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Tag: 2015

  • Baroness Lister of Burtersett – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Baroness Lister of Burtersett – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Lister of Burtersett on 2015-10-28.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government when they plan to publish the outcome of the consultation on reforming support for failed asylum seekers; and whether they will publish a summary of the responses to that consultation.

    Lord Bates

    The response to the consultation was published on 5 November 2015 and can be found at:. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/immigration-bill-part-5-support-for-certain-categories-of-migrant

  • Luciana Berger – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Luciana Berger – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2015-11-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many hours were worked by a (a) Improving Access to Psychological Therapies practitioners and (b) other therapists in the NHS in each of the last five years.

    Alistair Burt

    There were 756 training places commissioned for Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (Adult IAPT) programme in 2014/15. The commissioning intention for 2015/16 is 946.

    Information is not available of what proportion of National Health Service psychological therapists are IAPT practitioners. We also do not hold information on the number of hours worked by IAPT practitioners and other therapists.

  • Meg Hillier – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Meg Hillier – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Meg Hillier on 2015-10-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the appropriateness of the time taken to secure appeal hearings at the First-tier Tribunal Immigration and Asylum Chamber.

    Mr Shailesh Vara

    The most recently published average time for appeals to be disposed of by the First-tier Tribunal is 30 weeks between April and June 2015. This compares to an average of 29 weeks in 2014/15. HM Courts & Tribunals Service remains confident that it continues to have the capacity to deal with the volume of appeals it expects to receive. We are preparing to put additional court time in place to make sure waiting times do not increase.

  • Daniel Zeichner – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Daniel Zeichner – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2015-11-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make it her policy to establish Road Justice Scrutiny Panels to scrutinise investigations of road crime.

    Mike Penning

    The investigation of road crime incidents is an operational matter for the police. If anyone wishes to complain about any treatment he or she has received, they should raise a complaint with the local Chief Officer, Chief Constable or Police and Crime Commissioner. The Police Reform Act 2002 stipulates the procedures to make a complaint and outlines the role of the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC). This ensures that police officers and staff are fully answerable for their actions.

    The Home Office does not centrally hold information on the number of motorists who chose to attend a driver alertness scheme. How the scheme is managed is an operational matter for the police.

  • Baroness Bakewell of Hardington Mandeville – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Baroness Bakewell of Hardington Mandeville – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Bakewell of Hardington Mandeville on 2015-10-27.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government (1) whether they consider the action of Network Rail in closing the level crossing in the East Sussex village of Plumpton Green acceptable, and (2) whether they will call on Network Rail to re-open the affected road running through the village as a matter of urgency; and what arrangements will be made for emergency vehicles, access for disabled people and parents trying to get their children to local schools.

    Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

    Whilst Network Rail has an otherwise excellent record of completing works at the 6,200 level crossings which it manages with minimal disruption, it is highly regrettable that there appears to have been a lapse in project management in this particular case.

    The impact which the continued closure of the crossing is having on the lives of local residents and businesses is not acceptable. Ministers have raised this matter with Network Rail at the highest level to request that the company urgently re-doubles its efforts in partnership with local stakeholders to find a solution and ensure that the crossing can re-open as quickly as possible.

  • Richard Burden – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Richard Burden – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2015-11-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions he has had with insurance companies on the potential effect on models of motor insurance of increases in the number of autonomous vehicles in use.

    Andrew Jones

    My officials in the Department for Transport, and the cross-Whitehall Centre for Connected and Autonomous Vehicles, are meeting regularly with leading insurance companies and industry organisations, such as the Motor Insurers’ Bureau and the Association of British Insurers. These discussions include looking at how the ongoing introduction of connectivity and autonomy technologies in vehicles will change the way that motor insurance works in the short, medium and long term, and how the industry will need to adapt.

  • Lord Stoddart of Swindon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Lord Stoddart of Swindon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Stoddart of Swindon on 2015-10-27.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the construction of four commercial nuclear power reactors for the United Arab Emirates by a South Korean consortium with a total capacity of 5.6 GWe at cost of £14 billion, in the light of their plans for nuclear generation at Hinkley Point.

    Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth

    The Government does not make direct comparisons between projects in different circumstances that have different contracts and are situated in different markets.

    There has been a thorough review of the costs of the Hinkley Point C project to ensure that the contract represents value for money. Hinkley will provide reliable low carbon energy for around 60 years and offer 25,000 jobs during construction. My rt. hon Friend the Secretary of State expects to be in a position to take her final decision on the Contract for Difference and associated agreements for Hinkley Point C once the documentation relating to equity investment into the project is finalised.

  • Baroness Burt of Solihull – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Baroness Burt of Solihull – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Burt of Solihull on 2015-11-24.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what funding will be provided to assist with the delivery of their commitment to double the proportion of students from disadvantaged backgrounds entering higher education by 2020.

    Baroness Neville-Rolfe

    We will be issuing a grant letter to the Higher Education Funding Council for England early in the New Year outlining the Government’s priorities for expenditure through the teaching grant, including on widening access. This will take account of the announcements made in the Spending Review on. The Director of Fair Access has agreed 183 Access Agreements for 2016/17 containing an estimated £745m to support the access and success of students from disadvantaged backgrounds, up from £404m in 2009/10.

  • Tulip Siddiq – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Tulip Siddiq – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tulip Siddiq on 2015-10-27.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what position the UK’s representatives at the (a) Trade Policy Committee and (b) Foreign Affairs Council have taken on the replacement of the Investor State Dispute Settlements mechanism with an Investment Court System in the negotiations over the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership.

    Anna Soubry

    On 16 September, the European Commission published a draft of its proposed text for the investment protection provisions in the EU-US free trade agreement, also known as the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership.

    In discussions on these proposals with the European Commission and Member States, UK representatives have expressed support for the European Commission’s ongoing initiative to reform the investment provisions used in its trade and investment agreements. UK representatives have also raised questions of detail on how the proposed text will continue to safeguard governments’ right to regulate lawfully and in the public interest, while ensuring that UK investors are treated fairly overseas by foreign governments.

    The final content of the investment protection provisions in the EU-US free trade agreement will be subject to the outcome of negotiations between the EU and the US. The inclusion of investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) provisions in the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) will not threaten the right of the UK or Devolved Administrations to regulate or determine public policy. The Commission has published a proposal for reforms to investment protections in this agreement, which includes a clause setting out governments’ right to regulate.

    The UK will work with the Commission on this proposal to ensure that UK investors are treated fairly overseas by foreign governments while allowing governments to regulate lawfully and in the public interest.

  • Lord Naseby – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Lord Naseby – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Naseby on 2015-11-24.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what are the job titles of those officials within the Department of Health who sit on internal or external working or steering groups with representatives from Action on Smoking and Health.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    The Acting Deputy Director and Team Leader for Tobacco Control (EU) attended a dinner, hosted by the American Cancer Society, to celebrate the Luther. L. Terry award for Exemplary Leadership by a Government Ministry which was presented to the UK on 19 March at the World Conference on Tobacco and Health (WCTOH). Representatives of Action on Smoking and Health (ASH), as past recipients of an award in 2012, were also present.

    The Acting Deputy Director presented at the WCTOH in March 2015 and the Team Leader for Tobacco Control (EU) presented at the E-cigarette Summit in November. Representatives of ASH also presented at these independent events.

    The Deputy Director for Tobacco Control is a member of Public Health England’s Tobacco Control Implementation Board, which also includes a representative from ASH in its membership.