The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-10-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, for what reason the Civil Service Code does not apply to those undertaking public sector work for her Department in the private sector.
Sir Oliver Heald
The Civil Service Code only applies to Civil Servants. There is however a contractual expectation that privately contracted services are carried out in line with Ministry of Justice principles and policy.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mike Kane on 2015-11-20.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how her Department is contributing to the co-ordination of work across Government to support the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals.
Justine Greening
The UK welcomes, and is committed to championing, the Sustainable Development Goals. Through our commitment to global development, and by honouring our 0.7% aid commitments, we will play a key role in helping countries to achieve these goals – especially on eradicating extreme poverty, hunger and disease. This will be a cross-government effort, with DFID and other Departments contributing to the successful implementation of the Goals, both internationally and here in the UK.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Neil Gray on 2016-01-04.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people with multiple sclerosis who were awarded the daily living component of personal independence payment scored all of their points due to aid and appliances.
Justin Tomlinson
For Multiple Sclerosis, the number of individuals awarded the Daily Living component of PIP who scored all of their points due to aids and appliances is 2,200.
This data relates to the period April 2013 to 30th September 2015, and includes Normal Rules awards only.
DWP are currently running a consultation to seek views on how support can best be provided to help meet the costs of disability which are faced by people who are currently awarded points due to aids and appliances. The department is keen to hear views from all interested parties, especially disabled people and disability organisations.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2016-01-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many G4S employees in contracted-out facilities have been charged with a work-related criminal offence since 2010; and in which facility was each such person employed.
Andrew Selous
A total of 10* G4S employees in the 8 contracted-out facilities they run on behalf of the Ministry of Justice have been charged with a work-related criminal offence since 2010. The vast majority of staff working in these facilities are honest, hard-working professionals. There is no place for criminal behaviour within prisons and secure training centres.
*All figures are rounded to the nearest 10, with numbers ending in 5 rounded to the nearest multiple of 20 to prevent systematic bias. As with all HR databases, extracts are taken at a fixed point in time, to ensure consistency of reporting. However the database itself is dynamic, and where updates to the database are made late, subsequent to the taking of the extract, these updates will not be reflected in figures produced by the extract. For this reason, HR data are unlikely to be precisely accurate, and to present unrounded figures would be to overstate the accuracy of the figures. Rounding to 10 accurately depicts the level of certainty that is held with these figures. Low numbers are suppressed, in conjunction with the rounding policy to prevent disclosure in accordance with the Data Protection Act 1998.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dan Jarvis on 2016-02-22.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of reductions in the public health grant for local authorities on local smoking cessation services in (a) Barnsley Central constituency, (b) Yorkshire and the Humber and (c) the UK.
Jane Ellison
Local authorities, funded by the Government’s public health grant, have responsibility for providing a programme of tobacco control that meets the needs of their populations, including the provision of locally commissioned services. Over the next five years, local authorities will receive £16 billion through the public health grant.
The evidence shows that specialist stop smoking services are the most effective way to help smokers quit. Public Health England supports local authorities by developing and distributing information and advice for the commissioning of effective regional approaches to tobacco control which maximise value for money at a local level.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-03-16.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he has taken to ensure that there are sufficient specialist consultants in post to support all children living with neuromuscular conditions in the West Midlands.
Jane Ellison
NHS England is responsible for commissioning specialised services, including neuromuscular services. In July 2013 it published Neurosciences: Specialised Neurology (Adult), which is the service specification describing the service commissioned by NHS England for patients, including children, with a neuromuscular disorder within the neurology service. It is for service providers to put in place the clinical posts and infrastructure to deliver the requirements set out in the specification for their local population.
The service specification has been implemented since 1 October 2013. NHS England is working with providers to ensure they comply with the service description and standards.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dawn Butler on 2016-04-14.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans her Department has to reduce teacher workload and maintain pupil well-being when new Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 assessments are introduced.
Nick Gibb
Primary schools already carry out assessments at the end of key stages 1 and 2. We have developed new forms of assessment to align with the new National Curriculum. We recognise that in this first year of the new the assessments pupils and teachers will be adapting to the change, but the best way to prepare pupils remains to focus on teaching the new National Curriculum, which schools have been doing since September 2014.
The removal of unnecessary workload is a priority for this Department. Our primary assessment reforms have been designed to put arrangements for the majority of classroom assessment, between key stages, back into the hands of schools and to reduce the tracking burdens that national curriculum levels encouraged. We believe schools are best placed to decide how to assess pupils in line with their curriculum and that over time this should lead to a reduction in workload for teachers so that their efforts can focus on teaching.
As previously, schools should encourage high attainment among all pupils to but we do not recommend that they devote excessive preparation time for assessment and certainly not at the expense of a pupil’s wellbeing. We trust teachers to administer tests in a way that does not put undue pressure on pupils. Schools are also required to provide continuous and appropriate support as part of a whole school approach to supporting the wellbeing and resilience of pupils.
While we have set a more challenging expected standard to reflect our high aspirations for children, the new statutory assessments still measure the same range of attainment as previously. In addition, statutory assessments only form part of the broader assessments that teachers make on an ongoing basis. Schools should continue to put statutory assessment outcomes in the context of pupils’ overall achievements and progress. We expect schools to ensure that assessment is reported in an appropriate and proportionate manner.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Parminter on 2016-05-23.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Gardiner of Kimble on 15 December 2015 (HL4104), when they intend to make public the report of the Lead Ammunition Group, which was submitted on 3 June 2015, and their response.
Lord Gardiner of Kimble
The Government is still in the process of considering the report’s findings and recommendations and will respond to it as soon as possible.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nicholas Soames on 2016-07-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what additional support and resources her Department is providing to assist West Sussex County Council in meeting its universal broadband obligations.
Matt Hancock
The Government has implemented a basic broadband scheme to enable all premises to gain access to speeds of at least 2Mbps. This enables residents to gain access to every government service available online. Funding for subsidised connections through the scheme is provided by Broadband Delivery UK (BDUK) as part of the government’s superfast broadband programme. Consumers in eligible premises can access services from any of the suppliers who have been entered onto the scheme by BDUK.
In addition it is the Government’s intention to implement a new broadband Universal Service Obligation. This will give people the legal right to request a broadband connection, no matter where they live, by the end of this Parliament. Our ambition is that the minimum download speed should initially be set at 10 Mbps.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Hanson on 2016-10-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people prosecuted in their absence were on bail in each year since 2010.
Mr Sam Gyimah
Information on whether or not a defendant is in attendance at their hearing is not held centrally and can only be obtained at disproportionate cost.