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1289980

registered interest
date	25/02/2021
answering body	Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
answering dept id	201
answering dept short name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
answering dept sort name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
hansard heading	Consumer Goods: Electrical Safety
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that electrical goods offered for sale by third party sellers on online marketplaces are safe for use in the UK.
tabling member constituency	Harlow
tabling member printed	Robert Halfon
uin	158909
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/03/2021 answer text <p>The Government is committed to ensuring that only safe electrical goods can be sold in the UK. All distributors have a duty to act with due care to ensure products they are selling are safe, this includes online retailers selling goods via marketplaces.</p><p> </p><p>The Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS) is engaging proactively with major online marketplaces to ensure that they are playing their part in protecting UK consumers from unsafe products. The OPSS has recently taken action to ensure that a number of non-compliant products being sold by overseas third-party sellers have been removed from sale, including electrical appliances.</p><p> </p><p>The OPSS is also developing a new voluntary commitment for online marketplaces to agree actions they will take to reduce the risks from unsafe products being sold online. This will enable online marketplaces to demonstrate their commitment to the safety of their consumers in the UK by publicly promising to work with UK regulators.</p><p> </p><p>In order to ensure that the UK’s Product Safety framework is flexible and fit for the future, the OPSS is conducting a review. This will ensure we have a framework that delivers safety for consumers while supporting businesses to innovate and grow and will consider the impact on product safety (including electrical goods) of new business models such as third-party sales through online marketplaces.</p> answering member constituency Sutton and Cheam answering member printed Paul Scully question first answered 02/03/2021 17:03:20 answering member 4414 label Biography information for Paul Scully
tabling member	3985 label Biography information for Robert Halfon

1290007

registered interest
date	25/02/2021
answering body	Home Office
answering dept id	1
answering dept short name	Home Office
answering dept sort name	Home Office
hansard heading	Telephone Services: Fraud
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to tackle fraudulent calling.
tabling member constituency	Harlow
tabling member printed	Robert Halfon
uin	158910
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/03/2021 answer text <p>Fraudulent calls can be particularly stressful and damaging for the most vulnerable in society. Nuisance calls and cold calling can be a gateway to scams, with opportunistic criminals targeting potential victims.</p><p>The Government has taken a range of actions to reduce the number of these calls - it has banned cold calls from personal injury firms and pensions providers unless the consumer has explicitly agreed to be contacted. It has introduced director liability for nuisance calls and has supported the National Trading Standards Scams Team to roll out call blocking devices to vulnerable people. DCMS have provided over £1 million in the last 3 years to National Trading Standards for distribution of call blocking devices to vulnerable people. This funding has helped protect some of the most vulnerable in society from nuisance calls and scams, including those originating from overseas.</p><p>However, the Government recognises there is more to do and is working closely with industry, regulators and consumer groups to consider further legislative and non-legislative solutions.</p><p>The Government is also aware that criminals are exploiting the pandemic to commit opportunistic crimes such as fraud. Although Covid-19 related fraud represents a small proportion of overall fraud reporting, we understand the devastating impact it can have on individuals. Along with partners, we have been implementing measures to ensure the public has the protection and advice needed to shield themselves from these crimes.</p><p>We have published guidance for the public to spot potential frauds and the steps they can take to avoid them. This advice can currently be accessed at: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-fraud-and-cyber-crime" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-fraud-and-cyber-crime</a></p> answering member constituency Torbay answering member printed Kevin Foster grouped question UIN 158911 158912 question first answered 02/03/2021 17:06:52 answering member 4451 label Biography information for Kevin Foster
tabling member	3985 label Biography information for Robert Halfon

