Helen Maguire

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.

A response to the Hon. Lady’s Parliamentary Question of 13 December is attached.

Following the general election, the Prime Minister was clear that he wanted national renewal and a return of politics to public service.

The Government is committed to ensuring the public has diverse opportunities to take part in our vibrant democracy. The Government is taking steps to ensure meaningful public involvement in the work of government, including as part of mission-driven government and the broader toolkit for policy development and public engagement.

In addition to regular national and local elections, the public can engage in our political system and the policy-making process through various avenues. These include writing to their MP or to a government department, attending constituency surgeries, signing a petition which may end up the subject of debate in Parliament, taking part in a consultation (see the GOV.UK website for current consultations) or a parliamentary call for evidence, and of course taking part in politics directly by, for example, standing for office. The public are also encouraged to come and visit the UK Parliament to meet with their representatives and see the work of politics in action.

Section 31 of the Postal Services Act 2011 outlines the minimum requirements of the universal postal service and includes the requirement that free-of-charge postal services are provided to people who are blind or partially sighted.

Earlier this year, I met representatives of Ofcom, who reasserted their commitment to ensuring that the universal postal service meets the reasonable needs of users. The Government has no current plans to change the minimum requirements set out in the legislation.

The UK has the oldest housing stock in Europe and the government recognises that there is no “one-size-fits-all" approach to tackle the UK’s diverse building stock, and the need to ensure more historic buildings are able to achieve Net Zero. The Department commissioned research into complex to decarbonise homes and is currently considering the findings available at: www.gov.uk/government/publications/defining-and-identifying-complex-to-decarbonise-homes.

Our Warm Homes Plan will help people find ways to save money on energy bills and transform our ageing building stock. We have committed £3.4 billion over the next 3 years towards heat decarbonisation and household energy efficiency. Further details will be set out in due course.

Local authorities hold the statutory duty to secure, so far as is reasonably practicable, sufficient provision of educational and recreational leisure-time activities for young people. In September 2023 DCMS published updated statutory guidance to support local authorities’ understanding of the existing duty and how to deliver it. Alongside this, DCMS funds a Peer Review programme for local authorities to learn from each other about the best approaches to youth service provision.

This government has also committed to co-producing a new National Youth Strategy, which is an opportunity to move away from one-size-fits all approaches from central government, bringing power back to young people and their communities and rebuilding a thriving and sustainable sector. We plan to publish the strategy in the summer.

This Strategy, co-produced with young people and the youth sector, will better coordinate youth services, bringing power back to young people and their communities, and rebuilding a thriving and sustainable sector.

Over the coming months, we will be developing our plans in partnership with young people and with organisations within the youth sector, engaging closely with them to fully understand their needs and the issues they consider to be most crucial in addressing. This National Youth Strategy will cover youth services and policy at local, regional and national levels, and will outline a long-term vision for how all young people can realise their potential, with choices and chances, and be empowered and active members of society. It will also look to empower local areas and communities, moving away from one-size-fits-all approaches.

We will be holding a series of youth-led roundtables and we will set up a youth advisory board to work alongside us, influence our work and challenge us every step of the way. We will ensure this is an accessible engagement period that reaches as many young people as possible.

We will be publishing the Strategy in 2025.

The department is committed to supporting the aspiration of every person who meets the requirements and wants to go to university, regardless of their background.

The government continues to provide means-tested non-repayable grants to low income full time undergraduate students with children and/or adults who are financially dependent on them. We have announced an increase to maximum dependants’ grants for the 2025/26 academic year by 3.1%, based on forecast inflation using the RPIX inflation index. Students undertaking nursing, midwifery and allied health profession courses also qualify for non-repayable grant support through the NHS Learning Support Fund.

The department is also increasing the maximum maintenance loans for living costs for the 2025/26 academic year by 3.1%, in line with the forecast rate of inflation, to ensure that more support is targeted at students from the lowest income families. Higher rates of loan for living costs are also paid to students eligible for benefits such as lone parents and some disabled students as well as care leavers, who are normally assessed as low income independent students. In addition, care leavers are also entitled to a £2000 statutory bursary, paid via their local authority.

However, the department recognises that there is much more to do to expand access and improve outcomes for disadvantaged students. Too many people across our country do not get the opportunity to succeed. We will act to change this. We are calling for providers to go further and play a stronger role in expanding access and improving outcomes for disadvantaged students, making sure that they are delivering robust and ambitious access and participation plans. By the summer, the department will set out our plan for higher education (HE) reform and the part we expect HE providers to play in this.

