Category: Speeches

  • Matthew Offord – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Matthew Offord – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Matthew Offord on 2016-01-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent progress his Department has made on implementing plans for new Intercity Express Programme and Thameslink rolling stock.

    Claire Perry

    Both rolling stock programmes are on schedule with the first trains for each undergoing testing on the network as planned. Thameslink trains will enter passenger service this spring and IEP trains will enter service on the Great Western Main Line from 2017 and the East Coast Main Line from 2018. The investment in infrastructure together with these fleets of modern trains will deliver increased peak time capacity, reliability and improved connections that will transform journeys for passengers on routes in the South East, through London and out to Scotland and Wales.

  • Justin Madders – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Justin Madders – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Justin Madders on 2016-02-22.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many members of staff aged under 18 have been employed by NHS 111 in each of the last 12 months for which figures are available.

    Jane Ellison

    This information is not held centrally.

  • Tom Blenkinsop – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Tom Blenkinsop – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Blenkinsop on 2016-03-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to ensure that people with neuromuscular conditions who require a cough assist machine have access to a machine commissioned by their clinical commissioning group.

    Ben Gummer

    NHS England has been working with Muscular Dystrophy UK through the Bridging the Gap project to address areas of concern raised by patients and their representatives, one of which is the provision of cough assist machines for people with neuromuscular conditions.

    Clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) are responsible for commissioning and funding cough assist machines, where appropriate. A number of CGGs have now developed commissioning policies for these devices based on one developed by Walsall CCG, which has been shared nationally as an example of good practice by Muscular Dystrophy UK.

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

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

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

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what measures his Department has in place for helping to ensure that areas without parish or town councils are (a) serving demand for allotments and (b) ensuring adequate protection for currently designated allotment land.

    Brandon Lewis

    Responsibility for the provision and management of allotments rests with local authorities. Section 23 of the Allotments and Smallholdings Act 1908 places a duty on councils (excluding London Boroughs) to provide allotments where they perceive there is a demand for them. This is a matter for each council bound by the duty to determine.

    Local authorities are required under Section 8 of the Allotments Act 1925 to obtain consent from the Secretary of State to dispose of statutory allotments. Section 8 applications are considered against criteria set out by the Secretary of State. The department published guidance in January 2014 – Allotment Disposal Guidance: Safeguards and alternatives – which clarifies the legal and policy safeguards in place to ensure that disposal is properly and thoroughly handled. The guidance is available at www.gov.uk/government/publications/allotment-disposal-guidance-safeguards-and-alternatives.

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  • Anna Turley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Anna Turley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Anna Turley on 2016-05-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what support her Department is providing to recipients of Green Deal funding whose vouchers expired before their home improvements were completed.

    Andrea Leadsom

    I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave her on 26 May 2016, Question number 37787.

  • Stephen Gethins – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union

    Stephen Gethins – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Gethins on 2016-07-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, what discussions he has had with Ministers from the devolved administrations since he took office.

    Mr David Davis

    The Government will fully involve the devolved administrations, including Scotland, as we prepare for negotiations on the UK’s exit from the EU. We are working towards securing the best possible deal for the whole UK, and we will work closely with colleagues in the devolved administrations. Details of Ministerial meetings will be published in the Department’s Quarterly Transparency Returns, which will be made publicly available on GOV.UK.

  • Sammy Wilson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Sammy Wilson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sammy Wilson on 2016-10-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the threat from the Asian hornet to the honeybee population in the UK.

    Dr Thérèse Coffey

    A contingency plan outlining the Government’s response against the Asian hornet is in place. The emergency measures it sets out are tested twice a year by the National Bee Unit ensuring that all field inspectors and support staff are trained in how to respond should an outbreak occur.

    Following a confirmed sighting of the Asian hornet in Gloucestershire, the National Bee Unit (NBU) enacted our established biosecurity protocols to confirm the scale of the outbreak and eradicate the pest. A single nest was located and destroyed. To date, no more live hornets have been seen in this area.

    The outbreak follows on from a policy review in 2013 whereby the National Bee Unit (NBU) increased the number of risk-based exotic pest inspections it carries out each year. These are targeted at early interception of non-native invasive species such as the Asian hornet. NBU Bee Inspectors also routinely provide advice and training to beekeepers to raise awareness of the threat and the need for vigilance.

    The Non-Native Species Secretariat has carried out a risk assessment looking at the risks and impacts of an Asian hornet outbreak. The key threat is believed to be against honey bee species, rather than other bee species. Asian hornets will impact on native species through predation, competition and impact on natural pollination.

  • Sadiq Khan – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Sadiq Khan – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sadiq Khan on 2015-10-29.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many (a) lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender and (b) black and minority ethic people were diagnosed with mental health problems in (i) the UK, (ii) London, (iii) each London borough and (iv) each health trust in London on 1 October (A) 2010, (B) 2011, (C) 2012, (D) 2013, (E) 2014 and (F) 2015.

    Alistair Burt

    The data is not collected in the format requested.Data is not available for the lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender community.

    The attachment ‘black and minority ethnic mental health contact’ contains the latest data available on the number of people from black and minority ethnic groups who have been in contact with mental health services in London-based providers between 2011/12 and 2014/15 and clinical commissioning groups between 2013/14 and 2014/15.

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

    Lord Wills – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Wills on 2015-11-19.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made in the Comprehensive Spending Review of the number of schools in which asbestos is present in the constituencies covered by the Northern Powerhouse.

    Lord Nash

    An assessment of the number of schools where asbestos is present in the constituencies covered by the Northern Powerhouse has not been made as part of the Spending Review.

    The Department expects schools and responsible bodies to address a range of building-related issues, including asbestos, through the more than £4 billion in condition funding over the next three years.

    The amount of condition funding that responsible bodies receive is partly based on the Property Data Survey, which gathered information about the condition of buildings at 19,000 schools, meaning that our investment can now be targeted where it is needed most. The condition of a school building is likely to influence the level of hazard posed by any asbestos it contains and the information from the Property Data Survey has been considered as part of the Spending Review.

  • Lord Patten – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Lord Patten – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Patten on 2015-12-21.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have had discussions with the Chairman of the National Infrastructure Commission concerning railway links between London and south-west England.

    Lord O’Neill of Gatley

    The government has had discussions on a range of topics with the Chair of the National Infrastructure Commission. The commission will examine all forms of economic infrastructure, including rail transport.