theodi/ndl-core-corpus huggingface dataset:
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Mrs Elsie Blundell:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps she is taking to support the creative industries in Heywood and Middleton North constituency. \p Chris Bryant: The creative industries are one of the government’s eight priority Industrial Strategy (IS) sectors. In 2023, the sector employed 2.4m people, and contributed £124bn in UK GVA – more than 5% of total UK GVA.

The Industrial Strategy is being designed and implemented in lockstep with local and regional leaders. We have selected Greater Manchester as a priority region for the Creative Industries: as a result, Greater Manchester will receive additional funding, to be agreed as part of the Spending Review, to encourage sustainable investment in the creative industries.

Greater Manchester has also received funding from the Create Growth Programme, which supports high-growth creative businesses in 12 English regions outside of London. Government has awarded a further £16.3 million for the programme for the next financial year – part of the £60 million package of support for the sector announced at January’s Creative Industries Growth Summit.

We also set out new commitments from the British Business Bank, the UK’s economic development bank, and UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) in January to strengthen their support for the creative industries, in addition to making shorter apprenticeships available from August 2025, building towards a more flexible growth and skills levy. These are the first steps we have taken in delivering on our ambitions for the creative industries, with more to be set out with the publication of the Creative Industries Sector Plan, alongside the Industrial Strategy, in late Spring.
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Sir John Hayes:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps she is taking to help support (a) heritage restoration and (b) sustainable retrofitting for the stock of historic buildings. \p Chris Bryant: DCMS and its arms-length bodies offer a range of grants and support to restore heritage assets.The Secretary of State announced in February £15 million of additional funding for Heritage at Risk, building on Historic England's existing Repair Grants for Heritage at Risk programme - providing grants for repairs and conservation to heritage buildings at risk, focusing on those sites with most need, and a new £4.85 million Heritage Revival Fund to enable local people to take ownership of heritage they love and bring historic buildings back into use. The National Lottery Heritage Fund also delivers project-based heritage funding. Since 1994, The National Lottery Heritage Fund has distributed £8.6bn of National Lottery funds to more than 47,000 projects.

Historic England has published advice online to help owners of historic buildings to streamline the installation of energy efficiency measures, and works with partners including Government to support the wider retrofit of historic buildings.
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Helen Morgan:To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 14 March 2025 to Question 37331 on Whitchurch (Shropshire) Station: Access, what her Department's timetable is for its review of the option selection reports on step-free access at stations produced by Network Rail. \p Simon Lightwood: The feasibility work for Whitchurch station is underway and we expect all 50 of the feasibility studies announced last year to be complete in the spring. We expect to be able to confirm which stations will move forward over the summer. The Access for All programme continues to be heavily oversubscribed.

We remain committed to improving the accessibility of the railway and recognise the valuable social and economic benefits this brings to communities.
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Julia Lopez:To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress she has made on completing feasibility studies to provide step-free access to platform six at Upminster Station. \p Simon Lightwood: The feasibility work for Upminster station is underway and we expect all 50 of the feasibility studies announced last year to be complete in the spring. We expect to be able to confirm which stations will move forward over the summer. The Access for All programme continues to be heavily oversubscribed.

We remain committed to improving the accessibility of the railway and recognise the valuable social and economic benefits this brings to communities.
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Martin Wrigley:To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether all trains on the Great Western Mainline will be required to call at the proposed Old Oak Common station. \p Simon Lightwood: Future timetables for Great Western services will be continuously developed in the years to come, and timetable option assessment always evaluates the options for calling at Old Oak Common; but GWR trains will only stop there when there are good reasons for them to do so.
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James McMurdock:To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking to reduce (a) delays and (b) overcrowding of train services. \p Simon Lightwood: The Department has been clear that rail services have been failing passengers. Cancellations are at a ten-year high and punctuality is inconsistent across the network. We need to improve services for passengers and deliver better value for money for the taxpayer.

The Rail Minister is meeting with the Managing Directors of all train operators and their Network Rail counterparts, to address poor performance and demand immediate action to raise standards.

