The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Austin on 2014-06-18.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether (a) Serco and (b) G4S will be permitted to bid for community rehabilitation company contracts.
Jeremy Wright
G4S and Serco decided to withdraw from the competition to select lead providers of rehabilitation services.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Austin on 2014-04-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had on the redevelopment of Birmingham New Street station.
Stephen Hammond
The Secretary of State visited the Birmingham Gateway project on 22 April 2014 to view progress. In addition, regular meetings take place between officials, Birmingham City Council, Network Rail and other stakeholders on the project.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Austin on 2014-06-18.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how he plans to allocate National Probation Service staff to new community rehabilitation companies.
Jeremy Wright
On 1 June, as part of our ongoing Transforming Rehabilitation Programme of reform, the new National Probation Service (NPS) and Community Rehabilitation Companies (CRCs) formally commenced operation. All probation staff were allocated to either the NPS or CRC and many have been working in their new teams since April.
The probation workforce was allocated to the new organisations in line with future capacity needs. This was calculated on the basis of existing staffing needs for the different operational functions. The process was based on an objective consideration of the future functions and offender groups that each organisation will be responsible for.
There are no plans to allocate NPS staff to CRCs. However to help ensure effective working relationships between the bodies, we are in favour of an arrangement that would facilitate interchange between the NPS and CRCs where it was in the interests of both employers.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Austin on 2014-04-10.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent discussions he has had on the future of the Landfill Communities Fund.
Nicky Morgan
The Government regularly meets a range of stakeholders on the Landfill Communities Fund.
The LCF makes a valuable contribution to local communities. All projects have to be approved by ENTRUST as meeting specific criteria, to ensure the project benefits the wider community.The value of the landfill communities fund for 2014-15 will be reduced to £71 million. This reduction takes account of progress that environmental bodies have made to address the government’s challenge to reduce unspent funds. The saving will be used to fund an equivalent one-off increase in Defra’s budget to address waste crime. The government intends that environmental bodies’ performance against the challenge is published once the final information is available later this year.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Austin on 2014-06-18.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether the National Probation Service will have access to case records of community rehabilitation companies.
Jeremy Wright
Staff in the National Probation Service (NPS) and the Community Rehabilitation Companies (CRCs) have, and will continue to have, necessary access to each other’s case records. NPS staff are able to read all CRC records and update any case they are working on. CRC staff will be able to see and update records that relate to offenders they are working with.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Austin on 2014-04-10.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the performance of projects funded by the Landfill Communities Fund; what plans he has for the future of the fund; and if he will make a statement.
Nicky Morgan
The Government regularly meets a range of stakeholders on the Landfill Communities Fund.
The LCF makes a valuable contribution to local communities. All projects have to be approved by ENTRUST as meeting specific criteria, to ensure the project benefits the wider community.The value of the landfill communities fund for 2014-15 will be reduced to £71 million. This reduction takes account of progress that environmental bodies have made to address the government’s challenge to reduce unspent funds. The saving will be used to fund an equivalent one-off increase in Defra’s budget to address waste crime. The government intends that environmental bodies’ performance against the challenge is published once the final information is available later this year.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Austin on 2014-06-18.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether staff working for community rehabilitation companies will be able to (a) recall offenders and (b) write parole reports without consulting National Probation Service staff.
Jeremy Wright
The decision whether to recall an offender to custody continues to rest with the Secretary of State. Where a warning does not appear sufficient or appropriate, CRCs will be required to refer potential breaches to the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) with a breach report and a recommendation on the action to be taken. NOMS will take the final decision on behalf of the Secretary of State. The enforcement process for CRCs and the National Probation Service was described in detail in our published Target Operating Model.
Offenders serving indeterminate sentences for public protection will be managed by the National Probation Service: the arrangements for Parole Board hearings during their recall period will remain unchanged. If recalled to custody, offenders allocated to the CRCs who are serving determinate sentences will continue to be managed by the CRC, unless their risk of serious harm increases to “high”. CRCs will need to provide information, as appropriate, to support the recall process and consideration of re-release.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Austin on 2014-04-10.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the value of Landfill Community Fund grants to projects in (a) Dudley North constituency, (b) Dudley Borough, (c) the West Midlands and (d) England.
Nicky Morgan
ENTRUST, the regulator of the Landfill Communities Fund (LCF), has provided the value of the LCF in Dudley, the West Midlands and England from the inception of the fund to date and for the last financial year. This is set out in the table below. ENTRUST does not have this information broken down by constituency.
|
Dudley |
West Midlands (includes Dudley) |
England |
|
|
£m |
£m |
£m |
|
|
2013-14 |
0.142 |
2.17 |
67 |
|
1996 to date |
2.3 |
24 |
987 |
Given the level of unspent funds that the LCF continues to hold, reducing the value of the fund by less than 10% is not expected to impact on communities’ ability to receive LCF funding.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Austin on 2014-06-18.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent discussions he has had on tendering for contracts to run community rehabilitation companies.
Jeremy Wright
The tendering process is being run in accordance with standard Government procurement practice. Ministers are being kept updated on progress and throughout the programme have engaged in discussions with a wide range of stakeholders. Bids to run the Community Rehabilitation Companies (CRCs) are expected in June 2014 and the contract winners for each Community Rehabilitation Company will be announced by the end of 2014.