Category: Speeches

  • Alistair Carmichael – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Alistair Carmichael – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alistair Carmichael on 2016-10-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent meetings (a) she and (b) her officials have had with (i) MG ALBA and (ii) the BBC to discuss BBC ALBA.

    Matt Hancock

    The Department has engaged in an active discussion with a number of stakeholders on MG ABLA throughout the Charter Review Process.

    There is a new commitment for the BBC in the Framework agreement to continue their partnership with MG Alba for the next 11 years – something that has been enshrined in the Agreement for the first time. In addition, the BBC can be held to account for delivering on this commitment to the Scottish Parliament.

  • Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead on 2015-10-27.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussion they have had with the government of Burma to ensure that Rohingya are given full humanitarian access to camps, and the protection which enables them to return home or be given safe voluntary resettlement.

    Baroness Verma

    British Government Ministers take every appropriate opportunity to raise the plight of the Rohingya community with their Burmese counterparts. Most recently, the Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for East Devon (Mr Swire), did so with the Burmese Foreign Minister in New York on 29 September. During his visit to Burma in July, Mr Swire travelled to Rakhine State to see the situation there at first hand, and raised the situation of the Rohingya at a senior level both in Rakhine and with Burmese central government ministers. The UK’s Deputy Head of Mission, accompanied by DFID officials, visited northern Rakhine State on 5-8 October and discussed freedom of movement for those in internally displaced person camps with Rakhine State Chief Minister, U Mya Aung.

    DFID is one of the largest bilateral humanitarian donors in Rakhine, and has provided over £18 million since 2012.

  • Matthew Offord – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Matthew Offord – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Matthew Offord on 2015-11-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many penalty charge notices have been issued since the introduction of the free-flowing element at the Dartford Crossing.

    Andrew Jones

    Since the introduction of the Dart Charge remote payment system at the Dartford Crossing on 30 November 2014, there have been 1,594,225 penalty charge notices issued to UK drivers and 380,663 passed to a European Debt Recovery Agency for issue to overseas drivers (to 31 October 2015). There have been 42,499,904 chargeable crossings during the same period, so this equates to 4.6% of all chargeable crossings.

  • Robert Flello – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Robert Flello – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Robert Flello on 2016-01-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, which groups were consulted in preparation of the equality impact assessment for the introduction of fixed recoverable costs in medical negligence cases.

    Ben Gummer

    The consultation stage assessment for the introduction of fixed recoverable costs for clinical negligence is work in progress. The Department has established a working group to look at the impact of the proposal on equalities, health inequalities and families. Membership (which has not been finalised) currently includes representatives of claimant lawyers, defence lawyers, patients and the National Health Service. We will seek views on the impact of the policy on equalities, health inequalities and families within the consultation.

  • Daniel Zeichner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Daniel Zeichner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2016-01-27.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has recently made of the effectiveness of taxi and private hire vehicle regulations relating to passenger safety.

    Andrew Jones

    At the request of the Department for Transport, the Law Commission has undertaken a comprehensive review of taxi and private hire regulation in England and Wales. The Department instructions included requiring the review to focus on passenger safety.

    The Government is currently considering all the recommendations in the Law Commission’s report and will formally respond to the Law Commission and announce its intentions once this scrutiny is completed.

  • Jonathan Ashworth – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Jonathan Ashworth – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jonathan Ashworth on 2016-02-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what the cost of the trade envoy programme has been since its launch in September 2012.

    Anna Soubry

    To fulfil their overseas and UK travel commitments, there is a dedicated budget for the Trade Envoys.

    Total cost of the programme to date has been £424,529

  • Barry Sheerman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Barry Sheerman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Sheerman on 2016-03-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what data his Department collects on premature mortality in people on the autism spectrum.

    Alistair Burt

    The National Health Service is taking action to increase the health checks and cancer screening programmes for people with learning disabilities, including those who also have autism. In 2015, NHS England commissioned the world’s first Learning Disability Mortality Review Programme to support local areas to review deaths of people with learning disabilities and to use the information to improve service provision so that physical and mental health problems can be identified and addressed. This programme is currently being piloted and will be rolled out more widely in due course.

    We would expect that the work of the mortality review as a whole is likely to generate new information on the causes of premature mortality in all people with learning disabilities including many who will also have had autism spectrum disorder.

  • Julian Knight – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Julian Knight – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julian Knight on 2016-04-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the potential benefits of proposals to deny parole or release to people incarcerated for charges of murder for as long as they refuse to disclose the whereabouts of their victim’s remains.

    Andrew Selous

    I sympathise with the anguish caused to the families of victims where the offender wilfully refuses to disclose the whereabouts of their loved one. Such behaviour is already taken into account by the court when sentencing the offender, and by the independent Parole Board when assessing an offender’s continuing risk for the purposes of deciding whether he or she is eligible for possible release. The Parole Board has at my request, however, agreed to review its guidance on this particular issue as part of a review of all its guidance in 2016.

  • Lord Storey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Lord Storey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Storey on 2016-05-25.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government which local authorities provide (1) free transport, and (2) subsidised transport, for students in years 12 and 13.

    Lord Nash

    The statutory responsibility for post 16 transport rests with local authorities who are required to publish a transport policy statement setting out the arrangements they make to support young people to travel to further education and training.

    These arrangements do not have to include free or subsidised transport, but local authorities are expected to make reasonable decisions based on local needs, circumstances and resources. Discounts or concessions are also available from local transport companies and schools, colleges or other providers.

    Local authorities are encouraged to develop a collaborative approach when developing their statements to provide a full picture of the transport and support available. But it is for local organisations to decide whether to provide support and what level of discounts and concessions to give. The department does not collect specific information on which local authorities, transport companies, or education and training providers give free or subsidised transport for students in years 12 and 13.

    The 16 to 19 Bursary Fund is also available to help young people with the costs associated with attending education or training, and transport is the biggest single area of expenditure for which this fund is used. Schools and colleges are responsible for deciding how to distribute their bursary allocations to students, and for establishing what criteria to use.

  • Greg Mulholland – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Greg Mulholland – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2016-07-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what discussions she has had with her EU counterparts on the future of the Erasmus programme.

    Joseph Johnson

    The EU referendum result has no immediate effect on students abroad under Erasmus or those applying in 2016/17. Payments will be made in the usual way. Access after we leave the EU is a matter for the forthcoming negotiations.