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1434515

registered interest
date	23/02/2022
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	Conversion Therapy
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what plans she has to ban conversion therapy in all circumstances.
tabling member constituency	Nottingham East
tabling member printed	Nadia Whittome
uin	905718
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/02/2022 answer text <p>This Government is committed to banning conversion therapy practices regardless of the setting in which they are carried out. Our primary concern is to ensure that people are protected from harmful practices that do not work and can cause long lasting damage. We are analysing the responses to the consultation which closed on 4 February and remain committed to preparing legislation for Spring, to be introduced when Parliamentary time allows.</p> answering member constituency Finchley and Golders Green answering member printed Mike Freer question first answered 23/02/2022 16:20:31 answering member 4004 label Biography information for Mike Freer
tabling member	4869 label Biography information for Nadia Whittome

1434555

registered interest
date	23/02/2022
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	Ethnic Groups: Further Education
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 trends in the level of BAME Further Education (a) students and (b) college leaders.
tabling member constituency	Chesterfield
tabling member printed	Mr Toby Perkins
uin	905713
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/02/2022 answer text <p>Government is clear that all learners from all backgrounds must benefit from our education and training policies. Our latest FE trends participation data (August 2011 to July 2019) shows that whilst the total number of people in further education in England fell, during the same period, the percentage of people in further education from Asian, Black, Mixed, and Other ethnic groups increased from 19.3% to 22.6%.</p><p>We have exceeded our target to increase the proportion of apprentices from ethnic minority backgrounds starting apprenticeships. 14.3% of starts in 2020/21 were by people of Black Asian and Minority Ethnic backgrounds, compared to 13.3% in 2019/20. We continue to raise awareness in schools through our ASK programme to support young people into apprenticeships and The Apprenticeship Diversity Champions Network promotes diversity in apprenticeships including encouraging more from ethnic minorities into key sectors with historic under-representation.</p><p>We are supporting the largest-ever expansion of traineeships as part of the government’s Plan for Jobs to ensure that more young people have access to high-quality training. Since their introduction in the 2013/14 academic year (AY), the diversity record on traineeships has shown steady improvement, with around one third of starts being from ethnic minority backgrounds in 2020/21.</p><p>We also provide extra funding for colleges to support the most disadvantaged students with low prior attainment or living in deprived areas and provide learner support for disadvantaged students to help them overcome barriers to learning.</p><p>We have been working with a number of representative bodies in the Further Education sector to strengthen leadership and governance, including through greater diversity. We recognise the importance of having a diverse and representative workforce, and have funded the Education and Training Foundation to deliver a range of programmes designed to increase the diversity of leaders and managers. We have also committed to a new mandatory annual data collection in FE, which will uncover a large range of characteristics of the workforce, including ethnicity, which will provide a robust picture of the ethnic makeup of the workforce.</p> answering member constituency Brentwood and Ongar answering member printed Alex Burghart question first answered 23/02/2022 17:30:36 answering member 4613 label Biography information for Alex Burghart
tabling member	3952 label Biography information for Mr Toby Perkins

1434556

registered interest
date	23/02/2022
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	Females: Safety
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what steps her Department is taking to help ensure the Online Safety Bill improves protections for women and girls.
tabling member constituency	Basingstoke
tabling member printed	Mrs Maria Miller
uin	905716
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/02/2022 answer text <p>The Government is committed to tackling violence against women and girls, and we have taken significant steps to strengthen the forthcoming Online Safety Bill to improve protections for women and girls. Offences relating to sexual images (including revenge and extreme pornography), harassment and cyberstalking will be included in the list of priority offences on the face of the Bill. As a result, platforms will have to take steps to search for, remove and stop people from being exposed to this content and criminal behaviour. We have also accepted the Law Commission’s recommendations to introduce a new harms-based offence and threatening communications offence, which will go further to tackle harmful online abuse of women and girls. We are also making changes to the Bill to ensure children are protected from pornography content, wherever it appears online.</p> answering member constituency Redditch answering member printed Rachel Maclean question first answered 23/02/2022 16:47:24 answering member 4668 label Biography information for Rachel Maclean
tabling member	1480 label Biography information for Dame Maria Miller

1434567

registered interest
date	23/02/2022
answering body	Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
answering dept id	208
answering dept short name	Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
answering dept sort name	Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
hansard heading	Hong Kong: Judiciary
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps she is taking to help support the independence of the judiciary in Hong Kong; and if she will discuss that matter with her international counterparts.
tabling member constituency	Strangford
tabling member printed	Jim Shannon
uin	128258
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 03/03/2022 answer text <p>The National Security Law poses real questions for the rule of law in Hong Kong and the protection of fundamental rights and freedoms promised by China in the Joint Declaration. Our assessment of Hong Kong's judicial independence is increasingly finely balanced; it is therefore right that it is kept under review. It is essential that both the Hong Kong judiciary and Hong Kong's legal institutions are able to operate independently and free from political interference. The Foreign Secretary is in regular contact with her international counterparts on the issue of Hong Kong.</p> answering member constituency Cannock Chase answering member printed Amanda Milling question first answered 03/03/2022 15:51:22 answering member 4454 label Biography information for Dame Amanda Milling
tabling member	4131 label Biography information for Jim Shannon

