Helen Hayes MP: speeches

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Speeches

26 Feb 2025 · Grenfell Tower Inquiry: Phase 2 Report · Hansard source
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My thoughts today are with the survivors of the Grenfell Tower disaster and the 72 families who are still mourning the loss of a loved one. I pay tribute to their immense dignity, as they continue to fight for justice. I welcome the Deputy Prime Minister’s clear commitment to implement all of Sir Martin Moore-Bick’s recommendations. I have constituents living in blocks with fire safety issues. Those are often not cladding-related issues, but issues identified as part of the wider scandal in the construction industry uncovered by fire safety inspections post-Grenfell. In some cases there have been terrifying fires in these blocks, leaving residents feeling unsafe and leaseholders trapped in unsellable flats, as building owners and construction firms argue over who is responsible for the fire safety defects and fail to resolve the issues. Can the Deputy Prime Minister therefore say, as she moves forward to implement Sir Martin’s recommendations, when she would expect my constituents to have a clear plan, with a timescale attached to it, for the remediation work needed in unsafe buildings? Where is the accountability in the meantime?
25 Feb 2025 · Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (Transfer of Functions etc) Bill [Lords] · Hansard source
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The further education and skills sector is of strategic importance, and equipping our workforce with the skills that employers need is critical for economic growth. Ensuring that there are opportunities for young people and those mid-career to access high-quality training in order to enhance and develop their skills is vital for breaking down the barriers to opportunity that hold back far too many people. For far too long, the further education and skills sector has been the Cinderella service of our education system, patronised with lip service about how important it is, always regarded as second best, and never allocated the level of funding needed to really deliver. Despite the fact that at the very peak only around one third of 18-year-olds go on to university, our school system is overwhelmingly orientated to communicate to young people that university is the option they should all aim for, rather than supporting a plurality of education options post-18, all of which can equip them well for a successful career. That has created a postcode lottery in which the high-quality further education and training opportunities that are available in some parts of the country are not available everywhere.
25 Feb 2025 · Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (Transfer of Functions etc) Bill [Lords] · Hansard source
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I thank the right hon. Member for his intervention. I was delighted recently to visit a school in my constituency, and a careers fair that gave young people the opportunity to meet many employers and providers of further education face to face, in order to give real meaning and reality to what such opportunities might provide in the future. It is important that young people have those opportunities. Recently, I was delighted to visit the Lambeth college campus in Vauxhall, which is part of the Southbank University group, with my hon. Friend the Member for Vauxhall and Camberwell Green (Florence Eshalomi). We met young people engaged in cutting-edge training in robotics, renewable energy installation, dental technology and game design and production. They were being equipped with valuable skills to help them to access high-quality jobs, with the possibility, in some cases, of progressing their training all the way to degree level at the university. The college is a good example of a strategic vision being applied to skills at a local level to ensure that employers’ needs are being met, and that the best possible opportunities are made available to young people, but not everywhere can benefit from such a strategic approach at present. I therefore welcome the Bill, which will formally establish Skills England. It is encouraging that this Government are giving further education and skills the strategic prominence they need, and seeking to establish an effective national agency to deliver a step change in the strategy that underpins our approach to skills and the quality and availability of training opportunities. Skills England has been operating in shadow form within the Department for Education since July last year. Following the passage of the Bill, it will become an executive agency. This important Bill will work to underpin many of the strategic aims of the Government, including the delivery of economic growth, the skills to provide the additional 1.5 million homes that need to be built, and the skills to drive the urgently needed transition of our energy sector to achieve net zero, and the much-needed improvements in our national health service and in social care. As the first Skills England report highlights, we currently have a fragmented and confusing landscape that lets down learners, frustrates businesses and holds back growth. The current system that the Government inherited has been badly neglected and urgent action is needed to deliver the change and scale of ambition required. While I welcome the Bill, there are a number of issues on which I would be grateful for further clarity from the Government. The Bill does not provide a statutory underpinning for Skills England, meaning that the Secretary of State and future Secretaries of State can make fundamental changes to Skills England or close it down without the consent of Parliament. That calls into question the ability of Skills England to deliver a stable long-term underpinning of the skills system over a period of time. I understand the Government’s urgency, but it is important that in delivering this change Skills England is placed on a really solid foundation. In order to be effective in delivering the skills system that our country needs, Skills England will need to have leverage with a number of different Government Departments beyond the Department for Education, yet the chief executive of Skills England is the equivalent of a director-level post in the civil service, not a director general, calling into question the extent to which appropriately senior people from across Government will be required to act on its recommendations and work in effective partnership. As the Bill progresses, the Government should consider the seniority of the CEO in that light. Partnership working with key stakeholders outside Government, including training providers, trade unions, employers and devolved authorities will also be critical to the success of Skills England, but none of that is written into the Bill, and the ways in which Skills England will be held accountable for effective partnership working are unclear. Will the Secretary of State take further action to address that? The impact statement for the Bill states that there may be a drop in apprenticeship starts while the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education’s functions are transferred to the Secretary of State and then to Skills England, with a disproportionate impact on adult apprenticeships, disadvantaged learners and disadvantaged regions. Will the Secretary of State explain what steps she will take to minimise and mitigate that potential short-term drop? The success of Skills England will depend on a series of wider factors that should be considered at the point at which it is being established. There is a significant issue with the funding of sixth