Category: Speeches

  • Jamie Reed – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Jamie Reed – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jamie Reed on 2016-02-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps he has taken to ensure that young people in West Cumbria are equipped with the skills they need to access newly-created jobs in the nuclear and renewable energy sectors.

    Anna Soubry

    The Government is working with the energy industry to maximise economic benefits from new electricity generation projects and is providing support to enhance the competitiveness of the supply chain, including improving the skills and employability of the construction workers in the industry.

    In addition Cumbria Local Enterprise Partnership has identified nuclear and energy excellence as a key priority contributing significant growth opportunities for the Cumbria economy. The Local Enterprise Partnership has strong ambitions to drive growth across the Cumbria area by improving the delivery of skills, infrastructure, environmental sustainability and business support.

  • David Jones – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    David Jones – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Jones on 2016-03-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what discussions (a) he and (b) ministers of his Department have had with their Welsh Government counterparts on the potential benefits to North Wales of the Northern Powerhouse.

    Anna Soubry

    The Minister for the Northern Powerhouse and the Parliamentary Under Secretary for Wales jointly hosted a roundtable in August to discussthese potential benefits. Ministerial and official engagement continues across Departments to capitalise on the opportunities for North Wales from the Northern Powerhouse.

  • Lilian Greenwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lilian Greenwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lilian Greenwood on 2016-04-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 4 March 2016 to Question 29270, and with reference to the Answer of 31 March 2008, on cycleways, when his Department stopped collecting data on the creation of cycle lanes by local authority area.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    The previous Parliamentary Question refers to figures from 16 years ago. We have been unable to ascertain from Departmental records precisely when we stopped collating this data, but it will have been a decision made by the previous Labour administration.

  • Tim Farron – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Tim Farron – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Farron on 2016-05-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many cases of sexual assault have been recorded in schools in Cumbria in the last five years.

    Edward Timpson

    The Department for Education does not collect information on the number of sexual assaults taking place on school sites. The Government expects schools to take immediate and robust action if violent incidents occur. Schools should report criminal offences to the police.

  • Paul Monaghan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    Paul Monaghan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Monaghan on 2016-07-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent assessment he has made of the stability of the oil and gas industry.

    Jesse Norman

    We are working closely with the Oil and Gas Authority and industry to ensure we have a clear understanding of the issues affecting the sector, including the impact of low prices.

  • Liz McInnes – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Liz McInnes – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

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

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent steps he has taken to ensure that work status is routinely recorded in health records.

    Nicola Blackwood

    This matter is under consideration as part of work on the forthcoming Green Paper on work and health.

  • Sharon Hodgson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Sharon Hodgson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sharon Hodgson on 2015-11-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what plans his Department has to assist and promote the UK video games industry in areas outside London.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    The video games tax relief, launched in April 2014, is available to support video games productions based anywhere in the UK. Additionally, in October 2015 we launched our new £4m UK Games Fund to accelerate video games sector growth in all UK regions offering grants, mentoring and skills support for micro-businesses and SMEs. Of the first 24 successful grant applicants announced in February 2016, 18 were based outside London. Grant winning companies located in the North East of England for example included Coatsink Software in Sunderland, Nosebleed Interactive in Newcastle and Cardboard Sword and Double Eleven, both in Middlesbrough. The second call for applications is currently underway and closes on 18th April.

    The UK Games Fund’s talent programme, Tranzfuser, is currently in development and will be working with a UK-wide network of regional hubs including Vector 76 in the North East of England, The Digital Creativity Hub in the North West and Sheffield Hallam University in South Yorkshire.

  • Baroness Masham of Ilton – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Baroness Masham of Ilton – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

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

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact of reductions in funding to local public health budgets on the outcomes achieved by drug treatment services.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    A table which shows trend data from the National Drug Treatment Monitoring System for individuals completing treatment free of dependence for the years 2009-10 to 2014-15 is attached.

    For the first time in 2014-15, the annual report brought together information on people receiving specialist interventions for drugs and alcohol. Many people experience problems with both substances and receive interventions for both, and drugs and alcohol services are often commissioned together. The figures therefore include the substance group ‘non-opiate and alcohol’, as well as those seeking services for drug-only related dependency, to ensure all individuals leaving treatment drug-free are captured. This new methodology has been applied to the years prior to 2014-15 to ensure comparable figures.

    We have provided both the total numbers leaving treatment successfully free of dependence as well as the numbers that left successfully not using drugs or alcohol at the time of exit (which is a subset of the larger number), as some individuals may, for example, be occasionally drinking when they are discharged but it will have been judged by a clinician to be non-problematic and not dependent use and that therefore they no longer require treatment.

    Public Health England will continue to support local authorities to provide effective and efficient drug treatment services, by providing bespoke data to assist the joint strategic needs assessment and to show the effectiveness of the local treatment system, as well as value for money tools, topical briefings, advice on good practice and on the benefits of investing in alcohol and drug treatment. Across the country, councils have already begun to develop new ways to deliver public health, showing that it is possible to deliver better health for local people and also better value for the taxpayer.

    The evidence-base for the effectiveness of drug treatment is robust, with United Kingdom and international evidence showing that treatment provides value for money, improves public health and reduces crime.

    The Building Recovery strand of the Government’s Drug Strategy recognises the importance of non-medical interventions, such as recovery networks, employment, housing, family support and reduced re-offending, in helping people recover and to participate more fully in society. Every person in structured drug treatment has a personal care plan based on an assessment of their needs, which maps out the steps they will take towards recovery. It covers their drug use, health, social functioning, criminal involvement, housing, employment and any other barrier to recovery.

  • Chi Onwurah – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Chi Onwurah – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chi Onwurah on 2016-01-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment he has made of the role of the Code for America programme and its applicability to the UK.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    The UK is one of the most advanced digital countries in the world. The Government is currently developing a Digital Strategy, to be published later this year, which will set out the actions we will take so we continue to lead the world in embracing the benefits of digital technology in our government, economy and society.

    The Government has provided support and engagement to Code for America through a series of visits and information sharing activities as it has developed its programme, and continues to work with relevant international organisations to share best practice as appropriate to support and promote the UK’s status as a world leader in digital government.

  • 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 representations he has received on the timescale for the completion of the area review process in 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.