Such actions would be concerning and potentially unlawful. The Equality Act 2010 provides that it is unlawful age discrimination for a service provider such as a car hire company to refuse, on age grounds, to lease a vehicle to an otherwise qualified person, unless the company can objectively justify its decision.

Where a company cannot, in those circumstances, show that their leasing policy is a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim, the affected person can bring a case to the County Court, or Sheriff’s Court in Scotland. The court can then determine whether the “objective justification test” has been satisfied, and may award costs and compensation where the individual wins their case. A range of guidance is available to service providers on their obligations and to service users on their rights, most notably on the Equality and Human Rights Commission’s website, but also through the Equality and Advisory and Support Service (EASS). The EASS can be contacted via its website - http://www.equalityadvisoryservice.com, or it can be contacted by telephone on 0808 800 0082 (or by text phone on 0808 800 0084).

Tax relief is available on donations to charity by individuals and organisations, and to charities for their activities, including investment income.

Estimates for tax reliefs on charitable donations by individuals are published in “UK charity tax relief statistics”. The table below is an extract from the latest edition, showing these estimates for the previous 5 tax years.

Extract from Table 1 and 2: Estimates for UK charities tax reliefs. Updated November 2021

Restricted to those reliefs for which accurate figures can be estimated

Information about tax relief on charities’ investment income, and on charitable donations by organisations is not readily available.

There is no evidence to suggest that businesses have either ceased trading or reduced their turnover to below the VAT threshold due to Making Tax Digital (MTD) for VAT.

Following the successful introduction of MTD for VAT-registered businesses with taxable turnover above the VAT threshold in April 2019, the Government has extended MTD for VAT to all other VAT-registered businesses from April 2022.

Independent research shows that businesses using MTD-compliant software for their VAT obligations are realising efficiency benefits and the resulting reduction in errors is leading to additional tax revenue.

There has been no further assessment made on the judgment of the US Court of Appeal in these cases.

The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) is a specialist prosecuting authority tackling the top level of serious or complex fraud, bribery, and corruption.

In 2012, the SFO commenced investigations into Libor manipulation which resulted in nine individuals – all holding significant positions in their respective banks – either pleading guilty or found guilty by a jury.

Many of these convictions have been reviewed by the Court of Appeal and none of them have been overturned.

The Government is reviewing the current law on the use of metric and imperial units of measurement. The purpose of the review is to identify how we can give more choice to businesses and consumers over the units of measurement they use, while ensuring that measurement information remains accurate.

As part of this review, we will carry out an early-stage consultation to gather views and to ensure that we have the best evidence available to make any changes. We would encourage the British Weights and Measures Association to share their views as part of that process.

The Senior Deputy Speaker has asked me, as Chair of the Services Committee, to respond on his behalf.

The full assessment of risks to the Parliamentary Estate, including the Victoria Tower, from the construction of the Holocaust Memorial can only be made once detailed design proposals are available to review.

Different construction and excavation plans will have different impacts and risks. We plan to install vibration monitors when and where appropriate.

It is expected that the Holocaust Memorial project team will engage with the House as a key stakeholder throughout the detailed design stage.

Excavations and piling work for the Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre will be carefully managed and monitored to ensure minimal impact on the surroundings. There is no expectation that these works will impact on Victoria Tower.

The Government is fully committed to the construction of the new national Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre at Victoria Tower Gardens. The new Holocaust Memorial will be the national focal point to honour the 6 million Jewish men, women and children who were murdered in the Holocaust, and other victims of Nazi persecution, including Roma, gay and disabled people. The co-located Learning Centre will also focus on subsequent genocides in Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia and Darfur.

The Government is fully committed to the construction of the new national Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre at Victoria Tower Gardens. The new Holocaust Memorial will be the national focal point to honour the 6 million Jewish men, women and children who were murdered in the Holocaust, and other victims of Nazi persecution, including Roma, gay and disabled people. The co-located Learning Centre will also focus on subsequent genocides in Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia and Darfur.

