Every parliamentary written question tabled by Damian Hinds this session, with the full answer and department. See how every department answers, or back to the MP page.
Showing 141–160 of 491 · this parliament
Pursuant to the Answer of 13 January 2025 to Question 21573 on Mental Health: Children and Young People, whether he plans to publish further updates to those statistics.
Although no decisions have yet been made to commission further waves, the Department recognises the importance of the Mental Health of Children and Young People in England Report. We will publish plans in due course.
Whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of the addition of modular precast concrete blocks in Category C prisons.
In December, we published the 10-year capacity strategy outlining our commitment to build 14,000 prison places. We have already delivered c.2,500 places in the prison estate since coming into office, including a new c.1,500 place Category C prison HMP Millsike.To deliver the 14,000 places, we are using a range of supply types which are compliant with standards and requirements for prison accommodation to be safe, decent and lawful. This includes houseblocks and modular units such as Rapid Deployment Cells. We use Modern Methods of Construction and Design for Manufacture and Assembly to provide efficiency in terms of both timelines and costs; for example, through the use of pre-manufactured components, such as pre-cast concrete, which streamlines on site-assembly.
If she will list the key subjects into which her Department is recruiting 6,500 new expert teachers.
There are 2,346 more full-time equivalent teachers in secondary and special schools in 2024/25 compared to 2023/24 and there are 12% more trainees who have accepted offers to train as secondary teachers, and in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), acceptances are up 25% compared to last year.The department is driving teacher recruitment and retention across all subjects to deliver our pledge. We recognise that workforce shortages are more acute in some subjects which is why we have invested £233 million in recruitment incentives, including bursaries worth £29,000 tax-free and scholarships worth £31,000 tax-free for trainees in mathematics, physics, chemistry and computing.In addition, for 2025/26 the department is offering targeted retention incentives 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 or teach technical subjects in further education colleges. .
What estimate she has made of lead times for Parole Board hearings in each year from the earliest year for which data are available to the latest year for which data are available.
The Parole Board has worked hard to reduce its growing caseload and manage the time it takes from referral to completion of prisoner reviews at both paper and oral hearings.Timeliness of Parole Board hearings is not routinely published, however, in its annual report for 2023/24, the Board states that it had seen a reduction of 78% in cases waiting over 90 days to be listed for an oral hearing compared to the previous year: Parole Board for England and Wales Annual Report and Accounts 2023-24.We continue to work closely with the Parole Board to further improve the efficiency and timeliness of prisoners’ parole reviews.
What progress she has made on recruiting 6,500 new expert teachers in key subjects.
There are 2,346 more full-time equivalent teachers in secondary and special schools in 2024/25 compared to 2023/24 and there are 12% more trainees who have accepted offers to train as secondary teachers, and in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), acceptances are up 25% compared to last year.The department is driving teacher recruitment and retention across all subjects to deliver our pledge. We recognise that workforce shortages are more acute in some subjects which is why we have invested £233 million in recruitment incentives, including bursaries worth £29,000 tax-free and scholarships worth £31,000 tax-free for trainees in mathematics, physics, chemistry and computing.In addition, for 2025/26 the department is offering targeted retention incentives 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 or teach technical subjects in further education colleges. .
Pursuant to the Answer of 7July to Question 63294 on Personal Independence Payment and Universal Credit, whether projections of the number of claims for (a) PIP and (b) health components of Universal Credit are based on an extrapolation of recent trends.
DWP produces forecasts of benefit payments based on DWP assumptions agreed by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR), alongside economic determinants, judgments and assumptions provided by the OBR. The number of PIP claimants is forecast by considering new claims for the benefit, the rate of successful awards, and the likelihood that claimants leave the benefit, split by age (working age or pension age) and claim type (new claim or reassessment from Disability Living Allowance). The new claims assumption is informed by recent trends with adjustments made for seasonality and changes in external drivers such as trends in numbers of people with health conditions, the cost of living, and responses to public awareness. Similarly, award rates and exit rates are also based on recent trends. The Universal Credit caseload forecast combines evidence from the recent past with assumptions and OBR judgements on future trends. The driving factors within the UC Health forecast include observed benefit onflows and changes in circumstances that affect UC eligibility for benefits units, covering not only health but also family make-up, housing status, and earnings, derived from DWP admin data. The key assumptions affecting the UC Health Forecast include the plan to move all legacy claimants to UC by the end of March 2026 and an OBR judgement that onflows will fall from their recent high as real household disposable incomes recover, as described in the November 2023 EFO (see 4.57 CP 944 – Office for Budget Responsibility – Economic and fiscal outlook – November 2023). The drivers and assumptions of the UC Health forecasts were discussed in the OBR’s Welfare Trends Report of October 2024. Additionally, the UC forecast reflects further OBR forecasts and judgements on economic and demographic change (see answer to PQ 63294).
