Tag: 2016

  • Tania Mathias – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Tania Mathias – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tania Mathias on 2016-10-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what additional resources are being provided for post-16 students who are required to resit English and mathematics GCSEs.

    Robert Halfon

    Funding for the study of English and maths, including GCSE resits, is provided through the 16-19 national funding formula. The formula incorporates disadvantage funding for providers including a funding uplift of up to £960 per full time student per year to provide for the additional costs incurred for teaching students who have low prior attainment, as indicated by not achieving English and/or maths GCSEs at grade C or above by the end of year 11 (typically age 16). This additional funding is not intended to solely fund maths and English qualifications, but to fund support for students to achieve their learning goals, including maths and English.

    For the past three years the Government has also invested in programmes to support improvements in the teaching of maths and English in Further Education (FE) settings. This year, funding will provide up to 13,000 training opportunities for FE practitioners to improve their subject knowledge and confidence in their teaching of maths or English, fund bursaries for 300 graduates to train to become maths or English teachers in FE settings and further build evidence on evidence of what constitutes effective delivery and teaching of English and maths for students aged 16 to 18 that have not yet achieved level 2 English and maths.

  • Andy Slaughter – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Andy Slaughter – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2016-01-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many settlements his Department estimates have been affected by errors on his Department’s Form E divorce form.

    Mr Shailesh Vara

    An investigation into this issue is taking place. Officials are taking steps to identify rapidly cases where the regrettable error caused by the embedded calculator at table 2.20 may have had an impact, and we will be writing to anyone affected as soon as possible. Anyone concerned about their own court proceedings should contact formE@hmcts.gsi.gov.uk. The form now online no longer contains the error.

    “

  • Drew Hendry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Drew Hendry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Drew Hendry on 2016-01-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, for what reasons the universal service obligation for broadband was set at 10mb; and if he will make it his policy to increase the minimum universal service requirements to reflect higher levels set in other European countries.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    The Prime Minister’s announcement of the Government’s intention to implement a new broadband Universal Service Obligation (USO) and our ambition to set this at 10Mbps, followed assessments of consumers’ broadband needs from a range of sources, including Ofcom’s annual infrastructure reports. This new broadband USO will give people the legal right to request an affordable broadband connection, at a minimum speed, up to a reasonable cost threshold, no matter where they live.

  • Diana Johnson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Diana Johnson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Diana Johnson on 2016-02-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, which arts organisations have received public funding of more than £5 million in the last three years.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    The Arts Council publishes data on the organisations that have received regular funding and capital funding on their website: http://www.artscouncil.org.uk/funding/apply-funding/apply-for-funding/capital-investment-2015-18/large-capital-grants/"

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  • 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 2016-03-21.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to encourage supermarkets to redistribute surplus food to charities rather than disposing of surplus via anaerobic digestion or landfill.

    Lord Gardiner of Kimble

    If surplus food cannot be prevented, the next best option is to ensure that it is redistributed for human consumption. Working through the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) and our voluntary agreements with the grocery sector, we have taken action to ensure that more surplus food is redistributed to people before being put to any other use. All major retailers now have arrangements in place to redistribute surplus food. Signatories to phase 3 of the Courtauld Commitment have reported a 74% increase in food redistribution between 2012 and the end of 2014, and we expect this to increase further.

    Last year, the Secretary of State held a meeting with industry and redistribution organisations to take stock of progress on food redistribution. Outcomes from this include the recent publication of a Redistribution Framework to help facilitate closer working between potential donors and recipients of food surpluses. WRAP has commissioned research to identify where and why waste and surpluses occur in the supply chain to inform further action to increase waste prevention and redistribution.

    Following the success of earlier agreements, WRAP launched the Courtauld Commitment 2025 in March this year. This is an ambitious new agreement that takes a whole food supply chain approach, and will build on the progress we have already made to prevent waste, including through the redistribution of surplus food.

    There will always be some unavoidable food waste. The Government’s Anaerobic Digestion Strategy is in place to reduce the amount of organic material going to landfill and drive the waste that is produced into energy recovery or recycling.

  • Lord Patten – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Lord Patten – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Patten on 2016-04-18.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of progress in implementing the provisions regarding footpaths and bridleways contained in the Deregulation Act 2015.

    Lord Gardiner of Kimble

    We are continuing to work with the Stakeholder Working Group on both the secondary legislation and guidance necessary for implementation of the rights of way provisions in the Deregulation Act 2015. We expect the package of legislation and guidance to be commenced, all on the same date, later in the year. One of the sets of regulations we are introducing is subject to affirmative resolution and therefore first needs to be debated in both Houses. This has added to the timetable.

  • Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2016-05-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many times the Foreign Secretary’s Advisory Group on Human Rights has met in each year since its formation; and how many of those meetings in each such year (a) he or his predecessor and (b) Minister of his Department attended.

    Mr Philip Hammond

    My Advisory Group on Human Rights has met 11 times since its formation in November 2010 – twice a year, with the exception of 2010, when it met only in December and 2014 when it met only in May. My predecessors or I have chaired every one of these meetings, with the exception of the most recent meeting in April 2016, when the meeting was chaired by the Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my Rt Hon. Friend the Baroness of Anelay of St Johns.

  • Greg Mulholland – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Greg Mulholland – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2016-07-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent progress has been made on the electrification of the Leeds-Harrogate-York railway line.

    Paul Maynard

    Later this year the rail industry will present its initial advice to Government on investment needs for the national network in the next Control Period (2019-2024), drawing on the outputs of Network Rail’s long term planning process, including its review of the national electrification strategy. Taking account of this advice and other inputs – including from Transport for the North – the Government intends to articulate its emerging priorities for improvement to the national network during 2017.

  • Roger Godsiff – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Roger Godsiff – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2016-10-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the effect of removing the 50 per cent cap on religious selection in free schools on the ability of parents to get their children into a local school.

    Caroline Dinenage

    We want a diverse range of schools to give parents greater choice and drive up standards. The proposals set out in our consultation, ‘Schools that Work for Everyone’, aim to increase local capacity by enabling a wider group of providers to establish new schools. The proposal to remove the 50 per cent cap on religious selection in new free schools has, for some faith groups, been a barrier to setting up new schools. The removal of the cap and the establishment of new faith schools will add to the overall stock of places and should increase choice for parents.

  • John Spellar – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    John Spellar – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Spellar on 2016-01-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of the costs and benefits of ending the paper vehicle tax disc.

    Andrew Jones

    The changes to the administration of vehicle excise duty are expected to save the public purse £13.8m per year. These savings are made up of the elements shown in the table below:

    No longer having to print or store tax discs.

    £1.3m pa

    No longer having to post tax discs to customers.

    £7.9m pa

    No longer having to process applications for vehicle excise duty refunds (which are now paid automatically without the need for an application) or handle enquiries about lost or missing tax discs.

    £1.2m pa

    Reduction in Post Office Ltd costs as they no longer issue paper tax discs, but offer an assisted digital service instead.

    £3.4m pa

    Business will also save an estimated £8.6m per year from the changes. The savings arise from leasing companies no longer having to post tax discs to customers or businesses having to apply for refunds of vehicle excise duty and paying to replace lost or stolen tax discs.

    There are also one-off costs of £5.7m made up of the elements shown in the table below:

    DVLA IT and systems changes/updates,

    £4m

    Familiarisation costs to the General Public and Business in understanding the changes

    £1.7m