Daily Report Wednesday, 9 September 2020...

Daily Report Wednesday, 9 September 2020

This report shows written answers and statements provided on 9 September 2020 and the

information is correct at the time of publication (06:30 P.M., 09 September 2020). For the

latest information on written questions and answers, ministerial corrections, and written

statements, please visit: http://www.parliament.uk/writtenanswers/

CONTENTS

ANSWERS 6

BUSINESS, ENERGY AND

INDUSTRIAL STRATEGY 6

Biofuels 6

Biofuels: Imports 6

Community Centres: Energy 7

Coronavirus Job Retention

Scheme 7

Department for Business,

Energy and Industrial Strategy:

Staff 8

Green Homes Grant Scheme:

Certification 8

Hunterston B Power Station:

Closures 9

Hydrogen 9

Innovation Expert Group:

Public Appointments 10

OneWeb 10

Research: Coronavirus 10

Research: Equality 11

Constituencies 11

Coronavirus: Disease Control 11

House of Lords: Location 12

Industrial Relations: Scotland 12

Sovereignty: Scotland 12

DEFENCE 13

Joint Strike Fighter Aircraft 13

Military Aid 13

Ministry of Defence:

Disclosure of Information 13

Type 26 Frigates:

Procurement 14

DIGITAL, CULTURE, MEDIA AND

SPORT 15

Arts: Coronavirus 15

BBC: Local Broadcasting 15

Broadband 16

Cinemas: Grants 16

Data Protection: EU Law 17

Housing: Construction 18

Mass Media: Coronavirus 18

Mobile Phones: Rural Areas 19

Newspaper Press: Internet 19

Television Licences: Older

People 20

USA: Data Protection 20

EDUCATION 21

Babies and Children 21

Breakfast Clubs 22

Carers: Children 22

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2 Wednesday, 9 September 2020 Daily Report

Free School Meals: Primary

Education 23

Further Education and

Schools: Finance 23

GCE A-level: Assessments 24

Higher Education: Finance 24

Medicine: Higher Education 25

Remote Education: Pre-school

Education 26

Special Educational Needs:

Coronavirus 26

Students: Loans 27

Universities: Admissions 27

Universities: Disadvantaged 28

Universities: Freedom of

Expression 29

ENVIRONMENT, FOOD AND

RURAL AFFAIRS 30

Animal Experiments:

Chemicals 30

Bovine Tuberculosis: Disease

Control 30

Bovine Tuberculosis:

Vaccination 31

Department for Environment,

Food and Rural Affairs: Staff 31

Dogs: Imports 32

Farmers: Coronavirus 32

Hare Coursing: Fines 33

Hen Harriers 33

Hen Harriers: Conservation 34

Livestock: Transport 35

Pesticides: Regulation 35

Seals 35

Sheep Meat: Wales 36

FOREIGN, COMMONWEALTH

AND DEVELOPMENT OFFICE 36

Anoosheh Ashoori 36

Arab States: Israel 37

Bahrain: Legal Profession 37

British Overseas Territories:

Companies 38

British Overseas Territories:

Coronavirus 38

Caribbean: Overseas Aid 39

China: Human Rights 40

Developing Countries:

Coronavirus 40

Foreign, Commonwealth and

Development Office: Religion 41

Foreign, Commonwealth and

Development Office: South

America 41

Georgia: Overseas Aid 42

Independent Commission for

Aid Impact 42

Iran: Arms Trade 43

Iran: Coronavirus 43

Israel: United Arab Emirates 44

Maira Shahbaz 44

Malnutrition: International

Assistance 45

Mauritius: Oil 45

Mediterranean Region: Politics

and Government 46

Overseas Aid: Coronavirus 46

Pakistan: Religious Freedom 47

Palestinians: Curriculum 47

Palestinians: Recognition of

States 48

Qatar: Saudi Arabia 48

Wednesday, 9 September 2020 Daily Report 3

Riot Control Weapons: USA 48

Russia: Syria 49

USA: International Criminal

Court 50

Yemen: Armed Conflict 50

Yemen: Peace Negotiations 50

HEALTH AND SOCIAL CARE 51

Care Homes 51

Care Homes: Coronavirus 51

Care Homes: Palliative Care 52

Care Quality Commission:

Publicity 53

Coronavirus: Disease Control 53

Coronavirus: Food 55

Coronavirus: Leicester 55

Coronavirus: Prisons 55

Department of Health and

Social Care: Staff 56

Disability: Social Services 56

Food: Procurement 57

GP Surgeries: Coronavirus 57

Health Professions: Devolution 58

Health Services 58

Health Services: Stoke-on-

Trent 59

Health Services: Waiting Lists 59

Medical Treatments:

Coronavirus 60

NHS Trusts: Influenza 60

Out-patients 61

Personal Care Services:

Leicester 61

Pregnancy: Screening 62

Surgery: Coronavirus 62

HOME OFFICE 63

Action Fraud 63

Hezbollah 64

Home: Staff 64

Immigration: EU Nationals 65

Islamic Resistance Support

Organization 65

Rape: Victims 65

HOUSE OF COMMONS

COMMISSION 66

Kickstart Scheme 66

HOUSING, COMMUNITIES AND

LOCAL GOVERNMENT 66

Affordable Housing:

Construction 66

Construction: Wool 67

Future High Streets Fund:

Congleton 67

Green Belt 67

Help to Buy Scheme:

Coronavirus 68

High Rise Flats: Insulation 69

High Streets Task Force 70

Housing: Carbon Emissions 71

Housing: Construction 72

Housing: Older People 72

Ministry of Housing,

Communities and Local

Government: Ministerial

Powers 73

Ministry of Housing,

Communities and Local

Government: Staff 73

Planning Permission 73

Planning: Archaeology and

Cultural Heritage 74

4 Wednesday, 9 September 2020 Daily Report

Private Rented Housing:

Coronavirus 74

Private Rented Housing:

Evictions 75

Reopening High Streets Safely

Fund: Congleton 75

Tourism: Congleton 75

Towns Fund: Congleton 76

INTERNATIONAL TRADE 76

Arms Trade: Saudi Arabia 76

Department for International

Trade: Staff 79

Energy: Exports 80

Export Duties 81

Foreign Investment in UK 82

Free Zones 82

Hydrogen: Exports 82

Institute of Economic Affairs:

Meetings 83

Trade Agreements: Pesticides 83

Trade Agreements: USA 83

JUSTICE 84

Courts: Criminal Proceedings 84

Courts: Video Conferencing 85

Employment Tribunals

Service: Applications 86

HM Courts and Tribunals

Service: Video Conferencing 88

Pets: Theft 88

Police Custody: Coronavirus 88

Prisons and Probation:

Veterans 88

Probate 90

Probation and Remand in

Custody: Veterans 91

Remand in Custody:

Coronavirus 92

Remand in Custody: Visits 92

Television Licences: Older

People 93

SCOTLAND 93

Coronavirus: Screening 93

Fisheries: Scotland 94

TRANSPORT 94

Aviation: Coronavirus 94

British Airways 94

Department for Transport:

