Contributions
281 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDStudent Loan SystemI know the Chair of the Education Committee is looking at these issues and the Government will be very interested in that work. We will set out the details of our work soon. My…02 Mar 2026HANSARDTopical QuestionsI gladly congratulate Newcastle and Stafford Colleges Group on its recent Ofsted rating, which is fantastic, and I note my hon. Friend’s support for its application to become a…02 Mar 2026HANSARDBereaved Children: Government SupportIt is a pleasure to respond on behalf of the Government to such a constructive and heartfelt debate. I thank everybody for their contributions, and I particularly thank the hon.…26 Feb 2026HANSARDStudent Loan Repayment PlansIt is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Ms Lewell. I am grateful to my hon. Friend the Member for Ilford South (Jas Athwal) for securing today’s important debate on…25 Feb 2026HANSARDStudent Loan Repayment PlansThat is a very timely intervention, because when we were elected we recognised the pressures and acted. In this Parliament, the Government are lifting the plan 2 repayment…25 Feb 2026HANSARDStudent Loan Repayment PlansAs the Secretary of State said earlier this week, we will look at these issues. Across the board, we are acting as a Government to support people with the cost of living:…25 Feb 2026HANSARDStudent Loan Repayment PlansI can confirm, as the Secretary of State for Education said earlier this week, this is an issue that we will, of course, look at. The plan 2 system was introduced in 2012 by the…25 Feb 2026HANSARD Foster Care: Recruitment and RetentionIt is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir Jeremy. I thank both the hon. Member for South West Devon (Rebecca Smith) for securing the debate and other Members for…24 Feb 2026HANSARD Foster Care: Recruitment and RetentionMy hon. Friend is at risk of taking me off down two very important subjects that I would love to spend an entire Westminster Hall debate talking about. Briefly, I want to see the…24 Feb 2026HANSARD Kinship Carer IdentificationI thank my hon. Friend the Member for Worcester (Tom Collins) for securing a debate on this important matter. Like him, I recognise the enormous contribution that kinship carers…23 Feb 2026HANSARD Kinship Carer IdentificationI thank my hon. Friend for raising that point. It is because of stories exactly like that one—from aunts, uncles, grandparents and other relatives across the country who often…23 Feb 2026HANSARD Kinship Carer IdentificationI would be absolutely delighted to recognise Sue Nash and the amazing work that she and so many others are doing across the country through kinship support groups. The Government…23 Feb 2026HANSARD Kinship Carer IdentificationI thank my hon. Friend for mentioning that. The tireless campaigning of so many kinship families over the years has led the Government to the point of setting in train these…23 Feb 2026HANSARDAdoption and Special Guardianship Support FundI am today announcing that the adoption and special guardianship support fund will be extended until March 2028—the end of the current spending review period—and that the budget…10 Feb 2026HANSARDFostering ReformsToday I am setting out the Government’s plan to increase the number of foster care places in England and to renew fostering for modern family life. Foster families provide the…04 Feb 2026HANSARDLocal Authority Children’s ServicesIt is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Western. I thank the hon. Member for Woking (Mr Forster) for securing the debate and for his powerful and heartfelt…28 Jan 2026HANSARDInternational Education StrategyToday I am announcing the launch of the UK’s refreshed international education strategy. Together, the Department for Education, the Department for Business and Trade, and the…20 Jan 2026HANSARDA-level and T-level EnrolmentsMore than 260,000 state-funded pupils took at least one A-level in the summer of 2025, and we expect that to remain steady in the future. T-levels continue to grow: at the last…19 Jan 2026HANSARDA-level and T-level EnrolmentsI thank the right hon. Member for his read-out of the discussion that took place during the most recent shadow Cabinet meeting, where this was a lively topic of debate. Britain is…19 Jan 2026HANSARDA-level and T-level EnrolmentsI thank the hon. Member for his leadership on these issues through the all-party parliamentary group on sixth form education, and for his local leadership as a constituency MP. I…19 Jan 2026