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  • Alan Whitehead – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Alan Whitehead – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alan Whitehead on 2015-12-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, whether she plans to produce an updated version of her Department’s carbon capture and storage roadmap.

    Andrea Leadsom

    The Government continues to view Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) as having a potential role in the long-term decarbonisation of the UK’s power and industrial sectors. The detailed design and implementation of CCS policy changes are currently being assessed.

  • Alan Whitehead – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Alan Whitehead – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alan Whitehead on 2015-12-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, whether carbon capture and storage plants that become operational with the assistance of support not provided by her Department will be eligible to receive contracts for difference.

    Andrea Leadsom

    Contracts for Difference may be awarded to generators who meet the requirements of eligibility set out in the Contracts for Difference (Definition of Eligible Generator) Regulations 2014. A generating station connected to a complete CCS system is an eligible technology under those Regulations. Contracts for Difference for CCS are awarded on direction of the Secretary of State and would be subject to the circumstances at the time, including factors such as the value for money and affordability of a project and competing demands on available budgets.

  • Angus Brendan MacNeil – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Angus Brendan MacNeil – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Angus Brendan MacNeil on 2015-12-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what assessment she has made of the effect of cancelling the carbon capture and storage on oil recovery from the North Sea oil field over the next 20 years.

    Andrea Leadsom

    The Government’s view remains that Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) has a potential role in the long-term decarbonisation of the UK’s power and industrial sectors. There are also potential opportunities for the oil and gas and CCS industries to work together.

    The Wood Review identified a range of key issues faced by the maturing UK continental shelf, which the Government and industry must jointly address to deliver maximum economic recovery (MER) of UK petroleum. In response, the Government has established the Oil and Gas Authority (OGA) as a body focused on delivering MER. This has attracted strong industry support.

    The OGA is considering the role of CCS in the technology and decommissioning strategies it is developing and will engage with the CCS industry to ensure that opportunities between the industries are identified and explored wherever possible.

    DECC will continue to engage with industry and academia, to understand the potential for any future schemes to enhance oil recovery from the North Sea.

  • Angus Brendan MacNeil – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Angus Brendan MacNeil – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Angus Brendan MacNeil on 2015-12-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what assessment the Government has made of the potential contribution of carbon capture and storage to the UK meeting its 2020 carbon reduction targets.

    Andrea Leadsom

    In DECC’s most recently published reference scenario, Carbon Capture and Storage would generate one per cent of electricity in 2020. The UK has a carbon budget for the period 2018-22 which requires a 37% reduction in emissions on 1990 levels, which we are on track to meet and over-perform by 51 MtCO2e.

  • Craig Whittaker – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Craig Whittaker – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Craig Whittaker on 2015-12-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to increase educational attainment among white boys from low-income socio-economic groups.

    Nick Gibb

    We are determined to deliver educational excellence everywhere so that every child, regardless of background, reaches their potential. The latest statistics show that more white boys eligible for FSM are achieving the expected standard in reading, writing and mathematics at the end of primary school, rising from 51 per cent in 2012 to 59 per cent in 2015.

    It is unacceptable, however, that fewer than one in four white boys eligible for free school meals (FSM) achieves the expected standard at the end of secondary school.

    Through the pupil premium, the government is providing additional targeted money, worth £2.5 billion in this year, to help schools support their disadvantaged pupils and improve their progress and attainment.

    We are raising expectations further for all pupils. We are determined to ensure that every child masters the basics of literacy and numeracy at primary school, and that those who do not will re-sit the tests at secondary school. We are also committed to introducing an expectation that every child who is able studies the EBacc combination of subjects – maths, English, history or geography, a language and the sciences – up until the age of 16.

    We are also introducing reforms that will further help ensure high standards throughout every child’s education and tackle entrenched underperformance, particularly amongst schools serving deprived communities.

    The National Teaching Service (NTS) will deploy the country’s best teachers and leaders to underperforming schools that struggle to attract and retain the professionals they need. 1,500 outstanding teachers will be part of NTS by 2020.

    The introduction of the national funding formula for schools will ensure that funding is transparently and fairly linked to children’s needs, ending the unfair system where children from identical disadvantaged circumstances attract significantly different levels of funding, simply because of where they live.

    We have also made a commitment to double the percentage of disadvantaged pupils accessing higher education by 2020, and this will include a focus on children from disadvantaged backgrounds.

  • Caroline Ansell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Caroline Ansell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Ansell on 2015-12-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure the maximum take-up of the pupil premium; and if she will make a statement.

