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Tag: 2014

  • Tracey Crouch – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Tracey Crouch – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tracey Crouch on 2014-06-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions he has had with (a) NHS England and (b) Public Health England on improving treatment for gambling addicts.

    Norman Lamb

    The Department does not hold information on what specific training is provided to alcohol and drug treatment staff. Ensuring competent staff is the responsibility of local commissioners and providers.

    Public Health England (PHE) is working with the Royal College of Psychiatrists and the national gambling treatment service to identify how it can strengthen training, and are promoting the work of the Royal College of General Practitioners who have developed an online gambling diagnosis and treatment training resource that is available free to all health professionals.

    PHE promotes the Royal College of General Practitioners’ online training resource among all health professionals. PHE has developed guidance for local authorities on gambling and is exploring what the local needs are and where evidence allows it to intervene. However, PHE does not wish to undermine the treatment available through the national provider GamCare until evidence emerges that this is not meeting current need.

    My Rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State has regular discussions with PHE and NHS England on a range of health issues. PHE is also working with NHS England and the Local Government Association to explore what the current need is locally so it can get a better picture; and decide whether PHE needs to act through prevention and restrictions on gambling shops; or through changes to the current GamCare treatment network.

  • Mr Jim Cunningham – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Mr Jim Cunningham – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mr Jim Cunningham on 2014-03-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the role of firefighters in responding to the recent floods.

    Brandon Lewis

    [Holding Reply: Monday 31 March 2014]

    More than 1,000 firefighters from across the country assisted with the flood response over December, January and February. We are extremely grateful for the work that they did to reduce water levels and help communities deal with the flooding.

  • Gerald Kaufman – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Gerald Kaufman – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gerald Kaufman on 2014-06-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she intends to reply to the letter to her dated 2 May 2014 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Mr RO Estemogbo.

    James Brokenshire

    I wrote to the Rt. Hon. Member on 16 June 2014.

  • Kate Hoey – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    Kate Hoey – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kate Hoey on 2014-03-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, for what reasons the use of the Royal Prerogative of Mercy granted in respect of members of the IRA was not announced in the London Gazette or the Belfast Gazette.

    Mrs Theresa Villiers

    There have been no instances in which the Royal Prerogative of Mercy (RPM) has been issued in respect of paramilitaries in Northern Ireland since the current Government came to power in May 2010.

    I am not aware of any legal requirement to publish in the media information relating to the use of the Royal Prerogative of Mercy (RPM). In England and Wales, RPMs signed by HM the Queen, on the advice of the Secretary of State, are then passed to the Clerk of the Crown in Chancery for sealing, who by convention subsequently places the notice in the London Gazette. By convention in Northern Ireland, RPMs signed by HM the Queen are not subsequently placed in the Belfast Gazette.

  • Simon Burns – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the House of Commons Commission

    Simon Burns – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the House of Commons Commission

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Simon Burns on 2014-06-12.

    To ask the hon. Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross representing the House of Commons Commission, who will be responsible for the appointment of the next Clerk of the House and Chief Executive.

    John Thurso

    Following a competitive tendering process, Saxton Bampfylde was appointed on 29 May 2014 to support the recruitment of the next Clerk of the House and Chief Executive, in particular by providing executive search services. Three bids were received and evaluated by Mr Speaker and the Director General of HR and Change. The fee for these services is fixed at £18,000. The contract will be monitored by the Department of HR and Change. The recruitment brief to which Saxton Bampfylde are working will be placed in the Library.

    The Clerk of the House is appointed by the Crown by Letters Patent, on the recommendation of the Speaker to the Prime Minister, and the Prime Minister to the Crown. Short-listed candidates will be interviewed by a panel chaired by Mr Speaker, three other members of the House of Commons Commission, a senior backbencher and an external member.

  • Lord Quirk – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Lord Quirk – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Quirk on 2014-03-26.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answers by Lord Nash on 15 October 2013 (WA 76–7) and 21 October 2013 (WA 122), by what mechanism they have subsequently monitored the enhancement of teaching in maths and English, and with what outcomes.

