Tag: 2016

  • Mark Menzies – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Mark Menzies – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Menzies on 2016-06-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when he plans to make a decision on the drug Nivolumab becoming available under the Early Access to Medicines Scheme to treat patients with renal cell carcinoma.

    George Freeman

    The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) issued a positive scientific opinion concerning the use of nivolumab for renal cell carcinoma under the Early Access to Medicines Scheme on 11 February 2016. This scientific opinion has now lapsed as nivolumab has received its marketing authorisation for use in for renal cell carcinoma from the European Commission.

  • Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-09-13.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what progress has been made on developing the digital system for employers to pay the Apprenticeship Levy.

    Mr David Gauke

    The apprenticeship levy will be paid by employers alongside their other Pay As You Earn (PAYE) payments. This means employers will use the software they use for other aspects of their PAYE to report the apprenticeship levy to HM Revenue and Customs. A specification for the data items required for Real Time Information internet submissions for 2017-18 including the apprenticeship levy has been published and is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/real-time-information-online-internet-submissions-support-for-software-developers.

    Employers will be able to use a digital service to spend the levy on apprenticeship training and assessment. The development of the digital service is being led by the Skills Funding Agency and it will be available for employers to register their account from January 2017.

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  • Lord Patten – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Lord Patten – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Patten on 2016-01-20.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Bates on 29 December 2015 (HL4764), whether they will list the social and environmental influences that they take into account when defining character or the propensity to commit crime.

    Lord Bates

    An individual’s character and propensity to offend are influenced by a range of factors, but could include social aspects of a person’s upbringing or their environment.

    As the Home Secretary has set out, there is nothing inevitable about criminality, however, and most people do not go on to become criminals whatever circumstances they grow up in. And it is important to remember that the only cause of a crime is, in the end, the criminal. The government’s Modern Crime Prevention Strategy will focus on tackling the six key drivers of crime, including character, and will be published in the spring.

  • Gerald Kaufman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Gerald Kaufman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gerald Kaufman on 2016-02-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, when she intends to answer the letter to her dated 4 January 2016 with regard to Ms J. Ellis.

    Mr Desmond Swayne

    I responded to the Rt. hon. Member’s letter on 14 January.

  • Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2016-03-03.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what his Department’s policy is on the abolition of the Nursing and Midwifery Council’s statutory Midwifery Committee.

    Ben Gummer

    In the spring the Department will launch a full public consultation on a Section 60 Order (of the Health Act 1999) on midwifery regulation and this will include consideration as to whether to remove the statutory status of the Midwifery Committee.

  • Alex Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Alex Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2016-04-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what the (a) scientific and (b) economic basis was for her Department’s proposal to move the cement industry into a 75 per cent tier of free allocation in the EU Emissions Trading System; and what account her Department took in developing that proposal of the difficulty of abating process emissions.

    Andrea Leadsom

    The Government supports reform to strengthen the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS) whilst providing continued support for the competitiveness of British businesses as they decarbonise. Sectors at greatest risk of carbon leakage have high carbon costs and are highly exposed to international trade. The proposed tiering scenarios, which are indicative and do not represent a confirmed Government position, are intended to demonstrate how support could be differentiated between sectors at different levels of risk. We recognise the barriers to decarbonisation in the cement sector due to its high proportion of emissions from chemical processes. We will continue to work with the UK cement industry to ensure that its circumstances are reflected in Phase IV of EU ETS.

  • Rob Marris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Rob Marris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rob Marris on 2016-05-18.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what information HM Revenue and Customs holds on the number of people engaged in employment through an umbrella company in each year since 2008.

    Mr David Gauke

    HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) does not routinely record the information requested, but has published estimates on an ad hoc basis since 2008.

    In 2008 HMRC published figures for the number of umbrella workers in a consultation document “Tax Relief for travel expenses: temporary workers and overarching employment contracts.” HMRC estimated that around 120 umbrella companies operating in the UK were using overarching contracts and employed around 100,000 temporary workers at any one time.

    Evidence suggests that for 2013-14 the 50 largest umbrella companies alone employed 150,000 individuals over the course of a year. In 2015 an estimated 430,000 individuals were employed by umbrella companies and employment agencies on overarching contracts over the course of a year. The number at any one time will be less than this.

  • David Anderson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    David Anderson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Anderson on 2016-06-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she plans to reply to letters from the GMB trades union National Secretary, Mick Rix, on the outsourcing of jobs at British Airways and use of tier 2 visas; and if she will make a statement.

    James Brokenshire

    The Home Office has received letters from Mr Rix and intends to respond in due course. It is a decision for businesses whether to outsource certain functions. We have, however, responded to concerns that use of the Tier 2 (Intra-Company Transfer (ICT)) route may undercut or displace resident workers. On 24 March we announced that we will simplify and streamline the route in line with our international trade commitments to admit senior managers and specialists. From April 2017, all transferees (other than limited numbers of graduate trainees) will be required to qualify under a single visa category with a minimum salary of £41,500.

  • Mark Pritchard – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Mark Pritchard – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Pritchard on 2016-09-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will discuss with his counterpart at the (a) Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and (b) Iranian government to assist the government of Iran in helping to halt the decline in the number of Asiatic cheetahs.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    We are aware of the plight of Asiatic cheetahs in Iran and we welcome conservation efforts by Iran and the UN. My officials have held preliminary discussions with the Iranian Embassy in London on the issue.

  • Baroness Armstrong of Hill Top – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Baroness Armstrong of Hill Top – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Armstrong of Hill Top on 2016-01-19.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many houses they expect to be brought back into use through the Empty Homes programme in 2015–16.

    Baroness Williams of Trafford

    The Empty Homes Programme created 9,044 homes from empty properties between 2012-2015. The number of empty homes is now at its lowest level since records began.

    Local authorities have powers and strong incentives to tackle empty homes, and through the New Homes Bonus they earn the same financial reward for bringing an empty home back into use as building a new one. In addition, councils may also charge up to 150 per cent council tax for homes empty for over two years. Given these levers, the Government has no plans for a further empty homes funding programme.