Legislation was laid on 21 November to ensure householders do not face financial barriers to dispose of small-scale DIY waste at Household Waste Recycling Centres (HWRCs). The legislation will come into force from 31 December 2023, subject to parliamentary procedure.

Local authorities are responsible for the continuous professional development of their workforces, including social workers.

Social workers are critical to the functioning of the wider children’s social care system. They must meet the professional standards set by Social Work England to practise as a social worker. In relation to the altruism of those seeking to foster and adopt, the standards recognise the importance of family and community networks, requiring social workers to work in partnership with these.

To support child and family social workers to continuously improve their practice, the department funds professional development for around 4,000 social workers each year. The new Early Career Framework for child and family social workers will significantly extend the training and support they receive in the early stages of their career, helping to equip them with the knowledge skills they need to support children and families.

Local authorities are responsible for the continuous professional development of their workforces, including social workers.

Social workers are critical to the functioning of the wider children’s social care system. They must meet the professional standards set by Social Work England to practise as a social worker. In relation to the altruism of those seeking to foster and adopt, the standards recognise the importance of family and community networks, requiring social workers to work in partnership with these.

To support child and family social workers to continuously improve their practice, the department funds professional development for around 4,000 social workers each year. The new Early Career Framework for child and family social workers will significantly extend the training and support they receive in the early stages of their career, helping to equip them with the knowledge skills they need to support children and families.

While publicly owned, the Post Office operates at arm’s length from Government. Government sets the high-level parameters for the Post Office, but it is the Post Office Chief Executive, together with the Board of Directors, who are responsible for running Post Office day-to-day and the company has the commercial freedom to deliver the branch network within the parameters set by Government.

Government continues to protect the branch network by setting minimum access criteria, and protects services by setting minimum services to be provided at post offices across the country. Decisions about individual branches are made by Post Office Limited.

The Environment Agency is responsible for monitoring chemicals in the water environment in England. This includes drugs that are typically associated with discharges of treated waste water, including pharmaceuticals, substances used in personal care products and veterinary medicines. Data can be found at: Defra Data Services Platform.

Analysis conducted by Government suggests it would be technically feasible to install a heat pump in around 90% of British homes, based on analysis of homes’ current energy efficiency and internal electrical limit. Practical considerations, like space availability or compliance with planning regulations, may limit where heat pumps can be installed, but we are supporting innovation to develop solutions to these challenges.

The Government is investing £6.6 billion over this Parliament towards clean heat and improving energy efficiency in buildings, including the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, Home Upgrade Grant and Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund, which support the installation of heat pumps.

The Department plans to publish the Biomass Strategy before summer recess.

The Government meets regularly with the energy sector to monitor levels of global production and supply of renewable liquid fuels.

The Government expects heat pumps will be the primary technology for decarbonising off-grid buildings. The Government recognises that not all off-grid properties will be suitable for a heat pump and there will be a role for alternative low carbon technologies where heat pumps cannot be used.

Whilst there are no plans to publish anything further on this, the ongoing improvements of the online property and affairs applications process at the Court of Protection are iterative and include ongoing development of the online applications process, user testing, reviewing and revising the court forms and supporting guidance and clearer information on Gov.UK. Forms required for paper applications are also under review and revision.

Initial improvements were rolled out for all court users in February 2023, resulting in application waiting times being reduced from 24 weeks to 8 weeks.

The Government is currently investigating what role renewable liquid fuels such as Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil could play in the future low carbon heating mix. As sustainable biomass is a limited resource, the Government believes that the use of biofuels in heating is likely to be limited to properties where heat pumps cannot be used. The Government will prioritise its use in sectors that offer the greatest opportunity to reduce emissions, and where there are fewest options to decarbonise through alternative low carbon technologies.

The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency operates a 12-week booking window for approved driving instructor (ADI) part 2 [driving ability] tests, and part 3 [instructional ability] tests. A ‘book to hold’ system is in place for people booking a test outside of that window. The book to hold list is assessed daily to monitor demand.

In Plymouth, as of 15 March 2023:

• there is availability for the ADI part 2 test within the booking window;
• no part 2 tests booked to hold; and
• one part 3 test booked to hold.

Where a property is available for short-term lets for 140 days or more in a year, it will be assessed for business rates, rather than council tax, and would not be liable for a council tax premium.

From April 2023, short term lets will need to be able to demonstrate 70 days of actual short-term letting activity, that they were available for 140 days in the previous year, and will be available for 140 days in the forthcoming year, in order to be liable for business rates.

I have not had any discussions with Ofcom on the resumption of Royal Mail’s international delivery services, however the Government welcomes Royal Mail’s recent announcement that it has resumed international export services to all destinations.

There are no current plans to increase the flat rate of child maintenance payments. The child maintenance calculation was designed to be fair for the paying parent, while ensuring they contribute a significant proportion of their income to support their children.

A banding system ensures that the very lowest earners pay a flat rate of £7 per week, and those with no income pay nothing. Those that can afford to make a bigger contribution do so at a rate that reflects what they earn.

Cafcass’ domestic abuse practice guidance consists of a practice pathway and a guidance document that provides social work practitioners with a structured approach to risk assessment of domestic abuse in the family court. This was updated in May 2021 alongside a programme of training in its use for all practice staff. The materials can be accessed here: Resources for assessing domestic abuse - Cafcass - Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service.

The practice pathway guidance provides practitioners with a range of assessment tools to use when domestic abuse is part of a family’s circumstances. The aim of this guidance is to ensure that the safety and wellbeing of the child at the centre of proceedings; to promote the best interests of the child and offer a safe recommendation to the court; to work in a trauma focused, respectful and responsive manner; to assess the impact on the child of their lived experience of domestic abuse and to look for strengths in the family and community to promote safety.

My hon. Friend raises two important themes. The first relates to how many are in training, and I think it is around 4,000. We have boosted the number of GP training places and we have looked at medical schools as a specific issue. Also, he will have seen some of the changes being made around pensions in order to better retain staff, mindful of those clinicians who are leaving the profession, and further discussions are taking place with Treasury colleagues in that regard.

Section 102 of the Environment Act 2021, the general duty to conserve and enhance biodiversity, came into force on 1st January 2023 and applies to National Park Authorities and to Local Authorities which host Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty partnerships.

I refer the hon Member to the statement I made in the House on 15 December where I announced that the moral case for compensation was formally accepted. I also set out the work being carried out across government in consideration of the compensation framework study - which included specific reference to those groups who were not able to claim interim compensation.

This work is intended to ensure that the Government is prepared to act swiftly in response to Sir Brian Langstaff’s final report when it is delivered.

Electrolytic (‘green’) hydrogen is essential to meeting the UK's net zero target. Government analysis suggests that by 2030 the sector could support over 12,000 jobs and unlock over £9 billion in private investment. The UK is aiming to develop up to 10GW of low carbon hydrogen generation by 2030, with at least half from electrolytic hydrogen, subject to affordability and value for money.

The Government has set out a comprehensive package of support, combining upfront capital funding with a long-term business model, to instigate electrolytic hydrogen projects. The Government aims to run yearly electrolytic allocation rounds for the Hydrogen Business Model.

NHS England determines overall policy and strategy for integrated care boards (ICBs), including access to medication and treatments. ICBs are responsible for commissioning and ensuring the healthcare needs of local communities are met. Providers are required to ensure statutory responsibilities are met for the delivery of safe, effective, efficient, high quality services.