Maximising the take-up of free school meals is important in ensuring that as many eligible children as possible benefit from a healthy and nutritious meal. The department aims to make it as simple as possible for schools and local authorities to determine eligibility.

To support this, an ‘Eligibility Checking System’ has been provided to make the checking process as quick and straightforward as possible for schools and local authorities.

The department has looked at this issue and considers there to be merit in local authorities exploring initiatives to maximise take up and to better understand the barriers that prevent such take up, whilst ensuring adherence to legal and data protection constraints. The department has not provided formal guidance to support these activities but continues to engage with key stakeholder on this issue.

Maximising the take-up of free school meals is important in ensuring that as many eligible children as possible benefit from a healthy and nutritious meal. The department aims to make it as simple as possible for schools and local authorities to determine eligibility.

To support this, an ‘Eligibility Checking System’ has been provided to make the checking process as quick and straightforward as possible for schools and local authorities.

The department has looked at this issue and considers there to be merit in local authorities exploring initiatives to maximise take up and to better understand the barriers that prevent such take up, whilst ensuring adherence to legal and data protection constraints. The department has not provided formal guidance to support these activities but continues to engage with key stakeholder on this issue.

The Government is committed to ensuring that genuine victims of modern slavery and human trafficking (MSHT) are identified promptly and provided with the support necessary to assist them in rebuilding their lives.

The rights of victims of MSHT in the UK are governed by both our domestic and international obligations, such as those protected under the Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings (ECAT), Modern Slavery Act 2015 (MSA), Illegal Migration Act 2023 (IMA) and Nationality and Borders Act 2022 (NABA). Section 45 of the MSA 2015 introduced a statutory defence for victims of modern slavery to protect them from prosecution for crimes they have been compelled or forced to commit as a result of their exploitation.

The Home Office funds the Modern Slavery Victim Care Contract (MSVCC), valued at £379m over its lifespan, to provide temporary needs-based support to enable adult victims to escape modern slavery, connect with long-term support, and reintegrate into the community.

In addition to the statutory support provided to children by the local authorities, the Independent Child Trafficking Guardianship service, which provides advice and support for potentially trafficked children, irrespective of nationality, covers two-thirds of the local authorities across England and Wales.

Under the Healthy Start scheme, pregnant women and children aged under four years old and over one years old, each receive £4.25 every week, and children under one years old each receive £8.50 every week. Healthy Start can be used to buy, or be put towards the cost of, fresh, frozen or tinned fruits and vegetables, fresh, dried and tinned pulses, milk and infant formula. The money is loaded onto a pre-paid payment card. Beneficiaries are not required to spend the money each week and it can be accumulated and put towards more expensive Healthy Start items, such as infant formula. The legislation states that only after 16 consecutive weeks of the pre-paid payment card not being used can the card be cancelled.

This flexibility in how and when the money can be used means that the total amount spent in any one month can exceed the amount added in that month, if beneficiaries have accumulated funds in previous months. The following table shows the latest data for how much was added onto Healthy Start cards and spent, per month, during 2023:

This flexibility also means that from month to month some of the money may remain on the payment cards without being used. During 2023 the average outstanding balance across all Healthy Start cards was £12.6 million. This equates to around £37 per household. If a card was unused for 16 weeks as permitted in the legislation, it would accumulate £68 for a pregnant woman or a family with a child over one and under four, or £136 for a family with twins under one years old. The average balance of £37 per household is less than 16 weeks’ entitlement, although these are aggregate figures and there will be variation across households. The following table shows the total outstanding balance across all Healthy Start cards, per month, during 2023:

Under the Healthy Start scheme, pregnant women and children aged under four years old and over one years old, each receive £4.25 every week, and children under one years old each receive £8.50 every week. Healthy Start can be used to buy, or be put towards the cost of, fresh, frozen or tinned fruits and vegetables, fresh, dried and tinned pulses, milk and infant formula. The money is loaded onto a pre-paid payment card. Beneficiaries are not required to spend the money each week and it can be accumulated and put towards more expensive Healthy Start items, such as infant formula. The legislation states that only after 16 consecutive weeks of the pre-paid payment card not being used can the card be cancelled.

This flexibility in how and when the money can be used means that the total amount spent in any one month can exceed the amount added in that month, if beneficiaries have accumulated funds in previous months. The following table shows the latest data for how much was added onto Healthy Start cards and spent, per month, during 2023:

This flexibility also means that from month to month some of the money may remain on the payment cards without being used. During 2023 the average outstanding balance across all Healthy Start cards was £12.6 million. This equates to around £37 per household. If a card was unused for 16 weeks as permitted in the legislation, it would accumulate £68 for a pregnant woman or a family with a child over one and under four, or £136 for a family with twins under one years old. The average balance of £37 per household is less than 16 weeks’ entitlement, although these are aggregate figures and there will be variation across households. The following table shows the total outstanding balance across all Healthy Start cards, per month, during 2023:

The Government is committed to tackling modern slavery to ensure that victims are provided with the support they need to begin rebuilding their lives and that those responsible are prosecuted.

