Tag: 2015

  • Julian Sturdy – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Julian Sturdy – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julian Sturdy on 2015-11-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps he is taking to ensure that the Universal Service Obligation on broadband download speed for all properties will be achieved by 2016.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    Plans have been set out by the Government to ensure that every home and business can have access to fast broadband by the end of this Parliament. We will launch a public consultation early next year in preparation for the implementation of a new broadband Universal Service Obligation by 2020.

  • Ian Lavery – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Ian Lavery – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Lavery on 2015-12-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what arrangements have been made to ensure that fire cover remains available whilst fire crews are responding to major floods.

    Mike Penning

    I have been asked to reply on behalf of the Home Office.

    The Civil Contingencies Act 2004 requires that fire and rescue services have plans in place, working with local partners, to deal with emergencies such as flooding, and to ensure that the appropriate level of resource is available. Fire and rescue authorities are also required by the statutory Fire and Rescue National Framework for England to produce Integrated Risk Management Plans which identify the full range of risks to which an authority’s service is expected to respond, and to consult the local community on those plans.

    In addition, fire and rescue authorities’ mutual aid arrangements are well established under Section 13 and Section 16 of the Fire and Rescue Services Act 2004. These arrangements ensure continuity of service provision across authority boundaries, through mutual assistance from supporting authorities and other agencies other than the host fire and rescue authorities. The National Coordination and Advisory Framework, a collaborative arrangement between the Government, the Chief Fire and Rescue Adviser and Chief Fire Officers Association, is in place to both support and supplement these arrangements.

  • Kevan Jones – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Kevan Jones – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevan Jones on 2015-11-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the announcement by BAE Systems on jobs, related to production of the Eurofighter Typhoon on 12 November 2015, what estimate he has made of the number of jobs in each production location that will be lost which are related to the production of that aircraft.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    BAE Systems issued a statement on 12 November 2015 confirming that the company was taking action to reduce the Eurofighter Typhoon production rate; it also confirmed its intention to reduce the workforce within its Military Air and Information business by up to 371 roles. The majority of the affected posts are based at the company’s Samlesbury site, with the remainder at its Warton facility.

    Decisions on the capacity and capability of any company, including the division of work between sites, primarily rests with the company concerned.

  • Kevin Brennan – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Kevin Brennan – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevin Brennan on 2015-12-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will make an assessment of the potential effect on the Northern powerhouse of the closure of the Business Growth Service.

    Anna Soubry

    We do not expect closure of the Business Growth Service to have an impact on the growth of Small and Medium sized Enterprises or the Northern Powerhouse.

  • Callum McCaig – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Callum McCaig – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Callum McCaig on 2015-11-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what discussions her Department has had with National Grid on its Winter Outlook Report 2015-16, published in October 2015.

    Andrea Leadsom

    DECC Officials work closely with National Grid counterparts on the analysis in the winter outlook and maintain a constant dialogue as it is developed.

    The Winter Outlook Report presents a snapshot view of the forecast security of supply situation which is constantly being analysed by National Grid in cooperation with DECC and Ofgem. The Winter Outlook is part of a wider programme of analysis including National Grid’s Summer Outlook, Winter Outlook Consultation and Ofgem’s capacity assessment.

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  • Andy Slaughter – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Andy Slaughter – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2015-12-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent representations his Department has made to the Israeli government on the risk of demolition to recognised and unrecognised Bedouin villages in Israel.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    Officials at our Embassy in Tel Aviv are monitoring the situation closely and will continue to demonstrate our concern by regularly visiting the Bedouin communities. Officials have raised the issue of risk of demolition of unrecognised villages of Um-il-Hiran and Ateer with the Ministry of Justice and the Arab Affairs Officer at the Prime Minister’s Office.

  • Joan Ryan – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Joan Ryan – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Joan Ryan on 2015-11-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the average household bill for water was in (a) Enfield North constituency, (b) Enfield, (c) Greater London and (d) the UK in (i) 2010 and (ii) 2015.

    Rory Stewart

    Customers in Greater London are served by one water and sewerage company (Thames Water) and three water only companies (Affinity Water, Essex & Suffolk Water and Sutton & East Surrey Water). Customers of the water only companies receive sewerage services from Thames Water.

    Customers in both the London Borough of Enfield and the Enfield North constituency receive water services from one of two companies, Affinity Water or Thames Water.

    The following table sets out the average water and sewerage charges for each of the companies and for England and Wales in 2010 and 2015.

    Company

    2010

    2015

    Affinity Water – Central region1 (water)

    £156

    £172

    Essex & Suffolk Water (water)

    £183

    £229

    Sutton & East Surrey Water (water)

    £162

    £184

    Thames Water (water)

    £189

    £197

    Thames Water (sewerage)

    £114

    £171

    England and Wales (water)

    £165

    £182

    England and Wales (sewerage)

    £174

    £203

    1 Affinity Water was established in 2012, through the purchase of Veolia Water.

  • George Howarth – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    George Howarth – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by George Howarth on 2015-12-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what guidance his Department gives to mental health trusts on (a) reducing did not attend cases and (b) ensuring risk assessments are carried out when young people fail to attend.

    Alistair Burt

    NHS England has issued guidance through the Local Transformation Plans for Children and Young People’s Mental Health and Wellbeing: Guidance and Support for local areas (published August 2015) that states that services should set out a clear plan to transform the design and delivery of a local offer of services for children and young people with mental health needs in line with the Future in mind report.

    Future in mind was clear that services should monitor attendance and actively follow up families and young people who miss appointments, and that it may be necessary to find alternative ways to engage the child, young person or family. The Local Transformation Plans present an opportunity to make a step change in how agencies support the mental health and wellbeing of children and young people, especially the most vulnerable. This includes those who – for whatever reason – find it more difficult to engage with traditional models of service delivery and would instead benefit from seeing a clinician in a less conventional setting. Missed appointments should not lead to a family or young person being discharged from services, but instead be considered as an indicator of need and actively followed up, where necessary finding alternative ways to engage the child, young person or family.

  • Barry Sheerman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Barry Sheerman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Sheerman on 2015-11-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate his Department has made of the value to tourism and to the national economy of the UK coastline.

    Tracey Crouch

    There were more than 23 million overnight visits to the English, Scottish and Welsh seaside by GB residents in 2014, which resulted in spending of £4.9 billion, according to the Great Britain Tourism Survey. Additionally, therewere 144 million day visits by GB residents where the seaside was the main place visited in 2014 which resulted in spending of almost £5 billion.

  • Stephen Pound – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    Stephen Pound – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Pound on 2015-12-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Justice on the effect of the proposed British Bill of Rights on Northern Ireland.

    Mrs Theresa Villiers

    My most recent discussion with the Secretary of State for Justice took place on 1 December. The Government was elected with a mandate to implement its manifesto commitment to replace Labour’s flawed Human Rights Act with a Bill of Rights. The Government believes this can be done in a way that is consistent with the provisions of the Belfast Agreement.