Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Lord Birt – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Lord Birt – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Birt on 2016-03-14.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will consider exempting traditional windmills producing high-quality artisan flours from any obligations to introduce additives.

    Lord Gardiner of Kimble

    In the UK iron, niacin and thiamin are added back by law to all UK milled flour (except wholemeal) to restore nutrients lost in milling. Flour milled in the UK is also fortified with calcium to reduce the risk of calcium deficiency, a condition associated with poor bone health and osteoporosis. The Government is currently considering requests to exempt certain minor flour uses from these mandatory fortification requirements. This exercise could be extended to consider exempting traditional stoneground mills producing low volumes of flour should a case be made.

  • Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-04-25.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps the UK is taking in Burma to ensure that the three objectives of the Preventing Sexual Violence Initiative are met.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    We are persistent in applying pressure to the Burmese government to live up to the commitments it made when it endorsed the Declaration of Commitment to End Sexual Violence in Conflict at the London Global Summit in June 2014.

    During his visit to Burma in July 2015, the Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for East Devon (Mr Swire), pressed the Burmese government at senior ministerial level on the issue. He also launched the International Protocol on the Documentation and Investigation of Sexual Violence. We continue to raise the issue in international fora, including through UN resolutions on Burma at the General Assembly and the Human Rights Council, which we co-sponsor. We also facilitated the 2015 visit of the co-founder of the Preventing Sexual Violence Initiative, Angelina Jolie-Pitt. Along with Mr Swire, I was pleased to update selected Parliamentarians on our continuing efforts on this serious issue at the Burma briefing on Wednesday 4 May.

  • Lord Hunt of Kings Heath – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Lord Hunt of Kings Heath – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 2016-06-07.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what was the total combined overall spending on vaccines procurement and administration (1) nationally, and (2) locally, including awareness campaigns, in each year from 2012–13 to the current financial year.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    Public Health England (PHE) and NHS England were formed on 1 April 2013, therefore spend information can only be provided from 2013/2014 financial year onwards. Total combined spend for 2015/16 is not yet available.

    Overall spend on procurement and the administration of vaccines, including communications spend for campaigns, is split between PHE and NHS England. The total combined overall spend can only be provided at a national level. Local level information is not readily available. Spend information is provided in the following table.

    Approximate combined vaccine procurement and vaccine administration spend for England

    Financial Year

    2013/2014

    2014/2015

    Vaccine procurement and vaccine administration spend (£ million)

    578

    616
  • 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 2016-07-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether the environmental assurance work his Department undertook in December 2015 in connection with runway expansion has been completed; and what the estimated cost of that work was to the public purse on the latest date for which figures are available.

    Mr John Hayes

    The Department is undertaking work to understand the environmental impacts of additional airport capacity. Further details on procurement undertaken to support the Department on environmental impacts can be found here: https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/17ffaddc-3c19-4462-91ae-bf30029c08d9.

    “

  • Thangam Debbonaire – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Thangam Debbonaire – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Thangam Debbonaire on 2016-10-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 19 September 2016 to Question 46209, what the relationship will be between the clinical expert groups and the recently established cross-Clinical Reference Group working parties.

    David Mowat

    As part of the revised arrangements for the Clinical Reference Groups (CRGs), which support specialised commissioning, NHS England has also announced the establishment of cross-CRG working parties, including some which will work with other health and care bodies to contribute to improving services, data and efficiency. These are not distinct CRGs, but a collaboration between existing groups.

    Those working parties are:

    – Research – building an interface with the National Institute for Health Research to advise how future research strategies align with commissioning and maximising opportunities;

    – Data and Resource – working with NHS Digital and NHS Improvement to provide clinical advice to these organisations in their work to improve the information that guides commissioning;

    – Guidance – working with the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence as a stakeholder in their guidance development and providing clinical advice as needed; and

    – Value – to better understand, and therefore reduce, variations in services and, where appropriate, cease treatments/ways of working that are no longer of clinical or patient benefit.

    These relate to the specialised commissioning CRGs and there is no link to the clinical expert groups.

  • Lord Oates – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Lord Oates – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Oates on 2015-11-18.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the average time it takes HMRC to respond to written communications from (1) small businesses, and (2) personal taxpayers.

    Lord O’Neill of Gatley

    HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) does not collect data in such a way that the average waiting time for responses to written communications can be calculated. The performance is measured as a percentage of post cleared within 15 and 40 working days of receipt. HMRC has published the information on the performance results including post turnaround in the Annual Report and Accounts 2014-15.

    HMRC’s data on response times for written communication cannot be easily analysed by customer group.

  • Adam Holloway – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Adam Holloway – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Adam Holloway on 2015-12-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will not make a decision on the choice of Thames Crossing options A and C until a decision is made on the proposed London Paramount theme park.

    Andrew Jones

    The Government is committed to a new Lower Thames crossing. There is a need for increased capacity across the River Thames due to growth in general traffic and a range of developments in the Thames Gateway, including housing planned around Ebbsfleet. The location and route needs to be decided following further public consultation, expected to begin early this year, to ensure that the new crossing can be in place as soon as possible.

  • Douglas Chapman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Douglas Chapman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Chapman on 2016-01-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what safety and contingency measures his Department puts in place before nuclear materials are transported on roads in Scotland.

    Penny Mordaunt

    The transport of Defence Nuclear Material is regulated by the Defence Nuclear Safety Regulator according to the provisions of Joint Service Publication 538, Regulation of the Nuclear Weapon Programme, available at: www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/341332/20140801_JSP_538_V3_1_Pt_1.pdf

    A wide range of safety and contingency measures are in place to ensure the safety of nuclear convoy operations. These are summarised in the Local Authority and Emergency Service Information document available at: www.gov.uk/government/publications/local-authority-emergency-services-information.

  • Paula Sherriff – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Paula Sherriff – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paula Sherriff on 2016-02-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answers of 3 February 2016 to Question 24232 and 11 January 2016 to Question 20570 on British Transport Police: finance, how much income from (a) Transport for London, (b) train operating companies, (c) Network Rail and (d) other funding sources is included in the budget for 2016-17; and how much income by funding source (i) is in the budget for and (ii) has been received in 2015-16.

    Claire Perry

    The following table sets out the British Transport Police’s income by funding source in 2015-16:

    2015-16

    £000s

    Core funding (including train operators and Network Rail)

    209,262

    Transport for London

    63,883

    Non-core funding

    11,559

    Other income

    13,334

    Total

    298,038

    The split of income between the train operators and Network Rail is commercially sensitive information.

    Although the total budget for 2016-17 is £295.1 million, the individual components are still to be determined.

  • Baroness Tonge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Baroness Tonge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Tonge on 2016-03-14.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made to the government of Israel following raids on the Gaza Strip on 12 March, and in particular the deaths and injuries of children resulting from those raids.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    We have not raised this issue with the Israeli authorities. Israel, like all countries, has a legitimate right to self-defence, and the right to defend its citizens from attack. In doing so, it is vital that all actions are in line with International Humanitarian Law.