Category: Speeches

  • Lord Storey – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Lord Storey – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Storey on 2015-12-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the appointment process for Regional School Commissioners.

    Lord Nash

    The eight Regional Schools Commissioners (RSCs) take decisions in the name of the Secretary of State in relation to schools and academies (including free schools, university technical colleges and studio schools). The RSCs were appointed through open competition, with successful candidates being appointed for their outstanding leadership skills and track record. The process was overseen by the Civil Service Commissioner. RSCs are line managed by the national Schools Commissioner.

    The responsibilities of RSCs include:

    a) monitoring the performance of the academies, free schools, UTCs and studio schools in their area;

    b) taking action when an academy, free school, UTC or studio school is underperforming;

    c) approving the conversion of maintained schools to academies and making the decision on the sponsor for new academies in areas where the local authority has identified a need for additional school places;

    d) making recommendations to ministers about free school applications and advising on whether approved free school projects are ready to open;

    e) encouraging organisations to become academy sponsors or to establish free schools, approving applications to become sponsors and helping to build the capacity and capability of existing sponsors within their area;

    f) approving changes to open academies, for example: changes to age ranges, mergers between academies, and changes to MAT arrangements;

    g) addressing underperformance in local authority maintained schools through sponsored academy arrangements.

  • The Marquess of Lothian – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The Marquess of Lothian – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Marquess of Lothian on 2016-01-13.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what estimates, if any, they have made of the changes to the water table in Cumbria, Yorkshire and Lancashire as a result of rainfall over the last six weeks.

    Lord Gardiner of Kimble

    The Environment Agency’s water situation report for the north west of England (which is published on the Gov.UK website) reports the situation for observation boreholes in the main bedrock aquifer in Cumbria and Lancashire, the Sherwood Sandstone. The Sherwood Sandstone is moderately unresponsive to rainfall events and this is partly because of the high storage characteristics of the sandstone and also because much of it is covered by low permeability glacial clays.

    Hydrographs for Skirwith (Cumbria) and Yew Tree Farm (West Lancashire) are thought to be representative of this aquifer, although this monitoring is undertaken for water resources purposes not groundwater flooding purposes.

    • The Skirwith hydrograph shows that the groundwater level has risen quite dramatically since mid-November in response to recent rainfall..
    • The hydrograph for Yew Tree Farm shows a similar but less dramatic rise, with levels close to record highs (the site has been monitored since 1971 but with groundwater levels rising steadily since the late 1990s due to reduction in nearby abstraction).
    • The sudden rise in levels was from quite a low point due to a relatively dry year and especially early autumn. Both of the examples show a steady reduction in levels up to the rainfall starting in November.

    The Environment Agency routinely monitors groundwater throughout Yorkshire. Water levels in November 2015 were:

    • on the low side of average in the Chalk Principal Aquifer and the Corallian Limestone Principal Aquifer
    • just above average in the Magnesian Limestone Principal Aquifer
    • well above average in the Sherwood Sandstone Principal Aquifer

    Levels in all the aquifers in Yorkshire have responded to the rainfall in late December 2015 and early January 2016:

    • Levels in the Chalk have responded strongly to the recent rainfall.
    • Groundwater levels in the Corallian Limestone near Malton are now at record highs and the result is ongoing groundwater flooding in Malton. North Yorkshire County Council are coordinating a multi-agency response including pumping to minimise the impact on local communities.
    • Levels in the Magnesian Limestone and the Sherwood Sandstone have also responded to the rainfall and are now at maximum levels for the time of year.

    The Environment Agency undertakes monitoring and assessment of different aquifers locally, based upon the potential risk of groundwater flooding. A system of groundwater flood alerts and warnings is provided through our incident response procedures for those communities most vulnerable to potential groundwater flooding.

    Lead Local Flood Authorities (LLFAs)(Local Councils) have responsibility for local flood risk including groundwater under the Flood and Water Management Act 2010. This Act gives LLFAs duties to prepare local flood risk management strategies and to co-operate with other risk management authorities, and powers to carry out local flood risk management.

  • Emily Thornberry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Emily Thornberry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2016-02-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 26 January 2016 to Question 23171, to which countries RAF Reaper drones have been deployed on intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance sorties since 26 January 2016.