Generally, to qualify for higher education (HE) student support and home fee status in England, a person must have settled status and have been ordinarily resident in the UK and Islands (Channel Islands and Isle of Man) for the three years preceding the first day of the first academic year of their course.

This means that under existing student support legislation, holders of a Hong Kong British National (Overseas) visa would qualify for home fee status and financial support once they have acquired settled status in the UK and meet the three-year ordinary residence requirement. This also applies to any dependants who have been granted Hong Kong British National (Overseas) status.

There are no plans to extend HE student support and home fee status to Hong Kong British Nationals (Overseas) or their dependants before they are settled in the UK.

High and rising school standards are at the heart of the government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity and give every child the best start in life. The best way of supporting education in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) subjects is to ensure high quality teaching in these subjects, by helping schools to recruit and retain good teachers.

The department has therefore announced an Initial Teacher Training financial incentives package for the 2025/26 academic year worth £233 million, a £37 million increase on the last recruitment cycle. This includes a range of measures, including bursaries worth £29,000 tax-free and scholarships worth £31,000 tax-free, to encourage talented trainees in key STEM subjects such as mathematics, physics, chemistry and computing.

For the 2024/25 and 2025/26 academic years, the department is also offering a targeted retention incentive worth up to £6,000 after tax for mathematics, physics, chemistry and computing teachers in the first five years of their careers who choose to work in disadvantaged schools. This will support recruitment and retention of specialist teachers in these subjects and in the schools and areas that need them most.

In the 2025/26 financial year, the government will continue to fund subject continuing professional development (CPD) and other programmes in mathematics, computing and physics. This includes Maths Hubs, which co-ordinate mathematics CPD, and the ‘Subject knowledge for physics teachers’ programme, an intensive retraining programme for teachers teaching physics out of specialism.

This government’s ambition is that all children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) or in alternative provision receive the right support to succeed in their education and as they move into adult life, breaking down the barriers to opportunity.

Educational psychologists play a crucial role in the support available to children and young people, including those with SEND. Local authorities, as the employers of educational psychology services, are responsible for ensuring that their services are adequately staffed.

However, the department is taking measures to support local authorities by investing in building the pipeline. We are investing over £21 million to train 400 more educational psychologists from 2024. This is in addition to the £10 million currently being invested in the training of over 200 educational psychologists who began their training in September 2023.

To support retention, following graduation, trainees who have had their training funded by the department are required to remain in local authority employment for a minimum period. For trainees beginning their course in September 2024, this requirement has increased to three years.

Tackling child poverty is at the heart of the government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity and improve the life chances for every child. For too many children, living in poverty robs them of the opportunity to learn and to prosper.

The Ministerial Child Poverty Taskforce will harness all available levers to drive forward action across government to reduce child poverty. More detail on the approach and priorities for the strategy is set out in the publication ‘Tackling Child Poverty: Developing our Strategy’, which was published on 23 October and is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/tackling-child-poverty-developing-our-strategy.

The Children’s Wellbeing Bill will put children and their wellbeing at the centre of the education and children’s social care systems, and make sure every child has a fulfilling childhood, enabling them to achieve and thrive.

Breakfast clubs will remove barriers to opportunity by ensuring primary school children, no matter their circumstance, are well prepared with a supportive start to the school day. This will help to drive improvements in behaviour, attendance and attainment, and provide families with more affordable childcare choices. This will also support families, particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds.

This government sees the early years as central to our mission to give every child the best start in life and in the 2025/26 financial year expect to provide over £8 billion for the early years entitlements, to help even more families access affordable, high quality childcare and early education. We have also announced a new £75 million expansion grant, to be allocated later this year, to support nurseries, childminders and other providers to deliver the 35,000 additional staff and 70,000 places required to meet demand for next September.

High quality early education leads to better outcomes for all children, but is particularly impactful for those from disadvantaged backgrounds and those with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), where early identification of needs and support can help them to thrive.

Families of 2 year olds in receipt of certain benefits can access 15 hours of early education and care per week, over 38 weeks a year, and all 3 and 4 year olds are eligible for 15 hours of early education. Further support for disadvantaged children is available through Early Years Pupil Premium. This government will also be delivering the largest ever uplift to the Early Years Pupil Premium, increasing rates by over 45% to up to £570 per eligible child per year. This unprecedented increase is an investment in quality early education for those children who need it most, in the areas that need it most.

