Tag: 2016

  • David Amess – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    David Amess – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Amess on 2016-01-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many highly specialised technologies are awaiting assessment by NHS England which were not selected for consideration by NICE’s highly specialised technology appraisal process.

    George Freeman

    NHS England is currently developing a refined process for the prioritisation of proposed new investments in specialised services and highly specialised services.

    The number of technologies to be routinely commissioned by NHS England will be determined by the new process.

  • Helen Jones – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Helen Jones – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Helen Jones on 2016-02-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people have been prosecuted for bringing fraudulent claims in whiplash cases in each of the last five years.

    Dominic Raab

    Information on prosecutions for fraudulent whiplash claims is not held centrally, and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

    The Government remains concerned about the number and cost of personal injury claims and the impact they have on motor insurance premiums. At 760,000 (of which 690,000 were for whiplash) in 2014/15, personal injury motor claims volumes are still at historically high levels, being some 50% higher than in 2006 when there were around 520,000 such claims.

    The Insurance Fraud Taskforce published their final report on 18 January which was supportive of the Government’s proposals to tackle fraudulent and unnecessary claims. The Government will consider their recommendations closely.

    The Association of British Insurers regularly publishes data on the number of detected fraudulent claims made, and the most recent published data can be found here: https://www.abi.org.uk/News/News-releases/2015/07/You-could-not-make-up-Savings-honest-customers-insurers-expose-3-6-million-worth-insurance-frauds

    “

  • Biography information for Lord McColl of Dulwich – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Biography information for Lord McColl of Dulwich – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Biography information for Lord McColl of Dulwich on 2016-02-25.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many victims of trafficking or modern slavery who are EEA nationals and in receipt of a positive Conclusive Grounds decision under the National Referral Mechanism have been issued with (1) minded to remove” letters

    Lord Bates

    The information requested is not collected centrally and could only be provided by investigation of individual case records.

    Where an EEA national has been issued with a positive conclusive grounds decision they will not be served with administrative removal papers. EEA nationals who have left the Government-funded service provided under the victim care contract who are not exercising treaty rights and are not entitled to remain on other grounds may be encouraged to return home voluntarily.

  • Philip Davies – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Philip Davies – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Philip Davies on 2016-03-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, if she will ask her counterpart in the US administration for emissions data and costing information on the Kemper County energy facility, Mississippi; and if she will place a copy of that information in the Library.

    Andrea Leadsom

    DECC officials are in regular contact with their counterparts in other Governments, including the United States and United Arab Emirates, to exchange information on carbon capture and storage. This dialogue includes, within the limits of normal commercial confidentiality, progress in developing specific projects.

  • Chris Law – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Chris Law – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Law on 2016-04-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change on the climate threat arising from Chinese activities affecting the third pole region.

    James Duddridge

    Ministers in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and Department of Energy and Climate Change have not discussed this issue. However, the Tibet Society has been in contact with China Department about a report they produced on the Tibetan Plateau.

  • Jim Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Jim Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-06-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what contribution her Department has made to the UN Sustainable Development Goals in the last six months; and if she will make a statement.

    Sir Desmond Swayne

    The Global Goals are the starting point for DFID’s Strategic Objectives and are embedded across all that the Department does. In February this year we published our Single Departmental Plan (SDP), which sets out how we will play our part in delivering the UK Aid Strategy to help end extreme poverty, deliver the Global Goals and create a safer and more prosperous world.

    This strategic approach reflects DFID’s commitments to economic development, girls and women and responding to humanitarian crises; as well as our ambition to lead the way internationally on engaging young people; tackling climate change; and investing more in research, technology and skills to maximise development outcomes.

  • Frank Field – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Frank Field – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the number of people above pensionable age and living in general needs accommodation who will be deemed to be under-occupying their home and will have their housing benefit reduced in accordance with their household size as opposed to their property size as a result of the cap on housing benefit for social housing tenants to the Local Housing Allowance Rate; and what the average loss incurred by this group of people will be.

    Caroline Nokes

    This measure will be introduced in April 2018, where new tenancies have been taken out or existing tenancies renewed from 1 April 2016 (or 1 April 2017 for supported housing). Full impact and equality impact assessments will be undertaken in due course.

  • Diana Johnson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Diana Johnson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Diana Johnson on 2016-10-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, with reference to the Answer of 16 November 2015 to Question 13604, on tenancy deposit schemes, what the total value is of all the deposits currently held by each of the schemes on either a custodial or an insurance-based basis.

    Gavin Barwell

    The three Government approved Tenancy Deposit Schemes in England help ensure that tenants are treated fairly at the end of their tenancy through protecting deposits.

    A deposit can be protected in a custodial scheme where the deposit is paid (submitted) and held by the scheme until the end of the tenancy. The scheme will pay the deposit back (return) to the tenant if they have fulfilled all their obligations at the end of the tenancy. A deposit can also be protected in an insured scheme, where the landlord or agent holds the deposit and pays it back to the tenant at the end of the tenancy. The deposit is not submitted to or returned by the scheme.

    The figures available for the number of deposits protected for tenants in Greater London since 2011, are set out in Table 1, and for deposits submitted and returned in Table 2.

    Table 1 – tenant’s deposits protected in Greater London

    Year

    Total number of deposits protected

    2011-12

    434,031

    2012-13

    398,635

    2013-14

    453,200

    2014-15

    499,098

    2015-16

    545,937

    Table 2 – tenant’s deposits submitted and returned in Greater London

    Year

    Number of deposits submitted

    Number of deposits returned

    2011-12

    74,202

    55,550

    2012-13

    77,709

    62,341

    2013-14

    82,613

    67,583

    2014-15

    88,465

    70,105

    2015-16

    90,849

    76,305

    The differences between the number of deposits submitted and returned are due to different lengths of tenancies, cases going through the dispute resolution process, and the protection of more deposits as the private rental market continues to grow.

    Overall, 98 per cent of all deposits protected in England since the launch of the tenancy deposit scheme in 2007, are returned to the tenant at the end of their tenancy.

  • Frank Field – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Frank Field – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2016-01-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many licences for experimentation with animals the Animals and Science Committee granted in the most recent year for which data is available.

    Mr John Hayes

    The Animals in Science Committee (ASC) are responsible for providing impartial, balanced and objective advice to Ministers relating to the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 (ASPA). The Committee is not responsible for granting licences. Under Section 9 of ASPA, the Secretary of State may consult the Committee regarding licence applications. Current policy requires referral of the following categories of project licence application:

    • the use of wild-caught non-human primates;

    • the use of cats, dogs, equidae or non-human primates in severe procedures;

    • use of endangered species;

    • projects with major animal welfare or ethical implications;

    • projects involving the use of admixed embryos falling into category 3 of the Academy of Medical Science report on Animals Containing Human Material and category 2 where the predominance of an admixed embryo is unclear or uncertain;

    • projects which may invoke any of the ‘safeguard clauses’ in the Directive with respect to the purpose of primate use, proposals for the use of a great ape, or proposals to cause long-lasting pain, suffering or distress that cannot be ameliorated; or

    • projects of any kind raising novel or contentious issues, or giving rise to serious societal concerns.

    In 2014, the most recent year for which we have data available, the ASC provided advice on four project licences. These were subsequently granted by the Home Office. The numbers of licences the ASC provided advice on in 2015 will be published in the ASC Annual Report later this year.

  • 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 2016-02-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when HS2 Ltd plans to update its Register of Assurances and Undertakings to include agreements made after 23 September 2015.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    The publication date for the next iteration of the draft register of Undertakings & Assurances will be 26th February. This iteration will include all undertakings and assurances given up to and including 4 February 2016.