Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Gregory Campbell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Gregory Campbell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gregory Campbell on 2016-10-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the Answer of 7 March 2016 to Question 29379, whether she has had discussions with sporting bodies in the last six months on reducing instances of corruption in sport.

    Tracey Crouch

    The Government hosted an international anti-corruption summit in May this year where tackling corruption in sport was a central feature. In the lead-up to, and at the Summit, the Government was, and continues to be, in discussion with a range of sporting bodies, such as the International Olympic Committee, the International Paralympic Committee and the World Anti-Doping Agency on this matter.

    The communique published following the Summit can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/anti-corruption-summit-communique.

    “

  • David Crausby – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    David Crausby – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Crausby on 2015-11-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the projected transport budget per capita in Greater Manchester after the devolution agreement comes into effect.

    Andrew Jones

    Government committed to provide Greater Manchester with a devolved, multi-year transport funding settlement in their Devolution Deal which was agreed in November 2014. The transport funding to be devolved to Greater Manchester will be agreed as part of the Spending Review to be announced later this month.

  • Lord Oates – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Oates – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Oates on 2015-12-07.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made to the government of Zimbabwe regarding the disappearance of Itai Dzamara.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The British Government has been following this case closely since Itai Dzamara’s abduction in March 2015. Together with EU Member States, we have repeatedly called on the Government of Zimbabwe to undertake a full investigation. The EU issued a local statement on 11 September expressing deep concern about Itai Dzamara’s welfare. We continue to urge the Zimbabwean authorities to do everything they can to enable him to recover his freedom, and to respect their legal obligation to report on the progress of the investigation. The EU Delegation is in contact with Mr Dzamara’s family.

  • Chris Law – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Chris Law – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Law on 2016-01-18.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the cost of implementing HM Revenue and Customs’ Location Strategy over the next 10 years.

    Mr David Gauke

    HM Revenue and Customs’ (HMRC) Location Programme is the result of an extended period of consultation and deliberation. The Department has taken account of a number of criteria in reaching its decisions, including the quality of local transport links, the local labour market and future workforce supply, the cost of buildings and asset value, and the need to retain the staff and skills it needs to continue its transformation. These changes will reduce HMRC’s estates costs by around £100 million a year by 2025.

    HMRC’s modelling estimates that the majority of staff in Scotland live within Reasonable Daily Travel of Glasgow or Edinburgh. Reasonable Daily Travel is calculated in line with established HR policies and procedures. Every worker at HMRC will have a one-to-one meeting with their manager to discuss their individual circumstances.

    HMRC conducted high level People Impact and Equality Assessments to inform its planning. The Department plans to update these once discussions have been held with its staff.

    Activities of trade union representatives are governed by long-standing agreements with departments.

  • Gavin Newlands – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Gavin Newlands – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gavin Newlands on 2016-02-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how his Department regulates the activities of debt collection agencies during the period that they are under contract with his Department.

    Justin Tomlinson

    The Department’s policy is to recover outstanding debt whenever possible. Where a person is not in receipt of benefit and all the Department’s attempts at recovery have been unsuccessful, the overpayment will be referred to a debt collection agency. The debtor is always given an opportunity to make an agreement to pay the Department before the debt is sent to a debt collection agency to recover.

    With the exception of one service provider currently being used by the Child Maintenance Group, the Department does not hold extant, direct contracts with any debt collection agencies although the nature of some of the expired contracts means that a number of collections are still being made. DWP now makes use of one main contract with Indesser. The Framework Contract is managed by Cabinet Office. Indesser manage relationships with a number of Debt Collection Agencies on behalf of all Government Customers.

    Under the terms of the Framework Agreement, Indesser and its sub-contractors must comply with relevant industry and public sector standards for service delivery including those of the Credit Services Association, the Code of Practice and the Financial Conduct Authority guidelines. The standards are listed in the DMI Framework Agreement. Indesser reviews subcontractor compliance with these standards through audit and assurance activity, including responsibility for ensuring that they comply with relevant industry standards, managing their performance, and monitoring any complaints. Customer departments (i.e. DWP) in turn receive Letters of Assurance which they review to ensure standards are being achieved and the audits are effective.

    The breakdown of figures you have requested is derived from operational processes and systems designed solely for the purpose of helping the Department to manage its business. As it was not originally intended for publication, it has not been subjected to the rigorous quality assurance checks applied to our published official statistics.

    The debt collection agency costs of the Child Maintenance Group and DWP are given separately. Please note that the figures are rounded to the nearest £10,000.