form colleges, particularly around inequities in pay between teachers in schools and colleges, exacerbated by the failure to extend the recent pay increase to teachers to those employed by colleges. It cannot be right that a teacher in a college can be paid less than a teacher in a school sixth form for teaching exactly the same subject. To drive parity of esteem between pupils following an academic route and those following a vocational route, it is important that sixth form colleges are able to both recruit and retain teachers. That means addressing the lower pay in sixth form colleges compared with schools, and the gap between teacher salaries and the salaries that teachers could receive in industry. It is a real problem for colleges seeking to recruit teachers of vocational subjects that those who have the skills to teach trade can often earn far more by practising that trade in the private sector. There is currently very little obligation on industry to release staff to deliver vocational education or to help to secure the pipeline of vocational teachers, including through post-retirement options. The Government should give further consideration to the recruitment and retention of high-quality teachers in the further education sector. For some students in the further education sector, their school days have not been the happiest days of their lives. College or an apprenticeship should be the place where they start to find the things that they can excel at and where their confidence is built because they start to succeed. The importance of a functional level of English and maths is universally accepted and understood, so something is badly wrong in our education system when 38% of students do not achieve a grade 3 or above in English and maths at GCSE. The cycle of failure ends up continuing in the FE sector, which requires them to resit again and again. There must be a better way to ensure the functional skills in these subjects that employers need within further education, while enabling young people genuinely to succeed, build their confidence and thrive. Finally, I will raise the issue of the huge differential in the information provided to sixth form students as they decide on their next steps after school or college—a point made by the right hon. Member for South Holland and The Deepings (Sir John Hayes) earlier in the debate. When meeting with skills providers and school leaders in my constituency recently, many participants highlighted how a move to university was often presented as a natural, secure step, with multiple options and a well-trodden path through the UCAS process, while vocational options, including apprenticeships and degree apprenticeships, were not presented with the same clarity or coherence, or even within the same timeframe. That makes it harder for teachers to advise their students and for parents to have confidence in pathways that may appear less predictable and secure. If we want to see true parity of esteem between academic and vocational routes, that needs to change, and I hope that it will be a priority for the newly established Skills England. The Education Committee recognises the strategic importance of further education and skills, and we have recently launched a substantial inquiry that aims to understand how the further education system can better equip young people with skills and qualifications for a range of sectors experiencing labour shortages while opening up a wider range of opportunities to young people and mid-career switchers. We will make our recommendations to the Government in due course, and we look forward to playing our part in scrutinising the work of Skills England.
24 Feb 2025 · Breakfast Clubs: Early Adopters · Hansard source
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I thank the Secretary of State for her statement today. I welcome the news that St Luke’s Church of England primary school in my constituency will be one of the early adopters of a universal breakfast club under the programme. All too often, children with special educational needs and disabilities are excluded from extracurricular activities, and it is the parents of children with SEND who often find it the hardest to access childcare. It is essential that children with SEND have equal access to breakfast clubs in both mainstream and specialist schools. What steps are being taken to ensure that that is the case, that schools have the capacity to provide specialist staff where needed and that any additional home-to-school transport costs, which are often essential in enabling children with SEND physically to access a breakfast club, will be met?
12 Feb 2025 · Umana Yana restaurant in Herne Hill · Hansard source
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I rise to present a petition on behalf of residents of Dulwich and West Norwood. The petition is in support of a restaurant called Umana Yana in Herne Hill in my constituency. It is a wonderful restaurant run by Deborah Monfries and her family, who are in the Public Gallery today. Deborah’s restaurant serves delicious Guyanese food, and I would commend it to all Members in the House. However, it has suffered a detriment in recent years as a consequence of the installation of enormous telecommunications cabinets that obscure the view of the restaurant for passing customers. The petitioners “therefore request that the House of Commons considers this issue and urges the Government to bring forward legislation to ensure small businesses are not blocked from view by telecommunications equipment, to ensure the removal of equipment affecting small businesses, like Umana Yana, and that businesses are duly compensated by the telecoms companies for disruption.” I would add that petitions online and locally have been signed by more than 1,700 local residents. Following is the full text of the petition: [The petition of the owners and supporters of Umana Yana, Herne Hill, Declares that Umana Yana, an independent restaurant in Herne Hill, has faced serious disruption to their trade due to telecommunication boxes placed immediately outside their premises; notes that Umana Yana has been part of the local community for over fifteen years but has faced a significant fall in footfall as the shop can no longer be seen from the street, and that over 1700 people have signed local and online petitions in support of the restaurant; further notes that the shop has seen a loss of revenue for this valued community focused business; and further declares that small businesses across the country have faced similar challenges due to telecoms infrastructure placed without due consideration of nearby shops. The petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons considers this issue and urges the Government to bring forward legislation to ensure small businesses are not blocked from view by telecommunications equipment, to ensure the removal of equipment affecting small businesses, like Umana Yana, and that businesses are duly compensated by the telecoms companies for disruption. And the petitioners remain, etc. ] [P003043]
10 Feb 2025 · Rosebank and Jackdaw Oilfields · Hansard source
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The highly respected Grantham Institute, chaired by Lord Stern, said that a UK Government decision to proceed with Rosebank and Jackdaw would “signal to all other fossil fuel producers, including the United States and Russia,” that they support a “business as usual” approach to the oil and gas industry. Does the Minister acknowledge the leadership role of the UK Government internationally, and agree that such leadership is best shown by our investing in the sustainable green jobs that North sea communities need, not by granting further unjustifiable permissions?
