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  • Sheila Gilmore – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Sheila Gilmore – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sheila Gilmore on 2014-03-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what progress he has made in negotiations with the European Commission on a derogation from the ban on the import or manufacture of incandescent bulbs; and if he will make a statement.

    Gregory Barker

    Responsibility for energy-using products policy, including negotiations for product-specific regulations under the Ecodesign for Energy-related Products Directive, was transferred from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to the Department of Energy and Climate Change on 3rd March 2014.

    There are no provisions allowing the European Commission or individual Member States to create exemptions from Regulation 244/2009, which phases out of incandescent bulbs.

    The UK has been proactive in pressing to ensure EU policy and legislation takes full account of the potential health implications of artificial lighting, and has raised the issue in two recent meetings in Brussels. EC regulation 244/2009 will be reviewed later this year and we will continue to press for potential health implications to be considered.

  • Catherine McKinnell – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Catherine McKinnell – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine McKinnell on 2014-03-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to paragraph 2.42 of Budget 2014, whether the Regional Air Connectivity Fund will only be available to new domestic routes; which regional airports will be eligible; when funding is likely to become available; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    The Chancellor announced in this year’s Budget that funding to maintain existing air connectivity to London – first announced in the 2013 Spending Round last June – will increase from £10million to £20million per year. The Chancellor also announced that support from this funding will be provided for start-up aid for new air routes from UK regional airports. European Union aviation State aid guidelines allow for start-up aid to be provided under certain conditions to facilitate the development of new routes from airports which handle fewer than five million passengers per year. This currently includes Newcastle Airport.

    The Department for Transport is working with the Treasury to develop guidance that will clarify how the Government will ordinarily expect to interpret the European Union State aid guidelines, and explain how the funding process will operate.

  • Lisa Nandy – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Lisa Nandy – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lisa Nandy on 2014-03-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how the 60 mathematics teachers brought to the UK from Shanghai for an exchange organised by his Department were chosen.

    Elizabeth Truss

    We launched the Maths Teacher exchange between England and China in March 2014. The exchange will start in the next academic year. We are in the process of confirming arrangements, including which teachers from Shanghai will participate.

  • Angus Robertson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Angus Robertson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Angus Robertson on 2014-04-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the planned in-service date is for the Future Anti-Surface Guided Weapon; how many will be procured; and what estimate he has made of the (a) total programme and (b) unit cost.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    The planned in-service date for the Future Anti-Surface Guided Weapon (Heavy) (FASGW(H)) is 2020. I am withholding the information relating to the number being procured as its disclosure would, or would be likely to prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of the Armed Forces.

    The total programme cost for FASGW(H) is £500 million and is a joint investment with the French Government. The UK’s contribution is £280 million (contract value excluding VAT). I am withholding information on the unit cost of FASGW(H) as its disclosure would prejudice commercial interests.

    I am also withholding all information on the FASGW (Light) as contract negotiations are ongoing and disclosure would prejudice commercial interests.

  • Peter Luff – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Peter Luff – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Peter Luff on 2014-04-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will publish the corporate plan of the Defence Equipment and Support Organisation relating to its new bespoke trading fund status.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    Copies of the Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S) Corporate Plan and the Framework Document will be placed in the Library of the House in due course, and published on the gov.uk website and the Defence Intranet. The Corporate Plan sets out the DE&S strategic objectives and timelines for the next three years. The Framework Document includes the function and governance arrangements for the new DE&S, including the freedoms and benefits.

  • Peter Luff – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Peter Luff – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Peter Luff on 2014-04-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what advantages he expects to accrue from the new bespoke trading fund status of the Defence Equipment and Support Organisation; and what new freedoms that organisation will have which were not previously available to it.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    Copies of the Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S) Corporate Plan and the Framework Document will be placed in the Library of the House in due course, and published on the gov.uk website and the Defence Intranet. The Corporate Plan sets out the DE&S strategic objectives and timelines for the next three years. The Framework Document includes the function and governance arrangements for the new DE&S, including the freedoms and benefits.

  • Gavin Williamson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Gavin Williamson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gavin Williamson on 2014-04-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the (a) total and (b) average funding per head is under the basic funding formula for pupils in Staffordshire in 2014-15.

    Mr David Laws

    Total funding under the schools block element of the dedicated schools grant in financial year 2014 to 2015 for Staffordshire is £455.7 million, with an associated unit of funding per pupil of £4,310.

    More information on the dedicated schools grant allocations for financial year 2014 to 2015 can be found here:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dedicated-schools-grant-2014-to-2015

    “

  • Gavin Williamson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Gavin Williamson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gavin Williamson on 2014-04-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the (a) total and (b) average funding per head is under the basic funding formula for pupils in Somerset in 2014-15.

    Mr David Laws

    Total funding under the schools block element of the dedicated schools grant in financial year 2014 to 2015 for Somerset is £273.2 million, with an associated unit of funding per pupil of £4,278.

    More information on the dedicated schools grant allocations for financial year 2014 to 2015 can be found here:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dedicated-schools-grant-2014-to-2015

    “

  • Graham Stuart – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Graham Stuart – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Graham Stuart on 2014-04-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of how well-prepared school governors are in advance of their taking the first decisions regarding performance-related pay.

    Mr Edward Timpson

    Governors have held school leadership to account for school performance, including the assessment of overall teacher performance, for some time. With the introduction of performance-related pay, governing bodies will have already approved revised pay policies that set out precisely how their schools will make performance and pay decisions.

    To support governors in exercising their responsibilities, the Department for Education issued advice on implementing the new pay arrangements. The National College for Teaching and Leadership has also offered training for governors on performance-related pay and financial efficiencies. In addition, the National Governors Association has published guidance on how governors should prepare to deal with pay appeals. We believe that, with this support, most governing bodies will have the knowledge and awareness of the key issues they need to address to ensure that robust evidence-based pay decisions are made this September.

  • Jim Shannon – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Jim Shannon – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2014-04-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the incidence of truancy was in schools in the latest period for which figures are available; and what steps he is taking to reduce it and to involve parents in those efforts.

    Elizabeth Truss

    Since the report by Charlie Taylor on improving school attendance, the Government’s focus has been on reducing absence overall and encouraging schools to address patterns of poor attendance early.

    To help schools do this, the Department for Education reduced the threshold at which pupils were classified as persistent absent, from 20% to 15% of sessions missed. In 2012, we increased the level of the school attendance penalty fines, from £50 and £100 to £60 and £120 respectively, and in 2013 reduced the overall timescales for paying fines from 42 to 28 days. The second most common reason for absence is family holiday, so we tightened the law in September 2013 so that headteachers could only grant requests for leave during term time in exceptional circumstances.

    Our reforms are working. In 2012/13, 300,895 pupils were persistently absent, down from 433,130 in 2009/10 – a fall of almost a third. 130,000 fewer pupils were missing 15% of school in 2012/13 compared to 2010/11. Overall absence rates are down from 6.3% of possible sessions missed in 2008/09 to 5.2% in 2012/13.