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  • Lord German – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord German – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord German on 2015-11-05.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the implications for British tourists of the recent state of emergency declared by the President of the Maldives.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    Following the declaration of a State of Emergency, the Maldives government made clear that there would be no restrictions on tourist movements and that tourist resorts were unlikely to be significantly affected. Our travel advice was updated to reflect this and advised British nationals visiting the Maldives to take extra care and follow local advice. On 10 November the Maldivian government lifted the State of Emergency. Our travel advice has been updated accordingly.

  • Lord Berkeley – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Lord Berkeley – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Berkeley on 2015-11-05.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what the roles and responsibilities of the National Infrastructure Commission and Infrastructure UK are, to whom they report, and what overlaps there are between them, if any.

    Lord O’Neill of Gatley

    The National Infrastructure Commission is an independent advisory body, currently operating on an interim basis. It will deliver a long-term plan and assessment of national infrastructure needs and publish advice on specific infrastructure issues. The Commission reports to the Chancellor.

    Infrastructure UK is a specialist unit within the Treasury that works on the UK’s long-term infrastructure priorities and secures private sector investment. It provides commercial support for infrastructure projects, administers the UK Guarantee Scheme, and reviews and refines the way that Public Private Partnerships are run in the UK. Infrastructure UK reports to the Commercial Secretary to the Treasury and to the Treasury Permanent Secretary.

  • Lord Berkeley – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lord Berkeley – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Berkeley on 2015-11-05.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, where they are working to enable housing developments on Network Rail’s and London and Continental Railways’ land estate, what conditions will be set to ensure that noise and vibration issues are minimised.

    Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

    The Summer Budget stated “the government will introduce a new approach to station redevelopment and commercial land sales on the rail network, building on the experience of regenerating land around Kings Cross Station and Stratford in East London – the government will establish a dedicated body to focus on pursuing opportunities to realise value from public land and property assets in the rail network to both maximise the benefit to local communities and reduce the burden of public debt”. Discussions are taking place to develop an approach that maximises value for the taxpayer and supports the safe and efficient operation of the rail network.

    The disposal of Network Rail’s assets must be in accordance with its network licence, which is regulated by the Office of Rail and Road. London and Continental Railways’ asset disposals are approved by the company’s board and the Department for Transport.

    Sale contracts for land will not impose conditions on the seller in relation to noise and vibration. Proximity to the railway and related issues such as noise and vibration are generally considered as part of the planning process, which is regulated by the relevant planning authority in accordance with environmental legislation.

  • Lord Berkeley – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lord Berkeley – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Berkeley on 2015-11-05.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what process they are using to assess which parts of Network Rail and London and Continental Railways’ land estate are suitable for disposal, and what conditions will be set to ensure that noise and vibration issues are minimised.

    Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

    The Summer Budget stated “the government will introduce a new approach to station redevelopment and commercial land sales on the rail network, building on the experience of regenerating land around Kings Cross Station and Stratford in East London – the government will establish a dedicated body to focus on pursuing opportunities to realise value from public land and property assets in the rail network to both maximise the benefit to local communities and reduce the burden of public debt”. Discussions are taking place to develop an approach that maximises value for the taxpayer and supports the safe and efficient operation of the rail network.

    The disposal of Network Rail’s assets must be in accordance with its network licence, which is regulated by the Office of Rail and Road. London and Continental Railways’ asset disposals are approved by the company’s board and the Department for Transport.

    Sale contracts for land will not impose conditions on the seller in relation to noise and vibration. Proximity to the railway and related issues such as noise and vibration are generally considered as part of the planning process, which is regulated by the relevant planning authority in accordance with environmental legislation.

  • Lord Berkeley – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lord Berkeley – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Berkeley on 2015-11-05.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions are taking place between the Department for Transport and HM Treasury about the disposal of land owned by (1) Network Rail, and (2) London and Continental Railways.

    Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

    The Summer Budget stated “the government will introduce a new approach to station redevelopment and commercial land sales on the rail network, building on the experience of regenerating land around Kings Cross Station and Stratford in East London – the government will establish a dedicated body to focus on pursuing opportunities to realise value from public land and property assets in the rail network to both maximise the benefit to local communities and reduce the burden of public debt”. Discussions are taking place to develop an approach that maximises value for the taxpayer and supports the safe and efficient operation of the rail network.

    The disposal of Network Rail’s assets must be in accordance with its network licence, which is regulated by the Office of Rail and Road. London and Continental Railways’ asset disposals are approved by the company’s board and the Department for Transport.

