Tag: Andrew Rosindell

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2014-03-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to help people with mental illnesses find appropriate work.

Mike Penning

Each Jobcentre Plus District is resourced to have a Mental Health and Wellbeing Partnership Manager, they identify the availability of local support that advisers may refer to and provide a support role to advisers who work with customers with mental health conditions.

In January 2014 we launched the Employment and Wellbeing toolkit which offers practical support to Jobcentre advisers to help them work with claimants affected by mental health problems. The toolkit enables advisers to establish a clear employment focus and identify appropriate interventions and actions which enable claimants with mental health issues to progress into employment as quickly as possible.

Disability Employment Advisers (DEAs) and Work Psychologists also offer specialist advice in Jobcentres. DEAs can act as an advocate for the customer with prospective employers, aiming to identify work solutions that will overcome or minimise any difficulties related to an individual’s disability in the work place and Work Psychologists, can provide advice and guidance on effective provision and complete an Employment Assessment for claimants.

Many benefit claimants with mental health problems will be referred to, or may have access to, a range of support including the Work Programme or specialist disability employment programmes including Work Choice and Access to Work.

Work Programme advisors have access to the Working for Wellbeing toolkit which was developed by an expert group of Work Programme and specialist providers to improve employment outcomes for claimants who have mental health problems.

Work Choice is a programme for disabled people with more intensive support and can provide specialist support for people with mental health conditions.

Access to Work includes a specific Mental Health Support Service for people who require support while in work to help them to stay in work. 90 per cent of the people who have been on the MHSS programme for six months (though not always needing six months of support) are still in work. Employer engagement is a key element of the service.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2014-04-03.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his Greek counterpart on whether protests will be permitted to coincide with the upcoming EU meeting.

Mr David Lidington

Ihave not raised this specific issue with my Greek counterpart. Authorities in Greece have the constitutional right to place restrictive or preventative measures on outdoor demonstrations. No such restrictions were in place on 4 and 5 April 2014, the dates on which the informal meeting of EU Ministers of Foreign Affairs was held in Athens.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2014-03-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people have been signed off work in the UK as a result of having obsessive compulsive disorder.

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 having obsessive compulsive disorder.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2014-04-03.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to increase trust in the Metropolitan Police.

Damian Green

The majority of police officers serving in London and elsewhere do their jobs
well, serving their communities with dedication and professionalism. We are
building on this by:
• Delivering the first-ever Code of Ethics, which is due to be published
shortly by the College of Policing. The Code sets out clearly the high
standards of behaviour expected from all police officers and staff of all ranks;
• Establishing, through the College of Policing, a set of national registers of
chief officer reward packages, gifts and hospitality and business interests
including second jobs. The College is also producing a national register of
"struck-off" officers to record those dismissed for misconduct, ensuring that
those individuals are not re-employed by the police;
• Legislating for a new offence of police corruption, supplementing the
existing offence of misconduct in public office and focusing clearly on those
who hold police powers, as an amendment to the Criminal Justice and Courts Bill
already before Parliament;
• Strengthening the Independent Police Complaints Commission so that it will
have responsibility for dealing with all serious and sensitive cases involving
the police. HM Chief Inspector of Constabulary has also been commissioned to
look specifically at the anti-corruption capability of police forces, including
professional standards departments;
• Advertising now for Direct Entry to the police this autumn at Superintendent
level, which will bring a fresh perspective and approach and will open up
policing culture; and
• Introducing a comprehensive package of reform to stop and search which will
contribute to a significant reduction in the overall use of the powers, better
and more intelligence-led stop-and-search, and improved stop-to-arrest ratios.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2014-03-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to prevent married couples from fraudulently claiming council and housing tax-related benefit available only for single people.

Steve Webb

There are no social security benefits relating to housing costs or council tax that are available only to single people. There is a reduction of 25% in the council tax payable available to those who live alone, but the administration of this is a matter for local authorities.

Generally, suspicions that claimants may be living together as if they were married or in a civil partnership without informing the relevant benefit payer come from various sources, including members of the public and members of staff. The Department currently does not investigate cases that only involve housing benefit as these are a matter for local authorities.

Council tax benefit ceased to exist on 1 April 2013 and has been replaced by the local council tax reduction (LCTR) scheme, the administration of which is a matter for local authorities.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2014-04-03.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what her future plans are for support to the Caribbean.

Mr Alan Duncan

The UK is strongly committed to supporting development in the Caribbean. Helping the region tackle the risks posed by natural disasters is one of our top priorities, alongside supporting sustainable economic growth and addressing governance and security.

The UK Government has increased its bilateral support to the Independent Caribbean by 50 percent (around £75 million in 2011 to 2015). We also make significant contributions though multilateral partners, for example providing 15 per cent of the EU’s €1.4 billion support and 19 per cent of the Caribbean Development Bank’s Special Development Fund. Our funding runs until March 2015. We are currently reviewing our approach in the Independent Caribbean to ensure that the UK’s support responds to the countries’ needs and delivers the greatest positive impact in the next phase of support from 2015/16 onwards.

In addition, the UK provides assistance to the Overseas Territory of Monserrat by financing public services and investing in infrastructure. We are making these investments to facilitate economic growth and reduce long-term dependence on aid.