UKPOL.CO.UK

Tag: 2014

  • Lord Judd – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Judd – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Judd on 2014-05-07.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government by which minister the United Kingdom will be represented at the mid-May meeting in Geneva of the High Contracting Parties of the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons; and what are their priorities for the outcome of that meeting.

    Baroness Warsi

    An informal meeting of experts on lethal autonomous weapon systems (LAWS) will take place in Geneva from 13-16 May 2014 under the framework of the UN Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons. This is an official-level meeting at which ministerial attendance is not expected, and the UK will be represented by officials from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and Ministry of Defence. The Government aims to deepen understanding of the technical, legal, ethical and societal factors pertaining to LAWS through an exchange of information and views.

  • Lord Jopling – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Lord Jopling – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Jopling on 2014-05-07.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Bates on 6 May (WA 365), whether they will now answer the question which was put.

    Baroness Northover

    DFID’s Executive Management Committee review year-to-date and forecast expenditure against budgets each month through a monthly Management Information report.

    There is no formal cost overrun percentage threshold that triggers a review of specific budgets. The EMC does however examine potential material overspending each month that represents a significant risk to the DFID’s overall Resource and Capital budgets.

  • Stephen Metcalfe – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Deputy Prime Minister

    Stephen Metcalfe – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Deputy Prime Minister

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Metcalfe on 2014-05-07.

    To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what support the Government is giving to business growth opportunities in Basildon and Thurrock.

    Greg Clark

    Basildon and Thurrock are key economic centres within the South East Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) area. The LEP submitted its Strategic Economic Plan and Growth Deal at the end of March which is currently being assessed and negotiated.

    The Growth Deal contains proposals for direct business support by extending the Southend Growth Hub announced in its City Deal recently.

    Other funding is also being invested through Regional Growth Fund, Growing Places Fund, and through investment in major transport improvements on the M25 and Dartford Crossing to reduce congestion and enhance connectivity to the ports.

  • Virendra Sharma – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Virendra Sharma – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Virendra Sharma on 2014-05-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many people have been diagnosed with (a) liver disease and (b) viral hepatitis in each of the last 10 years.

    Jane Ellison

    Data is not collected on new cases of liver disease. Liver disease covers many individual diseases caused by different factors, such as alcoholic liver disease, fatty liver disease as well as hepatitis related diseases. The identification of new cases will take place in different settings, from general practice to hospital outpatients.

    The nearest proxy measure that we have is hospital admissions. However, hospital admissions only reflect the most serious cases when people are admitted to hospital. The number of hospital admissions for liver disease rose from 35,581 in 2001-02 to 57,682 in 2011-12, an increase of 62%.

    Hepatitis A, B, C and E are viruses that affect the liver. Where tests can differentiate acute from chronic infections, data is presented as newly acquired infections and where not, data is presented as newly diagnosed cases. Hepatitis surveillance data for 2013 will be available in August 2014.

    Cases of confirmed newly acquired hepatitis A virus infection are reported by laboratories to Public Health England.

    Table 1: Hepatitis A laboratory reports (newly acquired infections), England (2002-2012).

    Year

    2002

    2003

    2004

    2005

    2006

    2007

    2008

    2009

    2010

    2011

    2012

    Number of hepatitis

    A reports

    1,278

    999

    610

    469

    374

    344

    344

    341

    359

    252

    279

    Data on acute hepatitis B infections are reported both from laboratories and from Health Protection Teams to Public Health England. Reporting in this way commenced in 2008.

    Table 2: Reports of acute hepatitis B infections (newly acquired infections), England (2008-2012)

    Year

    2008

    2009

    2010

    2011

    2012

    Number of hepatitis

    B reports

    620

    597

    512

    589

    554

    Laboratory reports of newly diagnosed cases of hepatitis C are reported to Public Health England.

