Category: Speeches

  • Emily Thornberry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Emily Thornberry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2016-04-13.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many members of staff of the Infrastructure and Projects Authority have been assigned to work on the Government’s Successor submarine programme; and what (a) their grades, (b) their job titles and (c) the dates of their assignment to work on that programme are.

    Matthew Hancock

    The Successor programme is one of 188 projects reported on the Government Major Project Portfolio (GMPP) at the time of the last Major Projects Annual Report. The Infrastructure and Projects Authority undertakes a number of activities across the 188 major projects on the GMPP, including collecting quarterly programme performance data; the arrangement of independent assurance; and, providing expert advice to project and departmental leadership. These activities do not involve the assignment of individual IPA staff to work on this project specifically, but are undertaken by a number of staff working in a range of functions across the IPA.

  • 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 2016-05-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Answer of 9 May 2016 to Question 36052, on diesel vehicles: exhaust emissions, what estimate his Department has made of the cost of a pre-Euro 4 diesel scrappage scheme; how many vehicles in the UK were estimated to have been potentially eligible for a claim under such a scheme; and whether a benefit-cost ratio was calculated for that proposal.

    Andrew Jones

    Improving the UK’s air quality is a priority for this Government; we want the UK to have the best natural environment, and clean air is an essential part of this ambition.

    The Government’s National Air Quality Plan, published on 17 December 2015, sets out a comprehensive approach to improving UK air quality. A key measure of this is the introduction of new Clean Air Zones in five UK cities (Birmingham, Leeds, Southampton, Nottingham and Derby), along with the Ultra Low Emission Zone in London. The Plan will tackle the most polluting vehicles in air pollution hotspots, and will enable us to reach compliance with legal limit values as quickly as possible.

    A national scrappage scheme for diesel cars was considered, which included a high-level cost estimate looking at offering grants for scrappage of the dirtiest vehicles.

    It was found that even if only offering the scheme to pre-Euro 4 diesel cars only, the costs ran into the billions and impact on emissions was marginal.

    This would have minimal impact on compliance with legal limit values for air quality in 2020. It is estimated that 400,000 pre euro 4 diesel cars will remain in the national fleet by this time.

    As the costs of a scrappage were considered prohibitively expensive this option was judged an ineffective use of resource, and further analysis was not carried out.

  • The Earl of Sandwich – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The Earl of Sandwich – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Earl of Sandwich on 2016-07-07.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they plan to take to ensure that the National Solidarity Programme in Afghanistan receives adequate support and delivers the necessary assistance to the most deprived rural areas.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The UK supports the National Solidarity Programme (NSP) through the Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund (ARTF). The UK is one of the largest donors to the ARTF which supports the Afghan government to deliver basic services across the country. UK officials will continue to meet regularly with the World Bank, who are the ARTF administrators, and the Afghan Ministry for Rural Rehabilitation and Development, who manage the NSP, to discuss the delivery of these important programmes and ensure that they reach the most vulnerable people in Afghanistan.

  • Lord Moonie – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lord Moonie – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Moonie on 2016-10-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether there is any link between the salaries of senior managers in Network Rail and health and safety performance.

    Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

    Network Rail’s business performance is measured in every four-week period through a scorecard that includes a series of safety measures. Performance against the metrics in the scorecard is linked to the bonuses of senior managers.

    In terms of the company’s Executive Directors, each year Network Rail’s Remuneration Committee assesses performance for the year and decides whether the scorecard out-turn should be adjusted on safety grounds. Network Rail’s Management Incentive Plan states that in the event of a serious safety incident during the year, which impacts passengers, the workforce or the public, for which Network Rail was responsible, no incentive would normally be payable to any executive director for that year.

  • Jim Shannon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Jim Shannon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2015-11-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to reduce the incidence of depression among new mothers.

    Alistair Burt

    Reducing the incidence of depression among new mothers is a high priority for the Government.

    The Mandate from the Government for the National Health Service includes an objective for NHS England to work with partner organisations to reduce the incidence and impact of postnatal depression through earlier diagnosis, and better intervention and support.

    The NHS Mandate also includes an objective that every woman has a named midwife who is responsible for ensuring she has personalised care throughout pregnancy, childbirth and during the postnatal period. This will help clinicians to identify perinatal mental health problems as early as possible and to give women the support they need.

