Tag: 2015

  • Chi Onwurah – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Chi Onwurah – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chi Onwurah on 2015-11-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the effect on the financial sustainability of sixth form colleges of (a) VAT and (b) pension costs; and if she will estimate the average proportion of a sixth form college’s budget which is spent on those costs.

    Mr Sam Gyimah

    The Education Funding Agency (EFA) regularly assesses the financial viability of sixth-form colleges on behalf of the department. Those assessments take account of all income and costs for colleges, including costs relating to VAT and pension liabilities.

    The department estimates that VAT accounts for about 3% of sixth form colleges’ expenditure each year.

    With regards to pension costs, sixth-form colleges may contribute to a number of pension schemes. The SFC financial returns are available online at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/sfa-financial-management-college-accounts and show employer contributions to pensions. The EFA does not routinely collect data on the cost of other pension schemes through financial returns.

    “

  • Baroness Sharp of Guildford – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Baroness Sharp of Guildford – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Sharp of Guildford on 2015-12-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether, in developing their plans for improving the careers service for young people up to the age of 18, they have consulted the National Careers Service about possible collaboration.

    Lord Nash

    The Department for Education works closely with the National Careers Service (NCS), which supports young people directly through a website, telephone helpline and webchat service and through a brokerage role with schools and employers.

    We consulted the NCS in advance of establishing The Careers & Enterprise Company, and since then the two organisations have worked together to understand where and how services can be coordinated to ensure that they complement each other.

    In the spring we will publish a strategy for improved careers provision for young people and we are engaging with the NCS as we develop our proposals. In particular the NCS will support one of our key aims, which is to ensure that young people and their parents or carers can access the information they need to make informed decisions on their education, training and employment options.

  • Ann Clwyd – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Ann Clwyd – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ann Clwyd on 2015-11-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether he raised with the President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi of Egypt the case of Mahmoud Mohamed Ahmed Hussein.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    Although the Prime Minister, my right hon. Friend the Member for Witney (Mr Cameron) did not raise this specific case on 5 November, he discussed human rights issues in Egypt with President Sisi. He raised a number of concerns, including around the detention of political activists, mass trials and restrictions on freedom of expression.

  • Baroness Howe of Idlicote – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Baroness Howe of Idlicote – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Howe of Idlicote on 2015-12-02.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how Ofcom is ensuring that persons under the age of 18 are protected from inappropriate content in television and radio services.

    Baroness Shields

    Section One of the Broadcasting Code serves to protect children from unsuitable content in television and radio services. The rules in this section include specific provisions, and cover areas such as drugs, smoking, violence and dangerous behaviour, offensive language, sexual material and nudity. The rules also specifically protect children before the watershed on television at 9pm and at times when they are particularly likely to be listening to radio services. Ofcom enforces these rules robustly, and can impose statutory sanctions on any broadcaster that breaches them.

  • Natalie McGarry – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Natalie McGarry – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Natalie McGarry on 2015-11-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people in (a) the UK, (b) Scotland, (c) Glasgow and (d) Glasgow East constituency are in receipt of both the state pension and carer’s allowance in the 2015-16 financial year.

    Justin Tomlinson

    The information as requested for 2015/16 is not available.

    However information on the number of people in receipt of both the State Pension and Carer’s Allowance is published by the Department on a quarterly basis. The latest data available is February 2015 which can be found at:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/dwp-statistics-tabulation-tool

    Information for Northern Ireland is the responsibility of the Department for Social Development. Northern Ireland statistics can be found at:

    http://www.dsdni.gov.uk/index/stats_and_research/benefit_publications.htm

    “

  • Lord Rana – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Lord Rana – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Rana on 2015-12-02.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they plan to spend the £1 billion pledged for post-war reconstruction in Syria.

    Baroness Verma

    The UK has been at the forefront of the international response to the humanitarian crisis in Syria. We have committed over £1.1 billion to date, making us the second largest bilateral donor to the international response.

    We have planned for the endgame since the beginning of the conflict and during the Geneva process. We are now updating our planning to reflect the timeline envisaged in the Vienna process and are asking others to do the same. The initial priorities for Syria post-conflict will be protection, security, stabilisation and confidence building measures, including meeting basic needs and helping displaced people to return. Over time the focus will shift to longer-term re-building of Syria’s shattered infrastructure, harnessing the expertise of the UN, International Financial Institutions and the private sector. On 26 November, the Prime Minister announced at least £1 billion for Syria’s reconstruction. We anticipate that we would allocate reconstruction funds against a plan agreed between a new, inclusive Syrian government and the international community, once the conflict has ended.

  • Gordon Marsden – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Gordon Marsden – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gordon Marsden on 2015-11-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment he has made of the effect of his Department’s policies of providing bursaries and mathematics enhancement programmes to teaching staff in the further education sector on the total number of mathematics teachers in that sector; and on what evidential basis he made the decision to offer bursaries and mathematics enhancement programmes to teaching staff in the further education sector.

    Nick Boles

    The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) began offering bursaries to graduates to train to teach maths in the academic year 2013/14. 61 and 136 people took up such bursaries in 2013/14 and 2014/15, respectively. It is estimated that 167 maths bursaries will be taken up in 2015/16.

    The maths enhancement is a joint BIS/Department for Education supported programme and commenced in the academic year 2013/14. During 2013/14 and 2014/15 over 2,450 existing further education teachers participated in the maths programmes. During 2015/16 we are continuing to support access to a pipeline programme to enhance the maths skills of existing teachers. This is being delivered by the Education and Training Foundation. We have not made an estimate of the number of programmes that will be taken up in 2015/16.

    Emerging findings from the evaluation of the further education (FE) workforce programmes have shown a positive impact on the confidence and effectiveness of FE teachers delivering maths either as a core subject or in vocational context. The evidential basis for intervention in maths teaching was based on the clear need to raise the Maths attainment rates of students in further education; and improve the quality of Maths teaching as identified by Ofsted inspection reports.

  • Lord Pearson of Rannoch – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Lord Pearson of Rannoch – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Pearson of Rannoch on 2015-12-02.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Bridges of Headley on 10 June (HL56), whether they will provide updated statistics for the tables entitled Growth in the UK Muslim Population, to show the most recent figures available.

    Lord Bridges of Headley

    The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.

  • Peter Bone – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Wales Office

    Peter Bone – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Wales Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Peter Bone on 2015-11-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits for his Department of merging the Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland Offices to make a Department for the regions.

    Stephen Crabb

    I would start by reminding my honourable Friend that Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland are nations, not regions.

    Since my appointment as Secretary of State for Wales, I have taken action to drive down costs within the Wales Office by collaborating with other Government Departments and sharing services.

    At the present time I believe the nations are best served by strong Secretaries of State representing their interests around the Cabinet table.

  • Nigel Adams – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Nigel Adams – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nigel Adams on 2015-12-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment he has made of the potential overlap between contributors to the construction industry training levy and the proposed employer apprenticeship levy; and what assessment he has made of the potential effect on the construction industry of that proposed levy in drawing up those proposals.

    Nick Boles

    All employers with a pay bill greater than £3,000,000 will be in scope of the apprenticeships levy, including those in the construction and engineering construction sectors. We are working with the Industry Training Boards to understand how their existing arrangements will be affected. They will be consulting with their members in advance of the introduction of the apprenticeships levy on whether they should continue to pay the industry levy and if so, how it should be combined with the national apprenticeship levy. We are also working with other sectors, where there are existing collective training arrangements about what the apprenticeships levy means to them.