Tag: Jim Cunningham

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-09-05.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate she has made of how much her Department will spend on children’s centres in each of the next five years; and if she will make a statement.

Caroline Dinenage

Local authorities have a duty under the Childcare Act 2006 to ensure sufficient children’s centres to meet the needs of local families. Local authorities must meet their statutory duties on children’s centres from funding that forms part of the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) Business Rates Retention Scheme. In addition, other government funding, including that for public health, adult skills training and troubled families may also be used locally to support services delivered wholly, or in part, through children’s centres.

Since April 2010 local authorities have reported actual and planned expenditure on children’s centres (regardless of the funding source) through annual Section 251 returns. This information is published at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/expenditure-on-education-children-and-young-peoples-services-academic-year-2011-to-2012 and: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/section-251-materials

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-09-14.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what representations she has made to the Football League and the Premier League on whether the Fit and Proper Person Test they use is appropriate and effective; and if she will make a statement.

Tracey Crouch

I have regular meetings with the Leagues, and have discussed the Owners and Directors Test (formerly Fit and Proper Persons Test) with them. The test exists to protect clubs from individuals who fall within the disqualifying criteria, and I am pleased that The Football Association, The Premier League and the English Football League have committed to keeping it under constant review so that it is achieving its intended purpose. This commitment is set out in the report by the Government’s Expert Working Group on Supporter Ownership and Engagement published earlier this year.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-10-11.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 10 October 2016 to Question 46494, whether his Department keeps a record of the number of people who have had their tax credits stopped and subsequently reinstated by Concentrix in each of the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement.

Jane Ellison

HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) does not keep records of the number of people who had their tax credits stopped and then re-instated by Concentrix. Only the number of awards that have been amended, which could be stopped, reduced or increased, is recorded.

HMRC is currently focussed on resolving the outstanding cases but will be preparing analysis, which will be available in due course.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-10-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, what estimate he has made of his Department’s spending on hospitality to date.

Mr Robin Walker

Information about spend on hospitality for Senior officials, Ministers and Special Advisers will be published in the usual way through the transparency data on gov.uk.

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2015-10-29.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to encourage retailers to reduce the amount of food waste they produce; and if she will make a statement.

Rory Stewart

Through the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP), the Government is working with food manufacturers and retailers to meet targets to reduce food and packaging waste from the grocery supply chain under the Courtauld Commitment.

Signatories reported a reduction of 7.4% in supply chain waste between 2009 and 2012 under Courtauld 2. Interim results for Courtauld 3 show signatories reported a further 3.2% reduction by 2014 against the overall target of a 3% reduction by the end of 2015.

WRAP is currently brokering a new agreement, Courtauld 2025, which will build on this progress and is expected to start in 2016.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2015-11-05.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what his most recent estimate is of the number of UK military personnel currently involved in military operations in (a) Iraq and (b) Syria; and if he will make a statement.

Penny Mordaunt

We have over 850 military personnel committed to Operation SHADER (counter-ISIL operations in Iraq and Syria) based across the Middle East

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2015-11-16.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, pursuant to the Answer of 16 November 2015 to Question 15604, what information her Department holds on the (a) number of petroleum exploration and development licences which have been (i) applied for and (ii) issued in the last 12 months and (b) the location to which such applications and licences apply.

Andrea Leadsom

No landward Petroleum Exploration and Development Licences have been applied for, nor issued, during the last 12 months. However, in the latest (14^th) Onshore Oil and Gas Licensing Round, which closed for bids on 28 October 2014, 95 applications were received from 47 companies covering 295 Ordinance Survey Blocks. The Oil and Gas Authority announced on 18 August 2015 that a first tranche of 27 onshore blocks will be formally offered to companies, and that a second group of 132 further blocks has been subjected to detailed assessment under the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2010. Subject to the outcome of this consultation, the OGA intends to announce offers for the second group of licence blocks later this year. A map showing the location of the first tranche blocks and those being considered further can be found here:

https://decc-edu.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=29c31fa4b00248418e545d222e57ddaa.

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2015-11-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what estimate her Department has made of the proportion of UK energy production that takes the form of non-renewable energy production outputs in each of the next five years; and if she will make a statement.

Andrea Leadsom

We estimate that the proportion of electricity produced in the UK (gross total electricity supplied) which will be generated by non-renewable means over the next five years is as follows:

2016 75%

2017 71%

2018 68%

2019 66%

2020 62%

This excludes electricity supplied from other countries via interconnectors.

The above data is taken from the reference scenario in Annex J of DECC’s 2015 Energy and Emissions Projections. This and other scenarios with differing economic growth and fossil fuel prices are available online at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/updated-energy-and-emissions-projections-2015

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2015-11-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 20 November 2015 to Question 15657, what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of the level of support provided to the arts in the West Midlands in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Edward Vaizey

The Government recognises the intrinsic, social and economic value of the arts and supports fair distribution of funding across the whole country. Following the announcement of the spending review on 25 November 2015, Arts Council England will continue to support community arts organisations throughout the country including the West Midlands.

The West Midlands has seen a number of high quality arts programmes delivered in the region over the last five years. These include The Belgrade Theatre in Coventry which has received over £2.5 million of Government funding since 2012 enabling them to create eight new Youth Theatre groups – among them the Asian Youth Theatre and the Black Youth Theatre, which aim to give a voice to local communities; The Courtyard in Hereford which, thanks to almost £1 million of Government funding since 2012, became the first arts venue to join the Dementia Action Alliance, and is now a recognised leader in the development of dementia-friendly arts venues; and The New Vic Theatre in Newcastle-Under-Lyme, one of Arts Council England’s National portfolio organisations, which has been attracting national attention by challenging and changing people’s attitudes towards racism, domestic violence, forced marriage, poverty and crime.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2015-12-08.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of grassroots sports funding; and if he will make a statement.

Tracey Crouch

DCMS have recently gone through a detailed spending review process which has recognised the enormous value of investing in sport, resulting in an excellent settlement for Sport England. Earlier this year we consulted on plans for a new strategy for sport which will be published shortly and which sets a clear direction for future grassroots sport funding