Written questions by Bedford.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the implications for his polices of reports that UNRWA staff members were named as Hamas operatives planning attacks against Israel from the Al-Jawni School in Gaza.

We were appalled by the allegations that United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) staff were involved in the 7 October attacks against Israel. The Secretary-General and the Commissioner General of UNRWA took these allegations seriously and acted decisively. We expect robust processes to continue to be followed. UNRWA have confirmed that a Hamas leader killed in Lebanon, Fatah Sherif, was a staff member, suspended without pay while under investigation, and that the termination of his employment was imminent. We take this very seriously; UNRWA must meet the highest standards of neutrality as laid out in Catherine Colonna's report, including staff vetting and acting swiftly when concerns arise. The UK has allocated £1 million to support UNRWA to implement the report's recommendations. The FCDO will continue its own annual assessment of UK funding to UNRWA, which plays a vital role in saving lives in Gaza.

How many pensioners qualify for free bus passes.

Concessionary travel is a devolved policy area, and legislation and assessment of eligibility with regarding concessionary travel in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland are matters for the appropriate devolved administration. In England, the English National Concessionary Travel Scheme (ENCTS) provides free off-peak bus travel to those with eligible disabilities and those of state pension age. The Office for National Statistics mid-year estimates for 2021 show that around 9.9 million people in England were aged 66 and above and therefore eligible for an ENCTS bus pass.

What steps her Department is taking to ensure the growth and skills levy is available to people of all (a) ages and (b) levels.

The department’s reformed growth and skills levy will deliver greater flexibility for employers and learners and is aligned with the government’s industrial strategy, both of which will create routes into good, skilled jobs in growing industries, such as in construction, digital and green skills.This government has a driving mission to break down barriers to opportunity, which means rebalancing levy spending towards young people at the start of their careers whilst ensuring that adults at different stages of their lives can upskill and retrain. The department is developing new foundation apprenticeships in targeted sectors that will help to give more young people a foot in the door and support clear pathways into work-based training and employment.However, in order to do this, there are tough choices that need to be taken on how levy funding should be prioritised in future. That is why, taking advice from Skills England, the department will be asking more employers to step forward and fund Level 7 apprenticeships outside of the levy.The department is in the process of designing the growth and skills levy and will set out more detail in due course, including on Skills England’s engagement plans.

What was the full-time equivalent headcount of the civil service in each year between 2010 and 2024.

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority. A response to the Hon Gentleman’s Parliamentary Question of 4 October 2024 is attached.

Communities and Local Government, how many and what proportion of people qualify for the single-person household council tax discount.

The latest available data for October 2023 shows there were approximately 8.6 million households in receipt of a single person discount, this represents approximately a third of all households liable for council tax in England. This data is available here: Council Taxbase 2023 in England.

How many and what proportion of pensioners qualify for free prescriptions.

The number of identified patients aged 60 years old or over who received a prescription that was recorded as exempt from the single item prescription charge in England in 2023/24 was 13.6 million.

What was the total salary cost of the civil service in each year between 2010 and 2024.

The Cabinet Office does not hold actual outturn salary cost information for all Civil Service departments and organisations since 2010. However, estimated nominal Civil Service salary costs have previously been calculated for the years 2010 to 2024. These are provided in Table 1 below.Table 1YearEstimated nominal salary cost (£ billions)201012.7201112.4201211.6201311.4201411.6201511.7201611.6201711.8201812.4201913.2202014.0202115.4202216.6202317.8202419.7Source: Civil Service StatisticsFigures are based on Civil Service salaries as at 31st March in each year, and have been adjusted for missing values. They have not been adjusted for inflation (i.e. they are nominal values).

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the enforcement powers of the Environment Agency.

The Environment Agency (EA) publishes an annual Review of Activities Regulated by the EA setting out, details of enforcement action taken. The most recent of these reports was published in March this year and sets out statistics demonstrating the effectiveness of the regulatory activities of the Agency, including enforcement. In 2018 the Government published the Noel Review: an independent review into serious and organised crime in the waste sector. The review made several recommendations for enhanced enforcement powers and regulations to control the management of waste. The EA’s powers to search and seize evidence and access communications data have been strengthened as a result. Wide ranging recommendations are being implemented through regulatory reform. In 2023, the EA requested and was provided with enhanced powers to sanction offenders using Variable Monetary Penalties. In addition to the formal review, individual incidents and criminal investigation provide the regulators opportunity to learn lessons and identify further ways to frustrate the efforts of those who are determined to make profits, breaching environmental control with no regard to their impact on the environment and local people.

Communities and Local Government, if she will take steps to ensure that local authorities work collaboratively when preparing local plans.

Local authorities should already be working together when preparing development plans under the current plan making system as the Duty to Cooperate remains in place.The consultation on proposed reforms to the NPPF published on 31 July included proposals to strengthen co-operation between local authorities on the sharing of unmet housing need and other strategic issues.It also sought views on our proposed intention to introduce mandatory mechanisms for cross-boundary co-operation with a view to moving to a model of universal strategic planning coverage within the next five years.