Buildings 95

Department for Transport:

Staff 95

Free Zones: Infrastructure 95

High Speed 2 Railway Line 96

Level Crossings: Accidents 96

Official Cars: Electric Vehicles 97

Oxford-Hereford Railway Line 97

Railways: Coastal Areas 97

Railways: EU Countries 98

Railways: Landslips 98

Railways: Season Tickets 99

Roads: Tree Planting 99

Travel: Coronavirus 100

TREASURY 100

Bank Services: Fraud 100


Scheme 101


Scheme: Fraud 101

Customs 102

Eat Out to Help Out Scheme 102

Wednesday, 9 September 2020 Daily Report 5

Financial Services

Compensation Scheme 102

Free Zones: Foyle 103

Hydrogen: Investment 103

National Savings and

Investments 104

Protective Clothing: VAT 104

Self-employed: Coronavirus 105

Social Enterprises: Tax

Allowances 105

Sunscreens: VAT 106

WORK AND PENSIONS 106

Department for Work and

Pensions: Staff 106

Hygiene: Products 106

Industrial Accidents: Death 107

Jobcentres: Staff 108

Social Security Benefits:

Terminal Illnesses 108

State Retirement Pensions 108

Universal Credit 109

MINISTERIAL CORRECTIONS 110

JUSTICE 110

Prisoners' Release:

Homelessness 110

WRITTEN STATEMENTS 111

BUSINESS, ENERGY AND

INDUSTRIAL STRATEGY 111

Business Update 111

DIGITAL, CULTURE, MEDIA AND

SPORT 112

National Data Strategy 112

FOREIGN, COMMONWEALTH

AND DEVELOPMENT OFFICE 113

UK Commonwealth Chair-In-

Office Report 2018-2020 113

HOUSING, COMMUNITIES AND

LOCAL GOVERNMENT 115

Building Safety Update 115

Notes:

Questions marked thus [R] indicate that a relevant interest has been declared.

Questions with identification numbers of 900000 or greater indicate that the question was originally tabled as an

oral question and has since been unstarred.

6 Daily Report Wednesday, 9 September 2020 ANSWERS

ANSWERS

BUSINESS, ENERGY AND INDUSTRIAL STRATEGY

Biofuels

Helen Hayes: [83888]

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent

discussions he has had with his international counterparts on the use of biomass fuel for

electricity.

Kwasi Kwarteng:

All Ministerial meetings gifts, hospitality, travel and meetings are published quarterly.

Details of meetings from January to March can be found at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/beis-ministerial-gifts-hospitality-travel-

and-meetings-january-to-march-2020.

Data for April to June 2020 will be published in due course.

Biofuels: Imports


To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what criteria

his Department uses to measure and calculate the impact on (a) biodiversity and (b)

ecosystems of biomass sourced and imported into the UK from overseas forests.

Kwasi Kwarteng:

The UK only supports biomass for electricity generation which complies with strict

sustainability criteria, and generating stations utilising biomass only receive subsidies

in respect of compliant biomass. These criteria take into account social, economic

and environmental issues including protecting biodiversity and ecosystems, land use

rights, sustainable harvesting and regeneration rates. They ensure that the carbon

stock of the forest from which the pellets are derived is not decreased by requiring

that biomass fuels are derived from forest waste wood and residues and that the

forest owner adheres to relevant legal requirements to protect biodiversity and the

environment.


To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what

assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of the methodology it uses to

measure the impact of UK biomass imports on the forests from which those imports are

sourced; and what plans his Department has to review that methodology.

Kwasi Kwarteng:

The criteria used to ensure that only sustainably sourced biomass is used within our

power sector is effective in protecting biodiversity and carbon stock in forests where

biomass is sourced and requires biomass fuels to be derived from forest waste wood

http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2020-09-01/83888https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/beis-ministerial-gifts-hospitality-travel-and-meetings-january-to-march-2020https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/beis-ministerial-gifts-hospitality-travel-and-meetings-january-to-march-2020https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/beis-ministerial-gifts-hospitality-travel-and-meetings-january-to-march-2020http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2020-09-01/83886http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2020-09-01/83887

Daily Report Wednesday, 9 September 2020 ANSWERS 7

and residues. In their ‘Biomass in a low-carbon economy’ report the Committee on

Climate Change stated the evidence suggests that the UK’s bioenergy sustainability

rules are helping to limit sustainability risks.

Those sites using biomass with a capacity greater than or equal to 1 megawatt must

also prepare an annual sustainability report compiled by a third party auditor/verifier

which provides assurance that biomass is from sustainable sources.

Community Centres: Energy

Lee Rowley: [83924]

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what plans he

has to ensure that non-domestic properties used by community groups and clubs can

become more energy efficient.

Kwasi Kwarteng:

The Government has a range of policies aimed at improving the energy efficiency of

non-domestic properties such as those used by community groups and clubs.

Where the community buildings are owned by the public sector, they are eligible for

energy efficiency reduction funding through the Public Sector Energy Efficiency Loan

Scheme. The capital pot for England stands at £385 million by the end of 2020/21.

This funding, managed by Salix Finance, has delivered over 17,000 projects,

significantly improving energy performance in the public sector. There is also the rural

community energy fund which supports local communities in developing and

designing energy projects locally. These projects can include community and club

buildings.

We have also put in place minimum energy efficiency standards in the non-domestic

rental sector. The Energy Efficiency (Private Rented Property)(England and Wales)

Regulations 2015 require landlords of non-domestic properties to improve their

building’s energy performance to an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) rating of

E. We consulted in October 2019 on raising the minimum standard to an EPC B by

2030, where cost effective. This is expected to cover up to 85% of properties in the

non-domestic rental sector.

Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme

Stella Creasy: [85040]

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether he

has issued guidance on the implications for the calculation of statutory redundancy pay of

being placed on reduced pay in a furlough agreement under the Coronavirus Job

Retention Scheme and then made redundant; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Scully:

Any employee who is dismissed due to redundancy and who satisfies certain

qualifying conditions has a statutory entitlement to a lump sum from their employer,

based on their age, length of service and contractual weekly earnings, subject to a

statutory upper limit, payable at, or soon after, the dismissal date.

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The Government introduced new legislation which commenced on 31 July to ensure

that furloughed employees who are subsequently made redundant receive statutory

redundancy pay based on the employee’s normal pay, rather than their furlough pay

(potentially 80% of their normal wage). The Government issued guidance on these

changes which can be found on the Acas website at:

https://www.acas.org.uk/manage-staff-redundancies/work-out-redundancy-pay.

The Government has always urged employers to do the right thing and not seek to

disadvantage furloughed employees who are facing redundancy. We are aware that

most companies will do this and we have now underpinned these expectations with

additional statutory protections.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy: Staff

Neil O'Brien: [83984]

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many

members of staff in his Department have equality, diversity or inclusion in their job title.

Nadhim Zahawi:

There are six members of staff in the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial

Strategy that have equality, diversity or inclusion in their job title.

