Author: admin

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2014-06-04.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will take steps to ensure access to CT scanning is more readily available to NHS patients.

Jane Ellison

All acute trusts have access to computerised tomography (CT) and NHS England is not aware of any patient access problems. The NHS England standards for seven day services support seven day access to CT. CT involves ionising radiation, so is a test that has to be justified and used in appropriate patient pathways.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2014-06-04.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many calls were made on higher-rate telephone numbers to (a) magistrates’ courts, (b) county courts and county court money claims centres in England in 2012-13 and 2013-14; and what the average duration was of calls to such numbers.

Mr Shailesh Vara

I refer the hon. Member to the replies given to him on 12 May 2014, Official Report, Columns 413-414W (for volume and average duration of calls), and on 10 April 2014, Official Report Columns 396-397W (for a note on money claims centres).

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2014-06-04.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what proportion of mandatory reconsideration periods have exceeded 14 days; and if he will make a statement.

Mike Penning

The Department is collecting information to understand how the introduction of mandatory reconsideration is operating, including completion timescales. However, this data is not sufficiently robust and reliable to make available.

In the production of new statistics, which all the above would be, the Department works to guidelines set by the UK Statistics Authority to ensure we are able to publish statistics that meet the high quality standards expected. Departmental statisticians need to assure themselves of the quality of administrative data sources before releasing information as Official statistics, and before the exact timing and format of statistics can be confirmed. .

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2014-06-04.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when he expects Atos to appoint new agency staff to administer appeals on reassessment of eligibility for disability benefits.

Mike Penning

Appeals on the disability benefits are administered and heard by Her Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service. Atos has no role to play.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2014-06-04.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what consideration is given to fibromyalgia in the work capability assessment; and how many and what proportion of people diagnosed with fibromyalgia have been declared fit for work following such an assessment.

Mike Penning

As with any medical condition, DWP recognises fibromyalgia as a potentially significantly disabling condition. The statistical information requested is not readily available and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2014-06-04.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to help blind and partially sighted passengers travel on buses.

Stephen Hammond

The Department for Transport is committed to ensuring that all disabled people have the same access to transport services and opportunities to travel as other members of society. The Public Service Vehicles Accessibility Regulations 2000 (PSVAR) outline specific requirements for the bus industry to ensure that buses are as accessible as possible for disabled passengers. Latest statistics (September 2013) show that 78% of buses in England now meet PSVAR accessibility requirements, while 92% operate with a low floor facility and these figures continue to grow steadily.

The Department also recognises that blind and partially sighted passengers find audio and visual announcements particularly useful when travelling on buses. We will therefore continue to encourage bus operators and local authorities to invest in audio/visual announcement systems for their buses where possible. However, we also understand that this technology comes at a considerable cost.

With this in mind, my noble colleague, Baroness Kramer wrote to bus operators on 4^th February 2014 to encourage the development of simpler, more affordable audio/visual announcement systems for buses that can provide benefits to as many passengers as possible. Alongside this, the Department for Transport is also looking into the possibility of establishing a research initiative involving small businesses and academic institutions through the ‘Transport Systems Catapult’to encourage further innovation.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2014-06-04.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when he expects Mr Andrew Cottrell of Prenton, to undergo his medical examination as part of his application for the personal independence payment.

Mike Penning

The Department cannot respond to the House of Commons with regards to a specific case.

I will write to the hon. Gentleman.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2014-06-04.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the number and proportion of vacancies on Universal Jobsmatch classified as employer confidential; and what checks are in place to ensure that such vacancies are not bogus, fraudulent or otherwise inappropriate.

Esther McVey

Universal Jobmatch revolutionises the way jobseekers look for work and it has already helped many jobseekers find the jobs they want through the millions of vacancies posted since 2012. It is part of the government’s plan for providing easy online access to government services for all.

There are various circumstances where an employer may wish to keep their details confidential – for example, if they are employing a Personal Carer or another role where they are using their home address. We estimate that there are 42,544 employer confidential vacancies currently on Universal Jobmatch. This equates to 7.1% of the total live vacancies as at 5 June 2014.

The security of a user’s data is of the utmost importance to us and built into the service are monitoring tools and vacancy checks, which help to detect, deter and remedy inappropriate use of the site. Checks are made to identify inappropriate, fraudulent and bogus jobs and employers in order to block them from being posted.

There are also warnings to users of the service advising them they should not be asked to reveal personal information i.e. bank details, as this information is not relevant to the application process.

Additionally, a ‘Contact Us’ facility is provided so users can quickly highlight any employers that users may have concerns about. DWP then investigate such concerns.

These checks are in place for all vacancies, including employer confidential vacancies.