3 Feb 2025 · School Accountability and Intervention · Hansard source
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I thank the Minister for her statement, and I associate myself with her remarks about the tragic incident in Sheffield. The consultations that the Minister has announced are being launched in the context of considerable pressures in our education system, particularly the crisis in the SEND system, which has far-reaching consequences for every part of the sector, and the serious problems in the recruitment and retention of teachers. The Education Committee has heard from stakeholders that accountability pressures can encourage exclusionary practices to maintain academic performance. School leaders regularly raise concerns that the lack of resources to meet the needs of children with SEND makes it hard for them to meet the needs of every child. How does the Department plan to safeguard children with SEND to ensure that accountability pressures on schools do not lead to exclusionary practices but instead promote inclusive approaches that support the needs of students with SEND?
30 Jan 2025 · Local Post Offices · Hansard source
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I congratulate the hon. Member on bringing this important debate. My constituents are served by Crown post offices in Brixton and on Lordship Lane in east Dulwich. Both those town centres have effectively seen the withdrawal of high-street banks. Would he agree that the erosion of high-street banking services places an even greater emphasis on the role of post offices, and that the Government need to intervene to stop the further round of Crown post office closures if we are to see the banking hubs commitment met across the country?
28 Jan 2025 · Gaza: Humanitarian Situation · Hansard source
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I thank the Minister for her statement and the announcement of additional investment in aid to Gaza, which is very welcome. I have visited UNRWA schools and healthcare facilities in the west bank, and the role that UNRWA plays in the provision of essential services, including aid to Palestinians, is unique and irreplaceable. The implementation of the Knesset’s decision to ban UNRWA could therefore amount to the denial of health services, education and essential aid to a population that has already suffered unbearably for the past 15 months. Can the Minister say not only that the UK Government oppose the decision, but what will be done to hold the Israeli Government to account for the impact of that decision, if it is implemented later this week?
27 Jan 2025 · Speech and Language Therapy · Hansard source
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It is a pleasure to see you in the Chair, Mr Vickers. I thank the Petitions Committee for securing this important debate and my hon. Friend the Member for Lichfield (Dave Robertson) for introducing it; I associate myself with his words on Holocaust Memorial Day. I also congratulate Mikey on starting the petition and on his impactful campaign. Speech and language therapy is a vital service that supports children and adults with the development of speech and assists those who have difficulties in eating, drinking or swallowing. As Chair of the Education Committee, I will focus my remarks on access to speech and language therapy for children and young people. Speech and language are vital building blocks of communication. Children who face barriers to developing speech and language early in life, for a wide range of reasons, can face significant difficulties. Poor communication skills reduce participation in education and can lead to frustration and challenging behaviour or withdrawal and school avoidance. For children whose needs relate to a difficulty in eating, drinking or swallowing, good and timely speech and language therapy can make the difference between being able to attend school or nursery safely or not. I know the difference that speech and language therapy makes in my own family. When my oldest daughter started to learn to speak, it became apparent that she was really struggling to say particular sounds and that her inability to differentiate between sounds, because of her difficulty in pronouncing some of them, was having a consequential impact on her ability to read. We were able to seek advice from an open access speech and language therapy clinic at our local health centre, which provided a wealth of advice and some helpful exercises that we could support our daughter to do at home. The clinic was available to us whenever we needed it, and my daughter was able very quickly to overcome the challenges that she faced. I am pleased to report that she is now a 19-year-old who is nothing but forthright in her ability to communicate with everybody. Open-access services such as the clinic that we were able to access are now extremely hard to find. There is a shortage of speech and language therapists. Children who need speech and language support face long waiting lists in many parts of the country. That is a huge problem, because accessing timely support has a significant bearing on the impact that a speech and language difficulty can have in the long term. Issues that can be quickly addressed in very young children, for example, can become much more challenging to overcome with the passage of time. Early intervention saves money and delivers better educational outcomes. Speech and language therapy sits at the junction of several parts of the public sector. Needs are often identified in nurseries or schools; local authorities have a statutory responsibility for special educational needs and disability support; speech and language therapy is an allied health profession commissioned often by the NHS, but sometimes by local authorities and schools directly, and is often based in community settings. This complexity and the lack of a clear single pathway of commissioning services are among the contributory factors to the current shortage and the geographical disparities in the availability of speech and language services. I welcome the Government’s recognition of the importance of speech and language development in children and the commitment from the Department for Education to roll out the evidence-based