Tag: 2015

  • Fiona Bruce – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Fiona Bruce – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Fiona Bruce on 2015-11-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to promote alcohol treatment and counselling options that will help to prevent alcohol-related crime.

    Jane Ellison

    Government is keen to promote recovery from alcohol problems, and this year the Department added a new condition to the ring-fenced public health grant to local authorities, stating that they should have regard to the need to improve the take up of, and outcomes from, their alcohol and drug misuse treatment services.

    A key step in preventing alcohol-related crime is the Liaison and Diversion (L&D) programme. This programme is a cross government initiative, led by NHS England and has developed the first national model to identify, assess and refer people into appropriate treatment and support services at their first point of contact with the criminal justice system. Twenty-five trial sites have been commissioned by NHS England.

    Another key piece of work is an initiative between Public Health England, NHS England and the National Offender Management Service to give alcohol brief interventions in North West England where prisoners whose offending is linked to alcohol misuse are offered brief interventions pre-release and then by their offender manager after release.

  • Lord Taylor of Warwick – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Lord Taylor of Warwick – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Taylor of Warwick on 2015-12-14.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to introduce measures to set quotas for women on boards.

    Baroness Neville-Rolfe

    Government is committed to seeing more women on the boards of British companies. We believe that a business led, voluntary approach is the best way to get more women on boards, as set out in Lord Davies of Abersoch’s review 2010 into the subject.This approach is working, with 26.2% representation in the FTSE 100, up from 12.5% in 2011. We will build on this with a new programme of work set out by Lord Davies in his recent 5 year report on progress. Government will therefore not be introducing measures to set quotas for women on boards.

  • Fiona Bruce – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Fiona Bruce – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Fiona Bruce on 2015-11-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people were charged with drink-driving in each of the last three years.

    Mike Penning

    The below table provides the published figures on the number of people who were charged with drink driving in each of the last three years.

    Offence

    2012

    2013

    2014

    Driving with alcohol in the blood above the prescribed limit

    45,841

    41,798

    38,866

    Other offences related to drink- or drug-driving

    7,915

    9,421

    9,421

    This and other data on, for example, the number of prosecutions for drink driving offences is published by the Ministry of Justice and can be found at the following link:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/criminal-justice-system-statistics-quarterly-december-2014

  • Gary Streeter – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Gary Streeter – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gary Streeter on 2015-12-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, with reference to NHS England’s document, Commissioning Intentions 2016/2017 for Prescribed Specialist Services, published in September 2015, what plans are being put in place by NHS regions which will focus on development of hepatitis C Operational Delivery Networks; and how such plans will relate to the national improvement framework for hepatitis C services.

    Jane Ellison

    NHS England’s commissioning intentions recognise that following their establishment in August 2015, Operational Delivery Networks (ODNs) will need to continue to be developed as a mechanism for ensuring equitable access to expert multidisciplinary team care and treatment for hepatitis C. ODNs are working to develop their plans, based on the published service specification and with the support of local specialised commissioning teams and regional Clinical Directors of specialised commissioning. Work is also underway to establish by February 2016 a national network of ODN clinical leads to share good practice. The formation of ODNs provides an opportunity for local collaborative commissioning conversations about hepatitis C pathways beyond the remit of specialised or health and justice services. In addition, the draft hepatitis C improvement framework includes a numbers of areas pertinent to ODN operation and will therefore support further development of their role.

  • Edward Argar – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Edward Argar – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Edward Argar on 2015-11-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment the Government has made of (a) the condition of the port infrastructure at Hodeida in Yemen and (b) Hodeida’s ability to function as a port for the purpose of delivering and unloading international aid.

    Mr Desmond Swayne

    The UK assessed the damage to Hodeidah port in August 2015. The port is currently running but with significant constraints: cranes and warehouses have been damaged and the lack of a reliable electricity supply is affecting port operations. However, the port is still operational: it can receive and unload shipments and is capable of servicing between 3 and 5 ships at a time, dependent on size. Between 1-15 November (most recent data), 12 ships berthed in Hodeidah port.

  • Alex Cunningham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Alex Cunningham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2015-12-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what representations she has received in the last 12 months relating to enforcement of the Animal Welfare Act 2006.

    George Eustice

    We have received several representations enquiring about various aspects of the enforcement of the Animal Welfare Act 2006 over the last 12 months. They include representations on local authority powers under the 2006 Act, local authority resources and the ability of the RSPCA to bring forward prosecutions.

  • Margaret Ferrier – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Prime Minister

    Margaret Ferrier – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Prime Minister

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Margaret Ferrier on 2015-11-23.

    To ask the Prime Minister, what discussions he had with his Indian counterpart during his recent visit on the death of Sikh people at the Golden Temple in Amritsar in June 1984.

    Mr David Cameron

    The events between 5-7 June 1984 at the Golden Temple in Amritsar led to a tragic loss of life, and I understand the pain that they still cause to Sikh communities around the world, including in the UK.

    During the visit of Prime Minister Modi we discussed a wide range of issues and in those conversations he emphasised his commitment to upholding the Gandhian traditions of diversity and religious tolerance. In his Wembley address, he underlined the important role that Indians of all faiths are playing in India’s economic and social development.

  • Chi Onwurah – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Chi Onwurah – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chi Onwurah on 2015-12-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what transitional arrangements are being made for local authority employees who administer housing benefit when responsibility for that benefit moves to universal credit.

    Priti Patel

    Any transitional arrangements are the responsibility of the Local Authority, but we will work with them to manage the impact of these changes in a way which minimises the need for any redundancies. Where this does not prove possible, after the exercise of all reasonable efforts to redeploy people, the Department has given Local Authorities a commitment that we will meet their costs of any residual redundancies.

  • Rupa Huq – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Rupa Huq – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rupa Huq on 2015-11-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what financial and advisory assistance his Department offers to businesses to encourage them to employ, train and support people with physical and learning disabilities.

    Justin Tomlinson

    The Government’s award-winning Disability Confident campaign continues to work with employers to raise awareness of the business benefits of employing disabled people. It offers information and guidance to support employers in becoming more confident when attracting, recruiting and retaining disabled people and signposts further resources.

    We also deliver a number of programmes and initiatives that have successfully supported disabled people to find employment and which can also engage with and encourage employers, such as Access to Work (ATW), which provides a grant for support that is over and above the kinds of reasonable adjustment that employers have a duty to provide and Specialist Employability Support (SES).

    The Hidden Impairment National Group (HING) has made its Hidden Impairment Toolkit publically available to employers, providers, support organisations and other government departments. This Toolkit helps employers to support and employ individuals with Hidden Impairments such as learning disabilities, autism, or Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).

  • Diana Johnson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Diana Johnson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Diana Johnson on 2015-12-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many investigations the National Crime Agency has launched into money laundering offences in each of the last three years; and how many of those investigations resulted (a) from a referral from the Financial Conduct Authority and (b) in a prosecution.

    Mike Penning

    The National Crime Agency (NCA) became operational on 7th October 2013. Since that date the NCA has launched over 80 investigations where money laundering has been identified as a threat. In addition, in some investigations money laundering may not be identified at the outset but instead becomes a focus later on in the course of the investigation.

    Between 7th October 2013 – 31st March 2015, NCA activity has led to 156 prosecutions for money laundering offences.

    The NCA receives its intelligence from multiple sources, including partner agencies, but does not routinely provide detailed information on its sources in order to protect its operations.