Category: Speeches

  • David Amess – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    David Amess – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Amess on 2015-12-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many people with hepatitis C have commenced treatment under the commissioning policy for the treatment of patients with cirrhosis since June 2015.

    Jane Ellison

    At 10 November 2015, NHS England had received 2,667 applications to treat from clinicians. Applications relate to patients who either meet NHS England’s commissioning policy for the treatment of hepatitis C patients with cirrhosis or who meet the NICE Technology Appraisal guidance for sofosbuvir and simeprevir. The number of applications is likely to be slightly higher than the number starting treatment, as some patients may have decided not to proceed. NHS England expects to have an automated system in place by April 2016 to collect data on treatment referrals and treatment history, including clinical outcome data.

  • Chris Green – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Chris Green – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Green on 2016-01-27.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many young people in (a) Bolton borough and (b) Wigan borough have taken part in the National Citizen Service.

    Mr Rob Wilson

    National Citizen Service is the fastest growing youth programme for a century and over 200,000 young people across the UK have already taken part in this life changing opportunity. I am pleased to report that in the local authority areas of Bolton and Wigan, 1,962 and 676 young people have taken part respectively. NCS data is not held on constituency basis.

  • Jamie Reed – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Jamie Reed – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jamie Reed on 2016-02-19.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 12 February 2016 to Question 26203, if he will provide the number of publicly-funded jobs related directly to the Northern Powerhouse located in (a) Cumbria, (b) Northern England, (c) London and (d) other parts of England.

    Greg Hands

    The latest regional public sector employment survey figures are available online at: http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/pse/public-sector-employment/q3-2015/index.html

  • Bob Blackman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Bob Blackman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bob Blackman on 2016-03-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what progress has been made on the rebuilding of the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital.

    Ben Gummer

    A Full Business Case for the redevelopment of the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital will go to the trust board later this month and the approved version will be submitted to NHS Improvement for review. This is now very much a priority project for the Department and NHS Improvement.

  • Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2016-04-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of increasing the eligibility threshold for carer’s allowance to enable carers working 16 hours per week on the new National Living Wage to keep their entitlement to that allowance.

    Justin Tomlinson

    The primary purpose of Carer’s Allowance is to provide a measure of financial support and recognition for people who give up the opportunity of full-time employment in order to provide regular and substantial care for a severely disabled person. It is not, and was never intended to be, a carer’s wage or a payment for the services of caring, nor is it intended to replace lost or forgone earnings in their entirety.

    The earnings limit for Carer’s Allowance is a net figure which is the figure left once income tax, National Insurance contributions and half of any contributions to an occupational or personal pension are deducted from earnings. There are also a number of other deductions which can be made that mean that people can earn significantly more than £110 per week and still be eligible for Carer’s Allowance.

    The Carer’s Allowance earnings limit is not linked to the number of hours worked. Instead, it is set at a level that aims to encourage those who give up full time work in order to undertake caring responsibilities to maintain a link with the labour market through part time work.

    Whilst the Government does not link the earnings limit to any other particular factor (including the National Living Wage), we do keep it under regular review and increase it when it is warranted and affordable, and this will continue to be our approach. Most recently in April 2015 the earnings limit was increased by 8% to £110, far outstripping the general increase in earnings.

    For those carers working around 16 hours a week on a low income and receiving Working Tax Credit, Carer’s Allowance is taken fully into account as income. That means that any loss in Carer’s Allowance is likely to be offset by an increase in Working Tax Credit, and this is one of the changes of circumstances that results in an immediate change to Tax Credits. Going forward the earnings taper in Universal Credit will help ensure that people are always better off in work.

  • Tom Brake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Tom Brake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Brake on 2016-05-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies of the finding of the report from Human Rights Watch entitled, We Feel We Are Cursed: Life under ISIS in Sirte, Libya, published on 18 May 2016.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    I am deeply concerned by this report of the horrors and misery endured by ordinary Libyan civilians living under Daesh. I condemn their barbaric and appalling crimes in Sirte and elsewhere in Libya. It is vital that those responsible are held accountable. Political instability and conflict in Libya, after 40 years of Gaddafi misrule, created the conditions for Daesh to become established. Only an inclusive government will deliver the peace and stability that the Libyan people desire and deny the space for Daesh and other extremist groups to operate.

    Our consistent policy has been to support a lasting and inclusive political agreement and the establishment of a Government of National Accord (GNA) as the best way to tackle the threat in the long term. Following the Libyan Political Agreement, signed in December 2015, we now have a GNA, and the Foreign Secretary, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond) visited Tripoli on 18 April to discuss how we could help the GNA bolster security and tackle Daesh. We have allocated £10 million in this financial year to help restore stability in Libya; rebuild the economy; fight Daesh; and tackle the criminal gangs that fuel illegal migration.

  • Jo Churchill – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Jo Churchill – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jo Churchill on 2016-07-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how much funding he allocated for housing regeneration in (a) Bury St Edmunds constituency, (b) Suffolk and (c) the East of England in the last five years.

    Gavin Barwell

    Government expenditure on housing regeneration over the last five years is listed by programme and by the requested geographical areas below.

    Help to Buy*

    Expenditure

    St Edmundsbury LA

    £8,078,832

    Suffolk

    £12,627,929

    East of England

    £131,886,007

    Affordable Housing Programme*

    Expenditure

    Number of homes

    St Edmundsbury LA

    £6,611,142

    331

    Suffolk

    £42,209,973

    1,924

    East of England

    £136,907,510

    7,652

    Get Britain Building, Local Infrastructure Fund, Builders Finance Fund, Build to Rent

    Expenditure

    Bury St Edmunds Parliamentary Constituency

    nil

    Suffolk

    £4,258,400

    East of England

    £81,464,427

    *This data is not aggregated by constituency, and is provided instead for the St Edmundsbury Borough Council local authority area.

  • Emma Reynolds – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    Emma Reynolds – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emma Reynolds on 2016-10-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment his Department has made of the potential effect of leaving the EU Customs Union on (a) businesses and (b) complex supply chains.

    Margot James

    The Department is currently working closely with the Department for Exiting the EU to understand the impacts that withdrawal from the EU will have on businesses, consumers and other economic actors. As my Rt Hon Friend the Prime Minister has said we will work hard to get the best deal for Britain.

  • Tom Pursglove – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Tom Pursglove – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Pursglove on 2015-10-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many civil servants in his Department are members of trades unions; how much working hours facility time is claimed by each such civil servant; and what the cost of that facility time is to his Department.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    The Department does not actively collect information around trade union memberships.

    The Cabinet Office publishes data relating to Civil Service facility time on a quarterly basis. The latest data is Quarter 4, 2014 at and is available athttps://www.gov.uk/government/publications/trade-union-facility-time."

  • Kirsty Blackman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Scotland Office

    Kirsty Blackman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Scotland Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kirsty Blackman on 2015-11-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, pursuant to the Answer of 4 November 2015 to Question 14206, when he first saw draft copies of his Department’s accounts for (a) July to September 2014, (b) October to December 2014 and (c) January to March 2015.

    David Mundell

    This Government publishes an unprecedented range of data. This represents a significant task for Departments. We remain committed to publishing data in a timely fashion, and further transparency data will be published in due course.