NELI—Nuffield Early Language Intervention—programme in reception classes across the country. Expanding the availability of targeted support to help people who have speech and language difficulties to catch up will undoubtedly make a difference, but we know that the earlier a speech and language difficulty is identified, the better, not least because sometimes a speech difficulty is the first indication of wider special educational needs. The earlier a problem is identified, the easier it can be to address it. The Government recognise this, but there is currently no clear plan to expand the availability of speech and language therapy in early years and community settings. The early years sector is diverse and disparate. There is a need for clarity on expectations, commissioning pathways and professional development to ensure that very young children can access speech and language therapy as soon as a need is identified. The fact that it is not compulsory for children to be in a formal setting until the age of five underlines the importance of community-based support in children’s centres, family hubs and health centres, so that parents and carers can access support readily when they need it. Adjusting the workforce challenges within speech and language therapy will also require intervention from the Government to make more training places available and to encourage those who have left the profession to return. I hope that the Government will produce a workforce plan for all the professions related to SEND support, so that professional expertise and support will be there for children and families who need it. More widely, we have a SEND system that is failing children and their families across the country, with far too many children unable to access SEND support in school, waiting far too long for an EHCP and often finding that, when they get an EHCP, it cannot be fully delivered. Since the Minister for Care is responding to this debate today, I take the opportunity to highlight that when I speak with parents, teachers, local authority officers and others who are responsible for delivering SEND support, they very often say that, “within the EHCP, the H is too often absent”. They struggle to get the NHS to the table and there is very weak accountability in the levers that can force it to do so. I ask the Minister to look in detail at the issue, and to work with his colleagues in the Department for Education to ensure better collaboration between Health and Social Care and Education, in the best interests of children with special educational needs and disabilities. Finally, I take the opportunity to plug the Education Committee’s recently launched inquiry on special educational needs and disabilities. As a Committee, we recognise the vital role of speech and language therapy within the wider network of services that contribute to effective SEND support. Our call for evidence on SEND is open until 6 February. I encourage all right hon. and hon. Members who have an interest in SEND services or challenges within their constituencies to encourage their constituents to submit evidence to our inquiry, including those who have experience of speech and language therapy, so that we can hear the widest possible range of evidence and make recommendations to the Government that can deliver a transformation in SEND services across the country.
27 Jan 2025 · SEND Provision · Hansard source
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There are children with special educational needs and disabilities in every school across the country. Often, they face unacceptable barriers to participation, including school buildings that are not inclusive or fully accessible. What is the Minister doing, as part of the Government’s welcome commitment to inclusive mainstream schools, to ensure that all expenditure by the Department for Education on new school buildings and building refurbishments helps to make schools more inclusive?
22 Jan 2025 · Education, Health and Care Plans · Hansard source
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Will the shadow Minister give way?
22 Jan 2025 · Education, Health and Care Plans · Hansard source
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Thank you, Dr Huq. With such limited time, I simply reiterate that we have a SEND system in crisis. It is letting down children and their families. It is a contested and embattled system and is no way to decide and deliver on what is in the best interest of children. As Chair of the Committee, I welcome some of the measures that the Government are bringing forward, but I also believe that there is further to go. That is why, as the Committee, we have prioritised SEND as our first substantial new inquiry of this Parliament. I have good news for Members with constituents who are interested in and concerned about this subject: today we have extended the deadline for the submission of written evidence to 6 February. We are serious about looking at the evidence of what is happening across the country, but also at where there is good practice, both in this country and overseas. We will do our best to assist the Government to set out a programme of reform that delivers for children and their families. I urge all Members who have an interest in this topic to encourage their constituents to submit evidence to our inquiry.
22 Jan 2025 · Child Arrangements: Presumption of Parental Involvement · Hansard source
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My hon. Friend is making an immensely powerful speech. It was extremely moving yesterday for the Education Committee to hear directly from my hon. Friend’s constituent, Claire Throssell. Claire’s work, in the context of her unbearably painful experience, is deeply inspiring, and I pay tribute to her. We heard from her how problems in the family courts, including but not limited to the presumption of contact, have knock-on consequences for the wider work of child protection. Will my hon. Friend join me in calling on the Minister to ensure that there is strong, joined-up and effective working between her Department and the Department for Education so that we make sure that everyone who has a role in the protection of children is doing the most effective work possible?
