Every parliamentary written question tabled by Steve Darling this session, with the full answer and department. Back to the MP page.
Showing 261–280 of 527 · this parliament
When her Department plans to appoint a contractor to undertake works at St Michael’s Church of England School in Paignton.
We are aiming to enter contract later this year and are currently on track. The current planned timescale is for pupils to be in the permanent accommodation from September 2026. This is also on track, but we will need to continue to monitor this as normal throughout the build period.
What her planned timeline is for the completion of the rebuild of St Michael’s Church of England School in Paignton.
We are aiming to enter contract later this year and are currently on track. The current planned timescale is for pupils to be in the permanent accommodation from September 2026. This is also on track, but we will need to continue to monitor this as normal throughout the build period.
Whether his Department is taking steps to help tackle ageism in healthcare services.
I refer the Hon. Member to the answer I gave to the Hon. Member for Newcastle-under-Lyme on 5 June 2025 to Question 54136.
What steps his Department is taking to support small manufacturing businesses.
This Government will continue to support the advanced manufacturing sector, including SMEs, through our forthcoming Industrial Strategy, where advanced manufacturing has been selected as one of eight growth-driving sectors.Support is available through our Made Smarter Programme where manufacturing SMEs will be able to adopt industrial digital technologies like robotics and autonomous systems to boost their productivity and competitiveness.Later this year the government will publish its Small Business Strategy, including policies on creating thriving high streets, accessing finance, opening up overseas and domestic markets, building business capabilities, and providing a strong business environment.
What assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of developing a dedicated support strategy for smaller manufacturers.
This Government will continue to support the advanced manufacturing sector, including SMEs, through our forthcoming Industrial Strategy, where advanced manufacturing has been selected as one of eight growth-driving sectors.Support is available through our Made Smarter Programme where manufacturing SMEs will be able to adopt industrial digital technologies like robotics and autonomous systems to boost their productivity and competitiveness.Later this year the government will publish its Small Business Strategy, including policies on creating thriving high streets, accessing finance, opening up overseas and domestic markets, building business capabilities, and providing a strong business environment.
What steps his Department is taking to support small and medium-sized manufacturing enterprises in the UK.
This Government will continue to support the advanced manufacturing sector, including SMEs, through our forthcoming Industrial Strategy, where advanced manufacturing has been selected as one of eight growth-driving sectors.Support is available through our Made Smarter Programme where manufacturing SMEs will be able to adopt industrial digital technologies like robotics and autonomous systems to boost their productivity and competitiveness.Later this year the government will publish its Small Business Strategy, including policies on creating thriving high streets, accessing finance, opening up overseas and domestic markets, building business capabilities, and providing a strong business environment.
What steps the Government is taking to improve access to finance for small manufacturers.
Our October 2024 call for evidence on access to finance for small advanced manufacturing firms sought views and evidence on the challenges faced in this area. Since that time, the Government has been considering how best to support more advanced manufacturing scale-ups to access the capital they need. Further details will be contained in the forthcoming Industrial Strategy and the Advanced Manufacturing Sector Plan within it.
Whether the Government plans to expand (a) financial support and (b) tax relief for small and medium-sized manufacturing firms.
Small businesses are vital to high streets, local communities, and economic growth. At Autumn Budget 2024, the Government recognised this by:More than doubling the Employment Allowance to £10,500;Maintaining the Small Profits Rate and marginal relief at their current rates and thresholds, as well as maintaining the £1 million Annual Investment Allowance; andFreezing the small business multiplier for 2025/26. Taken together with Small Business Rate Relief (SBRR), over a million properties will be protected from inflationary bill increases. Despite the difficult fiscal inheritance, we have also been able to protect key business support programmes like Growth Hubs, while allocating £250 million to the British Business Bank's small business programmes in 2025/26.
What steps her Department is taking to tackle age discrimination in the workplace.
Equality and opportunity for all are at the heart of the Government’s programme of national renewal and the UK has a strong history of protecting against direct and indirect discrimination. The Equality Act 2010 has protections that enable people to challenge age discrimination across a range of fields, including in the provision of services, employment and recruitment processes. Where age discrimination cannot be objectively justified and is unlawful, individuals can seek redress in the courts or, where relevant, at an employment tribunal.
What assessment he has made of the potential merits of a signer being present at Government news conferences.
This Government is strongly committed to making our communications accessible and inclusive, and to reducing the barriers Deaf people face in their everyday lives. Since we have come into power, we have endeavoured to ensure as many of the Prime Minister's speeches as possible have BSL interpretation in vision during live streams. This can be found on the Prime Minister’s social media channels - X (formerly Twitter) and YouTube. Where speeches do not have political content, the interpretation is also made available afterwards on gov.uk. I pay tribute to the outstanding work of the Government’s BSL Advisory Board. We will continue to work with them, and with other members of the Deaf community, on how we can improve further the accessibility of our communications.