What (a) assumptions and (b) formulae she uses to model prison place need.
On 11 December 2024, we published the first annual statement on prison capacity, fulfilling our commitment to increased transparency, holding this government and future governments to account.The demand projections used in the annual statement are based on population projection Accredited Official Statistics which are published at: Prison Population Projections: 2024 to 2029 - GOV.UK. Further detail on the modelling methodology is contained within the publication, including an overview of the assumptions used.
What the average time was that prisoners released from recall spent on recall in each year for which data are available.
The requested information for indeterminate prisoners re-released following recall can be found in Table 5_Q_11 of the Department’s Offender Management Statistics Quarterly publication: licence-recalls-Oct-to-Dec-2024.ods.The corresponding information for determinate sentenced prisoners is only obtainable at disproportionate cost as it requires data matching between different data systems (namely prison recall information from the Public Protection Unit Database, and prisoner release information from prison-NOMIS).
What the average number of people in prison on custodial sentences was in each of the last 20 years.
Information on the number of people in prison on custodial sentences is published as part of the Offender Management Statistics Quarterly.Data from 2002-2015 can be found in Table 1.Leg.1 at the following link: Prison-population-2002-to-2015.ods.Data from 2015-2024 can be found in Table 1.A.1 at the following link: Prison-population-2015-to-2024.ods.
What the average time was that remand prisoners spent on remand in each of the last 20 years.
Information relating to the time spent on custodial remand is not centrally held by the Ministry of Justice. To obtain the data to answer this question would involve a manual interrogation of court records which would incur a disproportionate cost to the Department.
What estimate he has made of the proportion of retirement (a) villages and (b) homes without automated external defibrillators.
The Government is committed to improving access to automated external defibrillators (AEDs) in public spaces and reducing inequalities in access to these life saving devices. Following the depletion of the existing AED fund, launched in September 2023, the Government approved a further £500,000 in August 2024 to fulfil existing applications to the Fund.The Department selected a joint bid from Smarter Society as its independent partner to manage grant applications. Smarter Society reviewed funding applications, against requirements specified by the Department. These requirements were to ensure that the resource was allocated where there was the greatest need, e.g. remote communities with extended ambulance response times, places with high footfall and high population densities, hotspots for cardiac arrest including sporting venues and venues with vulnerable people, and deprived areas.At present, there are no plans to introduce legislation requiring the installation of AEDs in retirement villages and homes. Additionally, the Department has not conducted a formal assessment of the number of AEDs currently in place within these facilities. As noted above, this is because AEDs are allocated based on greatest need, and collecting this data would not likely be decision relevant.
Whether he plans to bring forward legislative proposals to mandate the installation of automated external defibrillators in retirement (a) villages and (b) homes.
The Government is committed to improving access to automated external defibrillators (AEDs) in public spaces and reducing inequalities in access to these life saving devices. Following the depletion of the existing AED fund, launched in September 2023, the Government approved a further £500,000 in August 2024 to fulfil existing applications to the Fund.The Department selected a joint bid from Smarter Society as its independent partner to manage grant applications. Smarter Society reviewed funding applications, against requirements specified by the Department. These requirements were to ensure that the resource was allocated where there was the greatest need, e.g. remote communities with extended ambulance response times, places with high footfall and high population densities, hotspots for cardiac arrest including sporting venues and venues with vulnerable people, and deprived areas.At present, there are no plans to introduce legislation requiring the installation of AEDs in retirement villages and homes. Additionally, the Department has not conducted a formal assessment of the number of AEDs currently in place within these facilities. As noted above, this is because AEDs are allocated based on greatest need, and collecting this data would not likely be decision relevant.
