Category: Speeches

  • Tulip Siddiq – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Tulip Siddiq – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tulip Siddiq on 2016-02-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much central government funding has been allocated to (a) the London Local Enterprise Partnership and (b) all Local Enterprise Partnerships to support the creative industries in each year since 2011-12.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    All Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs), including the London LEP, have access to funding through programmes such as Growth Deals. However, decisions on what to prioritise rightly rest with the LEPs themselves, ensuring a strong business voice to maximise local growth. In London, for example, the LEP is investing £5m in a Digital Skills Programme to ensure young Londoners have the skills they need to access jobs in the capital’s thriving tech sector.

  • Stephen McPartland – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Stephen McPartland – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen McPartland on 2016-03-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what plans he has to improve access to immunotherapy for the long-term management of allergic disease.

    Jane Ellison

    The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) clinical guideline, ‘Food allergy in children and young people’, published in 2011, sets out best practice on the care treatment and support for children and young people with food allergy. NICE clinical guidelines are designed to support health care professionals in their work, and commissioners should consider them when developing local services, but they do not replace the knowledge, skills and experience of clinicians in deciding how best to manage patients.

    Immunotherapy for the long-term management of allergic disease may be provided as part of the NHS England’s nationally commissioned specialised allergy service. NHS England has set out what these providers must have in place to offer high quality specialised allergy care, ensuring equity of access to patients wherever they live. Around 0.1% of people with allergies in the United Kingdom, some 20,000 people, are likely to require referral to a specialist centre. NHS England’s allergy service specification, which provides more information about specialised allergy services, can be viewed at the following link:

    www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/b09-spec-allergy.pdf

    “

  • Jo Stevens – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Jo Stevens – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jo Stevens on 2016-04-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether community rehabilitation companies (CRCs) have current information sharing agreements in place with their local police forces; and which CRCs do not have such an agreement in place.

    Andrew Selous

    All Community Rehabilitation Companies have information sharing agreements in place with local police forces.

  • Baroness Liddell of Coatdyke – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Baroness Liddell of Coatdyke – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Liddell of Coatdyke on 2016-05-25.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with UK banks about proposals to remove protection from customers whose accounts have been fraudulently accessed.

    Lord O’Neill of Gatley

    The government takes the resilience of the financial sector, and the protection of bank customers, very seriously. Making sure that everyone has access to basic banking and financial services is at the heart of the government’s long term economic plan. The government is working with the banking industry, the retail sector, and law enforcement agencies to put in place the right steps to tackle online fraud against the public.

    As the Chancellor announced in November, the government is creating a new National Cyber Security Centre, which will open in October. Its recently launched prospectus outlines the Centre’s proposed vision, goals and work. In February, the Home Secretary launched the Joint Fraud Taskforce, which aims to use the collective powers, systems and resources of banks, payment providers, police, wider law enforcement and regulators to tackle fraud, and raise awareness of the risk of fraud among consumers. Further details on both can be found on the GOV.UK website.

  • Patrick Grady – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Patrick Grady – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Patrick Grady on 2016-07-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will issue a response to Early Day Motion 110, on Palestinian oil and gas reserves, tabled on 26 June 2016.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    The Government believes that Israel must fulfil its obligations under the Oslo Accords, including through the exploration of shared natural resources. We continue to stress to the Israeli authorities the damage caused by its restrictions. I can assure you that the Government has long been of the view that easing restrictions, both on the movement of Palestinian people and goods internally and externally, and on access to natural resources, is an important step on the path to a two-state solution.

    The gas fields off the coast of Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories are a commercial matter. We remain in regular contact with British Gas, the Palestinian Authority and the Government of Israel about the exploration of offshore oil and gas. We also continue to follow the situation of oil exploration licenses in the Golan Heights closely. We have been clear that Israel must comply with its obligations under international law, including the Fourth Geneva Convention.

  • Mark Durkan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Mark Durkan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Durkan on 2016-10-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, in how many instances his Department’s procurement department sought further information from a company on potential corruption, bribery or fraud in the last two years.

    Harriett Baldwin

    The Ministry of Defence (MOD) routinely carries out checks on potential contractors prior to contract award, including on criminal activity, such as convictions for tax evasion, bribery or fraud, and a review of a company’s audited accounts. These enquiries are conducted in accordance with the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 and the Defence and Security Public Contracts Regulations 2011.

    This process is reiterated in all competitive and single source tender documentation issued to tenderers prior to any contract award.

    Any suspicion of corruption is reported to the appropriate authority. Where justified, the MOD can exclude potential suppliers who pose an unacceptable risk to public money.

  • James Cleverly – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    James Cleverly – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by James Cleverly on 2016-10-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the use of funding from the public purse provided to the Commonwealth Secretariat.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    We support the work of the Commonwealth Secretariat, in particular around the promotion of democratic values and development. We expect the Secretariat to use any funding we provide efficiently and effectively in line with its agreed budget, financial procedures and priorities. In addition to being considered by external auditors, the Secretariat’s budget is assessed by the Commonwealth’s Executive Committee and Board of Governors at regular meetings. The UK is a member of both groups, represented by the UK’s Commonwealth Envoy.

    We are committed to supporting the Secretary General’s efforts to reform and revitalise the Commonwealth Secretariat and to working with her and our Commonwealth partners to strengthen the organisation.

  • Stephen McPartland – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Stephen McPartland – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen McPartland on 2015-11-17.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many pupils are known to be (a) victims, (b) perpetrators of domestic assaults; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr Rob Wilson

    The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.

  • Luciana Berger – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Luciana Berger – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2016-01-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what proportion of (a) GPs and (b) clinical commissioning groups have plans in place to identify avoidable deaths.

    Alistair Burt

    Data on the proportion of general practitioners and clinical commissioning groups that have plans in place to identify avoidable deaths is not collected centrally.

  • 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 2016-01-27.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment he has made of the effect of the low oil price since summer 2014 on the number of UK seafarers employed on offshore supply vessels in the North Sea.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    The 2015 seafarer statistics have just been published. We estimate that there were 23,380 UK seafarers active at sea in 2015, an increase of 2 per cent on the previous year. We are aware that the current downturn in the offshore sector may not yet be fully reflected in these figures.