The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2016-01-21.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent representations he has received from charities and families on the effectiveness of the operation of the Fatal Accidents Act 1976.
Caroline Dinenage
One piece of Ministerial correspondence has been received in the last six months concerning the family of a deceased person affected by the 1976 Act.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Craig Whittaker on 2016-02-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with the Saudi Arabian government on tackling the spread of Daesh in the Middle East.
Mr Tobias Ellwood
We regularly hold discussions with Saudi Arabia about the threat from Daesh. Saudi Arabia has been at the forefront of international efforts to defeat Daesh and was one of the first countries to participate in air strikes against Daesh in Syria. The King and the religious establishment continue clearly and publicly to condemn Daesh and its poisonous ideology, and to emphasise that Daesh do not in any way represent the teachings of Islamic faith.
The Saudi Arabian Government is working to reduce the threat that religious extremists pose in Saudi Arabia and elsewhere. It has a comprehensive set of laws in place to prevent terrorist financing, which it enforces vigorously. We welcome the recent announcement of the creation of the Islamic Military Coalition which, among other things, aims to help Islamic countries to counter the threat from terrorism. Regional and Arab countries are best placed to tackle extremism and confront Daesh on the ground.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2016-03-14.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what reports his Department has received on alleged mistreatment and torture of British citizens in detention in the United Arab Emirates since 2011.
Mr Tobias Ellwood
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) Consular Directorate is aware of 37 cases of British nationals who have made allegations of torture or mistreatment in detention in the United Arab Emirates since and including 2011. The FCO takes all allegations or concerns of torture and mistreatment seriously and takes action appropriate to the circumstances of each case, including raising these with the Emirati authorities where we have permission from the individual.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nadine Dorries on 2016-04-12.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of his Department’s policies to tackle bank fraud and scams; and if he will make a statement.
Harriett Baldwin
The Government takes all types of fraud, including those targeted at banks’ customers, extremely seriously.
The Home Office is the lead Government department on crime, including fraud, and crime prevention overall. In February 2016, the Home Secretary announced a new Joint Fraud Taskforce. The Taskforce is a collaboration of banks, law enforcement and Government. This is the first time these organisations have come together to tackle fraud, and particularly to focus on those issues that have been considered too difficult for a single organisation to manage alone. The Taskforce seeks to identify the issues that will make the biggest difference to our collective fight against fraud.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord McConnell of Glenscorrodale on 2016-05-19.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to become a founding donor of the Education Cannot Wait fund for education in emergencies at its launch at the World Humanitarian Summit, and how much they intend to donate in 2016.
Baroness Verma
The UK has played a leading role in the development of the Education Cannot Wait fund for education in emergencies and protracted crises, which was launched at the World Humanitarian Summit on 23rd May. The UK has committed to provide £30 million in support over two years to the new fund as a founding donor, which was announced by the International Development Secretary at the fund’s launch event at the World Humanitarian Summit.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-07-13.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will hold discussions with credit card companies on steps to support people who have large credit card debts related to shopping.
Simon Kirby
The Government has fundamentally reformed regulation of the consumer credit market, which includes the credit card sector. Consumer credit regulation transferred from the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) to the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) on 1 April 2014.
The FCA is currently undertaking a thorough review of the credit card market through its ‘credit card market study’. The market study is investigating three areas, one of which is the extent of unaffordable credit card debt. On 3 November 2015 the FCA published its interim report which found that the market was working reasonably well for most customers. However, the FCA expressed concern about the scale of potentially problematic debt in this sector, and the incentives for firms to manage this.
The interim report also included the FCA’s early thinking on potential remedies which include measures to give consumers more control over their credit limits, measures to encourage customers to pay off debt quicker when they can afford to, and proposals that firms do more to identify earlier those consumers who may be struggling to repay and take action to help them manage their repayments. The FCA is currently asking for feedback on the findings and potential remedies.