No assessment has been made of the CO2 emissions from incineration of fallen livestock.

Agricultural greenhouse gas emissions have reduced by 13 percent since 1990 (as of 2019), with many farms using more efficient agricultural practices. Land use, land use change and forestry continue to provide benefits in carbon sequestration. The Government recognises the importance of reducing emissions further in these sectors. The Net Zero Strategy and the 25 Year Environment Plan set out the Government’s ambition for how this will be achieved.

Rules regarding the disposal of fallen livestock are in place to protect animal and public health by preventing dangerous pathogens spreading disease into the soil, groundwater, or air. Some pathogens can persist for many decades in the environment and only tiny quantities are needed to infect animals. Therefore, strict regulations are in place as to why fallen livestock cannot be buried but must be disposed of at one of the following: knackers’ yard, hunt kennel, maggot farm, incinerator, or a renderer. We have no plans to consider the option of burying.

The Government's Resources and Waste Strategy, published in 2018, sets out how we will minimise the damage caused to our natural environment by reducing and managing waste safely and carefully. A key principle is to prevent waste in the first place, in keeping with the waste hierarchy, which ranks options for waste management according to their environmental impact. Where waste does occur, we need to manage it in the most efficient way possible. After waste prevention, priority goes to reuse, recycling, and then recovery. Disposal, for example in landfill, is generally regarded as the worst option.

We are therefore encouraging increased use of heat through Combined Heat and Power (CHP) from EfW as it almost doubles the fuel efficiency and can play a really valuable role in our transition to decarbonising the heating of homes and buildings. There is financial support from government for EfW plants and heat networks developers to do this in the form of the existing Heat Networks Investment Project and the upcoming Green Heat Network Fund. The Heat Network Investment Project is already funding CHP based EfW projects in Leeds, London and Cardiff that will supply low carbon heat to local homes and businesses.

Ofcom’s 2020 Connected Nations report shows that 99.4% of UK premises have access to decent broadband speeds (10 Mbps and over), and according to thinkbroadband.com (https://labs.thinkbroadband.com/local/uk) , 97% can get superfast speeds (24 Mbps and over). Ofcom’s 2021 report, UK Home Broadband Performance, which can be found here (https://www.ofcom.org.uk/research-and-data/telecoms-research/broadband-research/broadband-speeds/uk-home-broadband-performance-nov-2020) showed that the average superfast speeds in rural areas was 44.2 Mbps, compared to 48.6 Mbps in urban areas in 2020.

In order to protect consumers, Ofcom has put in place voluntary broadband speeds Codes of Practice with industry, which can be viewed here (https://www.ofcom.org.uk/phones-telecoms-and-internet/information-for-industry/codes-of-practice). Signatories include BT, EE, Plusnet, TalkTalk and Virgin Media. Those signed up to the Code of Practice are committed to having systems which can identify the cause of speed problems, and processes to ensure they are resolved. Furthermore, signatories must provide guaranteed minimum speeds to their customers, and if speeds drop below the promised levels, are required to improve performance within one month. If there is no improvement, consumers have the right to exit their contract without penalty. To ensure effectiveness of the code, Ofcom monitors compliance by the signatories, and where it finds issues, will engage with the provider to deliver prompt resolutions.

Azuma trains were designed to modern standards for comfort and safety. Before the trains were delivered to London North Eastern Railway (LNER), a number of commissioning tests were carried out ensuring the quality of the ride was of an acceptable standard and safety specifications had been met. The comfort and safety of the trains in service and the rectification of any operational problems is the responsibility of the train operator, LNER, working in partnership with the train supplier and, if required, the Office of Rail and Road.

UK legislation on Animal By-Products (ABPs) bans the feeding of all farmed animals with catering waste. This ban was introduced following the foot and mouth disease (FMD) outbreak in the UK in 2001, which is thought to have originated from the illegal feeding of pigs with untreated food waste. The outbreak resulted in the destruction of more than 10 million cattle and sheep and cost the UK economy billions of pounds.

