The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2016-03-10.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many names were provided to Ministers to enable them to take a formal decision on the appointment of the Pubs Code Adjudicator.
Anna Soubry
I refer the hon Member to the answer I gave to the hon Member for Hove on 10 March, Official Report, Vol 607, Col 426.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Lucas on 2016-04-18.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, on how many occasions between 2006 and 2011 HM Revenue and Customs officials (a) met and (b) communicated with Peter Twiddy, a consultant who worked at Bircham Dyson Bell.
Mr David Gauke
HM Revenue and Customs officials meet with and receive representations from a wide variety of organisations as part of the policy formulation and delivery process. As has been the practice of successive administrations, it is not the Government’s practice to give details of any such discussion.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-05-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to ensure electric car charging points are accessible across the UK.
Andrew Jones
Plug-in vehicles are generally charged at home and overnight, and so the Government provides grants of up to £500 for the installation of domestic chargepoints. More than 60,000 have been installed to date. The UK also has over 11,000 publicly accessible chargepoints; in streets, car parks and motorway service areas. This includes almost 900 rapid chargepoints that can charge a car in 20-30 minutes – the largest network in Europe.
The Department’s Roads Investment Strategy includes funding of £15m to improve the network of chargepoints on the strategic road network, and the Go Ultra Low city scheme is expected to deliver around 750 more publicly accessible chargepoints in UK towns and cities by 2020. We will announce further targeted support for plug-in vehicle chargepoints in due course.
Government-funded chargepoints must meet a minimum common standard for chargepoint outlets, and include ‘pay as you go’ functionality.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chi Onwurah on 2016-07-13.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much (a) public, (b) private and (c) third sector money was spent on the care.data programme prior to the decision being taken to close that programme; and what estimate he has made of how much of that money is recoverable.
Nicola Blackwood
NHS England and the Health and Social Care Information Centre are not in a position to provide a final statement of expenditure at the present time.
However, NHS England has been clear that the evidence and groundwork from the care.data programme will be incorporated into the health and care system’s Paperless 2020 programme on technology and improving patient care, as overseen by the National Information Board, in close collaboration with the primary care community, in order to retain public confidence and drive better care for patients.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Fitzpatrick on 2016-10-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the recommendations of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee’s report of 25 February 2016, what assessment her Department has made of introducing a two-year probationary period for continued self-regulation of greyhound industry.
George Eustice
Defra’s Post Implementation Review of the Welfare of Racing Greyhounds Regulations 2010 made an assessment of the Greyhound Board of Great Britain’s (GBGB) enforcement of the standards contained in the 2010 Regulations at GBGB affiliated tracks. The Review found that the standards at GBGB affiliated tracks were being maintained in an effective manner by the GBGB. However, the GBGB’s ability to self-regulate track standards is dependent on them maintaining their United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS) accreditation as a certification body for those standards. Should GBGB lose its UKAS accreditation then, under the 2010 Regulations, it would immediately lose the right to self-regulate standards at GBGB affiliated tracks. Therefore, for regulating conditions at tracks, the Government would not support extending to two years such a probationary period. For other areas of GBGB’s self-regulatory work, prior to EFRA’s Greyhound Welfare report, the GBGB had already agreed with Defra a period of two years, up to 2018, to: develop a consensus standard for trainers’ kennels and to extend its current UKAS accreditation to cover the enforcement of these new standards; and begin publishing annually aggregate figures for dogs injured or euthanized at GBGB affiliated tracks, as well as dogs leaving GBGB racing.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2015-11-17.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assistance the Government has given to (a) Kent Police, (b) Kent County Council, (c) other operational organisations and (d) businesses to cover costs incurred during the implementation of Operation Stack in Summer 2015.
Mike Penning
In respect of Kent police, the Home Office has recently received an application from the Kent Police and Crime Commissioner for Special Grant funding for the additional costs relating to Operation Stack. I will carefully consider the bid and make a decision in due course.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Mann on 2015-12-15.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent estimate she has made of any shortfall in the number of qualified mathematics teachers in each English region.
