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Tag: 2016

  • Joan Ryan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Joan Ryan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Joan Ryan on 2016-01-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what further steps he intends to take to encourage the Sri Lankan authorities to review the Prevention of Terrorism Act 1978.

    Mr Hugo Swire

    I visited Sri Lanka from 14 to 17 January when I discussed a wide range of issues with the government of Sri Lanka, including the need for it to fulfil its commitment to repeal the Prevention of Terrorism Act. Officials at the British High Commission in Colombo will continue to encourage progress. We are also working closely with our international partners to encourage the government to address this concern. The EU issue was raised during the EU-Sri Lanka Human Rights Working Group discussions in Colombo on 19 to 22 January.

  • Iain Wright – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Iain Wright – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Iain Wright on 2016-02-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, whether his Department intends to cease any existing or planned business support mechanisms in order to implement the apprenticeship levy.

    Nick Boles

    We are not cutting business support mechanisms to implement the levy. We are improving our business services by developing the Digital Apprenticeship Service.

    Through this online mechanism employers will have access to a number of services to help them choose and pay for apprenticeship training in a simple way.

  • Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-03-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 14 March 2016 to Question 29818, what assessment he has made of the effect of a four-year freeze in local housing allowance (LHA) rates on people that rely on LHA if the cost of renting in the private rented sector continues to rise; and whether the four-year freeze will disproportionally affect those living in houses with more than four bedrooms.

    Justin Tomlinson

    The information requested is not available. However there will be Targeted Affordability Funding available to support areas where higher rent increases are causing a shortage of affordable accommodation.

  • Margaret Hodge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Margaret Hodge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Margaret Hodge on 2016-04-21.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether an equality impact assessment has been undertaken in respect of the policy of including an anti-lobbying clause in government grant agreements.

    Matthew Hancock

    Departments are currently working with grant recipients on the implementation of the guidance, in relation to the new grants clause. This will include a consideration of equality impact issues, which will be reported centrally to the Cabinet Office for assessment, with regards to finalising the central policy by 1 May 2016.

  • 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 2016-06-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the Government’s policy is on the future of the Chagos Islanders.

    James Duddridge

    The Government concluded an independent feasibility study in February 2015, and carried out a twelve week public consultation, the results of which we published in January this year. The Government is still considering its policy in this area and will announce developments to Parliament and the public in due course.

  • Daniel Zeichner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Daniel Zeichner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to support the installation of hydrogen refuelling stations.

    Mr John Hayes

    In March 2015 the Government announced a £6.6m investment to help develop a hydrogen refuelling infrastructure. Seven successful projects are now underway to install an initial network of 12 hydrogen refuelling stations. These will support the early take-up of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles in the UK.

  • Baroness Altmann – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Baroness Altmann – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Altmann on 2016-10-10.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the risk of pension fraud and scams, what are their reasons for not banning cold calling about pensions.

    Lord Ashton of Hyde

    We are determined to tackle the scourge of nuisance calls especially those of a fraudulent nature. Our efforts are focused on taking action against companies that are deliberating break the rules, rather than penalising legitimate businesses who comply with the law.

    My Department is in conversations with Her Majesty’s Treasury and the Department for Work and Pensions on how best we tackle scams as a result of pensions cold calls.

  • Wes Streeting – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Wes Streeting – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Wes Streeting on 2016-01-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what contingency planning his Department is undertaking to prepare for the possibility of a leave vote in the forthcoming referendum on the UK’s membership of the EU.

    Mr Julian Brazier

    I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister on 14 January 2016 to Question 21931.

  • Sarah Wollaston – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Sarah Wollaston – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sarah Wollaston on 2016-01-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many children and young people in need of specialist mental health support as a result of (a) experiences of sexual abuse, (b) non-sexual physical abuse or neglect, (c) emotional abuse or neglect, (d) bereavement or (e) other trauma have been (i) granted and (ii) not granted access to Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services.

    Alistair Burt

    The information needed to link individuals who have experienced various forms of trauma with those who have experienced mental health problems is not collected centrally.

    We are committed to improving child and adolescent mental health services, which is why we are investing an additional £1.4 billion in services for children and young people with mental health problems over the course of this Parliament. The guidance issued by NHS England in August last year on Local Transformation Plans for children and young people’s mental health and wellbeing specified that the plans should address the full spectrum of need including those with particular vulnerability to mental health problems such as those who have been sexually abused or exploited. The bespoke assurance process that was undertaken by NHS England will therefore have addressed the extent to which this has been addressed in local plans.

    NHS England has commissioned a quantitative and qualitative analysis of the Local Transformation Plans, in order to support policy makers, local commissioners and services to understand and use the data that is contained within the plans to drive further improvements. Local Transformation Plans will be reviewed from a narrative, analytical and financial perspective, with thematic reviews carried out in key focus areas that align with Future in Mind principles.

    Sensitive and routine enquiry will be introduced in targeted health services, such as sexual health clinics and mental health services, to help identify those children who have been subjected to abuse and other traumatic experiences.

    NHS England also published a Commissioning Framework for Adult and Paediatric Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC) Services in August 2015 which outlines the core services in SARCs and referral pathways to other services. These are now being rolled out throughout England and should lead to improved services for those who have experienced sexual assault, including children and young people.

  • Virendra Sharma – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Virendra Sharma – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Virendra Sharma on 2016-02-23.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what his Department’s wellness strategy is.

    Matthew Hancock

    The Cabinet Office takes the well-being of its employees seriously and provides a range of support, including the recent launch of the Cabinet Office Listening Service, resourced by staff who have been trained in active listening and emotional support. The service can provide upfront support to Cabinet Office staff dealing directly or indirectly with specific issues in their personal or working life or to help them to cope with mental health issues of any kind including depression, anxiety or stress. Listeners can also signpost individuals onto other relevant services such as the external Employee Assistant Programme which offers counselling, impartial advice and access to online health and wellness related resources.

    The department has established an employee led WorkWell community to further develop and implement a strategy for wellness. Progress to date includes establishing resilience training for senior leaders and their teams, signing up to the Time to Change pledge on mental health, providing access to coaching and training in skills to improve wellbeing such as mindfulness. WorkWell are also seeking to increase awareness of opportunities to improve physical wellbeing at work including provision of on-site health checks.