To respond to parents’ concerns about the cost of school, as committed in the King’s Speech, we will legislate to limit the number of costly branded items of uniform schools can require, ensuring uniforms make children smarter not families poorer.

In addition to free school meals (FSM), schools continue to receive the pupil premium grant, worth over £2.9 billion in the 2024/25 financial year, to support the educational outcomes of disadvantaged pupils. Also this year, all 153 local authorities in England have continued to deliver the Holiday and Activities Food programme during Easter, summer and Christmas holidays. The programme provides heathy meals, enriching activities and free childcare places to children from low-income families, benefiting their health, wellbeing and learning. It is primarily targeted at children who receive benefits-related FSM, however local authorities also have the flexibility to use some of their funding to target other vulnerable children.

The Government has taken immediate and substantial action to address the performance of water companies who are not delivering for the environment or their customers.

The Water (Special Measures) Bill will provide the most significant increase in enforcement powers for the regulators in a decade, giving them the teeth they need to take tougher action against water companies in the next investment period. The Bill will drive meaningful improvements in the performance and culture of the water industry as a first important step in enabling wider, transformative change across the water sector.

Separately, the regulators have also launched the largest criminal and civil investigations into water company sewage discharges ever They will take action if any illegality is identified. As part of their investigation, Ofwat has proposed fines of £168 million against the first three companies. This investigation is a priority for Ofwat, and it will continue to work as quickly as possible on all remaining companies.

Additionally, through the next investment period, which runs from 2025 – 2030, there will be improvements at wastewater treatment works protecting rivers across England and Wales.

Since July the Defra Secretary of State has met with water company Chief Executives and chairs, including Thames Water.

The Government is committed to ensuring that everyone has access to nutritious, affordable food. The Government’s recently launched Food Strategy will ensure that access to healthy food is affordable and accessible to all.

The Government has also committed to roll out free breakfast clubs at all primary schools, whilst also tripling investment in breakfast clubs to over £30 million. Additionally, this Government has committed to delivering its plan to make work pay to turn the minimum wage into a real living wage so that working families can afford healthy food

Defra regularly engages with supermarkets and producers about a range of measures they can take to ensure the availability of affordable food. These measures include maintaining value ranges, price matching and price freezing. The range and price of food is a commercial decision for each retailer and the Government does not interfere in their day-to-day operations.

This Government will also be introducing a Fair Repayment Rate for deductions from Universal Credit, and increasing the National Living Wage, boosting the pay of 3 million workers, ensuring that everyone can afford to make healthy food choices.

For too long, water companies have discharged record levels of sewage into our rivers, lakes and seas. That is why we are placing water companies under special measures through the Water (Special Measures) Bill, which will strengthen regulation, including delivering new powers to ban the payment of bonuses for polluting water bosses and bringing criminal charges against persistent law breakers.

For Price Review 2024, which runs from 2025 – 2030, water companies are investing almost £12 billion to improve 2,800 storm overflows across England and Wales. Where required outcomes are not met, companies must reimburse customers, thereby holding water companies to account to deliver the investment.

Going forward, the Secretary of State and I continue to meet regularly with water company leadership teams to hold them to account for and ensure they are delivering for customers and the environment.

In October 2024, the Secretary of State, in conjunction with the Welsh Government, also launched an Independent Commission on the water sector regulatory system. This is a wide-ranging review to fundamentally transform how our water system works and clean up our rivers, lakes and seas for good.

Ofwat regularly meet with Defra, other Government departments and regulators to discuss enforcement policy and activities. As part of their investigation into all water companies, earlier this year Ofwat proposed fines of £168 million for three companies (Thames, Yorkshire and Northumbria Water) for failing to manage their wastewater treatment works and networks, as part of the first batch of outcomes from its biggest ever investigation. These fines are alongside proposed enforcement orders, which require each company to rectify issues to bring them into compliance. Ofwat has also recently announced four more enforcement cases in relation to management of wastewater treatment works and networks.

Furthermore, the Water (Special Measures) Bill will provide the most significant increase in enforcement powers to the regulators in a decade, giving them the teeth they need to take tougher action against water companies in the next investment period, which is due to start in April next year. The Bill will provide Ofwat with legal powers to ban bonuses, where currently they can only set expectations, and ensure that imprisonment will always be available to the courts as a sentencing option where investigations by the environmental regulators have been obstructed.

