Written questions by Begum.

What recent estimate she has made of the average pay gap between further education college lecturers and school teachers.

The government’s role in relation to pay and conditions across schools and colleges differs.The statutory requirements for teachers' pay and conditions within maintained schools in England are set out in the ‘School teachers’ pay and conditions’ document. This is updated each year, based on recommendations from the independent School Teachers’ Review Body.In 2023/24, the median Full Time Equivalent (FTE) salary for classroom teachers in secondary schools was £47,666.Further education (FE) colleges were incorporated under the terms of the 1992 Further and Higher Education Act, which gave them autonomy over the pay of their staff. The government does not set or recommend college teacher pay.In 2023/24, the median FTE average salary for teaching staff on permanent or fixed term contracts in general further education colleges was £36,316 and £47,133 in sixth form colleges.The school and FE pay figures are sourced from different datasets and recorded differently which may make it difficult to make direct comparisons.

What assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of recent prison education funding changes on rehabilitation outcomes.

The Ministry of Justice is committed to supporting rehabilitation through high-quality education, skills and work activities. National funding for prison education has not been reduced. Inflationary pressures have affected the proportion of the overall budget that can be spent on the Core Education contracts, and this has led to reductions in the volume of delivery that prisons are able to commission. This represents just one element of the wider education, skills and work offer that prisoners are able to access and Governors retain the flexibility to commission provision that best meets the needs of their prison population.We continue to monitor delivery closely through HMPPS contract management arrangements. In addition, a full evaluation of the new Prisoner Education Service is underway to assess the impact of education provision on prisoner progress and rehabilitation outcomes, and to inform future policy and commissioning decisions.

What recent assessment she has made of the proportion of students who are international students in each of the past five years.

The Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) is responsible for collecting and publishing data on the UK higher education (HE) sector. These data are shared with the department and include a wide range of information on students in UK higher education providers (HEPs), including their country of domicile.Between 2020/21 and 2024/25, the proportion of students who are international in UK HE has ranged from 22% in 2020/21, to a peak of 26% in 2022/23. Since this peak, the proportion has decreased year on year, to 24% in 2024/25.Year on year detailed table available below. Note that data provided is for all UK HE providers. The data source link to the table is: https://www.hesa.ac.uk/data-and-analysis/sb273/figure-9.Academic Year2020/212021/222022/232023/242024/25Proportion of total that are International Students22%24%26%25%24%

Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to help ensure registered providers of social housing meet their obligations under the Equality Act 2010 in their work with their (a) tenants and (b) employees.

All registered providers of social housing are required to comply with the Equality Act 2010. This applies to their interactions with both tenants and employees.Registered providers are also required to deliver the outcomes of the regulatory standards set by the independent Regulator of Social Housing. Under the Transparency, Influence and Accountability standard, registered providers are required to treat tenants with fairness and respect and take action to deliver fair and equitable outcomes for them as well as, where relevant, prospective tenants.Since the introduction of the proactive consumer regulation regime in April 2024, the Regulator has begun carrying out regular inspections of large providers to ensure they are delivering the outcomes of its standards. The Regulator has strong enforcement powers to take effective action when it identifies serious failings.Under the Regulator’s Governance and Financial Viability standard, registered providers must ensure governance arrangements adhere to all relevant law.

Innovation and Technology, how many complaints her Department has received from company directors unable to verify their identity using the One Log in system and app for which the latest data is available.

Since the onboarding of Companies House, GOV.UK One Login has received and replied to over one hundred pieces of correspondence. This includes complaints from users who are having difficulties proving their identity GOV.UK One Login is currently used by 16 million users, therefore the number of complaints represents a small proportion of the service

Innovation and Technology, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the GOV.UK One Login system and app in verifying the identification of company directors.

GOV.UK One Login is being developed as the single sign-on and identity verification front door for accessing government services. Individual services are responsible for assessing whether it is suitable for their users.Companies House has completed this assessment and determined that GOV.UK One Login is an appropriate and effective way for company directors to prove their identity. Users who are unable to use GOV.UK One Login are able to utilise Companies House’s alternative route, through an Authorised Corporate Service Provider (ACSP).

Innovation and Technology, how many issues have been reported by users on the Gov.UK One Login system and app for which the latest data is available.

GOV.UK One Login is continuing to scale, with 227 services already onboarded, and over 15 million identities proven.The GOV.UK One Login contact centre, which opened on the 31st October 2024, has received just over one million enquiries relating specifically to GOV.UK One Login. This includes a wide range of contacts, such as general queries, technical issues, and complaints.The GOV.UK One Login Technical Service Desk, responsible for managing and supporting technical incidents, problems, cases, and requests for information, has dealt with over 40,000 escalated tickets since the 1st November 2023.

Innovation and Technology, how many issues have been reported by the Government Digital Service on the Gov.UK One Login system and app for which the latest data is available.

