Tag: 2016

  • Paul Monaghan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Paul Monaghan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Monaghan on 2016-02-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps the Government is taking to provide financial support to Jordan to tackle the humanitarian crisis in the Middle East.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    The UK has contributed £330 million to support stability in Jordan since the start of the Syria crisis, £193 million of which has gone towards support for refugees and host communities. We are committed to continuing our support. On 4 February the UK co-hosted the ‘Supporting Syria and the Region 2016’ conference which secured over $11bn in pledges for Syria’s neighbours from the international community, the largest sum raised for a cause on a single day. Jordan agreed a Compact at the conference which will see their receiving new funding, concessional finance, and support to increase investment in return for providing refugees with access to work and education. The UK will be at the forefront of work to deliver this plan.

  • Ian Mearns – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Ian Mearns – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Mearns on 2016-03-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what support the academies risk protection arrangement is providing to schools affected by the recent floods.

    Edward Timpson

    The Risk Protection Agreement (RPA) will cover all storm related costs, including flooding, incurred by academy trusts which are members of the RPA, in accordance with RPA membership rules. Cover will also be provided for temporary accommodation while their original buildings are being reinstated.

    The RPA service providers are working closely with those schools affected to minimise disruption and complete remedial works in a timely manner to the satisfaction of all parties concerned.

    Further information on the cover provided by the RPA can be found on GOV.UK at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/risk-protection-arrangement-rpa-for-academy-trusts-membership-rules

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  • David Morris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    David Morris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Morris on 2016-04-15.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department plans to introduce maternity pay for self-employed women; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr David Gauke

    The Government has continued to improve the support and flexibility of parental pay and leave, spending around £3 billion a year on maternity payments to support pregnant women and new mothers and to help them achieve a better balance between their work and home lives.

    Self-employed mothers can receive Maternity Allowance. The standard rate of Maternity Allowance is the same as the standard rate of Statutory Maternity Pay.

  • Nicholas Soames – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Nicholas Soames – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nicholas Soames on 2016-05-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, which organisations are consulted in advance of decisions taken on how many (a) doctors and (b) nurses will be trained each year.

    Ben Gummer

    It is Health Education England’s responsibility to ensure that there is sufficient future supply of staff, including doctors and nurses, to meet the workforce requirements of the English health system.

    The Workforce Plan is built upon the needs of local employers, providers, commissioners and other stakeholders who, as members of its Local Education Training Boards (LETBs), shape the 13 local plans.

    The Workforce Plan is predominately an aggregate of the local LETB plans, but the final national plan is only agreed with the advice and input of its clinical advisory groups and Patients’ Advisory Forum, as well as the Royal Colleges and other stakeholders.

  • Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead on 2016-07-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of Amnesty International’s report Our Hearts Have Gone Dark, what steps they have taken to ensure that the victims of serious health issues, including mental health, as a result of the conflict in South Sudan receive urgent and adequate care.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The UK is the second largest aid donor in South Sudan and leads the £200 million, five year, multi-donor Health Pooled Fund which provides primary health services, including mental health care, to over 8million people in eight states across South Sudan. The fund also supports the South Sudan Healthcare system to deliver lifesaving care, ranging from Primary Health Units in more remote areas to State Hospitals. Patients with serious illnesses, including mental health cases, are referred to the nearest centre able to provide care for them.

  • Tom Brake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Tom Brake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Brake on 2016-10-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to encourage clinical commissioning groups to abide in full by National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines on funding in vitro fertilisation.

    Nicola Blackwood

    Clinical commissioning groups have a legal duty to have regard to National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines. As such, NHS England expects that all those involved in commissioning infertility treatment services to be fully aware of the importance of having regard to the NICE fertility guidelines.

    Representatives from NHS England, the British Fertility Society and Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority are looking at how commissioning of in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) services could be improved. Commissioning of IVF will remain a local decision but there may be scope to improve the quality of commissioning through, for example, the development of a benchmark price that the National Health Service pays for infertility treatments and by encouraging the adoption of best practice when making clinical decisions.

  • Lord Hunt of Kings Heath – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Lord Hunt of Kings Heath – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 2016-01-26.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made, broken down by region and subject, of the current levels of qualified teachers.

    Lord Nash

    The information requested is not available.

    Latest figures show that 96 per cent of full-time equivalent teachers in service in state funded schools in England (November 2014) have qualified teacher status.

  • Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer on 2016-02-23.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will consider hosting a conference on the humanitarian consequences of nuclear war similar to those hosted by Oslo, Nayarit and Vienna.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The UK has no plans to host such a conference.

  • Kerry McCarthy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Kerry McCarthy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kerry McCarthy on 2016-03-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions she has had with her (a) ministerial colleagues and (b) the European Commission on the potential effects of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership on (i) animal welfare standards, (ii) environmental protection and (iii) food standards.

    George Eustice

    The Secretary of State has regular discussions on a range of trade matters with Ministerial colleagues.

    BIS Ministers lead UK engagement on TTIP supported by Defra on issues including animal welfare standards, environmental protection and food standards. The Food Standards Agency considers issues around food safety. These subjects were considered during Cabinet agreement of the UK’s priorities for TTIP. I have held discussions about TTIP with the European Commission and other Member States at Council meetings.

    Ministerial colleagues and I addressed environmental protection issues in detail in the Government’s written evidence to the recent House of Common’s Environmental Audit Committee’s inquiry into TTIP.

  • David Morris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    David Morris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Morris on 2016-04-15.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what assessment she has made of the likely timescale of type approval of first modular nuclear technology.

    Andrea Leadsom

    Any nuclear reactor or facility proposed for deployment in the UK will be subject to robust and independent regulatory scrutiny.

    Therefore, any small modular reactor (SMR) design proposed for construction would undergo safety, security and environmental design assessment. A reactor design would only be allowed to progress if the independent regulator was satisfied it was compliant with the UK’s stringent safety standards.

    At Budget 2016, the Government committed to publishing a SMR delivery roadmap that will clarify the UK’s plan for addressing SMR related regulatory approvals, along with siting and skills issues.