16 Jan 2025 · Middle East · Hansard source
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I welcome the announcement of this long overdue ceasefire today. My thoughts are with all those who have lost loved ones on and since 7 October, the families of hostages anxiously awaiting news, and the tens of thousands of families in Gaza who have suffered bereavement, displacement and destitution. My thoughts are also with all those for whom the announcement is bittersweet; I think particularly of Rachel Goldberg—the mother of Hersh Goldberg-Polin—whom I met in East Jerusalem in February. She has campaigned with such dignity for the release of her son, who was tragically killed in August. I think, too, of the families in Gaza who are losing their loved ones even now as this ceasefire is being announced. But while the war has raged in Gaza, the settlers have dramatically increased their activity in the west bank, taking land that does not belong to them in a systematic attempt to undermine the possibility of a viable Palestinian state. As our thoughts now turn to the peace process ahead and the aim of a two-state solution, what action is the Foreign Secretary taking to address illegal settlement? Without a more robust approach, a two-state solution simply cannot be achieved.
15 Jan 2025 · Higher Education Regulatory Approach · Hansard source
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I thank the Secretary of State for confirming the Government’s approach to the implementation of the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act 2023, and I welcome the clarity that she has provided today. The implementation of the Act will present some challenges for universities and for students. The Secretary of State will know that there can sometimes be a fine line between free speech and hate speech, and between statements of views and opinions and incitement or encouragement to violence or intimidation in the real world. Can she assure the House that she will ensure that universities and students are absolutely clear about the limits to free speech, which are already enshrined in law, and that support will be provided on the interpretation of that when it is needed? Professor Shitij Kapur, vice-chancellor and president of King’s College London, has said: “Universities are not there to function as a Speakers’ Corner where anyone can stand up and express an opinion not necessarily supported by facts. If academic freedom is to mean anything, it must be accompanied by the academic obligation for ideas and claims to be accompanied by evidence and reason. Proponents have an obligation to engage and respond to those questioning their assertions and conduct that debate and discourse in a civil manner.” How will the Secretary of State ensure—particularly as the erosion of fact-checking and moderation on social media is taking place before our very eyes—that the implementation of the Act results in a high quality of evidence-based discourse conducted in a culture of civility?
14 Jan 2025 · Renters’ Rights Bill · Hansard source
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I rise to speak on new clause 10 in my name and Government new clause 15, but before I do so, I would like to make some brief remarks about other aspects of the Bill. In my constituency of Dulwich and West Norwood, housing is overwhelmingly the biggest challenge that my constituents face. Housing costs have spiralled, and the previous Government wasted more than a decade failing to build the homes we need. The effect of this has been that more and more of my constituents are living in privately rented homes, in which they are currently systematically denied the basic stability and security that most of us would agree are essential to being able to function properly in the rest of life. Private tenants live with the constant fear that their landlord can at any time, without reference to the terms of their tenancy agreement, decide that they want their property back and serve an eviction notice. I have seen this happen time and again. It stops people putting down roots in their community, because they know that they are likely not to be able to stay. It means that parents live with the constant anxiety that they may have to move far away from their children’s school. It means that older people are denied security of tenure in their retirement. In return for extortionate rents, tenants all too often face appalling standards, and find it far too difficult to get basic health and safety issues addressed. I therefore welcome this Bill, which delivers the biggest package of reforms to private renting for 40 years, redressing the current imbalance between landlords and tenants, strengthening tenants’ rights and providing much-needed additional security. I particularly welcome the scrapping of section 21 evictions—I have been speaking on them in this place since 2016—the strengthening of local authority enforcement powers and the creation of a new private rented sector ombudsman, and the application of Awaab’s law to the private rented sector. There is a very great challenge about the affordability of private renting, particularly in London, and my constituents experience that every day. I hope the Minister will keep under review the measures in this Bill that are designed to limit the rate of rent increases to ensure they are as effective as they need to be to create a functioning rental market. I trust that the Minister will do that, and will not hesitate to take further action in future if it is needed. I now turn to my own new clause 10 and Government new clause 15, which would ban the use of guarantor agreements in the event of the death of a tenant. In this place, all of us know that there are sometimes emails that stop us in our tracks. So it was for me when, in 2023, I received an email from a constituent that read as follows: “Late last year I became a guarantor for my son so that he could secure accommodation with some friends for his second year at university; without me doing so, he would have lost the house. I had no real concerns about my son paying the rent as he had shown he was a hard worker in a variety of jobs he engaged with to supplement his student loan, which would have covered the rent anyway. The tenancy was due to start at the beginning of July. Tragically, two weeks ago he took his own life, leaving myself, my wife and his sister utterly devastated. On top of everything, I now find myself liable to pay the rent for his room for the entire length of his tenancy if a replacement tenant cannot be found…I wonder if there might be scope to look into the practice of expecting bereaved parents to continue in a role of guarantor to a loved one after they have died.” I do not think anyone could read that email and think that what happened to my constituents who were facing the worst kind of pain was remotely acceptable. I contacted the letting agent who refused to budge, simply stating that they were following the contract that had been signed.
