The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sharon Hodgson on 2014-06-10.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of changes in average waiting times for GP appointments in Sunderland since May 2010.
Jane Ellison
No such estimate has been made.
The attached table contains results from NHS England’s 2013 GP Patients Survey. The survey collected data from January to March and July to September 2013.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chuka Umunna on 2014-04-03.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what the total value is of all bids to each round of the Regional Growth Fund; how much has been committed to winning bidders in each Regional Growth Fund bidding round; and how much such funding has been drawn down in each region to date.
Michael Fallon
Regional breakdown of RGF allocations for each bidding round (Rounds 1-4) including the amount drawn down and remaining to be drawn down are provided in the attached tables. This data is as at 2 April. The RGF not drawn down for Rounds 1 to 4 totals £1,238 million. Of this, currently, £1,152 million is budgeted to be drawn down in 2014/15 and later years. Payments schedules are agreed with companies and payments are made when they need them.
Round 1
|
Region |
RGF Allocation (£m) |
RGF Drawdown (£m) |
RGF not drawn down (£m) |
|
North West |
21 |
19 |
2 |
|
Yorkshire & Humber |
47 |
39 |
8 |
|
North East |
34 |
34 |
0 |
|
West Midlands |
89 |
22 |
67 |
|
East Midlands |
2 |
2 |
0 |
|
East of England |
16 |
10 |
6 |
|
South East & London |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
South West |
4 |
4 |
0 |
|
National |
175 |
175 |
0 |
|
TOTAL |
388 |
305 |
83 |
Round 2
|
Region |
RGF Allocation (£m) |
RGF Drawdown (£m) |
RGF not drawn down (£m) |
|
North West |
189 |
123 |
66 |
|
Yorkshire & Humber |
68 |
45 |
23 |
|
North East |
64 |
56 |
8 |
|
West Midlands |
91 |
87 |
4 |
|
East Midlands |
80 |
49 |
31 |
|
East of England |
35 |
20 |
15 |
|
South East & London |
60 |
45 |
15 |
|
South West |
71 |
69 |
2 |
|
National |
90 |
80 |
10 |
|
TOTAL |
748 |
574 |
174 |
Round 3
|
Region |
RGF Allocation (£m) |
RGF Drawdown (£m) |
RGF not drawn down (£m) |
|
North West |
113 |
43 |
70 |
|
Yorkshire & Humber |
63 |
28 |
35 |
|
North East |
113 |
44 |
69 |
|
West Midlands |
158 |
24 |
134 |
|
East Midlands |
57 |
14 |
43 |
|
East of England |
25 |
8 |
17 |
|
South East & London |
48 |
18 |
30 |
|
South West |
82 |
8 |
74 |
|
National |
177 |
75 |
102 |
|
TOTAL |
836 |
262 |
574 |
Round 4
|
Region |
RGF Allocation (£m) |
RGF Drawdown (£m) |
RGF not drawn down (£m) |
|
North West |
96 |
5 |
91 |
|
Yorkshire & Humber |
30 |
2 |
28 |
|
North East |
33 |
1 |
32 |
|
West Midlands |
65 |
1 |
64 |
|
East Midlands |
41 |
1 |
40 |
|
East of England |
15 |
3 |
12 |
|
South East & London |
25 |
2 |
23 |
|
South West |
14 |
0 |
14 |
|
National |
115 |
12 |
103 |
|
TOTAL |
434 |
27 |
407 |
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sharon Hodgson on 2014-06-10.
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what proportion of staff within her Department who have been subject to formal disciplinary proceedings in each of the last five financial years classed themselves as white British.
Mrs Theresa Villiers
Because of the devolution of policing and justice functions on 12 April 2010, and subsequent reconfiguration of the Northern Ireland Office, my Department does not hold figures for the periods prior to 2010. Attempting to obtain this information would incur disproportionate cost.
Since April 2010, seven members of staff have been subject to formal disciplinary proceedings. Given the small numbers involved, it would not be appropriate to provide any further breakdown as to do so would risk the identification of the individuals concerned.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Winnick on 2014-04-03.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will put arrangements in place to enable telephone callers to the Tax Credit Office in Preston to raise queries with an official rather than through the automatic telephone system.
Mr David Gauke
The introduction of HMRC’s Intelligent Telephony Automation (ITA) system has enabled HMRC to significantly reduce call handling and call waiting times and increase satisfaction.
The speech recognition technology system reacts to what the caller says instead of selecting an option by pushing a button on their phone. ITA allows customers to say what they want to discuss when they telephone HMRC. For the majority of customers, this means their queries are answered by tailored informational messages, without the need to speak to an adviser. If a customer still wants to speak to someone, ITA ensures the adviser is already aware of the customer’s reason for calling, offering a more effective customer service.
