Tag: 2016

  • Gavin Robinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Gavin Robinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gavin Robinson on 2016-02-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of measures intended to curtail consumption of high sugar drinks on levels of consumption of drinks that require significant levels of added sugar to counteract their high acidity.

    Jane Ellison

    In its 2015 Carbohydrates and Health report the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition recommended that the consumption of sugary soft drinks should be minimised by children and adults. Such drinks do not need to contain added sugar; there are many alternatives on the market which contain artificial sweeteners instead.

    Public Health England’s (PHE) report Sugar reduction: The evidence for action (October 2015), outlined its assessment of a range of measures that could be implemented to reduce sugar intakes and improve diets overall. As part of their assessment of the evidence, PHE conducted an analysis of the impact on sugar intakes in adults and children of reducing the sugar content of eight food categories, including sugary soft drinks.

  • Bridget Phillipson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Bridget Phillipson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bridget Phillipson on 2016-03-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, which family courts have a designated safe space for victims of domestic abuse and other vulnerable individuals.

    Mr Shailesh Vara

    Safe areas are available for vulnerable victims and witnesses at every venue where the Family Court routinely conducts hearings.

  • Andrew Bridgen – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Andrew Bridgen – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Bridgen on 2016-04-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will (a) commission research to estimate the number of people from other EU member states who receive (i) in-work and (ii) out of work benefits in the UK; and if he will publish that information before 23 June 2016.

    Mr Shailesh Vara

    There are no current plans to conduct the analyses listed.

  • Andrew Gwynne – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Andrew Gwynne – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2016-05-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what measures are in place to ensure that alternative accommodation is found for people evicted from a care home.

    Alistair Burt

    Should a person have to leave a care home, the Care Act requires the local authority to carry out an assessment of their needs. The local authority must decide if the person has eligible needs by considering the outcomes they wish to achieve, what their needs are and how these impact on their wellbeing.

    Where a person is assessed as having eligible care and support needs – for example, for care and support, public assistance with the cost of care, help with arranging care or information and advice – those needs must be met by their local authority.

    For a person placed in residential care by a local authority, the authority would continue to have a duty to meet their needs and to arrange alternative care services. Should a person be able to fund their own care but lack capacity to arrange it, the local authority has powers under the Act to meet their needs.

    Statutory guidance issued under the Care Act sets out when a local authority should use these powers.

  • Jess Phillips – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Jess Phillips – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jess Phillips on 2016-07-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many bids her Department received from local authorities to the competition to offer 30 hours free childcare from September 2016.

    Mr Sam Gyimah

    The Department for Education received 69 Local Authority applications for the delivery of the three and four year old extended entitlement, a year earlier than planned. These applications were developed in partnership with childcare providers, as part of a formal Expressions of Interest process, which included a rigorous assessment process based on a selection criteria agreed by the Ministerial-level Childcare Implementation Task Force.

    The requested information can also be found at:

    https://hansard.parliament.uk/Commons/2016-02-02/debates/16020246000010/ChildcareBillEarlyImplementation?highlight=30%20hours%20free%20childcare#contribution-16020246000032

    “

  • Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Trade

    Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Trade

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-10-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, how many foreign workers his Department employs.

    Greg Hands

    Following her appointment on 13 July 2016 the Prime Minister established the Department for International Trade (DIT). The DIT aggregates UK Trade and Investment (UKTI), UK Export and Finance (UKEF), Trade Policy Units from the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS), as well as some new hires.

    Until such time as a transfer of functions order establishes my Rt hon. Friend the Secretary of State for International Trade as a corporation sole, DIT remains a unified Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) and Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) department for accounting purposes.

    As DIT is currently being formed, details of the staff that the Department employs is being finalised, whilst employee transfers and recruitment are taking place.

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

    Louise Ellman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Ellman on 2016-01-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether any action was taken by (a) the Vehicle Certification Agency, (b) the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency and (c) any other testing authority against vehicle manufacturers as a result of in-service emissions testing in each of the last 10 years; and what (i) penalties and (ii) other sanctions were imposed on vehicle manufacturers as a result of in-service emissions testing in each such year.

    Andrew Jones

    Action taken by the Vehicle Certification Agency is below;

    In the last 10 years, two models failed the tests. They were:

    • Mitsubishi Carisma Petrol Euro III (2005/2006 test)
    • BMW Mini One D (2008/2009 test)

    In-service testing requires a minimum of three tests in order to achieve meaningful statistical results, although up to 20 vehicles may need to be tested. Where a fail decision is reached the series production is deemed to have failed, and the Approval Authority for the vehicle should be contacted to inform them of the test result.

    In the Case of BMW Mini the KBA (German approval authority) were informed to enable them to take action. In the case of the Mitsubishi the manufacturer was contacted directly and a number of anomalies were found with the test vehicle that could account for the failed result. In this case, the approval authority was again the KBA. Following further discussion with the manufacturer, no further action was taken.

    The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency has not taken any action against any vehicle manufacturer as a result of in service emission testing during the past 10 years.

  • Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-02-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps the Government is taking to increase the number of missing people who are found.

    Karen Bradley

    The Government’s Missing Children and Adults Strategy for England and Wales provides a core framework for local areas to do more to prevent and protect children and vulnerable adults who go missing. We are currently undertaking a refresh of the strategy, to be published later this year. This will include an implementation plan to improve the overall response to missing people, including better use of the Child Rescue Alert (CRA) system, prevention (reducing the numbers who go missing) and improving the response to finding people who have gone missing or are at risk of doing so.

  • Daniel Zeichner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Daniel Zeichner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2016-03-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 3 March 2016 to Question 28183, using what evidence base his departmental economists (a) normally assume operators pass subsidy received on to passengers at a rate of 50 per cent through lower fares and at a rate of 50 per cent through increased service levels and (b) estimate that the Bus Service Operators’ Grant has the effect of keeping fares 3 per cent lower in England outside London.

    Andrew Jones

    The department assumed that the Bus Service Operators Grant (BSOG) was passed on to passengers 50% through lower fares and 50% through increased service levels as a working assumption made in the absence of better relevant evidence. The estimate of the effect of keeping fares lower as a result of BSOG was derived by using the National Bus Model, which combined assumptions based on the evidence available with actual data on passenger numbers, fares and service levels.

  • Viscount Waverley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Viscount Waverley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Viscount Waverley on 2016-04-13.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether, in the event of the UK leaving the EU, UK citizens living in EU member states will retain all of their UK pension rights and will continue to be treated the same as if they were resident in the UK.

    Baroness Altmann

    The Government’s view is that the UK will be stronger, safer and better off in a reformed EU.

    As set out in the Government’s White Paper: ‘The process for withdrawing from the European Union’, published on 29 February, the withdrawal process is unprecedented. No country has ever used Article 50 – it is untested. There is a great deal of uncertainty about how it would work. UK citizens living in the EU currently enjoy a range of specific rights to live, to work and access to pensions, health care and public services that are only guaranteed because of EU law. There would be no requirement under EU law for these rights to be maintained if the UK left the EU.