Tag: Andrew Gwynne

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2016-01-28.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions she has had with her ministerial colleagues on distributing UK fines for air quality breaches to individual local authorities or combined authorities.

Rory Stewart

The Secretary of State has regular discussions with Ministerial colleagues within Defra and across Whitehall on a range of issues, including on air quality. The air quality plan for nitrogen dioxide we published on 17 December last year sets out the steps we are taking to reduce pollutant levels, including working in partnership with Local Authorities, to avoid any prospect of fines.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2016-02-02.

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, whether he has powers to require the Greater Manchester Combined Authority to recommence the consultation on the sites identified in the draft Greater Manchester Spatial Framework Development Plan; and what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the current process.

Brandon Lewis

The authorities have consulted on a number of strategic options and the evidence used to produce them. I understand that the consultation is still open to interested parties and the authorities are asking local residents, businesses, land owners and developers to identify sites that they think could be suitable for housing or employment development.

As I previously set out, it is the responsibility of each authority to ensure that any Development Plan Document is prepared in accordance with its Statement of Community Involvement which should explain how they will engage local communities and other interested parties in producing development plan documents and determining planning applications.

I also refer the hon. Member to the answer given to him on of 4 February, PQ 24412.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2016-02-03.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 3 February 2016 to Question 24211, whether it is her policy that former school sites should be retained for potential new school provision in areas of expected new housing growth.

Edward Timpson

The Secretary of State is keen to ensure that education land is used to support the stated priority for the Department in ensuring that there are sufficient good quality school places in the system. In granting consent for any disposal of publicly-funded land, the Secretary of State takes into account whether there is a basic need for additional school places in the area, and whether the land could be used to support an academy or free school. The requirement for the Secretary of State’s consent to dispose of publicly funded land extends to former school sites that have been used as a school within the last 8 years. For former playing field sites, it extends to 10 years.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2016-02-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he expects Highways England operatives to attend to the day burning street lamps on the M67 between Denton and Hyde in Greater Manchester.

Andrew Jones

There was a fault in the lighting mechanism along the M67 Motorway. To ensure that the lighting was fully operational overnight, Highways England has attended to the lighting mechanism and temporarily bypassed the defective component. As a result, the lighting columns were temporarily lit both during the day and night. Highways England returned the lighting to its correct hours of operation on 15 February 2016.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2016-02-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the effect on NHS (a) services and (b) governance of NHS England’s decision to discontinue the role of national clinical director for neurology services from March 2016; and if he will make a statement.

Jane Ellison

Sir Bruce Keogh, NHS England’s Medical Director, has undertaken a review of the National Clinical Director (NCD) resource designed to focus clinical advisory resources on areas where major programmes of work are currently being taking forward, or areas identified as priorities for improvement. As a result of the review, NHS England has proposed to change the way in which clinical advice is received in speciality areas in the future.

Where there will no longer be a specific NCD role, NHS England will secure expert clinical advice from its clinical networks and through its relationships with professional bodies and by appointing clinical advisors. For neurology it is planned that access to advice will be through clinical leads and members of the NHS England-funded neurology clinical networks, the Neurology Clinical Reference Group and Royal Colleges. It is expected that these new arrangements will be in place from 1 April 2016.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2016-03-01.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much the UK has received in grants and funding from the EU to fund research into cancer under (a) the EU’s 7th framework programme 2007-2013 and (b) the current Horizon 2020 programme.

Ben Gummer

The Department does not hold this information.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2016-03-08.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the cost was of non-routine upholstery cleaning for the Government Car Service fleet in each month since May 2015.

Mr Robert Goodwill

No cost has been incurred by the Government Car Service fleet in each month since May 2015 for non-routine upholstery cleaning.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2016-03-23.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, for what reason exemptions were granted from the sugar levy for 100 per cent fruit juice and milk; and if he will publish the evidence on which that decision was taken.

Mr David Gauke

Pure fruit juices and milk-based drinks have other health benefits and we do not want to discourage their consumption.

Pure fruit juices are part of the 5-a-day message and have intrinsic nutrients such as containing certain vitamins.

Milk and milk-products are a good source of protein and calcium, which have health benefits such as aiding bone formation. The government wants to encourage the consumption of milk to help children consume the required amounts of these nutrients.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2016-04-13.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether his Department has made an assessment of the number of NHS organisations that have official terms and conditions that set payment terms longer than 30 days.

George Freeman

The Department has developed standard National Health Service terms and conditions for use by NHS bodies procuring goods and services from commercial suppliers. The documents were first published in August 2013.

The Department has details of all activity on the gov.uk website which shows extensive use and downloads of the documents and has also invited regular feedback and online surveys that demonstrate the extensive use of the suite of documents.

In June 2015, the Department and the Cabinet Office Mystery Shopper scheme carried out spot checks with a number of trusts to find out the level of take up of the NHS terms and conditions. The results showed 90% of the trusts contacted confirmed they were using (or intended to use) the NHS terms and conditions.

The suite of documents has been endorsed by the Association of British Healthcare Industries (ABHI), the industry association for the medical technology sector, and the Health Care Supply Association, the representative and network organisation for NHS buyers. Both organisations inform the Department of any activity they are aware of that NHS bodies or suppliers are deviating from the stated terms and conditions. There have only limited examples to date.

The Department of Health has been made aware of a couple of examples of where NHS bodies were extending their payment terms beyond 30 days. The examples came both via the Cabinet Office mystery shopper scheme and ABHI. To support their members ABHI undertook more extensive research but has found these are isolated cases and the practice is not widespread.

The Department understands the concern and together with NHS Provider Regulators are working very closely with NHS providers to ensure that they have sufficient cash to support the safe delivery of their essential services. Although the NHS financial position is tight, the Department has not endorsed, and do not support, formal extensions of credit terms, particularly with Small and Medium size Enterprises, beyond the 30 days in statute.

The Department will also ask NHS Improvement to communicate with all NHS providers through its official monthly bulletin to raise awareness of the Better Practice Payment Code.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what account she will take of the loss of playing fields in consideration of applications for the disposal for development of the former Two Trees High School site in Denton.

Edward Timpson

The Education Act 2011 requires that the Secretary of State must give consent prior to the disposal of land which has been used for any school or academy in the last eight years. A key consideration for the government is whether the land proposed for disposal could be suitable for use by a new academy or free school.

School playing fields are also protected by Section 77 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998. Schools and local authorities must obtain the Secretary of State’s approval before they can dispose of their land. Applications to dispose of school playing fields are first considered by the school playing fields advisory panel, who make a recommendation to the Secretary of State, before she then makes her final decision.

At this time I am not aware of an application by Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council to seek approval to dispose of the former Two Trees Sports College, including the playing fields.

Should an application be submitted, the Secretary of State would take into account any groups or organisations with permission to use the playing fields and what suitable alternative provision they may have been offered. Local schools, which are deficient in playing field land, should also be offered the opportunity to use the playing field before any application is presented. She will also take into account local school place needs and any academy requirement.