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Tag: 2016

  • Catherine West – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Catherine West – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

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

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she plans to include in the proposed Education for All Bill a contractual obligation on schools to provide sex and relationships education.

    Edward Timpson

    We want schools to provide all young people with a curriculum that equips them for success in adult life. High-quality sex and relationship education (SRE) and personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) education have a vital role to play in this.

    SRE is compulsory in maintained secondary schools. Academies and free schools do not have to teach SRE, but many choose to do so as part of their statutory duty to provide a broad and balanced curriculum.

    When teaching SRE, all schools, including academies through their funding agreement, must have regard to the Secretary of State’s Sex and Relationship Education guidance. The existing SRE guidance was last updated in 2000. We have received requests about updating the guidance which we will consider carefully.

    Schools and teachers have the freedom to design lessons that meet their pupils’ needs, taking account of pupil and parent views. Teachers are encouraged to develop their practice with the support of specialist organisations and expert professionals. Many of these specialist organisations have produced resources that can be used and adapted by schools.

    We hold regular meetings with Ofsted about a range of matters. As the Secretary of State said at the Education Select Committee hearing in September 2016, we need to look again at how schools deliver high-quality PSHE, including SRE. We are considering all the options, including the need for any statutory powers, and will come to a view soon.

  • Grahame Morris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Grahame Morris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Grahame Morris on 2016-01-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of existing legislation for tackling incidents of cyber bullying and harassment.

    Mike Penning

    As part of the arrangements for the collection of police recorded crime data the Home Office has introduced an ‘online flag’ allowing police forces to record online instances of crimes such as stalking and harassment. These data are still being developed but will be published once the data are considered to be of sufficient quality. In October 2015, the Office for National Statistics introduced new fraud and cyber questions to the Crime Survey for England and Wales. These new questions mean that we will be able to identify those crimes that had an online component and hence be able to provide estimates of cyber crime. This data will be published in due course.

    Legislation is in place to deal with internet trolls, cyber-stalking and harassment, and perpetrators of grossly offensive, obscene or menacing behaviour. Through the Criminal Justice Act 2015, we improved two communications offences which can be used to prosecute misuse of social media: section 1 of the Malicious Communications Act 1988, and section 127 of the Communications Act 2003, giving the police longer to investigate either offence, and increasing the maximum penalty for the former to two years imprisonment.

    Engagement with the industry is essential, and the UK Council for Child Internet Safety (UKCCIS) brings together industry, law enforcement, academia, charities, parenting groups, and government departments (Home Office, Department for Culture, Media & Sport, and Department for Education), to work in partnership to help to keep children and young people safe online. As part of this work, the UK’s Communications regulator, Ofcom, recently led a working group to develop good practice guidance for providers of social media and interactive services. Its purpose is to encourage businesses to think about “safety by design” to help make their platforms safer for children and young people under 18. This guidance was published in December 2015. A wide range of partners contributed to this project, including Twitter, Facebook, Google, Ask.FM, MindCandy and Microsoft.

  • Neil Coyle – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Neil Coyle – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Neil Coyle on 2016-01-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what contribution his Department is making to the delivery and monitoring of the Preventing Suicide in England strategy with specific reference to people identified as being vulnerable due to social and economic circumstances.

    Priti Patel

    The Department for Health (DH) lead the Preventing Suicide in England Strategy and since 2014 have published two annual reports. The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has provided information to contribute to the annual reports, to address the guidance and training it provides for staff and the DWP and DH joint work to look at improving co-ordination of mental health and employment support services.

  • Emily Thornberry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Emily Thornberry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2016-02-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 1 February 2016 to Question 24278, how much has been set aside in his Department’s budget for potential costs associated with the decommissioning and disposal of HMS Ocean.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    Much of the work to decommission Royal Navy ships is undertaken using contracts that provide support services for all ships conducting Fleet activities at HM Naval Base, Portsmouth. Costs are not attributed to individual vessels.

    Defence Equipment & Support (DE&S) will be responsible for the removal of classified equipment and known hazardous materials from HMS OCEAN after the ship has been decommissioned. The DE&S financial plan will include a provision for this work but a figure has yet to be approved.

    The Disposal Services Authority (DSA), part of DE&S, disposes of defence equipment that is surplus to requirement. DSA costs are not attributed to individual platforms and information is not held in the format requested.

  • Rebecca Long Bailey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Rebecca Long Bailey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rebecca Long Bailey on 2016-03-22.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to paragraph 1.293 of Budget 2016, which areas of criminal justice services he plans to devolve to Greater Manchester; which bodies will assume overall governance of such services; what legal framework he plans to put in place for the governance of service providers; and how such (a) governing bodies and (b) service providers will be funded.

    Mike Penning

    In the Budget, the Government announced that it will work with Greater Manchester to strengthen its role in commissioning joined up criminal justice services and in developing flexible local services.

    No services or budgets have been devolved. The Government is considering options in conjunction with Manchester.

  • Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-04-27.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the average reduction in benefits was for claimants subject to the under-occupancy penalty in each of the last three financial years.

    Justin Tomlinson

    The average weekly reduction for claimants subject to the Removal of the Spare Room Subsidy for each of the last three financial years was as follows:

    • £14.42 in 2013/14;
    • £14.92 in 2014/15; and
    • £15.25 in 2015/16.
  • Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2016-06-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many civil servants in his Department are paid through limited companies.

    Justin Tomlinson

    No Civil Servants in the Department for Work and Pensions are paid through limited companies.

  • Eilidh Whiteford – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Eilidh Whiteford – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Eilidh Whiteford on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment his Department has made of the effect on claimants of the (a) seven waiting days at the beginning of a universal credit claim and (b) six week period a claimant must wait before receiving their initial payment.

    Damian Hinds

    Many claimants come to Universal Credit with final earnings to support them until their first payment, and they often find work quickly.

    The Universal Credit assessment period and payment structure is a fundamental part of the design; it mirrors the world of work, where 75% of people are paid monthly.

    As with other working age benefits, Universal Credit is not designed to provide cover for brief spells of unemployment or sickness, and seven waiting days are served in Universal Credit as they are in Jobseeker’s Allowance and Employment and Support Allowance.

    We have a number of safeguards in place to help claimants’ transition to Universal Credit, including Advances and Budgeting Support.

  • Greg Mulholland – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Attorney General

    Greg Mulholland – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Attorney General

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2016-10-17.

    To ask the Attorney General, how many complaints to the Crown Prosecution Service were upheld at formal Stage 1 in each of the last three years.

    Robert Buckland

    The following table shows the number of complaints upheld at Stage 1 in the past three years:

    Year

    Stage 1 Complaints -Upheld

    2013/14

    150

    2014/15

    206

    2015/16

    206

  • Phil Boswell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Phil Boswell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Phil Boswell on 2016-01-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what discussions the Government has had with the devolved administrations on increasing social mobility since May 2015.

    Nick Boles

    The Government is committed to increasing social mobility throughout the UK. We hold regular discussions with the devolved administrations on a wide variety of topics many of which affect social mobility.

    It should also be noted however, that many key levers for improving social mobility such as apprenticeships, traineeships and higher education have some degree of devolution across the UK and so policy decisions on these issues should be referred to the relevant devolved administration.