Publicly-owned Great British Railways will end years of fragmentation – bringing together track and train to deliver for passengers with more reliable, better-quality services and simpler ticketing and fares

The Department holds operators to account on their service offer, ensuring they provide capacity where it is most needed, whilst maintaining performance and protecting the public purse.
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Ellie Chowns:To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of requiring local authorities to (a) provide (i) active travel routes, (ii) all-weather surfaces and (iii) appropriate signage and (b) regularly clear encroaching vegetation. \p Simon Lightwood: The Government recognises the merits of enabling local authorities to deliver and maintain high-quality, well-signed active travel routes to support its economic growth, health and net zero missions. Active travel can help to revitalise high streets, enable people to live longer, healthier lives and reduce transport emissions. In line with the Government’s devolution agenda decisions on the design, delivery and maintenance of active travel routes are best made at the local level by local authorities in consultation with local communities.
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Adam Jogee:To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what information her Department holds on the number of motor vehicle accidents that have taken place between junctions 12 and 16 of the M6 in each of the last five years. \p Lilian Greenwood: The number of road injury collisions reported to police occurring between junctions 12 and 16 of the M6, for each of the last five years for which data is available, are shown in the table below.

Year

Number of collisions

2019

40

2020

27

2021

20

2022

25

2023

29
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Olly Glover:To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent progress she has made on the preparation of the third Cycling and Walking Investment Strategy. \p Simon Lightwood: The Department’s officials are scoping out options for the third Cycling and Walking Investment Strategy, and the Department will say more on this in due course. The Department will consult stakeholders before the publication of the Strategy, as required by the 2015 Infrastructure Act, and will also report to Parliament later this year on the delivery of the second Cycling and Walking Investment Strategy.
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Martin Wrigley:To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 7 February 2025 to Question 27704 on Russia: Shipping, if she will list the Russian shadow fleet vessels that have entered UK waters in the last 12 months. \p Mike Kane: It is not possible to provide a list of suspected Russian shadow fleet vessels, due to national security considerations. However, the UK Government monitors vessels in UK waters which are of interest to the safety of mariners, the marine environment and the UK’s national security.
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Mr Andrew Snowden:To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment she has made of the potential impact of the Bus Services Bill on passengers with disabilities in (a) Fylde constituency and (b) Lancashire. \p Simon Lightwood: The Government is committed to improving public transport services so they are more inclusive and enable disabled people to travel safely, confidently and with dignity. The Bus Services (No.2) Bill, which was introduced on 17 December, will give local leaders the freedom to take decisions to deliver their local transport priorities and ensure networks meet the needs of the communities who rely on them, including for disabled people.

The Bill includes measures to make the design of bus and coach stations and stops more inclusive, and sets requirements for training for staff on disability-assistance and disability-awareness to ensure bus drivers and staff dealing directly with the travelling public are better informed of the rights and needs of disabled passengers.

In addition to this, the Government announced in the budget that we will be investing over £1 billion to support and improve bus services. Lancashire County Council has been allocated over £27 million for the 2025 to 2026 financial year to support and improve bus services. This funding can be used to improve services for passengers in whichever way they wish, including to improve access for disabled people.
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Mr Lee Dillon:To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking to improve road safety for horses and horse riders. \p Lilian Greenwood: In 2022 The Highway Code was updated to improve the safety of all road users, particularly the most vulnerable. Key changes included the introduction of a Hierarchy of Road Users, which ensures that those who do the greatest harm have the greatest responsibility to reduce the danger or threat that they pose to others, along with the strengthening of guidance on safe passing distances and speeds when overtaking horse riders.

The Government's flagship road safety campaign, THINK!, ran campaigns to alert road users of the changes as they came into effect and broader behaviour campaigns to encourage understanding and uptake of the guidance. Results from the last campaign showed that by September 2023, 93% of drivers agreed it was their responsibility to give space to vulnerable road users. We will continue to promote The Highway Code changes on THINK! and DfT social media channels and via our partner organisations.
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Alex Mayer:To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of exempting electric bus operators from Ofgem’s residual network charge reforms in 2023 on those operators. \p Simon Lightwood: My department continues to support bus decarbonisation, and to engage closely with both Ofgem and the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero.

