Category: Speeches

  • Laurence Robertson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Laurence Robertson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Laurence Robertson on 2015-10-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, with reference to paragraph 2.21 of the Summer Budget 2015, what arrangements he has put in place to enable the funding provided for defibrillators to be disbursed.

    Jane Ellison

    Following our 2015 Budget commitment on defibrillators, we have awarded the British Heart Foundation (BHF) £1 million to make public access defibrillators and coronary pulmonary resuscitation training more widely available in communities across England.

    More information can be found on the BHF’s website:

    https://www.bhf.org.uk/heart-health/nation-of-lifesavers/about-defibrillators/apply-for-a-defibrillator-in-england

    “

  • Lord Greaves – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lord Greaves – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Greaves on 2015-11-25.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what arrangements train operating companies are required to have in place to allow passengers on feeder services to a mainline hub station who have bought advance tickets online which start from a station without a ticket machine, and where the tickets have to be acquired at the mainline hub station, to travel by using booking confirmations that have been printed out, or can be shown on mobile devices, or by other means.

    Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

    The National Rail Conditions of Carriage (NRCoC) states that Train Operating Companies must make tickets and reservations available at stations, over the internet or by telephone as appropriate.

    When booking Advance tickets online most train operators give passengers the choice to print their ticket at home, collect it from a ticket machine, receive it by post or, where available, download their ticket onto a mobile phone.If a passenger chooses to collect from a ticket machine the train operator will give the passenger a choice of stations with ticket collection points available. These can be collected any time in advance of travel.

    Passengers do have an obligation to have a valid ticket for the whole of the journey, and to keep their ticket safe. The NRCoC states that it is the ticket, not the receipt for it, which gives the right to travel.

  • Lord Lester of Herne Hill – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Lord Lester of Herne Hill – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Lester of Herne Hill on 2015-12-17.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Neville-Rolfe on 15 December (HL3615), whether they will place retention instruments 111 to 119 in the Library of the House.

    Baroness Neville-Rolfe

    As set out in the Public Records Act 1958 (as amended), public records selected for permanent preservation are transferred toThe National Archives or an approved place of deposit no later than 20 years after creation, unless an department is authorised to keep them for longer. Such decisions are undertakenwithadvice from the Advisory Council on National Records and Archives.

    The Access to Public Records Manual published by the National Archives sets out the seven broad grounds for retention, which is attached.

    Retention instruments can cover multiple applicationsby departments to retain records and the number of applications covered by Lord Chancellor’s Instruments 111-119 ranges from 37 to 253, which were submitted by between 8 and 15 departments.

    The grounds provided by departments that were given permission to retain records under Instruments 111, 113, 114 and 119 are 1,2,4 and 6. Records under Instruments 112, 115, 117 and 118 were retained on grounds 1, 4 and 6 and records under Instrument 116 were retained on grounds 4 and 6. Each of the Instruments therefore covers documents retained on grounds of national security, as well as other administrative reasons.

    There is a strong public interest in not releasing information which could undermine the safeguarding of national security.

  • Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-01-27.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what protections exist for British veterans of the Iraq War who are subject to prosecutions for alleged crimes committed while undertaking their service.

    Penny Mordaunt

    The Government has consistently maintained that the vast majority of Service personnel deployed on operations overseas act in accordance with the law and their training. However, there remains a legal duty to investigate credible allegations of criminal offences, and to prosecute where appropriate. The Director of Service Prosecutions applies the same test as his civilian counterpart, and Courts Martial, like civilian courts, will convict only where the case is proved beyond reasonable doubt. The Iraq Historic Allegations Team has referred two cases to the Director of Service Prosecutions to date; in both cases he has declined to prosecute.

    Police investigations and other proceedings can impose a strain on the Service personnel and veterans affected, and we take very seriously our duty of care to them. Anyone who is interviewed as a suspect is entitled to free legal advice; this continues in the event that the case proceeds to prosecution. We also seek to provide pastoral support to Service personnel and veterans who are under investigation, or who are called upon to give evidence to inquests and inquiries. The Department funds independent legal advice wherever necessary in such cases.

  • Wendy Morton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Wendy Morton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Wendy Morton on 2016-02-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what his Department’s spending was on Overseas Development Aid in (a) 2013-14, (b) 2014-15 and (c) the first 10 months of 2015-16; and what the recipient countries of that aid were.

    Alistair Burt

    In 2013-14 the Department spent £11.66 million on Official Development Assistance. In 2014-15 the Department spent £11.5 million on Official Development Assistance.

    The Department’s Official Development Assistance in 2013-14 and 2014-15 is a proportion of the Department’s assessed contribution or subscription, to the World Health Organization (WHO). The subscription funds our contribution to all the functions of the WHO. The WHO provides the leadership and co-ordination role in global health for all its 194 member countries. As part of this role it provides technical support and assistance on the ground.

    WHO is able to use the assessed contribution flexibly to fund its priorities as agreed by the United Kingdom and other member countries. We do not therefore have specific data of individual countries supported through our assessed contribution. However, more specific information on WHO funding flows to regions, individual countries and programmes can be found on WHO’s web portal at:

    http://extranet.who.int/programmebudget/Biennium2014/Financing

    The 2015 Official Development Assistance figures have not yet been finalised. The Department for International Development will release the 2015 figures in the National Statistics publication on 1 April 2016.

    “

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

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

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-03-15.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 9 March 2016 to Question 29830, what guidance his Department provides to local authorities on the procurement of public-private partnerships.

    Mr Marcus Jones

    The Department does not provide any guidance.

  • Julie Cooper – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Julie Cooper – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julie Cooper on 2016-04-19.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many times he has attended public meetings of the Treasury Committee since his appointment.

    Harriett Baldwin

    This is a matter of public record.

  • William Wragg – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    William Wragg – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by William Wragg on 2016-05-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the effect on levels of inward migration from other EU member states of (a) an economic downturn and (b) a rise in unemployment in such states.

    James Brokenshire

    It has been the practice of this Government not to make such forecasts. There are numerous different factors that can affect migration flows.

  • Michael Dugher – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Michael Dugher – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Michael Dugher on 2016-07-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 14 July 2016 to Question 42405, on what date his Department commenced work on the impact assessment on changes to the budget for community pharmacy in 2016-17.

    David Mowat

    Officials have been undertaking impact analyses to inform the final impact assessment both prior to, and during, the consultation period which ran from 17 December 2015 to 24 May 2016. The Department remains committed to publishing the full and final impact assessment alongside any Drug Tariff determination.

  • Justin Madders – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    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 assessment he has made of the implication for his Department’s policies of the findings in the recent report from the charity Sense, Realising Aspirations for All.

    Penny Mordaunt

    We welcome the Sense report, Realising Aspirations for All and its findings. We want all disabled and people with a long term health condition to fulfil their potential and achieve their aspirations.

    We will soon publish a Green Paper on work and health and conduct a consultation to understand how every individual can have the opportunity to work and share in the economic and health benefits that work brings, regardless of their health condition or disability. We will continue to engage with Sense and other key stakeholders as part of the Green Paper consultation.