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  • Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb on 2015-02-12.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the Local Government Association’s assessment of the impact of spending reductions on the long-term financial sustainability of adult social care services.

    Earl Howe

    Adult social care expenditure and the future demand for services will be reviewed as part of the Spending Review before decisions on future funding are made. The Department is aware of the work undertaken by the Local Government Association and will involve both them and the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services in this process.

  • The Lord Bishop of Worcester – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The Lord Bishop of Worcester – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Lord Bishop of Worcester on 2015-02-12.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking, as a member of the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe, to bring about renewed discussions with Russia on a possible Euro-Atlantic security community.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The UK has regular discussions with Russia and all other participating States under the auspices of the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), including through the Helsinki +40 process, towards the goal of a security community as outlined at the OSCE Astana Summit 2010. I recently met Michael Link, the Director of the OSCE’s Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), and emphasised the need to uphold the OSCE’s comprehensive approach to security and the rule of law through strong commitments and institutions. The UK continues to underline to Russia that its illegal annexation of Crimea and its destabilising actions in eastern Ukraine are unacceptable, and a violation of fundamental OSCE principles and commitments. Additionally, in December 2014 the OSCE Chairmanship-in-Office launched an Eminent Persons Panel, with a remit to make recommendations on how to take forward an inclusive and constructive dialogue across the Euro-Atlantic and Eurasian regions, and to reflect on how to ensure effective adherence to the Helsinki Principles that OSCE participating States have signed up to. The UK looks forward to engaging with the work of the panel this year.

  • The Lord Bishop of Worcester – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The Lord Bishop of Worcester – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Lord Bishop of Worcester on 2015-02-12.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking, under the umbrellas of NATO and the European Union, to strengthen commitments and reassurances to Moldova, Georgia, and the Baltic states which could be vulnerable to further destabilising Russian action in those regions.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    At the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) Wales Summit, the Alliance launched the “Readiness Action Plan” (RAP). This included an increase to the package of assurance measures for Eastern Allies in response to Russia’s illegal annexation of Crimea and aggressive actions in Eastern Ukraine. All 28 Allies are supporting the effort. As in 2014, this year the UK will contribute four Royal Air Force Typhoons to Baltic Air Policing from May and deploy over 3000 troops to exercises in Eastern Europe.

    As part of the RAP, Allies also agreed to establish a new Very High Readiness Joint Task Force (VJTF), able to deploy at very short notice in response to a range of threats faced by the Alliance. At the NATO Defence Ministers meeting on 5 February the Secretary of State for Defence, my right hon. Friend the Member for Sevenoaks (Mr Fallon), confirmed that the UK will lead the VJTF in 2017 and also contribute to new forward integration units in the three Baltic States, Poland, Romania and Bulgaria, and to the regional headquarters in Poland and Romania.

    At the NATO Summit, the Alliance also agreed a ‘Substantial Package’ of support for Georgia to strengthen her defence capabilities, and interoperability with the Alliance, and provide a new “enhanced partnership” status. Separately Allies agreed to establish Defence Capacity Building (DCB) Missions in Georgia and Moldova. The UK will contribute £250,000 to a new Trust Fund to facilitate this and manpower to the Georgian DCB Mission.

    Georgia and Moldova have chosen to pursue closer ties with the EU. These countries have decided of their own free will to sign Association Agreements in order to support their own reform programmes and to seek closer political association and economic integration with the EU. We fully support the sovereign choices of Georgia and Moldova and strongly believe that no third country should have a veto over their decisions.

    The EU provides continuing financial and technical support to the implementation of these reform programmes. Under the European Neighbourhood Instrument, the European Commission currently plans to allocate a minimum of €610 million for each country, with up to €746 million of funding available depending on the pace of reform. On 6 May 2014, the European Commission announced an additional support package for Georgia and Moldova, worth €60 million. The UK is providing technical assistance, in areas such as trade and human rights, to both Georgia and Moldova in their implementation of the Association Agreement reform programmes. In Georgia, the UK Regional Conflict Advisor for the South Caucasus continues to engage in dialogue with the conflict-affected communities. We also fund secondees to the EU Monitoring Mission in Georgia. We have a number of projects in Moldova (including in the Transnistrian region) that work to increase engagement and build confidence between the sides of the Nistru (Moldova and the Transnistrian region).

    The UK plans to complete the ratification process for both Association Agreements with Georgia and Moldova before the General Election.

  • Lord Allen of Kensington – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Lord Allen of Kensington – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Allen of Kensington on 2015-02-12.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, following the rejection by National Health Service trusts of the financial tariff proposals drawn up by Monitor for 2015–16, whether they intend to refer the matter to the Competition and Markets Authority; and if not what other prescription they have to deal with the issue.

    Earl Howe

    Under the Health and Social Care Act 2012, the decision on whether to refer the matter to the Competition and Markets Authority is for Monitor to take.

