The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Ruane on 2014-03-26.
To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, with reference to the Answer of 3 September 2012, Official Report, columns 93-4W, on electoral register: fraud, what assessment he has made of the reasons there have been no successful prosecutions for postal vote fraud since 2011.
Greg Clark
The Government has made no such assessment.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Ruane on 2014-03-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what his Department’s policy is on allowing officials to appear before all-party parliamentary groups.
Stephen Crabb
I refer the hon Gentleman to the answer given by my Rt hon Friend the Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General on 26 March, Official Report, Column 300W.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Ruane on 2014-04-09.
To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission, what the voter registration rate was for 18 year olds in each of the last 30 years.
Mr Gary Streeter
The Electoral Commission informs me that it does not hold figures on the registration rates for 18 year olds in each of the last 30 years.
However, it does hold estimates of registration rates for age groups from several studies conducted on the accuracy and completeness of the electoral registers in Great Britain.
|
Register |
Age band |
Registration rate |
Study conducted by |
|
April 2011 (Great Britain) |
17-18 |
55% |
Electoral Commission (EC) |
|
19-24 |
56% |
||
|
February 2001 (England and Wales) |
18-24 |
84% |
EC and Office for National Statistics |
|
February 1991 (Great Britain) |
18-19 |
88% |
Office of Population Census and Surveys – Social Survey Division |
|
February 1981 (Great Britain) |
18-19 |
87% |
“
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Ruane on 2014-04-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the National Audit Office’s conclusion in its report on personal independence payments: early progress that his Department has increased the risk that the personal independence payment programme will not deliver value for money in the longer term.
Mike Penning
The National Audit’s Office (NAO) report acknowledged that it is too early to make judgements about value for money.
Both the NAO and Office for Budget Responsibility noted that the introduction of Personal Independence Payment is expected to deliver very significant savings for the taxpayer, estimated to be £3bn per year by 2018 as well as delivering fairer outcomes for disabled people.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Ruane on 2014-05-06.
To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what assessment he has made of the net benefits to people in Wales of the UK’s membership of the EU.
Mr David Jones
I refer the hon Gentleman to the answer I gave to the members for Delyn, Cardiff West and Ogmore earlier today.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Ruane on 2014-04-29.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will introduce a maximum charge for homecare and other non-residential social services.
Norman Lamb
Through the Care Bill we are making the biggest change to the care and support system in more than 65 years. The Bill reforms what people pay for care and support and how they pay to create a system that is a fair partnership between people needing care, their families and tax-payers.
The reforms will place a cap on lifetime care costs. This means that people will no longer face the possibility of catastrophic care costs, providing peace of mind and enabling them to plan for their future. New regulations and guidance on how to financially assess people will ensure that, while they are contributing towards the cost of their care, they will only pay what they can afford.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Ruane on 2014-05-06.
To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the use of the telephone to confirm continued entitlement to electoral registration; and which local authorities use telephones for that purpose.
Greg Clark
The Electoral Commission collates information on canvass responses (including responses by telephone) as part of its assessment of Electoral Registration Officers’ performance. This data can be found on their website at –
“
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 September 2010, Official Report, column 304W, on electoral register, if he will bring forward legislative proposals to provide for penalties against local authorities which fail to provide sufficient funding and resources to enable electoral registration officers to fulfil their statutory responsibilities.
Greg Clark
Section 54 of the Representation of the People Act 1983 sets out that any expenses properly incurred by an ERO in the performance of their functions must be paid by the local authority that appointed them.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Ruane on 2014-05-06.
To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission, what steps have been taken by the Electoral Commission to inform hon. Members of the performance of electoral registration officers in their (a) constituency and (b) local authority.
Mr Gary Streeter
The Commission informs me that it notified all hon. Members of the performance of electoral registration officers (EROs) through a written statement announcing the publication of its assessment report on 31 March 2014. The Commission also writes individually to every MP who has an ERO within their constituency who has failed to meet at least one performance standard
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Ruane on 2014-05-12.
To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, whether monies collected from fixed penalty notices issued for failure to register on the electoral register will be retained by the local authority which issues that notice.
Greg Clark
It has not proved possible to respond to the Hon Member in the time available before Prorogation.