Category: Speeches

  • Tom Greatrex – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Tom Greatrex – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Greatrex on 2014-04-03.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what estimate he has made of the number of combined heat and power plans delivering more than 10 per cent of input energy as heat output.

    Gregory Barker

    In 2013, the Government reviewed the minimum performance standards for renewable Combined Heat and Power (CHP) set in our Quality Assurance programme. As set out in the Government response, approximately 70% of solid and liquid renewable fuel CHP schemes already certified to Combined Heat and Power Quality and Assurance (CHPQA) deliver more than 10% of their input energy as useful heat output.

    No similar assessment has been made for fossil fuel CHPs.

  • Baroness Taylor of Bolton – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Baroness Taylor of Bolton – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Taylor of Bolton on 2014-06-17.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many category A and category B prisoners are currently being held in category C or category D prisons.

    Lord Faulks

    All prisoners are assessed as to their risk of escape or abscond, and their risk of harm to the public should they escape or abscond, which ensures allocation of prisoners to a prison providing appropriate levels of security. Only those prisoners categorised as C would be held in a category C prison and only those considered suitable would be held in category D open conditions.

    Those same procedures ensure that category A and B prisoners are not allocated to category C or D prisons and that all prisoners are held in an establishment of at least the security category to which they have been assigned.

    Prisoners re-categorised to a higher category would be held in the prison’s Segregation Unit until such time as they could be moved to more appropriate accommodation.

  • Douglas Alexander – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Douglas Alexander – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Alexander on 2014-04-03.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether the Cabinet Secretary was tasked with assessing whether there were gounds for a further inquiry into the events surrounding the storming of the Golden Temple in Amritsar.

    Mr William Hague

    The Cabinet Secretary Sir Jeremy Heywood’s investigation looked at why the UK provided advice to the Indian authorities, the nature of the UK assistance and the impact of that assistance in Operation Blue Star at the Golden Temple. As I told Parliament in my statement to the House on 4 February 2014, Official Report, columns 139-142, the report and the documents we published clearly show the limited nature of UK advice on Operation Blue Star, and that there were no grounds for a further inquiry.

  • Lord Hunt of Kings Heath – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Lord Hunt of Kings Heath – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 2014-06-16.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the detailed breakdown of the £7,250,000 so far incurred by the special administration process in relation to Mid Staffordshire NHS Trust.

    Earl Howe

    The £7,250,000 incurred by the special administration process at Mid Staffordshire NHS Trust relates to the period when the trust special administrators (TSAs) were appointed in April 2013, to the point at which the Secretary of State announced his decision to accept the TSAs’ proposals in February 2014.

    We are informed by Monitor that the total figure of £7,250,000 can be broadly broken down as follows:

    – Cost of the TSAs and supporting team to run the Trust – £2,000,000;

    – Cost of solution development – £3,600,000; and

    – Cost of stakeholder engagement and consultation – £1,650,000.

    Monitor has estimated the total cost of the special administration process will be £12 to £15 million. This was first announced as part of its decision to accept the TSAs’ final proposals on 16 January 2104 and re-stated in an announcement on 13 March 2014. This includes the £7,250,000 and £250,000 expenses incurred up to the point of the Secretary of State’s decision.

    The remainder of the estimated total cost consists of costs incurred in the period leading up to the dissolution of the trust. These are the cost of continuing to employ a team to run the trust, and the cost of implementing the recommendations set out in the TSAs’ Final Report.

    We are also informed by Monitor that an original budget for the remaining costs was agreed at approximately £7,000,000.

    That total figure of £7,000,000 can be broadly broken down as follows:

    – Cost of the TSAs and supporting team to run the Trust – £1,500,000;

    – Cost of delivering the transaction – £2,100,000; and

    – Cost of splitting the Trust – £3,400,000.

    The team running the trust will be required to remain in place up to the point at which the trust is dissolved.

  • Andrew Rosindell – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Andrew Rosindell – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2014-04-03.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what her future plans are for support to the Caribbean.

    Mr Alan Duncan

    The UK is strongly committed to supporting development in the Caribbean. Helping the region tackle the risks posed by natural disasters is one of our top priorities, alongside supporting sustainable economic growth and addressing governance and security.

    The UK Government has increased its bilateral support to the Independent Caribbean by 50 percent (around £75 million in 2011 to 2015). We also make significant contributions though multilateral partners, for example providing 15 per cent of the EU’s €1.4 billion support and 19 per cent of the Caribbean Development Bank’s Special Development Fund. Our funding runs until March 2015. We are currently reviewing our approach in the Independent Caribbean to ensure that the UK’s support responds to the countries’ needs and delivers the greatest positive impact in the next phase of support from 2015/16 onwards.

