The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dan Jarvis on 2015-10-20.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when the electrification schemes for the North TransPennine and Midland Mainline will resume.
Andrew Jones
The work to electrify the North TransPennine and Midland Mainline railways has resumed, as announced on 30th September 2015 by the Secretary of State, as part of Sir Peter Hendy’s work to reset Network Rail’s Upgrade Programme.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Fiona Mactaggart on 2015-10-20.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to help schools in areas with a housing shortage to recruit qualified teachers.
Nick Gibb
We recognise that in some parts of the country teacher recruitment may be challenging, particularly as the economy improves, but we are committed to attracting top graduates and career-changers into teaching, and supporting schools to recruit and retain good teachers. We have increased scholarships and training bursaries, in priority subjects; expanded Teach First and given graduates the chance to earn a salary while they train.
We have also given schools greater flexibility to use the pay system to attract and retain teachers in response to local circumstances.
The Secretary of State has asked the School Teachers’ Review Body to consider whether a salary advance scheme for rental deposits on privately rented homes should be introduced for teachers to help with the cost of moving and so support recruitment.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Lester of Herne Hill on 2015-10-19.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what guidance they give to first-tier tribunals about what is a reasonable time to hear and determine asylum and immigration appeals.
Lord Faulks
Guidance is not given to the First-tier Tribunals about what is a reasonable time to hear and determine asylum and immigration appeals. The Tribunal Procedure (First-tier Tribunal) (Immigration and Asylum Chamber) Rules 2014 provide an overriding objective for the Tribunal to deal with cases fairly and justly including avoiding delay, so far as is compatible with proper consideration of the issues.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Uddin on 2015-10-19.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what proportion of the Conflict, Stability and Security Fund will be allocated for survivors of sexual violence in conflict zones.
Baroness Anelay of St Johns
Seven million pounds has so far been allocated to Preventing Sexual Violence Initiative activity in 2015-16. We are currently finalising subsequent allocations.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Bradley on 2015-10-19.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government which regulatory body is responsible for regulating the safety of e-cigarettes.
Lord Prior of Brampton
The General Product Safety Directive and associated regulations apply to electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes), for which Trading Standards are the enforcement authority.
The Department of Health is responsible for the transposition of the revised Tobacco Products Directive (Directive 2014/40/EU), which from May 2016 will introduce additional rules on the composition, safety and presentation of e-cigarettes.
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency will be the designated competent authority under the Directive, which will operate a notification system for e-cigarettes and nicotine-containing refills prior to placing on the market.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Tonge on 2015-10-19.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they are making to the government of Israel regarding the need for road and rail links between Rafah, Hebron, Jerusalem, Nablus and Janin to serve Palestine.
Baroness Anelay of St Johns
While the British Government has not raised this specific issue with the Government of Israel, our Embassy in Tel Aviv consistently urge relaxation of the Israeli movement and access restrictions across the Occupied Palestinian Territories and raise the need to improve conditions on the ground for Palestinians. Most recently, on 19 October, our Ambassador in Tel Aviv raised these concerns with Israeli Cabinet Secretary, Avichai Mandleblit.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tulip Siddiq on 2015-10-23.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if he will take steps to make shared housing ownership schemes more accessible for buyers in (a) central London and (b) other areas with fast-rising house prices; and if he will make a statement.
Brandon Lewis
The Government is committed to helping hard working people across the country to own their own home. We believe that shared ownership has an important role to play to help those who aspire to home ownership but may be otherwise unable to afford it, especially in London and other high value areas. We know there is an appetite among providers and developers to deliver more shared ownership. We are currently considering a range of ways in which shared ownership can be made more accessible to first time buyers and increase its attractiveness to lenders and investors.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nicholas Soames on 2015-10-23.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what estimate he has made of the expected personnel (a) inflow and (b) outflow in each (i) rank and (ii) branch specialisation and arm in the Royal Navy over the next 10 years.
Mark Lancaster
The information requested for the Naval Service is provided in the tables attached.
Notes:
No estimates are provided for ranks greater than Commodore as they are not modelled.
Inflow tables represent Gains to Trained Strength figures.
Outflow tables represent flows from the Naval Service to civil life.
All totals are rounded in accordance with the Defence Statistics rounding policy; therefore totals may not equal the sum of their parts. All numbers are rounded to the nearest 10 with numbers ending in 5 rounded to the multiple of 20 to avoid bias. Numbers that would be rounded to 0 are represented by ‘~’.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2015-10-23.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how much was paid in (a) year end and (b) in-year bonuses to officials of his Department in each of the last three years.
Mr Tobias Ellwood
Since 2010-11, in line with wider Government policy, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has restricted Performance Related Pay (PRP) awards for senior civil servants within the FCO to the top 25% of performers. Since April 2015 the FCO has restricted PRP awards for UK based staff across all grades to the top 25% of performers.
In providing the below figures, we have interpreted ‘last three years’ to be the last three financial years. Amounts paid to officials working for the FCO, FCO Services and to those on interchange on FCO terms and conditions have been included within the figures provided.
The following amounts in (a) year end and (b) in-year bonuses were paid to FCO officials in each of the last three financial years, we also note the numbers of staff who received the bonuses during each of the financial years:
FY14-15 a) £6,274,254.70; 4160 officers received a year PRP
b) £575,894.46 ; 1714 officers received an in-year PRP
FY13-14 a) £6,654,783.10; 4271 officers received a year end PRP
b) £566,880.52; 1642 officers received an in-year PRP
FY12-13 a) £6,658,384.20; 4076 officers received a year end PRP
b) £757,403.98; 2492 officers received an in-year PRP
Non-consolidated PRP is only paid to reward excellence, for example to recognise and incentivise those responsible for delivering high quality public services and savings to the taxpayer.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Tami on 2015-10-23.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will take steps to ensure that funding is available for treatments for multiple myeloma after the removal of treatments for that condition from the Cancer Drugs Fund.
George Freeman
NHS England has advised that a draft treatment pathway for patients with multiple myeloma is currently in the process of being finalised. This has been the subject of public consultation and is being revised to take into account the comments received and the potential impact of treatments removed from the Cancer Drugs Fund.
The treatment pathway is likely to be published early in 2016.