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Tag: 2015

  • Kate Hoey – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Kate Hoey – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kate Hoey on 2015-02-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the potential effect on British businesses in the health and nutrition sector of the European Commission’s plans to implement maximum permitted levels for vitamins and minerals in food supplements through the food supplements directive.

    Jane Ellison

    No discussions have yet taken place with Commissioner Andriukaitis. The new European Commission has not announced any renewed plans to implement Article 5 of the Food Supplements Directive and the Government has not recently made an assessment of potential effects of maximum permitted levels of vitamins and minerals, either on consumer choice, or on British businesses. Our advice to United Kingdom manufacturers on safe daily dose levels for vitamins and minerals in food supplements is based on the report of the UK’s Expert Group on Vitamins and Minerals. The industry has supported the use of these levels and the report is also used by some other member states as advice for safe upper levels.

  • Philip Davies – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Philip Davies – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Philip Davies on 2015-02-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the extent of dog fighting in the UK.

    George Eustice

    We have not been provided with any recent estimate of the extent of dog fighting by either the police or animal welfare organisations.

  • Greg Mulholland – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Attorney General

    Greg Mulholland – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Attorney General

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2015-02-10.

    To ask the Attorney General, what steps he is taking to implement the recommendations of the report from HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate and HM Inspectorate of Constabulary entitled Joint Inspection of the Investigation and Prosecution of Fatal Road Traffic Incidents, published in February 2015.

    Jeremy Wright

    It is clear from the joint HMIC and HMCPSI report that there must be improvements in the way offences arising out of fatal road traffic incidents are investigated and prosecuted. It is therefore vital that police forces give due regard to the recommendations made in the report. However, it is rightly a matter for chief constables and Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) to ascertain how best to respond to the recommendations locally. Under Section 55 (5) of the Police Act 1996, all PCCs have a statutory requirement to publish their response to joint inspection reports that relate to their force.

    The CPS must provide the best possible service to the bereaved families in these cases. Whilst many of the recommended improvements have been achieved through more general development of CPS casework and guidance, there is clearly more which needs to be done. In order to make the improvements necessary to the prosecution of offences arising out of fatal road traffic accidents, the CPS is taking or has committed to take the following steps:

    • The introduction of accredited specialist prosecutors in each of the CPS Areas to prosecute these cases.
    • New mandatory training on the prosecution of fatal road traffic incidents to include case analysis and strategy, and how the CPS communicates with bereaved families.
    • CPS Area Coordinators to ensure that these sensitive and difficult cases receive the specialist attention they deserve and attract good quality, consistent decision making.
    • Amending guidance to remind prosecutors of the circumstances in which it is appropriate to charge assaults that arise from driving a motor vehicle.
    • Amending guidance to add a reference to the Criminal Practice Direction on acceptance of pleas in its Guidance on Charging Driving Offences.
    • A review of the flagging process of these cases to increase the accuracy of figures.
    • Consideration of better CPS Area access to appeals unit case reviews.
    • Consideration of existing protocols with police forces with the intention of drafting a model protocol for CPS Areas to agree with local forces.
  • Richard Burden – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Richard Burden – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2015-02-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to page 1 of Road Investment Strategy – Key Facts and Figures, how much of the £500 million allocated for the period 2015 to 2021 to address emerging priorities in period and fund staff to design, manage and deliver schemes will be spent on (a) addressing emerging priorities and (b) funding staff; what criteria will be used to select the emerging priorities; and what the cost will be of staff allocated to that task.

    Mr John Hayes

    The £0.5bn figure cited refers to the expected costs of developing proposals ahead of the next Road Investment Strategy. This includes the development of 14 major schemes to start work early in the next road period, as well as work to develop proposals from the next round of route strategies and strategic studies and any actions to take forward priorities emerging in the next parliament.

    The proportion of costs allocated to staff will depend on the precise nature of what is recommended and committed through this process. Given the nature of the design process, it is likely that a high proportion of the money allocated will be spent on engineers, designers, modellers and others involved in the early stages of development.

