The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2015-11-17.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what representations his Department received from the Mayor of London on the Transport for London Bill.
Mr Robert Goodwill
The Mayor has raised the Transport for London Bill with the Secretary of State in writing, and at several of their regular meetings.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2015-12-01.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to paragraph 1.143 of the Spending Review and Autumn Statement 2015, if he will publish an impact assessment on his policy to lower motor insurance costs.
Harriett Baldwin
The Ministry of Justice will launch a public consultation in the New Year on the details of the policy.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2015-12-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the status is of each prison building and site for prisons closed since May 2010.
Andrew Selous
Since May 2010 we have closed 18 prisons. This includes two partial closures (HMP Camp Hill, HMP Brockhill) and two former prisons (Morton Hall and The Verne) which have been re-roled into Immigration Removal Centres. The closure of these, and other uneconomic prison places, delivered £170m in savings between 2011-12 and 2014-15.
Two former prisons, Wellingborough and Camp Hill, have been retained as a contingency measure to deal with unexpected events such as a larger than projected increase in the prison population. This allows us to have reserve capacity without the cost of keeping them fully operational.
The status of each of the closed prisons is as follows:
|
Former Prison |
Status |
|
HMP Ashwell |
Sold |
|
HMP Lancaster Castle |
Lease handed back |
|
HMP Latchmere House |
Sold |
|
HMP Wellingborough |
Reserve capacity |
|
HMP Bullwood Hall |
Contracts exchanged |
|
HMP Canterbury |
Sold |
|
HMP Gloucester |
Sold |
|
HMP Kingston |
Sold |
|
HMP Shepton Mallet |
Sold |
|
HMP Shrewsbury |
Sold |
|
HMP Blundeston |
Contracts exchanged |
|
HMP Dorchester |
Sold |
|
HMP Northallerton |
Sold |
|
HMP Camp Hill (part of HMP Isle of Wight) |
Reserve capacity |
|
HMP Brockhill (part of HMP Hewell) |
Sold |
|
HMYOI Reading |
Not yet on the market |
The Secretary of State for Justice announced on 9 November that we will sell former HMYOI Reading.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2015-12-11.
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what Henry VIII powers were (a) enacted in legislation passed in the 2010 to 2015 Parliament and (b) since May 2015.
Mr Oliver Letwin
Each time the Government proposes a new delegated power in a Bill, it submits a memorandum to the Delegated Powers and Regulatory Reform Committee setting out the case for the power. These memoranda are published on Parliament’s website.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2016-01-04.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what budget his Department has allocated to the National Tactical Response Group for each of the last five years.
Andrew Selous
The budget allocation for National Tactical Response Group (NTRG) is set out in the table below.
These figures include pay and non-pay items (including training materials, operational incident consumables and vehicle costs). It is not possible to retrieve the 2010 data information within the time available. The resource allocation for 2016-17 is yet to be confirmed.
|
NTRG Budget |
|
|
2011-12 |
1.6m |
|
2012-13 |
1.6m |
|
2013-14 |
1.7m |
|
2014-15 |
1.8m |
|
2015-16 |
1.8m |
“
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2015-12-16.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, by what mechanism any savings made by insurance companies as a result of a change to the small claims limit for soft tissue road traffic accident injuries will be passed on to policyholders.
Harriett Baldwin
The pricing of insurance products is a commercial matter for individual insurers in which the Government does not seek to intervene. The motor insurance market is intensely competitive and the Government therefore expects that the insurance industry will pass on savings to consumers.
Some insurers have already committed to pass on all savings to consumers as a result of the proposed changes.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2016-01-11.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will bring forward legislative proposals to protect legally privileged communications from surveillance.
Mr John Hayes
The Covert Surveillance and Property Interference Code of Practice, which came into force on 10 December 2014 following approval by Parliament, set out the safeguards in relation to covert surveillance activity under the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 which is likely or intended to result in the acquisition of knowledge of matters subject to legal privilege.
There are similar safeguards in the existing Interception of Communications and Equipment Interference Codes of Practice which were approved by the House of Lords in December 2015 and the House of Commons earlier this month. The Investigatory Powers Bill and its associated codes of practice will replace the existing codes of practice for the interception of communication and equipment interference and will set out the powers available to public authorities to obtain communications and communication data and the safeguards that will apply.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2016-01-08.
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the evaluation and recommendations of the Law Commission on the Advice Services Transition Fund.
Mr Rob Wilson
The aim of the Advice Services Transition Fund (ASTF) was to support the sector to be able to respond with confidence to the challenges presented by the changing funding environment.
The Fund was always intended to support time limited transformational activity. Cabinet Office is not in a position to commit longer-term funding to support the core-running costs of advice services. However, the fund has supported organisations to transition to more collaborative working. We will also be working with the Big Lottery Fund to ensure that learning is identified and shared across the advice services sector. This work aligns with recommendations outlined in the Low Commission report.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2016-01-12.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to his contribution during the Urgent Question on 11 January 2016, Official Report, column 1573, when he was first made aware of the allegations made by Panorama about Medway Secure Training College.
Andrew Selous
The Secretary of State was first made aware of Panorama’s investigation on 30 December 2015. The Panorama team briefed the Secretary of State on the nature of their allegations on 6 January. The Youth Justice Board (YJB) was informed on 30 December 2015. To ensure the safety of the children at Medway, the YJB ceased placements into the centre with immediate effect. The YJB has increased their own monitoring at Medway and the independent advocacy service provided by Barnardo’s.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2016-01-18.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what arrangements his Department has in place to monitor the performance of MTCNovo’s delivery of the custodial service at Rainsbrook Secure Training Centre.
Andrew Selous
The contract with MTCnovo at Rainsbrook Secure Training Centre (STC) will begin on 5th May 2016. During the transition of the new contract, the Youth Justice Board (YJB) will work alongside MTCnovo and the current contract holder at Rainsbrook STC to facilitate a safe and successful transition to the new contract.
The YJB has responsibility for commissioning and overseeing the youth secure estate through monitoring and reporting performance at each STC site against the contract and STC rules. The YJB has a full time on-site Monitor at Rainsbrook STC supported by a part time assistant and YJB managers, to ensure that MTCnovo’s service delivery is in accordance with the contract and the STC rules, which set out how STCs should be managed and run. The YJB conduct regular walk-rounds to monitor compliance, analyse data returns, review reports – including incidents of use of force – and review contractor’s declaration of performance awards.