Tag: Barry Sheerman

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Sheerman on 2016-06-03.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps he is taking to support third-sector training providers and local authorities in reducing the number of young people who are not in education, employment or training.

Nick Boles

Third sector providers and local authority adult education services access the Adult Education Budget as prime and sub-contractors, using the funding for training which helps young people who are not in education, employment or training prepare for work, amongst other objectives. They also compete to run local European Social Fund programmes; many of these programmes focus on helping young people improve their skills levels and employment opportunities.

Where combined authorities agree devolution deals which include devolution of the Adult Education Budget, they will assume full responsibility for decisions about what provision to commission from that budget. Nine areas have agreed such deals to date, with devolution of that budget due to take effect from 2018/19, subject to readiness conditions being met. BIS is working with those areas in advance of full devolution to help increase local influence over nationally-funded adult education provision in their locality in the interim.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Sheerman on 2016-09-06.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to eradicate bovine tuberculosis.

George Eustice

Our comprehensive strategy to eradicate bovine tuberculosis includes strengthening cattle testing and movement controls, improving biosecurity on farm and when trading cattle, and badger control in areas where TB is rife.

We have recently launched a public consultation and a call for views on proposals for additional cattle measures. These proposals follow enhancements made in April 2016, including post-movement testing of cattle entering the Low Risk Area and a more sensitive TB testing regime for infected herds in the High Risk Area. Natural England has this year authorised licensed badger control in ten areas where TB is rife.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Sheerman on 2016-09-09.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent representations he has made to the South Korean government on the dog meat trade.

Alok Sharma

I spoke to the Republic of Korea (ROK) Ambassador on 12 September, ahead of a Westminster Hall Debate on the dog meat trade in ROK, to raise the issue of the dog meat trade and highlight the strength of feeling among the British public and Parliamentarians on this issue. As I stated in the Westminster Hall Debate, there is evidence that attitudes among the ROK public towards the dog meat trade and animal welfare are changing. We hope to encourage that change. The British Ambassador in RoK most recently raised the dog meat trade directly in Seoul on 1 September, highlighting our concerns about the treatment and welfare of animals. The UK has some of the highest animal welfare standards in the world and the British Government will continue to promote animal welfare with our international partners.

I have included a copy of the transcript of the 12 September Westminster Hall Debate with this answer.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Sheerman on 2016-10-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to reduce (a) dangerous driving and (b) driving under the influence of alcohol.

Andrew Jones

I published the Road Safety Statement in December 2015 which sets out the measures Government is taking to improve road safety including the reduction of road traffic offences. Our award-winning THINK! campaigns have also been running throughout the year to educate drivers on the risk and consequences of a number of different type of offences. The Department is in regular contact with a range of organisations and their reports, such as the ‘RAC Report on Motoring 2016’, are provided to the Department. The Department often includes research evidence in its impact assessments, for example the Elvik ‘dose response’ model, which shows that rigorous enforcement increases the deterrent effect on offending. The Government continues to keep road safety and road traffic offences under review.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Sheerman on 2016-10-14.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will take steps to ensure that health providers commissioned to give influenza vaccinations to patients at home are also commissioned to provide such vaccinations for eligible carers.

Nicola Blackwood

Under the national enhanced service specification, general practitioners (GPs) are contracted to offer the influenza vaccination to those who are in receipt of a carer’s allowance, or those who are the main carer of an elderly or disabled person whose welfare may be at risk if the carer falls ill.

It is the responsibility of the GPs to ensure access to influenza immunisation services is as accessible, convenient and efficient as possible; in some cases GPs may include a service to immunise patients at home.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Sheerman on 2015-10-28.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will take steps to reduce the number of false personal injury claims.

Dominic Raab

This Government is building on the significant reforms of the coalition Government to tackle fraudulent and unnecessary personal injury claims. We are looking forward to receiving the recommendations of the Insurance Fraud Taskforce later this year and will announce further reform in this important area in due course.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Sheerman on 2015-11-13.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he has had with representatives from the Icelandic government on debt owed to (a) UK taxpayers and (b) the public purse by Icelandic banks.

Harriett Baldwin

HM Government officials continue to engage with the Icelandic authorities in order to complete the recovery process from the failed Icelandic banks. In total, £8.64 billion was paid out by HM Treasury to compensate UK depositors of the Icelandic banks Kaupthing, Singer and Friedlander Ltd (KSF), Heritable Bank plc and Landsbanki (Icesave).

All eligible UK retail depositors were fully compensated. To date, the Treasury has recovered £7.71 billion from the three estates. The Government expects to make a full recovery of the outstanding funds from the estates.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Sheerman on 2015-12-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of whether the current sentencing framework for mothers with children takes sufficient account of the needs of those children.

Caroline Dinenage

Sentencing guidelines are issued by the independent Sentencing Council. They are available on the Sentencing Council website. They confirm that the gender of the offender is irrelevant for sentencing purposes in accordance with Equalities duties. They also confirm that where the offender is the sole or primary carer for dependent relatives, this should be taken into account for sentencing purposes as a mitigating factor.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Sheerman on 2016-01-21.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that all GPs are trained in awareness of the diagnostic pathway for people seeking a diagnosis of autism.

Alistair Burt

In 2015, new statutory guidance building on the 2010 Autism Strategy, and the 2014 Think Autism update, set out expectations for local authorities and the National Health Service in relation to autism training. It is the responsibility for the General Pharmaceutical Council and the Nursing and Midwifery Council, to ensure newly qualified pharmacists and health visitors are equipped with the knowledge, skills and attitudes to provide high quality patient care. The Department has worked the Royal College of Nursing, and Skills for Health and Skills for Care, to develop autism training material. Health Education England is also working with the Royal Colleges and other stakeholders to increase awareness and knowledge of autism for NHS health professionals.

The Department has also provided financial support to the Royal College of General Practitioners’ clinical priorities programme on autism which is undertaking practical work on autism awareness and training for general practitioners (GPs). GPs should be aware of what the local arrangements are for making referrals for autism diagnosis and how to access appropriate post-diagnostic interventions.

NHS England has commenced a programme to visit clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) to identify and share good practice in accessing timely autism diagnosis and post diagnostic support. NHS England with support from the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services is to visit a selection of areas to talk to CCGs and local authorities about their Autism Diagnostic Care Pathways. A report on the work will be completed by the end of April 2016.

We know that people with autism can experience common mental health conditions such as depression and anxiety, as well as other mental illnesses. Over £400 million has been invested in Improving Access to Psychological Therapies to ensure access to talking therapies for those who need them, including those with autism.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Sheerman on 2016-02-01.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to improve the diagnosis and treatment of lipoedema.

Jane Ellison

No such analysis has been made.

There are several different treatments available for the management of lipoedema such as compression therapy, exercise and massage. There is limited evidence on the efficacy of liposuction for the treatment of lipoedema, and it is not routinely available on the National Health Service.

In May 2014, the Royal College of General Practitioners, in partnership with the charity Lipoedema UK, developed and published an e-learning module for general practitioners on the diagnosis and management of lipoedema. The module was endorsed by the Royal College of Nursing and can be found at the following link:

elearning.rcgp.org.uk/course/info.php?id=146&popup=0

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