GOV.UK One Login is continuing to scale, with 227 services already onboarded, and over 15 million identities proven.The GOV.UK One Login contact centre, which opened on the 31st October 2024, has received just over one million enquiries relating specifically to GOV.UK One Login. This includes a wide range of contacts, such as general queries, technical issues, and complaints.The GOV.UK One Login Technical Service Desk, responsible for managing and supporting technical incidents, problems, cases, and requests for information, has dealt with over 40,000 escalated tickets since the 1st November 2023.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps she is taking to increase UK humanitarian aid to protect (a) women and (b) children targeted by sexual violence in Sudan.

I refer the Hon. Member to the responses provided in the Urgent Question debate on the Conflict in Sudan on 5 November 2025.

Media and Sport, what discussions she has had with the British Library on resolving the industrial action by the Public and Commercial Services Union.

The British Library is an arms-length body, sponsored by the Department of Culture, Media and Sport. It is under the control and management of the British Library Board, whose responsibilities and functions are laid out in the British Library Act 1972. The British Library is operationally independent of government and the day to day management of the Library - including staff pay - is a matter for the organisation to determine. DCMS is aware negotiations are taking place on this dispute and hopes for a speedy response.

With reference to pages 37 of her Department's statutory guidance entitled Relationships and sex education (RSE) and health education, updated on 15 July 2025, if she has made an assessment of the potential merits of including first response for drug misuse as part of mandatory training for secondary school pupils.

All state funded schools are required to teach first aid as part of the statutory health education set out in the relationships, sex and health education (RSHE) statutory guidance. Independent schools are required to cover health education as part of their responsibility to provide personal, social, health and economic education.The statutory RSHE guidance includes basic first aid for primary school children, for example dealing with common injuries, such as head injuries, and pupils in secondary schools are taught further first aid, for example specifically how to administer CPR and the purpose of defibrillators and how to use them.Schools also have the autonomy to decide how they teach first aid, including teaching additional topical content and which resources to use. Many schools incorporate additional content, which can include how pupils should deal with a first response emergency situation, including how to respond to knife wounds, drug misuse and road traffic injury.The department’s defibrillator programme completed in 2023 and was the largest rollout of defibrillators across England to date and provided over 20,000 defibrillators to almost 18,000 schools, ensuring that all state-funded schools in England have access to a device.Defibrillators are designed so they can be used by anyone with no prior training. As part of the department’s roll out, we provided awareness videos to schools showing how simple defibrillators can be to use, and asked schools to share these videos in staff meetings and assemblies.

With reference to page 37 of her Department's statutory guidance entitled Relationships and sex education (RSE) and health education, updated on 15 July 2025, if she has made an assessment of the potential merits of including first response for road traffic accidents as part of mandatory training for secondary school pupils.

All state funded schools are required to teach first aid as part of the statutory health education set out in the relationships, sex and health education (RSHE) statutory guidance. Independent schools are required to cover health education as part of their responsibility to provide personal, social, health and economic education.The statutory RSHE guidance includes basic first aid for primary school children, for example dealing with common injuries, such as head injuries, and pupils in secondary schools are taught further first aid, for example specifically how to administer CPR and the purpose of defibrillators and how to use them.Schools also have the autonomy to decide how they teach first aid, including teaching additional topical content and which resources to use. Many schools incorporate additional content, which can include how pupils should deal with a first response emergency situation, including how to respond to knife wounds, drug misuse and road traffic injury.The department’s defibrillator programme completed in 2023 and was the largest rollout of defibrillators across England to date and provided over 20,000 defibrillators to almost 18,000 schools, ensuring that all state-funded schools in England have access to a device.Defibrillators are designed so they can be used by anyone with no prior training. As part of the department’s roll out, we provided awareness videos to schools showing how simple defibrillators can be to use, and asked schools to share these videos in staff meetings and assemblies.

With reference to pages 37 to 38 of her Department's statutory guidance entitled Relationships and sex education (RSE) and health education, updated on 15 July 2025, if she has made an assessment of the potential merits of including first response for knife wounds as part of mandatory training for secondary school pupils.

All state funded schools are required to teach first aid as part of the statutory health education set out in the relationships, sex and health education (RSHE) statutory guidance. Independent schools are required to cover health education as part of their responsibility to provide personal, social, health and economic education.The statutory RSHE guidance includes basic first aid for primary school children, for example dealing with common injuries, such as head injuries, and pupils in secondary schools are taught further first aid, for example specifically how to administer CPR and the purpose of defibrillators and how to use them.Schools also have the autonomy to decide how they teach first aid, including teaching additional topical content and which resources to use. Many schools incorporate additional content, which can include how pupils should deal with a first response emergency situation, including how to respond to knife wounds, drug misuse and road traffic injury.The department’s defibrillator programme completed in 2023 and was the largest rollout of defibrillators across England to date and provided over 20,000 defibrillators to almost 18,000 schools, ensuring that all state-funded schools in England have access to a device.Defibrillators are designed so they can be used by anyone with no prior training. As part of the department’s roll out, we provided awareness videos to schools showing how simple defibrillators can be to use, and asked schools to share these videos in staff meetings and assemblies.

