Category: Speeches

  • Helen Hayes – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Helen Hayes – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Helen Hayes on 2016-05-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what estimate she has made of how many UK solar companies have gone out of business or stopped installing solar PV as a result of policy changes made since May 2015.

    Andrea Leadsom

    We recognise the efforts the solar industry is making to adapt following those changes; changes that we had to make to protect billpayers from the ever-increasing costs of support.

    We are encouraged by the way the industry is responding: deployment of solar under the revised FIT scheme continues, at rates that match those seen historically following revisions to the scheme.

    We expect that deployment will increase further as costs continue to fall, and the industry acclimatizes to the new system.

  • Oliver Colvile – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Oliver Colvile – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Oliver Colvile on 2016-07-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if his Department will encourage Northern, Eastern and Western Devon Clinical Commissioning Group to commission a minor eye conditions service in Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport constituency.

    Alistair Burt

    General practitioners (GPs), working with secondary care consultants, nurses and lay members, are best placed to co-ordinate the commissioning of high quality care for their patients. They ensure that commissioning decisions are underpinned by clinical insight and knowledge of local health care needs.

    Clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) have the freedom and autonomy to take responsibility for meeting the needs of local patients and the public by working closely with secondary care, other health and care professionals and with community partners to design joined up services. As such, while CCGs are led by primary care professionals, they are also guided by the expertise of other local clinicians.

    The current commissioning arrangements encourage innovation by placing commissioning with those who know patients best and are aware of the latest clinical evidence and technological advances in health and care.

    NHS England advises that Northern, Eastern and Western Devon CCG have no imminent plans to commission a specific minor eye conditions service at this time. CCGs are also able to commission services from local optometrists to provide treatment for minor eye conditions if they feel that is necessary to meet local needs.

    Those concerned they may have a minor eye condition can visit their GP, optical practice or pharmacy.

  • Baroness Altmann – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Baroness Altmann – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Altmann on 2016-09-13.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what estimate they have made of the percentage of pension scams in the UK that (1) originate overseas, and (2) are initiated by UK-based firms.

    Lord Freud

    The Government has not made an estimate of the geographic origin of pension scams. Scams are often complex in nature and those reported to Action Fraud as taking place in the UK may have originated elsewhere.

  • Alex Cunningham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Alex Cunningham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2015-11-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the effect of the starter homes policy on access to (a) home ownership and (b) affordable rented accommodation in (i) London and the South East and (ii) England.

    Brandon Lewis

    Evidence shows that young first time buyers have been priced out of home ownership. Since the early 1990s, the proportion of under 40s who are homeowners in England has declined by over a third from 62% in 1993/4 to 39% in 2013/14. The Housing and Planning Bill will require local planning authorities to promote Starter Homes and ensure Starter Homes are included on all suitable, reasonably-sized developments in future.

  • Tulip Siddiq – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Tulip Siddiq – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tulip Siddiq on 2015-12-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what progress has been made by (a) his Department and (b) NHS commissioners to ensure NHS services in England are meeting the six inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) standards set out by the IBD Standards Board in the 2013 Board Report; and if he will make a statement.

    Jane Ellison

    The six inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) standards were published in 2013 by the IBD standards group, an independent organisation made up of a number of clinical professional organisations and the charity Crohn’s and Colitis UK. The standards were designed to support clinicians, commissioning organisations in developing IBD services locally and may be considered, if appropriate, alongside sources of guidance, such as the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE).

    In February 2015, NICE published a Quality Standard (QS) for IBD. As part of the QS development process, the IBD Standards Group and other related organisations submitted evidence to help shape the four Quality Statements which constitute the QS. The NICE QSs are important in setting out to patients, the public, commissioners and providers the key elements of what a high quality service should look like in a particular area of care.

  • Richard Benyon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Richard Benyon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Benyon on 2016-01-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential effect on school budgets of the National Living Wage.

    Mr Sam Gyimah

    We want to reward people in work, so we are introducing a national living wage in April 2016 which raises the current minimum rate by 50p per hour. Over a million workers will benefit directly from the increase, many by up to £900 a year.

    Some of those workers are employed in our schools. We will be expecting schools, like all employers, to manage the change within their budgets. To help them do that, we have protected the core schools budget, including the pupil premium, and we have ensured that the extra £390 million allocated in 2015-16 remains in the baseline for future years. Throughout this Parliament we will increase the amount of money for our schools as pupil numbers rise, protecting the total budget in real terms.

    We have committed to target this funding more fairly by introducing a national funding formula. With a fair formula we will be able to fund schools based on their individual needs, so that they can manage cost pressures effectively and make informed decisions about what is best for them and their pupils in the long term. This fairer system will mean schools can keep driving up educational standards while managing their budgets.

  • Kate Hollern – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Kate Hollern – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kate Hollern on 2016-02-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the (a) details of contractor, (b) scope, (c) value and (d) cost overrun from the original estimate are of contracts awarded for the Successor Trident programme.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    The Ministry of Defence manages a wide range of contracts to support the Successor submarine programme. The information requested is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

  • Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-03-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 7 March 2016 to Question 29565, what criteria will be applied to determine whether the Jobcentre Plus support for schools initiative should be rolled out more widely.

    Priti Patel

    To determine the wider roll out of Jobcentre Plus Support for Schools, DWP will undertake an evaluation of the pathfinder activity in Autumn 2016 using programme data and a qualitative research study.

    The evaluation criteria will include assessing the demand for JCP support from schools, the level of employer engagement with schools being generated, work experience opportunities being brokered through the programme and schools perceiving the programme to have value in providing a more rounded career guidance offer to pupils – in particular those at highest risk of becoming NEET.

  • Baroness Howe of Idlicote – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Baroness Howe of Idlicote – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Howe of Idlicote on 2016-04-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many times payment providers have (1) been asked to block payments to online gambling websites not licensed in the UK, and (2) blocked such payments, since the Gambling (Licensing and Advertising) Act 2014 came into force.

    Baroness Neville-Rolfe

    Since the Gambling (Licensing and Advertising) Act 2014 came into force there have been 11 occasions where the Gambling Commission has asked payment providers to prevent payments to online gambling website operators not licensed in the UK but believed to be transacting with consumers in Great Britain. On all 11 occasions the payment provider either terminated their relationship with the unlicensed operator or took steps to ensure that the unlicensed gambling website was no longer available to consumers in Great Britain.

    In addition, the Gambling Commission are aware of additional instances where payment providers have, of their own initiative, terminated agreements with unlicensed gambling websites transacting with consumers in Great Britain. The Commission are unable to quantify these instances because payment providers are not obliged to report these cases unless the action is instigated by the Commission.

  • Helen Hayes – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Helen Hayes – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Helen Hayes on 2016-05-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of extra reserve capacity in the National Grid in 2016 and 2017.

    Andrea Leadsom

    National Grid has procured 3.6GW of a total volume cap of 3.7GW (de-rated capacity). This is the amount that National Grid calculated in their ‘volume Requirement methodology’ to assess the amount of reserve that would be considered adequate, considering a number of sensitivities. This has been approved by the regulator, Ofgem.