Tag: 2016

  • Rob Marris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Rob Marris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rob Marris on 2016-04-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions his Department has had with NHS England on commissioning of integrated paediatric continence services.

    Jane Ellison

    In November 2015, NHS England published the Commissioning Framework for Continence Services Excellence in Continence Care.

    This covers all ages including children and outlines a pathway including assessment, diagnosis and treatment to recovery where possible. The framework sets out a number of principles for a good design of service including integration across primary, secondary and tertiary services, health, education and social care.

    The framework references the Paediatric Continence Commissioning Guide (2014) which provides a specification for paediatric continence services which again puts integration at its heart.

    A national Excellence in Continence Care Board, chaired by NHS England and with membership of paediatric continence specialists and the Paediatric Forum continues to oversee the implementation of the Excellence in Continence Care framework.

  • Fiona Bruce – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    Fiona Bruce – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Fiona Bruce on 2016-05-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what steps she is taking to help strengthen the economy of Northern Ireland.

    Mr Ben Wallace

    The Government’s long term economic plan to strengthen the economy is delivering for the UK and for Northern Ireland.

    By cutting the deficit, reducing business taxes and encouraging investment in enterprise and innovation we are making Northern Ireland a more competitive and attractive place to do business.

  • Chi Onwurah – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Chi Onwurah – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chi Onwurah on 2016-07-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the (a) adequacy and (b) effectiveness of regulatory frameworks related to algorithms for (i) Facebook, (ii) Google and (iii) other online platforms.

    Matt Hancock

    The Government Office for Science published an evaluation report on Distributed Ledger Technology: beyond block chain on 19 January 2016, which provides an assessment. In addition, the report recommends 8 actions for government to maximise the opportunities and reduce the risks of this new technology. A copy of the report is available at:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/492972/gs-16-1-distributed-ledger-technology.pdf

    Consumers’ rights with regard to the collection, processing and disclosure of their personal data are governed by the Data Protection Act 1998 (DPA). The DPA provides rights for individuals in respect of their personal data, including rights in relation to automated decision-making, the right of subject access, the right to prevent processing likely to cause damage or distress compensation for failure to comply with certain of the Act’s requirements, and the right to have data rectified, blocked, erased or otherwise destroyed in certain circumstances.

    There have been significant advances in digital technology since the DPA came into force nearly 20 years ago. The Government is reviewing the current regulatory framework to ensure it is fit for purpose for the digital age.

  • John Pugh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    John Pugh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Pugh on 2016-10-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what information his Department holds on the proportion of new build properties excluding flats that has been sold as leasehold in each of the last here years.

    Gavin Barwell

    The department does not hold this information. The department published an estimate of the number of leasehold dwellings in 2014. As Table 1 (see link below) shows, in 2012-13 there were approximately 1.3 million leasehold properties that were not flats. The remaining 2.8 million leasehold dwellings were flats.

    https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/342628/Residential_Leasehold_dwellings_in_England.pdf

  • Emily Thornberry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Emily Thornberry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2015-12-16.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 3 November 2014 to Question 211605, how many and what proportion of initial enquiries by HM Revenue and Customs, which sought confirmation that arrears had been paid to workers following enforcement action due to non-payment of the national minimum wage, were unable to confirm that the requisite arrears had been paid in full in each of the last six years.

    Mr David Gauke

    The Government is committed to increasing compliance with minimum wage legislation and effective enforcement of it. Everyone who is entitled to the minimum wage should receive it. Employers who pay workers less than the minimum wage not only have to pay back arrears of wages at current minimum wage rates but also face financial penalties of up to £20,000 per underpaid worker. HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) does not keep data in a format to enable provision of the information requested. To reiterate the answer provided to UIN 211605, HMRC will pursue non-payment of arrears through civil recovery action.

  • Tim Loughton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Tim Loughton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Loughton on 2016-01-27.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much revenue from (a) CRB checks and (b) Disclosure and Barring Service checks has been raised for the public purse in each of the last 10 years.

    Karen Bradley

    The Disclosure and Barring Service was established on 1 December 2012 when the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) and Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA) merged. The table below shows total fee income from disclosures for the period 1 April 2005 to 31 March 2015 collated from the Annual Reports for the period. DBS is self-funding and operates on a full cost recovery basis.

