Tag: MiDavies

The below Parliamentary question was asked by MiDavies on 2016-01-04.

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what incentives his Department provides to encourage local authorities to build retirement and adapted housing.

Brandon Lewis

We are committed to increasing the diversity and choice of housing for older people. We know that the right housing can help people to have the lifestyle they want in later life, and help people stay healthier for longer. The National Planning Policy Framework requires local authorities to plan for a mix of housing based on current and future demographic trends, and the needs of different groups in the area, including older people and disabled people. In March 2015 we strengthened our planning guidance further to encourage local authorities to recognise the importance for planning for older people’s housing.

Local authorities are eligible to bid for capital grant funding for specialised housing for older people, including adapted housing through the Government’s Affordable Homes Programme, which includes funding for supported housing and the Care and Support Specialised Housing Fund.

To help older people stay healthier for longer in their existing home the Government provides the Disabled Facilities Grant, which is part of the Better Care Fund. This capital grant for adaptations is paid to local authorities in England to fund the provision of home adaptations (including stair lifts, level access showers and, in some instances, home extensions) to help disabled people to live as comfortably, safely and independently as possible in their own homes for longer. In the Autumn Statement, the Chancellor announced that funding for the Grant will rise to over £500 million by 2020. Annual allocations for the Disabled Facilities Grant for each year until 2020 will be announced in due course.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by MiDavies on 2016-05-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what proportion of people in Wales are involved in regular sport.

Alun Cairns

Sport is a devolved matter in Wales and is therefore the responsibility of the Welsh Government.

However, the Sport Wales’ Active Adult Survey 2014 found that 72% of adults in Wales had participated in sport and physical recreation within the previous four weeks of being surveyed.

Furthermore, their School Sport Survey 2015 found that 48% of children in Wales were participating in sports three or more times a week.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by MiDavies on 2016-01-13.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 8 December 2015 to Question 18753, whether the assessment of the FRANK website was based solely on preventing drug use.

Karen Bradley

The purpose of the Frank website survey 2013 was to assess: website users’ experiences, the information they accessed, their general satisfaction with the website and their intended behaviour after visiting the website.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the strength of a designation as a Site of Special Scientific Interest in determining planning applications.

Gavin Barwell

The National Planning Policy Framework provides strong protection for Sites of Special Scientific Interest. It makes clear that proposed development likely to have an adverse effect on a Site of Special Scientific Interest should not normally be permitted. Planning law requires local planning authorities to consult Natural England on applications for development in or likely to affect Sites of Special Scientific Interest.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by MiDavies on 2016-01-20.

To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what progress she is making on raising the profile of International Women’s Day.

Caroline Dinenage

International Women’s Day has been marked for many years, and is an opportunity to celebrate the progress and achievements of women around the world.

I, and many other ministers, will be attending a series of events, workshops and meetings to celebrate the day. We will also be supporting some of the many events that will be held around the country in schools, workplaces and communities. We are all working together to promote International Women’s Day and each year I am amazed by the creativity and energy that is on display.

I hope that honourable members will also be supporting events to mark International Women’s Day.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the use of air quality management areas by local authorities.

Dr Thérèse Coffey

Air quality has improved significantly in recent decades and we are working at local, national and international levels to continue those improvements. The UK currently meets legal limits for almost all pollutants; however, reducing levels for nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) remains the most challenging.

Local authorities (LAs) have opportunities to improve air quality for the protection of public health and the environment through decisions they make on land use planning, permitting, roads and air quality management areas (AQMAs).

Across the UK, 259 LAs declared 715 AQMAs since 1999. Most AQMAs in the UK are in urban areas and have been established to address the contribution to air pollution from traffic emissions of NO₂ or particulate matter (PM₁₀). Details of the current AQMAs declared by LAs, broken down by region and pollutant, are set out in the table below.

Region	Total LAs	Number of LAs with AQMAs	For NO2	For PM10	For SO2
England (outside London)	294	193	497	38	6
London	33	33	33	29	0
Scotland	32	14	25	21	1
Wales	22	10	37	1	0
N. Ireland	11	9	20	7	0
TOTAL	393	259	612	96	7

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps the Government is taking in schools to help young people spot the signs of mental illness.

Mr Sam Gyimah

Good mental health and wellbeing is a key priority for this Department. Young people have told us they would like to have opportunities to support each other and help to do this effectively.

We recently launched a suite of peer support activities, which include a call for evidence for stakeholders and children and young people and funding of up to £1.5m including a new digital innovation fund, to develop reliable, engaging and trusted advice online to help them understand both their own, and their friends mental health.

We will also be working with a core steering group, and wider advisory group of sector experts, including headteachers, youth leaders and charities, to look at what works in peer support, and how young people can strengthen their own networks.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many councils do not currently have a five-year land supply.

Gavin Barwell

We do not hold information centrally on how many local planning authorities do not have a five-year land supply for housing. A local planning authority’s five-year land supply position changes frequently and is subject to market conditions. The National Planning Policy Framework requires local planning authorities to keep their land supply under regular review.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by MiDavies on 2016-03-03.

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of guidance issued to councils on budget transparency.

Mr Marcus Jones

DCLG published a plain English guide to open and accountable local government in August 2014. Ultimately it is for local decision makers to decide what information should be recorded and publicly available on the basis of the national rules and for local electors to hold them to account for this.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the Italian model for screening heart conditions in young people who participate in organised sport.

David Mowat

Last year the United Kingdom National Screening Committee (UK NSC) reviewed published evidence and literature on the risk of sudden cardiac death (SCD) relating to a variety of conditions including in young people who participated in organised sport and recommended that screening should not be offered.

Cardiac screening is mandatory in Italy where young people undertake sport. This has resulted in an 89% decrease in mortality of those tested based data published in 2005 from one region in Italy.

There are a number of questions relating to the effectiveness of the Italian programme that are not available in published literature. We are awaiting a response from the Italian Health Minister on behalf of the UK NSC requesting access to the data for the whole of Italy so that the UK NSC could see to what extent the data is representative of Italy as a country overall. The UK NSC will be reviewing the evidence for SCD again in 2018/19 and welcomes any data from the Italian government.