Category: Speeches

  • Ian C. Lucas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Ian C. Lucas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian C. Lucas on 2016-01-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how access to pension provision at the age of 55 affects eligibility for benefits.

    Justin Tomlinson

    The rules relating to the treatment of pension funds in means-tested benefits have not changed. How someone’s (or their partner’s) pension fund is treated depends on whether they have reached the qualifying age for Pension Credit, and the way in which they have accessed the fund (released money can be treated as either income or capital). Each case is decided on its own circumstances.

    Information is available in terms of how income and capital are treated in the means-tested benefits. A factsheet on this subject can be found at

    www.gov.uk/government/publications/pension-flexibilities-and-dwp-benefits.

    Further information can also be found in the decision-making guidance at www.gov.uk.

    “

  • Brendan O’Hara – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Brendan O’Hara – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Brendan O’Hara on 2016-02-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether each Astral exercise between February 2011 and November 2012 assumed a post-incident release of nuclear materials from the transportation packages.

    Penny Mordaunt

    The Ministry of Defence maintains a Defence Nuclear Emergency Organisation (NEO) to respond in the unlikely event of an emergency involving the transport of defence nuclear materials. The NEO organises regular exercises to test the effectiveness of its emergency response planning and arrangements. These include the Astral series of exercises, which are designed to be challenging, and thus simulate the extremely unlikely event of a release of radioactive material from the transport containers. No radioactive materials are used or released to the environment during the exercises. The specific exercise objectives do not require assessments or estimates of decontamination, environmental or other post-incident decontamination costs or of radiological dose uptakes. The Atomic Weapons Establishment (AWE) undertook the modelling for each Astral exercise between February 2011 and November 2012.

    I am withholding information about the physical state, mass quantity, release fraction and total released radioactivity assumed for these exercises as disclosure would or would be likely to prejudice national security.

  • Thangam Debbonaire – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Thangam Debbonaire – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Thangam Debbonaire on 2016-03-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what access to higher education Syrian refugees resettled through the Vulnerable Persons Relocation Scheme will have.

    Joseph Johnson

    Syrian refugees resettled through the Vulnerable Persons Relocation Scheme will have access to home fee status and student support in England for higher education. Those granted humanitarian protection will be able, like UK citizens, to secure access to support after three years’ lawful ordinary residency in the UK.

  • Kate Osamor – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Kate Osamor – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kate Osamor on 2016-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if his Department will carry out an assessment of the potential (a) health, (b) economic and (c) social effects of its proposals to reduce community pharmacy funding.

    Alistair Burt

    Community pharmacy is a vital part of the National Health Service and can play an even greater role. In the Spending Review, the Government re-affirmed the need for the NHS to deliver £22 billion in efficiency savings by 2020/21 as set out in the NHS’s own plan, the Five Year Forward View. Community pharmacy is a core part of NHS primary care and has an important contribution to make as the NHS rises to these challenges. The Government believes efficiencies can be made without compromising the quality of services or public access to them. Our aim is to ensure that those community pharmacies upon which people depend continue to thrive and so we are consulting on the introduction of a Pharmacy Access Scheme, which will provide more NHS funds to certain pharmacies compared to others, considering factors such as location and the health needs of the local population.

    The Government’s vision is for a more efficient, modern system that will free up pharmacists to spend more time delivering clinical and public health services to the benefit of patients and the public.

    We are consulting the Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee (PSNC) and others, including patient and public representatives, on our proposals for community pharmacy in 2016/17 and beyond. We announced on 16 March 2016 that the consultation period was to be extended to allow more time to develop the proposed changes with the PSNC and others. It will now close on 24 May 2016.

    An impact assessment will be completed to inform final decisions and published in due course.

  • Will Quince – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Will Quince – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Will Quince on 2016-05-09.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will include a time limit in the terms of the soft drinks industry levy such that that levy would cease to apply if reformulation targets are met by soft drinks manufacturers.

    Damian Hinds

    There is no plan to include a time limit in the terms of the soft drinks industry levy, but the Chancellor keeps all taxes under review as part of the Budget process.

