Category: Speeches

  • Cat Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Cat Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Cat Smith on 2016-02-03.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the reasons for the reduction in personal independence payment award rates between October 2014 and October 2015.

    Justin Tomlinson

    Personal Independence Payment (PIP) is continuing to roll out in a safe and steady manner and as such there will be a variety of cases, and case volumes, within the system at any one time. Correspondingly, variation in PIP award rates and amounts is to be expected in a live system of this scale as cases are assessed on an individual basis.

    There are no targets for the numbers who are in receipt of PIP.

  • Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-02-29.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the Freedom of Information Act 2000 allows publicly funded bodies that are individually bound by that Act to form what is described as a private institution that is claimed to be exempt from that Act, and if so, in which clause or clauses.

    Lord Bridges of Headley

    Public authorities subject to the Act are listed in Schedule 1, and companies wholly owned by the public sector are automatically covered through section 6.

  • Christopher Chope – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Christopher Chope – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christopher Chope on 2016-03-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department has taken in response to the Resolution of the House of 11 February on conservation of sea bass and the effect of related EU measures on the UK recreational fishing industry.

    George Eustice

    The Government has noted carefully the points of the Resolution of the House, which have informed the ongoing development of UK policy on bass as we continue to work to improve the sustainability of the stock at both national and EU level.

  • Richard Burden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Richard Burden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-04-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the oral evidence given by the Minister of State to the Transport Committee on 25 April 2016, what further testing or retesting his officials are carrying out; and if he will make a statement.

    Andrew Jones

    Our initial testing programme, launched in the wake of the VW emissions scandal, is now complete and the results were published on 21 April. The Department for Transport will be establishing a new unit focused on checking that vehicles meet type approval requirements. The unit will have a budget of £1 million a year and will involve the department’s agencies, the Vehicle Certification Agency and the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency. It will initially focus on emissions testing and enforcement. The unit will be operational later this year.

  • Mark Durkan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Mark Durkan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Durkan on 2016-06-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation will next report to his Department on the cost-effectiveness framework for vaccinations.

    Jane Ellison

    Upon the recommendation of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation, the Department commissioned the Cost Effectiveness Methodology for Immunisation Programmes and Procurement (CEMIPP) Review. The Government expects to receive the CEMIPP report later this summer.

  • Margaret Hodge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Margaret Hodge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Margaret Hodge on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many times his Department has used the services of (a) PwC, (b) Deloitte, (c) Ernst and Young, (d) KPMG and (e) other consulting firms in the last three financial years; and what (i) work was undertaken and (ii) the cost to the public purse was on each such occasion.

    Sir Alan Duncan

    DELOITTE
    2013/14:£69,000
    2014/15:£33,000
    2015/16:£121,000

    ERNST & YOUNG
    2013/14:£480,000
    2014/15:£328,000
    2015/16:£181,000

    KPMG
    2013/14:£140,000
    2014/15:£116,000
    2015/16:£132,000

    PWC
    2013/14:£355,000
    2014/15:£377,000
    2015/16:£1,420,000

    Consultants
    2013/14:£1,500,000
    2014/15:£1,600,000
    2015/16:£1,100,000

    All applicable expenditure with these companies is published as part of HMG’s Transparency Agenda at https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/foreign-office-spend-over-25000.

  • Derek Thomas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Derek Thomas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Derek Thomas on 2016-10-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether he plans to review the decision no longer to fund second stem cell transplants for blood cancer patients.

    David Mowat

    The commissioning of stem cell transplantation is managed as part of the overall system to deliver specialised services. To ensure that investment decisions are affordable and offer value for money, NHS England has established a defined prioritisation process. This involves assessment of all proposals based on clinical benefit and cost. On 2 August 2016, NHS England announced a re-run of the prioritisation process carried out earlier this year.

    The Department is not planning to review the decision related to the commissioning of second stem cell transplants.

  • Nia Griffith – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Wales Office

    Nia Griffith – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Wales Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nia Griffith on 2015-11-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, how the Government plans to monitor and enforce clause 2 of the draft Wales Bill.

    Stephen Crabb

    Clause 2 of the draft Wales Bill will place the existing convention that Parliament will not normally legislate with regard to devolved matters without the consent of the National Assembly for Wales on a statutory footing. The Government will continue to work with the Welsh Government to obtain the Assembly’s consent (via legislative consent motions) to legislation in devolved areas included in parliamentary Bills. Similarly,where Welsh Government is legislating in relation to the functions of reserved authorities, they should seek the consent of UK ministers, and the draft bill makes this clear.

  • Stephen Timms – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Stephen Timms – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2015-12-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 3 December 2015 to Question 18221, what estimate she has made of the time taken to process a family from Syria onto the Syrian Vulnerable Persons Resettlement Scheme before they are housed in the UK.

    Richard Harrington

    The time taken to process a family from Syria onto the Syrian Vulnerable Persons Resettlement Scheme varies depending on the individual circumstances of that family.

  • Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-01-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the number of passengers who will (a) access Crossrail services via Stratford station and (b) pass through Stratford station on Crossrail services in each of the first three years after Crossrail services commence.

    Claire Perry

    Transport for London’s forecasts indicate that the following passenger numbers will (a) access Crossrail services via Stratford station and (b) pass through Stratford station on Crossrail services in each of the first three years after Crossrail services commence.

    2019

    2020

    2021

    Passenger numbers accessing Crossrail services via Stratford Station

    7.07m

    7.18m

    7.29m

    Crossrail passenger numbers using Stratford station as an interchange

    34.89m

    35.43m

    35.96m

    I have interpreted part ‘b’ of your request as referring to Crossrail passengers who will use Stratford station as an interchange.