Tag: Jim Shannon

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when electrical impulse equipment for spinal injuries will be available on the NHS.

Jane Ellison

The Department is aware of a number of recent newspaper articles about research into the use electrical impulse devices for the treatment of spinal injuries. This research is at a very early stage and the technology has yet to demonstrate its efficacy and safety in clinical trials in humans.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-02-09.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, whether he has had discussions with pharmaceutical companies based outside the UK on locating functions in the UK.

Anna Soubry

The Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills has overall responsibility for ensuring that the UK is an attractive place for overseas companies to set up or expand their business. In this context, the Secretary of State has had discussions with companies from a range of sectors, including in the life sciences sector.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-02-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if her Department will take steps to ensure that farming business is market-led rather than production-led.

George Eustice

The UK has some of the best farmers in the world, producing food to the highest standards of quality, safety, traceability and animal welfare. To make the most of this talent and quality, we need to work with farmers to raise our productivity and close the gap with some of our leading competitors. This means that we shall be supporting more UK businesses to sell their top quality produce around the world; trebling the number of apprenticeships in the food and drink industry to bring new skills and innovation; and reforming tax averaging and investment allowances to help farmers plan capital spending for the long term.

Our new 25-year food and farming plan has been developed jointly with food and farming businesses. It will set a joint vision for increasing productivity, exports, resilience and consumer confidence, thereby boosting demand for British food and the contribution of farming to our economy.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps he has taken to encourage teenage girls to be involved in sport and other physical activity.

David Evennett

There are a number of excellent initiatives to encourage teenage girls to get active such as Sport England’s This Girl Can campaign, a nationwide campaign to get women and girls moving, regardless of shape, size and ability. It is already changing behaviours with 49% of women aged 14 to 40 who have seen the campaign reporting they had taken action as a result.

Sport England has also invested over £2million in Bury for a pilot called ‘I Will if You Will’. The programme, on which they worked closely with the local council, combined marketing techniques with sports sessions and exercise classes designed to overcome the hurdles that stop women taking part. Us Girls, funded by Sport England, also exists to increase and sustain young women’s participation in sport and physical activity in some of the nation’s most disadvantaged communities.

Girls Active, funded by Sport England, in partnership with This Girl Can and Women in Sport is a scheme to encourage teenage girls to take part in PE and sport and the School Games offer children of all abilities the chance to take part in competitive sport. In 2014/15, 177,630 children took part at level 3 of the School Games (the county festivals) and 51% of these participants were girls.

In December, DCMS published ‘Sporting Future: A New Strategy for an Active Nation‘, a new cross-departmental strategy for sport and physical activity. The strategy sets out government’s vision for a successful and active sporting nation and emphasises the importance of helping people in under-represented groups, including women and girls, to get active.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to encourage the use of (a) credit unions and (b) the help to buy scheme by armed forces personnel.

Mark Lancaster

In October 2015, the Ministry of Defence (MOD) launched a facility to make Credit Union services available to UK Armed Forces personnel via payroll deductions. The launch was communicated through the MOD intranet and gov.uk website, and also cascaded to the single Service welfare and internal communications leads.

Three chosen Credit Unions are now working together collectively under the banner ‘Joining Forces’ to provide Service personnel with access to dependable savings facilities and safe affordable loans. Further details are available from their website: http://joiningforcescu.co.uk/

Joining Forces have an employee who works solely on behalf of the collective to deliver presentations and information packages to personnel on military bases. They are also examining various strategies to promote their services through Armed Forces publications and engagement with the Families Federations.

Work is currently under way to enable veterans who are in receipt of an Armed Forces pension to access the services provided by Joining Forces. It is expected that this facility will go live later this year.

Take-up of the £200 million Forces Help to Buy (FHTB) scheme has been very encouraging. The scheme has already given £93.7 million to help over 6,100 Service personnel buy or extend their homes. While there is no advertising budget for FHTB, the success stories of the scheme continue to be communicated through routine internal channels, as well as MOD social media where appropriate. These examples are cascaded via the individual Service networks to raise awareness of the scheme and to inform Service personnel of the support available to them.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions he has had with the Royal Colleges on the connection between memory loss and viral illness.

Jane Ellison

No such discussions have taken place.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-03-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if the Cross Government Working Group on Drones will conduct a detailed examination of the security threats posed by drones as part of its work.

Mr Robert Goodwill

The Cross Government Working Group is undertaking analysis of the potential use of drones for criminal and terrorist purposes, and the impacts of their negligent use near sensitive locations, such as airports.

Guidance on tackling the risks of criminal drone use has been provided to constabularies across the UK.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-03-17.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many treatments for rare and infectious diseases have been approved for use on the NHS based on a foreign laboratory test analysis.

Jane Ellison

The information requested is not available. The most appropriate treatment for a rare and infectious disease is determined by the physician looking after the patient. Where laboratory tests have been conducted abroad, they may be repeated in the United Kingdom depending on the condition, particularly where laboratory practice or standards in the country of origin are in doubt.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-04-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent steps she has taken to prevent the growing of cannabis.

Karen Bradley

Growing cannabis, whether for personal use or organised supply, is illegal and those who do so can face significant jail sentences.

The investigation and prevention of illegal cannabis cultivation is an operational matter for the police. The police use proactive operations and seizures to target dealers and the organised gangs behind illegal cannabis farms and promoting cooperation with all partners including the fire service, energy companies and the property sector.

They are also working to continually improve their knowledge and understanding of the trade through activity-led intelligence gathering.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-04-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with (a) the Russian business community and (b) other Russian citizens living in the UK on Russian attitudes towards the West.

Mr David Lidington

During my visit to Moscow in December 2015, I discussed Russian attitudes towards the West with a group of Russian political commentators. I also meet periodically with the Russian Ambassador to the UK to seek the views of the Russian Government.

Officials at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and UK Trade and Investment meet Russian individuals and businesses on a regular basis, principally through the Russo-British Chamber of Commerce (RBCC) which celebrates its centenary year in 2016. The UK Government also continues to support the development of cultural and people-to-people links which can help build trust between our two countries, such as through the 2016 UK-Russia Year of Language and Literature.