Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Andrew Gwynne – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Andrew Gwynne – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2015-11-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans her Department has to improve integrated working between health visitors and children’s centres.

    Mr Sam Gyimah

    Children’s centres provide access to health services – either by providing the services or by providing advice and assistance on gaining access to services. Local authorities and local health commissioners have statutory duties to consider providing services through children’s centres to ensure that families get access to the services they need. The transfer of responsibility for public health services to local authorities in October this year provides new opportunities for local areas to configure health services to best effect.

    The Department of Health has been working with local authorities in order to ensure sharing regular and timely updates of live birth data between NHS trusts and children’s centres and have mapped out a process for putting in place appropriate arrangements to support a national solution.

    Children’s centres can also have a key role in delivering integrated reviews, which check a child’s health and educational progress at age two.

    Future policy on children’s centres will be informed by the planned consultation on the future of children’s centre services, which is due to be launched shortly.

  • Kate Green – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Kate Green – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kate Green on 2016-01-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what guidance has been issued to police forces on monitoring and recording Gypsy and Traveller status as separate ethnic categories.

    Mike Penning

    The use of Census categories for ethnicity is assessed each year as part of the Home Office’s process of agreeing each year’s Annual Data Requirement (ADR) of mandatory collections of statistical data from the police. This process includes consideration of the need, use, burden and data quality issues for each data collection. The National Police Chiefs Council (NPCC) have previously advised against the transition to the new Census categories due to the significant burden that this would place on forces to change IT systems and processes.

    The ADR collections currently use the Census 2001 ethnicity framework, and there are no plans at present to move to the Census 2011 framework, which would add a separate category of ‘Gypsy or Irish Traveller’.

    The guidance given to police forces on providing data to the Home Office is based on the Census 2001 ethnicity framework. It is, however, a decision for individual forces as to how they monitor and record ethnicity data for their own purposes.

  • Lilian Greenwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lilian Greenwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lilian Greenwood on 2016-02-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Oral Answer of the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport of 28 January 2016, Official Report, columns 408-9, on rail infrastructure South-West, what progress his Department has made on funding the technical feasibility study referred to in that Answer.

    Claire Perry

    We are absolutely committed to making sure that the South West has the best infrastructure possible and we are determined to do everything possible to stop damage like we saw in 2014 happening again. That is why we have invested £31 million into improving the resilience of the route, Network Rail spent £40 million on repairing and strengthening the line at Dawlish after the extreme weather, and routine maintenance continues to strengthen the line further.

    We are working with Network Rail and the Peninsula Rail Task Force as they explore the potential for longer-term improvements in the area, and decisions on funding for these improvements will be taken in due course.

  • Lord Browne of Belmont – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Lord Browne of Belmont – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Browne of Belmont on 2016-02-25.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what recent discussions they have had about the work of UK Trade and Investment in promoting inward investment in Northern Ireland.

    Baroness Neville-Rolfe

    The established relationship between UKTI and Invest Northern Ireland (INI) enables both to support each other’s efforts to achieve the shared ambition to increase trade and investment and in turn jobs and growth, this includes regular engagement at Ministerial, Chief Executive, and operational levels.

    For example, over the last month Lord Maude visited Northern Ireland on 28th and 29th January, including both a meeting with the Chief Executive of INI and a number of company meetings. He has also conducted one overseas visit alongside Northern Ireland Assembly Minister Bell to Canada in February.

  • Ivan Lewis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Ivan Lewis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ivan Lewis on 2016-03-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential effect of planned future budget reductions on the capacity of Greater Manchester police service to tackle cyber-crime.

    Mike Penning

    As the Chancellor announced in the Spending Review, no PCC will receive a reduction in cash funding over the Spending Review period if they choose to maximise their precept. It is an operational decision for chief officers, working with their PCC, to determine how best to allocate their available resources taking into account local and national priorities. In total, including national transformation funding and other funding, policing will see a £900 million increase in funding by 2019/20 in cash terms. We will continue to allocate specific funding for Counter Terrorism Policing over the course of the Spending Review period to ensure that the CT policing network has the capabilities it needs to tackle changing threats. The settlement will increase counter-terrorism policing funding in real terms in 16-17 to £670m.

  • Diana Johnson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Diana Johnson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Diana Johnson on 2016-04-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how much has been paid out by his Department in statutory entitlements as a result of the collapse of Comet; how many people have been so compensated to date; and what estimate he has made of the total cost to the Exchequer of meeting all arising liabilities in this case.

    Anna Soubry

    The Insolvency Service’s Redundancy Payments Service has paid out a total of £23,687,320.37 in statutory entitlements to 4,918 former employees of Comet Group Plc.

    It is not possible at present to estimate the total cost to the Exchequer of meeting all liabilities in this case. Further payments will depend on the findings of the Employment Tribunal regarding the employees covered by the protective award judgment, and any associated costs. Consideration of this matter is ongoing and expected to be resolved this year.

  • Julian Knight – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Julian Knight – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julian Knight on 2016-06-03.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, on what date she plans for the National Litter Strategy to be launched.

    Rory Stewart

    Defra and the Department for Communities and Local Government are working on the Litter Strategy for England to improve the way we all tackle the scourge of litter. We will publish the Strategy this year and a great deal of work will be taken forward in the coming months.

  • Deidre Brock – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    Deidre Brock – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Deidre Brock on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether he plans to make it his policy that energy from renewable sources will be produced at (a) similar or (b) higher levels to those established by the EU Renewable Energy Directive following UK withdrawal from the EU.

    Mr Nick Hurd

    We are currently progressing in line with the trajectory set out in the Renewable Energy Directive, having met the Directive’s interim targets.

    There will be no immediate changes to our relationship with the EU. Until we have left the EU, the UK will remain a member of the EU with all of the rights and obligations that membership entails.

  • Diana Johnson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Diana Johnson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Diana Johnson on 2016-10-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether the Government plans to implement the recommendations in paragraph 6.3.15 in the Review of the National Referral Mechanism for victims of human trafficking, published in November 2014, on using European and other funding to afford victims of human trafficking and slavery the option to return safely to their country of origin.

    Sarah Newton

    The Home Office’s Voluntary Returns Service supports those who are confirmed victims of modern slavery to return home if they voluntarily choose to do so. The programme for non-EU nationals is part-funded by the EU Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund. The Home Office also support the return of confirmed victims from EU countries and this work is centrally funded at this time.

  • Louise Haigh – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Louise Haigh – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2015-11-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when he plans to amend the Investment Regulations for Occupational Pensions Funds to require them to set out within their Statement of Investment Principles their approach to considering environmental, social and governance risks and to stewardship.

    Justin Tomlinson

    Earlier this year the Government consulted on whether to amend the reference to social, environmental, or ethical considerations ,in the Occupational Pension Schemes (Investment) Regulations 2005, and whether to require trustees to state their approach to the Stewardship Code. The Government plans to respond to this consultation shortly.