The Home Office continues to fund specialist support for adult victims of modern slavery in England and Wales through the £379 million Modern Slavery Victim Care Contract and for children, who receive support through local authority safeguarding structures, we are also continuing to work with Barnardo’s to provide additional and tailored support through the Independent Child Trafficking Guardian service.

Since 2016, in addition to core police funding, we have invested £17.8 million in the Modern Slavery and Organised Immigration Crime Unit, a specialist police unit which supports all police forces in England and Wales to improve their response to modern slavery.

In addition, between 2016 and March 2023, the Home Office spent over £40.4 million through the Modern Slavery Fund to combat modern slavery overseas and reduce the threat of human trafficking to the UK. We continue to work across operational partners and the sector to deliver on modern slavery.

The Government does not hold the data requested. Our focus is on ensuring that all those who lost their Post Office roles or experienced other losses as a result of the Horizon scandal receive the compensation they deserve.

The extent of Fujitsu's culpability for the scandal will not be clear until the Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry reports. However Ministers have made clear that the taxpayer should not have to meet all the costs of the scandal. In the light of such comments Fujitsu have recently apologised publicly for their role in the scandal and have accepted that they have a moral obligation to contribute to its costs. The Government welcomes these statements and will continue to discuss matters with Fujitsu.

Like business software in general, accounting software is not directly regulated in the UK. The directors of a UK company must prepare accounts that give a true and fair view of its assets, liabilities, financial position and profit or loss. This builds on requirements that the company keeps adequate records for preparation of accounts. It is for the company to ensure software supporting these requirements does not cause them to fail to be met. Where accounting software is not fit for purpose, a company may have contractual remedies for breach of quality by the supplier, depending on the contract terms.

Over 2 million pupils are currently eligible for benefits-related free school meals (FSM). This includes pupils attending a local authority maintained, academy or free school nursery, as long as they are either in full-time education or receive education both before and after lunch and meet the benefits-related FSM eligibility criteria.

Additionally, close to 1.3 million infants receive free and nutritious meals under the universal infant FSM policy (UIFSM).

The department does not currently have plans to change the existing eligibility conditions for FSM or UIFSM. As such, the department has not made an estimate of the associated costs of providing FSM to all registered pupils at maintained nursery schools in England as well as to children in receipt of relevant funded early years education. The department continues to keep eligibility of FSM under review.

DWP values the role played by members of the public in reporting suspected fraud and takes appropriate action in relation to all such allegations. However, we do not hold information regarding the number of such cases suspended or closed whilst a fraud investigation is ongoing.

A claim would only be suspended whilst investigations are ongoing where there is strong intelligence/evidence that benefit entitlement is in doubt. The claimant would be informed of the specific reason for this, with all decisions on suspension being made in accordance with legislation and case law.

Such decisions are not taken lightly but are important in ensuring not only that losses to the public purse as a result of suspected fraud are minimised, but also in ensuring that the individual concerned does not incur potentially large benefit overpayments that they might later be required to repay.

The Infected Blood Support Schemes in the United Kingdom offer certain discretionary payments following the death of a registered beneficiary, some of which may be available to support surviving adult children, for example, estates of the bereaved can apply for a £10,000 one-off bereavement payment to help with the immediate costs associated with the loss of a loved one.

The various Infected Blood Support Schemes in the United Kingdom have provided ex gratia support payments rather than compensation. Interim compensation payments were made by the Infected Blood Interim Compensation Payment Scheme administered on behalf of the Government by the administrators of the UK infected blood support schemes (and in Scotland by the Scottish Ministers in conjunction with the administrators of the Scottish Infected Blood Support Scheme).

The information requested concerning support scheme payments is not available.

The various Infected Blood Support Schemes in the United Kingdom have provided ex gratia support payments rather than compensation. Interim compensation payments were made by the Infected Blood Interim Compensation Payment Scheme administered on behalf of the Government by the administrators of the UK infected blood support schemes (and in Scotland by the Scottish Ministers in conjunction with the administrators of the Scottish Infected Blood Support Scheme).

The information requested concerning support scheme payments is not available.

The various Infected Blood Support Schemes in the United Kingdom have provided ex gratia support payments rather than compensation. Interim compensation payments were made by the Infected Blood Interim Compensation Payment Scheme administered on behalf of the Government by the administrators of the UK infected blood support schemes (and in Scotland by the Scottish Ministers in conjunction with the administrators of the Scottish Infected Blood Support Scheme).

