Tag: 2016

  • Andrew Gwynne – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Andrew Gwynne – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2016-01-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much has been claimed in reimbursement expenses by press officers in (a) his Department and (b) his Department’s executive agencies and public bodies in each fiscal year since 2010-11.

    Jane Ellison

    The reimbursable expenses claimed by press officers in the Department in each fiscal year since 2010-11 are detailed in the table below:

    Financial Year

    2010-11

    2011-12

    2012-13

    2013-14

    2014-15

    Department of Health

    £2,773.27

    £3,606.40

    £1,895.41

    £771.80

    £1,624.01

    The data covers reimbursable expenses claimed by the Department’s press officers for travel and subsistence.

    The expenses are reimbursed to staff in accordance with the Department’s policy, and will not include any rail or air tickets or hotel accommodation booked through the Department’s central booking.

    To collate the reimbursable expenses claimed by press officers in the Department’s executive agencies and public bodies in each fiscal year since 2010-11 is a disproportionate cost.

  • Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2016-01-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what timetable has been set for the repayment of the reallocation of Big Lottery funding which was diverted to the Olympics in 2012.

    David Evennett

    As agreed when the Olympic loan was signed off, repayments to the National Lottery Distribution Fund will come from land development and sales in the Olympic Park, and are expected to start in the early 2020s.

  • Neil Coyle – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Neil Coyle – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Neil Coyle on 2016-02-22.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he plans to take to reduce domestic rent prices in London.

    Greg Hands

    The Government believes that the key to improving affordability in domestic rents is to increase the supply of homes. That is why the Government has taken measures to attract billions of pounds of investment to build homes specifically for private rent. This includes a £3.5 billion debt guarantee scheme to support the delivery of new homes purpose built for private rent.

    At the Spending Review the Government set out its Five Point Plan for increasing housing supply. This includes plans to deliver 400,000 affordable home starts by 2020/21, including 10,000 Rent to Buy homes; a £2billion fund to provide infrastructure on large housing sites; a £1billion fund to provide loans to SME builders; further reforms to the planning system and the release of public sector land for 160,000 homes.

  • Bob Blackman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Bob Blackman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bob Blackman on 2016-03-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the effect of proposed changes to the National Planning Framework for London on the (a) availability and (b) affordability of housing in London.

    Brandon Lewis

    The proposed changes to the National Planning Policy Framework reaffirm this Government’s commitment to increasing the supply of housing in sustainable locations. Consultation on our proposed changes closed on 22 February and we are currently analysing the responses.

    We have doubled the housing budget to help deliver our ambition of one million new homes and are committed to spending £8 billion to deliver over 400,000 affordable housing starts by 2021. Negotiations over the financial settlement to deliver affordable housing within London are continuing.

  • Luciana Berger – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Luciana Berger – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2016-04-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the average number of days was from referral to treatment in child and adolescent mental health services in each year since 2010.

    Alistair Burt

    This data has not been collected centrally before January 2016. However, in February this year for the first time the Health and Social Care Information Centre began collecting a range of data about children and young people’s use of secondary mental health services via the new Mental Health Services Dataset. This includes data on waiting times from referral to treatment in child and adolescent mental health services. Data quality and quantity will take time to build, but we expect a range of national reports to be developed during the course of 2016.

  • Anne Main – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Anne Main – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Anne Main on 2016-05-23.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of annual claims made for (a) tax credits and (b) child benefit by EU nationals who remain in the UK for less than one year in each of the last three years.

    Damian Hinds

    The information requested is not available.

  • Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-07-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how the UK plans to meet its commitment to the elimination of viral hepatitis by 2030 made at the 69th World Health Assembly in May 2016.

    Nicola Blackwood

    On 28 May 2016, the World Health Assembly adopted a Global Health Sector Strategy on viral hepatitis for the period 2016-2021. Within this strategy there is a target for elimination of hepatitis C as a major public health threat by 2030. This is a very ambitious goal and requires coordinated efforts across partner agencies. Success is largely dependent on the wider availability and access to new treatments combined with effective planning and integration of hepatitis prevention, testing, diagnosis and treatment within the broader health system.

