The below Parliamentary question was asked by Margaret Ferrier on 2016-05-18.
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate he made of the cost of Part Two of the Leveson Inquiry.
Mr Edward Vaizey
Criminal proceedings connected to the subject matter of the Leveson Inquiry, including the appeals process, have not yet completed. We have always been clear that these cases must conclude before we consider Part 2 of the Inquiry, including any estimate of cost.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Redwood on 2016-06-20.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what EU directives related to his Department’s responsibilities are awaiting transposition into UK law.
Anna Soubry
The following EU Directives related to my Department’s responsibilities are awaiting transposition into UK law:
Directive 2013/53/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 November 2013 on recreational craft and personal watercraft and repealing Directive 94/25/EC
Directive 2013/55/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 November 2013 amending Directive 2005/36/EC on the recognition of professional qualifications and Regulation (EU) No 1024/2012 on administrative cooperation through the Internal Market Information System (‘the IMI Regulation’)
Directive 2013/55/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 November 2013 amending Directive 2005/36/EC on the recognition of professional qualifications and Regulation (EU) No 1024/2012 on administrative cooperation through the Internal Market Information System (‘the IMI Regulation’)
Directive 2014/33/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 February 2014 on the harmonisation of the laws of the Member States relating to lifts and safety components for lifts
Directive 2014/34/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 February 2014 on the harmonisation of the laws of the Member States relating to equipment and protective systems intended for use in potentially explosive atmospheres (recast)
Commission Delegated Directive 2015/13 of 31 October 2014 amending Annex III to
Directive 2014/32/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council, as regards the flowrate range of water meters.
Directive 2014/29/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 February 2014 on the harmonisation of the laws of the Member States relating to the making available on the market of simple pressure vessels;
Directive 2014/30/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 February 2014 on the harmonisation of the laws of the Member States relating to electromagnetic compatibility (recast)
Directive 2014/31/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 February 2014 on the harmonisation of the laws of the Member States relating to the making available on the market of non-automatic weighing instruments
Directive 2014/32/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 February 2014 on the harmonisation of the laws of the Member States relating to the making available on the market of measuring instruments (recast);
Directive 2014/35/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 February 2014 on the harmonisation of the laws of the Member States relating to the making available on the market of electrical equipment designed for use within certain voltage limits
Directive 2014/53/EU of The European Parliament and of the Council of 16 April 2014 on the harmonisation of the laws of the Member States relating to the making available on the market of radio equipment and repealing Directive 1999/5/EC
Directive 2014/68/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 May 2014 on the harmonisation of the laws of the Member States relating to the making available on the market of pressure equipment
Directive 2014/95/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 October 2014 amending Directive 2013/34/EU as regards disclosure of non-financial and diversity information by certain large undertakings and groups
Directive 2014/104/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 November 2014 on certain rules governing actions for damages under national law for infringements of the competition law provisions of the Member States and of the European Union
Commission Directive (EU) 2015/2115 of 23 November 2015 amending, for the purpose of adopting specific limit values for chemicals used in toys, Appendix C to Annex II to
Directive 2009/48/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on the safety of toys, as regards formamide
Commission Directive (EU) 2015/2116 of 23 November 2015 amending, for the purpose of adopting specific limit values for chemicals used in toys, Appendix C to Annex II to
Directive 2009/48/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on the safety of toys, as regards benzisothiazolinone
Commission Directive (EU) 2015/2117 of 23 November 2015 amending, for the purpose of adopting specific limit values for chemicals used in toys, Appendix C to Annex II to Directive 2009/48/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on the safety of toys, as regards chloromethylisothiazolinone and methylisothiazolinone, both individually and in a ratio of 3:1
Directive (EU) 2015/2302 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 November 2015 on package travel and linked travel arrangements, amending Regulation (EC) No 2006/2004 and Directive 2011/83/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council and repealing Council Directive 90/314/EEC
Directive (EU) 2015/2436 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 December 2015 to approximate the laws of the Member States relating to trade marks
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christian Matheson on 2016-09-13.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 8 September 2016 to Question 45595, how much her Department spent from the public purse on advertising and promoting the previously proposed points-based immigration system for non-EU nationals in the latest period for which figures are available.
Mr Robert Goodwill
We have spent no money promoting a proposed points-based immigration system for non-EU nationals.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Willis of Knaresborough on 2016-01-19.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the evidential base to support their current policy on safe staffing levels for qualified nurses, and whether they will place a copy of that evidence in the Library of the House.
Lord Prior of Brampton
The Government is committed to supporting National Health Service trusts to put in place sustained safe staffing by using their resources as effectively as possible for patients.
