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  • Steve McCabe – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Steve McCabe – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2014-04-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what guidance his Department provides to local authorities on care leaving arrangements for asylum seekers who came to the UK alone as children.

    Mr Edward Timpson

    Guidance to local authorities on care leaving arrangements for asylum seekers who came to the UK alone as children is included in Volume 3 of ‘The Children Act Guidance and Regulations: Planning Transition to Adulthood for Care Leavers’. http://resources.leavingcare.org/uploads/c4f7aeaf941cdefb8f4a18f478aa1f19.pdf

    The Department for Education published for consultation in January of this year draft statutory guidance to local authorities on the care of unaccompanied asylum seeking and trafficked children.

    https://www.education.gov.uk/consultations/index.cfm?action=conResults&consultationId=1945&external=no&menu=3

    This new guidance brings together guidance on transition planning with wider guidance on providing care for unaccompanied asylum seeking children. That consultation has now closed and final guidance will be published in due course.

    “

  • David Blunkett – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    David Blunkett – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Blunkett on 2014-04-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Written Statement of 27 March 2014, Official Report, columns 35-6WS, on primary and 16-to-19 assessment and accountability, what account will be taken of the progress made by children who have entered the school beyond the baseline reception assessment procedure, but who do not warrant exemption under the final two years prior to Key Stage 2 exams.

    Mr David Laws

    Schools will continue to be expected to assess all of their pupils upon entering school and track their progress. Ofsted will expect to see evidence that pupils are making appropriate progress, with inspections informed by the school’s data on pupil progress. Assessment at key stage 1 will remain a statutory requirement.

  • David Blunkett – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    David Blunkett – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Blunkett on 2014-04-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Written Statement of 27 March 2014, Official Report, columns 35-6WS, on primary and 16-to-19 assessment and accountability, how the progress of pupils with severe educational needs will be taken into account in his Department’s accountability reform programme.

    Mr David Laws

    We plan to continue to publish information on attainment and progress of pupils with special educational needs at national and local authority level. A new web portal, which is under development, will improve access to 16-18 performance data, including the core demographic information such as special educational needs that is currently available for primary and secondary schools.

    Any pupils not able to access the relevant end of key stage test will continue to have their attainment assessed by teachers, and we will retain P scales for reporting teachers’ judgements.

  • Derek Twigg – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Derek Twigg – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Derek Twigg on 2014-04-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what his Department plans to spend on defence procurement in 2014-15 as a proportion of the overall departmental budget.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    This information will be available once the 2014-15 Main Supply Estimates have been laid before the House, which is currently planned for the end of April 2014.

  • Derek Twigg – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Derek Twigg – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Derek Twigg on 2014-04-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what his Department spend was in total in 2013-14 on defence procurement; and what proportion of that total was spent in the (a) UK, (b) EU and (c) rest of the world.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    Information on spending on defence procurement in financial year 2013-14 will be available once the audit of defence expenditure in that year has been completed; we are due to report our 2013-14 financial performance in our Annual Report and Accounts before the House rises for the summer recess. Information for April to September 2013 was published in the Ministry of Defence (MOD)’s Mid Year Report on 24 January 2014, available at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/ministry-of-defence-mid-year-progress-report

    The MOD does not routinely record information on the geographic location of its supply chain.

    “

  • Tom Watson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Tom Watson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Watson on 2014-04-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether there has been any testing (a) in Southern Australia and (b) elsewhere of the ability of the Taranis system to identify or strike targets autonomously.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    I am withholding details of the locations at which Taranis flight trials have taken place for the purpose of safeguarding national security. The Ministry of Defence has no plans to create weapons that operate without human control. Trained members of the Armed Forces will always be involved in the command and control of unmanned air systems.

  • Stephen Doughty – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Stephen Doughty – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Doughty on 2014-04-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when he plans to respond to the letter from the hon. Member for Cardiff South and Penarth of 23 December 2013, regarding a review of a discharge from the British Army.

    Anna Soubry

    The Ministry of Defence (MOD) has no record of receiving the letter from the hon. Member for Cardiff South and Penarth. The MOD requested a copy of the letter on 3 April 2014 and will respond shortly.

  • Tom Watson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Tom Watson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Watson on 2014-04-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 20 March 2014, Official Report, column 703W, on RAF Mildenhall, whether his Department maintains records of all MQ-1 Predators carried in aircraft which refuel in the air or by landing at RAF Mildenhall; and whether he will disclose the date of each such flight over the last three years.

    Mr Mark Francois

    The Ministry of Defence has no record of any aircraft carrying MQ-1 Predators air-to-air refuelling over the UK, or landing at RAF Mildenhall to refuel, over the last three years.

  • Tom Watson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Tom Watson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Watson on 2014-04-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether his Department has had any discussions with the government of Afghanistan concerning future basing of UK unmanned aircraft systems in that country after 2014.

    Mr Mark Francois

    To date, there have been no discussions with the Government of Afghanistan about the future basing of UK unmanned aircraft systems in Afghanistan after 2014.

  • Tom Watson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Tom Watson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Watson on 2014-04-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 17 March 2014, Official Report, column 490W, on the Royal Air Force, if he will provide details of (a) each base at which RAF personnel from the Remotely Piloted Air System division are stationed and (b) the branch and specialisation of every such person.

    Mr Mark Francois

    RAF Remotely Piloted Air System (RPAS) personnel are based at RAF Waddington and Creech Air Force Base, Nevada.

    RAF Personnel are from the following branches or specialisation:

    Branch/Specialisation

    Pilot

    Sensor Operator

    Mission Intelligence Coordinator

    Operations

    Engineer

    Administration

    RAF RPAS Squadrons can also include personnel from the Royal Navy, Royal Marines and Army.