    Penny Mordaunt

    Since 26 January UK Reapers have been deployed on intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance operations in Iraq and Syria.

  • Tulip Siddiq – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Tulip Siddiq – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tulip Siddiq on 2016-02-29.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much his Department spent on securing stem cell donations from abroad for patients in the UK who have blood disorders or blood cancer in each year since 2003-04; and (a) how many and (b) what proportion of patients in each of those years received stem cell donations from abroad.

    Jane Ellison

    The Department does not hold this information.

  • Chris Stephens – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Chris Stephens – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Stephens on 2016-03-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the preparedness is of the Animal and Plant Health Agency to react to and control a potential future animal health outbreak similar in scale to the foot and mouth outbreak of 2001.

    George Eustice

    The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA), compiles the UK contingency plan for exotic notifiable disease that sits above plans designed by Defra and the Scottish, Welsh and Northern Ireland Governments.

    These are key documents that describe the strategic, tactical and operational responses required to any incursion of exotic notifiable disease, such as foot and mouth disease. These plans are complemented by specific GB disease control strategies and APHA work with the Government Departments in each administration to produce the necessary operational instructions.

    To ensure the plans and instructions are fit for purpose, the UK runs a national animal disease exercise roughly every other year on various exotic diseases and we regularly include foot and mouth disease in those exercises.

    The next national exercise will be in June 2018 and will be based on a foot and mouth disease scenario.

    APHA also create and manage an annual programme of regional or country exercises designed to identify best practice and any gaps in existing plans or procedures. They also run table-top exercises for APHA’s policy customers to identify issues that may arise from new and emerging threats such as African Horse Sickness.

  • Kate Hoey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Kate Hoey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kate Hoey on 2016-05-04.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, which government websites include a link to information on the EU referendum.

    John Penrose

    The only Government websites currently linking to information on the EU referendum are Gov.uk and eureferendum.gov.uk.

    “

  • Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-06-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, when she expects the Bonfield Review of consumer advice, protection standards and enforcement for energy efficiency and renewable energy to be published.

    Andrea Leadsom

    The Bonfield Review is an independent review, being led by Peter Bonfield. We expect the review to be published in the near future and will announce the date in due course.

  • Norman Lamb – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    Norman Lamb – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Norman Lamb on 2016-09-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what role his Department played in drafting the Government’s childhood obesity plan.

    Margot James

    I refer the Rt hon Member to the reply I gave to Question UIN 44973.

    “

  • Fiona Bruce – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Fiona Bruce – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Fiona Bruce on 2015-11-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what grant her Department made available to the NSPCC for running the modern slavery human trafficking helpline between July 2014 to June 2015.

    Karen Bradley

    The NSPCC-run modern slavery helpline was launched in July 2014, as part of a wider awareness-raising campaign, to better support potential victims of modern slavery. For the period July 2014 to July 2015, £50,000 was made available to the NSPCC to run the modern slavery helpline. To support the launch of the helpline, training was provided by existing staff in the NSPCC child trafficking advice centre, the Metropolitan police’s human trafficking unit and the Modern Slavery Unit to NSPCC call-handlers at zero cost.

    The NSPCC helpline routinely records the number of contacts made each month, how they are made, and by whom. The helpline also records the gender, age and nationality of potential victims, where that information is known or presumed. Between 31 July 2014 and 31 July 2015 the NSPCC modern slavery helpline received, in total, 849 contacts. These were comprised of 491 referrals, 107 advice cases and 251 enquiries. During the period 31 July 2014 to 31 July 2015 the helpline received a total of 57 contacts from potential victims themselves and in that same period the NSPCC made 272 referrals to the police. The NSPCC does not hold data on the number of contacts referred to the helpline by the police and other agencies that were subsequently referred back to those agencies.

  • Paul Flynn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Prime Minister

    Paul Flynn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Prime Minister

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Flynn on 2015-12-02.

    To ask the Prime Minister, which (a) business organisations and (b) non-governmental organisations he met during his visit to the COP 21 climate change conference in Paris on 30 November 2015.

    Mr David Cameron

    Details of my meetings with external organisations are published on a quarterly basis and are available via the gov.uk website.