Written questions by Davies.

What steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to increase the number of white working-class boys taking up apprenticeships.

Meeting the skills needs of the next decade is central to delivering all of the government's five missions – economic growth, opportunity for all, a stronger NHS, safer streets, and clean energy. Through delivering the Opportunity and Growth Missions, we will ensure that we have the skilled workforce needed to deliver the national, regional and local skills needs, aligned with the Industrial Strategy and break down the barriers to opportunity for learners.The department is developing 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.Foundation apprenticeships will be a work-based training offer that will provide young people with clear progression pathways into further work-based training and employment.The department is engaging with relevant stakeholders to inform our thinking to maximise the positive impact of foundation apprenticeships on young people, including those in disadvantaged areas. More detail on foundation apprenticeships will be set out in due course.The department continues to pay additional funding to employers and training providers to support them to take on young apprentices, apprentices with learning difficulties and disabilities, and care leavers.The department also continues to promote apprenticeships through the Skills for Life campaign and in schools and colleges through the Apprenticeship Support and Knowledge (ASK) Programme. Through the ASK Programme, the department increases awareness of apprenticeships amongst students in years 10 to 13, as well as parents, carers, teachers and careers advisers. During the 2023/24 academic year, ASK engaged with 2,366 schools and colleges and reached over 575,000 students.There were 82,080 apprenticeship starts by white male apprentices that were aged under 25 in the 2023/24 academic year.

What progress her Department's appointed menopause champion has made.

The Government’s Menopause Employment Ambassador Mariella Frostrup has been working with policy officials to develop an action plan for her term of engagement. She has also spoken with government departments to promote and champion the role of women in the economy and is engaging with businesses in raising awareness and influencing workplace policies.

What steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to increase the number of white working-class boys attending university.

This government will act to address the persistent gaps for different groups and break down the barriers to opportunity. Opportunity should be available to all but too many people across our country do not get the chance to succeed. Whilst many higher education (HE) providers have demonstrated positive examples of supporting all working-class students, including targeted outreach, on course bursaries and mentoring, we are keen to see the sector to go further. By summer, we will set out our plan for HE reform and we expect providers to play an even stronger role in improving access and outcomes for all disadvantaged students.

What progress her Department has made on rolling out youth hubs.

As of January 2025, there were 111 Youth Hubs fully opened across Great Britain with a further three in development. Youth Hubs are based in external-partner-owned premises. Local DWP teams and external partners delivering Youth Hubs jointly discuss the ongoing need for the hubs in particular areas. These discussions take account of a range of factors, notably the number of young people claiming Universal Credit who are searching for employment in that local area, consequently, the number of operational Youth Hubs may fluctuate month by month. The ‘Get Britain Working’ White Paper sets out this government’s plan to Get Britain Working and includes a new Department for Work and Pensions and Department for Education led Youth Guarantee for all young people in England aged 18-21. Our approach to the Youth Guarantee is to help all young people aged 18-21in England to earn or learn. We will work in partnership with organisations at the national and local level to offer exciting and engaging opportunities to young people. This could include apprenticeships, work experience, training courses or employability programmes. Work is underway on the design and delivery of the new Youth Guarantee. Starting in spring 2025, eight Mayoral Authorities in England will pilot the Youth Guarantee Trailblazers. These 12-month Trailblazers are an opportunity to develop the Youth Guarantee and test different interventions ahead of a national roll out. We will assess and incorporate our findings for future delivery and rollout of the Youth Guarantee across the rest of England, working with Mayoral Authorities and Local Authorities in our roll out plans.

Innovation and Technology, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for her policies of the 40 safety measures that Ofcom has set out for social media platforms to tackle misogyny.

The Online Safety Act puts new duties on social media companies and search services, making them responsible for their users’ safety. These include new duties tackling illegal content and activity which affects women and girls, including intimate image abuse, exploitation and other forms of abuse.Ofcom will publish draft guidance in February, detailing measures services can take to tackle violence against women and girls (VAWG) online.The government has set an unprecedented mission to halve VAWG in a decade by improving the police and criminal justice system response, relentlessly pursuing perpetrators, and providing victim support. The steps Ofcom is taking helps supports this mission by tackling harmful content online.

What steps her Department has taken to implement the Buckland Review of Autism Employment.

