Tag: Chris Ruane

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Ruane on 2015-02-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what discussions he held with the National Federation of SubPostmasters on the abolition of road tax discs.

Jo Swinson

The abolition of vehicle tax discs is a matter for the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency. My Rt hon Friend the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills has not held any discussions with the National Federation of SubPostmasters specifically on the subject of vehicle tax.

Ministers meet the National Federation of SubPostmasters regularly to discuss a range of issues relating to the Post Office network. The dates of these meetings are available on the gov.uk website.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Ruane on 2014-06-24.

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, whether levels of poverty and deprivation in coastal towns are considered by his Department when making grants from the Coastal Communities Fund.

Brandon Lewis

Grant applicants submitting bids to the Coastal Communities Fund are expected to demonstrate the need for their project, which can include levels of poverty and deprivation in their area. This information is one of a range of factors that are taken into account in the assessment of grant applications. However, the Fund is not specifically targeted on deprived coastal towns. Its aim is to support jobs and growth in coastal communities across the United Kingdom where projects can best exploit local assets and opportunities to unlock their growth potential. In addition to demonstrating need, applications to the Fund must be clearly linked to an economic opportunity to create and safeguard jobs within the coastal community. Coastal flooding and erosion risk management and repair are also priorities for grant aid where proposed works support economic development.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Ruane on 2014-06-26.

To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission, on what date the discussions between the Electoral Commission and the Cabinet Office on sanctions against electoral registration officers (EROs) who refuse to conduct door-to-door canvassing as per Standard Three began; when those discussions will conclude; whether the conclusions of those discussions will be made available to (a) hon. Members with EROs who failed Standard Three, (b) the Political and Constitutional Reform Committee and (c) councillors within failed local authorities; and if he will place in the Library the conclusions of those discussions.

Mr Gary Streeter

The Commission informs me that it has reported on ERO performance against Standard 3 for each year since 2008.

To support EROs in preparing for and delivering the transition to individual electoral registration (IER) the Commission has developed a new performance standards framework, which it will use to monitor the performance of EROs against throughout the transition to individual electoral registration. The Commission will continue to carefully monitor and work closely with EROs and will consider a range of options to ensure EROs are carrying out their duties in full.

Discussions between the Electoral Commission and the Cabinet Office take place regularly on a range of subjects.

The Commission made clear in its June report that it would use its statutory powers to make a recommendation to the Secretary of State to require specific EROs to do door-to-door canvassing if this didn’t happen during the introduction of IER, which began on 10 June in England and Wales.

No specific date for conclusion has been set as it will depend on the circumstances in each area, but the Commission will continue to keep this under active review. Should the Commission make a recommendation for such a direction, it will write to the relevant honourable members and local council leaders. We will also write to the Political and Constitutional Reform Committee and ask for this correspondence to be placed in the House Library.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Ruane on 2014-07-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of people out of work suffer from (a) mental health disorder and (b) depression; and what proportion of them have been treated with (i) anti depressants, (ii) talking therapies and (iii) mindfulness.

Mr Mark Harper

The Department for Work and Pensions does not hold information on the proportion of people out of work with a mental health disorder or depression, nor the proportion treated with anti depressants, talking therapies and/or mindfulness.

However, 11% of out-of-work adults report having “Depression, bad nerves or anxiety” or “Mental illness, phobia, panics and other nervous disorders”. This is against a reported 3% of those in-work (Annual Population Survey, April 2013 – March 2014, GB residents aged 16+).

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Ruane on 2014-06-24.

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what grants have been given by the Coastal Communities Fund to date; which town, county and parliamentary constituency received each such grant; and what the size and purpose of each grant was.

Kris Hopkins

The Coastal Communities Fund supports economic growth and jobs in coastal communities across the United Kingdom. We have awarded a total of 104 grants under the Fund to date in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland at a total value of £53.6 million. A table has been placed in the Library of the House giving the details requested for all 104 grants.

Decisions on grant awards in England are taken by Government Ministers. In Wales and Northern Ireland grant awards are taken by panels involving officials from the BIG Lottery Fund and Devolved Administrations, and in Scotland by independently appointed panels.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Ruane on 2014-06-26.

To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission, if the Electoral Commission will publish the names of the 10 local authorities with the (a) smallest and (b) biggest percentage increase in registration after the implementation of the Standard Three door-to-door canvassing for 2013 canvass; and which parliamentary constituencies each such local authority covers.

Mr Gary Streeter

The Electoral Commission informs me that the table below shows the ten local authorities with the biggest increases and decreases in electorate between the start and end of the 2013 canvass.

Local authority	Change (November 2013 – Feb/March 2014
Edinburgh, City of	20,241
Cheshire West and Chester	14,676
Tower Hamlets	10,566
Newcastle upon Tyne	9,550
Taunton Deane	9,023
North Lanarkshire	9,001
South Lanarkshire	8,926
Glasgow City	8,710
Huntingdonshire	8,023
Mole Valley	7,866
Northampton	-10,309
Barnet	-12,743
Newham	-16,617
Maidstone	-10,121
Cornwall	-13,195
East Devon	-6,424
Birmingham	-20,572
Shropshire	-14,350
Leeds	-24,119
Renfrewshire	-7693

These local authorities cover the following parliamentary constituencies:

Local authority	Constituencies covered
Edinburgh, City of	Edinburgh East Edinburgh North and Leith Edinburgh South Edinburgh South West Edinburgh West
Cheshire West and Chester	City of Chester Eddisbury Ellesmere Port and Neston Tatton Weaver Vale
Tower Hamlets	Bethnal Green and Bow Poplar and Limehouse
Newcastle upon Tyne	Newcastle upon Tyne Central Newcastle upon Tyne East Newcastle upon Tyne North
Taunton Deane	Taunton Deane
North Lanarkshire	Airdrie and Shotts Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill Cumbernauld, Kilsyth and Kirkintilloch East Motherwell and Wishaw
South Lanarkshire	Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow Lanark and Hamilton East Rutherglen and Hamilton West

Glasgow City	East Dunbartonshire Glasgow Central Glasgow East Glasgow North Glasgow North East Glasgow North West Glasgow South Glasgow South West
Huntingdonshire	Huntingdon North West Cambridgeshire
Mole Valley	Epsom and Ewell Mole Valley
Northampton	Northampton North Northampton South South Northamptonshire
Barnet	Chipping Barnet Finchley and Golders Green Hendon
Newham	East Ham West Ham
Maidstone	Faversham and Mid Kent Maidstone and The Weald
Cornwall	Camborne and Redruth North Cornwall South East Cornwall St Austell and Newquay St Ives Truro and Falmouth
East Devon	Central Devon East Devon Tiverton and Honiton

Birmingham	Birmingham, Edgbaston Birmingham, Erdington Birmingham, Hall Green Birmingham, Hodge Hill Birmingham, Ladywood Birmingham, Northfield Birmingham, Perry Barr Birmingham, Selly Oak Birmingham, Yardley Sutton Coldfield
Shropshire	Ludlow North Shropshire Shrewsbury and Atcham The Wrekin
Leeds	Elmet and Rothwell Leeds Central Leeds East Leeds North East Leeds North West Leeds West Morley and Outwood Pudsey
Renfrewshire	Paisley and Renfrewshire North Paisley and Renfrewshire South