Category: Speeches

  • Lord Ouseley – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Lord Ouseley – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Ouseley on 2015-11-02.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the Equality and Human Rights Commission’s Report Is Britain fairer?, particularly with regard to the employment and earnings prospects of young people aged 16 to 24.

    Baroness Neville-Rolfe

    The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) is an independent body, and its report “Is Britain Fairer?” covers a five-year period spanning the Labour and Coalition governments. We welcome the positive areas of progress and note the key challenges to which it refers. The information in the report will be used by the EHRC to help develop its next strategic plan, covering the period 2016-19.

    Giving young people the skills that businesses need is important. That is why our work to ensure 3 million apprenticeship starts in England over this Parliament is crucial.

    According to London Economics, the lifetime benefits associated with the acquisition of Apprenticeships at Level 2 and 3 are very significant, standing at between £48,000 and £74,000 for Level 2 and between £77,000 and £117,000 for Level 3 Apprenticeships.

    The latest data shows that 89% of apprentices are satisfied with their apprenticeship; 85% of apprentices said their ability to do the job had improved, and 83% of apprentices said their career prospects had improved.

  • Michael Tomlinson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Michael Tomlinson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Michael Tomlinson on 2015-12-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what financial support his Department plans to provide to local authorities to resettle Syrian refugees in years two to five of the vulnerable persons relocation scheme.

    Richard Harrington

    At the Spending Review the Government committed around £130 million to assist with local authority costs over years 2-5 of the scheme. This will be allocated on a tariff basis over four years, tapering from £5,000 per person in their second year in the UK, to £1,000 per person in year five. There will also be support for education and healthcare, and a special cases fund to assist the most vulnerable refugees.

  • Julie Cooper – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Julie Cooper – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julie Cooper on 2016-01-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many lone parent households that are in receipt of housing benefit will be affected by changes to universal credit work allowances in (a) Burnley, (b) Lancashire and (c) the North West.

    Priti Patel

    The information requested is not available.

    The number of people on benefits is driven by a range of factors. Because of this, the programme measures progress by the successful achievement of its delivery plan rather than numbers of claimants.

  • Roger Godsiff – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Roger Godsiff – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2016-02-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people with Parkinson’s disease have been placed in the (a) support group and (b) work-related activity group with a prognosis statement of (i) three months, (ii) six months, (iii) 12 months, (iv) 18 months, (v) two years and (vi) more than two years since the introduction of employment and support allowance in 2008.

    Priti Patel

    I refer the Hon. Member to the reply given on the 25 January 2016 to Question UIN 23428.

    “

  • Joan Ryan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Joan Ryan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Joan Ryan on 2016-03-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent representations he has received from (a) the British Medical Journal, (b) GP networks, (c) Monitor and (d) other organisations on conflicts of interest in the commissioning of services by clinical commissioning groups.

    George Freeman

    NHS England updated existing guidance for managing conflicts of interest in December 2014, when NHS England issued revised statutory guidance, which prescribed stronger assurance measures in light of the development of primary care co-commissioning. This came into force from April 2015.

    In light of comments from stakeholders and the recent National Audit Office report “Managing conflicts of interest in NHS Clinical Commissioning Groups”, as well as findings from the audit of the management of conflict of interest that was undertaken in the autumn by NHS England’s internal auditors, NHS England is in the process of further updating this statutory guidance.

    NHS England has engaged with NHS Clinical Commissioners in respect of conflicts of interest in the commissioning of services by clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) to positive effect.

    It has also engaged with around 80% of the Audit chairs for the CCGs- the feedback and discussion received on behalf of both these groups will feed into the Revised Statutory Guidance which will be published and discussed at the next NHS England board meeting on 31 March. This will launch the official public consultation (which will also take into consideration views from British Medical Journal and Monitor).

    The final guidance will then be presented to the May NHS England board meeting and will be published on the NHS England website.

  • Nic Dakin – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Nic Dakin – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nic Dakin on 2016-03-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what evidence her Department holds on the relationship between the A-level grades achieved by prospective teachers and their later performance in the classroom.

    Nick Gibb

    Evidence, including a seminal McKinsey study from 2007 (How the world’s best-performing schools come out on top), shows that teacher quality and impact cannot be predicted by a single factor such as A-Level grades, but result from a complex combination of factors including academic achievement combined with characteristics and attributes such as communication skills, willingness to learn and motivation to teach.

    The Teachers’ Standards, developed by a group of leading teachers and heads, clearly define the core elements of effective teaching – including strong subject knowledge and the promotion of scholarship, as well as skills such as classroom management. All new teachers must demonstrate that they are meeting the standards at the end of their initial training.

    It is important that providers of initial teacher training are able to select and recruit candidates on the basis of their potential and their academic achievement to date; this is why we are giving schools much greater say in recruiting and training candidates who can be successful in the classroom. This year, over half of all postgraduate trainees are coming through school-led routes.

  • Lord Hylton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Hylton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2016-05-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether it is their policy that the other members of NATO have a responsibility to ensure that Turkey only uses proportionate force when dealing with insurgents and alleged terrorists; and whether they intend to call for discussions about that issue amongst NATO members.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    Turkey is a North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) ally and valued security partner for the UK. All countries, including NATO Allies, have a responsibility to use proportionate force when dealing with insurgents and alleged terrorists. We have no plans to call for discussion about that issue amongst NATO members.

  • Lord Scriven – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Scriven – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Scriven on 2016-06-20.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with the government of Turkey about the reported use of tear gas and rubber bullets at a LGBT pride march in Istanbul.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    We have not discussed these specific cases with the Government of Turkey. We regularly underline the importance of all fundamental freedoms as part of our broader dialogue with the Turkish government, including the freedom of assembly and the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, and/or intersex persons. We did not fly the rainbow flag over our Embassy in Ankara over the weekend commencing 24 June. British Missions overseas fly the Diplomatic, Union or Consular flag throughout the year, the flags of the constituent countries of the UK on their respective national days and in certain countries the European flag. Missions do not fly any other flags.

  • Christopher Chope – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Christopher Chope – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christopher Chope on 2016-09-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, which local authorities in England have held referendums seeking increases in council tax beyond the maximum threshold in each of the last three years.

    Mr Marcus Jones

    Over the last three years, one local authority held a referendum to increase council tax beyond the threshold. A referendum was held on Bedfordshire Police and Crime Commissioner’s proposal to increase council tax.

  • Paul Flynn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Paul Flynn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Flynn on 2015-11-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what recent estimate he has made of the number of graduates who are (a) unemployed and (b) not in high-skilled jobs.

    Joseph Johnson

    The Department publishes labour market statistics for English domiciled graduates and postgraduates relative to non-graduates as part of the Graduate Labour Market Statistics series. The latest figures refer to the quarter from April to June 2015 and are available at the link:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/graduate-labour-market-statistics-april-to-june-2015

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