The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2014-06-30.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of how many people are signed off work as a result of depression.
Mike Penning
The Department for Work and Pensions does not hold information on the number of people taking sickness absence from work as a result of depression.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2014-07-15.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to promote alternatives to university to young people.
Mr Edward Timpson
We want it to become the norm for young people to choose between an apprenticeship or university as equally prestigious routes to their career. We have placed a duty on schools to provide independent careers guidance for pupils in years 8-13 on the full range of options, including apprenticeships. We have published statutory guidance requiring schools to ensure that other providers, such as further education colleges, have the opportunity to inform pupils about their offer. The guidance also states that schools should offer pupils the opportunity to develop the entrepreneurial skills necessary for self-employment.
The guidance is published online at:
www.gov.uk/government/publications/careers-guidance-for-young-people-in-schools
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2014-07-15.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps she is taking to ensure that UK aid spending is used in the manner intended.
Lynne Featherstone
DFID has rigorous internal systems and processes to ensure that its aid reaches the intended beneficiaries and delivers results. A business case is mandatory for all new funding proposals, and all cases over five million pounds are approved at ministerial level. Once a programme is underway a formal review is required annually and at completion, which assesses and records whether funds have been used for their intended purposes and the results that have been delivered. Assurance that our aid money is being used for the intended purposes is gained form a number of independent providers including Internal Audit Department.
DFID has commissioned a package of reforms to further improve programme leadership, processes and capability and strengthen our oversight of spending.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2014-06-30.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department has taken to help people with autism find appropriate work.
Mike Penning
The Government has contributed significantly to the development of the ‘Rethink Autism’ strategy, owned by the Department of Health.
DWP is an active member of the Autism Programme Board and is working closely with colleagues from across government to address a number of key commitments that support the employment of people with Autistic Spectrum Conditions including Asperger’s Syndrome and associated Hidden Impairment Conditions.
DWP is working with an extensive range of partner organisations and the Hidden Impairment National Group (HING), which the Minister has agreed to sponsor.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2014-07-15.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what guidance her Department has issued to ensure staff at free schools receive appropriate levels of background check.
Mr Nick Gibb
Free schools, like all other state-funded schools, are required by law to carry out a range of checks on staff, including Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks.
The Department for Education issues ‘pre-opening guidance’ to free school proposers to help them establish their schools. It includes guidance on their responsibilities for checking the suitability of staff. The guidance is published online at:
www.gov.uk/government/publications/mainstream-free-school-pre-opening-guide
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2014-07-15.
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what recent assessment she has made of the level of political stability in Northern Ireland.
Mrs Theresa Villiers
The Northern Ireland Assembly is now over half way through its second term since the restoration of devolution in 2007 which of itself is a significant achievement. However, there is an urgent need to make progress on dealing with divisive issues such as flags, parading and the past. The Government also believes that implementation of welfare reform by the Executive is very important.
The Government will continue to press for progress on these matters.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2015-02-11.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent assessment he has made of the consequences for the UK economy of a Greek exit from the Eurozone.
Andrea Leadsom
As the Chancellor stated on 2 February “…it is clear that the stand-off between Greece and the euro zone is the greatest risk to the global economy”.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2014-07-15.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure that parents of disruptive children are made fully aware of their child’s bad behaviour.
Mr Nick Gibb
The majority of schools are safe and disciplined environments, where teachers are respected and pupils learn in an orderly environment. Nevertheless, Ofsted indicated in its 2013 annual report that there are 700,000 pupils in schools where behaviour is just not good enough.
The Government has taken strong action to support schools in maintaining discipline and developing a culture of respect for teacher authority. In the Education Act 2011, we strengthened teachers’ powers to discipline pupils for poor behaviour. Teachers can now issue same-day detentions and search pupils for banned items. We have also provided clarity on the use of reasonable force. Earlier this year we outlined a range of tough but proportionate sanctions that teachers can use to punish poor behaviour and maintain discipline. From January 2014, Ofsted introduced ‘no-notice’ inspections for schools with behaviour issues.
All schools must, by law, have a behaviour policy and make this known to parents, usually by placing it on the school’s website. Our advice makes clear that it is vital that the behaviour policy is well understood by staff, parents and pupils, and that it is consistently applied.
Good schools recognise the importance of engaging parents and have developed their own approaches according to the particular circumstances of the school. In March 2014, we published a series of case studies on managing behaviour and bullying, which include examples of what good schools are doing to engage parents in a spirit of openness and shared responsibility. These case studies are published online at:
www.gov.uk/government/collections/managing-behaviour-and-bullying-in-schools-case-studies
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2015-02-11.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent assessment he has made of the future prospects for the UK’s credit rating.
Andrea Leadsom
The Government’s long term economic plan has secured the UK’s strong credit rating, which has contributed to lower borrowing costs and help protect frontline services. In June 2014, Standard and Poor’s (S&P) revised the outlook on their UK AAA rating from negative to stable. The key driver cited by S&P was ‘Amid further progress in consolidating public fiannces, the UK’s economic recovery is broadening.’
S&P have assigned the UK sovereign the top triple AAA rating since they first published a UK rating in 1978. Moody’s and Fitch have assigned the UK the second highest rating Aa1 and AA+ respectively, with a stable outlook. The Government remains committed to its long term economic plan to ensure that the UK’s strong credit rating is maintained.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2014-07-15.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his European counterparts on steps to tackle Islamic extremism in Europe.
Mr Tobias Ellwood
Countering violent extremism in Europe is an important issue on which the British Government maintains a regular, ongoing dialogue with our European partners. For example, we have engaged with the recent revision of the EU’s Strategy for Combating Radicalisation and Recruitment, and welcomed this as an opportunity to enhance the approach of Member States and the EU to countering radicalisation and further challenging extremism in Europe.