UKPOL.CO.UK

Tag: 2014

  • Lucy Powell – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Lucy Powell – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lucy Powell on 2014-04-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many jobs have been transferred from the public to the private sector as a result of privatisations or outsourcing by his Department since May 2010.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    Transfer of work from the public to the private sector continues to be considered, among other options, as a way to deliver the savings set out at the Spending Review and to increase the efficiency of Government. The Department ensures that the staff involved in such transfers are treated fairly and consistently and that their terms and conditions are protected through Transfer of Undertakings (TUPE) arrangements.

    A full breakdown of civilian outflow from the MOD, including through privatisation of function, is provided in the MOD Quarterly Civilian Personnel Reports. The latest version (as at 1 January 2014, published on 6 February 2014) can be found at the following address: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/284487/civilian-personnel-report-1_january_2014.pdf

  • Tom Greatrex – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Tom Greatrex – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Greatrex on 2014-04-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how much has been disbursed to Ombudsman Services for work relating to the Green Deal in each month since January 2013; and how many complaints relating to the Green Deal have been processed by Ombudsman Services over the same period.

    Gregory Barker

    I can confirm that DECC pays the Ombudsman Service a fixed quarterly rate to provide Green Deal services, support to DECC and maintain systems, plus an additional fee for each investigation undertaken. The quarterly fixed rate payments work out at £3,333.00 per month.

    I would also like to point out that as part of the Government’s transparency initiative DECC publishes summary details of all payments made over £500, including payments to contractors. You can find this information using the following link:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/publications?keywords=&publication_filter_option=transparency-data&topics%5B%5D=all&departments%5B%5D=department-of-energy-climate-change&direction=before&date=2013-03-01

    The Ombudsman Service has undertaken some casework but this has not resulted in formal complaints or investigations and there have been no investigation charges to the Department.

    “

  • Lucy Powell – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lucy Powell – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lucy Powell on 2014-04-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many jobs have been transferred from the public to the private sector as a result of privatisations or outsourcing by his Department since May 2010.

    Hugh Robertson

    Comprehensive information on all outsourcing activities and the number of jobs involved is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

  • Robert Buckland – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Attorney General

    Robert Buckland – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Attorney General

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Robert Buckland on 2014-04-07.

    To ask the Attorney General, how many domestic violence cases have led to prosecutions for non-injurious behaviours.

    Oliver Heald

    The CPS flags all cases identified as domestic violence according to the revised Government definition implemented in March 2013. This includes the elements of coercive control, and behaviours which do not display visible injuries such as psychological abuse which were introduced in the revised definition. However the records held by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) cannot separately identify the number of people prosecuted for each of these elements. Such information could only be obtained through a manual search of records which would incur a disproportionate cost.

  • Nia Griffith – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Nia Griffith – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nia Griffith on 2014-05-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how many companies are registered to provide Green Deal assessments in Wales.

    Gregory Barker

    TheGreen Deal Oversight and Regulation Body (ORB) produces publically available information on the supply chain. The latest information is available by using the search tool at http://gdorb.decc.gov.uk/.

    These organisations operate in different geographical locations and provide a wide variety of offers to consumers. Table 1.16 of the Department’s quarterly Official Statistics release shows the self-reported operational coverage of assessor organisations by Local Authority that they are expecting to operate within:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/green-deal-energy-company-obligation-eco-and-insulation-levels-in-great-britain-quarterly-report-to-december-2013

    “

  • Julie Elliott – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Julie Elliott – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julie Elliott on 2014-05-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, when he expects the solar PV permitted development rights consultation referred to in his Department’s solar strategy to be published; and if he will make a statement.

    Nick Boles

    I have been asked to reply.

    The Department for Communities and Local Government is working with the Department for Energy and Climate Change on the introduction of a permitted development right in England for the installation of rooftop solar panels up to 1MWp on commercial buildings. This builds on the existing permitted development right for non-domestic properties which allows the installation of solar panels up to 50kWp. We expect to consult on this proposal over the summer.