We welcomed the Buckland Review of Autism Employment. This made recommendations to employers, third sector organisations and Government on addressing barriers autistic people face when seeking and remaining in employment and the Minister for Employment and I were pleased to meet Sir Robert in October to talk about his findings and key drivers for change in the workplace. He has indicated his willingness to continue to work with the department on this matter and we are continuing to build on those recommendations that were directed to Government, such as working with employers to reform Disability Confident to improve the schemes outcomes and realise the scheme's full potential. As a Government, we want to support all forms of neurodiversity in the workplace, and we are looking to build on the Review by gathering expert evidence in line with this expanded focus. In parallel, we are working with other areas of government to promote awareness of neurodiversity amongst employers and we recently announced Keep Britain Working, a major independent review of the employer’s role in reducing health-related inactivity and to promote healthy and inclusive workplaces, led by the former Chair of John Lewis, Sir Charlie Mayfield. Our expert evidence on neurodiversity at work will be available to inform this independent review which will help ensure employers receive a coherent set of messages from Government about inclusive workplace practices.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of proposed increases to employer National Insurance contributions on women in part-time work.

The Office for Budget Responsibility’s October 2024 Economic and Fiscal Outlook expects that the Employer National Insurance Contributions package will lead to a reduction in the participation rate of 0.1 per cent from 2025-26 onwards. Overall, once the impact of all budget measures are taken into consideration, the OBR expect the employment level to increase from 33.1 million in 2024 to 34.3 million in 2029. Employers have a choice about how they respond to the NICs increase. The Government recognises that employers may respond by increasing employees’ wages more slowly than they would have otherwise, alongside absorbing pressures through prices, efficiencies or lower profits. Employers will also continue to benefit from employer NICs reliefs including for hiring under 21s and under 25 apprentices, where eligible.

What assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of changes in the level of National Insurance contributions on young people in part time work.

The Office for Budget Responsibility’s October 2024 Economic and Fiscal Outlook expects that the Employer National Insurance Contributions package will lead to a reduction in the participation rate of 0.1 per cent from 2025-26 onwards. Overall, once the impact of all budget measures are taken into consideration, the OBR expect the employment level to increase from 33.1 million in 2024 to 34.3 million in 2029. Employers have a choice about how they respond to the NICs increase. The Government recognises that employers may respond by increasing employees’ wages more slowly than they would have otherwise, alongside absorbing pressures through prices, efficiencies or lower profits. Employers will also continue to benefit from employer NICs reliefs including for hiring under 21s and under 25 apprentices, where eligible.

What assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of changes to the level of national insurance on women’s shelters.

The Government publishes Tax Information and Impact Notes (TIINs) for tax policy changes. TIINs give a clear explanation of the policy objective and an assessment of the impacts including on the Exchequer, individuals and families, businesses including civil society organisations and others. The TIIN for the employer NICs changes was published on 13 November 2024.

What assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the rise in National Insurance contributions on women’s charities.

The Government publishes Tax Information and Impact Notes (TIINs) for tax policy changes. TIINs give a clear explanation of the policy objective and an assessment of the impacts including on the Exchequer, individuals and families, businesses including civil society organisations and others. The TIIN for the employer NICs changes was published on 13 November 2024.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of proposed increases to employer National Insurance contributions on women in full-time work.

The Office for Budget Responsibility’s October 2024 Economic and Fiscal Outlook expects that the Employer National Insurance Contributions package will lead to a reduction in the participation rate of 0.1 per cent from 2025-26 onwards. Overall, once the impact of all budget measures are taken into consideration, the OBR expect the employment level to increase from 33.1 million in 2024 to 34.3 million in 2029. Employers have a choice about how they respond to the NICs increase. The Government recognises that employers may respond by increasing employees’ wages more slowly than they would have otherwise, alongside absorbing pressures through prices, efficiencies or lower profits. Employers will also continue to benefit from employer NICs reliefs including for hiring under 21s and under 25 apprentices, where eligible.

Whether she has conducted an impact assessment for enacting the socioeconomic duty in the Equality Act 2010.

The Government is committed to commencing the socio-economic duty in the Equality Act 2010. We will give careful consideration to the impact of commencement on the public sector, business and charities or voluntary bodies, as well as undertaking an equality impact assessment.