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1300518

registered interest
date	09/03/2021
answering body	Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	Treasury
hansard heading	Hospitality Industry and Tourism: VAT
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	If his Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of making permanent the five per cent reduced rate of VAT for the tourism and hospitality sector.
tabling member constituency	Orkney and Shetland
tabling member printed	Mr Alistair Carmichael
uin	913203
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/03/2021 answer text <p>The temporary reduced rate of VAT was introduced on 15 July to support the cash flow and viability of about 150,000 businesses and to protect over 2.4 million jobs in the hospitality and tourism sectors. As announced at Budget, this relief will now run until 31 March 2022, with a staggered return to the standard rate. Applying this relief permanently would come at a significant cost to the Exchequer, and that cost would have to be balanced by increased taxes elsewhere, or reductions in Government spending.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Hereford and South Herefordshire answering member printed Jesse Norman question first answered 09/03/2021 12:45:58 answering member 3991 label Biography information for Jesse Norman
tabling member	1442 label Biography information for Mr Alistair Carmichael

1300682

registered interest
date	09/03/2021
answering body	Church Commissioners
answering dept id	9
answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
hansard heading	Remote Education
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Member for South West Bedfordshire, representing the Church Commissioners, what steps the church has taken to provide support for the teaching of children at home during the covid-19 lockdown.
tabling member constituency	Strangford
tabling member printed	Jim Shannon
uin	165539
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 11/03/2021 answer text <p>Church of England schools remained open during the pandemic for key worker children and also, where possible, for those who are unable to study at home. All teachers and staff in Church schools who are providing teaching and care at this difficult time deserve our deep gratitude.</p><p>Church schools moved rapidly to provide online lessons and resources, looking after children of key workers and overseeing the distribution of free school meal vouchers and technology to make online education possible. The Church is also delighted to have partnered with the Oak National Academy to provide assemblies and weekly collective worship for parents who are home-schooling.</p><p>Many parishes and cathedrals, such as Wakefield Cathedral, donated laptops and equipment to vulnerable children, which enabled these young people to continue to engage in education from home during the pandemic.</p> answering member constituency South West Bedfordshire answering member printed Andrew Selous question first answered 11/03/2021 16:42:29 answering member 1453 label Biography information for Andrew Selous
tabling member	4131 label Biography information for Jim Shannon

1300683

registered interest
date	09/03/2021
answering body	Church Commissioners
answering dept id	9
answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
hansard heading	Church of England: Land
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Member for South West Bedfordshire, representing the Church Commissioners, what steps the church is taking to encourage (a) regenerative agriculture, (b) more treeplanting and (c) good stewardship of hedgerows across its rural estates.
tabling member constituency	Strangford
tabling member printed	Jim Shannon
uin	165540
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/03/2021 answer text <p>The majority of the Church Commissioners rural estate is tenanted via secure long term agreements. Agreements that were drawn up after 1995 often include a combination of clauses which encourage regenerative agriculture and good stewardship of our landholdings, prohibit the removal of topsoil and the spraying and removal of hedgerows, require watercourses to be kept clear and ensure hedges are maintained.</p><p>The Church Commissioners are currently undertaking a natural capital assessment of our assets, and through this, the Commissioners hope to identify land across our estates that might be suitable for tree planting.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency South West Bedfordshire answering member printed Andrew Selous question first answered 12/03/2021 16:06:25 answering member 1453 label Biography information for Andrew Selous previous answer version 89455 answering member constituency South West Bedfordshire answering member printed Andrew Selous answering member 1453 label Biography information for Andrew Selous
tabling member	4131 label Biography information for Jim Shannon