    Table 3: Laboratory reports of hepatitis C (newly diagnosed cases), England (2002-2012)

    Year

    2002

    2003

    2004

    2005

    2006

    2007

    2008

    2009

    2010

    2011

    2012

    Number of hepatitis

    C reports

    4,809

    5,570

    6,240

    6,295

    6,961

    7,808

    8,407

    8,862

    7,882

    9,917

    10,873

    Note:

    At present serological tests are not able to differentiate between acute and chronic cases of hepatitis C infection. Therefore, laboratory reports of hepatitis C contain both recently acquired infections and past infections. For this reason the data represent newly diagnosed cases of hepatitis C as opposed to newly acquired infections.

    Laboratory reports of confirmed cases of hepatitis E are reported to Public Health England. Surveillance began in 2003.

    Table 4: Laboratory reports of hepatitis E (newly acquired infections), England (2003-2012)

    Year

    2003

    2004

    2005

    2006

    2007

    2008

    2009

    2010

    2011

    2012

    Number of hepatitis

    E reports

    122

    145

    294

    239

    161

    168

    166

    258

    435

    530
  • Chris Ruane – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Deputy Prime Minister

    Chris Ruane – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Deputy Prime Minister

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Ruane on 2014-05-06.

    To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the use of the telephone to confirm continued entitlement to electoral registration; and which local authorities use telephones for that purpose.

    Greg Clark

    The Electoral Commission collates information on canvass responses (including responses by telephone) as part of its assessment of Electoral Registration Officers’ performance. This data can be found on their website at –

    http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/find-information-by-subject/performance-standards/performance-in-running-electoral-registration.

    “

  • Chris Ruane – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Deputy Prime Minister

    Chris Ruane – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Deputy Prime Minister

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Ruane on 2014-05-06.

    To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, with reference to the Answer of 6 September 2010, Official Report, column 304W, on electoral register, if he will bring forward legislative proposals to provide for penalties against local authorities which fail to provide sufficient funding and resources to enable electoral registration officers to fulfil their statutory responsibilities.

    Greg Clark

    Section 54 of the Representation of the People Act 1983 sets out that any expenses properly incurred by an ERO in the performance of their functions must be paid by the local authority that appointed them.

  • Chris Ruane – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission

    Chris Ruane – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Ruane on 2014-05-06.

    To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission, what steps have been taken by the Electoral Commission to inform hon. Members of the performance of electoral registration officers in their (a) constituency and (b) local authority.

    Mr Gary Streeter

    The Commission informs me that it notified all hon. Members of the performance of electoral registration officers (EROs) through a written statement announcing the publication of its assessment report on 31 March 2014. The Commission also writes individually to every MP who has an ERO within their constituency who has failed to meet at least one performance standard

  • Philip Davies – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture Media and Sport

    Philip Davies – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Philip Davies on 2014-05-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 29 January 2014, Official Report, column 576W, on Equality and Human Rights Commission, if he will place in the Library a copy of the guidance referred to in the Equality and Human Rights Commission’s Equality and Diversity Workforce Report 2010-11 which has been provided to all managers on how to manage a diverse workforce through organisational change.

    Mrs Helen Grant

    The Equality and Human Rights Commission is an independent body and is responsible for its own staff management, including diversity training. The guidance papers requested are internal documents that were not intended for wider publication. However, I have asked the EHRC to send copies to the Hon Member.

  • Philip Davies – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Philip Davies – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Philip Davies on 2014-05-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of magistrates’ use of two year sentencing powers; and if he will make a statement.

    Jeremy Wright

    A Detention and Training Order, the main custodial sentence for children and young people, can be up to 24 months in length and is available to magistrates sitting in the Youth Court. The Government has not made an assessment of magistrates’ use of this order.

    There are a range of disposals available to magistrates when dealing with children and young people which are designed to address offending behaviour. Through our reforms this Government has taken steps to improve the youth sentencing framework.

  • Harriet Harman – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Harriet Harman – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Harriet Harman on 2014-05-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, who will represent the Government at the World Economic Forum on Africa in Abuja.

    Mark Simmonds

    No UK Minister was available to attend the World Economic Forum being held in Abuja on 7 – 9 May. We did propose to send senior officials, but the organisers of the World Economic Forum declined this request.