Tag: Catherine West

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2016-10-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether the Government plans to continue to participate in the European Institute of Innovation and Technology after the UK leaves the EU.

Joseph Johnson

There is no immediate effect on our participation in the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) while we remain a member of the EU. Post-exit participation in EIT will be a matter for the forthcoming negotiations. We will work through the implications for future years as part of the wider negotiations.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2016-10-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to his counterpart in the Falkland Islands on improving LGBT rights.

Sir Alan Duncan

The British Government works closely with the Overseas Territories (OTs) on LGBT rights to ensure that all OTs meet their international human rights obligations in this area.

In September, the UK Solicitor General chaired a human rights session at the annual conference of OT Attorneys General where LGBT equality was discussed extensively.

The Solicitor General will co-chair a session in November with the Minister for the Overseas Territories, my noble Friend, the Rt Hon Baroness Anelay of St Johns, on human rights at the Joint Ministerial Council.

We expect all Overseas Territory Governments to comply with their evolving international obligations in the field of human rights. Legislating in this area is for OT Governments.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2016-10-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, whether the Government has set its negotiating position for exiting the EU as being that it will not seek to remain in the single market.

Mr Robin Walker

We are considering carefully all options for future arrangements with the EU following a UK exit. We know that there is no mandate for a deal that involves accepting the existing arrangements governing free movement of people from Europe. However, we do not accept that there is a binary trade-off in terms of border control and access to the single market for goods and services. We are aiming for the best deal on both for Britain. The Prime Minister has been clear that we are going to be ambitious in our negotiation, to negotiate the best deal for the British people and that will include the maximum possible access to the European market for firms to trade with and operate within.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2016-10-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make it her policy to make sex and relationships education compulsory in all schools.

Edward Timpson

We want schools to provide all young people with a curriculum that equips them for success in adult life. High-quality sex and relationship education (SRE) and personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) education have a vital role to play in this.

SRE is compulsory in maintained secondary schools. Academies and free schools do not have to teach SRE, but many choose to do so as part of their statutory duty to provide a broad and balanced curriculum.

When teaching SRE, all schools, including academies through their funding agreement, must have regard to the Secretary of State’s Sex and Relationship Education guidance. The existing SRE guidance was last updated in 2000. We have received requests about updating the guidance which we will consider carefully.

Schools and teachers have the freedom to design lessons that meet their pupils’ needs, taking account of pupil and parent views. Teachers are encouraged to develop their practice with the support of specialist organisations and expert professionals. Many of these specialist organisations have produced resources that can be used and adapted by schools.

We hold regular meetings with Ofsted about a range of matters. As the Secretary of State said at the Education Select Committee hearing in September 2016, we need to look again at how schools deliver high-quality PSHE, including SRE. We are considering all the options, including the need for any statutory powers, and will come to a view soon.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2016-10-13.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the implications for the Commonwealth of the recent announcement by the government of the Maldives that the Maldives plans to exit the Commonwealth.

Alok Sharma

As the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Uxbridge and South Ruislip (Boris Johnson) said on 13 October, the UK is disappointed that the Maldives Government has decided to withdraw from the Commonwealth. We believe in the Commonwealth and its commitment to improving the lives of people across all its member states. It is an organisation dedicated to developing free and democratic societies, and to promoting peace and prosperity.

There are no immediate implications for the Commonwealth. The Secretary-General will continue to champion the values enshrined in the Commonwealth Charter and will maintain support to all member states, especially small and developing states, in upholding and advancing these values practically for the enduring benefit of their citizens.

However, we remain extremely concerned about governance and human rights in the Maldives, not least freedom of expression and association, judicial independence, and the arbitrary detention of political figures. I made clear our concerns when I met the Maldives Foreign Minister, Dr Asim, in London in September.

We will continue to work with the Maldives Government to support them to make progress on these and other areas.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2016-01-06.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, with reference to paragraph 3.22 of English Apprenticeships: Our 2020 Vision, how many apprentices with special educational needs or disabilities have not completed their transport-related apprenticeship placements.

Nick Boles

The table below shows this information for apprenticeship frameworks that are related to the transport Industry.