1434568

registered interest
date	23/02/2022
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Offences against Children: Criminal Proceedings
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps she is taking to ensure that child abuse claims are dealt with in a timely fashion within the criminal justice system.
tabling member constituency	Strangford
tabling member printed	Jim Shannon
uin	128259
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/03/2022 answer text <p>Child sexual abuse cases are some of the most challenging, complex and sensitive cases. They are dealt with by specially trained prosecutors, working closely with the police to build the strongest possible cases that meet the legal test.</p><p>In 2020-2021 there were 6,402 prosecutions for cases classified as child abuse. In the same period the conviction rate was 85.6%, an increase of 2.7% on the previous year.</p><p>Listing and prioritisation is a judicial function and judges continue to work to prioritise cases involving vulnerable complainants and witnesses (including youth cases), domestic abuse and serious sex cases. The most effective method to ensure that child abuse cases are dealt with in a timely fashion once they get to court is to expand our capacity, so that all cases requiring jury trial can be heard swiftly. To achieve this, among various other measures, we removed the limit on the number of days the Crown Court can sit in the 21/22 financial year, and equipped over 70 per cent of all courtrooms with the video hardware to use Cloud Video Platform, which enabled up to 20,000 cases to be heard virtually each week at the height of the pandemic. These measures are working. The caseload in the Crown Court has reduced from around 61,000 cases in June 2021 to around 58,400 cases at the end of December 2021.</p><p>Looking ahead, we will be investing £477 million in the Criminal Justice System to improve waiting times for victims and to reduce the Crown Court backlogs caused by the pandemic from 60,000 cases today to an estimated 53,000 cases by March 2025. We are also extending magistrates’ court sentencing powers from 6 to 12 months for a single Triable Either Way offence to allow more cases to be heard in the magistrates' court. As a result of these measures, in the next financial year we expect to get through 20% more Crown Court cases than we did pre-Covid (116,700 in 22/23 compared to 97,000 in 19/20).</p><p>Having the right data across the criminal justice system is also crucial to recovery. Working with our partners across the justice system, we have published criminal justice scorecards which bring together data on key areas of performance, including timeliness. The national CJS scorecards for all-crime and recorded adult rape, published in December 2021, can be found here: https://data.justice.gov.uk/cjs-scorecard-all-crime</p> answering member constituency South Suffolk answering member printed James Cartlidge question first answered 04/03/2022 16:28:57 answering member 4519 label Biography information for James Cartlidge
tabling member	4131 label Biography information for Jim Shannon

1434569

registered interest
date	23/02/2022
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Children in Care
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what support his Department is providing to children who live in children's homes.
tabling member constituency	Strangford
tabling member printed	Jim Shannon
uin	128260
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 03/03/2022 answer text <p>Children’s social care in Northern Ireland is a transferred power, making it a devolved matter. The answer reflects the position in England.</p><p>Children’s homes provide care for some of the most vulnerable young people unable to live with their families. This includes children who have suffered abuse or neglect, unaccompanied asylum-seeking children, children on remand, and children with emotional and behavioural difficulties, disabilities, special educational needs, or mental illnesses.</p><p>Local authorities have primary responsibility for the children in their care. They have a formal role as ‘corporate parents’. Their responsibilities include identifying which children should come into the care system, ensuring there is sufficient accommodation locally to meet the range of needs of looked after children in their area, safeguarding and promoting their wellbeing, ensuring that children’s education and health needs are met, and supporting care leavers.</p><p>The government provides funding and support to local authorities to help them meet all their duties to looked after children, including those in children’s homes. As well as providing safe, excellent quality care, the government wants to ensure that all homes can meet each child's individual needs and enable them to achieve the best possible outcomes.</p><p>For example, it has ensured that all looked after children have top priority in school admissions, and all local authorities must appoint a virtual school head with a statutory duty to promote the educational achievement of all children in their care. The government has funded eight Staying Close pilots to test an enhanced offer for young people leaving residential care. Additionally, the government will invest £140 million to introduce new national standards for unregulated provisions for older children.</p><p>Although we are making progress, the sector still faces challenges. The independent review of children’s social care commenced in March 2021, with Josh MacAlister as Chair. It is looking at how the government can make the system work better.</p><p>The review is taking a fundamental look at the needs, experiences, and outcomes of the children supported by children’s social care. It is drawing on a broad range of expertise and prioritising hearing the voices of children, young people, and adults that have received the help or support of a social worker, or who have been looked after. The review is looking at the whole system of support, safeguarding, protection and care, and the child’s journey into and out of that system. We expect it to point to new directions in children’s social care and directly improve the lives of vulnerable children.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 03/03/2022 11:54:36 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4131 label Biography information for Jim Shannon

