Tag: 2014

  • Simon Burns – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Simon Burns – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Simon Burns on 2014-06-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many expressions of interest from eligible providers to develop the HIV/STI national clinical audit NHS England has received to date.

    Jane Ellison

    The Healthcare Quality Improvement Partnership (HQIP) commissions and manages the National Clinical Audit and Patient Outcomes Programme on behalf of NHS England. The HQIP has asked for expressions of interest from suitable providers who are able to design and complete a one year feasibility study to inform any future national clinical audit of HIV and sexually transmitted infections. The contract for the work will be awarded this summer. NHS England cannot disclose the number of expressions of interest that have been received at this stage as this is commercially sensitive information.

  • Stephen O’Brien – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Stephen O’Brien – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen O’Brien on 2014-04-09.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to HM Revenue and Customs’ consultation document, Tackling marketed tax avoidance, published on 24 January 2014, whether consideration was given to (a) running the consultation for longer than one calendar month and (b) initiating it earlier, to allow more time for the decision-taking process in advance of the March 2014 Budget Statement.

    Mr David Gauke

    HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has been successful in challenging tax avoidance and, in relation to avoidance cases that go to litigation, around 80% of cases litigated resulting in the tax being due. This led to around £1.7 billion of tax being protected in 2013. It is not possible to provide a breakdown of the range and frequency of amounts of tax due without causing undue cost on the department to provide the information.

    The Government considered different options for the consultation period for the proposals but concluded that the time period made available was reasonable. There were a very large number of responses, which suggests that the timescale did not cause any undue impediment to those who wished to give their views in response to the consultation. ‘Tackling Marketed Tax Avoidance’ followed on from the earlier consultation over the summer of 2013 ‘Raising the Stakes on Tax Avoidance’, which consulted in detail on the initial proposal for the Follower Notice measure.

  • Luciana Berger – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Luciana Berger – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2014-06-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what (a) number and (b) proportion of adult cystic fibrosis centres in England have (i) reached and (ii) exceeded the maximum capacity of 250 patients recommended by the Cystic Fibrosis Trust in each of the last four years.

    Norman Lamb

    Information concerning the number of adult cystic fibrosis (CF) patients cared for by CF centres in England in each of the last four years is not available. This data has only been collected since the introduction of the tariff for CF services in 2011.

    In the attached table we have provided the number and proportion of CF centres treating 250 patients or more in each of the last three years.

    It should be noted that theStandards of Care, updated by CF Trust in 2011 does not state that 250 patients is the maximum number a CF centre should treat, but rather that when a centre reaches 250 patients, and anticipates that numbers will continue to rise, the development of alternative specialist centres should be considered.

  • Jeremy Corbyn – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Jeremy Corbyn – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jeremy Corbyn on 2014-04-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what reports he has received of 10 Palestinians from the Gaza Strip and the West Bank who were murdered by the Israeli military in March 2013.

    Hugh Robertson

    The Foreign and Commonwealth Office receives various reports throughout the year on the issues affecting Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories, this includes reports, from credited and un-credited sources, on Palestinians killed by the Israel Defence Forces.

  • Julian Huppert – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Julian Huppert – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julian Huppert on 2014-06-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people have been resettled in the UK under the Syrian Vulnerable Persons Relocation scheme since its launch; and how many people are expected to arrive in the UK under that scheme by December 2014.

    Karen Bradley

    To date 50 Syrians have arrived in the UK under the Syrian Vulnerable Persons Relocation scheme.

    The scheme is based on need, rather than designed to meet set arrival projections. However, we will continue to bring groups here on a regular basis, and envisage that several hundred people will be helped over the next three years.

  • Jim Cunningham – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Jim Cunningham – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2014-04-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 2 April 2014, Official Report, column 724W, on housing benefit: social rented housing, for what reasons his Department has determined that a longer timeframe than one year is required to assess the effects of the under-occupancy penalty on rent arrears in the social rented sector.

    Esther McVey

    Rent arrears can have multiple causes and levels tend to fluctuate over time. Analysis of monthly, quarterly or even a single year of arrears is insufficient to reliably remove these normal fluctuations, driven by both seasonal and general economic trends, and to determine whether and to what extent the removal of the spare room subsidy has impacted on rent arrears levels

  • Douglas Carswell – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Douglas Carswell – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Carswell on 2014-06-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what representations she received from the Essex Police and Crime Commissioner on changes to guidelines for police stop and search.

    Damian Green

    Essex Police have acknowledged receipt of the Home Secretary’s letter sent to Chief Constables on 30th April and have advised that they will submit a formal response in due course.

  • Julian Huppert – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Julian Huppert – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julian Huppert on 2014-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what criteria were used to calculate the levels of area cost adjustment used for sixth form colleges in (a) Cambridgeshire and (b) Oxfordshire; and how frequently those criteria are reviewed.

    Matthew Hancock

    Area cost adjustments for 16-19 education and training are based on the differing wage costs across England, as indicated by the Labour Force Survey (LFS). The same area cost index is used for sixth form colleges as for all other post-16 institutions in England that are funded by the Department for Education. It is also used for education and training for adults funded by the Skills Funding Agency.

    The current area cost index was developed in 2002 by the Learning and Skills Council and has been reviewed on several occasions since then. Initially Cambridgeshire did not have an area cost adjustment, but in 2008 there was a specific review of the area cost adjustment for the county, which considered a range of factors and gave Cambridgeshire an uplift of 2% for the academic year 2009/10 and all years subsequently. The uplift for Oxfordshire is 7%.

    The whole post-16 funding formula was reviewed in 2012, and we decided at that stage not to make any changes to area cost adjustments.

  • Diana Johnson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Diana Johnson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Diana Johnson on 2014-06-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people were convicted of an offence under Sections 141, 142, 146, 147A and 149 (1, 3 and 4), 151, 152 or 153 of the Licensing Act 2003 in the last 12 months; and how many of those convicted were fined the maximum amount stipulated in that Act for those offences.

    Jeremy Wright

    The number of offenders found guilty at all courts of the listed offences related to the Licensing Act 2003, in England and Wales, from 2009 to 2013, alongside the number of offenders given the maximum allowable sentence, can be viewed in the table.

  • Sarah Teather – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Sarah Teather – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sarah Teather on 2014-04-08.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he has had on the regeneration of the Brent Cross area with (a) Brent Council and (b) resident groups in Brent.

    Danny Alexander

    The Government has committed to working with the London Borough of Barnet to look at their proposals for the regeneration of Brent Cross. It is a matter for Barnet Council to discuss their plans with relevant stakeholders including Brent Council.