The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ivan Lewis on 2016-02-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what proportion of newly qualified doctors has entered (a) primary care and (b) hospitals.
Ben Gummer
The requested information is not collected centrally.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevin Hollinrake on 2016-03-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if he will estimate the number of new private rented homes that will be needed to meet demand in the next five years.
Brandon Lewis
It is difficult to determine the number of new private rented homes needed to meet demand as this is affected by a variety of outside impacts, including the affordability of home ownership, household formation rates and prospective sharing arrangements. The Government is committed to delivering 1 million new homes by the end of this parliament.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kirsten Oswald on 2016-04-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many hours UK drones have flown over which countries in each year since 2010.
Penny Mordaunt
Since 2010, the UK’s Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems (RPAS) have operated in Afghanistan until 2014 and in Iraq and Syria from 2014.
The number of hours flown by RPAS in Afghanistan can be found at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/operation-herrick-afghanistan-aircraft-statistics
Since 2014, Reaper has been flying in support of Op SHADER in Iraq and Syria. It is not possible to breakdown Reaper flying hours by country for Op SHADER. The table below provides the total number of hours flown:
|
Year |
Total Reaper flying hours flown in support of Op Shader |
|
2014 |
1,653 |
|
2015 |
12,698 |
|
2016 (up to and including 31 March 2016) |
2,509 |
|
Total |
16,860 |
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Debbie Abrahams on 2016-06-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether his Department is taking steps to set a national standard for a maximum number of patients that GPs, nurses and other primary care professionals can reasonably deal with during any working day.
Alistair Burt
It is important that practices are free to meet the needs of individual patients according to clinical need. Therefore there is no requirement for general practitioner practices to offer appointments of a specific length or a specific mix of workforce to meet population need.
However, in recognition of the increased demands being placed on general practice, NHS England has:
1. Placed a requirement on clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) in the NHS Planning Guidance for 2016/17 to develop and implement a local plan to address the sustainability and quality of general practice, including workforce and workload issues. This is the first time specific requirements have been placed on local commissioners to support and develop general practice.
2. Provided advice about specific ways to invest in general practice for National Health Service leaders as they prepare Sustainability and Transformation Plans for the future. In both of these, there is a dual focus on maintaining quality and access to care in existing services, while also supporting the introduction of new ways of working. Areas where support is required include increased funding, growth and diversification in the workforce, development of premises and information technology, and specific help to develop networks and federations with patient benefit at their heart.
The ‘General Practice Forward View’ released in April 2016, announced a major new programme of development and improvement support for practices over the next three years. This will help groups of practices to redesign care in order to simultaneously release staff time and improve care for patients. As part of the development programme, support and advice will be provided to federations and CCGs on ways to engage patients and voluntary and community sector groups as partners. This will help local people shape priorities, contribute to the co-design of improved services and build assets in the community.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-09-02.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the causes of the increase in homelessness in 2015; and if he will make a statement.
Mr Marcus Jones
Homelessness is rarely a housing issue alone. The causes are varied and driven by issues such as health, education, justice, welfare, and employment.
That is why the work we have undertaken supports action across these. For example, we invested £5 million in the world’s first homelessness Social Impact Bond, run by the Greater London Authority to turn round the lives around of 830 of London’s most entrenched rough sleepers. Over half have achieved accommodation, employment or reconnection outcomes.
In addition we have invested £15 million to improve outcomes for young people through the Fair Chance Fund. This funding is turning around the lives of around 1,900 18 to 25 year olds with complex and overlapping needs, by supporting them into accommodation, education, training and employment.
Since 2010 we have invested over £500 million to enable local authorities and the voluntary sector to support those vulnerable and at risk of homelessness.
We have protected the homelessness prevention funding local authorities receive, totalling £315 million by 2019-20. This builds on our Spending Review commitment to increase central government funding to £139 million over the next four years. We are working with homelessness organisations to consider all options, including legislation, to ensure those at risk of homelessness get earlier and more effective support.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jeff Smith on 2016-10-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what proportion of applications to the Disclosure and Barring Service were not resolved within 60 days in (a) the UK, (b) Manchester and (c) Manchester Withington constituency in the most recent year for which figures are available.
Sarah Newton
In the last 12 months (1 October 2015 – 30 September 2016), the proportion of disclosure applications which took longer than 60 days was as follows: (a) the UK – 5.4%, (b) Manchester – 3.9%, (c) Manchester Withington – 2.8%. The Disclosure and Barring Service is reliant on police forces completing their checks in a timely manner and is working closely with those forces whose performance does not meet turnaround time targets. The average time taken in days to process disclosures checks in the last three years is as follows:
|
Time Period |
Average waiting time – United Kingdom |
Average waiting time – Manchester Withington |
|
Oct-13 to Sep-14 |
13.4 |
12.0 |
|
Oct-14 to Sep-15 |
14.4 |
12.1 |
|
Oct-15 to Sep-16 |
15.5 |
12.6 |
The average processing time for applications to the DBS for each police force area in England from 1 October 2015 to 30 September 2016 is set out in the table below. This shows the average number of days each application took from the point at which the application form was received to the date the certificate was issued, broken down by the applicant’s geographical police force area. This information reflects all applications sent to the DBS, of which a proportion are sent to police forces for consideration for disclosure.
