Category: Speeches

  • Tim Loughton – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Tim Loughton – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Loughton on 2014-06-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what meetings (a) he, (b) Ministers in his Department and (c) officials in his Department have had with Dominic Cummings since Mr Cummings left his Department; and what the purpose of those meetings was.

    Matthew Hancock

    Mr Cummings is an ex-employee of the Department for Education. It is not uncommon for ex-employees to be in contact with Ministers and the Department. As the Secretary of State for Education explained to the House on Monday 16 June, many people seek to visit and contact the Department for Education to exchange ideas with old friends and colleagues.

  • Ivan Lewis – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    Ivan Lewis – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ivan Lewis on 2014-04-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what recent meetings she has had on First World War centenary commemorations in Northern Ireland.

    Mrs Theresa Villiers

    The Northern Ireland Office plays a co-ordination role with the aim of ensuring that First World War commemorations are implemented in Northern Ireland in a manner which promotes reconciliation and enhances prospects for a peaceful, shared future.

    Officials from my Department sit on the Department for Culture, Media and Sport Programme Board for First World War Centenary Commemorations. They also have regular contact with officials in the British Embassy Dublin, the Irish Government and the Northern Ireland Executive, and sit on the Northern Ireland First World War Centenary Committee chaired by Jeffrey Donaldson MP.

    I receive regular updates on this work and will attend a number of events being planned to mark this important centenary over the course of the coming months. These events will take place in Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland and France.

  • Huw Irranca-Davies – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Huw Irranca-Davies – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Huw Irranca-Davies on 2014-06-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether any phyto-sanitary and plant-disease expertise from the UK has been involved in helping to address the shortcomings identified by the EU Commissioner necessitating the recent ban on importation of mangoes from India.

    Dan Rogerson

    Defra’s Food and Environment Research Agency (Fera) has offered to deliver a technical training programme for Indian Plant Health Inspectors to help address some of the issues raised in the previous European Commission’s Food and Veterinary Office (FVO) audits of the Indian plant health export certification systems. A Plant Health and Seeds Inspector from Fera will be also be assisting the FVO when it undertakes its audit visit to India in September.

  • Mary Creagh – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Mary Creagh – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mary Creagh on 2014-04-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the amount of (a) net franchise payment and (b) revenue support is for the extension of the Greater Anglia franchise from July 2014 to October 2016.

    Stephen Hammond

    The Net franchise premium payment contracted for the Greater Anglia Direct Award from July 2014 to October 2016 is c. £266m payment to the Department for Transport. Premium is quoted in January 2014 price.

    There will be no Revenue support for the Greater Anglia Direct Award from July 2014 to October 2016.

  • David Crausby – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    David Crausby – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Crausby on 2014-06-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the average ambulance response time for each category of call was in Bolton in each year since 2010.

    Jane Ellison

    The information is not available in the format requested. Such information as is available is shown in the following table.

    The median response times to treatment for category A1 calls in the North West Ambulance Service NHS Trust2, April 20113 to April 2014

    Month

    Median time (in minutes)

    April 2011

    4.2

    May 2011

    5.0

    June 2011

    5.2

    July 2011

    5.0

    August 2011

    4.7

    September 2011

    4.8

    October 2011

    4.9

    November 2011

    4.9

    December 2011

    5.0

    January 2012

    4.8

    February 2012

    5.1

    March 2012

    5.0

    April 2012

    5.6

    May 2012

    5.7

    June 2012

    5.1

    July 2012

    5.1

    August 2012

    5.2

    September 2012

    5.3

    October 2012

    5.4

    November 2012

    5.4

    December 2012

    5.7

    January 2013

    5.5

    February 2013

    5.6

    March 2013

    5.6

    April 2013

    5.8

    May 2013

    5.4

    June 2013

    5.5

    July 2013

    5.8

    August 2013

    5.7

    September 2013

    6.1

    October 2013

    6.0

    November 2013

    6.1

    December 2013

    6.1

    January 2014

    5.8

    February 2014

    6.1

    March 2014

    6.1

    April 2014

    6.1

    Source: Ambulance quality indicators, NHS England

    Notes:

    1Category A calls are defined as those that are the result of immediately life threatening incidents.

