Tag: 2016

  • Lord Pendry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Lord Pendry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Pendry on 2016-03-23.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with the International Tennis Federation about the issue of equal prize money for men and women in tennis tournaments.

    Baroness Neville-Rolfe

    HMG has had no such discussions.

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

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

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 2016-05-04.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what formal public consultation will need to take place when Sustainability and Transformation Plans are given approval by NHS England.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    Where Sustainability and Transformation plans envisage changes to the way that NHS services are commissioned or delivered, it will be the responsibility of the relevant clinical commissioning groups to involve patients and the public in considering and making decisions on those proposals, in line with their duties under the National Health Service Act 2006.

  • Karen Lumley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Karen Lumley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Karen Lumley on 2016-06-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that British manufacturers have fair access to the tendering process to promote the use of UK parts in foreign-made railway trains on the UK rail network.

    Claire Perry

    We are encouraging SMEs, new entrants and innovators to work with the industry to identify and take advantage of initiatives benefitting the supply chain and improving access to the market to ensure that the UK remains competitive and develops the capacity for orders at home and abroad. It should be noted that over 2,000 railway vehicles are currently on order (being manufactured or to be manufactured) in the UK.

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

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

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 2016-09-05.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the reasons for the Basildon Clinical Commissioning Group spending less than the national average on mental health services, according to NHS Benchmarking figures.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    No such assessment has been made by this Department. NHS England advises that the National Health Service benchmarking data for 2014/15 (the latest data available) shows that, compared to a demographically similar cluster of clinical commissioning groups (CCGs), Basildon and Brentwood CCG spends slightly more than the cluster average on mental health services (£13,499,988 per 100,000 population against £13,080,187) and is therefore not considered an outlier. This analysis of the benchmarking data is used because within the CCG cluster the prevalence of mental health conditions, and therefore the appropriate spending, is likely to be comparable.

  • David Warburton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    David Warburton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Warburton on 2016-10-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what support her Department is giving to rural nurseries to ensure they are able to meet the Government’s commitment of providing 30 free hours of childcare.

    Caroline Dinenage

    We have recently consulted on a comprehensive set of reforms to the early years funding system, and one of our proposals is to allow local authorities to use a rurality/sparsity supplement in their local funding formulae, in recognition that there may be unavoidable higher costs to providers operating in sparsely populated, rural areas with limited demand. We are currently considering all responses to the consultation and are planning to publish the government’s response in the autumn.

    We are also keen to gather learning and test how the extended entitlement will operate in a range of area types, including rural areas. Through Early Implementation of the 30 Hours Free Childcare entitlement, Northumberland, one of our early implementer local authorities, is looking specifically at how the extended hours work for and impact on providers operating within the most rural postcodes in Northumberland. Since September, over 500 children in rural parts of Northumberland have been benefiting from a 30 hours free childcare place a year early.

  • MiDavies – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    MiDavies – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by MiDavies on 2016-01-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 8 December 2015 to Question 18753, whether the assessment of the FRANK website was based solely on preventing drug use.

    Karen Bradley

    The purpose of the Frank website survey 2013 was to assess: website users’ experiences, the information they accessed, their general satisfaction with the website and their intended behaviour after visiting the website.

  • Andrew Gwynne – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Andrew Gwynne – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2016-02-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much his Department has paid out in compensation to (a) internal and (b) external claimants in each year since 2010.

    Mark Lancaster

    The amounts paid as a result of claims brought by internal and external claimants including claimants’ legal costs from Financial Year (FY) 2010-11 to FY2013-14 are shown below. The costs for FY 2014-15 are being finalised and will be published shortly.

