The below Parliamentary question was asked by Henry Smith on 2014-04-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will establish an Aircraft Noise Ombudsman; and if he will make a statement.
Mr Robert Goodwill
The Government is currently considering the recommendations made by the Airports Commission, including the recommendation to create an independent noise authority. The Government will respond to the Interim Report as soon as possible.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Hanson on 2014-06-17.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer to the hon. Member for Brent Central of 16 June 2014, Official Report, column 445W, on HMP Verne, in which prison establishment for how long each person detained has been held.
Karen Bradley
It is not possible to provide detail of how long those held in prison
establishments have been detained without the examination of individual records
at disproportionate cost.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ann McKechin on 2014-04-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many professional and business services special envoys have been appointed by his Department; and what the remit of those envoys is.
Michael Fallon
There are currently six appointed Business Ambassadors covering the Professional and Business Services Sector: Caroline Plumb – CEO FreshMinds, Alan Parker – Chairman Brunswick Group, Ruby McGregor-Smith CBE – CEO MITIE, Rona Fairhead CBE, Will Lawes – Senior Partner Freshfields Bruchaus Deringer and Steve Varley – UK Chairman and Managing Partner (UK and Ireland) EY.
Business Ambassadors are appointed by the Prime Minister to act as advocates of the UK, promoting the UK’s excellence, economy, business environment and its reputation as the international trade and inward investment partner of choice.
Business Ambassadors agree to undertake a programme of activities agreed with UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) including, among others, holding events to promote UK businesses around the world, meeting overseas Ministers and inward missions; participating in trade missions; and providing insights into how UKTI can best deliver for business.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dominic Raab on 2014-06-17.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the per capita spending on prison officers was in England and Wales in each of the last five years.
Jeremy Wright
Information on the average total salary cost, including national insurance and pension contributions, of a prison officer as at 31 March each year since 2010 is contained in the table below.
Mean Annual Pay Cost of Prison Officers, Including Employer National Insurance and Pension Contributions – as at 31 March, 2010 to 2014
|
Year – At 31st March |
Mean Annual Pay Cost (Nominal) |
|
2010 |
32,747 |
|
2011 |
34,024 |
|
2012 |
34,951 |
|
2013 |
35,608 |
|
2014 |
36,157 |
The pay costs shown are for Band 3 Prison Officers and their equivalents and include basic salary and local pay allowance where applicable.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Redwood on 2014-04-08.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the reasons are for the difference in the most recent forecast capital gains tax revenue for 2013-14 and the forecast made in Budget 2013.
Mr David Gauke
The details of the forecasts are set out in the Office for Budget Responsibility’s Economic and Fiscal Outlook publications. The Office for Budget Responsibility was created in 2010 and provides the authoritative and independent forecasts for the UK’s economy and public finances.
http://budgetresponsibility.org.uk/category/publications/
“
The below Parliamentary question was asked by James Duddridge on 2014-06-17.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions his Department has had with the insurance industry on the behaviour and attitudes of novice drivers.
Mr Robert Goodwill
The number of young people being killed on our roads is far too high and we are determined to tackle this issue. It is an issue which, understandably, features prominently in the range of representations which we receive about road safety generally.
As part of our consideration of the way forward, we met the insurance industry on 27 January 2014 to discuss novice drivers and, in particular, our proposed research into the role which telematics can play in changing the behaviours and attitudes of new drivers. My officials regularly talk to the insurance industry and current discussions are aimed at encouraging participation in the research project before we can get it underway. We will publish the results of the research when they are available.
We will also publish the findings of the focus groups comprising parents, young people and employers which we undertook in order to get a better understanding of the issues from their perspective.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Madeleine Moon on 2014-04-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many senior members of each branch of the armed forces missed a promotion following the receipt of a police caution in (a) 2011, (b) 2012 and (c) 2013; and if he will make a statement.
Anna Soubry
None. Administrative action is no longer taken against Service personnel who receive a police caution.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Hendrick on 2014-06-17.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, which jobcentres (a) do and (b) do not have wifi access for jobseekers to use.
Esther McVey
The Digital Jobcentres project will modernise the Jobcentre digital infrastructure by delivering WiFi and Web Access Devices (WADs) across the Jobcentre network. From now until the end of October, we will be installing WiFi and new Web Access Devices (WADs) across the Jobcentre network.
The following 39 Jobcentres already have WiFi available for jobseekers to use:
|
By the end of October 2014, the remaining offices in the Jobcentre network will have WiFi installed and available for jobseekers to use.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Matthew Offord on 2014-04-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate his Department has made of the additional financial contributions made by parents to top up care for children with statements of special educational need.
Mr Edward Timpson
The Department for Education has not made such an estimate. Where a child has a statement of special educational needs (SEN), it should detail the provision that the child requires to meet their SEN. The local authority has a duty to ensure that the provision set out in the statement is made.
Where a parent feels that the provision specified in a statement is no longer sufficient, they can request a reassessment. They can appeal to the First-tier Tribunal for Special Educational Needs and Disability against any decision not to re-assess, or if they do not agree with the provision set out in the resulting statement.
The Children Act 2014 makes provision for education, health and care plans (EHC plans) to replace statements. EHC plans will cover the full range of the child’s needs. They will be subject to the same protections and rights of appeal as statements. In addition there will be a new duty on health commissioners to arrange health provision set out in the EHC plan.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Biography information for Ben Bradshaw on Justice.
1
Simon Hughes
There has been a significant decrease in referrals to publicly funded family mediation since April 2013 when the legal aid reforms were implemented. This is in part due to fewer people visiting solicitors who previously would have directed clients to mediation.
Before April 2013, attendance at a Mediation Information Assessment Meeting (MIAM) was a pre-requisite for legal representation for people eligible to obtain public funding. We introduced a statutory MIAM in April 2014 as part of the Children and Families Act. This placed a legal obligation on an applicant to attend a MIAM for the purpose of considering mediation, before being permitted to issue court proceedings in certain private family law matters (children and financial disputes).
Legal aid remains available for mediation (and for legal help with mediation) for those who meet the eligibility criteria. We are keen to encourage mediation as an alternative to court both for those eligible for public funding and for privately funded cases.
We are aware that a small number of mediation services have closed or are in difficulty. The Legal Aid Agency (LAA) is constantly monitoring the situation to make sure there is sufficient provision for client access to mediation services. While a decline in demand is a contributory factor in mediation service closures, another significant factor is poor and unsustainable business models. There is some evidence that a number of the mediation services which have closed following legal aid reforms were vulnerable to closure before the reforms took effect.
I have convened a Family Mediation Task Force, chaired by David Norgrove, which has considered many of the issues raised by the Member of Parliament for Exeter, including how to reverse the fall in referrals and engage the second party in the mediation process, and incentivising mediators and lawyers to work in partnership to support clients through the resolution of their dispute in compliance with the new legislation. A number of short-term financial options have been considered as well as the long term view for the future of dispute resolution services.
The Taskforce report will be published imminently. The Government will respond to the report in due course.