Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Jenny Chapman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Jenny Chapman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jenny Chapman on 2015-12-15.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many assaults on female prison staff took place in each of the last 10 years.

    Andrew Selous

    We do not tolerate violence of any kind in prison and any assault is treated extremely seriously. Any prisoner who commits an act of violence can expect to have action taken against them.

    Quarterly statistics on the numbers of assaults on prison staff are published in the Safety in Custody statistics bulletin, located at the following link:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/472712/Safety-in-custody-summary-q2-2015.xls

    Information on the gender of those staff who have been assaulted is not held centrally.

    “

  • David Anderson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    David Anderson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Anderson on 2016-01-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what (a) statutory and (b) other guidance is available to higher education institutions on their duties under the Equality Act 2010 towards disabled students.

    Joseph Johnson

    Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) have clear legal responsibilities under the Equality Act 2010 to support their students, including those with disabilities.

    The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has produced a range of guidance for institutions on their obligations under the Equality Act 2010, including technical guidance setting out the detail of the law.

    Guidance is also produced by the Equality Challenge Unit (ECU), a higher education sector body that supports equality and diversity for staff and students across the UK, including for disabled staff and students on managing “reasonable adjustments”. The ECU also published a report on the implications for institutions of the key issues contained in the Equality Act 2010.

  • Lord Storey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Lord Storey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Storey on 2016-02-23.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Nash on 29 January (HL5640), whether they request and collate statistics from each local authority about pupils who are regularly absent from school, or who have been deleted from the admission register in certain circumstances.

    Lord Nash

    Pupil absence information is collected by the Department at an enrolment level through the School Census.

    Absence information, including figures relating to those pupils who are persistent absentees, is published three times a year in the following National Statistics releases:

    • Pupil absence in schools in England: autumn term

    • Pupil absence in schools in England: autumn and spring term

    • Pupil absence in schools in England: full academic year

    The Department does not collect information on pupils who have been deleted from the admission register for specific circumstances.

  • Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-03-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what support his Department provides for local authorities to share best practice on adult social work.

    Alistair Burt

    Raising the quality and consistency of social work practice remains a priority for the Department and for Government. We continue to provide local authorities with the tools and resources to enable them to share good practice.

    Principal Social Workers are now in place in nearly every local authority and a number of National Health Service trusts, responsible for strong practice leadership in their organisations. They are supported by strong national and regional networks, with links to regional Association of Directors of Adult Social Services networks, helping to identify and share good social work practice. A statement on the role and the responsibility of local authorities to appoint a principal social worker in adult social care, has been included in revised statutory guidance accompanying the Care Act, which the Department published on 10 March.

    In addition, the Department is working with Skills for Care and the Social Care Institute for Excellence to assist local authorities in the implementation of the Care Act and the sharing of best practice across the whole of the adult social care sector, including social work.

  • Jeremy Lefroy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Jeremy Lefroy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jeremy Lefroy on 2016-04-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if she will make an assessment of the potential contribution of measures to support freedom of religion and belief to achieving (a) Sustainable Development Goal 16 and (b) other sustainable development goals.

    Mr Desmond Swayne

    The UK will continue to promote universal human rights as an integral part of building prosperity and stability around the world and attaches great importance to ensuring that people of all faiths can participate fully in society and live without fear of abuse or discrimination. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) leads on the UK’s work in promoting freedom of religion and belief overseas. DFID works closely with the FCO to raise concerns about freedom of religion with partner governments to ensure that all citizens can claim their rights. This is indeed part of our work to promote the golden thread of democracy, and achieve Goal 16 and the other Sustainable Development Goals. For the UK, the Sustainable Development Goals’ pledge to leave no one behind is one of the most important principles of the post-2015 Agenda. We have been a champion of Goal 16 to promote peaceful and inclusive societies and access to justice for all. We are working to ensure that the Sustainable Development Goals will be monitored closely.

  • Lord Hylton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Hylton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2016-05-18.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their policy regarding Somali refugees in Kenya and the presence of Kenyan armed forces in Somalia.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The Government recognises the significant burden that the Government of Kenya faces in housing a large number of Somali refugees. We encourage the Government of Kenya to maintain its global leadership role on this issue as well as its international obligations. We, and the international community, support the continued dialogue with the Government of Somalia and the Tripartite agreement which provides a legal framework for the voluntary repatriation of Somali refugees.

    We strongly support Kenyan troops deployed to Somalia as part of the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM). AMISOM has made important progress against Al Shabaab since 2007, who continue to pose a significant terrorist threat in Somali and the region. We greatly value the contribution made by Kenya and the other troop contributing countries, and recognise the sacrifices that the Kenyan Defence Forces are making.