Ofgem is aware that the reforms are causing concerns for a small number of specialist sites, and are active in industry working groups relating to sites with high-capacity usage and low utilisation and EV charging. In addition, Ofgem is currently undertaking a broad review of system costs to consider whether other cost recovery options provide potential for improvements. Across this work, Ofgem will ensure bus charging is given consideration.
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Andrew Gwynne:To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the letter from the Parliamentary Under-Secretary to the hon. Member for Gorton and Denton of 13 November 2024, what recent estimate she has made of when the memorandum of understanding between her Department and Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council will be signed in respect of the levelling-up funding for Denton. \p Simon Lightwood: The Department is working closely with Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council to allow progress all parts of the Destination Denton scheme that can be delivered and funding drawn down by March 2026. Funding after 2025/26 is subject to the outcome of the Spending Review, due to conclude in Spring.
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James McMurdock:To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to improve (a) service reliability, (b) service quality, (c) infrastructure, and (d) accessibility for passengers of trainlines. \p Simon Lightwood: Improving both the reliability and quality of rail services for passengers is an important priority for this Government. We have already taken significant steps towards this, through resolving the long running industrial disputes and through meeting regularly with train operator management teams and holding them to account for the delivery of their services. As well as delivering for passengers, such steps have led to significant benefit for taxpayers.

We also continue to invest around £2 billion each year in rail infrastructure, committing funding to projects and programmes to enhance the railway across the country. This will enable us to increase connectivity and capacity on the railway, so people can get to where they need to be more easily. This funding continues to support physical accessibility improvement on the rail network, on top of which we have invested over £10 million in funding for the Passenger Assist scheme since November 2024, which will deliver improvements for passengers needing support over the next two years.
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James McMurdock:To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of rail fare increases on the number of people using trains. \p Simon Lightwood: Our aim is to keep the price of rail travel at a point that works for both passengers and taxpayers, where possible. This year's increase is the lowest absolute increase in three years and delivers a fair balance between taxpayers and passengers. It will also support the Government’s long-term plans to achieve financial sustainability of the railway.
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Wendy Morton:To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 11 March 2025 to Question 36079 on Bus Services and Railways: Employers' Contributions, how much and what proportion of the £1 billion additional funding for buses will be spent on the increase to employer's National Insurance contributions. \p Simon Lightwood: The £1 billion of funding for buses awarded as part of the Budget includes £712 million allocated to local authorities to support and improve bus services. Local authorities can use this funding however they wish to improve bus services for passengers. In addition, over £150 million is being provided to bus operators to deliver the £3 cap on single bus fares in England outside London throughout 2025, and £243 million is being made available to bus operators through the Bus Service Operators Grant to support services.
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Sarah Coombes:To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions she has had with the DVLA on tackling the use of modified number plates designed to evade detection by automatic number plate recognition cameras, also known ghost plates. \p Lilian Greenwood: The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) is working with the National Police Chiefs Council (NPCC), various police forces and Trading Standards in relation to the supply and use of modified number plates, commonly known as ‘ghost plates’. One element of the work underway is to quantify the number of illegal plates that are in circulation. The evidence received will support further action to address this issue.
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Vikki Slade:To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, whether she plans to complete the Pay Transparency pilot, launched on 8 March 2022. \p Dame Nia Griffith: We are a mission-led government and women’s equality is at the heart of all our missions.

This means tackling the gender pay gap, where we are taking action much wider than just pay transparency. We are taking the first steps towards requiring employers to publish action plans alongside their figures, detailing the steps they are taking to narrow their gender pay gap and support employees during the menopause, as well as introducing stronger protections against sexual harassment.

Our plan to Make Work Pay will move further and faster to tackle the gender pay gap, improve access to flexible working and provide stronger protections at work. We are also expanding access to high-quality, accessible early years education with more free hours for working families.

Many employers understand that when women succeed, so does their business. As women’s equality and economic growth go hand in hand we need to ensure that every organisation is harnessing the talent, creativity and brilliance of women in their workforce.
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Lee Anderson:To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, whether her Department is taking steps to help protect freedom of speech in the hospitality sector. \p Dame Nia Griffith: Free speech is a cornerstone of British values. The right to freedom of expression is a long-held fundamental right under Article 10 of the European Convention of Human Rights.

The Equality Act 2010 provides protection from discrimination protects people with a religion or philosophical belief from discrimination, as well as to those who lack a religion or belief. The definition of religion or religious or philosophical belief is in line with Article 9 of the European Convention on Human Rights which stipulates that everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion. It is also compatible with Article 10 which covers the right to freedom of expression, including the freedom to hold opinions and to receive and impart information and ideas without interference by public authorities.