The information requested concerning support scheme payments is not available.

The Infected Blood Inquiry’s terms of reference include the task to “ascertain, as far as practicable, the likely numbers of people who have been infected (directly or indirectly) in consequence of: a) the use of infected blood; and b) the use of infected blood products”.

To this end, the Inquiry’s Statistical Expert Group has published two reports. The first, published in September 2022, contains estimated numbers of people infected by blood and blood products as well as estimated numbers of those people who subsequently died; however, this excludes those with Hepatitis B and secondary infections. The second supplementary report, published in July 2023, updates the Committee’s estimates of the numbers of people who died because of their infection. Due to its size, a copy of the first report has been placed in the Library. A copy of the second report is attached.

In July, the Inquiry published a note on interim compensation payments made on behalf of the Government by the four national Infected Blood Support Schemes. The note shows the number of people registered and payments made as of July 2023; however, information on the numbers of eligible people is not available. A copy of the note is attached.

The Infected Blood Inquiry’s terms of reference include the task to “ascertain, as far as practicable, the likely numbers of people who have been infected (directly or indirectly) in consequence of: a) the use of infected blood; and b) the use of infected blood products”.

To this end, the Inquiry’s Statistical Expert Group has published two reports. The first, published in September 2022, contains estimated numbers of people infected by blood and blood products as well as estimated numbers of those people who subsequently died; however, this excludes those with Hepatitis B and secondary infections. The second supplementary report, published in July 2023, updates the Committee’s estimates of the numbers of people who died because of their infection. Due to its size, a copy of the first report has been placed in the Library. A copy of the second report is attached.

In July, the Inquiry published a note on interim compensation payments made on behalf of the Government by the four national Infected Blood Support Schemes. The note shows the number of people registered and payments made as of July 2023; however, information on the numbers of eligible people is not available. A copy of the note is attached.

Information on estimates of Income Tax relief on pension contributions and investment income of pension funds can be found online in Table 6 of the Private pension statistics publication. Estimates for the tax years 2018 to 2019 to 2020 to 2021 have been reproduced in Table 1 below.

Table 1: Total pension Income Tax relief for tax years 2018 to 2019 to 2020 to 2021.

*Improvements in the estimation methodology for the tax years 2019 to 2020 onwards mean that estimates for the tax year 2018 to 2019 are not directly comparable to those in later years.

Estimates for the 2021 to 2022 tax year will be published on 27^th September 2023. Estimates for the 2022 to 2023 tax year will be published in Summer 2024.

HMRC does not hold complete information on whether contributions have been made to personal or occupational pension schemes.

Information on the National Employment Savings Trust is exempt from release by HMRC under the Commissioners for Revenue and Customs Act 2005 (CRCA).

Information on estimates of Income Tax relief on pension contributions and investment income of pension funds can be found online in Table 6 of the Private pension statistics publication. Estimates for the tax years 2018 to 2019 to 2020 to 2021 have been reproduced in Table 1 below.

Table 1: Total pension Income Tax relief for tax years 2018 to 2019 to 2020 to 2021.

*Improvements in the estimation methodology for the tax years 2019 to 2020 onwards mean that estimates for the tax year 2018 to 2019 are not directly comparable to those in later years.

Estimates for the 2021 to 2022 tax year will be published on 27^th September 2023. Estimates for the 2022 to 2023 tax year will be published in Summer 2024.

HMRC does not hold complete information on whether contributions have been made to personal or occupational pension schemes.

Information on the National Employment Savings Trust is exempt from release by HMRC under the Commissioners for Revenue and Customs Act 2005 (CRCA).

The territorial extent, age requirements, and availability of latest data vary by policy area. Pensioner benefit spending is devolved to Northern Ireland, whereas transport and healthcare spending is devolved to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Noting these points, the UK Government spends around £150bn per year on pensioner benefits.

The forecast of 2023-24 expenditure on all pensioner benefits in Great Britain can be found in the table below. Deferred pension figures are captured in the basic State Pension, new State Pension, and Lump Sum Payment figures.

Source: Spring 2023 Benefit Expenditure Outturn and Forecast Tables on GOV.UK

The latest available data on dental care for pensioners in England is from 2022-23 and can be found below. However, there is no published 2022-23 data on prescription or eye test expenditure as any information provided would be based on internal DHSC analysis and modelling, which could change.

Source: NHS Dental Statistics: 2022-23

The latest available data on free travel for pensioners in England is from 2021-22 can be found below. This figure also includes spend on travel for individuals with disabilities.

Source: Concessionary Travel data from the Bus Statistics data tables on GOV.UK.