Defra has undertaken studies which show that it might be possible for a range of food waste to be safely fed to livestock but that this is dependent on proper segregation of animal by-products from other material, meaning non-segregated material is an unacceptable disease risk. It is doubtful whether it would be economically viable for potential operators to comply with the controls we would consider necessary for the use of catering waste in feed for pigs.

The UK government has committed to working towards sending zero food waste to landfill by 2030 through its Clean Growth Strategy and Waste and Resources Strategy for England, published in 2018 - http://www.gov.uk/government/publications/resources-and-waste-strategy-for-england. The Environment Bill requires that food waste must be collected from households at least weekly. It should be sent for recycling or composting, ideally through anaerobic digestion which generates energy and produces fertiliser digestate. We will continue to discuss with industries and other stakeholders how we reduce waste and maximise recycling.

Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease belongs in the family of fatal brain diseases, Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies (TSEs). The family also includes BSE in cattle, scrapie in sheep and goats and Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) in deer. Scientific research indicates that new variant (nv) CJD is contracted via the consumption of products from cattle infected with BSE, the only TSE known to be transmissible to humans. There is no evidence that pigs and poultry can be affected by TSEs.

Legislation for the prevention and eradication of TSEs prohibits the feeding of protein of animal origin to farmed animals, with a few exceptions (e.g. milk). This is to prevent the transmission of TSEs through feeding. Processed animal protein (PAP) made from pig or poultry material is currently used as fertiliser or is exported but is not sent to landfill.

The Home Office has been in close contact with West Yorkshire Police, who worked with local partners to take swift action to protect the individual involved in recognition of the significant interest both locally, nationally and across various media outlets.

We expect the police to take appropriate and proportionate action in relation to any threats made, and we will continue to engage with them as appropriate in relation to this case.

We are committed to tackling those who spread views that promote violence and hatred against individuals and communities in our society, and must stand up to those who seek to undermine our fundamental values.

As an independent arm’s length body, it would be inappropriate for the Government to comment on the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC)’s handling of an individual case. However, the CCRC Casework Policy on Priority of Cases, available on its website, assigns cases which have been under review for more than two years as ‘higher priority’.

Budget allocations for 2021/22 for Arm’s Length Bodies such as the CCRC are yet to be decided. However, the decision will take into account – in consultation with the CCRC – the amount of funding it feels it needs to achieve its strategic goals for the year.

There has been substantial reform to the regulation of benchmarks since the 2012 LIBOR manipulation scandal. In 2013 the administration of LIBOR become a regulated activity, overseen by the FCA, and the government created a new criminal offence of knowingly or deliberately making false or misleading statements in relation to benchmarks. In 2016, the EU Benchmarks Regulation was introduced, regulating the administration, calculation and use of benchmarks.

The Financial Services Bill, currently before Parliament, amends the Benchmarks Regulation, to provide the Financial Conduct Authority with new and enhanced powers to oversee the orderly wind-down of critical benchmarks, such as LIBOR. The Bill also increases the maximum sentence for all criminal market abuse offences from 7 to 10 years, and this includes the offence of making misleading statements in relation to benchmarks.

The UK does not have an exchange rate target and the government does not have a desired level for sterling – the rate is set by the market.

Currency markets move up and down and it would not be appropriate for the Treasury to speculate on the impact of currency moves on the real economy. Any impact would necessarily adjust over time and be sensitive to the broader economic and financial context. The independent Monetary Policy Committee of the Bank of England has responsibility for monetary policy. Its primary objective, set out in law, is to maintain price stability, defined as a symmetric inflation target of 2 per cent, as measured by the twelve month increase in the Consumer Prices Index. The separation of fiscal and monetary policy is a key feature of the UK’s economic framework, so the Government does not comment on the conduct or effectiveness of monetary policy.

The pound currently sits 12% and 10% below the 10-year average exchange rate against the dollar and euro respectively.