    The cost to the DWP of the debt collection agencies, and the related recovery made by them, is as follows:

    Financial Year

    Spend

    Recoveries

    2009/2010

    £1.59m

    £8.50m

    2010/2011

    £1.33m

    £9.77m

    2011/2012

    £2.11m

    £13.94m

    2012/2013

    £1.95m

    £14.15m

    2013/2014

    £2.12m

    £15.00m

    2014/2015

    £2.52m

    £17.30m

    2015/2016*

    £1.64m

    £11.05m

    *to date

    The cost to Child Maintenance Group of the debt collection agencies, and the related recovery made by them, is as follows:

    Financial Year

    Spend

    Recoveries

    2009/2010

    £1.25m

    £10.20m

    2010/2011

    £0.56m

    £4.68m

    2011/2012

    £0.35m

    £1.35m

    2012/2013

    £0.21m

    £1.71m

    2013/2014

    £0.05m

    £1.21m

    2014/2015

    £0.10m

    £0.86m

    2015/2016 to date

    £0.07m

    £0.53m

  • Tristram Hunt – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Tristram Hunt – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tristram Hunt on 2016-03-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 29 February 2016 to Question 28207, how many and which local authorities have notified her Department about plans to dispose of grant-funded assets through the (a) sale, (b) transfer and (c) change of use of children’s centres.

    Mr Sam Gyimah

    The decision whether to dispose of grant funded assets is a local issue. We have a thorough process in place to consider whether the local authority should be subject to claw back as a result of the disposal of grant funded assets which was outlined in the response to Question 28207.

  • Anne Main – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Anne Main – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Anne Main on 2016-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much the Government has contributed to the Your first EURES job scheme; how many vacancies have been filled under that scheme in the UK since 2012; and how many UK workers have found work in the EU under that scheme.

    Mr Shailesh Vara

    The UK Government has not contributed any financial resources to the Your First EURES Job project. As this project is led by the EU Commission, the UK Government does not collect or hold information relating to the number of EU job seekers that have found jobs in the UK, or the number of UK jobseekers that have found work elsewhere in the EU through Your First EURES Job.

  • Ruth Cadbury – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Ruth Cadbury – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ruth Cadbury on 2016-05-03.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, for what reasons her Department acquired the land for the new Nishkam School site in West London before planning permission for that school was granted; and whether the valuation of that land was based on an assumption that planning permission would be granted.

    Edward Timpson

    The Syon Lane site was acquired by the Department for Communities and Local Government on behalf of the Education Funding Agency (EFA) as a permanent site for Nishkam School West London. When full, the school will provide 1,400 places for local children.

    Where possible, sites for new free schools are secured with exchange subject to planning approval. The decision to proceed with the purchase was taken following confirmation from Hounslow Local Planning Authority that the proposal to develop a school on the site would be consistent with local planning policies, so an argument could be made for such a development.

    The land valuation undertaken to inform the purchase took account of its designation as Metropolitan Open Land and an estimation of the value of the land should its planning status change to permit the construction of a school building.

  • Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-06-15.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what powers she has to prevent multi-academy trusts from expanding faster than their capacity to maintain a strong record on school improvement.

    Edward Timpson

    Regional Schools Commissioners (RSCs) take decisions in the name of the Secretary of State. RSCs are responsible for intervening where there is underperformance and for the creation of new academies.

    When schools are converting to academy status as part of a Multi Academy Trust (MAT) or joining an existing MAT, it is the RSC’s role to decide whether to approve or decline the application. The RSC, supported by their headteacher board, will want to be assured that the governance and leadership of the MAT is clear and robust; and that the MAT has the capacity to drive improvement across all schools within it.

    The RSC will reassess MATs at key milestones throughout the academic year (such as following exam results) and at key stages of their growth to consider their capacity to support and enable the academies within their MAT to improve.

    This information is publically available and can be found in the RSC decision-making framework on GOV.UK at: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/517565/RSC-Decision-Making-Framework.pdf

    “

  • Helen Goodman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Helen Goodman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Helen Goodman on 2016-09-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what child protection steps have been taken to prevent self-employed adults with violent or sexual convictions providing extracurricular activities for children when no governing body exists for that sport or activity.

    Edward Timpson

    Schools are aware of their responsibilities in ensuring that any self-employed individual who is providing extra-curricular classes or sessions on their behalf has been subject to the necessary and appropriate checks, which could include checking individual status with the relevant sports or activity governing body.

    If those checks reveal convictions for violence the school will then determine the appropriateness or otherwise of allowing that individual to continue to provide classes or sessions.