Tag: Mark Pritchard

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Pritchard on 2015-11-06.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will discuss with Virgin Trains its replacing the ageing Voyager fleet rolling stock.

Claire Perry

The Voyager fleet was introduced in 2001/2 to provide high speed services on routes which could only be served by Diesel Trains and is primarily operated by Virgin on routes to Chester and Holyhead. We will consider train fleet options as part of the upcoming ICWC franchise competition.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Pritchard on 2015-12-07.

To ask the Attorney General, what discussions he has had with the Secretaries of State for Defence and International Development on ensuring that full and proper account is taken of the importance of international humanitarian law in areas of potential conflict and war.

Jeremy Wright

I meet regularlywith Ministerial colleagues to discuss important issues of common interest, including on international humanitarian law. I am not able to talk about any legal content of those discussions because, by convention, whether the Law Officers have given advice or not is not disclosed outside Government. All legal advice provided by the Law Officers is confidential and subject to legal professional privilege.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Pritchard on 2016-01-18.

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the effect of the national living wage and the apprenticeships levy on (a) contracted-out services provided to local authorities and (b) the revenue of those local authorities; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Marcus Jones

The impact of the introduction of the national living wage and apprenticeships levy was considered during the Spending Review as part of the overall assessment of spending pressures on local authorities. However, no assessment has been made on contracted out services or revenue generation as that is for individual local authorities to consider as part of their budget setting process.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Pritchard on 2016-03-21.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to reduce the number of non-natural deaths (a) in police custody and (b) on the prison estate.

Mike Penning

Every death in police custody and on the prison estate is a tragedy and this is a priority area for the Government.

The Ministerial Council for Deaths in Custody looks at this issue across Government. The Council considers what lessons can be learnt following a death in custody and the development of a clear and robust legislative and policy framework to help prevent deaths in any state custody setting.

The Home Secretary announced a major review into deaths in police custody on 23 July. This review is being led by Dame Elish Angiolini who is working closely with victims, families and the police. At its heart will be the experience of the families of those who have died in custody. The review is scheduled to report in the summer of 2016. My officials also work closely with police forces, the Independent Police Complaints Commission, the National Offender Management Service and other partners to take action to minimise the risks to detainees and prevent deaths from occurring in custody environments. Police forces are required to refer all matters concerning deaths in police custody to the Independent Police Complaints Commission who will decide whether the matter should be investigated and, if so, what form that investigation should take.

All deaths in prison are subject to a police investigation, an independent investigation by the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman (PPO) and a Coroner’s inquest. The Ministry of Justice works hard to learn lessons from each death, and has accepted and acted on the vast majority of recommendations from recent investigations by the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman.

All prisons are required to have procedures in place to identify, manage and support people who are at risk of harm to themselves, and the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) has put in place additional resources to undertake this safer custody work.

Health partners are engaged in supporting all prisoners’ physical and mental health and wellbeing, and play an important role in the identification and management of prisoners at risk of self-harm and suicide.

On 17 December 2015 the Government published its response to the Harris Review into the deaths in custody of young adults and reaffirmed its commitment to reducing the levels of self-harm and self-inflicted deaths in custody.

NOMS has an extensive programme of work aimed at preventing self-inflicted deaths and reducing levels of self-harm.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Pritchard on 2016-09-13.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will introduce a statutory maximum temperature on (a) stationary aircraft and (b) aircraft in flight.

Mr John Hayes

The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) has requirements in the aircraft certification specifications regarding the ventilation requirements of aircraft cabin, but no maximum temperature has been identified. It would be for EASA to introduce any changes to these safety requirements, based on robust evidence base.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Pritchard on 2015-11-09.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what joint work she and her French counterpart are undertaking on providing governance and capacity-building support for francophone Africa.

Nick Gibb

The Department for Education is not undertaking any work on providing governance and capacity-building support for Francophone Africa.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Pritchard on 2015-12-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will introduce regulations to monitor the sale of drones for private and commercial use.

Mr Robert Goodwill

The Civil Aviation Authority keeps a record of all the permissions they have issued to fly commercial drones in UK airspace. However this does not extend to leisure users of drones. To address this the Department for Transportis currently looking at a range of options including regulation, registration and licensing options and a database to increase transparency on the use of drones for the general public. We will be looking to address these issue without placing unnecessary bureaucratic burden on this emerging industry. We intend to consult on all of these issues and other possible solutions in 2016.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Pritchard on 2016-01-18.

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what research his Department has commissioned on the (a) age profile of rural counties and (b) ability of older residents to generate business rates.

Mr Marcus Jones

The Office for National Statistics publish population estimates and population projections at the local authority level, broken down by age. We are not aware of any evidence to suggest a correlation between levels of business rates income and the age profile of residents.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Pritchard on 2016-03-24.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will discuss with vehicle manufacturers improvements to in-vehicle technology to prevent vehicle hacking.

Anna Soubry

Government recognises that vehicle security is a priority to ensure the safety and security of the public and their data. Government is actively engaging with the automotive industry, including vehicle manufacturers and suppliers to develop understanding and capability around the rapidly evolving cyber threats to vehicles.

As vehicle technology is advancing rapidly, particularly with respect to connectivity and automation technologies, the nature and level of threat, together with vulnerabilities and the potential impact of any successful exploit is changing. It is important that vehicles are "secure by design" and government is working with industry to ensure the opportunities of these new technologies can be realised safely and securely.

Connected technologies present cyber security challenges across a broad range of sectors. The recent Strategic Defence Spending Review, and the recently announced National Cyber Security Centre provide cross-cutting strategy for cyber security and it is important that automotive is considered as a part of this wider agenda.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Pritchard on 2016-09-13.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will make it his policy to introduce a statutory workplace maximum temperature.

Penny Mordaunt

The Government has no plans to introduce a statutory workplace maximum temperature. For information on the existing law and guidance on workplace temperature, I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 09 September 2016 to Question UIN 44106.

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