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Tag: 2015

  • Baroness Stern – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Baroness Stern – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Stern on 2015-02-12.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they have taken in response to the report of HM Inspectorate of Prisons on HMP Nottingham in respect of its conclusion that HMP Nottingham was failing most of its core responsibilities.

    Lord Faulks

    The National Offender Management Service has taken immediate action to improve the situation. An experienced temporary Governor was urgently appointed to bring stability and to implement rapid improvements. Subsequently, a new permanent Governor was appointed on 1 February 2015. A review of the staffing levels needed to complete the improvement work required has led to additional staff resources being deployed to the prison. There have been fewer incidents of serious assaults on prisoners and staff, concerted indiscipline and incidents at height since the inspection and there has been a marked improvement in the overall operational stability of the establishment. As with all inspection reports, NOMS will now produce an action plan in response to the recommendations.

    Improvements in staffing levels have allowed an increase in the amount of time that prisoners can participate in recreational activities, such as using the gymnasium. It has also enabled prisoners to undertake more educational workshops to enhance employability skills. .

    Since the Inspection, HMP Nottingham’s Violence Reduction (VR) Policy has been rewritten and implemented and, in line with the national NOMS VR Policy, requires staff to challenge all forms of violence and apply appropriate sanctions. Additional resources have been allocated to monitoring and managing violence reduction and safer custody. Use of the Independent Adjudicator and/or referral to the Police for consideration of prosecution for violent incidents has increased dramatically. HMP Nottingham continues to challenge all forms of violence and actively promotes a zero tolerance to it. The prison is forging stronger links with the local Police and Crown Prosecution Service to ensure that, where appropriate, prisoners involved in violence are prosecuted.

    The operational capacity of HMP Nottingham was reduced, at the time of the inspection, from 1100 to 1060. There are now regular bedding and clothing checks. This helps to recover items that have been stockpiled by prisoners, to ensure fair allocation of clean clothing and bedding. Additional clothes and bedding have also been issued.

  • Lord Beecham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Lord Beecham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Beecham on 2015-02-12.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what proportion of report writers and court staff have received training arising from the implementation of the Offender Rehabilitation Act 2014.

    Lord Faulks

    All staff have received comprehensive guidance on the implementation of the Offender Rehabilitation Act 2014.

    A cadre of staff received central training to enable them to train other staff, as required, in the Act’s provisions. We do not hold statistics for the total number of staff who have been trained under this system.

  • Lord Kennedy of Southwark – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Kennedy of Southwark – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Kennedy of Southwark on 2015-02-12.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their latest assessment of the human rights situation in Mali.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The UK remains concerned about the human rights situation in Mali. In recent years civilians have suffered from widespread human rights abuses, particularly during the occupation of northern Mali by terrorist groups. Women and girls have been victims of sexual violence and children have been recruited into armed groups. Those who commit human rights violations continue to act with impunity. Negotiations in Algiers are taking place between the government and armed groups aimed at reaching a sustainable peace agreement, which would lead to an improvement in human rights in Mali.

    The UK is actively working to improve human rights in Mali including with partners. For example, we are providing a curriculum of training in international humanitarian law as part of the EU’s training mission to the Malian Armed Forces. So far some 3,000 Malian soldiers have received this training. We also support the work of the UN to monitor human rights abuses in Mali.

  • Iain McKenzie – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Scotland Office

    Iain McKenzie – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Scotland Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Iain McKenzie on 2015-02-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what estimate he has made of the change in the level of real wages in Scotland since May 2010.

    David Mundell

    Our economy is recovering from the deepest recession since ONS records began in 1948.

    Thanks to this government’s long-term economic plan we have seen average regular pay rising faster over the last year than inflation. Furthermore, business surveys expect the steady rise in real wages to continue.

  • Paul Flynn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Paul Flynn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Flynn on 2015-02-11.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what communications he has had with Mr David Hartnett, the former head of tax collection at HM Revenue and Customs, since he left that post to advise HSBC in 2014.

