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Tag: 2016

  • Jonathan Ashworth – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Jonathan Ashworth – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jonathan Ashworth on 2016-04-27.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many families of deceased civil servants received death in service benefits in each of the last six years.

    Matthew Hancock

    Civil servants are eligible to be a member of either the Principal Civil Service Pension Scheme (PCSPS) or the Public Service (Civil Servants and Others) Pension Scheme (CSOPS) subject to when they joined the Civil Service. Depending on which scheme they are in, a lump sum death benefit of either two or three times the civil servant’s final pay is payable on their death in service, plus a pension to a surviving spouse or civil partner and any eligible children. Details of the benefits payable are in the rules of the schemes which are available at http://www.civilservicepensionscheme.org.uk/about-us/scheme-rules

    The lump sum payable on death in service is payable to whoever the scheme member has nominated to receive it (this can be an individual or a corporate body such as a charity). The number of death benefit lump sums paid in each of the last 6 years is as follows:

    Scheme Year Number of death in service cases

    2010/2011 1195

    2011/2012 1119

    2012/2013 1007

    2013/2014 904

    2014/2015 664

    2015/2016 447

  • Lilian Greenwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lilian Greenwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lilian Greenwood on 2016-06-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 26 May 2016 to Question 37807, on Thameslink railway line: rolling stock, whether he expects the Class 700 Thameslink rolling stock to come into revenue-earning service in 2016.

    Claire Perry

    The new Class 700 Thameslink trains are expected to enter into revenue earning service shortly.

  • Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-09-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many dairy farmers there were in each of the last five years.

    George Eustice

    The number of dairy farms in England from 2011 to 2015 is shown below along with the number of cows in the dairy herd on these farms. The source of cattle population data is the administrative Cattle Tracing System (CTS) data.

    Year

    Number of dairy farms(a)

    Number of cows in the dairy herd

    2011

    9 041

    1 112 459

    2012

    8 663

    1 104 676

    2013

    8 342

    1 098 610

    2014

    8 092

    1 128 548

    2015

    7 982

    1 148 089

    (a) Sourced from Cattle Tracing System (CTS). Defined as the number of holdings with more than 10 female dairy cows over 2 years old in the milking herd (i.e. with offspring)

  • Chi Onwurah – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    Chi Onwurah – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chi Onwurah on 2016-10-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment his Department has made of the energy-saving capacity of 5v USB outlets; and what assessment he has made of their potential effect on national domestic energy consumption.

    Joseph Johnson

    The Department has not made a specific assessment of whether 5v USB outlets offer any energy-saving capacity nor of their effect on national energy consumption.

  • Tim Loughton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Tim Loughton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Loughton on 2016-01-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what contingency arrangements her Department has made for the eventuality of a majority leave vote in the upcoming EU referendum.

    Mr Nick Hurd

    I refer the Honourable Member to the answer provided by my Right Honourable Friend the Prime Minister on Thursday 14 January 2016 (UIN: 21952).

  • Lord Jones of Cheltenham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Lord Jones of Cheltenham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Jones of Cheltenham on 2016-02-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they intend to take against landlords who fail to maintain their properties in a safe and fit state of repair.

    Baroness Williams of Trafford

    The Housing Health and Safety Rating System assesses the health and safety risks in all residential properties. Under the Housing Act 2004, following an Rating System inspection, if a local authority identifies a serious hazard they can take action, including issuing an Improvement Notice or a Hazard Awareness Notice. In extreme circumstances, the local authority may decide to make repairs themselves, or to prohibit that property from being rented out. Where a landlord fails to comply with a statutory notice, this is an offence, and they can be prosecuted by the local authority. From October 2015 we introduced protection for tenants from retaliatory eviction, where they have a legitimate complaint about the condition of the property.

