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Tag: 2016

  • Julie Cooper – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Julie Cooper – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julie Cooper on 2016-02-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps his Department is taking to reduce the time taken for appeals for benefit sanctions.

    Mr Shailesh Vara

    The First-tier Tribunal (Social Security and Child Support), administered by HM Courts & Tribunals Service (HMCTS), hears appeals against Department for Work and Pensions’ (DWP) decisions on a range of benefits.

    HMCTS does not record data specifically relating to appeals against sanctions imposed by DWP.

    In order to increase the capacity of the Tribunal, and therefore speed up the appeals process, HMCTS has recruited extra judges and medical members, increased venue capacity and introduced more efficient processes. This action, coupled with a reduction in appeal receipts, has enabled HMCTS to reduce the overall average length of time to administer appeals from 28 weeks in the period July to September 2014, to 19 weeks for the same period in 2015 (the latest period for which statistics have been published). The median length of time to administer appeals (which will be the experience of the majority of appellants) has reduced from 18 weeks to 14 weeks in the same period.

    Information on the length of time taken to administer appeals generally is published by the Ministry of Justice in Tribunal Statistics Quarterly. The most recent report, for the period July to September 2015, published on 10 December 2015, can be viewed at:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/tribunals-and-gender-recognition-certificate-statistics-quarterly-july-to-september-2015

    “

  • Jim Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Jim Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-03-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what the (a) total number and (b) cost has been of (i) flights, (ii) rail journeys and (iii) taxi journeys taken by (A) ministers, (B) special advisers and (C) officials of his Department related to the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership negotiation process; and if he will make a statement.

    Anna Soubry

    The European Commission conducts trade negotiations – including the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) – on behalf of the EU and, where appropriate, Member States. The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills does not therefore incur the direct costs of the TTIP negotiating rounds.

    It is rare that travel undertaken by Ministers and officials relates solely to TTIP, but will usually encompass other issues. Officials within the Transatlantic and International Unit in my Department have the lead policy responsibility for TTIP as well as certain other international matters. The total travel expenditure by these officials in 2014/15 was £25,081, in 2015/16 £14,269.

    The cost to the Department of any travel undertaken in relation to TTIP is greatly offset by the economic prize that an ambitious agreement offers. Independent analysis shows that a comprehensive TTIP agreement could give an annual boost to the UK economy of as much as £10 billion each year.

  • Baroness Nye – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Baroness Nye – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Nye on 2016-03-23.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many level 2 Craft, Creative Arts and Design (9.2) vocational qualifications were completed in each year since 2011 in England, Wales and Northern Ireland combined.

    Lord Nash

    As there is no formal definition of what constitutes “Craft, Creative Arts and Design”, it has not been possible to provide the information that is requested.

  • Kate Hoey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Kate Hoey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kate Hoey on 2016-05-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment the Government has made of the adequacy of the fire safety regulations governing staffing levels and other procedures on London Underground.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    Fire safety regulations on London Underground are a matter for Transport for London (TfL). Under London Underground’s new staffing model introduced in April 2016, all London Underground stations continue to be staffed during traffic hours in line with the London Underground Rule Book – which includes defined minimum numbers of staff at sub-surface stations as required by the Fire Precautions (Sub-Surface Railway Stations) (England) Regulations 2009.

    The introduction of the new staffing model followed a review of individual stations’ Congestion Control and Emergency Plans, which identified various improvements to help maintain London Underground’s good safety record.

  • John Redwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    John Redwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Redwood on 2016-06-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, which EU (a) legislative and (b) other proposals her Department is leading negotiations on for the Government in the Council of the EU.

    James Brokenshire

    The Home Office is responsible, along with the Ministry of Justice, for negotiating EU legislation in the Justice and Home Affairs area. The Home Office provides Explanatory Memoranda to Parliament on any proposals defined by the terms of reference of the parliamentary EU scrutiny committees, which can be found online.

  • Baroness Wolf of Dulwich – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Baroness Wolf of Dulwich – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Wolf of Dulwich on 2016-09-05.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many students, broken down by region of domicile, were enrolled for higher education qualifications at further education colleges in England in the academic year 2014–15.

    Lord Nash

    Information prepared by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) on participation in Higher Education at Further Education Colleges (FECs) in England in the academic year 2014/15 has been provided in the table.

    Full-person equivalent students registered for a HE qualification by region of domicile

    Further Education Colleges in England

    Academic Year 2014/15

    Region of Domicile

    Academic Year 2014/15

    North East

    6,040

    North West

    14,690

    Yorkshire and the Humber

    12,595

    East Midlands

    5,945

    West Midlands

    5,150

    East of England

    3,755

    Greater London

    6,695

    South East

    7,640

    South West

    4,555

    Wales

    570

    Scotland

    315

    Northern Ireland

    195

    England (unknown)

    3,715

    United Kingdom (unknown)

    25

    EU

    565

    Rest of the world

    2,160

    Total (all domiciles)

    74,610

    Source: Information is derived from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) student return and the Skills Funding Agency individualised learner record (ILR) F05 return

    Prepared by: Analytical Services Directorate, HEFCE, 7 September 2016

    Coverage:

    – Students registered at FECs are only included if they are studying a prescribed course of HE.

    – Includes students across all years of study, at all levels and modes of higher education and distance learners.

    – Numbers are based on where the student was domiciled rather than where they student studied.

    – Full-person equivalents (FPEs) have been rounded to the nearest 5.

  • Grant Shapps – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Grant Shapps – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Grant Shapps on 2016-10-20.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will bring forward legislative proposals to reduce VAT on the purchase of new solar panels as part of home renovations once the UK has left the EU.

    Jane Ellison

    While all taxes are kept under review, there are no plans to reduce the rate of VAT applied to sales of solar panels.

  • Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2016-01-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent bilateral discussions he has had with members of the International Syria Support Group on achieving a ceasefire in Syria.

    Mr Philip Hammond

    Since the last meeting of the International Syria Support Group (ISSG) on 18 December in New York I have spoken personally to my French, US, Saudi Arabian, Turkish, Chinese and German counterparts about our common goal of achieving an end to the Syrian crisis. British officials continue to engage with their counterparts from the full range of ISSG countries and organisations over Syria. Next month we are co-hosting an international conference in London to address the appalling situation in Syria and the impact on neighbouring countries. This event will provide a further opportunity to engage with ISSG counterparts.

  • Angela Eagle – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Angela Eagle – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Angela Eagle on 2016-02-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of the change to Sunday trading laws proposed in the Enterprise Bill on employment in each region.

    Anna Soubry

    The Government has been considering the costs and benefits of changes to Sunday trading and we will be publishing the Impact Assessment shortly.

  • David Jones – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    David Jones – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Jones on 2016-03-02.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions (a) he and (b) ministers of his Department have had with their Welsh Government counterparts on the potential benefits to North Wales of the Northern Powerhouse.

    Greg Hands

    Ministers from the Treasury and Wales Office regularly meet with members of the Welsh Government. The Rt. Honourable Member is right to recognise that north Wales is well positioned to play an integral role in the Northern Powerhouse. The UK Government wants to work with the Welsh Government and partners like the Economic Ambition Board to improve productivity and drive further growth in the region.