1290008

registered interest
date	25/02/2021
answering body	Home Office
answering dept id	1
answering dept short name	Home Office
answering dept sort name	Home Office
hansard heading	Telephone Services: Fraud
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department plans to take to strengthen measures to prevent fraudulent calling.
tabling member constituency	Harlow
tabling member printed	Robert Halfon
uin	158911
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/03/2021 answer text <p>Fraudulent calls can be particularly stressful and damaging for the most vulnerable in society. Nuisance calls and cold calling can be a gateway to scams, with opportunistic criminals targeting potential victims.</p><p>The Government has taken a range of actions to reduce the number of these calls - it has banned cold calls from personal injury firms and pensions providers unless the consumer has explicitly agreed to be contacted. It has introduced director liability for nuisance calls and has supported the National Trading Standards Scams Team to roll out call blocking devices to vulnerable people. DCMS have provided over £1 million in the last 3 years to National Trading Standards for distribution of call blocking devices to vulnerable people. This funding has helped protect some of the most vulnerable in society from nuisance calls and scams, including those originating from overseas.</p><p>However, the Government recognises there is more to do and is working closely with industry, regulators and consumer groups to consider further legislative and non-legislative solutions.</p><p>The Government is also aware that criminals are exploiting the pandemic to commit opportunistic crimes such as fraud. Although Covid-19 related fraud represents a small proportion of overall fraud reporting, we understand the devastating impact it can have on individuals. Along with partners, we have been implementing measures to ensure the public has the protection and advice needed to shield themselves from these crimes.</p><p>We have published guidance for the public to spot potential frauds and the steps they can take to avoid them. This advice can currently be accessed at: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-fraud-and-cyber-crime" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-fraud-and-cyber-crime</a></p> answering member constituency Torbay answering member printed Kevin Foster grouped question UIN 158910 158912 question first answered 02/03/2021 17:06:52 answering member 4451 label Biography information for Kevin Foster
tabling member	3985 label Biography information for Robert Halfon

1290009

registered interest
date	25/02/2021
answering body	Home Office
answering dept id	1
answering dept short name	Home Office
answering dept sort name	Home Office
hansard heading	Telephone Services: Fraud
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of changes in the level of incidents relating to fraudulent calling during the covid-19 pandemic.
tabling member constituency	Harlow
tabling member printed	Robert Halfon
uin	158912
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/03/2021 answer text <p>Fraudulent calls can be particularly stressful and damaging for the most vulnerable in society. Nuisance calls and cold calling can be a gateway to scams, with opportunistic criminals targeting potential victims.</p><p>The Government has taken a range of actions to reduce the number of these calls - it has banned cold calls from personal injury firms and pensions providers unless the consumer has explicitly agreed to be contacted. It has introduced director liability for nuisance calls and has supported the National Trading Standards Scams Team to roll out call blocking devices to vulnerable people. DCMS have provided over £1 million in the last 3 years to National Trading Standards for distribution of call blocking devices to vulnerable people. This funding has helped protect some of the most vulnerable in society from nuisance calls and scams, including those originating from overseas.</p><p>However, the Government recognises there is more to do and is working closely with industry, regulators and consumer groups to consider further legislative and non-legislative solutions.</p><p>The Government is also aware that criminals are exploiting the pandemic to commit opportunistic crimes such as fraud. Although Covid-19 related fraud represents a small proportion of overall fraud reporting, we understand the devastating impact it can have on individuals. Along with partners, we have been implementing measures to ensure the public has the protection and advice needed to shield themselves from these crimes.</p><p>We have published guidance for the public to spot potential frauds and the steps they can take to avoid them. This advice can currently be accessed at: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-fraud-and-cyber-crime" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-fraud-and-cyber-crime</a></p> answering member constituency Torbay answering member printed Kevin Foster grouped question UIN 158910 158911 question first answered 02/03/2021 17:06:52 answering member 4451 label Biography information for Kevin Foster
tabling member	3985 label Biography information for Robert Halfon

1290124

registered interest
date	25/02/2021
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Pre-school Education: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department plans to take to support early years providers with the additional costs associated with (a) personal protective equipment and (b) enhanced cleaning measures.
tabling member constituency	Harlow
tabling member printed	Robert Halfon
uin	158913
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/03/2021 answer text <p>Keeping children and staff safe is our utmost priority. We continue to work with the early years sector to understand how they can best be supported to ensure that sufficient safe, appropriate and affordable childcare is available for those who need it now, and for all families who need it in the longer term.</p><p>Most early years staff will not require personal protective equipment (PPE) beyond what they would normally need for their work. If a child already has routine intimate care needs that involve the use of PPE, the same PPE should continue to be used. Additional PPE for COVID-19 is only required in a very limited number of scenarios, for example, when:</p><ul><li>a child becomes ill with COVID-19 symptoms, and only then if a 2 metre distance cannot be maintained</li><li>performing aerosol generating procedures when working with children who cough, spit or vomit but do not have COVID-19 symptoms, only any PPE that would be routinely worn, should be worn</li></ul><p> </p><p>The Department has published guidance for nurseries to follow, which provides further details about cleaning and PPE: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-early-years-and-childcare-closures" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-early-years-and-childcare-closures</a>.</p><p>For further information about cleaning, Public Health England has published guidance: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-decontamination-in-non-healthcare-settings/covid-19-decontamination-in-non-healthcare-settings" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-decontamination-in-non-healthcare-settings/covid-19-decontamination-in-non-healthcare-settings</a>. This contains advice on the general cleaning required in addition to the existing advice on cleaning when there is a suspected case.</p><p>For further information about funding support, guidance is available through the following link: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-financial-support-for-education-early-years-and-childrens-social-care/coronavirus-covid-19-financial-support-for-education-early-years-and-childrens-social-care" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-financial-support-for-education-early-years-and-childrens-social-care/coronavirus-covid-19-financial-support-for-education-early-years-and-childrens-social-care</a>.</p> answering member constituency Bognor Regis and Littlehampton answering member printed Nick Gibb question first answered 02/03/2021 17:51:57 answering member 111 label Biography information for Nick Gibb
tabling member	3985 label Biography information for Robert Halfon

