Category: Speeches

  • Tim Farron – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    Tim Farron – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Farron on 2016-07-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will make an assessment of the potential effect on investment in renewable energy of the UK withdrawing from the EU.

    Jesse Norman

    Since the EU referendum, the Government has been engaging with our key energy stakeholders, including investors in the renewable energy sector, to make it clear that we are open for business.

    The UK remains an attractive environment for investors in energy.

  • Liz McInnes – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Liz McInnes – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Liz McInnes on 2016-09-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when the Government plans to publish its green paper on disability employment.

    Penny Mordaunt

    We will publish a Green Paper later this year.

  • Barry Sheerman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Barry Sheerman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Sheerman on 2015-11-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps he is taking to ensure that higher education institutions make appropriate provision for disabled students who do not have complex needs.

    Joseph Johnson

    Higher education institutions are responsible for meeting their legal obligations under the Equality Act 2010, including for students with dyslexia.

    The legal duty to provide reasonable adjustments applies to all disabled students. In addition Disabled Students Allowances (DSAs) are available where the needs of the student cannot be met by the institution by way of such a reasonable adjustment. A consultation on DSAs closed on 24 September and the Government response will be published in due course.

  • Baroness Masham of Ilton – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Baroness Masham of Ilton – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Masham of Ilton on 2015-12-08.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to produce an update to the 2010 Drug Strategy, and if so, what is the timetable.

    Lord Bates

    The Government plans to refresh our approach and build on the balanced 2010 Drug Strategy ‘Reducing demand, restricting supply, building recovery: supporting people to live a drug-free life’ in line with the manifesto commitments including to tackle drugs as a key driver of crime; intervene early to prevent troubled young people being drawn into crime; and review how best to support those suffering from long term drug dependency back into work.

    There are promising signs our approach is working – with a downward trend in drug use over the last decade and more people recovering from their dependency now than in 2009/10.

    A date for the publication of the refreshed approach is yet to be confirmed.

  • Gregory Campbell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Gregory Campbell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gregory Campbell on 2016-01-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment (a) his Department and (b) Ofcom have made of the effectiveness of the gaining provider-led notification of transfer process for broadband since its introduction.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    A Government call to evidence on switching principles has recently closed. We have committed to legislating for easier switching in the Communications markets, and we are now working with Ofcom to progress this.

    Ofcom’s assessment of the costs and benefits of implementing the enhanced process are set out in Chapter 9 athttp://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/consultations/consumer-switching-review/.

    “

  • Ian Austin – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Ian Austin – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Austin on 2016-02-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what consideration his Department plans to give to local availability of courses in area reviews of further education.

    Nick Boles

    Government will produce an evaluation of the area review programme and its potential to impact on groups protected by the Equality Act 2010. The reviews do not however, mandate action, and colleges are independent corporations, so it will be for each college’s governing body to assess the potential impact on groups protected by the Act, as part of its decision to accept or reject any recommendation requiring a change to their provision.

    Each area review steering group will consider relevant data relating to current courses delivered within their area, assess the relevance of these courses to local learner and employer needs and determine how current and future demand can be best met through the recommendations of the area review.

    Individual area reviews are expected to take about four months, the timescale being dependent on the number of colleges and complexity of the local issues involved in each area. The overall review process has been divided into five waves of area reviews and is scheduled to be completed by March 2017

    We expect the costs of completing an area review to be met within existing budgets, with minimal additional costs to the colleges, local authorities or LEPs involved. The Departments and their agencies will undertake this work with no additional staffing. Additional costs will be minimal.

    The costs arising from the recommendations of each review will be explored as part of the process. We expect the colleges, alongside local authorities and LEPs with devolved skills budgets, to consider how these costs can be met locally. Where there are costs that cannot be met, but which are essential to the successful implementation of the review, we have announced a facility for transitional funding to support this. We will provide more detail in due course.

  • Steve Reed – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Steve Reed – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve Reed on 2016-03-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of his Department’s weekly collection support scheme; whether that scheme is still in use; and how many local authorities were awarded funding through that scheme.

    Mr Marcus Jones

    The Department’s Weekly Collection Support Scheme has been a success. It has protected weekly collections of residual waste for 6 million households and demonstrated how councils with weekly collections can deliver cost-effective, convenient waste services for residents while seeing their recycling rates increase. Light-touch monitoring of the scheme has ensured councils are spending money on the projects set out in their bids, and has captured good practice. The 81 local authorities awarded funding through the scheme are expected to monitor and evaluate the performance of their projects and to volunteer to make that data publicly available.

    While the scheme’s funding was allocated over the course of three years (2012-15), the scheme runs for five years and comes to an end in November 2017.

    This Government continues to encourage councils to support the wishes of local people about regularity of bin collections and champions frequent and convenient waste collections which protect the environment and public health.

  • Peter Aldous – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Peter Aldous – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Peter Aldous on 2016-04-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when he plans to make a decision on how supported housing will be funded when universal credit is introduced.

    Justin Tomlinson

    The Department for Work and Pensions jointly with the Department for Communities and Local Government commissioned an evidence review of the shape, scale and cost of the supported housing sector.

    Off the back of this evidence, we will conduct a policy review to ensure support is focused on the most vulnerable and the appropriate groups are safeguarded.

  • Jim Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Jim Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-05-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what information she holds on trends in recruitment of teachers of priority subjects in secondary schools across the UK in each of the last five years; and if she will make a statement.

    Nick Gibb

    Information on recruitment numbers can be found in Table 1c of the Main Tables: SFR46/2015 of Initial teacher training: trainee number census – 2015 to 2016, available at the following link:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/initial-teacher-training-trainee-number-census-2015-to-2016

    “

  • Sammy Wilson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Sammy Wilson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sammy Wilson on 2016-07-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to support beekeepers whose colonies are at risk from notifiable diseases.

    George Eustice

    I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to the hon. Member for Fermanagh and South Tyrone, on 12 July 2016, PQ UIN 41793.