On 23 October 2024, the UK and Welsh Governments launched an independent commission, led by Sir Jon Cunliffe, to recommend reforms to reset the water sector regulatory system. The Commission will publish a report in Q2 2025, with recommendations for actionable solutions to the sector’s problems.

The Government is committed to making EV charging infrastructure affordable and accessible.

Energy suppliers providing energy to EV chargepoints are regulated by Ofgem. Ofgem does not currently set a limit for the price that can be charged for the resale of electricity through EV chargepoints. We continue to work with DESNZ and Ofgem on measures to keep EV charging affordable.

Under the Public Charge Point Regulations 2023, all chargepoint operators must display the price of charging using a common metric of p/kWh and make their data on pricing available freely. This allows drivers to easily compare the price of charging and find the best chargepoint for their needs.

There are already specific criteria in place to assess the need for a Blue Badge for children under three years old who require the use of bulky mobility aids. The Department has no plans to amend the current eligibility criteria.

Department officials have regular conversations with the operator seeking to improve accessibility across South Western Railway’s fleet. Improvements include the new fleet of Class 701s with fully accessible toilets replacing the Class 455s which do not have toilets, an App with Artificial Intelligence generated British Sign Language and a planned rollout of improved Passenger Information Screens on services between Waterloo and Exeter. South Western Railway also has guards on all of its fleet providing assistance for all passengers who require it.

Budgeting Advances help Universal Credit customers meet intermittent miscellaneous expenses, such as buying essential items like furniture or household equipment. These advances ensure that low-income families that have an emergency financial need and do not have access to adequate savings or affordable loans can access funding to meet the emergency.

Only eligible customers are able to access Budgeting Advances and there are limits set out in regulation on the amount that can be awarded. Information on the eligibility criteria can be found in the House of Commons Library.

The three month qualifying period is not a waiting period. Its purpose is to help establish that the disability or health condition, and the resulting care, supervision or mobility needs are of a long-standing nature. This ensures that disability benefits are targeted to support those with long term health conditions or disabilities.

Children applying for DLA do not always have to wait for the full three months from the date of their claim before they become entitled to the benefit. The case manager will always look at whether, and for how long, the person has required the necessary level of help for care/daily living and/or mobility purposes before the date of claim and consider whether some or all of the qualifying period has already been completed.

Children claiming DLA under the special rules for end of life do not have to satisfy the three--month qualifying period. Their claim is fast tracked, and they are eligible for the higher-rate care component from the date of claim.

Financial and practical support may be available during the qualifying period, for example through the Healthcare Travel Costs Scheme or support provided by Local Authority.

The decision to maintain Local Housing Allowance (LHA) rates at current levels for 2025/26 considered a range of factors such as, rental data, the impacts of LHA rates, the Government’s missions and wider fiscal context and the fact that rates were increased in April.

We are also investing £1bn in funding for both the Household Support Fund (HSF) and Discretionary Housing Payments (DHPs) (including Barnett impacts) for 2025/26 and will be ensuring DHP funding is maintained at current levels. DHPs are available from local authorities for those unable to meet a shortfall in their rent.

We are publishing a Long-Term Housing Strategy in the Spring, to reform the housing market so that it works better for communities, to build 1.5 million high-quality homes, and deliver the biggest increase in affordable housing for a generation, this includes an extra £500m in new funding for the Affordable Homes Programme.

Given the current cost of living it is essential for individuals to possess the knowledge and skills necessary to effectively manage their finances. DWP invests in upskilling their staff to increase their confidence in guiding customers through conversations about enhancing their financial skills and understanding the advantages of doing so.

DWP supports customers to improve their financial skills by signposting them to MoneyHelper in order to help them make better financial choices. MoneyHelper operates across the UK, however, as financial skills is a devolved matter, additional support is available in Scotland and Wales.

DWP is consistently striving to enhance the services provided to our customers, ensuring they receive the most effective guidance by directing them to bodies that can assist in improving their financial skills.

The extra costs disability benefits are not means–tested, paid regardless of any income or savings and worth up to £9,580 a year, tax free.

They were uprated by 6.7 per cent from April and will be uprated by 1.7 per cent from next April subject to Parliamentary approval.