The below Parliamentary question was asked by Will Quince on 2016-05-09.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will include a time limit in the terms of the soft drinks industry levy such that that levy would cease to apply if reformulation targets are met by soft drinks manufacturers.
Damian Hinds
There is no plan to include a time limit in the terms of the soft drinks industry levy, but the Chancellor keeps all taxes under review as part of the Budget process.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Sharkey on 2016-06-29.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have received about the summary and non-appealable closure by UK-based banks of accounts belonging to Muslims or Muslim organisations; from whom they received those representations, if any; and what response they made.
Lord O’Neill of Gatley
The withdrawal of banking services from certain sectors, including NGOs and community-based organisations, is unfortunately one instance of a global problem of de-risking affecting many countries and a number of sectors. The Government is concerned about the growth of this trend and the implications it has for NGOs, economic growth, financial inclusion and financial stability. That is why the Government continues to work closely with those affected in the UK to better understand their experiences and encourage dialogue with the banking sector. The Government also encourages banks to take a risk-based approach in their activities, to ensure that the measures they take are effective and proportionate, and that they mitigate the risks they face.
Treasury Ministers and officials receive representations and have meetings with a wide variety of organisations and individuals as part of the process of policy development and delivery.
Details of ministerial and permanent secretary meetings with external organisations on departmental business are published on a quarterly basis and are available on the gov.uk website.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2016-09-09.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what funds or other support they have provided in recent years for the organisation known as White Helmets in Syria; and what assessment they have made of its activities.
Baroness Anelay of St Johns
The UK has provided support to Syria Civil Defence (also known as the White Helmets) through the cross-departmental Conflict Pool and its successor, the Conflict Stability and Security Fund. Our assistance has been delivered through trusted third party implementers. The total value of funds committed between June 2013 and the end of the last financial year (31 March 2016) was £19.7m. For financial year 2016/17, we have allocated a further £12.5m.
Our support to Syria Civil Defence is part of a coordinated international programme of assistance. It has helped to provide the Syrian-led organisation of over 2800 volunteers with much-needed training and equipment. To date they have saved more than 60,000 lives and were nominated for the Nobel peace prize in both 2015 and 2016 in recognition of their efforts to alleviate the suffering of the Syrian people.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Antoinette Sandbach on 2015-11-10.
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate he has made of the number of homes and businesses that will not benefit from the roll-out of superfast broadband in each of the 11 Cheshire parliamentary constituencies.
Mr Edward Vaizey
The Government’s is committed to achieving the availability of superfast broadband to 95% of UK premises by December 2017. Broadband Delivery UK’s (BDUK) modelled estimates of the currently planned superfast broadband coverage for the 11 Cheshire constituencies predict 96% coverage, and are set out in the table below. These estimates are based on modelled coverage at the end of the Connected Cheshire Phase 2 project. Further coverage will be possible through additional funding sources including the gainshare funding that BT have offered in response to the high levels of take-up being achieved.
As you will be aware the Prime Minister recently announced the Government’sintention to introduce a new broadband Universal Service Obligation (USO) by 2020. The USO will be demand-led and will give people a legal right to request anaffordable connection to broadband of a minimum specified speed, from adesignated provider, no matter where they live, up to a reasonable cost threshold. This reflects that many people now see broadband as a basic service similar to thepost and telephone.
|
Constituency |
Total |
Planned Coverage (%) |
|
City of Chester Constituency |
46,652 |
97% |
|
Congleton Constituency |
44,269 |
96% |
|
Crewe and Nantwich Constituency |
49,984 |
97% |
|
Eddisbury Constituency |
39,293 |
89% |
|
Ellesmere Port and Neston Constituency |
41,636 |
99% |
|
Halton Constituency |
44,739 |
98% |
|
Macclesfield Constituency |
45,198 |
95% |
|
Tatton Constituency |
40,592 |
95% |
|
Warrington North Borough Constituency |
44,770 |
98% |
|
Warrington South Borough Constituency |
50,656 |
98% |
|
Weaver Vale Constituency |
40,411 |
97% |
|
Total |
488,200 |
96% |
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2015-12-10.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will make an assessment of the effects of zero-hour and uncertain hour contracts on the mental health of people holding such contracts.
Alistair Burt
The Department has no plans to make any such assessment.
Research undertaken by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) found that, compared to the average employee, zero hours contract workers are just as satisfied with their job (65% versus 63%) and happier with their work-life balance (62% versus 58%).
