Tag: Oliver Colvile

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Oliver Colvile on 2016-03-14.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what funding his Department has allocated to Plymouth City Council for pothole maintenance since 2010; and what estimate he has made of how many potholes have been repaired as a result of that funding.

Andrew Jones

The Department for Transport allocated funding of £4.7 billion for local highways maintenance to local highway authorities in England from 2010 to 2015 which would be enough to repair approximately 89 million potholes based on an average of £53 per pothole. A further £6.1 billion is being allocated between now and 2021, including £250 million as part of a Pothole Action Fund, which could fix a further 115 million potholes. For Plymouth City Council we are providing over £25 million for local highways maintenance between 2010 and 2021 enough to help them repair over 400,000 potholes.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what support her Department is giving to dispersal centres for asylum seekers to help foster community cohesion.

Mr Robert Goodwill

The Home Office funds strategic migration partnerships which are local authority-led partnerships designed to provide structures and support services for those organisations working with migrants and refugees in local communities.

The Home Office also provides a dedicated integration loan directly to recognised refugees. The loan is designed to help refugees integrate into UK society by offering financial support towards housing costs, employment and training.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Oliver Colvile on 2016-01-18.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many children under the age of 16 in Plymouth who have been diagnosed with an autism spectrum condition or have been identified as having autism-related needs are not in education.

Edward Timpson

Our reformed system for meeting the needs of children and young people with Special Educational Needs (SEN) and Disabilities is designed to ensure that their needs are identified at an early stage, that the right support is in place, and that problems do not escalate.

All early years providers are required to have arrangements in place to identify and support children with SEN or disabilities and to promote equality of opportunity for children in their care. All schools should have a clear approach to identifying and responding to SEN and must use their best endeavours to ensure that children with SEN, including those with autism, get the support they need.

As part of their Initial Teacher Training, all teachers are expected to learn to identify and address various types of SEN, including autism. The Government is also funding the Autism Education Trust in 2015-16, providing £650,000 to provide tiered training at universal, enhanced and specialist levels for early years, school and post-16 staff to help them understand how best to recognise and support children and young people with autism.

The Department does not hold data on the numbers of autistic children who are home educated nor the numbers of children who are not in school. The Alternative Provision Census does collect data about children who are not in school or in a pupil referral unit. However, it covers as a single ‘Not in School’ category only those who are educated otherwise than at school under arrangements made and funded by local authorities. The information does not reflect types of special educational need.

The data may be available from Plymouth City Council, since it has a duty under Section 22 of the Children and Families Act 2014 to carry out its functions with a view to identifying all the children and young people in its area who have or may have special educational needs or a disability, and also a duty to provide children of compulsory school age with an education.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Oliver Colvile on 2016-04-25.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate his Department has made of the economic benefits of the construction of a second rail line into the South West.

Claire Perry

The reinstatement of the Exeter – Okehampton – Plymouth route and the economic value of re-opening it is being looked at by the Peninsula Rail Task Force (PRTF). They will report to the Secretary of State in July 2016.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to create more cohesive societies in areas with dispersal centres for asylum seekers.

Mr Robert Goodwill

The Home Office funds strategic migration partnerships which are local authority-led partnerships designed to provide structures and support services for those organisations working with migrants and refugees in local communities.

The Home Office also provides a dedicated integration loan directly to recognised refugees. The loan is designed to help refugees integrate into UK society by offering financial support towards housing costs, employment and training.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Oliver Colvile on 2016-01-18.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many young people over the age of 16 who are not in education, employment or training have been diagnosed with an autism spectrum condition or identified as having autism-related needs.

Nick Boles

The Department does not hold this information.

The 0-25 Special Educational Needs and Disability system extends the rights that children with SEND of compulsory school age previously enjoyed to all those who are studying after the age of 16.All further education providers must now have regard to the SEND Code of Practice[1], and must endeavour to meet the needs of students with SEND, including those with autism.

In 2015-16 the Department is providing funding of £239,502 for Ambitious about Autism to extend their previous grant-funded project, Finished at School, which developed an innovative, integrated model of transition support to enable more young people with complex autism and learning disabilities to access further education and training beyond school.

[1] https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/send-code-of-practice-0-to-25

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Oliver Colvile on 2016-04-27.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking to support a UN implementing agreement for the establishment and management of marine protected areas in the high seas.

James Duddridge

The UK supports the need for a new implementing agreement and the need to establish a mechanism to deliver Marine Protected Areas in areas beyond national jurisdiction. This is because whilst a range of different bodies with varying responsibilities address the protection of marine bio-diversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction, these bodies have sectorally or regionally restricted mandates.

The first session of the Preparatory Committee (Prepcom) to develop a new implementing agreement took place at the UN from 28 March to 8 April. The UK was represented by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and Defra officials. We will continue to engage on this issue in preparation for the remaining three sessions of the Prepcom.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps her Department is taking to combat the supply of drugs into prisons.

Mr Sam Gyimah

The Justice Secretary is clear that safety is fundamental to the proper functioning of our justice system and a vital part of our reform plans. There are a number of factors, including the availability of drugs in prisons, which must be tackled in order to make our prisons safe and places of rehabilitation.

We have introduced tough new laws which will see those who smuggle packages over prison walls, including new psychoactive substances, face up to two years in prison. Those who involve themselves in the distribution of drugs in our prisons should know that they could face prosecution and extra time behind bars. We have a range of security measures and searching techniques in place to detect drugs, and to prevent smuggling into prisons.

I am looking closely at this important issue, and will be setting our further plans in due course.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Oliver Colvile on 2016-01-18.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what early intervention and education support is available for children who are on the autism spectrum to prevent them developing mental health difficulties later in their school career.

Edward Timpson

Our reformed system for meeting the needs of children and young people with Special Educational Needs (SEN) and Disabilities is designed to ensure that their needs are identified at an early stage, that the right support is in place, and that problems do not escalate.

All early years providers are required to have arrangements in place to identify and support children with SEN or disabilities and to promote equality of opportunity for children in their care. All schools should have a clear approach to identifying and responding to SEN and must use their best endeavours to ensure that children with SEN, including those with autism, get the support they need.

As part of their Initial Teacher Training, all teachers are expected to learn to identify and address various types of SEN, including autism. The Government is also funding the Autism Education Trust in 2015-16, providing £650,000 to provide tiered training at universal, enhanced and specialist levels for early years, school and post-16 staff to help them understand how best to recognise and support children and young people with autism.

The Department does not hold data on the numbers of autistic children who are home educated nor the numbers of children who are not in school. The Alternative Provision Census does collect data about children who are not in school or in a pupil referral unit. However, it covers as a single ‘Not in School’ category only those who are educated otherwise than at school under arrangements made and funded by local authorities. The information does not reflect types of special educational need.

The data may be available from Plymouth City Council, since it has a duty under Section 22 of the Children and Families Act 2014 to carry out its functions with a view to identifying all the children and young people in its area who have or may have special educational needs or a disability, and also a duty to provide children of compulsory school age with an education.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Oliver Colvile on 2016-04-27.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what estimate his Department has made of the number and area of marine protected areas established beyond national jurisdiction through regional seas agreements or other instruments.

James Duddridge

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office is aware of eight Marine Protected Areas that have been established beyond national jurisdiction. One has been designated by the Commission on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources and seven have been designated by the OSPAR Commission in the North-East Atlantic. The UK plays an active role in both of these organisations and is fully supportive of their work to establish networks of Marine Protected Areas in the Antarctic and the North-East Atlantic.