Pursuant to the Answer of 25 June 2025 to Question 60037 on Dentistry: Higher Education, when he expects the Privy Council approval process to be completed.
The Privy Council must be satisfied that it has all the required information before it can make a final decision to award Dental Authority Status to an organisation.I understand that the Privy Council Office has recently requested additional information from Portsmouth Dental Academy pertinent to its application, and that it is awaiting a response.
What data her Department provides to HM Treasury for the purposes of forecasting future numbers of claims for (a) PIP and (b) the (i) Limited Capability for Work Element and (ii) Limited Capability for Work and Work-Related Activity Element of Universal Credit; and whether her Department is responsible for any of the assumptions underpinning those forecasts.
Forecast number of claims for PIP and health components of Universal Credit are produced by the Department as part of overall expenditure forecasts provided to the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) at each fiscal event. DWP provides forecasts of benefit payments based on DWP assumptions agreed by OBR, alongside economic determinants, judgments and assumptions provided by the OBR. These forecasts are shared with HM Treasury in parallel with the Office for Budget Responsibility. Full details of the relationship between DWP, OBR and HMT can be found within the Memorandum of understanding between the Office for Budget Responsibility, HM Treasury, the Department for Work & Pensions, and HM Revenue & Customs.
On what date her Department first published a projection of the number of (a) Primary and (b) Secondary school places that would be needed in September 2024.
Estimates of the primary places needed to meet predicted demand for places in September 2024 were first published on 24 March 2022.Estimates of the secondary places needed to meet predicted demand for places in September 2024 were first published on 28 March 2019.The statutory duty to provide sufficient school places sits with local authorities.
Whether she plans to fund level 6 apprenticeships for all ages for 2027-28.
Level 6 apprenticeships are a core part of our apprenticeships offer and continue to be funded by government.
What her Department's definition is of expert teachers.
Recruiting and retaining high quality teachers is critical to the government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity and boost the life chances for every child. This is why the government’s Plan for Change has committed to recruiting an additional 6,500 new expert teachers in secondary and special schools, and in our colleges, over the course of this Parliament.The term ‘expert teacher’ focuses on the qualities and expertise it requires to be a high quality teacher and ensuring that teaching remains a valued profession. Quality teaching is essential to reduce the attainment gap and is the most significant in-school and college determinant of pupil outcomes.This is why the department has put in place initiatives to ensure teachers are better qualified and better trained. We are introducing legislation to ensure new teachers have or are working towards qualified teacher status, and to help further improve teacher quality from September 2025, we will also introduce the new initial teacher training and early career framework, replacing the current initial teacher training core content framework and the early career framework. We are also reviewing national professional qualification courses to align with the latest evidence and best practice.
If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of merging the Valuation Office Agency and HMRC when dealing with businesses, in the context of changes to Agricultural Property Relief.
On 28 April 2025, the government announced that the Valuation Office Agency’s functions will be brought into HMRC by the end of this financial year. This will combine the expertise and experience of both organisations in policy, valuations and programme delivery to support the government to deliver change more effectively. The move will improve the experience for taxpayers and businesses.
Whether the fall in the number of children at independent schools was in line with her Department’s projections.
Pupil numbers remain firmly within expectations and higher than 2021/22. As a percentage of the overall school population, private school pupils have remained the same, at 6.5%. It has been between 6% and 7% for the last two decades.
With reference to the Written Ministerial Statement of 22 May 2025, HCWS652, whether programmatic advertisements served to UK residents on non-UK sites will be covered by the regulations.
The Government has committed to implementing advertising restrictions for less healthy food and drink on television and online as part of its ambition to raise the healthiest generation of children ever. These restrictions are expected to remove up to 7.2 billion calories from United Kingdom children’s diets per year and deliver £2 billion in health benefits.As set out in the Communications Act 2003 (as amended by the Health and Care Act 2022), the online restrictions will apply to advertisements which are intended to be accessed principally by people in the United Kingdom. The Advertising Standards Authority, as the frontline regulator, will issue guidance to set out how this will be enforced. As also set out in legislation, video on demand (VOD) and Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) services that are under the jurisdiction of the UK, and therefore regulated by Ofcom, will be subject to the 9:00pm television watershed. Whereas VOD and IPTV services not regulated by Ofcom, and therefore outside of UK jurisdiction, will be subject to the 24-hour online restrictions.