Green Homes Grant Scheme: Certification

Andrew Rosindell: [83677]

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps he

is taking to ensure that businesses offering home improvement under the Green Homes

Grant scheme receive their PAS 2030 certification as quickly as possible.

Kwasi Kwarteng:

It is the responsibility of the TrustMark scheme providers to ensure that organisations

are Publicly Available Specification (PAS) certified, although the Department is

working closely with TrustMark to ensure that the right information is shared with the

scheme providers and their members so they know what they need to do to become

certified to the correct level of PAS.

The Green Homes Grant scheme is making a substantial commitment to supply chain

development, to bolster the workforce and support the delivery of the scheme,

including support and training directed towards gaining required certification.

Andrew Rosindell: [83678]

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, the average

time is for a PAS 2030 certification to be processed once a business applies, in the most

recent month for which figures are available.

Kwasi Kwarteng:

The amount of time that it takes to receive receives PAS 2030 certification differs

depending on the certification body that the business has applied to and the

completeness of it application.

https://www.acas.org.uk/manage-staff-redundancies/work-out-redundancy-payhttps://www.acas.org.uk/manage-staff-redundancies/work-out-redundancy-payhttp://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2020-09-01/83984http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2020-09-01/83677http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2020-09-01/83678


Certification can take less than two weeks providing the business has the correct

documentation.

Hunterston B Power Station: Closures

John Lamont: [83902]

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what

assessment he has made of energy security in relation to the reported early closure of

Hunterston nuclear power station.

Nadhim Zahawi:

Hunterston B has been generating low carbon electricity for more than 40 years. Over

its lifetime, it has produced enough low carbon energy to power the whole of Scotland

for 8 years.

The Capacity Market ensures security of electricity supply by providing all forms of

capacity with the right incentives to be on the system and to deliver electricity when

needed. It secures the capacity we need, including new capacity to replace aging

power stations as they retire, through auctions held either four years or one year

ahead of delivery (T-4 and T-1). To date, these capacity auctions have secured the

majority of the capacity that Great Britain needs until 2023/.

Hunterston B holds capacity agreements for around 0.9 GW of capacity in 2020/21

and 2021/22. In light of EDF Energy’s decision to end generation at Hunterston B by

7 January 2022, we will have the opportunity to secure replacement capacity in the T-

1 auction for 2021/22 if required.

Hydrogen

Dr Lisa Cameron: [82020]

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if the

Government will (a) develop and (b) publish a hydrogen strategy.

Kwasi Kwarteng:

The Government is committed to the development of hydrogen as a strategic

decarbonised energy carrier for the UK. We are currently developing our strategic

approach to hydrogen and its potential to deliver against our net zero goals.

In order to inform our approach, we are undertaking extensive stakeholder

engagement, including through the launch of our Hydrogen Advisory Council enabling

government to work in partnership with industry, as we develop new policy to help

bring forward the technologies and supply chain we will need to grow the UK

hydrogen economy. This includes developing business models to support the

deployment of, and investment in, low carbon hydrogen production and a £100m Low

Carbon Hydrogen Production Fund to stimulate capital investment.



Innovation Expert Group: Public Appointments

Chi Onwurah: [83801]

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, with reference

his Department's Policy paper UK Research and Development Roadmap, published on 1

July 2020, what the timetable is for appointments to be made to the Innovation Expert

Group.

Amanda Solloway:

The Innovation Expert Group will comprise people with the deep knowledge,

experience and clear vision to help advise on innovation, drawing from industry,

public services, the investment community and across the relevant disciplines of the

research community.

OneWeb


To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, from which

area of his Departmental budget will the funding for the acquisition of OneWeb be

allocated from.

Amanda Solloway:

The budget for OneWeb will be allocated through the 2020-21 Supplementary

Estimate and considered as part of the Comprehensive Spending Review 2020

process.

Research: Coronavirus


To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what funding

has been made available from the public purse to support multi-partner collaborative

research projects during the covid-19 outbreak.

Amanda Solloway:

UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), has committed more than £95 million to new

research aimed at tackling COVID-19 and repurposed research grants of £80 million

to address the effects of the pandemic. This includes projects supported by the UKRI

call launched in March 2020 for short-term projects (up to 18 months) addressing the

health, social, economic, cultural and environmental impacts of the COVID-19

outbreak - these calls were open to collaborations across disciplines and sectors.

Recognising the global nature of the virus and the UK’s obligation to the world’s

poorest under our ODA commitments, funding has been mobilised to support COVID

research in Lower- and Middle-Income Countries. BEIS, through UKRI, has launched

a joint Newton Fund-Global Challenges Research Fund agile call, amounting to £7.5

million. The call aims to help tackle the outbreak across developing countries where

communities are already vulnerable due to long-term conflict, food and water

shortages, and crowded living conditions.

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Research: Equality


To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to

the Answer of 24 July 2020 to Question 76019 on Postgraduate Education: Equality, (a)

when and (b) how regularly the Government plans to publish diversity statistics for the

UK’s research sector.

Amanda Solloway:

UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) monitors diversity data of the research and

innovation funded through the research councils, Innovate UK and Research

England. UKRI published its first set of harmonised diversity data for all seven

research councils for the past five academic years in July 2020 and are committed to

publishing diversity data annually. The next harmonised diversity data release is

scheduled for early 2021.

UKRI are also committed to expanding their data collection and analysis capabilities

including of grants funded by Innovate UK, and publishing other diversity data more

regularly, such as the detailed ethnicity analysis of grant applications due to be

published in Autumn 2020.

Constituencies

Dr Matthew Offord: [83771]

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he

will amend the Government's guidance to the Electoral Commission to ensure the

Commission's recommendations on the Boundary Review are based on the number of

people in the total population rather than those only on the electoral register.

Chloe Smith:

Boundary reviews have always been based on the number of registered electors. The

Government considers that using the definitive registered electorate, and holding

regular reviews, is the clearest and most effective method of keeping constituency

sizes up to date.

Coronavirus: Disease Control

Bob Stewart: [83729]

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, what

steps he is taking to co-ordinate a cross-Departmental response to a potential increase in

the prevalence in covid-19 in winter 2020-21.

Penny Mordaunt:

The actions of the Government and people across the UK have reduced the

transmission of the virus significantly from its peak in the spring, but the coming

winter presents further challenges.

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Our collective understanding of the virus, and how it spreads, has vastly improved

since the initial wave of infections. In the coming months, we will continue to assess

what the UK can learn from other nations, and carry out a series of exercises to test

the Government’s winter plans, and to ensure effective coordination between

departments and with the devolved administrations.

House of Lords: Location

Rachael Maskell: [83876]

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, how

much his Department spent on scoping a potential move of the House of Lords to York.

Chloe Smith:

The Prime Minister wrote to the CEOs of the Sponsor Body and Delivery Authority

requesting that the strategic review of the Restoration and Renewal Programme give

consideration to decant locations outside of London, including York. The Government

looks forward to the findings of the strategic review. It will be Parliament that will take

the final decision on how to proceed.

Industrial Relations: Scotland

Alan Brown: [83861]

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, for what reasons employment and industrial

relations are devolved to the Northern Ireland Assembly but not to the Scottish

Parliament.

