The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2015-10-22.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what estimate his Department has made of the cost of unmanned drone missions flown over Syria in the last year; and if he will make a statement.
Penny Mordaunt
The net additional costs associated with REAPER operations over Iraq and Syria to the end of September 2015 were an estimated £43 million.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2015-10-26.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 23 October 2015 to Question 12620, what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of the level of public subsidy for train operators in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement.
Claire Perry
The level of public subsidy paid to (or premiums paid by) train operators is determined by the franchising process, in which bidders compete for the right to run passenger services franchises. Franchise competitions are designed to allow train operators an adequate financial return while at the same time ensuring they can fulfil their franchise commitments and obligations in full. Last year the Department received net £1.2bn premium from franchised train operators. Further information can be found on the Gov.uk website
(https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/rail-subsidy-per-passenger-mile).
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2015-10-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 16 October 2015 to Question 11738, what review his Department has conducted of the working conditions of junior doctors; and if he will make a statement.
Ben Gummer
The working conditions of junior doctors are a matter for employers. The new contract for doctors and dentists in training will introduce new, stronger limits on working hours and patterns and place a continued contractual obligation on employers to abide by those, ensuring a safer National Health Service for patients all days of the week.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2015-10-22.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 21 October 2015 to Question 12263, what estimate her Department has made of the number of Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 pupils who will qualify for free school meals in each of the next five years.
Mr Sam Gyimah
The continuation of free school meals was a commitment in the Conservative Party’s election manifesto. The government is currently conducting a spending review across all its programmes. We are not able to report on free school meals until after the outcome of that review.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2015-10-26.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment he has carried out of the ability of road infrastructure to meet future demand; and if he will make a statement.
Andrew Jones
The Road Investment Strategy (RIS) published in December 2014 sets out how £15.2 billion is being invested between 2015 and 2021 to improve the Strategic Road Network (SRN) – motorways and major ‘A’ roads in England. The RIS takes into account a range of possible outcomes for the future, underpinned by broad evidence which the Department will continue to build on and review. This includes an assessment of the trends that are likely to have a significant impact on road use and what these trends mean for traffic volumes on the SRN.
On the local road network it is for local highway authorities to make assessments of need and consider improvements.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2015-10-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department has taken to review the adequacy of public transport options in the West Midlands; and if he will make a statement.
Andrew Jones
Local transport authorities across England are responsible for public transport in their local areas, as has been the case under previous Administrations. This includes the development of policies relating to local transport, including public transport, and the preparation and publication of a local transport plan. In the Metropolitan area of the West Midlands, this responsibility sits with the West Midlands Integrated Transport Authority.
In the 2015 Summer Budget, the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced £5million for Midlands Connect, a partnership of Local Authorities and Local Enterprise Partnerships from across the Midlands, to develop its transport vision and strategy for transforming transport connectivity across the region in order to drive economic growth. Officials from the Department for Transport continue to work with Midlands Connect and the partnership launched their approach to this task today.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2015-10-22.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the contribution of the agricultural industry to total UK carbon dioxide emission levels in each of the last five years; and if she will make a statement.
Rory Stewart
Defra works closely with the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) to identify carbon dioxide emissions from agriculture. We provide detailed farm statistics that DECC feeds into the UK Green House Gas Inventory, which contains the UK’s official reported greenhouse gas estimates.
The Inventory indicates that:
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2015-10-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department has taken to review the safety of roads and highways in the West Midlands; and if he will make a statement.
Andrew Jones
The Department for Transport has not undertaken a review of safety of the roads of highways in the West Midlands as this is a matter for the local highway authorities and Highways England.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2015-10-22.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment his Department has made of trends in the diagnosis levels of inflammatory bowel diseases in England and Wales; and if he will make a statement.
Jane Ellison
The two main forms of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) are Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. Ulcerative colitis only affects the large intestine whereas Crohn’s disease affects the whole of the digestive system.
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidance indicates that ulcerative colitis has an incidence in the United Kingdom of approximately 10 per 100,000 people annually, and a prevalence of approximately 240 per 100,000. This amounts to around 146,000 people in the UK with a diagnosis of ulcerative colitis. In addition to this, there are currently at least 115,000 people in the UK with Crohn’s disease.
The Department does not hold information on diagnosis levels in Wales specifically; this is a matter for the devolved administration.
NICE published Crohn’s Disease Management in Adults, Children and Young People in October 2012 and Ulcerative Colitis Management in Adults, Children and Young People in June 2013. These set out best practice in the management of these conditions.
Treatment for both Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis is largely directed at symptom relief to improve quality of life, rather than cure. Management options include drug therapy, dietary and lifestyle advice and, in severe or chronic active disease, surgery. The aims of drug treatment are to reduce symptoms and maintain or improve quality of life.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2015-10-16.
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate his Department has made of the economic benefit of investment in the arts over the last five years; and if he will make a statement.
Mr Edward Vaizey
The Government recognises the important contribution the arts makes to the economy, For every £1 of gross value added generated by the arts and culture industry, an additional £1.43 of gross added value is generated in the wider UK economy (The Contribution of the Arts and Culture to the National Economy,Centre for Economics and Business Research). Activities within arts and culture can provide direct employment to commercial creative industries organisations – the number of jobs in the creative industries sector is now 1.8 million.
It is important to note that the contribution of arts is not just about the economic benefits, and there is also considerable evidence that culture has the capacity to improve health and wellbeing, educational attainment, and community cohesion.