Ian Sollom MP: written questions
299 published records · newest first.
Written questions
Chemistry: EducationDepartment for EducationTabled 11 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 30783More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to improve chemistry education; and whether she has plans for the subject to focus on (a) green skills, (b) digital skills and (c) transferrable skills alongside technical knowledge.
Answer: High and rising school standards are at the heart of the government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity and give every child the best start in life. The government also recognises that science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) su...
Answered 19 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordSchools: UniformsTreasuryTabled 11 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 30733More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 30 January 2025 to Question 26623 on Schools: Uniforms, what is the evidential basis to support that (a) expanding the existing relief may not reduce the price of school uniforms and (b) VA
Answer: There is a wide range of academic research into how VAT changes affect prices, which supports the conclusion that pass-through is typically only partial. This includes, for example, an International Monetary Fund study which examined the pass through of V...
Answered 24 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordDental Services: St Neots and Mid CambridgeshireDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 11 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 30720More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to support NHS dentistry in St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire.
Answer: The Government plans to tackle the challenges for patients trying to access National Health Service dental care with a rescue plan to provide 700,000 more urgent dental appointments and recruit new dentists to the areas that need them most. To rebuild den...
Answered 17 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordSkills EnglandDepartment for EducationTabled 10 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 30449More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many times she has met with the Interim Chair of Skills England since their appointment.
Answer: Since their appointment in July, the Interim Chair of Skills England, Richard Pennycook, has met my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education six times and my noble Friend, the Minister for Skills five times. In addition, the Interim Chair h...
Answered 4 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordApprenticesDepartment for EducationTabled 6 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 29641More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to support intermediate and advanced apprenticeships.
Answer: This government has a driving mission to break down barriers to opportunity. Meeting the skills needs of the next decade is central to delivering all of the government's five missions on economic growth, opportunity for all, a stronger NHS, safer streets,...
Answered 26 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordHome EducationDepartment for EducationTabled 6 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 29634More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the oral contribution of the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Education of 30 January 2025 in the Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill Public Bill Committee (Eighth sitting), Offici
Answer: New section 436C(1) of the Education Act 1996 lists the information legally required to be provided by parents of children who are eligible for inclusion on a local authority’s ‘Children Not in School’ register. This information is their child’s name, dat...
Answered 20 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordHome EducationDepartment for EducationTabled 6 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 29633More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the oral contribution of the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Education during the Eighth sitting of the Public Bill Committee on the Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill on Thursda
Answer: New section 436C(1) of the Education Act 1996 lists the information legally required to be provided by parents of children who are eligible for inclusion on a local authority’s ‘Children Not in School’ register. This information is their child’s name, dat...
Answered 20 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordHome EducationDepartment for EducationTabled 6 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 29632More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether parents will be legally obliged to provide all information listed in inserted section 436C in Clause 25 of the Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill to local authorities.
Answer: New section 436C(1) of the Education Act 1996 lists the information legally required to be provided by parents of children who are eligible for inclusion on a local authority’s ‘Children Not in School’ register. This information is their child’s name, dat...
Answered 20 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordSkills England: AccountabilityDepartment for EducationTabled 4 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 28623More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure that Skills England is accountable to Parliament.
Answer: It is intended for Skills England to become an Executive Agency of the Department for Education. As with all other Executive Agencies, Skills England will be required to have robust governance arrangements and clear lines of accountability, including to p...
Answered 12 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordMulti-sport Grassroots Facilities ProgrammeDepartment for Culture, Media and SportTabled 4 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 28619More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 3 February 2025 to Question 26625 on Multi-sport Grassroots Facilities Programme, if she will publish the 521 projects that remain incomplete.
Answer: The Government published a list of funded Multi-Sport Grassroots Facilities projects on 8th October 2024 on Gov.uk. The lists can be found here and include funded projects that are either due to start, in progress or complete.We are committed to publishin...
Answered 13 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordHigher Education: MathematicsDepartment for EducationTabled 3 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 28208More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent discussions she has had with universities on the importance maintaining the provision of maths.
Answer: My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, recognises the critical importance of mathematics provision at universities. English universities are independent, autonomous institutions and are therefore free to choose which courses they run....
Answered 11 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordHigher Education: MathematicsDepartment for EducationTabled 3 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 28207More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to maintain provision of maths at universities of all tariff levels.
Answer: My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, recognises the critical importance of mathematics provision at universities. English universities are independent, autonomous institutions and are therefore free to choose which courses they run....
Answered 11 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordHigher Education: MathematicsDepartment for EducationTabled 3 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 28206More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the importance of maths provision at universities of all tariff levels.
Answer: My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, recognises the critical importance of mathematics provision at universities. English universities are independent, autonomous institutions and are therefore free to choose which courses they run....
Answered 11 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordAdoption and Special Guardianship Support FundDepartment for EducationTabled 29 Jan 2025AnsweredUIN 27495More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department will continue funding the Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund after March 2025.
Answer: The department will shortly be finalising business planning decisions on how we will allocate the budget for the next financial year. All decisions regarding the Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund are being made as part of these discussions, a...
