Tag: 2016

  • Barbara Keeley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Barbara Keeley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barbara Keeley on 2016-03-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, whether his Department has made an estimate of the number and proportion of councils which have decided to levy the social care precept in 2016-17.

    Mr Marcus Jones

    The number of local authorities which have decided to set a precept in 2016-17 for adult social care will be published with the Department’s annual council tax statistical release; the scheduled date for publication is 31 March 2016.

  • Kerry McCarthy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Kerry McCarthy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kerry McCarthy on 2016-04-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential effect on future funding of research by the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs of the introduction of anti-lobbying clauses in government grant arrangements.

    George Eustice

    The Government is committed to supporting our excellent science and research community. The anti-lobbying clause is mandated by the Cabinet Office so the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs will be implementing the clause. No detailed assessment has yet been made against the future funding of research following the implementation of the new clause, but the initial belief is that it will have minimal impact. We are continuing to engage with the research community and will outline more detail in due course.

  • 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 2016-06-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate NHS England has made of the projected savings from the introduction of dose banding of chemotherapy drugs without affecting quality of care.

    George Freeman

    NHS England has advised that the dose banding initiative forms part of its Specialised Commissioning Improving Value programme and can be considered as an expansion of current practice and direction of travel. The dose banding scheme has been primarily designed to deliver improvements in safety and quality of care.

    NHS England advises that the scheme does also have the potential to deliver efficiencies for hospitals and its initial estimate is that this could release up to £5 million of value to the health system.

  • Mark Durkan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Mark Durkan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Durkan on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment she has made of the humanitarian situation in South Sudan; what estimate she has made of the number of (a) refugees, (b) displaced people and (c) people with severe malnutrition in that country.

    James Wharton

    The humanitarian situation in South Sudan remains dire. More than 2.4 million people are displaced; over 785,000 of them to neighbouring countries as refugees. 4.8 million South Sudanese people, almost half of the population, are at risk of severe food insecurity. Although famine has not yet been declared, there is a looming risk in parts of Unity State. Through DFID, the UK remains the second largest bilateral donor to South Sudan.

  • Anna Turley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    Anna Turley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Anna Turley on 2016-10-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment his Department has made of the presence and scope of existing commercial assets when considering new public funding for research and development and innovation.

    Joseph Johnson

    All potential major capital projects are assessed against the additional value they add, including an evaluation of whether the research or innovation activity is already being undertaken elsewhere. The majority of decisions about which research investments to undertake are taken directly by Research Councils, based on rigorous criteria including peer review.

    In respect of the establishment of Innovate UK’s 11 Catapult Centres, all candidate areas have undergone a robust evaluation by Innovate UK’s Senior Innovation Leads who have relevant domain expertise. In addition, facilitated workshops, with leading figures in the relevant industries – including business, academic and representatives from the public sector, are held to ascertain whether Innovate UK’s analysis of the market opportunities in this area is correct. Each candidate area is evaluated according to an agreed process to assess the size of the global market opportunity and the demand for a Catapult to help business build on their capabilities to commercialise innovation and realise this potential in the UK.

    In setting up new Catapult centres Innovate UK take into account the option of working within or alongside existing physical centres in the UK either to avoid duplication or to achieve quicker delivery.

    At a local level, Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) are responsible for identifying, assessing and approving Local Growth Funded projects. They do this in accordance with their strategic economic objectives and Local Assurance Frameworks which have to comply with the LEP National Assurance Framework. The National Assurance Framework covers value for money and states that methodology should be proportionate to the funding allocated and in line with established Government guidance including the HM Treasury Green Book.

  • 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 2016-01-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 4 January 2016 to Question 15523, what assessment he has made of the credibility of assurances by Saudi Arabia that it is in compliance with international humanitarian law in the conflict with Yemen.

    Mr Philip Hammond

    The UK’s support for military action is contingent on adherence to International Humanitarian Law (IHL). The Ministry of Defence monitors alleged IHL violations, using available information, which in turn informs our overall assessment of IHL compliance in Yemen. We consider a range of information from government sources, foreign governments, the media and international non-governmental organisations. We keep compliance under constant review. We are also offering advice and training to Saudi Arabia to demonstrate best practice and to help ensure continued compliance with IHL. I raised the issue of compliance with IHL during my October visit to Saudi Arabia. We have also raised our concerns with the Houthis on the importance of compliance with IHL.

  • Alex Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Alex Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2016-02-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will make it his policy to send prisoners returned to jail having broken their licence conditions to a different prison than the one from which they were released.

    Andrew Selous

    Prisoners recalled to custody having breached the conditions of their licence will be arrested by the police and then taken to the nearest local prison for the area in which they were arrested. Prisoners who, prior to release had been held in the closed training estate or in an open prison, will not therefore be returned to the same prison from which their release took place. Those prisoners who had been held in a local prison prior to release on licence, may be returned to the same establishment if that is the nearest local prison for the area in which they were arrested.

    Once returned to a local prison, prisoners will be re-assessed and a decision made on which prison is best suited to their needs, taking into account all factors in the case including the risks they present and other security issues. Prisoners recalled for short periods may remain in the local prison until release unless there are specific reasons, including security reasons, why they should be transferred elsewhere.

  • Lilian Greenwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lilian Greenwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lilian Greenwood on 2016-02-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse in 2016 of (a) raising regulated national rail fares by the retail price index and (b) removing train operators’ flexibility to vary regulated fare levels within the basket of fares in 2016.

    Claire Perry

    We know that passengers are concerned about the cost of fares. That is why we have capped regulated fares at the level of the Retail Price Index (RPI) for three years running, and will continue to do so for the life of this parliament. We have also removed the flex which allowed train operators’ flexibility to vary regulated fare levels within the basket. The estimated cost to the Department in 2016 is, £30.4 million (in nominal prices) for capping regulated rail fares at RPI+0%, and £6 million (in nominal prices) for removing the flex.

  • Dan Jarvis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Dan Jarvis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dan Jarvis on 2016-03-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, which military exercises UK armed forces have been involved in that have (a) included other EU member states and (b) been EU-led.

    Penny Mordaunt

    Exercises with international Allies and partners are critical to improving our Armed Forces’ interoperability on deployment and enhancing collective Defence through NATO. Last year we saw an excellent example of this in NATO’s Exercise Trident Juncture, the biggest military exercise in 10 years. Although the EU does not lead large scale military operations like NATO, it does support the interoperability of our Armed Forces through its battlegroup framework and small scale exercises led by its Member States. The UK will hold the leadership of the battlegroup in the second half of this year.

  • 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 2016-04-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the political situation in Mozambique and tensions between that country’s opposition party’s militia and state security forces.

    Mr Philip Hammond

    There has been an increase in tension in Mozambique, including continuing clashes between state security forces and the opposition militia in the central provinces. We are also concerned by incidents of intimidation, kidnapping and assassinations, which may be politically motivated. We continue to urge both the government and opposition to address these tensions through dialogue and peaceful means. This is all the more important against a difficult macroeconomic context that is further affected by drought in central and southern provinces and the revelation this month of undisclosed lending, which puts an already weak economy at risk.