Category: Speeches

  • Grant Shapps – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    Grant Shapps – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Grant Shapps on 2016-10-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what independent body or bodies he plans will judge phase one of the Small Modular Reactor Competition.

    Jesse Norman

    Phase One has not involved any evaluation or assessment of Small Modular Reactor proposals, beyond reviewing applicants against the published eligibility criteria, and therefore no independent bodies have been or will be making decisions during Phase One.

  • Gareth Thomas – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Gareth Thomas – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gareth Thomas on 2015-11-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to increase the number of housing co-operatives; and if he will make a statement.

    Brandon Lewis

    The Government continues to demonstrate its support for the community-led housing sector and we have encouraged community-led groups, including housing co-operatives, to apply for funding from the current Affordable Homes Programme. We also strongly encourage local authorities and larger providers to identify new community-based partnership members who may be able to bring additional capacity to a bid.

    The Homes and Communities Agency is operating a process of continuous market engagement which offers all providers ongoing access to bid for grant. This should specifically help smaller community-led organisations such as housing co-operatives to prepare good bids and access funding.

  • Martyn Day – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Martyn Day – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Martyn Day on 2015-12-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, when he expects to publish the outcomes of his Department’s BBC Charter Review consultation.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    The Government’s BBC Charter Review Public Consultation closed in October. Over 190,000 people responded to the consultation – the second largest response to any Government consultation. We are in the process of reading and analysing all the responses, and will publish the results once this exercise is completed.

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

    Lord Lingfield – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Lingfield on 2016-01-27.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what actions they are taking to ensure that local offers published under the statutory duty on local authorities in the Children and Families Act 2014 meet the two key purposes set out in Chapter 4 of the Special Educational Needs and Disability Code of Practice 2015.

    Lord Nash

    The Department is monitoring the implementation of the Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) reforms and securing a wide range of feedback. This feedback is collected through statutory data collection; regular surveys of local authorities, parents and carers; regular inputs for the Special Educational Consortium (which represents more than 30 organisations); and reports from contractors such as the Council for Disabled Children, which provides Independent Support services in all local authority areas, and Contact a Family, which runs a national helpline for parents of children with SEND.

    The Department provides support to local areas in a range of ways, such as voluntary and community sector experts and a team of specialist SEND Advisers.

    Local authorities must include information about Personal Budgets in their Local Offers, including information on how to request one. Parents and young people have the right to request a Personal Budget for elements of an Educational Health and Care (EHC) plan; local authorities are under a duty to prepare a budget when requested. Our termly surveys collect responses on the number of EHC plans which carry a Personal Budget.

    Since April 2013, the Government has provided nearly £1.5 million in funding to a number of projects with voluntary sector organisations to develop materials to support local areas to introduce Personal Budgets. We regularly promote these projects in our communications to families and to organisations in the sector. For example, KIDS produced guidance in 2015, through the Making it Personal 2 project. The Department is currently funding KIDS to build on this project, to develop further guidance and training resources, including some specifically aimed at young people with SEND, in a range of accessible formats. The SEND Gateway, which is run by the National Association for Special Educational Needs, also offers practical resources on Personal Budgets to assist both users and professionals.

    Through our regional support networks, we have funded a number of workshops aimed at local authorities, parents and others about Personal Budgets and we will continue to offer support for of this kind.

    Following publication of the Children and Families Act 2014, the Government set out the statutory duties to which local authorities and those working with children and young people must adhere, in the SEND Code of Practice: 0-25 years[1]. The Code of Practice includes clear information on the processes of EHC plan assessment and production. The Department’s team of specialist SEND Advisers are working with local areas to improve the quality of EHC plans, and are currently leading workshops on this across England.

    The SEND Code of Practice includes clear requirements that all local authorities must meet when developing, publishing and reviewing their Local Offer. All local areas have Local Offers in place, but we recognise that the quality varies. This is another area we are monitoring through our termly surveys, our voluntary and community sector experts and specialist SEND Advisers. We have provided regular advice to local areas about how to improve the quality of Local Offers. We are confident that local authorities are working with their partner bodies and with families and young people to continue to improve their Local Offers to ensure they respond to local needs.

    [1] https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/398815/SEND_Code_of_Practice_January_2015.pdf

    “

  • Justin Madders – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Justin Madders – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Justin Madders on 2016-02-22.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many (a) junior doctors, (b) consultants, (c) nurses and (d) healthcare assistants have been employed to undertake work capability assessments in each year for which figures are available.

