The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alan Brown on 2016-03-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, with reference to the Housing Statistical Release Right to Buy Sales October to December 2015, published on 24 March 2016, what the average length of time was from a start on site to occupancy.
Brandon Lewis
This information is not available.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2016-03-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, whether housing association tenants who part-buy their properties under shared ownership will be able to use Right To Buy to purchase either a share or all of that property.
Brandon Lewis
As is the case with the existing Right to Buy, the agreement with housing associations and the National Housing Federation to extend Right to Buy discounts to housing association tenants will not apply to those people who already own a share in their home, including those who purchased their home under shared ownership.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Vicky Foxcroft on 2016-03-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what contribution his Department is making to Government steps to reduce the incidence of serious youth violence.
Mr Edward Vaizey
This Government is committed to reducing youth violence. On 13 January 2016 the Home Office published the new Ending Gang Violence and Exploitation approach. This has a twin focus concerned with both reducing violence and protecting vulnerable individuals from exploitation by gangs, and how the Home Office want to work with national and local partners to respond to this.
The Home Office’s Modern Crime Prevention Strategy, published on 23 March 2016, sets out a range of measures they are taking, including working with the police and industry to ensure there are effective controls on the sales of knives, particularly to under-18s. The Home Office has agreed a set of principles with major retailers and the British Retail Consortium to prevent the underage sale of knives and to ensure knives are displayed safely.
Government is also supporting police action taken against knife crime. Most recently, in February 2016, the Home Office supported thirteen police forces who undertook coordinated action against knife crime. This involved targeting habitual knife carriers, weapon sweeps, test purchases of knives from identified retailers, and use of surrender bins.
In addition, DCMS launched the Sport Strategy in December 2015, which sets out how sport can play a role in inclusivity and giving everyone the best chance in life.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Damian Collins on 2016-03-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what plans his Department has to commemorate the life of Bobby Moore and to mark the 60th anniversary of his captaincy of the 1966 England FIFA World Cup winning team.
David Evennett
Sir Bobby Moore OBE made an exceptional contribution to English football – his leadership and skill inspired not only the 1966 squad, but also subsequent generations of aspiring footballers at clubs across the country.
The FA is leading commemorations of the 50th anniversary of the 1966 World Cup win, which the Government supports. The FA will be making a formal announcement in due course.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by William Wragg on 2016-03-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps his Department is taking to maximise engagement of children and young people in the arts.
Mr Edward Vaizey
The Culture White Paper published last month makes clear that this Government is committed to ensuring that the arts should be an essential part of every child’s education both in and out of school. This includes working with the Department for Education on a range of music and cultural education programmes since 2012, supporting the Arts Council’s Cultural Education Challenge to create a network of cultural education partnerships and a new Cultural Citizens programme which will be piloted in three areas to support the engagement of disadvantaged young people with arts and culture in their local community.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Grant Shapps on 2016-03-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what plans the Government has to extend the period of time separating spouses of service personnel have to vacate his Department’s accommodation.
Mark Lancaster
The Ministry of Defence (MOD) has no plans to extend the period of time in which separating spouses of Service personnel have to vacate MOD provided accommodation. However, the current 93-day period can be extended further according to individual circumstances, such as children’s schooling, relevant welfare and any medical considerations.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tania Mathias on 2016-03-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether spending on the upkeep of the defence estate counts towards the Government’s pledge to spend at least two per cent of GDP on defence, as defined by NATO.
Mark Lancaster
In accordance with NATO guidelines on Defence expenditure, spending on the upkeep of the defence estate to support our Armed Forces does count towards the Government’s pledge to spend at least two per cent of GDP on defence.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Vicky Foxcroft on 2016-03-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the potential contribution of cadet forces to reducing the incidence of serious youth violence.
Mr Julian Brazier
The Ministry of Defence-Sponsored Cadet Forces comprise the Sea Cadet Corps, the Combined Cadet Force, the Army Cadet Force, and the Air Training Corps.
The Department has not formally assessed the potential contribution of its Cadet Forces in reducing the incidence of serious youth violence. However, the 131,000 Cadets involved follow a wide variety of well-organised, enjoyable and challenging military-themed activities in a safely-managed environment.
Experience shows that these activities allow Cadets to develop a sense of responsibility and service to the community, self-reliance, leadership, teamwork, communication skills and respect for authority and for others. In undertaking these activities, Cadets can gain nationally-recognised educational and vocational qualifications.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Vicky Foxcroft on 2016-03-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, in how many towns there is no choice of secondary education provision.
Edward Timpson
The information requested is not held in the required format.
The Department’s register of educational establishments in England and Wales, EduBase, contains the postal address details of all schools including the postal town which may differ from the actual town where the school is located.
The EduBase system is publically available and can be accessed at: http://www.education.gov.uk/edubase/home.xhtml
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Vicky Foxcroft on 2016-03-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what contribution her Department is making to Government steps to reduce the incidence of serious youth violence.
Nick Gibb
The Department for Education is working with the Home Office on a series of measures to reduce the incidence of serious youth violence.
In January 2016, the Home Office published its Ending Gang Violence and Exploitation approach. Among its priorities, this publication describes action to protect locations where vulnerable young people can be targeted, including pupil referral units and residential children’s care homes. New regulations and guidance, introduced in 2015, make it clear that homes can prevent a child leaving the home where there is an immediate risk to their safety – which would include where a gang was seeking to lure a child away for involvement in gang activities. The Department for Education has also undertaken a stock-take of frontline practice in relation to missing children, which will inform and help to shape ongoing work to strengthen and improve practice with the Association of Directors of Children’s Services.
The Ending Gang Violence and Exploitation publication also states that the Department for Education continues to focus on action to improve school attendance. Regular attendance plays a vital role in keeping young people away from gang involvement and other crime and antisocial behaviour. The Department has, from September 2015, reduced the threshold for ‘persistent absence’ from 15% to 10%, emphasising the message that attending school should be a priority for every pupil.
In March 2016, the Home Office published its Modern Crime Prevention Strategy, outlining measures to strengthen the Government’s response to knife crime. This publication notes that the Home Office is working with the Department for Education to deliver prevention messages in schools; teaching school pupils to recognise and challenge unhealthy and exploitative relationships, to prevent them from being abused or from engaging in abuse themselves. We are working with the Personal, Social, Health and Economic Education Association to train teaching staff in areas that seek help, to help them to teach young people to recognise and avoid exploitation and abuse.
The Modern Crime Prevention Strategy also highlights that the Department for Education will work with the Home Office on how best to raise awareness in school age children about the risks of carrying knives, and the role schools can play to build resilience in children and young people so they do not give in to peer pressure to carry knives.