1300684

registered interest
date	09/03/2021
answering body	Church Commissioners
answering dept id	9
answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
hansard heading	Church of England: Greenhouse Gas Emissions
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Member for South West Bedfordshire, representing the Church Commissioners, what steps the church is taking to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions ahead of COP26.
tabling member constituency	Strangford
tabling member printed	Jim Shannon
uin	165541
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 11/03/2021 answer text <p>The General Synod of the Church of England, at its meeting in February 2020, committed the Church of England to reach carbon net zero' by 2030. This year the Church of England's National Institutions have reviewed their Energy Footprint Tool, which enables parishes and cathedrals to monitor their carbon usage. The tool was launched in 2020, and it has been used by over 5,000 churches so far. More information can be found here: <a href="https://eur02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.churchofengland.org%2Fnews-and-media%2Fnews-and-statements%2Fone-year-church-moves-forward-carbon-reduction-target&amp;data=04%7C01%7Csimon.stanley%40churchofengland.org%7C2fecb0aea8b0486dc14d08d8e4aaf14e%7C95e2463b3ab047b49ac1587c77ee84f0%7C0%7C0%7C637510772130383752%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C1000&amp;sdata=hjZV%2BTJS%2Fv71DHHMIwbrmmgPneTs5AB4Mswf5S5Emks%3D&amp;reserved=0" target="_blank">https://www.churchofengland.org/news-and-media/news-and-statements/one-year-church-moves-forward-carbon-reduction-target</a></p><p>The Church of England Pensions Board is a member of the Institutional Investors Group on Climate Change (IIGCC). This week the investor group has launched the 'Net Zero Investment Framework' following a period of industry-wide consultation. The framework will enable investors to maximise their contribution to the decarbonisation of the global economy and tackle climate change. More information can be found here: <a href="https://eur02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.churchofengland.org%2Fnews-and-media%2Fchurch-england-pensions-board-commits-global-net-zero-investment-framework&amp;data=04%7C01%7Csimon.stanley%40churchofengland.org%7C2fecb0aea8b0486dc14d08d8e4aaf14e%7C95e2463b3ab047b49ac1587c77ee84f0%7C0%7C0%7C637510772130383752%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C1000&amp;sdata=9GFX2CSchezedCXPFnQ9cEZd90hc53W3PIuD%2BGvPYEU%3D&amp;reserved=0" target="_blank">https://www.churchofengland.org/news-and-media/church-england-pensions-board-commits-global-net-zero-investment-framework</a></p><p>The Church Commissioners are committed to reaching a net-zero portfolio in 2050, and the Church of England's National Investing Bodies joined the UN Net Zero Asset Owner Alliance in 2020. More detail about the alliance can be found here: <a href="https://eur02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.churchofengland.org%2Fnews-and-media%2Fnews-and-statements%2Fchurch-england-national-investing-bodies-join-un-convened-net&amp;data=04%7C01%7Csimon.stanley%40churchofengland.org%7C2fecb0aea8b0486dc14d08d8e4aaf14e%7C95e2463b3ab047b49ac1587c77ee84f0%7C0%7C0%7C637510772130393746%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C1000&amp;sdata=pPg4l%2Fg5XHe6mkSpBmL6wY6Pa4Ji1GbKb%2B22hApwNIY%3D&amp;reserved=0" target="_blank">https://www.churchofengland.org/news-and-media/news-and-statements/church-england-national-investing-bodies-join-un-convened-net</a></p><p>The Church Commissioners have instituted further climate-related investment restrictions to capture companies with significant greenhouse gas emissions but are not taking their responsibilities seriously to assist with the transition to a net-zero emissions economy. The Commissioners are also setting our first interim emissions reduction target as members of the Net Zero Asset Owner Alliance, working with our public equities managers to achieve it.</p> answering member constituency South West Bedfordshire answering member printed Andrew Selous question first answered 11/03/2021 16:45:17 answering member 1453 label Biography information for Andrew Selous
tabling member	4131 label Biography information for Jim Shannon

1300685

registered interest
date	09/03/2021
answering body	Department of Health and Social Care
answering dept id	17
answering dept short name	Health and Social Care
answering dept sort name	Health and Social Care
hansard heading	Coronavirus: Vaccination
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of including inclusion of Myalgic encephalomyelitis in the group 6 specified conditions for covid-19 vaccination; and what estimate he has made of the number of people with that condition who have received a covid-19 vaccination.
tabling member constituency	Stockport
tabling member printed	Navendu Mishra
uin	165694
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/03/2021 answer text <p>The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) has not identified any robust data to indicate that, as a group, persons with myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue symdrome (ME/CFS) are at higher risk of dying from COVID-19, therefore those under 50 years old are not prioritised for phase one of the programme.</p><p> </p><p>Prioritisation for Phase two has not yet been decided, but interim advice has been published by the JVCI recommending an age-based approach, which the Government has accepted in principle subject to final advice. The information on estimates of people with ME/CFS who have received a covid-19 vaccination is not held centrally in the format requested.</p> answering member constituency Stratford-on-Avon answering member printed Nadhim Zahawi question first answered 12/03/2021 14:09:44 answering member 4113 label Biography information for Nadhim Zahawi
tabling member	4811 label Biography information for Navendu Mishra

