Category: Speeches

Jim Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-06-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the largest financial contracts between the NHS and private companies were in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

George Freeman

The Department does not hold this information, as it is not collated centrally. It is for individual clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) to take decisions on which providers, including those from the private sector, are awarded contracts for the provision of NHS services for their respective regions.

For information on individual contracts held by individual National Health Service bodies, such as NHS trusts and NHS foundation trusts, the Hon. Member may wish to contact any relevant NHS authority directly. Independent providers, both for-profit and not-for-profit have long, and through successive governments, provided care to NHS patients. Our position on who should provide services is taken to ensure patients receive the best possible services and outcomes. These decisions are taken by the local clinicians, who are best placed to act for the benefit of their patients.

January 1, 2023
Natalie McGarry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Natalie McGarry on 2016-09-12.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his Pakistani counterpart on reports of the persecution of Christians and other minorities living in Pakistan.

Alok Sharma

We are concerned about continuing reports of abuses against Christians and other religious minorities in Pakistan. The Government strongly condemns the persecution of all minorities, including the targeting of innocent people based on their religion or beliefs. Our concerns are reflected in the latest update to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office annual human rights report. We regularly raise our concerns about the protection of minority communities, including religious minorities, with the Pakistani Government at a senior level. In April, the previous Foreign Secretary, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Philip Hammond), raised the importance of safeguarding the rights of all minorities with Sartaj Aziz, Advisor to the Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs. It is encouraging that the Government of Pakistan has enacted legislation to protect religious minority groups. The United Kingdom continues to urge Pakistan to honour in practice its human rights obligations, including those related to religious minorities, and to uphold the rule of law.

January 1, 2023
Gordon Marsden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gordon Marsden on 2016-10-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 12 September 2016 to Question 45104, when her Department plans to publish its final policy on apprenticeship funding reforms.

Robert Halfon

We will be publishing details of our final funding policy for apprenticeships in England from May 2017 shortly.

January 1, 2023
Alan Whitehead – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alan Whitehead on 2015-11-06.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, whether she plans to bring forward legislative proposals that hydraulic fracturing cannot be conducted from wells that are drilled at the surface of sensitive areas.

Andrea Leadsom

On 4 November 2015, the Government set out proposals to ensure that hydraulic fracturing cannot be conducted from wells drilled at the surface of specified protected areas.¹ The proposed restrictions would be delivered through the inclusion of a licence condition in new Petroleum Exploration and Development Licences (PEDLs) and the development of a policy statement designed to inform the approval process for programmes submitted for approval under existing PEDLs.

The proposals are now subject to consultation with key stakeholders, including the industry and non-governmental organisations.

[1] https://www.gov.uk/guidance/oil-and-gas-licensing-rounds#surface-development-restrictions

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January 1, 2023
Lord Eames – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Eames on 2015-12-07.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government when the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Theresa Villiers, briefed Peers and MPs on the Northern Ireland political agreement prior to her statement to the House of Commons on 19 November and whether all, or any, Northern Ireland-based Members of both Houses were invited to attend.

Lord Dunlop

There was no briefing for Peers or MP’s prior to the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland’s Statement to the House of Commons on Thursday 19 November.

An invitation to the briefing on the Northern Ireland (Welfare Reform) Bill held on Monday 23 November was circulated electronically to all Peers via the Usual Channels.

January 1, 2023
Greg Mulholland – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2016-01-18.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how much funding his Department has given to the Hospitality Guild for creating centres of excellence in Asian cookery.

Nick Boles

The ‘Centres of Excellence in Asian Cookery’ pilots were organised by People 1^st, which was operating on behalf of the Hospitality Guild, which received funding from the UK Commission for Employment and Skills (UKCES) through their grant with BIS. People 1^streported that during the period of the pilot (October 2011 to September 2013), 79 people started training at the Centres of Excellence for Asian and Oriental cuisine, out of which 46 completed the pre-employment course, 22 completed work experience and 7 moved onto an apprenticeship.

£205,961 was provided to fund the Asian Cookery campaign. In total, UKCES allocated £1,745,785 to create the Hospitality Guild and to promote skills training, apprenticeships and innovation in the hospitality industry through a range of measures. These included apprenticeships as chefs, baristas, bar staff and hotel management, training provider accreditation, work placements and launching the Hospitality Guild Portal where careers tools, an employer guide and a vacancy matching service can be accessed.

January 1, 2023
Neil Coyle – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Neil Coyle on 2016-02-04.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what evidence her Department has received from the Migration Advisory Committee on whether nurses should remain on the Government’s Shortage Occupation List.

James Brokenshire

The Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) has not yet submitted its advice on whether nurses should remain on the Shortage Occupation List. The MAC will publish the report shortly after it is submitted to the Government. We will consider the findings carefully before making any final decision.

January 1, 2023
Paul Flynn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Attorney General

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Flynn on 2016-03-01.

To ask the Attorney General, what criteria he uses when deciding whether to make public legal advice made available to Government; and on what occasions such legal advice has been made public since May 2015.

Jeremy Wright

It is a longstanding constitutional convention, set out in the Cabinet Manual and the Ministerial Code, that the fact that the Law Officers have advised or have not advised, and the content of their advice, must not be disclosed without their authority. The convention exists for fundamental constitutional reasons and to promote the public interest in the Rule of Law. Whether the Law Officers have advised and the content of that advice is part of the collective Cabinet decision-making process. The convention reflects the public interest in collective Cabinet responsibility. It also reflects the fact that Law Officers’ advice is confidential legal advice and, as with all professional legal advice, it is subject to legal professional privilege. In addition, it acknowledges the feature of Law Officers’ advice which sets it apart from other legal advice, namely that it is sought in relation to issues of particular complexity, sensitivity and constitutional importance. It is a matter of constitutional importance that the provision of advice in these circumstances should be protected in the public interest.

A decision to disclose would require an exceptional countervailing public interest. No such case has arisen since May 2015.

January 1, 2023
Imran Hussain – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Imran Hussain on 2016-04-08.

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what final estimate of damage in the Yorkshire and Humber region caused by recent flooding his Department has provided to the EU Commission.

James Wharton

The UK Government submitted an initial application to the European Union Solidarity Fund on Friday 26 February which included a provisional estimate of the costs of direct damage incurred by storms Desmond and Eva. We are in the process of refining our cost estimations and figures, and will update Parliament once the application is finalised.

January 1, 2023

Tulip Siddiq – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tulip Siddiq on 2016-05-03.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, of the Consent Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) submitted to the National Crime Agency in each year since 2011-12, how many involved suspected contraventions of (a) the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 and (b) Part 3 of the Terrorism Act 2000; and how many Consent SAR requests in each such category were permitted because they were not responded to within the seven-day time limit.

Mr John Hayes

The below table provides figures on the number of Suspicious Activity Reports received by the National Crime Agency (NCA) between October 2011 and September 2015 which requested consent under Part 7 of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (POCA) and Part 3 of the Terrorism Act 2000 (TACT). The table also includes figures on the number of consent requests where the reporter received no reply from the NCA.

	POCA Total Consent Requests	POCA – No Reply within 7 Days	TACT Total Consent Requests	TACT – No Reply within 7 Days
Oct 2011 – Sept 2012	12915	10	75	Nil
Oct 2012 – Sept 2013	14103	8	77	Nil
Oct 2013 – Sept 2014	14155	7	102	Nil
Oct 2014 – Sept 2015	14672	110	198	Nil

January 1, 2023