Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Lord Hunt of Kings Heath – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Lord Hunt of Kings Heath – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 2016-01-26.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the number of hours a week worked by (1) teachers, and (2) school leaders.

    Lord Nash

    Removing unnecessary workload for teachers is a priority for this Government. On 6 February 2015, we published the response to our Workload Challenge alongside the findings in an independent research report. In response, a comprehensive programme was put in place to help address the complex issues raised. This included a commitment to continue to track teachers’ workload by carrying out a large scale survey every two years. This will start in spring 2016. Three review groups are also in progress to address the causes of unnecessary workload in relation to three of the biggest issues emerging from the Workload Challenge, namely: marking, planning, resources and data management. The groups will report to the Secretary of State in the spring of 2016 with principles for teaching practice and recommendations for the Department, schools and headteachers on how to eliminate unnecessary workload.

    Information on hours worked by teachers was collected in the 2013 Teaching and Learning International Study.

  • Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town on 2016-02-23.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many charities in receipt of government grant funding were found to have engaged in activity intended to influence or attempt to influence Parliament, government, or the European Commission, or attempt to influence legislative or regulatory action, in each of the past three years.

    Lord Bridges of Headley

    This information is not held centrally and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

  • Kerry McCarthy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Kerry McCarthy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kerry McCarthy on 2016-03-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, for what reasons waste reduction, improved resource efficiency and increasing recycling rates were not included in her Department’s Single Department Plan: 2015 to 2020, published on 19 January 2016.

    Rory Stewart

    Waste and resource management are important priorities for the Government. That is why reducing waste is one of the key aims in our departmental strategy that was published last month. Furthermore, our 25 Year Environment Plan will consider waste and resource management alongside other issues.

  • Justin Madders – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Justin Madders – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Justin Madders on 2016-04-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what reports he has received on the NHS investigation into the performance of the non-urgent transport service provided by Coperforma in Sussex; who will conduct that investigation; what the terms of reference and expected duration of that investigation are; and if he will make a statement.

    Jane Ellison

    NHS England advises that the High Weald Lewes Havens Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), on behalf of all seven Sussex CCGs, has begun an enquiry on 18 April 2016 into the non-emergency Patient Transport Service (PTS) in Sussex.

    We are informed that the CCG has engaged TIAA, an independent company and a provider of assurance services to the public sector, to carry out the enquiry. This is an independent investigation into the transition and mobilisation of the PTS contract from the South East Coast Ambulance Service to Coperforma and is supported by the CCGs in Sussex, Coperforma and the South East Coast Ambulance Service. We are advised the CCG has asked for a draft final report to be available for review by June 2016 with interim progress reports.

    We are advised the following terms of reference have been agreed by South East Coast Ambulance Service, High Weald Lewes Havens CCG and Coperforma:

    ― consideration of the transition arrangements set out in such as contract specification and tender submission;

    ― the extent to which compliance with agreed handover arrangements can be evidenced;

    ― a root cause analysis of a sample of incomplete bookings;

    ― establishing the causes of poor service delivery on commencement of the new contract and whether these could have been reasonably anticipated prior to the contract commencement date;

    ― the appropriateness and timeliness of the actions taken by the CCG; and

    ― any lesson learned which could be incorporated into other future major contracts let by the CCG.

  • The Earl of Sandwich – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The Earl of Sandwich – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Earl of Sandwich on 2016-05-18.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what international safeguards and oversight mechanisms will be in place throughout the implementation of the Khartoum Process to prevent trafficking and bribery, and to ensure that human rights are respected.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The Rome Declaration launching the Khartoum Process and the Valletta Summit Political Declaration both make clear that all participants should work to combat people trafficking and smuggling with full respect for human rights. The UK will continue to work closely with partners to ensure that all work supported under the Khartoum Process is fully human rights compliant.

    While helping the countries of the Horn of Africa cope with migratory flows and tackling the root causes of migration is firmly in the UK’s interests, we remain mindful of the broader humanitarian and political concerns regarding countries in that region.

  • Helen Goodman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Helen Goodman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Helen Goodman on 2016-07-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent discussions he has had with victims of press intrusion on the Leveson 2 inquiry.

    Matt Hancock

    The Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport met victims of press intrusion in March 2016 to discuss the Leveson Inquiry. Criminal proceedings connected to the subject matter of the Leveson Inquiry,including the appeals process, have not yet completed. We have always been clear that these cases must conclude before we consider Part 2 of the Inquiry.

  • Alistair Carmichael – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Alistair Carmichael – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alistair Carmichael on 2016-10-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 12 September 2016 to Question 44262 on Diego Garcia, since what date the existing procedures referred to have been in place.

    Sir Alan Duncan

    The US presence on the island of Diego Garcia is governed by a series of agreements, called Exchanges of Notes, of which the overarching agreement sets out the whole Territory should be made available for UK and US defence purposes for an initial 50 year period of 1966 to 2016. If neither side object during a two year window of December 2014 to December 2016, the agreement will continue as it stands until the end of December 2036.

  • Lord Steel of Aikwood – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Steel of Aikwood – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Steel of Aikwood on 2015-11-17.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the elections in Tanzania, particularly with respect to the devolved assembly in Zanzibar, and what representations they have made to the government of Tanzania or the Commonwealth Secretariat regarding the elections.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    Despite some problems, the national elections in Tanzania were peaceful and generally well organised. We have extended our congratulations to President Magufuli on his victory. We are however deeply concerned at the decision to nullify the elections for the Zanzibar Presidency and Parliament. We have conveyed our concerns to the Government of Tanzania on a number of occasions including at senior levels, most recently during a meeting last week between the Tanzanian High Commissioner to London and the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my hon. Friend the Member for Rochford and Southend East (James Duddridge).

  • Barry Sheerman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Barry Sheerman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Sheerman on 2015-12-15.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she has taken to ensure that the police are adequately trained to tackle online criminal activity involving young people.

    Mike Penning

    The last Parliament invested £860 million over five years through the National Cyber Security Programme (NCSP) to increase the cyber security of the UK. The Chancellor also announced on 17 November that we plan to almost double investment in cyber security, including cyber crime, to £1.9 billion over the next five years. This will enable us to continue to invest in training at the national, regional and local levels. NCSP funding is being used to deliver specific training for officers in the National Cyber Crime Unit within the National Crime Agency (NCA), cyber teams within each of the Regional Organised Crime Units and local police officers and staff to increase their capabilities to tackle this issue.

    For example, the second Phase of the Mainstream Cyber Crime Training course was launched on 30 September 2015 by College of Policing to police officers and staff on cyber, digital and social media issues. The College and police forces also deliver a classroom-based course to police investigators, which includes bespoke modules on how young and vulnerable people become victims of cyber and digital crime online and what police can do to help, including preventing them from becoming victims.

    The National Cyber Crime Unit in the National Crime Agency has also recently launched a communications campaign to deter young people, particularly young males aged 12-15 with an interest in computer gaming, from becoming involved in cyber criminality. The campaign, launched on 8 December, is aimed at parents, teachers and young people to educate them about the risks of becoming involved, and the career opportunities for those with cyber skills.

  • Lord Laird – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    Lord Laird – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Laird on 2016-01-26.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government further to the Written Answer by Lord Dunlop on 1 July 2015 (HL811), on what dates the British-Irish Intergovernmental Conference has discussed human rights; what specific topics were discussed; who attended those meetings; and what actions were taken as a result.

    Lord Dunlop

    Article 2 of The Belfast Agreement made provision for the British-Irish Intergovernmental Conference (BIIGC). The BIIGC last met in 2007.