UKPOL.CO.UK

Tag: 2014

  • Chris Bryant – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Chris Bryant – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Bryant on 2014-07-15.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much his Department spent on (a) accommodation, (b) taxis or private cars and (c) alcoholic beverages in (i) 2010-11, (ii) 2011-12 and (iii) 2012-13.

    Steve Webb

    The Department is a geographically-dispersed organisation employing around 90,000 staff across some 870 sites, delivering services directly to around 22 million customers. The table below shows the expenditure on accommodation and taxis for the years in question. The average spend per head on accommodation for 2012-13 was in the region of £70.

    The expenditure on taxis includes reimbursement of the cost of actual fares to support our disabled staff travelling to and from their place of work.

    Date

    (a) Accommodation

    (b) Taxi

    2010/11

    £6,932,231

    £1,539,581

    2011/12

    £5,281,218

    £1,201,506

    2012/13

    £6,571,462

    £1,288,034

    In the years 2008/09 and 2009/10 the Department’s spend on hotels under the previous administration was £11,264,324 and £11,694,697 respectively. This has almost halved under this administration. Spend on taxis for the year 2009/2010 was £1,526,863.

    As the purchase of alcohol is exceptional, there is no separate finance code to identify this spend.

  • Chuka Umunna – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Chuka Umunna – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chuka Umunna on 2014-07-15.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, whether the review by Lord Myners of the process of privatisation of Royal Mail will be published in full; and when this report will be completed.

    Matthew Hancock

    The review is intended to inform wider HMG considerations about alternatives to bookbuilding, as recommended by the National Audit Office in its report on the Royal Mail Initial Public Offering (IPO). It will help my Rt. Hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) in his own assessment of the system the Government operates for the sale of its assets through IPOs to ensure that Government can meet its full objectives whilst achieving value for money.

    It is not a public review but my Rt. Hon. Friend the Secretary of State for BIS will make the key findings of the review public.

    It is expected that the noble Lord Myners will complete his review later this year.

  • Hilary Benn – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Hilary Benn – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2014-06-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, when he will answer Question 200690 tabled by the hon. Member for Leeds Central on 13 June 2014.

    Kris Hopkins

    Question 200690 was answered on 26 June 2014, Official Report¸ Column 270W.

  • Angus Robertson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Angus Robertson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Angus Robertson on 2014-06-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many fires have occurred onboard each variant of Joint Strike Fighter aircraft; and what the cause was of each fire.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    All aircraft variants of F-35 are currently within the Development Test phase of the overall programme. The aim of the Development Test phase is to reveal issues through testing so that solutions can be developed in order to deliver a capable aircraft to the Armed Forces.

    There have been no fires on-board either the F-35B (Short Take Off & Vertical Landing Variant) or the F-35C (Carrier Variant).

    There have been four fires on-board the F-35A (Conventional Take Off & Landing Variant) that the UK are aware of:

    The first fire was within the Integrated Power Pack (IPP) and was due to an internal valve failure. Ground personnel extinguished the fire which resulted in minor aircraft damage. This incident lead to a minor design change.

    The second fire was as a result of a hydraulic fluid leak onto a brake assembly following landing. Ground personnel extinguished the fire which resulted in minor aircraft damage.

    The third fire was due to a hot brake condition after landing which was extinguished by ground personnel and resulted in a replacement of the wheel/tyre assembly.

    Both brake fires remain under investigation with no immediate design change being considered as necessary.

    The most recent fire occurred on 23 June 2014 at Eglin Air Force Base during a takeoff roll. The root cause of the incident is currently being investigated.

  • Mark Menzies – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Mark Menzies – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Menzies on 2014-06-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what steps he is taking to ensure that the risk of flooding is taken into account in any potential shale gas sites.

    Michael Fallon

    Any development (including a shale gas site) that is planned near a main river or a flood defence (including a sea defence) will require a flood defence consent from the Environment Agency. The Environment Agency is a statutory consultee in the planning process and can object to any development that they consider to be at high risk of flooding. The Environment Agency will continue to assess each site on a case by case basis and work with operators and local planning to ensure sites are protected from flood risk.

  • Andrew Turner – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Andrew Turner – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Turner on 2014-06-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what information his Department gathers on the number of people who move to another GP practice.

    Dr Daniel Poulter

    The Health and Social Care Information Centre has advised that data on the number of people changing general practitioner practice each year is not collected centrally.

  • Stephen O’Brien – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Stephen O’Brien – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen O’Brien on 2014-06-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what monetary thresholds were applied to the cost-per-quality adjusted life year quoted in the evidence submitted as part of the Health Protection Agency’s work with the Inter-departmental Group for the Valuation of Life and Health review in 2008.

    Dr Daniel Poulter

    I refer my Rt. hon. Friend to the answer given on 26 June 2014, Official Report, column 283W.

  • Sadiq Khan – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Sadiq Khan – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sadiq Khan on 2014-06-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many full-time staff are employed in the Older Live Cases Unit.

    Karen Bradley

    There were 332 Full Time Equivalent (FTE) staff employed by OLCU at the end of
    Q1 2014. FTE means that part time employees are counted by the proportion of
    full time hours they work, so that staff working half the time of an equivalent
    full time colleague would count as 0.5 FTE.

  • Thérèse Coffey – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Thérèse Coffey – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Thérèse Coffey on 2014-06-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will make it his policy that civil partnerships can be dissolved at any county court.

    Mr Shailesh Vara

    As of 22nd April 2014, the County Court no longer has the jurisdiction to consider divorce or civil partnership dissolution applications. These are now considered by the Family Court.

    Hearings in divorce and civil partnership dissolution cases are rare, but from April 2015 if a hearing is required then it can be accommodated at any Family Court venue with the appropriate judicial expertise.

  • Gordon Marsden – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Gordon Marsden – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gordon Marsden on 2014-06-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what minimum qualifications staff at the Maritime and Coastguard Agency Maritime Operations Centre in Fareham will need in order to discharge the technical duties of that centre when it is fully operational; and what range of qualifications staff currently employed at that centre have.

    Stephen Hammond

    Existing Coastguard officers who are successful in getting a role at the National Maritime Operations Centre (NMOC) will need to have successfully passed the following training programmes dependent on the role they are undertaking:

    · Maritime Search and Rescue – Foundation

    · Maritime Search and Rescue – Intermediate

    · Search and Rescue Mission Coordinator

    New Coastguard Officers recruited into roles at the NMOC will need to have successfully passed the following training programmes dependent on the role they are undertaking:

    · HM Coastguard Foundation Programme

    · Maritime Operations Officer Programme

    · Senior Maritime Operations Officer Programme

    Currently the Maritime Operations Officers externally recruited are undertaking the Maritime Operations Officer Programme and will be qualified prior to the NMOC taking on operational duties in September 2014. All existing Coastguard Officers who are currently employed at the NMOC have the requisite qualifications for the posts they hold.