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Category: Speeches

  • Lord Mawson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Lord Mawson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Mawson on 2016-02-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the decision to cancel the transfer of police custody healthcare services to the NHS, whether they will put into place, and ensure the appropriate funding for, any recommendations made about minimum standards and quality of such police custody healthcare services for vulnerable detainees as a result of the forthcoming independent review of deaths and serious incidents in police custody.

    Lord Bates

    The decision not to pursue the transfer of custody healthcare commissioning from Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) to NHS England was taken in the context of wider decisions about the Provisional Police Funding Settlement for 2016/17, details of which were announced to Parliament in a written statement by the Minister of State for Policing, Crime and Criminal Justice and Victims on 17 December.

    The Government is clear that Police and Crime Commissioners should retain full flexibility to be able to prioritise resources towards police custody healthcare functions based on their local needs.

    A number of sources of information and guidance are available to PCCs to inform their commissioning of custody healthcare services.

    The Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1983 (PACE) sets out the statutory framework for custodial care and the rights and entitlements of a detainee in police custody. The College of Policing, as the professional body for policing, has published Approved Professional Practice (APP) on custody and detention. Police officers and staff are expected to have regard to the APP in discharging their responsibilities.The APP references wider guidance published by professional medical bodies including the Faculty of Forensic and Legal Medicine. In addition there is a NHS England national service specification setting out clinical standards for the commissioning and provision of police custody healthcare functions. This is currently being reviewed and updated.

    In many police force areas the close ties which PCCs have established to local NHS England commissioners over recent years have already helped to drive up the standards and quality of provision. On 11 February my Rt Hon Friend the Home Secretary and my Right Honourable Friend the Secretary of State for Health wrote to Police and Crime Commissioners and NHS England Commissioners encouraging them to continue to build upon this work to further improve healthcare service delivery.

    Any recommendations made by the forthcoming independent review of deaths and serious incidents in police custody will be carefully considered in due course.

  • Mark Hendrick – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Mark Hendrick – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Hendrick on 2016-03-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps Ofsted is taking to ensure that home schooled children are (a) taught about British values and (b) integrated into British society.

    Edward Timpson

    Ofsted has no powers or duties in respect of home education with regards to specific children who are being educated at home. We recognise that parents may choose to home school their children and may do a good job, but that education must be of a suitable quality.

    If parents do educate children at home, a local authority may intervene if it appears to the authority that the parents are not fulfilling their duty. When Ofsted inspects children’s services in local authorities under section 136 of the Education and Inspections Act 2006, it considers the effectiveness of the authority’s arrangements for dealing with children missing education, a category which includes any children who are home educated but not receiving a suitable education.

    We are taking steps to ensure the system is as robust as it can be when it comes to protecting young people, while at the same time safeguarding the rights of parents to determine how and where to educate their children.

  • Sharon Hodgson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Sharon Hodgson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sharon Hodgson on 2016-04-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to assess the potential benefits of applying school food standards to all schools as part of the Government’s childhood obesity strategy.

    Mr Sam Gyimah

    Tackling obesity, particularly in children, is one of our major priorities. We will be launching our cross-government Childhood Obesity Strategy in the summer. It will look at everything that contributes to a child becoming overweight and obese. It will also set out what more can be done by all.

    The School Food Standards apply to all local authority maintained schools and to academies that opened prior to 2010 and from June 2014 onwards.

    1,420 academies have voluntarily registered to follow the standards, including some of the largest Multi-Academy Trusts. Many academy caterers also hold the Food for Life Catering Mark, which also guarantees compliance with the School Food Standards.

  • Lord Aberdare – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Lord Aberdare – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Aberdare on 2016-05-18.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the Institute for Apprenticeships will take over any of the functions carried out by Ofsted, the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education or Ofqual, such as the inspection of apprenticeship provision or the regulation of qualifications, and if so, which.

    Baroness Neville-Rolfe

    The role of the Institute for Apprenticeships will be to ensure the quality of apprenticeship standards.

    Apprenticeships will only attract funding from government or the levy if they are against an approved standard or framework. Each standard will contain a plan for how the apprenticeship will be assessed. Although this will be approved by the Institute, the Institute will not assess the apprenticeship training itself: the register of training providers is owned by the Skills Funding Agency and Ofsted will continue to inspect providers.

    The Institute will, however, need to ensure there is consistency between the levels of assessment being applied, as part of its role in approving standards and assessment plans.