|
Police Force Area in which applicant lives |
Average time taken in calendar days |
|
Metropolitan |
28.1 |
|
Cumbria |
11.5 |
|
Lancashire |
11.6 |
|
Merseyside |
12.1 |
|
Greater Manchester |
14.1 |
|
Cheshire |
11.1 |
|
Northumbria |
13.9 |
|
Durham |
11.9 |
|
North Yorkshire |
14.1 |
|
West Yorkshire |
12.7 |
|
South Yorkshire |
19.8 |
|
Humberside |
12.2 |
|
Cleveland |
13.5 |
|
West Midlands |
10.3 |
|
Staffordshire |
9.6 |
|
West Mercia |
11.9 |
|
Warwickshire |
9.4 |
|
Derbyshire |
14.1 |
|
Nottinghamshire |
11.7 |
|
Lincolnshire |
10.5 |
|
Leicestershire |
9.4 |
|
Northamptonshire |
17.9 |
|
Cambridgeshire |
10.1 |
|
Norfolk |
9.1 |
|
Suffolk |
9.9 |
|
Bedfordshire |
11.6 |
|
Hertfordshire |
14.8 |
|
Essex |
14.2 |
|
Thames Valley |
16.1 |
|
Hampshire |
14.2 |
|
Surrey |
14.1 |
|
Kent |
15.8 |
|
Sussex |
11.9 |
|
City of London |
11.9 |
|
Devon & Cornwall |
11.3 |
|
Avon And Somerset |
10.7 |
|
Gloucester |
10.7 |
|
Wiltshire |
10.2 |
|
Dorset |
26.8 |
For a breakdown of how long police forces take to process applications they receive; this information is regularly published on the DBS website and can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/dbs-performance
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emma Reynolds on 2016-01-12.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what plans his Department has to ensure that medical nutrition is integrated into end of life care pathways in clinical commissioning groups.
Ben Gummer
Information on annual National Health Service spend on medically assisted nutrition in end of life care is not held centrally.
It is for clinicians with responsibility for the care of people at the end of life to ensure their patients receive care and treatment appropriate to their needs. Similarly, local commissioners are responsible for ensuring the services they commission meet the needs of their local populations.
In 2014 we set out five priorities for care of the dying person which should underpin the care being delivered to all dying people. Alongside the priorities, we set out the duties and responsibilities for all staff with responsibility for looking after dying people and implementation guidance for all providers and commissioners of care. The priorities for care state that an individual plan of care, which includes food and drink, symptom control and psychological, social and spiritual support, is agreed, co-ordinated and delivered with compassion.
In December 2015, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence published guidance on the care of dying adults in the last days of life, including guidance on medical nutrition and hydration. Clinicians and commissioners should have regard to this guidance when making decisions about care for people at the end of life.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Mearns on 2016-02-01.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how accurate prior actuarial analysis of the Risk Protection Arrangement was in forecasting the scheme’s overall loss as a result of flooding.
Edward Timpson
The Risk Protection Arrangement provision includes an allowance within its benchmarks for large storm or flood events, based on the actuarial work undertaken, which last took place on data as at 31 August 2015. Actuarial analysis is not intended to provide forecasts for individual events, so it would not be meaningful to compare the analysis with recent events.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Brake on 2016-02-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an assessment of the potential effect on the number of people employed in Scotland who are from non-EU countries of the salary threshold increase for Tier 2 visa applications to £35,000.
James Brokenshire
The Government announced in 2012 that from 6 April 2016 Tier 2 visa holders who apply for settlement in the UK will be required to meet a minimum annual salary requirement of £35,000. PhD level roles and those in recognised shortage will be exempt from the £35,000 threshold.
Data of the number of people employed in specific regions of the United Kingdom is not available. The Home Office holds individual records showing the working location of Tier 2 (General) migrants, but centralised records show the registered address of the Tier 2 Sponsor, which is normally that organisation’s Head Office.
The Home Office published a full impact assessment on the changes to Tier 2 settlement rules when they were laid before Parliament on 15 March 2012. This includes the impact on the top ten occupations and is available on the gov.uk website at: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/117957/impact-assessment-tier2.pdf
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Lucas on 2016-03-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make it her policy to ring-fence special educational needs funding as part of her Department’s new national funding formula.
Mr Sam Gyimah
We are currently consulting on arrangements for new national formulae for schools and high needs funding (funding for pupils with high cost Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND)). Both funding streams, along with early years funding, make up the Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG), which is ring-fenced so that local authorities can only spend it on specified elements of education. The DSG will continue to be ring-fenced when the national funding formulae are in place. We have also protected the high needs budget in this Parliament and the previous one. We recently added £92.5 million to the 2016-17 allocations.