Tag: Chris Ruane

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Ruane on 2014-05-01.

To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what steps his Department has taken to improve registration rates and voter turnout of (a) visually impaired voters and (b) voters with learning difficulties.

Greg Clark

Electoral law requires returning officers to take account of the needs of people with disabilities by making polling stations and voting accessible.

In June 2014, the government will be introducing an online facility for registration which will support further accessibility options for those with particular needs. User testing of paper forms has allowed their design to take into account the requirements of those with disabilities.

The Cabinet Office has also funded the Royal Mencap Society to create educational resources for people with a learning disability and to develop a model for one-to-one support for families, carers and others to encourage and enable registering to vote.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Ruane on 2014-04-29.

To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission, pursuant to the Answer of 3 April 2014, Official Report, column 766W, on electoral register, in which cases numbers of electors registered to vote in the transition from individual electoral registration will be monitored at an electoral ward level.

Mr Gary Streeter

The Electoral Commission informs me that it will collect and publish the results of the confirmation data matching process for all electoral wards in Great Britain. These will be available in late-summer 2014.

The Commission also informs me that subsequently data will be collected and published at a local authority level. This will take place after the publication of the December 2014 register and at the time of the 2015 UK parliamentary general election. However, the Commission may choose to ask for more detailed ward statistics from individual EROs if it has concerns around the implementation of individual electoral registration in a particular area.

The Commission also expects electoral registration officers to be monitoring their own data on registrations at ward level, or below, throughout the transition to individual electoral registration, and to communicate them locally to elected representatives and others.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Ruane on 2014-05-06.

To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, with reference to the Answer of 6 June 2011, Official Report, columns 625-6W, on the electoral register, what assessment he has made of the effect of the ending of the Participation Fund on voter registration levels before the introduction of individual electoral registration.

Greg Clark

As part of the transition to Individual Electoral Registration, the Electoral Commission has been responsible for conducting research into the completeness and accuracy of the register. Their previous report, following the conclusion of the Participation Fund, can be found at:

http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0007/145366/Great-Britains-electoral-registers-2011.pdf.

The Electoral Commission will be publishing a further assessment of the completeness and accuracy of the register in Summer 2014.

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Ruane on 2014-05-06.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what funds the Crown Estate received from offshore wind farms in each coastal constituency in each of the last five years.

Nicky Morgan

It is not possible to breakdown the revenue The Crown Estate receives from its offshore activity against constituency boundaries onshore.

The Crown Estate’s Annual reportand accounts is available at http://ar2013.thecrownestate.co.uk/ and includes a section on Energy and Infrastructure.

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Ruane on 2014-05-12.

To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, pursuant to the Answer of 28 January 2014, Official Report, columns 509-10W, on electoral registration, whether his Department provides funding to Bite the Ballot to increase voter registration.

Greg Clark

It has not proved possible to respond to the Hon Member in the time available before Prorogation.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Ruane on 2014-06-04.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, on how many occasions and relating to which locations proposals for overground cables between onshore windfarms and the connecting sub-station have been rejected in each of the last 10 years.

Michael Fallon

The Department has not rejected any applications for overhead line connections to onshore windfarms in the past 10 years in England and Wales.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Ruane on 2014-06-04.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what estimate he has made of the number and proportion of people eligible to be on the most recent (a) census and (b) electoral register who were not recorded.

Mr Nick Hurd

The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Ruane on 2014-06-04.

To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission, what (a) number and (b) proportion of voters voted (i) at a polling station and (ii) by postal ballot in each police authority area in the 2012 Police and Crime Commissioner elections.

Mr Gary Streeter

The Electoral Commission has placed the answer to the hon. member’s question in the library.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Ruane on 2014-06-12.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the effect of work-based stress on suicide levels.

Norman Lamb

Numerous studies, including the Marmot Review into health inequalities in England (published in 2010) draw attention to the impacts of unemployment, and particularly long-term unemployment, on mental health.

Research also demonstrates that work related stress and mental health problems often go together. Work related stress may trigger an existing mental health problem that the person may otherwise have successfully managed.

However, common mental health problems and stress can exist independently. For example, people can have work related stress leading to physical symptoms such as high blood pressure, without experiencing anxiety and depression. They can also have anxiety and depression that is unrelated to stress.

Gainful employment promotes mental well-being. Unfortunately, the workplace can also be the source of nonproductive stress leading to physical and mental health problems, including suicidal thoughts and behaviours and suicide.

A number of studies demonstrate an association between the areas of England worst affected during the recent financial crisis and increased suicide rates. Between 2008 and 2010, there were approximately 800 more suicides among men and 155 more among women than would have been expected based on historical trends. This was supported by a recent review of the international impact of the global economic crisis. A rise in poor health status associated with the recession has also been found not only for the unemployed, but also among people who remain employed.

People come into contact with the welfare system at a time when they may be vulnerable because of unemployment and its associated consequences. The Department for Work and Pensions provides guidance and training for staff to help them identify and support people who are vulnerable, including those who may be at risk of suicide or self-harm.