Category: Speeches

  • Lord Barnett – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Lord Barnett – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Barnett on 2014-05-06.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 9 April (WA 302), what are the current terms of income contingent repayment loans.

    Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

    The Education (Student Loans) (Repayment) Regulations set out the terms and conditions of income contingent student loans. This is also set out in the booklet Student Loans – a Guide to Terms and Conditions, the latest copy of which can be accessed at http://www.sfengland.slc.co.uk/media/666045/sfe_t_c_guide_1415_d.pdf . Students are informed at the time of taking out their student loan that the regulations may change from time to time and this means that the terms of their loan may also change.

  • Cathy Jamieson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Cathy Jamieson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Cathy Jamieson on 2014-03-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much was paid in jobseeker’s allowance to recipients in (a) Scotland and (b) Kilmarnock and Loudoun constituency in the last 12 months.

    Esther McVey

    The amount paid in Jobseeker’s Allowance in 2012/13 can be found in the table below.

    2012/13
    £m

    JSA

    Scotland

    478

    Kilmarnock & Loudoun

    12

    Source: DWP statistical data

    Note: Expenditure is shown for the last complete financial year. The benefit expenditure for Jobseeker’s Allowance can be found in the Parliamentary Constituency tables as per link:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/266825/pc-tables-201213.xls

    “

  • Robert Buckland – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Robert Buckland – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Robert Buckland on 2014-06-04.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will assess the potential merits of allowing designated bodies to be given the power to make super-complaints against public service providers such as those that exist in private markets.

    Mr Francis Maude

    The Government is considering recent reports of the Public Administration Select Committee (PASC) into how complaints about public services are handled. As part of this, the Cabinet Office is working to investigate further how public services can make best use of complaints and also to take a wider look at the role and powers of the Public Sector Ombudsmen. The Government will respond to the PASC in due course. I am happy to discuss this matter further with my Hon. Friend.

    The annual reports and accounts of the public service ombudsmen in the UK provide details of their performance over the past 12 months including information about complaints received.

  • Helen Goodman – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Helen Goodman – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Helen Goodman on 2014-03-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department plans to take to ensure that children and adoptive parents receive support beyond the initial stages of the adoption process.

    Edward Timpson

    People who adopt are making a life changing decision, both for themselves and the children they adopt.

    Research indicates a high level of need among adoptive families for therapeutic services often many years after the adoption process has ended.

    It is for this reason that we have committed £19.3 million into an Adoption Support Fund to make therapeutic support much more widely accessible, timely and of high quality for adoptive families.

  • Alex Cunningham – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Alex Cunningham – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2014-06-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what assessment he has made of the effect of export of refuse-derived fuel and solid recovered fuel for use in energy from waste plants overseas has on the ability of the UK to meet renewable energy targets; and if he will make a statement.

    Gregory Barker

    DECC has not made an assessment of the effect of export of refuse-derived fuel and solid recovered fuel may have on the ability to meet renewable energy targets.

    We are making good progress towards meeting our 2020 target. In 2012 4.2% of UK energy consumption was met by renewables, up from 3.8% in 2011. Our latest estimates suggest that the UK is currently on course to meet our next interim renewable target of 5.4% for 2013/2014.

  • Mr Barry Sheerman – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Mr Barry Sheerman – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mr Barry Sheerman on 2014-03-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking to improve the education of children on the autistic spectrum.

    Edward Timpson

    Children on the autism spectrum will benefit from the changes to the special educational needs system which the Government is bringing about through the Children and Families Act 2014, including the strengthened arrangements, through 0-25 Education, Health and Care plans, for the transition from children’s services to adulthood which young people with autism can find particularly difficult.

    The Department for Education is funding the Autism Education Trust to provide training to early years, school and further education staff on autism. From January 2012 to February 2014, 22,451 staff have received level 1 basic awareness training, 3,214 have received level 2 hands-on tools and techniques training and 775 have received level 3 training for those who want to develop their knowledge of autism further and those who will themselves take on a training role, such as school Special Educational Needs Co-ordinators.

    The Department is also funding three autism organisations from 2013 to 2015, including Ambitious about Autism, to work with four general further education colleges and schools to test innovative ways of supporting the transition of young people with autism from school to college and the National Autistic Society to help young people with autism take part in the development of ‘local offers’, to provide advice to professionals and to fund an exclusion adviser for parents and professionals.

  • Cathy Jamieson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Cathy Jamieson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Cathy Jamieson on 2014-06-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, which Scottish airports will benefit from the Regional Air Connectivity Fund.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    The Government announced on 6 June that a Public Service Obligation will be established on the air route between Dundee Airport and London Stansted Airport from 1 July 2014 for a two-year period, with support from the Regional Air Connectivity Fund announced in last year’s Spending Round.

    The Scottish devolved administration or regional body may apply for access to this fund to maintain an air link from other Scottish airports to London, where there is a risk that an existing link may be lost, and where the case for a Public Service Obligation has been made.

    The Chancellor announced in this year’s Budget that the funding would be doubled to £20 million per year, and also extended to allow for the support for start-up aid for new air routes from UK regional airports. European Union aviation State aid guidelines allow for provision of start-up aid to facilitate start-up of new routes from airports which handle fewer than five million passengers per annum. This will therefore cover all Scotland’s airports apart from Glasgow and Edinburgh.

    The Department for Transport is working with the Treasury to develop guidance that will clarify how the Government will ordinarily expect to interpret the European Union guidelines, and explain how the funding process will work.

  • Mr Andy Slaughter – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Mr Andy Slaughter – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mr Andy Slaughter on 2014-03-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many Sure Start centres have fewer staff now than in May 2010.

    Elizabeth Truss

    Local authorities are responsible for, and retain the flexibility for, children’s centres provision in their area. They have a statutory duty to consult if any changes are planned and to ensure there is a sufficient number of children’s centres to meet the needs of their local communities.

  • Cathy Jamieson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Cathy Jamieson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Cathy Jamieson on 2014-06-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what proportion of passport applications have been dealt with within the target timescale in each of the last 12 months.

    James Brokenshire

    Expected service standards for passport applications are given at
    www.gov.uk.

    Information in respect of the Member’s constituency is not available and the
    cost of collating it would be disproportionate.

    The table below shows the proportions of UK passport applications in each of
    the last 12 months which have been processed within the published service
    standards.

    2013

    % straightforward applications processed within the published timescales

    % non-straightforward applications processed within the published timescales

    June

    100%

    97.8%

    July

    100%

    96.9%

    August

    100%

    96.4%

    September

    100%

    96.0%

    October

    100%

    95.9%

    November

    99.99%

    96.5%

    December

    99.99%

    96.3%

    2014

    January

    99.99%

    96.8%

    February

    99.98%

    98.1%

    March

    99.95%

    96.8%

    April

    98.59%

    99.6%

    May

    92.26%

    93.9%

  • Robert Halfon – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Robert Halfon – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Robert Halfon on 2014-03-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the punctuality levels of train services between Harlow Town train station and London Liverpool Street station have been over the last 10 years.

    Stephen Hammond

    The Department does not hold such information to the level required. We do not routinely measure punctuality (or any other performance measure) by individual line or route; it is the franchise as a whole we measure.