Category: Speeches

Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead on 2016-07-18.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the continuing impact of the alterations to the state pension age on women born in the 1950s, on or after 6 April 1951.

Lord Freud

The decision to equalise the State Pension age for men and women dates back to 1995 and addresses a longstanding inequality. Since April 2010, women’s State Pension age has been gradually increasing for those born after 6 April 1950. Following sharp increases in life expectancy projections, and therefore the increase in the number of people living longer in retirement, this timetable was accelerated by the Pensions Act 2011.

The Government listened to concerns expressed by those affected by the Pension Act 2011 changes, and took action to limit the maximum change to State Pension age to 18 months, a concession worth over £1billion.

All those affected by the faster equalisation timetable will reach State Pension age following the introduction of the new State Pension, which is more generous for many women who have historically done poorly under the current system.

The average woman reaching State Pension age in the first forty years of the new State Pension is estimated to receive 10 per cent more State Pension over her lifetime than the average man.

Women retiring today can still expect to receive the State Pension for 26 years on average – several years longer than men. And this generation of women will spend a higher proportion of their lives in retirement than any before.

01/01/2023
Justin Madders – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Justin Madders on 2016-10-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he is taking to reduce the autism employment gap.

Penny Mordaunt

We will shortly publish a Green Paper on work and health and conduct a consultation aimed at disabled people, their representative organisations and a wide range of other stakeholders.

We have put in place the Autism Alliance UK contract to upskill autism leads across the JCP+/DWP Network – Delivering autism and associated hidden impairments training by specialists in this area. So far we have reached over 1,100 staff.

It is hoped the training will help increase the proportion of autistic adults in full-time employment, which currently stands at 15%, according to the National Autistic Society.

DWP has also developed an uncovering hidden impairments toolkit to help colleagues support those with hidden impairments, including autism.

01/01/2023
Andy Slaughter – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2015-11-16.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of changes to his Department’s policies on (a) the provision of secure colleges, (b) prohibiting prisoners from receiving books, (c) the sale of HM Courts and Tribunal Service, (d) Saudi prison contracts and (e) the timetable for the tender for criminal defence work.

Andrew Selous

I refer the honourable member to the answer given to PQ 13074 on 7th December 2015. There was never any plan to sell HM Courts and Tribunals Service. There is no cost to the public purse from the delay to implementation of new criminal legal aid contracts.

01/01/2023
Greg Mulholland – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2015-12-17.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the cost is to the public purse of Deloittes’ consultancy services on helping to develop commissioning policies for drugs to treat ultra-rare diseases.

George Freeman

There is no contract with Deloittes’ consultancy services for developing policies for drugs to treat ultra-rare diseases.

However, as part of NHS England’s wider responsibilities to directly commission specialised services, NHS England has a significant clinical commissioning policy work programme which enables the development and publication of fair and equitable eligibility criteria for specialised treatments for patients across England, based on a review of the latest evidence of clinical and cost effectiveness.

In order to provide support to this programme, NHS England awarded a contract to Deloitte in September 2015 to provide support to the lead clinicians and patients undertaking this work. The level of support, analysis and review work varies, but the cost of developing a policy from start to finish, using the support of the Deloitte contract, is around £33,000.

Deloitte will not be making any decisions on NHS England’s commissioning policies, accessing any patient or commercially sensitive data or accessing any privileged information about specific drugs or treatments. Furthermore, all policies, whether developed solely with support from NHS England staff, or with project support from Deloitte, will be subject to the same assurance and scrutiny requirements and will considered for adoption in the same way by NHS England.

01/01/2023
Lord Luce – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Luce on 2016-01-27.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many public libraries there are in the UK, and how many there were in 2010.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe

Local authorities have a statutory duty to provide a comprehensive and efficient library service that takes account of local needs within available resources. Statistics for the number of public libraries published by the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy do not include figures for Northern Ireland, so it is not possible to provide the number of public libraries in the UK. However, in the rest of the country, the total number of public library service points open ten hours or more per week at 31 March 2015 was 3,917, compared with 4,356 in 2010. Based on desk research undertaken by the Department, we estimate that from January 2010 to January 2016 only approximately 110 static public libraries in England closed. Government has the power to ensure public libraries comply with the law, and where individual authorities have failed to meet this duty we will – and have – intervened.

