Category: Speeches

  • Craig Whittaker – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Craig Whittaker – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Craig Whittaker on 2015-12-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to increase educational attainment among white boys from low-income socio-economic groups.

    Nick Gibb

    We are determined to deliver educational excellence everywhere so that every child, regardless of background, reaches their potential. The latest statistics show that more white boys eligible for FSM are achieving the expected standard in reading, writing and mathematics at the end of primary school, rising from 51 per cent in 2012 to 59 per cent in 2015.

    It is unacceptable, however, that fewer than one in four white boys eligible for free school meals (FSM) achieves the expected standard at the end of secondary school.

    Through the pupil premium, the government is providing additional targeted money, worth £2.5 billion in this year, to help schools support their disadvantaged pupils and improve their progress and attainment.

    We are raising expectations further for all pupils. We are determined to ensure that every child masters the basics of literacy and numeracy at primary school, and that those who do not will re-sit the tests at secondary school. We are also committed to introducing an expectation that every child who is able studies the EBacc combination of subjects – maths, English, history or geography, a language and the sciences – up until the age of 16.

    We are also introducing reforms that will further help ensure high standards throughout every child’s education and tackle entrenched underperformance, particularly amongst schools serving deprived communities.

    The National Teaching Service (NTS) will deploy the country’s best teachers and leaders to underperforming schools that struggle to attract and retain the professionals they need. 1,500 outstanding teachers will be part of NTS by 2020.

    The introduction of the national funding formula for schools will ensure that funding is transparently and fairly linked to children’s needs, ending the unfair system where children from identical disadvantaged circumstances attract significantly different levels of funding, simply because of where they live.

    We have also made a commitment to double the percentage of disadvantaged pupils accessing higher education by 2020, and this will include a focus on children from disadvantaged backgrounds.

  • James Berry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    James Berry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by James Berry on 2016-01-13.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to widen access to financial advice.

    Harriett Baldwin

    Last year the Government and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) jointly launched the Financial Advice Market Review. The Review is exploring how the UK’s financial advice market is operating for consumers, and what more can be done to ensure they have the access they need to high-quality, affordable advice so they can make informed decisions with their hard earned money. The Review will report ahead of Budget 2016.

  • Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead on 2016-02-04.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what information they have regarding claims that UN member states are seeking to minimise the number of Sustainable Development Goal indicators, possibly eliminate the Female Genital Mutilation target, and retain the current restriction of measuring Female Genital Mutilation only in relevant countries”.”

    Baroness Verma

    The UK has continually championed the inclusion of a global goal on gender and the inclusion of a target on ending harmful practices with indicators on Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) and Child, Early and Forced Marriage (CEFM). With others, we resisted a proposed qualifier which would have restricted the measurement of FGM to ‘relevant countries only’. We anticipate this indicator will remain, and apply to all countries, when the report and indicators are approved by the UN Statistical commission in mid-March.

  • Gareth Thomas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Gareth Thomas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gareth Thomas on 2016-03-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what her policy is on UK membership of the UN 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol; and if she will make a statement.

    James Brokenshire

    The UK has a proud record of providing protection to those who need it and will continue to do so, in accordance with our obligations as a signatory to the 1951 Refugee Convention and the 1967 Protocol.

    As the Home Secretary said in her speech to the Conservative Party conference, in the longer term we want to work with other countries in the EU and the UN to look at the international definitions of asylum and refugee status.

  • Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-03-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 14 March 2016 to Question 30456, what proportion of (a) primiparous and (b) multiparous women are discharged from hospital less than 24 hours after giving birth.

    Ben Gummer

    The Care Quality Commission 2015 survey of women’s experience of maternity care found that 27% of primiparous mothers (first time mothers) stayed in hospital for less than 24 hours after birth. 47% of multiparous mothers (women who have previously given birth one or more times) stayed in hospital for less than 24 hours after birth.

    Full details of the survey can be found here:

    http://www.cqc.org.uk/content/maternity-services-survey-2015

    “

  • Lord Ouseley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Lord Ouseley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Ouseley on 2016-05-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the effectiveness of policies and programmes aimed at tackling poverty, in the light of the study by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, Destitution in the UK, which found that over a million people were destitute at some point in 2015.

    Lord Freud

    This Government has introduced a wide range of policies and programmes to transform lives, from the flagship reform of Universal Credit to the Troubled Families Programme and the Pupil Premium. The majority of these programmes are audited

    We know that work is the best route out of poverty. Evidence shows that almost three-quarters of poor workless families who found full employment escaped poverty; and that the highest poverty exit rate of 75% was for children living in families that moved from part to full employment.

    That is why this Government is committed to policies that provide people with the support they need at all stages to get into work, increase their earnings, and keeping more of what they earn.

  • The Lord Bishop of St Albans – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The Lord Bishop of St Albans – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Lord Bishop of St Albans on 2016-06-15.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what proportion of reported commercial robberies in London in 2015 were targeted at betting shops.

    Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

    The Home Office does not hold data on the number of police recorded crimes made in licensed premises such as betting shops in London.

    The Home Office collects data on the number of notifiable offences broken down by offence group and police force area, but these do not routinely include information on the specific location.

  • Baroness Scott of Needham Market – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Baroness Scott of Needham Market – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Scott of Needham Market on 2016-09-12.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the EU referendum result, what is the status of applications made to the European Investment Bank by housing associations and local authorities.

    Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth

    The UK is and continues to be a shareholder of the European Investment Bank and the EIB has publicly stated that its engagement in the UK is unchanged. All existing loan contracts signed between UK promoters and the EIB remain in force, and the EIB has continued to sign and approve new projects since the referendum.

  • Fiona Mactaggart – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Fiona Mactaggart – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Fiona Mactaggart on 2016-10-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people have been granted refugee status or another type of subsidiary protection in the UK on the basis that they have been trafficked since 2010.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    Our records indicate that since 2010, 1,003 confirmed victims of trafficking have been granted refugee status or other form of protection as a result of an application for asylum. It is not possible to say whether refugee status was awarded due to the applicant being a victim of trafficking without a review of individual case record at disproportionate cost.

  • Bridget Phillipson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Bridget Phillipson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bridget Phillipson on 2015-11-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the cost has been of the North East Traffic Commissioners Quality Contact Scheme board to date.

    Andrew Jones

    The Quality Contract Scheme Board (QCSB) that was convened to consider the proposed Quality Contract Scheme for Tyne and Wear published their report in accordance with the Transport Act 2000 on 3 November 2015.

    The cost incurred by QCSB in fulfilling their statutory obligation to date is £206,088. This figure should not increase significantly as the report has now been published.