    Any decisions around specific commitments for the next road period, including the criteria by which they will be made, will be made in the next parliament. More detail on this process has been set out in part 6 of the draft licence for Highways England, which has been laid in the Library of the House and is available on gov.uk.

  • Nigel Evans – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Nigel Evans – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nigel Evans on 2015-02-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what plans his Department has for reform of the Pensions Regulator.

    Steve Webb

    A report on the Triennial Review of pensions bodies was published by the Department on 9 January 2014. It concluded that the Pensions Regulator should continue in its current role and retain its status as a Non-Departmental Public Body. Accordingly there are no plans for reform of the Pensions Regulator.

  • Gregory Campbell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Gregory Campbell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gregory Campbell on 2015-02-09.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the merits of allowing savings bonds for older people to be used as part of an ISA.

    Andrea Leadsom

    The Government has introduced a range of measures to support savers, including raising the ISA limit to £15,240, and making ISAs more flexible by allowing all of that money to be invested in stocks and shares or cash. The 65+ “Pensioner” Bond is a specific policy on top of the improvements to ISAs, designed to help savers who rely on their income during retirement. The Bonds will be taxed in line with other comparable products in the savings market: the only difference is the market-leading rate.

  • Stephen Doughty – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Stephen Doughty – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Doughty on 2015-02-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the advertising budget is for the Defence Discount Service campaign; and how much his Department has spent on (a) television, (b) newspaper, (c) online, (d) radio and (e) other forms of advertising using the phrase Defence Discount Service since January 2012.

    Anna Soubry

    The Ministry of Defence (MOD) does not incur any costs in respect of advertising the Defence Discount Service. Advertising the scheme is the responsibility of Blue Light Card Ltd which provides this service at no cost to the MOD.

  • Dan Byles – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Dan Byles – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dan Byles on 2015-02-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how many medium wind turbines deemed excessively de-rated have been granted pre-accreditation or have been commissioned in (a) 1 April 2010 to 30 November 2012 at £22.16 per kWh, (b) 1 December 2012 to 31 March 2014 at £18.83 per kWh, (c) 1 April 2014 to 30 September 2014 at £15.06 per kWh, (d) 1 October 2014 to 31 March 2015 at £13.55 per kWh and (e) 1 April 2015 to 31 March 2016 at £12.05 per kWh.

    Amber Rudd

    We are closely monitoring the extent of de-rating and its impact.

  • Dan Jarvis – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Dan Jarvis – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dan Jarvis on 2015-02-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what estimate he has made of the number of British citizens who have travelled to Syria and Iraq to support forces opposed to Islamic State.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    We are aware of reports of a small number of British citizens fighting against ISIL in Syria and Iraq, but are not able to estimate accurately the total number. The UK advises against all travel to Syria and against travel to much of Iraq. Anyone who does travel to these areas, for whatever reason, is putting themselves in considerable danger. The Syrian National Coalition, which we recognise as the sole legitimate representatives of the Syrian people, have made clear that they do not want foreign fighters to come to their country. The best way for the British public to help the people of Syria and Iraq is to support UK registered charities that are providing humanitarian relief to those affected by the conflict.

  • Roger Godsiff – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Roger Godsiff – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2015-02-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the total value of contracts his Department has with private sector providers was in each of the last five years for which records are available.

    Dr Daniel Poulter

    Information held by the Department shows the total value of contracts with private sector providers was for each of the financial years for which we have records available at a proportionate cost:

    Financial Year

    Value of Contract

    2011/12

    £365,621,061

    2012/13

    £428,405,616

    2013/14

    £245,882,759

    2014/15

    £156,256,479

    The above figures include all spend that either currently is or was previously under contract with the third party commercial providers of the Department.

    Information for 2010/11, whilst being available, is not in a format to answer the question without the Department incurring disproportionate costs.