The below Parliamentary question was asked by Imran Hussain on 2016-04-12.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how many UK-based consultancy firms receive funding from her Department.
Mr Desmond Swayne
Detail on all DFID supplier funding is available via our departmental website.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Imran Hussain on 2016-05-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if her Department will take steps to increase prevention programmes for violence against women and girls in developing countries.
Mr Nick Hurd
Over the last few years DFID has rapidly and significantly scaled up its work on the prevention of Violence against Women and Girls. Between 2012 and 2014 we have had a 40% increase in programmes that aim to change social norms alone. We have also successfully worked to secure international targets on the prevention of violence against women and girls including Global Goal 5, which includes targets on ending all forms of violence against women and girls, FGM and CEFM.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Imran Hussain on 2016-10-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when he plans to implement the changes to funding for community pharmacies, announced in December 2015.
David Mowat
We have consulted on these proposals and are continuing to engage with the Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee. The responses received have, and will continue to be, considered very carefully so we make sure we get it right for patients, the public, the National Health Service and pharmacy.
We are aiming to implement the package from December 2016.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Imran Hussain on 2016-10-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what guidance her Department plans to issue to local authorities on their responsibilities to resettle Syrian refugees in the second to fifth year of resettlement.
Mr Robert Goodwill
The Department for Communities and Local Government and the Home Office work with councils to resettle refugees in the UK.
It is for each local authority to decide what type of support is required for each resettlement case. A funding instruction covering Years 2- 5 of the scheme is to be issued to local authorities shortly, which includes examples of how funding can be spent. It also explains how councils can claim funding from the exceptional cases fund.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Imran Hussain on 2015-11-16.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department has taken to enable people with limited English to access healthcare services.
Alistair Burt
The provision of language support, including interpretation and translation, is driven by the requirement for all National Health Service organisations to comply with the public sector equality duty in the Equality Act 2010. The provision of such services by NHS bodies is a matter for local determination based on the composition of the communities they serve, and the needs and circumstances of their patients, service users and local populations.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Imran Hussain on 2015-12-14.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that landlords receive rent from tenants who are in receipt of housing benefit.
Justin Tomlinson
Housing Benefit for claimants living in the social rented sector is paid direct to the landlord. Those renting in the private rented sector normally receive their benefit direct and are responsible for paying this over to their landlord. In certain circumstances the local authority can make direct payments to the landlord including when rent arrears of eight weeks or more have accrued and or when it would be in the best interest of the claimant to do so.
Authorities are not required to make direct payments to landlords that are not a “fit and proper person” to receive it.
The arrangements in Universal Credit allow for the housing costs element to be paid direct to the landlord where it is in the claimant’s or their families interests, including where the claimant is in rent arrears of the equivalent of two month’s rent.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Imran Hussain on 2016-04-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what final estimate of damage in the Yorkshire and Humber region caused by recent flooding his Department has provided to the EU Commission.
James Wharton
The UK Government submitted an initial application to the European Union Solidarity Fund on Friday 26 February which included a provisional estimate of the costs of direct damage incurred by storms Desmond and Eva. We are in the process of refining our cost estimations and figures, and will update Parliament once the application is finalised.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Imran Hussain on 2016-04-12.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what discussions she has had with Cabinet colleagues on making tax information of UK-listed companies available to developing countries.
Mr Desmond Swayne
DFID Ministers and officials have regular discussions with other Government Departments on a wide range of issues relating to international development, including tax.
The UK supports efforts to improve tax transparency. We initiated international work on country-by-country (CbC) reporting during our G8 Presidency in 2013, calling on the OECD to develop a framework for CbC reporting to tax authorities as part of the Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) project. This important initiative will enhance transparency between business and tax authorities, including those of developing countries.
The UK leads international efforts to help developing countries tackle tax evasion and avoidance. DFID funds the Global Forum and the World Bank to provide technical assistance to improve exchange of tax information in developing countries which will allow tax authorities to gain access to information such as country-by-country reports. We also support the OECD in helping developing countries tackle multinational practices such as transfer pricing and have provided HMRC tax auditors to Tax Inspectors Without Borders, which puts expert tax auditors in the field working on complex multinational audit cases.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Imran Hussain on 2016-05-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department is taking to encourage donor organisations and partner countries to include action on violence against women and girls in their sectoral programmes.
Mr Nick Hurd
DFID worked hard with others to secure Global Goal 5, which includes targets on ending all forms of violence against women and girls, FGM and CEFM. In addition DFID has been at the forefront of work with OECD-DAC to create a new reporting marker for development programmes that will more comprehensively track donor spend on violence against women and girls from 2016. These measures will ensure that action on violence against women and girls enters into the core work of donors and UN agencies. DFID is also providing funding to the UN Trust Fund to End Violence against Women, which is testing and building evidence on interventions for the benefit of the whole international development community.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Imran Hussain on 2016-10-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to increase understanding of dental care among young people.
David Mowat
We are committed to improving the oral health of school children. As part of every child having the Best Start in Life, Public Health England (PHE) has established a Child Oral Health Improvement Programme Board with a substantial programme of work, working with others to improve children’s oral health.
As part of this programme of work, PHE has produced a toolkit to support local authorities (LAs) in their responsibility to improve dental health and reduce inequalities among children and young people in their area. The toolkit supports LAs to invest in programmes which have demonstrated improvement in children’s dental health such as targeted community-based fluoride varnish programmes, targeted nursery and school based tooth brushing programmes and water fluoridation.
More broadly, sugar consumption is the primary cause of tooth decay in children. The Change4Life Sugar Smart app launched in January 2016 provides parents with a tool to show how much total sugar is in every day food and drinks, to help them make healthier choices. Dental health professionals have also been provided with Change4Life toolkits to help them have conversations with parents about their children’s oral health.