Tag: 2016

  • Jess Phillips – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Jess Phillips – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jess Phillips on 2016-10-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to prevent wage discrepancies between male and female apprentices.

    Robert Halfon

    The Apprentice National Minimum Wage (NMW) applies equally to all apprentices regardless of gender (for the first year, if aged 19, the appropriate NMW for age applies). From October 2016, this rate increased to £3.40 per hour.

    Most apprentices receive more than the minimum wage; the latest Apprenticeship Pay Survey (2014) estimates that the median hourly pay for Level 2 and Level 3 apprentices across Great Britain is £6.31. For males it was £6.19 and for females it was £6.36. Differences in pay may occur due to the proportion of males and females in higher or lower paid apprenticeships.

    The Government places importance on compliance with minimum wage legislation and the effective enforcement of it. Everyone who is entitled to the minimum wage should receive it.

  • Roger Godsiff – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Roger Godsiff – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2016-01-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if the Government will make an assessment of the potential merits of increasing penalties levied on employers who do not pay staff at least the national minimum wage.

    Nick Boles

    From April 2016, we are increasing the calculation of penalties from 100% to 200% of the arrears owed. The penalty is reduced by half if employers pay within 14 days.

    By increasing the penalties for underpayment of the National Minimum Wage (NMW) we intend to deter employers from breaking the law so that working people receive the money they are legally due.

    This new calculation ensures a tougher penalty for employers found to have underpaid the NMW.

    The fast track Impact Assessment for increasing the penalties has been validated by the Regulatory Policy Committee and published here – http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukia/2015/324

    “

  • Kevin Brennan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Kevin Brennan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevin Brennan on 2016-01-28.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether it is his policy that a lump sum paid by a public sector employer to an employee’s pension fund to compensate the scheme for having to pay a reduced pension earlier than expected should be used as part of the calculation for the public sector exit payment cap proposed in the Enterprise Bill.

    Greg Hands

    The Government consulted on implementing a public sector exit payment cap in July 2015. The Government response to this consultation was published on 16 September 2015. This response provides detail on which organisations and types of payments the Government intends to capture within the scope of the public sector exit payment cap. This accords with the Government’s manifesto commitment to end tax payer funded six figure payoffs for public sector workers.

    The response document can be found at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/464367/Public_sector_exit_payments_response.pdf

    The exit payment cap will apply to payments made as a result of an employee leaving their employment. It will not affect any pension a person has earned through their years of service or have any impact on accrued pension rights or pension lump sum entitlements on retirement. It will capture contributions, made by the employer, to fund early access to an unreduced or partially reduced pension. This is because such costs are ultimately funded by the tax payer.

    The Government has been clear that early retirements relating to ill health are outside the scope of the cap and will not be affected. Additionally, any payments directed by a Court or Tribunal will not be included in the scope of the cap.

    Exits on compassionate grounds are not such a clearly defined concept as exits related to ill health or redundancy. There will generally be a large degree of employer discretion on the terms of such exits, and on any payments. In these cases there will be discretion available to relax the cap in individual cases, subject to relevant Ministerial or local council approval, as will be set out in further detail in forthcoming Treasury guidance and directions.

  • Paul Flynn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Paul Flynn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Flynn on 2016-02-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the cost to his Department of the Export Support Team was in (a) 2013-14 and (b) 2014-15; and whether those costs have been reimbursed by the UK Trade and Investment Defence and Security Organisation.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    The Export Support Team is part of the Defence and Security Organisation, part of UK Trade and Investment. The Minister for Trade and Investment is responsible for administrative and funding arrangements, including attached Service personnel’s capitation costs. Therefore, there is no cost to the Ministry of Defence.

  • Baroness Jones of Whitchurch – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Baroness Jones of Whitchurch – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch on 2016-03-17.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to review and propose simplification of household waste and recycling collection across the UK.

    Lord Gardiner of Kimble

    Defra and the Waste and Resource Action Programme are working with local authorities and other waste management stakeholders to develop a vision and business case for greater consistency in the way materials are collected for recycling. This will set out the benefits that could be achieved for householders, local authorities, reprocessors and others. The vision is to be published in the summer and will include proposed models for more consistent arrangements for collection of recyclable materials.