Answered 20 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordHigher Education: FinanceDepartment for EducationTabled 28 Jan 2025AnsweredUIN 26979More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to protect the financial viability of English universities, in the context of falling numbers of international students applying for Higher Education in England.
Answer: The department acknowledges the challenging financial environment faced by the higher education (HE) sector. The Office for Students' (OfS) latest report on the HE sector's financial health, which was published in November, stated that the sector's financ...
Answered 18 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordOverseas StudentsDepartment for EducationTabled 28 Jan 2025AnsweredUIN 26978More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of recent trends in the number of international students studying in England on the financial viability of universities.
Answer: The department acknowledges the challenging financial environment faced by the higher education (HE) sector. The Office for Students' (OfS) latest report on the HE sector's financial health, which was published in November, stated that the sector's financ...
Answered 18 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordUniversities: FinanceDepartment for EducationTabled 28 Jan 2025AnsweredUIN 26977More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to support the financial viability of universities.
Answer: The department acknowledges the challenging financial environment faced by the higher education (HE) sector. The Office for Students' (OfS) latest report on the HE sector's financial health, which was published in November, stated that the sector's financ...
Answered 18 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordMulti-sport Grassroots Facilities ProgrammeDepartment for Culture, Media and SportTabled 27 Jan 2025AnsweredUIN 26625More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many Multi-Sport Grassroots Facilities Programme projects have (a) been completed and (b) remain incomplete since the start of this Parliament.
Answer: Since 9 July 2024, a total of 637 Multi-Sport Grassroots Facilities projects have been completed across the UK. Projects funded include new and upgraded artificial grass pitches, clubhouses, changing rooms, floodlights, and pitch maintenance equipment.As ...
Answered 3 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordSchools: UniformsTreasuryTabled 27 Jan 2025AnsweredUIN 26623More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment her Department has made of the cost to families of VAT on school uniform for 14-16 year olds.
Answer: VAT is a broad-based tax on consumption, and the 20 per cent standard rate applies to most goods and services. The UK’s generous regime for children’s clothing costs approximately £2 billion a year, and we are one of only two countries in the OECD – out o...
Answered 30 Jan 2025
Original Parliament recordSchool Rebuilding Programme: FinanceDepartment for EducationTabled 8 Jan 2025AnsweredUIN 22776More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much funding has been allocated in total for the school rebuilding programme.
Answer: School buildings are integral to high and rising standards and need to be fit for the future.We have committed to rebuilding or refurbishing 518 schools and sixth form colleges through the School Rebuilding Programme (SRP).The Autumn Budget 2024 included ...
Answered 23 Jan 2025
Original Parliament recordSchool Rebuilding ProgrammeDepartment for EducationTabled 8 Jan 2025AnsweredUIN 22775More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the cost to the public purse has been of the school rebuilding programme broken down by spending on (a) completed projects and (b) ongoing projects.
Answer: School buildings are integral to high and rising standards and need to be fit for the future.We have committed to rebuilding or refurbishing 518 schools and sixth form colleges through the School Rebuilding Programme (SRP).The Autumn Budget 2024 included ...
Answered 24 Jan 2025
Original Parliament recordSchool Rebuilding ProgrammeDepartment for EducationTabled 8 Jan 2025AnsweredUIN 22774More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many and what proportion of school rebuilding projects have (a) been completed, (b) been completed within their intended time frame and (c) have passed their original deadline.
Answer: As of 31 December 2024, buildings have been handed over at 23 schools. Of these, demolition and ground works are complete at nine schools, with a further six forecast to reach practical completion this financial year.The programme started in 2020, with th...
Answered 23 Jan 2025
Original Parliament recordSchool Rebuilding ProgrammeDepartment for EducationTabled 7 Jan 2025AnsweredUIN 22407More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, which contractors have been chosen to carry out works under the school rebuilding programme; and on what criteria these contractors were chosen.
Answer: The department procures contractors from its frameworks to deliver the vast majority of projects, including the School Rebuilding Programme. Information on the contractors on its frameworks, including the criteria for selecting contractors for individual ...
Answered 20 Jan 2025
Original Parliament recordSchools: BuildingsDepartment for EducationTabled 7 Jan 2025AnsweredUIN 22406More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many temporary classrooms are currently in use in schools across England, broken down by number in use in (a) primary schools (b) secondary schools and (c) special schools.
Answer: It is the responsibility of those who run schools, academy trusts, local authorities and voluntary aided school bodies, to manage the maintenance of their schools and alert the department if there is a concern with a building. Local authorities and academ...
Answered 23 Jan 2025
Original Parliament recordDisability Aids: RecyclingDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 18 Dec 2024AnsweredUIN 21172More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to (a) promote patient awareness of walking aid return and reuse schemes, (b) promote NHS staff awareness of the possibility of establishing those schemes and (c
Answer: The National Health Service is committed to reducing its environmental impact, and in 2020, published its Delivering a Net Zero NHS strategy, committing to reach net zero by 2045.The NHS recognises that reusing walking aids, such as crutches, frames, and ...
Answered 6 Jan 2025
Original Parliament record
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