Tag: Greg Mulholland

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2016-01-26.

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if he will take steps to introduce mandatory electrical safety checks for private rented sector properties.

Brandon Lewis

The Government is committed to protecting tenants and has therefore agreed to carry out the necessary research to understand what, if any, legislative changes regarding electrical safety checks in the private rented sector should be introduced.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2016-02-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the number of (a) pharmacy closures and (b) job losses caused by planned reductions to the community pharmacy budget.

Alistair Burt

Community pharmacy is a vital part of the National Health Service and can play an even greater role. In the Spending Review the Government re-affirmed the need for the NHS to deliver £22 billion in efficiency savings by 2020/21 as set out in the NHS’s own plan, the Five Year Forward View. Community pharmacy is a core part of NHS primary care and has an important contribution to make as the NHS rises to these challenges. The Government believes efficiencies can be made without compromising the quality of services including public access to medicines. Our aim is to ensure that those community pharmacies upon which people depend continue to thrive and so we are consulting on the introduction of a Pharmacy Access Scheme, which will provide more NHS funds to certain pharmacies compared to others, considering factors such as location and the health needs of the local population.

Our proposals are about improving services for patients and the public and securing efficiencies and savings. A consequence may be the closure of some pharmacies but that is not our aim.

We are not able to assess which pharmacies may close or the number of people who may lose their jobs, because we do not know the financial viability of individual businesses or the extent to which they derive income from services commissioned locally by the NHS or local authorities or have non-NHS related income.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2016-03-14.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of current penalties to deter stone theft.

Karen Bradley

Stone theft has a detrimental effect on towns and communities across England and Wales. The impact of these crimes includes both the economic cost to the victim, but there are also wider costs to the community, for example where schools, churches or heritage items are targeted by criminals.

We have received no recent representations from local authorities on this issue, nor have we had recent discussions with the police on stone theft specifically. However, the police are working with Historic England, the Crown Prosecution Service and others to share intelligence and shape good practice in tackling and preventing heritage crime, such as stone theft.

We would encourage all victims of stone theft, whether individuals or organisations, to report instances of these crimes to their local police, so that the crimes can be properly recorded and investigated. The local response is a matter for individual chief officers of police and Police and Crime Commissioners, taking into account the specific local issues and demands that they face.

We are satisfied that the existing legislation provides the police and courts with sufficient powers to respond to stone theft.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2016-03-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what discussions his Department had with Mr Paul Newby’s employer on his contributions to the draft Pubs Code.

Anna Soubry

No such discussions were held.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2016-03-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to ensure accurate and early diagnosis of Kawasaki disease.

George Freeman

The Government published the UK Strategy for Rare Diseases in November 2013. The strategy contains over 50 commitments to ensure people living with a rare disease, such as Kawasaki disease, have access to the best evidence-based care and treatment that health and social services, working with charities, researchers and industry can provide.

It is the responsibility of the professional regulators to set the standards and outcomes for education and training and approve training curricular to ensure newly qualified healthcare professionals are equipped with the knowledge, skills and attitudes to provide high quality patient care. This includes training in both scarlet fever and Kawasaki disease.

Health Education England works with bodies that set curricula such as the General Medical Council and the Royal Colleges to seek to ensure training meets the needs of patients.

The Department and its arm’s length bodies have not published any specific guidance on the similarities between Kawasaki disease and scarlet fever.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s guideline on the assessment and initial management of fever in under 5s sets out the circumstances in which a diagnosis of Kawasaki disease should be considered, and Public Health England (PHE) has endeavoured to keep healthcare professionals, schools and the general public informed of the increased incidence of scarlet fever through timely information, news stories and updates on the PHE website and by using social and other media. These awareness raising measures assist general practitioners and other frontline healthcare professionals in reaching a correct diagnosis more quickly and encourage patients to seek medical advice early so that suspected cases receive prompt antibiotic treatment to reduce the risk of complications and limit further transmission.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2016-04-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what discussions he has had with Universities UK on reviewing the Zellick guidelines.

Joseph Johnson

The Government asked Universities UK to establish a taskforce to explore what more can be done by the higher education sector to prevent, and respond effectively, to incidents of violence and sexual harassment against women, hate crimes and other forms of harassment. The taskforce is expected to report its findings in the autumn.

To date Universities UK have received 59 written representations from universities, plus additional evidence from a wide range of agencies and organisations.

Universities UK has published an update of the recent taskforce meeting, which addressed the Zellick guidelines. The Government looks forward to receiving the taskforce’s final report in due course.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2016-04-25.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to paragraph 2.256 of Budget 2016, what meetings (a) he and (b) his officials have had with the Department for Education on his support for the UK’s bid to host the 2021 Rugby League World Cup.

Greg Hands

As stated in Spending Review 15 the government supports the ambition to host the 2021 Rugby League World Cup in the Northern Powerhouse.

Treasury Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery.

Details of ministerial and permanent secretary meetings with external organisations on departmental business are published on a quarterly basis and are available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/hmt-ministers-meetings-hospitality-gifts-and-overseas-travel“

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2016-05-24.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what the average hourly earnings were of her Department’s (a) BME and (b) non-BME employees in (i) 2015 and (ii) 2016.

Mrs Theresa Villiers

My Department does not hold the information requested in this format. To create this information would incur a disproportionate cost.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2016-06-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, for what reasons the Sheffield to Rotherham tram-train scheme has been delayed.

Andrew Jones

The Department for Transport and South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive, the joint funders of the tram train pilot project, have been advised that Network Rail has initiated a review of the current programme of works needed to adapt their infrastructure to operate the tram train vehicles between Meadowhall South and Rotherham Parkgate.

The Department understands that Network Rail has encountered significant issues with the approval of new bespoke electrification equipment needed to operate the tram train vehicles. The joint funders are clearly disappointed by this further delay.

The current programme showed delivery of these works by early spring 2017, however until the outcome of the Network Rail review is known, no further details can be provided.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2016-07-21.

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps members of the public can take to ensure that their local authorities comply with the National Planning Policy Framework.

Gavin Barwell

There are many ways in which local people can ensure that Local Planning Authorities have regard to the policies in the National Planning Policy Framework when carrying out their planning functions.

Local Plans prepared by Local Planning Authorities are assessed against requirements of the National Planning Policy Framework as part of the tests of soundness. There are opportunities at various stages for communities to comment on the Local Plan including at publication stage. Each local council must prepare a Statement of Community Involvement. This should set out a local council’s policy for involving communities in the preparation and revision of its Local Plan.

Local Planning Authorities are required to make decisions on planning applications in accordance with the development plan unless material considerations indicate otherwise. The National Planning Policy Framework is such a material consideration. There are opportunities for communities to comment on planning applications.

Neighbourhood planning also provides a powerful set of tools for local people to ensure they get the right types of development for their community, where the ambition of the neighbourhood is aligned with the strategic needs and priorities of the wider local area. Communities are able to choose where they want new homes, shops and offices to be built, have their say on what those new buildings should look like, and what infrastructure should be provided, and grant planning permission for the new buildings they want to see go ahead.