Category: Speeches

  • Luciana Berger – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Luciana Berger – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2014-06-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether the forthcoming National Institute for Health and Care Excellence quality standard on fertility will be considered for a CCG Outcome Indicator.

    Jane Ellison

    The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has not yet published its final quality standard on fertility. NICE’s Clinical Commissioning Group Outcomes Indicator Set (CCGOIS) Advisory Committee makes recommendations on potential indicators derived from its published guidance and quality standards for inclusion in the CCGOIS which are then considered by NHS England.

  • 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 2014-03-27.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will review the current requirements for seizing property or cash under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 to bring those requirements into line with the new powers of HM Revenue and Customs to seize money from an individual’s bank account without a warrant.

    Karen Bradley

    The Government’s Serious and Organised Crime Strategy clearly sets out our
    plans to attack criminal finances by making it harder to move, hide and use the
    proceeds of crime. These include measures to enable assets to be frozen more
    quickly and earlier in investigations, reduce the time that courts give
    offenders to pay confiscation orders, and make it easier for magistrates to
    confiscate cash held in bank accounts.

  • Tom Blenkinsop – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Tom Blenkinsop – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Blenkinsop on 2014-06-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, with reference to his Written Statement of 7 April 2014, Official Report, column 1WS on higher education, what public consultation he has undertaken on the proposed changes to disabled students’ allowance.

    Mr David Willetts

    We are currently consulting with a wide range of stakeholders to help inform both the Equality Analysis and Disabled Students’ Allowances Guidance for 2015/16.

  • Frank Field – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Frank Field – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2014-03-27.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many outstanding cases of social fund loan repayments his Department is curretnly pursuing; in what year each such loan was issued; what estimate he has made of the total value of such outstanding repayments; and how much his Department is paying a debt management service to pursue such repayments.

    Steve Webb

    At March 2013, there were 10,118,298 loans outstanding relating to 2,940,087 customers. The table below indicates the age of loans and their volumes and values.

    Age of loan

    Loans

    Value £000

    Five years and over

    1,837,896

    218,840

    Between one and five years

    5,898,911

    595,737

    Less than one year

    2,381,491

    373,729

    Total

    10,118,298

    1,188,306

    The Department pursues all debts available for recovery. Where we have difficulty with locating a customer and obtaining payment from them we will employ a private sector company to do this for us; for year ending March 2013 we paid £880,000 and recovered £6.1m.

    Data has been included for the financial year 2012-13, the latest year for which the audited Social Fund White Paper Account is available. The 2013-14 Account will be publicly available from July 2014.

  • Liam Byrne – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Liam Byrne – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Liam Byrne on 2014-06-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what recent estimate his Department has made of the RAB charge for student loans issued after 2012.

    Mr David Willetts

    We estimate the RAB charge on these loans to be around 45%.

    The actual cost of issuing student loans will be dependent on future macro-economic circumstances, in particular earnings and we will continue to update our forecasts on a regular basis to take account of changes to short term and long term macro-economic assumptions.

  • Sheila Gilmore – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Sheila Gilmore – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sheila Gilmore on 2014-03-27.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the (a) 20 highest and (b) 20 lowest value contracts awarded by his Department were in each financial year since 2009-10.

    Elizabeth Truss

    I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by the Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General, my right hon. Friend the Member for Horsham (Mr Maude) on 2 April 2014, Official Report, column 721W.

  • Stewart Jackson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Stewart Jackson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stewart Jackson on 2014-06-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many pupils in Peterborough constituency achieved (a) Level 1 and (b) Level 2 skills in English in each year since 2005; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr David Laws

    A table showing the number of pupils in Peterborough constituency that achieved a Level 1 or a Level 2 in English (key stage 4) since 2005/06 has been placed in the House Library.

    Information on pupils for 2004/05 is not readily available and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

  • Sarah Champion – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Sarah Champion – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sarah Champion on 2014-03-27.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the timetable is for the contracting-out of the Probation Service during 2014.

    Jeremy Wright

    Under our reforms the market will be opened up to a diverse range of new rehabilitation providers, so that we get the best out of the public, voluntary and private sectors, at the local as well as national level. A more diverse market of rehabilitation providers will bring innovation in rehabilitative services, helping to deliver a real reduction in reoffending rates. The process to establish the owners of the 21 new Community Rehabilitation Companies (CRCs) with responsibility for the provision of rehabilitation services is well underway. We will assess the bids we receive over the summer, and expect to sign contracts with new CRC owners later this year. We remain committed to seeing Payment by Results rolled out across the system by 2015.

  • Caroline Lucas – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Caroline Lucas – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Lucas on 2014-06-11.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether Ministers or officials of his Department have (a) met the Attorney General of Nigeria since January 2012 and (b) had any conversations about the sale of the OPL 245 oil concession in Nigeria involving Shell and ENI with (i) the Attorney General of Nigeria and (ii) any other senior official of the Nigerian government.

    Mr Francis Maude

    Details of meetings held by Ministers and Permanent Secretaries with external organisations are published quarterly and can be found at Gov.uk.

    Information on meetings by other officials is not held centrally.

  • Teresa Pearce – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Teresa Pearce – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Teresa Pearce on 2014-03-27.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer 6 March 2014, Official Report, columns 971-2W, on Remploy, which businesses were sold; and whether profit from such sales has been passed back to HM Treasury.

    Mike Penning

    The automotive, filters, healthcare, e-cycle and CCTV managed services were the five businesses that were sold as part of Remploy’s commercial process.

    The overall cost of the exit of the factory businesses included profits from the sales of the businesses with total costs estimated to be below budget.