Written questions by Ranger.

What steps she is taking to increase access to careers education in (a) schools and (b) further education.

High-quality careers provision is an essential part of the government’s missions to break down barriers to opportunity and to drive economic growth. The department is creating more opportunities for young people to develop skills and improve work readiness through our commitments to improve careers advice in schools and colleges and to guarantee two weeks’ worth of work experience for every young person.The department will publish updated careers statutory guidance this spring that sets out our expectations of what schools, colleges and independent training providers should do to raise the quality of careers provision and work experience for young people. The Gatsby Benchmarks of Good Career Guidance, a standard for world-class careers guidance for young people, are a cornerstone of our approach. Building on the widespread adoption and impact of the benchmarks in recent years, the framework has been updated following extensive research and consultation, for implementation from September 2025.Inclusion and impact for each and every young person is a prominent theme that emerged from evidence to the benchmark review. Updates to the benchmarks emphasise the importance of tailoring programmes to the needs of each young person. Particular attention is given to any additional or different support that may be needed by vulnerable or disadvantaged young people and those with special educational needs and disabilities.The department is continuing to fund The Careers and Enterprise Company to support schools and colleges to deliver careers programmes in line with the Gatsby Benchmarks and to plan towards the delivery of two weeks’ worth of work experience for every young person. 95% of secondary schools and colleges are part of a local Careers Hub, connecting careers provision to the needs of local economies through strategic partnerships with mayoral combined authorities, local authorities and employers. A network of 400 leading employers and over 3,700 business volunteers inspire young people about a range of exciting career opportunities, including in priority growth sectors.The National Careers Service helps young people, aged 13 to 18, to discover their careers options. The website includes around 800 job profiles and young people can access information and advice via webchat and a telephone helpline which is supported by local community-based career advisers. The website can be found here: https://nationalcareers.service.gov.uk/.In addition, the Skills for Life campaign, ‘It all starts with skills’, promotes a range of priority skills programmes to young people, including apprenticeships, T Levels and Higher Technical Qualifications.

What steps his Department is taking to support social mobility for people from (a) underrepresented and (b) disadvantaged groups in the green energy sector.

The Office for Clean Energy Jobs is working closely with industry and trade unions to improve accessibility of jobs in the clean energy sector, and coordinate across social inclusion initiatives. In January it published a ‘Clean Energy Jobs Employer Handbook’ which summarises support available, including for employees from underrepresented and disadvantaged groups. The Department will set out its wider approach to clean energy workforce strategy later this year, to support delivery of the workforce for the Clean Energy Superpower Mission.

What steps the Government is taking to improve access to opportunity in disadvantaged areas to promote social mobility for students from low-income backgrounds.

For too many children and young people in Britain, their background, where they come from or their parents' income limits the life they are able to build. The government’s Opportunity Mission aims to break this link between a child’s background and their future success. To achieve the department’s overall mission objective of closing the opportunity gap, we have set a milestone of a record proportion of children starting school ready to learn.As the Plan for Change set out, the department will measure our progress through 75% of 5-year-olds reaching a good level of development in the Early Years Foundation Stage assessment. We are already making good progress to deliver this first milestone, we have announced the largest ever uplift to the Early Years Pupil Premium, confirmed the first wave of 300 school-based nurseries and are on track to deliver the final increase in childcare entitlement from September. This first milestone is only the beginning of our ambition for children and young people. The department’s first step for the Opportunity Mission is recruiting an additional 6,500 new expert teachers across our schools, both mainstream and specialist, and our colleges over the course of this Parliament. The quality of teaching is the single most important in-school factor in improving outcomes for children, especially for those from disadvantaged backgrounds. The department has already made good early progress towards this key pledge, including providing a 5.5% pay award for teachers and leaders in maintained schools, announcing a £233 million initial teacher training financial incentives package for the 2025/26 recruitment cycle, and confirming targeted retention incentives for shortage subjects worth up to £6,000 after tax. More widely the department has already shown commitment to supporting the most disadvantaged by confirming over £3 billion will be provided to state-funded schools in England through the pupil premium in the 2025/26 financial year, an increase of almost 5% from 2024/25, to help disadvantaged pupils achieve and thrive in education and remove the barriers to learning that hold too many children back.

What steps his Department is taking to ensure that businesses and employers are contributing to enhancing social mobility through (a) apprenticeships, (b) internships and (c) employment practices.

The Plan to Make Work Pay aims to improve fairness at work, ensure equal treatment and opportunity, and support low-paid workers.Too many young people are struggling to access high-quality opportunities. That is why this government is working with businesses to develop new foundation apprenticeships: to give more young people a foot in the door at the start of their working lives whilst supporting the pipeline of new talent that employers will need to drive economic growth.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to tackle foreign interference in politics.

Protecting the UK and our democratic processes from foreign interference is a priority for this Government and we have several mechanisms in place. The National Security Act 2023 provides the security services and law enforcement agencies with the tools they need to deter, detect, and disrupt state threats. The Government's Defending Democracy Taskforce, chaired by the Minister of State for Security, is focused on safeguarding our democracy from the full range of threats including foreign interference. The Joint Election Security and Preparedness Unit (JESP) works between the Cabinet Office and the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government (MHCLG) to coordinate election security and preparedness activity including working with the devolved administrations, local authorities and the Electoral Commission. The Government has also committed to enhancing the safeguards against foreign funding of election campaigns and will be bringing forward proposals in due course. The Government also works with like-minded international partners to share expertise and develop tools to build our collective democratic resilience.

What recent progress the Defending Democracy Taskforce has made.

The Taskforce has undertaken a comprehensive review of last year’s elections and is now driving forward a programme of work to ensure the UK’s democracy is strengthened and protected against a multitude of threats.This includes work to tackle the unacceptable instances of harassment and intimidation of elected representatives that we saw during the General Election.This vital work is ongoing, and I will further update the House in due course.

What the selection criteria is for membership of the Hospitality Sector Council.

The Hospitality Sector Council’s Terms of Reference is publicly available, outlining that membership is by invitation only and is subject to final agreement by DBT Ministers in consultation with the joint chairs. Members are selected to provide a breadth of knowledge and experience across the hospitality sector and Government. All members are selected in a personal capacity and will be expected to speak for their areas of expertise rather than the specific interests of their organisation. Membership is reviewed by DBT and it may be amended to take account of changing priorities in the sector to ensure appropriate representation and expertise is maintained.

What recent discussions he has had with representatives of Oscar Mayer Limited on its employment practices.

Ministers meet regularly with business organisations and trade associations. Details of ministerial meetings with external organisations and individuals are published quarterly on GOV.UK. This Government has introduced the Employment Rights Bill, representing the biggest upgrade to workers’ rights in a generation. This includes day one protections from unfair dismissal, banning exploitative zero hours contracts and ending fire and rehire.

What assessment she has made of the adequacy of the performance of Avanti West Coast trains from stations in north Wales.

The Secretary of State is clear that the performance of Avanti West Coast (AWC) on its North Wales route is not good enough with passengers facing too many cancellations and delays. Poor Network Rail (NR) infrastructure reliability has also contributed si...

What role North Wales will have in helping the UK reach it's 2030 energy targets.

Following NESO’s advice on 2030 Clean Power, the Government will publish a Clean Power Action Plan later this year, which will set out how we can deliver our ambition. The resources of North Wales already play a key role in delivering clean power, includi...