The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Empey on 2014-06-10.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government when they expect Lady Justice Hallett’s inquiry into the on the runs” administrative scheme to be published.”
Baroness Randerson
While Lady Justice Hallett is making good progress on her report, she has informed the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland that it will not be ready for publication until shortly after the 30 June deadline.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Howard of Rising on 2014-06-10.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how much money was repaid to taxpayers as a result of overcharging by HM Revenue and Customs in each of 2009–10, 2010–11, 2011–12 and 2012–13.
Lord Deighton
The information is not available as HM Revenue and Customs does not collect information on amounts underpaid or overpaid.
For many of the taxes that HM Revenue and Customs is responsible for such as income tax and corporation tax, taxpayers are required by law to make payments on account before the ultimate tax liability for the year is known. This can result in overpayments, in which case the taxpayer would be due a refund once the final liability was known. But it can also result in underpayments, in which case HMRC would seek to collect the additional amount owed.
In either case, interest may be due to HMRC or to the taxpayer according to the statutory rates.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Adonis on 2014-06-09.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many apprenticeship starts there were in public sector employers in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013 respectively in total and for each apprenticeship framework; for each year, how many were in (1) central government, and (2) local government, in total; and for each year and type of public sector employer, how many of those apprentices were aged (a) 16–18, (b) 19–24, or (c) over 25, when starting their apprenticeship.
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
We do not separately measure the number of apprenticeship starts in the public and private sector.
Information on the number of Apprenticeship starts by Sector Subject Area is published in a supplementary table to a quarterly Statistical First Release (SFR). The latest SFR was published on 27th March 2014 and is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/learner-participation-outcomes-and-level-of-highest-qualification-heldhttps://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/fe-data-library-apprenticeships–2
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 2014-06-09.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the changes to service provision at the Cannock Chase Minor Injuries Unit onemergency departments in Staffordshire and Wolverhampton.
Earl Howe
The reconfiguration of local health services is a matter for the National Health Service. All service changes should be led by clinicians and be in the best interests of patients, not driven from the top down.
We are aware that local general practitioners in Cannock Chase Clinical Commissioning Group are currently developing proposals for the future configuration of the Cannock Chase Minor Injuries Unit. Any proposed service redesign would be subject to public consultation in due course. No decisions on the future of the unit have been made yet.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Taylor of Warwick on 2014-06-09.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they are taking to protect vulnerable people from radicalisation.
Lord Taylor of Holbeach
Prevent, which is a key strand of the Government’s counter-terrorism strategy, aims to stop people becoming terrorists or supporting terrorism. The Prevent strategy, which was revised in 2011, now covers all forms of extremism where it creates an environment conducive to terrorism.
The Prevent strategy has three objectives: respond to the ideological challenge of terrorism and the threat we face from those who promote it; prevent people from being drawn into terrorism and ensuring that they are given appropriate advice and support; and work with sectors and institutions where there are risks of radicalisation that we need to address.
Frontline staff have a significant role to play. We have produced a training tool, ‘Workshop to Raise Awareness of Prevent’ (WRAP), which teaches staff how to recognise people who may be vulnerable to radicalisation and how to refer people who may need support to our Channel programme.
Channel is a key element of the Prevent strategy, and was rolled out nationally in April 2012. It uses existing collaboration between local authorities, the police, the local community and statutory partners (such as the education and health sectors, social services, children’s and youth services, and offender management services), to identify individuals at risk of being drawn into terrorism, assess the nature and extent of that risk; and develop the most appropriate support plan for the individuals concerned.
Since roll-out, over 2000 Channel referrals have been received, and over 300 people offered support. We are working to increase awareness of Channel, particularly among public sector frontline staff, in order to maximise the number of appropriate referrals.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by (3) the release of prisoners held for political reasons on 2014-06-09.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they and the European Union have made to the government of Turkey concerning (1) attacks on and imprisonment of journalists, including the deaths of staff of Özgür Gündem”
Baroness Warsi
We recognise the concerns over the specific cases raised in the question. Although we have not made representations on those specific cases, together with our EU partners, we continue to have a frequent and comprehensive dialogue with the Turkish authorities on human rights and Kurdish issues.
