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Tag: 2015

  • 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 2015-10-20.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what guidance they and the NHS 111 service give to qualified nurses about the prioritisation of complex cases and more routine calls, in the light of the targets set for that service.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    The Government has seen successes with the NHS 111 service since its launch, with over a million calls offered to the NHS 111 service in August, of which 93.6% were answered within 60 seconds.

    The Government expects all NHS 111 centres to be appropriately staffed to offer people safe care and advice and treatment at all times and has asked NHS England for assurances that the NHS 111 service is doing all it can to help patients. Furthermore the Care Quality Commission has announced it will inspect and rate NHS 111 services by September 2016 to give additional assurances that minimum levels of quality are attained.

    New Commissioning Standards for Integrated Urgent Care were published last week by NHS England. Developed jointly with commissioners and providers, the Commissioning Standards will support the transformation of urgent care services; introducing the clinical hub employing a broader range of clinical skills, direct booking into general practitioner appointments, improved clinical governance and staff development amongst other developments. Commissioners will now complete their plans to achieve the Commissioning Standards. A copy is attached.

    The commissioning of NHS 111 services is led by local Clinical Commissioning Groups and the safety and effectiveness of NHS 111 services are subject to constant review by local commissioners, monitoring performance and investigating complaints and clinical incidents through existing clinical governance arrangements.

  • Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer on 2015-10-20.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the report by the Land Use Policy Group published in June, The role of agroecology in sustainable intensification.

    Lord Gardiner of Kimble

    Defra officials have reviewed this report and contributed to its development. The report concluded that agroecological practices have the potential to benefit the sustainability of farming without adversely affecting productivity and profitability. It also found that agroecological approaches can particularly reduce the impact of farming on biodiversity, water quality, soils and greenhouse gas emissions. The report has informed further research, which is being undertaken through the Defra Sustainable Intensification Research Platform.

  • Lord Stoddart of Swindon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lord Stoddart of Swindon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Stoddart of Swindon on 2015-10-20.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 12 October concerning operational expenditure on the Severn Crossings (HL2333), whether those figures include the costs of collecting tolls; and if so, what are the specific costs for each year between 2005 and 2014.

    Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

    The figures provided with the previous answer (HL2333) included the cost of collecting the tolls at the Severn Crossings. The specific costs in relation to the collection of the tolls have not been made available by the concessionaire.

  • Lord Blencathra – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Lord Blencathra – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Blencathra on 2015-10-20.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what consideration they have given to the removal of the passports of British Jihadists who have gone to fight in Syria and Iraq, in order to prevent their return to the United Kingdom.

    Lord Bates

    The Government has long-standing powers under the Immigration Act 2014 to deprive persons of their British citizenship if such deprivation is deemed ‘conducive to the public good’, for instance if a person has been involved in threats to national security, war crimes, serious and organised crime or unacceptable behaviours such as glorification of terrorism.

    Deprivation of British citizenship results in simultaneous loss of the right of abode in the United Kingdom. Once deprived, an individual becomes subject to immigration powers and can be deported or removed from the UK or prevented from returning to the UK if deprivation action occurs whilst they are abroad.

    In addition under the Counter-Terrorism and Security Act 2015, the Home Secretary may impose a temporary exclusion order on a British citizen suspected of involvement in terrorism-related activity outside the UK. The individual’s passport would be cancelled, but the individual may return to the UK in accordance with a permit to return.

  • Angela Eagle – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Angela Eagle – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Angela Eagle on 2015-10-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, on how many occasions he has discussed the Energy Intensive Industry Compensation Package with the European Commission in the last six months; and what forthcoming meetings he has with the European Commission.

    Anna Soubry

    My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills spoke with Competition Commissioner Verstager on Friday 23 October, to raise the issue of state aid clearance for our proposed package of support for energy intensive industries. Further discussions are planned this week, and next month. In addition, my officials have been in regular contact with the European Commission throughout this process, and have met with the Commission’s case handler to help progress clearance of the support package.

