Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Andrew Gwynne – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Andrew Gwynne – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2016-06-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment his Department has made of the (a) capacity of and (b) skills and knowledge of local mainstream advice and advocacy services in Lambeth, Southwark and Lewisham health authority area to be able to meet the support needs of local people living with HIV following implementation of the proposed reduction in specialist HIV support services.

    Jane Ellison

    Support services for people living with HIV are commissioned by local authorities.

    We are advised by NHS England that the boroughs of Lambeth, Southwark and Lewisham are currently consulting on a new service model, under which advice and advocacy, counselling and assessment and signposting services for people living with HIV would be provided by local non-HIV specialist services.

    We understand that the consultation exercise commenced on 9 May 2016 and is due to end on 28 June.

  • Daniel Zeichner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Daniel Zeichner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the effect that the changes to plug-in grants from March 2016 have had on the take-up of electric vehicles.

    Mr John Hayes

    Many consumers brought forward their orders of new plug-in vehicles to before March to take advantage of the higher grant rates. The effect of this sales spike is still being felt with some vehicles ordered in February still to be delivered. This impact of the grant change will become clearer after the new registration plate in September. Registrations of ULEVs have continued to grow since the grant change.

  • Baroness Hamwee – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Baroness Hamwee – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Hamwee on 2016-10-10.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have any medical evidence, including psychiatric and psychological evidence, of the relationship between the trauma and other harm suffered by a victim of torture and the identity of the perpetrator.

    Baroness Williams of Trafford

    The definition of torture adopted for the “adults at risk in immigration detention” policy is in line with that set out in the United Nations Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (UNCAT) although, for the purposes of the policy, it has been extended to cover serious harm inflicted by terrorist groups exploiting instability or civil war to hold territory.

    The Government adopted this definition as it most accurately reflects the need to protect those who are most likely to be adversely affected by detention – that is, those who have been harmed by the state, or by an organisation exercising similar control, and for whom detention is most likely to be redolent of the harm they have suffered.

    In order to be consistent, the same definition was applied to the reporting system in rule 35 of the Detention Centre Rules 2001 under which doctors working in immigration removal centres are required to report concerns that a detainee may have been the victim of torture. This has no effect on the requirement also in rule 35 for such doctors to report where a detainee’s health is likely to be injuriously affected by continued detention or the conditions of detention.

  • Lord Marlesford – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Lord Marlesford – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Marlesford on 2015-10-29.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their estimate of the numerical strength of the moderate forces fighting against President Assad in Syria.

    Earl Howe

    Estimating the numerical strength of armed groups in Syria is challenging given the lack of data, the fluidity of the situation on the ground, and the multiplicity of groups. Nevertheless, we estimate that fighters loyal to the Free Syrian Army, which has close links to the Syrian National Coalition, which is the heart of the political opposition, run into tens of thousands.

  • Luciana Berger – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Luciana Berger – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2015-11-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, with reference to the Answer of 22 October 2015 to the hon. Member for Bath to Question 11880, how much of the funding for the Homelessness Change/Platform for Life programme has been (a) spent on and (b) allocated to mental health support.

    Alistair Burt

    The bidding and assessment process for the Homelessness Change/Platform for Life programme is now complete. We are looking forward to making an announcement of the successful bids shortly. Mental health is a key issue for homeless people – often part of a range of multiple and complex conditions. The programme will help address these mental health issues by providing decent accommodation and health support for some of the most vulnerable people in the community.

  • Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2016-01-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment has been made of the humanitarian situation in (a) Madaya and (b) other Syrian cities under attack by armed forces of the government of President Assad.

    Mr Desmond Swayne

    We are seriously concerned about the acute humanitarian situation in Madaya, Rural Damascus. Madaya has been surrounded by regime and allied forces since July 2015, leading to sharply deteriorating conditions for an estimated 40,000 people, most of whom are women and children. Around 20,000 residents currently face life-threatening deprivation of the basics for survival. Prior to 11 January 2016, humanitarian assistance was last delivered on 18 October, as part of a joint UN/ Syrian Arab Red Crescent/ICRC convoy, that provided assistance to Madaya, Zabadani, Foah and Kefraya under the terms of a ceasefire agreement.