The attacks on and imprisonment of Kurdish journalists and lawyers reflects the wider issue of the need to protect fundamental freedoms in Turkey. We share the concerns of the Council of Europe, the OSCE and the EU Commission over freedom of expression and separation of powers between the judiciary and the government. We will continue to work closely with the EU delegation in Ankara and with the EU Commission in Brussels and maintain our engagement with Turkey to encourage progress on governance and human rights issues.
Despite these challenges, we are encouraged by the positive steps taken by the Turkish government to improve protections for minorities. The EU Commission’s 2013 Annual Progress Report recognised the significance of the 4th Judicial Reform and Democratization Packages and specifically the progress made on the reform of the legal framework for terrorist offences. Further narrowing of the scope of this legal framework would aid the development of a genuinely open and free press.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gregory Campbell on 2014-06-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what representations he has received on fracking in 2014.
Michael Fallon
My rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State has received a number of representations on various aspects of hydraulic fracturing.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Philip Davies on 2014-06-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prisoners in an open prison have previously breached a licence condition while released on temporary licence.
Jeremy Wright
Keeping the public safe is our priority. That is why this Government has taken action on both releases on temporary licence (ROTL) and absconds from prison.
We commissioned a fundamental review of ROTL policy and practice last year and, in March, announced a package of measures to ensure that the public was properly protected. We have brought forward some of those measures so that they take effect immediately; particularly with more serious offenders, where the review concluded that an enhanced risk assessment approach should be taken.
Absconds have reached record lows under this Government but each incident is taken seriously. Immediate changes have already been ordered to tighten up the system as a matter of urgency. Prisoners will no longer be transferred to open conditions or allowed out on temporary release if they have previously absconded.
My officials are currently working to provide the information requested. I will write to you in due course.
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Clive Betts on 2014-06-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to improve patient choice and reduce avoidable harm for people with advanced Parkinson’s.
Norman Lamb
From April 2013, NHS England assumed responsibility for commissioning adult specialist neurosciences services, including the majority of services for patients with Parkinson’s disease, with some being the responsibility of clinical commissioning groups.
NHS England has advised that it does not routinely fund Duodopa (co-careldopa) for the treatment of Parkinson’s disease. Clinicians can submit individual funding requests for this treatment on behalf of their patients as per NHS England’s individual funding requests standard operating procedure, which is found at the following link:
www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/cp-04.pdf
NHS England has advised that its individual funding request process is monitored against the standard operating procedure to ensure that referring clinicians are informed of outcomes in a timely manner.
Treatments for Parkinson’s are largely drug based and there is a choice of therapies available. Parkinson’s disease: Diagnosis and management in primary and secondary care, published by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence in 2006, makes it clear that communication with people with Parkinson’s disease should be aimed towards empowering them to participate in the judgements and choices about their own care. With regard to decisions about the drugs available for treatment of the disease in its later stages, the guidance states that the patient preference should be taken into account, once they have been informed of the short- and long-term benefits and drawbacks of the different types of drugs available.
To reduce avoidable harm, through the Mandate we have asked NHS England to make measurable progress by 2015 to embed a culture of patient safety in the NHS including through improved reporting of incidents. The NHS Outcomes Framework contains a range of indicators designed to measure progress in this area of care which will be relevant to patients with all conditions, including, Parkinson’s disease.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Greatrex on 2014-06-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate she has made of the number of passport applications submitted in each month since June 2010; and how many such applications were processed within three weeks of receipt.
James Brokenshire
The table below gives the requested information.
|
Month |
Number of straightforward applications |
Number processed within 3 weeks |
|
Jan-13 |
315,467 |
315,424 |
|
Feb-13 |
368,035 |
368,003 |
|
Mar-13 |
343,103 |
343,097 |
|
Apr-13 |
384,487 |
384,477 |
|
May-13 |
420,209 |
420,204 |
|
Jun-13 |
421,757 |
421,755 |
|
Jul-13 |
388,781 |
388,770 |
|
Aug-13 |
285,055 |
285,050 |
|
Sep-13 |
231,979 |
231,971 |
|
Oct-13 |
207,083 |
207,079 |
|
Nov-13 |
179,323 |
179,312 |
|
Dec-13 |
115,461 |
115,448 |
|
Jan-14 |
274,120 |
274,097 |
|
Feb-14 |
360,087 |
359,997 |
|
Mar-14 |
406,736 |
406,517 |
|
Apr-14 |
416,591 |
414,882 |
|
May-14 |
376,403 |
347,256 |