The below Parliamentary question was asked by Angela Rayner on 2015-12-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment he has made of the potential effect on students of replacing maintenance grants with loans.
Joseph Johnson
The Government published an Equality Analysis on changes to student support on 3rd December. This can be found at the following link:
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Angela Rayner on 2015-12-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment he has made of the implications for the financial position of students of offering loans to 19 to 23 year olds who are undertaking further education.
Nick Boles
Loans have been available to those aged 24 and over studying at levels 3 and 4 in further education since April 2013. We are now making them available to those aged 19-23 and extending them to levels 5 and 6. Advanced Learner Loans remove the barrier of paying up-front fees for courses.
Learners do not repay their loan until they can afford to. Repayments on the loan are taken when the individual is earning more than £21,000 per annum and is at the rate of 9% of their earnings above this level.
Loans enhance shared responsibility for skills funding, recognising that much of the benefit of advanced vocational study goes to the learner.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Iain Wright on 2015-12-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what estimate he has made of the costs of implementing the Teaching Excellence Framework.
Joseph Johnson
We recently published the Green Paper: “Fulfilling our potential: Teaching Excellence, Social Mobility and Student Choice,” which sets out our proposals for delivering the Teaching Excellence Framework.
Once we have considered the consultation responses, and are in a position to publish our final proposals, we will publish a Regulatory Impact Assessment which will set out the costs of implementation.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chi Onwurah on 2015-12-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what the level of take-up by (a) micro, (b) small and (c) medium-sized enterprises has been of the cyber essentials programme.
Mr Edward Vaizey
At the end of March 2016, 2,181 Cyber Essentials and Cyber Essentials Plus certificates had been issued, of which it is estimated 28% were awarded to micro, 28% to small, and 22% to medium-sized businesses.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Peter Kyle on 2015-12-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will set a target for apprenticeship achievements over this Parliament.
Nick Boles
We are committed to reaching 3 million apprenticeship starts in 2020. We are establishing a new Institute for Apprenticeships to safeguard quality but do not intend to set a target for achievements.
Further data on apprenticeships achievements can be found in table 6.2 of the main SFR: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/learner-participation-outcomes-and-level-of-highest-qualification-held
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Peter Kyle on 2015-12-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what estimate he has made of the time needed to devolve the adult skills budget; and if he will make a statement.
Nick Boles
We expect to be able to fully devolve the adult education budget to local areas that have agreed devolution deals with Government and where readiness conditions (as set out in the devolution agreements) have been met during this parliament. This timetable will ensure other important work such as the further education area reviews can first be completed and implementation plans put into action.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Charlotte Leslie on 2015-12-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many prosecutions there have been for tachograph violations in each year since 2010.
Andrew Jones
The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency takes non-compliance with drivers hour’s regulations very seriously and deals appropriately with anyone who attempts to undermine public safety by not taking the required breaks. This includes taking prohibition and prosecution action.
DVSA is determined to tackle the small minority of operators and drivers who choose to break the rules, and it has effective measures in place to catch offenders quickly.
DVSA carry out investigations based on intelligence and information from the public and the haulage industry, as well as conducting checks across the strategic road network, using technology such as ANPR cameras, as well as enforcement officers at the roadside and at DVSA check sites
The figures below show the amount of prosecutions for tachograph violations in each year since 2010, with figures also included for 2008/09 and 2009/10 to provide context.
Heavy Goods Vehicle
|
2008/09 |
2009/10 |
2010/11 |
2011/12 |
2012/13 |
2013/14 |
2014/15 |
|
|
Drivers Hours |
3,913 |
2,717 |
2,211 |
2,346 |
2,130 |
2,219 |
1,518 |
|
Tacho records |
2,046 |
1,391 |
1,153 |
1,619 |
1,664 |
1,831 |
1,343 |
Public Service Vehicle
|
2008/09 |
2009/10 |
2010/11 |
2011/12 |
2012/13 |
2013/14 |
2014/15 |
|
|
Drivers Hours |
326 |
107 |
87 |
458 |
293 |
119 |
149 |
|
Tacho records |
219 |
122 |
58 |
409 |
218 |
106 |
148 |
Light Goods Vehicle
|
2008/09 |
2009/10 |
2010/11 |
2011/12 |
2012/13 |
2013/14 |
2014/15 |
|
|
Drivers Hours |
38 |
23 |
43 |
25 |
15 |
35 |
33 |
|
Tacho records |
20 |
19 |
25 |
15 |
13 |
6 |
20 |
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Falconer of Thoroton on 2015-12-08.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government (1) how many, and (2) what percentage of, prison governors have worked at two or more prisons in the last five years.
Lord Faulks
Of the governors of public sector prisons in post at 30 September 2015, a total of 90 (85%) had worked at two or more prisons in the previous five years.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Falconer of Thoroton on 2015-12-08.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what are the quantities and types of drugs found in each prison, and the additional sentences given to those caught.
Lord Faulks
We take a zero tolerance approach to drugs in prison.
Strict measures are in place to tackle visitors who smuggle or attempt to smuggle drugs into prison. This includes arrest and prosecution where there is sufficient evidence. Likewise, any prisoner found in possession of drugs will face disciplinary action, which could include a further prosecution and sentence.
In addition, as of 10 November 2015, we have introduced new laws so that those who smuggle packages, including new psychoactive substances, over prison walls will face up to two years in custody.
NOMS collects data on drug finds on a central database. Historically, this data has not included retrievable information on the quantity of the drug find. In October 2015, changes were made to reporting forms to improve data collection to include quantity. The tables below provide figures for (a) the quantities and (b) the types of drugs found in prisons in England and Wales over a two month period between October and November 2015.
It is not always possible to attribute a drug find to an individual prisoner. In those cases where a drug find has been attributed to a particular prisoner, NOMS does not collate centrally information on any additional sentences handed down and to do so would involve disproportionate cost.
Notes to Tables:
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Falconer of Thoroton on 2015-12-08.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the potential impact of the end of the Advice Services Transition Fund in December 2015.
Lord Bridges of Headley
The fund is a Big Lottery Fund programme, to which Government contributed 50% of the budget. As the fund comes to a close, the Big Lottery Fund will be monitoring how organisations have met their agreed outcomes and will be supporting the dissemination of learning amongst the ASTF partnerships and beyond.