Category: Speeches

  • Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-03-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions he has had with bus companies on priority wheelchair spaces on buses.

    Andrew Jones

    The Public Service Vehicles Accessibility Regulations (PSVAR) 2000 require all affected vehicles to incorporate a designated space suitable for a reference wheelchair.

    The use of the wheelchair space is currently the subject of a case at the Supreme Court however. As such Ministers are unable to discuss it with bus operators.

  • Mike Kane – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Mike Kane – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mike Kane on 2016-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether NHS England requires mental health and social care trusts to monitor the effect on service users of service closures.

    Alistair Burt

    The Government is clear the reconfiguration of front line health services is a matter for the local National Health Service. Services should be tailored to meet the needs of the local population, and proposals for substantial service change must meet the four tests of reconfiguration which are (i) support from general practitioner commissioners (ii) strengthened public and patient engagement (iii) clarity on the clinical evidence base and (iv) support for patient choice.

    Any proposals for NHS service reconfiguration, including closure of services, must include a robust case for change and impact assessment. NHS England’s good practice guide for commissioners on service reconfiguration advises that:

    ― Following the decision on which option to take forward, an implementation plan should be set out on how the changes will be taken forward, when and by whom. The plan should identify a clear benefits realisation timetable with key milestones against which progress can be monitored. NHS England’s local teams will offer commissioners support, guidance and ongoing assurance through the implementation phase.

    The guidance and the assurance process is designed to ensure the outcomes and effects of proposed service changes are taken into account at an early stage. Local commissioners and providers routinely monitor patient outcomes.

    The good practice guide can be found here:

    https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/plan-ass-deliv-serv-chge.pdf

    “

  • David Mackintosh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    David Mackintosh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Mackintosh on 2016-05-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of the Advertising Standards Agency.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    This Government supports the system of co-regulation and self-regulation, overseen by the independent Advertising Standards Authority and underpinned by consumer protection legislation. This regulatory system is independent of the Government and is ultimately responsible for setting the standards in advertising, ensuring that all adverts, wherever they appear, are legal, decent, honest and truthful.

  • Lord Storey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Lord Storey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Storey on 2016-06-29.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what level of check by the Disclosure and Barring Service is required for someone to work in a school as a non-teaching staff member.

    Lord Nash

    The School Staffing (England) Regulations 2009, The Education (Independent School Standards) (England) Regulations 2014 and The Non-maintained Special Schools (England) Regulations 2011 require schools to carry out specific checks before they may appoint an individual to work in a school.

    For non-teaching staff members, the school must obtain an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service certificate and where relevant a check of the children’s barred list. A check of the barred list is required for staff engaging in regulated activity if as a result of their work they:

    • Will be responsible, on a regular basis in a school or college, for teaching, training instructing, caring for or supervising children; or

    • Will carry out paid, or unsupervised unpaid, work regularly in a school or college where that work provides an opportunity for contact with children; or

    • Engage in intimate or personal care or overnight activity, even if this happens only once.

  • Baroness Jones of Whitchurch – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Baroness Jones of Whitchurch – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch on 2016-09-09.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many people were convicted of food crime following the horsemeat scandal in 2013.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    The City of London Police investigation into how food products became adulterated with horsemeat led to three men being charged with fraud offences on 26 August 2016.

    The charges follow a complex international criminal investigation that saw the City of London Police, which is the National Policing Lead for Fraud, working in partnership with the Food Standards Agency and Crown Prosecution Service, as well as law enforcement agencies from across the United Kingdom and Europe.

  • Paul Flynn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Paul Flynn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Flynn on 2015-11-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the implications for her policies of the recent figures on household food waste published by the Waste and Resources Action Programme; and what steps her Department is taking to reduce domestic food waste.

    Rory Stewart

    Working through the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP), we are helping households waste less and save money through the Courtauld Commitment and the Love Food Hate Waste campaign. They have contributed to a 15% reduction in the amount of household food and drink waste between 2007 and 2012, from 8.3 m tonnes to 7.0 m tonnes. The current phase of the Courtauld Commitment has a target to reduce household food waste by a further 5% by the end of this year.

    In addition, signatories have reported a 7.4% reduction in supply chain waste between 2009 and 2012, with interim results for Courtauld 3 showing a further 3.2% reduction by 2014.

    WRAP is currently brokering a new agreement, Courtauld 2025, which is expected to start next year and will build on this progress.

  • Chi Onwurah – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Chi Onwurah – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chi Onwurah on 2015-12-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 30 November 2015 to Question 17745, whether provision was made for investments in Newcastle Station with a payback period longer than the East Coast Franchise Agreement, when his Department concluded that Virgin Trains East Coast were the best value to the public purse and passengers to continue as manager of that station.

    Claire Perry

    Mechanisms exist within the Franchise Agreement that allow stakeholders and operators to propose long term investments with payback periods beyond the length of the Franchise term. We are encouraging such investment proposals at Newcastle station.

  • Catherine West – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Catherine West – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2016-01-15.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how the Government plans to respond to the terrorist bombings in Jakarta in January 2016.

    Mr Hugo Swire

    The UK and Indonesia are already working closely together on a broad range of issues, including counter-terrorism and counter-extremism. We continue to provide support and assistance to the Indonesian government as it works to defeat those who plan and perpetrate acts of terror.

  • David Crausby – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    David Crausby – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Crausby on 2016-02-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what his policy is on removing from local authorities powers to veto planning applications for fracking.

    James Wharton

    Mineral planning authorities have a responsibility to consider planning applications for shale gas exploration under the Town and Country Planning regime. Planning law requires that applications for planning permission must be determined in accordance with the development plan for the local authority area, unless material considerations indicate otherwise. The Government has taken steps to ensure this locally led regime is effective, as set out in Written Ministerial Statements of 16 September, HCWS201 and HCWS202. This includes making available £1.2 million to ensure mineral planning authorities have adequate resource to reach timely decisions.

    Community involvement in planning applications and people’s safety and the environment will remain paramount. No decision has been made to take shale gas exploration out of this local authority led process.

  • Andrew Percy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Andrew Percy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Percy on 2016-03-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment he has made of recent trends in apprenticeship start-ups.

    Nick Boles

    There were 2.4 million apprenticeship starts over the previous parliament, and 499,900 apprenticeship starts in the 2014/15 academic year – an increase of 13.5 per cent on 2013/14.

    The number of under-19 apprenticeships starts in 2014/15 was 125,900, this was up 5.1 percent on 2013/14. There were 19,800 starts on Higher and Degree Apprenticeships in 2014/15, an increase of 115 per cent on 2013/14 (9,200 starts).

    We are taking action to support and encourage the growth of apprenticeships to meet our commitment to reaching 3 million starts by 2020.