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Tag: 2015

  • Catherine West – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Catherine West – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2015-12-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, whether apprentices are required to achieve a Level 2 qualification, including mathematics and English, in order (a) to be entered for an Advanced Level Apprenticeship and (b) for entries to be in accordance with the Specification of Apprenticeships Standards for England.

    Nick Boles

    In order to maximise accessibility, there are no centrally set entry requirements to start an apprenticeship. However, as apprenticeships are jobs with training, individual employers may set their own entry requirements for a specific apprenticeship.

    The government does set requirements relating to training and achievement in English and maths during apprenticeships. This is because English and maths are fundamental to career progression and access to further learning.

    All apprenticeship frameworks must comply with the Specification of Apprenticeship Standards for England (SASE). Under SASE, English and maths qualifications are a mandatory component of all Intermediate and Advanced apprenticeships. However, all adult apprentices are assessed for prior learning, and people who start an apprenticeship with current English and maths qualifications at the right level need not repeat these.

    We are reforming apprenticeships to ensure that they are based on standards designed by employers.The government sets minimum requirements for apprenticeship standards, though employers are able to go further in the standards they design. They are able to specify a higher level of English and/or maths achievement or to specify a particular qualification or qualifications where this is needed for a particular occupation or sector. . The minimum requirements are – passing level 1 English and maths and taking the test for level 2 before taking the end-point assessment for an intermediate apprenticeship; and passing level 2 English and maths before taking the end-point assessment for an advanced or higher apprenticeship.

  • Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town on 2015-11-18.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what consultations they have conducted on the impact of the cap on low- to middle-income earners in the public sector, and what protections were considered when setting the level of the exit payment cap at £95,000.

    Lord O’Neill of Gatley

    The Government set out its proposals for the cap on public sector exit payments in the consultation document published on 31 July 2015 and confirmed the design of the cap in the consultation response document published on 16 September 2015. The consultation document gave details of the number of exits over recent years that cost the taxpayer more than £100,000.

    The precise number of those affected by the public sector exit payment cap will depend on the number and type of exits in coming years. However, in recent years the large majority of exits in the public sector are below the level of the cap. For example, the Whole of Government Accounts states that, in 2013-14, 1,838 out of 72,445 pay outs were in excess of £100,000.

    The exit payment clauses currently before the House of Lords in the Enterprise Bill set out how the cap is expected to apply.

  • Phil Boswell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Phil Boswell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Phil Boswell on 2015-12-10.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what statistical information his Department holds on small- and medium-sized enterprises which have defaulted on a loan received through the Funding for Lending Scheme.

    Harriett Baldwin

    The Bank of England does not lend directly to small and medium sized enterprises as part of the Funding for Lending Scheme (FLS). Under the FLS, the Bank of England provides funding to UK banks and building societies participating in the scheme. The amount of funding participant banks and building societies are eligible to borrow from the Bank of England is determined by their net lending to certain sectors of the economy.

  • Lord Black of Brentwood – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lord Black of Brentwood – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Black of Brentwood on 2015-11-18.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to amend road traffic legislation to make it compulsory for drivers who run over a cat to report it to the police.

    Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

    The Government has no plans to amend the legislation.

    The Highway Code advises drivers to report any accident involving an animal to the police, which I hope would lead to domestic animal owners whose animals are killed in road accidents being made aware of their loss.

    The police also advise drivers that, if possible, they should make enquiries to ascertain the owner of domestic animals, such as cats, and advise them of the situation.

  • Jack Dromey – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Jack Dromey – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jack Dromey on 2015-12-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many cyber specials there are in police forces; and how many such people have been recruited since January 2015.

    Mike Penning

    The Home Office does not hold specific data in relation to this issue. We have consulted with the National Crime Agency (NCA) in providing this response in relation to NCA figures. We have provided a response to the police force question using information provided by forces. This is not exhaustive and therefore may not reflect the full number of Cyber Specials in place. Cyber Specials can be either Special Constables or volunteers.

    There are 15 NCA Specials who have particular expertise in cyber crime. The NCA are also now recruiting a further seven. From the 15 in post now, 10 have been recruited since January 2015.

    There are at least 23 Cyber Specials in police forces across England and Wales. In addition, a further nine are currently being recruited. From the 23 in post now, at least four have been recruited since January 2015.

  • Baroness Greengross – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Baroness Greengross – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Greengross on 2015-11-18.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they are taking to address the stigma of mental health problems amongst healthcare workers.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    The Government included in its Mandate to NHS England an objective for them to “make partnership a success”. This includes “championing the Time to Change campaign to raise awareness of mental health issues and reduce stigma, including in the NHS workforce”.

    In taking this forward, NHS England recently announced the "A healthy NHS workforce" initiative. This aims to raise staff awareness and understanding of mental health issues, helping to ensure they have access to help, support and treatment when they need it. A copy of the announcement is attached.

    “A healthy NHS workforce” includes, for example, line manager trainingand, providing NHS staff rapid access to talking therapies. Thisis currently being tested as part of the Healthy Workforce programme led by NHS England.

    In addition, NHS Employers have launched the How are you feeling NHS? toolkit. This has been developed with NHS staff to help bridge a gap in understanding and enable them to: talk openly and regularly about their emotional health; assess the impact emotional wellbeing has on themselves, their colleagues and patients, and help with action planning to enable more good days than bad. The online only resource can be found at:

    www.nhsemployers.org/your-workforce/retain-and-improve/staff-experience/health-work-and-wellbeing/protecting-staff-and-preventing-ill-health/how-are-you-feeling-nhs-toolkit

    “

  • Nigel Dodds – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    Nigel Dodds – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nigel Dodds on 2015-12-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many visits Ministers have made to the Northern Ireland Office in Brussels since 2010.

    Mrs Theresa Villiers

    I have made one visit to the Northern Ireland Executive office in Brussels.

  • Lord Oates – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Lord Oates – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Oates on 2015-11-18.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to reduce HMRC’s delays in answering telephone enquiries.

    Lord O’Neill of Gatley

    HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) recognise that their customer service has not been good enough, and have taken major steps to improve, including recruiting 3,000 new staff into customer service roles, available outside normal office hours when many of their customers choose to call. This year has seen their biggest-ever training programme as HMRC build customer support teams that can move across a wide range of work according to customer demand. By the end of December 1,600 existing staff will be trained to cover a wider range of work. Hundreds of these people are already taking calls. These improvements have started to make a difference. Last month, HMRC answered more than 80 per cent of calls, and average queue times are now around 10 minutes or less.

  • Adam Holloway – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Adam Holloway – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Adam Holloway on 2015-12-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether the Government plans to build an additional bridge at Dartford.

    Andrew Jones

    Two locations are being considered for the new Lower Thames crossing: ‘Option A’ close to the existing Dartford Thurrock crossing, and ‘Option C’, to the east of Tilbury and Gravesend, which would connect the A2 and M2 to the M25 via the A13.

  • Andrew Rosindell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Andrew Rosindell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2015-11-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his French counterpart on the ISIL attacks in Paris and the implications of those attacks for the Government’s foreign policy.

    Mr David Lidington

    The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond) met his French counter-part Laurent Fabius in Vienna the day after the cowardly terrorist attacks and offered hiscondolences to the French people. The Prime Minister, my right hon. Friend the member for Witney (Mr Cameron) met President Hollande yesterday to discuss how we can strengthen the counter-terrorism co-operation between our two countries and work together to defeat ISIL.