The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Bassam of Brighton on 2016-02-02.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the estimated reduction in the number of local authority right-to-buy applications annually as a result of the introduction of fixed-term tenancies.
Baroness Williams of Trafford
The Right to Buy will continue to apply to new fixed-term tenancies as it already does to flexible tenancies. Tenants will still be able to fulfil their aspirations of owning their own home.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2016-02-29.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he made prior to his announcement in the Autumn Statement 2015 of the effect on VAT receipts of changes to personal injury law and procedure; and if he will make a statement.
Mr David Gauke
It is too early to say what the impact will be since there is still work in progress. The Government will consult on the detail of the new reforms in due course. The consultation will be accompanied by an impact assessment.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Murray on 2016-04-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of assessment reports conducted by contractors for Scottish claimants of (a) employment and support allowance and (b) personal independence payments were returned by his Department as not being of a sufficient standard to enable a decision to be made in each of the last four quarters for which information is available.
Priti Patel
In each of the last four quarters for which information is available, less than 0.1% of all Employment and Support Allowance and less than 0.1% of all Personal Independent Payment assessment reports completed in Scotland have been returned to the provider for rework, meaning that the report has been deemed not fit for purpose by the Department.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julie Cooper on 2016-04-27.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential effect of the Government’s plan to make every school an academy on nursery school education.
Mr Sam Gyimah
The government has confirmed that the expectation that all schools will become academies by 2020 does not include the early years.
We know that close working between primary schools – whether they are academies or maintained schools – and nursery schools is essential to improving pupils’ transition to Reception. We would expect those excellent local relationships that already exist to continue, regardless of whether the school is an academy or not.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Lucas on 2016-06-10.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much funding for children and young people with special educational needs was allocated to East Sussex local authority area through the dedicated schools grant in each of the last three years.
Mr Sam Gyimah
Funding for children and young people with special educational needs (SEN) is allocated to local authorities through the dedicated schools grant (DSG), which includes both funding to be delegated to mainstream schools, and funding for the additional costs associated with educating children and young people with high needs.
The Department does not allocate specific amounts of funding for children and young people with SEN within the funding allocated to local authorities for their mainstream schools. Schools are funded through a formula set by their local authority, and local authorities are required to delegate funds to a level that enables schools to meet the additional costs of pupils with SEN, up to £6,000 per annum. For those pupils whose additional support costs more than £6,000 the local authority pays top-up funding to the schools from their high needs budget.
East Sussex County Council’s high needs allocation, within the dedicated schools grant, in each of the last three years was as follows:
2015-16: £44.06 million
2014-15: £42.82 million
2013-14: £40.94 million
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve Reed on 2016-09-06.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to reduce the funding gap between research spending on adult autism and other health conditions.
Nicola Blackwood
The Department’s National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including adult autism. These applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the potential impact of the proposal on patients and health and care services, value for money and scientific quality. In all disease areas, the amount of NIHR funding depends on the volume and quality of scientific activity.
Research currently funded by the NIHR includes a £0.8 million study entitled Supporting adults with high functioning autism and asperger syndrome: mapping and evaluating specialist autism team service models, and a £0.4 million study of guided self-help for depression in adults with autism spectrum disorders.
The Department’s Policy Research Programme has recently funded a project which aimed to synthesise both research evidence relevant to low-level support for people with high functioning autism and information on current practice and service provision in England. This research was undertaken by the Centre for Reviews and Dissemination, University of York and the Social Science Research Unit, Institute of Education, University College London.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Diana Johnson on 2016-10-18.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether UK projects earmarked for EU funding in 2019-20 under the EU’s 2014-2020 budget cycle will continue to receive such funds should the UK formally leave the EU in 2019.
Mr David Gauke
The Treasury has provided a guarantee for multi-year funds that may carry over after exit where they meet UK priorities and value for money criteria.
The Treasury has also guaranteed all direct, competitively bid projects between UK organisations and the European Commission signed before we leave the EU, and the current level of direct payments to farmers until 2020.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2015-11-04.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what estimate he has made of the number of Syrian children in Europe who are (a) vulnerable to trafficking and (b) unaccompanied.
Mr Philip Hammond
As of 2 November the number of people arriving in Europe had reached 745,229 according to the UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency. Of these 149,045 are children, including around 79,000 Syrian children. Humanitarian organisations are expecting that, given the rate of arrivals, a total of 225,000 children will need assistance between September and December 2015. All of these are considered to be vulnerable to trafficking and exploitation.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mims Davies on 2015-12-03.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the drugs advice provided by FRANK in tackling use of illegal drugs.
Mike Penning
FRANK, the Government’s drugs information and advice service, is run by Public Health England. It provides impartial, reliable and confidential information and advice about drugs. It can be used in both specific drug prevention activities and in general health and wellbeing activities which are designed to help individuals to build and develop the skills they need to be able to actively choose not to use drugs.
The last assessment of the website was run by the Home Office through the website user survey between 20 February – 11 March 2013. Key findings included:
• 85% said they are very/fairly likely to visit the FRANK website in the future if needed
• in total, 69% claimed that their visit to the FRANK website had a positive effect on their attitudes and/or behaviours in at least one way
FRANK continues to be updated to reflect new and emerging patterns of drug use, remain in line with young people’s media habits and strengthen situational advice and support. FRANK is just one part of our approach to reducing the demand for drugs. For example, Public Health England has launched a new online resilience building resource, ‘Rise Above’, aimed at 11- to 16-year-olds, which provides tools to help develop skills to make positive choices for their health, including avoiding drug use.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Percy on 2016-01-14.
To ask the Leader of the House, how many defibrillators are provided in each building his Office manages.
Chris Grayling
The Office of the Leader of the House of Commons does not directly manage any buildings.