1288176

registered interest
date	22/02/2021
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	16 to 19 Tuition Fund
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on ensuring that the 16 to 19 tuition funding is not limited to students with low prior attainment in GCSE English and Maths.
tabling member constituency	Harlow
tabling member printed	Robert Halfon
uin	156338
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/03/2021 answer text <p>I regularly meet with Cabinet colleagues on a range of issues, including the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on education.</p><p>The 16-19 Tuition Fund is focused on supporting those young people who are at significant disadvantage and whose learning has been impacted most severely by the outbreak.</p><p>Low prior attainment in GCSE English and/or maths at the expected standard at age 16 is the agreed measure used for disadvantage in 16-19 education and an established part of the 16-19 funding formula. Agreement to any extension of tuition funding for 16-19 students will continue to be based on this measure.</p><p> </p><p>Funding is available to spend on those students without a grade 5 or above in English and/or maths GCSE, however providers are required to prioritise support for students who have not achieved a grade 4 in English and/or maths.  If providers have funding available within their allocations, they should consider whether any young people with a grade 4 also needed catch up support.</p><p> </p><p>As further evidence emerges, we will consider if refinements to eligibility for tuition funding are needed to maximise its value and impact in providing catch-up support for 16-19 students.</p> answering member constituency Chichester answering member printed Gillian Keegan question first answered 02/03/2021 12:07:54 answering member 4680 label Biography information for Gillian Keegan
tabling member	3985 label Biography information for Robert Halfon

1288177

registered interest
date	22/02/2021
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Vocational Education: Qualifications
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent progress has been made on the Government's consultation on the future of newly-reformed Applied General Qualifications.
tabling member constituency	Harlow
tabling member printed	Robert Halfon
uin	156339
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/03/2021 answer text <p>The Department has consulted in 2 stages on proposals for the review of post-16 qualifications at level 3, which includes Applied General qualifications. The second stage of consultation ran from 23 October 2020 to 31 January 2021 and asked for views on the range of qualifications that will sit alongside A levels and T Levels in future.</p><p>No decisions have been made yet. The responses to the consultation are informing our thinking and we intend to publish a full response in due course.</p> answering member constituency Chichester answering member printed Gillian Keegan question first answered 02/03/2021 10:28:04 answering member 4680 label Biography information for Gillian Keegan
tabling member	3985 label Biography information for Robert Halfon

1288178

registered interest
date	22/02/2021
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Sixth Form Education: Finance
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of funding allocated to sixth form students.
tabling member constituency	Harlow
tabling member printed	Robert Halfon
uin	156340
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/03/2021 answer text <p>The government is investing an additional £291 million in 16 to 19 education in 2021 to 2022. This is in addition to the £400 million awarded in the 2019 Spending Review, which was the biggest injection of new money into 16-19 education in a single year since 2010. This has allowed us to raise the base rate of funding for all providers of 16-19 education, including school sixth forms and sixth form colleges, for the first time since the current funding system was introduced in 2013 – from £4,000 in each academic year up to 2019/20, to £4,188 this year and next year – as well as to make further funding increases targeted on high value and high cost programmes.</p><p> </p><p><strong><br> <br> </strong></p> answering member constituency Chichester answering member printed Gillian Keegan question first answered 02/03/2021 10:36:05 answering member 4680 label Biography information for Gillian Keegan
tabling member	3985 label Biography information for Robert Halfon

