It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before prorogation.

The family leave guidance published by NHS Employers in October 2020 sets out what an employer may consider should a member of staff who is currently on family leave -maternity, adoption, or shared parental leave - indicate that they would like to return to work early or for a period of time to support the National Health Service during the pandemic.

Employers will need to carry out a risk assessment and provide appropriate facilities in accordance with the Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992 for any employee returning from a period of maternity leave, in particular mothers who are breastfeeding.

The term ‘specialty and associate specialist’ refers to doctors employed on a number of different medical contracts. They generally require at least four years full time post-graduate training at least two of which must be in a specialty training programme. This group of staff are employed across all specialties and routinely carry out a range of medical functions appropriate to their level of expertise.

We do not collect data on vacancies for doctors by grade. The pay and contract reform agreement delivers a number of changes which will contribute to the improvement of NHS services - for example, reducing the hours paid at enhanced rates will improve flexible service provision and introducing a new senior grade will enable employers to achieve the best skill mix for multi-disciplinary teams. The total cost of the agreement will depend on the number of doctors opting to transfer to the new contracts. In the first year of operation we expect an average cost of 3% per full time equivalent for those who transfer to the new terms and conditions.

I refer the honourable member to the answer given for PQ 167248.

Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust is giving all its staff an extra day’s leave this year to thank them for their sacrifices during the pandemic. I am sure that is a welcome gesture, but staff in Nottingham and across England deserve so much more. Real-terms pay in the NHS is already below 2010 levels, and we went into the pandemic facing serious staff shortages, with 40,000 nurse vacancies and 7,000 doctor vacancies. What will the Government’s proposed real-terms pay cut do to vacancy rates?

I am very glad to say that the numbers that the hon. Lady uses are out of date. We have seen a very significant increase in the number of nurses and other staff in the NHS. In fact, we have a record number of nurses in the NHS. For the very first time, we have more than 300,000 nurses in the NHS. We have seen over 10,000 more nurses over the last year alone. Of course, the mission to work caring for others and looking after the health of the nation in the NHS has never been more important, and I am delighted that so many people are rising to that, because we have record numbers of people in training too.

In 2016, the Government set ambitions through the Transport Infrastructure Skills Strategy (TISS) to increase apprenticeships in road and rail client bodies to help address skills shortages in the transport sector, ensuring that the transport sector has the capacity and capability to deliver planned investment and to increase diversity.

Over the past four years, the Strategic Transport Apprenticeship Taskforce (STAT) has worked to identify skills shortages across the transport sector. To understand the likely impact of changes to migration policy post-Brexit, STAT responded to the Migration Advisory Committee’s Call for Evidence on Salary Thresholds (2019) and the Shortage Occupation List (2017 and (2020). This included employer led evidence of the potential impacts of Brexit on the transport industry.

The Department has received representations from sector stakeholders including Logistics UK which publishes an annual Skills and Employment Report and a monthly Logistics Performance Tracker. The Road Haulage Association also continue to make representations to government.

The labour shortages in the sector are longstanding. There has been no recent systematic assessment by the department of the extent of the skills shortage. Assessments have been made by Logistics UK.

We are working with the Department for Work and Pensions and Jobcentre Plus to ensure that jobseekers can find employment or training in the industry as quickly as possible.

We are also working with the Department for Education in supporting the logistics sector make the most of the opportunities provided through the apprenticeship levy.

I refer the honourable member to PQ 169973 in relation to the number of jobs started and to PQ 165550 for regional vacancies.

I refer the honourable member to PQ 169973 in relation to the number of jobs started.

We are unable to publish data below regional level, I refer the honourable member to PQ 165610.

We recognise that a number of education leavers will face challenges gaining employment due to the ongoing adverse impact on the UK labour market and economy of the COVID-19 outbreak.

Recent data from the Office for National Statistics shows that unemployment amongst graduates in the UK has been consistently lower than the total unemployed. The unemployment rate for recent graduates remains below the youth (16-24 years of age) unemployment rate. This data can be found here: https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/employmentandemployeetypes/articles/graduateslabourmarketoutcomesduringthecoronaviruscovid19pandemicoccupationalswitchesandskillmismatch/2021-03-08. We do not hold data about graduate-specific job vacancies and how these vary by region.

The government is doing all it can to help people who are at the start of their career journey. The Department for Work and Pensions is aiming to have a nationwide network of 27,000 Work Coaches in place by the end of March 2021 to support jobseekers and match them with employers who are recruiting.

As part of the government’s skills recovery package Plan for Jobs announced on 8 July 2020, we are investing an additional £32 million in the National Careers Service up to March 2022. This investment will provide individual careers advice for 269,000 more people whose jobs or learning have been affected by COVID-19. On 29 September 2020 we added additional courses to The Skills Toolkit covering digital, numeracy and employability skills. The new content includes a range of courses to develop ‘work readiness’ skills that employers report they value in their new recruits.

