Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Emily Thornberry – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Emily Thornberry – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2015-11-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether participants in Daily Work Search Review under the Help to Work scheme are set quotas for completing a minimum number of job applications.

    Priti Patel

    Under Daily Work Search Review claimants need to provide evidence of their work search activity on a daily basis. Their Claimant Commitment will specify their work search activity requirements which can be up to 35 hours a week. The Claimant Commitment is tailored to claimants’ individual circumstances.

  • Maria Caulfield – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Maria Caulfield – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Maria Caulfield on 2016-01-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what plans he has to respond to the report of the Independent Cancer Taskforce; and what the timetable is for implementation of the recommendations of that report.

    Jane Ellison

    The independent Cancer Taskforce’s five-year strategy for cancer, Achieving World-Class Cancer Outcomes, published in July 2015, recommends improvements across the cancer pathway with the aim of improving survival rates. NHS England has appointed Cally Palmer as NHS National Cancer Director. She will lead on the implementation of the strategy, as well as new cancer vanguards to redesign care and patient experience.

    She is currently setting up a new Cancer Transformation Board to lead the roll-out of the recommendations of the new strategy, and a Cancer Advisory Group, chaired by Dr Harpal Kumar, Chief Executive of Cancer Research UK, will oversee and scrutinise their work. Timeframes and phasing for implementation will be dependent on the final financial settlement reached as a result of the spending review.

    We announced in September 2015 that Health Education England (HEE) is developing a new national training programme for an additional 200 staff to get the skills and expertise to carry out endoscopies by 2018. The content of the next mandate from the Government to HEE is currently being determined.

    A commitment to whole-person care for patients, including those living with and beyond cancer, is embedded throughout the cancer taskforce report. In addition, the cancer vanguards have been established to explore new models of care, with a focus on delivering more person-centred care.

    Ensuring the National Health Service is able to support the availability and use of effective treatments and medicines for rare cancers is a key priority. Cancer 52, an organisation which specifically represents patients with rarer cancers, was represented on the independent Cancer Taskforce. The Taskforce’s report made many recommendations relevant to rarer cancers, focussing in particular on improving access to diagnostic testing, including fast, direct general practitioner access to key blood tests, and increasing patient access to the most advanced treatments.

  • Tim Loughton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Tim Loughton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Loughton on 2016-01-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when she plans to publish her review of children’s centres; and for what reasons that review was not published in 2015.

    Mr Sam Gyimah

    We value children’s centres services. We are committed to consulting on the role of children’s centres in 2016. Details about the scope and timing of the consultation will be made available in due course and will be publicised widely to ensure the broadest possible response.

  • 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 2016-02-22.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether he or Ofcom have made an assessment or hold information on the proportion of BT’s ducts that were able to have fibre blown through them without further civil works in the superfast broadband rollout.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    BT and other suppliers with funding from BDUK are obliged to provide wholesale access to all new ducts and poles built using public subsidy, in line with the requirements of the BDUK European State aid approval.

    Ofcom has not conducted an assessment of the proportion of ducts that were able to have fibre blown through them without further civil works in the subsequent superfast broadband rollout. Ofcom does not hold any other information on the proportion of BT’s ducts that were able to have fibre blown through them without further civil works.

  • Maria Eagle – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Maria Eagle – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Maria Eagle on 2016-03-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate his Department has made of the potential additional revenue that would be generated for the BBC by extending the licence fee to include viewing content on iPlayer.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    The Government is currently working with the BBC to come to an agreed estimate of the likely revenue impact. These measures are being introduced to ensure that payment of the licence fee is fair for the public and that those who enjoy BBC content pay the licence fee accordingly.

  • Lord Touhig – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Lord Touhig – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Touhig on 2016-04-14.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the annual operating cost of the Welbeck Defence Sixth Form College.

    Earl Howe

    The annual operating cost for the Welbeck Defence Sixth Form College for academic year 1 September 2015 to 31 August 2016 is £14,532,603.

  • Richard Fuller – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Richard Fuller – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Fuller on 2016-05-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if his Department will bring forward legislative proposals to apply provisions equivalent to those of the British Sign Language (Scotland) Act 2015 to England.

    Justin Tomlinson

    The Government currently has no plans to bring forward legislative proposals to apply provisions equivalent to those of the British Sign Language (Scotland) Act 2015 to England.

    Last year the Minister for Disabled People published a written statement announcing that DWP would lead a Market Review of British Sign Language (BSL) interpreting provision, which would engage with Deaf people and stakeholder groups to examine opportunities that could strengthen and improve the market in the long term.

    The Call for Evidence for this review opened in January 2016 and closed in March 2016. We received hundreds of comprehensive submissions of evidence, which we are currently analysing.

  • Kevan Jones – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Kevan Jones – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevan Jones on 2016-07-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps is he taking to ensure that the General Purpose Frigate programme leverages the wider supply chain built up for the Queen Elizabeth-class carrier programme and takes advantage of skills in design, engineering, manufacturing, integration, and assurance resident outside BAE Systems.

    Harriett Baldwin

    We have begun the initial pre-concept work to take forward the new General Purpose Frigate (GPFF) programme outlined in the White Paper ‘National Security Strategy and Strategic Defence and Security Review 2015’. The work is in the very early stages and it is too early to say what either the build strategy or the detailed supply chain arrangements may be.

    In addition, as part of his work leading the National Shipbuilding Strategy, Sir John Parker will be considering how to balance the GPFF requirement against export opportunities and industrial capacity.

  • Stephen Gethins – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Stephen Gethins – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Gethins on 2016-10-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether the Government plans to maintain the Assisted Voluntary Returns schemes after 2020.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    The Assisted Voluntary Returns Service was integrated into the Home Office Voluntary Returns Service (VRS) on 1st January 2016 and provides a range of help and support to those who are here illegally and are seeking to leave the UK voluntarily. The Home Office envisages that the VRS will continue beyond 2020.

  • Luciana Berger – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Luciana Berger – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2015-11-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what proportion of jobcentres have a private room in which Improving Access to Psychological Therapies services can take place.

    Priti Patel

    The Budget 2015 provided £15 million over three years to co-locate Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) services in Jobcentres. We are looking to test co-location of IAPT services in two phases in 2015-2018. Within the first phase Canterbury Jobcentre is hosting their local IAPT service within private rooms on site. The second phase will test co-location of IAPT in a wider number of Jobcentres, which have yet to be selected. Some Jobcentres are independently building relationships with their local IAPT services under Freedom and Flexibilities.