Tag: Parliamentary Question

Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-04-14.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether a bedroom which is currently unusable pending repairs by a social landlord is included by his Department in its assessment of whether a household under-occupying accommodation.

Justin Tomlinson

This is a matter between the claimant and the landlord and we would always advise claimants in this situation to contact their landlord in the first instance.

Some landlords may choose to reduce the rent whilst the bedroom is uninhabitable others may not. The reduction that applies for under-occupation depends on whether the rent has been reduced to reflect that the property temporarily has one less bedroom.

January 1, 2023
Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-05-18.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the extent of the practice among clinical commissioning groups in England of offering only one fresh cycle of IVF treatment.

Jane Ellison

The Government has not made an assessment of the annual cost to the National Health Service of high risk pregnancies caused by patients going abroad for in vitro fertilisation (IVF).

Multiple births are the single biggest risk to the health and welfare of children born following fertility treatment and present significant health risks to mothers and babies. Over recent years, the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) has worked to drive down multiple birth rates whilst maintaining consistent treatment success rates.

To minimise the risk of multiple pregnancies, there has been a growing trend for IVF providers to only transfer one embryo, even when more are available, in patients who have a good chance of successful treatment. Elective single embryo transfer is the most effective way of reducing multiple pregnancies. The HFEA has advised that most clinics have shown significant progress in reducing multiple births without compromising pregnancy rates. In 2008 nearly one in four IVF births resulted in a multiple birth but now, with a concerted multiple births reduction policy, this number is one in six.

Although progress has been made, this number is still higher than the rate in conceptions that do not involve assisted reproduction treatment. The overall goal is to reduce multiple births to one in ten.

The level of provision of infertility treatment, as for all health services they commission, is decided by local clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) and will take into account the needs of the population overall. The CCG’s decisions are underpinned by clinical insight and knowledge of local healthcare needs. As such, provision of services will vary in response to local needs.

Information about CCGs approach to commissioning or compliance with the National Institute of Health and Care Excellence guidelines regarding IVF services is not collected centrally.

January 1, 2023
Jim McMahon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim McMahon on 2016-07-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many times air quality safety levels were breached in Greater Manchester in each year since 2011.

Rory Stewart

Defra uses both monitoring and modelling to assess air quality in the UK. The Department has five monitoring stations in the Greater Manchester Urban Agglomeration, at: Bury Whitefield Roadside, Manchester Piccadilly, Manchester Sharston, Salford Eccles and Shaw Crompton Way. Information about the sites and the pollutants measured is available on Defra’s UK-Air website.

Nitrogen dioxide pollution from road transport is the predominant source of air pollution in the Greater Manchester area.

There have been two measured exceedances of the annual mean air pollution objective for nitrogen dioxide in the Greater Manchester Urban Agglomeration since 2011. These were recorded in the Bury Whitefield Roadside and Manchester Piccadilly monitoring sites in 2011 and 2012. However, based on both modelling and monitoring carried out for compliance purposes, the zone was reported to have exceeded the annual mean limit value for nitrogen dioxide for all years between 2011 and 2014.

Local authorities have a crucial role to play in improving air quality in their areas. They are required to review and assess air quality in their areas and to designate Air Quality Management Areas (AQMAs) and put in place Air Quality Action Plans (AQAPs) to address air pollution issues where national air quality objectives are not being met.

The ten local authorities in the Greater Manchester area designated AQMAs between 2001 and 2007. In 2016 the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) amalgamated all AQMAs across the region into a single AQMA. The GMCA has put in place an AQAP that sets out measures aimed at promoting sustainable transport initiatives, including proposals to introduce Ultra-Low Emission Zones.

January 1, 2023
Helen Goodman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Trade

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Helen Goodman on 2016-10-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what his Department’s capital and current budgets are for (a) 2016-17 and (b) 2017-18.