14 Jan 2025 · Renters’ Rights Bill · Hansard source
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I agree with my hon. Friend, and I will speak in a moment about evidence I have received that this issue is more widespread than any of us might have imagined. I raised the issue at Prime Minister’s questions, and after that I was contacted by many people, including families who had experienced exactly that, as well as letting agents who told me that they explicitly did not use such clauses, and that such clauses were not necessary because the loss of rental income in the event of the death of a tenant is an insurable risk for landlords. I am grateful to Members across the House who have supported my campaign, including 48 Members who signed new clause 10, and those who signed my amendment to the Renters (Reform) Bill in the last Parliament. I engaged extensively with two different housing Ministers in the previous Government, both of whom said that they were sympathetic but declined to take action in that Bill or support my amendment. I am therefore grateful to the Minister for Housing and Planning for his compassionate and rigorous engagement on this issue. He has listened and, more importantly, he has acted where his predecessors did not. Government new clause 15, tabled this week, bans the use of guarantor agreements in the event of the death of a tenant who is a family member. That is what my constituent asked of me, and I am proud that that is what we will achieve today. I hope my constituents will take some small comfort from knowing that by speaking out and contacting their MP, other families faced with the heartbreak of losing a loved one will not be pursued by a greedy landlord or letting agent, adding financial stress and hardship to an already unbearable situation. New clause 15 does not go as far as new clause 10, extending protection only to bereaved guarantors who are related to the tenant. While that protection would have helped my constituent, and while I agree that institutional guarantors should not automatically be released from their responsibilities on the death of a tenant, the limitations of the new clause mean that there could still be hard cases in future—for example, a close friend who is bereaved. I therefore trust that the Minister will keep the situation under review to ensure that new clause 15 is as effective as he intends. As a consequence of the Minister’s engagement on this matter, I am content to withdraw new clause 10 and support Government new clause 15. I urge all right hon. and hon. Members to do the same, and to support this Bill, which will deliver the step change in regulation of the private rented sector that we have all been needing for far too long.
8 Jan 2025 · Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill · Hansard source
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I agree with the hon. Lady that school food, in whichever setting it is delivered, should be of the highest quality. She will know about the pressures on school budgets. My constituency has experienced among the highest drops in funding for local schools of anywhere in the country. That has eroded the money that schools have to spend on high-quality food. I know that that is one of the areas on which those on the Government Front Bench will be anxious to deliver over time as public finances permit. The measures to support care leavers are welcome, but are limited to extended Staying Close support and requiring local authorities to publish the details of their offer. What further measures does the Minister intend to take to improve outcomes for care leavers and to ensure they get the same opportunities as their peers? Only 14% of care leavers go to university compared with 46% of non-care-experienced young people. What further measures will the Government take to support care leavers to access and stay in higher education? Why are the Government not proposing a national offer for care leavers to address the postcode lottery in care, in particular to provide care leavers with the confidence that if they choose to attend university away from home, because that is the best option for them, the same support will be available to them wherever they study? The policies and practices of other Departments also have a profound effect on the experience of care leavers. Can the Minister confirm whether, outside of the Bill, the Government are still considering the expansion of corporate parenting duties, so that every part of the state is required to take seriously its duty to looked-after children and care-experienced people? Finally, to deliver on the commitments in the Bill, those who work with children and families will need support. There are challenges in recruitment and retention across many of the professions, from social work to teaching to the early years. Will the Government set out a workforce strategy to ensure that training places, continuing professional development and effective recruitment strategies are in place to secure the staff we need to deliver the transformation our children deserve? The Bill will introduce a series of measures that will start the process of rebuilding support for children and their families, and that is very welcome. My Committee will continue to take an interest in the detail of the Bill and seek to ensure that it is as effective as it can be in delivering a system that can support every child to thrive, and in contributing to the debate about the further steps, beyond the scope of the Bill, that will also be needed.