    Lord Nash

    The new national curriculum sets out very clearly what should be taught to pupils. However, it deliberately gives teachers the flexibility to decide how to teach it. The Department for Education expect schools to identify the support that they need to prepare for the new curriculum, recognising that different schools will face different challenges.

    The Department has provided funding to teaching schools to work with their alliances and beyond, and we have been signposting schools to the range of free support that is available in English and mathematics including the resources developed by the National Literacy Trust and the National Centre for Excellence in the Teaching of Mathematics. The sector-led expert subject groups have been providing audit tools and guidance, and publishers are bringing a variety of new materials to market.

    The Government is funding a national network of around 30 maths hubs to drive up the quality of mathematics teachers. Each hub will be led by an outstanding school and will provide support to all schools in the area, across all areas of mathematics education. Systematic phonics has been emphasised in the teaching of early reading in the new national curriculum because evidence shows that it is the most effective way of teaching all children to begin to read. We have provided match-funding of £23 million to primary schools to purchase high quality phonics resources.

    Ofsted, as part of their on-going programme of inspection, report on the quality of teaching in schools to ensure that teaching in subjects such as English and mathematics is resulting in improved achievement.

  • Kerry McCarthy – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Prime Minister

    Kerry McCarthy – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Prime Minister

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kerry McCarthy on 2014-06-12.

    To ask the Prime Minister, what discussions he has had on the Government’s Action Plan on Business and Human Rights in advance of the visit by his Chinese counterpart to the UK.

    Mr David Cameron

    I plan to hold wide-ranging discussions with Premier Li. We have a foreign policy that is based on our values, and we consistently raise them with the Chinese government, including during high level dialogues.

    I am very supportive of the business and human rights agenda, and action against climate change is a priority for the government.

  • Lord Ouseley – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Lord Ouseley – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Ouseley on 2014-03-25.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what consideration has been given to local authorities and their partners having more responsibilities and commensurate finance to work with local employers to tackle unemployment and underemployment of young people.

    Lord Freud

    Through the City Deals, the Government has invited Local Authorities to develop proposals to tackle unemployment and worklessness in their areas. Several of these proposals have entailed working closely with local employers to enhance employment opportunities for young people, for example, Greater Manchester have developed a local employer-led jobs campaign to co-ordinate and simplify local and national employment schemes so that business can access young talent easily.

  • 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 2014-06-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions he has had with maritime industry stakeholders on the implications of maritime fuel sulphur regulations for freight traffic moving from water freight to road freight.

    Stephen Hammond

    In October 2012, and again in March 2013, I chaired ‘round table’ meetings of industry stakeholders (from the shipping, ports, exhaust gas cleaning system technology, oil refining and logistics sectors) to consider the best way forward for compliance with the new international and EU sulphur requirements. The potential for reverse modal shift, the maturity and efficacy of scrubber technology and the scope for financial assistance to industry were all key to those discussions. The report commissioned by the UK Chamber of Shipping was produced as a result of those meetings, and officials have taken it into account in producing the Government’s Impact Assessment on the draft UK Regulations to implement the sulphur limits in national law.

    The Government went out to an eight-week public consultation on 29 April 2014 on those draft UK Regulations. Meanwhile, Government officials continue to work closely with the industry and to explore the scope for securing EU finance, possibly under the Trans-European Network (commonly known as TEN-T) programme and affordable capital from the European Investment Bank, for shipowners and ports who wish to invest in scrubber technology or in technology associated with the use of an alternative fuel, such as liquefied natural gas, to comply with the new limits.

    The UK Regulations will be reviewed in accordance with normal Government practice and consistent with the principles of better regulation.

  • Mr David Nuttall – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Mr David Nuttall – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mr David Nuttall on 2014-03-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the annual saving to the defence budget will be from the disbandment of the Second Battalion of the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers.

    Mr Mark Francois

    The annual cost of a Regiment will depend on that Regiment’s size, role and manpower mix and will comprise a combination of personnel, training, infrastructure and equipment. This information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

    However, based on manpower capitation rates, the average annual cost of a Light Infantry Battalion is in the region of £27.5 million.