The below Parliamentary question was asked by Danny Kinahan on 2016-07-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had with the Consumer Council on UK ferry operators and their pricing structures.
Mr John Hayes
I have held no such recent discussions. The level of charges on ferries across the Irish Sea is a commercial matter for the companies concerned, subject to normal competition law.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Stephenson on 2016-10-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to (a) educate bus passengers about over-staging and (b) help them to report cases of over-staging.
Andrew Jones
The destination printed on a bus ticket should not have any effect on the amount of reimbursement that the bus operator receives for carrying concessionary passengers.
This is because reimbursement paid to operators is not based on the full commercial adult fare for a typical journey, but on the average equivalent full fare – taken from a “basket of fares” – that each concessionary traveller would have paid in the absence of the scheme.
Reimbursement payments are also subject to audits of ticket sales data and, if required, ‘on-bus’ surveys of patronage.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Rooker on 2015-11-02.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to review the Teratology Society recommendation regarding mandating folic acid fortification in Europe.
Lord Prior of Brampton
We have not formally reviewed the 2015 Obeid paper but officials are aware of its conclusions which are in line with information already considered by Ministers.
The recommendation in the Teratology Society in essence repeats current advice on folic acid supplements. There are no plans to review this advice.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2015-11-23.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what safeguards his Department is putting in place to ensure the quality of university specialist mental health mentoring provision when the new single quote system is introduced.
Joseph Johnson
Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) have clear responsibilities under the Equality Act 2010 to support students, including those with mental health conditions. It is for the HEI to determine what welfare and counselling services they need to provide to their students.
In addition, Disabled Students Allowances (DSAs) are available to meet the additional costs of study-related support needs, where the needs of the student cannot be met by the institution by way of a reasonable adjustment.
A new quality assurance framework is being developed for support that is funded by DSAs, so as to provide assurance on both quality and financial matters. The quality assurance framework will be in place in 2016. All support workers will be required to meet quality standards in order to be funded through DSAs. Discussions with stakeholders regarding new mechanisms for the selection of non-medical help support providers are already underway.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Wolf of Dulwich on 2015-12-22.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 14 December (HL4061), what checks are in place to ensure that Regulation 6 of the Local Authorities’ Traffic Orders (Procedure) (England and Wales) Regulations 1996 is complied with; who is entitled to complain if that Regulation is not complied with, and to whom; and what penalties are incurred by local authorities or London boroughs for failing to comply with that regulation.
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
There are no checks in place to ensure that local authorities comply with the Local Authorities’ Traffic Orders (Procedure) (England and Wales) Regulations 1996, including the duty concerning consultation. Anyone can complain if they consider that the authority has failed to comply with their duty. Complaints should initially be raised with the authority concerned, and if they are not satisfactorily addressed, they can be raised with the Local Government Ombudsman. Alternatively, failure to comply with the consultation requirements in regulation 6 would be grounds for bringing a legal challenge against an order under paragraph 35 of Schedule 9 to the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2016-01-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 14 January 2016 to Question 21778, on genito-urinary medicine, what questions it is planned will be asked of local commissioners as part of Public Health England’s survey of local commissioning arrangements for sexual health; when that survey is planned to be completed; and when he plans to make publicly available the results of that survey.
Jane Ellison
Public Health England, supported by the Association of Directors of Public Health, is undertaking a review of Sexual Health, Reproductive Health and HIV Commissioning services; the survey was first published on the 19 January 2016. The closing date for the survey is 8 February 2016. Results of the survey, including responses and analysis of the questions, will be published this summer.
A range of tailored commissioning questions have been selected for local authorities, NHS England and clinical commissioning groups. Each survey is slightly adapted for its audience. The survey questions focus on 11 key areas; commissioning support structures, services commissioned, needs assessments, service specifications, access to services, tendering, changes to investment, tariffs and payments, outcomes and performance, resources and top challenges.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-02-22.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how much (a) the Government and (b) each government department spent on (i) arrangements and (ii) hospitality for the Chinese state visit in October 2015.
James Duddridge
The full cost of inward State Visits is borne by a number of different Government Departments. We do not yet have the costs borne by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office for the 2015 State Visit by the President of China. These will be published on the gov.uk website once available.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Maria Eagle on 2016-03-16.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to page 33 of the Budget, how much of the £520 million estimated to be raised by the new sugar levy she expects to be allocated to sporting initiatives through her Department’s budget in each of the next four years.
Edward Timpson
As announced in Budget 2016, a new soft drinks industry levy is expected to raise £520 million in the first year.
In England, revenue from the soft drinks industry levy will be used to double the Physical Education (PE) and sport premium for primary schools from £160 million a year to £320 million from September 2017. Primary schools will be able to make further improvements to the quality and breadth of PE and sport they offer, including introducing new activities, after school clubs and hiring specialist coaches to work alongside teachers.
Revenue generated from the levy will also be used to provide up to £285 million a year to give 25% of secondary schools increased opportunity to extend their school day to offer a wider range of activities for pupils. This can include sports clubs.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Chalk on 2016-04-14.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if her Department will take steps to support National Stalking Awareness Week.
Karen Bradley
The Government has committed £80 million to support victims of violence against women and girls, including, stalking, between 2016 and 2020. This includes funding for the National Stalking Helpline run by the Suzy Lamplugh Trust.
We have strengthened the law by introducing new offences of stalking in 2012. In 2014-15, there were 1,103 prosecutions commenced under the new stalking offences, an increase of 50% over the previous year (2013-14).
To mark National Stalking Awareness Week, we are raising awareness of the increases in prosecutions and convictions for these crimes to help improve victim confidence in the criminal justice system.
Additionally, we have consulted on the introduction of a new civil Stalking Protection Order to tackle perpetrators at an early stage to help prevent victims becoming targets of a prolonged campaign of abuse. Our response to this consultation will be published in due course. Through the Police Innovation Fund, we are supporting the police to identify ways to manage the significant volume of online material in abuse, harassment and stalking cases, so that evidence can be collected more easily and a strong case built to bring a prosecution.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Tugendhat on 2016-05-23.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what his Department’s target is for the proportion of its properties that are classified as void.
Penny Mordaunt
The Ministry of Defence (MOD) target for the proportion of Service Family Accommodation properties classified as void is 10 per cent which allows the MOD to facilitate moves in and out of each area, support short notice requirements and allow for upgrades to take place.