member constituency	Newcastle upon Tyne Central
tabling member printed	Chi Onwurah
uin	30015
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/07/2022 answer text <p>We must draw on all our available talent and inspire more young people, including those currently under-represented in the STEM workforce, to take up STEM subjects and careers. Our focus on STEM diversity is primarily because of its importance to the UK's continued growth and its impact on wider society. STEM sector jobs are, on average, higher paid than those in the retail and care sectors, so supporting under-represented people into STEM helps their income, and supports our levelling up agenda.</p><p>The Equality Hub’s focus is on data and evidence, and a commitment to sharing that across Government so that we can all develop practical interventions that we know will have an impact. Officials work closely with other relevant departments, as well as academics and other organisations working in the sector to improve the shared evidence base.</p><p>The Social Mobility Commission (SMC), an independent body sponsored by the Equality Hub in the Cabinet Office, looks at social mobility from a UK perspective. The Social Mobility Commission's new Index does not focus on any one sector or industry, but looks at occupational classes more broadly, using the NS-SEC classifications from the ONS Labour Force Survey.</p> answering member constituency Derby North answering member printed Amanda Solloway question first answered 12/07/2022 16:43:09 answering member 4372 label Biography information for Amanda Solloway
tabling member	4124 label Biography information for Chi Onwurah

1381628

registered interest
date	24/11/2021
answering body	Women and Equalities
answering dept id	31
answering dept short name	Women and Equalities
answering dept sort name	Women and Equalities
hansard heading	Equality: Artificial Intelligence
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	What steps she is taking to tackle the effect of algorithmic bias on equality.
tabling member constituency	Newcastle upon Tyne Central
tabling member printed	Chi Onwurah
uin	904392
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/11/2021 answer text <p>We take this issue very seriously. On Monday my Rt Hon. friend the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care announced a review into possible inadvertent bias in medical devices. The Equality and Human Rights Commission has also set tackling the challenges faced by AI as one of the priority work areas in its draft strategic plan for the next three years. It is engaging with key stakeholders in AI, like the Ada Lovelace Institute and the Alan Turing Institute and is developing guidance on AI and the Public Sector Equality Duty, for government departments and public bodies, which will be published early in the new year.</p> answering member constituency Saffron Walden answering member printed Kemi Badenoch question first answered 24/11/2021 15:22:13 answering member 4597 label Biography information for Kemi Badenoch
tabling member	4124 label Biography information for Chi Onwurah

1381914

registered interest
date	24/11/2021
answering body	Women and Equalities
answering dept id	31
answering dept short name	Women and Equalities
answering dept sort name	Women and Equalities
hansard heading	Racial Discrimination
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, with reference to the Answer of 14 June 2021 on Racial Discrimination: Technology, when a response to the The Independent Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities Report will be published; and what assessment she has made since the previous Answer of the feasibility of defining fairness mathematically as proposed in the Commission's Report.
tabling member constituency	Newcastle upon Tyne Central
tabling member printed	Chi Onwurah
uin	80989
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/11/2021 answer text <p>The Government is carefully considering the findings of the independent Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities report and will publish its response in due course.</p><p>In line with the Commission’s findings, the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) published a <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/data-a-new-direction" target="_blank">consultation</a> in September 2021 examining the role of sensitive personal data in bias detection and mitigation in AI systems, and the use of the term ‘fairness’ in a data protection context. The consultation is now closed and DCMS is analysing the responses.</p><p>The National AI Strategy published in September 2021 also sets out further government action to address concerns around fairness and algorithmic bias. The strategy can be found here: <a href="https://gbr01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gov.uk%2Fgovernment%2Fpublications%2Fnational-ai-strategy%2Fnational-ai-strategy-html-version&amp;data=04%7C01%7CPSKemiBadenoch%40communities.gov.uk%7C10fe3d73e06e4ea3b93b08d9b3e3360e%7Cbf3468109c7d43dea87224a2ef3995a8%7C0%7C0%7C637738610711539745%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000&amp;sdata=vKJGzOvbRZ6sLpLxOY7sHCHAkFT%2BWDEfSJsPSTBM8rA%3D&amp;reserved=0" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-ai-strategy/national-ai-strategy-html-version</a>.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Saffron Walden answering member printed Kemi Badenoch question first answered 30/11/2021 10:46:16 answering member 4597 label Biography information for Kemi Badenoch
tabling member	4124 label Biography information for Chi Onwurah