The below Parliamentary question was asked by Derek Twigg on 2016-04-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what plans he has to merge clinical commissioning groups during the course of the current Parliament.
George Freeman
There are no plans to merge clinical commissioning groups.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord De Mauley on 2016-05-25.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of each of the issues raised in the response of the British Horse Society to their consultation on a draft cycling and walking investment strategy.
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
We are now analysing the feedback received during the draft Cycling and Walking Investment Strategy eight week consultation period, which closed on Monday 23 May. We expect to publish the final Strategy this summer along with a Government response to the consultation.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kirsten Oswald on 2016-07-21.
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether her Department has undertaken research into the child welfare implications of possible amendments to the meaning of the term supply in the Video Recordings Act 1984 to include adults providing children with access to recordings categorised as containing age-inappropriate content.
Matt Hancock
Following public consultations involving representations from classification bodies, child welfare groups, local authorities, content producers and many others, since 2010 we have legislated twice to strengthen the protections provided by the Act. This has ensured that retailers now cannot sell or rent any age-inappropriate DVDs or video games discs or cartridges to children. It also ensures these products are all labelled with relevant British Board of Film Classification (DVDs) and PEGI (video games) age ratings and content advice. This means adults have better information to help them make responsible decisions about the material children can access.
We will continue to work with industry and the age ratings bodies to encourage further promotion of the BBFC and PEGI age ratings to consumers including through initiatives such as BBFCInsight and AskAboutGames.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Helen Goodman on 2016-10-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the number of areas of the country with a relatively low level of social care provision; and what steps he plans to take to reduce that number.
David Mowat
There has been no estimate of the number of local authorities with low level of social care provision. Access to adult social care is based on the level of need an adult has and not on the number of users.
In April 2015, the Care Act 2014 introduced a national eligibility criteria for access to adult social care. The Act requires that local authorities must meet the needs of any adult whose needs meet this national criteria. Authorities cannot restrict eligibility beyond this threshold. This ensures that the most vulnerable adults have their eligible needs met.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Clive Lewis on 2015-12-16.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether the contract between HM Revenue and Customs and Concentrix on compliance checks for tax credits includes payments by results.
Mr David Gauke
Reducing tax credits fraud and error is a top priority for HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC). The contract with Concentrix offers additional capacity to help build on HMRC’s own work, which has reduced tax credits fraud and error to the lowest ever level. Using a private company provides a cost-effective way to reach additional claims that need checking.
The checks are to ensure that people are paid the correct amount of money to prevent them from getting into debt which they may find difficult to repay and protect losses to taxpayers.
Concentrix operate under the same powers and processes as HMRC. Concentrix select cases to be checked using information provided by HMRC. Concentrix decide how best to achieve the expected benefits, including the number and type of cases and number of staff employed. HMRC closely monitors their performance.
The contract uses a payment by results model, which means Concentrix is only paid based on the money it saves the Exchequer as a result of correcting claims that are incorrect. They will not be paid if the decisions they make about claimants’ awards are incorrect.
The contract was signed on 6 May 2014. The contract was awarded to Synnex-Concentrix UK Ltd in April 2014, following a procurement exercise advertised under the open procedure. Information about the contract value and contract award is already in the public domain.
https://www.deltaesourcing.com/delta/viewNotice.html?noticeId=97910033
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-01-27.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assistance the Government has given to former Gurkhas who are homeless as a result of recent earthquakes in Nepal.
Mr Desmond Swayne
A Joint DFID and Ministry of Defence (MOD) response was launched immediately in the aftermath of the Nepal earthquakes in April and May 2015. The MOD through the Gurkha Welfare Trust (GWT) supported both immediate and longer term initiatives. The GWT carried out a detailed assessment of the damage to Gurkha communities and provided £1.2 million in emergency aid that included distribution of shelter kits, tarpaulins and corrugated iron sheets in remote areas immediately in the aftermath of the earthquake. In addition, a unit of the Queen’s Gurkha Engineers was deployed to repair and rebuild the homes and communities of approximately 2,200 Gurkha servicemen that were severely damaged by the earthquake. To date, 150 new houses, built to an earthquake resistant design, are under construction and a further 600 houses will be started this year. DFID has been supplying humanitarian assistance to the Gurkha communities hit by the earthquake since April 2015 and continues to do so.