    In addition, the UK provides assistance to the Overseas Territory of Monserrat by financing public services and investing in infrastructure. We are making these investments to facilitate economic growth and reduce long-term dependence on aid.

  • The Countess of Mar – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The Countess of Mar – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Countess of Mar on 2014-06-16.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether patients have the legal right to be referred to any hospital provider of their choice, no matter where the consultant is located in England, subject to the provisos listed on the NHS website under Choosing your Hospital; whether patients diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalopathy in Sussex and elsewhere have been denied the opportunity to do so by local clinical commissioning groups when their general practitioners request a referral; and, if so, why.

    Earl Howe

    The 2014-15 Choice Framework and the NHS Constitution, both available on .gov.uk, set out when patients have legal rights to choice.

    The NHS Constitution states that patients have the rightto make choices about the services commissioned by National Health Service bodies and to information to support these choices.

    The 2014-15 NHS Choice Framework establishes that if a patient needs to see a consultant or specialist as an outpatient for a physical or mental health condition, they can choose the organisation that provides their NHS care and treatment anywhere in England for their first outpatient appointment. They can also choose which consultant-led team or which mental health team led by a named health care professional will be in charge of their NHS care and treatment for their first outpatient appointment.

    The organisation can be any clinically appropriate health service provider with whom any clinical commissioning group or NHS England has a commissioning contract for the service required as a result of the referral, but the team must be clinically appropriate and led by a named consultant or health professional who is employed or engaged by that health service provider.

    There are also times that patients are not able to make a choice, and these are outlined in the Choice Framework and the Handbook to the NHS Constitution. For example, patients can only choose a hospital or clinic that offers the right treatment and care for their condition. Furthermore, if patients need urgent or emergency treatment, they cannot choose who they see.

    If a patient, who is not covered by the exemptions, has not been offered choice, or denied the opportunity to exercise choice by a clinical commissioning group, the 2014-15 Choice Framework sets out a clear complaints procedure.

  • Kate Green – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Kate Green – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kate Green on 2014-04-03.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the average waiting time for applicants for the personal independence payment (PIP) in each region of the UK is between submission of the PIP2 form and the date of receipt of the first payment after an assessment from each assessment provider.

    Mike Penning

    I refer the hon Member to the answer I gave to the hon Member for Liverpool, West Derby, official report, 5 March, column 850W.

    In order to manage the gap between Personal Independence Payment go-live and the first release of Official Statistics in Spring 2014, we are assessing whether we can release some further information. If the quality assurance of this information shows that it is sufficiently robust and reliable then we will publish it via ad-hoc statistical releases.

  • Richard Fuller – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Richard Fuller – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Fuller on 2014-06-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will review the level of the debt threshold for a creditor bankruptcy petition.

    Jenny Willott

    We plan to review the debt threshold for a creditor bankruptcy petition this year.

  • Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth on 2014-04-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to combat domestic violence.

    Lord Taylor of Holbeach

    The Government is determined to do all it can to tackle domestic violence and abuse and bring perpetrators to justice. Our approach is set out in our strategy, ‘Call to End Violence Against Women and Girls’ published in November 2010, together with a supporting Action Plan. A revised version of the Action Plan was published in March 2014 and contains a hundred and fifty actions across Government departments.

    We are committed to ensuring that the police response to victims of domestic violence is as good as it can be. That is why last September, the Home Secretary commissioned Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) to conduct an all force review of domestic violence. HMIC published its findings on 27 March 2014 and highlighted serious failings in the police response. In response to the review, the Home Secretary is leading a series of measures to improve the police response. This includes establishing a new national oversight group, which she will chair. The Home Secretary has also written to chief constables making it clear that the police must make significant improvements and that every police force must have an action plan in place by September 2014 to address HMIC’s findings.

    The Coalition Government is also committed to ensuring that the police and other agencies have the tools necessary to tackle domestic violence, to bring offenders to justice and to ensure victims have the support they need to rebuild their lives. That is why on 8 March 2014, we commenced the national rollout of Domestic Violence Protection Orders and the Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme across England and Wales and why we are currently providing funding for 144 Independent Domestic Violence Advisers and 54 Multi-Agency Risk Assessment Conference co-ordinators.

  • Catherine McKinnell – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Catherine McKinnell – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine McKinnell on 2014-06-16.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many (a) HM Revenue and Customs and (b) National Savings and Investments staff will be employed administering tax-free childcare in (i) 2015-16, (ii) 2016-17, (iii) 2017-18 and (iv) 2018-19.

    Nicky Morgan

    On the 23 May the Government published a further consultation on the delivery of childcare accounts within Tax-Free Childcare. The consultation will be open until 27 June and the Government will consider the responses alongside those to the first consultation before it makes its decision on the provision of childcare accounts.