The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Blackford on 2016-05-18.
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment he has made of the main reasons for recent changes in the death rate.
Mr Rob Wilson
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tulip Siddiq on 2016-06-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to increase capacity for (a) new and (b) follow-up appointments in ophthalmology clinics.
Alistair Burt
The need for ophthalmology outpatient clinics will be determined locally by clinical commissioning groups who will then commission the care, normally from National Health Service trusts.
The most recent NHS workforce statistics for trusts and clinical commissioning groups, published by the Health and Social Care Information Centre on 22 June 2016, shows that since May 2010, there are now 264 more doctors with a specialty of ophthalmology; this includes a 27% increase in the number of consultants.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-09-13.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the delivery of services under the CarillionAmey contract to support armed forces married quarters.
Harriett Baldwin
The Ministry of Defence has put in place a strategy to provide an alternative contractor should CarillionAmey fail to sustain performance.
The Department continues to assess CarillionAmey’s performance to determine whether the implementation of this strategy is necessary.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Storey on 2016-01-20.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what support they make available for stand-alone academies facing budget deficits and the possibility of becoming bankrupt.
Lord Nash
Academy trusts are required to set balanced budgets each year, and it is the trustees’ responsibility to manage the funding for their school effectively and appropriately.
Where stand-alone academy trusts are facing genuine financial difficulties, there are a number of ways they can access support to help them return to financial stability. These include:
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Brake on 2016-02-11.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions the Government has had with the Indonesian government on the situation of Ahmadis in Bangka, Indonesia.
Mr Hugo Swire
We take freedom of religion or belief extremely seriously. We regularly urge Governments to protect the right of all individuals to practise their religion or belief free from persecution or discrimination. In this regard, we are concerned with the plight of the Ahmadiyah community in Bangka regency. Our Ambassador in Jakarta has discussed these issues, including the plight of the Ahamdiyah community, with the Minister of Religious Affairs, Indonesian civil society, and religious leaders. He urged them to ensure the rights of all individuals to practise their religion or belief freely were fully respected and protected.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Hanson on 2016-03-03.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department has taken to review the definition of stillbirth since January 2014; and whether he has had discussions with his ministerial colleagues on changing the procedure on the registration of stillbirths to allow for the registration of deaths before 24 weeks.
Ben Gummer
The Births and Deaths Registration Act 1953, as amended, provides for the registration of babies born without signs of life after 24 weeks’ gestation, which is the legal age of viability. Parents of babies who are stillborn after 24 weeks’ gestation receive a medical certificate certifying the stillbirth and, upon registration, can register the baby’s name and receive a certificate of registration of stillbirth.
Parliament supported a change to the stillbirth definition from “after 28 weeks” to “after 24 weeks” in 1992, following a clear consensus from the medical profession at that time that the age at which a foetus should be considered viable should be changed from 28 to 24 weeks. Medical opinion does not currently support reducing the age of viability below 24 weeks of gestation. Therefore, there are no plans to amend the stillbirth definition.
We are aware that some parents find it very distressing that they may not register the birth of a baby born before 24 weeks. However, it is important to recognise there would also be parents distressed at the possibility of having to do so. When a baby is born without signs of life before 24 weeks’ gestation, hospitals may issue a local certificate to commemorate the baby’s birth.
In November 2015, the Government announced a national ambition to halve by 2030 the rates of stillbirths, neonatal and maternal deaths and brain injuries occurring during or soon after birth. The announcement also committed to publishing an annual report to update the public, health professionals, providers and commissioners on the progress we are making towards achieving the ambition.
To support the system in achieving this ambition we also announced:
― A £2.24 million capital fund for equipment to improve safety.
― Over £1 million to roll out training programmes to make sure staff have the skills and confidence they need to deliver world-leading safe care.
― £500,000 to develop a new system that can be used consistently across the National Health Service to enable staff to review and learn from every stillbirth and neonatal death.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Karl Turner on 2016-04-11.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what records are kept by commanding officers when dealing with offences that are reported to them and dealt with summarily.
Mark Lancaster
A Commanding Officer dealing with a Summary Hearing must complete a Record of Summary Hearing (RSH). This can be found at Annex C to Vol 1 Ch.9 JSP 830 (Manual of Service Law) which can be found at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/478387/20151113-Chapter9-SHSSSD-AL38.pdf
The information that must be recorded includes the following:
– Details of the accused
– The charges and whether they are admitted or denied
– The outcome of the Summary Hearing and where relevant the sentence awarded
– Any order made (for example detention, order to pay)
– Reasons for sentence (including mitigating and aggravating factors and the effect of the punishment)
– The date of hearing and who it was heard by
The paperwork connected with the Summary Hearing should be processed within 24 hours following the hearing. The RSH should be retained under single-Service arrangements for a minimum period of two years and recordable offences will be recorded on the Police National Computer.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gareth Thomas on 2016-05-18.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what meetings (a) he and (b) Ministers of his Department have had with officials of his Department in which withdrawal of the valuation check service by HM Revenue and Customs was discussed since May 2015; 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
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Diane Abbott on 2016-06-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many apheresis machines are operational in the UK; and where those machines are located.
George Freeman
Apheresis machines are part of the care provided in a number of haematology services including sickle cell and thalassaemia care.
NHS Blood and Transplant is one of the main providers of Therapeutic Apheresis Services in England and has the largest installed base of therapeutic apheresis equipment in the National Health Service (32 machine platforms across the country). Additional provision of apheresis services are provided by NHS trusts and other UK Blood Services but NHS England does not currently hold information on this information centrally.
Work in relation to these services including the incentivisation of automated exchange through Commissioning for Quality and Innovation will improve the baseline information over the coming year.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-09-13.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what proportion of children aged 11 to 16 are educated at (a) selective state-maintained schools, (b) non-selective state-maintained comprehensive and academy schools, (c) independent fee-paying schools and (d) other educational settings in (i) the UK, (ii) England, (iii) Scotland, (iv) Wales and (v) Northern Ireland.
Nick Gibb
The number and proportion of pupils aged 11-16 in selective state-funded schools, non-selective state-funded secondary schools, independent schools and other settings in England are given in the table below. The Department does not hold this information for Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland, and therefore cannot provide these figures or a UK figure.
|
Type of Establishment |
Number of pupils aged 11-16 (1) |
Proportion of Total |
|
State-funded selective schools |
117,310 |
3.9% |
|
State-funded non-selective secondary schools |
2,569,444 |
86.2% |
|
Independent Schools (2) |
226,878 |
7.6% |
|
All other educational settings (3) |
66,498 |
2.2% |
(1) Includes sole and dual main registered pupils, as at January 2016.
(2) Not all independent schools charge all pupils fees, but it is not possible to group only the fee-paying independent schools together here.
(3) Includes state-funded primary schools, state-funded special schools, non-maintained special schools, general hospital schools, pupil referral units and alternative provision academies and free schools.