The Government is looking forward to the final report in Q3 2016, and would encourage interested parties to give their views to the FCA to assist it in addressing the issues it has identified.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Martyn Day on 2016-09-15.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when his Department expects an updated Strategic Noise Map for Edinburgh Airport to be available.
Mr John Hayes
As noise is a devolved matter, the UK Government is not able to answer questions on noise mapping for Scottish airports. This is the responsibility of the Scottish Government and they will be able to advise on this matter.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jonathan Edwards on 2016-01-21.
To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what discussions he has had with the Welsh Government on Tata Steel’s recent announcement on job losses.
Stephen Crabb
The recent announcement of job losses at Port Talbot is another hammer blow to the industry and the wider South Wales economy.
I have had regular contact with the Welsh Government Minister for Economy, Science and Transport since the announcement. With the Minister for Small Business, Industry and Enterprise, I have offered the UK Government’s full commitment to working collaboratively with the Welsh Government.
My Ministerial colleague, Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth, has also accepted an invitation from the Welsh Government to be part of a High Level Task Force charged with supporting everyone affected by the job losses at Port Talbot.
Our immediate priority is to support those who have suffered job losses and to ensure the industry has a sustainable future in Wales.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Keith Vaz on 2016-02-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the salaries are of the directors of each clinical commissioning group in Leicestershire.
Alistair Burt
Information about the salaries of the directors of clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) is published in each CCG’s annual report, which are available on the CCGs’ websites.
East Leicestershire and Rutland CCG’s annual report can be found at:
https://eastleicestershireandrutlandccg.nhs.uk/about-us/publications/reports-and-plans/
West Leicestershire CCG’s annual report can be found at:
http://www.westleicestershireccg.nhs.uk/page/corporate-documents
Leicester City CCG’s annual report can be found at:
https://www.leicestercityccg.nhs.uk/about-us/strategies-and-reports/
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Amess on 2016-03-14.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, with reference to the Annual Report of the National Clinical Audit for Rheumatoid and Early Inflammatory Arthritis, published on 22 January 2016, what steps he is taking to ensure that patients with suspected inflammatory arthritis have their first specialist appointment within the three weeks recommended by NICE.
Jane Ellison
National Clinical Audits are commissioned and managed on behalf of NHS England by the Healthcare Quality Improvement Partnership (HQIP). Audits help drive improvement by providing local trusts with individual benchmarked reports on their performance against a range of measures, feeding back comparative findings to help participants identify necessary improvements for patients
The first annual report of the national clinical audit of rheumatoid and early inflammatory arthritis was published on 22 January 2016. The report identifies that although most services offer prompt educational support and agree targets for treatment with their patients, performance against criteria for referral and assessment could be improved. Since the audit, HQIP has reported that a number of trusts have successfully reconfigured their services in order to improve patient care. More information can be found at the following link:
www.hqip.org.uk/national-programmes/a-z-of-nca/arthritis-rheumatoid-and-early-inflammatory
To help clinicians to identify the symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and make prompt referrals to specialists, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) published Rheumatoid arthritis: The management of rheumatoid arthritis in adults, in 2009. This best practice guideline sets out the signs and symptoms of the disease and emphasises the need for early diagnosis with urgent referral to a specialist rheumatologist on suspicion of RA. For those diagnosed with the condition, the guidance also recommends they should be offered the opportunity to take part in educational activities, including self-management programmes.
The NICE RA quality standard (QS), published in 2013, is based on the NICE guideline, and one of the seven quality statements recommends that people with suspected RA are assessed in a rheumatology service within three weeks of referral. However, whilst providers and commissioners must have regard to these standards in planning and delivering services, they do not provide a comprehensive service specification and are not mandatory.
Regarding the establishment of early arthritis clinics, the configuration of services, including decisions to such arthritis clinics, is a matter for the local National Health Service.
The latest monthly workforce statistics published by the Health and Social Care Information Centre showed that, as of November 2015, there were 563 full time equivalent rheumatology consultants employed in the NHS. This is an increase of 119 (26.8%) since May 2010. The recruitment and retention of staff is matter for local NHS services.