The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christina Rees on 2015-10-26.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how his Department plans to apply the apprenticeships levy in Wales.
Nick Boles
My Rt hon Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer will announce further details of the apprenticeship levy at the Spending Review, including the scope and rate of the levy and how it will operate with respect to the Devolved Administrations.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kate Osamor on 2015-10-26.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what progress his Department has made on the implementation of the Choice Review.
Ben Gummer
The Department commissioned the Review of Choice in End of Life Care to examine the issue of choice in end of life care. The Review’s recommendations on achieving high quality care and greater choice were published earlier this year. We agree with the vision set out by the Review and we are working with NHS England to see how this can best be achieved. We intend to respond to the Review later this year.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lilian Greenwood on 2015-10-26.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 23 October 2015 to Question 12538, and with reference to the statement in the Answer of 21 September 2015 to Question 10029 that Ely to Soham track doubling was among a small number of schemes that had been paused by Network Rail, which other schemes were paused by Network Rail.
Claire Perry
The Secretary of State announced on 25 June 2015 the pause of work on Midland Main Line electrification and TransPennine electrification. Network Rail subsequently announced to stakeholders that it was pausing work on Ely to Soham track doubling. No other pauses have been announced.
Any further changes to Network Rail’s delivery plans will be announced as part of the outcome of Sir Peter Hendy’s review.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2015-10-26.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of his Department’s policies on increasing access to public transport for disabled passengers.
Andrew Jones
We have made significant progress on increasing access. By the end of the year, we expect around 75% of rail journeys to start or end at a step-free station. That is an increase from around 50% when the Access for All programme started. That programme will deliver 151 step-free routes at stations this year. On the buses, only 57% met accessibility regulations in 2009-10. That number is now nearly 90% and rising.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Suttie on 2015-10-23.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with business on how labour inspection and enforcement could support implementation of section 54 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015, relating to transparency in the supply chains of commercial organisations.
Lord Bates
Section 54 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 focuses on encouraging businesses to take action to prevent modern slavery in their supply chains. The state seeks to prevent this type of abuse through labour inspection and enforcement. We want these two areas of activity to complement each other to prevent labour exploitation in the UK. We have recently launched a consultation on the Government’s approach to tackling exploitation in the labour market. We will use the outcomes of this consultation to ensure that our final proposals complement section 54 of the Modern Slavery Act as effectively as possible.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nicholas Soames on 2015-10-23.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how much and what proportion of brownfield land is controlled by central government departments.
Brandon Lewis
The Department for Communities and Local Government does not hold this information.
The Housing and Planning Bill will require local authorities to have a statutory register of brownfield land that is suitable for housing, improving the availability and transparency of up-to-date information.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2015-10-27.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what proportion of senior civil servants from his Department are from a lower socio-economic background.
Mr Tobias Ellwood
Information on the socio-economic background of all our staff is not centrally held and to compile it would incur disproportionate cost.
The FCO takes part in a number of schemes to encourage applicants from a lower socio-economic background.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2015-10-27.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many people aged (a) under 18 and (b) 18 to 24 have been diagnosed with depression in each of the last five years.
Alistair Burt
This information is not held centrally.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tulip Siddiq on 2015-10-27.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what role his Department played in NICE’s decision not to publish safe nurse staffing guidance in accident and emergency departments along with four evidence reviews of safe nurse staffing; and if he will make a statement.
Ben Gummer
Responsibility for developing safe staffing guidance in a number of clinical areas passed from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) to NHS England in June 2015, and is being led by Dr Mike Durkin working with others across the National Health Service. This work will include guidance on safe staffing in accident and emergency departments, and the guidance will draw on the earlier work undertaken by NICE. When the responsibility for this work was transferred, NICE concluded that it would be unhelpful, ahead of the further work to be done on the guidance, to publish the material that it had brought together. The Department discussed these options with NICE and agreed with their decision.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Imran Hussain on 2015-10-27.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assistance her Department is providing to areas affected by the recent earthquake in Afghanistan.
Mr Desmond Swayne
We are in close contact with our governmental and non-governmental partners in Afghanistan and Pakistan who are assessing and responding to the situation on the ground. Whilst we have not received any official requests for assistance at this stage, we do have multi-year humanitarian programmes in both countries which could be drawn upon if needed.
In Afghanistan, DFID is providing up to £80 million of humanitarian support over 2015-2019, including through the UN-led Common Humanitarian Fund and the International Committee of the Red Cross. In Pakistan, our multi-year humanitarian programme could provide up to £100 million over 2014-2018 for immediate relief and early recovery, depending on the extent of emergencies which occur. In both countries we are also supporting work by local organisations to build resilience to natural disasters and increase preparedness for recurring events.