    Priti Patel

    Data on Healthcare Professionals’ backgrounds has been recorded for statistical purposes since March 2015. The background of Healthcare Professionals has been recorded as either: Nurse; Physiotherapist; Doctor, or; Occupational Therapist.

    From March 2015 to January 2016, CHDA employed 612 nurses; 66 physiotherapists and 147 doctors on average each month. Occupational therapists have been recruited from July 2015 and the average number employed each month to January 2016 was 10.

  • Lord Berkeley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lord Berkeley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Berkeley on 2016-03-16.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their latest estimate of (1) the number of HS2 trains of each size required for HS2 Phase 1 and HS2 Phase 2, and (2) the total cost (a) of each type of train, and (b) for each phase.

    Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

    The Functional Response annexed to the Development Agreement outlines what HS2 Ltd will deliver to satisfy the Sponsor’s Requirements, including capacity requirements for both phases of the new railway. HS2 Ltd are in the process of completing their Rolling Stock Strategy which will contain greater detail on the fleet sizes expected to be procured.

    As part of the Spending Round announced in November 2015, the rolling stock funding envelope has been integrated with the relevant Phase specific infrastructure funding envelope as shown below.

    Phase One

    27.2

    Phase Two

    28.5

    Programme Total

    55.7

    Note. The above table shows information in £Billion at 2015 prices.

  • Jo Cox – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Jo Cox – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jo Cox on 2016-04-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to support carers assisting people with mental health conditions.

    Alistair Burt

    The Government recognises the invaluable contribution made by unpaid carers including those who care for people with mental health conditions and the importance of supporting them in their caring roles.

    That is why we continue to support implementation of the improved rights for carers enshrined in the Care Act 2014. The Department has provided £104 million of funding to local authorities for these rights in 2015/16, which include an extended right to assessment and, for the first time, a duty on local authorities to meet carers’ eligible needs for support.

    We have also made an additional £400 million available to the National Health Service between 2011 and 2015 to provide carers with breaks from their caring responsibilities to sustain them in their caring role. The equivalent annual allocation of £130 million for carers breaks is now included in the Better Care Fund.

    In May 2014, NHS England published its action plan NHS England – Commitment to carers, it includes a series of commitments around eight priorities, which include raising the profile of carers, including young carers.

    The Department is leading on the development of a new cross-Government National Carers Strategy that will look at what more can be done to support existing and new carers including those who care for people with mental health conditions. To support the development of the strategy we are currently conducting a national call for evidence. We want to engage with a wide range of individuals and organisations with experience of caring, to ensure our evidence reflects the diversity of experience of carers, and those for whom they care. The call for evidence was launched in March and will run until mid-summer 2016.

  • Chi Onwurah – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Chi Onwurah – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chi Onwurah on 2016-05-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what data has been shared between Google DeepMind and the NHS; what plans there are for further data sharing under that partnership; and if he will make a statement.

    George Freeman

    In law, individual organisations providing National Health Service care are the legal data controllers for the information that they hold, and need to take the necessary action to prevent data from being accessed inappropriately. In addition, the proper use of informatics in medical research, diagnostics, treatment and condition management is central to the NHS’s ability to deliver safe and high quality patient care. There are national standards and protocols for monitoring and maintaining data security across the NHS.

  • Lord Steel of Aikwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Steel of Aikwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Steel of Aikwood on 2016-07-18.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will support the resolution from Mauritius at the forthcoming UN General Assembly calling for the matter of the resettlement of Chagos islanders to be referred to the International Court of Justice.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    We are not aware of any plans by Mauritius for a resolution at the next UN General Assembly regarding the resettlement of Chagos islanders to be referred to the International Court of Justice (ICC). On 17 May the Prime Minister of Mauritius expressed to the Mauritian Parliament his intention to seek a referral by the UN General Assembly to the ICC this autumn, in order to obtain an advisory opinion in relation to sovereignty of the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT). We would not support any such resolution as we are in no doubt about British sovereignty over BIOT.

  • Andrew Rosindell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Andrew Rosindell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2016-10-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate her Department has made of the total number of refugees who will attempt to cross the Mediterranean in 2017.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    The Government is closely monitoring global migration developments, including the number of Mediterranean crossings, working in partnership with the EU and in source and transit countries, to address the mass movements of people attempting to cross the Mediterranean. This includes tackling criminal gangs who facilitate journeys and exploit migrants.

    We have not made an estimate of the number of refugees who will attempt to cross the Mediterranean in 2017. Determining refugee status is at the discretion of EU Member States and we do not estimate the number of illegal migrants that will be granted refugee status.