Tag: 2015

  • Jim Shannon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Jim Shannon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2015-12-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to reduce the incidence of (a) CRE and (b) other superbugs which are persistent to antibiotics.

    Jane Ellison

    The Government has already taken significant action to address carbapenem-resistant enterobacteriaceae and other organisms that are resistant to antibiotics.

    The UK 5 Year Antimicrobial Resistance Strategy set out key steps for tackling organisms that are resistant to a range of antibiotics. As part of our strategy to reduce the incidence of such infections, we have tightened the regulatory aspects in England by revising the Health and Social Care Act Code of Practice on the prevention and control of infections in July 2015. The revised Code strengthens links and references to antimicrobial resistance within primary and secondary care. Furthermore, the NHS Standard Contract published in March 2015 included amendments to require compliance with the Code of Practice. This enables regulators such as the Care Quality Commission to look at compliance with the Code within its inspection programme.

    At the same time, we have ensured that a range of guidance and tool kits have been produced to support healthcare staff to manage carbapenem-resistant enterobacteriaceae and other resistant bacteria. Public Health England has published updated standards in June 2015 covering additional training on infection and control, which includes a carbapenemese-resistant Enterobacteriaceae toolkit for the non-acute and community sector.

    In terms of surveillance of carbapenemase-resistant organisms, Public Health England has rolled out the second generation surveillance system for the reporting of notifiable infectious diseases and antimicrobial resistance in December 2014. It has also developed an electronic system for reporting carbapenemase-producing organisms, to allow demographic and clinical risk information to be captured and analysed.

  • Grahame Morris – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Grahame Morris – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Grahame Morris on 2015-11-16.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to encourage the growth of stakeholder banks within the UK.

    Harriett Baldwin

    The Government has taken significant steps to support stakeholder banks. We more commonly refer to stakeholder banks as mutually-owned financial service firms such as credit unions, building societies and mutual savings banks.

    The Government has encouraged the growth of the credit union sector by increasing the maximum interest rate that credit unions can charge on loans from 2% to 3% per month; investing £38m in the sector through the Department of Work and Pensions’ (DWP) Credit Union Expansion Project; ensuring that universal credit and pensions payments can be paid into any credit union account; and launching a Call for Evidence which allowed all credit unions, regardless of size or influence, the opportunity to contribute their vision for the future of the sector to the wider debate.

    This Government has supported the building societies sector through a number of initiatives including: carving out building societies from the Independent Commission on Banking’s ring-fencing regulations; extending ISA eligibility to Core Capital Deferred Shares; allowing building societies to create floating charges for the first time; and applying a £25m sector-specific allowance to carried-forward losses for Corporation Tax.

    The Airdrie Savings Bank is the only remaining example of a mutual savings bank in the UK. At the Summer Budget the government announced that savings banks established under the Savings Bank (Scotland) Act 1819 will benefit from the same £25m carried-forward loss allowance for Corporation Tax as the building society sector. This will be backdated to 1 April 2015 and is being actioned through the Finance Bill 2015.

  • Maria Eagle – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Maria Eagle – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Maria Eagle on 2015-12-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many Type (a) 45 Destroyers and (b) 23 Frigates will be used to host training programmes for Royal Navy personnel in 2015-16.

    Penny Mordaunt

    Training programmes for Royal Navy personnel are delivered on all Royal Navy ships and submarines as part of the unit’s generation and operation cycles, throughout individuals’ careers. We currently have six Type 45 Destroyers and 13 Type 23 Frigates in service.

  • Barry Sheerman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Barry Sheerman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Sheerman on 2015-11-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps he is taking to promote joint work between special needs assessors and disability advisers within universities on ensuring that appropriate support is given and provision made for disabled students and for students with dyslexia.

    Joseph Johnson

    Higher education institutions are responsible for meeting their legal obligations under the Equality Act 2010, including for students with dyslexia.

    The legal duty to provide reasonable adjustments applies to all disabled students. In addition Disabled Students Allowances (DSAs) are available where the needs of the student cannot be met by the institution by way of such a reasonable adjustment. A consultation on DSAs closed on 24 September and the Government response will be published in due course.

  • Maria Eagle – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Maria Eagle – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Maria Eagle on 2015-12-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what his Department’s expenditure was on the Single Persons Accommodation Centre for the Ex-Services in each year since 2010.

    Mark Lancaster

    The Single Persons Accommodation Centre for the Ex-Services (SPACES) is a charitable project working in partnership with Ministry of Defence (MOD) Joint Service Housing Advice Office. There have not been any MOD employees at SPACES since 2010.

    SPACES assists the most vulnerable single Service Leavers to secure appropriate accommodation as they leave the Armed Forces in order to reduce the likelihood of them becoming homeless or rough sleepers. In order to ensure the provision of this service, the MOD has paid SPACES the following:

    FY2010-11 = £170,750

    FY2011-12 = £175,019

    FY2012-13 = £179,394

    FY2013-14 = £179,394

    FY2014-15 = £179,394

  • Tim Farron – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Tim Farron – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Farron on 2015-11-13.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many (a) employees and (b) companies have participated in the shares for rights scheme under section 31 of the Growth and Infrastructure Act 2013.

    Mr David Gauke

    The information requested is not available.

  • Andrew Rosindell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Andrew Rosindell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2015-12-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much the UK contributed to the European Defence Agency (EDA) during 2014-15; and what the benefit is to the armed forces of membership of the EDA which they do not receive from NATO membership.

    Mr Julian Brazier

    The UK contribution to the European Defence Agency (EDA) budget for Financial Year 2014-2015 was £3.319 million. The UK has held the budget at zero nominal growth since 2010.

    A recent review by Cranfield University of the UK’s EDA membership found it enables the UK to influence coherent capability development across Member States; 22 of which are also in NATO. Specific benefits include membership of the EDA Military Airworthiness Authorisation Forum, the Helicopter Training Programmes, and the Single European Sky initiative, which support interoperability through harmonisation of military airworthiness regulations across Member States, and de-risk future combined operations.

    The Review also identified benefits to UK Defence industry: the ability to influence European Defence industry initiatives, enabling UK Defence industry access to EDA programmes and the building of confidence of cross border procurement, all of which help contribute to reducing the cost of Defence capability and thus the delivery of the most effective capabilities to UK Armed Forces.

  • Rebecca Long Bailey – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Rebecca Long Bailey – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rebecca Long Bailey on 2015-11-13.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the total on-flow and off-flow for tax credits was for claimants in Salford in the most recent (a) three and (b) six months for which data is available.

    Damian Hinds

    The answers are only available at disproportionate cost.

  • Justin Madders – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Justin Madders – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Justin Madders on 2015-12-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much (a) his Department, (b) Public Health England, (c) NHS England and (d) each of his Department’s non-departmental public bodies spent on (i) iPads, (ii) iPhones, (iii) other smartphones and (iv) other tablet devices in each of the last five years; and how many of each such device were purchased in each such year.

    Jane Ellison

    Information about the number and cost of iPads, iPhones, other smartphones and other tablet devices purchased by the Department and its arm’s length bodies in each of the last five years is contained in the attached tables.

  • Liz McInnes – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Liz McInnes – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Liz McInnes on 2015-11-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what the change was in the number of firefighter posts in the Cumbria Fire and Rescue Service in 2013-14.

    Greg Clark

    I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave her on 6 November 2015, PQ 13946.