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2016-01-14.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many existing tax credit claimants had their payments stopped in the most recent 12 months for which data is available.
Mr David Gauke
HM Revenue and Customs do not hold the requested data.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Pearson of Rannoch on 2016-02-09.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the percentage of child refugees to the UK from Syria and elsewhere who are from Muslim families, and whether the families of such refugees will be able to follow them in due course.
Lord Bates
The Home Office does not record the religion of those granted refugee status or humanitarian protection for statistical purposes.
There is no provision in the Immigration Rules for children granted refugee status or humanitarian protection in the UK to sponsor family members to join them. The policy is designed to avoid creating incentives for children to be encouraged, or even forced, to leave their country and risk hazardous journeys to the UK, which would play right into the hands of people smugglers and traffickers.
Where a family reunion application fails under the Immigration Rules, there is provision in the policy to consider whether there are exceptional circumstances or compassionate reasons to justify granting a visa outside the Rules in individual cases.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nic Dakin on 2016-03-04.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 28 January 2016 to Question 24002, on further education, how many steering group meetings of area reviews of post-16 education and training in (a) Birmingham and Solihull, (b) Greater Manchester, (c) Sheffield City Region, (d) Tees Valley, (e) Sussex, (f) Solent and (g) West Yorkshire took place without representatives of the (i) regional schools commissioner and (ii) local enterprise partnership being present in each of the last six months.
Nick Boles
There are a range of ways in which Regional Schools Commissioners (RSCs) and members of Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) can contribute to area reviews, for instance through the National Area Review Advisory Group.
It is expected that there will be at least five steering group meetings in each review. To date all Wave 1 Area Reviews have held a number of local steering group meetings and RSCs and LEPs are members. They or their representatives have attended the majority of these meetings.
In Birmingham and Solihull, one meeting in December 2015 took place without an RSC representative present.
In Greater Manchester, one meeting in November 2015 took place without an RSC representative present and one meeting in December 2015 took place without either an RSC or LEP representative present.
In Sheffield City Region, one meeting in December 2015 took place without an RSC representative present.
In Tees Valley, all meetings have taken place with a RSC or LEP representative present.
In Sussex, one meeting in February 2016 took place without an RSC representative present.
In the Solent, one meeting in November 2015 and one meeting in January 2016 took place without an RSC representative present.
In West Yorkshire, one meeting in November 2015, one meeting in December 2015 and one meeting in January 2016 took place without an RSC representative present.
Both a RSC and LEP representative have been present at all other steering group meetings of the Wave 1 area reviews.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Craig Tracey on 2016-04-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will take steps to require health commissioners to make publicly available information on how they commission palliative care for children and young people across their locality.
Ben Gummer
A review of the allocation methodology of the annual children’s hospice grant is being considered to support an equitable, transparent and evidence based formula making use of data from all children’s hospices in 2016/17. The aim is to provide clear advice to hospices on the grant for 2016/17 and a proposed way forward to review the formula and how hospices can contribute to that process.
Adult hospices, including voluntary sector hospices, receive on average around a third of their funding from the National Health Service and it is for local commissioners to ensure that the services they commission meet the needs of their local populations, including in end of life care.
Clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) have responsibility for ensuring that they are meeting the needs of those requiring children’s palliative care services, considering the full range of local provision, both statutory and voluntary sectors, and the wishes of children and young people and their families. CCGs will need to make sure that they provide information on the support available locally for children with palliative care needs and their families.
Many maternity units have specialist bereavement midwives and dedicated bereavement suites to support parents but we know that this support is not available in every unit and we are currently considering the actions that we can take to improve bereavement services further. For families of older children and young people chaplaincy services may be able to provide support.
It is the responsibility of the professional regulators to set the standards and outcomes for education and training and approve training curricula to ensure newly qualified healthcare professionals are equipped with the knowledge, skills and attitudes to provide high quality patient care. It is the responsibility of employers to ensure staff receive appropriate development to deliver safe and effective healthcare. This includes training in providing care to children and young people with life-shortening conditions.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Mackintosh on 2016-05-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of the Advertising Standards Agency.
Mr Edward Vaizey
This Government supports the system of co-regulation and self-regulation, overseen by the independent Advertising Standards Authority and underpinned by consumer protection legislation. This regulatory system is independent of the Government and is ultimately responsible for setting the standards in advertising, ensuring that all adverts, wherever they appear, are legal, decent, honest and truthful.