Category: Speeches

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

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

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-10-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 12 September 2016 to Question 44480, what monitoring mechanisms are in place to collect data on the effects of his Department’s devolution policies.

    Andrew Percy

    The Government believes that local areas are best placed to monitor the effects of devolution policies within their locality. All devolution deals include a commitment to putting in place a monitoring and evaluation plan, which is locally developed and administered with government support and signed off by government.

    Combined authorities are also required to have local scrutiny committees, helping to ensure that those best placed to monitor devolution activity are empowered to do so.

    It is the government’s view that this is an appropriate and proportionate approach to decentralising power.

  • Grahame Morris – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Grahame Morris – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Grahame Morris on 2015-10-29.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what analysis his Department has conducted or commissioned on the number of doctors likely to retire in the next five years; and what assessment his Department has made of whether sufficient numbers of doctors are in training to maintain current service levels.

    Ben Gummer

    The Centre for Workforce Intelligence medical workforce modelling, estimates that around 13,500 consultants and general practitioners (GPs) in England will retire in the five years from 2015 to 2019 inclusive.

    Taking account of expected retirements the consultant and GP workforce is projected to grow by around 9,400 posts by 2019, or 2.2% per annum, which is a considerably faster rate of growth than that projected baseline demand for healthcare services (reflecting population growth and the ageing of the population) over this period.

  • Stewart Jackson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Stewart Jackson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stewart Jackson on 2015-11-25.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many people have received funding from government schemes to assist first-time home buyers in (a) Peterborough and (b) England in each year since 2010; and if he will make a statement.

    Greg Hands

    The Government does not hold annual figures for the number of first time buyers who have received funding since 2010. However since the launch of The Help to Buy: Equity loan in April 2013, funding has been made available to support 46,133 first time buyers in England, of whom 601 were in Peterborough. Funding has also has been made available to support 19,971 first time buyers in England, of which 154 were in Peterborough, through the Firstbuy and Homebuy Direct schemes.

    To support more first time buyers, the Government announced at the Spending Review plans to extend the Help to Buy: Equity Loan scheme until 2021, launch London Help to Buy and build 200,000 starter homes, to be sold at a 20% discount to young first time buyers. The Government is also launching Help to Buy: ISA, giving savers a bonus to help them purchase their first property.

  • Maria Eagle – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Maria Eagle – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Maria Eagle on 2015-12-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what programmes he plans to fund from the Joint Security Fund; and how much each such programme will receive in each year up to 2020.

    Michael Fallon

    Decisions on programmes to be funded in part or in whole from the Joint Security Fund will be finalised on receipt of the Chancellor’s formal Spending Review settlement for Departments expected shortly.

  • Chris Green – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Chris Green – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Green on 2016-01-27.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, with reference to NHS’s consultation, Specialised services policy and specifications, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the procedure in use by NHS England to develop commissioning policies for specialised medicines.

    George Freeman

    NHS England is continuing to refine its standard operating procedure for developing commissioning policies for specialised medicines, taking into account professional and stakeholder feedback. For example, during 2015/16 NHS England introduced a more explicit requirement for external review of the available evidence of clinical and cost effectiveness, and a parallel clinical assurance process to ensure new policies appropriately reflect the available evidence. These evidence reviews are now made available alongside draft policy proposals as part of NHS England’s public consultation process.

    NHS England has also commissioned an external review of its current policy development process and will formally consider lessons learned as it refines the process to be adopted in support of the 2016/17 work programme.

  • Christopher Chope – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Christopher Chope – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christopher Chope on 2016-02-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 23 February 2016 to Question 27033, which governments within the EU support further political integration.

    Mr David Lidington

    As I said in my response of 23 February 2016 (PQ 27033), there is clearly support in some governments within the European Union for further political integration, but there are other, more sceptical voices too. The recital in paragraph one of section C makes clear that “the United Kingdom, in the light of the specific situation it has under the Treaties, is not committed to further political integration into the European Union”.

  • Fabian Hamilton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Fabian Hamilton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Fabian Hamilton on 2016-03-15.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the reasons for trends in the number of junior doctors electing not to finish their postgraduate training in the UK; and if he will make a statement.

    Ben Gummer

    The General Medical Council report, “Interactive reports to investigate factors that affect progression of doctors in training”, shows that for 7,423 Foundation Year 2 (F2) doctors who completed foundation training in 2012, the first cohort the General Medical Council began collecting data on:

    – 65.8% of these doctors took up a specialty or general practitioner training place immediately after completing foundation training;

    – a further 16.6% took up a training place the following year; and

    – 92.5% were in further medical training or working as doctors in the United Kingdom within two and a half years of completing F2.

    A copy of the report is attached and it can also be found at:

    http://www.gmc-uk.org/Briefing_note___Exams_and_recruitment_outcome_reports.pdf_60060997.pdf_60086828.pdf

  • Helen Jones – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Helen Jones – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Helen Jones on 2016-04-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the annual costs incurred in clinical negligence legislation due to the failure of the NHS Litigation Authority to (a) properly investigate claims early in the process and (b) offer a realistic settlement at the earliest possible time; and if he will make a statement.

    Ben Gummer

    The role of the National Health Service Litigation Authority (NHS LA) is to deal efficiently and effectively with clinical negligence cases against the NHS as set out in the framework agreement with the Department.

    The NHS LA discharges its functions by:

    ― paying justified claims promptly and appropriately;

    ― defending claims without merit;

    ― undertaking appropriate and proportionate risk management activities with its members with a view to assisting them to minimise their claims and thus improve patient and staff safety; and

    ― ensuring that the lessons learned from claims and the other activities of the NHS LA are appropriately shared in order to help reduce adverse incidents in the future.

    A review of NHS LA by the Department, published in July 2015, concluded that it is a well-led and efficient organisation.

  • Toby Perkins – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Toby Perkins – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Toby Perkins on 2016-05-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people appointed to the taskforce to look at improving accessibility of apprenticeships for people with learning disabilities have learning difficulties.

    Justin Tomlinson

    The individuals invited to sit on the taskforce represent a range of organisations and specialisms, from employers and training providers to charities and educational experts. Organisations representing disabled people and those with learning disabilities have been invited to take part.

    It would not be appropriate for DWP to disclose personal information about taskforce members.

  • Philip Davies – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Philip Davies – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Philip Davies on 2016-07-21.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an estimate of the effect of tobacco legislation on levels of revenue received by HM Treasury in the last 10 years.

    Jane Ellison

    Impact assessments for legislative changes are published by the department responsible. HM Revenue and Customs and HM Treasury publish Tax Information and Impact Notes which estimate the impacts of tax and operational changes.

    The forecast for tobacco duty receipts is published twice a year by the Office for Budget Responsibility. The latest forecast can be found on page 116 of the Economic and Fiscal Outlook published in March 2016: http://cdn.budgetresponsibility.org.uk/March2016EFO.pdf.