This Government is helping libraries innovate, to ensure they serve the needs of local communities – particularly through the expansion of their digital offer. In the latest spending round we secured extra funding for our Libraries Task Force, set up in 2014, to promote the role of digital and share best practice between councils, and we have funded the rollout of free Wi-Fi in 99% of public libraries in England. E-book loans have rocketed more than four-fold from nearly 445,000 in 2011/12 to over 2.3 million in 2014/15.

01/01/2023

Frank Field – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2016-02-22.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many claims have been made for a Short Term Benefit Advance in the last six months for which data is available; and what the outcomes of those claims were.

Priti Patel

Please see table below for Short Term Benefit Advance (STBA) applications and the outcomes of those claims;

	Aug-15	Sep-15	Oct-15	Nov-15	Dec-15	Jan-16
STBA Requests Received	17,450	17,188	17,391	17,355	17,428	17,526
STBA Requests Primary Benefit Paid (where the primary benefit has been paid negating the need for an STBA)	3,420	3,984	3,890	3,688	3,971	3,699
STBA Requests Disallowed	5,691	5,398	4,973	4,749	4,938	5,375
STBAs Awarded	15,372	15,922	17,515	18,240	21,844	25,118

The data provided is for Employment and Support Allowance, Incapacity Benefits, Jobseeker’s Allowance and Income Support.

01/01/2023

Lord Berkeley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Berkeley on 2016-03-16.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their latest estimate of (1) the number of HS2 trains of each size required for HS2 Phase 1 and HS2 Phase 2, and (2) the total cost (a) of each type of train, and (b) for each phase.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

The Functional Response annexed to the Development Agreement outlines what HS2 Ltd will deliver to satisfy the Sponsor’s Requirements, including capacity requirements for both phases of the new railway. HS2 Ltd are in the process of completing their Rolling Stock Strategy which will contain greater detail on the fleet sizes expected to be procured.

As part of the Spending Round announced in November 2015, the rolling stock funding envelope has been integrated with the relevant Phase specific infrastructure funding envelope as shown below.

Phase One

27.2

Phase Two

28.5

Programme Total

55.7

Note. The above table shows information in £Billion at 2015 prices.

01/01/2023
Gloria De Piero – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Prime Minister

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gloria De Piero on 2016-04-20.

To ask the Prime Minister, when he plans to respond to the hon. Member for Ashfield’s correspondence of 8 March 2016 on voter registration.

Mr David Cameron

My Office did not receive the original letter but has now obtained a copy. A reply will be sent shortly.

01/01/2023
Andrew Percy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Percy on 2016-05-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, with reference to the report of Surrogacy UK, Surrogacy in the UK: Myth busting and reform, published on 28 April 2016, if he will take steps to publish a legal pathway document for intended parents and surrogates.

Jane Ellison

Surrogacy is a complex issue, the legislation about which has not been significantly addressed by respective administrations since the Surrogacy Arrangements Act was introduced in 1985. The Government recognises the arguments for the need for a review, and we have therefore asked the Law Commission, as part of the consultation on its 13th work programme this summer, to consider including a project on surrogacy.

The Department has not issued guidance about surrogacy to professional groups or the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (CAFCASS). The Government recognises surrogacy as an important option for some people wishing to start a family and is currently considering how best to clarify the current legal arrangements for intended parents, surrogates and their families. The CAFCASS campaign to increase awareness of Parental Orders is ongoing and targeted at health workers, local authority registration staff and surrogacy agencies. It will be evaluated in full upon completion in autumn 2016; in-campaign monitoring indicates its messaging is reaching the target audience.

01/01/2023
Tom Watson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Watson on 2016-07-18.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much the Propriety and Ethics Unit spent on legal advice relating to Freedom of Information cases in the last 12 months.

Ben Gummer

The information requested is not held centrally and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

01/01/2023

Phase One	27.2
Phase Two	28.5
Programme Total	55.7