The below Parliamentary question was asked by Annette Brooke on 2014-07-15.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether it is in the remit of Ofsted to investigate pupils’ safety from asbestos in school buildings when it inspects schools; and if she will make a statement.
Mr David Laws
It is not in Ofsted’s remit to assess asbestos management in schools. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is the lead regulator on managing asbestos.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Flint on 2014-07-15.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, pursuant to the Answer of 9 July 2014, Official Report, column 305W, on housing energy, what programmes, projects and policies were funded under the financial support allocated to the Green Deal Programme in (a) 2011-12, (b) 2012-13 and (c) 2013-14.
Amber Rudd
Financial support allocated to the Green Deal Programme has chiefly funded the following projects and policies:
Delivery of these schemes was, or is, funded by the obligated energy companies, not Government, and administration is undertaken by Ofgem. Ofgem is funded by DECC for the administration of CESP and ECO.
Delivery of the Energy Saving Advice Service – a telephone response service taking calls from the public and the industry, providing advice to people enquiring about information on the Green Deal or household energy efficiency measures. This service remains in operation.
Funding for the Green Deal Oversight and Registration Body – the independent governance body for the Green Deal supply chain. This remains in operation.
DECC’s investment in The Green Deal Finance Company.
Core Cities – a project to enable bids from Local Authorities of the Core Cities to install energy-saving measures in their housing stock, mostly in 2012/13. This has been completed.
Green Deal Cashback – a scheme to provide grant funding to support households in the installation of energy-saving measures. The scheme opened in January 2013 and closed to new applicants on 30th June 2014.
Green Deal Communities – a scheme to provide funding for Local Authorities to implement energy-saving measures in their housing stock. Funding was available in 2013/14.
Supporting IT development and systems – the procurement, supervision and control of IT systems to enable Energy Performance Certificates, Green Deal Assessments and Green Deal financing to be delivered to applicants.
Funding the administration by Ofgem of:
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Matthew Offord on 2014-07-15.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to restore upland peat sites.
Dan Rogerson
Defra has a range of measures in place to support the restoration of upland peat sites. These include protection through statutory area designations such as Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs) and Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONBs). In addition there are specific incentives for peatland restoration in agri-environment schemes. In 2013 we committed £31.2 million through Environmental Stewardship (covering around 98,000ha) to management options for the maintenance and restoration of moorland habitats. A further £4.1million was committed in capital grants for grip blocking. These are the key options in Environmental Stewardship that contribute to the management of upland peat. This support will continue to be provided under the new environmental land management scheme.
The Dark Peak Nature Improvement Area (NIA) in the Peak District, one of the twelve NIAs announced in 2012, is focused on improving upland peatland habitats across an area of 25,000ha.
In September 2013 we launched the pilot UK Peatland Code which provides a basis for business sponsorship of peatland restoration. An initial suite of restoration projects from across the UK have been identified covering over 25,000 ha of mainly blanket bog.
Upland peat restoration is also being addressed through Defra’s Research and Development Programme, with over £1 million committed between 2010 and 2015 to identify restoration techniques with the best environmental outcomes.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Hemming on 2014-07-15.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that the opening of the airport on St Helena does not lead to the development of child sex tourism in that territory.
Mark Simmonds
Safeguarding children in St Helena is a critical priority for the St Helena Government and the UK. Whilst Territory Governments have the principal responsibility for ensure the safeguarding of children in the Overseas Territories, the UK provides practical assistance and support. DFID and the FCO have been supporting child safeguarding initiatives in the OT’s for the last nine years, most recently through the Safeguarding Children in the Overseas Territories (SCOT) programme (2013-2016), which followed on from an earlier SCOT programme (2009-2013) and a regional Child Protection Programme (CPP, 2005-2008). This new programme will focus on gaining a deeper understanding of the problem including how to detect, prevent and address child abuse.
Following recent further allegations relating to child abuse in St Helena, the then Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs agreed to establish an independent panel of experts to investigate these specific allegations and related matters. In response to these allegations the island’s Executive Council said: “We have taken great steps on St Helena to protect our children and vulnerable people against abuse of any kind. We know that there are concerns, as there are in any community, but solid progress has been made in improving our safeguarding capabilities. We know there is still more to do, and we will continue to strive for further improvements
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Watson on 2014-07-15.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the value is of duplicate supplier payments identified by his Department since 2010; and what proportion of such payments have since been recovered in each of the last two financial years.
Mr David Lidington
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) does not hold all of the required data centrally and could not answer this question in full without incurring disproportionate costs. However, we recently investigated duplicate supplier payments for the eight month period from April to November 2013 and identified just one duplicate invoice, with a value of £2,501. Our financial control system prevented any payment being made. The FCO has several controls in place to prevent duplicate payments.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tessa Munt on 2014-07-15.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, for what reason none of the £42 million his Department has made available for increasing the use of radiotherapy is to be spent on treating cancer patients with Stereotactic Ablative Radiotherapy this year.
