Tag: Alex Cunningham

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2015-02-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, pursuant to the Answer of 9 February 2015 to Question 223458, what the current (a) employment protections and (b) collective bargaining rights are for contractors working in the offshore oil and gas sector.

Jo Swinson

A contractor’s employment protections will depend on the facts of the working relationship and the contract under which they are working. This is irrespective of whether the individual is being contracted for offshore work or not. Contractors who are actually workers or employees would be entitled to the same basic employment protections as other offshore workers with a similar status, and indeed would have common collective rights. Contractors who are self-employed may be entitled to a smaller number of employment protections, depending on the terms of their contract. There is no single list of the protections and rights of offshore workers and contractors because these will be specific to the contract, the location of the work place and the employment status of the contractor. The Government is exploring how to add clarity to this as part of the employment status review.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2015-02-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps have been taken since July 2014 to revise the UK Oil and Gas Industrial Strategy: government and industry in partnership; and when that Strategy is next due for review.

Matthew Hancock

The Oil and Gas Industrial Strategy is under constant review by the Oil and Gas Industry Council. The Council met in November 2014 and is due to meet next in March 2015.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2015-02-10.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 3 February 2015 to Question 221932, what estimate he has made of the number of redundancies in the offshore drilling sector since the introduction of the Investment Allowance.

Priti Patel

The government understands the challenges currently facing the UK oil and gas industry and is following developments in the North Sea closely.

The Investment Allowance rewards companies investing in the long-term future of the basin – at all stages of the investment life cycle – and we would expect it to significantly reduce the effective tax rate for companies investing in the UK Continental Shelf.

Work on the design of the new Investment Allowance has been progressing rapidly since December – the government published a consultation document on its proposals on 22 January.

The government recognises the importance of the industry to local economies and as an employer. The report published by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, in partnership with Oil and Gas UK and OPITO (the Offshore Petroleum Industry Training Organisation) in December, “Fuelling the next generation: A study of the UK upstream oil and gas workforce” highlighted both the sector’s current contribution to employment and its future potential. The government will continue to work closely with industry through the Oil and Gas Industry Council and with the newly-formed Scottish Energy Jobs Taskforce to support jobs in the sector, develop the industry’s skills base and make sure this potential is realised.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2015-02-10.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 9 February 2015 to Question 221932, when the Joint Oil and Gas Industrial Strategy was published; what discussions he has had regarding the Strategy with his ministerial colleagues in the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills since the fall in international oil prices; and what updates his Department has proposed to the Strategy since July 2014.

Priti Patel

Actions on fiscal matters fall under the responsibility of HM Treasury (as stated in the industrial strategy) and these actions are taken forward in collaboration with the Oil and Gas Fiscal Forum. The Forum is separate from the Oil and Gas Industry Council, who have responsibility for the Oil and Gas Industrial Strategy, in partnership with BIS.

The Oil and Gas Industrial Strategy is kept under review by the Oil and Gas Industry Council. The Council met in November 2014 and is due to meet next in March 2015.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2014-06-25.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the (a) mean and (b) median duration to assessment, duration to treatment and duration to departure was in (i) type 1 and (ii) all accident and emergency departments in each month in each of the last five years.

Jane Ellison

The information has been placed in the Library.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2015-02-10.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 9 February 2015 to Question 221932, what estimate he has made of the effect of the reduction in the rate of Supplementary Charge on levels of (a) employment, (b) exploration activity, (c) infrastructure maintenance and (d) decommissioning in the offshore oil and gas industry to date.

Priti Patel

The government recognises the importance of the UK oil and gas industry and its contribution to energy security and the UK economy. We are committed to the future of the industry and creating the right conditions to maximise economic recovery.

At Autumn Statement, the government published a radical plan for the future of the oil and gas fiscal regime and set out a package of measures, including the reduction in the rate of the Supplementary Charge, to tackle the fiscal challenges and ensure the UKCS continues to attract investment, simplify the current system, and remove barriers at all stages of the production life cycle. The package is expected to drive around £7bn of additional investment and 350m barrels of oil equivalent production.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2014-06-25.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the potential increase in passenger numbers on (a) the TransPennine Express and (b) Northern Rail lines during the life of the next franchises starting in February 2016.

Stephen Hammond

Between 2002 and 2012 rail demand in the North of England grew by a total of 66% and demand is expected to continue to grow. The Department for Transport is currently preparing its own forecasts of passenger demand for the next franchises to inform the specification.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2015-02-09.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many people are in receipt of a war disablement pension in (a) England, (b) Wales, (c) Scotland and (d) Northern Ireland.

Anna Soubry

The number of recipients of war disablement pensions in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, can be found below:

Country	Number
England	89,450
Wales	6,925
Scotland	11,890
Northern Ireland	3,680
Other UK	340
UK Unknown	345
Not Known	135
Total	112,765

Notes:

1. Other UK includes Isle of Man and Channel Islands.

2. In line with Defence Statistics’ Rounding Policy, all figures of five or more have been rounded to the nearest 5. Due to rounding, the figures provided may not sum to totals.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2014-06-25.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment he has made of the value for money of current levels of service on each section of the (a) TransPennine Express and (b) Northern Rail franchises.

Stephen Hammond

At a Direct Award or franchise Re-let we carry out value for money assessments (in order to calculate Benefit-Cost Ratios) of changes to service levels but we do not undertake this assessment of the existing base service levels where they carry forward into the new Agreement.

However, for any large procurement exercise such as a Direct Award or Franchise Re-let, we use externally produced comparators that cover the whole of the franchise to allow us to evaluate the price of any bid that we receive.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2015-02-20.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many of the pilots in the Prime Minister’s Challenge Fund are not yet fully operational.

Dr Daniel Poulter

NHS England has advised that all 20 of the pilots in wave one of the Prime Minister’s Challenge Fund are delivering improved access to general practice, including additional appointments on evenings and weekends. In addition, some of the pilots continue to work on further improvements that will benefit patients such as the development of healthcare apps.