  • Stephen Timms – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Stephen Timms – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2014-05-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of sanction referrals made by Work Programme providers to a decision maker in his Department have led to (a) a sanction being applied and (b) no sanction being applied.

    Esther McVey

    Information on the outcomes of decisions resulting from referrals for a sanction for failure to participate in the Work Programme is published and can be found at:

    https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/

    Guidance for users is available at:

    https://sw.stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/online-help/Stat-Xplore_User_Guide.htm

    Note that the published data is based on decisions and therefore does not show referrals where no decision has been made.

    “

  • Barry Sheerman – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Barry Sheerman – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Sheerman on 2014-05-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the cost is of redundancies made by NHS England since January 2013; and what proportion of total expenditure that figure represents.

    Dr Daniel Poulter

    The Secretary of State meets regularly with NHS England to discuss a wide variety of issues. The Department is clear on the need to ensure that redundancy payments are made only in circumstances where it is appropriate to do so and has been working with NHS England to ensure that payments are tightly controlled, whilst meeting contractual obligations.

    Redundancies are subject to rigorous scrutiny and challenge before being approved. Additionally, any individual redundancy compensation payment in excess of £100,000 also requires Departmental approval. Where redundancies do occur, NHS England ensures that these are formally subject to national NHS provisions to claw back any redundancy payment received where an individual then goes on to be re-employed within the National Health Service, further ensuring better value for the tax payer.

    NHS England takes seriously its responsibilities to ensure that redundancy is a last resort and has implemented a system to seek to re-deploy any staff affected by such change to retain knowledge, skills and capability within the organisation, where at all possible.

    NHS England has a responsibility for ensuring that maximum value for money for taxpayers is delivered, whilst seeking to improve health outcomes for patients through effective commissioning arrangements. As a direct employer of 6,000 people, NHS England has a responsibility to continually improve the way it delivers both commissioning and the provision of the services for which it is directly accountable, which includes the regular review of its workforce arrangements.

    NHS England has advised that its redundancy costs for 2012-13 were £54,000, which represented 0.1% of total expenditure. For 2013-14 the costs were £1,017,000, which represented 0.003% of total expenditure.

  • Andy Slaughter – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Andy Slaughter – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2014-05-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether he has further plans to expand the Public Defender Service beyond the first phase of recruits.

    Mr Shailesh Vara

    We are still concluding the recruitment campaign from 20 January 2014 and expect some further appointments to the PDS to be confirmed as a result of that.

    In the current circumstances the Government will take the necessary steps to ensure availability of representation in Very High Cost Cases in which legally aided defendants are currently unrepresented. This could include increasing the capacity of the Public Defender Service. It remains open to the self-employed Bar to accept instructions on these cases, and we would welcome the maximum possible participation of the self-employed Bar in this regard.

  • Jim Cunningham – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Jim Cunningham – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2014-05-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many strategic clinical networks currently have a breast network site-specific group; and how many times each such group met in 2013-14.

    Jane Ellison

    The requirement for the provision of site-specific groups (SSGs), such as those for breast cancer, is written into national cancer peer review requirements. In consultation with strategic clinical networks (SCNs), NHS England has developed an SCN framework. The framework reiterates the role and importance of clinical networking groups as support for the commissioning process, but allows for local agreement to how those groups are supported.

    There are 12 SCNs and we would expect all to have a breast network SSG. This will be evidenced by the annual report published for the SCN and relevant area team. The National Peer Review Programme “Manual for Cancer Services; Breast Cancer Measures” states that network groups should meet regularly.

    The Review Programme further states that the network group should produce an annual work programme in discussion with the SCN and agreed with the director of the relevant Area Team. It should include details of any planned service developments and should specify the personnel responsible and the timescales for implantation. The SSGs also develop protocols for the treatment of patients within the SCN and agree audits and research projects that will be supported.

    The Review Programme also states that network groups should meet regularly. It gives guidance on the roles that should be represented on the group but not numbers.

    We do not hold information on how many breast network SSGs existed and how many times each group met prior to April 2013.