Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Gordon Marsden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Gordon Marsden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gordon Marsden on 2016-03-22.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, whether Equivalent or Lower Level Qualifications are exempted under (a) degree and (b) Masters level apprenticeships.

    Nick Boles

    There are no centrally set entry requirements for apprenticeships; recruitment decisions lie with employers. As with any other job, they may set their own entry requirements for a specific apprenticeship vacancy at any level.

    Apprenticeship funding supports individuals to progress to higher levels of learning. A graduate who has completed a degree is not usually eligible for funding to complete an apprenticeship at Level 6 (degree), but would be eligible for funding to progress to an apprenticeship at Level 7 (Masters). A graduate with a Master’s degree would not normally be eligible for funding for an apprenticeship.

    The only exception to this is where the apprentice starts a new job role which is in a different occupation requiring a significant amount of new learning to take place, delivered over the minimum duration for the standard. In this case the apprentice would be eligible for funding for an apprenticeship at the same level, but no lower than, their current highest qualification.

  • Kevin Hollinrake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Kevin Hollinrake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevin Hollinrake on 2016-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will consider extending the exemptions that exist in the sea fishing industry to self-employed workers seeking Skills Funding Agency support for apprenticeships in the construction industry.

    Nick Boles

    Under Apprenticeship Frameworks, there are very specific instances where an apprentice is able to undertake an apprenticeship without being employed; where they are made redundant and where they are in an occupation that does not traditionally have an employer. In order to facilitate apprenticeships under these circumstances, specifically where employers do not exist, Government has provided funding to cover training and support. Fewer than 2000 apprenticeship starts fall under these conditions each year, of which fewer than 40 are in the sea fishing industry.

    The role of an employer in an apprenticeship, where possible, is considered vital and ensures the apprentice receives appropriate training, pay and support during their apprenticeship programme. The Government is therefore not considering widening exemptions that exist into other sectors at this time.

  • Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-04-27.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 19 April 2016 to Question 33991, what proportion of the 644 teachers and head teachers who responded to the 2013 consultation supported the principle of the assessment reforms.

    Nick Gibb

    The primary school assessment and accountability consultation in 2013 was an important exercise which contributed to the development of our reforms.

    An analysis of the consultation responses is available online at: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/new-national-curriculum-primary-assessment-and-accountability.

    “

  • Toby Perkins – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Toby Perkins – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Toby Perkins on 2016-06-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether the UK offered support to Saudi Arabia for the process of that country being elected to the UN Human Rights Council.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    Saudi Arabia was the only candidate put forward by the Asian Group for this seat in the UN’s Human Rights Council. So while the UK never publicises how it votes, this was not a contested election and the UK’s vote was immaterial.

  • Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-09-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many people have been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis aged (a) 0-10, (b) 11-20, (c) 21-40, (d) 41-60, and (e) 61+ years old in each of the last five years.

    David Mowat

    This information is not collected. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence estimates that multiple sclerosis affects approximately 100,000 people in the United Kingdom.

  • Lord Balfe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Lord Balfe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Balfe on 2016-10-18.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what consideration they gave to proposals to ban the advertising of unhealthy foods aimed specifically at children, and before the nine o’clock watershed, as part of their Childhood Obesity: A Plan for Action and, if such proposals were not considered appropriate, why not.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    In developing Childhood Obesity: A Plan for Action we have been clear that we considered a number of different policies and have focused on the ones that are likely to have the biggest impact on childhood obesity.

    The policies in the plan are informed by the latest research and evidence, including from the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition report Carbohydrates and Health, Public Health England’s evidence package Sugar reduction: the evidence for action, other Government departments, debates in the House of Commons and various reports from key stakeholders including the House of Commons Health Select Committee.

    Current restrictions on the advertising of less healthy food and drink in the United Kingdom are amongst the toughest in the world. Alongside this, we welcome the action taken by forward thinking retailers on promotions. These voluntary actions mean that business can move more quickly and go beyond what regulation would permit.

    We are confident that the measures we have announced will make a real difference and estimate that childhood obesity rates could be reduced by around a fifth (330,000) over the next ten years. Though we are clear in our goals and firm in the action we will take, this plan represents the start of a conversation, rather than the final word.

    Copies of Carbohydrates and Health and Sugar reduction: the evidence for action are attached.

  • Maggie Throup – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Maggie Throup – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Maggie Throup on 2015-10-30.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will request that NICE publishes its reasons for including a recommendation on the use of C-reactive protein testing for patients presenting with lower respiratory tract infection in primary care in its guidance on pneumonia but not in its pneumonia draft quality statement.

    George Freeman

    The prioritisation of topics for inclusion in quality standards is a matter for the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE). NICE has advised that its Quality Standards Advisory Committee considered the inclusion of a quality statement on the use of C-reactive protein testing for patients presenting with lower respiratory tract infection in primary care in its draft quality standard on pneumonia, but felt that this was not an area to be prioritised.

    The minutes of Quality Standards Advisory Committee meetings are published on NICE’s website at:

    www.nice.org.uk/get-involved/meetings-in-public/quality-standards-advisory-committee

    “

  • Maria Eagle – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Maria Eagle – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Maria Eagle on 2015-11-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on the Joint Security Fund; and how much his Department may draw from that fund in each year from 2015 to 2020.

    Michael Fallon

    It has been agreed with Her Majesty’s Treasury that the Ministry of Defence will be able to draw down £2.1 billion from the Joint Security Fund over the remainder of this Parliament.

  • Harry Harpham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Harry Harpham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Harry Harpham on 2016-01-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what the total cost to the public purse had been of developing carbon capture and storage technology.

    Andrea Leadsom

    The Government continues to view CCS as having a potential role in the long-term decarbonisation of the UK’s power and industrial sectors and has invested over £222 million since 2011 in developing carbon capture and storage technology, including approximately £130 million through our support to new technologies and research to help develop new capture technologies to reduce costs. The latest investment includes £1.7 million for three innovative CCS technologies awarded through Energy Entrepreneurs Fund and £2.5 million to identify suitable CO2 stores in the North and Irish Seas.

    Government has also supported industry to complete detailed engineering and design work on CCS project proposals to determine their cost and feasibility, ensuring that knowledge gained is made freely available to benefit future CCS projects and aid research and development in CCS technology.

  • Chris Law – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Chris Law – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Law on 2016-01-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, which categories of young people will be exempt from the new restrictions to housing benefit eligibility.

    Justin Tomlinson

    Removal of automatic housing support for 18 – 21 year olds, announced in the Summer Budget 2015, will be introduced in April 2017. The Department is liaising with a range of key stakeholders as we develop the detail of the policy and once this work is complete we will bring forward detailed proposals.