UKPOL.CO.UK

Category: Speeches

  • Margaret Ferrier – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Margaret Ferrier – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Margaret Ferrier on 2016-06-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, whether he plans to raise the national living wage to the same rate as the living wage set by the Living Wage Foundation.

    Nick Boles

    The Government’s ambition is for the National Living Wage to reach 60% of median earnings by 2020 – which would currently be around £9 per hour. The Government has asked the Low Pay Commission to recommend the National Living Wage rate going forward.

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

    Oliver Dowden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Oliver Dowden on 2016-09-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if the Government will consider setting up a system of Finnish-style care packages for elderly people leaving hospital and going into care homes.

    David Mowat

    Despite a welcome shift towards more care provision in community settings, our ageing population means a growing number of people require care in care and nursing homes, with an increasing level of acuity and complexity of need.

    The Enhanced Health in Care Homes vanguards, implemented by NHS England, are beginning to show how addressing this inequity in access to services can reduce unnecessary, unplanned and avoidable admissions to hospital, shorten the length of hospital stays and improve peoples’ quality of life, wellbeing and clinical outcomes.

    NHS England is also leading the multi-agency Community Services and Hospital Discharge programme, which will deliver a series of interventions to transform community services and improve discharge of older people from hospital. These include initiatives such as “discharge to assess”, which will increase the number of patients who are discharged quickly and safely to their usual place of residence.

    The Department is not aware of a clothing grant for people who enter care homes and is therefore unable to consider reinstatement. Where a local authority arranges care and support to meet an adult’s eligible needs, it may charge them. Where care is arranged in a care home, a local authority must not, through charges, reduce the adult’s income below the Personal Expenses Allowance of £24.90 per week.

    The allowance means that local authority supported care home residents have money to spend as they wish on personal items, including clothing. It must not be spent on meeting their eligible care needs.

    Local authorities have discretion to be more generous where they think this would be appropriate.

  • Andrew Stephenson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Andrew Stephenson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Stephenson on 2015-11-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the proportion of people eligible for the Class 3A Voluntary National Insurance Contribution Scheme that have signed up to that scheme.

    Justin Tomlinson

    We do not hold application data for the State Pension top up (Class 3A) at a regional or constituency level. To obtain this would incur a disproportionate cost. Across the UK we have received 3193 applications for State Pension top up (Class 3A) in the scheme’s first 3 weeks.

    Up to c. 12m individuals are eligible for the scheme depending upon personal circumstances. In the first 3 weeks of operation there were 3193 applications for State Pension top up (Class 3A).

  • Jim Cunningham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Jim Cunningham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2015-12-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment his Department has made the effectiveness and reliability of small arms equipment issued as standard across the armed forces; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    The effectiveness of small arms is regularly reviewed, with current performance routinely compared to other equipment used by military peers and developed by industry. The requirement for small arms to achieve defined levels of reliability is set prior to procurement and tested prior to purchase. Equipment already in service is continually reviewed, with any emerging issues investigated to resolution.

  • Baroness Gould of Potternewton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Baroness Gould of Potternewton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Gould of Potternewton on 2016-01-20.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether there has been an increase in the rate of abortions among women over the age of 24 since 2010, and if so, what assessment they have made of the cause.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    We have made no such assessment.

    Rates of abortions for women aged 25 and over, England, 2010-2014

    Year

    Rate per thousand women

    2014

    13.72

    2013

    13.43

    2012

    12.97

    2011

    13.30

    2010

    12.82

    Source: Office for National Statistics

  • Ian Austin – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Ian Austin – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Austin on 2016-02-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate she has made of the amount of EU funding her Department received in each of the last three years.

    Mr Sam Gyimah

    For the period December 2013 to July 2015 (2007-2013 European Social Fund programme extended to 2015), £71 million of ring fenced European Social Fund monies was available to provide support for young people aged 14-19 who were not in education, employment or training or, who were at risk of being so. The funding was administered by the Skills Funding Agency on behalf of the Education Funding Agency.

  • 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 2016-03-03.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, pursuant to the Answer of 23 February 2016 to Question 26815, what the job titles are of those people in receipt of paid car allowances.

    Andrea Leadsom

    Please note: this list excludes those in receipt of the essential car user allowance (29 people as of 23 February). This is allocated to those that require considerable business travel at a particular point in time, where a car is the most appropriate and cost efficient form of transport. The job titles will therefore vary.

    The job titles of those in receipt of paid car allowances are in the attached.

  • David Mackintosh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    David Mackintosh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Mackintosh on 2016-04-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if his Department will make plans to provide the Housing Ombudsman service with greater powers to deal with complaints from members of the public.

    Brandon Lewis

    There are no current plans to provide the Housing Ombudsman Service with greater powers.

  • Rachel Reeves – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Rachel Reeves – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rachel Reeves on 2016-05-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how much new funding has been given to SMEs across the West Yorkshire Combined Authority to develop their workforces since the publication of the Long-Term Economic Plan for Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire in February 2015.

    Anna Soubry

    The Leeds City Region Skills Service has, to date, supported 620 businesses, with 3,300 pieces of training completed and 1,595 more underway. The value of this support to SMEs is £2.12m.

    In 2016/17 the Skills Service is expected to support skills diagnostics for 800 businesses, help 1,100 SMEs to offer apprenticeships and upskill 5,600 employees.

    Grants between £500 and £50,000 are available to match business investments in workforce training.

  • Gareth Thomas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Gareth Thomas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gareth Thomas on 2016-06-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether his Department has plans in the next three years to stop flights into or out of RAF Northolt to enable work to reinforce or rebuild the runway at that base; and if he will make a statement.

    Mark Lancaster

    Plans are being considered to reinforce the aerodrome operating surfaces at RAF Northolt in that timescale, and to introduce improvements to the safety zones at either end of the runway with an engineered material arresting system. However, until the scope of works is fully defined, we are not in a position to identify what impact these planned works may have on flying activity at RAF Northolt.