The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2016-06-06.
To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, how much was spent on non-payroll staff in his Department in 2015-16.
Guto Bebb
The Wales Office spent £56,561 on non-payroll staff in 2015-16.
In 2015-16, the Department used non-payroll (agency) staff to cover for staff on maternity leave and for vacant posts.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julian Sturdy on 2016-09-02.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to ensure assessment centres for work capability assessment and personal independence payment consultations are fully accessible to people using different kinds of mobility assistance devices.
Penny Mordaunt
All assessment centres meet accessibility standards under the Equality Act 2010.
Before attending an assessment, claimants are given the opportunity to alert the assessment provider to any additional requirements they may have and the providers will endeavour to meet any such reasonable requests.
If a claimant is unable to travel to, or access an assessment centre as a result of their health condition or impairment, a home visit may be offered.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2016-10-17.
To ask the Attorney General, how many complaints to the Crown Prosecution Service proceeded to formal Stage 2 during each of the last three years.
Robert Buckland
The following table shows the number of complaints escalated to Stage 2 in the past three years:
|
Year |
Stage 2 Complaints |
|
2013/14 |
245 |
|
2014/15 |
264 |
|
2015/16 |
254 |
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rosie Cooper on 2015-11-04.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, why HM Courts and Tribunals Service officials based in Lancashire were not informed that courts in that county were to be considered for closure before the consultation on the proposal for a single local justice area for Lancashire.
Mr Shailesh Vara
The consultation on the merger of the Local Justice Areas in Lancashire was launched on behalf of the Cumbria and Lancashire Judicial Business Group. This consultation closed on the 10 July 2015 and is separate to the consultation on the court and tribunal estate which I announced on 16 July 2015.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2015-11-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much of the £600 million additional funding for mental health announced in the Spending Review and Autumn Statement 2015 will be allocated in (a) the 2015-16 financial year and (b) each financial year.
Alistair Burt
The additional £600 million for mental health over the next five years announced in the Spending Review and Autumn Statement is additional to current spending. The levels of funding in individual years and the specific mental health service improvements it will fund will be determined in the new year, once the Mental Health Taskforce has reported.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Phil Boswell on 2016-01-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what discussions the Government has had with the devolved administrations on increasing social mobility since May 2015.
Nick Boles
The Government is committed to increasing social mobility throughout the UK. We hold regular discussions with the devolved administrations on a wide variety of topics many of which affect social mobility.
It should also be noted however, that many key levers for improving social mobility such as apprenticeships, traineeships and higher education have some degree of devolution across the UK and so policy decisions on these issues should be referred to the relevant devolved administration.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Campbell of Pittenweem on 2016-01-28.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what recent discussions they have had with the Scottish Government about the future electrification of the East Coast Main Line between Edinburgh and Aberdeen.
Lord Dunlop
UK and Scottish Government officials have regular discussions regarding transport policy, and the rail industry is undertaking studies to identify the best value cases for further route electrification in Scotland, England and Wales. The introduction of bi-mode intercity express trains on East Coast Scottish services from 2018 is expected to help the business case for electrification between Edinburgh and Aberdeen.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Liddell-Grainger on 2016-02-23.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what her Department’s policy is on the future development of tidal lagoons in the UK.
Andrea Leadsom
The Government recognises the potential that exists in harnessing tidal energy around the coastline of the UK.
That is why we are commissioning an independent strategic review to assess the case for tidal lagoons and consider whether they could represent value for money for the consumer.
Government will carefully consider the recommendations from the review before making decisions on future development of tidal lagoons.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nick Herbert on 2016-03-22.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how much (a) European Regional Development and (b) European Structural funding (i) Scotland, (ii) Wales, (iii) Northern Ireland and (iv) each region of England will receive in each year between 2014 and 2020.
Anna Soubry
The amount allocated by year to each operational programme for the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and European Social Fund (ESF) in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland for the 2014-2020 period is set out in table 1.6 of the United Kingdom’s Partnership Agreement with the European Commission which can be found on GOV.UK at ‘European Structural and Investment Funds: UK Partnership Agreement’ and is attached.
Within England, notional allocations for ERDF and ESF were made on the basis of Local Enterprise Partnership areas. The total allocations to each Local Enterprise Partnership area for the 2014-2020 period can be found on the GOV.UK website at ‘EU Structural Funds: UK allocations 2014 to 2020’ and is attached.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Golding on 2016-04-27.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what progress is being made towards appointing the proposed Small Business Commissioner to help small businesses resolve payment disputes with large businesses.
Baroness Neville-Rolfe
Government has taken powers to establish the Small Business Commissioner via the Enterprise Bill, which is currently waiting for Royal Assent. We have started the implementation process and will begin the recruitment of the Commissioner later this year with the expectation of appointing him or her in 2017. We are completing the rest of the implementation in parallel which includes: consulting on, preparing and laying secondary legislation; setting up the Commissioner’s office; and creating a web presence.