UKPOL.CO.UK

Category: Speeches

  • Justin Madders – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Justin Madders – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Justin Madders on 2016-02-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the (a) scale of the difficulty experienced by trusts in recruiting to consultant posts and (b) effect of that difficulty on numbers of occupied consultant posts in cellular pathology.

    Ben Gummer

    Individual healthcare providers are responsible for ensuring that they have the right level of staffing to provide high quality care to their patients.

    The following table taken from the monthly workforce statistics published by the Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC) shows the total consultant figures for May 2010, November 2010 and for November 2015 working in the National Health Service in England. The data for November 2015 is the latest available. The HSCIC statistics do not show cellular pathology, but data is provided for those working in the pathology group.

    England full-time equivalent

    May 2010

    November 2010

    November 2015

    All Consultants

    35,174

    36,010

    42,423

    Consultants in Pathology group

    2,426

    2,486

    2,597

    Source: Health and Social Care Information Centre NHS monthly workforce statistics

  • Carolyn Harris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Carolyn Harris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Carolyn Harris on 2016-03-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what training is available for prison officers in dealing with inmates who are under the influence of psychoactive substances on the prison estate.

    Ben Gummer

    Public Heath England has produced guidance to support healthcare and operational staff in prisons in England manage the impact of new psychoactive substances on the health and wellbeing of prisoners and staff and help staff manage security. This guidance is available at:

    http://www.nta.nhs.uk/uploads/nps-manual-final.pdf

  • Lord Mendelsohn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Lord Mendelsohn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Mendelsohn on 2016-04-25.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the Executive Remuneration Working Group’s conclusions that executive pay is not fit for purpose” and that extensive reform is needed to allay “widespread scepticism and [the] loss of public confidence”.”

    Baroness Neville-Rolfe

    The Government has noted the views set out in the interim report of the Executive Remuneration Working Group.

    Government reforms introduced in 2013 provide a significantly more transparent and robust governance framework for executive pay. The reforms give shareholders a binding vote at least every three years on company pay policies and an annual vote on the remuneration report which sets out exactly what directors have been paid. The annual vote is advisory but if the shareholders vote down the report, the company has to bring a revised pay policy to the next Annual General Meeting.

    These reforms give shareholders effective powers to challenge excessive executive pay and to hold boards to account on pay policies and it is now for investors and companies to engage constructively to ensure that pay policies are fit for purpose and that they align the interests of executives, shareholders and companies.

    Evidence from the current round of Annual General Meetings is that the reforms are having an impact and that shareholders are increasingly willing to use these powers where they are dissatisfied. BP and Smith and Nephew’s shareholders, for example, voted against their companies’ remuneration reports and the shareholders of Weir Group voted against that company’s remuneration policy in a binding vote. There have been significant shareholder votes against the remuneration reports at a number of other companies.

    The Government has no current plans for further legislation or regulation, but expects to see companies liaising effectively with shareholders and adjusting pay policies where there is shareholder dissatisfaction.

  • Baroness Deech – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Baroness Deech – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Deech on 2016-06-06.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Verma on 25 April (HL7413), whether the independent auditor of UK payments to the Palestinian Authority that are channelled through a trust fund administered by the World Bank is regulated by any British regulator.

    Baroness Verma

    Deloitte is a registered audit firm that employs certified public accountants who conduct their assignment in compliance with the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) standards.

  • Mark Menzies – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Trade

    Mark Menzies – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Trade

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Menzies on 2016-07-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what steps his Department is taking to negotiate a trade deal with the Mercosur trading bloc.

    Greg Hands

    The EU is currently negotiating a trade deal with Mercosur. Until we have left the EU, the UK will remain a member of the EU with all of the rights and obligations that membership entails.

    In due course, Britain will be leaving the EU. This offers us an opportunity to forge a new role for ourselves in the world: to negotiate, in time, our own trade agreements and to be a positive and powerful force for free trade. The Prime Minister has established the Department for International Trade to promote British trade across the world and ensure the UK takes advantage of the huge opportunities open to us. The Government is currently reviewing its trade policy. We will engage fully with a broad range of stakeholders, including both governments and business over the coming weeks and months as we prepare for the negotiation with the EU and other international partners.

  • Alex Cunningham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Alex Cunningham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2015-11-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what provisions her Department has made for (a) child and adolescent friendly spaces and (b) other psycho-social support for children affected by the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

    Mr Desmond Swayne

    The UK is the third largest donor to the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), which is providing basic education and protection for over 230,000 children in Gaza.

    As part of the UK’s humanitarian response to the 2014 conflict, DFID activated its £3 million Rapid Response Facility which included support to Handicap International, Plan International and International Medical Corps to provide psycho-social support, child protection and mental health support to children in Gaza.

    DFID also provided support to the UN Mine Action Service (UNMAS) who have cleared all UNRWA and 21 Palestinian Authority schools of unexploded ordnance allowing 250,000 students to return to school.

  • Heidi Alexander – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Heidi Alexander – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Heidi Alexander on 2016-10-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what data his Department (a) records and (b) publishes on the nationality of NHS staff.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    The Department does not record or publish data on the nationality of staff working in the National Health Service. Data on nationality is published twice a year by NHS Digital and turnover data is published quarterly and available by nationality.

    Nationality is a data item within the National Workforce Data set used with a range of other data items to support workforce planning, analysis of staff movement and equality monitoring. It is not mandatory, but self-declared.

    In 2015 and 2016 requests for nationality data on NHS staff in England were published on the supplementary information part of the NHS Digital website, rather than as part of the routine Hospital and Community Health Services statistical publications. In 2016, following NHS Digital’s public consultation, NHS Digital now routinely publish tables showing the self-declared nationality of staff in staff groups and regions, bi-annually, together with quarterly turnover statistics which show the nationality of joiners and leavers to and from the NHS in England.

    The latest nationality data was published in March 2016 and the next set will be published in December 2016 showing the position at September 2016.

    The latest turnover data published in September 2016 covers the 12 month period to 30 June 2016.

  • Andrew Tyrie – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Andrew Tyrie – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Tyrie on 2015-11-27.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if his Department will make an assessment of the effect on (a) the cost of passenger fares and (b) passenger demand of each of the Airports Commission’s three shortlisted schemes and the effect of that cost.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    The Government is currently considering the large amount of very detailed analysis contained in the Airports Commission’s final report before taking any decisions on next steps.

    The Government will carefully consider all the evidence set out, including that on costs, when making a decision on additional runway capacity.

  • Jess Phillips – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Jess Phillips – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jess Phillips on 2016-01-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many applicants for Universal Credit have requested split payments on the grounds of domestic abuse since the launch of universal credit in the pilot areas; and what proportion of the total number of applicants have so claimed.

    Priti Patel

    The information requested is not currently available.

  • Nicholas Soames – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Nicholas Soames – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nicholas Soames on 2016-01-29.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the obligations are on the UK under the provisions of the Five Power Defence arrangements.

    Mr Julian Brazier

    Under the Five Power Defence Arrangements, the five powers (Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia, Singapore and the UK) undertook to consult "immediately" in the event or threat of an armed attack on Malaysia or Singapore for the purpose of deciding what measures should be taken jointly or separately in response. There is no specific commitment to intervene militarily.