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  • Tom Watson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Tom Watson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Watson on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will take steps to ensure that business appointment rules are enforced for civil servants after leaving the Civil Service.

    Ben Gummer

    The Business Appointment Rules apply to all civil servants. The rules make clear the process for compliance. The aim of the Rules is to avoid any reasonable concerns that a civil servant might be influenced in carrying out his or her official duties by the hope or expectation of future employment with a particular firm or organisation. The Government’s view is that the rules are effective in managing departures from the civil service.

  • Tom Watson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Tom Watson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Watson on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps he plans to take to strengthen the code of conduct for special advisers.

    Ben Gummer

    An updated Code of Conduct for Special Advisers will be published in due course.

    I would add that a revised version of the Special Adviser Code of Conduct was published in October 2015, taking into account recommendations from the (then) Public Administration Select Committee at the end of the last Parliament. The Code ensures high standards of integrity and professionalism, whilst recognising the political dimension of the advice and assistance that special advisers provide to Ministers.

  • Daniel Kawczynski – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Daniel Kawczynski – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Kawczynski on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department took to publicise its consultation on the West Coast Mainline franchise.

    Paul Maynard

    The public consultation for the next InterCity West Coast (ICWC) rail franchise was launched on 10 May and enabled passengers to have their say on rail services. We want to make sure that passengers’ views are taken into consideration in developing the specification for the future franchise.

    The consultation was widely publicised through a range of channels including posters, leaflets, websites, social media and key stakeholder communication channels. There was also coverage in the regional and trade press. My predecessor also wrote to all MPs, MSPs and AMs with constituencies on the ICWC route and the Scottish and Welsh Government Transport Secretaries to ensure they were informed of the consultation which serves their parts of the UK. The consultation document and associated material was published in English and Welsh both on the web and in hard copy.

    We also organised a series of events for the public and stakeholders in Scotland, Wales and England for people to come along to speak to the project team about the consultation and ask any questions to help inform their response.

    The consultation closed on 2 August and we are now reviewing and analysing the information. A summary of the responses will be published in due course.

  • Greg Mulholland – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Greg Mulholland – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of the reasons for the fall in the DVLA’s revenue from vehicle excise duty between 2014-15 and 2015-16.

    Andrew Jones

    The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) collects around £6billion in vehicle excise duty annually and also recovers almost £30million from enforcement activities. The DVLA annual audited accounts showed a reduction in the amount of vehicle excise duty collected of £93million for 2015-16, a decrease of around 1.5% of total revenue raised the previous year. However, this figure was better than the Office of Budget Responsibility forecasts.

    It is widely recognised that the amount of vehicle tax collected varies year on year. The decrease in revenue for the last financial year has been attributed to three main causes; more efficient vehicles emitting less carbon dioxide resulting in lower tax bands, over 10 million direct debits which moves the revenue across months rather than being collected up front as before and a small increase in evasion.

  • Amanda Solloway – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Amanda Solloway – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Amanda Solloway on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of the proposed A52 improvement programme.

    Mr John Hayes

    Highways England, in accordance with its Delivery Plan, is delivering the A52 scheme in Roads Investment Strategy Period 1 (2015-2020) and plans to start construction by 2019/20. The scheme will deliver a package of measures to improve junctions along the A52 near Nottingham to assist with the development of the Nottingham Enterprise Zone adjacent to the A52.

    Highways England has appointed design consultants to work up and assess a range of options and will be engaging stakeholders in the coming months.

  • Oliver Colvile – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Oliver Colvile – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Oliver Colvile on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what improvements to WiFi coverage on trains are being made by Great Western Railways.

    Paul Maynard

    First Great Western InterCity and Thames Valley trains have been fitted with on-train Wi-Fi. Following the Direct Award Great Western Railway is fitting free Wi-Fi to all Super Express Trains, Electrical Multiple Units and long term diesel trains remaining in the fleet.

    The fitted trains include the new AT300 trains providing London to South West services. Great Western Railway state in their ‘Annual Stakeholder Report 2015-16’ that this work will be completed by December 2018.

  • Dawn Butler – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Dawn Butler – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dawn Butler on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will bring forward legislative proposals to make it illegal to disable a diesel particulate filter.

    Mr John Hayes

    It is an offence under the Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations (Regulation 61a(3)) to use on a road a vehicle which has been modified in such a way that it no longer complies with the air pollutant emissions standards it was designed to meet. Removal of a diesel particulate filter (DPF), from a vehicle used on the road, will invariably result in a contravention of the Regulations (making the vehicle unlawful to use on the road). The potential penalties are £1,000 for a car and £2,500 for a van, lorry or bus.

    Under section 75 of the Road Traffic Act 1988, it is an offence to alter a vehicle in such a way that the use of the vehicle on a road would be unlawful. Thus both the vehicle user and the person disabling the DPF (if they knew or believed that the vehicle would be used on the road) could be found guilty of an offence under the Act.

  • Kevin Foster – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Kevin Foster – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevin Foster on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, for what reasons the Gender Recognition Panel administrative guidance states that the Statutory Declaration should be dated within six months of the date of the Gender Recognition Certificate application.

    Dr Phillip Lee

    The date of the statutory declaration needs to be close to the date of application for a GRC (Gender Recognition Certificate) because the Gender Recognition Panel must be satisfied that the applicant and the spouse’s consents are still valid and current at the time of the application for a GRC. The 6 month timeframe reflects this need for up-to-date evidence.

  • Kevin Foster – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Kevin Foster – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevin Foster on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what forms of medical evidence his Department accepts for personal independence payments claims from a person suffering from (a) myalgic encephalopathy and (b) other illnesses with variable symptoms that permit part-time work.

    Penny Mordaunt

    Personal Independence Payment (PIP) is a non-means-tested, non-taxable cash benefit that is paid regardless of the employment status of the claimant. It has been designed to take full account of fluctuating and variable conditions.

    The Department encourages claimants to provide as much relevant evidence as necessary to support their claim. The “How your disability affects you” form and accompanying guidance sets out the range of information that can help the Department reach a decision. The guidance for Health Professionals also sets out sources of further evidence which could help inform their advice to the Department (Section 2.3 Further Evidence); this includes family members, carers or anyone else who supports them.

    This guidance can be accessed on the gov.uk website:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/547146/pip-assessment-guide.pdf

    “

  • Ian Austin – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Ian Austin – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Austin on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent discussions he has had with groups representing people with rare conditions on the criteria used in personal independence payment assessments.

    Penny Mordaunt

    We are committed to ensuring that the Personal Independence Payment (PIP) assessment process works effectively across the spectrum of disabilities and health conditions, including rare conditions.

    I, along with my officials, meet regularly with disability representative groups, including members of our Implementation Stakeholder Forum which hears views from a wide range of organisations representing and supporting disabled people, including those with rare conditions. We have worked extensively with them to make improvements to guidance, training and audit procedures in order to ensure a quality service for all claimants including those with rare conditions.