The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2016-01-14.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many personal independence payment claimants were asked to attend reassessments earlier than the date originally given in each of the last three years.
Justin Tomlinson
The information requested can only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Crausby on 2016-02-02.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much was owed to the UK by which countries in the last year for which figures are available.
Harriett Baldwin
Information on the stock of UK assets, or money owed by other countries to the UK, is captured in the UK’s International Investment Position. A country by country breakdown is available in table 10.2 of the 2015 ONS Pink Book which can be found here: http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/publications/re-reference-tables.html?edition=tcm%3A77-382775
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Joan Ryan on 2016-02-29.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will commission a technical review of the indicators of deprivation used to decide formulae for funding for (a) schools and (b) free school meals.
Mr Sam Gyimah
Children from disadvantaged backgrounds often need extra support at school to achieve as well as their peers. That is why, in addition to providing £2.5 billion this year through the pupil premium – which we have protected at current rates for the duration of the parliament – we also require local authorities to target funding for deprived pupils through their local formula.
Under current arrangements local authorities can choose between a pupil-level measure of disadvantage (pupils eligible for free school meals or eligible at any point in the previous 6 years) or an area-level measure of disadvantage (the Income Deprivation Affecting Children Index), or a combination. We are aware that the update to the area-level deprivation data last year led to some areas changing their local formulae to mitigate the impact on deprivation funding for their schools.
We recently launched the first stage of the consultation on our plans to introduce a national funding formula for schools from 2017. Our proposals would mean schools’ funding is matched fairly and transparently to their needs and their pupils’ characteristics. Through the consultation process we are seeking views on the best way to target funding for disadvantaged pupils to support them to achieve to the best of their ability.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevin Hollinrake on 2016-03-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if he will estimate the number of new private rented homes that will be needed to meet demand in the next five years.
Brandon Lewis
It is difficult to determine the number of new private rented homes needed to meet demand as this is affected by a variety of outside impacts, including the affordability of home ownership, household formation rates and prospective sharing arrangements. The Government is committed to delivering 1 million new homes by the end of this parliament.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2016-04-27.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to ensure that general practitioners are taught objective methods of assessing serious illness in babies.
Ben Gummer
The training curriculum for general practitioners (GPs) is written by the Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP), and has to meet the standards set by the General Medical Council. Whilst the RCGP curriculum does not highlight specific conditions for GPs to be aware of, it instead emphasises the skills and approaches that a GP must develop in order to ensure accurate and timely diagnoses and treatment plans for their patients.
GPs have responsibility for maintaining their continuing professional development, ensuring that they can provide high quality care to all patients. Health Education England, through its local offices, has a role in ensuring employers remain committed to continuing professional development and in developing the overall strategy for workforce skills and development in their areas.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-06-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many applications were made by developers for housebuilding on green belt land in each of the last five years.
Brandon Lewis
The Department for Communities and Local Government does not hold information on the numbers of planning applications made in the Green Belt.
The department’s Land Use Change Statistics estimate that 3% of new residential addresses created in 2014-15 were in the Green Belt; unchanged from 2013-14. This equates to an estimated 3,900 homes – 2.9998% of the total homes built in the Green Belt in 2013-14, and 4,600 homes – 2.9997% of the total homes built in 2014-15.
The figures in the 13/14 publication are the first in the new series and so are not directly comparable to the previous Land Use Change Statistics which last published data covering the year 2011. Figures for 2011 and prior are available from the department’s website.
https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/land-use-change-statistics-in-england-2011
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-09-06.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the total spend on High Speed 2 to date; and if he will make a statement.
Andrew Jones
Since 2009 the Government has spent £1.4bn on the HS2 programme. This covers the period up to and including 2015/16 and includes the costs incurred by HS2 Ltd and Land & Property (L&P) expenditure. Data for 2016/17 is provisional and is currently not included.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alan Campbell on 2016-10-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many properties affected by subsidence have been compulsorily purchased by the Coal Authority in each of the last five years.
Jesse Norman
The Coal Authority has no compulsory purchase powers in relation to subsidence and as such has not purchased any properties on that basis in the last five years.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Greaves on 2016-01-13.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their definition of a sink estate and what criteria they are using to draw up a list of them; what discussions they have had, or will have, with local authorities before drawing up such a list and before any decisions are made about the future of estates on that list; and which estates they have so far identified that (1) qualify as sink estates, and (2) they propose to demolish in whole or in part.
Baroness Williams of Trafford
The Estates Regeneration Advisory Panel members, criteria and terms of reference will be published in due course.
The Panel will evaluate the potential for the regeneration of particular estates over the coming months, and will report by this year’s Autumn Statement.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Carswell on 2016-02-02.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether the rental income generated for investors in his Department’s sukuk bond scheme is equivalent to that of the coupon paid from a June 2014 Government five-year gilt.
Harriett Baldwin
In the Sukuk structure, rental payments provide the income for investors. When the Sovereign Sukuk were issued in July 2014 the profit rate was set at 2.036% in line with the yield on gilts of similar maturity, making the investor return on the Sukuk broadly equivalent to that on conventional gilts of similar maturity.
Three central government properties form the underlying assets which underpin the Sukuk.
The Government was clear at the time of issuance that the Sukuk issuance was not for debt financing purposes. Instead, it was issued to deliver on the government’s commitment to become the western hub for Islamic finance. The issuance showed that the UK is open for business with all parts of the world and provided high quality capital to UK-based Islamic banks.
UK based institutions that offer Islamic finance services are contributing to jobs and growth with assets totalling $4.5bn at the end of 2014.