Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Alison Thewliss – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Alison Thewliss – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alison Thewliss on 2016-05-18.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will bring forward legislative proposals to prevent payday loan companies from advertising financial services from third party companies to customers during the loan application process.

    Harriett Baldwin

    The Government has fundamentally reformed regulation of the consumer credit market, transferring regulatory responsibility from the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) to the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) on 1 April 2014. This more robust regulatory system is helping to deliver the Government’s vision for a well-functioning and sustainable consumer credit market which is able to meet consumers’ needs.

    The FCA has introduced detailed rules regarding firms’ promotions and advertisements. It has consulted on possible new rules, including forbidding financial promotions appearing in or among the rankings of price comparison websites comparing high-cost short-term credit.

  • Royston Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Royston Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Royston Smith on 2016-06-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what measures are in place to prevent people remanded in custody from accessing social media platforms.

    Andrew Selous

    An extensive programme of work is underway to prevent prisoners having access to mobile phones. As the Prime Minister said on 8 February 2016, we are working with the mobile network operators to challenge them to do more, including developing new technological solutions, so we can block mobile phones’ signals in prisons.

    Although there are no rules to prevent prisoners on remand from passing on passwords for social media platforms, prisoners, including those on remand in custody, are not allowed access to social media platforms either directly or via a third party.

    It is a criminal offence for a person to take or transmit any image or sound from within a prison and send it outside the prison and where a link between a prisoner and content posted on social media is identified, the case will be referred to the police. A sentence of up to two years can be given if those charged are found guilty. If the police decide not to pursue a criminal investigation, a prisoner can be punished under the prison disciplinary system, for example, by having privileges removed or additional days added to their time in prison.

  • Barry Sheerman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Barry Sheerman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Sheerman on 2016-09-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that NHS Sustainability and Transformation Plans consider the overall health economy of a region including the effect on (a) GPs, (b) hospitals, (c) pharmacies, (d) ambulance services and (e) all other health services.

    David Mowat

    For their Sustainability and Transformation Plan, local areas, including commissioners, providers and local authorities, have come together to decide how to improve services in the medium and long term. This is a unique exercise in collaboration, with local doctors, hospitals and councils working together to decide the way forward in consultation with local communities. This approach will ensure that all services within a local health economy are considered.

  • Jim Shannon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Jim Shannon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2015-11-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many people have had corrective laser eye surgery in each of the last five years.

    Alistair Burt

    Corrective laser eye surgery (surgery to correct a refractive error) is not routinely carried out on the National Health Service other than for exceptional clinical reasons. Refractive errors can be successful corrected with glasses or contact lenses. Data is not collected on the number of corrective laser eye surgery procedures carried out in the independent sector or on the number of successful or unsuccessful procedures.

    The following table, provided by the Health and Social Care Information Centre, shows a count of Finished Admission Episodes (FAEs) for those diagnosed with disorders of refraction and accommodation who underwent corrective laser eye surgery between 2009-10 to 2013-14. This data includes a range of laser eye surgery procedures and is therefore not exclusive to corrective laser eye surgery.

    Activity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector

    Year

    FAEs

    2009-10

    318

    2010-11

    241

    2011-12

    276

    2012-13

    176

    2013-14

    195

    Source:Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), Health and Social Care Information Centre

  • Lord West of Spithead – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Lord West of Spithead – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord West of Spithead on 2015-12-08.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government when the last RAF Tornado GR4 navigator completed their training.

    Earl Howe

    Tornado GR4 Weapons Systems Officers (navigators) continue to be trained until the projected completion of the final course in March 2017.

  • Stewart Jackson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Stewart Jackson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stewart Jackson on 2016-01-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to improve teacher recruitment in local education authority areas with poor educational attainment; and if she will make a statement.

    Nick Gibb

    The Government is committed to achieving educational excellence everywhere so that children in every part of the country, regardless of their background and circumstances, have access to an outstanding education.

    High-quality teachers are central to that ambition, and we have recently announced the establishment of a new National Teaching Service (NTS) that will second outstanding teachers and middle leaders into the schools that most need support, particularly in areas of the country that find it hardest to retain and recruit good teachers. Our ambition is that by 2020 there will be 1,500 NTS teachers/middle leaders in underperforming schools in areas of the country facing particular challenges in terms of teacher quality and recruitment. The NTS will begin with a pilot of 100 outstanding teachers and middle leaders in the North West from September 2016. Following the pilot the national programme will be rolled out from September 2017 where it will be extended into other regions.

    We are also increasing the number of high-achieving graduates teaching in disadvantaged schools by supporting the geographical expansion of Teach First into every region of England. This gives Teach First the scope to reach 90 per cent of eligible schools by 2016, boosting the Government’s commitment to recruit more top teachers throughout England, including in more rural, coastal and disadvantaged areas. We are continuing to increase the proportion of initial teacher training that is led by schools, and our School Direct programme is giving more head teachers the ability to select, train and employ the teachers they need in their local areas.

    The pay reforms that we have introduced since September 2013 give schools greater autonomy and more freedom to decide how much they pay teachers and how quickly pay progresses. Schools may also choose to use their pupil premium funding to attract or retain the best teachers. This increased flexibility gives schools in disadvantaged areas more scope to attract and recruit the high quality teachers that they need to deliver outstanding education in the most challenging circumstances.

  • Chi Onwurah – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Chi Onwurah – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chi Onwurah on 2016-02-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment he has made of whether current arrangements for listed building status take account of potential measures that can be taken to improve the energy efficiency of data centres.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    Listed buildings are designated by the Secretary of State on the basis of their special architectural and historic interest. Other factors – including their energy efficiency – can be considered through the process of seeking listed building consent (LBC) prior to the alteration, extension or demolition of such buildings. Requests for LBC are determined by the relevant local planning authority.

  • Catherine McKinnell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Catherine McKinnell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine McKinnell on 2016-03-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential effect of the decision not to make personal, social, health and economic education statutory on the ability of schools to teach that subject.

    Edward Timpson

    This Government wants to provide all young people with a curriculum for life, which prepares them to succeed in modern Britain. High quality teaching of PSHE is central to this.

    The Secretary of State wrote to the ESC in February 2016 stating that the Department will continue to keep the status of PSHE in the curriculum under review.

    We have asked leading head teachers and practitioners to produce an action plan for improving PSHE. We will work with these experts to identify further action we can take to ensure that all pupils receive high quality, age appropriate PSHE and SRE.

  • Tom Brake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Tom Brake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Brake on 2016-04-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions the British Ambassador in Egypt has had with the Egyptian authorities on the planned asset freeze trial in Egypt which could affect the activities of non-governmental organisations working in that country.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    We are deeply concerned by growing restrictions on civil society in Egypt, including a proposed asset freeze against investigative journalist Hossam Bahgat and human rights defender Gamal Eid. The British Embassy in Cairo has been following the proposed asset freeze closely. Representatives of the British Embassy in Cairo observed the most recent hearing in the asset freeze trial on 24 March. The Ambassador raised concerns over restrictions on civil society with the Minister of Health and with senior officials at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in February 2016.

  • David Mackintosh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    David Mackintosh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Mackintosh on 2016-05-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if his Department will make representations to the Advertising Standards Authority to change the guidelines for broadband speed advertisements to increase the proportion of broadband customers who must reach the stated speed on their internet connection.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    The Minister for Culture and the Digital Economy has met and written to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), encouraging it to strengthen its rules on broadband speed claims in advertising. We consider that the proportion of customers who can receive the headline speed should be higher than their guidelines stipulate (10%) and have asked to ASA to examine this.