This enables HMRC to offer a more efficient and tailored customer service and where necessary, give the customer extra support.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Yasmin Qureshi on 2014-06-17.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many child victims and witnesses involved in sexual abuse cases have been given access to and use of a Registered Intermediary in each of the last five years.
Damian Green
As at 19 June 2014, 29 Registered Intermediaries (RIs) were available for use by child victims and witnesses in the Greater Manchester police force area that covers Bolton, 25 RIs for Lancashire, 81 RIs for England and 26 RIs for Wales. Support for vulnerable witnesses is a devolved matter in Scotland.
We recruited over 25 RIs this year, to increase the numbers of Active Registered Intermediaries to be used across the 43 police forces to help vulnerable witnesses.
Registered Intermediaries are available for work across multiple police force areas and the numbers quoted above do not reveal the total number of active RIs.
The number of child victims and witnesses involved in sexual abuse cases that have benefitted from the use of an RI in the last four years since the Witness Intermediary Scheme has been operational are provided in the table below. We do not hold data on cases before this time.
|
Age |
Age |
Age |
Yearly |
|
|
2010 |
131 |
152 |
351 |
|
|
2011 |
62 |
107 |
171 |
340 |
|
2012 |
87 |
173 |
165 |
425 |
|
2013 |
168 |
257 |
261 |
686 |
|
TOTAL |
385 |
668 |
749 |
1802 |
The Ministry of Justice continues to monitor the number of Registered Intermediaries and is considering future recruitment plans. We are working with the CPS and police so that RIs are used to help more vulnerable witnesses to give their best evidence.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2014-04-03.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made on the effect of changes in the size of the regular Army on the UK’s ability to fulfil NATO obligations.
Mr Mark Francois
We remain fully confident the UK is able to fulfil its obligations to NATO as we implement our Future Force 2020 plans. As explained to NATO Allies during recent NATO defence planning discussions, the UK has a realistic and achievable plan to meet our target of a sensible whole force balance and the UK already has an enviable reputation in NATO for addressing the defence planning targets the Alliance gives us.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth on 2014-06-17.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what outcomes they anticipate from the visit of Premier Li Keqiang of China.
Baroness Warsi
Premier Li Keqiang’s visit to the UK for the UK-China Summit has brought our two countries closer together in a partnership for growth, reform and innovation. During the visit, £14 billion of trade and investment deals were signed between UK and Chinese firms. London’s position as the leading offshore Renminbi (RMB) trading hub was strengthened by the appointment of China Construction Bank as an RMB clearing bank in London. Premier Li’s visit has also deepened our cooperation on innovation, as well as on key global issues including through a landmark Joint Statement on Climate Change and through positive discussions with the Prime Minister, my right hon. Friend the Member for Witney (Mr Cameron), on key foreign policy issues such as Iraq and Ukraine.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Gardiner on 2014-04-03.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Government’s response to the Government’s Environmental Audit Committee’s Report HC 1195 published on 26 March 2014, what the forecasted costs and savings are under each cost heading for planning authorities of implementing the biodiversity offsetting proposals over a five year period.
Dan Rogerson
The consultation paper “Biodiversity Offsetting in England”, published on 5 September 2013, set out a number of options for taking forward offsetting in England. The accompanying Impact Assessment (Defra 1126) set out the available financial information. However, the costs and benefits to each sector would vary according to the system of offsetting which was adopted. In keeping with the Environmental Audit Committee’s recommendations, the Government will not take any policy decisions on offsetting until the assessment of the six pilots is available.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tobias Ellwood on 2014-06-17.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent estimate he has made of the level of youth unemployment in (a) the UK and (b) Bournemouth East constituency; and if he will make a statement.
Esther McVey
Excluding full-time students, nationally there were 565,000 unemployed under-25s in February-April 2014, a fall of nearly 100,000 since the 2010 election. Latest figures show 5,700 unemployed under-25s in Bournemouth East in January-December 2013, a fall of 900 compared to the same period in 2010.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Margaret Curran on 2014-04-03.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what support the First Minister of Scotland has received from (a) the British embassy in Washington and (b) consular offices in the US ahead of his upcoming visit to that country.
Mr David Lidington
The British Embassy in Washington, and the New York Consulate, have provided support for the visit this week of the First Minister of Scotland, Alex Salmond, to the US. The Consul General in New York hosted a lunch at his residence on 7 April, in association with Scottish Development International (SDI), for the First Minister and 17 Scottish companies from the First Minister’s accompanying trade mission, to which key business figures were invited. The British Embassy in Washington worked with the New York Consulate to organise port courtesies for the First Minister, upon arrival in New York ,to allow the Scottish Affairs Office (based in the British Embassy Washington) to greet the First Minister at the airport and expedite customs and immigration procedures.