Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Emily Thornberry – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Emily Thornberry – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2015-11-25.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the total budget allocated to HM Revenue and Customs’ (a) National Minimum Wage Risk Unit, (b) National Minimum Wage compliance teams and (c) Criminal Investigations Directorate was in each of the last six years.

    Mr David Gauke

    The Government is determined that everyone who is entitled to the National Minimum Wage (NMW) receives it. Anyone who feels they have been underpaid NMW should contact the confidential Acas helpline on 0300 123 1100. HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) review all complaints that are referred to them. However, some complaints may not lead to the commencement of an investigation. This might be due to incomplete information being provided, or the worker subsequently wishing to withdraw their complaint. Similarly, multiple complaints about the same employer would only be recorded under one investigation.

    In 2014/15, 2489 worker complaints and 691 pieces of third party information were referred to HMRC. However, I reiterate that not all complaints will lead to an investigation. In previous years, HMRC did not record statistics by complaints received, but by investigations completed. In 2014/15, HMRC completed 2204 investigations. I refer the honourable member to the answer provided to her on 6 May 2014 at Hansard Column 110W for information on prior years.

    Staff across HMRC contribute to enforcing NMW, including people who work in legal advice, debt management, technical support and criminal investigation amongst others, but HMRC does not record the specific numbers of those staff involved beyond this. The budget allocated to HMRC by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) is provided as an overall amount. I therefore refer the honourable member to the answers provided to her at UIN 16853 for budget details & UIN 16938 for information on staffing.

  • Tristram Hunt – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Tristram Hunt – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tristram Hunt on 2016-01-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many jobs in (a) her Department and (b) each of its non-departmental public bodies, executive agencies, non-ministerial departments, advisory bodies and other accountable statutory bodies (i) have been abolished or relocated from Stoke-on-Trent since 2010 and (ii) will be abolished in or relocated from Stoke-on-Trent by 2020.

    George Eustice

    The Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, its executive agencies non-ministerial departments, advisory bodies and other accountable statutory bodies have no offices in Stoke-on-Trent, and therefore no jobs have been abolished since 2010 nor are any to be abolished or relocated by 2020.

  • Norman Lamb – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Norman Lamb – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Norman Lamb on 2016-02-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the annual cost of prescription charges paid by adults with cystic fibrosis; what the effect of prescription charges is on such adults; and if he will make a statement.

    Alistair Burt

    We have not made an assessment of the annual cost of prescription charges to those with cystic fibrosis. However, there are a number of prescription charge exemptions in place, for which someone with cystic fibrosis may qualify. These include exemptions based on low income, such as certain out of work benefits and the NHS Low Income Scheme, and age. Where someone does not qualify for exemption, Prescription Prepayment Certificates are available. The three-month and 12-month certificates allow someone to claim as many prescriptions as they need for £29.10 and £104, respectively.

  • Roger Godsiff – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Roger Godsiff – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2016-02-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, by what communication channels his Department has responded to the concerns expressed by junior doctors about the illustrative rotas, published by NHS Employers on 18 February 2016; for what reasons his Department used Facebook as one of those channels; and if he will make an assessment of the effect of the timing of that Facebook conversation on the number of junior doctors who were aware of that conversation.

    Ben Gummer

    NHS Employers, who are leading the introduction of the new contract, are engaging with juniors via a number of channels including Facebook. Issues around rotas raised by junior doctors are being dealt with in a variety of ways, including by updated Frequently Asked Questions that are published on the NHS Employers website. The Department continues to respond to individual correspondence it receives.

  • Charles Walker – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Charles Walker – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Charles Walker on 2016-03-21.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what estimate his Department has made of the number of its senior civil servants who will potentially fall under the provisions of the Fourth EU Money Laundering Directive, 2015/849; and what assessment he has made of which of his Department’s agencies or other public bodies will potentially be classed as holding a prominent public function for the purposes of that directive.

    Matthew Hancock

    The Government’s view is that the Directive permits a risk-based approach to the identification of whether an individual is a politically exposed person and, when identified, the Directive enables the application of different degrees of enhanced measures to reflect the risks posed. The Government will be setting out this view in a consultation which will be published shortly.

    The changes proposed under the Directive should not prevent any individual in this category from gaining or maintaining access to financial services. We regularly raise these issues with financial institutions and the regulator, and we encourage financial institutions to take a proportionate, risk-based approach when applying these measures.

  • Lord Chidgey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Lord Chidgey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Chidgey on 2016-04-18.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact on the normal functioning of parliamentary ratification processes in developing countries of the EU bringing forward the deadlines for ratification of EU Economic Partnership Agreements.

    Lord Price

    The EU has not brought forward the deadlines for ratification of Economic Partnership Agreements between the EU and African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) partners. EU Regulation 1528/2007 of 20 December 2007 states that ratification of the agreements should take place “within a reasonable period of time.” I expect the parliamentary ratification processes in developing countries to function as normal in relation to these agreements.

  • Helen Jones – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Helen Jones – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Helen Jones on 2016-05-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many free schools have opened in areas where there are surplus places in the age range covered by the school in each year since 2010.

    Edward Timpson

    Every free school has been approved for opening in response to either the need to provide extra school places for the future, the need to provide parents with greater choice or the need to provide more high quality places. Of the open mainstream free schools reported in School Capacity data in May 2015, all of which were approved prior to January 2014, seven in ten were approved in areas where there was a basic need for additional school places.

    85% of mainstream free schools approved since January 2014 – the majority of which have not yet opened – are in areas where School Capacity data showed there was a basic need for additional school places. The remaining 15% were approved on the basis of more recent local authority intelligence of future need for places; in areas where there was a need for additional high quality places or to create additional choice or diversity.

  • Rebecca Long Bailey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Rebecca Long Bailey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rebecca Long Bailey on 2016-07-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, for what reason her Department has increased the small claims limit for minor whiplash claims.

    Sir Oliver Heald

    The government remains concerned about the number and cost of low value personal injury claims and has announced robust new measures to tackle them – including raising the small claims limit for personal injury claims to £5,000. This change has not yet been made.

  • Bridget Phillipson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Bridget Phillipson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bridget Phillipson on 2016-10-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she plans to bring forward legislation to allow for the forcible conversion of schools to academy status in underperforming local authority areas.

    Edward Timpson

    We have been clear that we want to see all schools, over time, become academies. But our focus is on schools where standards need to be raised. So we will continue to convert all schools that are judged inadequate by Ofsted, and work with those that are coasting or otherwise underperforming to identify the support they need to improve. We expect that in some cases this support will be through conversion to become a sponsored academy. No new legislation is required for these purposes.

  • Gavin Newlands – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Gavin Newlands – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gavin Newlands on 2015-11-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 14 October 2015 to Question 11080, on deportation: appeals, how many appellants (a) had a legal representative at their panel and (b) gave evidence at the appeal via video link.

    James Brokenshire

    Such data is not aggregated in national reporting systems, which would mean these questions could only be answered through a disproportionately expensive manual case search to collate the data.