Women and Equalities<p>The government’s position remains as stated by the then Minister for Women and Equalities, the member for Portsmouth North, in her statement to Parliament on 23 July 2018.</p><p>We do not intend to make an order determining caste to be an aspect of ‘race’ for the purposes of the Equality Act 2010.</p><p>We will repeal the statutory duty to make such an order once a suitable legislative vehicle becomes available.</p>PudseyStuart Andrew2024-03-20false2024-03-20T14:04:00.793Z31Women and EqualitiesWomen and Equalities2024-03-14Castes1House of CommonsTo ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, if she will bring forward legislative proposals to exclude caste as a protected characteristic from the Equality Act 2010.falseHarrow EastBob Blackman902137Department for Work and Pensions<p>We spend around £30bn annually on housing support for low-income renters in the private and social rented sectors.</p><p> </p><p>From April we are investing £1.2bn increasing the Local Housing Allowance rates to the 30th percentile of market rents, ensuring 1.6m private renters gain on average almost £800 in 2024/25 in additional support towards rental costs. This significant investment will cost £7bn over five years.</p><p> </p><p>Discretionary Housing Payments are available for those who need additional support. Since 2011 the Government has provided nearly £1.7bn for DHPs to local authorities.</p>Mid SussexMims Davies2024-03-18false2024-03-18T17:02:48.093Z29Work and PensionsWork and Pensions2024-03-12Low Incomes: Rents1House of CommonsTo ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to support low-income renters.falseHarrow EastBob Blackman902041Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities<p>We are currently consulting on a direction to the Regulator of Social Housing to set a Competence and Conduct Standard for social housing, which closes on 2nd April. We will analyse responses and respond in due course.</p><p>PAS 8673 (Competence requirements for the management of safety in residential buildings) already sets out a competence framework for people involved in managing residential buildings. This includes support for accountable persons and others in managing building safety risks in higher risk buildings, and for those managing non higher-risk residential buildings.</p>North East DerbyshireLee Rowley2024-03-13false2024-03-13T16:40:27.96Z211Levelling Up, Housing and CommunitiesLevelling Up, Housing and Communities2024-03-06Social Rented Housing: Standards1House of CommonsTo ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, with reference to the consultation on a direction to the Regulator of Social Housing to set a Competence and Conduct Standard for social housing, published on 6 February 2024, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of extending competency and mandatory qualification standards to residential property managers who are responsible for (a) tall and high-risk and (b) other residential buildings.falseHarrow EastBob Blackman17328Department of Health and Social Care<p>The Department funds research into liver health through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). Between 2018/19 and 2022/23 the NIHR funded over £51.6 million across 80 projects related to liver health.</p><p>The NIHR funds and supports research into liver health through its research programmes and infrastructure. This includes a two-part commissioned call on liver disease through NIHR research partnerships that launched in May 2022, through the Clinical Research Network. This supports patients, the public, and health and care organisations across England to participate in high-quality research, and supports National Health Service doctors working in hepatology to apply for clinical research training through the NIHR Clinical Research Training Programme.</p><p>The NIHR welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including liver health. The usual practice of the NIHR is not to ring-fence funds for expenditure on particular topics. Research proposals in all areas compete for the funding available. Applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money, and scientific quality. In all disease areas, the amount of NIHR funding depends on the volume and quality of scientific activity.</p>PendleAndrew Stephenson2024-02-26false2024-02-26T10:13:13.78Z17Health and Social CareHealth and Social Care2024-02-16Liver Diseases: Research1House of CommonsTo ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to help researchers access funding for liver health.falseHarrow EastBob Blackman14005Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs<p>Under the Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations 2018 (“the 2018 Regulations”), anyone selling animals as pets in the course of a business, including kittens and cats, needs to hold a valid license issued by their local authority. Information provided by local authorities indicates that 2169 licenses to sell animals as pets were in force in England on 1 April 2023. The data can be found here: <a href="https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fckan.publishing.service.gov.uk%2Fdataset%2Flocal-authority-licensing-of-activities-involving-animals-returns&data=05%7C02%7Cpqteam%40defra.gov.uk%7C76cb6c154b7d48a41e3d08dc320b6ecc%7C770a245002274c6290c74e38537f1102%7C0%7C0%7C638440271902722886%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=kdMkmaQOFCy8uBO7P0CwKNq8%2BXZ9cuJ%2BPv%2BgOjW%2BChI%3D&reserved=0" target="_blank">Local Authority Licensing of Activities involving Animals returns - Dataset - data.gov.uk (publishing.service.gov.uk)</a>.</p>SherwoodMark Spencer2024-02-23false2024-02-23T14:11:29.15Z13Environment, Food and Rural AffairsEnvironment, Food and Rural Affairs2024-02-16Cats: Sales1House of CommonsTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many licensed cat sellers there are in England.falseHarrow EastBob Blackman14006Ministry of Justice<p>Effective resettlement is a core part of our efforts to reduce reoffending.</p><p>We are introducing resettlement passports, bringing together key information and services in one place, to address individual drivers of repeat offending and enable continuity of support on release.