The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Kennedy of Southwark on 2015-12-03.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the activities of ticket resale websites.
Baroness Neville-Rolfe
An independent Review has been established to consider consumer protection measures in relation to online ticket resales and will report by 26 May 2016.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Pearson of Rannoch on 2016-01-13.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have any plans to alter the timing of school exams to accommodate Muslim children during Ramadan, and whether they have similar plans to accommodate Jewish children and the children of other non-Christian religions during their religious festivals.
Lord Nash
This is a matter for the Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation (Ofqual) and I have asked its Chief Regulator, Glenys Stacey, to write directly to the Noble Lord. A copy of her reply will be placed in the House of Lords Library.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Laurence Robertson on 2016-02-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what additional funding her Department plans to make available to small childcare facilities to help them meet the costs of the proposed free 30 hours of childcare per week.
Mr Sam Gyimah
As part of the Spending Review in November 2015, we announced that we will be investing over £1billion more per year by 2019-20 to fund the government’s commitments on the early education entitlements. The funding includes £300 million per year for a significant increase to the rate paid for the two, three and four year old entitlements. From April 2017, the national average funding rates will increase to £4.88 for three and four year olds and £5.39 for two year olds. Local authorities are responsible for deciding how to distribute this funding across their area and for setting the rate paid to early years providers.
We will introduce a national funding formula for early years so that funding is transparently and fairly matched to need and fairly distributed between different types of providers and different parts of the country. We will be consulting on detailed proposals later this year.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Royston Smith on 2016-02-29.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he plans to take to improve the quality of end of life (a) care and (b) provision in the NHS in England.
Ben Gummer
The Government is committed to making improvements in the quality of care people experience at the end of life.
In 2014, we set out five priorities for care of the dying person which should underpin the care being delivered to all dying people. The priorities for care state that an individual plan of care, which includes food and drink, symptom control and psychological, social and spiritual support, is agreed, co-ordinated and delivered with compassion.
The priorities also set out the critical importance of compassion, respect and dignity in delivering care to dying people and the implications, for staff, commissioners and providers, when making decisions about how end of life care services will meet the needs of local people. The new approach to care, based on these fundamental principles, is being used by clinicians across the country.
The Government’s forthcoming response to the independent Review of Choice in End of Life Care will set out further actions we are taking to achieve high quality, personalised end of life care.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2016-03-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what reports he has received of injured children trying to leave Syria being turned away at the Jordanian border.
Mr Philip Hammond
We are aware that there are large numbers of refugees being denied access to Jordan at the Jordan/Syria border. Whilst recognising their legitimate security concerns and the need for proper vetting, we have discussed with the Government of Jordan the necessity of prioritising admittance for the sick and injured, including children. Jordan has shown remarkable generosity as host to over 630,000 registered refugees from the Syria conflict. The UK is firmly committed to supporting Jordan. We have contributed over £330 million to help Jordan since the start of the Syria crisis. As co-hosts of the Supporting Syria and the Region Conference held in London this year we helped secure over $12 billion of commitments of further support for those inside Syria and Syria’s neighbours Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey which are bearing the humanitarian weight of the crisis.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tulip Siddiq on 2016-05-04.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the oral contribution by the Financial Secretary to the Treasury on 13 April 2016, Official Report, column 374, on tax avoidance and evasion, whether (a) the Guardian, (b) the BBC, (c) the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists and (d) the Süddeutsche Zeitung have agreed to provide the data they received.
Greg Hands
HM Revenue & Customs has asked the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), the BBC and The Guardian to share their data. The BBC and The Guardian have confirmed that they do not hold the data. The ICIJ have refused to share their data with us, stating that their policy is not to hand over such material. While we welcome the steps they have taken in exposing this issue, their decision not to release the full set of information to us is disappointing.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Crispin Blunt on 2016-06-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what plans NICE has to consult on its methodology for carrying out evidence reviews and impact analyses to support NHS England’s specialised commissioning process.
George Freeman
As yet, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) does not have any plans to consult on changes to its methods and processes to support NHS England’s specialised commissioning process, but will carry out a full consultation if any such changes are considered necessary.
Following NHS England’s review of its specialised commissioning processes and the publication in the summer of the final report from the Accelerated Access Review, we anticipate NICE will want to look at its processes and methods for the assessment of drugs and treatments used in specialised commissioning.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-09-06.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what discussions he has had with the government of Japan on increasing trade links with that country.
Mark Garnier
My Rt Hon. Friend the Secretary of State for International Trade met with the Japanese Ambassador to the United Kingdom on 6 September. A range of topics were discussed including the opportunities presented by the United Kingdom exiting the European Union to strengthen its role as a global leader for free trade, including its trade links with Japan.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jeremy Lefroy on 2016-10-21.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether it is his Department’s policy that all submarines being constructed for the Royal Navy meet shock standard BR3021 as a minimum in respect of hydroplane bolts.
Harriett Baldwin
Hydroplane bolts are externally located equipment, whereas the BR Standard referred to, albeit superseded, sets standards for internal equipment. The Department is satisfied that appropriate standards are met for this equipment in accordance with our existing guidance.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Laird on 2015-11-09.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Faulks on 5 November (HL2965) concerning public inquiries that they have instigated into the death of a single individual since 1988, which of the individuals specified have not had a full coroner’s inquest.
Lord Faulks
A coroner’s inquest was not completed into the deaths of the following individuals:
Victoria Climbié, Robert Hamill, Dr David Kelly, Alexander Litvinenko, Baha Mousa, Zahid Mubarek, Rosemary Nelson and Azelle Rodney.
The only occasion when an inquest has been adjourned under section 17A of the Coroners Act 1988 because a non-statutory inquiry was to be held was following the death of Dr David Kelly. The Lord Chancellor established an inquiry to investigate the circumstances surrounding the death on 18 July 2003, the day that Dr Kelly’s body was found.