Hospitals should be able to demonstrate that they are able to ensure safe, quality care for patients and that they are making the best use of resources. This should take account of patient acuity and dependency, time of day and local factors. It is therefore important for providers to take a rounded view, looking at staffing in a flexible way which is focused on the quality of care, patient safety and efficiency rather than just numbers and ratios of staff.
The responsibility for both safe staffing and efficiency rests, as it has always done, with provider Boards.
Comprehensive lists of research commissioned and published, of criteria in all European Union countries, Australia and the United States, each of which have a variety of systems in operation, and of discussions held by United Kingdom officials to compare patient outcomes in those countries with outcomes in England, could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
However, the 2013 National Quality Board (NQB) guidance on safe staffing issued in 2013 How to ensure the right people, with the right skills, are in the right place at the right time: A guide to nursing, midwifery and care staffing capacity and capability, referred to a number of sources of evidence on this issue. The National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE) safe staffing guideline Safe staffing for nursing in adult inpatient wards in acute hospitals, July 2014 set out the evidence and expert papers, including international evidence, that was considered in preparing the guideline. A copy of the NQB guidance and the NICE guideline are attached.
In addition, The Department’s National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) commissions research evidence to improve the quality, accessibility and organisation of health services through the NIHR Health Services and Delivery Research programme. Current research of particular relevance to the relationship between nurse staffing levels and patient outcomes and mortality includes:
– a study on nurse staffing levels, missed vital signs observations and mortality in hospital wards; and
– a study on the future of 24/7 care: investigating the links between staffing levels, patient access and inequalities in health outcomes.
As announced by the Secretary of State on 16 July 2015, Dr Mike Durkin, National Director for Patient Safety, is working with the Chief Nursing Officer to complete the work started by NICE on safe staffing levels. Their work will draw on evidence and expert advice from England and internationally, and will be reviewed independently by NICE, the Chief Inspector of hospitals, and Sir Robert Francis to ensure it meets the high standards of care the NHS aspires to.
The programme includes revision of the NQB 2013 guidance to take account of further developments in the evidence base, the need to look beyond acute settings, new models of care leading from the Five Year Forward View and the need for providers to secure both safe staffing and greater efficiency.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jessica Morden on 2016-02-11.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he estimates the Severn River crossing concession will end.
Andrew Jones
The Severn River Crossing concession is currently forecast to end in 2018.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Colleen Fletcher on 2016-03-03.
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what representations he has received from charities on the Government’s proposal to prevent charities using government grants to lobby Parliament.
Matthew Hancock
Taxpayers money should not be diverted away from its intended purpose and wasted on political campaigning and political lobbying. The clause does not stop grant recipients, including charities, from using other sources of funding for this or from making their views known.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Mann on 2016-04-11.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when those parts of the Psychoactive Substances Act 2016 which have not come into force are expected to come into force; and what the reason is for the time taken to bring all provisions of that Act into force.
Karen Bradley
We expect to commence the Psychoactive Substances Act in its entirety in the spring. In line with the advice of the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs, we are in the final stages of putting in place a programme of testing to demonstrate the psychoactivity of a substance prior to commencement of the Act. The timing of commencement has always been subject to consideration of all the activity necessary across the UK for the provisions to come into force
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2016-05-18.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many personnel from each branch of the armed forces took part in cold weather training in each of the last six years.
Penny Mordaunt
The UK Armed Forces conduct a wide range of training to operate in cold weather environments. Information on the full range of activities is not held centrally in the format requested and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Redwood on 2016-06-20.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, which EU (a) legislative and (b) other proposals his Department is leading negotiations on for the Government in the Council of the EU.
Mr David Gauke
HM Treasury is responsible for measures relating to the Economic and Financial Affairs Council. This includes economic policy, taxation issues, financial markets and capital movements, the EU budget, economic relations with countries outside the EU, and coordination of EU positions for international meetings such as the G20, the International Monetary Fund, and the World Bank.
The Department provides Explanatory Memoranda to Parliament on any proposals defined by the terms of reference of the parliamentary EU scrutiny committees, which can be found online.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julian Sturdy on 2016-09-13.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps the Government is taking to ensure that all children complete free, equitable and quality primary and secondary education by 2020.
James Wharton
The UK Government is committed to ensuring all children are able to complete a full cycle of quality education. Between 2011 and 2015 DFID supported over 11 million children into primary and lower secondary school (7.5 million children in countries considered fragile), and training 380,000 teachers through our multilateral partners. In 2015, the UK again committed to support a further 11 million children in the poorest countries to gain a decent education by 2020.
DFID is also supporting up to one million of the world’s poorest girls through DFID’s Girls Education Challenge (GEC). In July, DFID co-hosted the first, hugely successful Girls’ Education Forum in London and announced a further £100 million through the GEC to continue this support and help an additional 175,000 of the poorest, most marginalised adolescent girls in the world to get a decent education.