</p><p>We have introduced ID and Banking Administrators in 93 prisons to ensure prisoners leave custody with the basics required to start work, find accommodation and claim Universal Credit, with over 26,000 IDs arranged since April 2022.</p>CharnwoodEdward Argar2024-02-20false2024-02-20T16:28:14.07Z54JusticeJustice2024-02-08Offenders1House of CommonsTo ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to ensure that offenders are prepared for life outside prison.falseHarrow EastBob Blackman901598Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office<p>Despite concerns expressed by civil society, opposition parties and international internet providers regarding the potential negative impacts of the Online Safety Act, the Sri Lankan Parliament passed it into law on 24 January. The UK also raised concerns about the impact of this Act on freedom of expression and economic growth, including when I met Sri Lankan President Wickremesinghe in October, and when Lord (Tariq) Ahmad, Minister of State for South Asia, met Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Ali Sabry on 25 January. The UK will continue to closely follow developments on this Act.</p>Berwick-upon-TweedAnne-Marie Trevelyan2024-02-05false2024-02-05T16:16:30.473Z208Foreign, Commonwealth and Development OfficeForeign, Commonwealth and Development Office2024-01-30Sri Lanka: Civil Liberties1House of CommonsTo ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of the Sri Lankan Online Safety Act on freedom of expression and religion in that country.falseHarrow EastBob Blackman12009Home Office<p>The Government has recently published and consulted on draft guidance on the enforcement of abortion safe access zones.</p><p>The Home Office is now considering the responses before we publish a final version.</p><p>The Home Secretary is committed to ensuring that women in England and Wales feel safe and protected whilst exercising their legal right to access abortion services and I am confident that this guidance will support the effective introduction of Safe Access Zones.</p>Croydon SouthChris Philp2024-02-06false2024-02-06T17:54:57.057Z1Home OfficeHome Office2024-01-29Abortion: Demonstrations1House of CommonsTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether he is taking steps to ensure that the enforcement of safe access zones is proportionate to other (a) protests and (b) gatherings.falseHarrow EastBob Blackman11769Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office<p>The UK government has been working with partners across the region to secure the release of hostages, including British nationals and their families. Release of hostages was a priority for the recent Foreign Secretary visit to the Middle East where he held high level talks with regional leaders and met with hostage families. We are calling for an immediate humanitarian pause now to get aid in and remaining hostages out, and as a vital step towards building a sustainable, permanent ceasefire. To achieve that, Hamas must agree to the release of all hostages.</p>Sutton ColdfieldMr Andrew Mitchell2024-01-30false2024-01-30T13:05:30.363Z208Foreign, Commonwealth and Development OfficeForeign, Commonwealth and Development Office2024-01-24Hamas: Hostage Taking1House of CommonsTo ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what steps he is taking to help secure the release of hostages held by Hamas in Gaza.falseHarrow EastBob Blackman901255Department for Education<p>It is deeply concerning to see the huge rise in antisemitism following Hamas’s terrorist attacks in Israel on 7 October 2023. To see this form of hatred also take place in education is unacceptable.</p><p>The government took immediate action in October 2023. First, to increase security measures at Jewish schools, colleges and nurseries - we announced £3 million of additional funding to the Community Security Trust.</p><p>The Secretary of State also wrote to all schools and colleges on 17 October 2023, urging them to support Jewish students and highlighting our political impartiality guidance and advice on the Prevent programme.</p><p>To support schools and colleges we published learning resources on our Educate Against Hate website.</p><p>We are also providing over £3 million of funding, between 10 August 2021 and 31 March 2024, to five anti-bullying organisations, which includes projects to tackle hate-related bullying on the basis of race and faith.</p><p> </p><p>The department has networks of ‘Prevent’ practitioners who provide training to school staff on radicalisation and empower teachers to challenge extremism in the classroom.</p><p>We continue to monitor the situation carefully. Ministers have conducted several visits recently to listen to the experience of Jewish communities, including meeting with Dr David Landau who is Chair of Governors Menorah High School, one of the settings that temporarily closed in October over safety concerns.</p><p>We are engaging regularly with faith groups and school leadership organisations to understand their concerns and use it to shape our response. This includes the Board of Jewish Deputies and Chinuch UK.</p><p>In the Autumn Statement, on 22 November 2023, the government announced a further £7 million of funding over the next three years to help tackle antisemitism. This will help support schools, colleges, and universities to understand, recognise and deal with antisemitism effectively. We are preparing to issue an invitation for interested organisations to tender in the coming weeks.</p><p> </p><p>If anyone feels that specific issues in education are not being addressed, they can raise them directly to the department through the Counter Extremism helpline or our “Report Extremism” online form. We then engage with the police and local authorities to consider what action is needed.</p>East HampshireDamian Hinds2024-01-29false2024-01-29T17:18:56.14Z60EducationEducation2024-01-23Schools: Antisemitism1House of CommonsTo ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to tackle antisemitism in schools.falseHarrow EastBob Blackman9012011001343