1286909

registered interest
date	19/02/2021
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Remote Education: ICT
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans his Department has to ensure that 16-19 year-olds receive adequate IT device support to continue their education remotely during the covid-19 outbreak.
tabling member constituency	Harlow
tabling member printed	Robert Halfon
uin	154631
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 25/02/2021 answer text <p>The Get Help with Technology (GHWT) service has been extended to provide support with devices and connectivity for disadvantaged 16-19 year olds. This forms part of a £400 million investment to help children and young people continue their education at home and access online social care services.</p><p>Schools with sixth form provision and further education providers are eligible to receive devices where they have students that are aged 16-19 who are in receipt of free meals, and where they have students aged 19 and over with an Education, Health and Care Plan who are also in receipt of free meals. All eligible providers were invited to order devices in January 2021. Over a million devices have now been dispatched to schools, trusts, local authorities and further education institutions since the start of the scheme.</p><p>Through the GHWT service, providers eligible to receive devices are also able to access support for connectivity for financially disadvantaged students where they do not have access to the internet at home.</p><p>The mobile data network offer has to date been focused on providing connectivity support to pupils in years 3-11 who have experienced disruption to their face-to-face education. The amount of free data provided will vary by operator and uplifts will be in place until the end of July 2021. However, we are working with mobile network operators to make this offer available for disadvantaged 16-19 year olds until the end of July 2021.</p><p>Currently,16-19 providers eligible for help via the GHWT service can access 4G wireless routers to provide connectivity support for financially disadvantaged learners without access to broadband at home.</p> answering member constituency Chichester answering member printed Gillian Keegan grouped question UIN 154970 question first answered 25/02/2021 12:23:48 answering member 4680 label Biography information for Gillian Keegan
tabling member	3985 label Biography information for Robert Halfon

1286910

registered interest
date	19/02/2021
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Higher Education: ICT
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans his Department has to ensure that university students receive adequate IT device support to continue their education remotely during the covid-19 outbreak.
tabling member constituency	Harlow
tabling member printed	Robert Halfon
uin	154633
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 25/02/2021 answer text <p>The government is aware of the disproportionate impact the COVID-19 outbreak will have on some students.</p><p>We are making available an additional £50 million of hardship funding this financial year. In total, we have made £70 million of funding available for student hardship, given the £20 million made available to higher education (HE) providers in December 2020.</p><p>HE providers will have flexibility in how they distribute the funding to students, in a way that will best prioritise those in greatest need. Support can include assistance to help students access teaching remotely. The funding can be distributed to a wide population of students, including postgraduates (whether taught or research) and international students.</p><p>This money is in addition to the £256 million of Student Premium funding that HE providers are able draw on this academic year towards student hardship funds, including the purchase of IT equipment.</p><p>We know that not all students will face financial hardship. The current measures aim to target support for students in greatest need and the government continues to monitor the situation going forward to look at what impact this funding is having.</p><p>The government has also invested over £400 million to help provide laptops and tablets for disadvantaged children and young people so they can access education and social care services remotely. As part of this, we have provided devices for care leavers, including those who may be studying at university.</p><p>On 13 January 2021, I wrote to the Office for Students (OfS), the regulator for HE providers in England. I outlined government expectations of the HE sector: universities should maintain the quality and quantity of tuition and seek to ensure that all students, regardless of their background, have the resources to study remotely.</p><p>In June 2020, my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, commissioned OfS chair Sir Michael Barber, to conduct a review of the shift toward digital teaching and learning in English HE since the start of the COVID-19 outbreak. His report, published on 25 February 2021, is based on interviews, a call to evidence, roundtable discussions and surveys and includes ‘six actions’ university and college leaders can take for next academic year. Details of the ‘six actions’ can be found here: <a href="https://www.officeforstudents.org.uk/publications/gravity-assist-propelling-higher-education-towards-a-brighter-future/six-actions-for-2021-22/" target="_blank">https://www.officeforstudents.org.uk/publications/gravity-assist-propelling-higher-education-towards-a-brighter-future/six-actions-for-2021-22/</a>. The full report can be found here: <a href="https://www.officeforstudents.org.uk/publications/gravity-assist-propelling-higher-education-towards-a-brighter-future/" target="_blank">https://www.officeforstudents.org.uk/publications/gravity-assist-propelling-higher-education-towards-a-brighter-future/</a>.</p><p>HE providers must also continue to comply with their legal obligations under the Equality Act 2010, ensuring that education and learning is accessible to all students. When making changes to the delivery of their courses, providers need to consider how to support all students, particularly the most vulnerable, to achieve successful academic and professional outcomes.</p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency Chippenham answering member printed Michelle Donelan question first answered 25/02/2021 18:16:04 answering member 4530 label Biography information for Michelle Donelan
tabling member	3985 label Biography information for Robert Halfon