Chloe Smith:

The devolved nations, institutions and their respective devolution settlements are all

different, reflecting their circumstances and history, and are considered as individual

entities.

The Smith Commission did not recommend any change to the reserved status of

employment and industrial relations policy in Scotland.

Sovereignty: Scotland

David Linden: [82315]

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he

will publish all opinion polling commissioned by his Department on Scottish independence

conducted in 2020.

David Linden: [82316]

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office,

which polling organisations his Department commissioned in 2020; and how much his

Department has paid to each of those organisations for each service.

Julia Lopez:

As has been the case with successive administrations, Government routinely works

with suppliers to provide polling and market research work so as to understand public

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attitudes and behaviours to inform our vitally important campaigns and policies. This

enables us to deliver strong, national, cross-government communications campaigns,

including to support the UK’s response and recovery from the pandemic. Internal

policy development work is not normally disclosed.

Details of departmental expenditure and contracts are published on GOV.UK.

DEFENCE

Joint Strike Fighter Aircraft

Mr Tobias Ellwood: [83685]

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what mid air refuelling system the F35B uses;

and how that system differs from the one used by the Typhoon.

Jeremy Quin:

The UK's F-35 Lightning and Typhoon fleets both use the 'probe and drogue' air to air

refuelling system, utilising the RAF Voyager fleet.

Military Aid

Mr Kevan Jones: [84972]

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether his Department made an assessment

of the potential merits of the use of Giraffe radar prior to the deployment of RAF aircraft in

the English Channel in the last two months.

James Heappey:

An assessment on the suitability of Giraffe radar system was conducted and it was

deemed that this capability was not appropriate due to the good existing radar

coverage in the area.


To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, on what date his Department received a

request from the Home Office to assist UK Border Force in the English Channel.

James Heappey:

A Military Aid to the Civil Authorities (MACA) request from the Home Office was

received by Defence on 7 August 2020 for support to the Border Force efforts to

counter people trafficking activity in the English Channel.

Ministry of Defence: Disclosure of Information


To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether non-disclosure agreements agreed

between his Department and prime defence contractors purport to prohibit industry

experts from providing evidence to the House of Commons Defence Committee.




To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many non-disclosure agreements are

being required by his Department from the industry for procurement competitions; and for

what reasons those such agreements are necessary.

Jeremy Quin:

It is Ministry of Defence (MOD) policy to use standard contract conditions to prevent

the unauthorised disclosure of information for a variety of reasons, including

protection of national security, commercial confidentiality and personal data.

The MOD would only use Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDAs) in its commercial

arrangements by exception. Any such NDAs, if agreed, would be prepared on a

project by project basis: the MOD does not hold any central record of any such

agreements.

Similarly, the MOD has no centrally held records of any contractual conditions or

NDAs that would prevent an industry expert from attending a Parliamentary

Committee. Where circumstances arose in which information is requested, the

disclosure of which may be prohibited under contractual arrangements; for example,

on grounds of national security or commercial sensitivities, this would have to be

carefully considered on a case by case basis.

Type 26 Frigates: Procurement

Luke Pollard: [83945]

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when he plans to order the next batch of Type

26 frigates.

Luke Pollard: [83946]

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether there are penalty clauses in the

procurement contracts for the new Type 26 frigates in the event that his Department does

not order a second batch of Type 26 frigates.

Jeremy Quin:

For our plans to order the next batch of Type 26 frigates, I refer the hon. Member to

the answer given by my noble Friend, the Minister of State at the Ministry of Defence

(Baroness Goldie of Bishopton), on 21 January 2020 to Question HL366 in the House

of Lords.

The terms and conditions of our contract with BAE Systems for the Batch 1 Type 26

frigates are commercially confidential; I can, however, confirm that the contract

contains no such penalty clauses.

Attachments:

1. HL366 - Type 26 Frigates [Hansard Extract HL 366.docx]



DIGITAL, CULTURE, MEDIA AND SPORT

Arts: Coronavirus

Tracy Brabin: [84722]

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps his

Department is taking to monitor the effect of the covid-19 outbreak on the number of

people employed in the creative industries.

Caroline Dinenage:

DCMS conducted a business impact survey earlier this year with results published in

June and the next set of results are due later in the Autumn. Since the start of the

crisis, the department has engaged extensively with stakeholders across the Creative

Industries and we are aware of the difficulties organisations and individuals face.

We appreciate that the Covid-19 pandemic presents a significant challenge to the

creative industries which is why the Government announced an unprecedented £1.57

billion support package specifically for the cultural sector to help them through this

crisis. This funding will provide targeted support to many organisations in the Creative

Industries, to stay open and continue operating. This substantial sector-specific

package is in addition to economic wide measures such as the furlough scheme, and

the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme, both of which were designed to

protect as many jobs as possible.

BBC: Local Broadcasting

Scott Mann: [82183]

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what recent

discussions he has had with the BBC on holding a public consultation on its proposals to

revise regional television and radio production.

Mr John Whittingdale:

The Government recognises the vital role that regional news and local current affairs

play in bringing communities together and reflecting experiences across the UK. The

BBC’s proposed cuts to English regional television were debated in the chamber on

22 June 2020, where the government set out its support for regional broadcasting

and its concern about the BBC’s decision.

The BBC is editorially and operationally independent of government, and regional

programming is a matter for the BBC. The BBC’s Royal Charter requires the BBC to

represent, reflect and serve audiences, taking into account the needs of diverse

communities of all the UK nations and regions. Under the new regulatory system

introduced by the government in 2017, the BBC Board must ensure the BBC

complies with its Charter duties, and Ofcom was established as the BBC regulator to

ensure the BBC is robustly held to account.

Ofcom is aware of the changes to the BBC’s regional news and current affairs, and

has said it will require the BBC to set out how the proposed cuts are consistent with

the delivery of the BBC’s public purposes.



The government has no plans to reopen the BBC Charter or conduct a public

consultation on this issue. The Charter will next be considered at the mid-term

review. This is the appropriate milestone to consider whether the current regulatory

arrangements for the BBC are working effectively. The Charter specifies that the

review must take place between 2022 and 2024.

Broadband

Mr Jonathan Lord: [84225]

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps his

Department is taking to ensure that superfast broadband is available throughout the UK.

Matt Warman:

The government has invested significant amounts in digital infrastructure over the last

decade, with the BDUK Superfast programme investing over £1.8 billion of public

money to ensure over 96% of UK premises have access to superfast broadband. In

addition to this, nearly £900 million has been allocated to stimulate the market to start

building gigabit-capable infrastructure and full fibre connectivity.

For those premises that are still struggling with slow speeds, there are a number of

options available to them. DCMS runs a voucher scheme that can be used by rural

communities across the UK to reduce the cost of installing gigabit-capable

connectivity. This provides a voucher worth up to £3,500 for eligible small businesses

and vouchers worth up to £1,500 for residents. ‘Top-up’ schemes run by Local

Authorities, who provide their own funding on top of DCMS’s, are also operating

across the UK.