    We understand that Monitor is carefully considering the best course of action, alongside NHS England.

  • Lord Allen of Kensington – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Lord Allen of Kensington – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Allen of Kensington on 2015-02-12.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to increase the United Kingdom’s research and development intensity above the 1.7 per cent reported by the Office for National Statistics last March for 2012; and whether they anticipate that the United Kingdom will meet the three per cent research and development intensity targets set by the European Union when the latest figures are released by the Office of National Statistics.

    Baroness Neville-Rolfe

    The Government’s Science & Innovation Strategy, published last December has a long term commitment to research infrastructure of £1.1bn a year, increasing in real terms to 2021. This will give businesses long term certainty in planning their R&D investments which will be vital in ensuring the UK increases its R&D intensity. The Government has also protected the science ring fence in cash terms during this Parliament.

  • Lord Beecham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Lord Beecham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Beecham on 2015-02-12.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what proportion of report writers and court staff have received training arising from the implementation of the Offender Rehabilitation Act 2014.

    Lord Faulks

    All staff have received comprehensive guidance on the implementation of the Offender Rehabilitation Act 2014.

    A cadre of staff received central training to enable them to train other staff, as required, in the Act’s provisions. We do not hold statistics for the total number of staff who have been trained under this system.

  • Lord Beecham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Lord Beecham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Beecham on 2015-02-12.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many vacancies for qualified staff there are in each National Probation Service region.

    Lord Faulks

    Staffing levels are kept under constant review to ensure public safety is maintained. A new reporting tool for the National Probation Service is being implemented which will provide functionality to capture vacancies centrally as part of the ongoing development of workforce planning processes and capability.

    We continue to invest in a qualified workforce. Last autumn, we made over 270 training places available for new probation officers. A similar number were made available in January this year, and a further intake is planned for April. Recruits undertake on-the-job training and study, and graduate in 15 months as qualified probation officers. This represents the biggest investment in the professionalism of the probation workforce for some considerable time.

  • Lord Beecham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Lord Beecham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Beecham on 2015-02-12.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what are the current sickness rates for practitioners in the National Probation Service; and what were the rates for 2013 and 2014.

    Lord Faulks

    Information on sickness absence rates among National Probation Service (NPS) staff for the period 1 June – 30 September 2014 was published on 17 November in a Management Information Release. The annualised rate of absence for this period in the NPS was 10.6 working days lost per staff year. Information for the whole of 2014-15 will be published in the Management Information Addendum to the National Offender Management Service Annual Report 2014-15.

    Information on sickness absence rates in the former Probation Trusts is published annually in the Management Information Addendum to the National Offender Management Service Annual Report. The sickness absence rate for Probation Trusts for April 2013 to March 2014, published on 30 July 2014 was 9.8 working days lost per person.

    The NPS statistics are not directly comparable to the annual Probation Trust data, as they relate to different timescales.

    We take the health and wellbeing of probation staff extremely seriously and have worked closely with the NPS to support staff. We recognise this has been a challenging time for them and they can be extremely proud of how they have maintained standards throughout the transition period.

  • Lord Beecham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Lord Beecham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Beecham on 2015-02-12.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what budgets have been set for professional development for (1) qualified, and (2) trainee, probation officers.

    Lord Faulks

    Under the Government’s Transforming Rehabilitation reforms, probation staff are now employed either by the National Probation Service (NPS) or one of the 21 Community Rehabilitation Companies (CRCs).

    Probation Officers in the NPS are supported by the National Offender Management Service’s Human Resources Learning & Development team, which delivers professional skills training for the NPS. Funding for this work is found from within the National Offender Management Service’s overall Human Resources budget.

    In addition, all NPS staff have free access to Civil Service Learning which includes a range of generic face to face and e-learning modules covering a wide range of subjects.

    The professional development of probation officers employed by the 21 CRCs is the responsibility of those companies.

    As regards trainee Probation Officers, their training and development is overseen by the National Offender Management Service, through the Probation Qualification Framework (PQF). Recruits undertake on-the-job training and study, leading to graduation in 15 months as qualified probation officers. The final budget for delivery of the PQF will depend on the total number of trainees recruited. Last autumn, we made over 270 training places available for new probation officers and a similar number in January this year. A further intake is planned for April. This represents the biggest investment in the professionalism of the probation workforce for some considerable time. The NPS will continue to use the PQF and the CRCs are also free to do so should they choose.

  • Lord Beecham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Lord Beecham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Beecham on 2015-02-12.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what arrangements are in place to ensure and to monitor the timely production of court reports.

    Lord Faulks

    The Performance Framework for the National Probation Service (NPS) includes a target for timely delivery of court reports. Data relating to this measure is collected from operational case management systems. This data is validated and used by NPS Performance and Quality Managers to monitor and enhance performance against the target.