1300686

registered interest
date	09/03/2021
answering body	Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
answering dept id	7
answering dept short name	Housing, Communities and Local Government
answering dept sort name	Housing, Communities and Local Government
hansard heading	Planning
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to Chapter 3 of his Department's consultation, National Planning Policy Framework and National Model Design Code: consultation proposals, updated on 8 February 2021 on proposed changes to paragraph 35 of the National Planning Policy Framework, what criteria will be used to assess whether local plans and spatial development strategies are sound; and what other statements of national planning policy are referred to in that paragraph.
tabling member constituency	Dulwich and West Norwood
tabling member printed	Helen Hayes
uin	165615
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/03/2021 answer text <p>Plans are 'sound' if they are found by an independent Inspector to have been positively prepared, and justified, and are effective and consistent with national policy. The proposed changes to paragraph 35 of the National Planning Policy Framework currently out for consultation, only refers to the section 35 d) of paragraph 35. The purpose of this proposal is to clarify that plans should be consistent with national policies, for example Written Ministerial Statements and other national policies, not just those policies in the Framework at its time of publication. This is a consultation proposal and I would encourage everyone one with a interest in this proposal to respond, the consultation closes at 11.45 pm, Saturday 27 March 2021.</p> answering member constituency Tamworth answering member printed Christopher Pincher question first answered 12/03/2021 12:17:58 answering member 4075 label Biography information for Christopher Pincher
tabling member	4510 label Biography information for Helen Hayes

1300687

registered interest
date	09/03/2021
answering body	Home Office
answering dept id	1
answering dept short name	Home Office
answering dept sort name	Home Office
hansard heading	Biometric Residence Permits
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent estimate her Department has made of the number of applicants who are unable to book a free biometric residence permit enrolment appointment; and what plans her Department has to increase the provision of those appointments.
tabling member constituency	Bristol West
tabling member printed	Thangam Debbonaire
uin	165587
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/03/2021 answer text <p>UK Visa and Citizenship Application Service (UKVCAS) centres are run by Sopra Steria Ltd (SSL) on behalf of UK Visas &amp; Immigration (UKVI).</p><p>The Home Office produces intake forecasts for immigration applications which are used to inform business and appointment capacity planning with SSL; forecasts vary across the year and our service is designed to respond and meet fluctuating demand. As part of UKVI’s ongoing operational forecasting activities we regularly review and refresh the number of applications we expect from all routes which in turn inform UKVCAS capacity planning.</p><p>Demand for appointments to enrol biometrics at a UKVCAS service point is not wholly predictable and is dependent on customer behaviour. All chargeable appointments are optional. Estimates of how many customers are unable to book a free appointment is not possible; many of our customers choose to book chargeable appointments for reasons of convenience, cost and time benefits which enhanced service points or out of hours appointments provide alongside additional services they are able to access within a chargeable appointment, such as document checking and scanning, which are not included with free appointments.</p><p>UKVCAS appointment levels have now returned to above the levels they were in March 2020, prior to COVID-19 disruption. Although UKVCAS are still currently experiencing very high demand for all appointments and the ongoing impact of measures to maintain COVID-secure facilities is limiting the ability to quickly expand capacity. Nevertheless, appointment capacity, including free appointment capacity will continue to increase over the coming months.</p><p>Work is ongoing with SSL not only to ensure enough free appointments are available, but also to ensure family groups have access to them, and access is fairly balanced across the four nations. SSL have successfully recently trialled the introduction of group booking slots at some of the core service points, including Cardiff which is the closest core site to Bristol, and are now in the process of increasing the number of group slots at other sites.</p> answering member constituency Torbay answering member printed Kevin Foster question first answered 12/03/2021 13:16:08 answering member 4451 label Biography information for Kevin Foster
tabling member	4433 label Biography information for Thangam Debbonaire

1300688

registered interest
date	09/03/2021
answering body	Department of Health and Social Care
answering dept id	17
answering dept short name	Health and Social Care
answering dept sort name	Health and Social Care
hansard heading	Coronavirus: Vaccination
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will publish the evidential basis for the decision not to vaccinate (a) school staff and (b) other frontline workers against covid-19; and if he will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	Coventry South
tabling member printed	Zarah Sultana
uin	165680
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/03/2021 answer text <p>On 26 February the independent Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) published their interim advice for phase two of the COVID-19 vaccination programme which is available at the following link:</p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/priority-groups-for-phase-2-of-the-coronavirus-covid-19-vaccination-programme-advice-from-the-jcvi" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/priority-groups-for-phase-2-of-the-coronavirus-covid-19-vaccination-programme-advice-from-the-jcvi</a></p><p>The JCVI has advised that the evidence indicates that certain occupations have a higher risk of exposure and these are more likely to be occupations involving frequent contact with multiple other people in enclosed settings. However, delivery of a programme targeting occupational groups is recognised to be operationally complex given a number of key factors including that robust data on the infection exposure risk for every occupational group, or in every occupational setting, are not available. Regarding school staff specifically, data sources considered by the JCVI suggest that risk of infection among staff in educational settings is comparable with that seen in the general population.</p><p>We will follow the recommended approach of the JCVI, subject to the final advice given by the independent expert committee. School staff and other frontline workers who are over 50 years old or who have underlying health conditions which make them clinically vulnerable to COVID-19 will be vaccinated in the current first phase, which will be completed by the middle of April.</p> answering member constituency Stratford-on-Avon answering member printed Nadhim Zahawi question first answered 12/03/2021 14:15:52 answering member 4113 label Biography information for Nadhim Zahawi
tabling member	4786 label Biography information for Zarah Sultana

