Tag: Jim Cunningham

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-01-12.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what estimate his Department has made of the (a) total research and development spend by his Department in each of the last five years and (b) forecast research and development spend by his Department in the next five years.

Mr Philip Dunne

Ministry of Defence (MOD) research and development expenditure is published in "Departmental Resources Statistical bulletin" (Excel Table 5), which is available at the following website:

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/defence-departmental-resources-2015

There is no fixed forward budget for research and development because development expenditure is mostly part of the equipment programme applied as needed against the development requirements of individual projects. The government will dedicate 1.2% of its growing Defence budget to the Defence Science and Technology Programme, the centralised research budget, under the Department’s Chief Scientific Adviser.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-01-26.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he has taken to ensure that rail commuters have greater access to the cheapest available tickets (a) on the day they travel and (b) when booking in advance; and if he will make a statement.

Claire Perry

We recognise the pressure on hardworking families and have put a stop to increases in regulated fares until 2020, extending the cap on rail fares which we regulate introduced in 2014. This will save the average season ticket holder £425 in this Parliament and means average earnings are outstripping rail fare increases for the first time in a decade. We are also taking a number of steps that will make it easier for people to obtain the best value ticket for their journey. We have committed to introducing more flexible tickets for people who work or commute part-time, which could enable customers to buy discounted advance carnet-style tickets. Arriva Trains Wales and Great Northern already offer flexible products and both GTR and c2c have commitments to introduce more flexible tickets on their smartcards.

The evidence also shows that advance fares, which can offer good value for people who are able to book in advance, are a key rail success of recent years where we have seen huge growth. Unregulated advance tickets have increased from 8% of revenue in 2007/08 to 15% of revenue in 2014/15.

In December 2014, I challenged the rail industry to improve the information they provide through ticket vending machines. The industry has responded positively with a code of practice on retail information published in March 2015. Most train operators now have actions underway and complete, including providing new messages on screens and improved availability of off-peak tickets through vending machines. The Department continues to monitor progress closely in this area.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-01-29.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what information his Department collects on the number of A&E visits by patients who are (a) above and (b) below the recommended body mass index to NHS hospitals in each of the last 10 years; and if he will make a statement.

Jane Ellison

The information requested is not collected centrally. The Health and Social Care Information Centre does not collect body mass index details as part of the accident and emergency or Hospital Episode Statistics datasets.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-02-01.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what submissions she has received from teachers’ representatives on the rollout of the English Baccalaureate in the last year; and if she will make a statement.

Nick Gibb

On 3 November 2015 we launched a consultation seeking views on how to ensure that pupils receive a rigorous education in the core academic subjects; an education that includes the English Baccalaureate GCSEs: maths, English, science, a foreign language and history or geography. The consultation closed on 29 January.

Alongside the consultation, we have discussed the English Baccalaureate with more than 50 head teachers from schools or academy trusts in roundtable discussions, individual meetings or phone conversations. We have also met representatives from teaching unions to discuss the EBacc consultation.

We will publish the results of the consultation and the government’s response later in the spring. This will include information about the submissions received from teachers’ representatives.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-02-08.

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what estimate his Department has made of the number of rent repayment orders issued to houses in multiple occupation which were not adequately licensed in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

Brandon Lewis

The Department does not collect or hold information about the number of rent repayment orders issued in respect of unlicensed houses in multiple occupation.

A local authority may apply to the First Tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) for such an order if Housing Benefit was paid to cover or assist with rent payments during the period a house in multiple occupation was required to be licensed, but was not. Information about the number of rent repayment orders issued to local authorities will be held by the authorities themselves.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-02-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many grants of what value were made by his Department for meningitis research programmes in each of the last five years.

George Freeman

Since 2011, the Department’s National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) has made the following awards through its research programmes and fellowship schemes for research relating to meningitis:

– Impact of conjugate vaccination on population immunity to pneumococcal and meningococcal disease in England: immunosero-epidemiological analysis (£605,843; 2013-15); and

– Improving the diagnosis of meningitis in adults in the United Kingdom (£415,242; 2013-16).

In addition, the NIHR funds research relating to meningitis through:

– the NIHR Clinical Research Network;

– NIHR Biomedical Research Centres;

– NIHR Clinical Research Facilities for Experimental Medicine; and

– Health Protection Research Units.

Since 2011, the Department’s Policy Research Programme has made the following award for research relating to meningitis:

– Characterisation of meningococcal carriage isolates from UK MenCar4 study (£199,990; 2016-17).

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-03-01.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people aged under 18 have been (a) charged with and (b) convicted of (i) indecent exposure, (ii) public drunkenness, (iii) drug possession and (iv) hate crime in each year since 2010.

Caroline Dinenage

The number of juveniles proceeded against at magistrates’ courts and found guilty at all courts of offences of exposure and simple public drunkenness, in England and Wales, from 2010 to 2014 can be viewed in the table.

The number of juveniles proceeded against at magistrates’ courts and found guilty at all courts of offences of drunkenness with aggravation in a public place, drug possession and hate crime offences, can be viewed in the CJS Outcomes by Offence data tool in the latest annual Criminal Justice Statistics publication, which is available at the link below.

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/criminal-justice-system-statistics-quarterly-december-2014

Crimes that may have been motivated by hate but are not defined hate crimes are not specifically included in this data.

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-03-02.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has received from his US counterpart on the security situation in Libya; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Tobias Ellwood

The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Philip Hammond) spoke with US Secretary of State Kerry on 29 February and discussed a range of issues, including Libya. We have regular discussions with international partners, including the United States, in support of the Libya Political Agreement, including on security matters.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-03-08.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 7 March 2016 to Question 903912, what estimate her Department has made of number of postgraduate trainee teachers recruited in each of the last five years.

Nick Gibb

The data requested has been attached to this answer and can be found in Table 1b at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/initial-teacher-training-trainee-number-census-2015-to-2016

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-03-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what progress his Department has made on the restructuring process set out in the review of the Air Cadet Organisation; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Julian Brazier

I refer the hon. Member to the Written Ministerial Statement I made on 10 March 2016, (Official Report, column WS605).

A programme of works has been developed to deliver the improved infrastructure and accommodation at Volunteer Gliding Squadrons. Work also continues to align and integrate the various training courses for Air Cadets into an integrated aviation training package. In future this will be tailored to a cadet’s level of experience and will cover aviation related ground training, realistic flight simulation with part-task training glider simulators, and formal gliding instruction on Volunteer Gliding Squadrons.