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Tag: 2015

  • Jonathan Ashworth – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Jonathan Ashworth – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jonathan Ashworth on 2015-12-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what proportion of apprentices received (a) formal and (b) informal training in each year since 2007.

    Nick Boles

    In 2013/14, 79% of Apprentices received formal training. In 2011/12 and 2012/13 the figures were 76% and 77% respectively. Information on formal training was not collected prior to 2011/12.

    In 2013/14, 80% of Apprentices received informal training, while in 2012/13, 85% of apprentices received informal training. . Information on informal training was not collected prior to 2012/13.

    Information on types of training can be found in the Apprenticeships Evaluation: Learners survey report online.

    https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/387662/bis-14-1208-Apprenticeships-Evaluation-Learners-December-2014.pdf

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  • Lord Scriven – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Lord Scriven – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Scriven on 2015-11-09.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have carried out to determine whether the police facial recognition database complies with the Data Protection Act 1998; and what were the findings of that review.

    Lord Bates

    There is no facial recognition database as such. The Police National Database (PND) includes photographs of persons taken on their arrest. These images can be uploaded onto the PND by police forces. Full face images of a suitable size and quality are then enrolled in the facial image recognition gallery within the PND, which can be searched using automated facial recognition software. As set out by the Code of Practice on the Operation and Use of the PND, chief police officers are responsible for the development and implementation of appropriate procedures and systems so that personal data is processed in accordance with the provisions of the Data Protection Act 1998 and other relevant legislation and guidance.

  • Rebecca Long Bailey – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Rebecca Long Bailey – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rebecca Long Bailey on 2015-12-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, with reference to paragraph 1.242 of the Spending Review and Autumn Statement 2015, whether the Government carried out an equality impact assessment on the policy to allow local authorities to raise council tax by two per cent to fund adult social care.

    Mr Marcus Jones

    The Spending Review set out that, if fully used, the additional council tax flexibility could raise nearly £2 billion a year by 2019-20. We will set out further details alongside the provisional local government finance settlement later this month, including an equality impact assesment in the New Year.

  • Lord Bassam of Brighton – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Lord Bassam of Brighton – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Bassam of Brighton on 2015-11-09.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will publish the full list of advisers assisting Lord Strathclyde’s review of the powers of the House of Lords.

    Baroness Stowell of Beeston

    The Lord Privy Seal (Baroness Stowell of Beeston):

    Lord Strathclyde is being supported in his review by a panel of external experts and a small secretariat of civil servants in the Cabinet Office. The secretariat does not include political advisers. The expert panel comprises Sir Stephen Laws, former First Parliamentary Counsel; Jacqy Sharpe, a former Clerk in the House of Commons and Clerk to the Joint Committee on Conventions; and Sir Michael Pownall, former Clerk of the Parliaments.

    Several reviews have examined the powers of the House of Lords, including the Royal Commission on the reform of the House of Lords (2000) and the Joint Committee on Conventions referenced above (2006).

    The review led by Lord Strathclyde is due to consider how to protect the ability of elected Governments to secure their business in Parliament in the light of the operation of certain conventions. The review will consider in particular how to secure the decisive role of the elected House of Commons in relation to its primacy on financial matters; and secondary legislation.

    Ministers regularly discuss a wide range of issues with the Cabinet Secretary and Head of the Civil Service.

    Lord Strathclyde will determine the way in which the review is undertaken and the content of his recommendations, including any definitions required. It is not possible to provide an estimate of the cost of the exercise at this stage, but neither Lord Strathclyde nor his panel of experts will be paid a fee. Lord Strathclyde is expected to seek views from a wide range of Parliamentarians, parties and groups in undertaking his review, and has issued a letter to all Parliamentarians inviting their input. He is also seeking views from the Clerk of the Parliaments and the Clerk of the House. Lord Strathclyde will report to the Prime Minister, and the Government will decide how to proceed upon receipt of his recommendations.

  • Chi Onwurah – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Chi Onwurah – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chi Onwurah on 2015-12-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what information he has received from TalkTalk concerning the cause of its recent cyber-security breach and the measures it has put in place to prevent another such breach.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    The Government has been in contact with TalkTalk from the early stages of this incident, but this remains primarily a matter for the company itself and for law enforcement.

  • Lord Hunt of Kings Heath – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Lord Hunt of Kings Heath – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 2015-11-09.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with other EU member states concerning the impact on NHS patients of the introduction of the European Professional Card for healthcare professionals.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    The aim of the European Professional Card (EPC) is to simplify and streamline the recognition of professional qualifications process for the applicant. Improving the freedom of movement of professionals will give the National Health Service greater access to a range of skills to the benefit of patients.

    For health and care professions, the EPC will be introduced for nurses, pharmacists and physiotherapists in 2016. It will not be introduced for doctors until 2018 at the earliest. The EPC will be introduced through an Implementing Act.

    The Department was involved in extensive negotiations with the European Commission and other Member States during the development of the Implementing Act and was successful in achieving a number of positive changes including increasing access to translations of documents, and ensuring that authorities can challenge the issuance of an EPC in another Member State under ‘justifiable circumstances’, which will be an important patient safety mechanism. We will continue to work with the health and care regulators and the Commission during the implementation process to mitigate any risks.

    The United Kingdom was also successful in receiving a commitment from the Commission that they will undertake an early review to ensure that any issues are resolved before the EPC is rolled out to any additional professions.