The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) is Great Britain’s national equality and human rights body. The Commission safeguards and enforces the laws that protect people’s rights to fairness, dignity and respect.
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Pippa Heylings:To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, whether she is taking steps to ban conversion practices. \p Dame Nia Griffith: This Government’s position is that conversion practices are abuse. Such practices have no place in society and must be stopped. In the King’s Speech, the Government committed to bring forward a full, trans-inclusive ban on conversion practices.

Previous administrations failed to deliver on this issue and allowed the debate to become ever more toxic and divided.

We are committed to bringing forward legislation to finally ban these abusive practices, starting with publishing our draft Bill later this session.
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Pippa Heylings:To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, whether she has had recent discussions with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on the (a) experiences and (b) needs of LGBTQ+ elders in social care. \p Dame Nia Griffith: We want everyone to have fair access to high quality care, which is respectful, inclusive and supports choice, control, and independence.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) sets out clinical guidelines for the provision of IVF services. NICE is currently reviewing its guidelines. In the light of broader pressures on the NHS and on-going changes within NHS England, the Department of Health and Social Care is looking again at achievable ambitions to improve access to services and fairness for all affected couples.
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David Chadwick:To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, which towns in Wales were considered for funding through the Plan for Neighbourhoods; and on what evidential basis the successful towns were chosen. \p Jo Stevens: I refer the Hon Member to the answer I gave on 17 March 2025 (UIN 37472).
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Lisa Smart:To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether their Department has made an assessment of the impact of energy suppliers incorrectly reporting missed payments to credit reference agencies based on erroneous estimated bills on consumers. \p Miatta Fahnbulleh: While this is a commercial matter between suppliers and credit reference agencies, the Government takes the issue of accurate billing very seriously.

All suppliers must take the required steps to reflect accurate meter readings in bills or statements sent to customers where these have been provided by a customer or obtained by the supplier. This is also laid out in the Ofgem’s licence conditions.

All energy suppliers must follow Ofgem’s enforceable overarching principles of the Standard Licence Conditions 0 and 0A. These are a set of broad and enforceable ‘standards of conduct’ principles that set fundamental expectations on how suppliers must ensure fair treatment of each customer. These principles guide supplier behaviour, information provision, and customer service processes.
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Lisa Smart:To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps his Department is taking to ensure energy suppliers issue accurate bills based on customer-submitted meter readings rather than estimated usage. \p Miatta Fahnbulleh: The Government takes the issue of accurate billing very seriously. All suppliers must take the required steps to reflect accurate meter readings in bills or statements sent to customers. This is laid out in Ofgem licence conditions.

All energy suppliers must follow Ofgem’s enforceable overarching principles of the Standard Licence Conditions 0 and 0A. These are a set of broad and enforceable ‘standards of conduct’ principles that set fundamental expectations on how suppliers must ensure fair treatment of each customer. These principles guide supplier behaviour, information provision, and customer service processes. For domestic consumers, the Standards also dictate how suppliers identify and respond to consumers in vulnerable situations.
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Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, how many solar farms have been approved as nationally significant infrastructure projects by (a) size in acres and (b) capacity in megawatts in each year since 2008. \p Michael Shanks: Nine nationally significant solar farms have been consented since 2008:

Project

(a) Approximate size in acres

(b) Approximate megawatt capacity

Year consented

Cleve Hill Solar Park

1213.29

300 – 400

2020

Little Crow Solar Park

558.46

150

2022

Longfield Solar Farm

1119.39

500

2023

Gate Burton Energy Park

xx-xxxx-xxxx

500

2024

Mallard Pass Solar Project

2105.34

350

2024

Sunnica

2424.10

500

2024

Cottam Solar Project

2841.71

600

2024

Heckington Fen Solar Park

1448.04

500

2025

West Burton Solar Project

2190.34

480

2025
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Robin Swann:To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if his Department will take steps to prepare for temperature rises that could reach 4C by the end of the century. \p Kerry McCarthy: The latest UN Environment Programme Emissions Gap Report estimates that current policies will limit peak global warming to 3.1°C by 2100, with further reductions possible through full implementation of Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) (https://www.unep.org/resources/emissions-gap-report-2024). More work is needed to limit warming to 1.5°C which is why the Government is committed to driving climate action domestically and internationally. At COP29 the UK announced an ambitious goal to reduce emissions by at least 81% by 2035 and will continue to urge other nations to be ambitious. The Government is investing in mitigation actions while future-proofing the Net Zero system against climate hazards.
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Dave Doogan:To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, on what date GB Energy's annual report and accounts will be published. \p Michael Shanks: Clause 7 of the Great British Energy Bill requires Great British Energy to report its accounts to the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero. It also requires the Secretary of State to lay a copy of these before Parliament.

