Tag: Andrew Stephenson

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Stephenson on 2015-11-05.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the proportion of people eligible for the Class 3A Voluntary National Insurance Contribution Scheme that have signed up to that scheme.

Justin Tomlinson

We do not hold application data for the State Pension top up (Class 3A) at a regional or constituency level. To obtain this would incur a disproportionate cost. Across the UK we have received 3193 applications for State Pension top up (Class 3A) in the scheme’s first 3 weeks.

Up to c. 12m individuals are eligible for the scheme depending upon personal circumstances. In the first 3 weeks of operation there were 3193 applications for State Pension top up (Class 3A).

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Stephenson on 2016-01-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the Government’s publication, Call to End Violence against Women and Girls’ Action Plan 2014, published in March 2014, what progress has been made on putting in place a new code of practice to ensure that safe addresses of victims of domestic and sexual abuse are protected; and if he will make a statement.

Karen Bradley

Protecting women and girls from violence and supporting victims and survivors of domestic abuse and sexual violence remain key priorities for the Government. We will continue to improve the protection for victims and to bring offenders to justice.

The Home Office has been working with a number of relevant Government Departments to assess what processes and guidance are currently used to protect the addresses and personal information of vulnerable persons and victims of crime. We are now developing a voluntary code of practice to address the identified gaps.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Stephenson on 2016-02-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many homes she estimates will benefit from Flood Re in (a) the North West, (b) Lancashire and (c) Pendle.

Rory Stewart

Flood Re is on target to start operating on 4 April. The Scheme will help owners of property at high risk of flooding by ensuring that, for the first time, they can access affordable flood insurance regardless of where they live.

We expect Flood Re to cover up to 350,000 properties across the country and insurers are free to decide which properties to pass to Flood Re. The number of properties passed to Flood Re in particular areas will become evident once the scheme is in operation. There is no limit to the number of properties that can be ceded to Flood Re.

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

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what comparative assessment he has made of trends in the level of wage growth and inflation.

Damian Hinds

Latest figures from the Office for National Statistics show that in the three months to January, Real Average Weekly Earnings grew 2 percent compared to a year earlier.

Wage growth has outstripped inflation for 16 consecutive months. And the OBR forecast wages to grow faster than inflation in each of the next five years.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Stephenson on 2016-07-12.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions his Department has had with other Commonwealth countries on sharing trade negotiating capabilities and resources.

Alok Sharma

We have been consulting, and will continue to consult, a broad range of stakeholders, including governments and businesses, on the implications of the referendum result for trade. We have been encouraged by the interest coming from a range of non-EU countries, including some of our closest allies. Across government, we are preparing options for our future trade policy for the Prime Minister, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Maidenhead (Mrs May) to consider. We are also rapidly building civil service capacity and capability on trade.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Stephenson on 2015-10-22.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many deaths in (a) Pendle, (b) the North West and (c) England have been caused as a result of people taking legal highs in each of the past three years.

Mr Rob Wilson

The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Stephenson on 2015-10-22.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how the Government plans to use the fines collected in Lancashire for parents taking their children out of school early in 2014-15.

Nick Gibb

Revenue from penalty notices (fines) is payable to the local authority in respect of pupils registered at school in their area, or in the case of an unregistered pupil, for whom they have arranged alternative provision.

Regulations provide that the local authority can retain revenue from their penalty notice scheme to cover the cost of issuing or enforcing notices, or the cost of prosecuting recipients who do not pay. All revenue not used for these purposes must be paid to the Secretary of State.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Stephenson on 2015-10-22.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the level of truancy was in Pendle in the last three years.

Nick Gibb

Information on pupil absence, including authorised and unauthorised absence, is published at school, local authority, regional and national level in the “Statistics: pupil absence”[1] series. Parliamentary constituency level information is not available.

[1] https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/statistics-pupil-absence

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Stephenson on 2015-10-22.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many parents were fined for taking children out of school early or for their children’s truancy in Pendle in each of the past three years.

Nick Gibb

The Department for Education does not hold information on the number of penalty notices (fines) issued to parents for school attendance offences in Pendle.

The department collects and publishes local authority level annual data on the number of penalty notices issued to parents, for offences relating to Section 444(1) of the Education Act 1996. The department does not collect data regarding fines issued by the courts on this matter. The most recent data published by the department is for the academic year 2012/13.

The number of penalty notices issued in Lancashire in 2011/12 and 2012/13 can be viewed at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/parental-responsibility-measures-academic-year-2012-to-2013

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Stephenson on 2015-10-22.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what funding her Department has made available for the maintenance of waterways in (a) Pendle, (b) the North West and (c) England in 2015-16.

Rory Stewart

The Government provides grant-in-aid funding to the two largest navigation authorities in England and Wales: the Canal & River Trust (CRT) and the Environment Agency.

Under the terms of the grant agreement, for 2015-16, the CRT will receive a total of £49.546m for the navigations it owns in England and Wales. The distribution of maintenance funding across CRT’s waterways is a matter for CRT.

The Environment Agency does not own or manage any navigations in Pendle or the North West.