The government also introduced the broadband Universal Service Obligation (USO)

on 20 March 2020. The USO gives eligible premises in the UK the right to request a

decent and affordable connection. The government has defined decent broadband as

a service that can provide a download speed of 10Mbps and an upload speed of

1Mbps.

Furthermore the government has pledged a further £5 billion to invest in the hardest

to reach areas of the UK. Supplier engagement has taken place over the summer,

and their feedback will be used to refine and finalise the delivery vehicle of the

programme which will launch the first wave of procurements in early 2021.

Cinemas: Grants

Dan Jarvis: [81913]

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what additional

support his Department is providing to independent cinemas applying for the British Film

Institute managed grant.

Caroline Dinenage:

My officials are working closely with the British Film Institute (BFI) to ensure that

appropriate support is in place for those independent cinema owners applying to the

Culture Recovery Fund. We recognise that some independent cinema owners will not



have had much experience applying for Government funding and as a result we have

agreed with the BFI a range of measures to support their applications.

This includes detailed guidance notes, a robust supporting Q&A document, dedicated

contact points to answer questions, and proactive engagement from the BFI’s Film

Audience Network and its regional English Film Hubs to actively promote the Fund

and support applicants through the required process. DCMS and the BFI have also

been promoting the Fund through press and comms channels and encouraging

potential applicants to apply. It is also positive that the industry has provided further

support, with the UK Cinema Association setting up a series of meetings for their

members to better understand the application process.

The Culture Recovery Fund is intended to support the nation’s most important

national, regional, and local organisations and funding will not be available for every

organisation. As such it is critical that we scrutinise applications against rigorous

criteria and continue to act to support applications from all eligible cinemas.

Data Protection: EU Law

Owen Thompson: [82137]

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment the

Government has made of the likelihood of the UK receiving a positive data protection

adequacy finding from the European Commission in the event that the transition period

ends without a deal on the future relationship.


It is our intention to secure positive adequacy decisions from the EU to allow personal

data to continue to flow freely from the EU/EEA to the UK. We see the EU’s

assessment process on data adequacy as technical and confirmatory of the reality

that the UK is operating the same regulatory frameworks as the EU, and we consider

that it is self-evidently in the interest of both sides to have adequacy decisions in

place by the end of the year. No other third country's standards have ever been

closer to the EU's.

Adequacy assesses whether UK data protection standards are ‘essentially

equivalent’ to the EU’s, not identical.

However, we will take sensible steps to prepare for a situation where decisions are

not in place by the end of the transition period. In such a scenario businesses and

other organisations would be able to use alternative legal mechanisms to continue to

transfer personal data. Guidance is available on the Information Commissioner's

Office website.

The UK is a global leader in strong data protection standards and protecting the

privacy of individuals will continue to be a priority.

http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2020-08-28/82137


Housing: Construction


To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions he

has had with the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions on support from charities and

social enterprises to the Kickstart programme.


To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions he

has had with the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions on adapting the Kickstart

scheme to make it easier for charities and social enterprises to participate in that scheme.


The Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport has held discussions with

the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, including on how DCMS sectors have

been impacted by Covid-19, particularly in relation to unemployment and where new

opportunities may arise so that workers could be helped to pivot into new roles.

Throughout Kickstart policy development, Government officials have engaged with a

wide range of stakeholders, including a number of voluntary sector organisations.

Employers from all industries and across the private, public and voluntary sectors will

be able to get involved in creating new jobs, funded by the Kickstart scheme.

Government will continue to engage with organisations in order to encourage a wide

range of delivery partners to support the scheme and make it a success.

Mass Media: Coronavirus

Florence Eshalomi: [78945]

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what plans the

Government has to provide additional support to freelance workers in the media during

the covid-19 outbreak.


The Government has taken and continues to take action to support media

organisations, and all those who work in them, during this time.

For those who are self-employed, the Government has set up the Self-Employment

Income Support Scheme, which has helped millions of people across the UK, with

those eligible receiving a cash grant worth 80% of their average monthly trading profit

over the last three years. This covers 95% of people who receive the majority of their

income from self-employment. The scheme has helped many eligible freelance

workers, including those in the media, receive up to £2,500 per month in grants, and

our support for those who are self-employed is far more comprehensive, generous

and longer lasting than almost any other country.

In addition, from 1 July employers have been able to bring back to work employees

who have previously been furloughed for any amount of time and any shift pattern,

while still being able to claim for their normal hours not worked.



The Government remains determined to do all it can to help sectors, including the

Media, in their recovery and return to profitability. Only by helping the overall

economy to stabilise and grow will we be able to ensure a safe and prosperous future

for freelance workers.

Mobile Phones: Rural Areas

Ben Lake: [82285]

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, how much funding the

Government plans to allocate to the implementation of the Shared Rural Network in each

of the UK's nations.

Matt Warman:

Shared Rural Network programme will ensure that the £1 billion jointly committed by

government and industry will increase 4G mobile coverage throughout the UK to 95%

geographic coverage by the end of 2025. Technical work is underway to determine

how to most efficiently reach targets and the department is unable to provide any

further details on funding allocations at this stage. Government funds will be directed

to areas where there is no current coverage while industry funds will be directed

towards filling gaps where there is only partial coverage.

Newspaper Press: Internet

Emma Hardy: [83918]

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps he is

taking to help tackle (a) disinformation and (b) abuse on the commenting forums of

newspaper websites.

Emma Hardy: [83921]

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment he

has made of the effect of (a) covid-19 disinformation and (b) other online harms on

newspaper comment forums on public safety; and if he will make a statement.


The Government takes the issue of disinformation very seriously. During the Covid-

19 pandemic, it has been vitally important that the public has accurate information

and DCMS is leading work across Government to tackle disinformation.

The Cross-Whitehall Counter Disinformation Unit was stood up on 5 March, bringing

together cross-Government monitoring and analysis capabilities. The Unit’s primary

function is to provide a comprehensive picture of the extent, scope and impact of

disinformation and misinformation regarding Covid-19 and to work with partners to

ensure appropriate action is taken.

More generally, the Government’s Online Harms White Paper, published in April

2019, set out our plans for world-leading legislation to make companies more

responsible for their users’ safety online. We intend to establish in law a new duty of

care on companies towards their users which will be overseen by an independent



regulator. This regulator will set clear safety standards, backed up by mandatory

reporting requirements and strong enforcement powers to deal with non-compliance.

However, Online Harms regulation will not seek to duplicate existing regulation on

moderated comment sections on news sites. The government is committed to

independent self-regulation of the press. Complaints about user-generated comments

on news websites can be directed to the publication itself, or to the appropriate self-

regulator. The majority of traditional publishers—including 95% of national

newspapers by circulation—are members of IPSO. A small number of publishers

have joined IMPRESS

Television Licences: Older People

Colum Eastwood: [85124]

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate his

Department has made of the number of over 75s in the Foyle constituency who will be

required to pay for TV licences.


The government is deeply disappointed with the BBC’s decision to restrict the over 75

licence fee concession to only those in receipt of pension credit. We recognise the

value of free TV licences for over-75s and believe they should be funded by the BBC.

