The below Parliamentary question was asked by Wayne David on 2015-12-11.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how much will be spent from the public purse on Christmas parties (a) in each prison and (b) across the prison estate in 2015.
Andrew Selous
There will be no Christmas parties held in any prison across the prison estate in 2015.
There are no public funds or opportunities provided to facilitate Christmas parties for prisoners.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Burrowes on 2016-01-21.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will request the government of Burma to release former monk U Gambira from custody.
Mr Hugo Swire
We are aware of the arrest of U Gambira, a well known political activist and former political prisoner, on 19 January, for alleged immigration offences. Our Embassy in Rangoon is following the case closely. The UK regularly raises our concern over political prisoners with the government of Burma, both publicly and privately. Most recently our Embassy in Rangoon issued a statement on 25 January calling for the government of Burma to ensure that all remaining political prisoners are released. We remain concerned that some 78 remain incarcerated, and will continue to raise this with the Burmese authorities.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-02-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will establish a regulatory body to enforce the School Admissions Code.
Nick Gibb
It is the role of the Schools Adjudicator to determine whether school admission arrangements comply with the School Admissions Code. Where they do not, the school’s admission authority is required to revise the arrangements.
Currently, anyone who believes a school’s admission arrangements may not comply with the Code may refer them to the Adjudicator. We propose that, in future, only local parents and local authorities should be able to do so. We want to ensure that the Adjudicator is able to focus on the concerns that parents may have about their local school’s admission arrangements. We will be conducting a full public consultation in due course.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2016-03-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will bring forward proposals to require supermarkets to donate unsold food to charities.
Rory Stewart
The Government welcomes the redistribution of good quality surplus food to charities that can make sure it goes to people rather than going to waste.
Based on our experience, a simple law would not fix the barriers to redistribution. We need to look at the bigger picture. The retail sector is responsible for 210,000 tonnes of the total 4.1m tonnes of food waste in the food and drink supply chain, so we need the whole chain to work together.
Instead, we favour a voluntary approach. Signatories to the voluntary Courtauld Commitment with industry have reported a 74% increase between 2012 and end 2014, and we expect it to increase further.
We expect the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) to launch a new agreement, Courtauld 2025, later this month. The new agreement will take a whole food supply chain approach, and will build on the progress we have already made.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Anna Turley on 2016-04-20.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what research his Department has commissioned on the causes and consequences of neural tube defect-affected pregnancies.
George Freeman
The Department has not recently commissioned specific research on the causes and consequences of neural tube defect-affected pregnancies.
The Department funds the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR). A pilot randomised controlled trial led by researchers at the NIHR Biomedical Research Centre at Great Ormond Street Hospital and University College London suggests that women at risk of having children with neural tube defects may be able to reduce this risk by taking inositol (Vitamin B8) as well as folic acid during pregnancy. The findings were published in February in the British Journal of Nutrition.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chi Onwurah on 2016-05-23.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what data has been shared between Google DeepMind and the NHS; what plans there are for further data sharing under that partnership; and if he will make a statement.
George Freeman
In law, individual organisations providing National Health Service care are the legal data controllers for the information that they hold, and need to take the necessary action to prevent data from being accessed inappropriately. In addition, the proper use of informatics in medical research, diagnostics, treatment and condition management is central to the NHS’s ability to deliver safe and high quality patient care. There are national standards and protocols for monitoring and maintaining data security across the NHS.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Smith of Hindhead on 2016-07-18.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what progress has been made in setting a date for the Triennial Review of gaming machine stakes and prizes.
Lord Ashton of Hyde
As previously stated in the House of Commons, Government is reviewing the situation and we hope to announce details of a review in due course.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Phil Boswell on 2016-10-10.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what qualifications and experience are expected of personal independence payment assessors who handle cases in which an individual suffers from a neurological condition for which symptoms may present sporadically; and what processes are in place for claimants who consider the result of an assessment an unfair representation of their condition.
Penny Mordaunt
All Health Professionals (HPs) undertaking assessments on behalf of DWP must be registered practitioners who have also met requirements around training, experience and competence. Approval to work as an HP must be conferred by the DWP Chief Medical Adviser on behalf of the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions.
For the delivery of Personal Independence Payment (PIP) assessments, they must be an occupational therapist, level 1 nurse, physiotherapist, paramedic or doctor. They must also be fully registered and have at least two years’ post full-registration experience. In addition to their profession, the Department recognises the importance of ensuring that individuals also have sufficient experience, skills and training to carry out their duties and PIP providers are required to ensure that the HPs carrying out assessments have knowledge of the clinical aspects and likely functional effects of a wide range of health conditions and impairments.
This means that all HPs receive comprehensive training in disability analysis which includes a functional evaluation as to how medical conditions and the long-term medical treatment of those conditions affect an individual’s ability to perform day-to-day activities. Prior to carrying out an assessment the HP routinely refreshes their knowledge of any condition with which they are not fully familiar.
Claimants who consider the result of an assessment to be an inaccurate representation of their condition can ask for a “mandatory reconsideration”, in writing or by telephone, giving their reasons. They may include further information to support their case.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dan Jarvis on 2015-11-18.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, for what reasons the triple lock on pensions does not apply to disability war pensions.
Mark Lancaster
Compensation payments under the War Pensions Scheme are uprated annually in line with the Consumer Price Index (CPI) figure. This is the same measure the Department for Work and Pensions uses for uprating social security disability benefits and is in keeping with other public service schemes. Our approach ensures consistency with the measure of inflation used by the Bank of England.
The triple lock applies only to the State Pension. Members of the Armed Forces will therefore benefit from the triple lock once they reach State Pension age.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tulip Siddiq on 2015-12-11.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many times claimants of working age on unemployment benefits have been interviewed under caution by staff of his Department in each of the last five years.
Priti Patel
We do not hold official statistics to the National Statistical Authority and so we are unable to provide this information.