The below Parliamentary question was asked by Matthew Pennycook on 2015-10-29.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of appeals against fit for work decisions since January 2013 have involved people whose primary medical condition is a mental health condition.
Justin Tomlinson
The information as requested is not readily available and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nicholas Soames on 2015-11-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment she has made of the confidence of farmers operating in the dairy sector; and if she will make a statement.
George Eustice
The Government understands that many dairy farmers currently find themselves in a difficult position. We hope the recently announced EU support package we secured will offer some relief while we continue to pursue a host of additional measures, such as the creation of a futures market for dairy and better branding and labelling in supermarkets. 81% of dairy farmers across the UK have now received their payment.
We continue to work closely with farming unions to improve the stability of the industry as a whole and help farming businesses become more resilient. This will prepare us to benefit from the growing demand for British dairy both at home and overseas.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gregory Campbell on 2015-10-28.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will hold discussions with motor trade associations on steps to ban the sale of devices that are used to illegally reduce car mileages on vehicles for resale.
Nick Boles
The Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills has no plans to hold such a meeting.
It is illegal to reduce the mileage on a car and advertise or sell it on that basis. This is the case regardless of the availability of devices that can reduce vehicle mileage. For advice on alleged offences of misleading advertising or fraud, consumers should approach Action Fraud or Citizens Advice, who may refer cases to Trading Standards.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Hendrick on 2015-11-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is taking to ensure that registered nurses in its employment are able to comply fully with the requirements of revalidation with the Nursing and Midwifery Council; and what training is being provided to such nurses for that purpose.
Ben Gummer
Information on support provided by individual National Health Service providers is not collected centrally and may be obtained from the organisations themselves.
All nurses and midwives practising in England are required by law to be registered with the Nursing and Midwifery Council. From April 2016, nurses and midwives will have to revalidate every three years, when they renew their registration.
It is the responsibility of nurses and midwives to register and undertake revalidation.There is no specific requirement for employers to help nurses and midwives through revalidation but it is in their interests and a matter of good practice, to support nurses and midwives to provide safe and effective care.
As part of its inspection process, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) considers staff access to training and related support. Where nurses are employed, the CQC makes enquiries about the maintenance of continual professional development and the levels of support offered by the provider.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Joanna Cherry on 2015-10-28.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many requests have been made for paper copies of tax return forms in the last 12 months.
Mr David Gauke
HM Revenue and Customs does not hold easily accessible data regarding the number of requests made for paper copies of tax returns forms in the last 12 months.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2015-11-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what discussions her Department has had with Police and Crime Commissioners on the priority afforded to the enforcement of wildlife crime.
Mike Penning
Home Office Ministers have a range of discussions on a wide variety of subjects. Police and Crime Commissioners are helping to ensure that police forces’ priorities reflect those of the communities they serve, with individual police forces enjoying the flexibility to deploy their resources without unnecessary interference from central government.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gregory Campbell on 2015-10-28.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will hold discussions with Lloyds Bank on that company prioritising the payment of dividends to encourage small shareholders to retain shares for the long term, in advance of further sales of the Government’s stake in that company.
Harriett Baldwin
The Government is planning to encourage long-term share ownership in Lloyds shares, offering the incentive of bonus shares for longer-term investors.
Lloyds Banking Group (LBG) remains a commercial company in which the Government is currently a shareholder. The Government’s shareholding is managed at arm’s length from HM Treasury by UK Financial Investments (UKFI). The Government does not involve itself in the commercial decisions of LBG. Whether or not to pay dividends to its shareholders is a commercial decision to be made by the bank’s independent management team.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Anderson on 2015-11-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what proportion of courts and tribunal buildings in England and Wales have wifi access.
Mr Shailesh Vara
One of the main projects within the Criminal Justice Efficiency Programme was to introduce Wi-Fi throughout the criminal courts, allowing professional court users access to their home systems and the internet, improving their productivity and efficiency of flow of cases in court. With 158 courthouses already connected, the Programme is on track to deliver to all criminal courts well before summer 2016. Further courts may come into scope depending on the outcome of the consultation on the court estate which is currently underway. In addition to the wifi provided for professional court users many courts have commercially provided BT wifi solutions to allow court users to access the internet. These have been installed locally and no central record is held on the exact number of courts where this is available.
We have secured over £700m of funding to invest in our courts and tribunals. We have worked closely with the senior judiciary to develop a plan for investing this in reforming the courts and tribunals so they can deliver swifter, fairer justice at a lower cost. This will include digitisation and modernisation of our IT infrastructure. This will mean court users can attend hearings remotely, and not be inconvenienced by having to take a day off work to come to court. It will also mean victims of crime can give evidence from somewhere they feel safe.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chi Onwurah on 2015-10-28.
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 27 October 2015 to Question 12790, whether the licence obligation on Telefonica to provide indoor 4G coverage to 98 per cent of UK premises by 2017 includes coverage in tunnels.
Mr Edward Vaizey
The licence obligation on Telefonica to provide indoor 4G coverage to 98% of the UK population by 2017 does not include coverage in tunnels.The Government recognises that dropped calls and intermittent access to the internet are frustrations felt by many rail passengers. The Government is working with the rail and telecommunications industries to reach a collective understanding of the technical and commercial challenges and the potential solution to this problem.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Holly Lynch on 2015-11-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the (a) implications for his policies and (b) reasons for the finding of the Civil Service People Survey 2015 that Driver and Vehicle Standard Agency staff rated leadership and management the lowest in the civil service.
Andrew Jones
The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) acknowledges that its 2015 Civil Service People Survey results are disappointing, and it is determined to improve its leadership and management of change. This is no easy task for an organisation of 4,500 people working across more than 500 sites. It has begun implementing actions to improve staff engagement, including creating forums for specific groups of staff to contribute to change, and Directorate and team meetings focussing specifically on staff engagement. It is also sending out its corporate senior leaders to talk to, and more importantly, to listen to its public-facing operational staff.