    The Housing and Planning Bill will strengthen local authorities’ ability and incentives to tackle rogue landlords by introducing measures including:

    • A database of rogue landlords and property agents convicted of certain offences;
    • Banning orders for the most serious and prolific offenders;
    • Civil penalties of up to £30,000 as an alternative to prosecution;
    • Extension of Rent Repayment Orders to cover illegal eviction, breach of a banning order or failure to comply with a statutory notice;
    • A more stringent fit and proper person test for landlords of licensable properties such as Houses in Multiple Occupation.

    My Department also recently announced a further £5 million of funding across 48 local authorities to tackle the worst rogue landlords in their areas.

  • Lord Warner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Lord Warner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

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

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of paragraph 16 of the agreement between the Scottish and UK governments on the Scottish fiscal framework, whether there is any obligation on the Scottish Government (1) to spend all or a certain proportion of the money passed to them for NHS services under the Barnett formula on those services; or (2) to account to the Scottish Parliament for not doing so.

    Lord O’Neill of Gatley

    The mechanical application of the Barnett Formula ensures that the Scottish Parliament, Welsh Assembly and Northern Ireland Assembly receive a population share of changes in UK government funding on the services for which they have devolved responsibility. In accordance with the principles of devolution and the devolution Acts themselves, it is for the devolved administrations to decide how to allocate their funding (from the block grant or taxes/borrowing) to public services in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland; and it is for the devolved legislatures to hold them to account. The Scottish Government’s new fiscal framework does not alter this.

  • Richard Burden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Richard Burden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what routine responsibilities are required of Amey by Highways England in its maintenance and response contract for the East Midlands.

    Andrew Jones

    The Maintenance and Response (M&R) Contractor for Area 7. Amey Highways Ltd, will be required to undertake cyclic and reactive maintenance, incident response, severe weather response and traffic management across the East Midlands and Lincolnshire. This includes :

    Cyclic and reactive maintenance:

    • Schedule and deliver the annual programme of cyclical work to meet requirements in the most efficient and effective way
    • Carry out defect repairs to the requirements for each asset type

    Incident Response:

    • Attend incident, assess and advise Area 7 Control
    • Make safe and clear up, including environmental containment
    • Act as lead if other parts of the Highways England supply chain is used
    • Carry out associated defect repairs
    • Act as the on-road incident support function for Area 7
    • Be Principal Contractor if other contractors are used

    Severe Weather Response:

    • Provide severe weather response for winter, flooding and high winds
    • Work with Highways England on weather intelligence to be prepared and proactive
    • Provide trained driver / operatives to cover the full winter service
    • Maintain vehicles and equipment
    • Provide fuel used by fleet and management of salt

    Traffic Management (TM):

    • Provide TM for all M&R cyclical work
    • Provide TM for all reactive work, including incidents
    • Provide TM for Highways England activities and Support Services, including inspections and technical survey work
    • Provide TM for events when requested

  • Karl McCartney – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Karl McCartney – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Karl McCartney on 2016-04-27.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what representations he has received on the potential merits of exempting drivers between the ages of 17 and 25 who have telematics car insurance policies from insurance premium tax.

    Harriett Baldwin

    HM Treasury receives representations on a wide variety of issues. We have received representations from parts of the insurance industry indicating that they would support a reduction in, or exemption from, Insurance Premium Tax for telematics insurance policies, particularly for young drivers. We keep all taxes under review.

  • Roger Godsiff – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Roger Godsiff – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2016-06-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what information his Department collects on the (a) cost of tribunal hearings for sanctioned jobseeker’s allowance claimants and (b) costs of tribunals for other benefits.

    Mr Shailesh Vara

    Her Majesty’s Courts & Tribunals Service (HMCTS) cannot isolate cost data relating to specific benefit types. I refer the hon Member to my answer to PQ 39104, which states that the estimated average cost of a tribunal case for all benefits in the First Tier Tribunal (Social Entitlement Chamber) in 2014/15 (the latest period for which figures are available) was £468.