Tag: Daniel Zeichner

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2016-02-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the timeliness of the processing of Disclosure and Barring Service checks.

Karen Bradley

The average processing time for disclosure applications is 15.3 days and 94.3% of applications are issued within 8 weeks, as of December 2015. Some Enhanced Certificate applications are referred to relevant police forces. DBS is working closely with the small number of forces whose performance does not meet turnaround targets.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2016-02-24.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 15 February 2016 to Question 26407, what funding for cycling in London is included within the (a) £925 million of capital funding and (b) £659 million of resource funding paid to Transport for London.

Mr Robert Goodwill

The annual funding grant paid to the Greater London Authority by the Department is not ring-fenced and it is a matter for the Mayor to determine how it is spent.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2016-02-25.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions he has had with the Department of Health to encourage more people to walk.

Mr Robert Goodwill

Since 2013 the Department has worked with the Department of Health (DH) to deliver projects to increase walking levels in Norwich, Birmingham, Cambridge, Greater Manchester and Leeds/Bradford through DH funded Walking Cities programme. These projects have now started to achieve a cultural and strategic shift towards more walkable cities which complements the Department’s investment in measures to increase cycling levels through the Cycle Ambition Cities programme.

A report and evaluation summary of the interventions in Birmingham, Leeds/Bradford and Norwich reveals that 49% were more likely to choose walking and 47% felt fit and healthy as a result of being involved in the programme. The five Cities in receipt of Walking City funding have highlighted the need for capital funding to deliver infrastructure improvements to make walking safer and easier to support increased walking levels.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2016-03-21.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 11 March 2016 to Question 29611, in what specified format the Buses Bill will require data on routes, timetables, punctuality and fares to be published; and whether this format will differ from the format currently used by his Department to publish bus fares information.

Andrew Jones

The Buses Bill will not specify the format in which the data on routes, timetables, punctuality and fares must be provided. The Bill would give the Secretary of State the powers to make secondary legislation to mandate the provision of data. The specific format of the data will be determined following discussions with industry in due course.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2016-04-18.

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how funding is allocated for the Local Growth Fund; and if he will publish formal guidance on the bidding process for local enterprise partnerships.

James Wharton

The Local Growth Fund is competitively awarded to Local Enterprise Partnerships based on the strength of their plans for driving economic growth in their areas. The Secretary of State has written to all LEPs setting out the basis on which further awards will be made later this year. The government is encouraging bold and ambitious bids for this further funding, which will be assessed competitively based on the quality of the proposals submitted.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2016-05-09.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will bring forward legislative proposals to define the term, fit and proper, for the licensing of taxi and private hire vehicle drivers.

Andrew Jones

The Department for Transport currently provides Best Practice Guidance to assist with the fit and proper person test, which is the responsibility of local authorities.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2016-06-08.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent estimate he has made of the number of lawyers trained in supporting people with mental health problems.

Caroline Dinenage

The legal profession in England and Wales is independent from government and we have no estimate of these numbers.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2016-06-27.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions he had with (a) bus operators and (b) local authorities on preventing local authorities outside of London from forming bus companies whilst the Bus Services Bill is under consideration.

Andrew Jones

There are only 8 existing municipal bus companies operating services in England, and we are not aware of any current plans to establish new municipal bus companies.

Government recognises the quality services that existing municipal bus companies provide for passengers, and these existing companies will not be affected. However, it is our view that the commissioning and provision of bus services should be kept separate from each other, particularly as the introduction of new partnership and franchising powers in the Bill could lead to more local authority control and influence of local services.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2016-09-02.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had with private bus operators on Clause 21 of the Bus Services Bill.

Andrew Jones

The Secretary of State recently met with the Confederation of Passenger Transport and private bus operators to discuss the Bus Services Bill, which included discussion of Clause 21.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2016-09-02.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent assessment he has made of the effect of the vote to leave the EU on the UK’s (a) space sector and (b) role in the European Galileo satellite navigation system project.

Joseph Johnson

There are a number of factors that the Government will need to consider when developing our strategy for negotiating our withdrawal from the European Union. The Department is working closely with businesses to understand their concerns and I will be working with colleagues across Government to make sure we understand all of the potential risks and opportunities across the economy. This will continue to inform our approach as we seek to shape our future relationship with Europe.