The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Sheerman on 2015-12-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent representations he has received from (a) charities, (b) lobby groups, (c) experts, (d) social workers and (e) law professionals on the treatment of female prisoners with young children.
Caroline Dinenage
The information requested could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nicholas Soames on 2015-11-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much was spent from the public purse on reimbursing each non-European Economic Area country with reciprocal healthcare agreements with the UK for health care provided to UK nationals for each financial year from 1997-98 to 2014-15.
Alistair Burt
Regarding non-European Economic Area (EEA) countries, including those with reciprocal healthcare agreements with the United Kingdom, we can confirm that no reimbursements are made from the public purse in respect of healthcare provided to UK citizens.
For non-EEA countries without a reciprocal agreement in place with the UK, it would be for the individual to pay for any healthcare needed and for that reason appropriate travel and medical insurance is highly advisable. Similarly, for those non-EEA countries with whom the UK does have a reciprocal healthcare agreement, no money changes hands between the parties to the agreement. The basis of these agreements is reciprocity – that is, necessary healthcare is provided in most cases free of charge to the visitor and the associated costs are absorbed by either side.
The information requested on the amount received in reimbursement from EEA countries in only available for the country totals of cash payment for 2007-08 to 2014-15. That information is provided in attached table. We do not hold totals for amounts before 2007-08, as the information is hot held centrally.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Adam Afriyie on 2015-12-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make it his policy to publish a health impact assessment on proposals for new airport runways of (a) the health effects of noise and (b) other health effects before the construction of those runways is started.
Mr Robert Goodwill
The Government is currently considering the large amount of very detailed analysis contained in the Airports Commission’s final report before taking any decisions on next steps.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Ansell on 2015-11-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will make an assessment of potential risks associated with vulnerable witnesses and defendants travelling by public transport when considering potential court closures as part of proposals on the future of the court and tribunal estate; and if he will make a statement.
Mr Shailesh Vara
To ensure that access to justice is maintained, we are committed to providing alternative ways for users to access our services. This includes the use of other civic buildings and extending video conferencing facilities. This will further reduce the need for vulnerable victims and witnesses to travel to attend court.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Anderson on 2015-12-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 4 December 2015 to Question 17647, if he will carry out a survey of women’s attitudes to state pension equalisation.
Justin Tomlinson
The Department has no plans to carry out a survey of women’s attitudes to State Pension age equalisation. It has been Government policy since 1995 that the inequality between men and women’s State Pensions Ages must be removed.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Danny Kinahan on 2015-11-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what the Government’s policy is on the proposed 400kV North-South electricity interconnector between County Tyrone and County Meath.
Mr Ben Wallace
Non-nuclear energy policy is a devolved matter in Northern Ireland and the responsibility of Northern Ireland Executive Ministers.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Harris of Haringey on 2015-12-07.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what sanctions are available to NHS England to enforce the obligations under regulation 15A of the National Health Service (Personal Medical Services Agreements) Regulations 2004, as amended, to establish and maintain a Patient Participation Group, and what information they have about the use of such sanctions.
Lord Prior of Brampton
NHS England is responsible for the assessment of general medical practices compliance with contractual requirements.
NHS England operates an annual practice declaration to support its local teams assess contractual compliance. The annual declaration was amended this year to include key areas of enquiry in relation to the new responsibilities to establish and maintain a Patient Participation Group.
The NHS (Personal Medical Services Agreements) Regulations contain steps which NHS England may take where a practice does not comply with the terms of the agreement. These include issuing a remedial notice and, if no action is taken as a result of this notice, a breach of contract notice which could result in NHS England withholding money, due under the agreement, or terminating the agreement.
NHS England does not currently hold information nationally on the use of contractual sanctions. NHS England is developing its reporting systems to identify the number of breach notices issued periodically and to identify common themes associated with contractual non-compliance.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2015-11-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate his Department has made of how many taxi drivers have undergone disability awareness training since the Law Commission’s recommendation on that subject published in its report, Taxi and Private Hire Services, on 23 May 2014.
Andrew Jones
The results of the Department’s taxi survey in 2015 showed that 103 licensing authorities in England and Wales out of 313 responding authorities require taxi drivers to undergo disability awareness training. This compares to 67 licensing authorities in 2009 from 276 responses.
We do not keep statistics on the number of drivers who have undergone disability awareness training since May 2014.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Tonge on 2015-12-07.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what advice they have given to banks concerning closing bank accounts of those NGOs supporting the Palestinians.
Lord O’Neill of Gatley
The Government does not advise banks around the closure of bank accounts of NGOs: it is for a bank itself to decide whether or not to offer products or services to certain individuals or groups, and it would not be appropriate for the Government to seek to control the commercial decisions of banks and other financial institutions, nor compel them to make a specific decision about a bank account. Banks take such decisions taken in accordance with their business strategies, risk appetite and legal and regulatory requirements.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rupa Huq on 2015-11-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the contribution of the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Disabled People of 27 October 2015, Official Report, column 101WH, what assessment he has made of the reason for the high proportion of young people receiving benefit sanctions.
Priti Patel
The department has not made a specific assessment of this. All claimants are required to meet the same conditionality rules regardless of age.
Jobseekers are only asked to meet reasonable requirements taking into account their circumstances and capability. These requirements are clearly explained and agreed by jobseekers with their Work Coach and set out in their individually tailored Claimant Commitment.