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  • Roberta Blackman-Woods – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Roberta Blackman-Woods – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roberta Blackman-Woods on 2015-02-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what estimate he has made of the potential cost to local authorities of the proposed takeover of responsibility for LLC1 searches by the Land Registry.

    Matthew Hancock

    All costs of the conversion from the various databases held locally at the moment, whether they involve paper, microfiche or any other format to a digitised process, will be met by Land Registry.

    Whilst costs to local authorities will be taken into account by Land Registry, they have yet to be broken down into greater detail at this stage, so as not to prejudice Land Registry’s commercial interests in respect of future procurement activity.

  • Roberta Blackman-Woods – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Roberta Blackman-Woods – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roberta Blackman-Woods on 2015-02-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what support he has given to commissioners in local government to attend the Commissioning Academy.

    Kris Hopkins

    The Government worked very closely with the Local Government Association to set up and develop the Commissioning Academy.

    Since June 2012, 527 delegates have attended Commissioning Academy programmes. Of these 392 have attended the central Commissioning Academy programmes, including 206 (52%) from 53 local authorities.

    A number of other programmes sit alongside the central programme under the Commissioning Academy umbrella. 78 have attended local programmes modelled on the central programme in Norfolk and Staffordshire, with participants drawn from local authorities and other public sector bodies in the local area. In addition, 8 councillors have attended a streamlined programme for local authority elected members.

    Feedback from participants has been consistently positive. Independent research by the Local Government Information Unit on the impact of the Academy found that 71.9% of survey respondents felt their involvement in the programme was already having a tangible impact and they were confident it would lead to a positive outcome for citizens.

    The Government continues to work with the sector to encourage even greater local authority take up of the programme.

  • Roberta Blackman-Woods – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Roberta Blackman-Woods – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roberta Blackman-Woods on 2015-02-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what guidance his Department has published to ensure local authorities fulfil their duty to consider economic, social and environmental well-being through procurement.

    Kris Hopkins

    The Government published Best Value Statutory Guidance in September 2011. Under the Duty of Best Value local authorities should consider overall value, including economic, environmental and social value, when reviewing service. The Guidance can be found at:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/5945/1976926.pdf

    In addition, the Cabinet Office/Crown Commercial Service have also provided guidance on the Public Services (Social Value) Act 2012 , which the Department has distributed to all local authorities including fire and rescue authorities.

  • Roberta Blackman-Woods – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Roberta Blackman-Woods – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roberta Blackman-Woods on 2015-02-10.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether his Department has undertaken a post-legislative analysis of the Public Services (Social Value) Act 2012.

    Mr Rob Wilson

    The Cabinet Office asked Lord Young of Graffham, the Prime Minister’s Adviser on Enterprise, to conduct a review of the Public Services (Social Value) Act 2012.

    The report, published on 13 February, shows the Act is having a positive effect where it is taken up. It finds that a number of local authorities have taken a leading role in implementing social value and names Durham Council as an example.

    The report makes a number of recommendations. The Government is considering these to ensure that the Act fulfils its full potential.

  • Paul Flynn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Paul Flynn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Flynn on 2015-02-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will introduce legislative proposals to ensure social care workers and home care providers are paid costs for travel to clients, training and on-call time in addition to being paid for the time spent with those for whom they provide care.

    Jo Swinson

    The Government already makes clear in legislation and guidance that travel time between assignments should be paid at least the appropriate National Minimum Wage (NMW) rate. Whether a worker paid by the hour is entitled to the minimum wage for periods such as the time spent travelling between home and their first assignment and between their last assignment and home depends on the terms of their contract and whether they are working during that time. We have updated our guidance on the Gov.UK to make it clear that time spent travelling between assignments and rest breaks must be paid at least the NMW.

    In relation to training, the NMW rules state that, where a worker is paid according to the number of hours they work, the NMW must be paid for all time spent training.

    Workers who are required to be available to work, either on standby or on call, should also receive at least the NMW rate for this time, although there are exceptions in some circumstances.

    We encourage any care sector worker who believes that they have been underpaid to make a complaint, using the free and confidential Pay & Work Rights Helpline on 0800 917 2368. HM Revenue & Customs investigate all complaints. In addition, they are currently undertaking proactive enforcement action into the six largest care providers.

