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 funding is available for third-sector training providers to support young people who are not in education, employment or training and not ready for classroom-based learning since the end of the Youth Contract.

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 her policy is on the maintenance of current restrictions on the use of neonicotinoids once the UK leaves the EU.

George Eustice

As part of the preparation for EU exit, we are considering future arrangements for pesticides. Our highest priority will continue to be the protection of people and the environment.

The Government remains of the view that decisions on the use of neonicotinoids and other pesticides should be based on a careful scientific assessment of the risks. Pesticides that carry unacceptable risks to pollinators should not be authorised. The Government keeps the developing evidence on neonicotinoids under active review, advised by the Expert Committee on Pesticides.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Sheerman on 2016-09-13.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many calls NHS 111 has received in each of the last 12 months.

Mr Philip Dunne

NHS England publishes national data on the numbers of calls received (which are referred to as “offered”) through the NHS 111 number each month. This information provided in the table below.

Number of calls offered through the NHS 111 number, August 2015 to July 2016

August 2015	1,033,643
September 2015	933,786
October 2015	1,062,248
November 2015	1,140,196
December 2015	1,329,398
January 2016	1,343,248
February 2016	1,194,928
March 2016	1,488,928
April 2016	1,169,311
May 2016	1,282,993
June 2016	1,105,485
July 2016	1,222,866

Source: NHS England, NHS 111 Minimum Data Set 2016-17

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent representations his Department has received on the effectiveness of the laws against dangerous driving, speeding and driving while under the influence of alcohol in deterring those offences.

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 2015-11-03.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when his Department plans to release estimates of NHS expenditure on mental health services for financial year 2013-14; and if he will make a statement.

Alistair Burt

NHS England has published clinical commissioning group (CCG) level expenditure on mental health for 2013/14, which was estimated to be £8.1 billion. CCGs are currently in the process of preparing estimates of expenditure for mental health services in 2014/15.

We continue to take mental health as seriously as physical health and to hold the National Health Service to account for achieving the objectives set out in the NHS Mandate. In the planning requirements for 2015/16, CCGs were required to invest additionally in mental health in line with their increase in allocation. The total planned additional spend is £376 million, an increase of 4.5%.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure that guidance on changes to the disabled students’ allowance is easily accessible to (a) parents and (b) schools.

Edward Timpson

Reforms to the special educational needs and disability system mean local authorities must publish information in their Local Offers about support available to young people in Higher Education (HE), including Disabled Students’ Allowances (DSAs) and the process and timescales for making an application for DSAs. We would expect this information to cover changes to DSAs.

The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) is currently considering the responses made to the recent consultation on proposed changes to DSAs, and the government response to the consultation will be published in due course. The proposed changes aim to make HE as accessible as possible, to re-balance support between HE providers and DSAs, and to improve value for money.DSAs will remain available to complement the support provided by institutions, and students will continue to receive the support they need.

BIS has been clear that any changes implemented will take effect from August 2016 for the Academic year 2016/17. BIS will be working closely with the Student Loans Company and other stakeholders, to ensure that correct information is easily available.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Sheerman on 2015-12-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps he is taking to widen access to the digital economy for young people.

Mr Edward Vaizey

This Government is ensuring that young people can participate in the digital economy. The new computing curriculum was launched in schools in September 2014, supporting young people to be digitally confident, and reformed digital apprenticeships are providing more opportunities for young people to gain the digital skills employers value. This Government has also launched a new digital degree apprenticeship, giving young people from all backgrounds high-level digital skills training alongside on-the-job experience.

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 help prevent bleach and other ineffective treatments advertised as miracle cures being used to treat autism.

Alistair Burt

The Department is aware of the development of sodium chlorite being marketed as Miracle Mineral Solution (MMS) as a cure for autism. MMS is not a cure for autism.

The Food Standards Agency has issued advice previously, first in 2010, that MMS is not safe and should not be sold as a supplement. Since then it has been working with local authorities across the country to share knowledge, and to investigate and prevent the sale of MMS and similar products.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether his Department has conducted an analysis of the potential cost to the public purse of offering liposuction treatment for lipoedema through the NHS.

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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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Sheerman on 2016-02-26.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans he has for the future level of beer duty.

Damian Hinds

The government continues to keep all taxes under review and decisions on tax policy are made as part of the Budget process.

The government is committed to supporting the beer industry. The tax on a typical pint of beer was cut by a penny at March Budget 2015, building on the duty cuts at Budget 2014 and Budget 2013.