    2North West Ambulance Service NHS Trust provides services to the Bolton area. Ambulance response times are not readily available for areas smaller than those covered by one Ambulance Trust.

    3Information is not available before April 2011.

  • Kerry McCarthy – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Kerry McCarthy – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kerry McCarthy on 2014-04-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, which Minister in his Department has responsibility for assessing the effect of his Department’s policies on the welfare of children.

    Esther McVey

    Each of the Department’s Ministers is responsible for assessing the effect of their policies on the welfare of children.

  • Roger Godsiff – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Roger Godsiff – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2014-06-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he has taken to ensure that patient data extracted under care.data shared with countries inside the European Economic Area cannot be shared outside that area.

    Dr Daniel Poulter

    The Data Protection Act (1998) allows personal data to be transferred to countries within the European Economic Area (EEA) on the same basis as transferring data within the United Kingdom. Personal data can only be sent to a country or territory outside the EEA if an adequate level of protection for the rights and freedoms of individuals when processing their personal data is ensured.

    Every application for information will be considered by the Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC), in line with the Data Protection Act, taking account of their location if it is outside the UK.

    Recipients of data from the HSCIC must agree to certain terms and conditions of use, i.e. a data sharing contract, before any data is disclosed. Those terms and conditions include measures intended to safeguard the use of information that may identify individuals, including:

    – limiting the use of information to a specific purpose, which must also be both legitimate, compatible and shared only for the benefit of the health and social care system;

    – prohibiting onward disclosure of information to an additional organisation;

    – ensuring the security of the data once it is in the possession of another organisation that applied successfully for the data; and

    – the right of HSCIC to audit where it is suspected the terms and conditions have not been complied with.

    The HSCIC announced on 17 June 2014 that a new, strengthened audit function will monitor adherence to data sharing agreements and halt the flow of data if there are any concerns exposed. This will include scrutiny of how the data is being used and stored by those receiving it. This will also monitor that data has been deleted when an agreement comes to the end. Any failure on the part of data users to abide by their agreements will entail no further release of data to them.

  • Andrew Bingham – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Andrew Bingham – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Bingham on 2014-04-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many small businesses in High Peak constituency have received support from the Regional Growth Fund.

    Michael Fallon

    We do not hold the information requested. However, businesses in High Peak constituency are eligible to bid to the Regional Growth Fund programme administered by Derbyshire County Council as well as national programmes.

  • Jamie Reed – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Jamie Reed – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jamie Reed on 2014-06-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the proportion of patients who were able to see their preferred GP in the most recent period for which figures are available.

    Dr Daniel Poulter

    Data from the most recent GP Patient Survey found that 55% of patients have a particular general practitioner (GP) that they usually prefer to speak to or see. Of those, 61.7% of respondents said they could see or speak to their preferred GP ‘always or almost always’ or a ‘lot of the time’.

  • Diana Johnson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Diana Johnson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Diana Johnson on 2014-04-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what review was undertaken of the Hull Official Receiver’s office before his Department’s decision to close that office; what the timescale for that review was; and what evidence was collected in that review.

    Jenny Willott

    The decision on Hull was one of a number of decisions made by the Insolvency Service Board n the context of a review of the Insolvency Service’s estate. That review covered all 36 buildings occupied by the Insolvency Service and had the objectives of ensuring that its estate met the Insolvency Service’s needs to provide efficiency and excellent customer service and to reduce costs against a context of significant falls in case numbers. The review of the estates strategy started in early 2013 and Hull was in the final phase of buildings being reviewed in February 2014. The Board considered the options of remaining in the same accommodation in Hull, moving to alternative Government property in Hull and moving the Hull operation to Leeds. The evidence collected comprised, for each option, impact on customers, impact on employees, an assessment of strategic benefits, financial impact and how any move could be delivered.