As The Bill has not yet received Royal Assent, we are unable to confirm a specific date on which the first annual reports and accounts will be laid before Parliament.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether the Warm Homes Plan will (a) rationalise the number of home energy efficiency funding schemes and (b) streamline application processes for those schemes. \p Miatta Fahnbulleh: The Warm Homes Plan will help people find ways to save money on energy bills and transform our ageing building stock into comfortable, low-carbon homes that are fit for the future. As a first step the Government launched the Warm Homes: Local Grant (WH:LG) and Warm Homes: Social Housing Fund. The WH:LG is a successor scheme replacing the HUG and LAD schemes simplifying the current landscape.

We will continue to evaluate the application processes as schemes are developed.

Further details will be set out in the Warm Homes Plan in due course.
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Ms Polly Billington:To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether he has had discussions with the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government on the potential implications of the development of the National Planning Policy Framework for the Strategic Spatial Energy Plan. \p Michael Shanks: My Rt hon Friend the Secretary of State has regular discussions with Ministerial Colleagues on a number of issues, including planning. We are working with MHCLG on potential planning development and reform measures, and their interactions with the SSEP.
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Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, pursuant to the Answer of 11 March 2025 to Question 35004 on Solar Power: Electricity Generation, when his Department announced its plan to bring forward legislative proposals to increase the threshold for solar projects determined under the Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project planning regime from 50MW to 100MW. \p Michael Shanks: The Government’s intention to increase the threshold above which solar projects must be determined under the Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project regime was announced in its response to an 8-week consultation on changes to the National Planning Policy Framework. This was published on 12 December 2024.
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Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what the (a) average and (b) maximum megawatt capacity of a solar energy infrastructure project was in (i) 2008 and (ii) 2024. \p Michael Shanks: No new operational solar photovoltaic installations above 50kW were recorded in 2008. In 2024, new solar installations (excluding those below 50kW) had an average capacity of 15.4MW. The largest was 67MW.
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Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what the (a) average and (b) maximum megawatt capacity was of a wind energy infrastructure project in (i) 2008 and (ii) 2024. \p Michael Shanks: For the 22 onshore wind projects completed in 2008, the largest capacity was 68 MW and the average capacity was 20 MW. Both of the offshore wind projects completed in 2008 had a capacity of 97 MW.

For the 17 onshore wind projects completed in 2024, the largest capacity was 443 MW and the average capacity was 48 MW. For the 2 offshore wind projects completed in 2024, the largest capacity was 882 MW and the average capacity was 665 MW.

Large wind projects may be installed in phases over several years.
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Ian Sollom:To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that the Office for Clean Energy Jobs makes use of the research and evidence collected by the Green Jobs Delivery Group. \p Sarah Jones: The Office for Clean Energy Jobs is committed to ensuring that research and evidence gathered by the former Green Jobs Delivery Group directly inform its initiatives. In December 2024 we published the Clean Power 2030 Action Plan, accompanied by an Annex titled Assessment of the Clean Energy Skills Challenge. This Annex provides a comprehensive analysis of the skills landscape within the clean energy sector, highlighting workforce challenges and opportunities. We continue to engage with industry, unions, and educational bodies to ensure our policies align with latest labour market intelligence and effectively address workforce challenges in the clean energy sector.
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Max Wilkinson:To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what his Department's policy is on promoting deep geothermal energy. \p Kerry McCarthy: The Government supports the development of geothermal projects, provided they deliver affordable energy for consumers and are environmentally appropriate. The following schemes are open to applications from deep-geothermal projects: Contracts for Difference (for geothermal power); the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme and Green Heat Network Fund (for geothermal heat).

Recognising that cost is a barrier, the Government commissioned research to understand how we can support the geothermal sector to achieve its potential.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-20)

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Ian Sollom:To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether his Department has (a) evaluated the effectiveness and (b) undertaken a lessons learned review of the Green Jobs Delivery Group. \p Sarah Jones: We have been building on the progress that the Green Jobs Delivery Group previously made by setting up the Office for Clean Energy Jobs (OCEJ). The OCEJ has been created to ensure that clean energy jobs are abundant, high quality, paid fairly, and have favourable terms and good working conditions.

