Category: Speeches

  • Daniel Zeichner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Daniel Zeichner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2016-01-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to his Department’s British Road Safety Statement, published in December 2015, Cm 9175, when he plans to consult on legislative changes to improve urban cycle safety by ensuring that sideguards and rear under-run devices are not removed from HGVs but remain permanently fitted.

    Andrew Jones

    The Department plans to consult on amendments to the Construction and Use Regulations in the second half of 2016.

  • Bernard Jenkin – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Bernard Jenkin – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bernard Jenkin on 2016-02-08.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether his Department has established a group or unit to deal with the Government approach to the forthcoming EU referendum.

    John Penrose

    There is a long established secretariat in the Cabinet Office that deals with all European matters, including the renegotiation. This has been expanded in recent weeks to reflect the increased workload resulting from the renegotiation.

  • Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

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

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans he has to modernise the HM Revenue and Customs payment system to allow people to make payments via BACS bank transfers.

    Mr David Gauke

    HM Revenue and Customs’ (HMRC) payment systems allow customers to make payments via BACS or Faster Payment bank transfers for the vast majority of taxes and regimes. In 2014/15, HMRC received just under 16 million BACS and Faster Payments, totalling £186 billion, which equates to almost a quarter of all payments made to HMRC in that year. Customers can also pay electronically using HMRC’s Online Payment Service, by Direct Debit or CHAPS.

  • Baroness Jowell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Baroness Jowell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Jowell on 2016-04-12.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their estimate of the number of people who are street homeless in London for each year since 2010.

    Baroness Williams of Trafford

    One person without a home is one too many and we are committed to doing all we can to prevent homelessness. That is why we have increased central investment to tackle homelessness over the next four years to £139 million.

    This will include a new national £10 million programme to support innovative ways to tackle rough sleeping, and will build on the success of our No Second Night Out initiative, which saw two-thirds of rough sleepers in London come off the streets after a single night.

    DCLG publishes regular statistics on rough sleeping. These are available (the latest figures are attached) at:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/rough-sleeping-in-england-autumn-2015

    The GLA collects more detailed statistics on rough sleeping in London. These are available at: http://data.london.gov.uk/dataset/chain-reports

    “

  • Alex Chalk – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Alex Chalk – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Chalk on 2016-05-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether his Department plans to review the length of maximum sentence for animal cruelty offences.

    Dominic Raab

    We keep maximum penalties under review. This includes sentencing trends, and whether the courts may be finding their sentencing powers inadequate.

    Data on the average sentence length for animal cruelty can be found in the Outcomes by offence table at the attached link:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/criminal-justice-system-statistics-quarterly-december-2014

    “

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

    Jim Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-06-27.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 27 June 2016 to Question 40542, what estimate he has made of the number of his Department’s civil servants that will be based in Coventry in each of the next five years; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    The Department for Transport currently consists of a central department and four executive agencies as follows:

    • The Driver & Vehicle Licensing Agency
    • The Driver & Vehicle Standards Agency
    • The Vehicle Certification Agency
    • The Maritime and Coastguard Agency

    The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency has not made an estimate of the number of civil servants it plans to base in Coventry over the next five years. All other areas of the Department do not currently have any plans to base any staff in Coventry.

  • Oliver Dowden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Oliver Dowden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Oliver Dowden on 2016-09-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if the Government will consider reinstating clothing grants for care homes for elderly residents who have just arrived from hospital.

    David Mowat

    Despite a welcome shift towards more care provision in community settings, our ageing population means a growing number of people require care in care and nursing homes, with an increasing level of acuity and complexity of need.

    The Enhanced Health in Care Homes vanguards, implemented by NHS England, are beginning to show how addressing this inequity in access to services can reduce unnecessary, unplanned and avoidable admissions to hospital, shorten the length of hospital stays and improve peoples’ quality of life, wellbeing and clinical outcomes.

    NHS England is also leading the multi-agency Community Services and Hospital Discharge programme, which will deliver a series of interventions to transform community services and improve discharge of older people from hospital. These include initiatives such as “discharge to assess”, which will increase the number of patients who are discharged quickly and safely to their usual place of residence.

    The Department is not aware of a clothing grant for people who enter care homes and is therefore unable to consider reinstatement. Where a local authority arranges care and support to meet an adult’s eligible needs, it may charge them. Where care is arranged in a care home, a local authority must not, through charges, reduce the adult’s income below the Personal Expenses Allowance of £24.90 per week.

    The allowance means that local authority supported care home residents have money to spend as they wish on personal items, including clothing. It must not be spent on meeting their eligible care needs.

    Local authorities have discretion to be more generous where they think this would be appropriate.

  • Philip Davies – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Philip Davies – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Philip Davies on 2015-11-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of adult education courses in helping people into work.

    Nick Boles

    The Department commissioned econometric research to estimate the labour market impact of Further Education (FE), which found that FE generates significant economic effects, resulting in sustained higher earnings and increased employment chances. This report was published in December 2014 and is available at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/further-education-comparing-labour-market-economic-benefits-from-qualifications-gained

    “

  • Madeleine Moon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Madeleine Moon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Madeleine Moon on 2015-12-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he is negotiating for a UK support element within the contact negotiations for the P8; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to her on 3 December 2015 to Question 17838.

  • Catherine McKinnell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Catherine McKinnell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine McKinnell on 2016-01-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of the removal of housing allowance for 18 to 21 year-olds who receive universal credit in the number of (a) homeless people and (b) claimants living on temporary accommodation.

    Justin Tomlinson

    The Department continues to liaise with a range of key stakeholders as it develops exemptions to the removal of automatic entitlement to housing support for 18-21 year olds in Universal Credit. This includes discussing this policy with landlords, housing associations and charities.

    Once this work has been completed we will bring forward detailed proposals.