2022 March

The EU Treaty of Lisbon recognised animal sentience. After the UK left the European Union and ceased to be a party to that Treaty, the Government did not transpose that recognition into UK law. The Animal Welfare (Sentience) Bill recognises all vertebrate animals and some invertebrate animals such as octopi, lobsters and crabs as sentient beings. Sentience is not defined in the Bill. The Bill requires the Government to establish an Animal Sentience Committee (ASC). The ASC will be able to scrutinise and report on whether the Government is taking into account the adverse effect of any policy on the welfare of animals as sentient beings. The ASC will not have an advisory or enforcement role.

In the UK, more than 200 professions are regulated by law, and regulators have established processes to recognise credentials gained overseas. These rules help determine whether qualifications acquired abroad include an adequate level of skill and training for the professionals to practice in the UK, and sometimes whether they can use a professional title.  The UK’s current system for qualification recognition comes from EU law and treats qualifications gained in the European Union and European Economic Area differently to those gained in the rest of the world. The Professional Qualifications Bill would set out a new system where qualifications have to meet the same requirements to be recognised in the UK wherever in the world they are originally gained. It would seek to allow regulators in the UK and overseas to mutually recognise qualifications where they cannot do that now.

The Dissolution and Calling of Parliament Bill is designed to repeal of the Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011 (FTPA) and would make the maximum term of a Parliament (rather than the period between general elections) five years. This would enable Governments, within the life of a Parliament, to call a general election at the time of their choosing. It does not envisage a role for Parliament in deciding when general elections are held. The Bill includes an ‘ouster clause’ that states questions relating to the use of the powers, preliminary work on dissolution and the extent of the powers cannot be questioned by the courts.

On Monday 14 March 2022, the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities made a statement to the House on the Ukraine Sponsorship Scheme. Excerpts from the statement are below. “The Home Secretary has already expanded the family route. She has also confirmed that from tomorrow Ukrainians with passports will be able to apply for UK visas entirely online without having to visit visa application centres. We also know, however, that the unfailingly compassionate British public want to help further. That is why today we are answering that call with the announcement of a new sponsorship scheme, Homes for Ukraine. The scheme will allow Ukrainians with no family ties to the UK to be sponsored by individuals or organisations who can offer them a home. There will be no limit to the number of Ukrainians who can benefit from it. The scheme will be open to all Ukrainian nationals and residents, and they will be able to live and work in the United Kingdom for up to three years.They will have full and unrestricted access to benefits, healthcare, employment and other support. Sponsors in the UK can be of any nationality, with any immigration status, provided they have at least six months’ leave to remain within the UK.

Joseph Leckie Academy was awarded £17 million for major refurbishment through the Building Schools for the Future Programme under the last Labour Government, but did not receive the majority of the funding after the BSF Programme was cancelled by David Cameron in 2010.