Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Fiona Bruce – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Fiona Bruce – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Fiona Bruce on 2016-05-03.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what reports he has received on the potential effects of proposed legislation in China on the management of foreign non-governmental organisations’ activities.

    Mr Hugo Swire

    I follow the human rights situation in China closely and the wider impact of legislative developments. We will be gathering reactions, in particular from UK organisations and British nationals working in the Non-Governmental Organisation sector, to assess the law’s potential impact ahead of it coming into force in January 2017. Along with EU partners we will be submitting detailed questions around the implementation of the law to the Chinese authorities.

  • Joan Ryan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Joan Ryan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Joan Ryan on 2016-06-15.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policy of the findings of the Care Quality Commission’s recent inspection report for North Middlesex University Hospital NHS Trust on the (a) level and (b) grade of staff in the accident and emergency department.

    Ben Gummer

    Patient safety remains a key priority for the Government and whilst progress has been made there is clearly much more to be done. The Department is aware of the situation at North Middlesex University Hospital NHS Trust and the relevant regulatory bodies, led by NHS Improvement, are taking appropriate action.

    The Warning Notice, issued to North Middlesex University Hospital NHS Trust by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) on 6 June 2016 requires the trust to significantly improve the treatment of patients attending the emergency department (ED).

    NHS Improvement has given assurance that North Middlesex University Hospital carried out immediate actions to support the staffing concerns raised by the regulators.

    A new Clinical Director and an experienced Medical Director have been appointed to provide the ED with dedicated substantive leadership. The Clinical Director will provide leadership to the department and oversee the recruitment to currently vacant posts. In addition, there is also focus on reducing the medical work load in the ED through added support from other clinical services and professionals. This includes the appointment of new matrons and a new dedicated service manager with extensive ED experience.

    Further, local general practitioners are increasing the level of support they provide to the department both to prevent admissions and to improve discharges. All of these measures will be in place by the end of June 2016.

    On staffing, the local National Health Service is working with the Trust to ensure it can provide emergency care to the required standards. NHS Improvement and NHS England have put in place enhanced oversight mechanisms to assure themselves that services remain safe at all times.

    An external specialist review of the consultant and middle grade rotas for June, July, August and September has been commissioned to provide independent assurance of the appropriate competencies within each rota.

    NHS Improvement will continue to work with system colleagues, Health Education England and the General Medical Council to assure themselves that the improvements being put in place meet the requirements that they need to see from both the Trust and the system both in the short term and the long term.

  • Tim Farron – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Tim Farron – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Farron on 2016-09-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many GP surgeries do not have access to a high-speed broadband internet connection in each region.

    Nicola Blackwood

    NHS Digital does not keep records on the availability of high-speed broadband at all general practice (GP) sites. However NHS Digital does have records for broadband services provided by the Department to GP sites through the BT N3 arrangements.

    Across England, some 6,021 GP sites receive broadband services through the National Health Service N3 connection arrangements; of these 6,010 GP sites are defined as high speed (i.e. 512 kilobits per second or greater).

  • Catherine West – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Catherine West – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2016-10-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will confirm which Minister of his Department has responsibility for (a) Akrotiri and Dhekelia and (b) Gibraltar.

    Sir Alan Duncan

    ​The Foreign and Commonwealth Office Minister responsible for Cyprus and Gibraltar is the Minister for Europe and the Americas (Sir Alan Duncan MP). The Secretary of State for Defence, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Sevenoaks (Michael Fallon) is responsible for the Sovereign Base Area of Akrotiri and Dhekelia.

  • Grahame Morris – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Grahame Morris – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Grahame Morris on 2015-11-06.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many rating assessment appeals are outstanding with the Valuation Office Agency.

    Mr David Gauke

    The information requested can be found at the following link:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/non-domestic-rating-challenges-and-changes-experimental

    “

  • Tania Mathias – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Tania Mathias – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tania Mathias on 2015-12-07.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to paragraph 3.70 of the Spending Review and Autumn Statement 2015, whether it is his policy that the new rate of stamp duty land tax on second homes will apply to foreign investors and people not domiciled in the UK.

    Mr David Gauke

    Foreign investors and people not domiciled in the UK will be treated in exactly the same way as UK residents under these new rates. If purchasers own another property anywhere else in the world and are purchasing an additional property in England, Wales or Northern Ireland they will be charged under the new rates.

  • Michelle Donelan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Michelle Donelan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Michelle Donelan on 2016-01-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what estimate her Department has made of how much fresh water will be used during each exploratory fracking operation.

    Andrea Leadsom

    The volume of water used will depend on the site, but estimates suggest that the amount needed to operate a fracked well for a decade may be equivalent to the amount needed to water a golf course for a month, or the amount needed to run a 1,000 MW coal-fired power plant for 12 hours.

    In order to carry out hydraulic fracturing activities, an operator is required to seek an abstraction permit from the Environment Agency if more than 20 cubic metres per day of water is to be abstracted from surface or groundwater bodies. If water is instead sourced from a mains supply, the water company will need to ensure it can still meet the conditions of the abstraction permit that it will already be operating under. Whichever source an operator chooses to use, a thorough assessment will be made considering the existing water users’ needs and the environmental impact before permission is granted.

    The Infrastructure Act 2015 states that the Secretary of State will only be able to issue hydraulic fracturing consent if satisfied that planning authorities have consulted the relevant water company.

  • Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-02-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the average patient waiting times for A&E departments at hospital sites that have introduced a (a) co-located urgent care centre and (b) model that integrates primary care staff within the A&E department in the last 12 months.

    Jane Ellison

    The location and structure of urgent and emergency care services is a matter for local commissioners, taking account of guidance issued by NHS England. This guidance includes Safer, faster better: good practice in delivering urgent and emergency care, which was published in August 2015, to support frontline providers and commissioners in re-designing urgent and emergency care services.

  • Richard Burden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Richard Burden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-03-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 1 March 2016 to Question 27610, for what reasons the technical solution offered by VW was accepted in the EU but not in the US.

    Andrew Jones

    Manufacturers are required to comply with different technical standards between the EU market and the USA market. The engineering solution proposed by VW will bring its diesel cars into compliance with the EU emissions limits and testing is underway to confirm that this solution works for all model types. We do not have information regarding VW’s technical solutions in the USA.

  • Greg Mulholland – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Greg Mulholland – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2016-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to paragraph 2.256 of Budget 2016, when he plans to announce further details of the Government’s support for a bid to host the 2021 Rugby League World Cup.

    David Evennett

    My officials are holding regular discussions with the Rugby Football League (RFL) and UK Sport about establishing the support the RFL requires for a successful bid. The government will make a further announcement ahead of the bid deadline in June.