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Tag: 2015

  • Dawn Butler – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Dawn Butler – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dawn Butler on 2015-11-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what support her Department is providing to aid agencies and international partners to prepare Syrian refugee camps for winter.

    Mr Desmond Swayne

    The UK has been at the forefront of the response to the crisis in Syria and the region. We have pledged over £1.1 billion to date, our largest ever response to a single humanitarian crisis. We are the second largest bilateral donor after the US.

    DFID is supporting 11 implementing partners to prepare and respond to the onset of winter across Syria, Lebanon and Jordan. This financial year, we have provided £221 million to these 11 partners to support their emergency programmes, of which £12.9 million has been committed for specific winter response activities such as the provision of warm clothing, thermal blankets, fuel and cash to support thousands of vulnerable families across the region.

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

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

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Empey on 2015-12-08.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether UK aid is able to enter Nepal by road without interference or delay.

    Baroness Verma

    We have been closely monitoring the movement of humanitarian and health goods over the land borders to Nepal. A number of DFID partners providing winter assistance for vulnerable households living over 1,500m affected by the earthquake have trucks that have not been able to move freely across the border. Other DFID humanitarian partners have been procuring goods from Nepal but are struggling with their distribution due to shortages of fuel.

    We are actively advocating to all parties for the free movement of humanitarian and health supplies and peaceful resolution of the current disruption. The UN Resident Coordinator and the UK Ambassador met with Nepal’s Prime Minister this week to raise the issue of access to fuel for humanitarian operations. This has resulted in a positive commitment to prioritise a supply of fuel to humanitarian partners. UK ministers and senior civil servants continue to raise concerns over the current crises and need for quick resolution with concerned groups.

  • Jim Shannon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Jim Shannon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2015-11-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what discussions she has had with her French counterpart on the possible introduction of fingerprinting at Schengen zone borders.

    James Brokenshire

    The Home Secretary and her French counterpart have had a number of discussions concerning the need to fingerprint individuals at the external border of the Schengen area as part of the strategy to manage the unprecedented flow of migrants.

  • Lord Roberts of Llandudno – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Lord Roberts of Llandudno – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Roberts of Llandudno on 2015-12-08.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of what medical support is available for diabetic asylum seekers in refugee camps across Europe.

    Lord Bates

    Each EU Member State is responsible for the welfare of asylum applicants on their territory. The UK government bears no responsibility for asylum seekers who are on the territory of another Member State and has made no assessment of the support available for diabetic asylum seekers in other parts of Europe.

  • 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 2015-11-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what educational and health programmes are (a) in place and (b) planned to reduce the incidence of sexually transmitted disease.

    Jane Ellison

    Public Health England (PHE) supports local prevention initiatives through the provision of guidance, evidence and data. PHE supports the National Chlamydia Screening Programme which provides testing for chlamydia to all young people aged 15-24 annually. PHE commissions a number of national human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) prevention activities and specialised sexual health information resources to provide educational and health resources to reduce the incidence of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) including HIV.

    STI prevention programmes are the responsibility of local authorities, and there are a wide variety of local educational and health initiatives underway across England. Local authorities are mandated to provide genitourinary medicine services for the early diagnosis and treatment of STIs.

    Further, last week I launched the £500,000 HIV prevention innovation fund and our first National HIV Home Sampling service which aims to deliver up to 50,000 postal testing kits.

  • Lord Hunt of Kings Heath – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Lord Hunt of Kings Heath – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 2015-12-08.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will publish implementation plans for the rollout of the system of medical examiners in the NHS now that the Spending Review has been published.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    Following the Spending Review, further work on the reforms to death certification and the introduction of medical examiners will be subject to confirmation of spending priorities through the normal business planning cycle. We will provide an update on the implementation plans and timetables as soon as we are able.

  • Louise Haigh – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Louise Haigh – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2015-11-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the cost of using external agencies for recruitment to senior Civil Service posts in his Department in each of the last five years for which figures are available.

    Jane Ellison

    The Department uses external recruitment agencies to support appointments to the Senior Civil Service (SCS). The table below shows the costs of SCS appointments that have been made where a recruitment agency was involved, for each financial year since 2010/11.

    Year

    Spend

    1 April 2010 – 31 March 2011

    £45,673

    1 April 2011 – 31 March 2012

    £160,404

    1 April 2012 – 31 March 2013

    £49,275

    1 April 2013 – 31 March 2014

    £76,973

    1 April 2014 – 31 March 2015

    £68,906

    1 April 2015 – November 2015

    £7,450
  • Charlotte Leslie – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Charlotte Leslie – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Charlotte Leslie on 2015-12-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many prosecutions there have been for tachograph violations in each year since 2010.

    Andrew Jones

    The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency takes non-compliance with drivers hour’s regulations very seriously and deals appropriately with anyone who attempts to undermine public safety by not taking the required breaks. This includes taking prohibition and prosecution action.

    DVSA is determined to tackle the small minority of operators and drivers who choose to break the rules, and it has effective measures in place to catch offenders quickly.

    DVSA carry out investigations based on intelligence and information from the public and the haulage industry, as well as conducting checks across the strategic road network, using technology such as ANPR cameras, as well as enforcement officers at the roadside and at DVSA check sites

    The figures below show the amount of prosecutions for tachograph violations in each year since 2010, with figures also included for 2008/09 and 2009/10 to provide context.

    Heavy Goods Vehicle

    2008/09

    2009/10

    2010/11

    2011/12

    2012/13

    2013/14

    2014/15

    Drivers Hours

    3,913

    2,717

    2,211

    2,346

    2,130

    2,219

    1,518

    Tacho records

    2,046

    1,391

    1,153

    1,619

    1,664

    1,831

    1,343

    Public Service Vehicle

    2008/09

    2009/10

    2010/11

    2011/12

    2012/13

    2013/14

    2014/15

    Drivers Hours

    326

    107

    87

    458

    293

    119

    149

    Tacho records

    219

    122

    58

    409

    218

    106

    148

    Light Goods Vehicle

    2008/09

    2009/10

    2010/11

    2011/12

    2012/13

    2013/14

    2014/15

    Drivers Hours

    38

    23

    43

    25

    15

    35

    33

    Tacho records

    20

    19

    25

    15

    13

    6

    20

  • Nick Hurd – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Nick Hurd – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nick Hurd on 2015-11-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment she has made of the cost effectiveness of her Department’s programmes to help reduce the incidence of avoidable blindness and low vision.

    Grant Shapps

    DFID uses evidence on the cost-effectiveness of health interventions to inform DFID investment decisions. This includes the World Health Organisation CHOICE (CHOosing Interventions that are Cost-Effective) project that provides detailed cost-effectiveness estimates of a large number of interventions to reduce risks to health, including many causes of blindness. DFID’s aim is to maximise health gains through targeted, cost-effective health interventions that are delivered through strengthened, more efficient and effective health systems.

    Every DFID project is rigorously appraised before approval. During implementation each project is regularly monitored to examine whether the targeted results are on track, whether the project represents value for money and remains cost effective, and what, if any, corrective action needs to be undertaken. DFID considers alternative approaches and cost-effectiveness, amongst other factors, whenever we make an investment. The best value for money in a given country at a given time will depend on many factors, including the local context and what others are doing.

  • Diana Johnson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Diana Johnson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

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

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will list the makes and models of cars bought by the Government Car Service in each of the last five years; and what the carbon dioxide output of each of those cars is.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    The attached table lists the make, model, and carbon dioxide emissions for cars procured by the Government Car Service in the last five years.