The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rachel Reeves on 2016-07-06.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the financial costs relating to asbestos surveying and removal in buildings being converted to free schools have been since the free school programme began.
Edward Timpson
The Education Funding Agency does not have access to the breakdown of cost information in relation to asbestos surveys and asbestos removal works.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Stephenson on 2016-07-06.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate her Department has made of the number of instances of sexual harassment that have taken place in schools in each of the last three years.
Nick Gibb
The information requested is not available.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rachel Reeves on 2016-07-06.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment for the presence of asbestos is made prior to the purchasing and occupation of a previous industrial building for conversion into a free school.
Edward Timpson
We instruct building surveys prior to the acquisition of all buildings that we are intending to convert into free schools. Where necessary, we commission further surveys, including asbestos surveys, where risks highlighted in the building survey warrant further investigation.
Ahead of any acquisition we also ask sellers for their Building and Health and Safety files to determine the level of statutory compliance, which includes meeting the control of asbestos regulations.
If we wish to proceed with the transaction and our initial assessment highlights any quality issues or gaps in compliance, our due diligence arrangements and budgets are tailored accordingly, in advance of completing the transaction.
When construction works are planned in an industrial building with known asbestos, an asbestos refurbishment and demolition survey is undertaken to assess if the asbestos should be removed, encapsulated or left in-situ. This is according to material type, location, condition and the extent of works to be undertaken to the existing building.
For any sites with known asbestos, a management strategy identifying the asbestos location is handed over to the occupier. They are then responsible for complying with statutory regulations for the management of asbestos.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-07-06.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, pursuant to the Answer of 4 July 2016 to Question 41418, whether she plans to start making projections of the cost of energy imports by the UK; and if she will make a statement.
Andrea Leadsom
The Department of Energy and Climate Change does not currently have plans to produce projections of the cost of energy imports by the UK.
The government is committed to making sure consumers have secure, affordable and clean energy. Keeping the cost of energy imports low will be important in helping achieve this goal.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Percy on 2016-07-06.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps he has taken to engage with (a) coal generators and (b) the biomass sector on whether a future biomass auction will take place.
Jesse Norman
We plan to hold the next Contracts for Difference allocation round in due course We will announce further details about the allocation round and engage with stakeholders in good time.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Percy on 2016-07-06.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, if she will make it her policy to implement the Competition and Markets Authority’s recommendations in making all future auctions for renewable support contracts technology neutral.
Andrea Leadsom
The CMA recommendations are another step towards ensuring we have a competitive and effective energy market for consumers. We will now take action, along with Ofgem and other delivery bodies, to implement these recommendations.
The Competition and Markets Authority did not recommend making all future auctions for renewable support technology neutral.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Percy on 2016-07-06.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what the timetable is for publishing the Government’s analysis of whole system costs.
Mr Nick Hurd
Following peer review by experts in the field of whole system impacts, the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy will publish the methodology report of the Whole System Impacts of Electricity Generation Technologies project in due course.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kerry McCarthy on 2016-07-06.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 27 June 2016 to Question 40362, (a) for what reason the Government has concentrated gamma interferon testing outside the high risk areas and (b) what assessment she has made of the effect of the reduced number of gamma interferon tests in high risk areas on the incidence and spread of bovine TB.
George Eustice
Supplementary interferon gamma blood testing improves the detection of infected cattle in TB affected herds in the Low Risk and Edge Areas of England reducing the risk of TB taking hold in parts of the country where the disease is not yet endemic.
Information published by the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) on gov.uk shows more supplementary interferon gamma tests in the High Risk Area in each of the years 2012 to 2015 than in 2009. We continue to explore options for wider deployment of this test in the High Risk Area.
www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/532709/ATIC0882.pdf
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-07-06.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much her Department has spent on preventing the spread of ash dieback disease since that disease was first detected in the UK; and if she will make a statement.
Rory Stewart
We are monitoring and managing ash dieback and have invested over £4 million into surveillance and research.
Our surveillance programme involving Government, industry, conservation groups and the public, enables us to monitor the disease and to target resources effectively.
Investing in research on the development of tolerant trees is one of our key commitments in response to the disease. Ash trees have a very wide genetic diversity and have the potential for great levels of resistance compared to other tree species that have been affected by diseases.
The Government-funded research and screening trial of 155,000 ash saplings is unprecedented in its scope. It has now identified native ash trees that show tolerance to ash dieback, raising the possibility of using selective breeding to develop strains of trees that are tolerant to the disease.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-07-06.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment she has made of the threat of ash dieback disease to biodiversity across the UK; and if she will make a statement.
Rory Stewart
A series of research projects, jointly funded by Defra, has looked into the ecological impacts of ash dieback and investigated possible woodland management options which might ameliorate the problems caused by ash dieback. The results from this work have been published[1]. The research found that there are tree species that share ecological traits or support some of the species associated with ash trees. However, there is no single tree species that would be able to fill the niche provided by ash in terms of both its ecosystem characteristics and biodiversity contribution.
The Forestry Commission provides advice to woodland managers about how best to manage and adapt to ash dieback, for example, by planting a variety of tree species as diversity brings resilience to pests and diseases.
[1] http://publications.naturalengland.org.uk/publication/5273931279761408
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