Tag: Andy Slaughter

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2016-02-03.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to improve the quality of early years education.

Mr Sam Gyimah

The Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) sets the standards for the provision of learning, development and care for children from birth to age five, which all early years providers must follow. All three- and four-year-olds are entitled to 15 hours a week of quality early education, free of charge, to prepare them for school and improve their life chances. 94% of three- and 99% of four-year-olds are taking up the current free entitlement.

The latest Early Years Foundation Stage Profile data reveal that an increasing proportion of children are achieving a good level of development at age five: 66% in 2015, compared to 52% in 2013. This is an impressive increase in the last two years.

The quality of the workforce is key to the quality of early years provision and to the positive outcomes it delivers for children’s long term life chances. In group full day care settings, 87% of the workforce has a relevant qualification at level 3. Many of the workforce are qualified beyond level 3. Since 2007, over 16,000 individuals have achieved Early Years Professional Status and Early Years Teacher Status.

We will continue to grow a high quality workforce to drive improvement across the sector through our Workforce Strategy. The strategy will consider how career progression in the sector can be improved to attract and retain quality staff and how effective continuing professional development can help settings to deliver the best quality provision they can.

The government is committed to supporting parents with high childcare costs and is investing in childcare at record levels. By 2019-20 we will be spending more than £6 billion on early years and childcare. The Childcare Bill is delivering the government’s election manifesto commitment to giving families where parents are working an entitlement to 30 hours of free childcare for their three- and four-year-olds.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2016-02-04.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the status is of (a) the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman and (b) any other investigation into the death in custody of HM Prison Holloway prisoner Sarah Reed who was pronounced dead on 11 January 2016.

Andrew Selous

Every death in custody is a tragedy and we work hard to learn the lessons from each death. All deaths in prison custody are subject to a police investigation, an independent investigation by the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman (PPO) and a Coroner’s inquest.

I can confirm that each of these processes has begun following the death of Ms Reed, and I extend my condolences to her family and friends. Until investigations have concluded it would not be appropriate for me to comment further.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2016-02-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many trainees from Medway Secure Training Centre required hospital treatment as a result of injury from (a) assault and (b) restraint in (i) 2013, (ii) 2014 and (iii) 2015.

Andrew Selous

We have appointed an Independent Improvement Board to increase oversight, scrutiny and challenge of managerial arrangements. As the justice secretary said last month, the safety and welfare of all those in custody is vital.

The number of incidents at Medway Secure Training Centre which require hospital treatment as a result of injury from assault or Restrictive Physical Interventions can be found in the annual 2014/15 Youth Justice statistics (Chapter 8 – Behaviour Management) via the link below:

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/youth-justice-annual-statistics-2014-to-2015

We are investigating the accuracy of all restraint injury data from Medway Secure Training Centre.

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2016-02-24.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many (a) disturbances and (b) riots have been recorded (i) on the prison estate and (ii) in private prisons since May 2010.

Andrew Selous

I refer the Hon Member to the answer for PQ 28151, answered on 18 March 2016. This can be found on the following link:

http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2016-02-23/28151/

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2016-02-29.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of the potential change in the level of employment in law firms arising from the changes to personal injury law and procedure announced in the Autumn Statement 2015; and if he will make a statement.

Dominic Raab

The Government will be consulting on the detail of the proposals in due course. The consultation will be accompanied by an impact assessment.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2016-03-03.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, which of the (a) 108 structures funded by the EU or its member states in the Occupied Palestinian Territories and demolished by the Israeli authorities in 2015 and (b) 104 such structures demolished in the first six weeks of 2016 have been funded by her Department (i) directly and (ii) indirectly.

Mr Desmond Swayne

The UK contributes to the EU budget as a whole, not individual instruments within it. The UK’s share on EU expenditure in EU instruments is approximately 14.5%.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2016-03-17.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations his Department has made to the government of Bahrain on the imprisonment of Zainab Al Khawaja; and whether he plans to make representations to press for Zainab Al Khawaja’s release.

Mr Tobias Ellwood

We have raised Zainab Al Khawaja’s case with the Government of Bahrain at the highest levels. The UK encourages Bahrain to respect the rights of all peaceful opposition figures. We call on the Bahraini government to act proportionately in all such cases to protect the universal rights of freedom of expression and assembly. I most recently raised human rights with the Bahraini Ambassador to the UK, His Excellency Sheikh Fawaz bin Mohammed Al Khalifa , on 8 March.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2016-04-08.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what (a) written and (b) other contacts he or Ministers of his Department had with senior executives at (a) AXA UK, (b) Ageas UK, (c) General Insurance, (d) Direct Line Insurance and (e) Admiral Insurance between 1 September and 26 November 2015.

Harriett Baldwin

Treasury Ministers and officials have meetings and representations with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery.

Details of ministerial and permanent secretary meetings with external organisations on departmental business are published on a quarterly basis and are available at:

www.gov.uk/government/collections/hmt-ministers-meetings-hospitality-gifts-and-overseas-travel

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2016-04-20.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, under which statute he has the power to impose contracts on junior doctors.

Ben Gummer

The Secretary of State acted entirely lawfully in deciding to announce, on 11 February 2016, Official Report, columns 1763 – 1778 that he would proceed with the introduction of a new contract without further negotiation with the British Medical Association.

In deciding that a new contract – which would be safer for patients and fair and reasonable for junior doctors – should proceed to be introduced, the Secretary of State was exercising a range of powers under the National Health Service Act 2006.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2016-05-18.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what proportion of the total spend by the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) on projects to improve the employability of ex-offenders came from the European Social Fund via the NOMS Co-Financing Organisation in each year since January 2010.

Andrew Selous

We are committed to improving the employability of offenders. A range of services is available to help offenders improve their employability by helping them increase their knowledge, skills and employment experience. This can also include support to tackle substance misuse or to improve mental health. Providing meaningful work in prisons and vocational qualifications also helps increase employability. Funding comes from a variety of sources including through contracts to provide education and health services, and via Community Rehabilitation Companies. We do not, therefore, collate centrally all expenditure on projects to improve the employability of ex-offenders.

We do, however, carefully record and monitor the funding received from the European Social Fund and ensure there is no duplication of service provision. All funding received from the European Social Fund (ESF) is recorded in the NOMS Annual Report and Accounts. In accordance with strict ESF rules, all funding is passed on to third-party providers who work with offenders to improve their employability. These providers are selected as part of a competitive process.