The Department has undertaken lessons learned exercises of the work undertaken by, and to support the Green Jobs Delivery Group. This included an informal assessment of its effectiveness. The outputs have informed the establishment of the OCEJ and its work.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-20 conversation_284

Mr Andrew Snowden:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the Autumn Budget 2024 on levels of business confidence in rural communities in (a) Fylde constituency and (b) Lancashire. \p Darren Jones: The Autumn Budget delivered fiscal stability. Recent surveys from EY and PwC show overall business and investor confidence is rising.

The government has taken significant steps to support rural businesses across the country. We are restoring stability and investment in our public services as the best way to support growth across the country, including in rural areas. We are investing £5 billion in broadband connectivity which will support growth in rural areas across the UK. We confirmed over £650 million of funding for local transport beyond City Region Sustainable Transport Settlements in 2025-26 to ensure that transport connections improve in our towns, villages and rural areas.

We have also committed £5 billion for the farming budget over two years – which includes the largest ever amount of funding directed at sustainable food production and nature’s recovery in our country’s history.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-20 conversation_285

Anna Gelderd:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of trends in the level of NEET rates on (a) household poverty, (b) tax revenue, (c) benefit expenditure, (d) mental health and (e) productivity. \p Darren Jones: The government is committed to supporting young people who are not in education, employment, or training (NEET), as set out in the Get Britain Working White Paper, published on 26 November 2024. That is why it has announced a Youth Guarantee, so that every young person aged 18-21 in England has access to further learning, help to get a job or an apprenticeship.

In addition to this, the government is taking steps to transform the Apprenticeship Levy into a more flexible Growth and Skills Levy by investing £40 million which will help to deliver new foundation and shorter apprenticeships in key sectors, giving young people a route to careers in critical sectors. The Autumn Budget also provided an additional £300 million for further education to ensure young people are developing the skills this country needs.

To support young people with poor mental health who may be at risk of becoming NEET, the government will provide access to a specialist mental health professional in every school in England.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-20 conversation_286

Noah Law:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she has had discussions with the National Wealth Fund on establishing a platform for geothermal investment to commercialise the industry. \p James Murray: The Chancellor issued a new Statement of Strategic Priorities to the National Wealth Fund (NWF) on 19th March 2025, in which she set out that the NWF is at the forefront of investing public money for our future to help deliver the investment that underpins the Government’s growth and clean energy missions.

The Chancellor made clear that the NWF should prioritise investment into clean energy, digital and technologies, and advanced manufacturing, alongside transport sectors. An NWF investment into any geothermal project would be subject to the investment satisfying the NWF’s normal requirements for investable proposals.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-20 conversation_287

Jayne Kirkham:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what her Department's timeline is for the allocation of funding to ports through the National Wealth Fund. \p James Murray: The National Wealth Fund (NWF) has financial capacity totaling £27.8 billion, of which at least £5.8 billion will be committed over this Parliament to the five priority sectors that the Chancellor announced at the International Investment Summit, including ports. This capital will be targeted into investable projects that meet the NWF’s investment criteria and mandate – driving growth, clean energy and creating the jobs of the future.

The NWF will support regional and local strategies with advisory and lending support throughout the investment cycle to deliver on local priorities. In doing so, the NWF will act in partnership with central government, local government, and other public bodies, to help identify and deliver the right support for projects.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-20 conversation_288

Luke Murphy:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the introduction of low benefit-in-kind rates for electric vehicles on job creation since 2020-21. \p James Murray: Company cars in the UK are subject to an emissions-based regime, which taxes vehicles based on their list price as well as their CO2 emission level. The Government recognises that this regime plays an important role in the electric vehicle transition.

In July 2019, the Government announced new company car tax rates for the tax years 2020 to 2025, which included generous incentives for electric vehicles. These were legislated for as part of the Finance Act 2020. The Government subsequently announced rates for 2025 to 2028 at Autumn Statement 2022, and rates for 2028 to 2030 at Autumn Budget 2024.

Alongside each fiscal event where the changes were announced, an accompanying Tax Information and Impact Note was published setting out expected economic, equalities and other impacts of the new rates. In each of these notes, the rates were not expected to have any significant macroeconomic impacts, such as impacts on GDP and job creation.

