Tag: Daniel Zeichner

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2016-02-03.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment she has made of the financial viability of education providers offering PGCE qualifications.

Nick Gibb

For all new School Centred Initial Teacher Training (SCITT) providers there is a rigorous accreditation process which includes a financial and governance review of the lead school encompassing financial accounts and forecasts and governance arrangements. If successful, the new SCITT is awarded accreditation by the Secretary of State. In Academic Year 2015/16 there were 41 new SCITT providers who commenced operations.

As part of the December annual school return process all Local Authority SCITT providers are required to produce an audited income/expenditure statement and balance sheet.

For Academy based SCITT providers, the Education Funding Agency obtain financial health information from the audited academy trust, financial statements by 31 December and their budget returns by 31 July each year. The financial statements include independent audit opinions and regularity reports, which provide assurance that the trust has used funds appropriately and report any instances of financial concerns. The financial information is assessed and where appropriate instances of trusts at potential risk are asked to prepare and submit a recovery plan.

Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) receiving PGCE bursary funding are regulated through HEFCE and therefore the responsibility of the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills. There is a Memorandum of Understanding in place with HEFCE so that if there any financial viability issues with HEIs, these are notified and considered by the National College for Teaching and Leadership.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2016-02-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will maintain the level of funding of the Charity Research Support Fund in real terms over the next five years.

Joseph Johnson

The Government has protected the science budget in real terms to the end of the Parliament. Our intention is to formally allocate budgets to individual funding bodies in the coming weeks. The Government recognises the significant contribution made by charitable funders of research, which the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE), has reflected through the charity support element of Quality Related research funding. Decisions by HEFCE on any funding beyond 2015-16 will be taken once they have received their annual Grant Letter which, sets out their funding allocations.

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 8 February 2016 to Question 25199, what steps he is taking to encourage the development and implementation of improved HGV design.

Andrew Jones

We are working with our European counterparts on specifications for safer and more aerodynamic cab designs in HGVs. We will continue to work pro-actively with the European Commission and other EU Member States, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), Transport for London and other stakeholders to improve the safety of HGVs.

The Department for Transport’s “British Road Safety Statement” published in December 2015 sets out a number of measures to further improve safety of vehicles. The Department plans to consult on sideguard provisions in the second half of 2016 to ensure these important safety devices remain on the vehicle throughout its life.

Department for Transport officials have negotiated improved requirements for mirrors on the passenger side of the largest heavy goods vehicles and these will apply from 1 July 2016. Camera monitoring systems will be permitted to replace mirrors from around 1 September 2016, which should further improve driver vision around HGVs.

Officials have worked with our European partners to require fitment of technology helping HGVs avoid collisions. Electronic Stability Control (ESC) has been gradually rolled out to all new HGVs and the final phase will be implemented on 11 July 2016, when it will become compulsory on certain smaller HGVs below 12 tonnes laden weight. Advanced Emergency Braking Systems were recently made compulsory on new HGVs over 8 tonnes laden weight, and we expect it will become compulsory on goods vehicles between 3.5 and 8 tonnes laden weight from 1 November 2018.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the effect of the walk to school programme on the Government’s objective to increase the proportion of children aged five to 10 that usually walk to school from 46 per cent in 2013 to 55 per cent in 2025.

Mr Robert Goodwill

The Walk to school programme funded by the Local Sustainable Transport Fund achieved significant modal shift: in primary schools the number of pupils walking all or part of the way to school increased by 23% and the number being driven all the way decreased by 30%. In secondary schools the number of pupils walking increased by 12%.

Modal shift data collected from the programme, alongside various other actual and estimated figures, indicated that the project produced over 20 million new walking journeys, and took over 18.5 million car miles off the road network.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2016-03-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer to Question 31603, from which funding stream the additional £130 million funding for repair of roads and bridges damaged by Storms Desmond and Eva will be taken.

Andrew Jones

The Chancellor of the Exchequer announced on 16 March 2016 as part of the Budget 2016 that the Government will be allocating a further £130 million to those authorities affected by this winter’s Storms. This funding is on top of the £49 million already committed to repair transport infrastructure damaged by Storms Desmond and Eva. This funding is being met by savings made by the Department for Transport in other transport programmes during the 2015/16 financial year.

This funding is in addition to the £6.1 billion we are providing to local highway authorities in England for local highways maintenance between now and 2021.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent assessment he has made of the (a) accountability of internet service providers to their customers and (b) role of the regulator in upholding the rights of those customers.

Mr Edward Vaizey

Internet Service Providers are accountable to Ofcom – and in turn to their customers – through Ofcom’s ‘General Conditions (14)’. These conditions include ensuring that an effective complaint handling procedure is in place, and Ofcom can impose a penalty of up to 10% of turnover for failure to comply.

Ofcom, as the UK’s independent communications regulator, has a duty to secure alternative dispute resolution (ADR) schemes for domestic and small business customers to make sure their rights are upheld. Ofcom periodically reviews the two approved ADR schemes (Ombudsman Services: Communications and the Communications and Internet Services Adjudication Scheme) and monitors their ability to deal with complaints independently, transparently and effectively.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 12 February 2016 to Question 25870, how many (a) officials and (b) other staff are working on the Government’s response to the Law Commission’s recommendations on taxi and private hire vehicle legislation.

Andrew Jones

There are currently (a) three officials and (b) no other staff in the Department for Transport working on taxi and private hire vehicle policy. One of those officials works full-time on taxi and private hire vehicles, and it forms a core part of the work load of the other two. Their responsibilities include scrutiny of the Law Commission recommendations for reform of taxi and private hire vehicle legislation. This level of staffing for work on taxis and private hire vehicles remains essentially consistent with that going back to 2009/10. The Government will respond to the Law Commission report once scrutiny is complete.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many and what proportion of transport projects delivered from the Local Growth Fund have been dedicated to walking to date.

Mr Robert Goodwill

To date, around 36% of transport projects in Local Enterprise Partnerships’ Local Growth Fund programmes are solely or in part dedicated to walking projects.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2016-07-08.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will take steps to ensure that UK researchers have the same level of funding as before the EU referendum.

Joseph Johnson

The UK economy is fundamentally strong and our research and innovation are world leading. We have a long established system that supports, and therefore attracts, the brightest minds, at all stages of their careers. We fund excellent science wherever it is found, and ensure there is the freedom to tackle important scientific questions. While the UK remains a member of the EU, current EU arrangements continue unchanged, including those that apply to students, researchers, and businesses. We remain fully open to scientists and researchers from across the EU. We hugely value the contribution of EU and international staff and there are no immediate changes to their rights to live and work in the UK. The Government intends to maintain and enhance the strength of our research base, which is why we have protected the science resource budget in real terms from its 2015/16 level of £4.7 billion for the rest of the parliament.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what research his Department has conducted on the potential effect of cashless payments and smart ticketing on buses on (a) bus journey times, (b) bus patronage and (c) congestion.

Andrew Jones

Through Transport Focus, the Department has conducted three pieces of bus related research on contactless payments and smart ticketing:

a) Oxford SmartZone smart card evaluation – published in September 2013

b) Norfolk’s smart card evaluation – published in March 2015

c) Non-London bus passenger attitudes towards contactless payments – not yet published.