Tag: Frank Field

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2016-01-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will estimate how many pupils are being taught how to cook in the 2015-16 academic year.

Nick Gibb

The specific information requested is not held by the Department for Education.

Under the National Curriculum, as updated in September 2014, cooking is now compulsory for pupils in Key Stages 1-3 in maintained schools. Children are taught about food, nutrition and healthy eating and how to cook a repertoire of dishes.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2016-01-14.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what is the average length of time taken by Concentrix to determine applications for mandatory reconsideration of a tax credits decision.

Mr David Gauke

The number of requests for mandatory reconsideration of a decision about a tax credits award that Concentrix have received since the commencement of their contract with HM Revenue and Customs in November 2014 is as follows:

Month	Number of MRs
November 2014	0
December 2014	2
January 2015	6
February 2015	38
March 2015	29
April 2015	137
May 2015	100
June 2015	45
July 2015	71
August 2015	108
September 2015	1221
October 2015	925
November 2015	871
December 2015	2371

The total is about 1.6% of all decisions Concentrix made in the same period.

As of 15 January 2016, there are 566 mandatory reconsiderations in progress that have been opened and Concentrix are waiting for customers to provide further evidence. Concentrix have 30 further mandatory reconsiderations that are awaiting determination.

The average length of time taken between Concentrix starting to work a mandatory reconsideration and making a decision is 24 days. This includes the time needed for customers to provide any further evidence.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2016-02-05.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department has contracted out the maintenance and screening arrangements for Universal Jobmatch.

Priti Patel

The current Universal Jobmatch service is delivered through a managed service by Monster Worldwide Ltd. Monster have built into the service some screening and monitoring tools which help to detect, deter and remedy inappropriate use of the site. Further to this, the Department carries out its own checks to ensure that Universal Jobmatch continues to deliver a safe and effective service for jobseekers and employers.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2016-02-22.

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 9 February 2016 to Question 25978, whether the timetable for making a decision on applying to the EU Solidarity Fund has been extended.

James Wharton

I refer the rt. hon. Member to the answer I gave on the EU Solidarity Fund on 25 February 2016, Official Report, column 455.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2016-02-29.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will review entitlement to universal credit of people whose wages are paid two weeks in arrears after their temporary employment contract has ended.

Priti Patel

Universal Credit takes earnings into account in a manner that is fair and simple to understand. Earnings are taken into account in the assessment period in which they are received and the Universal Credit award adjusted accordingly. We have no plans to change this policy.

Claimants have access to help and support from the first day they make a claim to Universal Credit, regardless of when earnings are received.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2016-03-24.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what proportion of new universal credit claims were processed within one month in the most recent 12 months for which data is available.

Priti Patel

The information you have requested is currently not available.

Additional breakdowns will be included in future Universal Credit official statistics as quality assurance of data from the Universal Credit systems progresses during 2016.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2016-05-18.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when he expects to reply to the letter of 1 March 2016 from the Rt hon. Member for Birkenhead on the recommendations made by the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Hunger.

Justin Tomlinson

My Rt. Hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (Stephen Crabb) has replied to the Rt. Hon. Member today.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2016-07-20.

To ask the Attorney General, how many people working for the Law Officers’ Departments or its executive agencies on a (a) directly employed, (b) agency or (c) outsourced basis are paid less than the living wage as defined by the Living Wage Foundation; and how many of those people are employed on zero-hours contracts.

Robert Buckland

The Attorney General’s Office, the Government Legal Department, HMCPSI and the Crown Prosecution Service have no direct employees or agency workers that are paid less than the living wage as defined by the Living Wage foundation.

The Serious Fraud Office directly employs six staff who earn less than this. The six are all either apprentices or sandwich students on placement, and are all under 20 years of age and paid at a rate equivalent to £9.04 an hour.

None of the Law Officers’ Departments have any direct employees or agency workers who are on zero-hours contracts. No information is held in regards to pay rates or contracts with individuals employed by agencies or firms for subcontracted services.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2016-07-20.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, how many people working for his Department on a (a) directly employed, (b) agency or (c) outsourced basis are paid less than the living wage as defined by the Living Wage Foundation; and how many of those people are employed on zero-hours contracts.

Guto Bebb

The Wales Office has no direct employees or contracted workers. Staff at the Wales Office are subject to Ministry of Justice (MoJ) policies for pay and agency contract purposes. No permanent staff working at the Wales Office are paid less than the living wage as defined by the Living Wage Foundation. We have less than five agency staff and none are paid less than the national living wage. No staff are on zero hours contracts.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2016-10-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential effect on employment outcomes of moving care leavers from jobseeker’s allowance to income support.

Damian Hinds

We have not made an assessment of the potential effect on employment outcomes of moving care leavers from Jobseekers Allowance to Income Support.