Tag: 2015

  • Paul Flynn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Paul Flynn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Flynn on 2015-11-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether General Sir Nicholas Houghton sought permission under departmental directive 2014DIN03-024 on Contact with the media and communicating in public to discuss the Trident nuclear weapons system in advance of the recent television interview on the Andrew Marr on Sunday programme.

    Michael Fallon

    General Sir Nicholas Houghton sought prior clearance to be interviewed on the Andrew Marr Show on Remembrance Sunday, 8 November 2015: as with previous Remembrance Sunday appearances a number of military issues were covered.

  • Sarah Wollaston – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Sarah Wollaston – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sarah Wollaston on 2015-12-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to ensure that funding is sufficient to meet patient demand in (a) community mental healthcare and (b) inpatient mental healthcare; and if he will make a statement.

    Alistair Burt

    NHS England’s Planning Guidance for 2015/16, Forward View into action: planning for 2015-16, sets out the expectation that clinical commissioning groups’ (CCGs) spending on mental health services in 2015/16 should increase in real terms, and grow by at least as much as each CCG’s allocation increase to support the ambition of parity between mental and physical health. Compliance with the Planning Guidance is being assured at national and Area Team level.

  • Grahame Morris – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Grahame Morris – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Grahame Morris on 2015-11-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of establishing a national pay scale for teaching assistants.

    Nick Gibb

    The government believes that decisions on the use, deployment, and pay of teaching assistants are best made in a way that reflects local needs.

    Support staff rates of pay are determined by employers: in maintained schools, these will be set by the local authority; in Academies and Free Schools, these will be set by school or the Trust.

  • Gareth Thomas – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Gareth Thomas – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gareth Thomas on 2015-12-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, (a) what the average waiting time was for checks by the Disclosure and Barring Service to be completed and (b) how long on average the Police National Computer search took in (i) 2010-11, (ii) 2011-12, (iii) 2012-13, (iv) 2013-14, (v) 2014-15 and (vi) 2015-16 to date.

    Karen Bradley

    The following table shows, for each year from November 2010 to October 2015, both the average end-to-end turnaround time for Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) certificates and the average time to complete the Police National Computer (PNC) stage.

    The PNC stage has been defined as the time spent in DBS between receipt of an application and – in the case of Enhanced Disclosures – its despatch to local police forces; or – in the case of Standard Disclosures – its assembly for return to the applicant. During this period, DBS conducts a search of the Police National Computer, followed by internal checks to ensure both the accuracy and quality of certificates.

    Time Period

    Average End to End Turnaround (days)

    Average PNC Stage Turnaround (days)

    Nov-10 to Oct-11

    16.22

    1.72

    Nov-11 to Oct-12

    10.85

    2.25

    Nov-12 to Oct-13

    10.23

    1.54

    Nov-13 to Oct-14

    13.63

    2.42

    Nov-14 to Oct-15

    14.28

    2.86

  • Paul Flynn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Paul Flynn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Flynn on 2015-11-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, pursuant to the Answer of 2 November 2015 to Question 13044, what assessment she has made of reasons for the delays in constructing reactors in China as requested in that question.

    Andrea Leadsom

    Whilst being a minority partner in the Taishan project, EDF expect Taishan to start generating power before the EPR at Flamanville in France, which EDF have estimated will be by the end of 2018.

  • Andy Slaughter – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Andy Slaughter – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2015-12-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, which prisons he intends to close; and what consultation is taking place or is planned to take place on those closures.

    Andrew Selous

    No decisions have yet been made on which prisons will be closed. After the announcement of a closure, the Ministry of Justice will work actively with stakeholders to ensure that we manage the local impact of a prison closure.

  • Jim Fitzpatrick – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Jim Fitzpatrick – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Fitzpatrick on 2015-11-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what progress her Department has made on implementing those aspects of the Floods and Water Management Act 2010 applicable to smaller reservoirs.

    Rory Stewart

    In February 2015, Defra announced it had decided not to make further changes to the inspection regime for smaller reservoirs because, at that time, the evidence base would not support such changes.

    However, we are exploring potential further research which could provide additional evidence on the level of risk posed by smaller reservoirs.

  • Richard  Arkless – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Richard Arkless – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Arkless on 2015-12-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prosecutions were brought to court under the provisions of the Human Rights Act in each year since 2005.

    Dominic Raab

    Prosecutions are not brought under the provisions of the Human Rights Act. A person may bring a civil claim under the Act or rely on Convention rights in any legal proceedings.

  • 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 2015-11-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of levels of compliance with the Environmental Protection (Restriction of the Use of Lead Shot) (England) Regulations 1999 (as amended).

    Rory Stewart

    The Government is considering the independent Lead Ammunition Group’s report on the effect of lead shot on human and wildlife health and will respond as soon as possible.

    The Food Standards Agency has produced advice on the consumption of lead shot game which can be accessed at https://www.food.gov.uk/science/advice-to-frequent-eaters-of-game-shot-with-lead.

  • Mike Kane – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Mike Kane – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mike Kane on 2015-12-10.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of a 50 per cent reduction in air passenger duty in Scotland on Manchester Airport.

    Damian Hinds

    The government is currently undertaking a consultation into options to support regional airports from the impacts of air passenger duty devolution. We are carefully considering the evidence we have received from stakeholders and will respond in due course.