Tag: 2016

  • Karl Turner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Karl Turner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Karl Turner on 2016-02-03.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 29 January 2016 to Question 24371, how many Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) staff carried out complete checks on vessels working in all sulphur dioxide emission control areas contiguous with the UK coastline in 2015; and how many MCA staff will carry out this work in 2016.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) Marine Surveyors carry out a full range of Port State Control (PSC) and inspection tasks including assessment of compliance with environmental requirements such as the use of low sulphur fuel forming part of their normal duties.

    Surveyor resources are not dedicated to specific tasks and inspections will consider a range of safety and environmental issues so it is not possible to disaggregate staff numbers on this specific issue.

    In 2015, there were 74 qualified and accredited MCA Marine Surveyors carrying out PSC inspection activity, including that related to sulphur compliance across the UK.

    In 2016, there are 64 qualified and accredited MCA Marine Surveyors who have been supplemented by a further 30 trained sulphur inspectors.

  • Ian Murray – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Scotland Office

    Ian Murray – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Scotland Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Murray on 2016-03-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what recent discussions he has had with Ministers in the Scottish Government on the recent report from the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, Uneven Growth: Tackling City Decline and its ranking of Dundee as seventh highest on its index of relative decline.

    David Mundell

    I am aware of the Joseph Rowntree Foundation report and the issues it raises. The Government is committed to growing the economy across the UK and empowering Cities to realise their potential.

    Last week my Parliamentary Under Secretary of State, Lord Dunlop, participated in a Jobs Summit in Dundee along with the Scottish Government, Dundee City Council and others aimed at boosting employment in the area and regenerating one of our finest Scottish cities. Following the summit we have committed to work with interested parties to drive forward investment in Dundee.

  • Royston Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Royston Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

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

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if her Department will issue guidance to schools on the terminology used for children who do not reach the national standard grade under the proposed reforms to Key Stage 2.

    Nick Gibb

    Schools have been informed that pupil outcomes will be described as meeting or not meeting the expected standard in the Key Stage 2 (KS2) tests. Pupils who do not meet the expected standard in the teacher assessment of writing will be awarded one of a number of standards: Foundations for the expected standard, Early development of the expected standard, Growing development of the expected standard or Working towards the expected standard. The Standards and Testing Agency will provide additional guidance on scaled scores in July 2016.

    Schools are required to report to parents of year 6 children their child’s scaled scores for the KS2 tests; whether they have met the expected standard or not; and their teacher assessed standards for English writing, English reading, mathematics and science. Schools are also required to give parents more general information about the child’s achievements, general progress and attendance record. This is intended to give a more comprehensive view of a child’s overall achievements at the end of the key stage than just their attainment in the national curriculum assessments. The Department does not prescribe the terminology to be used in these reports.

    We expect schools to ensure that children’s achievements are reported in a professional and appropriate manner.

  • Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-04-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions he has had with the Northern Ireland Assembly on increasing connectivity with Northern Ireland through expansion of Heathrow.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    There have been no recent discussions with the Northern Ireland Assembly on increasing connectivity with Northern Ireland through expansion of Heathrow.

  • Nic Dakin – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Nic Dakin – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nic Dakin on 2016-06-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 6 June 2016 to Question 38720, if his Department will make an assessment of the likely effect on the free services currently being offered by community pharmacies of planned changes to funding.

    Alistair Burt

    The proposals for community pharmacy in 2016/17 and beyond are being considered in respect of the public sector equality duty, the family test and relevant duties of the Secretary of State under the National Health Service Act 2006. This includes the potential impact on quality or on the services offered by community pharmacies.

  • Graham Evans – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Graham Evans – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Graham Evans on 2016-09-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps she is taking to ensure that public-facing staff at sports venues have disability equality awareness training.

    Tracey Crouch

    I refer my Honourable friend to the answer to PQ 44837, answered on 7th September.

  • David Crausby – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    David Crausby – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Crausby on 2016-10-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many applications for a visitor’s visa have been (a) received and (b) refused in each of the last five years.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    The information requested for the last 5 calendar years is published in table vi_01_q (visa data tables volume 1) in ‘Immigration Statistics, April – June 2016’, available from the Home Office website at:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/immigration-statistics-april-to-june-2016/list-of-tables#visas

  • Daniel Zeichner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Daniel Zeichner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2016-01-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, for what reason passenger cars have been exempted from the proposed clean air zones in her Department’s plan to reduce nitrogen dioxide emissions.

    Rory Stewart

    Local Authorities already have powers under Part 3 of the Transport Act 2000 which can be used to establish Clean Air Zones. Vehicles have to comply with European emissions standards in order to be put on the market and we have been pushing strongly for action to improve the standards and for real driving emission testing to be introduced as quickly as possible.

    As set out in our air quality plan for reducing nitrogen dioxide emissions, published on 17 December 2015, we will be requiring five cities in England to introduce Clean Air Zones and discourage certain types of vehicles from entering them. The plan identifies different categories of Clean Air Zone which may be appropriate depending on the circumstances of a particular Local Authority introducing a zone. However, the plan explains that, for those five cities, we have assessed that we can bring the UK into compliance with nitrogen dioxide limits without requiring the Local Authorities to impose restrictions on passenger cars. Further, the plan sets out the Mayor of London’s commitment to introduce an Ultra Low Emission Zone by September 2020 covering a range of vehicles, including passenger cars.

  • Lord Addington – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Lord Addington – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Addington on 2016-02-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what role the National College for Teaching and Learning has in formulating the criteria for qualified teacher status.

    Lord Nash

    The National College for Teaching and Leadership (NCTL) had no role in the formulation of the Teachers’ Standards. The Teachers’ Standards were published by the Secretary of State in 2011.

    The National College for Teaching and Leadership publishes the Initial Teacher Training (ITT) Criteria. These set out entry, training, management and quality assurance criteria with which all accredited providers of ITT must comply. Ofsted uses these criteria when it inspects ITT providers.

    The Criteria are attached, and can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/434608/ITT_criteria.pdf

    “

  • Lord Clement-Jones – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Lord Clement-Jones – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Clement-Jones on 2016-02-29.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they support the proposal that NHS England will only pay for patients participating in data collection under the new NICE conditional approval route.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    NHS England and the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence have proposed that, where a drug is recommended for use within the Cancer Drugs Fund (CDF), its entry into the Fund would be subject to the company agreeing to fund the collection of a pre-determined data set, during a period normally lasting no longer than 24 months, and a commercial access arrangement which is affordable within the available CDF budget.

    Access by eligible patients will not be restricted to the number of patients considered necessary for data collection, but any costs for treatment over and above this number will be paid for by the company.

    At its meeting on 25 February 2016, the NHS England Board agreed a way forward which will see the new operating model going live on 1 July 2016.

    The Accelerated Access Review is looking at ways to better use data on treatments and outcomes from initiatives, such as the CDF, to drive innovation, adoption and reimbursement of novel treatments.