The below Parliamentary question was asked by Damian Collins on 2016-10-13.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, when he plans to respond to the expression of interest made to his Department by Shepway District Council on proposals for a garden town development near Otterpool in Kent.
Gavin Barwell
We plan to respond in the next three weeks.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Berkeley on 2015-11-11.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what measures the Department for Transport has taken to ensure that the appointment of the Managing Director of ScotRail Alliance to the Network Rail Executive Committee does not give a commercial advantage to Abellio in respect of future franchise bids across the UK.
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The Managing Director of the ScotRail Alliance has now also been appointed as Managing Director Scotland within Network Rail and, as part of his new role, will sit on Network Rail’s Executive Committee. He is an employee of Network Rail in both roles, but continues to report to the head of Abellio UK in his capacity of running the ScotRail Alliance only.
It is for Network Rail and any individual concerned to ensure that no conflicts of interest are allowed to affect the conduct of the company’s business.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Oliver Heald on 2015-12-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 22 June 2015 to Question 2734, what progress her Department has made on restoring physical habitats on chalk rivers in North East Hertfordshire constituency.
Rory Stewart
Through its Restoring Sustainable Abstraction (RSA) Programme, the Environment Agency (EA) is working with local water companies and the Catchment partnerships to significantly improve the condition, flow and habitats of chalk streams Beane, Mimram and Lee.
As part of the Programme, Affinity Water and the EA have committed to investing £3 million by 2020 in habitat improvement projects for these chalk streams. These are currently in the planning and design stage. Delivery will accelerate as the Programme progresses over the next five years.
In order to achieve the greatest benefit from these works, Affinity Water has agreed to reduce abstraction from local chalk streams by over 40 million litres per day by 2024. It will significantly reduce abstraction at the Whitehall pumping station on the River Beane by 2018 by building a pipeline, currently under construction, to supply customers with water from alternative sources.
The EA partnership project at Waterford Marsh, also on the River Beane, has seen improvements for both wildlife and people through chalk stream restoration, pond creation, access repair, and the provision of new information boards.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2016-01-18.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she plans to bring forward legislative proposals to amend the Registration of Births and Deaths Regulations 1987 to include a requirement to stipulate the time of death.
James Brokenshire
There are no plans at present to amend the Registration of Births and Deaths Regulations 1987 to include time of death at death registration.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-02-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to reduce deaths of premature babies.
Ben Gummer
We are committed making sure every baby receives consistently high quality care, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
In November 2015, the Government announced a national ambition to halve by 2030 the rates of stillbirths, neonatal and maternal deaths and brain injuries occurring during or soon after birth.
To support the National Health Service in achieving this ambition we also announced:
― a £2.24 million capital fund for equipment to improve safety;
― over £1 million to roll out training programmes to make sure staff have the skills and confidence they need to deliver world-leading safe care; and
― £500,000 to develop a new system that can be used consistently across the NHS to enable staff to review and learn from every stillbirth and neonatal death.
The announcement also committed to publishing an annual report to update the public, health professionals, providers and commissioners on the progress we are making towards achieving the ambition.
The National Maternity Review, chaired by Baroness Cumberlege, will include proposals for the future shape of modern, high quality and sustainable maternity services across England. We anticipate that its report will have an important role in shaping the system to achieve our ambition.
For those babies who are born sick or premature, NHS England commissions Neonatal Care from 165 neonatal units. These units are organised and supported by 13 Operational Delivery Networks. The organisation of networks has brought tangible benefits in the delivery of babies in the right place to receive specialist care when it is needed.
NHS England’s Neonatal Critical Care Service Specification states that providers should ensure that expert and experienced staff treat sufficient numbers of cases to maintain a safe high quality service and move towards national standards.
It is for local hospital trusts and specialised commissioners to decide how best to use the guidance and the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence quality standard for specialist neonatal care to improve babies’ chances of survival and minimise mortality associated with being born either premature or unwell. We know that that there is still more to do to ensure these services are consistent across the country and that is why the Neonatal Clinical Reference Group at NHS England has committed to review the findings of the Bliss report, (published in October 2015 which can be found here http://www.bliss.org.uk/babyreport), and will work with all of its key partners to make recommendations for further improvement.
Unless we invest in research we cannot understand how to best improve services for mothers and their babies. Significant sums have been invested over recent years in support of research looking at important questions regarding premature birth. The National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) funds a range of research relating to causes, risk factors and prevention of stillbirth and neonatal death. The NIHR Health Technology Assessment is funding a £6.0 million trial of an intelligent system to support decision making in the management of labour using the cardiotocogram – due to report in 2017. The NIHR is also funding a £1.2 million study on preventing adverse pregnancy outcome in women at increased risk of stillbirth by detecting placental dysfunction– due to report in 2019.
