Tag: David Simpson

The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Simpson on 2016-10-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how his Department plans to raise awareness among young people of the dangers of so-called smart drugs.

Nicola Blackwood

The Government’s drug information website FRANK is updating its content to include enhancement drugs, including so-called smart drugs.

FRANK forms part of a wider programme of education and prevention that should be delivered locally in line with evidence on what works best in effective prevention programmes.

Public Health England (PHE) commissioned Mentor’s Alcohol and Drug Education and Prevention Information Service (ADEPIS) programme to helps schools and practitioners share information and resources to help them deliver good quality drug prevention activities. PHE also delivers the Rise Above campaign to 11–16 year olds, which provides content that aims to delay and prevent uptake of risky behaviours including smoking, drinking alcohol and drug use, to build resilience and enable young people to make good life choices.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Simpson on 2015-10-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department plans to provide assistance to companies in training personnel to gain HGV qualifications.

Andrew Jones

The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) is responsible for funding the Trailblazer apprenticeships programme and the industry is developing a standard for an HGV Driver apprenticeship. Funding for obtaining an HGV licence is not currently in scope of Trailblazers but this is under review. BIS will consider what the new funding model will be with the introduction of the new apprenticeship levy.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Simpson on 2015-10-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the number of HGV drivers in the UK relative to demand.

Andrew Jones

The Department recognises that there is a high demand for HGV drivers in the UK and that there is a shortage, manifesting itself in pressure on costs, delays to some deliveries and the recruitment of people from outside the UK.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Simpson on 2015-10-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans his Department has to increase the number of HGV drivers.

Andrew Jones

The Department is working with its motoring services agencies to reduce times and delays in obtaining a driving test appointment and medical licence renewals.

Other government activity is helping jobseekers join the industry, retraining ex-military personnel and supporting apprenticeships.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Simpson on 2015-10-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will bring forward legislative proposals for stricter laws dealing with people who abuse animals.

George Eustice

There are a number of existing laws, most notably the Animal Welfare Act 2006, that already provide enforcement agencies and courts with suitable powers to investigate and deal with people who are found to have abused animals.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Simpson on 2015-10-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many people died on the roads in each region in incidents where a driver was using a mobile telephone in each of the last three years.

Andrew Jones

The Department holds information on the number of personal-injury road traffic accidents where the attending police officer judged that a driver using a mobile telephone contributed to the accident. This includes both cases where ‘hand held’ and ‘hands free’ telephones were deemed to contribute to the accident. The table below provides the number of fatalities in road traffic accidents that were reported to the police in which at least one driver was allocated the contributory factor ‘driver using mobile phone’ by region for 2012 to 2014.

Fatalities in reported road accidents in which the contributory factor ‘driver using mobile phone’ was reported: GB, 2012-2014

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Simpson on 2015-10-09.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what representations his Department has received on the removal of archery from the sports included in the Commonwealth Games for 2018; and what discussions his Department has had with the Commonwealth Games Federation about the decision not to include archery in those Games.

Tracey Crouch

DCMS has received no representations on archery’s exclusion from the 2018 Commonwealth Games. The inclusion of which certain sports that may participate in the Commonwealth Games is a decision entirely for the Commonwealth Fund and the host city.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Simpson on 2015-01-14.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking to tackle the persecution of Christians in Somalia.

Mr David Lidington

The overwhelming majority of people in Somalia are Muslim (around 99.8%) and Islam is recognised as the official state religion in Somalia’s provisional constitution. The UK continues to support the Federal Government of Somalia in their efforts to bring government control to Somalia, and restore essential freedoms to all Somalis.

The UK is working with the Federal Government of Somalia to establish a national human rights commission, to improve human rights for everybody in Somalia, irrespective of their religious persuasion – and also supporting the United Nations assistance mission in Somalia (UNSOM) monitoring and improving human rights.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Simpson on 2015-01-14.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to provide care and support for members of the armed forces who have a mental illness.

Anna Soubry

We take the mental health of our personnel and veterans very seriously, and are committed to ensuring that help is available for everyone who needs it. For serving personnel, the Defence Medical Services (DMS) have in place a variety of measures to identify issues at the earliest possible opportunity. These include pre- and post-deployment briefing, and a range of professional support, assessment and treatment both during and after deployments, as well as peer-group mentoring through the Trauma Risk Management (TRiM) process.

On major operations such as in Iraq and Afghanistan, we deploy mental health professionals as part of the medical team in support of our troops to provide advice and treatment. Personnel who require further treatment are referred back to the UK, where our services are configured to provide community-based mental healthcare in line with national best practice. This care is delivered primarily through unit-based primary healthcare centres and our network of 16 military Departments of Community Mental Health (DCMHs) across the UK (plus centres overseas), where the DMS have developed a significant capability in managing traumatic stress conditions. Patient care, when required, is available through a contract with a group of eight specialist NHS Trusts across the UK.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Simpson on 2015-02-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what progress has been made on the provision of superfast broadband to rural businesses in all parts of the UK.

Mr Edward Vaizey

In 2010 nearly half of UK premises could access superfast broadband. Current superfast broadband coverage is almost 80% of UK premises and the Government remains committed to providing 95% coverage by 2017. This will benefit rural businesses across the UK.

BDUK works with local authorities and the devolved administrations to determine how funding for broadband projects is deployed and where the roll out of superfast broadband is carried out.