UKPOL.CO.UK

Tag: 2014

  • Mark Pritchard – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Mark Pritchard – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Pritchard on 2014-06-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will discuss sexual violence against women in India with his Indian counterpart.

    Mr Hugo Swire

    We are committed to working with the government of India and international partners to address the problem of gender-based violence, human trafficking and child exploitation in India. The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my Rt. Hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague) has invited the government of India to attend the End Sexual Violence in Conflict Summit and has already discussed the initiative with the new Indian Foreign Minister.

  • Barry Sheerman – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Barry Sheerman – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Sheerman on 2014-06-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent representations he has received from (a) the Tibetan government in exile and (b) human rights charities on human rights abuses in that country.

    Mr Hugo Swire

    Officials regularly meet with human rights non govermental-organistions (NGOs) to discuss the situation in Tibet. They last did so in May, following the UK-China Human Rights dialogue. I will be meeting with representatives from a number of Tibet NGOs later this month.

    We also receive occasional updates from the Central Tibetan Administration, also known as the Tibetan government in exile. We believe that meaningful dialogue is the best way to address and resolve the underlying grievances of the Tibetan communities and we continue to urge all sides to restart talks.

  • David Ruffley – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    David Ruffley – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Ruffley on 2014-06-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what change there was in the number of homelessness acceptances arising from the end of a private sector tenancy in (a) Bury St Edmunds, (b) Suffolk and (c) England and Wales in each of the last five years.

    Kris Hopkins

    To assist public scrutiny, a table showing homelessness acceptances due to loss of private sector tenancy, by local authority, in each year from 2003 to 2013 is available in the Library of the House,

    Data is not collected by parliamentary constituency.

    The dataset shows that under the last Administration, the average numbers were higher than under this Administration, especially when taking into account the changes in the overall size of the private rented sector.

    I would note that the rental sector policies of HM Opposition would make the problem worse, by reducing availability of private rented accommodation, forcing up rents and discouraging investment in the private rented sector. By contrast, this Government is increasing house building, delivering £19.5 billion of investment in affordable housing, supporting billions of private investment in new private rented accommodation, providing £470 million to prevent and tackle all forms of homelessness, and avoiding the excessive regulation which would harm the interests of tenants.

  • Cathy Jamieson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Cathy Jamieson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Cathy Jamieson on 2014-03-18.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many businesses in (a) the UK, (b) Scotland and (c) Kilmarnock and Loudoun constituency were required to return the UK manufacturers’ sales by product (Prodcom) form in the year ending 31 January 2014.

    Nick Hurd

    The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.

  • Dan Byles – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Dan Byles – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dan Byles on 2014-06-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what recent assessment he has made of the potential need for additional gas storage capacity in the UK; and if he will make a statement.

    Michael Fallon

    The Department commissioned independent analysis by Redpoint Energy on the case for intervention in the UK gas storage market.

    This cost-benefit analysis did not support intervention to deliver additional gas storage capacity within the UK due to a combination of low risk, poor rates of return for the taxpayer, and the risk of unintended consequences within the market. A written statement to Parliament on gas security of supply policy and gas storage was made by my rt. Hon. Friend the Secretary of State on 4 September 2013.

    The market continues to bring forward gas storage projects: two storage facilities have recently been completed and two more are currently under construction.

  • Justin Tomlinson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Justin Tomlinson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Justin Tomlinson on 2014-03-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what his policy is on opening up school facilities to the local community for use outside of the school day.

    Elizabeth Truss

    The out-of-hours term time and holiday childcare that schools provide are vital to working parents. Many parents still find that the high cost and inflexibility of childcare is a barrier to working, or increasing their working hours. The Government wants more schools to make their facilities available to the local community. The Department for Education believes that if schools open up their facilities, it can make them a valuable resource and can strengthen links with the wider community that they serve. The Department wants to encourage more schools to offer childcare between 8am to 6pm during term time and during school holidays by removing all unnecessary red tape and increasing freedoms. For example, we are removing the need for schools to have to consult when introducing community facilities and to have regard to guidance from my Rt. hon Friend the Secretary of State for Education or local authorities and we are clarifying the rules on charging for community facilities.

  • Sarah Newton – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Sarah Newton – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sarah Newton on 2014-06-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent estimate his Department has made of the cost of administering the social care means test in England.

    Norman Lamb

    Access to State financial support for adult social care in England is means-tested and is not generally provided free of charge. In this way, individuals are expected to pay towards the cost of their care and support based on what they can afford.

    Adults with less than £23,250 in capital can seek help with the cost of social care from their local authority. Local authorities carry out a financial assessment to decide what an individual can afford to pay. Local authorities must take account of an individual’s capital assets and income, including income from Benefits and the State Pension.

    Information on the cost to local authorities of carrying out financial assessments is not collected centrally.

    In its 2011 report, the independent Palliative Care Funding Review recommended the provision of free social care at the end of life. A series of palliative care funding pilots were established to test the review’s recommendations, and these completed their work in March 2014. NHS England is currently analysing the financial data collected from the pilots. Once this analysis has been completed, a decision will be made on the issue of free social care at the end of life, taking into account this analysis and wider policy and financial considerations.

  • Mr Adrian Sanders – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Mr Adrian Sanders – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mr Adrian Sanders on 2014-03-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he has taken since 2010 to ensure that (a) primary and (b) secondary schools are equipped to support children with diabetes.

    David Laws

    Schools are already required to support children with long-term medical conditions such as diabetes. Non-statutory guidance, “Managing Medicines in Schools and Early Years Settings”, is available to schools to help them manage medicines and support children with medical needs such as diabetes.

    From September 2014, there will be a new duty, which was introduced in the Children and Families Act 2014, on governing bodies of maintained schools and proprietors of academies to make arrangements to support pupils at school with medical conditions and to have regard to statutory guidance. The guidance, upon which we have consulted publicly, will set out the requirements on schools to support children with medical conditions, which we would expect them to apply to conditions like diabetes.

  • Chris Ruane – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Chris Ruane – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Ruane on 2014-06-04.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what use his Department has made of the National Wellbeing Index introduced by the Office for National Statistics in formulating policy since the introduction of that Index in 2011; and what policies his Department has introduced to improve national wellbeing as defined in that Index since 2010.

    Mr Nick Hurd

    This Government is starting to advance the use of wellbeing indicators in policy formulation.

    Evidence provided to the Environmental Audit Committee for its Inquiry into Wellbeing can be found at: http://www.parliament.uk/business/committees/committees-a-z/commons-select/environmental-audit-committee/inquiries/parliament-2010/well-being/

    “

  • Diana Johnson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Diana Johnson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Diana Johnson on 2014-03-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make it his policy that the new Transpennine Express franchise due to begin in 2015 maintains hourly direct services between Hull and Manchester.

    Stephen Hammond

    The new directly awarded franchise for TransPennine that begins in April 2015 will aim to provide train services at the same level as is currently available to passengers today until the start of the new competed franchise, expected in February 2016.