    Sale contracts for land will not impose conditions on the seller in relation to noise and vibration. Proximity to the railway and related issues such as noise and vibration are generally considered as part of the planning process, which is regulated by the relevant planning authority in accordance with environmental legislation.

  • Lord Beecham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Lord Beecham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Beecham on 2015-11-05.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they will take to ensure that residents in council areas with low levels of business rates are protected from the effects of the change to funding council tax benefit by retained business rates in 2020.

    Baroness Williams of Trafford

    By the end of this Parliament, when local government will keep 100% of the £26 billion of business rates they raise locally, our ambition is that local councils will meet their spending needs, including local council tax support, from local taxation and other locally raised income. At the point that we introduce 100% business rates retention, there will continue to be a measure of redistribution to ensure that no authority loses out just because it starts from a relatively weaker position.

  • Baroness Coussins – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Baroness Coussins – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Coussins on 2015-11-05.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will continue to fund the Routes into Languages programme after the current funding expires in July 2016.

    Baroness Evans of Bowes Park

    This programme is funded by the Higher Education Funding Council (HEFCE). HEFCE will review its spending priorities (including for Routes into Languages) in the light of its grant settlement from Government, following the Spending Review.

  • Baroness Coussins – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Baroness Coussins – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Coussins on 2015-11-05.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the potential impact of recording and monitoring the number of teachers leaving the profession centrally alongside the number of new recruits already collected on the planning of teacher supply in modern foreign languages; and whether they plan to begin recording and monitoring those figures.

    Lord Nash

    The numbers of teachers leaving and joining the profession in each secondary subject, including Modern Foreign Languages (MFL), are already factors in the department’s modelling of future demand for secondary teachers.

    The department uses the Teacher Supply Model (TSM) to estimate the demand for the number of qualified teachers within state-funded schools in England each year using a range of assumptions, including projections for the numbers of pupils in schools and the number of teachers expected to leave the sector.

    To estimate the demand for teachers in specific secondary subjects, the TSM uses the latest data on secondary subject take-up, defined by hours taught, and projected pupil numbers at Key Stages 3 to 5. It also takes into account the different age and gender demographics of current teachers for the different secondary subjects, plus the historical rates at which teachers left the profession by subject group. For modelling purposes, the leaver rates are estimated separately by age and gender groups, and in each case vary by groups of subjects.

  • Baroness Coussins – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Baroness Coussins – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Coussins on 2015-11-05.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will extend the current additional financial incentives for modern foreign language teachers in secondary schools to language specialists entering the teaching profession in primary schools.

    Lord Nash

    Financial incentives for initial teacher training (ITT) are designed to attract applicants to certain subjects. We have increased bursaries for secondary languages ITT trainees for 2016/17 in response to growing demand.

    We have no current plans to extend these generous financial incentives for secondary language trainees to primary trainees. Primary ITT courses continue to be popular with applicants, and we are confident that we can recruit enough trainees nationally to meet need at the bursary rates announced for 2016/17.

  • Baroness Coussins – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Baroness Coussins – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Coussins on 2015-11-05.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they will take to reverse the shortfall of 21 per cent in the number of modern foreign language teachers, as calculated by the Department for Education’s initial teacher training census for 2014–15.

    Lord Nash

    To support recruitment to languages Initial Teacher Training (ITT) in 2016/17, we have increased the bursary rates for postgraduate languages trainees on fee-based courses. Trainees with 2:1 degree classification will now receive £25,000 (up from £20,000 in 2015/16 in 2015/16) and those with a 2:2 will receive £20,000 (up from £15,000 in 2015/16).

    We offer potential languages trainees a range of support. The Premier Plus programme is available to candidates wanting to teach languages. This service includes support from a dedicated advisor; access to exclusive events; and regular communications with important news and application hints and tips. Languages candidates are also eligible for the funded School Experience Programme, helping them gain classroom experience to assist with their ITT application. Before they begin their training, languages applicants may benefit from funded Subject Knowledge Enhancement (SKE) courses, through which they can improve either their first or their second additional language. Bursary support is also available for applicants undertaking an SKE course.

    Furthermore, we want to attract qualified languages teachers who wish to return to the profession. We have recently launched a new pilot programme designed to help schools to attract and support returning teachers; this includes funding for returning language teachers. We will be undertaking a national marketing campaign to support this initiative.