The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Loughton on 2016-09-15.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much in compensation payments has been paid by Network Rail to Govia Thameslink Railway since the start of that franchise.
Paul Maynard
The latest information is published on Network Rail’s website – http://www.networkrail.co.uk/transparency/datasets/ – covering the years 2011-12 to 2014-15.
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Royston Smith on 2016-10-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many grammar schools have sought to end selective admissions under sections 104 to 109 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998.
Nick Gibb
The Department does not routinely collect data on significant changes to schools but we are not aware of any grammar schools that have sought to remove selection under the provisions mentioned.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Melanie Onn on 2015-11-05.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will estimate the number of gastroenterology appointments specifically related to Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis that have been cancelled or postponed at the request of an NHS provider in the last 12 months.
Jane Ellison
The information is not held centrally.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2015-12-16.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Answer of 15 December 2015 to Question 19180, how her Department calculates how to allocate refugee support funding to recipient countries; what information her Department holds on how the distribution of that funding is allocated by the recipient country; and if she will make a statement.
Mr Nick Hurd
The UK has allocated £559 million, of an overall £1.12 billion contribution to the Syria crisis response, to support refugees in the region and vulnerable host communities. This includes £304 million in Lebanon, £193 million in Jordan and the remainder across the region. The UK prioritises its assistance according to where needs are greatest and most unmet, guided by assessments including the UN appeals, and the capacity of the host country to absorb refugees.
In line with the key humanitarian principles of neutrality and impartiality, we work with trusted humanitarian partners with experience of operating in fragile and conflict affected states, to ensure that aid is delivered to people on a needs basis. In 2015/16 DFID is working with 18 humanitarian partners in neighbouring countries. These include UN agencies, international organisations, NGOs and civil society organisations.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Pugh on 2016-01-20.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether the Government plans to increase the compensation available to Equitable Life pensioners.
Harriett Baldwin
There are no plans to review the payments made by the Equitable Life Payment Scheme. The Scheme closed to new claims on 31st December 2015. However, the annual payments to With-Profits annuitants will continue unaffected for the duration of their annuity.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Kawczynski on 2016-02-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps the Government is taking to assist vulnerable Syrian minorities register with the UNHCR who have not done so due to fear of persecution.
Mr Desmond Swayne
At the "Supporting Syria and the Region London 2016" Conference on 4 February more than US$11 billion was pledged to support people in Syria and the region affected by the conflict. This is the largest amount raised in one day for a humanitarian crisis. The UK remains at the forefront of the response to the crisis in Syria and the region. We have doubled our commitment and have now pledged a total more than £2.3 billion, our largest ever response to a single humanitarian crisis.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is mandated to lead and coordinate international action to protect refugees. Any person claiming refugee status is able to avail themselves of UNHCR’s global protection mandate where UNHCR has a presence. They can directly approach UNHCR and register with them, or be referred to UNHCR by a third organisation, or UNHCR can ask them to register. The UK has allocated £115 million to UNHCR’s operations in Syria and the surrounding region, of which a proportion is used for registration.
Over time, many previously unregistered refugees have sought UNHCR’s assistance and protection services as their resources have dwindled and coping mechanisms become stretched. Some minority groups may not see a need to register either due to their own resources or due to reliance on community/social networks.
DFID continues to work with the UN and the international community to ensure all minorities’ rights are protected and our aid reaches those in greatest need.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-03-14.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what reports he has had from Highways England on the recent closure of the M5 between Junction 5 and Junction 4A northbound due to a gantry removal; and if he will publish each of those reports on that closure.
Andrew Jones
Highways England is continuing to investigate this incident and the way in which its impact on the road network was managed by the organisation and its contractors. The Secretary of State has been briefed and a review of the incident is being held with local authorities and the emergency services.
Findings and recommendations are currently being prepared by Highways England and these will be shared with the Secretary of State and subsequently published on its website.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Brake on 2016-04-12.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the compliance of the in absentia death sentence handed down to Andy Tsege in Ethiopia with international human rights standards.
James Duddridge
The UK Government is opposed to the death penalty in all circumstances as a matter of principle. We remain deeply concerned about the process by which Mr Andargachew Tsege was detained and his ongoing lack of access to legal counsel. The Foreign Secretary, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond) and I have raised this case repeatedly with our Ethiopian counterparts, which has resulted in frequent consular access to Mr Tsege. We continue to press the Ethiopian government to provide a legal process through which Mr Tsege can challenge his detention, that is consistent with domestic and international law. We will continue to lobby the Ethiopian government until our concerns have been fully addressed.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-05-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many students took science A-levels in each of the last five years; and if she will make a statement.
Nick Gibb
The number of entries in A levels in individual Science[1] subjects in the last five years is published as part of the “A level and other level 3 results: 2014 to 2015 (revised)” statistical first release (SFR).[2]
[1] Includes Biological Sciences, Chemistry, Physics, Other Science and Computing
[2] https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/a-level-and-other-level-3-results-2014-to-2015-revised (“Subject time series tables: SFR03/2016” document)
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-07-13.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies on NHS services provision of the findings in the article entitled, Mental health services, suicide and 7-day working, published in the British Journal of Psychiatry in July 2016, related to suicides at weekends.
Nicola Blackwood
The cross-Government Suicide Prevention Strategy (2012) identifies people under the care of mental health services as a high risk group. We have made significant progress in this area over the last decade with the number of inpatient deaths by suicide reducing by more than half. However, we recognise that the number of suicides in people under the care of mental health services in the community has been increasing.
We have implemented the Mental Health Crisis Care Concordat and now every local area has a crisis care action plan in place. We are also investing an additional £1 billion in mental health over the next five years which includes £290 million to improve perinatal mental health, £247 million to improve liaison mental health services in emergency departments and over £400 million to enable 24/7 treatment in communities as a safe and effective alternative to hospital.
We have accepted the recommendations of the independent Mental Health Taskforce’s Five Year Forward View for Mental Health to reduce the national suicide rate by 10% by 2020/21, local areas to implement multi-agency suicide prevention action plans by 2017 and to take steps so that lessons are learned from all suicides in NHS-funded mental health settings to prevent future deaths.
We will publish the annual progress report to the cross-Government strategy later this year which will set out ways we are strengthening the strategy, including how we can reduce suicides in high risk groups.