The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Greaves on 2015-01-15.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many adopted local plans include the designation of local green spaces; and how many such spaces have been designated.
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
We do not collect detailed statistics on individual policies within Local Plans.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Bradshaw on 2015-01-15.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact on total passenger capacity of the East Coast Main Line of the use of 280-seat trains on 17 per cent of the long distance train paths into and out of King’s Cross, as compared with the 530-seat trains used by the InterCity East Coast franchise.
Baroness Kramer
Decisions on the allocation of track capacity on the railway are matters for Network Rail and the Office of Rail Regulation. Clearly, where the number of available train paths on a route is constrained, as in the case of parts of the East Coast Main Line, the use of trains with fewer seats than the maximum operationally possible would reduce passenger capacity. However there are other factors influencing the allocation of train paths, including the need for services to cover a range of different routes and stopping patterns, and the availability of rolling stock. The Government would expect such considerations to be taken into account within the decision process.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Earl of Sandwich on 2015-01-15.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government to what extent humanitarian trade between Iran and the United Kingdom is exempt from sanctions; to what extent the Joint Plan of Action has facilitated this trade, if at all; and what humanitarian and cultural trade is taking place.
Baroness Anelay of St Johns
EU sanctions against Iran do not prevent Iran from purchasing humanitarian goods such as food and medicines. The UK issues as a priority licenses for transactions for these goods. Furthermore, the Joint Plan of Action includes provisions to make humanitarian trade with Iran easier. Medicinal and pharmaceutical exports from the UK to Iran in 2014 were £16,551,536.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Earl of Sandwich on 2015-01-15.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what proportion of bilateral aid from the Department for International Development in the last three financial years has been channelled through non-governmental organisations (1) based in the United Kingdom, and (2) based in the recipient countries.
Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth
The table below shows the proportion of bilateral aid from the Department for International Development in the last three calendar years which has been channelled through non-governmental organisations (1) based in the United Kingdom, and (2) based in the recipient countries.
|
NGO Percentage of DFID Net Bilateral ODA |
2011 |
2012 |
2013 |
|
NGO Based in the United Kingdom |
8% |
9% |
10% |
|
NGO Based in Recipient Countries |
2% |
2% |
3% |
The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Earl of Sandwich on 2015-01-15.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government which United Kingdom-based or indigenous aid agencies and non-governmental organisations working to reduce poverty in India currently receive funding from the Department for International Development; and which will continue to receive funding from the Department for International Development after its official programme closes.
Baroness Northover
DFID’s financial grant aid to India will cease in 2015, as we move towards a new UK-India development partnership. After 2015, our partnership will be based on sharing skills and expertise, investing in private sector projects that benefit the poor whilst generating a return, and working together on global development issues. While current funding to NGO’s will end as individual projects come to a close over 2015/ 16, individual future projects involving Technical Assistance may find that NGO’s are the most appropriate partner.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Scriven on 2015-01-15.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many public bodies as defined in the Counter-Terrorism and Security Bill do not meet the provisions of the Prevent duty guidance consultation document, according to each category of public body.
Lord Bates
The duty outlined in Chapter 1 of Part 5 of the Counter-Terrorism and Security Bill (‘the Prevent duty’) falls on the specified authorities listed in Schedule 3 to the Bill. The authorities include local government, prisons and probation services, schools, further and higher education institutions, NHS bodies, and the police. The Government does not hold information about the Prevent policies and processes of all the authorities on which the duty would fall. There are many examples of good practice, but involvement in Prevent activity is not consistent across the country. In legislating, the Government’s intention is to spread that good practice, and ensure all apply the duty in a risk-based and proportionate way.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Sharp of Guildford on 2015-01-15.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what proportion of 17 year-olds in England are participating in education and training in fulfilment of the duty to participate set out in the Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning Act 2009, and what steps they are taking to maximise participation from September 2015 when the requirement to participate increases to the 18th birthday.
Lord Nash
Young people who were aged 17 at the start of this academic year were covered by the first phase of raising the participation age (RPA) set out in the Education and Skills Act 2008. This required them to continue in education or training for one further year, to 27 June 2014. This cohort is therefore no longer under a duty to participate, although we expect that the vast majority of them will continue to participate this academic year.
Data showing the proportion of these young people participating in the current academic year will be published as part of the 16-18 participation statistical first release at the end of June.
Young people who were aged 16 at the start of this academic year will be under a duty to participate until their 18th birthday. We will encourage schools, colleges and training providers to ensure that young people are aware of this requirement.
In addition, local authorities have a duty to promote the effective participation in education and training of 16 and 17 year olds in their area with a view to ensuring that they fulfil the duty to participate.
We plan to invest £7.2 billion in 2014/15 to fund education and training places for 16 to 19-year-olds. The government has implemented a range of other measures to promote participation and help young people get the best possible start in life, including the reform of vocational education and the Youth Contract.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Sharp of Guildford on 2015-01-15.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have considered whether it is appropriate that the requirement for an NVQ1 Care Qualification would prevent an experienced teacher with special needs training from working with elderly dementia patients if a back problem prevented that individual from demonstrating making a bed.
Earl Howe
The Department does not set the standards/criteria for attainment of NVQ qualifications. This is the responsibility of the appropriate awarding bodies working in partnership with employers, employer representative bodies and sector skills council in the relevant sector. Any proposed revision to NVQ qualifications would be a matter for consideration by the awarding bodies with relevant employers, employer representative bodies and sector skills council.
There is no requirement in adult social care currently for a care worker to hold a specific qualification in order to work in this role. However, under the Care Quality Commission’s registration system, it is the responsibility of the social care employer to determine the range of duties undertaken by the care worker and to ensure they have the necessary training and skills for those duties.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Sharkey on 2015-01-15.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what criteria they use for assessing the effectiveness of the Prevent and Channel counter-terrorism programmes; what targets have been set for any aspects of these programmes; and what key performance indicators are in place.
Lord Bates
The Home Office assess the effectiveness of the Prevent and Channel programmes through a range of performance mechanisms.
We have publically reported on a number of performance indicators such as internet removals and projects delivered. For example, since December 2013 over 53,000 pieces of unlawful terrorist-related content which encourages or glorifies acts of terrorism have been removed from the internet. And since 2011, 180 local projects have been delivered in Prevent priority areas, including projects in education, internet safety, and families.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Morris of Aberavon on 2015-01-15.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government when Maxwellisation” letters were sent to witnesses to the Chilcot inquiry.”
Lord Wallace of Saltaire
The timing of Maxwellisation is a matter for the independent Inquiry.