    The UK is deeply concerned that nearly 400,000 people live in besieged areas and roughly 4.5 million in hard-to-reach areas in Syria. Due to constrained humanitarian access, we are unable to provide a systematic and updated picture of humanitarian needs across besieged and hard-to-reach areas. The appalling numbers of people living in besieged areas is indicative of the continued flouting of International Humanitarian Law and disregard for civilian lives by the regime, Daesh and armed groups inside Syria.

    The UK has been at the forefront of the response to the crisis in Syria and the region. We have pledged over £1.1 billion, making us the second largest bilateral donor after the US. We have provided support to the UN and international NGOs (INGOs) since the start of the conflict to deliver aid in hard to reach and besieged areas of Syria, including Madaya. We are working to bring about an inclusive political solution to end the conflict in Syria through our engagement in the International Syria Support Group, with the UN Special Envoy for Syria, and with the Syrian Opposition.

    In February 2016, the UK will invite world leaders to London for a Conference to support immediate needs and identify longer-term solutions to address the needs of those affected by the crisis.

  • Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-02-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many people have been diagnosed with lung disease in each of the last five years.

    Jane Ellison

    This data is not available in the format requested.

  • Andrew Rosindell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Andrew Rosindell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2016-02-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if the Government will provide additional financial support to providers in the care industry to support such providers affected by the introduction of the living wage; and if he will make a statement.

    Alistair Burt

    Local authorities are responsible for commissioning adult social care services. Fee levels are agreed by local authorities and social care providers, reflecting local conditions. In setting fee levels, local authorities are obliged to consider the sustainability of their local social care market.

    At the Spending Review, the Government made up to £3.5 billion extra available by 2019/20 to local authorities for adult social care through the social care precept and Better Care Fund. This will help give councils more flexibility to meet local priorities as they see fit.

  • Andy Slaughter – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Andy Slaughter – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2016-03-22.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the Court of Appeal’s recent decision on domestic violence evidential requirements for legal aid, what interim steps his Department plans to make for victims of domestic violence whose evidence is more than 24 months old.

    Mike Penning

    We are carefully considering the judgment and will make a further announcement in due course.

  • Dan Jarvis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Dan Jarvis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dan Jarvis on 2016-04-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when her Department plans to publish the terms of reference for Sir Nick Weller’s report into transforming education across the Northern Powerhouse.

    Nick Gibb

    Our White Paper, Education Excellence Everywhere, sets out the range of support we will offer to schools across England.

    Where schools are failing, Regional Schools Commissioners will identify a suitable academy sponsor to turn them around. In areas where there are too few sponsors, we will recruit new sponsors, including high-performing schools and more sponsors from business, charity and philanthropy. We will also encourage existing sponsors to expand, increasing incentives and minimising barriers, learning from the investment we have already made through the Northern Sponsor Fund.

    For other struggling schools, we will ensure there is nationwide coverage of system leaders (teaching schools and National Leaders of Education), who will be expected to work with weaker schools to support them to improve. To help achieve this, we will improve how we designate system leaders by introducing a more sophisticated approach based on timely and accurate data rather than relying heavily on Ofsted judgements. We will also partner schools with the potential to become strong system leaders with existing teaching schools and National Leaders of Education.

    Through the Department’s strategy for Achieving Excellence Areas, we will target our existing programmes to secure sufficient high quality teachers, leaders, system leaders, sponsors and members of governing boards on the areas of greatest need. At the Budget, the Government announced that we will invest an additional £20 million a year to build on this strategy to raise education standards across the Northern Powerhouse. The allocation of this funding will depend on the identified need and will be reassessed each year, based on the evidence.

    For the additional funding announced in the budget, decisions on how the funding will be allocated for the 2016-17 financial year will be made by the autumn of this year and will be informed by the emerging findings of the review by Sir Nick Weller. We will be publishing the terms of reference for Sir Nick Weller’s review shortly.