The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Morris on 2015-11-10.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what steps she is taking to prevent shale gas drilling at the surface in areas of the greatest environmental value.
Andrea Leadsom
I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave the hon. Member for Southampton Test on 11 November 2015 to Written Parliamentary Question 15221:
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Kawczynski on 2015-12-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when his Department plans to launch its consultation on amending regulations on crematoriums.
Caroline Dinenage
In my written statement of 8 July 2015 (http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-statement/Commons/2015-07-08/HCWS88/http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-statement/Commons/2015-07-08/HCWS88/) I announced my intention to launch a consultation on changes to cremation legislation by the end of the year. I can confirm that this remains my intention; the consultation will be launched shortly.
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mrs Anne Main on 2016-01-15.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the EU ban on neonicotinoids has been renewed; and if she will make a statement.
George Eustice
EU restrictions prohibiting the use of three neonicotinoids on some crops have been in place since 1 December 2013. Other uses of these neonicotinoids remain approved. The restrictions have been implemented in full in the UK and will remain in place unless and until the European Commission decides to change them. The Commission has mandated the European Food Safety Authority to carry out a scientific review of the effects of neonicotinoids on pollinators. The UK will participate in that process.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nick Clegg on 2016-02-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what proportion of (a) primary and (b) secondary school budgets have been spent on tackling mental health problems in each of the last five years; and if the Government will take steps to protect such spending in future.
Mr Sam Gyimah
The most recent prevalence survey estimated that 1 in 10 children have a diagnosable mental health disorder, and more have lower level problems. This is why the Government has made good mental health, character and resilience a high priority. The Department of Health is commissioning a new prevalence survey to update this estimate for a wider range of ages, from 2-19. It is due to report in 2018. We do not routinely collect data that allows us to measure the amount schools spend specifically on addressing mental health issues.
We are committed to better understanding what schools are doing on this matter, which is why my department is commissioning an extensive survey. This survey will provide a robust national picture of mental health support provided by schools and colleges.
It is for head teachers to determine how they spend their individual school budgets to best meet the needs of all their pupils. In the Spending Review we announced that the core schools budget will be protected in real terms through this Parliament. We are also protecting the Pupil Premium, which many schools use to fund mental health provision, at current pupil rates. Within these protections, we announced in December 2015 that an additional £92.5 million will specifically be provided in the high needs element of the Dedicated School Grant (DSG) next year.
We have also made £1.4 billion available over the next five years to transform local children and young people’s mental health services to deliver more integrated and accessible services. Clinical Commissioning Groups have been required to work with others services locally, including schools, to produce plans that set out how they will transform children and young people’s mental health services locally to make them more accessible and increase the focus on prevention.
We are also contributing to a £3 million joint pilot with NHS England for training single points of contact in schools and specialist mental health services, to ensure that children and young people have timely access to specialist support where needed. There are 22 pilot areas covering more than 200 schools across 27 CCGs.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-03-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions he has had with the Civil Aviation Authority on its consultation on air display and low-flying permission charges.
Mr Robert Goodwill
I have had no discussions with the Civil Aviation Authority on its consultation on air display and low-flying permission charges.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Matthew Pennycook on 2016-04-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether he plans to make oral contraceptive pills available without a doctor’s prescription.
George Freeman
The Government has no plans to make oral contraceptive pills available without a prescription.
Any applications to reclassify specific products from prescription only to non-prescription supply would be considered in accordance with its usual procedures by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Lammy on 2016-05-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 27 April 2016 to Question 34579, what plans his Department has to publish information on the performance of the Defence Diversity and Inclusion Programme in increasing the diversity of the armed forces since that programme was established.
Penny Mordaunt
The Defence Diversity and Inclusion Programme (DDIP) is driving change in the core areas of leadership and culture; recruitment; retention and progression; and outreach by ensuring diversity and inclusion considerations as part of normal business across the whole Department. This involves staff and funding across all areas of the Department, to define how this should be done and ensure delivery as part of people’s existing roles wherever they work.
The Ministry of Defence is dedicated to achieving a more diverse workforce and is undertaking various activities to increase the number of Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) recruits into the Armed Forces to 10% by 2020 and has allocated resources for this purpose.
The cost of funding the DDIP is disaggregated amongst budgets across the Department; therefore a response could only be provided at disproportionate cost. As part of the 2015 Strategic Defence and Security Review we dedicated additional resources to recruitment activity in order to help generate a more diverse workforce and reach all parts of the UK’s Armed Forces community.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Walmsley on 2016-06-29.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether x-ray equipment bought for a hospital trust by local fundraising efforts belongs to that trust or to NHS Property Services.
Lord Prior of Brampton
On the abolition of primary care trusts in April 2013, former primary care trust land, buildings and related contracts transferred either to NHS Property Services or to National Health Service trusts, depending on the details of the individual transfer schemes. Clinical equipment was not generally transferred to NHS Property Services.
Equipment donated after April 2013 directly to individual NHS hospital trusts and x-ray equipment bought for a trust by local fundraising efforts would belong to the NHS trust unless it has been specifically transferred to NHS Property Services under the terms of a particular transfer scheme.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Smith of Basildon on 2016-09-09.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many applications have been made for legal aid that relate to female genital mutilation.
Baroness Mobarik
Up to 31 March 2016, 50 applications had been made for legal aid that can be identified as relating to female genital mutilation. This includes all applications for civil legal representation in proceedings concerning Female Genital Mutilation Protection Orders. There may be other legally-aided cases involving issues related to female genital mutilation that cannot be identified from the information recorded by the Legal Aid Agency.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Fitzpatrick on 2015-11-10.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans she has to take further steps to implement those aspects of the Floods and Water Management Act 2010 applicable to smaller reservoirs.
Rory Stewart
In February 2015, Defra announced it had decided not to make further changes to the inspection regime for smaller reservoirs because, at that time, the evidence base would not support such changes.
However, we are exploring potential further research which could provide additional evidence on the level of risk posed by smaller reservoirs.