  • The Countess of Mar – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The Countess of Mar – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Countess of Mar on 2016-06-29.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether jet engine oils and hydraulic and de-icing fluids contain substances that attract harmonised and notified hazard classifications under the CPL Regulation (EC) No 1272/2008.

    Lord Freud

    Suppliers of jet engine oils, hydraulic and de-icing fluids are required to provide information on their products and on certain hazardous components under the direct-acting EU CLP Regulation. Some hazardous components/substances in these oils and fluids may attract harmonised hazard classifications under the CLP Regulation.

    Information for users of these products about hazardous components/substances must be included in the safety data sheets required by the REACH Regulation ((EC) No 1907/2006) and, where appropriate, on the labels for these products before the products can be placed on the market in the EU.

  • Diana Johnson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union

    Diana Johnson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Diana Johnson on 2016-09-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, how many trade negotiators his Department plans to employ by the end of the current fiscal year.

    Mr Robin Walker

    Britain has been at the forefront of the free trade-supporting countries in the EU for the last 40 years. The Department for Exiting the EU now has over 200 staff plus the expertise of over 120 officials in Brussels, and is growing fast. The overall size and scope of the new Department, including staffing and budget, are regularly reviewed. We will ensure we are appropriately staffed to deal with all aspects of the forthcoming negotiation.

  • Alex Cunningham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Alex Cunningham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2015-11-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to increase the breadth of physical activity opportunities beyond sport available to children (a) in and (b) out of school.

    Edward Timpson

    We want all children to lead healthy and active lives. The government will publish a new sports strategy by the end of 2015. The strategy will set out how the government intends to support young people to participate in, and engage with sport and physical activity.

    Schools can offer a variety of opportunities for children to be physically active. Physical education (PE) is a compulsory subject at all four Key Stages in the national curriculum for maintained schools. The curriculum sets out the expectation that pupils should be physically active for sustained periods of time. Teachers have the flexibility to organise and deliver a range of activities.

    Through the Primary PE and Sport Premium, the government has committed over £450m of ring-fenced funding to primary schools to improve the quality of their PE and sport provision.

    Other programmes focused on increasing physical activity include Change4Life Sports Clubs and the Young Ambassador Peer Leaders programme. Change4Life Sports Clubs aim to increase the physical activity, health and wellbeing of the least active children through healthy lifestyle activities. In May 2015, an independent evaluation on Change4Life Primary Clubs found that around 270,000 children participated in Change4Life Primary Clubs over the lifetime of the programme (2011/12 – 2014/15). Young Ambassadors are primary and secondary pupils who promote physical activity across their school and lead activities with their less active peers.

    Outside of school, more than 385,000 families signed up to the Change4Life 10 Minute Shake Up summer campaign and over 700,000 children participated. The campaign encouraged children to team up with some of their favourite Disney characters and enjoy 10 Minute Shake Up activities to keep them healthy and physically active.

    The government is also keen to encourage more pupils to walk to school. Statutory guidance for local authorities on travel and transport to school was published in July 2014. Local authorities have a duty to promote the use of sustainable travel and transport and to develop a strategy for sustainable local travel.

  • Andrew Rosindell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Andrew Rosindell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2015-12-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if her Department will take steps to (a) develop a comprehensive and detailed plans for the development of Montserrat and (b) encourage young Montserratians in the UK to return to Montserrat and assist with economic growth.

    Mr Desmond Swayne

    DFID is working jointly with the Government of Montserrat and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to establish a joint vision for Montserrat. This includes encouraging all Montserratians, home and abroad, to participate in the future of the island.

  • James Berry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    James Berry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by James Berry on 2016-01-15.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what arrangements his Department has in place to ensure that organisations are not able to provide both training for and assessment of the standards for the same apprenticeship; and if he will make a statement.

    Nick Boles

    The Department is fully committed to the principle that end point assessment should either be delivered by an independent third party, or in such a way that no party involved in the management or training of an apprentice can make the sole decision on competence and passing the end-point assessment.

    We are working to ensure the Register of Assessment Organisations and Register of Training Providers, which govern who can conduct training and assessment, support this principle.