If she will ensure that UK Border Force eGates are configured to permit entry to holders of Irish passport cards travelling from outside the Common Travel Area.

I refer the Honourable Member to the Answer I gave her on 8 April to Question 42838.

With reference to the Written Statement of 23 June on Security, HCWS729, what guidance her Department has issued to police forces on (a) the implementation of the Terrorism Act 2000 (Proscribed Organisations) (Amendment) Order 2025 and (b) how to interpret placards relating to (i) Gaza and (ii) Israel's actions in Gaza that do not refer to Palestine Action.

The Police are operationally independent of government and have significant experience in policing protests and ensuring proscription orders are implemented fairly and in line with legislation.The Home Office maintains regular contact with Policing to ensure that there is appropriate oversight as the Police carry out their statutory duties

What assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of the level of funding available for specialist by and for violence against women and girls organisations that support (a) Black, Asian and minority ethnic survivors, (b) migrant victim-survivors and (c) migrant victim-survivors with No Recourse to Public Funds.

This Government recognises the specific challenges that both Black, Asian and minority ethnic survivors, and migrant victim-survivors, can face when accessing support. These can include cultural and language barriers, fear of reporting to the police, and difficulty accessing refuge and support.To address this, we fund financial and wraparound support to migrant victims of domestic abuse through a scheme delivered by Southall Black Sisters, a by-and-for organisation. This can include accommodation, subsistence, counselling and immigration support. Funding for the scheme was increased by £398k in 2024/25, with a further uplift of £600k in 2025/26, bringing total investment to £2.4m. Migrant victims here on certain visa routes can also access the Migrant Victims of Domestic Abuse Concession, which provides three months recourse to public funds.In addition, we are investing £1.96m in the Flexible Fund, delivered by Women’s Aid Federation England and a consortium of over 470 services. This provides financial support to victims of domestic abuse, including those with no recourse to public funds, to enable them to leave abusive situations where their financial situation otherwise prevents that.

Pursuant to the Answer of 17 March 2025 to Question 36526 on Legal Ombudsman, what steps her Department is taking to (a) identify and (b) resolve complaint cases awaiting investigation for more than four years; and whether the Legal Ombudsman has a procedure for prioritising those cases where delay may cause further harm to the complainant.

The legal profession in England and Wales, together with its regulators, operate independently of government. The Office for Legal Complaints (OLC) is the independent body responsible for administering the Legal Ombudsman (LeO) Scheme and the Legal Services Board (LSB), in its role as oversight regulator, has statutory duties in relation to monitoring the OLC.My officials have engaged with the LeO, which has advised that, at present, it has no complaints that have been waiting four or more years for allocation for investigation. There are two cases where initial contact with the LeO occurred over four years ago, but where enquiries were either premature (not previously responded to by the legal provider, as required by legislation) or lacked sufficient information to proceed.The LeO has also advised it operates a policy for prioritising cases where a continued delay is likely to have an adverse impact on the complainant, such as cases involving vulnerability, significant medical issues or a required reasonable adjustment.

On what dates the Violence Against Women and Girls strategy advisory panel has met since its establishment.

The Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) Strategy Advisory Board met on 19 March 2025 and 30 April 2025, and bilateral engagements with sector organisations and experts, as well as ministerial roundtables on specific VAWG issues, have taken place regularly.

Whether she plans to publish the minutes or summaries of any meetings of the Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy Advisory Panel.

The Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) Strategy Advisory Board met on 19 March 2025 and 30 April 2025, and bilateral engagements with sector organisations and experts, as well as ministerial roundtables on specific VAWG issues, have taken place regularly.

What assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of the level of funding available to specialist by and for violence against women and girls organisations.

We recognise the vital role of specialist and ‘by and for’ services in providing the tailored support that victims and survivors of VAWG need to recover and rebuild their lives. That’s why in May 2025 we announced a £19.9m investment to provide vital support to victims of VAWG, increase awareness of VAWG and fund projects across the country aimed at preventing these horrific crimes. This includes:Over £6 million for national helplines supporting victims of VAWG, including over £1.5m for helplines for LGBT+ victims and Deaf victims delivered by ‘by and for’ organisations.£2.4 million for financial and wraparound support to help those with no recourse to public funds delivered by Southall Black Sisters, a ‘by and for’ organisation.£1.96 million for the Flexible Fund, which provides financial support to domestic abuse victims via a consortium of over 470 frontline services, including by-and-for organisations.The Home Office continues work on improving the commissioning of ‘by and for’ services at the local level to help stabilise and strengthen the sector.