    The broad aims for this work are to help local authorities to reduce costs; improve the quality and quantity of materials collected and to improve householder engagement and participation in recycling through reducing confusion and inconsistency and providing opportunities to improve communications.

  • Liz McInnes – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Liz McInnes – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Liz McInnes on 2016-04-22.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what progress has been made in reducing the national diabetes-related amputation rate since his 2013 commitment to halving that rate.

    Jane Ellison

    The NHS Five Year Forward View committed to introducing the first national diabetes prevention programme to be delivered nationwide. As a result, NHS England, Public Health England and Diabetes UK have been working together on Healthier You: the NHS Diabetes Prevention Programme which this year will offer at least 10,000 places on an evidence based behaviour change intervention shown to reduce the risk of Type 2 diabetes. Preventing diabetes from developing in those at risk will be key to combatting the rise of this condition and its complications, including those resulting in amputation, in the coming years.

    We have made achieving a measurable reduction in variation in the management and care of people with diabetes by 2020 a mandate objective for NHS England and improving foot care for people with diabetes is an important part of achieving this. NHS England will support clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) and providers in identifying the steps they need to take to improve outcomes for patients with diabetes, including foot care services for inpatients.

    Improvements in outcomes for patients with diabetes will be monitored as part of the CCG Improvement and Assessment Framework. Also, the National Diabetes Foot Care Audit, the first of which was published in March, provides data on all diabetes foot care services. This will enable all foot care services to measure their performance against the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence clinical guidelines and peer units, and to monitor adverse outcomes for people who develop diabetic foot disease.

  • Paul Blomfield – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Paul Blomfield – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Blomfield on 2016-06-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, pursuant to the Written Statement of 26 May 2016 on BIS consultation, HCWS30, how his Department plans to ensure organisational effectiveness in the operation of the proposed Business, Innovation and Skills regional presence.

    Joseph Johnson

    BIS2020 plans have always included a strong regional footprint as part of the Department’s location strategy. A regional presence will exist through the Department’s BIS Local offices, as well as where it is necessary to support service delivery at a local, rather than a national, level. Around 80% of the staff the Department pays for will continue to work outside of London, as part of the regional presence and in our business centres.

    The operational effectiveness of our regional presence will continue, as now, to be managed through the Department’s business planning process and the sharing of best practice as well as through the strengthening of departmental governance by including partner CEOs on the Executive Board sub-committees.

  • David Burrowes – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    David Burrowes – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Burrowes on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many unaccompanied minors have had their take charge request accepted in (a) Calais, (b) Greece and (c) Italy in the latest period for which figures are available.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    Since the beginning of this year, over 120 unaccompanied asylum-seeking children in Europe have been accepted for transfer to the UK, over 70 of which are from France. The Government does not routinely publish statistics on the number of take charge requests accepted for unaccompanied asylum-seeking children transferring to the UK under the Dublin III regulation broken down by country or region.

  • Rehman Chishti – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Trade

    Rehman Chishti – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Trade

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rehman Chishti on 2016-10-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what discussions he has had with (a) the government of Pakistan and (b) other key stakeholders on promoting UK trade with that country.

    Greg Hands

    The Department for International Trade and other departments, have extensive contact with their counterparts in Pakistan. Discussions routinely cover enhancing bilateral trade and investment, and business climate reform in Pakistan. The Prime Minister met Pakistan’s Prime Minister Sharif on 20 September, and they discussed trade relations.

  • Alex Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Alex Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2016-01-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many new homes have been built in National Flood Zone 3 in each of the last five years.

    Brandon Lewis

    The Department’s latest land use change statistics provide estimates on the proportion of new residential addresses created in national flood zone 3. The latest figures show that in 2013-14, 7% of new residential addresses were created in the national flood zone 3. This equates to an estimated 9,100 homes being built in national flood zone 3 in 2013-14.

    Prior to the publication of 2013-14 figures land use change statistics were calculated using a different methodology so they are not directly comparable to the 2013-14 figures. Figures produced using the previous methodology were last published for the calendar year 2011 and are provided in the attached table.

    National planning policy is designed to protect people and property from flooding. Local planning authorities are expected to avoid inappropriate development in areas at risk of flooding by directing development away from areas at highest risk.