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  • Julie Cooper – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Julie Cooper – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julie Cooper on 2016-04-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, which Government minister will be responsible for distributing the £80 million Violence Against Women and Girls Transformation Fund.

    Karen Bradley

    The Government is providing £80 million of dedicated funding up to 2020 to tackle violence against women and girls. This funding will provide core support for refuges and other accommodation-based services, a network of rape support centres and national helplines, and from April 2017 will also include a new Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) Service Transformation Fund.

    The VAWG Service Transformation fund will support local programmes which encourage new approaches that incorporate early intervention, establish and embed the best ways to help victims and their families, and prevent perpetrators from re-offending. Criteria for applications to the fund will support these aims. Full details of the how the fund will be administered and the criteria for applications will be published in due course.

  • Paul Flynn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Paul Flynn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Flynn on 2016-04-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, which firms tendered to take over the G4S contracts at Rainsbrook Secure Training Centre.

    Andrew Selous

    The Ministry of Justice holds this information and can confirm the following 5 bidders submitted tenders in last year’s competition for Rainsbrook Secure Training Centre:

    • Diagrama Foundation

    • G4S Care and Justice (UK) Limited

    • Ingeus UK Limited

    • MTCnovo Limited

    • Sodexo Limited

  • Paul Flynn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Paul Flynn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Flynn on 2016-04-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether G4S was invited by his Department to retender for the contracts to run Rainsbrook and Medway Secure Training Centres under its new trading name; and what weight that company’s record in carrying out its previous contractual roles has in the decision-making process.

    Andrew Selous

    G4S Care and Justice (UK) Ltd commenced as and remained the legal entity and prime contractor throughout the Secure Training Centre retendering process and as such was subject to robust and rigorous assessment as ‘G4S Care and Justice (UK) Ltd’ at the pre-qualification stage of the competition.

    The name ‘Inspiring Futures’ only represents a rebranding of the work that G4S Care and Justice (UK) Ltd undertakes in the youth detention arena.

  • Paul Flynn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Paul Flynn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Flynn on 2016-04-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many contracts relating to (a) secure training centres and (b) prisons MTC Novo have been awarded; and how many such contracts that firm is currently under consideration for.

    Andrew Selous

    The Ministry of Justice holds contract information related to (a) secure training centres and (b) prisons, and can confirm that MTCnovo Limited have been awarded one contract associated with Rainsbrook Secure Training Centre. At present MTCnovo Limited are not under consideration for any further secure training centre or prison contracts.

  • Gregory Campbell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Gregory Campbell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gregory Campbell on 2016-04-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of trends in diabetes incidence on changes in medical provision for people with diabetes.

    Jane Ellison

    Both the prevalence and incidence of Type 2 diabetes has been rising, driven by increasing obesity and an ageing population. The numbers of people diagnosed with the condition are projected to grow from 2.9 million in 2014/15 to 4.6 million by 2030. In addition, a further 5 million people are estimated to be at high risk of developing Type 2 diabetes.

    The Government is therefore committed to introducing a national Type 2 diabetes prevention programme and improving the management and care of people with diabetes within the lifetime of this parliament. These commitments are reflected in Government’s 2016/17 mandate to NHS England. This is in the context of our wider public health programme to prevent disease and promote good health which includes a strong focus on tackling obesity, one of the most common, modifiable risk factors for developing Type 2 diabetes. For example, the announcement for a soft drinks industry levy by the Chancellor in the budget is the first step in this Government’s comprehensive childhood obesity strategy, which we will be launching in the summer.

  • Alex Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Alex Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2016-04-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 11 April 2016 to Question 32147, whether his Department plans to bring forward proposals to enable police to issue fixed notices for people smoking in cars with children present.

    Jane Ellison

    The police use traffic offender reports to record information on a range of offences, including for smoking in private vehicles carrying children. Local authorities can then take appropriate enforcement action, including the issue fixed penalty notices, rather than the police.

    Guidance on the use of traffic offender reports to share information with local authorities has been circulated to police forces.

  • Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-04-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to raise awareness of tuberculosis screening.

    Jane Ellison

    Actions to raise awareness and tackle stigma among populations at high risk of tuberculosis (TB) are highlighted in the Collaborative TB Strategy for England 2015 to 2020.

    These actions consist of awareness raising of symptoms, targeted TB screening and education as part of new patient checks at general practice surgeries and the use of community workers and health advocates to signpost and facilitate patient access to local services. In addition, TB awareness raising is provided to statutory and voluntary agencies working with: the homeless; individuals who misuse drugs or alcohol; and migrants from countries with high TB incidence. Efforts to raise awareness of TB among health professionals are supported nationally by Public Health England and the leading national TB charity, TB Alert.

    In addition, I have attended and hosted a number of events to raise awareness, most recently for World TB Day in March which included visiting the Find and treat mobile unit.

  • Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-04-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to encourage homeless people to be screened for tuberculosis.

    Jane Ellison

    The Collaborative Tuberculosis (TB) Strategy for England 2015-2020 was launched in January 2015[1]. It lays out 10 key ‘areas for actions’ which include improving TB awareness raising, TB case finding (screening) and treatment for under-served populations such as the homeless; which are being delivered across England by seven TB Control Boards supported by a national TB team.

    These actions are underpinned by collaborative working between third sector organisations, local authorities, Public Health England and the National Health Service. The work focuses on targeted awareness-raising of symptoms and curability of TB; the range of local health and care services; and eligibility for free treatment. Specific and targeted outreach interventions for under-served populations (informed by proven models such as ‘Find and Treat’ in London) include specific services for active case finding for pulmonary TB among homeless people, use of mobile X-ray units (MXUs) with incentives for people to have chest X-rays, enhanced case management and return to service interventions to prevent loss to follow up.

    [1]Public Health England. Collaborative Tuberculosis Strategy for England 2015 to 2020 [Internet]. 2015. Available from:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/collaborative-tuberculosis-strategy-for-england

    “

  • Heidi Alexander – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Heidi Alexander – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Heidi Alexander on 2016-04-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what enhancement to pay rates officials in his Department receive for working on Saturdays and Sundays.

    Ben Gummer

    Civil Servants at the Department are contracted to work Monday to Friday. Senior Civil Servants are not eligible to claim any paid overtime for weekend or late working outside of contracted hours.

    In the majority of cases, for civil servants in the delegated grades (AO-G6), overtime is paid in exceptional circumstances and must be agreed in advance with the appropriate senior official. The rate for paid overtime is dependent on the official’s grade and/ or the day worked.

  • Sarah Wollaston – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Sarah Wollaston – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sarah Wollaston on 2016-04-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether he expects to be consulted in cases where a Bulk Personal Dataset is required from his Department by an Agency under the provisions of Part 7 of the Investigatory Powers Bill.

    George Freeman

    The Investigatory Powers Bill does not include any powers to require the provision of a bulk personal dataset (BPD) to a security and intelligence agency. It does require that there should be robust and transparent safeguards relating to such an agency’s use of BPDs. This includes a new requirement for warrants to authorise the retention and examination of BPDs.

    The Bill provides for both class BPD warrants, covering datasets of a particular class, and specific BPD warrants, covering an individual dataset. The draft statutory Code of Practice provides further guidance on the factors that the security and intelligence agencies should consider in determining which type of warrant to apply for. These include whether the nature or provenance of the dataset raises particularly novel or contentious issues; whether it contains a significant component of intrusive data; and whether it contains a significant component of confidential information relating to members of sensitive professions. All warrants will be subject to the ‘double-lock’ safeguard meaning that they will be subject to approval by both a Secretary of State and a Judicial Commissioner.