Category: Speeches

  • Lord Touhig – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Lord Touhig – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Touhig on 2016-01-28.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what financial arrangements are in place to support reservists upon leaving (1) the army, (2) the Royal Navy, and (3) the Royal Air Force, and what is the total cost of those arrangements.

    Earl Howe

    From 1 April 2015 Reserve personnel have had access to the Armed Forces Pension Scheme 2015 (AFPS 15), unless covered by Transitional Protection in an existing scheme. For the first time, pay received for Man Training Days is pensionable. This represents an increase in the overall package for Reserves and one that aligns the structure of Reservists’ remuneration more closely with that of Regulars. In common with all Service personnel, Reservists qualify for pension benefits under AFPS 15 after completing the mandatory vesting period of two calendar years and pension benefits are based on the average pensionable pay received from the date of joining the scheme. Other main features of the scheme are ill-health pensions, dependants’ benefits and death-in-service benefits. Any benefits built up in a legacy pension scheme prior to 1 April 2015 are protected.

    As with other unfunded public sector pension schemes the Ministry of Defence’s contribution to meet the cost of these pensions is calculated by the Superannuation Charges Adjusted for Past Experience (SCAPE) mechanism – this is expressed as a percentage of the pay bill and following the last valuation is set at 50.4%.

  • Andy Slaughter – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Andy Slaughter – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2016-02-22.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many incidents at height in respect of each method of access there have been in each prison in each month since May 2010.

    Andrew Selous

    I refer the Hon Member to the answer for PQ 20749. The table attached provides a further breakdown of the data provided in that PQ.

    The vast majority of incidents at height are minor in nature and resolved quickly and professionally without injury, damage or disruption to the running of the prison. Many are short in duration, lasting less than 15 minutes and the majority occur when prisoners go onto netting on prison wings. Each incident is investigated fully to ensure lessons are learnt and best practice in managing incidents is shared across NOMS.

    These figures show that the Prime Minister and Justice Secretary are right and our prisons badly need reform. We are making progress: we have made it illegal to smuggle new psychoactive substances (NPS) into prisons and have trained over 300 sniffer dogs to detect NPS and are trialling the use of body worn cameras with front-line staff. But the only way to reduce disorder and violence in our prisons is to give those who work in prisons the tools necessary to better reform and rehabilitate offenders.

  • Ian C. Lucas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Ian C. Lucas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian C. Lucas on 2016-03-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the average travel time is for customers attending a first-time passport application interview; and what she estimates the average travel times will be after the proposed closure of interview offices in (a) Scotland, (b) Wales, (c) Northern Ireland and (d) England.

    James Brokenshire

    HM Passport Office does not collate any information on average travel times for applicants.

    In 2015, HM Passport Office interviewed 222,264 adult customers applying for their first passport. Under the planned changes to HM Passport Offices the vast majority of passport application interviewees will see no change to their travel time. In a small number of cases passport application interviewees will have to travel further but this should not be more than 65 miles or one and a half hours from their previous closest office.

  • Tom Brake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Tom Brake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Brake on 2016-04-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what representations she has received on the introduction of citizenship-for-investment schemes by EU member states; and what assessment she has made of the need for increased transparency of such schemes.

    James Brokenshire

    I refer the Rt Hon. Member to the answers I gave on 22 March to Questions 31324 and 31325 from my Hon. Friend the Member for Romford (Andrew Rosindell) and the answers I gave on 9 March to Question 29833 from the Hon. Member for Hammersmith (Andy Slaughter) and to Question 29873 from my Hon. Friend the Member for Rochester and Strood (Kelly Tolhurst).

  • Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-05-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions his Department has had with medical organisations on treatment of chronic bronchitis through the freezing of lungs.

    Jane Ellison

    There have been no such discussions.

  • Lord Hunt of Kings Heath – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Lord Hunt of Kings Heath – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 2016-07-19.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the National Audit Office (NAO) investigation into the collapse of the Uniting Care Partnership Contract in Cambridge and Peterborough, whether they intend to hold to account (1) the Strategic Projects Team, (2) Monitor, and (3) NHS England, for the failings identified in the NAO’s report.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    The Department welcomes the National Audit Office (NAO) report. Decisions about the Strategic Projects Team (SPT) are, however, for NHS England. Following an internal review and the NAO report, NHS England identified concerns about the work of the SPT. As a result, the SPT will close and all its ongoing commitments will be reviewed with a view to bringing them to a conclusion.