  • Stephen Hammond – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Stephen Hammond – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Hammond on 2015-10-20.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many new distilleries have been registered in the UK since 2012.

    Damian Hinds

    HM Revenue and Customs does not hold real time information on the number of distillery licenses issued.

  • Steve Rotheram – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Steve Rotheram – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve Rotheram on 2015-10-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what estimate his Department has made of the number of wheelchair accessible (a) homes, (b) flats and (c) bungalows which will be built in each of the next five years.

    Brandon Lewis

    Local authorities are best placed to understand the housing needs in their area. We expect them to work closely with key partners and their local communities in deciding what type of housing is needed.

    National policy sets out clearly the need for local authorities to plan for the housing needs of all members of the community and that planning should encourage accessibility. The introduction of optional requirements for accessibility in the Building Regulations provides local authorities with the tools needed to ensure that new homes are accessible and that in particular the needs of disabled people are met.

    At the same time as introducing these new optional requirements, we amended planning guidance to provide further advice on how they should be applied through local planning policy. We also published a data sheet setting out information and statistics on older and disabled peoples’ needs to act as a starting point for local authorities wishing to develop suitable policies.

    An impact assessment supporting implementation of the Housing Standards Review estimated, for appraisal purposes, an indicative rate of construction of accessible housing in the period 2015 to 2025 – the impact assessment and accompanying documents can be found at the link below;

    https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/housing-standards-review-final-implementation-impact-assessment.

  • Fabian Hamilton – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Fabian Hamilton – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Fabian Hamilton on 2015-10-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, who is responsible for the oversight of US armed forces bases on UK soil.

    Penny Mordaunt

    The Ministry of Defence retains oversight of those UK military bases on UK territory which are made available for use by the US.

  • Nicholas Soames – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Nicholas Soames – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nicholas Soames on 2015-10-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps are being taken to ensure that schools in West Sussex are delivering educational excellence.

    Nick Gibb

    Provisional information on the latest Key Stage 2 results in West Sussex and other local authorities is published as part of the “National curriculum assessments: key stage 2, 2015 (provisional)” release[1].

    These indicate that 77% of pupils in West Sussex local authority achieved level 4 or above in reading, writing and mathematics, below the national average of 80%. This is down from 78% in 2013/14.

    In the same year, 21% of pupils in West Sussex local authority achieved level 5 or above in reading, writing and mathematics, below the national average of 24%. This is down from 22% in 2013/14.

    Since the phonics check was introduced in West Sussex, the proportion of children who achieve the expected standard has risen each year to 73% in 2015. This remains, however, below the national average of 77%.

    Standards in some West Sussex schools are currently too low. I have therefore written to West Sussex County Council, asking them to set out their plans to improve results, so that more children in West Sussex receive the standard of education to which they are entitled.

    This is part of our national plan to raise standards, by setting higher expectations in our curriculum and qualifications; creating a self-improving school system; and promoting strong school governance through academies and free schools. We are also committed to making sure schools are funded fairly so all pupils have access to a good education – a key part of our core mission ensure every child reaches their full potential.

    [1] 2014/15 provisional local authority level tables can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/456135/SFR30_2015_KS2_LA_Tables.xls

    “

  • Roger Mullin – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Roger Mullin – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Mullin on 2015-10-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, whether the new smart meters being rolled-out under her Department’s initiative are competitively-priced as required under EU Directive 2006/EC/32; and what information her Department holds on their competitive pricing.

    Andrea Leadsom

    Meters being rolled-out as part of the DECC programme are compliant with this requirement. Meters are within the competitive part of the GB energy market and are the responsibility of energy suppliers to procure, install and operate. Energy suppliers have a competitive incentive to ensure that they achieve value for money for their customers when purchasing meters.

    DECC has assessed the development of smart meters by manufacturers, as well as the supply chains of energy suppliers in relation to smart metering, and is confident that a well-developed market exists based on competitive pricing.