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Tag: 2016

  • Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-03-03.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate her Department has made of the additional (a) salary and (b) other costs which are incurred by schools in London, compared with those outside London; and if she will make a statement.

    Nick Gibb

    On Monday 7 March the Department published our consultation for a national funding formula, which is now open until 17 April. The consultation explains our proposals to use an area cost adjustment to reflect variation in labour market costs, given the significant impact of such costs to school spending. We are currently consulting on which methodology we should use to do this, and will bring forward our response in due course, once the consultation has closed.

  • Peter Aldous – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Peter Aldous – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Peter Aldous on 2016-04-11.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment his Department has made of the potential economic benefits of supported housing; and if he will make a statement.

    Greg Hands

    The Government is currently conducting an evidence review into supported housing. We expect this review to conclude in the Spring.

  • Kevin Brennan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Kevin Brennan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevin Brennan on 2016-05-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will make a comparative assessment of the effect of tariffs on steel imports in the EU and the US.

    Anna Soubry

    Each anti-dumping case is different. Moreover the levels of dumping and injury occurring in EU and US markets may be very different. The Government examines the evidence in all EU anti-dumping cases closely before taking a view.

    The Government believes that effective trade defence measures should be proportionate, not protectionist, and strike a balance between removing the injury to producers caused by dumping, and avoiding imposing unnecessary costs on user industries, retailers, consumers and the rest of the economy. The evidence we have to date is that duties that have been imposed on imports of Chinese steel into the EU have been effective in delivering rapid, substantial and sustained reductions in imports. For example, imports of wire rod, organic coated steel and stainless steel flat products are down by more than 90%.

    Where the European Commission has set duties that we believe to be too low to remove the injury caused to EU industry by dumped imports, we will push for them to be increased, as we have done in the reinforcing bar and cold rolled flat products cases.

  • Julian Sturdy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Julian Sturdy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julian Sturdy on 2016-06-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what discussions her Department has had with HM Treasury on the effect of the planned 2017 business rate revaluation on small solar PV systems.

    Andrea Leadsom

    Business rates are calculated based on a property’s ‘rateable value’. The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) is responsible for determining the rateable values in line with existing legislation and case law. I understand that the VOA is currently consulting with the solar industry over how those rateable values will apply to solar installations from 1st April 2017.

  • Alison Thewliss – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Alison Thewliss – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alison Thewliss on 2016-09-13.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many HM Revenue and Customs staff were employed in Scotland in each year since 2006.

    Jane Ellison

    The number of HM Revenue and Customs staff employed in Scotland each year since 2006 is shown in the following table.

    Year Ending

    Head Count

    31/03/2006

    11,415

    31/03/2007

    11,464

    31/03/2008

    11,018

    31/03/2009

    11,160

    31/03/2010

    10,031

    31/03/2011

    9,860

    31/03/2012

    9,839

    31/03/2013

    9,437

    31/03/2014

    8,959

    31/03/2015

    8,331

    31/03/2016

    9,147
  • Baroness Crawley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Baroness Crawley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Crawley on 2016-01-20.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of whether there is a conflict between HMRC piloting the tobacco industry’s Codentify system and its legal action against tobacco companies for failing to control their supply chains.

    Lord O’Neill of Gatley

    HMRC is piloting the Codentify system as a product authentication tool that could help tackle the illicit tobacco market.

    This has no bearing on the obligations placed on tobacco companies to control their supply chains or on any action taken by HMRC to ensure compliance with these obligations.

  • Caroline Nokes – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Caroline Nokes – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Nokes on 2016-02-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans she has to improve the teaching of personal, social, health and economic education and sex and relationship education in schools that Ofsted inspectors have assessed as requiring improvement in the teaching of those subjects.

    Edward Timpson

    This Government believes that all children should have the opportunity to receive a high quality and appropriate sex and relationship education (SRE). SRE is compulsory in all maintained secondary schools and many primary schools also teach it in an age-appropriate way. The Government also expects academies and free schools to deliver SRE as part of their provision of a broad and balanced curriculum.

    Any state-funded school teaching SRE must have regard to the Secretary of State’s SRE guidance (2000). The Department does not collect data about the number of schools that follow the guidance. The Department has received requests about updating the existing SRE guidance which we will carefully consider.

    Ofsted does not inspect individual curriculum subjects. However, aspects of Personal Social, Health and Economic (PSHE) education and SRE will inform its judgment on personal development, behaviour and welfare. Inspectors must also consider the spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of pupils. Schools have responsibility for acting upon the inspection reports they receive and any weaknesses will be considered when the school is next inspected.

    Initial Teacher Training is currently determined by the Teachers’ Standards, which all trainee teachers must be able to demonstrate by the end of their training. The Standards set out the key principles of good subject pedagogy and the importance of subject knowledge development across the curriculum. Schools and headteachers are best placed to determine which staff learning activities will be most beneficial for their schools and we expect them to lead the personal development of their teachers to improve the quality of all round teaching.

    The Department supports schools’ efforts to improve PSHE teaching, by drawing schools’ attention to a range of high quality PSHE education teaching resources, including quality resources, lesson plans, a programme of study, factsheets and case studies. These resources are kite-marked by the PSHE Association to ensure that schools can trust the materials they use and improve their teaching.

  • Melanie Onn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Melanie Onn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Melanie Onn on 2016-03-03.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, if she will estimate the change in the number of jobs that will be lost in the solar industry as a result of the early closure of the renewables obligation.

    Andrea Leadsom

    The Department of Energy and Climate Change does not maintain data on the number of jobs in the solar industry. In order to support the path to subsidy-free solar deployment, we have decided to keep the Feed-in-Tariff scheme open, and expect that the scheme could support 15,000-23,000 jobs in the sector.

    We expect subsidy-free solar to be an increasingly attractive option. Lightsource, the biggest solar developer in the UK, have said publically that they will be installing and connecting subsidy-free sites in 2016.

  • Richard Arkless – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Richard Arkless – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Arkless on 2016-04-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions his Department has had with television channel and radio station providers on inclusion and the representation of disability in mainstream media.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    The government is encouraging the industry to be proactive in increasing diversity on and off screen – including in the representation of disabled people. I have hosted a number of roundtables that have addressed this issue, including a conference in January, which raised the wider issue of lack of representation of disabled people in the creative industries.

  • Ian Blackford – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Ian Blackford – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Blackford on 2016-05-18.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment he has made of the main reasons for recent changes in the death rate.

    Mr Rob Wilson

    The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.