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Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Karen Buck – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Karen Buck – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Karen Buck on 2015-11-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether, where there is a Direct Pay arrangement for child maintenance between parents but the liabilities required by the Child Maintenance Service have not been fully paid, that Service seeks to collect unpaid amounts retrospectively.

    Priti Patel

    The Child Maintenance Service has a wide range of effective powers to facilitate the collection of child maintenance.

    Where a direct pay arrangement is in place between parents and the Child Maintenance Service is informed and satisfied that payments have been missed, action will be taken to collect these amounts retrospectively at the request of the receiving parent.

  • Clive Lewis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Clive Lewis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Clive Lewis on 2015-12-16.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, on what grounds it was decided that compliance checks for tax credit applications would be outsourced to Concentrix.

    Mr David Gauke

    Reducing tax credits fraud and error is a top priority for HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC). The contract with Concentrix offers additional capacity to help build on HMRC’s own work, which has reduced tax credits fraud and error to the lowest ever level. Using a private company provides a cost-effective way to reach additional claims that need checking.

    The checks are to ensure that people are paid the correct amount of money to prevent them from getting into debt which they may find difficult to repay and protect losses to taxpayers.

    Concentrix operate under the same powers and processes as HMRC. Concentrix select cases to be checked using information provided by HMRC. Concentrix decide how best to achieve the expected benefits, including the number and type of cases and number of staff employed. HMRC closely monitors their performance.

    The contract uses a payment by results model, which means Concentrix is only paid based on the money it saves the Exchequer as a result of correcting claims that are incorrect. They will not be paid if the decisions they make about claimants’ awards are incorrect.

    The contract was signed on 6 May 2014. The contract was awarded to Synnex-Concentrix UK Ltd in April 2014, following a procurement exercise advertised under the open procedure. Information about the contract value and contract award is already in the public domain.

    https://www.deltaesourcing.com/delta/viewNotice.html?noticeId=97910033

    “

  • Poulter – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Poulter – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Poulter on 2016-01-27.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what progress her Department has made on implementing its response to the Eleventh Report from the International Development Committee, Session 2013-14, on Disability and development, HC 947.

    Mr Desmond Swayne

    In December 2014 DFID published a Disability Framework which set out how the International Development Committee’s recommendations would be addressed. In December 2015 the Secretary of State launched an updated Framework which set out how DFID would continue to build on this work. DFID recently produced a detailed review of progress on disability which will be shared with the International Development Committee soon.

  • Holly Lynch – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Holly Lynch – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Holly Lynch on 2016-02-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when he plans to respond to Question 18949, tabled by the hon. Member for Halifax on 7 December 2015.

    Mr Shailesh Vara

    I can confirm that the answer to PQ 18949 was given on the 29th February 2016.

  • Sue Hayman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Sue Hayman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sue Hayman on 2016-03-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the press release by her Department of 17 March 2016, how much of the £33 million funding for flood defence schemes in Cumbria will be spent in Flimby.

    Rory Stewart

    Flimby has been allocated £1.1 million of the £33 million funding for flood defence schemes in Cumbria.

  • Robert Flello – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Robert Flello – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Robert Flello on 2016-04-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, with reference to the Care Quality Commission report, British Pregnancy Advisory Service, BPAS-Richmond, Quality Report, published in November 2015, whether his Department plans to issue guidance to abortion clinics on the administration of drugs.

    Jane Ellison

    The termination of pregnancies is a regulated activity. All providers of regulated activities must be registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) and must meet all of the relevant Regulations under the Health and Social Care Act 2008, including meeting the fundamental standards of quality and safety, which includes independent sector termination of pregnancy providers and managers. The CQC is responsible for monitoring and, where appropriate, inspecting providers in relation to their ongoing compliance with meeting those requirements. Independent sector providers are also required to comply with the Department’s Required Standard Operating Procedures which the CQC inspect against.

    The CQC has made a public commitment to undertake inspection of all independent providers of termination of pregnancy services using their new inspection approach and will continue to respond to risk as appropriate and take regulatory action as required.

    On the issue of whether the Department plans to issue guidance to abortion clinics on consultation on disposal arrangements following termination, I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 11 April 2016 to Question 32357.

    We have no plans to issue guidance to abortion clinics on the administration of drugs. The administration of drugs is managed through the CQC’s fundamental standards and through inspection visits.

