The below Parliamentary question was asked by Corri Wilson on 2016-02-22.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people in receipt of (a) disability living allowance and (b) personal independence payments are (i) undergoing treatment for and (ii) recovering from cancer.
Justin Tomlinson
The information requested is not available as information on treatment is not recorded centrally.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-03-16.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many appeal hearings at the (a) First-tier Tribunal (Social Security and Child Support) and (b) Upper Tribunal (Administrative Chamber) his Department did not send a representative to in (i) 2012-13, (ii) 2013-14 and (iii) 2014-15.
Justin Tomlinson
The department’s policy has been to focus its resources on sending Presenting Officers to the more complex benefit cases and when directed by the tribunal therefore the department sent a representative to all Upper Tribunal appeal hearings notified to them in the three years 2012-13; 2013-14 and 2014-15.
For the First-Tier Tribunal, POs did not attend as follows:
2012/13 238,210 (of 252,992 hearings)
2013/14 293,713 (of 308,502 hearings)
2014/15 78,301 (of 89,689 hearings)
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Naz Shah on 2016-04-20.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate her Department has made of the number of additional breakfast club places which will be created by the £10 million increase in funding announced in paragraph 1.95 of Budget 2016 in (a) England, (b) Yorkshire and the Humber and (c) Bradford.
Mr Sam Gyimah
The Chancellor announced in the recent budget that funding from the new sugar levy would be used in part to expand breakfast clubs in up to 1,600 schools from September 2017. We are currently refining the details of how this scheme will operate and further details will be announced in due course.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Monaghan on 2016-05-23.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many kittens and cats entered the UK under the EU Pet Travel Scheme in (a) 2015 and (b) each previous year since that scheme’s introduction.
George Eustice
The number of pet cats entering Great Britain from January 2004 to December 2015 under the EU Pet Travel Scheme is detailed below.
|
Year |
Total |
|
2004 |
7314 |
|
2005 |
8544 |
|
2006 |
9450 |
|
2007 |
9935 |
|
2008 |
11643 |
|
2009 |
6789 |
|
2010 |
7870 |
|
2011 |
8280 |
|
2012 |
14601 |
|
2013 |
14147 |
|
2014 |
15081 |
|
2015 |
21404 |
Kittens which are old enough to meet the requirements for the scheme will be included in these figures.
The statistics are provided by the carriers transporting pet animals on approved routes into Great Britain.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2016-07-19.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what progress they are making in reforming benefit sanctions and in preventing hardship to children and other dependent family members.
Lord Freud
We keep the operation of the sanctions processes under constant review to ensure they continue to function effectively and fairly, to promote positive behaviours. Where we identify an issue, we act to put it right.
Following the recommendations from the Oakley Review and the subsequent report ‘Benefit sanctions policy beyond the Oakley Review’ by the Work and Pensions Select Committee, we have made a number of improvements to the Jobseekers’ Allowance (JSA) and Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) sanction systems, particularly around communications to claimants and safeguarding measures for those who maybe vulnerable.
We are now focussing our efforts on continuing with the current improvements in JSA and ESA, to ensure that all the agreed recommendations and improvements can continue to be delivered in Universal Credit.
We also have a well-established system of hardship payments, available as a safeguard if a claimant demonstrates that they cannot meet their immediate and most essential needs, including accommodation, heating, food and hygiene, as a result of their sanction.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nicholas Soames on 2016-10-10.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department plans to take to recruit and train more doctors.
Mr Philip Dunne
On 4 October 2016 my Rt. hon Friend the Secretary of State announced that the number of medical training places available to students each year will be expanded to ensure the National Health Service has enough doctors to continue to provide safe, compassionate care in the future. From September 2018, the Government will fund up to 1,500 additional student places through medical schools each year.
The ultimate responsibility for recruitment rests with NHS organisations as they are best placed to ensure they have the right staff, in the right place, at the right time to provide safe and effective care for their patients.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2015-11-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department plans to amend the Act which results from the Investigative Powers Bill in the event of repeal of the Human Rights Act 1998.
Mr John Hayes
The draft Investigatory Powers Bill will provide law enforcement and the security and intelligence agencies with the powers they need to keep the UK safe in a world of internet-enabled communications and evolving technologies. The Bill specifies that all the powers will be subject to appropriate safeguards and robust oversight arrangements.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Martyn Day on 2015-12-17.
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, when he expects to publish the outcomes of his Department’s BBC Charter Review consultation.
Mr Edward Vaizey
The Government’s BBC Charter Review Public Consultation closed in October. Over 190,000 people responded to the consultation – the second largest response to any Government consultation. We are in the process of reading and analysing all the responses, and will publish the results once this exercise is completed.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Luce on 2016-01-27.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many public libraries there are in the UK, and how many there were in 2010.
Baroness Neville-Rolfe
Local authorities have a statutory duty to provide a comprehensive and efficient library service that takes account of local needs within available resources. Statistics for the number of public libraries published by the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy do not include figures for Northern Ireland, so it is not possible to provide the number of public libraries in the UK. However, in the rest of the country, the total number of public library service points open ten hours or more per week at 31 March 2015 was 3,917, compared with 4,356 in 2010. Based on desk research undertaken by the Department, we estimate that from January 2010 to January 2016 only approximately 110 static public libraries in England closed. Government has the power to ensure public libraries comply with the law, and where individual authorities have failed to meet this duty we will – and have – intervened.
This Government is helping libraries innovate, to ensure they serve the needs of local communities – particularly through the expansion of their digital offer. In the latest spending round we secured extra funding for our Libraries Task Force, set up in 2014, to promote the role of digital and share best practice between councils, and we have funded the rollout of free Wi-Fi in 99% of public libraries in England. E-book loans have rocketed more than four-fold from nearly 445,000 in 2011/12 to over 2.3 million in 2014/15.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Valerie Vaz on 2016-02-22.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people with epilepsy have been assessed as being fit to work by their work capability assessments in each year since 2010.
Priti Patel
The information requested is shown in the table below.
|
Assessment type |
10/11 |
11/12 |
12/13 |
13/14 |
14/15 |
|
FFW outcomes |
2,200 |
4,000 |
3,300 |
1,500 |
900 |