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Tag: 2015

  • Gregory Campbell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    Gregory Campbell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gregory Campbell on 2015-10-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if she will take steps to enable the Government to direct the Police Ombudsman of Northern Ireland to investigate a complaint from a former police officer where matters giving rise to the complaint took place more than 12 months ago and there are exceptional circumstances which justify such an investigation being held.

    Mr Ben Wallace

    The RUC (Complaints etc) Regulations 2001 allow the Police Ombudsman for Northern Ireland to investigate complaints into matters which took place more than 12 months ago in exceptional circumstances, for example when new evidence has come to light which was not reasonably available at the time of an original complaint.

    The Police Ombudsman is accountable to the Northern Ireland Assembly, through the Minister of Justice for Northern Ireland.

  • Stephen Timms – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Stephen Timms – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2015-11-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many pirate radio broadcasting installations have been taken off air by enforcement action in each of the last five years.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    As part of Ofcom’sresponsibilityfor protecting and managing radio spectrum, enforcement operations arecarried out every year to remove pirate radio broadcasts. After the success of these operations, and the combined effort of local authorities, the number of pirate stations still broadcasting has significantly reduced, explaining the decline in number of pirate stations taken off air in 2014. This success has led Ofcom to launch a new initiative involving local authorities and other owners of high rise residential buildings to remove the presence of illegal broadcasters. The results have already been positive, with the complete removal of pirate radio broadcasters in the London Boroughs of Haringey and Islington.

    Year

    Number of Pirate Radio Stations

    Taken off the air
    2010 104
    2011 96
    2012 99
    2013 102
    2014 69


    Background

    This year Ofcom began a new initiative involving local authorities and other owners of high rise residential properties to remove the presence of illegal broadcasters from their buildings. Ofcom has implemented this strategy with a number of London boroughs already. The results have been positive, with the complete removal of pirate broadcasts in the London Boroughs of Haringey and Islington. Ofcom intends to pursue this further.

  • Tom Pursglove – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Wales Office

    Tom Pursglove – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Wales Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Pursglove on 2015-10-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, how many civil servants in his Department are members of trades unions; how much working hours facility time is claimed by each such civil servant; and what the cost of that facility time is to his Department.

    Alun Cairns

    The Wales Office does not record how many of its staff are members of trades unions. No civil servant working at the Wales Office currently claims facility time.

  • Ann Coffey – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Ann Coffey – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ann Coffey on 2015-11-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many looked-after children have committed criminal offences in the last three years; what the (a) age and (b) gender was of each such child; what offence was committed in each such case; and what distance away from home each child had been placed when the offence was committed.

    Edward Timpson

    The numbers of looked after children who were convicted or subject to a final warning or reprimand in 2012, 2013 and 2014 by age and gender is published in Table 4 of the statistical first release ‘Outcomes for Children Looked After by Local Authorities in England as at 31 March 2014’ at https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/outcomes-for-children-looked-after-by-local-authorities.

    The Department for Education does not collect information on the type of offence committed or the location of each child at the time of the offence.

    “

  • Alison McGovern – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Alison McGovern – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alison McGovern on 2015-10-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what plans he has to monitor sustained employment through the Work Based Sector Employment scheme beyond 13 week follow-up enquiries to employers.

    Priti Patel

    Official statistics record starts to sector-based work academy pre-employment training only. The Department does not collate information on outcomes, nor the number of benefit claimants finding work through a sector-based work academy placement. There are no current plans to do so.

    Official statistics are available on GOV.UK at:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/youth-contract-april-2012-to-may-2015

    “

  • Louise Haigh – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Louise Haigh – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2015-11-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate she has made of the cost of using external agencies for recruitment to Senior Civil Service posts in her Department in each of the last five years for which figures are available.

    George Eustice

    In financial years 2010-11, 2011-12, 2012-13 this data was not held centrally. Providing an estimate would be at a disproportionate cost. In 2013-14 Defra and its Executive Agencies spent £199,639 and in 2014-15 £103,977 on external agencies for recruitment to Senior Civil Service posts.

  • Lord Rooker – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Lord Rooker – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Rooker on 2015-10-28.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Gardiner of Kimble on 22 July (HL1237), whether the consultation in respect of the Bread and Flour Regulations 1998 includes the devolved administrations.

    Lord Gardiner of Kimble

    In June this year the Government held an informal consultation in order to seek views on possible additions to the exemptions currently allowed under the Bread and Flour Regulations 1998 from the requirement to fortify flour with calcium, iron, niacin, and thiamine. The exemptions that were envisaged would allow more efficient and streamlined manufacturing operations for foods produced for export as well as for the home market, without compromising the public health benefits which accrue from fortification. A range of interested parties were consulted including millers, flour users, retailers, fortificant manufacturers and health professionals.

    The options proposed in the consultation would allow millers to produce unfortified flour in England when used as a secondary ingredient which undergoes further processing, or is used in relatively small quantities in products. This approach was welcomed by most consultees and the Government is now considering how to take this forward.