The GWT’s commitments for the earthquake response now stand at £19 million over 5 years. The MOD has provided an additional grant of £512,000 to assist the GWT in its on-going response operations. Between 2012-20 DFID has committed £14.19 million to support the GWT’s Gurkha Welfare Scheme, a programme predominantly supporting the Nepali servicemen and their communities, on water and sanitation programmes.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-02-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what financial savings she expects to result from the transfer of processing Bangladeshi visa applications to New Delhi.
James Brokenshire
Decision making on UK visa applications lodged in Bangladesh was transferred from Dhaka to New Delhi in September 2014. Logistical changes like this are made for operational reasons and to refine the longstanding hub and spoke structure of the visa network, where applications are decided at regional decision making centres. The hub and spoke structure increases resilience, improves security and enhances decision quality. The overall customer experience is unchanged as applications can be submitted at the same visa application centres and continue to be decided within the same global customer service standard. As result of this transfer of work we also estimate a saving of around £0.6m per year.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2016-03-21.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to paragraph 1.301 of Budget 2016, how much funding will be made available to support delivery of the final phase of the Leeds Flood Alleviation Scheme; and what proportion of that funding is additional to the £2.3 billion capital programme previously announced.
Rory Stewart
The Government has announced a new scheme for Leeds and the wider Aire catchment, which will provide flood defence for the area north of the station. Subject to business case approval, £35 million has been made available for this scheme up to 2021, with a commitment to ensure that the project is completed. This funding is in addition to the £2.3 billion capital programme.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Thangam Debbonaire on 2016-04-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people who applied for UK citizenship applied for an exemption from the written life in the UK test between June 2014 and June 2016; and how many such applications were refused.
James Brokenshire
The Secretary of State may waive the Knowledge of Language and Life in the UK requirement for British citizenship on the basis of a person’s age, physical or mental condition.
A person will normally be exempted from this requirement if they provide evidence from an appropriate medical practitioner that their condition is so severe that it prevents them from being able to learn English or prepare for or sit an English test or the Life in the UK test. Each application is considered on its own merits.
Information cannot be obtained from UKVI data systems to show how many exemption requests were made and granted. This information could only be obtained from looking at individual records at disproportionate cost.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Lester of Herne Hill on 2016-05-25.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to protect British girls in the Dawoodi Bohra community from female genital mutilation, in the light of the sermon by Supreme Leader Mufaddal Saifuddin on 25 April urging that all girls must undergo that procedure.
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) is a crime and it is child abuse. We will not tolerate a practice that can cause extreme and lifelong physical and psychological suffering to women and girls.
We will not stop FGM until we have changed attitudes within communities. The Government works closely with a range of community and faith groups, including Muslim women’s groups, to tackle FGM. Over 350 faith leaders from all the major faiths have signed a declaration condemning FGM. They have declared that it is not required by their religions and is a form of child abuse. The declaration makes clear that all religions will work together to end FGM for good. We continue to work with community organisations and survivors through the Governments FGM Unit’s stakeholder group and outreach programme to drive this work forward.
In 2014 the Government ran a national communications campaign to raise awareness. We also funded 29 community engagement projects, including a network of community champions, who are reaching thousands of women and girls affected by FGM, and, importantly, their families. The work of these projects has included training for teachers, awareness sessions in local mosques, and the establishment of a new national website for, and by, young people giving information about how to prevent FGM. The Department for Communities and Local Government has established a network of community champions which is operating in London, Bristol, Manchester and Birmingham. Champions are working with local people to address the myths that sustain FGM and to help keep girls safe.