  • Thangam Debbonaire – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Thangam Debbonaire – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Thangam Debbonaire on 2016-07-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make it her policy to provide an integration support service for refugees to help those refugees who have recently arrived in the UK to integrate into local communities.

    Mike Penning

    We are working towards achieving more integrated communities and creating the conditions for everyone to live and work successfully alongside each other.

    Those who are granted refugee status are given access to the labour market, mainstream benefits and housing assistance from their local authority. There are therefore no plans to allow refugees to stay in asylum support accommodation.

    The Home Office offers integration loans to recognised refugees. The loan is designed to help refugees integrate into UK society by offering financial support towards housing costs, employment and training.

    The Home Office also funds strategic migration partnerships which provide coordination and support services for those organisations working with migrants and refugees in local communities.

    Earlier this year the Government announced that £20 million of additional funding for English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) courses would be introduced in October 2016. This funding will reach the most isolated communities in the UK.

  • Bridget Phillipson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Bridget Phillipson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bridget Phillipson on 2016-10-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will bring forward legislative proposals to ban the manufacture, sale, possession and use of animal snares.

    Dr Thérèse Coffey

    The Government has no plans to ban the use of all animal snares. The Government has sought to improve the welfare of snared animals through research to improve snare deployment and design and by working with users who are producing new guidance on best practice.

    The Animal Welfare Act 2006 contains protection for animals under the control of man to help prevent unnecessary suffering and covers any animal held in a snare. Any suspected cases of illegal use should be reported to the Police.

  • Kirsty Blackman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the House of Commons Commission

    Kirsty Blackman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the House of Commons Commission

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kirsty Blackman on 2015-10-30.

    To ask the hon. Member for Carshalton and Wallington representing the House of Commons Commission, if he will take steps to ensure that the parliament.uk website states the country in which hon. Members’ constituencies are located.

    Tom Brake

    The way that Members’ biographical information is displayed on Parliament’s website is not a matter for the Commission. I have, however, drawn the Administration Committee’s attention to the hon. Member’s request, and would advise her to approach the Chair of that Committee directly to discuss her proposal. The Administration Committee can then decide whether to offer advice on this matter to the authorities of the House.

  • Lord Hunt of Kings Heath – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Lord Hunt of Kings Heath – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 2015-12-15.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to establish an independent external assessment of the reasons for the failure of the contract for older people’s services in Cambridge and Peterborough; and what plans they have for a moratorium on further large-scale procurements until lessons from that contract have been learnt.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    NHS England advises that it will be commissioning an investigation into the circumstances leading up to the termination of the contract between Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Clinical Commissioning Group and UnitingCare Partnership LLP to deliver urgent care for the over 65s and adult community services. This will include the role of the Strategic Projects Team. NHS England is also considering how similar contracts will be managed and assured in the future.

  • Kit Malthouse – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Kit Malthouse – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kit Malthouse on 2016-01-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps he is taking to maintain the UK’s position as a market for investment by global pharmaceutical companies.

    George Freeman

    This Government is committed to maintaining and building on the UK’s position as a leader in the global market for investment in health and life sciences – the UK is the number one destination for life science FDI in Europe, and pharmaceutical exports grew 23% in the first three quarters of 2015. Through the Life Sciences Strategy we are working across Government to improve the UK’s competitiveness to stimulate investment, including by protecting the ring-fenced science budget in real terms and increasing funding in real terms to the Catapults which play a key role in commercialising innovation.

  • Lord Storey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Lord Storey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Storey on 2016-02-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what percentage of pupils sat GCSE and A Level Music in 2014–15.

    Lord Nash

    In 2014/15, 7 per cent of students[1] were entered for GCSE[2] Music as published in the latest “Revised GCSE and equivalents results in England” statistical first release (SFR)[3]. In 2009/10, the percentage of students who were entered for GCSE Music was 7 per cent.

    The percentage of students[4] who were entered for A level[5] Music was 2.5 per cent which can be calculated from data published on entries in A Level Music in the latest “A level and other Level 3 results” SFR[6].

    [1] Pupils at the end of key stage 4.

    [2] GCSE only.

    [3] Revised GCSE and equivalent results in England: 2014 to 2015.

    [4] Based on total number of entries in A level music divided by the number of students entered for at least one A level or applied single/double award A level – so could be an overestimate if a student has entered A level music more than once.

    [5] A level only.

    [6] A level and other level 3 results: 2014 to 2015 (revised).