    NHS Improvement advises that it also welcomes the NAO report and is working closely with NHS England and the Department to consider assurance processes for such complex transactions. NHS Improvement further advises that its focus since May has been liaison with the NAO on its report and joint consideration with NHS England of the assurance issues raised.


    NHS England confirms that the NAO investigation supports the findings of its previously published independent review. Before the NAO investigation, NHS England had already commissioned a follow-up review focusing on the role of external advisors, the effectiveness of the Gateway review process, and the role of the clinical commissioning group leadership and governing body. This work continues and NHS England expects to publish findings later this summer.

    More widely, NHS England has been undertaking assessments of current and planned novel contracts and is developing an assurance framework for contracts of this sort. This is being informed by the findings of the Uniting Care reviews.

  • Steve Double – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Steve Double – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

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

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the likely effect on accident and emergency services of the proposed changes to the pharmacy funding formula.

    David Mowat

    The Government’s proposals for community pharmacy in 2016/17 and beyond, on which we have consulted, are being considered against the public sector equality duty, the family test and the relevant duties of my Rt. hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health, under the National Health Service Act 2006.

    Our assessments include consideration of the potential impacts on the adequate provision of NHS pharmaceutical services, including the supply of medicines, access to NHS pharmaceutical services, supplementary hours, non-commissioned services, individuals with protected characteristics, impacts on other NHS services, health inequalities, individuals with restricted mobility and access to healthcare for deprived communities.

    An impact assessment will be completed to inform final decisions and published in due course.

    Our proposals are about improving services for patients and the public and securing efficiencies and savings. We believe these efficiencies can be made within community pharmacy without compromising the quality of services or public access to them.

    Our aim is to ensure that those community pharmacies upon which people depend continue to thrive. We are consulting on the introduction of a Pharmacy Access Scheme, which will provide more NHS funds to certain pharmacies compared with others, considering factors such as location and the health needs of the local population.

    We want a clinically focussed community pharmacy service that is better integrated with primary care and public health in line with the Five Year Forward View. This will help relieve the pressure on general practitioners and accident and emergency departments, ensure better use of medicines and better patient outcomes, and contribute to delivering seven day health and care services.

    The Chief Pharmaceutical Officer for England, Dr Keith Ridge has commissioned an independent review of community pharmacy clinical services. The review is being led by Richard Murray, Director of Policy at The King’s Fund. The final recommendations will be considered as part of the development of clinical and cost effective patient care by pharmacists and their teams.

    NHS England is also setting up a Pharmacy Integration Fund to support the development of clinical pharmacy practice in a wider range of primary care settings, resulting in a more integrated and effective NHS primary care patient pathway.

    The rollout of the additional 1,500 clinical pharmacists announced by NHS England will help to ease current pressures in general practice by working with patients who have long term conditions and others with multiple medications. Having a pharmacist on site will mean that patients who receive care from their general practice will be able to benefit from the expertise in medicines that these pharmacists provide.

  • Ben Bradshaw – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Ben Bradshaw – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ben Bradshaw on 2015-11-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, for what reasons the number of prisoners being released on Home Detention Curfews in Devon decreased between 2011 and 2014.

    Andrew Selous

    The number of prisoners released on Home Detention Curfew (HDC) in England and Wales has fallen in recent years. This is principally due to the reduction in the number of prisoners eligible for the scheme.

    The Ministry of Justice only collates data on the number of prisoners released on HDC who are then recalled to prison for breach of their curfew conditions and this data is only available for England and Wales as a whole. It would incur disproportionate cost to isolate from this overall data those recalled prisoners who had been released on HDC from prisons in Devon.

    This data is published and can be located at the following link (table A3.5 details HDC recalls):

    https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/424903/prison-releases-annual-2014.xlsx

    “

  • Patricia Gibson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Patricia Gibson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Patricia Gibson on 2015-12-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, when responses from members of the public to the recent BBC Charter review consultation will be published.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    The Government’s BBC Charter Review Public Consultation closed in October. Over 190,000 people responded to the consultation – the second largest response to any Government consultation. We are in the process of reading and analysing all the responses, and will publish the results once this exercise is completed.

  • Kelvin Hopkins – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Kelvin Hopkins – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kelvin Hopkins on 2016-01-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if she will make an assessment of the implications for her Department’s aid policy of the research on global income distribution published by Oxfam on 19 January 2016.

    Mr Desmond Swayne

    Eradicating extreme poverty is central to DFID’s mission and the Sustainable Development Goals. Oxfam say inequality affects the politics around growth. Our economic development strategy takes account of this by supporting inclusive growth and tackling inequality by creating opportunities, widening access to them (including through education and health), economically empowering women and leaving no-one behind.