The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Davis on 2016-01-25.
To ask the Prime Minister, whether he plans to commission any review of the drone strike against Reyaad Khan on 21 August 2015 aside from the review being undertaken by the Intelligence and Security Committee.
Mr David Cameron
I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Hornsey and Wood Green (Ms West) on 21 January 2016, UIN 22720.
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Justin Madders on 2016-02-22.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of staff retention in the NHS of his decision to impose a new contract on junior doctors.
Ben Gummer
Senior National Health Service leaders have advised that the new contract, 90% of which was agreed with the British Medical Association, will be fair and reasonable for doctors in training and for the service and will be safer for patients. We believe that this, and the fact that the new contract will better support training, will be clear to individual junior doctors from the details that have been sent to them all. The contract includes specific provisions to ensure recruitment and retention in hard-to-fill training programmes, and the groups to which this applies will be kept under review.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Henry Bellingham on 2016-03-16.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many unplanned admissions took place in North West Norfolk last year; and what estimate he has made of the number of such admissions this year.
Jane Ellison
NHS England publishes the number of non-elective general and acute admissions each month for National Health Service clinical commissioning groups and NHS hospital trusts. This data is published on NHS England’s website at the following address:
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chi Onwurah on 2016-04-20.
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what progress has been made on the implementation of the Government’s Digital Inclusion Strategy, published in April 2014.
Mr Edward Vaizey
Government has invested heavily in basic digital skills. For example, BIS continues to fund a programme to help people gain the skills needed to access employment, education and wider opportunities. The Future Digital Inclusion programme aims to support 1 million people, including those with low skills, the unemployed and people with disabilities and learning difficulties. It indirectly supports SMEs and sole traders. Since September 2014 it has supported 482,000 individuals. Last year, Arts Council England oversaw government investment of £2.7m for more than 1,000 libraries to ensure that free WiFi is now available in over 99% of libraries in England.
Increasing the level of digital engagement in the UK requires commitment from all sectors. To date, 93 organisations have signed up to collaborate with government departments to increase digital engagement in the UK. This commits them to working together to join up their efforts where relevant, to scale up good ideas and to devise new and innovative solutions. A wide range of activities and programmes have been delivered by partners across the UK.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Anna Turley on 2016-05-23.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what support her Department is providing to recipients of Green Deal funding who have had their home improvements interrupted because the contracting companies have ceased trading.
Andrea Leadsom
Under the Green Deal Home Improvement Fund (GDHIF), where applicants had their home improvements interrupted, they were free to engage another approved installer to undertake the work within the six month validity period of their voucher. The GDHIF scheme was designed to provide a financial incentive for work to be done at the applicant’s instigation. Installers were required to come from an approved list but applicants were responsible for engaging an installer. The same response applies where vouchers expired before home improvements were completed; the responsibility rests with the applicant to ensure works were completed before the voucher expired.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Diana Johnson on 2016-07-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, if he will make it his policy to ensure that (a) UK students can continue to participate in the Erasmus programme and (b) UK universities can continue to participate in cross-European research projects.
Mr David Davis
The UK remains a member of the EU until our withdrawal is completed. There is no immediate change to the rights of UK universities and their students and staff from EU countries. UK researchers can still apply for Horizon 2020 projects. There is no change to those currently participating in, or about to start, Erasmus+ exchanges and Marie Curie fellowships.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2016-10-10.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, which convictions of UK citizens in foreign countries the UK is currently challenging; and what guidance his Department follows in deciding which convictions of UK citizens in overseas courts to challenge.
Mr Tobias Ellwood
The British Government does not interfere in the legal systems of other countries by challenging convictions, any more than we would accept interference in our judicial system. We do, however, lobby strongly and consistently against the application of the death penalty, and against the carrying out of such sentences when they are imposed. We always lobby, where apt, to ensure the rule of law for fair trials.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Lester of Herne Hill on 2015-12-22.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will implement the recommendations of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child and the Joint Committee on Human Rights to raise the minimum age of armed forces’ recruitment to 18; and if not, why not.
Earl Howe
All recruitment into the UK military is voluntary and no young person under the age of 18 years may join our Armed Forces unless their application is accompanied by the formal written consent of their parent or guardian. We take the duty of care towards all recruits seriously, in particular those under 18 years of age. We have robust, effective and independently verified safeguards in place to ensure that under-18s are cared for properly.
The Armed Forces do not intend to phase out the recruitment of personnel under the age of 18. Our policies on under-18s in Service are robust and comply with national and international law. In addition to the comprehensive welfare system that is in place for all Service personnel we remain fully committed to meeting our obligations under the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, Optional Protocol on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict, and have taken steps to bestow special safeguards on young people under the age of 18.
The provision of education and training for 16-year-old school leavers provides a route into the Armed Forces that complies with Government education policy and offers a significant foundation for emotional, physical and educational development throughout an individual’s career.
All recruits aged under 18 receive key skills education in literacy and numeracy, should they need it, and all are enrolled onto apprenticeships. The Armed Forces remain the UK’s largest apprenticeship provider, equipping young people with valuable and transferable skills for life. Over 95% of all recruits, no matter what their age or prior qualifications, enrol in an apprenticeship each year. The Armed Forces offer courses in a wide range of skills, such as engineering, information and communications technology, construction, driving, and animal care. Ofsted regularly inspects our care of newly joined young recruits, and we are very proud of the standards we achieve.
Our policy on under-18s is published in Part 2 of Joint Service Publication 898, "Defence Direction and Guidance on Training, Education and Skills", available at the following website: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/433762/20141126-JSP_898_Part2_Guidance_v1_1.pdf
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-01-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate his Department has made of the total compensation expected to be paid by insurers to people with mesothelioma who were exposed to asbestos by their employer negligently or in breach of statutory duty over the next (a) five, (b) 10, (c) 20 and (d) 30 years.
Justin Tomlinson
The Department does not make estimates of the total amount of compensation expected to be paid by insurers to people with mesothelioma who were exposed to asbestos by their employer negligently or in breach of statutory duty.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Justin Madders on 2016-02-22.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, (a) how many and (b) what proportion of clinical staff have suffered from work-related stress in each of the last five years for which figures are available.
Ben Gummer
The Department does not collect the number or proportion of clinical staff who have suffered from work related stress. However, the annual NHS Staff Survey[1] records the proportion of staff responding to the Survey who reported having felt unwell as a result of work related stress during the previous 12 months. This proportion for clinical staff in each of the last five years is as follows:
|
2011 |
2012 |
2013 |
2014 |
2015 |
|
31% |
39% |
39% |
38% |
37% |
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