Tag: 2016

  • Julie Cooper – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Julie Cooper – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julie Cooper on 2016-04-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment his Department has made of the risk of the Zika virus spreading to the UK.

    Jane Ellison

    The risk of Zika virus to the United Kingdom population remains very low and has been regularly assessed and reviewed since the first reports of cases of Zika infection from Brazil in May 2015. A pre-Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies has met to review the Zika outbreak in the Americas, the link with microcephaly and other disorders, and the risk to the UK. In addition, a qualitative assessment of the risk that Zika virus presents to the UK population was undertaken by the UK Human Animal Infections and Risk Surveillance group, and this was published on the gov.uk website in February 2016, which can be found at the following link:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/hairs-risk-assessment-zika-virus

    All evidence is kept under constant review.

    “

  • Imran Hussain – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Imran Hussain – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Imran Hussain on 2016-05-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department is taking to encourage donor organisations and partner countries to include action on violence against women and girls in their sectoral programmes.

    Mr Nick Hurd

    DFID worked hard with others to secure Global Goal 5, which includes targets on ending all forms of violence against women and girls, FGM and CEFM. In addition DFID has been at the forefront of work with OECD-DAC to create a new reporting marker for development programmes that will more comprehensively track donor spend on violence against women and girls from 2016. These measures will ensure that action on violence against women and girls enters into the core work of donors and UN agencies. DFID is also providing funding to the UN Trust Fund to End Violence against Women, which is testing and building evidence on interventions for the benefit of the whole international development community.

  • Sarah Wollaston – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Sarah Wollaston – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sarah Wollaston on 2016-07-20.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the Government’s plans are for the implementation of the soft drinks industry levy; and if he will publish a timetable for the implementation of that levy.

    Jane Ellison

    The Soft Drinks Industry Levy consultation was launched on 18th August 2016. At the Budget in March, the Government announced that it would consult on the Levy during the summer and legislate in Finance Bill 2017, for implementation from April 2018. This timetable remains in place.

  • Baroness Tonge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Baroness Tonge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Tonge on 2016-10-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they intend to take in response to plans by the government of Israel to establish a new settlement deep in the West Bank.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    We have raised our concerns over this issue with the Israeli authorities. The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my Hon. Friend the Member for Bournemouth East (Mr Ellwood), issued a statement on 5 October condemning the announcement by Israel of plans to construct a new settlement near Shilo. The increased pace of settlement advancement, including moves to approve retroactively unauthorised settlement units and outposts, fundamentally calls into question Israel’s commitment to the two state solution.

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

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

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Healey on 2016-01-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, for how many new homes planning permission has been granted on the direct commissioning sites at (a) Daedelus Waterfront, (b) Lower Grayling Well, (c) Connaught Barracks, (d) Northstowe and (e) Old Oak Common.

    Brandon Lewis

    The planning process is ongoing for these sites. This will be completed in due course working closely with the local communities and local authorities.

  • Norman Lamb – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Norman Lamb – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Norman Lamb on 2016-02-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many young people aged 17 or under of each age were treated in adult mental health wards in each if the last 10 years for which figures are available.

    Alistair Burt

    Whilst we do not have figures for how many young people were treated in adult mental health wards, the data below shows the number who were admitted to adult mental health wards for all available years. These figures may therefore include children who have been admitted when their parents are treated, e.g. a mother for a perinatal mental health condition.

    Age

    2011/12

    2012/13

    2013/14

    2014/15

    Total aged 17 and under

    357

    219

    355

    391

    0

    –

    1

    –

    2

    1

    –

    –

    –

    –

    2

    –

    –

    –

    –

    3

    –

    –

    –

    –

    4

    –

    –

    –

    –

    5

    –

    –

    –

    2

    6

    –

    –

    –

    2

    7

    –

    –

    –

    2

    8

    –

    –

    –

    3

    9

    –

    –

    –

    3

    10

    –

    –

    –

    3

    11

    –

    –

    –

    3

    12

    1

    1

    2

    8

    13

    3

    2

    3

    8

    14

    11

    5

    9

    8

    15

    32

    14

    29

    31

    16

    100

    51

    104

    106

    17

    210

    145

    208

    210

    The Mental Health Act 2007 introduced new provisions, in effect since April 2010, to help ensure that patients under the age of 18 are accommodated in an environment that is suitable for their age. Young people are all individual, however, and some in the 16 to 18 age group may feel more comfortable in adult wards. Services should take into account the individual’s needs and preferences.

    There are now more inpatient Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services inpatient beds (‘Tier 4’) than ever before.

  • Andrew Gwynne – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Andrew Gwynne – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2016-02-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the annual rent paid by his Department is on 39 Victoria Street.

    Jane Ellison

    The Department does not currently lease 39 Victoria Street and is not paying rent for the building.

  • Charles Walker – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Charles Walker – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Charles Walker on 2016-03-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate his Department has made of the number of its senior civil servants who will potentially fall under the provisions of the Fourth EU Money Laundering Directive, 2015/849; and what assessment he has made of which of his Department’s agencies or other public bodies will potentially be classed as holding a prominent public function for the purposes of that directive.

    Jane Ellison

    The Government’s view is that the Directive permits a risk-based approach to the identification of whether an individual is a politically exposed person and, when identified, the Directive enables the application of different degrees of enhanced measures to reflect the risks posed. The Government will be setting out this view in a consultation which will be published shortly.

    The changes proposed under the Directive should not prevent any individual in this category from gaining or maintaining access to financial services. The Treasury regularly raises these issues with financial institutions and the regulator, and we encourage financial institutions to take a proportionate, risk-based approach when applying these measures.

  • Paula Sherriff – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Paula Sherriff – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paula Sherriff on 2016-04-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what his policy is on the payment of senior NHS staff through limited companies; and what estimate he has made of the number of senior NHS staff paid off-payroll.

    Alistair Burt

    Our policy is to comply with the guidance from HM Treasury on senior staff engaged on an off-payroll basis. Engaging staff off-payroll can be a useful flexibility for employers but the guidance is clear that the most senior staff should be on the payroll of the organisation they lead, except in exceptional circumstances and then for no more than six months. The latest figure for staff in National Health Service trusts within the scope of the Treasury guidance indicate there were 1,193 off-payroll staff in 2014/15. The latest figure for NHS foundation trusts was 1,109 in 2013/14. These figures may include staff engaged off-payroll other than through limited companies. Figures for staff in clinical commissioning groups are not collected centrally.

  • Lilian Greenwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lilian Greenwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lilian Greenwood on 2016-05-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans he has to increase the number of locations with paid toll crossings in England.

    Andrew Jones

    The Government has a longstanding policy of funding estuarial crossings through tolls. Work on a new Lower Thames Crossing has assumed that it will be tolled, although no decisions have yet been made. Beyond this, there are no plans for further tolled crossings in England. The £15 billion to be invested in strategic roads over the period 2015 to 2020, set out in the Road Investment Strategy, is wholly funded by Government.

    The new Mersey Gateway Bridge and existing Silver Jubilee Bridge will be tolled when the new bridge opens in 2017, although these are the responsibility of Halton Council.