The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Woodcock on 2016-01-05.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what process his Department followed in awarding the lighting contracts for the Successor submarines.
Mr Philip Dunne
No contract has yet been awarded for the Successor primary lighting system.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Carol Monaghan on 2016-02-01.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people with spouses or partners who are UK citizens have been detained in immigration removal centres in each of the last five years.
James Brokenshire
The data requested is not available centrally and is not routinely collected.
It could be provided only by examining individual case records, which would result in disproportionate cost.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2016-02-23.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 2 February 2016 to Questions 24490 and 24491, on right of abode, what the process is for her Department’s assessment on granting the right of abode to former British-Hong Kong servicemen.
James Brokenshire
The assessment of the request by former members of the Hong Kong Military Service Corps that they be granted right of abode in the UK is on-going, including discussions at official level with other government departments and a review of archived material on the schemes established between 1990 and 1997. A decision will be made as soon as practicable
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve Rotheram on 2016-03-17.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what the average length was of apprenticeships in the construction, planning and the built environment sector in 2015.
Nick Boles
Estimates of the average length of Apprenticeships, overall and by Sector Subject Area, are published as a supplementary table (first link) to a Statistical First Release (second link). Latest published data in this table is for the 2013/14 academic year. Data for 2014/15 will be published at the same link in due course.
“
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Jones of Cheltenham on 2016-04-11.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what criteria were used in selecting the members of the Guidelines Development Group who advised the Chief Medical Officer on the evidence base for the updated guidelines concerning alcohol consumption.
Lord Prior of Brampton
A group of 13 independent scientific experts were commissioned to report back to the United Kingdom Chief Medical Officers and make recommendations on new low risk drinking guidelines. The members of the Guidelines Development Group were chosen according to the type of expertise they had and their individual ability.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by William Cash on 2016-05-18.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what assessment her Department has made of the effect on the (a) costs and (b) margins of combined cycle gas turbine plants of (i) Supplementary Balancing Reserve and (ii) other Black Start ancillary support subsidy contracts to coal plants.
Andrea Leadsom
The Supplementary Balancing Reserve and Black Start contracts are two important services developed to support National Grid in managing security of supply. Responsibility for these services rests with OFGEM.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Stephenson on 2016-07-11.
To ask the Rt. hon. Member for Carshalton and Wallington representing the House of Commons Commission, what recent assessment the Commission has made of the security arrangements for screening mail received by hon. Members of each House of Parliament.
Tom Brake
A procurement process for a new contract for screening mail received by hon. Members is currently underway. A full review of the security arrangements and contract specification forms part of that process. This review is based on advice from the Centre for the Protection of National Infrastructure (CPNI) as well as on a national standard specification for mail screening (PAS 97:2015).
Following an incident, the Parliamentary Security Department has recently revised and reissued guidance to Members and staff on what to do following receipt of a suspicious letter or package.
We do not comment in public on details of security arrangements. The Deputy Director of Security (Delivery) would be happy to discuss these arrangements in more detail with the hon. Member.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Randerson on 2016-09-13.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of which specific rail service improvements the new East Anglia rail franchises would deliver for (1) Stansted Airport, and (2) Cambridge.
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
Under the new franchise agreement passengers travelling to and from Stansted Airport will benefit from new trains with free Wi-Fi from February 2019, and a minimum 12.5% reduction in anytime return fares and anytime single fares on the Stansted Express by early 2017. Almost all hourly services between Norwich and Cambridge are to be extended to provide a direct service to and from Stansted Airport.
Cambridge Station will similarly benefit from new trains with free Wi-Fi from February 2019. Additional train services are an earlier first service from Cambridge to Norwich and an additional evening service from Norwich to Cambridge.
Cambridge Station will be provided with a significant refurbishment. This will include construction of a pavilion to include a customer waiting area, train information displays and ticketing offices and ticket vending machines at the entrance to the station. Cambridge will also be provided with 1000 additional secure cycle spaces.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve Reed on 2015-10-27.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what estimate he has made of (a) current and (b) forecast adult learner demand in Croydon.
Nick Boles
Our policy is to support the growth of high quality apprenticeship places available in Croydon and across the country as a whole. Apprenticeships are the best form of adult vocational education because they bring together in one coherent experience formal learning and personal development in the workplace. The number and nature of the apprenticeship opportunities available depends on what employers offer, but we are supporting this by doubling public funding for apprenticeships since 2010, supporting employers in developing clear new apprenticeship standards, and introducing a levy on employers to fund further growth. Our aim is that there should be three million new apprenticeship starts by 2020.
Across adult education as a whole, it is important that there is the right supply of places to meet future demand. Determining what this supply should be is not something central government can take the lead on. In September the government announced a programme of area reviews, which will be locally led and will involve key stakeholders. They will be based on the best available evidence of skills requirements and establish a local post-16 education and training offer which is high quality and responsive to employer need. The reviews will support local involvement in the ongoing commissioning of provision, putting responsibility in the hands of people who are best placed to tailor provision to local economic needs. Croydon will be included in the area review process, which is due to be completed by March 2017, and an announcement on the date for the review will be announced in due course.
There is also a role for Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) in ensuring that adult education reflects future economic development. LEPs are working in collaboration with local authorities, colleges and providers in the area to jointly agree key local skill needs and develop a local skills offer that responsive to local labour market conditions and contributes to improving our productivity. LEPs are responsible for decisions about capital allocations for adult skills projects, and the Skills Funding Agency requires colleges to engage with LEPs as a condition of its grant funding.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Naseby on 2015-11-24.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will place in the Library of the House a copy of all audits undertaken or commissioned by the Department of Health into Action on Smoking and Health.
Lord Prior of Brampton
In financial year 2012/13, the Department grant awarded to Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) (under Section 64 of the Health Services and Public Health Act 1968) was included in a sample of grants that was reviewed in an internal audit of the grant management arrangements of the Department. The audit included visits to the charities that formed part of the sample to test the information they provided to the Department and to garner their views on how the Department engaged with them. ASH was included in the work because its grant fulfilled the sample criteria.
The internal audit was not a review of the organisation and the way that it operated, its focus was on the Department grant management. It found that, at the time, there were satisfactory arrangements in place in the Department. The audit report did not raise any adverse comments about ASH or include any recommendations in relation to them. It is not normal practice to place copies of Internal Audit reports in the Library.