Jane Ellison
In July 2011, the National Radiotherapy Implementation Group concluded that current evidence supports treatment withstereotactic ablative radiotherapy (SABR) for only a small number of patients. The evidence supports its use in the treatment of early stage lung cancers for patients who are unsuitable for surgery (approximately 1,000 per annum).
NHS England recognises the positive clinical impact that its national policy on SABR for the treatment of early non-small cell lung cancer has had. It is currently examining the potential use of SABR in patients with oligometastatic disease – where a cancer is in the early stages of spreading.
NHS England is also currently undertaking a review of stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) and SABR for intracranial conditions to establish what the national demand is in line with its national clinical commissioning policies on SRS and SABR, and what the national capacity requirements are for this specialised treatment. Following the review it is planned that a final decision will be taken by the Specialised Commissioning Oversight Group in October 2014.
Later this year, the Radiotherapy Clinical Reference Group will review its current policy position on SABR to assess whether there is new evidence to recommend its use on other conditions. It is important to ensure that treatments commissioned are supported by robust evidence of their benefit to patients.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Joe Benton on 2014-07-15.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many women who underwent an abortion in 2013 had previously had an ectopic pregnancy.
Jane Ellison
Information on women who had an abortion and had previously had an ectopic pregnancy is not available.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jonathan Evans on 2014-07-15.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many animals were used in regulated procedures under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 in Wales in 2013.
Norman Baker
During 2013 in Wales, regarding the number of regulated procedures under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 (ASPA):
(a) 36,010 involved mice, of which:
(i) 18,886 involved genetically-modified animals
(ii) 7,206 involved animals with a harmful genetic defect
(b) 3,345 involved rats, of which:
(i) 10 involved genetically-modified animals
(ii) none involved animals with a harmful genetic defect
(c) 24 involved guinea pigs, of which:
(i) none involved genetically-modified animals
(ii) none involved animals with a harmful genetic defect
(d) none involved hamsters
(e) 3 involved rabbits, of which:
(i) none involved genetically-modified animals
(ii) none involved animals with a harmful genetic defect
(f) none involved horses and other equids
(g) 396 involved sheep, of which:
(i) none involved genetically-modified animals
(ii) none involved animals with a harmful genetic defect
(h) none involved pigs
(i) 643 involved birds, of which
(i) none involved genetically-modified animals
(ii) none involved animals with a harmful genetic defect
(j) 165 involved amphibians, of which
(i) 9 involved genetically-modified animals
(ii) none involved animals with a harmful genetic defect
(k) none involved reptiles
(l) 11,927 involved fish, of which:
(i) none involved genetically-modified animals
(ii) none involved animals with a harmful genetic defect
(m) none involved cats
(n) none involved dogs
(o) none involved new world primates
(p) none involved old world primates
During 2013 in Wales, regarding the proportion of regulated procedures under ASPA in different types of designated establishment:
(a) 2.8% (1,462) were performed in public health laboratories
(b) 96.7% (50,826) were performed in universities and medical schools
(c) none were performed in NHS hospitals
(d) none were performed in Government Departments
(e) none were performed in other public bodies
(f) none were performed in non-profit making organisations
(g) 0.5% (251) were performed in commercial organisations
During 2013 in Wales, regarding the proportion of regulated procedures under ASPA:
(a) all (52,539) were carried out for fundamental and applied studies other than toxicity.
(b) none were carried out for toxicity tests or other safety and efficacy evaluation.
In 2013 in Wales, regarding the number of animals used in regulated procedures under ASPA:
(a) 18,707 genetically modified animals were used
(b) 7,206 animals with a harmful genetic defect were used
During 2013 in Wales, 59.3% (31,202) of regulated procedures under ASPA were undertaken without anaesthesia.
During 2013 in Wales, 51,576 animals were used in regulated procedures under ASPA.
During 2013 in Wales, 52,539 regulated procedures under ASPA were conducted
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mike Wood on 2014-07-15.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she plans to introduce service standards and set processing time limits for visa applications made at overseas posts.
James Brokenshire
Service Standards are in place for the processing of visa applications submitted overseas.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Murphy on 2014-07-15.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps the Government has taken to meet the commitment made by the G20 heads of state in the final declaration of the Cannes Summit in November 2011 to reduce the average cost of transferring remittances to 5 per cent by 2014; and what assessment she made of the likelihood of the UK meeting this commitment.
Justine Greening
The UK is contributing to the achievement of the 5% target by supporting the development of payments infrastructure, with a focus on digitisation to reduce transaction costs.
We also support piloting and scaling up mobile banking through a Technology Programme for Branchless Banking which is co-funded with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the Master Card Foundation and the Consultative Group to Assist the Poor (CGAP). As of December 2013, the Programme has helped an estimated 31 million poor people globally to access financial services.