    Financial Year

    Total Fee Income

    £(000)

    2005 – 06

    75,494

    2006 – 07

    93,042

    2007 – 08

    97,765

    2008 – 09

    113,117

    2009 – 10

    125,883

    2010 – 11

    117,898

    2011 – 12

    105,253

    2012 – 13

    115,193

    2013 – 14

    135,878

    2014 – 15

    145,773
  • Mark Durkan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Mark Durkan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Durkan on 2016-02-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if his Department, NHS England and NICE will publish work undertaken to analyse variation between areas in treatment for patients during the transition from the current Cancer Drugs Fund (CDF) to proposed a new CDF scheme.

    George Freeman

    NHS England has advised that it plans to publish analyses of variation in use of Cancer Drug Fund (CDF) drug indications according to geographical areas in the spring of 2016 and then routinely in the future for the new CDF.

  • Steve Baker – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Steve Baker – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve Baker on 2016-03-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, which measures originating in the EU have an effect on the level of energy bills.

    Amber Rudd

    Many EU policies, energy related and wider, have the potential to impact on the level of energy bills. These include the single European market for energy, product standards to improve energy efficiency and measures to meet climate change objectives.

  • Greg Mulholland – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Greg Mulholland – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2016-04-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what proportion of victims rescued by the Forced Marriages Unit in each year since 2005 have been under 18 years old.

    Karen Bradley

    The jointly led Home Office and Foreign and Commonwealth Office Forced Marriage Unit (FMU) leads on the Government’s forced marriage policy, outreach and casework. Figures on the number of cases reported to the FMU via its public helpline and email inbox are published annually and are available on GOV.uk. The figures include a breakdown of cases by age range. The FMU acts in an advisory capacity, and information on the number of cases which resulted in prosecutions is therefore not collated centrally.

    We made forced marriage a criminal offence in 2014 to send a clear message that this brutal practice will not be tolerated in the UK. We are encouraged by the first conviction in June 2015, and the Crown Prosecution Service’s (CPS) most recent report shows that the volume of referrals from the police to the CPS has risen from 67 in 2013-14 to 82 in 2014-15. But there is still work to be done, and we will continue to work with partners to lead efforts to tackle this abhorrent crime.

  • Lord Kennedy of Southwark – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lord Kennedy of Southwark – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Kennedy of Southwark on 2016-05-25.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to improve east-west transport connectivity in the North of England.

    Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

    The Government is committed to improving transport connectivity across the North of England, including east-west routes. Current work includes upgrades to the road network as set out in Road Investment Strategy: for the 2015/16 – 2019/20 Road Period (March 2015).

    Work has already started to deliver improved rail journeys between Liverpool and Manchester. The Ordsall chord will enable direct links from the Northeast to Manchester Airport. Sir Peter Hendy’s rail upgrade re-plan (Hendy review – Replanning Network Rail’s investment programme: a report from Sir Peter Hendy to the Transport Secretary (Nov 2015)) includes significant benefits for the North of England, such as the Transpennine Route Upgrade Programme, which is aligned to Rail North’s Long Term Rail Strategy (September 2015). Current proposals are to deliver faster journeys and more capacity on the existing railway line between Leeds and Manchester. This work is expected to provide up to six fast trains per hour, with a target journey time of 62 minutes between Manchester and York and 40 minutes between Leeds and Manchester.

    Additionally, the new TransPennine Express (TPE) and Northern franchises, which came into effect on 1 April, will deliver a range of significant benefits to their passengers, including increases to services between Manchester and Newcastle, more daily services to Hull from Manchester and Leeds, and 44 new 125 mph TPE trains fitted with free Wi-Fi and real-time passenger information screens.

    The Government is also working with Transport for the North on future transport plans in the North of England. As set out in the Northern Transport Strategy: Spring 2016 Report (March 2016), these plans include east-west connectivity improvements through HS3/Northern Powerhouse Rail and the strategic studies investigating the cases for a trans-Pennine road tunnel and upgrading the A66 and A69.

    All four documents referred to in this reply have been placed in the libraries of both Houses.