The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2014-03-13.
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the average earnings of full-time employees in Denton and Reddish constituency were in April (a) 2009, (b) 2010, (c) 2011, (d) 2012 and (e) 2013.
Nick Hurd
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gareth Thomas on 2014-06-04.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what representations he has received about the publication of personal and business lending data by postcode; and if he will make a statement.
Andrea Leadsom
In July 2013 the Government announced that it had reached an agreement with the major UK banks to publish lending data across 10,000 individual postcodes.
The first dataset was published in December 2013 and shows the outstanding stock of lending that has been committed to customers across three categories; loans and overdrafts to SMEs, mortgages and unsecured personal loans (excluding credit cards).
The data will allow challenger banks, smaller building societies, credit unions and community development finance institutions (CDFIs) to find areas where there is a lack of lending so they can offer finance to those customers who are crying out for support to help their business grow.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mr David Hanson on 2014-03-13.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, which local authorities are participating in the vulnerable persons relocation scheme.
James Brokenshire
The Vulnerable Persons Relocation scheme has been put in place to relocate to the UK some of the most vulnerable Syrian refugees, displaced to neighbouring countries by the on going conflict. We anticipate that it will support several hundred people over the next three years. On-going discussions with a number of local authorities regarding participation in the scheme will determine exact numbers to be relocated between 29 January 2014 and 30 May 2015. Given the continuing nature of these discussions, it is therefore too early to have a clear indication of the type of accommodation that will be available to house the relocated refugees.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Hanson on 2014-06-04.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many passport applications processed by the Passport Office between 1 January and 31 May 2014 which missed the three week target for processing.
James Brokenshire
Table A sets out the requested information in respect of how many telephone
calls were received during the requested periods.
Table B shows income received in fees for premium and fast track services.
Table C provides information on the number of full time equivalent staff
employed by HM passport Office on 31 December for each of the years from 2010 –
2013.
Table D sets out the number of first time passport applications and the number
of passport renewals received during each month between January 2013 and May
2014.
In the period between 1 January and 31 May 2014, 31,188 straightforward
passport applications processed by Her Majesty’s Passport Office were not
processed within the 3-week target.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Ruane on 2014-03-13.
To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission, if he will list the registration rates for students in higher education institutions in the UK in ranked order for the most recent period available.
Gary Streeter
The Electoral Commission informs me that it does not hold data on the registration rates of students by higher education institution.
The Commission has conducted an analysis of the results of the dry run of the confirmation process to be used during the transition to IER. This indicated that students were one of the groups less likely to be matched against the Department of Works and Pensions database.
This analysis and all the associated data is available to EROs across the country. This has allowed them to identify areas, such as those with large student populations, where they may need to target more of their resources in order to maintain or improve levels of registration.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Michael McCann on 2014-06-04.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many cases funded by legal aid against his Department where public interest lawyers have represented clients were won by his Department in each of the last 10 years.
Anna Soubry
It is not possible to give a definitive answer to this question, since in a number of cases where there were multiple issues before it, the Court found for the claimant on some issues and for the defendant on others.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Toby Perkins on 2014-03-13.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the effect on the ability of small businesses to manage sickness absence of abolishing the Percentage Threshold Scheme for recovering statutory sick pay.
Mike Penning
The SSP Percentage Threshold Scheme compensates employers with high levels of sickness absence but an independent review of sickness absence[1] found it does nothing to tackle the causes of absence. As a result, the Government accepted a recommendation in the Review to abolish the Percentage Threshold Scheme. The Government also accepted a recommendation to establish a Service (now known as the Health and Work Service) to offer specialist occupational health assessment and advice to employers, employees and GPs. The Service is designed to reduce the costs of sickness absence for employers by addressing the obstacles preventing a return to work, and supporting employees back to work as quickly as appropriate. It will be funded from the savings made from the abolition of the PTS and will provide a more proactive way to manage sickness absence.
Small businesses are least likely to have access to occupational health services, and will benefit from having access to occupational health assessments and advice through the HWS.
[1] Black, C. and Frost, D (2011) Health at work – and independent review of sickness absence.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2014-06-04.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will take steps to encourage insurance companies to set travel insurance premiums for the elderly based on their state of health rather than their age.
Andrea Leadsom
Insurers take into account a range of different factors when considering risk and decisions concerning the pricing of insurance products are a commercial matter for individual insurers. The Government does not seek to intervene in these decisions.
The insurance industry recognises that older people can face difficulties finding appropriate travel insurance and in 2012 signed an agreement, endorsed by the Government, to re-direct older customers to an alternative insurer or to a specialist insurance broker where they cannot provide insurance themselves.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mr Chuka Umunna on 2014-03-12.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what proportion of teachers teaching in (a) the UK, (b) England, (c) London, (d) Lambeth and (e) Streatham parliamentary constituency have undertook specialist training on educational provision for children and young people on the autism spectrum in each of the last five years.
Edward Timpson
These figures are not collected centrally. Schools make their own decisions on what training their staffs need to support their pupils based on the individual circumstances of the school.
The Department for Education funds the Autism Education Trust (AET) to provide tiered training on autism: basic awareness training for teaching and non-teaching staff at level 1; practical knowledge and hands-on tools and techniques for all staff working directly with children and young people with autistic spectrum disorders at level 2; and level 3 training for those seeking more advanced knowledge and those pursuing a training role, such as lead practitioners in autism and Special Educational Needs Co-ordinators. Between 2011 and 2013 the AET received grant funding to provide training to schools and from 2013 to 2015 is receiving funding under contract to provide training to early years providers, schools and further education colleges.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2014-06-04.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions he or officials of his Department have had on the effects of digestion of sycamore tree seeds on horses; and what estimate he has made of the number of horses that have died as a result of ingesting such seeds.
George Eustice
Digestion of sycamore seeds can cause equine atypical myopathy. However, like many other equine illnesses, such as strangles and equine influenza, this is not a notifiable disease so there has been no need for active government intervention.
Defra works closely with the Animal Health Trust (AHT) and the British Equine Veterinary Association (BEVA) in identifying cases of this emerging condition in the British equine population. This includes monitoring scientific developments and inclusion of data in the joint Defra/AHT/BEVA Equine Quarterly Disease Surveillance Report published on the AHT’s website.
This type of surveillance and communication enables private veterinarians to advise horse keepers to avoid pasture containing sycamore trees during high risk periods and to provide additional forage on fields where grazing is poor. This should be sufficient to mitigate against this illness. We will continue to monitor the situation and keep in touch with the equine veterinary profession to be aware of developments.