Tag: Bridget Phillipson

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bridget Phillipson on 2016-05-09.

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many specially adapted homes for (a) disabled and (b) elderly people there were in (i) Sunderland, (ii) the North East and (iii) England in 2014-15.

Brandon Lewis

The Department for Communities and Local Government does not collect data on the number of specially adapted homes. However, the Department does collect data on the number of Disabled Facilities Grants completed annually in England. The latest data available from 2013-14 indicates 42,586 adaptations were provided.

The Government is committed to helping older and disabled people to live independently and safely in their own homes for as a long as possible. Since 2010 we have invested over one billion pounds (£1,005,000,000) into the Disabled Facilities Grant, providing around 250,000 adaptations for older and disabled people’s homes in England.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bridget Phillipson on 2016-10-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what definition of underperforming local authorities, or other measures of performance her Department will use in a decision to convert a school to academy status.

Edward Timpson

We have been clear that we want to see all schools, over time, become academies. But our focus is on schools where standards need to be raised. So we will continue to convert all schools that are judged inadequate by Ofsted, and work with those that are coasting or otherwise underperforming to identify the support they need to improve. We expect that in some cases this support will be through conversion to become a sponsored academy. No new legislation is required for these purposes.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bridget Phillipson on 2015-12-01.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 17 November 2015 to Question 15582, if he will define bus franchising in relation to the North East Devolution Deal and how it differs from a Quality Contact Scheme.

Andrew Jones

The Buses Bill will provide the powers for local transport authorities to franchise their local bus services subject to agreement from Government. It will allow local transport authorities to replace the current deregulated bus market with a system of contracting, whereby the authority specifies the services or outcomes they are looking to achieve and bus companies bid to provide those services.

The final content of the Bill is still being developed, but the process through which the franchising powers are exercised is likely to differ from that set out in the Quality Contract Scheme process. The intended outcome of franchising is similar to that of a Quality Contract Scheme, although there are likely to be some differences. For example, the ten-year time limit that applies to Quality Contract Schemes is not expected to apply under franchising.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bridget Phillipson on 2016-01-25.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 18 January 2016 to Question 21777, if he will publish or summarise the outcome of the operational assurance audit of Northumbria Community Rehabilitation Company completed in June 2015 and any remedial actions required as a result of that audit.

Andrew Selous

Northumbria Community Rehabilitation Company has put in place an action plan to remedy shortcomings identified. We monitor the performance of all Community Rehabilitation Companies closely, to make sure they fulfil their contractual commitments to maintain service delivery, reduce reoffending, protect the public and deliver value for money to the tax payer. Operational assurance audit results are commercially sensitive, so will not be published.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bridget Phillipson on 2016-02-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to paragraph 1.26 of the National Audit Office report, Implementing reforms to civil legal aid reports, published in November 2014, what assessment he has made of the effect of the increase in the number of litigants in person in family courts for cases involving contact with children on the quality of child arrangements orders made in families known to have a history of domestic abuse.

Caroline Dinenage

The family court takes the issue of domestic violence extremely seriously. Where domestic violence or abuse is admitted or proven, any child arrangements order put in place must protect the safety and wellbeing of the child and the parent with whom the child is living, and not expose them to the risk of further harm. In particular, the court must be satisfied that any contact ordered with a parent who has perpetrated violence or abuse is safe and in the best interests of the child.

Where the court concludes that direct contact is safe and beneficial for the child, it can impose conditions such as supervised contact to protect the child.

The Ministry of Justice has improved funding for support and advice projects led by advice, voluntary and the pro bono sector to assist litigants in person and provide them with the information and skills to effectively represent themselves in court. Further, a person who has evidence of domestic violence or abuse, or the risk of such violence or abuse, can still obtain legal aid for advice and legal representation in the family court for a protective order or to deal with other family matters, such as a child arrangements order. This is to make sure that actual or potential victims of domestic violence or abuse are given the protection they need to keep them and other family members, including children, safe.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bridget Phillipson on 2016-05-20.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many women have been diagnosed with endometriosis in (a) Sunderland, (b) the North East and (c) England.

Jane Ellison

The number of people who have been diagnosed with endometriosis is not collected centrally.

The table below shows finished hospital admission episodes (FAEs) with a primary diagnosis of endometriosis, for the year 2014-15. The data only include diagnoses of endometriosis where there was a hospital admission. There may be further cases of the condition that were diagnosed and treated in another healthcare setting, including hospital outpatient services.

These data are not counts of people, as the same person may have been admitted to hospital on more than one occasion. These data are based on the patient’s normal home address.

Count of FAEs for female patients with a primary diagnosis of endometriosis, for Sunderland Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), North East England Government Office Region (GOR), and England in 2014-15:

Region of residence	FAEs
Sunderland CCG	109
North East GOR	718
England	18,011

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if he will review the operation of the scheme requiring letting agents to publicise their fees to consumers.

Gavin Barwell

In May 2015, the Government introduced measures in the Consumer Rights Act 2015 that require letting agents to publicise prominently in their offices and on their website, a full tariff of their fees, whether or not they are a member of a client money protection scheme and which redress scheme they are a member of.

We are committed to reviewing the impact of transparency requirements. We recently established a working group with Baroness Hayter and Lord Palmer to look at how Client Money protection is currently operating and whether to go further by making use of the powers taken through the Housing and Planning Act 2016 to make Client Money Protection (CMP) mandatory.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bridget Phillipson on 2015-12-01.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, with reference to paragraph 39 (e) on page 12 of the North East Devolution Agreement, what discussions he has had with the First Minister of Scotland on Government support for joint initiatives between the North East and Scotland.

David Mundell

The UK Government supports opportunities for joint initiatives between the North East and Scotland. The Borderlands Initiative is a cross-border project which brings together the five local authorities of Dumfries and Galloway, Scottish Borders, Carlisle City Council, Cumbria Council and Northumberland. It aims to promote economic growth and competitiveness across the Borderlands and is jointly supported by the UK and Scottish Government.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bridget Phillipson on 2016-01-25.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 18 January 2016 to Question 22251, which (a) community rehabilitation companies have been issued with informal remedial action plans and (b) companies contracted to run probation services have failed an audit in each year since 2010; and what remedial action was required in each such case.

Andrew Selous

We hold providers rigorously to account for their performance and take action wherever they are falling short.

Following operational assurance audits by the MoJ, seven CRCs have developed action plans. We will continue to monitor CRC performance closely. No CRC has been put on a formal Remedial Plan.

Our probation reforms are designed to make sure that almost all offenders receive support on release, including, for the first time, those sentenced to less than 12 months.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bridget Phillipson on 2016-02-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many family courts have special access measures in place for victims of domestic violence attending the court for child contact cases.

Caroline Dinenage

Every family court has a system to support vulnerable court users. Protective measures are put in place whenever this is considered to be appropriate. These can include separate waiting areas, additional security and the use of separate entrances where appropriate. Parties can also request special measures such as the use of protective screens in the hearing or the use of a video link.