UKPOL.CO.UK

Tag: 2016

  • Jon Trickett – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Jon Trickett – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jon Trickett on 2016-06-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the effect of the extension of the mental health officer pension age to 65 on the health and income of pension scheme members with Mental Health Officer status.

    Alistair Burt

    Mental Health Officer status is a reserved right for members who joined the NHS Pension Scheme before 6 March 1995 and have continued working in a role that qualifies for this status. The historic rationale for Mental Health Officer status related to working in long stay mental hospitals that no longer exist. It was clearly inappropriate and unnecessary to retain different pension arrangements for staff working in mental health to other National Health Service staff. This was recognised in 1995 when it was removed for new entrants.

    When the normal pension age (NPA) for new members of the scheme changed to 65 in 2008, the only Mental Health Officers with an NPA of 65 are those who, at the time, chose to transfer to the 2008 section of the scheme. Those who did not transfer retained their Mental Health Officer status. As part of the Hutton reforms to public service pensions, scheme members who on 1 April 2012 were not within 10 years of their NPA moved to the 2015 scheme for future service with an NPA the same as their state pension age. Most Mental Health Officers were within 10 years of their NPA of 55 and so were unaffected. A minority of Mental Health Officers did transfer to the 2015 scheme but all their benefits earned up to that point are fully protected and payable in accordance with Mental Health Officer status rules, so without reduction at 55 and including a calculation to reflect the doubling of the value of some service for accrual purposes.

    The Working Longer Group, a partnership group of nationally recognised NHS trade unions, NHS employers and health department representatives, was established by the Government to review the implications of the NHS workforce working to a later, raised retirement age. The Group is taking forward its recommendations, accepted by Ministers, to support staff working longer in the NHS.

  • Peter Kyle – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Peter Kyle – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Peter Kyle on 2016-09-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what progress has been made by the Apprenticeship Delivery Board.

    Robert Halfon

    The Apprenticeship Delivery Board was announced in July 2015 and launched in January 2016. Board members are senior figures representing eight key sectors with potential for apprenticeship growth.

    Board members have input to the apprenticeship reforms, supported the Get In Go Far campaign, helped to achieve 500,000 apprenticeship starts in the 2014/15 academic year, and are targeting major employers to advocate the case for apprenticeships.

    An evaluation of the impact of the board is planned and will report its findings in January 2017.

  • Lord Naseby – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Leader of the House of Lords

    Lord Naseby – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Leader of the House of Lords

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Naseby on 2016-01-20.

    To ask the Leader of the House whether she will set up a working party to consider the combining of the contents of the Companion to the Standing Orders with those parts of Erskine May that refer to the House of Lords in order to produce a single reference volume reflecting the law, privilege, proceedings and usage of Parliament as applicable to the House.

    Baroness Stowell of Beeston

    The Companion to the Standing Orders is the single authoritative statement of practice and procedure of the House, issued with the authority of the Procedure Committee.


    Erskine May is edited by the Clerk of the House of Commons. It contains some additional information about the history and privileges of Parliament, including the House of Lords, and Lords Clerks contribute to its production, but for the House of Lords the resulting text does not have the authoritative status that it does in the House of Commons. For this reason, and in order to keep the Companion a manageable length, I do not propose to pursue amalgamation of the texts into a single volume.

  • Christopher Chope – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Christopher Chope – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christopher Chope on 2016-02-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, with reference to the recital in paragraph one of section C of the revised version of the draft EU decision on a new settlement for the UK, what assessment he has made of whether the objectives of political integration enjoys wide support in the union.

    Mr David Lidington

    There is clearly support in some governments within the European Union for further political integration, but there are other, more sceptical voices, too. The recital in paragraph one of section C makes clear that “the United Kingdom, in the light of the specific situation it has under the Treaties, is not committed to further political integration into the European Union”.

  • Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2016-03-03.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions he has had with Ministers of the devolved administrations on proposals to end the statutory supervision of midwives.

    Ben Gummer

    Ministers in the devolved administrations have been briefed by their Chief Nursing Officers who have been closely involved in the discussions on the changes to statutory supervision of midwives.

    The Department will soon be launching a full public consultation on a Section 60 Order (of the Health Act 1999) on midwifery regulation which includes a proposal to remove statutory midwifery supervision from the Nursing and Midwifery Council’s governing legislation.

  • Jonathan Reynolds – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Jonathan Reynolds – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jonathan Reynolds on 2016-04-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department plans to introduce guidance to link the salaries of CEO’s of multi-academy trusts to the performance of schools within that trust.

