The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord West of Spithead on 2015-12-10.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether embarked carrier air squadrons will follow the all of one company” rule and operate under the same harmony rules.”
Earl Howe
When necessary to deliver the carrier strike programme, embarked jointly manned F-35B air squadrons will operate to the same harmony guidelines.
Deck qualifications will not be affected by harmony rules.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jonathan Edwards on 2016-01-21.
To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what discussions he has had with the Secretaries of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, Work and Pensions and Energy and Climate Change and with the Chancellor of the Exchequer since the announcement of job losses this week by Tata Steel.
Stephen Crabb
I have had discussions with the Chancellor of the Exchequer and the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills about the steel industry in Wales. We are committed to doing everything we can to level the playing field for the UK Steel industry. We are actively engaged with the Welsh Government and our officials are working together to support individuals affected by last week’s announcement, as a matter of priority.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Brake on 2016-02-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many Health and Wellbeing boards have identified in their strategic plans loneliness as an issue needing to be tackled.
Alistair Burt
Health and wellbeing boards are responsible for preparing joint strategic needs assessments (JSNAs) which should assess the health and care needs of the entire local population. As such, the JSNA offers a valuable opportunity for localities to review how current local services address loneliness.
The Government has not highlighted or prioritised any specific groups or area of need over another as this would risk undermining the purpose of JSNAs as being objective, comprehensive and most importantly locally-owned assessments.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paula Sherriff on 2016-03-14.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what international comparisons his Department is drawing on to inform implementation of a gender-neutral HPV vaccination programme.
Jane Ellison
The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI), the expert committee that advises Ministers on immunisation related issues, is currently considering whether a human papillomavirus vaccination programme for boys, in addition to that in place for girls, would be cost-effective.
The JCVI considers evidence from a range of sources including published data and experiences in other countries.
It is important to note that other epidemiological circumstances and situations in other countries may differ and may therefore not transfer to the United Kingdom. The advice of the JCVI is made with reference to the UK immunisation programme.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mary Creagh on 2016-04-12.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many people in (a) Wakefield and (b) the UK have purchased homes through Help to Buy.
Brandon Lewis
The total number of homes sold under the three Help to Buy schemes are 153,235 in the UK and 1,402 in Wakefield.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Low of Dalston on 2016-05-19.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps the Department for International Development is taking to reach the ambition it set out in the 2015 discussion paper Delivering quality education in protracted crises.
Baroness Verma
The UK has played a leading role in the development of Education Cannot Wait, a new fund for education in emergencies and protracted crises. The fund is designed to address many of the issues identified in the 2015 discussion paper – such as improving the co-ordination and funding of education in crises, and building evidence and data – with the aim of reaching 13.6 children and young people a year living in protracted crises and emergency affected countries by 2021.
The Secretary of State has recently announced a multi-year commitment of £30 million to the fund at the World Humanitarian Summit on 23rd May, as a founding donor to this important initiative.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Storey on 2016-07-13.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what measures are in place to ensure that there is an adequate supply of history, geography, and language teachers to meet the forecast demand stemming from the introduction of the English Baccalaureate.
Lord Nash
We have more teachers in our schools than ever before and the number of teachers has kept pace with changing numbers of pupils. There are more than 456,000 teachers in schools throughout England – up more than 15,000 since 2010. Teaching continues to be a popular profession with more than 14,000 former teachers coming back to the classroom in the last year.
We recognise that as schools increase their entry rates to English Baccalaureate (EBacc) subjects there will be more demand for specialist teachers, particularly language teachers. That is why we are spending over £1.3 billion up to 2020 to attract new teachers into the profession including continuing to offer teacher training bursaries in history, geography and languages to make sure that we continue to attract the brightest graduates. We have recently announced the expansion of the teacher subject specialism training to include modern foreign languages.
This investment in training the next generation of teachers clearly demonstrates the political will we have to make sure that all schools are able to recruit the teachers they need.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-09-15.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 12 September 2016 to Question 44394, what assessment his Department has made of the implications for its policies of the finding in the NSPCC report, entitled Transforming mental health services for children who have experienced abuse, published in June 2016, that 14 per cent of Local Transformation Plans contained an adequate needs assessment for children who have been abused or neglected; and if he will issue further guidance to clinical commissioning groups on ensuring such plans include such an assessment.
Nicola Blackwood
The published Children and Young People’s Local Transformation Plans (LTPs) for mental health set out how local areas intend to implement the proposals detailed in “Future in Mind” published in March 2015. These plans are jointly produced by clinical commissioning groups working with key partners across the National Health Service, local authority, education, youth justice and voluntary sectors, and crucially, involving young people and their families in their design. LTPs should cover the full spectrum of service provision, addressing the mental health needs of all children and young people including the most vulnerable, making it easier for them to access the support they need when and where they need it.
NHS England published a quantitative review of LTPs in January 2016 and a further thematic review of LTPs in August 2016 which includes detailed analysis of developing models and approaches to identification and management of children and young people with extra vulnerability to mental health problems including those who have experienced abuse or neglect.
NHS England has issued further guidance regarding the refresh of LTPs which includes a reminder regarding meeting the needs of children and young people who have extra vulnerabilities, such as those who have been abused.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2015-11-02.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of interim or emergency measures to provide access to drugs for rare cancers during the period of the accelerated access review.
George Freeman
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence is the independent body that makes decisions on the clinical and cost effectiveness of drugs, including those for rare cancers, based on thorough assessment of the best available evidence.
The Government has also established the Cancer Drugs Fund, which has helped over 72,000 cancer patients in England to access life-extending drugs that would not otherwise have been available to them.
The Early Access to Medicines Scheme (EAMS) was launched in April 2014 to support access in the United Kingdom to unlicensed or off-label medicines representing a significant advance in treatment in areas of unmet medical need. Eight EAMS Promising Innovative Medicines designations and four positive EAMS scientific opinions have been issued so far, including some for new cancer drugs.
The independent Accelerated Access Review is currently looking at how we can reduce the time, cost, and risk of drug development, develop a new range of flexible reimbursement models and consider the long term landscape for innovation adoption. The Review’s recommendations are expected in spring 2016.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2015-12-10.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many staff made up the BIS Automotive sector team in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.
Anna Soubry
Information on the number of staff in the BIS Automotive sector team over each of the last five years is illustrated in the table below.
|
Year (Calendar) |
Number of Staff (Full-Time Equivalent) |
|
2011 |
15 |
|
2012 |
15 |
|
2013 |
17 |
|
2014 |
20 |
|
2015 |
20 |