    “

  • Nick Clegg – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Nick Clegg – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nick Clegg on 2016-05-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment his Department has made of the potential effect of planned budget reductions for community pharmacy on patient and health services in (a) Sheffield and (b) Yorkshire and the Humber.

    Alistair Burt

    We are consulting the Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee, other pharmacy bodies and patient and public representatives on our proposals. An impact assessment will be completed to inform final decisions and published in due course.

    NHS England has a statutory duty to ensure the adequate provision of National Health Service pharmaceutical services across England and will ensure that duty continues to be met in Sheffield.

    Community pharmacy is a vital part of the NHS and can play an even greater role. In the Spending Review, the Government re-affirmed the need for the NHS to deliver £22 billion in efficiency savings by 2020-21 as set out in the NHS’s own plan, the Five Year Forward View. Community pharmacy is a core part of NHS primary care and has an important contribution to make as the NHS rises to these challenges. The Government believes efficiencies can be made without compromising the quality of services or public access to them. Our aim is to ensure that those community pharmacies upon which people depend continue to thrive and so we are consulting on the introduction of a Pharmacy Access Scheme, which will provide more NHS funds to certain pharmacies compared to others, considering factors such as location and the health needs of the local population.

    The Government’s vision is for a more efficient, modern system that will free up pharmacists to spend more time delivering clinical and public health services to the benefit of patients and the public.

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

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

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Judd on 2016-07-06.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what they are doing to preserve and enhance the international character and international standing of British universities and their research.

    Baroness Neville-Rolfe

    The Government is determined to ensure that the UK continues to play a leading role in European and international research and innovation. It is promoting the international success of UK universities through bilateral engagement with overseas partners, the Britain is GREAT marketing campaign which has education and science pillars, and through the Chevening and Commonwealth scholarship schemes.

    For example, in November 2015, the Indian and UK Prime Ministers jointly announced the ‘2016 UK-India Year of Education, Research and Innovation’. This was immediately followed by a major education visit to India, including 28 vice-chancellors to increase higher education partnerships.

    Programmes such as the UK China Partners in Education programme and the UK India Education Research Initiative bring long term international collaboration.

    Our international research is being enhanced through the Government’s Newton Fund, a £735 million UK investment matched by partner countries, linking our universities with researchers in 16 major emerging economies. Our Global Challenge Research Fund, £1.5 billion and Ross Fund, £1bn., support universities engaging in global challenges including health, agritech and water research.

    British universities have a world-class reputation for both education and research. Globally the UK has four universities in the top ten and ten in the top fifty in the QS rankings, a 10% share of the international student recruitment market, and 15.9% per cent of the world’s most highly-cited research articles.

  • Alison Thewliss – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Alison Thewliss – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alison Thewliss on 2016-09-15.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many Brimstone missiles have been used in Syria and Iraq to date as part of Operation SHADER; and what the cost of the use of those weapons has been to the public purse.

    Mike Penning

    Between November 2014 and 16 September 2016 there have been 230 Brimstone missiles used in Iraq and Syria as part of Operation SHADER. The estimated cost of the use of these missiles is £18.7million.

  • Toby Perkins – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Toby Perkins – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Toby Perkins on 2015-10-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to UK Defence in Numbers, published by his Department in August 2015, how many of the 125 Tornado Combat aircraft referred to in that document are combat ready.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    The Defence in Numbers booklet is a snap shot of the UK’s Defence capability and how we are spending the fifth largest Defence budget in the world. As well as giving details on civilian and personnel numbers and current operations, it also includes a list of the Ministry of Defence’s equipment holdings, the vast majority of which are in service and deployable. We will continue to review the Defence in Numbers booklet to ensure that it best reflects the breadth of defence equipment.

    The pieces of equipment listed in the Defence in Numbers booklet that are not capable for use on the front-line are: Jet provost aircraft, BAE-125 aircraft, Wessex helicopters, Challenger 1 battle tanks, FH70 Towed Howitzers and Chieftain Armoured Vehicles. These platforms are used in either a training or ceremonial capacity.

    Currently 90 Tornado aircraft remain in the operational fleet and are, or could be, returned to combat ready status; this number includes aircraft undergoing periodic deep maintenance and modification which are not immediately available for operational use.