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Category: Speeches

  • Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-01-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what support his Department offers to women who decide to have a baby later in life.

    Ben Gummer

    Women, regardless of their age, should receive personalised maternity care that focuses on the best outcomes for them and their babies.

    Early access to antenatal care, especially for women over 35, helps to ensure they receive the right care. As soon as they know they are pregnant, women are encouraged to contact their maternity service for a full assessment of their health, risk factors and choices so that a personalised approach to their care can be taken.

  • Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-02-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what her Department’s rationale was for allocating £30,000 to provide training or recruitment of teachers with protected characteristics.

    Nick Gibb

    School workforce census data continues to show under-representation of particular groups of individuals within leadership positions (in particular for Black and Minority Ethnic and female leaders).

    The Leadership Equality and Diversity Fund supports teachers from under-represented groups (as measured by the protected characteristics in the Equality Act 2010) to prepare for leadership positions.

  • Andrew Gwynne – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Andrew Gwynne – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2016-03-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many organisations have withdrawn from the Responsibility Deal since May 2015.

    Jane Ellison

    Two organisations have withdrawn from the Responsibility Deal since May 2015.

    Information about the Deal and the partners that have signed up to it can be found at:

    https://responsibilitydeal.dh.gov.uk/

    “

  • Baroness Tonge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Baroness Tonge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Tonge on 2016-04-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made to the government of Israel regarding the pre-dawn raid on the Students Council office and store of Alquds University 5 April.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    We have not raised this specific incident with the Government of Israel.

  • Daniel Kawczynski – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Daniel Kawczynski – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Kawczynski on 2016-05-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate she has made of the proportion of farmers who have received (a) a payment and (b) full payment from the Rural Payments Agency under the Basic Payment Scheme in 2015.

    George Eustice

    The Rural Payments Agency estimates that as of 22 May 2016, 86375 (99%) claimants have received a payment on their 2015 BPS claim. Of these 79,633 have received a claim payment; 6561 bridging payments; and 181 a manual hardship payment. There are a number of claims where processing has been completed successfully but they have not resulted in a payment for reasons such as the claim being under minimum claim size, or the Agency awaiting information on probate cases.

    The Rural Payments Agency will continue to make full payments throughout the remainder of the payment window up to the end of June 2016.

  • Anna Turley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Anna Turley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Anna Turley on 2016-07-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, by what date his Department expects the replacement of Pacer trains on the Tees Valley Line to be completed.

    Andrew Jones

    The replacement of Pacer trains across the Northern network will be completed by December 2019, although the timing of when this will occur on individual lines will be a matter for Northern Rail.

  • Baroness Randerson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Baroness Randerson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Randerson on 2016-09-13.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what work they are undertaking to implement the Airports Commission recommendations for surface transport improvements to Stansted to make the best use of existing capacity at London’s airports, to encourage more people to travel by rail, and to reduce emissions.

    Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

    In its National Infrastructure Plan of December 2013, the government confirmed that it would be taking forward the surface access measures recommended by the Airports Commission to make best use of existing capacity at London airports.

    For Stansted, work to examine potential upgrades to rail infrastructure between London, Stansted and Cambridge has been taken forward by the West Anglia Taskforce, which was established by the government and the Mayor of London to consider this issue and the benefits it might generate.

    The Taskforce published its recommendations and a suggested timetable for action in July.

    Rail services to Stansted will also be enhanced through the new East Anglia franchise. This will bring a number of improvements for passengers travelling to the airport, including new trains with free Wi-Fi from February 2019 and a minimum 12.5% reduction in anytime return fares and anytime single fares on the Stansted Express by early 2017. By early 2018, passengers will be able to purchase tickets via a dedicated Stansted Express website, to be delivered to their mobile devices for validation. There is flexibility within the new franchise for the train operator to introduce services to different parts of London if market demand for this emerges.

  • Sharon Hodgson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Sharon Hodgson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sharon Hodgson on 2015-11-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans her Department has to take steps to promote the STEAM agenda in schools to support the development of skills for careers in creative digital sectors.

    Nick Gibb

    Both the arts and STEM subjects are important in developing the skills people need for the global economy, including the creative digital economy.

    The national curriculum sets the expectation that pupils study the arts subjects in Key Stages 1 to 3 and the arts are one of four "entitlement areas” at Key Stage 4. Provisional figures show that since 2012, the percentage of pupils for all schools with at least one GCSE entry in an arts subject has increased from 44.4% to 48.7% in 2015.[1] We are reforming all GCSEs and A levels, including STEM and arts subjects, to make them robust and rigorous; to match the best education systems in the world; and to keep pace with universities’ and employers’ demands.

    It is important that pupils are given the information and advice to choose a combination of subjects that will open doors for their future. The Careers & Enterprise Company (CEC) is an employer-led, independent organisation strengthening links between schools, colleges, employers and careers and enterprise organisations, including in the digital and technological sectors, to inspire young people and prepare them for the world of work.

    [1] https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/473178/EBacc_and_non-EBacc_subject_entries_and_achievement.pdf

    “

  • Jamie Reed – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Jamie Reed – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jamie Reed on 2015-12-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what support his Department is giving to Cumbria County Council to assist in the assessment of bridges in that county affected by recent flooding.

    Andrew Jones

    The Department for Transport is providing funding of up to £2 million to help both Cumbria County Council and Lancashire County Council assess the local highway networks for which they are responsible for the damage caused by Storm Desmond. In respect to the A591 this will be for Cumbria County Council to determine the options for the repair of this road to ensure it can be opened as quickly as possible.

  • Tulip Siddiq – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Tulip Siddiq – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tulip Siddiq on 2016-01-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 21 September 2015 to Question HC 1906, on Asylum, what recent progress has been made on resuming the Detained Fast Track system.

    James Brokenshire

    In line with my statement on 2 July 2015, Detained Fast Track will only be resumed once the right structures are in place to minimise any risk of unfairness.

    A review of the policy and process has been conducted, informed by the recommendations in Stephen Shaw’s report into the welfare of vulnerable people in detention, which was published on 14 January 2016.

    A statement will be made before we resume the operation of the Detained Fast Track.