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  • Vernon Coaker – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Vernon Coaker – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Vernon Coaker on 2014-05-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether the pupil premium is available for pre-school children from service families; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr David Laws

    The pupil premium and the service children premium are additional resources provided to maintained schools and academies in England to support the education of 4-16 year-olds who meet the eligibility requirements.

    The Government has announced that a new early years pupil premium, worth £50 million, will be introduced from April 2015. It will give disadvantaged three- and four-year-old children better access to quality early education which evidence shows can have a major impact on their school readiness. The Government will consult later this year on how best to implement these proposals.

  • Vernon Coaker – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Vernon Coaker – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Vernon Coaker on 2014-05-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how armed forces veterans are identified when making an application for jobseeker’s allowance; and if he will make a statement.

    Esther McVey

    Armed Forces Veterans who claim Jobseeker’s Allowance are identified by the Work Coach at their initial Work Search interview.

  • Andy Slaughter – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Andy Slaughter – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2014-05-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether he has further plans to expand the Public Defender Service beyond the first phase of recruits.

    Mr Shailesh Vara

    We are still concluding the recruitment campaign from 20 January 2014 and expect some further appointments to the PDS to be confirmed as a result of that.

    In the current circumstances the Government will take the necessary steps to ensure availability of representation in Very High Cost Cases in which legally aided defendants are currently unrepresented. This could include increasing the capacity of the Public Defender Service. It remains open to the self-employed Bar to accept instructions on these cases, and we would welcome the maximum possible participation of the self-employed Bar in this regard.

  • Jim Dobbin – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Jim Dobbin – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Dobbin on 2014-05-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps she is taking to ensure that her Department’s vaccination programmes reach children with disabilities.

    Lynne Featherstone

    The UK is a leading advocate for vaccination coverage that ensures that the poorest and most vulnerable groups, including those with disability, have access to essential vaccines. The UK funds the GAVI Alliance, the Global Polio Eradication Initiative and the Measles and Rubella Initiative to conduct supplemental immunisation activities, specifically targeting children who are outside the routine immunisation service delivery system.

    The UK’s goal on immunisations is that every child is fully immunised with equitable coverage of core vaccines. In 2011, the UK committed over four years to vaccinate over 80 million children against preventable diseases, including diseases which can lead to disability, through the GAVI Alliance. DFID’s 2014 Annual Report shows we are on track to meet this commitment.

  • Paul Uppal – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Paul Uppal – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Uppal on 2014-05-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what representations he has received on the applicability of the end-of-life criteria to the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s appraisal of abiraterone acetate for the treatment of metastatic hormone relapsed prostate cancer not previously treated with chemotherapy.

    Norman Lamb

    Since January 2013, the Department has received four questions from hon. Members, including his own, regarding the applicability of end-of-life criteria in the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s appraisal of abiraterone (Zytiga) for the treatment of metastatic hormone relapsed prostate cancer not previously treated with chemotherapy.

    In addition, we have received one letter from an hon. Member regarding this particular appraisal more generally.

  • Paul Uppal – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Paul Uppal – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Uppal on 2014-05-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what figures he holds on the life expectancy of men with metastatic castrate-resistant prostate cancer.

    Jane Ellison

    The Government’s Mandate to NHS England sets out an ambition to make England one of the most successful countries in Europe at preventing premature deaths from all cancers, including prostate cancer.

    Cancer indicators in the NHS Outcomes Framework and the Public Health Outcomes Framework will help NHS England to assess progress in improving cancer survival and mortality for men with prostate cancer.

    Data related to men with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer is not collected to permit the calculation of a reliable figure for average life expectancy.

    However, Cancer Research UK has estimated that men with advanced, incurable prostate cancer treated in trials or under drug access schemes at the Royal Marsden Hospital survived on average 41 months, compared to between 13 and 16 months 10 years ago.

  • Sadiq Khan – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Sadiq Khan – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sadiq Khan on 2014-05-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, in how many immigration appeal hearings lost by the Government her Department failed to send a presenting officer in each of the last four years.

    James Brokenshire

    I will write to the Rt Hon Member.

  • Sadiq Khan – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Sadiq Khan – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sadiq Khan on 2014-05-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answers of 28 February 2014, Official Report, columns 556-7W, on Serco, what liability his Department has for termination payments to Serco for its surrender of the contract for running community payback in London; and how much his Department will have to pay to Serco for its surrender of that contract.

    Jeremy Wright

    I refer the Honourable MP to the response sent to him in 28th February 2014 under PQ 187896, PQ 187897, PQ 187898, and PQ 187894 which can be found on Hansard under the reference columns 556-7W, for ease of reference, the link is:

    http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201314/cmhansrd/cm140228/text/140228w0003.htm

    “

  • Sadiq Khan – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Sadiq Khan – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sadiq Khan on 2014-05-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, to how many immigration appeal hearings the Home Office failed to send a presenting officer in each of the last four years.

    James Brokenshire

    I will write to the Rt Hon. Member.

  • Sadiq Khan – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Sadiq Khan – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sadiq Khan on 2014-05-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how much his Department has spent in each of the last four years on counsel fees related to inquests into the deaths of those in custody.

    Mr Shailesh Vara

    The Legal Aid Agency (LAA) is able to identify fees paid to counsel for inquest cases funded under the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders (“LASPO”) Act 2012 from April 2013 onwards. For the financial year 2013-14, the total value of counsel fees paid relating to inquests into the deaths of those in custody under the LASPO Act totalled £10,574.40.

    This figure represents only those cases under the LASPO Act where payment has been made during 2013-14. Very few inquests that have been funded under the LASPO Act have been billed and paid in that period, as many are ongoing. Cases typically take over a year from approval of funding to payment of the final bill.

    The total figure of £10,574.40 does not include information recorded in the LAA’s new costs management system, upon which a small pilot group of providers are currently processing their claims. The volume of claims being processed through this system represents around 1% of all claims.

    The Legal Aid Agency does not hold the information requested centrally for cases funded under the Access to Justice Act 1999 (i.e. cases originally submitted prior to April 2013). Under the Access to Justice Act, ad hoc payments were made aggregating fees for the instructed solicitors and counsel on the case, and it is not possible to disaggregate the costs without checking each individual file.