    Mr Sam Gyimah

    The pupil premium provides schools with additional funding to improve the progress and attainment of pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds, with £6.25 billion provided to date. Pupil premium allocations to schools are mainly based on the number of pupils on roll at the time of the January school census who have been registered for free school meals at any point in the preceding six years.

    We are working to encourage all families who meet the current criteria toregisterfor free school meals. The Department’s eligibility checking system has made it much easier and quicker to check which families are entitled to free school meals.

    The Department has also published a registration form to help schools to identify pupils who are entitled to free school meals and the pupil premium. This is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/free-school-meals-and-pupil-premium-registration-form.

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  • Michael Tomlinson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Michael Tomlinson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Michael Tomlinson on 2015-12-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps the Government is taking to tackle bullying initiated by religious intolerance in schools.

    Edward Timpson

    All bullying is unacceptable and every school is required to have a behaviour policy including measures to tackle all forms of bullying. They are held to account by Ofsted and inspectors will look at records and analysis of bullying, discriminatory and prejudicial behaviour, including racist, disability, use of derogatory language and racist incidents.

    The Longitudinal Study of Young People in England published in November 2015 found that 30,000 fewer young people said they had been bullied in the last twelve months – a drop from 41 per cent in 2004 to 36 per cent in 2014.

    All schools are required to promote the fundamental British values of democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty and mutual respect and tolerance of those with different faith and beliefs. Our guidance published in November 2014 says that British values include accepting that others of different faiths or beliefs to oneself (or having none) should be accepted and tolerated, and should not be the cause of prejudicial or discriminatory behaviour.

    All publicly funded schools are required also to promote community cohesion and teach a broad and balanced curriculum. The curriculum provides many opportunities to foster tolerance and understanding. For example, as part of the history curriculum, pupils could learn about different cultures, and about how different groups have contributed to the development of Britain. The citizenship programme of study sets out a requirement for pupils to be taught about ‘the diverse national, regional, religious, and ethnic identities in the United Kingdom and the need for mutual respect and understanding’. PSHE can teach young people about the rights and responsibilities of living in a diverse community and how to respect others.

  • Jim Shannon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Jim Shannon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2015-12-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will take steps to encourage school children to participate in rifle shooting (a) sports and (b) as part of armed forces cadet activities.

    Edward Timpson

    Physical education (PE) is a compulsory subject at all four key stages in the national curriculum for maintained schools in England. It sets out the expectation that pupils should be provided with opportunities to engage in a broad range of competitive sports and activities. Teachers have the flexibility to organise and deliver a range of activities; this can include rifle shooting where teachers have the specific expertise.

    The government announced in the summer that it was allocating £50m from LIBOR fines to support the cadet expansion programme. This will deliver the Prime Minister’s commitment to expand the number of cadet units to 500 across the UK by 2020.

    The Cadet Expansion programme is a joint MOD/DfE initiative. Cadet units aim to build character, discipline and leadership skills, particularly among disadvantaged young people, through military themed activities. Cadets will have the opportunity to experience rifle shooting as part of the cadet syllabus under the supervision of fully trained Cadet Force Adult Volunteers.

  • Gareth Thomas – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Gareth Thomas – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gareth Thomas on 2015-12-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate she has made of the cost of regional school commissioners in each of the next three years; and if she will make a statement.

    Edward Timpson

    At present, I am unable to provide detailed information on the budget for the Regional Schools Commissioners for each of the next three years.

    The Department’s spending review settlement was agreed in November. The Department has now begun a business planning process to devolve this budget internally to specific activities and functions. This work is intended to finish in early 2016, when the future budgets for all the Regional School Commissioners’ offices, including the South-Central and North-West London office, will be agreed for the next financial year (2016-17) and beyond.

  • Peter Kyle – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Peter Kyle – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Peter Kyle on 2015-12-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, with reference to paragraph 6.14 of English Apprenticeships: Our 2020 Vision, what steps his Department will take to ensure employers are still encouraged to take on 16 to 18 apprentices following the introduction of the apprenticeship levy.

    Nick Boles

    We are working through the policy implications of the levy. Ministers and officials are conducting end to end meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of getting the detailed design of the levy right before its implementation in 2017.

    We want 16-18 year olds to play a key part in the success of apprenticeships. The lifetime benefits associated with the acquisition of apprenticeships are significant, and there is a high level of return to investment delivered by the apprenticeship programme. We will continue to encourage employers to take on 16-18 year olds as apprentices.