Category: Speeches

Daniel Zeichner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2016-02-02.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Highways England document, Cycling Strategy: our approach, published in January 2016, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that the needs of cyclists are also considered when improvements are made to the local road network.

Andrew Jones

Decisions on how best to provide for cyclists on local roads are matters for the local authority – not only do they have a duty to balance the needs of all road users when considering how to design and manage their road networks, but they also have a detailed understanding of their roads.

Our guidance in Local Transport Note 2/08: Cycle Infrastructure Design is comprehensive and allows councils to design good, safe schemes within current legislation. It already includes most of the measures highlighted as good practice by, for example, the All Party Parliamentary Cycling Group, and British Cycling.

Government promotes best practice through the Cycle Proofing Working Group; an advisory body to the Government on ‘cycle proofing’. They share knowledge of cycle proofing with those designing and implementing cycle infrastructure on UK roads through their website:-

https://www.gov.uk/government/groups/cycle-proofing-working-group

01/01/2023
Lord Scriven – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Scriven on 2016-02-26.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the current performance and practices of South Yorkshire Police regarding investigations of sexual exploitation of children.

Lord Bates

As I set out in response to the Noble Lord on 20 August 2015, Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary published a National Child Protection Inspection post-inspection review of South Yorkshire Police in July 2015. The report found that South Yorkshire Police had made child protection a priority and was taking steps to improve its response to child sexual exploitation although areas of poor practice still remained. South Yorkshire Police must continue to work towards implementing Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary’s recommendations. Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary is continuing to monitor South Yorkshire Police’s approach to child protection.

The South Yorkshire Police and Crime Commissioner has commissioned an independent review into the force’s handling of reports of child sexual exploitation. The review, led by Professor John Drew, launched on 30 September and the report will be published this year.

01/01/2023
Alex Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2016-03-21.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what work has been carried out under the National Flood Resilience Review on the costs of protecting the UK from future flooding and extreme weather events.

Rory Stewart

The National Flood Resilience Review, led by the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, is making good progress. It is gathering evidence and using extreme flood modelling to stress-test the resilience of Core Cities and key infrastructure. This work will inform future options on the investment needed to secure the resilence of the country against such flood events. Our call for evidence closed on 4 March and we are now reviewing the 66 responses received.

01/01/2023

Debbie Abrahams – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Debbie Abrahams on 2016-04-26.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what proportion of people with acute strokes were treated with thrombolysis in the last 12 months.

Jane Ellison

Information on the proportion of stroke patients treated with thrombolysis in 2015 is set out in the table below. This information covers England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Thrombolysis	January-March 2015	April-June 2015	July-September 2015	October-December 2015
Percentage of all stroke patients given thrombolysis (all stroke types)	11.1%	11.4%	10.9%	11.0%
Percentage of eligible patients given thrombolysis	81.8%	83.3%	85.6%	85.6%

This information is taken from the Stroke Sentinel Audit Programme’s clinical audit. More details can be found at:

https://www.strokeaudit.org/

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01/01/2023

Jeremy Lefroy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jeremy Lefroy on 2016-06-08.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many fines of what total monetary value were written off by HM Courts Service in Staffordshire in each year since 2011-12.

Caroline Dinenage

Due to the limited management information that can be extracted from the Libra system it is not possible to identify how many financial impositions have been cancelled.

The table below shows the total value of financial impositions cancelled in Staffordshire in each of the year since 2010-11.

Year	Total Value Legally Cancelled regardless of Imposition date	Total Value Admin Cancelled regardless of Imposition date
2010-11	£1,237,941	£722,603
2011-12	£1,181,416	£692,066
2012-13	£1,256,081	£924,630
2013-14	£1,406,722	£835,113
2014-15	£1,320,535	£656,536
Apr 2015 – Dec 2015	£1,154,484	£410,937

The data for January 2016 to March 2016 is not included as the data has not been published yet.

A legal cancellation can be applied when an imposition has been cancelled in court by a Judge or Magistrate, for example if an appeal is successful or if some of the original amount imposed is remitted after the offenders financial circumstances have been reconsidered.

Financial impositions are only administratively cancelled after all attempts to collect the amount outstanding have been made, and in accordance with a strict cancellation criteria. Any imposition which has been administratively cancelled still retains legal status and can be written back at any time if more information is found which will enable collection, for example if a new address for the offender is discovered. We periodically review administratively cancelled accounts.

01/01/2023

Ian Austin – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Austin on 2016-09-02.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what discussions she has had with the Skills Funding Agency on that body’s proposal to reduce 16-18 apprenticeship funding.

Robert Halfon

The department and the Skills Funding Agency have worked closely together on the development of the apprenticeships funding policy and plans for implementation, including on the digital apprenticeship service.

We have engaged thousands of employers and training providers throughout the development of the apprenticeship funding reforms and continue to do so. This engagement helped to shape the funding policy proposals for England from May 2017, published on 12 August.

A survey seeking detailed views from employers and providers closed on 5 September, and the feedback will inform the final policy, which we aim to publish in October.

01/01/2023
Grant Shapps – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much his Department has spent from the public purse on modifications and adapted housing in each year from 2000 to date; and whether data on such spend is available before 2000 and to what date.

Mark Lancaster

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 15 September 2016 to Questions 45414 and 45461.

01/01/2023
Jim Cunningham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2015-11-03.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what estimate his Department has made of the cost of military operations across Iraq in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement.

Penny Mordaunt

The net additional cost of Operation SHADER, the name for countering ISIL activity in Iraq and Syria, from the start of operations in August 2014 to the end of the financial year in March 2015 was around £80 million (£35 million of which was allocated for the replenishment cost of munitions to be purchased in 2015-16). For the current financial year, running from April 2015 to March 2016, at Main Estimates the MOD has initially requested a further £45 million.

01/01/2023
Jack Dromey – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jack Dromey on 2015-12-01.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate she has been made of potential changes in local council tax required to maintain overall police spending in real terms.

Mike Penning

The Home Office worked closely with policing partners and other Government Departments as part of Spending Review preparations to ensure flexibility on council tax is a key part of the Spending Review settlement for the police.

The Spending Review makes provision for overall police spending to be protected in real terms, when council tax income is taken into account. The ten Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) in England with the lowest precept levels in each year will be able to raise their police precept level by up to £5 per year over the Spending Review period, compared to the usual two per cent. These provisions are an integral part of the overall Spending Review settlement for the police.

It is right that PCCs, in consultation with local taxpayers, should decide the level of police precept in their area each year.

01/01/2023
Andy Slaughter – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2016-01-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how much his Department has paid to (a) Rentokil and (b) other pest control companies in the last 12 months.

Mike Penning

In the last 12 months for which data is available (December 2014 – November 2015), £91,172.45 was paid directly to Rentokil Initial Plc. Rentokill provide a range of services to the department in addition to pest control. £66,961.94 of the total was paid to Rentokill Initial Pest Control, and in the same period £525.88 was also paid to Killgerm Group Ltd for pest control services, a total of £67,487.82.

This has reduced from £1,503,530.40 spent with Rentokil Initial Plc in 2010, of which £109.923.50 was with Rentokil Initial Pest Control. An additional £3,529.44 was paid to pest control companies in that year, making a total of £113,452.94.

01/01/2023