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  • Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2014-03-31.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what specific training is received by Ministry of Defence officials in negotiating equipment and services procurement contract terms and conditions effectively and in guaranteeing best value for money.

    Lord Astor of Hever

    Ministry of Defence (MOD) procurement activity ranges from the purchase of low value consumable items through to complex equipment acquisition, support and services. These activities involve multi-disciplinary teams, including engineering, technical, finance, project management and procurement staff. There is clear separation of responsibilities between those authorising the initial requirement, those giving financial authority and those empowered to place contracts.

    The MOD currently has around 1,700 civilian staff in the commercial function of which 1,200 are in active commercial roles and are authorised to sign contracts with suppliers.

    Commercial staff must demonstrate the necessary levels of functional competence and experience to be licensed and receive a formal commercial delegation. Some 60% of commercial staff currently hold, or are working towards, qualifications in the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply (CIPS). This is expected to rise to around 75% in 2015. The MOD is also developing an advanced commercial skills programme to provide additional training relevant to the MOD complex acquisition process, which goes beyond standard CIPS training.

  • Lord Wigley – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lord Wigley – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Wigley on 2014-03-31.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with disability organisations with respect to the minimum size of parking restriction notices (1) on public highways, (2) in parking areas owned or managed by public authorities, and (3) in privately owned or managed parking areas that fall within the provisions of Schedule 4 to the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012.

    Baroness Kramer

    The Department for Transport has not discussed these issues directly with disability organisations. Regulations relating to road traffic are subject to full public consultation in accordance with Government consultation principles. Privately owned car parking facilities are covered by industry codes of practice.

  • Lord Wigley – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lord Wigley – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Wigley on 2014-03-31.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what orders have been made under Schedule 4 to the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 relating to charging for parking on private land; and on what dates each of those orders came into force.

    Baroness Kramer

    No orders have been made under Schedule 4.

  • Baroness Thornton – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Baroness Thornton – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Thornton on 2014-03-31.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the national averageweekly income in Burton for (1) men, and (2) women.

    Lord Wallace of Saltaire

    The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.

  • Baroness Thornton – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Baroness Thornton – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Thornton on 2014-03-31.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the national averageweekly income in the West Midlands for (1) men, and (2) women.

    Lord Wallace of Saltaire

    The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.

  • Baroness Thornton – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Baroness Thornton – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Thornton on 2014-03-31.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Governmentwhat is the national averageweekly income in the United Kingdom for (1) men, and (2) women.

    Lord Wallace of Saltaire

    The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.

  • Lord Avebury – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture Media and Sport

    Lord Avebury – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Avebury on 2014-03-31.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of their announcement in July 2013 that the consultation on caste legislation was expected in February or March 2014, why it has not yet been issued.

    Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

    The Government is currently considering two issues which have developed and which have potential implications for the consultation.

    In February, the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) published helpful research designed to inform the introduction of new legislation on caste, as outlined in the July 2013 announcement. However, that announcement said: ‘…work will also be undertaken to determine information about the extent of caste discrimination in Britain that can be used as a comparative baseline for any future consideration of the effectiveness of caste legislation.’

    We had intended to reflect consideration of this work in the public consultation process. However, further discussions between Government and the EHRC about the research needed for it have revealed concerns that not only might this be difficult to commission successfully, but it could be seen as intrusive and might have an adverse effect on good relations in the relevant communities. We are therefore considering how best to proceed with the consultation in the light of this.

    Another recent development is the judgment in the Employment Tribunal case of Tirkey v Chandok which concluded that there is already legal protection against caste discrimination through the race provisions of the Equality Act 2010. We need to review recent case law to consider whether and how it may affect the way in which we implement the legislation.

    We would expect the public consultation document, including our conclusions on these matters, to issue in the Autumn.

  • Stephen Doughty – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Stephen Doughty – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Doughty on 2014-03-31.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 21 January 2014, Official Report, column 162W, on employment and support allowance, when his Department expects to publish data on mandatory reconsiderations of employment and support allowance.

    Mike Penning

    While data is being collected, it is not sufficiently robust and reliable to make available.

    The data will need to be validated in order to ensure that it satisfies the relevant standards. I will not publish this data until it is in a robust state to share.

  • Chris Ruane – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Chris Ruane – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Ruane on 2014-03-31.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the percentage change in long-term youth unemployment was in each constituency between 2010 and the most recent period for which figures are available.

    Mr Nick Hurd

    The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.

  • Stephen Doughty – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Stephen Doughty – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Doughty on 2014-03-31.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the average waiting time is for applicants for personal independence payment in each region of the UK to be assessed by (a) Capita Health and Wellbeing and (b) Atos Healthcare in each region.

    Mike Penning

    Personal Independence Payment (PIP) started from April 2013 and although limited data has started to feed through, we need to wait until the Department has quality assured, meaningful figures for publication. The Department is working to guidelines set by the UK Statistics Authority to ensure we are able to publish statistics that meet high quality standards at the earliest opportunity. We intend to publish official statistics on PIP from spring 2014 in line with our publication strategy –https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/284330/pip_stats_release_strategy_feb14.pdf

    An ad-hoc release of PIP information was published on Tuesday 11th February 2014.

    “