8 Jan 2025 · Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill · Hansard source
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Our education system and the wider network of services that support children and families offer unparalleled opportunities to make a critical difference to the life chances of the next generation. If Governments get the policy framework right, they can support every child to thrive in their education, close the disadvantage gap and lay the foundations for good mental health and wellbeing, which will set a child up for life. However, the situation that this Government inherited in July was overall very far from that. There are, of course, many schools, teachers and other professionals who work with children and young people who are doing an exceptional job and achieving good results. As we consider this important legislation, I want to pay tribute to everyone who works to give our children and young people the best possible start in life—a great education, support where they need it and access to opportunities—and those who do the very difficult work of keeping the most vulnerable children safe. The challenges in our system are not down to them; they are the consequence of layer upon layer of policy decisions taken since 2010 that have made the context in which they work immeasurably harder. I shall mention just a few of those policy decisions. The decision to cut the funding for early help and support for families, resulting in the closure of 1,300 Sure Start centres, stripped away vital support that can prevent families from reaching a crisis. While funding for early help and support has reduced, expenditure on child protection and on children in the care system in crisis situations that can often be prevented has gone up. The decision to make academy schools directly accountable to the Secretary of State and responsible for their own admissions policies, and to make free schools the main delivery method for new schools, has left local authorities, which retain the statutory duty for providing a school place for every child who needs one and for SEND provision, without the tools and levers to deliver them, creating an unaccountable and unmanageable wild west of admissions in many areas. The neglect of the SEND system has allowed it to reach breaking point, and children are routinely let down; the capacity of schools to meet their needs has been eroded, and there is a lack of accountability for the role of health services. Local authorities are being pushed to the edge of effective bankruptcy; school attendance has been falling at a completely unacceptable rate; and our children and young people have the worst mental health and wellbeing in Europe. Where we should have a system of many parts all working together in the best interests of children and families, we have a broken system where some parts are missing entirely and others are buckling under the pressure. Far too many children—particularly those with SEND—are being let down. In too many cases, either children are not protected from harm as they should be, or the outcomes of the attempts of the system to protect them are shamefully poor. We need only to look at the shocking over-representation of care-experienced people who are homeless or in the criminal justice system to know that our systems are failing. We need only to reflect on the names of the children who have been tragically killed at the hands of those who should have protected and nurtured them—Star Hobson, Arthur Labinjo-Hughes and Sara Sharif, among others—to know that child protection urgently needs to be strengthened. I welcome the Bill, which begins the work of stitching back together a support system for children and families and places children once again at the heart of Government policy. Measures such as the creation of a single child identifier and a register of children not in school, restoring the ability of local authorities to deliver new school places and intervene on admissions, tackling profiteering by providers of children’s homes, delivering free breakfast clubs, reducing costs of uniforms and many other measures in the Bill will make a big difference to children and their families. The Education Committee is taking a close interest in this legislation, which is relevant to our ongoing inquiries on children’s social care, SEND and many other aspects of our work, and there are a number of areas on which I would like to press Ministers today. The measures to improve children’s social care are welcome, but it is well established that local authorities face huge cost pressures, which means that the system does not function as well as it should. Local authorities that are currently trapped in a cycle of spot-purchasing residential places for looked-after children from expensive out-of-area providers will need support and funding to make the transition to more positive ways of working, even if those new ways of working can bring down costs in the longer term. What investments will the Government make in children’s social care to ensure that the changes in the Bill can be fully delivered with the maximum impact? The £30 million of funding for breakfast clubs provided in the autumn Budget will extend the existing breakfast club scheme from around 2,700 schools to around 3,450 schools, but there are more than 16,700 state-funded primary schools in the UK. Can I therefore press the Government on the need to set out the costs and funding for delivering this policy in every primary school, and for a clear timescale for doing so? Parents of children with SEND often find it hardest to find childcare for their children. Many have expressed concern at a clause in the Bill that will allow for exemptions from the requirement to provide breakfast clubs for disabled children. Some disabled children will also be able to access a breakfast club only if they have home-to-school transport to arrive at school earlier. Will Ministers confirm that the Bill will ensure equal access to breakfast clubs for children with SEND in mainstream and specialist settings, with support where needed to enable children to attend them? Breakfast clubs ensure that no child has to start the school day hungry, which will be transformative. However, school lunches also really matter, as the most effective way to ensure access to a nutritious hot meal for the most disadvantaged children. Will Ministers therefore consider whether auto-enrolment of children already eligible for free school meals can be incorporated into the Bill? As a minimum, we should ensure that all children who are currently eligible receive a free school lunch.
6 Jan 2025 · Child Sexual Exploitation and Abuse · Hansard source
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Several years ago, I supported, over a number of months, a constituent of mine who suffered horrific sexual abuse as a child in the care of Lambeth council, as she prepared to give evidence to the independent inquiry on child sexual abuse, chaired by Professor Jay. It was unimaginably hard for victims and survivors to give evidence to that inquiry, reliving the abuse that they suffered and being retraumatised. The fact that they did so was exceptionally important, and I pay tribute to their courage. My constituent and thousands of other victims and survivors gave their evidence so that their experiences could be at the heart of Professor Jay’s recommendations. Does the Home Secretary agree that if we are really to put victims and survivors first, the priority must be to act on what they have already told us, and to implement the IICSA recommendations at pace, and in full?