    Mr David Gauke

    The Chancellor of the Exchequer has had no communications with David Hartnett in an official capacity since his departure from HM Customs and Excise in 2012.

  • Harriet Harman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture Media and Sport

    Harriet Harman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Harriet Harman on 2015-02-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent discussions he has had with the European Commission on the Digital Single Market.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    I have regular discussions with the EU Commissioners on a range of matters. The UK wants the EU to create an open, flexible digital single market with a regulatory framework that reflects the dynamic nature of the digital economy.

  • Caroline Flint – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Caroline Flint – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Flint on 2015-02-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what the (a) value and (b) amount is of land property holdings held by NDA Properties Limited, by function.

    Matthew Hancock

    NDA Properties Limited holds, in approximate figures: 30 acres of land at Berkeley, Gloucestershire; 130 acres at Bradwell, Essex; 220 acres at Chapelcross, Dumfriesshire; 340 acres at Dounreay, Caithness; 10 acres at Harwell, Oxfordshire; 5 acres at Hunterton, Ayrshire; 30 acres at Drigg, Cumbria; 1,570 acres in West Cumbria; 14 acres at Springfields, Lancashire; and 270 acres at Trawsfynydd, Gwyndd. The land covers a wide variety of functions, including agricultural land, woodland, land used for operational purposes, and offices. For commercial reasons, NDA Properties does not make public its valuations of land held.

  • John Howell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    John Howell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Howell on 2015-02-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many NHS doctors are excluded from practice under the Maintaining High Professional Standards framework.

    Dr Daniel Poulter

    This information is not collected centrally.

    Under Directions to the NHS Litigation Authority, the National Clinical Assessment Service function has a responsibility to monitor and report on national suspensions and exclusions under the Maintaining High Professional Standards framework.

    The National Clinical Assessment Service has provided the following information. In their most recent published report ‘Use of exclusion and suspension from work in England’ of June 2014, which refers to financial year to 31 March 2014 they recorded 148 exclusions for doctors with a mean duration of 41 weeks based on 75 cases.

    The information provided does not provide a breakdown of clinical and non-clinical behaviour.

    The classification used is that the primary recorded reasons for exclusion are conduct (119 cases (80%)) and clinical (29 cases (20%)).

  • Paul Flynn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Prime Minister

    Paul Flynn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Prime Minister

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Flynn on 2015-02-11.

    To ask the Prime Minister, what due diligence he undertook on the background of Lord Green of Hurstpierpoint before his appointment as a Minister of State in the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office; and what communications he has had with Lord Green in respect of the accounts of British residents and nationals held by HSBC in Switzerland since 2005 since 7 February 2015.

    Mr David Cameron

    I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Washington and Sunderland West (Mrs Hodgson) on 11 February 2015, Official Report, columns 774-775.

  • Keir Starmer – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Keir Starmer – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Keir Starmer on 2015-10-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what compensation HS2 Ltd has to pay to rail franchise holders for the track possessions required to bring High Speed 2 to Euston; and what effect the provisions made in the AP3 Environmental Statement have had on this figure.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    HS2 Ltd deposited an Additional Provision (AP3) to the HS2 Phase One hybrid Bill on 16 September 2015 which includes revised plans for London Euston station. The new plans focus on an incremental strategy which will deliver new high speed platforms (Stages A and B1) and do not preclude wider redevelopment of the existing station in the future (Stage B2).

    We have listened to train operators and worked very closely with them throughout the development of the new design. The staged approach will mean less disruption to passengers using existing train services and therefore compensation to train operators. We have made budget provision for a level of compensation to train operators as part of the overall Phase One rail budget. These allowances have still to be agreed with the relevant train operators and will be assessed further as part of the design development process. The information also remains commercially sensitive.

    Any necessary impacts to the existing railway will be carefully planned with Network Rail and the affected operators from the outset, learning from experiences at other major stations such as Kings Cross and London Bridge.