Tag: Bridget Phillipson

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bridget Phillipson on 2016-10-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the effect the availability of childcare provision of extended schools has had on reducing (a) the gender pay gap, (b) child poverty, and (c) workless households in England.

Caroline Dinenage

The evaluation of the extended schools programme suggested that extended services, which are not limited to childcare, may help overcome or ameliorate the effects of child poverty and workless households by allowing parents to work, or work more hours. Research by others, such as the Women’s Business Council, suggests that affordable, flexible childcare is key to enabling women to participate in the labour market, if they want to.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bridget Phillipson on 2015-11-30.

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, with reference to paragraph 42 of the North East Devolution Agreement, what the composition of the proposed Steering Group will be; what the process of escalation referred to will be; and what plans he has to report on the activities of the Steering Group to Parliament on an annual or quarterly basis.

James Wharton

My officials are working closely with representatives of the North East Combined Authority to ensure that robust implementation arrangements for the North East Devolution Deal are in place. Aspects of monitoring, including a steering group, are still subject to ongoing discussions, and once agreed will form part of the North East Combined Authority’s Implementation Plan.

The Cities and Local Government Devolution Bill includes provision for the Secretary of State to provide an Annual Report to both Houses of Parliament on areas of the country where agreements have been reached, as soon as practicable after 31 March each year.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bridget Phillipson on 2016-02-01.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what recent discussions he has had with (a) ministers in the Scottish Government and (b) women’s organisations on devolving competence for abortion legislation to Scotland.

David Mundell

I have regular discussions with the Scottish Government’s Deputy First Minister on all aspects of our implementation of the Smith Commission Agreement, including the devolution of responsibility for abortion law to the Scottish Parliament. UK and Scottish Government officials will continue to work closely on this issue.

I have had discussions with representatives of women’s organisations on this matter. However, with the transfer of responsibility to the Scottish Parliament, it is primarily for the Scottish Government to take forward engagement with interested parties. Scottish Government Ministers have met with representatives of a number of stakeholder organisations to discuss the devolution of abortion law and the delivery of abortion services in Scotland.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bridget Phillipson on 2016-02-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether his Department has allocated funding to defend a legal challenge against his decision to impose a new junior doctors contract.

Ben Gummer

The Department has an allocated budget to fund the legal services it requires, which would include funding for any challenge in relation to the junior doctors’ contract.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bridget Phillipson on 2016-05-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of stopping survivors of domestic abuse from being cross-examined by their abusers in family court proceedings.

Caroline Dinenage

The family courts take the issue of domestic violence extremely seriously. The Child Arrangement Programme and Practice Direction 12J sets out a strong and clear framework for judges to apply to the management of difficult court room situations, to ensure they are handled sensitively for alleged victims of domestic violence and other vulnerable witnesses. All judges receive specific training on this framework and they can intervene to prevent inappropriate questions or have questions relayed. Practical protections, for example, protective screens, video links, separate waiting rooms and separate entrances are available where appropriate.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bridget Phillipson on 2016-10-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the effect of the level of parental contributions required to fund extended school activities on participation of pupils pupils from low-income families in such activities.

Edward Timpson

We want to ensure that all young people get the best start in life, with the opportunity to receive the knowledge and skills, the right advice at the right time, and great, challenging life-shaping experiences that will ensure their future success. We know that effective schools personalise their support for disadvantaged pupils, which can include the use of extended school activities. Schools are free to use the funding they receive, including through the pupil premium, to offer these activities. We have committed to protecting the pupil premium at current rates for the duration of this Parliament, providing £2.5billion of additional funding this year alone to raise the attainment of disadvantaged pupils.

The Department for Education does not collect information on the amount of funding schools receive from parental contributions for extended school activities or how this affects levels of participation in such activities. It is for schools to set their charging and remission policy. Any charges for extended services cannot exceed the cost of the provision, and in setting their charging policy schools can determine the circumstances where they will remit or partially remit any charges.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bridget Phillipson on 2015-10-21.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the effect of changes in police officer numbers on the ability of police to respond to anti-social behaviour.

Mike Penning

The number of police recorded incidents of anti-social behaviour has declined year-on-year from 2.7 million incidents in 2011/12 to 1.9 million in the year ending June 2015. The number of anti-social behaviour incidents recorded by police in England and Wales in the year ending June 2015 decreased by 9% compared with the previous year. However, we recognise that anti-social behaviour continues to blight too many communities. This is why new and more flexible powers were introduced in the Anti-social Behaviour Crime and Policing Act 2014 to make it quicker and easier for police forces and local authorities to protect communities from unacceptable behaviour.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bridget Phillipson on 2015-10-27.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if his Department will examine evidence from Scotland on the effects of a lower drink-drive limit; and if he will make it his policy to equalise the limit in England.

Andrew Jones

Tackling drink driving is a priority for this Government and we have continued to focus on tough enforcement. In April 2015 legislation was introduced through the De-Regulation Act which removed the automatic right for drivers who fail a breathalyser test to demand a blood or urine test. This has denied people the chance to sober up while waiting for the test to be taken. Also, ‘High Risk Offenders’ are now required to prove that they are no longer alcohol-dependent before being allowed to drive.

I would be interested to see a robust and comprehensive evaluation of the change to the Scottish drink drive limit.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bridget Phillipson on 2015-10-26.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if his Department will give consideration to introducing the testing of (a) night-time and (b) motorway driving as mandatory components of the driving test.

Andrew Jones

Current legislation requires the eyesight element of the practical driving test to be conducted in good daylight and prohibits learner drivers from motorways. The learning to drive and testing processes are, however, kept under review. The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) is currently trialling a series of potential changes aimed at encouraging learner drivers to obtain a wider range of driving experience prior to the practical driving test. This will include driving on roads which require a higher speed and other varying traffic situations. DVSA is also developing clips that depict hazards related to driving at night for inclusion in the hazard perception element of the theory test.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bridget Phillipson on 2015-10-21.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether his Department plans to improve out-of-hour services for palliative care.

Ben Gummer

This Government is committed to improving the quality of palliative care. Earlier this year, the Review of Choice in End of Life Care made a number of recommendations on how to enable greater choice and improve quality in palliative and end of life care nationally, including on the provision of out-of-hour palliative care services.

We agree with the vision set out by the Review and are working with NHS England and others to see how this can best be achieved. We intend to respond to the Review recommendations in due course.