Category: Speeches

  • Dan Jarvis – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Dan Jarvis – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dan Jarvis on 2014-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of young person’s advocates in supporting young victims of crime.

    Norman Baker

    The Home Office is funding 13 Young People’s Advocates posts for three
    years (April 2012 – March 2015) to provide direct support to young women who
    have been victims, or are at risk of, sexual violence by gangs. The full
    breakdown of posts, organisations and areas covered is available online at:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/news/support-for-young-victims-of-sexual-violence-
    and-gangs

    Measures are in place to conduct an assessment of perceptions of the scheme
    among Young People’s Advocates and local practitioners in the areas where they
    are based.

  • Helen Goodman – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture Media and Sport

    Helen Goodman – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Helen Goodman on 2014-06-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to paragraph 18 of Investing in Britain’s Future, Cm 8669, produced in June 2013, how he intends to spend the £250 million allocated to broadband in 2015-16 and 2016-17.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    With local match funding, the £250m allocated to broadband in 2015-16 and 2016-17 will enable superfast broadband coverage to be extended to 95% of premises by 2017. The Department announced indicative funding allocations for local broadband project areas in February 2014. The first procurements for projects using this funding are now under way.

  • Jim Shannon – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Jim Shannon – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2014-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will bring forward legislative proposals to increase sentences for shoplifting.

    Jeremy Wright

    The maximum penalty for theft is seven years’ imprisonment. The independent Sentencing Council is responsible for issuing guidelines which all courts must follow when determining the appropriate sentence in each case, within this maximum penalty. On 3 April, the Council opened a consultation on a new draft guideline for theft offences. The consultation period ends on 26 June 2014 and is open to everyone. The responses received will inform the definitive new sentencing guideline for theft offences in due course.

  • Gavin Williamson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Gavin Williamson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gavin Williamson on 2014-06-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what provision is in place for a member of school staff to contest an unjust or open-ended suspension.

    Mr David Laws

    School staff who believe that they have been unfairly suspended or subjected to an unreasonable period of suspension can choose to submit a formal grievance to their employer.

  • Dan Jarvis – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Dan Jarvis – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dan Jarvis on 2014-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of Sexual Assault Referral Centres in supporting victims of crime.

    Damian Green

    Sexual Assault Referral Centres (SARCs) are commissioned jointly by NHS England, individual police forces and Police and Crime Commissioners. Although the Ministry of Justice have not undertaken any recent assessments into the effectiveness of sexual assault centres in supporting victims of crime, NHS England ensure that Sexual Assault Services are commissioned in ways that support consistently high standards of care and quality across the country through the Public Health Oversight Group. NHS England is currently undertaking a review of these commissioning processes.

  • Geraint Davies – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Geraint Davies – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Geraint Davies on 2014-06-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what funds have been provided from his departmental expenditure limit for nuclear decommissioning in the 2014-15 financial year.

    Michael Fallon

    The net DEL figure for 2014/15 is £2,298.7m.

    Source: DECC 2014-15 Main Estimate Explanatory Memorandum

  • 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 2014-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the (a) timetable and (b) process will be under which debt suspension in older Child Support Agency (CSA) cases will be reviewed during the forthcoming CSA case closure process; and what process will be put in place to enable the participation of the parents in that process.

    Steve Webb

    The Child Support Agency (CSA) plans to close all 1993 and 2003 scheme cases over a three year period starting in 2014.

    When a client’s ongoing maintenance liability has ended, the case will be reviewed to ensure any arrears balance is accurate. This process will include any suspended debt to ensure the reason for suspension remains valid and, if not, the debt will be reinstated. Whether the CSA need to contact the client during this process will depend on the circumstances of the individual case.

    When the review has been completed, both clients will be informed of the arrears balance and can contact the CSA about this should they wish to do so.

  • Paul Flynn – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Paul Flynn – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Flynn on 2014-06-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will raise with the Moroccan Ambassador to the UK the situation of the political prisoners in Saharawi; and what information he has received from HM Ambassador in Morocco on the state of health of Abdalah Boukiod.

    Hugh Robertson

    We regularly emphasise to Morocco the importance of full respect for human rights in Western Sahara. Minister Robertson discussed this issue during his trip to Rabat in March this year. We are aware of reports that Abdalah Boukiod has been on hunger strike since 20 May. We do not have further information on the state of his health.

  • Chris Ruane – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Chris Ruane – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Ruane on 2014-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department has tested (a) assessment providers’ and (b) departmental plans for dealing with backlogs and high numbers of assessments.

    Mike Penning

    The Department does not have a target for completion of Personal Independence Payment (PIP) claims whilst processes are bedding in. Clearly, we want to minimise the length of time claimants have to wait for assessments but the key requirement is to produce high quality assessments, to enable DWP decision makers to make the right decisions about benefit entitlement.

    We are committed to driving up PIP performance and are in regular contact with our assessment providers to do this. We already monitor performance closely and liaise with assessment providers on a daily basis, supplemented by formal monthly performance review meetings. We will continue to work closely with assessment providers on an ongoing basis to monitor quality.

    Our original Departmental operational delivery plans assumed a larger volume of assessment provider referrals than we are currently receiving and we have retained this surplus capacity using it to consolidate learning or carry out other duties. This will be available for deployment as cases are returned to the Department for decision maker action. The Department has contingency plans in place to secure additional capacity from other areas of the Department should assessment provider volumes exceed plans.

    From 10 March we have included with the PIP2 ‘How your disability affects you’ questionnaire, issued to PIP claimants, communications explaining how long they might be expected to wait for a PIP assessment. This information is also available on Gov.uk.

  • Iain Wright – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Iain Wright – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Iain Wright on 2014-06-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will provide additional funding for Cleveland Police to assist in (a) retaining and (b) increasing the number of police officers in operation in Hartlepool constituency.

    Damian Green

    Like all parts of the public sector the police must play their part in
    reducing the deficit and the vast majority of forces are rising to the
    challenge of reducing costs, maintaining services and cutting crime.
    Ultimately what matters is how officers are deployed, not how many of them
    there are and, in Cleveland, police recorded crime has fallen by 14 per cent
    since 2010.