  • Jamie Reed – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Jamie Reed – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jamie Reed on 2015-12-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of regional variations in the level of education provision for children with cerebral palsy.

    Edward Timpson

    The reforms introduced in September 2014 will ensure that all children and young people with special educational needs or disabilities (SEND) aged 0 to 25, including those with cerebral palsy, have improved access to the support they need.

    Local authorities are responsible for meeting the educational needs of all children with SEND within their local area. They must co-ordinate education, health and care provision for individual children and ensure that young people and parents are involved in discussions about their individual support and about local provision more generally. Statutory Local Offers published by each local authority must set out what support is available for all children and young people with SEND in their area, including those with more complex needs.

    The reforms detailed in the SEND Code of Practice were drawn up in consultation with a wide range of interested parties, many of whom represented the interests of children and young people with specific impairments. They are intended to improve outcomes for every child or young person with SEND by placing them at the heart of a system designed to respond to their individual needs and aspirations.

    The Department has not assessed the impact of the SEND Code of Practice, or regional variations in provision, on the basis of any specific impairment but is monitoring implementation closely.

    This monitoring includes inputs from annual data collection; termly surveys of local authorities and Parent Carer Forums; and feedback from specialist SEND Advisers and funded voluntary sector organisations. From May 2016, this monitoring will be enhanced by a new joint Ofsted/CQC inspection framework for SEND, which is currently the subject of a national consultation.

    Schools are required by the Children and Families Act 2014 to identify the SEN of the pupils they support and to use their best endeavours to make sure that they get the support they need. Teachers are expected to be able to adapt their teaching to the needs of all pupils, and to have an understanding of the factors that can inhibit learning and how to overcome them.

    To support the school workforce, the Department has funded almost 11,000 SEN Coordinators to attain Masters-level national awards between 2009 and 2014, at a cost of almost £33 million; is funding SEND conferences for school leaders and supporting the development of a ‘SEND gateway’ for education professionals, which offers a wide range of online training and information.

  • Lord Stoddart of Swindon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Lord Stoddart of Swindon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Stoddart of Swindon on 2015-11-09.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the answer by the Lord Privy Seal on 28 October (HL Deb, col 1176) concerning the review by Lord Strathclyde of the House of Lords powers, whether it is intended that the opinion of peers will be invited.

    Baroness Stowell of Beeston

    The Lord Privy Seal (Baroness Stowell of Beeston):

    Lord Strathclyde is being supported in his review by a panel of external experts and a small secretariat of civil servants in the Cabinet Office. The secretariat does not include political advisers. The expert panel comprises Sir Stephen Laws, former First Parliamentary Counsel; Jacqy Sharpe, a former Clerk in the House of Commons and Clerk to the Joint Committee on Conventions; and Sir Michael Pownall, former Clerk of the Parliaments.

    Several reviews have examined the powers of the House of Lords, including the Royal Commission on the reform of the House of Lords (2000) and the Joint Committee on Conventions referenced above (2006).

    The review led by Lord Strathclyde is due to consider how to protect the ability of elected Governments to secure their business in Parliament in the light of the operation of certain conventions. The review will consider in particular how to secure the decisive role of the elected House of Commons in relation to its primacy on financial matters; and secondary legislation.

    Ministers regularly discuss a wide range of issues with the Cabinet Secretary and Head of the Civil Service.

    Lord Strathclyde will determine the way in which the review is undertaken and the content of his recommendations, including any definitions required. It is not possible to provide an estimate of the cost of the exercise at this stage, but neither Lord Strathclyde nor his panel of experts will be paid a fee. Lord Strathclyde is expected to seek views from a wide range of Parliamentarians, parties and groups in undertaking his review, and has issued a letter to all Parliamentarians inviting their input. He is also seeking views from the Clerk of the Parliaments and the Clerk of the House. Lord Strathclyde will report to the Prime Minister, and the Government will decide how to proceed upon receipt of his recommendations.

  • Kerry McCarthy – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Kerry McCarthy – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kerry McCarthy on 2015-12-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what timetable she proposes for deciding on the funding allocation to the National Wildlife Crime Unit from March 2016.

    Rory Stewart

    The Government has committed to providing funding to help secure the National Wildlife Crime Unit until at least the end of March next year.

    With the Spending Review concluded, Defra is now looking at what this settlement means in terms of the detailed allocation of its budgets. Ministers will be making decisions about the funding of the NWCU beyond March as part of this process and will confirm the funding position as soon as possible in the new year.

  • Catherine McKinnell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Attorney General

    Catherine McKinnell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Attorney General

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine McKinnell on 2015-11-09.

    To ask the Attorney General, what estimate he has made of the amount of expected underspend for his office against departmental expenditure limits in 2015-16.

    Jeremy Wright

    The Departmental Expenditure Limit for HM Procurator General and Treasury Solicitor includes the Government Legal Department (GLD), the Attorney General’s Office (AGO) and HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate (HMCPSI). The estimated underspend against the Resource Departmental Expenditure Limit is £2.69m. Total expenditure is estimated to be £190m.

    GLD sets its fees and fee rates at the beginning of the year with the aim of achieving full cost recovery and in line with HM Treasury guidance Managing Public Money. In setting the fees and fee rate judgements about volumes of work, the impact of inflation, and cost are made and as a result it is normal for there to be a variance.