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  • Sharon Hodgson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Sharon Hodgson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sharon Hodgson on 2015-12-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions his Department has had with (a) NHS England and (b) Health Education England on recommendation 83 in the Independent Cancer Taskforce’s report entitled, Achieving world-class cancer outcomes, a strategy for England 2015 to 2020, published in July 2015, on producing a workforce review by the end of 2016.

    Jane Ellison

    NHS England is currently working with partners across the health system to determine how best to take forward the recommendations in the independent Cancer Taskforce’s report, Achieving world-class cancer outcomes: a strategy for England 2015 to 2020, and has appointed Cally Palmer CBE as NHS National Cancer Director to lead on managing implementation. She is currently setting up a new Cancer Transformation Board to lead the roll-out of the recommendations of the new strategy, including on workforce, and a Cancer Advisory Group, chaired by Dr Harpal Kumar, Chief Executive of Cancer Research UK, will oversee and scrutinise their work.

    We announced in September that Health Education England (HEE) is developing a new national training programme for an additional 200 staff to get the skills and expertise to carry out endoscopies by 2018. The content of the next mandate from the Government to HEE is currently being determined.

  • Sharon Hodgson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Sharon Hodgson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sharon Hodgson on 2015-12-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, with reference to the Independent Cancer Taskforce’s report entitled, Achieving world-class cancer outcomes, a strategy for England 2015 to 2020, published in July 2015, what (a) short-term and (b) long-term steps he plans to take to ensure that there is (i) sufficient capacity and (ii) the optimal skills mix within the cancer workforce.

    Jane Ellison

    NHS England is currently working with partners across the health system to determine how best to take forward the recommendations in the independent Cancer Taskforce’s report, Achieving world-class cancer outcomes: a strategy for England 2015 to 2020, and has appointed Cally Palmer CBE as NHS National Cancer Director to lead on managing implementation. She is currently setting up a new Cancer Transformation Board to lead the roll-out of the recommendations of the new strategy, including on workforce, and a Cancer Advisory Group, chaired by Dr Harpal Kumar, Chief Executive of Cancer Research UK, will oversee and scrutinise their work.

    We announced in September that Health Education England (HEE) is developing a new national training programme for an additional 200 staff to get the skills and expertise to carry out endoscopies by 2018. The content of the next mandate from the Government to HEE is currently being determined.

  • Lord West of Spithead – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Lord West of Spithead – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord West of Spithead on 2015-12-14.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether there will still be a main gate decision for the Vanguard-class replacements.

    Earl Howe

    In 2016, we expect to approve the next stage of the programme to replace the Vanguard Class submarines and to commit to further investment to demonstrate the ability of the submarine enterprise to deliver the programme to time and cost. Long lead materials procurement continues within the on-going Assessment Phase.

  • Lord West of Spithead – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Lord West of Spithead – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord West of Spithead on 2015-12-14.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, following the Strategic Defence and Security Review 2015 and the revised time and cost estimates to the Trident programme, when the next major orders will be placed for long lead items and hull fabrication.

    Earl Howe

    In 2016, we expect to approve the next stage of the programme to replace the Vanguard Class submarines and to commit to further investment to demonstrate the ability of the submarine enterprise to deliver the programme to time and cost. Long lead materials procurement continues within the on-going Assessment Phase.

  • Lord West of Spithead – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Lord West of Spithead – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord West of Spithead on 2015-12-14.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend, before the Scottish general election, to table a debate in the House of Commons on the decision to build the Vanguard-class replacement.

    Earl Howe

    Her Majesty’s Government has confirmed it will hold a debate in Parliament on the principle of Continuous at Sea Deterrence and our plans for the Successor submarine. A decision on when it will be held will be taken in due course.

  • Lord Laird – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Lord Laird – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Laird on 2015-12-14.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether non-academic employees of a UK university are considered to be public officers for the purposes of misconduct or malfeasance in public office.

    Baroness Neville-Rolfe

    This is a matter of interpretation for the courts to pronounce upon in the context of a relevant case, and it would not be appropriate for the department to provide a general legal opinion.

  • Lord Young of Cookham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Lord Young of Cookham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Young of Cookham on 2015-12-14.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether, following the Spending Review 2015, they have undertaken any analysis of the relationship between the value of business rates collected by local authorities and the local level of deprivation according to the English Indices of Deprivation.

    Baroness Williams of Trafford

    Under the current rates retention scheme, and under the new 100 percent scheme to be introduced by the end of the Parliament, there is, and will continue to be, a measure of redistribution of local tax income. This ensures that those authorities with higher relative spending needs compared to their tax base will receive additional funding through the redistribution mechanism; and means that any comparison of local business rates income and levels of deprivation would be misleading.

  • Lord Young of Cookham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Lord Young of Cookham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Young of Cookham on 2015-12-14.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they intend to reduce smoking within the NHS as part of implementing the radical upgrade in prevention and public health” called for in NHS England’s Five Year Forward View.”

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    Smoking continues to be the leading cause of premature death and health inequality in England, placing a significant burden on the National Health Service.

    The Department remains dedicated to the delivery of effective and robust tobacco control and has committed to developing a new tobacco control strategy to further reduce the prevalence of smoking, working with NHS England and Public Health England (PHE) to identify interventions that will make the best contributions to achieving this.

    Training material and guidance has been developed to support health professionals deliver effective interventions to pregnant women who smoke.

    PHE will continue to support local authorities by developing and distributing information and advice for the commissioning of effective smoking cessation services.

  • Lord Taylor of Warwick – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Lord Taylor of Warwick – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Taylor of Warwick on 2015-12-14.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of why there has not been an improvement in the proportion of female high earners in the UK despite initiatives to reduce the gender pay gap.

    Baroness Williams of Trafford

    New figures released by the Office for National Statistics show that the gender pay gap in the UK remains the lowest on record.

    I am proud of our achievements, but recognise there is still more we must do. To help eliminate the gender pay gap within a generation, we are requiring larger employers to publish information about their gender pay gaps and bonuses. We are also working with business to support and promote Lord Davies’ target of 33% of women on boards in the FTSE 350 by 2020.

    The government is also introducing new regulations that will require larger employers to publish their gender pay gap information. This will encourage companies to take action and drive change on this important issue

  • Lord Taylor of Warwick – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Lord Taylor of Warwick – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Taylor of Warwick on 2015-12-14.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to promote Small Business Saturday.

    Baroness Neville-Rolfe

    The Government is a strong supporter of Small Business Saturday, which was this year held on Saturday December 5. As part of a programme of activity to get behind the event and encourage communities to support their local businesses at a key time in the commercial calendar, the Government worked with Small Business Saturday organisers to hold a flagship market with a diverse range of small companies at HM Treasury. All 21 Government departments were also briefed to raise awareness of the campaign, with many using social media channels to highlight the initiative. In addition, 50 Ministers visited a local business in their area on the day, endorsing the campaign through their own social media channels. We also distributed message packs online to 588 stakeholders to encourage them to reach out to their own memberships and support the day. We are now planning to work with organisers to support Small Business Saturday 2016.