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Tag: 2015

  • Vicky Foxcroft – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Vicky Foxcroft – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Vicky Foxcroft on 2015-10-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many children aged between four and seven in (a) Lewisham, Deptford constituency, (b) the London Borough of Lewisham and (c) London received free school meals in each of the last five academic years.

    Mr Sam Gyimah

    Prior to the 2014/15 academic year, the department did not collect data on the number of free school meals given out to pupils below school level. The department does not, therefore, hold information on receipt of free school meals by pupils of different ages for earlier years.

    Data from the January 2015 school census at regional and local authority level can be found in table 8e of ‘Schools, Pupils and their Characteristics: January 2015 statistics’[1]. Constituency level data can be obtained by aggregating the underlying school level data from the same publication. This is available in the ‘SFR16_2015_Schools_Pupils_UD’ file within the underlying data, which contains information on each school within constituencies and the number of infant pupils who took a free school meal on census day.

    [1] https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/schools-pupils-and-their-characteristics-january-2015

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  • Liam Fox – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Liam Fox – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Liam Fox on 2015-10-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what the Government’s aims are for the forthcoming Paris Climate Summit; and if she will make a statement.

    Andrea Leadsom

    The Government is committed to securing an ambitious, legally binding, global deal on climate change at the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Conference of the Parties (COP) 21 in Paris in December.

    The UK is working with other countries to secure ambitious mitigation commitments from all parties that together keep the global goal of limiting global warming to below 2°C within reach. We also want an agreement that includes a regular review of targets to increase ambition over time, a global long term goal and a robust, legally binding rules framework to ensure transparency and accountability of commitments to help the world track progress, improve competitiveness and provide business certainty.

    It will also be important that the Agreement supports the most vulnerable countries to build climate resilience. I am pleased that my rt. hon. Friend the Prime Minister announced a significant uplift in funding through the International Climate Fund (ICF) providing at least £5.8 billion over the next five years. This complements commitments from other countries such as France and Germany and should help build momentum for climate action beyond Paris.

    However, there remains a lot of work to do and we are working closely with international counterparts to help secure an ambitious deal.

    Following the outcome in Paris, my rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State will lay a statement in the House.

  • Fiona Bruce – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Fiona Bruce – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Fiona Bruce on 2015-10-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will express concern about the effect the one-child policy has had on the prevalence of forced abortions, infanticide and involuntary sterilisation in China to President Xi Jinping during his visit to the UK.

    Mr Hugo Swire

    We pay close attention to the human rights situation in China. The Government is committed to engaging with China on the issue and Ministers will continue to raise concerns with their counterparts. Discussions during the State Visit will be broad and cover issues where we agree and where we disagree.

    The Government’s policy on population and sexual and reproductive health and rights is about providing women and girls with a voice, choice and control. We do not condone coercion or support sex-selective abortion. We provide core funding to the United Nations Population Fund who do work in China; they work to promote and uphold the principles of free and informed choice and to challenge the gender norms that de-value girls.

  • John Glen – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    John Glen – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Glen on 2015-10-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 14 October 2015 to Question 10868, on blood diseases: drugs, what assessment his Department has made of the date on which he will issue a tender for extended half-life products.

    George Freeman

    The timing of the tender is effectively predicated on the availability of licensed products. The Department is in dialogue with those suppliers understood to be concerned in this market to understand their potential capabilities.

    NHS England has made no decision to develop a clinical commissioning policy for ‘extended half-life products’. The potential need for policy will remain under review by the Clinical Reference Group with input from the Department’s Commercial Medicines Unit, as manufacturer’s products achieve licence and procurements are completed.

  • Vicky Foxcroft – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Vicky Foxcroft – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Vicky Foxcroft on 2015-10-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 23 July 2015 to Question 7788, whom his Department has consulted on the matter of compensation packages for people affected by NHS contaminated blood.

    Jane Ellison

    The Department is considering wider reform of the ex-gratia financial assistance and other support for those affected with HIV and/or hepatitis C by infected NHS-supplied blood or blood products. We are doing this within the context of the spending review and in a way that is sustainable for the future.

    In order to help develop the shape and structure of any new scheme, we plan to consult publicly on scheme reform soon. The Department has alrady engaged with representative groups of infected/affected individuals. These individuals were nominated from the Contaminated Blood Campaign, Tainted Blood and The Haemophilia Society. The event was held in a neutral venue and had an independent facilitator. A report from this one off event will be made public soon. Discussions are ongoing with other interested parties.

    While we are working to establish a full and fair resolution, liability has not been established in the majority of cases, so it would not be appropriate to talk about payments in terms of compensation, particularly on the scale that some may envisage.

  • Cat Smith – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Cat Smith – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Cat Smith on 2015-10-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when he expects the publication of the new Clinical Commissioning Group Outcomes Indicator Set (2016/2017) indicators.

    George Freeman

    The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence and the Health and Social Care Information Centre make recommendations to NHS England for new indicators for the Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) Outcomes Indicator set. This process includes a public consultation on potential new indicators. Any new indicators that are selected would be published in the 2016/17 CCG Outcomes Indicator Set during 2016, in time for commissioners to begin using them in 2016/17.

  • Douglas Carswell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Douglas Carswell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Carswell on 2015-10-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to encourage police forces to enable private security firms to provide community security services.

    Mike Penning

    The Community Safety Accreditation Scheme, established by the Police Reform Act 2002, seeks to engage those working in community safety, including private companies, to be involved in reducing crime and disorder alongside the police.

    Chief constables may accredit employees of an organisation that provides community safety and security services with certain powers. Decisions about accreditation are for Chief Constables locally.

  • Dan Jarvis – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Dan Jarvis – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    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.

  • Fiona Mactaggart – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Fiona Mactaggart – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    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.

  • Lord Lester of Herne Hill – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Lord Lester of Herne Hill – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    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.