At Budget 2024, the Chancellor announced £2 billion of funding to 2030 to support the zero emissions vehicle manufacturing base and supply chain, recognising the value that the industry delivers for the UK and its ongoing transition.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-20 conversation_289

Wendy Morton:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much revenue the Exchequer has raised from the application of VAT to private school fees since 1 January 2025. \p James Murray: The Annex to the Government Response to the Technical Note, Government_Response_to_the_Technical_Note_on_Applying_VAT_to_Private_School_Fees_and_Removing_the_Business_Rates_Charitable_Rate_Relief.pdf, sets out the expected VAT revenue resulting from this measure and the costing methodology. The Government estimates that it will raise £460 million this year, rising to £1,725 million in 2029/30.

VAT revenue overall is recognised in the National Accounts on an accruals basis. As set out in the above Annex, the VAT liability in 2024/25 is time apportioned for the implementation date of 1 January 2025. The actual VAT liability reported on VAT returns for any month or quarter will depend on various factors, including the date when schools meet the requirement to register for VAT (if not already registered), and which of the staggered quarterly accounting periods apply to the business. VAT returns are generally due one month and seven days after the end of the accounting period.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-30)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-30 conversation_1

Jim Shannon:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to prevent hate speech in schools. \p Georgia Gould: Education is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only.

There is no place for hate or prejudice in our education system. Every school should actively promote the shared values of democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty, and mutual respect for those of different faiths and beliefs.

The department has published advice for schools on promoting these values and made resources available through the Educate Against Hate website.

The new relationships, sex and health education (RSHE) guidance seeks to provide a practical framework that enables schools to teach RSHE in a way that is preventative and protective. It strengthens content on healthy relationships, mental health and the content reflects some of the challenges facing young people today. The guidance was updated on 15 July and is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/relationships-education-relationships-and-sex-education-rse-and-health-education.

The department has also published ‘Respectful School Communities’, a self-review and signposting tool to support schools to develop a whole- school approach which promotes respect and discipline. It is available here: https://www.educateagainsthate.com/resources/respectful-school-communities-self-review-signposting-tool-2/.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-30)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-30 conversation_2

Matt Vickers:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she has taken to ensure fair funding across local authorities under the National Funding Formula. \p Georgia Gould: Every year, the department uses the schools national funding formula (NFF) to distribute core funding for 5 to 16-year-old pupils in mainstream state-funded schools in England. This ensures that funding is distributed based on a fair and consistent assessment of need.

The vast majority of funding is distributed on the basis of pupil numbers and characteristics. In 2025/26, 74.2% of the schools NFF has been allocated through basic entitlement funding, which every pupil attracts. A further 17.8% (£8.6 billion) of all funding has been allocated through additional needs factors based on deprivation, low prior attainment, English as an additional language and mobility. It is right that schools with more pupils with additional needs receive extra funding to help them meet the needs of all their pupils.

The government will continue to keep all the unit values and the wider operation of the schools NFF under review for 2026/27 and in future years.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-30)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-30 conversation_3

Anneliese Dodds:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of (a) initial teacher training and (b) continuing professional development for teachers in media literacy. \p Georgia Gould: The Initial Teacher Training and Early Career Framework sets out the foundational core content that defines great teaching. This includes anticipating common misconceptions within particular subjects, which is an important aspect of curricular knowledge. In the context of media literacy, this can help teachers to spot pupil misconceptions that may arise from various sources. Beyond this, providers can design a curriculum which is responsive to participant needs, including training on media literacy where necessary.

The independent Curriculum and Assessment Review is evaluating the existing national curriculum and statutory assessment system in England, to ensure they are fit for purpose. The Review’s final report and recommendations will be published shortly. The government will then consider the recommendations and its response.

The department funds the National Centre for Computing Education, which provides teachers with free CPD and resources to support the teaching of computing, including media literacy. In addition, Ofcom published its three-year Media Literacy Strategy in October 2024, which commits to supporting teachers through CPD, evaluation of training outcomes and stronger collaboration with regional partners to share learnings and effective practices.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-30)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-30 conversation_4

Daisy Cooper:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when her Department plans to publish the final recommendations of the Curriculum and Assessment Review. \p Georgia Gould: The independent Curriculum and Assessment Review’s final report and recommendations will be published this autumn. The government’s response will be published alongside this.