However, the Digital Economy Act 2017 provides that the future of the concession is

the responsibility of the BBC, not of the government. The BBC must look urgently at

how it can use its substantial licence fee income to support older people and deliver

for UK audiences of all ages.

The BBC has estimated that around 3.7 million households will now be expected to

pay for their TV licence as a result of its decision. The BBC has not published

information on the breakdown by constituency of those affected by its decision.

USA: Data Protection


To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what plans the

Government has to negotiate an agreement with the US similar to Privacy Shield.


To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what policy proposals

the Government has on the future of personal data transfers to the US.


To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment the

Government has made of whether US data law ensures a level of protection equivalent to

that provided by Article 47 of GDPR.




On Thursday 16 July the Court of Justice of the European Union handed down its

judgment in the case known as “Schrems II”. The Court invalidated the EU’s “Privacy

Shield” adequacy decision and it is therefore no longer a valid basis for the transfer of

personal data from the EU and the UK to the US. The UK Government intervened in

the case, alongside the Commission, to support the validity of the Privacy Shield and

is disappointed in the outcome of the judgment.

During the Transition Period, judgments of the Court of Justice of the European

Union apply to the UK. After the transition period, the UK will repatriate the powers to

conclude its own adequacy decisions, on the basis of future independent UK

assessments of other countries’ data protection laws. The UK cannot do such

assessments until after the end of the transition period.

We propose to work with US and other stakeholders to support initiatives that reduce

the burdens and barriers on organisations transferring personal data, unlocking the

value of data within the modern digital economy, while providing trust and confidence

that personal data is protected.

EDUCATION

Babies and Children

Damien Moore: [82347]

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the Government's timeframe is for the

reopening of maternal and child classes as covid-19 lockdown restrictions are eased.

Vicky Ford:

Activities for families and their young children, for example baby and toddler groups,

can operate provided they, and the premises they operate from, follow relevant

government guidance.

Guidance on which premises and businesses are legally able to open is available

here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/further-businesses-and-premises-

to-close/further-businesses-and-premises-to-close-guidance.

Providers should also have regard to and, where relevant, ensure that they are

following guidance on the safe use of multi-purpose community facilities, which is

available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-guidance-for-the-

safe-use-of-multi-purpose-community-facilities.

Ofsted registered early years providers should ensure they are following guidance for

early years and childcare providers, which is available here:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-early-years-and-

childcare-closures.

http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2020-08-28/82347https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/further-businesses-and-premises-to-close/further-businesses-and-premises-to-close-guidancehttps://www.gov.uk/government/publications/further-businesses-and-premises-to-close/further-businesses-and-premises-to-close-guidancehttps://www.gov.uk/government/publications/further-businesses-and-premises-to-close/further-businesses-and-premises-to-close-guidancehttps://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-guidance-for-the-safe-use-of-multi-purpose-community-facilitieshttps://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-guidance-for-the-safe-use-of-multi-purpose-community-facilitieshttps://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-guidance-for-the-safe-use-of-multi-purpose-community-facilitieshttps://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-early-years-and-childcare-closureshttps://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-early-years-and-childcare-closureshttps://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-early-years-and-childcare-closures


Breakfast Clubs

Theresa Villiers: [83690]

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking to extend access to

breakfast clubs prior to the start of the school day.

Vicky Ford:

We are committed to supporting schools and children so that they are able to benefit

from our breakfast club programme. The department is investing up to £35 million

into the National School Breakfast Programme, using funds from Soft Drinks Industry

Levy revenues. We have also announced that the programme will be extended by a

further year, until March 2021, with up to an additional 650 schools being supported.

Many schools operate their own breakfast and after school clubs, and from the start

of the autumn term should be working to resume this provision. As part of our

guidance to schools on full opening, we have provided guidance to schools to help

them in reopening this valuable support, more information is available at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/actions-for-schools-during-the-

coronavirus-outbreak/guidance-for-full-opening-schools#wraparound-provision-and-

extra-curricular-activity.

We have also published updated guidance for providers who run before and after-

school clubs, tuition and other out-of-school settings for children on the protective

measures that should be put in place from the start of the autumn term, to ensure

they are operating as safely as possible when all children return to school. The

guidance is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/protective-

measures-for-holiday-or-after-school-clubs-and-other-out-of-school-settings-for-

children-during-the-coronavirus-covid-19-outbreak/protective-measures-for-out-of-

school-settings-during-the-coronavirus-covid-19-outbreak.

Carers: Children


To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking to recruit an

adequate number of (a) short breaks foster carers and (b) community short breaks carers

to care for children with disabilities.


To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent estimate he has made of the

adequacy of the number of short breaks foster carers (a) nationally and (b) in York.

Vicky Ford:

Local authorities have a duty to ensure they have sufficient placements that meet the

needs of their looked-after children in their area, this includes foster care placements

for short breaks. These placements are for children with special educational needs

and disabilities (SEND) and children with behavioural difficulties to enjoy a short stay

on a planned, regular basis with the same short break-carer as a strategy to relieve

strain on a permanent placement or birth family.

http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2020-09-01/83690https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/actions-for-schools-during-the-coronavirus-outbreak/guidance-for-full-opening-schools#wraparound-provision-and-extra-curricular-activityhttps://www.gov.uk/government/publications/actions-for-schools-during-the-coronavirus-outbreak/guidance-for-full-opening-schools#wraparound-provision-and-extra-curricular-activityhttps://www.gov.uk/government/publications/actions-for-schools-during-the-coronavirus-outbreak/guidance-for-full-opening-schools#wraparound-provision-and-extra-curricular-activityhttps://www.gov.uk/government/publications/actions-for-schools-during-the-coronavirus-outbreak/guidance-for-full-opening-schools#wraparound-provision-and-extra-curricular-activityhttps://www.gov.uk/government/publications/protective-measures-for-holiday-or-after-school-clubs-and-other-out-of-school-settings-for-children-during-the-coronavirus-covid-19-outbreak/protective-measures-for-out-of-school-settings-during-the-coronavirus-covid-19-outbreakhttps://www.gov.uk/government/publications/protective-measures-for-holiday-or-after-school-clubs-and-other-out-of-school-settings-for-children-during-the-coronavirus-covid-19-outbreak/protective-measures-for-out-of-school-settings-during-the-coronavirus-covid-19-outbreakhttps://www.gov.uk/government/publications/protective-measures-for-holiday-or-after-school-clubs-and-other-out-of-school-settings-for-children-during-the-coronavirus-covid-19-outbreak/protective-measures-for-out-of-school-settings-during-the-coronavirus-covid-19-outbreakhttps://www.gov.uk/government/publications/protective-measures-for-holiday-or-after-school-clubs-and-other-out-of-school-settings-for-children-during-the-coronavirus-covid-19-outbreak/protective-measures-for-out-of-school-settings-during-the-coronavirus-covid-19-outbreakhttps://www.gov.uk/government/publications/protective-measures-for-holiday-or-after-school-clubs-and-other-out-of-school-settings-for-children-during-the-coronavirus-covid-19-outbreak/protective-measures-for-out-of-school-settings-during-the-coronavirus-covid-19-outbreakhttp://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2020-09-01/83866http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2020-09-01/83867


Data on the approved households for each placement type can be found at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/childrens-social-care-statistics.

