Category: Speeches

  • Steve Rotheram – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Steve Rotheram – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve Rotheram on 2014-06-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many times ambulance response times in (a) the North West and (b) each ambulance service trust in England have exceeded (i) 15, (ii) 20, (iii) 30 and (iv) 60 minutes since May 2010.

    Jane Ellison

    The information is not available in the format requested. The attached tables show that in April 2014, North West Ambulance Service responded to 95% of Category A immediately life threatening calls within 17 minutes and that 99% of calls were responded to within 31 minutes. The tables also provide response time information for each ambulance service trust in England since April 2011.

  • Tom Greatrex – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Tom Greatrex – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Greatrex on 2014-04-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the costs of the regulation and monitoring of exploration and extraction of unconventional gas (a) at each drilling site and (b) the exploration in England and Wales.

    Dan Rogerson

    The Environment Agency raises charges for environmental permits and licences at the individual sites it regulates in England. The costs can vary depending on the nature of the site and the permits required. The shale gas industry remains at an early exploration stage and the Agency will keep its charges under review in light of developments. The annual budget the Environment Agency receives is adequate to ensure that sufficient money is allocated to costs associated with regulating the industry and for monitoring of sites during the exploration phase. As the industry develops over the next few decades appropriate funds will continue to be available to ensure the safe and sustainable exploitation of shale gas.

  • Jim Shannon – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Jim Shannon – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2014-06-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps the Government is taking to ensure that hospitals do not discourage whistleblowing by staff; and if he will take steps to issue a UK NHS-wide policy on that matter.

    Dr Daniel Poulter

    We have been absolutely clear that National Health Service staff who speak out in the interests of patient safety must be protected and listened to and that we expect all NHS organisations to have whistleblowing policies in place that are compliant with the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998. On 5 March this year, my Rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State wrote to Chairs in NHS trusts and foundation trusts in England to express his strong views on this matter and to reiterate the vital importance of fostering a culture of openness and transparency in the NHS.

    In addition, the Department recently commissioned the Whistleblowing Helpline to update whistleblowing guidance for the NHS. This revised guidance “Raising Concerns at Work – Whistleblowing Guidance for workers and employers in Health and Social Care” was published on 17 March 2014. This guidance transparently sets out the policies and processes for staff and employers in a single document and is available via their website or as a hard copy. This guidance can be found on their website.

    www.wbhelpline.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Raising-Concerns-at-Work.pdf

    Employment law and policy (of which whistleblowing law and policy is a part), and health law and policy, are devolved matters in Northern Ireland. In Scotland and Wales employment law is not devolved, but health law is. Decisions about implementation of whistleblowing policy in the NHS in each part of the United Kingdom are therefore a matter for each of those areas.

  • Maria Eagle – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Maria Eagle – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Maria Eagle on 2014-04-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential risks fracking pose to livestock; and if he will make a statement.

    Dan Rogerson

    Our regulatory framework is robust and provides stringent environmental safeguards which will protect both humans and animals.

  • David Hanson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    David Hanson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Hanson on 2014-06-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what discussions her Department has had with representatives of the travel insurance industry regarding cancellations of holidays or business trips due to delays in processing passport applications.

    James Brokenshire

    Home Office Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of
    international partners, as well as organisations and individuals in the public
    and private sectors, as part of the process of policy development and
    operational delivery.
    Details of Ministerial meetings with external organisations and individuals are
    passed to the Cabinet Office on a quarterly basis and are subsequently
    published on the Cabinet Office website, which is available here:
    https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/home-office-mnisters-hospitality-data

  • Jim Cunningham – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Jim Cunningham – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2014-04-02.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what progress has been made on the development of an indicator on five year survival rates from all cancers to support early diagnosis and reduction of preventable mortality from cancer.

    Mr Nick Hurd

    The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.

  • Richard Burden – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Deputy Prime Minister

    Richard Burden – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Deputy Prime Minister

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

    To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, how many schools in England and Wales were closed for the local and European elections on 22 May 2014.

    Greg Clark

    The Information requested is not held centrally.

  • Steve McCabe – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Steve McCabe – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2014-04-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what support her Department offers to local authorities who are caring for asylum seekers who entered care as a child to ensure adequate support is in place when they become care leavers.

    James Brokenshire

    The Home Office does not have a direct role in this policy area. The Department of Education provides statutory guidance to local authorities about how to support care leavers, including care leavers who are asylum seekers. The guidance makes clear that asylum seekers should receive the same level of support as any other care leaver. The Home Office does, however, provide funding to local authorities to help cover the costs of supporting the young people.

  • Richard Fuller – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Richard Fuller – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

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

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what representations he has had on including insolvency litigation in the scope of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012.

    Mr Shailesh Vara

    We have recently received representations from insolvency practitioners, including the Association of Business Recovery Professionals (R3), regarding a permanent exemption for insolvency litigation from the scope of the costs and funding provisions in Part 2 of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders (LASPO) Act 2012. Ministry of Justice officials have met with R3 on this matter.

    The LASPO reforms were implemented generally from 1 April 2013, although they were delayed for insolvency proceedings in order to allow stakeholders time to adjust. The Government’s position remains – as announced by written ministerial statement in May 2012 (24 May 2012: Col 94WS) – that the reforms should apply to insolvency proceedings from April 2015.

  • Nigel Dodds – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    Nigel Dodds – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nigel Dodds on 2014-04-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what the cost is of the relocation of the London headquarters of her Department.

    Mrs Theresa Villiers

    The cost of relocating my Department’s London office in 2013 was £1,156,236. The estimated savings as a result of the move are approximately £1m per year.