Category: Speeches

  • Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-10-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to help prevent the Zika virus from entering the UK.

    Nicola Blackwood

    The female mosquitoes responsible for Zika virus transmission are not native to the United Kingdom and it is considered highly unlikely they could survive the current UK climatic conditions long enough to become established. The risk to public health posed by Zika virus is, therefore, very low and no greater than the risks posed by other mosquito-borne infections, such as malaria, for example.

    Public Health England monitors various insect vectors (in particular, mosquitoes) in the UK through surveillance projects that it runs in collaboration with a range of organisations across the UK. In England, detection of an invasive species considered to pose a threat to the UK would trigger the use of appropriate control measures.

    In addition, the Government is ensuring UK residents travelling to countries with active Zika transmission are encouraged to take measures to minimise the risk of being bitten by mosquitoes, for example through the use of insect repellent.

    Up-to-date travel advice is in place, and clinical advice is available to UK medical professionals. More information can be found at:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/zika-virus-zikv-clinical-and-travel-guidance

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  • Sadiq Khan – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Sadiq Khan – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sadiq Khan on 2015-11-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the weekend bed occupancy rates were in each mental health hospital in London in each weekend since 1 January 2015, taking account of patients on weekend leave.

    Alistair Burt

    Official statistics for average daily occupancy rates for beds open overnight, including mental health beds, are published every quarter by NHS England on its website at the following address:

    https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/bed-availability-and-occupancy/

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  • Lord Kennedy of Southwark – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lord Kennedy of Southwark – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Kennedy of Southwark on 2015-11-26.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what support they are giving to producers of biodiesel made from waste products.

    Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

    The Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (RTFO) provides double rewards for biofuels derived from wastes.

    The Department concluded a post-implementation review of the RTFO in April 2014. Evidence from the review indicates that double rewards for biofuels from wastes, which were introduced under the RTFO in 2011, have encouraged a strong market for biodiesel from used cooking oil in the UK.

    Since the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (RTFO) was established waste based biofuels have risen from 12% of total biofuel supply in the first year of the obligation 2008/09, to 50% according to the data for 2014/15 (Biofuels Statistics obligation year 7 2014/15 – Report 5).

  • Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-01-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that all people in vulnerable categories receive the flu vaccination.

    Jane Ellison

    This flu season eligible groups, such as those with a long term health condition, are encouraged to take up the flu vaccine through a single winter health campaign, ‘Stay Well this Winter’[1]. The campaign launched in October and advises the public on how to avoid common winter illnesses.

    The National Health Service and local authority partners have been encouraged to implement the campaign at local level and make use of available campaign resources, including patient letters, information leaflets and posters. Voluntary organisations, health charities and schools have received tailored resources to assist them in communicating the risks of flu and benefits of vaccination to their members and parents/pupils. General practitioners are urged to invite all eligible patients for vaccination. For the first time this flu season, many community pharmacies are also offering free NHS flu vaccinations to eligible adults, extending patient choice and opportunities for patients to take-up the vaccine.

    [1] News release: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/winter-campaign-starts-with-largest-flu-vaccination-programme

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  • Mrs Sheryll Murray – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Mrs Sheryll Murray – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mrs Sheryll Murray on 2016-02-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps the Government is taking to support UK fishermen (a) in general and (b) in the under 10 metre fleet.

    George Eustice

    UK-led Common Fisheries Policy reforms have given UK fishermen a more sustainable long-term future.

    The inshore fleet will particularly benefit from an extra 1,000 tonnes of quota this year. This comes on top of the permanent transfer of under-used quota to the Under-10s, which was worth an extra 678 tonnes in 2015.

    In addition, over £100m of European (EMFF) Funding is now available to support the UK catching, processing and aquaculture sectors.

  • Virendra Sharma – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Wales Office

    Virendra Sharma – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Wales Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Virendra Sharma on 2016-02-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what his Department’s wellness strategy is.

    Alun Cairns

    The Wales Office is not an employer in its own right and staff are subject to Ministry of Justice (MOJ) policies for issues such as wellness.

  • Philip Davies – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Philip Davies – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Philip Davies on 2016-03-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, with reference to her speech of 18 November 2015, at the Institution of Civil Engineers, when her Department plans to publish the terms of reference and timescales for the consultation on closing all unabated coal-fired power stations.

    Andrea Leadsom

    My rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State announced in her speech that the Department will be launching a consultation in the spring, and that remains the intention.

  • Lord Berkeley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lord Berkeley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Berkeley on 2016-04-25.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans HS2 has for using secondary aggregates for the construction of Phase 1.

    Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

    As part of our overall sustainability policy for HS2, we plan to use both secondary and re-cycled aggregates in structures which are designed with concrete. Their use, along with the types of concrete to be used, will be dependent on the specific design characteristics of individual HS2 structures and will be subject to the detailed design process in due course. The design process will also take into account other important sustainable factors such as material availability and logistics.

  • Lord Donoughue – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Lord Donoughue – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Donoughue on 2016-06-07.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the Clean Technology Funds financial eligibility threshold of $200 per tonne of CO2 equivalent abated represents good value for UK taxpayers in the context of global mitigation effects.

    Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth

    In order to ensure value for money, the Clean Technology Fund (CTF) Investment Criteria (2009) has six objectives, of which cost-effectiveness is one. The other objectives are Potential for GHG Emissions Savings, Demonstration Potential at Scale, Development Impact, Implementation Potential and Additional Costs and Risk Premium.

    The financial eligibility threshold of $200 per tonne of CO2 equivalent is in place to safeguard value for money. This threshold was based on the International Energy Agency’s Energy Technology Perspectives 2008 Report, as the lower-end estimate of the marginal incentive needed to achieve a reduction of global GHG emissions to 50% by 2050. The average total investment cost per tonne achieved in the CTF is $39.60 (£26.40), which is significantly below this threshold.

    More information is available in the document Climate Investment Funds (2009), Clean Technology Fund Investment Criteria for public sector operations.

  • Greg Mulholland – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Greg Mulholland – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2016-07-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he expects Network Rail to publish an update to its industry electrification strategy.

    Paul Maynard

    Network Rail is now evaluating electrification of routes on a case by case basis as one of the ways of delivering enhanced train services to meet the forecast growth in rail usage.