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Tag: 2016

  • Baroness Parminter – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Baroness Parminter – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Parminter on 2016-10-19.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what progress they have made on the implementation, through public procurement policy, of their commitment to achieve 100 per cent sourcing of credibly certified sustainable palm oil by the end of 2015.

    Lord Gardiner of Kimble

    The Government Buying Standard for food and catering was amended in October 2012 to state that, from the end of 2015, all palm oil used for cooking and as an ingredient in food shall be sustainably produced. The Government has been making good progress towards meeting this requirement, with the majority of departments reporting that their catering contractors are complying with it. The next report on progress under the Greening Government Commitments, covering 2015/16, will include an update on sustainable procurement issues, including palm oil.

  • Lord Donoughue – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Lord Donoughue – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Donoughue on 2016-01-12.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they are aware of any intermittency issues concerning renewable generating capacity installed using finance from the UK International Climate Fund.

    Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth

    Through the International Climate Fund (ICF) we support a number of renewable energy projects in developing countries, with the aim to increase the availability of affordable, reliable and sustainable energy. On the grid, we support a diverse portfolio of renewable energies which are planned to contribute to generation diversity and system stability; we also support off-grid renewable energy systems, which are integrated with storage technologies. ICF support not only keeps the lights on, but also improves health and education, spurs economic growth and creates jobs. Our work is aligned with the new Global Goals, particularly Goal 7, to ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all by 2030.

  • Daniel Zeichner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Daniel Zeichner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2016-02-03.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps NHS England is taking to standardise the collection of data on cholesterol.

    Jane Ellison

    The Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC) provides information and data for commissioners, analysts and clinicians in health and social care and is responsible for matters relating to standardisation of the collection of cholesterol data.

    The HSCIC administers the Health Survey for England which is an annual survey of the general population. Since 2008, it has included measurements of total cholesterol and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol. The data is publically available from the UK Data Service.

    Additionally, cholesterol testing in primary care for people diagnosed with hypertension and diabetes is included in the Quality Outcomes Framework. This information from this is published every year by the HSCIC.

  • The Earl of Sandwich – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The Earl of Sandwich – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Earl of Sandwich on 2016-02-24.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of (1) the British Medical Association’s report Prescribed drugs associated with dependence and withdrawal: building a consensus for action published in October 2015 on the effects of sudden withdrawal from prescribed drugs that have been over-prescribed; and (2) the need for more training on those effects; and whether they have plans to take any action as a result of that report.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    We welcome the British Medical Association’s report and its contribution to addressing this serious issue.

    It is the responsibility of local areas to plan, develop and improve health services according to the healthcare needs of the local population, including services for people dependent on prescription or over-the-counter medicines.

    The Department, Public Health England (PHE) and NHS England (NHSE) are responsible for helping local areas to understand how they can best support people dependent on prescribed or over-the-counter medicines and have undertaken a number of initiatives. These include:

    – supporting a project by St George’s University of London to strengthen the training of medical students in relation to substance misuse;

    – supporting the Centre for Pharmacy Postgraduate Education, Royal College of General Practitioners and others to develop information and educational materials, and training on addiction to medicines for General Practitioners and other healthcare professionals;

    – the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency publishing a learning module on benzodiazepines in April 2013;

    – PHE supported an expert group led by the Faculty of Pain Medicine at the Royal College of Anaesthetists (RCOA) to develop an online only core resource on opioid pain medicines that can be used as a source of consistent information by any medical body developing its own materials, and are working with RCOA colleagues to support the widespread dissemination and implementation of this online only resource;

    – in June 2013, PHE published a commissioning guide for the NHS and local authorities, ‘Commissioning treatment for dependence on prescription and over-the-counter medicines: a guide for NHS and local authority commissioners’, which sets out their expectation that support should be available in every area for people with a dependency on prescription or over-the-counter medicines, based on a full assessment of local need. A copy of this guidance is attached;

    – PHE supporting a small number of local areas to pilot improvements in their commissioning of responses to dependence on prescribed or over-the-counter medicines; and

    – Commissioning research into prescribing patterns of dependence forming medicines in primary care.

  • Grant Shapps – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Grant Shapps – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Grant Shapps on 2016-03-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what plans the Government has to extend the period of time separating spouses of service personnel have to vacate his Department’s accommodation.

    Mark Lancaster

    The Ministry of Defence (MOD) has no plans to extend the period of time in which separating spouses of Service personnel have to vacate MOD provided accommodation. However, the current 93-day period can be extended further according to individual circumstances, such as children’s schooling, relevant welfare and any medical considerations.

  • Andy Slaughter – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Andy Slaughter – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2016-04-29.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what proportion of employment tribunal claims were successful in each of the last five years.

    Mr Shailesh Vara

    Information on the number of tribunal claims relating to sexual discrimination and other matters brought against employers and the proportion of successful claims in each of the last five years can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/tribunals-statistics#employment-tribunal-and-employment-appeal-tribunal-statistics-gb.

    “

  • Gregory Campbell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Gregory Campbell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gregory Campbell on 2016-06-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will commission a study into the potential merits of the use of E10 petrol.

    Andrew Jones

    The revised industry fuel standard for petrol (EN228), agreed and published by the British Standards Institution in 2013, allows up to ten per cent bioethanol content (known as ‘E10’). However, E10 is not yet on general sale in the UK and whether to supply it is a commercial decision for suppliers.

    The Transport Energy Task Force, made up of experts from industry and environmental NGOs, reported its findings to the Department for Transport in March 2015. The report, which included recommendations relating to E10, is available on the Low Carbon Vehicle Partnership’s website at:

    http://www.lowcvp.org.uk/projects/transport-energy-task-force.htm

    “

  • Greg Mulholland – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Greg Mulholland – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of the reasons for the fall in the DVLA’s revenue from vehicle excise duty between 2014-15 and 2015-16.

    Andrew Jones

    The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) collects around £6billion in vehicle excise duty annually and also recovers almost £30million from enforcement activities. The DVLA annual audited accounts showed a reduction in the amount of vehicle excise duty collected of £93million for 2015-16, a decrease of around 1.5% of total revenue raised the previous year. However, this figure was better than the Office of Budget Responsibility forecasts.

    It is widely recognised that the amount of vehicle tax collected varies year on year. The decrease in revenue for the last financial year has been attributed to three main causes; more efficient vehicles emitting less carbon dioxide resulting in lower tax bands, over 10 million direct debits which moves the revenue across months rather than being collected up front as before and a small increase in evasion.

  • Lord Storey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Lord Storey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Storey on 2016-10-19.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they are planning to bring sixth form colleges in line with sixth form college academies in not having to pay VAT.

    Lord Young of Cookham

    I refer the noble Lord to the answer I gave on 25th October 2016 (Question HL2214).

  • Glyn Davies – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    Glyn Davies – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Glyn Davies on 2016-01-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how the Government plans to commemorate in Northern Ireland the centenary of the battle of the Somme.

    Mr Ben Wallace

    I refer the hon Gentleman to the answer I gave earlier today to the hon Member for Portsmouth South.