Category: Speeches

  • Stephen Kinnock – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Stephen Kinnock – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Kinnock on 2016-03-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent representations he has received on the effectiveness of the Pension Service helpline.

    Justin Tomlinson

    We have a number of pension service telephony lines including the Pension Tracing Service; International Pension Claims/Changes; International Pension Enquiries; State Pension Claims; and State Pension changes. We conduct an annual DWP Customer Satisfaction Survey which ensures that we are delivering against our customer charter.

    All our Pension Service telephony services are subject to continuous improvement to improve our service delivery.

  • Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2016-04-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many civil servants were employed at each location by Innovate UK in the last year for which figures are available.

    Joseph Johnson

    There no civil servants employed by Innovate UK.

    People employed in Innovate UK are public servants and as at 31 December 2015 they were located as shown in the table below.

    Location

    Region

    Innovate UK

    Swindon

    South West

    180

    Other (inc. Work from home, Field work, Mobile, etc.)

    Mobile

    126

    Total

    Total

    306
  • Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2016-06-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much was spent on non-payroll staff in her Department in 2015-16.

    Nick Gibb

    The total spent on non-payroll Contingent Labour staff (ie, Agency Staff (Clerical and Admin); Interim Managers; and Specialist Contractors) in the Department for Education and its Executive Agencies is published by the Department for Education on a monthly basis at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/dfe-monthly-workforce-management-information which also includes Non Departmental Public Bodies (Equality & Human Rights Commission and Office of the Children’s Commissioner).

    “

  • Oliver Colvile – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Oliver Colvile – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Oliver Colvile on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps her Department is taking to reduce the level of drugs in prisons.

    Mr Sam Gyimah

    The Justice Secretary is clear that safety is fundamental to the proper functioning of our justice system and a vital part of our reform plans. There are a number of factors, including the availability of drugs in prisons, which must be tackled in order to make our prisons safe and places of rehabilitation.

    We have introduced tough new laws which will see those who smuggle packages over prison walls, including new psychoactive substances, face up to two years in prison. Those who involve themselves in the distribution of drugs in our prisons should know that they could face prosecution and extra time behind bars. We have a range of security measures and searching techniques in place to detect drugs, and to prevent smuggling into prisons.

    I am looking closely at this important issue, and will be setting our further plans in due course.

  • Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town on 2016-10-10.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what consideration they have given to prohibiting passengers from consuming their own alcohol on board aircraft, as is the case in the United States under Federal Aviation Administration regulations; and whether they have considered amending the Air Navigation Order 2016 to include such a prohibition.

    Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

    The Air Navigation Order has provisions that make it an offence to board an aircraft, or be in an aircraft, while drunk, as well as behaving in a disruptive way. Additionally, the aviation industry has clear rules and procedures in place which make it clear that only alcohol bought onboard will be allowed to be consumed. There are no current plans for the Government to review legislation further in this area. Aviation safety is, however, always kept under review.

  • Lord Marlesford – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Lord Marlesford – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Marlesford on 2015-10-29.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have considered seeking UN authority to establish safe holding areas outside the EU, to which refugees seeking to enter the EU could be transferred.

    Lord Bates

    The current migration crisis requires a global response. This may necessitate radical measures to address the unprecedented situation. We regularly engage with EU and multilateral partners, including the UN on a wide range of migration issues in order to find an effective and sustainable solution. Ideas about establishing safe centres outside the EU are at an early stage of development and we will consult appropriate organisations as discussions on these with EU and other partners progress.

  • Tim Loughton – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Tim Loughton – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Loughton on 2015-11-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many people are employed in the Property Asset Management Unit; and how many such people are (a) civil servants and (b) secondees from outside bodies.

    Brandon Lewis

    The Department for Communities and Local Government does not employ any civil servants, or secondees from outside bodies within the Property Asset Management Unit.

  • Andy Slaughter – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Andy Slaughter – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2016-01-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the (a) title and (b) date is of each memorandum of understanding signed by a Government department with another country since 2010.

    James Duddridge

    I refer to the answer I gave on 11 January to Question 20196. This information could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

  • Andrew Gwynne – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Andrew Gwynne – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2016-01-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what additional training has been provided to (a) NHS England and (b) Public Health England personnel on the Zika virus.

    Jane Ellison

    NHS England continues to work closely with Public Health England (PHE) and Government Departments to ensure appropriate advice is provided to the National Health Service in England in line with the current risk assessment. PHE will provide guidance and information specifically targeted at primary care and this will be available shortly. PHE has also produced regular briefing notes for local health protection teams who have been asked to share this with local NHS.

    PHE has raised awareness about Zika virus among public health and clinical colleagues within PHE by circulating a briefing note to all staff. This will support clinicians to identify, investigate and manage cases that may present in clinical practice. The briefing note included information about the outbreak in the Americas and the unusual increase in microcephaly cases in Brazil. It highlighted existing resources available to PHE personnel, including the PHE Zika virus page:

    https://www.gov.uk/guidance/zika-virus

    and the National Travel Health Network and Centre website:

    http://travelhealthpro.org.uk/

    An additional training session will also be provided to the duty doctors in PHE.

    “

  • Gregory Campbell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Gregory Campbell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gregory Campbell on 2016-02-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people automatically enrolled into workplace pensions between October 2012 and October 2013 have since withdrawn from that scheme.

    Justin Tomlinson

    The Information requested is not routinely recorded for management information purposes and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

    Research from 2013 shows that between nine and ten per cent of automatically enrolled workers had opted out of their pension scheme. Our latest figures show that since the roll out of automatic enrolment, nearly 6 million people have now been automatically enrolled, and opt outs have remained much lower than were originally anticipated. We expect that around nine million workers will be newly saving or saving more by 2018. The Department is doing further analysis into workplace pension participation and opt out rates.