Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Luciana Berger – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Luciana Berger – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2016-01-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, with reference to the Prime Minister’s announcement of 11 January 2016, how much of the proposed £1.4 billion mental health support funding for young people over the next five years has already been allocated.

    Alistair Burt

    The Government has committed to making available the full £1.4 billion over the course of this Parliament to improve children and young people’s mental health.

    In this financial year (2015/16), the Government has already allocated £173 million. This includes:

    – £75 million for clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) to improve local services;

    – £30 million to CCGs to develop evidence based community eating disorder services for children and young people;

    – £28 million to fund the expansion of the Children and Young People’s Improving Access to Psychological Therapies Programme;

    – £15 million for improvements to perinatal mental health care; and

    – £25 million for investment in inpatient services for children and young people, to build workforce capability, and to support innovation and development of online support.

    A targeted and phased approach to the additional investment over future years will enable local areas to develop additional capacity and a collaborative approach across health, education and children’s services so that the money can be spent effectively. This is what is needed to make a real difference. The Government remains committed to spend the whole £1.4 billion over the course of this Parliament to improve children and young people’s mental health.

  • 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 2016-02-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what estimate they have made of the speed at which reservists will be able to fill front-line combat roles.

    Earl Howe

    Volunteer Reservists (VR) on the trained strength (26,560 as at 1 December 2015) are required to respond to a mobilisation call-out at 28 days’ notice and may then carry out additional training for an operation. The length of time required for this training will depend on the complexity of the operation, which may require familiarisation training on equipment which they will be required to operate, and procedural training to prepare for the environment they will encounter. Further preparations may be required, such as vaccinations, which depend on the environment of the operation and which will affect the length of time between mobilisation and deployment.

    For a medium scale intervention operation we would expect the period between mobilisation and deployment for VR to be around 180 days. However, the use of intelligent mobilisation means that willing and available VR are routinely mobilised in around 90 days for specific tasks and this can be significantly shortened in some circumstances.

    No estimate has been made of the number of Reservists who would be able to serve at short notice in the event of a major conflict.

  • John Mc Nally – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    John Mc Nally – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Mc Nally on 2016-02-29.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, pursuant to the Answer of 30 November 2015 to Question 17357, when in 2016 he plans to introduce the new reporting requirement to report on payment practices and performance.

    Anna Soubry

    The reporting requirement will come into force later this year. Further information on timings will be published in due course.

  • Richard Burden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Richard Burden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-03-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps he is taking to improve national minimum wage enforcement in the shipping industry.

    Nick Boles

    The application of the National Minimum Wage (NMW) for seafarers continues to be considered by the cross-Government working group which is reviewing the implementation of the Equality Act 2010 (Work on Ships and Hovercraft) Regulations 2011.

    The Government is working with key stakeholders through this working group to agree and finalise revised guidance on the NMW for seafarers which will be published in spring 2016.

    The Government is committed to ensuring that everyone who is entitled to receive the NMW does so, and we have committed to increasing the enforcement budget again this year in order to secure that aim. HM Revenue and Customs will investigate all NMW complaints from workers.

  • Margaret Ritchie – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Margaret Ritchie – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Margaret Ritchie on 2016-04-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, on what grounds emergency applications for the use of neonicotinoid pesticides are granted.

    George Eustice

    Emergency authorisation is a procedure set out in law that allows for authorisation of a product, for a period not exceeding 120 days, for “limited and controlled use, where such a measure appears necessary because of a danger which cannot be contained by any other reasonable means”.

    All applications for emergency authorisation in the UK are decided according to these criteria. In the case of applications relating to restricted neonicotinoids, experts in the Health and Safety Executive and the Expert Committee on Pesticides assess the scientific data to consider the need for the pesticide, the adequacy of the proposed controls and the possible impacts on health and the environment. On the basis of this advice, Ministers will decide whether authorisations can be issued.

  • Rachel Reeves – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Rachel Reeves – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rachel Reeves on 2016-06-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will estimate the cost of providing free school meals to children of people in receipt of universal credit upon the full roll-out of that benefit; and what the cost was of the provision of such free school meals to children of people in receipt of benefits prior to the roll-out of universal credit.

    Mr Sam Gyimah

    We will continue to ensure that children from the poorest families benefit from a free school meal. My Department is continuing to work closely with the Department for Work and Pensions to consider eligibility criteria for free school meals following the introduction of Universal Credit. In the meantime, any child in a family in receipt of Universal Credit will continue to be entitled to free school meals.

  • Dawn Butler – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Dawn Butler – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dawn Butler on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she plans to bring forward legislative proposals to amend or repeal the Hunting Act 2004 during this Parliament.

    Dr Thérèse Coffey

    The Government stands by its manifesto commitment to give Parliament the opportunity to repeal the Hunting Act on a free vote, with a Government Bill in Government time.

  • Stephen Kinnock – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Stephen Kinnock – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Kinnock on 2016-10-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what representations he has received on evidence that was made available to the Government on the dangers of the pregnancy testing drug Primodos in 1967; and what steps he has taken as a result of those representations.

    Nicola Blackwood

    The Government has maintained an ongoing and close dialogue with campaigners over the course of the last eight years, involving face to face meetings and extensive correspondence. As a result of these discussions, the Government committed to an independent review of all the evidence relating to a possible link between hormone pregnancy tests and adverse effects on pregnancy. An ad-hoc Expert Working Group of the Commission on Human Medicines is conducting this review and has so far met on five occasions. It is anticipated that the review will be complete early in 2017, at which time a report of the Group’s findings will be published.

    The Government remains committed to open engagement on this important issue.

  • Anne Main – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Anne Main – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Anne Main on 2015-11-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the outcome was of his Department’s visit to Um-il-Hiran and Ateer; whether he plans to visit that region; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    Officials from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) and our Embassy in Tel Aviv visited three Bedouin communities in the Negev, including Um al Hiran, on 5 August. This visit, arranged through the Negev Coexistence Forum for Civil Equality (NCF), deepened our understanding of the constant risk of demolition faced by both recognised and unrecognised Bedouin villages; the restrictions on construction in even Government-planned Bedouin towns; and the unequal provision of services to communities of different ethnicities in the Negev. We remain concerned about this situation and will continue to work with partner countries, to address the inequalities.

  • Julie Cooper – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Julie Cooper – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julie Cooper on 2015-12-03.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, whether people over the initial postgraduate loan age cap of 30 will be able to apply and receive a postgraduate loan of up to £10,000 for the 2016-17 academic year.

    Joseph Johnson

    The Government is committed to enhancing its support for postgraduate study and wants more people to have the opportunity to build on their academic success through access to a higher level qualification.

    The new Postgraduate Loans for Master’s study are intended to be available for eligible students studying in academic year 2016/17.

    The Government announced on 25 November that the new Postgraduate Loan for Master’s study will be available to individuals up to age 60. Further information is available via the following link:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/postgraduate-study-student-loans-and-other-support

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