Category: Speeches

  • Gordon Henderson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Gordon Henderson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gordon Henderson on 2016-06-13.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to reduce the amount of correspondence not yet dealt with at the HM Revenue and Customs Stamp Duty office.

    Mr David Gauke

    This Government invested in HM Revenue and Customs’ (HMRC) Stamp Taxes business unit at Budget 2016 to increase capacity in relation to the new higher rates of Stamp Duty Land Tax on additional properties.

    In order to reduce volumes of correspondence HMRC is reviewing guidance to cover those areas where substantial correspondence has been generated.

    Additional resources have been put into call handling at HMRC’s Stamp Taxes helpline, providing an improved customer service and aiming to reduce follow-up correspondence.

  • Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the implications for her Department’s funding of free early education of the conclusions of the report of the Family and Childcare Trust, Driving High Quality Childcare: the role of local authorities, published on 11 August 2016, on the proportion of local authorities which use such funding to encourage graduate-led care.

    Caroline Dinenage

    We recognise that high quality childcare improves children’s long-term educational outcomes and helps close the gap in attainment between the most disadvantaged children and their peers. We want to enable all children, whatever their background and individual needs, to access high quality early education. Investment has an important part to play in achieving continued improvements in quality. We have committed over £1 billion more per year by 2019-20 to fund the early years entitlements – this includes £300 million per year from 2017-18 for a significant increase to the rate paid for the two, three and four year old entitlements.

    We know that high quality childcare has the most significant impact on those from disadvantaged homes. Therefore it is important that funding is targeted at those areas and children who need it most. This is why we propose an additional needs factor in the early years national funding formula, on which we are currently consulting. This will channel funding towards local authorities with a higher relative proportion of children with additional needs.

    Whilst we know funding plays a role in the quality of childcare, we also recognise the importance of the early years workforce in improving quality and delivering better outcomes for children. That is why we are committed to publishing an early years workforce strategy. The Government currently delivers early years initial teacher training places in England. We fund eligible graduates to undertake the training, and provide student bursaries. Information about training routes is available on the Get into Teaching website at: https://getintoteaching.education.gov.uk/

    “

  • Mrs Cheryl Gillan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Mrs Cheryl Gillan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mrs Cheryl Gillan on 2016-10-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when he plans to publish Christine Lenehan’s review of children’s services and learning disabilities.

    Nicola Blackwood

    Dame Christine Lenehan is in the final stages of completing her report into the co-ordination of care, support and treatment for children and young people with complex needs (and behaviour that challenges) involving mental health problems and learning disabilities and/or autistic spectrum condition.

  • Peter Kyle – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Peter Kyle – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Peter Kyle on 2015-11-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will ask the Care Quality Commission to investigate the project run by South East Coast Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust between December 2014 and February 2015 on the treatment of emergency calls to NHS 111.

    Jane Ellison

    The Care Quality Commission (CQC), the independent regulator of health and adult social care, advises the South East Coast Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust is scheduled for a comprehensive inspection in 2016.

    The CQC advises it has attended a recent risk summit conducted by NHS England. The decisions or actions arising from the NHS England risk summit will be one of the factors considered in the timing of any forthcoming CQC inspection.

    NHS England undertook an external investigation of the project, the report of which was published by NHS England on 5 November 2015.

    We are advised that Monitor is taking action with South East Coast Ambulance Service Foundation Trust regarding concerns about the project and the regulator is working with the Trust now to identify the negative impact this project could have had on patients. It is Monitor’s function to undertaken such investigations independently of the Department. Monitor and Departmental officials regularly discuss such issues on a routine basis.

    As part of regulatory action, Monitor advises it has asked the trust to carry out a detailed independent review of the impact the project had on patients. Monitor has asked the Trust to do this with the help of an external expert, who the regulator will select. The full details of what the review will look at and how long it will take are being worked on by the trust and Monitor, including consideration of publication of the review findings.

  • Jim Shannon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Jim Shannon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2015-11-30.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will establish an independent inquiry to consider the costs and benefits of frozen pensions.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    Any independent inquiry to consider the costs and benefits of frozen pensions for the Civil Service Pension Scheme will be a matter for the Cabinet Office.

  • Lord Patten – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Patten – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Patten on 2016-01-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether their representatives in any UK embassies are banned from making representations concerning capital punishment in any country or countries.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    No such bans exist. On the contrary, the pursuit of the abolition of the death penalty is part of what the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond), has called the “every day work” of our missions in countries which continue to implement the death penalty.

  • Teresa Pearce – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Teresa Pearce – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Teresa Pearce on 2016-02-03.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure that provision of high-quality early years education is included in the Government’s Life Chances Strategy.

    Mr Sam Gyimah

    Education plays a significant role in ensuring that children have the best start in life, and this government is committed to supporting families to give children a strong foundation in the earliest years.

    The Prime Minister made clear in his recent speech that high quality early education will be a key part of the forthcoming Life Chances Strategy. We are working with other government departments to pursue this.

  • Helen Hayes – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Helen Hayes – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Helen Hayes on 2016-03-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, for what reasons no data is available for Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust in the 2015 NHS staff survey results.

    Ben Gummer

    We are informed that data for Guys and St Thomas’ Foundation Trust 2015 Staff Survey are available via the following weblink:

    http://www.nhsstaffsurveys.com/Page/1049/Latest-Results/Combined-Acute-and-Community-Trusts/

    We understand that the trust also published a news story about the results on the following website:

    http://www.guysandstthomas.nhs.uk/news-and-events/2016-news/february/20160223-trust-comes-top-staff-engagement.aspx

    “

  • Lord Mancroft – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Lord Mancroft – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Mancroft on 2016-03-23.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many people diagnosed with hepatitis C are eligible for treatment under the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidance for new direct acting antiviral drugs.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    Based on National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) modelling, NHS England has planned for 10,000 patients to be treated in 2016/17. No national registry exists for hepatitis C and as a result NICE estimates that the NHS should be treating 10,000 people based on the total number of people diagnosed with hepatitis C, their genotype, their treatment history and their disease severity, all of which impact on treatment eligibility.

  • 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 2016-04-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether the Government has provided support to the US administration for its remotely piloted aircraft system strikes in Yemen.

    Penny Mordaunt

    The UK Government has not provided support to the US for Remotely Piloted Aircraft System strikes in Yemen.