Tag: 2016

  • Lady Hermon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Lady Hermon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lady Hermon on 2016-02-03.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the oral contribution by the Minister for the Cabinet Office, of 26 January 2016, Official Report, column 231, what steps he has taken to contact the Northern Ireland Executive in relation to the reform of charities legislation to include social investment; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr Rob Wilson

    Charity law is a devolved matter in Northern Ireland. Officials in the Office for Civil Society kept their counterparts in the Department for Social Development, Northern Ireland, informed of progress as the measures which are now contained in the Charities (Protection and Social Investment) Bill were consulted on and developed.

    I have written to Lord Morrow MLA, Minister for Social Development, following the Third Reading of the Charities (Protection and Social Investment) Bill, to draw his attention to the debate and the provisions of the Bill.

  • Jonathan Ashworth – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Jonathan Ashworth – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jonathan Ashworth on 2016-02-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many civil law suits have been brought against his Department based either wholly or partially on grounds provided by the Human Rights Act 1998; how many such suits were settled out of court before a court judgment was delivered; and how much such settlements have cost the public purse since 2010.

    Dominic Raab

    It is not possible to provide the information requested. Litigants in civil cases can rely on arguments based wholly or partly on the Human Rights Act 1998. In some cases, the Act is relied on in addition to other claims. When the Human Rights Act came into force, no specific arrangements were put in place by the then government to record cases in the way requested. As a result, there are not currently data published which distinguish between cases where the Human Rights Act was or was not invoked.

  • Derek Thomas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Derek Thomas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Derek Thomas on 2016-03-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will issue guidance to NHS trusts on ensuring future reductions in frontline staff numbers are not made for the purpose of reducing trusts’ deficits.

    Ben Gummer

    The National Health Service has taken a number of steps to reduce trusts’ deficits. We have introduced tough new financial controls to cut down on waste in the NHS – including clamping down on rip-off staffing agencies and expensive management consultants, and introducing central procurement rules.

    We are also introducing a £2.1 billion Sustainability and Transformation Fund in 2016/17 to support providers to move to a financially sustainable footing. This will give the NHS the space to transform services so they are world class for decades to come.

    The purpose of these actions is to put NHS finances on a sustainable footing to ensure high quality care, now and in the future.

    Trusts should focus on the numbers and skillmix needed to deliver quality care, patient safety and efficiency, taking into account local factors such as acuity and casemix.

    Two communications to NHS trusts (a letter on safe staffing and efficiency dated 13 October 2015 from NHS Improvement, the Care Quality Commission (CQC), NHS England, Jane Cummings, Chief Nursing Officer and the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence; and a letter dated 15 January 2016 from Chief Executive-designate of NHS Improvement, Jim Mackey, and the CQC’s Chief Inspector of Hospitals, Professor Sir Mike Richards) asked trusts to consider quality and finances on an equal footing in their planning decisions; stated that it is not the case that NHS trusts could only achieve their financial targets at the expense of quality, or that improving quality is more important than staying in financial surplus; and emphasised that responsibility for staffing rests (as it has always done) with trust boards.

  • Kerry McCarthy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Kerry McCarthy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kerry McCarthy on 2016-04-29.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how her Department’s 25-year food and farming plan will contribute to delivering the Government’s emissions reduction plan.

    George Eustice

    The Food and Farming Plan will explore the role of technology in reducing emissions through improved feed efficiency, among other issues. It will also set out how we will work with industry to deliver emissions reductions across the rest of the food chain, including supporting the Courtauld 2025 objective of reducing food and drink emissions by 20% between 2015 and 2025.

  • Gareth Thomas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Gareth Thomas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gareth Thomas on 2016-06-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many prosecutions there have been of applicants for asylum who have arrived without documents and concealed their identity to frustrate removal in each of the last 10 years.

    James Brokenshire

    The number of individuals prosecuted for arriving without documents and concealing their identity is 50. The figures are illustrated below.

    1st April 2014 – 31 March 2015 26

    1st April 2015 – 31 March 2016 22

    This information was not held centrally prior to 2014.

    The Home Office works closely with the NCA and other law enforcement agencies, and prosecuting authorities in the UK and abroad, to ensure criminal investigations are robustly progressed in accordance with Criminal Justice standards.

  • Stephen McPartland – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Stephen McPartland – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen McPartland on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions officials of his Department have had with their counterparts in (a) Wales on the Welsh Liver Disease Delivery Plan and (b) Scotland on the Sexual Health and Blood Borne Virus Framework.

    David Mowat

    There have been no discussions with counterparts in Wales on the Welsh Liver Disease Delivery Plan or Scotland on the Sexual Health and Blood Borne Virus Framework.

    Public Health England contributes to the Lancet Commission on Liver Disease and the Lancet Commission have also reviewed the Welsh Liver Disease Delivery Plan.

  • Chi Onwurah – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    Chi Onwurah – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chi Onwurah on 2016-10-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether a Minister of his Department was present at the meeting between the Prime Minister and the Chief Executive of Nissan, Carlos Ghosn on 14 October 2016.

    Mr Nick Hurd

    Ministerial meetings with external organisations are published quarterly on the www.gov.uk website at the following link:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/bis-quarterly-publications-april-to-june-2012

    “

  • Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-01-12.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether any North Korean assets are held in the UK; and what steps they are taking to freeze assets they suspect to be linked to weapons proliferation, smuggling, money laundering, or human rights abuses in North Korea.

    Lord O’Neill of Gatley

    HM Treasury has, since 2007 implemented European Union sanctions against individuals and entities identified as linked to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea’s (DPRK) nuclear programmes.

    The result of these sanctions is that financial institutions are required to freeze funds and economic resources of persons, entities and bodies engaged in or providing support for North Korea’s nuclear-related, other weapons of mass destruction-related or ballistic missile-related programmes. Any assets in the UK which are owned, held or controlled by any of the 70 listed individuals and entities identified as linked to North Korea’s nuclear programmes are frozen. HM Government works to ensure that these measures are robustly implemented, including by looking to uncover assets which may be hidden behind complex company structures.

  • Jonathan Lord – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Jonathan Lord – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jonathan Lord on 2016-02-03.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what proportion of homes in (a) Woking constituency, (b) Surrey and (c) the South East have access to superfast broadband.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    In the Woking constituency the Government expects 98% of homes & businesses to have access to superfast broadband at the end of the Superfast Surrey project. At county level Surrey will have over 99% superfast broadband coverage by the end of the Superfast Surrey project.

  • Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2016-02-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he expects to bring forward legislative proposals to enable the construction of the Eastern Leg of High Speed 2.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    In November 2015, the Secretary of State for Transport provided an update to Parliament on our progress to deliver HS2. He reconfirmed the Government’s commitment to completing the full Y-shaped network by 2033. The Government will make a decision on the remainder of the Phase Two route, including the Eastern Leg, in autumn 2016, with a view to introducing a third hybrid Bill before the end of this Parliament.