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  • Jamie Reed – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Jamie Reed – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jamie Reed on 2016-05-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will make it her policy to require supermarkets to donate food to food banks and other charities.

    Rory Stewart

    I am replying as the Minister with responsibility for food waste.

    The Government welcomes the redistribution of good quality surplus food to charities that can make sure it goes to people rather than going to waste.

    Based on our experience, a simple law or requirement obliging supermarkets to donate food would not fix the barriers to redistribution. We need to look at the bigger picture. Less than 10% of food wasted in the supply chain is from supermarkets, so we need the whole chain to work together.

    Facilitated and supported by government, all major retailers now have arrangements in place to redistribute surplus food. Action taken by retailers to redistribute surplus food includes:

    • Morrisons have announced that, from January 2016, any unsold safe food will go to redistribution organisations
    • Tesco are making use of an app which links supermarkets with redistribution organisations
    • Asda are working with FareShare to redistribute food

    Signatories to the voluntary Courtauld Commitment with industry have reported a 74% increase between 2012 and end 2014, and we expect it to increase further.

    We want to achieve more. Last year, the Secretary of State held a meeting with industry and redistribution organisations to take stock of progress on food redistribution. Outcomes from this include the recent publication of a Redistribution Framework to help facilitate closer working between potential donors and recipients of food surpluses. Research has been commissioned by WRAP to identify where and why waste and surpluses occur in the supply chain to inform further action to increase waste prevention and redistribution.

    Following the success of earlier agreements, WRAP launched The Courtauld Commitment 2025 in March. This is an ambitious new agreement that takes a whole food supply chain approach, and will build on the progress we have already made to prevent waste, including through the redistribution of surplus food.

  • Alex Chalk – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Alex Chalk – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Chalk on 2016-05-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that the decision-making process followed by local enterprise partnerships is transparent.

    Anna Soubry

    We’ve set out clear standards on transparent decision making, which Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) must comply with through their local assurance frameworks. These are verified by their accountable section 151 officers. We commissioned the Government Internal Audit Agency to review the quality of these frameworks, and keep the system under review through annual performance conversations with each LEP.

  • Baroness Tonge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Baroness Tonge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Tonge on 2016-05-05.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with the World Health Organization about making Misoprostol available in conflict settings.

    Baroness Verma

    DFID has regular contact with the Inter-Agency Working Group on Reproductive Health in Crisis Situations (IAWG), of which WHO is a member.

    The IAWG establishes technical standards for the delivery of reproductive health services in crisis contexts. Misoprostol is included in the drugs list for the IAWG’s Reproductive Health Kits for Crisis Situations, used to deliver the Minimal Initial Service Package for Reproductive Health in Crisis Situations (MISP), a series of crucial actions to respond to reproductive health needs at the onset of every humanitarian crisis. The UK advocates for full implementation of the MISP at the onset of emergencies.

    DFID has supported the Reproductive Maternal Newborn and Child Health Trust Fund that focuses on increasing the availability of misoprostol, as one of 13 life-saving commodities, in all countries as a follow up to the UN Commission on Life Saving Commodities.

  • Baroness Tonge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Baroness Tonge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Tonge on 2016-05-05.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether Misoprostol is approved for usage in obstetrics and gynaecology in the UK, and if so, for what specific purposes.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    Misoprostol is used in adults for the medical termination of developing intra-uterine pregnancy, in sequential use with mifepristone, up to 49 days of amenorrhoea. It is taken as a single 400 microgram oral dose 36 to 48 hours after taking a single 600 milligrams oral dose of mifepristone.

  • Lord Lansley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Lord Lansley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Lansley on 2016-05-05.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact of leaving the EU on businesses that export within the EU single market and on individual sectors.

    Baroness Neville-Rolfe

    It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with my noble Friend.

  • Lord Kilclooney – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Kilclooney – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Kilclooney on 2016-05-05.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of which of the 27 other EU member states have not legalised same-sex marriage.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    Seven EU Member States have not legalised same sex marriage. These States are: Bulgaria, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania and Slovakia.

  • which states their intention that by March 2014 the e-Borders system would have reached the key milestone of “the receipt and processing of data for 100 per cent of passengers and crew movements” ; whether it is still their aim to reach that milestone; and if not – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    which states their intention that by March 2014 the e-Borders system would have reached the key milestone of “the receipt and processing of data for 100 per cent of passengers and crew movements” ; whether it is still their aim to reach that milestone; and if not – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by which states their intention that by March 2014 the e-Borders system would have reached the key milestone of “the receipt and processing of data for 100 per cent of passengers and crew movements” ; whether it is still their aim to reach that milestone; and if not on 2016-05-05.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 4 May (HL7852), why they only conduct targeted passport checks against selected cohorts of passengers leaving the UK for a range of law enforcement purposes”

    Lord Keen of Elie

    Routine embarkation controls by Border Force officers were abolished in 1994 and 1998, as the paper-based checks were deemed outdated and checks were not carried out on all modes of transport. However, Border Force does undertake targeted passport checks against selected cohorts of passengers leaving the UK for a range of law enforcement purposes. Since April 2015 exit data has been collected by carriers and port operators from all scheduled international commercial services departing the UK from air and sea ports and from international rail stations, except those services not within scope. Departure data is collected by carriers and port operators and transmitted to Home Office systems, where work takes place to match it to arrival data, visa conditions and other information as appropriate.

  • Lord Grocott – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Lord Grocott – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Grocott on 2016-05-05.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the answer by Lord Nash on 3 May (HL Deb, col 1308), how many allegations of fraud in respect of academies and free schools were made to the Education Funding Agency in each financial year from 2012–13 to date.

    Lord Nash

    EFA does not classify allegations into fraud or other forms of irregularity until they have been investigated. The number of fraud allegations cannot therefore be isolated from other allegations of irregularity. After investigation EFA concluded that only 10 of the allegations received in respect of academies and free schools since 2012-13 were probable fraud. This shows that there are low levels of fraud within the 5,685 academies in the sector. Where fraud or other irregularity is identified EFA takes swift action which may include conducting its own investigations.

  • Lord Grocott – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Lord Grocott – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Grocott on 2016-05-05.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the answer by Lord Nash on 3 May (HL Deb, col 1308), what steps they plan to take to provide Parliament with a clear view of academy trusts’ spending.

    Lord Nash

    From 2016-17 onwards, the department will produce a new report and accounts covering the performance of the academy sector during the previous academic year. This will provide Parliament with information on academy trusts’ spending, income and assets that is clearer, more transparent and more timely. This approach has been considered and endorsed by the Education Select Committee and the Liaison Committee of the House of Commons.

  • Baroness Greengross – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Baroness Greengross – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Greengross on 2016-05-05.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Prior of Brampton on 26 April (HL7576), why the current section 7a public health functions agreement does not include performance indicators for the provision of pneumococcal vaccination to severely immunocompromised children aged at least five years and adults, as recommended by the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation in July 2013.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    The performance indicators included in the 2016-17 S7A public health functions agreement do not reflect every activity which is carried out under the agreement.

    As I stated in my answer of 26 April, the provision of pneumococcal vaccination to severely immunocompromised children aged at least five years and adults, as recommended by the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation in July 2013, is reflected in the relevant service specification for the existing pneumococcal immunisation programme and within the document Immunisation against Infectious Diseases (‘the Green Book’). The Green Book is published on the GOV.UK website in an online only format.

    A copy of the service specification on the pneumococcal immunisation programme is attached.