  • Catherine West – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Catherine West – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2016-07-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when he expects to (a) issue the local authority self-assessment questionnaire on implementation of the adult autism strategy, (b) receive all responses from local authorities and (c) publish the results of the questionnaire.

    David Mowat

    The fourth local authority self-assessment questionnaire on implementation of the adult autism strategy is expected to be issued under a joint letter from the Department and the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services, to Directors of Adult Social Services, before the end of July. This is with the aim of receiving responses by 17 October 2016. As with previous exercises, Public Health England will collate and analyse the data received and publish full results and all the individual responses. An exact date for publication has not yet been set but this is likely to happen in the period February to March 2017.

  • Clive Efford – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Clive Efford – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Clive Efford on 2016-10-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of (a) the performance of Circle Holdings Plc in the delivery of musculoskeletal services in Bedford and (b) whether Circle Holdings Plc is meeting its national access targets; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    The assessment of the performance of musculoskeletal (MSK) services in Bedfordshire is a matter for the local National Health Service.

    Bedfordshire Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) advises that it monitors Circle’s performance closely through monthly contract meetings and Service Quality and Performance Reports.

    The CCG advises that Circle Clinical Services Limited is the Prime Contract provider for MSK services for over 18s in the Bedfordshire area, and is responsible for managing the whole patient pathway. Circle itself does not provide clinical services to patients as part of this contract, but refers patients on to local hospital and community based providers subject to patient choice. Circle therefore does not submit data on national Referral to Treatment waiting time standards in relation to MSK services in Bedfordshire. Waiting times data is included in the data return from the patient’s hospital or community provider.

  • Kate Osamor – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Kate Osamor – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kate Osamor on 2015-11-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the effect of the (a) level of provision of spaces in SEN schools and (b) rising number of children with SEN statements in mainstream schools on the educational rights and attainment of children with SEN.

    Edward Timpson

    Our vision for children with Special Educational Needs and disabilities (SEND) is the same as for all children and young people – that they thrive in their early years, at school and in college, and lead happy and fulfilled lives. We have made extensive changes to the SEND system to improve prospects for these students.

    The Children and Families Act 2014 secures the general presumption in law of mainstream education in relation to decisions about where children and young people with SEN should be educated and the Equality Act 2010 provides protection from discrimination for disabled people. The presumption of mainstream education is supported by provisions which safeguard the interests of all children and young people and ensure that the school preferences of the young person or their parents are met wherever possible.

    Local authorities must review the educational provision for children and young people with SEN and disabilities in their areas and whether this meets the needs of those concerned. The Department produces national projections for the number of pupils in England, which help inform local authority decision-making over school capacity. Local authorities have the freedom to choose to use some of their capital funding on new places in special schools where that is a local priority and we continue to welcome applications for new special free schools where there is a particular need or demand for new provision.

    The proportion of pupils with a statement of SEN or Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan has remained at 2.8% since 2007. There are 236,165 children with statements or EHC plans. Of those children with statements, 57% were in mainstream places in state-funded schools in January 2015. The proportion in special schools was 43% in January 2015.

    The educational attainment of pupils with SEND has generally been improving, but a significant gap remains between their attainment and that of those with no identified SEND. At Key Stage 2 for example, in National Curriculum assessments in 2014 38% of all pupils with SEN achieved the expected level in the combined reading, writing and mathematics measure in 2014, compared with 90% of pupils with no identified SEN, resulting in an attainment gap of 51 percentage points. This represented an improvement of 2 percentage points since 2013 (when the equivalent figures were 34% of pupils with SEN and 88% of those with no identified SEN). We will continue to support schools and local authorities in their efforts to support improvement of the attainment of those with SEND.

  • Jonathan Reynolds – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Jonathan Reynolds – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jonathan Reynolds on 2015-12-15.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make an assessment of the effect of changes to the use of the Young Persons Railcard for peak time services on people holding that card.

    Claire Perry

    The administration of all the national cards, both mandatory and voluntary, is performed by a council, run as part of the Association of Train Operating Companies (ATOC). The council agrees the conditions of the schemes and any changes to the mandatory schemes have to be approved by the Secretary of State. All Train Operating Companies are obliged to participate in such schemes under the terms of their franchise agreements.

    As it is for ATOC to suggest any change to the schemes, it would be for them to make such an assessment when proposing any change which would be reviewed before approval by the Secretary of State.