    Internal Claimants

    The amounts paid in compensation, including claimants’ legal costs, for claims brought against the Ministry of Defence (MOD) by members and former members of HM Forces and civilian employees since 2010 are as follows:

    Employers Liabilty Claims (including Service personnel and civilian staff)

    FY 2010-11

    FY 2011-12

    FY 2012-13

    FY 2013-14

    £83.9 million

    £62.0 million

    £69.5 million

    £58.5 million

    The vast majority of clinical negligence claims are brought by current or former members of HM Armed Forces but a small number will relate to their dependants treated in MOD medical facilities. The amounts paid in compensation, including claimants’ legal costs, for these claims since 2010 are as follows:

    Clinical Negligence Claims

    FY 2010-11

    FY 2011-12

    FY 2012-13

    FY 2013-14

    £17.0 million

    £6.7 million

    £7.1 million

    £5.8 million

    External Claimants

    Public Liability Claims

    The amounts paid in compensation, including claimants’ legal costs, for public liability claims brought against the MOD by third parties, including civilians both in the UK and overseas, relating to personal injury or property damage since 2010 are as follows:

    FY 2010-11

    2011-12

    2012-13

    2013-14

    £5.4 million

    £10.0 million

    £25.0 million

    £11.1 million

    Third Party Motor Claims in UK

    The amounts paid in compensation, including claimants’ legal costs, for claims brought against the MOD by third parties involved in collisions with MOD-operated vehicles since 2010 are as follows:

    FY 2010-11

    FY 2011-12

    FY 2012-13

    FY 2013-14

    £5.6 million

    £6.7 million

    £4.8 million

    £5.0 million

    Area Claims Offices

    The amounts paid in compensation, including claimants’ legal costs, for claims brought against the MOD by third parties that are managed by the MODs regional Area Claims Offices since 2010 are as follows:

    FY 2010-11

    FY 2011-12

    FY 2012-13

    FY 2013-14

    £3.0 million

    £1.8 million

    £1.7 million

    £1.5 million

  • John Spellar – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    John Spellar – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Spellar on 2016-03-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether (a) Health Education England and (b) the Department of Health consulted his Department over the workforce need of the armed services and defence contractors before deciding to reduce training commissions for physiotherapists in 2016-17.

    Mark Lancaster

    The Ministry of Defence has not been consulted.

  • Royston Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Royston Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Royston Smith on 2016-03-23.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps the Government plans to take to ensure institutions and organisations in receipt of public funds do not express a corporate opinion on the forthcoming EU referendum.

    John Penrose

    The rules on campaigning at the referendum are set out in the European Union Referendum Act 2015 and the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000. There is no general restriction on institutions and organisations in receipt of public funds expressing a corporate opinion on the European Union Referendum. However, there are restrictions on organisations whose expenses are met wholly or mainly from public funds publishing certain material relating to the referendum in the final 28 days.

    As the independent regulator for charities in England and Wales, the Charity Commission published guidance for charities on 7 March 2016 regarding the forthcoming EU referendum. This clearly sets out the threshold necessary to justify any charitable activity on this specific issue.

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

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

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Byford on 2016-05-04.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, of the 1,103 claims to the Flood Recovery Fund made by farmers in Cumbria, Northumberland, Lancashire, Yorkshire, County Durham and Greater Manchester, (1) who is responsible for approving those claims, (2) how many have been paid, and (3) what is the total value of those claims.

    Lord Gardiner of Kimble

    Whilst the Farming Recovery Fund is not competitive, farmers wishing to apply to the Fund have to submit a formal application with evidence to support their need for a grant to contribute to the restoration of farmland badly affected by Storms Desmond or Eva. Payments are made to farmers once the work has been carried out and a claim has been submitted.

    The Rural Payments Agency (RPA) is responsible for determining the eligibility of Farming Recovery Fund applications, issuing grant funding agreements to eligible applicants, and receiving, processing and paying claims for costs incurred under those grant funding agreements.

    The RPA received 1,103 applications for a total value of grant of £11,429,194 by the closing dates for the scheme. As of 5 May 2016, 209 applications have been approved with a total value of £1,947,738. A further 20 applications, with a value of £265,440, have been either rejected as ineligible or withdrawn by the applicant.

    Of the projects approved, 29 have been completed and have submitted claims with a value of £202,268. 13 of these claims have been paid with a total value of £78,504.