18 Dec 2024 · Provisional Local Government Finance Settlement · Hansard source
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I welcome the Minister’s statement, particularly the additional funding to tackle homelessness and provide early help and support for families. I also welcome the principle that resources should be directed according to need. However, as the Minister knows, the elephant in the room of local government finance is that the statutory override for deficits related to special educational needs and disabilities is due to come to an end in March 2026. Councils will be setting their budgets in the new year through to the end of March 2026, and if there is no plan to address the SEND deficits, many councils will be issuing section 114 notices. Councils urgently need certainty at this point, so what discussions are taking place with local authorities about the statutory override, and when will they have the certainty they need?
16 Dec 2024 · Israel and Palestine · Hansard source
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It is a pleasure to see you in the Chair, Ms Harris. I am grateful to the Petitions Committee for securing this important debate and to everyone from my constituency of Dulwich and West Norwood who has signed these important petitions. Both the war in Gaza and the horrific actions in Israel on 7 October that started it are intolerable. Fourteen months on from the attack that claimed 1,200 lives, more than 40,000 Palestinian men, women and children are dead and 101 Israelis are still being held hostage. Palestinians in Gaza have been displaced, often multiple times. Aid has repeatedly been prevented from reaching the population and the risk of preventable diseases has continued to rise. There is an horrific humanitarian crisis unfolding in Gaza.
16 Dec 2024 · Israel and Palestine · Hansard source
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I certainly agree with my hon. Friend on that point. I welcome the actions that the UK Government have taken since the election in July. However, the UK Government have found that there is a clear risk that UK arms components are being used by Israeli armed forces in Gaza in ways that breach international law. It is welcome that the new Government took swift action to suspend some arms licences, but when there are breaches of international law, they must be clear that they take action to ensure compliance with the law. The importance of the F-35 programme is understood, but the argument that it is justifiable in the current circumstances to carry on with business as usual does not hold water. If the Government believe in the rules-based international order, they cannot recognise breaches of international law and then ignore them. The Government’s position on the F-35 licences is not defensible. I would like to focus on the importance of the recognition of the state of Palestine as an essential precondition for a successful peace process. I have had the privilege of visiting Israel and Palestine twice. I have seen at first hand how oppressive the Israeli occupation is for Palestinians in the west bank: how every day, ordinary Palestinians face systems and actions that seem to be devised to frustrate their normal activity and grind them down; how widespread the practice of illegal settlement is and how it seems designed to ensure that there can never be a viable landmass to form a state of Palestine; and how Palestinians are forced to live under different laws, travel on different road systems, live in different areas and attend different schools. The UK Government’s position is to support a two-state solution, but that position is currently rejected by the Government of Israel. Recognition of a state of Palestine is an important counteraction to that rejection. It would send an immediate and powerful message that the UK is serious about the only viable route to peace: a two-state solution. That must be accompanied by a much stronger position on illegal settlement and settler violence. Again, we cannot pick and choose which aspects of international law we uphold. Taking a stronger stance on illegal settlements and settler violence in Palestine is not only the right thing to do; it sends a message to Governments around the world that the UK Parliament are serious about the rules-based international order. Israeli settlements in the west bank are illegal. There should be a process accompanying recognition for supporting and strengthening the Palestinian Authority and building the full capacity of a functioning state. Of course, with recognition comes responsibilities and accountability, but I believe that recognition of a Palestinian state cannot continue to be delayed. To do so is simply to further reduce the possibility of the two-state solution that the Government support ever coming to fruition.
12 Dec 2024 · Qualifications Reform Review · Hansard source
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I pay tribute to everyone who works in further education—a vital sector that makes a transformative difference, and whose importance is often not properly recognised. Vocational and technical courses and qualifications are a critical part of our education system, yet schools, colleges and students have faced great uncertainty as a consequence of the previous Government’s decision to defund a number of applied general qualifications. I welcome the additional certainty that the Minister has provided by committing to maintain some AGQs and pause any further changes until 2027. The landscape of vocational qualifications is indeed too complex and confusing, but the cliff-edge approach adopted by the previous Government had significant adverse consequences. My Committee has heard evidence that the previous Government’s plans have already had material impacts, because some colleges have modelled the proposed reduction in courses and now face potential insolvency as a result. What support will the Government provide to colleges that have already planned and committed to their qualification offering for September 2025, based on the previous Government’s decision to defund, and now face further changes? The Committee has also heard evidence of the success of T-levels for those who complete them, particularly in areas such as healthcare. However, T-levels account for just 10% of all vocational courses, and continue to have a worryingly high drop-out rate. What further work are the Government planning between now and 2027 to reform T-levels and make them accessible to a wider range of students, including students with special educational needs and disabilities, before any further changes to AGQs are made? My Committee understands the value and potential of T-levels, but it is vital that in pursuing this route as the predominant option for technical and vocational training, the Government are not locking some young people out of the opportunity to learn, succeed and thrive.

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