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  • Baroness Jones of Whitchurch – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Baroness Jones of Whitchurch – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch on 2014-03-27.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many primary school places have been created as a result of the Priority School Building Programme since its introduction.

    Lord Nash

    261 schools were successful in their application to the Priority School Building Programme (PSBP) and initial work has started with over 230 of these schools. Construction work has started at 24 schools and the first primary school is due to open in May 2014.

    The PSBP is aimed at addressing the condition needs of those schools most in need of urgent repair; it is not a programme aimed at increasing school capacity. However, where a school is seeking to expand and this is supported by pupil planning statistics, we are increasing the capacity of the schools.

    The PSBP will create approximately 9,300 new primary school places through the expansion of these schools beyond the existing capacity stated in their application forms.

    This number is subject to change. As part of the feasibility study undertaken for each school, we work with the school, local authority and other stakeholders to review pupil planning statistics for the area and confirm that the size of the school being rebuilt or refurbished is sustainable and also meets any demand for pupil places where possible.

    We are on track to complete all PSPB schools by the end of 2017. This is two years earlier than was planned when the programme was announced.

  • Baroness Jones of Whitchurch – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Baroness Jones of Whitchurch – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch on 2014-03-27.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to ensure that all maintained and academy schools in receipt of the pupil premium use the funds directly to support disadvantaged pupils.

    Lord Nash

    Headteachers of maintained schools and academies are expected to use their professional judgement in determining which well-evidenced interventions to invest in to raise the attainment of their disadvantaged pupils. A headteacher may decide to spend some of their pupil premium on whole school interventions, such as improving the quality of teacher feedback, as the evidence shows that this has a significant impact on the attainment of disadvantaged pupils.

    While headteachers have this freedom, they are also held accountable for the impact of this additional funding in three different ways. Firstly, the performance tables set out the attainment and progress of disadvantaged pupils and the gap between them and their peers. Secondly, Ofsted inspects the achievement of all pupils in a school, and where disadvantaged pupils are making insufficient progress, inspectors are likely to grade a school as requiring improvement and will recommend that the school undertakes a pupil premium review. Thirdly, schools are required to publish online how much pupil premium funding they receive, how they have used this funding and an evaluation of the impact that it has had.

  • – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by on 2014-03-27.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Randerson on 26 March (WA 124), whether the review by Lady Justice Hallett is to be purely an internal government exercise without anyone else whom the judge may summon being under any statutory legal compulsion to appear; and whether any compulsion to co-operate extends to members of Sinn Fein, the police, the recipients of the on-the-run” letters

    Baroness Randerson

    The inquiry led by Lady Justice Hallett has no powers of compulsion. As recorded in my earlier Written Answer, Official Report, Column WA124, officials who are requested to appear will be expected to do so.

  • – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by on 2014-03-27.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the guidelines issued by the Law Society on 13 March on making wills Sharia compliant”

    Lord Faulks

    Sharia law has no jurisdiction in England and Wales and the Government has no intention to change this position.

    The Government also has no intention of changing the fundamental principle of the law of succession in England and Wales that testators are, by making a valid will, able to leave their property to whomsoever they wish, subject only to the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975.

    We encourage people to make wills by providing a relatively straightforward legal framework that keeps the formalities to a minimum and enables wills to be made quickly and inexpensively; and are considering what further steps we can take to raise awareness of the importance of making a will and to make the process simpler. We provide information to help people considering making a will on government websites: see, for example, https://www.gov.uk/make-will and www.justice.gov.uk/courts/probate/why-make-a-will.

    “

  • Lord Bradshaw – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Lord Bradshaw – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Bradshaw on 2014-03-27.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many legal cases were decided under Sharia law in the United Kingdom in 2012 and 2013.

    Lord Faulks

    Sharia law has no jurisdiction here and legal cases are not decided under Sharia law in the United Kingdom’s courts and tribunals. The answer to the question is therefore ‘none’.

    If people choose to use Sharia for the purposes of dispute resolution or to agree a contract, for example, the enforceability of such arrangements will be entirely dependent on the law of the relevant part of the United Kingdom.

    Regardless of religious belief everyone in the United Kingdom is equal before the law of the land.

  • The Lord Bishop of Coventry – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The Lord Bishop of Coventry – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Lord Bishop of Coventry on 2014-03-27.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the independence of the judiciary in Egypt.

    Baroness Warsi

    The new Egyptian constitution, adopted in January 2014, states that the judicial system is independent, and allows the judiciary its own budget, and to appoint the Prosecutor General and members of the Supreme Constitutional Court. We do however have some concerns over recent judicial decisions, including the sentencing to death of 529 people in Minya on 24 March. Reports that many of the defendants were tried in their absence and may not have been represented properly are deeply troubling. We have been urging the Egyptian authorities to ensure that the rights of defendants are fully respected in all cases.

  • Lord Morrow – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Lord Morrow – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Morrow on 2014-03-27.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many complaints about Atos Healthcare have been submitted or received through the Department for Work and Pensions, per year, since the commencement of the service provision contract.

    Lord Freud

    The Department does not hold central records on the number of complaints received in regards to Atos Healthcare, this information could only be collated at disproportionate cost.

  • The Countess of Mar – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The Countess of Mar – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Countess of Mar on 2014-03-27.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether social services departments are required to maintain a record of children with disabilities who are subject to child protection investigation under the Equality Act 2010.

    Lord Nash

    Under the Equality Act 2010 (Specific Duties) Regulations 2011, local authorities are required to publish information demonstrating compliance with the public sector equalities duty under section 149 of the Equality Act 2010. Whilst this information must include “information relating to persons who share a relevant protected characteristic who are affected by its policies and practices”, this does not specifically require the publication of information about children with disabilities who are subject to child protection investigations.

    Local authorities are, however, required to report annually on the numbers of children in need who have a disability (as defined by section 6 of the Equality Act 2010) as part of the Children in Need Census data collection. This data is collected under section 83 of the Children Act 1989. As part of this collection, local authorities report on the number of children with disabilities who are subject to child protection investigations under section 47 of the Children Act 1989.

  • The Countess of Mar – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The Countess of Mar – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Countess of Mar on 2014-03-27.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Nash on 26 March (WA 121), whether local education authorities are required to record details of children with disabilities as defined by the Equality Act 2010.

    Lord Nash

    Local authorities have a duty to open and maintain a register of disabled children and young people under section 17 (part 1 schedule 2) of the Children Act 1989. This duty uses the Children Act definition of disability which differs from the Equality Act definition.

  • Lord Beecham – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Lord Beecham – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Beecham on 2014-03-27.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will attempt to measure the re-offending rates of ex-service personnel convicted of criminal offences.

    Lord Faulks

    The Ministry of Justice does not centrally collate or hold information on the current or previous occupation of those convicted of criminal offences; therefore it is not possible to provide re-offending rates for ex-service personnel in the criminal justice system.

    Rory Stewart MP has been invited to conduct an independent review of ex-Service personnel within the criminal justice system. He has been asked to consider the needs of ex-Services personnel, current rehabilitation available to them, how they are identified and best practice. The Review is due to report back in autumn 2014 and we will then consider his recommendations.