The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2016-04-28.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the level of disability benefits for which disabled refugees in the UK are eligible.
Justin Tomlinson
Refugees who are eligible must meet the same basic conditions of entitlement for disability benefits as other recipients.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Thangam Debbonaire on 2016-06-13.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential effect on the number of police call-outs of reductions in staffing in (a) mental health units, (b) hospitals and (c) social care services.
Mike Penning
Decisions on the deployment of a police force’s workforce in relation to local requirements are operational matters for individual chief constables, working with their Police and Crime Commissioners. However, a range of initiatives at both local and national level including the Crisis Care Concordat partnership arrangements and street triage scheme have already helped to reduce inappropriate mental health demands on the police.
The use of police cells in England as places of safety under the Mental Health Act, for example, reduced from 8,667 instances in 2011/12 to 3,996 in 2014/15. Legislative changes being introduced in the Policing and Crime Bill currently before Parliament, to prohibit the use of cells as places of safety for children and further limit their use for adults, as well as reductions in detention periods, will ensure progress in maintained.
In addition, the Government has committed to invest an additional £1 billion in mental health services by 2020 to ensure improved mental health support in the community and for people in Accident and Emergency, as well as crisis response provision and treatment options for both adults and children. In the last Autumn Statement, the Government also gave local authorities access to up to £3.5 billion of ne support for social care per year by 2019/20.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Helen Grant on 2016-09-06.
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment has she made of the effectiveness of regulations on advertising of gambling products on social media.
Matt Hancock
The Government is committed to ensuring that people, particularly the young and vulnerable, are protected from the risk of gambling-related harm. We are keeping the issue of advertising, including via social media, under review to ensure that sufficient protections are in place, and will not hesitate to take further action if necessary.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rehman Chishti on 2016-10-18.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many Gypsy, Traveller and Roma young people were held in (a) secure training centres, (b) secure children’s homes and (c) young offenders’ institutions in the most recent year for which figures are available.
Dr Phillip Lee
The Youth Justice Board (YJB) and HM Inspectorate of Prisons (HMIP) publish an annual report on ‘Children in Custody’ that monitors the number of gypsy, traveller and Romany (GRT) children in youth offenders’ institutions (YOIs) and secure training centres (STCs). The reports are available on the HMIP website.
The survey does not cover young people in Secure Children’s Homes (SCH). This is because Ofsted are responsible for inspecting SCHs, not HMIP.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Bradshaw on 2015-11-04.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 28 October (HL2621), what assessment they have made of whether the 12 unplanned closures of the East Coast Main Line in September represent an adequate level of service to the users of that line.
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The Department for Transport measures the performance of franchised train operators through a range of metrics as specified within their franchise agreements. The Office of Rail and Road monitor the performance of Network Rail. We expect all in the rail industry to work together to ensure good performance for its customers.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Mearns on 2015-12-03.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to paragraph 1.17 of the UK National Strategy for Maritime Security, published in May 2014, how many policy decisions in relation to the Royal Fleet Auxiliary have been taken to date by the ministerial working group on maritime security.
Penny Mordaunt
The Ministerial Working Group has not made any policy decisions on the Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA). The role of the RFA in providing logistic support to the Royal Navy (RN) is implicit within the support that the RN provides in delivering the National Strategy for Maritime Security.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gareth Johnson on 2016-01-11.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what proportion of (a) GCSE, (b) AS and (c) A-level exam results have been appealed against in each of the last five years.
Nick Gibb
These are matters for Ofqual, the Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation. I have therefore asked its Chief Regulator, Glenys Stacey to write directly to the Honourable Member. A copy of her replies will be placed in the House of Commons Library.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Oates on 2016-02-03.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact on mortality rates arising from changes to journey times for patients if the proposed closure of Huddersfield Royal Infirmary’s Accident & Emergency department goes ahead.
Lord Prior of Brampton
The reconfiguration of front line health services is a matter for the local National Health Service. Services should be tailored to meet the needs of the local population, and proposals for substantial service change must meet the four tests of reconfiguration which are: (i) support from GP commissioners; (ii) strengthened public and patient engagement; (iii) clarity on the clinical evidence base; and (iv) support for patient choice.
All commissioners proposing reconfiguration must include an analysis of travelling times and distances in their Pre-Consultation Business Case.
All service changes should be based on clear evidence that they will deliver better outcomes for patients. We expect the local NHS to undertake robust analysis of the impact of any proposed significant changes to services as part of the case for change.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by on 2016-02-29.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of Detective Superintendent McDonald’s description of child abuse allegations against Sir Edward Heath, Lord Bramall and Lord Brittan as credible and true”
Lord Bates
The Government is clear that allegations of child abuse should be thoroughly and properly investigated. However decisions about arrest and charge are an operational matter for the police and Crown Prosecution Service and it would be inappropriate for the Home Office to comment further.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Derek Twigg on 2016-03-23.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent discussions his Department has had with NHS England on increasing the amount of funding available to GP practices.
Alistair Burt
The Department has regular discussions with NHS England on various measures to support general practice, including funding.
NHS England has confirmed that it will increase funding for general practice by an average of 4.5% each year to 2020/21.