Category: Speeches

  • Gareth Johnson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Gareth Johnson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gareth Johnson on 2016-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what funding his Department has allocated to Kent County Council for local road maintenance for (a) 2015-16 and (b) 2016-17.

    Andrew Jones

    This Government is providing both tools and funding to local highway authorities in England, outside London, to tackle the condition of our local road network. In the Spending Review 2015, the Government announced that we are allocating a total of £6.1 billion funding for local highways maintenance between now and 2021. This funding includes an additional £250 million between 2016 and 2021 for a potholes action fund to improve local roads, to promote innovation within the sector and to ensure that taxpayers get greater value for money.

    For Kent we are providing the following funding for local highways maintenance for the financial years 2015/16 and 2016/17:

    Funding Stream

    2015/16 £m

    2016/17 £m

    Highways Maintenance Block Needs Element

    27.277

    25.006

    Highways Maintenance Block Incentive Element

    1.377

    Pothole Action Fund

    1.473

    Total

    27.277

    27.856

    Further details of the funding we are providing to all local highway authorities in England outside London can be found here:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/news/6-billion-funding-to-tackle-potholes-and-improve-local-roads

    Local authorities are able to use revenue funding for maintaining their local highways and this is allocated by the Department of Communities and Local Government through the Revenue Support Grant.

    “

  • Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the House of Commons Commission

    Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the House of Commons Commission

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-04-26.

    To ask the Rt. hon. Member for Carshalton and Wallington representing the House of Commons Commission, what assessment the Commission has made of the effectiveness of the Education Service in engaging the attention of children during their visits to Parliament.

    Tom Brake

    The Commission has not made a formal assessment of the effectiveness of the Education Service in engaging the attention of children during their visits to Parliament. However, it receives regular updates on the work and reach of the service, and has supported the substantial growth in this area in recent years.

    The Education Service uses a number of techniques to engage students’ attention during visits including story-telling, question and answer, images, audio-visual clips, debating, quizzes and roleplay.

    Visits also make use of interactive and immersive technology as a means to enhance learning. The Education Centre’s Discovery space uses 360° projection and sound technology to immerse students in virtual chambers, historical events and The Story of Parliament, whilst three of the Centre’s learning spaces are equipped with augmented reality experiences, which see Winston Churchill, the Yeoman Usher, Charles I and Queen Victoria ‘come to life’ in virtual environments.

    Voting pods and tablets are used regularly in sessions, and the centre also contains a 3D printer, for printing objects students cannot normally handle or get close to; this is proving particularly effective for tactile learning and Special Educational Needs (SEN) groups. Tablets are also used on the line of route as part of the ‘Adventurer’s Tour’ programme, where KS2 students are tasked with a mission to save democracy.

  • Adam Afriyie – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Adam Afriyie – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Adam Afriyie on 2016-06-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps he is taking to support and spread awareness of cyber security insurance amongst businesses.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    The Government is committed to making the UK one of the safest places in the world to do business online and we recognise the role cyber insurance can play as part of a broader risk management strategy.

    In March 2015 the Government published a report on the joint initiatives between Government and the insurance sector to tackle cyber risk. The report is available here:https://www.gov.uk/government/news/cyber-security-insurance-new-steps-to-make-uk-world-centre

    “

  • Richard Bacon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Richard Bacon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Bacon on 2016-09-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much Oxford University Hospitals NHS Trust has paid Cerner in the last 10 years.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    The Department has not, over the last 10 years, made payments to Cerner for National Health Service systems. The Department does not hold information centrally about contracts that are held by NHS Trusts locally.

  • Grant Shapps – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Grant Shapps – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Grant Shapps on 2016-10-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether the £55.7 billion cost of the High Speed 2 project also includes the cost for the High Speed 3 project.

    Andrew Jones

    Spending Review 2015 restated the long-term budget for HS2 at £55.7bn (2015 prices). This is for the entire ‘Y’ network, including Phase 1 and 2.

    The government committed a separate £60m from the Transport Development Fund for the development of Northern Powerhouse Rail (sometimes known as HS3) at this year’s Budget. Transport for the North are leading the development of a range of potential options for Northern Powerhouse Rail, including options that make use of sections of the HS2 network, major upgrades, and new lines. Transport for the North will publish their priorities for further development in spring 2017.

  • Seema Malhotra – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Seema Malhotra – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Seema Malhotra on 2015-11-03.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent estimate she has made of the average cost to a police authority of employing a (a) police officer and (b) police community support officer; and what estimate she has made of that cost in each year from 2016-17 to 2019-20.

    Mike Penning

    Police authorities were abolished in 2012. Police and Crime Commissioners are now responsible for local priorities. The Home Office has estimated the costs of police officers and police community support officers based on average full time equivalent costs and predicted cost increases. The costs include the employers’ portion of National Insurance and pension contributions.

    £

    2015/16

    2016/17

    2017/18

    2018/19

    2019/20

    Average Officer

    47,800

    50,000

    50,800

    51,500

    52,400

    Average PSCO

    32,300

    33,400

    33,800

    34,200

    34,700
  • Danny Kinahan – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Danny Kinahan – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Danny Kinahan on 2015-12-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what change there has been in the number of jobs in the solar industry in Northern Ireland since January 2015.

    Andrea Leadsom

    The Size and Performance of the Low-carbon Economy (2015) report by the Department of Business, Innovation, and Skills estimated the number of low-carbon jobs in Northern Ireland in 2013.

    https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/416240/bis-15-206-size-and-performance-of-uk-low-carbon-economy.pdf

    “

  • Tom Brake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Tom Brake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Brake on 2016-01-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many civilian casualties have been recorded in Syria as a result of RAF military intervention since 2 December 2015.

    Penny Mordaunt

    There have been no recorded civilian casualties in Iraq or Syria as a result of RAF military intervention since 2 December 2015.

  • Paul Blomfield – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Paul Blomfield – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Blomfield on 2016-02-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what estimate his Department has made of the average period of time which (a) male and (b) female student radiographers who enter training at the age of (i) 19, (ii) 25 and (iii) 30 in 2017-18 will take to pay off their student loans taking into account changes to the student support system from 2016-17.

    Joseph Johnson

    The changes announced at the Spending Review will enable us to lift the cap on the number of students on nursing courses and will provide nursing students with access to around 25% additional financial support. We expect this reform will enable universities to provide up to 10,000 additional nursing, midwifery and allied health training places over this Parliament.

    The average repayment term on student loans is calculated for the total full time student population, rather than separately for students taking certain courses or their age on starting their course. On this basis, we estimate that the average repayment term for a full time student entering Higher Education in 2017-18 is around 20 to 25 years.

    This estimate includes both borrowers who fully repay their loans and those who have loans written off due to death, disability leading to permanent inability to work, or reaching the end of the repayment term. The estimate takes into account the changes to student finance announced at Spending Review and Autumn Statement 2015.

  • Catherine West – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Catherine West – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2016-02-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what the rate of pay is for cleaners in his Department.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    DCMS shares premises with other Government Departments – HMRC and DfE – that are responsible for the employment and payment of cleaning staff.