It is vital that local authorities can find the right carers to meet the needs of vulnerable

children. The department commissioned behavioural insights research which

commenced in November 2019, to explore the barriers and motivations of

prospective carers and seek recommendations for more targeted approaches in local

recruitment. We will share these findings with fostering services and recruitment

managers.

The department also recently funded 7 feasibility studies in commissioning and

sufficiency planning, bringing together local authorities with their partners to explore

innovative practices, including collaborative approaches to foster care recruitment.

We are also exploring whether digital approaches could help us in supporting local

authorities to improve matching of children to carers.

Free School Meals: Primary Education


To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether free schools meals are being

offered to all pupils in the first three years of primary school in England.

Vicky Ford:

We allocate £600 million per year to ensure that 1.4 million infants enjoy a free,

healthy and nutritious meal at lunchtime following the introduction of the universal

infant free school meals (UIFSM) policy in 2014. Now that schools are reopen to all

children, those in reception, year 1 and year 2 in England’s state-funded schools will

receive a free meal. During the period in which schools were largely closed, the

government continued to provide support to those eligible for benefits related free

school meals (FSM) through the National Voucher Scheme.

Now that schools and their kitchens are open again, we expect them to provide free

school meals to all those entitled to benefits related FSM and UIFSM to those

children attending school. If a child needs to miss school for COVID-19 related

matters, such as self-isolation due to a case of COVID-19, then we have asked

schools to provide meals to those entitled to benefits related FSM.

Further Education and Schools: Finance

Mick Whitley: [83960]

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what additional funding he plans to make

available to (a) schools and (b) further education providers to support the mental health

needs of young people returning to classrooms in September 2020.

Vicky Ford:

Getting children and young people back into education, with settings devoting time to

supporting wellbeing, will play a fundamental part in supporting children and young

people’s mental health during the COVID-19 outbreak. All pupils and students will

https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/childrens-social-care-statisticshttps://www.gov.uk/government/collections/childrens-social-care-statisticshttp://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2020-09-01/83689http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2020-09-01/83960


return to a full high-quality education programme in September, so they have the

opportunity to thrive and fulfil their potential.

Our £1 billion COVID-19 catch-up package, including a £650 million pupil premium

shared across schools over the 2020-21 academic year, will support education

settings to put the right catch-up support, including pastoral support, in place.

The catch-up premium is in addition to core funding through which schools already

support young people. This year we are also providing £780 million additional high

needs funding across England for children with the most complex special educational

needs and disabilities. We are providing a further £730 million in 2021-22, which will

bring the total high needs budget to over £8 billion.

From September, when pupils and students will return to schools and colleges, the

government is investing £8 million in the new Wellbeing for Education Return

programme, which will provide schools and colleges all over England with the

knowledge and practical skills they need to support teachers, students and parents to

the emotional impact of the COVID-19 outbreak.

Schools and colleges may also need to access support from specialist services. NHS

mental health services remain open and all NHS mental health trusts have been

asked to ensure that there are 24/7 open access telephone lines to support people of

all ages. In addition to this, the government has provided over £9 million to mental

health charities to ensure they can continue to support people experiencing mental

health challenges throughout the outbreak.

GCE A-level: Assessments


To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will make an assessment of the

potential merits of postponing autumn A-level exams to the end of November 2020 to

give students unable to take their A-levels in summer 2020 additional time to prepare for

those exams.

Nick Gibb:

We want students who wish to sit autumn exams to be able to do so at the earliest

opportunity following the cancellation of exams in the summer. A level exams will be

sat in October so that students receive results before Christmas and can use them to

progress to their next step as soon as possible.

Higher Education: Finance


To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether the Government is providing

additional financial support to higher education providers to support larger numbers of

students following the removal of temporary student number controls.



Michelle Donelan:

We have announced that, subject to parliamentary approval, we will completely

remove temporary student number controls to help ensure there are no additional

barriers to students being able to progress to higher education.

We are working closely with the sector to create additional capacity and ensure

providers are as flexible as possible. To do this, we are taking steps such as lifting

caps on domestic medicine and dentistry courses in the next academic year. We are

also supporting providers to offer places to as many students who have met the

grades for their current offer as they have capacity for and where there are clinical

placements available, through additional grant funding to support the costs of this

provision.

We are also providing additional teaching grant funding to increase capacity in

science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) and other high-cost

subjects which are vital to the country’s social needs and economy. The Office for

Students (OfS) will consult the sector on the details of how the allocations are made.

Providers will also be eligible to bid for a share of up to £10 million funding to support

capital expenditure. This funding will be used to support the infrastructure required to

accommodate additional students recruited as a result of the changes to policy on A

level grades.

The fund will be administered by the OfS, and providers will be eligible to bid for

projects that support expansion in 2020-21.

We will continue to monitor the situation and to consider the effects that deferrals will

have on future years. Funding decisions for future years will be taken at the Spending

Review.

Medicine: Higher Education

Emma Hardy: [83923]

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether he plans to require universities that

have accepted medical students on a deferred entry to 2021-22 as a result of the 2020 A-

level awards to accept the result of the 2020 UCAT and BMAT tests beyond their 12-

month validity period to ensure that students do not have to resit them.

Michelle Donelan:

Universities are independent, autonomous bodies. As such, they are responsible for

their own admissions decisions, including on the use of the University Clinical

Aptitude Test and BioMedical Admissions Test in their admissions process.

The evidence for acceptance to university courses ceases to be relevant once a

university student has been accepted to the course, regardless of when they have

commenced, including deferrals. The Medical Schools Council is not aware of any

medical school that would expect any student in this situation to have to resit.



The government has asked that universities are as flexible as possible, and we will

continue to make every effort to minimise the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on

young people’s education.

Remote Education: Pre-school Education

Sir Alan Campbell: [81577]

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to his Department's guidance

for parents and carers of children attending out-of-school settings during the coronavirus

(covid-19) outbreak, published on 10 July 2020, when similar guidance will be published

for parents with children under five years old.

Vicky Ford:

The guidance for parents and carers with children under five is available at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/what-parents-and-carers-need-to-know-

about-early-years-providers-schools-and-colleges-during-the-coronavirus-covid-19-

outbreak.

It was first published on 18 June 2020.

Special Educational Needs: Coronavirus


To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment the Government has made

of the (a) ability and (b) safety of children with SEND returning to school as covid-19

restrictions are eased.

Vicky Ford:

Supporting all children and young people and keeping them safe is the highest

priority for the government, especially at this time. The decision to ask pupils to return

to school has not been taken lightly, and it is based on the latest available evidence.

Our NHS Test and Trace system is up and running, and we are clear about the

measures that need to be in place to create safer environments within education

settings. This enables children to return to their educational setting so that they can

receive high-quality teaching and specialist professional care.