Greg Hands

The newly created Department for International Trade (DIT) has been formed from the previous UK Trade and Investent (UKTI) and from the Trade Policy Unit of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS). My Rt hon. Friend the Secretary of State for International Trade also has responsibility for UK Export Finance (the Export Credits Guarantee Department), which has its own budget.

The estimated annual budgeted operating costs of the department for the next four years are currently being established and will be submitted to parliament later this financial year.

January 1, 2023
Andrew Gwynne – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2015-11-02.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what estimate she has made of the value of stationery that has been (a) lost and (b) stolen from her Department in each of the last five fiscal years; and what the cost was of replacing such stationery.

Mr Ben Wallace

There has been no stationery reported lost or stolen in my Department during the period requested.

January 1, 2023
Andrew Gwynne – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2015-11-26.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what responsibilities the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster has which relate to the Duchy of Lancaster.

Mr Oliver Letwin

The Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster is responsible to the Sovereign for the administration of the estates of the Duchy of Lancaster, in which he is assisted by the Duchy Council. The Chancellor also appoints various Duchy representatives on university councils, school governing bodies and charities in the County Palatine.

January 1, 2023
Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2016-01-11.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what stakes are held in the Debt Market Integrator by private sector partners.

Matthew Hancock

The companies that bid to provide Debt Market Integrator services were as follows;

Single Bidders:
- Price Waterhouse Coopers LLP
- CGI IT UK Ltd
- Capita Business Services Ltd
- HP Enterprise Services UK Ltd
- SYNNEX Concentrix UK Ltd
- TDX Group Ltd
- arvato AG
  Consortia:
- Equiniti Ltd/First Direct
  As of 12/01/ 2016 The debt collections agencies providing service for Indesser through the Debt Market Integrator contract are:
  
  Walker Love
  
  Rossendales
  
  Akinika
  
  Advantis
  
  CCS Collect
  
  Drydens
  
  Apex
  
  Bluestones
  
  Freds
  
  Rossendales
  
  Walker Love
  
  Moorcroft
  
  Past Due
  
  CCI Legal
  
  The private sector partner owns 75% equity in Indesser.
January 1, 2023
Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2016-01-28.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what actions he has taken as a result of receiving the Final Report of the UN Panel of Experts on Yemen.

Mr Philip Hammond

We are looking at the conclusions of the UN Panel of Experts’ report carefully. We recognise the importance of the work of the UN Panel of Experts. Looking at the information available to us, we have assessed that there has not been a breach of IHL by the coalition.

January 1, 2023
Peter Lilley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Peter Lilley on 2016-02-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, with reference to the report, The Size and Performance of the UK Low Carbon Economy, published in March 2015, whether estimates of gross value added for electricity generation include (a) the value of renewable obligation certificates and (b) the element of the feed-in tariff and Contract for Difference prices which are above the market price of energy.

Andrea Leadsom

The report on the Size and Performance of the UK Low Carbon Economy is based on a bottom-up analysis of company accounts from those businesses participating in the sector.

The report estimates gross value added within the sector by taking gross profit less the sum of employment costs, depreciation and amortisation. This definition is consistent with the approach generally taken in official statistics as a measure of the value of goods and services produced in an area, industry or sector of an economy.

To the extent they are included within company accounts, the report captures the value of renewable obligation certificates and the element of the feed-in tariff which is above the market price of energy. However, this will exclude payments to householders and other non-business or charity electricity generators.

No element of Contracts for Difference (CfDs) will be included in the estimates as the report only covers the period 2010 to 2013, before the introduction of CfDs.

January 1, 2023
Cheryl Gillan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Cheryl Gillan on 2016-03-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether the construction activity required to construct Phase One of High Speed 2 will result in any household experiencing carbon monoxide levels in excess of the thresholds for that substance detailed in European Directive 2008/50/EC on ambient air quality and cleaner air for Europe.

Mr Robert Goodwill

The construction of Phase One of HS2 will not result in any household experiencing carbon monoxide levels in excess of the thresholds for that substance detailed in European Directive 2008/50/EC.

January 1, 2023