Tag: 2016

  • Richard Burden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Richard Burden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-03-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment his Department has made of the effects on the incidence of hearing loss of mobile phones and other similar devices which do not have a volume control; and if he will make a statement.

    Alistair Burt

    The Department has made no assessment of the effects on the incidence of hearing loss of mobile phones and other similar devices which do not have a volume control.

    The Department’s Policy Research Programme is funding COSMOS (Cohort Study of Mobile Phone Use and Health) which is conducted by Imperial College London and expected to end in 2019. This study will investigate possible health effects from long term use of mobile phones and other wireless technologies, on a United Kingdom cohort of 105,000 adults. One of the health outcomes investigated will be tinnitus (ringing in the ears). Hearing loss is one of the factors that may be involved in the development of tinnitus and this study will monitor the incidence of tinnitus in mobile phone users.

  • Steven Paterson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Steven Paterson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steven Paterson on 2016-04-27.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for UK Erasmus students, lecturers and research fellows of the UK leaving the EU.

    Joseph Johnson

    At the February European Council, the Government negotiated a new settlement, giving the United Kingdom a special status in a reformed European Union. The Government’s position, as set out by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister to the House on 22 February, is that the UK will be stronger, safer and better off remaining in a reformed EU.

  • Lilian Greenwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lilian Greenwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lilian Greenwood on 2016-06-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 23 May 2016 to Question 37807 and with reference to the Answer of 29 October 2015 to Question 12850, on Thameslink railway line: rolling stock, for what reasons the introduction of Class 700 trains has been delayed.

    Claire Perry

    Operational testing of the new Class 700 Thameslink trains by Govia Thameslink Railway Ltd is in the process of being finalised prior to their entry into revenue earning service, which I expect will take place shortly.

  • David Winnick – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    David Winnick – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Winnick on 2016-09-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much has been allocated from the Condition Improvement Fund for 2016-17; and how much from that Fund was allocated in 2015-16.

    Edward Timpson

    On 26 March 2015, the Department for Education announced the outcome of the Condition Improvement Fund (CIF) 2015 to 2016. 1,407 projects across 1,127 academies and sixth-form colleges were approved funding of £383 million. This includes institutions successful following appeals in July 2015.

    We announced the outcome of the CIF for 2016 to 2017 on 24 March 2016. Funding of £435 million was approved for 1,276 projects across 1,030 academies and sixth-form colleges. The information can be viewed on the government’s website here:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/condition-improvement-fund-2015-to-2016-outcome

    https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/condition-improvement-fund-2016-to-2017-outcome

    “

  • Peter Aldous – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Peter Aldous – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Peter Aldous on 2016-10-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when the Green Paper on the devolution of employment and support allowance WRAG and targeted support for claimants will be published.

    Penny Mordaunt

    We will publish a Green Paper later this year.

  • Tim Loughton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Tim Loughton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Loughton on 2016-01-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what contingency arrangements his Department has made for the eventuality of a majority leave vote in the upcoming EU referendum.

    Brandon Lewis

    I refer my hon Friend to the answer given to him by my rt. hon. Friend the Prime Minister on 14 January to PQ 21952.

  • Lord Wigley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Lord Wigley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

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

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what research they have undertaken into the number of legal practitioners who will still be able to provide criminal legal aid services in England and Wales in the light of the decision to abandon proposals to reduce significantly the number of duty solicitors in those countries.

    Lord Keen of Elie

    All organisations who bid for own client contracts in 2015 will have the opportunity to bid for criminal legal aid work when we invite applications for replacement contracts later in the year. As my colleague, Lord Faulks, told the House on 28 January, a process of natural consolidation is already taking place in the criminal legal aid market, following the reduction in crime and natural competition.

  • Lord Hunt of Chesterton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lord Hunt of Chesterton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hunt of Chesterton on 2016-02-29.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have a target for the proportion of new motor vehicles that will be electrically powered by (1) 2020, and (2) 2025; what investments they are making to ensure that a high proportion of those vehicles are manufactured in the UK; and what incentives, if any, they plan to introduce for such vehicles, such as through reducing motor vehicle tax and congestion charges.

    Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

    The Government has a commitment that almost all cars and vans will be zero emission by 2050. This means all new cars should be zero emission by 2040. We have not set interim targets, but market penetration of ultra low emission vehicles (ULEVs) has doubled in the last year to nearly 2% of new vehicle sales.

    We will invest over £600 million during this Parliament to support the uptake and manufacture of ULEVs in the UK – including over £400m for the Plug in Car Grant that offers up to £4,500 off the price of eligible cars. ULEVs also benefit from favourable vehicle excise duty, company car tax, and enhanced capital allowances. They are exempt from Transport for London’s congestion charge and can attract other local benefits. The £40m Go Ultra Low cities scheme is supporting a range of local measure such as free parking and use of bus lanes that are designed to drive take up of ULEVs. £82m support was provided during the period 2010 to 2015 for industry-led collaborative research and development, with a similar programme of support underway for the period 2015-20. In addition the Government and industry are investing around £1bn over 10 years in the Advanced Propulsion Centre to develop, commercialise and enable the manufacture of advanced propulsion technologies in the UK.

  • Christian Matheson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Christian Matheson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christian Matheson on 2016-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the average cost per mile of electrification of a railway line in the UK.

    Claire Perry

    The Department for Transport does not delineate the average cost per mile of electrification from the wider rail upgrade works that it funds in England and Wales. The Government’s commitment to a rolling programme of electrification is reliant on a wider set of enhancement works to make journeys better. This often includes track works, gauging, signalling upgrades, power supply works and station works to allow electric trains to run. The Department does not make an estimate of the average cost per mile of electrification as the engineering complexity and challenge varies significantly across England and Wales. Electrification works in Scotland are devolved to the Scottish Government.

    However, we are aware of the significant cost to the industry and the wider public of the failure of the Labour Governments of 1997 to 2010 to progress electrification schemes across the country. This Government is determined to rectify this failure.

  • Royston Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Royston Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Royston Smith on 2016-04-27.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what discussions he has had the Electoral Commission on ensuring that people are able to check whether they are registered on aboutmyvote.co.uk related to the EU referendum.

    John Penrose

    A registration look up tool that allowed electors to check their registration status would reduce duplicate applications. Technical and practical barriers prevent its implementation before the EU referendum.