The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Mackintosh on 2016-05-18.
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will make representations to the Office for National Statistics on including a separate ethnicity box for Sikh in the (a) 2021 census and (b) 2017 test questionnaire.
Mr Rob Wilson
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Mackintosh on 2016-06-28.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that computer coding is taught to children from an early stage in their education.
Nick Gibb
Demand for high-level skills in computing will only grow in the years ahead and will be crucial to supporting a successful economy. It is essential that we have a generation of pupils who have the knowledge and understanding they need to become active creators of digital technology, and not just passive consumers of it. We want them to have a deeper understanding of how digital technologies work and be able to write computer programs.
Since 2014, computing has been part of the National Curriculum at all four key stages. This replaced the outdated Information and Communications Technology (ICT) programme of study. The computing curriculum focuses on teaching children how computers work, the basics of programming, and encourages them to design computer programs to address real world problems. This includes introducing coding to primary pupils. At primary school, pupils are being taught what algorithms are, how to design and write programs to accomplish specific goals using sequencing, selection and repetition and how to apply logical reasoning to detect and correct errors.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Mackintosh on 2016-01-13.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will add pulmonary arterial hypertension to the conditions which are exempt from prescription charges.
Alistair Burt
There are no plans to change the list of medical conditions which provide exemption from prescription charges.
Other extensive exemption arrangements are in place, in England, including those based on low income, which support those who cannot afford to pay for their prescriptions. For those who need multiple prescriptions and do not qualify for exemption, Prescription Prepayment Certificates (PPC) can be purchased, which allow someone to claim as many prescriptions as needed. A 12 month PPC costs £104 and benefits anyone who needs 13 or more prescriptions a year.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Mackintosh on 2016-03-18.
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of individual voter registration.
John Penrose
The transition to IER is now complete and has been a great success. Over 14 million applications have been made to register since the introduction of IER, almost three quarters of them online. Ghost entries have been removed, which means the electoral registers are more accurate and less vulnerable to fraud than before. The Electoral Commission is expected to publish its assessment of the completeness and accuracy of the first full electoral registers under IER, published in December 2015, this summer.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Mackintosh on 2016-04-12.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what procedures his Department has to ensure that housing associations maintain an adequate level of housing stock available for key workers.
Brandon Lewis
Housing associations have ambitious plans to increase their housing stock over the next few years. The Government is supporting this with £8 billion of funding to deliver over 400,000 affordable homes. This will extend the opportunity of home ownership to more hard working families, including key workers, through measures aimed at doubling the number of first time buyers. The funding prospectus for the new Shared Ownership and Affordable Homes Programme was published on Wednesday 13 April.
The voluntary Right to Buy between the Government and the housing association sector will give another 1.3 million families the chance to purchase a home at Right to Buy level discounts. Homes sold to tenants under this agreement will be replaced on a one for one basis using the proceeds from the sale of the property.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Mackintosh on 2016-04-26.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what recent research her Department has conducted on the potential merits of wave-generated power.
Andrea Leadsom
The Scottish Government set up Wave Energy Scotland in December 2014 to take the development of the technology forward. DECC provides assistance as required.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Mackintosh on 2016-05-18.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of metro-mayors since May 2015.
James Wharton
The Government considers that, where areas choose to introduce a directly-elected, region-wide Mayor as part of a devolution deal, this will provide a mechanism to strengthen local accountability and strategic leadership and drive local economic growth. No region-wide elected Mayors are yet in place under the provisions of the Cities and Local Government Devolution Act; the first elections for the new Mayors are being planned for May 2017, subject to Parliamentary approval.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Mackintosh on 2016-06-28.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assistance her Department has provided to Palestine in the last two years; and what assessment she has made of the results of such assistance.
Sir Desmond Swayne
DFID provided almost £157 million to the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPTs) between 2014/15 and 2015/16 to help build Palestinian institutions, deliver basic services and promote economic development. DFID has either met or exceeded the majority of its targets for programmes in the OPTs.
DFID supported over 390 companies to improve their operations and increase competitiveness. In each of the two years, through UNRWA support, over 26,000 families received social transfers (either food or cash) and almost 45,000 children were provided basic education. Furthermore, over 1.6 million medical consultations were provided over the two years.
In addition to this support, the UK provided more than £17m in immediate humanitarian assistance for those affected by the Gaza conflict in the summer of 2014. Non-food Item (NFI) packages were provided for 23,400 families covering their needs for three months.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Mackintosh on 2016-01-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 21 January 2016 to Question 22430, if his Department will consider new collaborative funding proposals for further research into rehabilitative therapies for veterans with Gulf War illnesses.
Mark Lancaster
As stated in my answer to Question 22430, the Ministry of Defence (MOD) has funded extensive research into Gulf War Illness, including some research into rehabilitative therapies for those veterans with persistent symptoms. There are no plans to fund any further research.
The MOD has no plans to issue guidance on treatment best practice to healthcare professionals or partners in the military charity sector in respect of veterans of the 1990-91 Gulf Conflict. Neither do we have any plans in January 2016 to communicate the findings of independent research on the 1990-91 Gulf Conflict, published in the UK or overseas, to UK veterans.
There is a wide range of support already available to veterans of the 1990-91 Gulf conflict. This can be accessed through MOD’s Veterans UK website and free help line.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Mackintosh on 2016-03-18.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what mechanisms are in place to ensure funding from her Department reaches the project for which it is intended.
Mr Nick Hurd
As set out in the UK aid strategy we are determined to ensure that aid is focussed on tackling the global challenges of our time, in order to eliminate poverty and advance the UK’s national interest. The Department for International Development works with many suppliers and partners to deliver hundreds of individual programmes, often in complex and high risk environments. It has rigorous internal systems and processes to ensure that its aid reaches the intended beneficiaries and delivers the intended results. These are reflected in a detailed programme management framework (known as the Smart Rules) which sets out rules and principles designed to ensure all funding is spent as intended and delivers value for money.
Due Diligence Assessments are undertaken on organisations receiving funding from DFID. The Department also uses delivery chain maps to understand the number and complexity of suppliers involved in a programme and how funds flow to the beneficiaries. These tools allow us to identify, understand and manage potential risks as programmes are delivered and to ensure that funds are properly accounted for. Risk levels are regularly reviewed and programmes closed if risk levels rise too high.
All programmes that are being implemented undergo a rigorous formal annual review which assesses and records whether funds have been used for their intended purposes and the results that have been delivered. Risks or issues identified during the review are recorded, addressed and monitored. In areas of high risk, particularly in fragile and conflict affected areas, the Department often uses monitoring agents, independent audits, and other additional safeguards.
All organisations who receive funding from DFID have to provide evidence about the use of funds, including through annual audited statements. DFID’s Internal Audit Department provides further checks that programme funding reaches the intended recipients and reviews the work of all overseas offices every two years. This is supplemented by the National Audit Office and the Independent Commission on Aid Impact who provide independent scrutiny over the use of the aid budget.