We look forward to engaging the Devolved Administrations on the Levelling Up Fund. MHCLG and DfT will seek advice, where appropriate, from the relevant Devolved Administrations at the shortlisting stage on projects that will be delivered in their geographical areas – including on deliverability and alignment with existing provision. Further details on the Levelling Up Fund application process are set out in the prospectus.

As set out in the prospectus published at Budget, the index used for the Levelling Up Fund places areas into category one, two or three based on the local area’s need for economic recovery and growth, improved transport connectivity, and regeneration. We will shortly publish further detail on the methodology used to calculate the index.

In deciding to launch the Turing scheme as an alternative to Erasmus+, the Government carefully considered the benefits of Erasmus+ and a domestic alternative scheme including cost and our ambitions for a global scheme that supports social mobility. On cost, Erasmus+ participation would have entailed a net cost in the region of £2 billion more than we received from the programme in funding over the seven-year period and an annual gross contribution of £600 million. As such we do not consider Erasmus+ participation to be value-for-money and in the interests of the UK taxpayer.

The design of the Turing scheme will be driven by our ambition for a truly global UK-wide scheme that promotes social mobility and provides excellent value for money for the taxpayer. These principles underpin the decision-making on the design of the scheme, including the decision not to fund inward mobility.

The Government has carefully considered whether to fund inward mobility as part of the scheme design, including through discussions with the sector, and is confident that students will continue to want to study in the UK. The UK is a world-leading destination for study and research, with four universities in the world’s top 10 and 18 in the top 100. The UK is currently second only to the USA as a destination for international HE students with approximately 486,000 students from abroad and has been one of the most popular destinations within Erasmus+.

It is clear that we have considerable appeal as a destination and partner in international mobilities and exchanges. We will harness this to deliver an international education exchange programme that has a genuinely global reach, establishing new relationships with academic institutions across Europe and the rest of the world.

In terms of direct income to higher education providers, we expect tuition fees to be waived for Turing scheme participants consistent with the arrangements for Erasmus+.

More generally, the International Education Strategy update, will respond to the COVID-19 context, challenges, and opportunities setting out how the Government will support the whole of the UK’s education sector in the recovery of its international activity in pursuit of the original IES ambitions to increase the value of our education exports to £35 billion per year, and to increase the number of international higher education students hosted in the UK to 600,000 per year, both by 2030.​

The Government has recognised taxpayers have faced immense challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic. It has prioritised delivering support to as many people as possible, as quickly as possible while guarding against the risk of fraud or abuse.

The Government always welcomes constructive proposals from stakeholders to improve the design of its COVID-19 business support schemes, including the suggestion for a Directors Income Support Scheme (DISS). This proposal aims to provide a new system for company directors, based on reported profits. The Government has consulted key stakeholders and is currently scrutinising the proposal in detail.

In the meantime, let me highlight that company owner managers could be eligible for existing support schemes including the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme for the income taken by company owner managers via PAYE, Bounce Back loans, tax deferrals, rental support, increased levels of Universal Credit, mortgage holidays and other business support grants. More information about the full range of business support measures is available at: www.businesssupport.gov.uk/coronavirus-business-support/.

The Government is committed to investing in cyber capabilities to protect the UK from modern threats both online and in the physical world. Defence Ministers and officials routinely discuss a range of business, including cyber issues, with HM Treasury counterparts.

Throughout this crisis, the Government’s priority has been to protect people’s jobs and livelihoods. Since the start of the pandemic we have committed over £280 billion to supporting the economy, including supporting 9.9 million jobs through the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) and around 2.7 million self-employed individuals via the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS).

The Government has continued to review its support and brought in ineligible groups where possible. For example, the extended Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) is available to those directors who paid themselves a salary between 19 March and 30 October 2020, and to new starters who were employed and on their employer’s PAYE payroll on 30 October 2020. Both the CJRS and SEISS have also been updated to provide support to those on maternity leave and to reservists. The Government continues to work closely with stakeholders to explore how we can best support different groups.

Those who are ineligible for the CJRS and SEISS may still be eligible for other elements of the COVID-19 support available. This comprehensive package of support includes Bounce Back loans, tax deferrals, rental support and other business support grants. The Government has also temporarily increased the Universal Credit standard allowance for 2020-21 by £20 per week and relaxed the Minimum Income Floor, meaning that where claimants' earnings have significantly fallen, their Universal Credit award will have increased to reflect their lower earnings.

The Government has provided a comprehensive economic response that is one of the most generous in the world, taking unprecedented steps to support families, businesses and the most vulnerable. As well as the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) and Self-Employment Support Scheme (SEISS), the package includes a suite of Government-backed loans and grants to businesses, tax deferrals and mortgage and consumer credit holidays. This package also includes extra funding for the welfare safety net, to help those unable to obtain other forms of support. The temporary welfare measures include increases to Universal Credit, Working Tax Credit, and Local Housing Allowance, a relaxation of the Universal Credit minimum income floor and measures to make Statutory Sick Pay and new style Employment and Support Allowance easier to access.

