Blog

  • Lord Smith of Finsbury – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture Media and Sport

    Lord Smith of Finsbury – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Smith of Finsbury on 2015-02-10.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with British-based banks and other major companies which have outsourced customer services to overseas countries about the way in which enquiries from United Kingdom citizens who have entered into a civil partnership or same-sex marriage are handled.

    Lord Wallace of Saltaire

    The Government has had no discussions with businesses on this specific issue. The Equality Act 2010 provides that service providers are not allowed to discriminate, harass or victimise service users because they have a ‘protected characteristic’ – which includes sex and sexual orientation, amongst others. The Act provides that, in some circumstances, employers can be liable for the acts of their employees or agents. Businesses are required to comply with the relevant provision of the Act applicable to them unless an exception in the Act applies.

  • Mark Hendrick – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Mark Hendrick – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Hendrick on 2015-02-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many unqualified staff were teaching children in each local authority in the North West of England in April 2010.

    Mr David Laws

    The following table provides the head count number of regular teachers without qualified teacher status (QTS) in service in publicly funded schools in each local authority in the North West region in England in November 2010. The information is from the School Workforce Census which takes place in November each year.

    November 2010

    NORTH WEST

    2,119

    Knowsley

    17

    Liverpool

    81

    St. Helens

    4

    Sefton

    60

    Wirral

    47

    Bolton

    59

    Bury

    246

    Manchester

    138

    Oldham

    80

    Rochdale

    85

    Salford

    267

    Stockport

    66

    Tameside

    64

    Trafford

    118

    Wigan

    52

    Halton

    12

    Warrington

    59

    Lancashire

    246

    Blackburn with Darwen

    47

    Blackpool

    15

    Cheshire East

    172

    Cheshire West and Chester

    73

    Cumbria

    111

    Source: School Workforce Census


  • Mark Hendrick – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Mark Hendrick – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Hendrick on 2015-02-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many unqualified staff are currently teaching children in each local authority in the North West of England.

    Mr David Laws

    The following table provides the head count number of regular teachers without qualified teacher status (QTS) in service in publicly funded schools in each local authority in the North West region in England in November 2013. The information is from the School Workforce Census which takes place in November each year. November 2013 is the latest information available.

    November 2013

    NORTH WEST

    1,630

    Knowsley

    14

    Liverpool

    140

    St. Helens

    11

    Sefton

    41

    Wirral

    52

    Bolton

    58

    Bury

    49

    Manchester

    125

    Oldham

    59

    Rochdale

    75

    Salford

    60

    Stockport

    54

    Tameside

    91

    Trafford

    118

    Wigan

    96

    Halton

    28

    Warrington

    54

    Lancashire

    270

    Blackburn with Darwen

    23

    Blackpool

    14

    Cheshire East

    39

    Cheshire West and Chester

    48

    Cumbria

    111

    Source: School Workforce Census

  • Baroness Pinnock – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Baroness Pinnock – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Pinnock on 2015-02-10.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to give the responsibility for traffic speed enforcement on roads with a 30mph limit to local authorities.

    Baroness Kramer

    Her Majesty’s Government does not plan to give responsibility for traffic speed enforcement to the local authorities. These decisions on where to apply speed limits are taken by local authorities in conjunction with the police force for the area in question, whose role it is to properly enforce these.

  • Mark Hendrick – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Mark Hendrick – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Hendrick on 2015-02-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many Sure Start Centres there are in Preston; and how many child care places each such centre offers.

    Mr Sam Gyimah

    The Department does not hold this data at constituency level.

  • Baroness Pinnock – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Baroness Pinnock – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Pinnock on 2015-02-10.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have carried out any research into the effect of excessive traffic speed in 30mph areas on the quality of life of residents in those areas.

    Baroness Kramer

    The Government has not carried out any specific research into the effect of excessive speed in 30mph areas on the quality of life of residents. Local authorities have the power to set local speed limits, and implement physical road changes to suit local conditions. The Department for Transport has provided advice to highway authorities in the Speed Limit Circular 01/2013 – Setting Local Speed Limits.

    However, the Department has commissioned research into the effectiveness of 20mph limits. The study will cover many aspects including effects on speed, collisions, casualties and modal shift. The research will also consider best practice, road users’ perceptions and effects on the quality of the environment. This is a three year study reporting in 2017.

  • Gerry Sutcliffe – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Gerry Sutcliffe – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gerry Sutcliffe on 2015-02-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what proportion of community schools in England have made their sports facilities available to members of the public outside school hours in each of the last five years.

    Mr Edward Timpson

    The Department for Education does not collect data on the number of community schools that have made their sports facilities available to members of the public outside of school hours. Schools are not required to report to the Department on how they use their sports facilities.

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

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

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2015-02-10.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they are making representations to the government of Bahrain about its revocation of nationality of citizens of that country.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    Our Ambassador to Bahrain has raised the revocation of citizenship of 72 Bahraini nationals at Ministerial level with the Government of Bahrain. All of the individuals affected have the right to appeal. Our Embassy in Bahrain will continue to follow these cases closely.

  • Tracey Crouch – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Tracey Crouch – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tracey Crouch on 2015-02-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what funds her Department has allocated to the Alcohol and Drug Education and Prevention Information Service in 2015-16.

    Mr Nick Gibb

    No decision has been made about allocation of funding in 2015-16.

    Effective drug and alcohol education plays an important role in helping to ensure that young people are equipped with the information they need to make informed, healthy decisions and to keep themselves safe. Drugs education is a statutory part of the new national curriculum for science. Pupils should be taught about the effects of recreational drugs, including substance misuse, on behaviour, health and life processes. Teaching in this area can be further strengthened through PSHE education.

    ADEPIS have produced a range of resources for schools to support teachers when they provide drug education. In particular, ADEPIS help teachers to tackle difficult topics by producing briefing papers on themes such as ‘Novel Psychoactive Substances’ or ‘Alcohol, drugs and sexual health’.

    ADEPIS have also produced a toolkit which aims to help schools when reviewing their drug and alcohol policy, including practical advice on consulting with parents, teachers, pupils and others in the community.

  • Lord Hylton – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Lord Hylton – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2015-02-10.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what resources they are providing to the Moving Energy Initiative for Middle Eastern Refugees; to what extent any such assistance will include solar energy for camps; and what other forms of energy, for instance solar ovens, are being planned.

    Baroness Northover

    Over the next two years, DFID’s Humanitarian Innovation and Evidence Programme is providing £2million to develop The Moving Energy Initiative. Initial research and evidence will guide subsequent pilots which will provide renewable and/or sustainable energy for displaced populations. A country in the Middle East will be one of the pilots.

    The initiative will consider the applicability of a range of technologies in addition to solar photovoltaic and solar thermal systems, including clean or fuel efficient cookstoves, anaerobic digestion, appropriate energy efficient buildings, and wind power amongst others. One of the objectives of the research will be to identify the ‘best-fit’ renewable/sustainable energy option(s) for each specific location.