1300689

registered interest
date	09/03/2021
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Schools: Coronavirus
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 level of covid-19 transmission risk associated with the return of children to school at the same time.
tabling member constituency	Coventry South
tabling member printed	Zarah Sultana
uin	165681
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/03/2021 answer text <p>Alongside the announcement of the full return to school, the Department published the following evidence summary around children, young people, and schools: <a href="https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/963639/DfE_Evidence_summary_COVID-19_-_children__young_people_and_education_settings.pdf" target="_blank">https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/963639/DfE_Evidence_summary_COVID-19_-_children__young_people_and_education_settings.pdf</a>.</p><p>The scientific evidence papers from SAGE meetings, including papers on children and transmission from the Children’s Task and Finish Group, are published in tranches and are available here: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/scientific-evidence-supporting-the-government-response-to-coronavirus-covid-19" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/scientific-evidence-supporting-the-government-response-to-coronavirus-covid-19</a>.</p> answering member constituency Bognor Regis and Littlehampton answering member printed Nick Gibb question first answered 15/03/2021 14:54:07 answering member 111 label Biography information for Nick Gibb
tabling member	4786 label Biography information for Zarah Sultana

1300690

registered interest
date	09/03/2021
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Schools: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of introducing phased returns for school children of different ages.
tabling member constituency	Coventry South
tabling member printed	Zarah Sultana
uin	165682
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/03/2021 answer text <p>As my right hon. Friend, the Prime Minister, set out in his statement to Parliament on 22 February, based on the Government’s assessment of the current data against its four tests for relaxing restrictions, it was possible for children to return to schools from 8 March 2021. All secondary pupils will be offered testing from 8 March and those who consent to testing should return to face to face education following their first negative test result. The Government has prioritised education as we cautiously begin to relax restrictions. It is vital for all pupils to attend school to minimise the longer-term impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on their education, wellbeing, and wider development.</p><p>Opening schools to all pupils is a national priority. As a result of the efforts the country has made, it is now possible for schools to welcome back pupils in all year groups, in addition to the vulnerable children and young people and the children of critical workers who have continued to attend face to face education since the start of the spring term. At every stage since the start of the COVID-19 outbreak, our decisions have been informed by the scientific and medical evidence, both on the risks of COVID-19 infection, transmission, and illness, and on the known risks to children and young people not attending school and college, balancing public health and education considerations. The Government has published its COVID-19 children, young people and education settings evidence summary which can be found here: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/evidence-summary-covid-19-children-young-people-and-education-settings" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/evidence-summary-covid-19-children-young-people-and-education-settings</a>.</p><p>To prepare for full reopening, schools should update their risk assessment and ensure they are implementing the system of controls in order to minimise the risk of infection. The system of controls is described in full within the published schools guidance which can be found here: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/actions-for-schools-during-the-coronavirus-outbreak/schools-coronavirus-covid-19-operational-guidance" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/actions-for-schools-during-the-coronavirus-outbreak/schools-coronavirus-covid-19-operational-guidance</a>.</p><p>The Government’s Roadmap is a step-by-step plan to ease restrictions in England cautiously, starting with schools and colleges, taking into consideration the scientific evidence. The Roadmap sets out indicative, “no earlier than” dates for the steps which are five weeks apart. These dates are driven by the data; before taking each further step, the Government will review the latest data on the impact of the previous step against its four tests. The Government’s Roadmap can be found here: <a href="https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/963491/COVID-19_Response_-_Spring_2021.pdf" target="_blank">https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/963491/COVID-19_Response_-_Spring_2021.pdf</a>.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Bognor Regis and Littlehampton answering member printed Nick Gibb question first answered 17/03/2021 17:03:55 answering member 111 label Biography information for Nick Gibb
tabling member	4786 label Biography information for Zarah Sultana