What plans her Department has to develop teacher training to recognise (a) autism presentation and (b) masking behaviours in girls.
The department wants all children and young people to be able to receive the right support to succeed in their education and we recognise that children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) often require access to additional support.The department also provides continuing professional development to the school and further education workforce through the Universal SEND Services programme, led by the National Association for Special Educational Needs (NASEN). From April 2025, NASEN are developing a new autism specific online training offer to support the workforce’s understanding of autism, which will include ‘train the trainer' packages and webinars to support teachers and leaders to deliver autism training in their settings.The department has also invested in the Partnerships for Inclusion of Neurodiversity in Schools (PINS) programme, which is a national programme backed by £22 million of investment.PINS deploys specialists from both health and education workforces to build teacher and staff capacity to identify and better meet the needs of neurodivergent children including pupils with autism.
What guidance her Department provides to schools on supporting (a) autistic girls (b) girls masking symptoms of autism in educational settings.
The department wants all children and young people to be able to receive the right support to succeed in their education and we recognise that children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) often require access to additional support.The department also provides continuing professional development to the school and further education workforce through the Universal SEND Services programme, led by the National Association for Special Educational Needs (NASEN). From April 2025, NASEN are developing a new autism specific online training offer to support the workforce’s understanding of autism, which will include ‘train the trainer' packages and webinars to support teachers and leaders to deliver autism training in their settings.The department has also invested in the Partnerships for Inclusion of Neurodiversity in Schools (PINS) programme, which is a national programme backed by £22 million of investment.PINS deploys specialists from both health and education workforces to build teacher and staff capacity to identify and better meet the needs of neurodivergent children including pupils with autism.
Whether she plans to take steps to close the pay gap between (a) school teachers and (b) college teachers to achieve equity within the higher education sector.
Further education (FE) colleges, rather than government, are responsible for setting and negotiating pay within colleges. Colleges are not bound by the national pay and conditions framework for school teachers but are free to implement their own pay arrangements in line with their own local circumstances.On 22 May, the department announced an investment of £160 million for colleges and other 16-19 providers in the 2025/26 financial year. This funding will boost opportunities for learners across the country and drive forward delivery of the critical skills needed to grow our economy.Additional funding of over £30 million will also be included within 16-19 allocations. This funding comes from within the overall funding envelope of £615 million for 2025/26, announced alongside the 2025/26 school teachers’ pay award. Together, this means that a total additional sum of over £190 million will be available for 16-19 funding in the 2025/26 financial year.
Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to reduce (a) delays and (b) administrative burdens on zoos undertaking international animal transfers for conservation purposes.
Defra continues to work closely with the Animal and Plant Health Agency and the British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums (BIAZA) to address immediate challenges to the cross-border movement of endangered species, including the availability of Export Health Certificates and Border Control Post capacity. An SPS Agreement will establish a UK-EU Sanitary and Phytosanitary Zone aimed at reducing trade barriers and facilitating the safe and efficient movement of terrestrial and aquatic zoo animals. Our ambition is to reach an agreement that reduces administrative burdens by streamlining SPS checks and certification, while upholding the UK’s commitment to ensure its biosecurity is protected within this future framework. Where animals are protected under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), permits will be required to ensure specimens have been legally and sustainable acquired. These are typically valid for 6 months and can be applied for in advance of any planned move to avoid delay. The application process is digital and live animal movements are prioritised to avoid welfare implications. We are currently in the process of reviewing existing CITES regulations to ensure they support conservation and sustainable trade and minimise administrative burdens on businesses.
Communities and Local Government, what recent discussions she has had with youth homelessness organisations on the inclusion of a youth chapter in the forthcoming cross-governmental homelessness strategy.
Homelessness levels are far too high. This can have a devastating impact on those affected, including young people. We must address this and deliver long term solutions. The Deputy Prime Minister is leading cross-government work to deliver the long-term solutions we need to get us back on track to ending all forms of homelessness. This includes chairing a dedicated Inter-Ministerial Group, bringing together ministers from across government to develop a long-term strategy. We have also established an Expert Group to bring together representatives from across the homelessness and rough sleeping sector, local and combined authorities and wider experts. The role of this expert group is to provide knowledge, analysis and challenge to help Government understand what is working well nationally and locally and where improvements are needed. We will continue to meet with a range of stakeholders, including mayors and MPs, to make sure the strategy is informed by a range of expertise. As well as work on the Inter-Ministerial Group and Expert Group we are also working closely with the sector to deliver a number of lived experience forums to ensure that the voices of those with lived experience are reflected in the homelessness strategy.
Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 3 April 2025 to Question 42101 on Holiday Accommodation: Licensing, what her planned timetable is for her Department’s publication of the short-term rental registration scheme.
The government has commenced the second phase of digital development for the short-term lets registration scheme legislated for in the Levelling Up and Regeneration Act 2023. During this phase, DCMS will test the user interface with a small number of users to ensure our systems and processes are effective, with public testing planned to start within the next 9 months.
Pursuant to the Answer of 9 May 2025 to Question 47378 on Personal Independence Payment, how many working-age people are in receipt of the PIP daily living component at (a) regional, (b) constituency and (c) local authority level by whether those people receive the (i) standard or (ii) enhanced rate; and what proportion of each of those (A) standard and (B) enhanced rate claims were awarded fewer than four points in all daily living activities.
Table 1 in the attached excel file contains data, at the regional level, of claimants in receipt of the Enhanced or Standard Daily Living award for Personal Independence Payment (PIP) and the proportion of those claims which were awarded less than four points in all daily living activities by award rate. Table 2 contains data, at the Parliamentary Constituency level, of claimants in receipt of the Enhanced or Standard Daily Living award for PIP and the proportion of those claims which were awarded less than four points in all daily living activities by award rate. Table 3 contains data, at the Local Authority level, of claimants in receipt of the Enhanced or Standard Daily Living award for PIP and the proportion of those claims which were awarded less than four points in all daily living activities by award rate. The number of people currently on PIP and did not score 4 points in one category in their last assessment should not be equated with the number who are likely to lose PIP. It’s important to make a clear distinction between the two, not least because we don’t want constituents to be unnecessarily fearful about their situation, when we understand many are already anxious. We will always protect the most vulnerable people. The OBR has determined that 9 in 10 people currently on PIP will still be receiving it by the end of this Parliament. No one will lose access to PIP immediately. The changes, subject to parliamentary approval, would be brought in from November 2026. After that date, no one will lose PIP without first being reassessed by a trained assessor or healthcare professional, who assesses individual needs and circumstance. Reassessments happen on average every 3 years. Someone who didn’t score 4 points in an activity in a previous assessment may well score 4 points in a future assessment – not least as many conditions tend to get worse, not better, over time. We are consulting on how best to support those who are affected by eligibility changes, including how to make sure health and eligible care needs are met. PIP is not based on condition diagnosis but on functional disability as the result of one or more conditions, and is awarded as a contribution to the additional costs which result. We have also announced a wider review of the PIP assessment, to make it fair and fit for purpose, which I will lead. We are bringing together a range of experts, stakeholders and people with lived experience to consider how best to do this. We will provide further details as plans progress. Even with these reforms, the overall number of people on PIP is expected to rise by 750,000 by the end of this parliament and spending will rise from £23bn in 24/25 to £31bn in 29/30.
How many applications to the Ukrainian Permission Extension scheme have been (a) made, (b) processed, (c) granted, (d) withdrawn and (e) rejected for which the latest data is available.
The Ukraine Permission extension scheme is open for those granted under the previous Ukraine Schemes to apply up to 28 days before their current permission expires. Applications received – 53,870Applications processed – 45,576Applications approved – 44,105Applications withdrawn – 1,321Applications rejected or refused – 150 These figures have been taken from a live operational database. As such, numbers may change as information on that system is updated.
What steps her Department is taking to help small unitary authorities to access funding for domestic abuse perpetrator programmes.
For the current financial year (2025/26), the Home Office has awarded over £19 million to continue funding 27 Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) through the Domestic Abuse and Stalking Perpetrator Intervention Fund. This fund enables PCCs to commission domestic abuse and stalking interventions to suit the priorities and scale of their local area. PCCs work with local agencies and delivery partners to deliver a range of interventions which cover the full range of risk and harm.
What steps he is taking to support independent hospitality businesses.
Hospitality businesses are at the heart of our communities and play a vital role in supporting economic growth and social cohension across the UK.We recently launched a licensing taskforce to reduce red tape and barriers that too often hold businesses back. In addition, the Government intends to introduce permanently lower business rates for retail, hospitality and leisure properties with a rateable value less than £500,000 We have also recently announced a £1.5 million Hospitality Support Scheme to co-fund projects that align with Department of Business & Trade and Hospitality Sector Council Priorities. I am working with Council Members to maximise the benefits of this funding.