    Edward Timpson

    As our White Paper, Educational Excellence Everywhere, sets out, we will publish some ‘design principles’ outlining how successful multi-academy trusts (MATs) have been established and grown, as well as the basis on which Regional Schools Commissioners will approve new MATs. The White Paper also sets out our intention to launch new accountability measures for MATs and publish new performance tables to show how well MATs are leading their schools, in addition to individual school-level inspection results and performance data.

    Academy trusts are free to run their organisations as they see fit to improve educational outcomes. Securing good leadership is central to this and it is for academy trusts to decide how to employ and reward staff. Academy trusts operate under a robust accountability system which holds them to account for the results they achieve and their use of resources. This includes a requirement to publish audited accounts each year with details of the salaries of school leaders, allowing the wider public the chance to hold academy trusts to account to help ensure that funds are spent on improving pupil outcomes.

  • Gareth Thomas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Gareth Thomas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gareth Thomas on 2016-05-18.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what (a) meetings he has had with external organisations and (b) steps he has taken to encourage the take up of employee share ownership schemes in small and medium-sized businesses in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr David Gauke

    Tax-advantaged employee share schemes are greatly valued by both companies and employers, and the government wants to make sure that the rules surrounding these schemes are as simple and clear as possible. Budget 2016 made a number of changes to the rules for employment-related securities and options which will make these schemes fairer and easier for taxpayers to understand, and therefore encourage businesses to use them.

    An HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) commissioned report conducted by Oxera considered the effect of the tax-advantaged employee share schemes on productivity. The report is available at: http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20110203095056/http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/research/tax-advantaged-report2.pdf.

    The government’s most recent assessment of the cost of the tax-advantaged employee share schemes to the Exchequer is provided in the table below.

    Forecast cost of Income Tax relief (2015-16)

    Forecast cost of National Insurance relief (2015-16)

    Share Incentive Plan

    £220 million

    £165 million

    Save As You Earn

    £180 million

    £140 million

    Enterprise Management Incentives

    £70 million

    £40 million

    Company Share Option Plan

    £70 million

    £40 million

    HMRC has not withdrawn the valuation checking service for the tax-advantaged employee share schemes. However, HMRC has withdrawn other checks for non-tax advantaged schemes as, in the majority of cases, acceptable valuations were submitted. Therefore, the valuation service added no value and is seen as unnecessary.

    The government keeps all areas of the tax system under review and as part of that in always interested in understanding the views of all interested parties.

    Treasury Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery. Details of ministerial and permanent secretary meetings with external organisations on departmental business are published on a quarterly basis and are available at: http://www.gov.uk/government/collections/hmt-ministers-meetings-hospitality-gifts-and-overseas-travel

    “

  • Julian Knight – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Julian Knight – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

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

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, for what reasons Mohammed Amir has been granted a visa to travel to the UK for the Test series between England and Pakistan.

    James Brokenshire

    In order to safeguard an individual’s personal information and comply with the Data Protection Act 1998 the Home Office is limited in what information it can provide when the request is made by someone who is not the applicant. The Home Office is therefore unable to provide the information requested.

  • Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-09-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 13 June 2016 to Question 39705, what assessment his Department has made of Ethiopa’s progress on providing independent legal access for Andargachew Tsege.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    ​On 1 June 2016, Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam assured the then Foreign Secretary, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond), that Mr Tsege would be allowed access to independent legal advice to allow him to discuss options under the Ethiopian legal system. Since then, the Foreign Secretary, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Uxbridge and South Ruislip (Mr Johnson) has raised Mr Tsege’s case with his Ethiopian counterpart, Foreign Minister Tedros, on 3 occasions, most recently during the UN General Assembly in New York, insisting that the Ethiopians follow through with their commitment to allow legal access. The British Government will continue to do so until Mr Tsege is given access to independent legal advice.

  • Baroness Armstrong of Hill Top – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Baroness Armstrong of Hill Top – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Armstrong of Hill Top on 2016-01-19.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many houses have been brought back into use through the Empty Homes programme.

    Baroness Williams of Trafford

    The Empty Homes Programme created 9,044 homes from empty properties between 2012-2015. The number of empty homes is now at its lowest level since records began.

    Local authorities have powers and strong incentives to tackle empty homes, and through the New Homes Bonus they earn the same financial reward for bringing an empty home back into use as building a new one. In addition, councils may also charge up to 150 per cent council tax for homes empty for over two years. Given these levers, the Government has no plans for a further empty homes funding programme.