    The Department of Health and Public Health England has considered the proposals and concluded that it is unlikely that an exemption from fortification for flour used in such products will have a nutritionally significant impact on the intakes of calcium, iron, thiamine or niacin.

    The changes proposed would apply to England only since food legislation is a devolved matter. The devolved administrations are aware of these proposals but have not yet made any decisions on whether to introduce similar changes.

    Respondents to the consultation also asked for some additional flexibility around the point at which the fortificants are added to flour. At the moment flour must be fortified at the mill and the four fortificants are added as a premix at the end of the milling process. Many businesses which manufacture foods both for the home market and for export requested the flexibility to be able to add the fortificants at the bakery stage. They highlighted that the requirement for separate storage and handling for, both fortified and unfortified flour (which is used for exported products) was creating significant manufacturing complexities. That resulted in a more restricted product range and is having an adverse effect on their export potential and their ability to diversify into new global markets. The Government is currently considering this.

  • Andrew Gwynne – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Andrew Gwynne – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2015-11-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the (a) reduction in cases of and deaths from human pappillomavirus (HPV) as a result of the introduction of the HPV vaccine to the UK schedule in 2008, (b) number of HPV vaccinations administered in each year since that programme began and (c) cost of delivering that programme in each year since 2008.

    Jane Ellison

    HPV vaccination will eventually prevent hundreds of deaths due to cervical cancer every year. Public Health England (PHE) expect the major benefit of the vaccination programme, i.e. a decrease in cervical cancer, which peaks in women between 25 and 50; will be seen in some years’ time.

    Table 1: Number of HPV vaccine doses given for the academic years 2008/09 to 2013/14.

    Academic Year

    Total doses given

    2008/09 -2010/111 (routine and catch-up cohorts*)

    5,319,058$

    2011/122 (routine only)

    784,831

    2012/133 (routine only)

    766,832

    2013/144 (routine only)

    762,038

    2014/15 (routine only)

    Not available

    *Routine cohort are school Yr8 females (aged 12-13 years) in academic years 2008/09, 2009/10, 2010/11) and catch-up cohorts are females born between 1/9/1990 and 31/8/1995. $ Data for 2008/09, 2009/10 and 2010/11 are combined as these years had both routine and catch-up cohorts targeted and include some ‘mop-up’ vaccinations for eligible females receiving vaccine(s) after the academic year they first became eligible for vaccination.

    Table 2. The cost of delivering the HPV programme since 2008.

    Financial year

    Estimated total programme costs

    2008/09

    £51 million

    2009/10

    £114 million (includes catch up campaign)

    2010/11

    £40 million

    2011/12

    £27 million (change in dosage schedule)

    2012/13

    £24 million

    2013/14

    £28.2 million

    2014/15

    £16.3 million (change from 3 to 2 doses)

    These are the estimated full programme costs (including the cost of the vaccine) for England, inclusive of VAT.


  • Lord Hoyle – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Lord Hoyle – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hoyle on 2015-10-28.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will list the balance of United Kingdom payments to and receipts from the European Union for each of the last 10 years.

    Lord O’Neill of Gatley

    The United Kingdom’s contribution to the EU budget, net of rebate and total receipts, for the last 10 years is as follows:

    Year

    Gross contributions post rebate

    Total public and private receipts

    Net contribution

    Net contribution

    €bn

    €bn

    €bn

    £bn

    2005

    12.16

    8.67

    3.49

    2.46

    2006

    12.38

    8.29

    4.09

    2.80

    2007

    13.43

    7.42

    6.01

    4.03

    2008

    10.11

    7.31

    2.80

    2.06

    2009

    10.11

    6.25

    3.86

    3.68

    2010

    14.66

    6.75

    7.91

    7.09

    2011

    13.83

    6.57

    7.26

    6.21

    2012

    16.18

    6.93

    9.24

    7.82

    2013

    17.07

    6.31

    10.76

    8.78

    2014

    14.07

    6.98

    7.09

    5.91

    These figures are taken from the EU’s Financial Report 2014, where comprehensive figures for the UK’s contributions and receipts, as well as those for all other Member States, for all years from 2000-2014 are available. The latest version of this report can be accessed at the European Commission’s website.[1]

    [1] http://ec.europa.eu/budget/financialreport/2014/foreword/index_en.html

    “

  • Andy McDonald – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Andy McDonald – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy McDonald on 2015-11-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many UK microbiology laboratories use the UK SMI B58 or equivalent test for detecting group B strep carriage.

    Jane Ellison

    UK microbiology laboratories that do not use Standards for Microbiological Investigations (SMIs) should be able to demonstrate at least equivalence in their testing methodologies to the relevant accreditation body. Public Health England is not an accrediting body in these circumstances therefore we do not hold information as to what tests are deemed to be equivalent to UK SMI B58.

    UK SMIs are not mandatory and Public Health England does not have data as to how many laboratories, National Health Service or otherwise use UK SMI B58 or equivalent testing for detecting Group B Strep.

    SMIs are intended as a general resource for practising professionals operating in the field of laboratory medicine and infection specialties in the United Kingdom.

    SMIs help laboratories to meet accreditation requirements by promoting high quality practices which are auditable.