1434570

registered interest
date	23/02/2022
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
hansard heading	Lakes and Rivers: Litter
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to tackle littering in (a) lakes and (b) rivers.
tabling member constituency	Strangford
tabling member printed	Jim Shannon
uin	128261
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/03/2022 answer text <p>The Litter Strategy for England sets out our aim to deliver a substantial reduction in litter and littering within a generation by focusing on education and awareness, improving enforcement and better cleaning and access to bins.</p><p> </p><p>The Code of Practice on Litter and Refuse, published by Defra, sets out the standards of cleaning that litter authorities are expected to be able to achieve on waterside land.</p><p> </p><p>The riparian owner is responsible for clearing watercourses and waterside land but other authorities may also have duties and powers. For example, in England, the Environment Agency will remove items or accumulations of litter that could restrict flow and increase flood risk on statutory main rivers. Local authorities and internal drainage boards have comparable powers on other ‘ordinary watercourses’.</p><p> </p><p>With support from Defra, and in partnership with the Canal &amp; River Trust, the Scouting Association have developed a pack containing information to help Scouts and Explorers understand the impact of plastic on wildlife, the waterways and oceans, and take practical action about issues affecting their local area.</p> answering member constituency Bury St Edmunds answering member printed Jo Churchill question first answered 02/03/2022 17:49:15 answering member 4380 label Biography information for Jo Churchill
tabling member	4131 label Biography information for Jim Shannon

1434571

registered interest
date	23/02/2022
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Fuels: Prices
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she is taking to help ensure that rising cost of fuels prices does not lead to an increase in levels of pensioner poverty.
tabling member constituency	Strangford
tabling member printed	Jim Shannon
uin	128262
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/03/2022 answer text <p>We have a comprehensive package of measures to help pensioners. The State Pension is the foundation of support for older people, and the value of it has been steadily increasing since 2010.</p><p> </p><p>From April, subject to Parliamentary approval, the full yearly amount of the basic State Pension will be around £720 more in 2022/23 than if it had been up-rated by prices since 2010; a rise of over £2,300 in cash terms. Over the last two years the basic and new State Pension has increased by over 5.6%.</p><p> </p><p>In addition, around 1.4 million eligible pensioners across Great Britain receive around £5 billion annually in Pension Credit, which tops up their retirement income and act as a passport to other financial help, such as support with housing costs, council tax, heating bills and a free TV licence for those over 75.</p><p> </p><p>The overall trend in the percentage of pensioners living in poverty shows a significant fall over recent decades and there are 200,000 fewer pensioners in absolute poverty (both before and after housing costs) than in 2009/10.</p><p> </p><p>Customers of State Pension age are also entitled to an annual winter fuel payment worth up to £300. Cold weather payments and the warm home discount may also be paid to those in receipt of Pension Credit.</p><p> </p><p>Further support for pensioners includes free eye tests and NHS prescriptions worth around £900m every year and free bus passes worth £1bn every year.</p><p /><p>The Chancellor’s announcement on 3 February of a package of support to help households with rising energy bills, worth £9.1 billion in 2022-23, will also be available to eligible pensioners. The devolved administrations are receiving around £715 million funding through the Barnett formula.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 02/03/2022 14:12:46 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
tabling member	4131 label Biography information for Jim Shannon

1434572

registered interest
date	23/02/2022
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	Department of Health and Social Care: Written Questions
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to provide a substantive Answer to Question 108576, tabled on 20 January 2022.
tabling member constituency	Halifax
tabling member printed	Holly Lynch
uin	128349
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 10/03/2022 answer text <p>I refer the hon. Member to the answer to Question <a href="https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-questions/detail/2022-01-20/108576" target="_blank">108576</a>.</p> answering member constituency Charnwood answering member printed Edward Argar question first answered 10/03/2022 13:44:46 answering member 4362 label Biography information for Edward Argar
tabling member	4472 label Biography information for Holly Lynch

1434573

registered interest
date	23/02/2022
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	Department of Health and Social Care: Written Questions
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to provide a substantive Answer to Question 112622, tabled on 26 January 2022.
tabling member constituency	Halifax
tabling member printed	Holly Lynch
uin	128350
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 10/03/2022 answer text <p>I refer the hon. Member to the answer to Question <a href="https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-questions/detail/2022-01-26/112622" target="_blank">112622</a>.</p> answering member constituency Charnwood answering member printed Edward Argar question first answered 10/03/2022 14:04:14 answering member 4362 label Biography information for Edward Argar
tabling member	4472 label Biography information for Holly Lynch