The Government prioritised delivering support to as many people as possible, as quickly as possible while guarding against the risk of fraud or abuse. The Government takes an evidence-based approach when developing policy, and this has meant making difficult decisions; the Chancellor has acknowledged that it has not been possible to support everyone as they would want. However, as the National Audit Office report acknowledges, the support schemes have been successful in supporting millions of people and protecting large scale job losses.

Treasury ministers and officials have had meetings with a wide variety of organisations and individuals in the public and private sectors, including MPs, businesses, professional representative bodies, and the unions, throughout the development of the COVID-19 support package including both the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme and the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme.

This proactive engagement has been widely praised, and the Institute for Government has said: “The Government’s approach to consultation compensated for some of the difficulties of accelerated policy development, because it gave it fast access to information, and an early sense of whether the measures would work and how they would be received by businesses and workers. This contributed to both positive reception on announcement and successful roll-out.”

Details of ministerial and permanent secretary meetings with external organisations on departmental business are published on a quarterly basis and are available at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/hmt-ministers-meetings-hospitality-gifts-and-overseas-travel.

There are generous measures available for the whole voluntary and community sector which include more than £1.3 billion a year in respect of Gift Aid on donations. Charities play an invaluable role in this country, which is why we have committed £750 million in targeted funding so that they can continue their vital work through the coronavirus outbreak. £360m was allocated by central government departments to help charities in England based on service need, and £310m was allocated to support smaller, local charities working with vulnerable people in England on the frontline of the coronavirus response. £60 million from the wider package has been distributed via the Barnett formula to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland to support all types of charities on the frontline of the response.

In addition to this support, the Charity Commission for England and Wales has published guidance on gov.uk, which sets out how charities can get support for their staff, advice on use of reserves, and other potential issues.

We are providing an unprecedented multi-billion-pound package of government support for charities. We are absolutely committed to ensuring taxpayers' money is spent effectively and are working flat out to ensure help reaches those who need it most.

There are generous measures available for the whole charity sector which include more than £1.3 billion a year in respect of Gift Aid on donations. Since the outbreak of COVID-19, the government has made available a support package to all charities and businesses, including deferring their VAT bills, paying no business rates for their shops next year, and furloughing staff where possible.

In addition, the Government has made available an unprecedented £750 million package of support, specifically for charities, social enterprises and the voluntary sector. This will ensure charities and other civil society organisations, including those at risk of financial hardship, can continue their vital work during the Covid-19 outbreak. £60 million from this package has been distributed via the Barnett formula to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland to support all types of charities on the frontline of the response.

The Government is committed to the development of hydrogen as a strategic decarbonised energy carrier for the UK. As set out at the Environmental Audit Committee on 10 September 2020, we plan to publish a Hydrogen Strategy in early 2021. The Strategy will include discussion around the costs associated with expansion of the UK hydrogen economy, and how these might be met.

I refer the Honourable Member to the written answer to Parliamentary Question 54215 on 9 June 2020: https://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2020-06-03/54215/

Heat pumps will play an important role in decarbonising heat in the UK. The Clean Heat Grants scheme is focussed on supporting the installer base that will be required to implement regulations to phase out the installation of high-carbon fossil fuel heating off the gas grid. The Government is committed to doing this during the 2020s, as set out in the Clean Growth Strategy. In order to target taxpayer funding most effectively, we propose to introduce a 45kW capacity limit to focus this scheme on smaller installations. This reflects evidence that the majority of heat pump installations supported under the Renewable Heat Incentive have a capacity less than or equal to 45kW.

The Clean Heat Grant has been designed as part of a broader package of measures to support the decarbonisation of heat. Alongside the Clean Heat Grant scheme, the Budget announced future support for large heat pump installations in heat networks through the Green Heat Network Scheme. BEIS will consult on this scheme later in the year. The Industrial Energy Transformation Fund will also be open to large heat pumps providing process heat. In addition, as part of the Summer Economic Update made on 8 July, the government committed £1 billion of funding for the new Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme to upgrade public sector buildings, including schools and hospitals. This forms part of the wider manifesto commitments to invest in low-carbon heat and energy efficiency in buildings over the next decade.

The National Health Service continues to work constructively with organisations that are helping to develop and test the NHS COVID-19 App. These companies include VMware/Vmware Pivotal Labs, Zuhlke Engineering, Microsoft, Amazon Web Services, the University of Oxford, the BBC, the RAF, as well as partners in countries including Singapore, Norway, Ireland, Switzerland, New Zealand and Germany.

For more information on companies and organisations that have received funding, details on individual contracts can be found on Contract Finder on GOV.UK.

Rigorous testing has been underway through development of the contact tracing app, including during the Isle of Wight pilot and in field tests. All of the lessons learned will be applied to the development of the app moving forwards.

The government has set out an unprecedented package of support for all businesses affected by this crisis. Businesses, including SMEs, will benefit from the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, Statutory Sick Pay refunds and the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme alongside tax cuts and direct grants.

Further detail of the business support package can be found at: www.businesssupport.gov.uk.

More information on claiming for the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/claim-for-wage-costs-through-the-coronavirus-job-retention-scheme.