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Tag: 2014

  • Lord Allen of Kensington – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Lord Allen of Kensington – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Allen of Kensington on 2015-10-26.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what estimate they have made of the number of individuals who are innocent of crimes but have pleaded guilty in order to reduce their liability for the mandatory criminal courts charge since April 2015.

    Lord Faulks

    Section 55 of the Criminal Justice and Courts Act 2015 places a duty on the Lord Chancellor to carry out a review of the Criminal Courts Charge three years after implementation of the charge. No such assessment has been made to date.

  • Baroness Helic – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Baroness Helic – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Helic on 2015-10-26.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of freedom of access to Yemen by the UNHCR and non-governmental organisations looking after the most vulnerable in that country.

    Baroness Verma

    Intense fighting on the ground is making it increasingly hard for UNHCR and other non-governmental organisations to reach those in need within Yemen. This is compounded by restrictions on imports of commercial and humanitarian supplies into the country, including fuel. This in turn is hampering the distribution of humanitarian supplies within country, including essential food and medicines.Of the 2.3 million internally displaced people in Yemen, to date UNHCR has provided emergency relief items to 147,386 of them since the end of March.

    The UK continues to call on all parties to facilitate rapid, safe and unhindered access to all people in need in Yemen. The UK is one of the largest donors to the crisis and has announced £75m to respond to the crisis in Yemen. UK aid is providing vital medical supplies, water, food and emergency shelter, working with trusted and impartial actors who have a strong track record in delivering assistance in difficult and dangerous places. We also support a UN-led process on access negotiations and the establishment of the Access Working Group where partners report cases of obstruction and accessible routes.

  • Baroness Donaghy – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Baroness Donaghy – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Donaghy on 2015-10-26.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of whether initial teacher-training programmes delivered using core places allocated to universities are as schools-led as those delivered through School Direct.

    Lord Nash

    A school-led training course gives trainees the chance to train on the job in at least two schools.School-led initial teacher training is made up of School Direct (tuition fee), School Direct (salaried) and School-centered ITT provider (SCITT) routes. One of the key principles of the School Direct training route is that it gives schools the decision-making power they need to work with their preferred partners in the design and delivery of ITT, and to select and recruit the best possible candidates. A number of different models have been developed by schools working with appropriate ITT providers based on local needs.

    Many schools are choosing to work with universities in the delivery of School Direct training. The same ITT criteria, which specify the minimum amount of time that trainees must spend in schools, apply to all ITT routes, whether school or university-led.

    The increasing availability of school-led routes alongside university-led courses allow applicants to choose the right course depending on personal circumstances, qualifications, and the subject and age group they want to teach.

  • Baroness Randerson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Baroness Randerson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Randerson on 2015-10-26.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to continue with the Local Sustainable Transport Fund beyond 2016; and if not, whether they plan to replace it with an alternative fund for sustainable transport.

    Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

    All future budgets, including those for the Local Sustainable Transport Fund, remain subject to Spending Review negotiations. Further information will be made available after the outcome of the Spending Review is announced on 25 November.

  • Sharon Hodgson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Sharon Hodgson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sharon Hodgson on 2015-10-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps the Government is taking to provide adequate fire service on bonfire night.

    Greg Clark

    The Government is grateful to all firefighters who continually demonstrate their commitment to protecting their communities, particularly at this busy time of year.

    It is for each local fire and rescue authority to ensure the adequacy of its fire and rescue service provision on bonfire night and throughout the year. Each will have in place an Integrated Risk Management Plan, identifying and assessing the risks facing its communities and determining its priorities in relation to prevention, protection and response.

  • Greg Mulholland – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Greg Mulholland – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2015-10-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will give an undertaking to the British Medical Association not to impose a new junior doctors’ contract.

    Ben Gummer

    It remains the Government’s preference to reach a negotiated agreement with the British Medical Association (BMA). However, since the BMA Junior Doctors Committee withdrew from negotiations in October 2014, they have refused repeatedly to re-enter negotiations, even though they entered those negotiations recognising that the current contract was not fully fit for purpose and needed to change.

    On 28 OctoberGovernment confirmed that the pay of all junior doctors working safe hours in the transition to the new contract would be protected and again appealed to the BMA to return to negotiations.

    A new contract will be introduced from August 2016 that promotes safe working and rewards juniors more fairly in relation to the hours they work.

  • Chi Onwurah – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Chi Onwurah – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chi Onwurah on 2015-10-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what proportion of the £840 million funding for his Department’s National Cyber Security Programme has been disbursed to projects exclusively for (a) small businesses and (b) consumers.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    The National Cyber Security Programme (NCSP) is a comprehensive five-year, £860 million programme which aims to protect and enhance the UK, tackle cyber crime and make the UK one of the safest places in the world to do business online. The cross-Government programme is led by the Cabinet Office, with support from the Department for Culture, Media & Sport, the Home Office, the security & intelligence agencies and many other Government departments. As such, investment which provides benefits for small businesses and consumers is spread across a wide range of projects and workstreams, as much of the work in the programme meets multiple objectives. A significant proportion of the £860 million is therefore invested in work to protect small businesses and consumers. This includes, but is not restricted to, approximately £14m for projects exclusively for small businesses and consumers, plus over 10% of the NCSP budget to date to build law enforcement capabilities, which includes supporting businesses and the public to stay safe.

  • Graham Jones – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Graham Jones – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Graham Jones on 2015-10-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what proportion of annual income has been held in reserve by Herefordshire Constabulary in each of the past five years.

    Mike Penning

    It is up to Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) and Chief Constables to decide how to allocate their resources, including the efficient use of reserves, based on local priorities.

    Herefordshire is covered by the West Mercia police force area. The total amount of revenue funding received by the West Mercia PCC (formerly West Mercia Police Authority) and the total amounts of usable reserves, taken from publically available force area accounts are included in the following table.

    This includes total core Government funding area from the Home Office, Legacy Council Tax Grants and locally raised precept income. It excludes specific grants such as the Innovation Fund and other locally raised income.

    Year

    Reserves £m

    Revenue funding (government grant+precept) £m

    Reserves as % of total revenue funding

    31 Mar 2011

    43.8

    212.6

    20.6%

    31 Mar 2012

    37.8

    206.9

    18.3%

    31 Mar 2013

    46.1

    204.6

    22.5%

    31 Mar 2014

    53.1

    201.6

    26.4%

    31 Mar 2015

    63.9

    198.5

    32.2%
  • Gareth Thomas – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Gareth Thomas – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gareth Thomas on 2015-10-26.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps he is taking to promote the use of credit unions in the work of his Department; and if he will make a statement.

    Matthew Hancock

    I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to him by the Economic Secretary to the Treasury, my hon. Friend the Member for West Worcestershire on 2 November 2015, UIN 13524.

  • Gareth Thomas – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Gareth Thomas – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gareth Thomas on 2015-10-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to promote the use of credit unions in the work of his Department; and if he will make a statement.

    Dominic Raab

    The Ministry of Justice has not taken any direct steps in this regard. However, The Government is committed to continuing to support the credit union movement in making financial services more accessible.