To help achieve the best outcomes, women are also offered a comprehensive programme of scans, screening tests and development examinations during pregnancy and following birth babies will receive the checks in the NHS newborn and infant physical examination screening programme and the NHS newborn blood spot screening programme .
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-03-01.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps the Government is taking to stop the black market economy in aid allocations.
Mr Desmond Swayne
DFID’s work on the black market is primarily related to illicit markets and organised crime. We are building the evidence base on the linkages between organised crime, development and conflict, and exploring innovative integrated approaches to tackling organised crime in partnership with other government departments. Our work in this area is focused on building resilience and reducing vulnerabilities to organised crime, increasing transparency, and mitigating harm. Examples of our work related to organised crime include:
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2016-04-25.
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many prosecutions have been brought under Section 70 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 in each year since the coming into force of that Act.
Matthew Hancock
Section 70 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 does not contain an offence. It amends the Data Protection Act 1998 to exempt data falling within section 1(1)(e) of that Act from some of its provisions, including the offence under section 55 of that Act.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Michelle Donelan on 2016-06-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate she has made of the number of students who have taken up computer science as an option in the EBacc in each of the last five years.
Nick Gibb
Computer science has been included in the science element of the English Baccalaureate (EBacc) since 2014. To enter the EBacc science pillar, pupils can enter core and additional science GCSE; enter GCSE science double award; or enter three single sciences at GCSE. The single sciences are biology, chemistry, computer science and physics.
A time series of the total number of entries in GCSE computer science for the last three years is published as part of the “Revised GCSE and equivalent results in England: 2014 to 2015 (revised)” statistical first release (SFR).[1]
[1] https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/502685/SFR01_2016_Subject_Timeseries.xls (“Subject time series tables: SFR01/2016” document)
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Callum McCaig on 2016-09-05.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent progress his Department has made on developing an Energy Innovation Strategy.
Mr Nick Hurd
Following the recent Machinery of Government changes, the detail of the Department’s energy innovation programme is being considered by Ministers. The 2016-2021 programme, over £500m, announced as part of the last Spending Review was developed as a cross-Government initiative by the former Department of Energy and Climate Change. The Department is also collaborating internationally with other countries, including through ‘Mission Innovation’ – a global partnership of 21 members announced at COP21 in Paris, pledging to double support for clean energy innovation over the next five years and strengthening transparency and collaboration.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Farron on 2016-10-13.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department plans to hold discussions with parents on the effect on children’s mental health of primary school SATs.
Edward Timpson
Good mental health and resilience are a priority for the Department. We have high aspirations for all children and want them to be able to fulfil their potential, both academically and in terms of their mental wellbeing.
Good schools manage tests appropriately, and there is a lot that teachers can do to help prepare pupils to take tests and exams, and to help parents support their children. Good school leaders know that positive mental wellbeing, as part of a ‘whole-school’ ethos, along with good teaching, supports pupil attainment.
The Government considers the impact of primary testing on all children as a matter of course, and we listen to the views of parents on an ongoing basis. Tests are an established and valuable part of a child’s education. Tests in primary school are not examinations and should not put pressure on pupils. They are about helping teachers to identify where additional support is needed and ensuring that schools are accountable for the education that they provide.
We trust primary school teachers to use their experience and professional expertise to administer assessments in a way that does not put undue pressure on pupils. Schools should encourage all pupils to work hard and achieve well, but we do not recommend that they devote excessive preparation time to assessment, and certainly not at the expense of pupils’ wellbeing.
We know that recent reforms to primary assessment have represented a significant change for schools and these will need time to embed. We are committed to listening to teachers and parents to ensure primary assessment arrangements are proportionate as well as robust.
To support schools to understand signs of stress and mental ill-health and to provide support to their pupils, the Government has funded MindEd to develop a free, on-line resource for all professionals, including teaching staff, working with children and young people to access information about mental health issues. We also funded the PSHE Association to produce guidance and age-appropriate lesson plans on teaching about mental health in PSHE. In addition we have published guidance on behaviour and mental health, which sets out how schools can identify problems and seek support, as well as a blueprint for effective school-based counselling to help schools provide access to support.
However, teachers are not mental health specialists and need to know how to help pupils access specialist support. We contributed to a £3 million joint pilot between schools and children and young people’s mental health services to improve local knowledge and develop effective referrals to allow pupils to access timely specialist support where needed.