Nick Gibb
During the academic year 2014/15 there were 33,400 mathematics teachers in state-funded schools in England. The vacancy rate was low, with only 1.4% of all mathematics teaching posts in secondary schools vacant. Mathematics continues to be a popular subject for teacher training, with nearly 2,500 training in 2015/16. During this period we achieved 93% of our postgraduate initial teacher training (ITT) target in mathematics.
Each year we estimate the number of mathematics teachers we need to train using the Teacher Supply Model. This estimate is based on assumptions about pupil numbers, teaching practice, curriculum changes, and teacher deployment. The department does not hold estimates of shortfalls for teachers in any particular subjects or regions. It is up to schools to decide what teachers they need, in what specialisms and with what qualifications.
Nevertheless, we realise that within the context of a strong economy, recruitment for all STEM subjects is challenging. We have continued to offer scholarships and bursaries worth up to £25,000 tax free for those candidates entering mathematics initial teacher training in academic year 2016/17. Through the School Direct (salaried) route we provide schools with additional grant funding to boost trainees’ salaries in mathematics.
Furthermore, in March the Prime Minister announced a package worth up to £67 million to transform mathematics and physics teaching in England by recruiting 2,500 additional mathematics and physics teachers and providing subject knowledge training to 15,000 non-specialist serving teachers.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Justin Madders on 2016-01-26.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the number of nurse training places in each of the next five years.
Ben Gummer
Health Education England (HEE) was established and has been mandated by the Government to provide national leadership on education, training and workforce development in the National Health Service. As one of the arm’s length bodies to help improve the quality of care delivered to patients, it ensures that the future workforce is available in the right numbers with the right skills, values and competencies to meet patient needs today and tomorrow.
HEE operate an annual comprehensive planning process to ensure their investments meet the future needs of the population. This process determines the number of training places that will be commissioned by HEE in the following financial year. The planned commissions are published annually in both the HEE commissioning and investment plan and the HEE Workforce Plan for England.
The 2016-17 commissioning and investment plan was published in December 2015 and includes the planned number of nurse training commissions for 2016-17. The plan can be found at the following link:
https://hee.nhs.uk/sites/default/files/documents/HEE%20commissioning%20and%20investment%20plan.pdf
The HEE annual Workforce Plan for England 2016/17 is planned for publication by the end of February 2016.
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nic Dakin on 2016-02-11.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the daily rate of pay is for specialist contractors hired by her Department to advise regional school commissioners.
Edward Timpson
The department does not publish daily rates for specialist contractors. Doing so would prejudice commercial interests.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Michelle Donelan on 2016-03-10.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what cross departmental work his Department has undertaken with the Department for Education to ensure that the needs of business are met by the education system.
Nick Boles
Officials from the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) and the Department for Education (DfE) are working together at all levels to deliver the ambitious 16+ skills reform programme, supporting me in my role as joint Minister. This programme aims to achieve the best possible outcomes for young people and adults and set high standards and promote strong qualifications. Our work is intended to ensure that people have the education, training and skills that business and employers need in order to be competitive and grow.
Apprenticeships are our flagship policy for equipping people with the skills employers demand. For young people (aged 16-19), we want the new norm to be them considering university or an apprenticeship (or both, in the case of Degree Apprenticeships), as equally valid routes to a successful career. 2.6m apprentices have started since 2010 and we are committed to 3m starts by 2020. BIS and DfE are also supporting traineeships, which are designed to equip young people aged 16-24 with skills and experience that employers are looking for. Both apprenticeships and traineeships are joint DfE/BIS programmes that are managed through clear and collaborative joint working between both Departments and their Agencies.
The Government’s ambitious reforms to the education system raise standards in English and maths, giving people the essential literacy and numeracy skills and qualifications that we know employers seek from new recruits more than any other qualifications. Learners who did not achieve a Level 2 in English and maths by the age of 16 are now required to continue to study those subjects post-16. We have also increased the level we expect people to study in apprenticeships and in traineeships and fully fund all adults to achieve their first English and maths GCSE. In addition, we are jointly leading a programme to reform Functional Skills qualifications to ensure they are robust and credible qualifications that develop the skills that employers need.