    In the United Kingdom, new, highly effective, interferon-free treatments for hepatitis C will contribute to this goal. 5,000 of those affected have already been treated with the new therapies, under the early access schemes operated by NHS England from 2014 to the start of 2016. NHS England are currently funding providers to treat more patients in accordance with National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidance.

  • Barry Sheerman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Barry Sheerman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Sheerman on 2016-10-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to reduce (a) dangerous driving and (b) driving under the influence of alcohol.

    Andrew Jones

    I published the Road Safety Statement in December 2015 which sets out the measures Government is taking to improve road safety including the reduction of road traffic offences. Our award-winning THINK! campaigns have also been running throughout the year to educate drivers on the risk and consequences of a number of different type of offences. The Department is in regular contact with a range of organisations and their reports, such as the ‘RAC Report on Motoring 2016’, are provided to the Department. The Department often includes research evidence in its impact assessments, for example the Elvik ‘dose response’ model, which shows that rigorous enforcement increases the deterrent effect on offending. The Government continues to keep road safety and road traffic offences under review.

  • Maria Caulfield – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Maria Caulfield – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Maria Caulfield on 2016-01-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to improve outcomes for people with rarer cancers.

    Jane Ellison

    The independent Cancer Taskforce’s five-year strategy for cancer, Achieving World-Class Cancer Outcomes, published in July 2015, recommends improvements across the cancer pathway with the aim of improving survival rates. NHS England has appointed Cally Palmer as NHS National Cancer Director. She will lead on the implementation of the strategy, as well as new cancer vanguards to redesign care and patient experience.

    She is currently setting up a new Cancer Transformation Board to lead the roll-out of the recommendations of the new strategy, and a Cancer Advisory Group, chaired by Dr Harpal Kumar, Chief Executive of Cancer Research UK, will oversee and scrutinise their work. Timeframes and phasing for implementation will be dependent on the final financial settlement reached as a result of the spending review.

    We announced in September 2015 that Health Education England (HEE) is developing a new national training programme for an additional 200 staff to get the skills and expertise to carry out endoscopies by 2018. The content of the next mandate from the Government to HEE is currently being determined.

    A commitment to whole-person care for patients, including those living with and beyond cancer, is embedded throughout the cancer taskforce report. In addition, the cancer vanguards have been established to explore new models of care, with a focus on delivering more person-centred care.

    Ensuring the National Health Service is able to support the availability and use of effective treatments and medicines for rare cancers is a key priority. Cancer 52, an organisation which specifically represents patients with rarer cancers, was represented on the independent Cancer Taskforce. The Taskforce’s report made many recommendations relevant to rarer cancers, focussing in particular on improving access to diagnostic testing, including fast, direct general practitioner access to key blood tests, and increasing patient access to the most advanced treatments.

  • Nic Dakin – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Nic Dakin – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nic Dakin on 2016-01-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, on which dates the relevant (a) regional schools commissioner and (b) chief executive of the local enterprise partnership have attended steering group meetings of the area reviews of post-16 education and training in (i) Birmingham and Solihull, (ii) Greater Manchester, (iii) Sheffield City Region, (iv) Tees Valley, (v) Sussex, (vi) Solent and (vii) West Yorkshire; and if she will make a statement

    Nick Boles

    There are a range of ways in which Regional Schools Commissioners (RSCs) and members of Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) contribute to area reviews, for instance through the Area Review Advisory Group.

    All Wave 1 Area Reviews have held a number of local steering group meetings, and RSCs and LEPs are members. In terms of specific attendance, an RSC may attend in person, or may instead send a representative. The area review guidance published in September 2015 does indicate that the LEP should be a member of the local steering group, but it does not require a particular representative to attend. LEPs do not usually have chief executives.

    RSC and LEP representatives have attended various steering group meetings in Birmingham and Solihull, Greater Manchester, Sheffield City Region, Tees Valley, Sussex, Solent and West Yorkshire from September 2015 to the present.