The below Parliamentary question was asked by Owen Smith on 2015-11-03.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what preparatory work his Department has undertaken in advance of sending letters to tax credit recipients on changes to tax credits.
Damian Hinds
HM Revenue and Customs will be ready to notify tax credit claimants of their 2016/17 tax credit award in good time.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Justin Madders on 2015-12-01.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many consultants have opted out of routine weekend working through the schedule 3 paragraph 6 of the NHS consultant contract in the last year.
Ben Gummer
This information is not held centrally.
Schedule 3 Paragraph 6 of the 2003 NHS consultant contract allows consultants to refuse non-emergency work after 7pm and before 7am during weekdays and weekends. The definitions section clarifies that this also applies to emergency work for those consultants whose specialty by its nature involves dealing routinely with emergency cases, e.g. accident and emergency consultants.
NHS trusts hold information on consultant working patterns. However, this information would not reveal how many individuals have relied on the clause to not participate in weekend work as part of their contract, or to work them at expensive locally negotiated rates.
In its 2013 report ‘Managing NHS hospital Consultants’ the National Audit Office (NAO) reported that 91% of trusts who responded to its survey paid for additional work using locally agreed rates, with rates of up £200 per hour reported. The NAO expressed the view that “This is likely to be linked to the fact that the contract allows consultants to refuse to work outside 7am to 7pm Monday to Friday.”
A subsequent report by the House of Commons Committee of Public Accounts concluded that as a result of the opt out, hospitals struggle to provide the appropriate level of consultant-led care for patients.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian C. Lucas on 2015-11-03.
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of the privatisation of Channel 4 on the independent production sector in the UK.
Mr Edward Vaizey
No decisions have been made on the future of Channel 4. The Government is considering how best to ensure Channel 4’s future sustainability, while maintaining its ability to deliver against its remit. It will also be important to consider the impacts of any possible changes to Channel 4 on the independent UK production sector.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alison McGovern on 2015-12-01.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent discussions she has had with her French counterpart on securing a long-term solution to the situation in Calais.
James Brokenshire
The Home Office is in regular discussions with French counterparts at ministerial and official level on all aspects of the migrant situation in Calais. The French Government is responsible for the care of migrants in Calais, including support over the winter. However, both governments are committed to finding a sustainable solution to the situation in Calais. One aspect of the UK-France Joint Declaration of 20 August, committed the UK to providing a £3.6 million (or €5 million) per year for two years to help support a range of work to manage the migrant population in Calais, in particular to provide support and facilities elsewhere in France. Additionally, the UK has provided £530,000 (€750,000) to fund a project to identify those in the camps at risk of trafficking and exploitation, to transfer them to places of safety; and to provide them with appropriate support within the French system.
The UK and French Governments are unified in their response to the migratory phenomenon and both governments recognise the importance of close partnership and collaboration to reach a long-term solution. This is a global challenge, and we will also work together to ensure that other EU states, as well as source and transit countries outside Europe, are doing everything they ought to be to stop people making these dangerous journeys in the first place.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Ansell on 2015-11-03.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what support her Department provides to local education authorities and academy trusts when they have been the victim of fire; and if she will make a statement.
Edward Timpson
Local education authorities and academy trusts are expected to take responsibility for managing the risks and issues of fire related incidents and must make appropriate arrangements to insure against fire damage and associated disruption.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mike Kane on 2015-12-01.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether her Department plans to continue to spend £500 million per year on tackling malaria.
Mr Nick Hurd
The UK Government is committed to remain a world leader in tackling global diseases like malaria.
In the recent Spending Review we announced the Ross Fund, which will provide £1 billion to support research and implementation to tackle malaria and other infectious diseases. This will be one part of DFID’s balanced portfolio of investments in malaria control, delivered through bilateral and multilateral channels, support to health systems and service delivery and support to research.
The UK has pledged a contribution to the Global Fund for AIDS, TB and Malaria of up to £1 billion between 2014 and 2016, subject to a 10% donor share cap. This will dramatically improve the lives of millions of people, saving approximately 580,000 lives by preventing 8.4m new malaria, HIV and TB infections. Our future contributions to the Global Fund are being considered as part of the Spending Review.
We will lay out further investment plans in the future.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Anderson on 2015-11-03.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, pursuant to the Answer of 29 June 2015 to Question 3036, whether the estimated reduction in household bills in 2030 indicated in that Answer has changed to take into account the deal on nuclear new build with the Chinese government.
Andrea Leadsom
We currently estimate that a new nuclear programme could reduce average household bills by up to around £30 (real 2012 prices) in 2030. This is calculated by comparing the costs for consumers in a modelled scenario for the future electricity mix with Hinkley Point C and a further roll out of the new nuclear programme with the cost for consumers in a scenario where there are no new nuclear power stations by 2030. Savings could be higher or lower depending on changes in the cost of alternative generation technologies and what mix of technologies would ultimately be used. Earlier analysis had identified a higher saving, but other low carbon energy technologies have become far more cost competitive which has brought down the cost.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nigel Dodds on 2015-12-01.
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what discussions she has had with (a) the NI Executive, (b) business leaders, (c) third sector representatives on the potential effects of the UK leaving the EU.
Mr Ben Wallace
The Government is focused on delivering a successful renegotiation: it believes it can and will succeed in reforming and renegotiating our relationship with the EU and campaigning to keep the UK in the EU on that basis.
I meet regularly with NI Executive Ministers, business leaders and third sector representatives to discuss a range of issues and will continue to do so.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2015-11-03.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether it is his policy to (a) support the Safe Schools Declaration which arose from the Oslo conference on safe schools in May 2015 and (b) implement the Guidelines on Protecting Schools and Universities from Military Use during Armed Conflict, published by the Global Coalition to Protect Education from Attack.
Mr Philip Hammond
The intention of the Safe Schools Declaration is for countries to endorse the Guidelines for Protecting Schools and Universities from Military use during Armed Conflict. While we support the spirit of the initiative, we have concerns that the Guidelines do not mirror the exact language of International Humanitarian Law. We consider that the full implementation of International Humanitarian Law provides the best protection for civilians in all situations of armed conflict. The UK, along with other countries such as Australia, Canada and France, were therefore not able to sign the Safe Schools Declaration in Oslo in May.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2015-12-01.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the potential of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles and electric vehicles to help the UK meet the 2050 carbon budget.
Andrew Jones
This Government is committed to the transition to ultra-low emission vehicles, recognizing the economic and environmental benefits this will bring. We believe that both hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles together with battery electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles will play an important part in the ongoing decarbonisation of our road transport.
The Government’s vision, as set out in the Carbon Plan is that by 2050 almost every car and van on the road will be an ultra-low emission vehicle (ULEV). We announced at the Spending Review that we will spend more than £600 million between 2015-16 and 2020-21 to support uptake and manufacturing of ultra-low emission vehicles in the UK, maintaining the global leadership that has seen 1 in 4 of all European electric vehicles built here and keep the UK on track for all new cars to be effectively zero emission by 2040. This investment will save 65million tonnes of carbon and help deliver the long term answer on urban air quality.