    To help achieve this we have increased the number of midwives by over 1,800 and the number of health visitors by over 3,500 since May 2010. In addition, 6,400 midwifery students and an extra 1,000 health visitors are in training respectively.

    We are also working to improve the provision of perinatal mental health services which is why it was announced in the March budget that the Government would invest an additional £75 million over the next five years, £15 million per year, to support women with mental ill health in the perinatal period. NHS England is leading a work programme to ensure that this extra money is spent in the right way, at the right time and in the right places. This work is being carried out collaboratively with partner organisations, including the Department and Public Health England, clinical experts and service users.

    Health Education England (HEE) has committed to ensure that the right knowledge and training is available so that the NHS is skilled in how it looks after women’s mental as well as physical health. The HEE Mandate includes an objective that there will be specialist perinatal mental health staff available for every birthing unit by 2017. HEE is also committed to working with the medical royal colleges to support specific perinatal mental health training being incorporated into the syllabus for doctors in postgraduate training by 2017.

    The Department has funded the Institute of Health Visitors which has trained over 600 perinatal mental health visitor champions to enable health visitors to identify and manage perinatal depression and other maternal mental health conditions.

    The Department has also funded the Maternal Health Care Policy Research Unit to undertake a project to develop and pilot test a perinatal mental health indicator which would reflect the mental health care a woman receives at certain critical perinatal time-points; the antenatal booking, the early postnatal period, and approximately one year postnatally.

    In line with the approach on other access and waiting time standards, NHS England appointed the National Collaborating Centre for Mental Health to run expert engagement and produce implementation outputs, for example commissioning guidance and model pathways. An Expert Reference Group has been formed to oversee this work. NHS England plan to be able to make the recommendations of the group public as soon as possible.

  • Bridget Phillipson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Bridget Phillipson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bridget Phillipson on 2015-12-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 7 December 2015 to Question 18232, if he will make it his policy to include the monitoring of the use of public transport and investment in the North East’s bus and rail networks as part of the process of monitoring the North East Devolution Deal.

    James Wharton

    Monitoring arrangements for the North East Devolution Deal are still subject to ongoing discussions, and once agreed will form part of the North East Combined Authority’s Implementation Plan.

  • Lord Kilclooney – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Kilclooney – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Kilclooney on 2016-01-21.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what consideration they have given to ceasing to be a guarantor power in Cyprus to facilitate a political settlement on the island.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The UK is prepared to consider whatever arrangements the two communities can agree upon to meet the security needs of a reunited Cyprus as part of a settlement. We remain strongly supportive of the efforts of President Anastasiades and Mr Akinci to seize this opportunity to secure a historic agreement.

  • Lord Rooker – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Lord Rooker – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Rooker on 2016-02-10.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government when the consultation promised by the Prime Minister in his speech of 28 July 2015 at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy in Singapore regarding property ownership and extending what we currently ask of UK companies to foreign companies” will commence.”

    Baroness Neville-Rolfe

    I refer the hon. Member to my recent answer (HL5950) to him on the same issue, to which I have nothing further to add.

  • Lord Hylton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Hylton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2016-03-07.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they plan to take, if any, to get the current ceasefires in Syria enlarged to include the whole of south-east Turkey.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    There are no plans to extend the Syrian Cessation of Hostilities to south-east Turkey. Violence by the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) must end and we support a return to peace talks between Turkey and the PKK, in the interests of Turkey and the wider region.

  • Andrew Rosindell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Andrew Rosindell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2016-04-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what input officials of his Department had on the commissioning of the research study on tobacco taxation and tobacco industry pricing by the Department of Health to the University of Bath awarded in September 2014.

    George Freeman

    The Department’s National Institute for Health Research funds the Public Health Research (PHR) programme to generate evidence to inform the delivery of non-National Health Service interventions intended to improve the health of the public and reduce inequalities in health. The programme has two workstreams: commissioned and researcher-led. The PHR commissioned workstream welcomes outline proposals in response to specific research questions prioritised for their public health importance. The application for the study ‘Understanding the impact of tobacco tax increases and tobacco industry pricing on smoking behaviours and inequalities’ was received through the researcher-led workstream and therefore did not go through a tender process via the commissioned workstream. Details of the PHR application process are available on the PHR website:

    www.nets.nihr.ac.uk/programmes/phr/application-process