Tag: Dan Jarvis

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dan Jarvis on 2014-06-25.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, under what criteria a decision will be made to place a child into a secure college.

Jeremy Wright

The Youth Justice Board, with proper consideration of the individual needs of young people and advice from Youth Offending Teams, currently decides the most appropriate establishment in which to place individual young people remanded or sentenced to custody. This will remain the case when there is the option of placement in a Secure College.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dan Jarvis on 2015-02-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of the average number of days taken by coroners to release the body of a homicide victim back to the family for burial in each year since 2010.

Simon Hughes

Information on the average number of days taken by coroners to release the body of a homicide victim is not held centrally. This information could only be obtained by inspection of individual case files at each coroner’s office before collating the information, and this could only be done at disproportionate cost.

In July 2013 we implemented reforms in the Coroners and Justice Act 2009 together with new coroner regulations and rules aimed at improving standards and achieving greater consistency in coroner services. Regulation 20 of the Coroners (Investigations) Regulations 2013 requires a coroner to release the body for burial or cremation as soon as is reasonably practicable. Where this cannot be done within 28 days, the coroner must notify the next of kin or personal representative of the reason for the delay.

In February 2014 we also published the statutory “Guide to Coroner Services” which explains the standards of service that can be expected during a coroner’s investigation and what action can be taken if these are not met.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dan Jarvis on 2014-06-25.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will publish the success criteria against which the secure college pathfinder will be evaluated.

Jeremy Wright

The Ministry of Justice is developing a robust monitoring and evaluation strategy for the Secure College Pathfinder. This will ensure that the most appropriate methods for measuring the performance of the Secure College Pathfinder are in place.

Detail relating to performance measures against which the Secure College Pathfinder’s construction and operation providers’ performance will be measured will be contained within their individual contracts, which will be published on Contract Finder in due course.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dan Jarvis on 2014-06-05.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much has been spent from the public purse on accommodating asylum seekers in (a) hotels and (b) bed and breakfasts, hostels and other establishments that provide lodging paid on a short-term basis in each year since May 2010; and how much was spent in each region.

James Brokenshire

Accommodation is provided to asylum applicants through contracts with third party suppliers. Providers are required to provide accommodation that is safe, fit for purpose and correctly equipped in line with the contractual Statement of Requirements agreed between themselves and the Home Office.

There is no added expense to the Home Office when providers use B&B or hotel accommodation as short term contingency accommodation. Any and all additional costs are borne by the provider.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dan Jarvis on 2014-06-16.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent steps he has taken to reduce child obesity in Barnsley.

Jane Ellison

In April 2013, local responsibility for the prevention and management of obesity transferred from primary care trusts to local authorities.

Barnsley’s Health and Wellbeing board, run by Barnsley Council, is drafting a Health and Wellbeing strategy for the borough to support children and young people in avoiding the potential health problems related to child obesity, such as diabetes and cardiovascular diseases later in life.

Our national approach to tackling obesity includes engaging with a wide range of partners including businesses, health professionals and individuals. We have set national ambition for a downward trend in excess weight in children and have a well-developed and wide-ranging programme of actions. Obesity rates in children are levelling off.

Some of the key initiatives are Change4Life, Change4Life Sports Clubs, the National Child Measurement Programme and School Sports Funding.

This is in addition to measures being taken by other Government departments such as the School Food Plan, published by the Department for Education last year.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dan Jarvis on 2014-06-05.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to ensure oversight and scrutiny of private contractors responsible for the accommodation of asylum seekers.

James Brokenshire

The providers are contractually required to provide safe, habitable, fit for
purpose and correctly equipped accommodation to comply with the Housing Act
2004 and the Decent Homes Standard. The COMPASS contracts contain high
standards and requirements to be met by providers in the services they provide
to asylum applicants. The contracts also contain robust monitoring mechanism
including regular meetings and inspection of services. Where standards are not
met, Providers reimburse the department in the form of service credits.