Tag: 2016

  • Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-01-26.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Anelay of St Johns on 22 January (HL4827), what assessment they have made of the capacity of the United Nations Special Advisers on the Prevention of Genocide and on the Responsibility to Protect, to investigate and bring to justice those responsible for genocide against Yazidis and Christians.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The role of the UN Office of the UN Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide is to raise awareness of the causes and dynamics of genocide, to alert relevant actors where there is a risk of genocide, and to advocate and mobilise for appropriate action. The role of the Special Adviser on the Responsibility to Protect is to lead the conceptual, political, institutional and operational development of the Responsibility to Protect. They are not mandated to carry out criminal/judicial investigations, and therefore the British Government has made no assessment of their capacity to do so.

  • Lord Falconer of Thoroton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Lord Falconer of Thoroton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Falconer of Thoroton on 2016-02-23.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have, if any, to reform legal aid provision for victims of domestic abuse in the light of the Court of Appeal judgment The Queen (On The Application Of Rights Of Women) v The Lord Chancellor And Secretary Of State For Justice [2016] EWCA Civ 91 on 18 February.

    Lord Faulks

    We are pleased the court confirmed that the Lord Chancellor did have the power to set domestic violence evidence requirements. We are now carefully considering the judgment as we decide how best to respond to the court’s concerns. We are determined to make sure victims of domestic violence can get legal aid whenever they need it.

  • Catherine West – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Catherine West – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2016-03-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, pursuant to the Answer of 4 March 2016 to Question 28603, how many cleaners working in her Department are paid at the rate of (a) £7.85 and (b) £9.15.

    Andrea Leadsom

    The number of cleaners in the Department paid at an hourly rate of a) £7.85 is five and b) £9.15 is fourteen.

    From 1 April 2016, the rate of pay will be increased to the 2016 Living Wage Foundation rates.

  • Teresa Pearce – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Teresa Pearce – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Teresa Pearce on 2016-04-15.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, when his Department plans to review Building Regulations Approved Document B (Fire Safety).

    James Wharton

    My Department is considering a number of issues related to the Building Regulations and the building control system. We will make an announcement about our plans in due course.

  • Wes Streeting – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Wes Streeting – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Wes Streeting on 2016-05-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many staff working at (a) Queen’s Hospital in Romford, (b) Whipps Cross University Hospital and (c) King George Hospital in Goodmayes are nationals of other EU countries.

    Ben Gummer

    The Health and Social Care Information Centre collects data on the number of staff working in National Health Service hospitals and community health services (HCHS) in England. Nationality is a self-reported field within the electronic staff record system. Data is only available for people working in NHS trusts.

    The following table shows the number of HCHS staff by nationality working at Barking Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals NHS Trust and Barts Health NHS Trust as at 29 February 2016.

  • Lord Maginnis of Drumglass – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Lord Maginnis of Drumglass – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Maginnis of Drumglass on 2016-07-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) decision to allow transgender athletes to compete at the Olympic Games; what consultation they have had with the British Olympic Association about that issue; what rules apply in the UK regarding transgender athletes competing in sport; and whether they consider the IOC’s ruling to be a disadvantage to non-transgender female athletes.

    Lord Ashton of Hyde

    We have had no such discussions with the British Olympic Association. Sports competition regulations are a matter for the governing body.

    Home Nation Sports Councils published the attached guidance in 2013 for national governing bodies of sport entitled "Transsexual people and competitive sport”.

  • Imran Hussain – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Imran Hussain – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Imran Hussain on 2016-10-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much overtime was paid to NHS staff in (a) 2015-16, (b) 2014-15 and (c) 2013-14.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    The total overtime payments to National Health Service staff are estimated to have been:

    – £380 million in 2015-16;

    – £362 million in 2014-15; and

    – £330 million in 2013-14

    These estimates are based on pay information from the NHS Electronic Staff Record (ESR), which is the Human Resources and Payroll system for almost all trusts in England. These estimates do not include overtime payments to general practitioners or their staff.

    ESR includes hundreds of payment type codes and payment figures are aggregated to high-level groupings using a mapping system. One of the high-level groupings is Overtime/Additional Duty Hours. The estimates provided in the answer above are based on this.

    Overtime/Additional Duty Hours is just one way of buying extra staffing resource in the NHS. Shifts, absence and vacancies are also filled using additional activity payments (e.g. additional programmed activities and additional hours at plain time rates for part-time staff), bank contracts, and agency staffing.

  • Lord Condon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Lord Condon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Condon on 2016-01-26.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the efficacy of the rollout of high speed broadband, and when they expect the rollout to be completed.

    Baroness Neville-Rolfe

    Broadband Delivery UK’s (BDUK) Superfast Broadband Programme remains on track to achieve 90% superfast broadband coverage within the next few months, and 95% by December 2017. The programme has provided coverage to more than 3.5 million homes and businesses across the UK that would otherwise not have it, and will reach 4 million by spring 2016.

  • Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town on 2016-02-23.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact on government consultations and their policy-making processes of the new policy on charitable campaigning for charities in receipt of government grant funding, published on 6 February.

    Lord Bridges of Headley

    This clause does not contravene any organisation or individuals’ right to take part in government consultations or prevent government seeking input on policy in other ways.

  • Jim Fitzpatrick – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Jim Fitzpatrick – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Fitzpatrick on 2016-03-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the recommendations of the Pitt Review on the 2007 floods, whether her Department plans to (a) change building regulations to make homes more resilient in flood risk areas and (b) increase the adoption of sustainable drainage systems in order to better manage urban flood risk in the long term.

    Rory Stewart

    Building regulations were updated in 2013 and enable the incorporation of flood resilience measures into building work. In addition, the British Standards Institution published BS8550 in November 2015. This is a technical standard addressing resilience and resistance issues. We continue to promote better resilience and support innovations in this field.

    On 6 April 2015, planning policy was strengthened to ensure that sustainable drainage systems are provided in new major developments where appropriate, and that clear arrangements are in place for ongoing maintenance over the lifetime of the development.