Additionally, the risk to children and young people themselves of becoming severely

ill from COVID-19 is very low and there are negative impacts of being out of school or

college. Returning to normal educational routines as quickly as possible will be critical

for children and young people’s education and wellbeing, particularly those with

special educational needs and disabilities. Most pupils and students will be able to

return to their setting. However, some pupils and students who are no longer required

to shield but who generally remain under the care of a specialist health professional

may need to discuss their care with their health professional. More advice is available

from the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health here:

https://www.rcpch.ac.uk/resources/covid-19-shielding-guidance-children-young-

people#children-who-should-be-advised-to-shield.

http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2020-08-28/81577http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2020-09-01/83869https://www.rcpch.ac.uk/resources/covid-19-shielding-guidance-children-young-people#children-who-should-be-advised-to-shieldhttps://www.rcpch.ac.uk/resources/covid-19-shielding-guidance-children-young-people#children-who-should-be-advised-to-shieldhttps://www.rcpch.ac.uk/resources/covid-19-shielding-guidance-children-young-people#children-who-should-be-advised-to-shield


On 2 July, the government published detailed plans for schools and colleges that set

out what is needed to plan for a full return of their pupils and students from the

beginning of the autumn term, including for special schools and other specialist

settings. This has been developed with medical experts from Public Health England

and includes putting in place a ‘system of controls’ to minimise the risk of

transmission in their settings.

The guidance for special schools and other specialist settings can be found here:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guidance-for-full-opening-special-

schools-and-other-specialist-settings.

The guidance for mainstream settings is available here:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/actions-for-schools-during-the-

coronavirus-outbreak/guidance-for-full-opening-schools.

Students: Loans

Nick Fletcher: [83973]

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether he (a) has made an assessment of

the equity of student loan repayments being taken from probationary police officers in

London whose allowance takes them over the threshold for repayment and (b) plans to

change his policy on that issue.

Michelle Donelan:

Repayments are made based on a borrower’s monthly or weekly income, not the

interest rate, amount borrowed or borrower’s occupation. Repayments are calculated

as a fixed percentage of earnings, with only the amount of earnings above the

relevant repayment threshold being considered – and if the borrower’s income drops,

so do repayments made. No repayments are made on earnings below the repayment

thresholds. Any outstanding debt is written off at the end of the loan term with no

detriment to the borrower.

If, at the end of the year, the borrower’s total income is below the relevant annual

threshold, they may reclaim any repayments from the Student Loans Company made

during that year.

There are no plans to amend the regulations to apply different repayment terms to

borrowers in different occupations.

Universities: Admissions

Dr Luke Evans: [84361]

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the ability

of universities to manage the increased number of places available to students for the

2020-21 academic year.

Michelle Donelan:

I have written directly to all Vice Chancellors and have set up a Higher Education

Taskforce so that the government can work with the sector to build capacity, harness

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guidance-for-full-opening-special-schools-and-other-specialist-settingshttps://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guidance-for-full-opening-special-schools-and-other-specialist-settingshttps://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guidance-for-full-opening-special-schools-and-other-specialist-settingshttps://www.gov.uk/government/publications/actions-for-schools-during-the-coronavirus-outbreak/guidance-for-full-opening-schoolshttps://www.gov.uk/government/publications/actions-for-schools-during-the-coronavirus-outbreak/guidance-for-full-opening-schoolshttps://www.gov.uk/government/publications/actions-for-schools-during-the-coronavirus-outbreak/guidance-for-full-opening-schoolshttp://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2020-09-01/83973http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2020-09-02/84361


expert views and tackle challenges. Together, we have agreed that all students who

achieved the required grades will be offered a place at their first-choice university,

wherever possible.

We have taken a number to steps to support this commitment. We have announced

that, subject to parliamentary approval, we will completely remove temporary student

number controls to help ensure there are no additional barriers to students being able

to progress to higher education.

We have announced that we will lift caps on domestic medicine and dentistry courses

in the next academic year. We will support providers to offer places to as many

students who have met the grades for their current offer as they have capacity for,

and where there are clinical placements available, through additional grant funding to

support the costs of this provision.

We will also provide additional teaching grant funding to increase capacity in science,

technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) and other high-cost subjects,

which are vital to the country’s social needs and economy. The Office for Students

(OfS) will consult the sector on the details of how the allocations are made.

Providers will also be eligible to bid for a share of up to £10 million in funding to

support capital expenditure. This funding will be used to support the infrastructure

required to accommodate additional students recruited as a result of the changes to

policy on A level grades.

The fund will be administered by the OfS, and providers will be eligible to bid for

projects that support expansion in 2020-21.

We will continue to monitor the situation and to consider the effects that deferrals will

have on future years. Funding decisions for future years will be taken at the Spending

Review.

Universities: Disadvantaged

Emma Hardy: [83917]

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans he has to make an assessment

of the effect of the (a) covid-19 outbreak and (b) 2020 A-level awards process on

university applications from students from disadvantaged backgrounds for the 2020-21

academic year in order to mitigate any such adverse effects for the 2021-22 academic

year.

Michelle Donelan:

The government will do whatever it takes to support people affected by COVID-19.

This has been an incredibly difficult time for students and this government is making

every effort to make sure that all those who planned to move on to higher education

can do so.

Protecting students’ mental health and wellbeing is a priority. I wrote to all higher

education providers asking them to ensure they continue to support students. We

have clarified that providers can use funding worth £256 million for the academic year



of 2020/21, starting from August, towards student hardship funds and mental health

support. Furthermore, the Office for Students has provided up to £3 million to fund

the Student Space platform to bridge gaps in mental health support for students.

Through our government taskforce, we are working closely with universities to

support them with the challenges they face and to help them build capacity for

students entering university in the 2020/21 academic year. We have already

announced that we intend to remove the temporary student number controls as well

as the normal caps on medical and dental students. We will also be making additional

funding available to universities to help them take on more students.

The government and the higher education sector have agreed that all students who

achieved the required grades will be offered a place at their first choice university in

the 2020/21 academic year wherever possible, or if maximum capacity is reached,

they will be offered an alternative course or a deferred place. In these circumstances,

we have asked universities to particularly consider what they can do for students from

disadvantaged backgrounds.

As of 2 September, The Universities and Colleges Admissions Service figures show

that a record 24,680 18-year-olds from the most disadvantaged backgrounds

(POLAR4 quintile 1) in England have been accepted into university for 2020/21 – this

is a record rate of 22.9%, compared to the same point last year. I also wrote to Vice

Chancellors on 28 August, confirming that I would work with higher education

providers in the coming weeks to support the 2021/21 intake of students.

We are also ensuring that higher education providers have the guidance they need to

ensure that their provision is COVID-19 secure. We will continue to work with the

sector to support them with the current challenges that providers might face as well

as to deliver on this year’s admission cycle and to allow the sector to access the

government support on offer as needed.

Universities: Freedom of Expression

Paul Girvan: [82302]

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department is taking to

ensure freedom of academic thought and expression at UK

Daily Report Wednesday, 9 September 2020...

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