The Department for Education is working with Universities UK, the Association of Graduate Careers Advisory Services, the Institute of Student Employers, the Office for Students, and the sector to understand what more we can do to support graduates who are looking to enter the labour market or continue their studies at this challenging time.

Apprenticeships are more important than ever in helping businesses to recruit the right people and develop the skills they need. In recognition of the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak we introduced a number of flexibilities to ensure that apprenticeships can continue where possible. This includes flexibilities to off-the-job training to support remote learning and making it possible for furloughed apprentices to continue their apprenticeships and undertake end-point assessments.

To help employers across the country offer new apprenticeships we have increased the duration and level of incentive payments. Employers will be able to claim £3,000 for each apprentice they take on as a new employee between 1 April 2021 and 30 September 2021 under the government’s Plan for Jobs. Further information can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/incentive-payments-for-hiring-a-new-apprentice.

Apprenticeships starts in the first quarter of 2020/21 academic year (reported to date) in the requested geographies, and the equivalent 2019/20 academic year figures are shown in the attached table.

The latest data on apprenticeships and traineeships is published here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/apprenticeships-and-traineeships.

I refer the honourable member to the answer given for PQ 157063.

Over 150,000 jobs have been approved for the Department of Work and Pensions’ Kickstart scheme. Over 50,000 of these jobs have been made available for young people, including almost 6,000 jobs started.

Once an application to the Department of Work and Pensions’ Kickstart Scheme has been approved, along with their grant agreement, the gateway or employer receives the necessary documentation and guidance to create their job advert, that will be uploaded onto the Universal Credit system and made visible only to DWP staff. Young people are then matched and referred to the Kickstart jobs by their Work Coach who supports them in selecting and applying for these jobs - including giving them access to the vacancy information.

The length of time a job is advertised is flexible to meet the employer’s needs, including how many referrals they would like and how long the vacancy will be live for. General information is available on gov.uk.

While the Department does not hold information on the adequacy of staffing levels in the mammography and radiology workforce, we are aware of collaborative work undertaken by NHS England and Improvement, Public Health England and Health Education England to ensure that staffing levels are adequate.

While the Department does not hold information on the adequacy of staffing levels in the mammography and radiology workforce, we are aware of collaborative work undertaken by NHS England and Improvement, Public Health England and Health Education England to ensure that staffing levels are adequate.

On 31 January, the UK launched the new Hong Kong British National (Overseas) (BN(O)) route for those with BN(O) status and their eligible family members to come to the UK to live, study and work in virtually any capacity, on a pathway to citizenship.

There is no cap on numbers on the BN(O) route, nor are there any requirements for BN(O) status holders to have a job offer in order to apply. As such, those on the BN(O) route will be able to work in virtually any capacity (with the exception of working as a professional sportsperson or sports coach) whilst in the UK, including in the sectors and occupations highlighted in the most recent Employer Skills Survey.

The Employer Skills Survey collects data on how many vacancies are proving hard to fill due to a lack of applicants with the right skills, experience, or qualifications – these are called skill-shortage vacancies (SSVs). The most recent survey conducted in 2019 found that 24% of all vacancies were SSVs. By sector, the rates of SSVs were highest in the Construction and Manufacturing industries, with both sectors reporting that 36% of their vacancies were SSVs. By occupation group, the Skilled Trades had the highest rates of SSVs (48% of vacancies were classed as SSVs). The three specific occupations with the highest rates of SSVs were Carpenters and Joiners, Welding trades, and Metal machining setters.

These findings from the Employer Skills Survey can be found at the following link: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/936489/ESS_2019_Skills_Needs_Report_Nov20.pdf.

Departments across Government are working together closely to ensure that necessary support and guidance is provided for BN(O) status holders who take advantage of the new visa route.

We want the UK to be the first choice for the highly skilled both from Hong Kong and around the world. This can be seen in the focus on high skilled migration in the Budget, including plans to modernise the immigration system and make it easier to use, as well as new routes for high skilled talent. We also want to ensure the UK is seen as open and welcoming to talent by those who are thinking of moving. At this stage we are considering those coming to the UK from Hong Kong as part of the wider picture of high skilled migration.

The Government announced on 8 March its intention to bring forward legislation to change the mandatory retirement age for all judicial office holders, including magistrates, to 75 – a step which I know has been welcomed by many magistrates

We will also be legislating to allow retired magistrates to apply to return to the bench where there is a business need.

On 1 April 2020, there were 13,177 magistrates. We are currently updating our modelling to assess the impact of a change to the retirement age on our recruitment requirements in each region for 2021/22 and beyond.

Hong Kong is not on the World Health Organization’s Workforce Support and Safeguard List, 2020. Therefore, the Department considers Hong Kong a suitable country for supplying the National Health Service with qualified health workers. Agencies are working in Hong Kong and some nurses have already joined the NHS.