Table 1: Apprenticeship success rates for learners with a learning difficulty or disability on frameworks related to the transport industry (2013/14)

Frameworks	Overall Success Rate
Aviation Operations on the Ground	85.7%
Driving Goods Vehicles	70.7%
Rail Transport Engineering	81.0%
Road Passenger Transport – Bus and Coach	81.0%
Transport Engineering and Maintenance	96.2%
Vehicle Body and Paint Operations	58.3%
Vehicle Fitting	68.8%
Vehicle Maintenance and Repair	67.0%
Vehicle Parts Operations	72.2%

Notes

1) Frameworks with fewer than 20 leavers are excluded.

2) Figures for learning difficulties or disabilities are based on self-declaration by the learner

The Department does not collect the information required to estimate 5 per cent club or NHS apprenticeship success rates.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2016-01-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to increase secondary school places in London.

Nick Gibb

Local authorities are responsible for planning and securing sufficient school places in their area, and supporting them to do so is one of this Government’s top priorities. This is why the Government is investing £23 billion overall in school buildings to create 600,000 new school places, open 500 new free schools and address essential maintenance needs.

Basic need funding is allocated to local authorities to help them to create new school places. This Government has allocated £960 million to local authorities in London for places needed between 2015 and 2018, including at secondary level. This is in addition to the £2 billion London received between 2011 and 2015, almost 40% of the total funding provided to local authorities to help create new places in this period.

This funding has helped to create 155,000 new school places between 2010 and 2014. Of these new places, over 30,000 have been created in 52 open free schools. There are over 60 approved new schools due to open in London in future academic years.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2016-02-09.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when her Department’s Sex and Relationship Education guidance published in 2000 will be updated.

Edward Timpson

The Government believes that all children should have the opportunity to receive a high quality and appropriate sex and relationship education (SRE). SRE is compulsory in all maintained secondary schools and many primary schools also teach it in an age-appropriate way. The Government also expects academies and free schools to deliver SRE as part of their provision of a broad and balanced curriculum.

Any state-funded school teaching SRE must have regard to the Secretary of State’s SRE guidance (2000). The Department has received requests about updating the existing SRE guidance which we will carefully consider.

Initial Teacher Training (ITT) is currently determined by the Teachers’ Standards, which all trainee teachers must be able to demonstrate by the end of their training. The Standards set out the key principles of good subject pedagogy and the importance of subject knowledge development across the curriculum. Schools and headteachers are best placed to determine which staff learning activities will be most beneficial for their schools and we expect them to lead the personal development of their teachers to improve the quality of all round teaching.

The Department supports schools’ efforts to improve PSHE teaching by drawing schools’ attention to a range of high quality PSHE education teaching resources, including quality resources, lesson plans, a programme of study, factsheets and case studies. These resources are kite-marked by the PSHE Association to ensure that schools can trust the materials they use and improve their teaching.

Ofsted does not inspect individual curriculum subjects. However, aspects of PSHE education and SRE will inform its judgment on personal development, behaviour and welfare. Inspectors must also consider the spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of pupils. Schools have responsibility for acting upon the inspection reports they receive and any weaknesses will be considered when the school is next inspected.

We expect schools to ensure that young people, whatever their developing sexuality or identity, feel that SRE education is relevant to them and sensitive to their needs. The statutory SRE guidance is clear that schools should teach about HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases. Sexually transmitted infections are also covered as part of the national curriculum for science at key stage 3.

We welcome the supplementary SRE guidance ‘SRE for the 21st Century’ produced by Brook, the PSHE Association and the Sex Education Forum, which includes guidance on ensuring that SRE is inclusive. All children and young people, regardless of background or identity, are entitled to quality SRE that helps them build confidence and stay healthy.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2016-02-19.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the rate of pay is for cleaners in his Department.

Matthew Hancock

The pay range for directly employed London cleaning staff is £19,988 – £24,430 per annum.

The rates of pay for cleaning staff employed by our Facilities Management contractors around the country range from £6.70 per hour to £7.62 per hour, depending on the contract.

The pay of contracted cleaners will increase to the National Living Wage when that is introduced in April. As the living wage increases the minimum paid to cleaners will also increase.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2016-02-25.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the rate of pay is for cleaners in her Department.

Karen Bradley

Cleaning services across the Department are outsourced and suppliers currently pay as a minimum the National Minimum Wage. From the 1 April 2016 suppliers will pay as a minimum the National Living Wage for over 25 year olds.