Blog

  • Douglas Chapman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Douglas Chapman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Chapman on 2016-01-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) establishment and (b) strength personnel of (i) 6 SCOTS and (ii) 7 SCOTS have failed a medical in each year from 2012 to 2015.

    Mr Julian Brazier

    Army medicals result in the allocation of a graded "medical deployability standard" reflecting those active roles for which personnel are declared fit. It is not a simple pass or fail. Unlike their regular counterparts, Army Reserve personnel do not undertake annual medical assessments. The only mandatory medicals are during the recruitment process and during mobilisation. The medical care of Reserve personnel lies with their General Practitioners and the National Health Service unless they are mobilised at which point the medical care responsibility transfers to the Defence Medical Services.

  • Tristram Hunt – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Tristram Hunt – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tristram Hunt on 2016-01-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many jobs in (a) his Department and (b) each of its non-departmental public bodies, executive agencies, non-ministerial departments, advisory bodies and other accountable statutory bodies (i) have been abolished or relocated from Stoke-on-Trent since 2010 and (ii) will be abolished in or relocated from Stoke-on-Trent by 2020.

    Mark Lancaster

    This information is not held in the format requested.

    In April 2010 there were 20 Ministry of Defence (MOD) civilian personnel employed at locations within the Unitary Authority of Stoke-on-Trent; in October 2015 there were 10. All numbers are rounded.

    Full details of how the planned reductions in MOD civilian staff numbers announced in the Strategic Defence and Security Review will be profiled over the next five years are not yet available and will be developed as programmes mature.

  • Liz Kendall – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Liz Kendall – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Liz Kendall on 2016-01-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many people of each gender work in his Department.

    Mark Lancaster

    The requested information, as at 1 October 2015, is provided below:

    Male

    Female

    UK Regular Armed Forces

    136,750

    15,400

    Future Reserves 2020 Volunteer Reserve

    28,740

    4,540

    Ministry of Defence core civilian personnel

    22,140

    14,970

    Full analyses of UK Armed Forces and Ministry of Defence civilian diversity statistics are published on a regular basis and can be found at the following links:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/uk-armed-forces-biannual-diversity-statistics-2015

    https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/mod-civilian-personnel-quarterly-report-2015

    “

  • Liz Kendall – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Liz Kendall – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Liz Kendall on 2016-01-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many people of each gender work in his Department.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    Information relating to gender distribution in government departments is collated by the Office for National Statistics and published under the Annual Civil Service Employment Survey each year. The number of each gender working in DCMS is:

    Gender

    Headcount

    %

    Male

    220

    46

    Female

    260

    54

    Total

    480

  • Jim Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Jim Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-01-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what representations his Department has received from professional football teams in England and Wales on the potential introduction of safe-standing facilities at higher tier sports stadia in the last year; and if he will make a statement.

    Tracey Crouch

    Representations have been received from one League One club, Peterborough United, and from Grimsby Town in the National League about the possible introduction of safe standing accommodation at their respective grounds.

    The Minister for Sport has also met Andrew R T Davies, Leader of the Conservative Party at the Welsh Assembly to discuss the possibility of a safe standing pilot in Wales.

  • Tristram Hunt – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Tristram Hunt – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tristram Hunt on 2016-01-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many jobs in (a) his Department and (b) each of its non-departmental public bodies, executive agencies, non-ministerial departments, advisory bodies and other accountable statutory bodies (i) have been abolished or relocated from Stoke-on-Trent since 2010 and (ii) will be abolished in or relocated from Stoke-on-Trent by 2020.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    The Department has had no offices in the area in the timeframe.

  • Callum McCaig – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Callum McCaig – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Callum McCaig on 2016-01-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of devolving to the Scottish Parliament all aspects of (a) gaming and betting legislation, (b) including curbing the terminals’ speed of play and maximum stakes for fixed-odds betting terminals and (c) other regulation of fixed-odds betting terminals.

    Tracey Crouch

    The Scotland Bill will give the Scottish Parliament and Scottish Ministers the power to vary the number of sub-category B2 gaming machines (FOBTs) permitted by new betting premises licences. The UK Government will retain the equivalent powers on FOBTs for the rest of the UK, except for Northern Ireland where gambling is a devolved matter.

  • Callum McCaig – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Callum McCaig – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Callum McCaig on 2016-01-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if he will commission independent research on the effect of fixed-odds betting terminals on the health of their users and on the communities in which they are prevalent.

    Tracey Crouch

    The Responsible Gambling Strategy Board (RGSB), was set up to by the Gambling Commission to advise on priorities for research relating to responsible gambling. Research into gambling related harm is commissioned by the independent charity, the Responsible Gambling Trust (RGT), taking into account the priorities set out by the RGSB. At the request of the RGSB, the RGT is currently commissioning research to define Gambling Related Harm which will consider the wider health impacts of problem gambling. The Government continues to encourage such research.

  • Alan Brown – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Alan Brown – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alan Brown on 2016-01-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what plans he has to bring forward proposals to ensure service level agreement requirements incorporated into broadband supplier contracts with their customers ensure a reasonable minimum speed of download is maintained and commensurate with the advertised product.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    The Ofcom Code of Pratice on Broadband Speeds, effective from October 2015, requires internet service providers (ISPs) to give customers clear and accurate information on home broadband speeds, including the maximum speeds they can achieve, the estimated speed on the customer’s line, and factors that may slow down the speed, such as any fair use or traffic management policies.

    ISPs must have systems in place to find the cause of speed problems, take steps to fix any issue they are responsible for, and explain to customers if they can do anything to improve the situation. As a result of the October 2015 revised code, customers can terminate contracts at any time without penalty if they receive speeds significantly below the ‘minimum guaranteed access line speed’; previously customers could only terminate within the first three months.

  • Fiona Bruce – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Fiona Bruce – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Fiona Bruce on 2016-01-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, after how long it is his policy to take action when a local planning authority has not produced a playing pitch strategy; and what powers his Department has to taken such action after that period.

    Tracey Crouch

    Sport England, which helps local authorities develop and implement Playing Pitch Strategies to protect existing playing fields as well as meet future demand, recommends that the strategy should be updated every three years. In its role as statutory consultee, Sport England also monitors the number of planning applications that have an impact on playing fields and objects where it believes local sports provision could be harmed. As set out in our sports strategy, published last month, this Government is committed to improving the quality of community sports facilities.