  • Chi Onwurah – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture Media and Sport

    Chi Onwurah – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chi Onwurah on 2015-02-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what funding BAFTA receives from his Department and its agencies; and what diversity guidance and requirements accompany that funding.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    The Department is providing funding to BAFTA of £18,870 in 2014-15 via Creative Skillset to support skills development in the sector.

    BAFTA also receives £17.5K from the British Film Institute (BFI) for Film Academy work which is funded by the Department for Education.

    Although there are no specific diversity targets attached to this funding, Creative Skillset and BAFTA are committed to improving diversity across the sector and have met their diversity guidelines which are in place for all their funding and initiatives.

  • Anne McIntosh – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture Media and Sport

    Anne McIntosh – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Anne McIntosh on 2015-02-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what guidance his Department issues on what compensation is payable for the loss of both landline and internet services for the period of 21 days; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    Ofcom expects providers to resolve network faults, however caused, as quickly as possible. The regulator also expects providers to deal fairly and sympathetically with consumers who experience a loss of service as a result of network issues. This could include giving compensation or by allowing customers to exit their contract without penalty.

    The Communications Act requires telecoms providers to take appropriate measures to protect the security and resilience of their networks and services. When a security or availability incident occurs which has a significant impact on the operation of a network or service, the legislation requires the provider to report this to Ofcom. Ofcom monitors these reports closely and has the power to intervene if they believe a provider is not taking the appropriate measures.

    Ofcom has imposed minimum targets on Openreach requiring 80% of fault repairs to be completed within one to two working days of being notified and the company to report publicly on its performance, allowing Ofcom to monitor and intervene if required.

    Consumers can pursue claims for compensation caused by line outages by contacting their communications providers. If they are unhappy with the outcome of their complaint or how their complaint has been handled, they are able to pursue the case through the registered Alternative Dispute Resolution service – a free and impartial service that Ofcom requires all communications providers to have in place.

  • Anne McIntosh – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture Media and Sport

    Anne McIntosh – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Anne McIntosh on 2015-02-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps his Department is taking to expedite the restoration of landline and internet services to more than 25 residences in Rillington and Sherburn in Ryedale following the breakage of a telephone pole on 20 January 2015.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    Ofcom expects providers to resolve network faults, however caused, as quickly as possible. The regulator also expects providers to deal fairly and sympathetically with consumers who experience a loss of service as a result of network issues. This could include giving compensation or by allowing customers to exit their contract without penalty.

    The Communications Act requires telecoms providers to take appropriate measures to protect the security and resilience of their networks and services. When a security or availability incident occurs which has a significant impact on the operation of a network or service, the legislation requires the provider to report this to Ofcom. Ofcom monitors these reports closely and has the power to intervene if they believe a provider is not taking the appropriate measures.

    Ofcom has imposed minimum targets on Openreach requiring 80% of fault repairs to be completed within one to two working days of being notified and the company to report publicly on its performance, allowing Ofcom to monitor and intervene if required.

    Consumers can pursue claims for compensation caused by line outages by contacting their communications providers. If they are unhappy with the outcome of their complaint or how their complaint has been handled, they are able to pursue the case through the registered Alternative Dispute Resolution service – a free and impartial service that Ofcom requires all communications providers to have in place.

  • Angus Brendan MacNeil – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture Media and Sport

    Angus Brendan MacNeil – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Angus Brendan MacNeil on 2015-02-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 12 January 2015 to Question 220134, whether the 90 per cent 4G geographical coverage will cover the Outer Hebrides.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    The agreement announced on 18 December 2014 will improve coverage throughout the UK, and we expect the Scottish Islands will see one of the greatest improvements of any area. Under the agreement each mobile network operator (MNO) will provide voice and text coverage to at least 90% of the UK landmass by 2017, and we understand that data coverage will improve in many areas. This will lock in £5bn of investment in UK mobile infrastructure, halving partial not-spots and cutting complete not-spots by two-thirds. The MNOs have now made the agreed coverage obligations legally binding, by requesting that Ofcom vary their spectrum licences on a voluntary basis.

  • Alison McGovern – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture Media and Sport

    Alison McGovern – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alison McGovern on 2015-02-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether he plans to bring forward legislative proposals to adopt the measures contained in the Football Governance Bill.

    Mrs Helen Grant

    In recent years, the football authorities have introduced greater independence to the FA’s main Board, stricter rules around club ownership, and improved financial transparency and reporting rules to ensure clubs are sustainably run.

    Government is allowing the football authorities more time to make the necessary reforms to the game themselves