The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-06-06.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the number of incidents of drunkenness on aeroplanes in each of the last five years.
Mr Robert Goodwill
The Government does not collect specific data on the frequency of incidents involving drunk passengers on aircraft. As such, no estimates have been made.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Danny Kinahan on 2016-09-02.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he is taking to improve the life chances of people with disabilities.
Penny Mordaunt
The Government is committed to improving the life chances of disabled people and has made a commitment to halve the employment gap between disabled and non-disabled people.
The Government is working with employers through Disability Confident to challenge attitudes towards disability and ensure that disabled people have the opportunities to fulfil their potential and realise their aspirations. Since 2013 the number of disabled people in work has increased by almost half a million (493,000). Nearly 3.4 million disabled people are now in employment.
Access to Work provides practical and financial support with the additional costs faced by individuals whose heath or disability affects the way they do their job. 36,470 individuals were helped by Access to Work in the 2015/16 including record numbers of people with learning disabilities, mental health conditions and young people. Last year’s Spending review announced a real-terms increase in funding for access to work starting in 16/17 to enable the scheme to help a further 25,000 people by the end of the parliament.
Work Choice is a voluntary contracted specialist disability employment programme introduced in 2010 and helps people with disabilities whose needs cannot be met through other employment programmes, Access to Work or workplace adjustments. It provides individually tailored support (e.g. job search skills, basic training, and work placements) for disabled people who face the most complex employment barriers to find and stay in work.
Later this year, we will produce a Green Paper exploring a range of options to close the disability employment gap and transform the lives and prospects of disabled people, and conduct a consultation which will reach out to disabled people and their representative organisations.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nigel Evans on 2016-10-10.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the effect on the employment of the introduction of tax on soft drinks.
Jane Ellison
The Government is consulting on the detail of the Soft Drinks Industry Levy (SDIL). An initial impact assessment has been published alongside the consultation document.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2015-10-29.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to encourage retailers to reduce the amount of food waste they produce; and if she will make a statement.
Rory Stewart
Through the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP), the Government is working with food manufacturers and retailers to meet targets to reduce food and packaging waste from the grocery supply chain under the Courtauld Commitment.
Signatories reported a reduction of 7.4% in supply chain waste between 2009 and 2012 under Courtauld 2. Interim results for Courtauld 3 show signatories reported a further 3.2% reduction by 2014 against the overall target of a 3% reduction by the end of 2015.
WRAP is currently brokering a new agreement, Courtauld 2025, which will build on this progress and is expected to start in 2016.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Carswell on 2015-11-26.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 24 November 2015 to Question 17025, what plans he has to increase the borrowing and investing powers of clinical commissioning groups to ensure that employment terms and conditions for GPs encourage employment in areas with (a) an elderly demographic and (b) a high workload.
Alistair Burt
There are no current plans to increase the borrowing and investing powers of clinical commissioning groups. Responsibility for ensuring all patients have access to NHS primary medical services rests with NHS England.
Those providing services under a contract with NHS England, or clinical commissioning groups acting on their behalf, are independent contractors and not employees of the NHS.
Practices may employ general practitioners to assist them in the provision of services under the contract. Where they do so, they are required to apply, as a minimum, model terms and conditions of service as agreed between NHS Employers and the General Practitioners’ Committee of the British Medical Association.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Cheryl Gillan on 2016-01-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many staff have transferred from another government department to HS2 Ltd in each year since HS2 Ltd was formed; and from what Departments those staff transferred.
Mr Robert Goodwill
HS2 Ltd do not hold a record of organisations from which employees are hired. However, there are 3 staff known to HS2 Ltd that have transferred during the last two years from Department for Transport, one from the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and one from the Cabinet Office.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Mc Nally on 2016-02-02.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to improve access to specialist psychology support for people with muscle-wasting conditions.
Jane Ellison
With regards to the National Health Service in Scotland, as healthcare is a devolved issue, the Department cannot comment.
NHS England commissions specialised neurological services at a national level, including those with muscle-wasting conditions. The neurosciences service specification sets out what designated specialised providers must have in place to offer evidence-based, safe and effective care. Patients should have access to a multidisciplinary team (MDT) to assess, diagnose and provide support. The MDT will include neuromuscular consultants, neuromuscular physiotherapists, psychologists, specialist nurses, occupational therapists, speech and language therapists and other health professionals.
The specification further sets out that neuromuscular clinics need to identify those at risk of respiratory problems and refer for specialist respiratory assessment and monitoring.
The specification can be found at the following link:
www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/d04-neurosci-spec-neuro.pdf
A separate specification covers services for children.
www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/e09-paedi-neurology.pdf
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2016-02-23.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 29 January 2016 to Questions 24490 and 24491, when her Department expects to have made a decision on whether to grant the right of abode to former British-Hong Kong servicemen.
James Brokenshire
The assessment of the request by former members of the Hong Kong Military Service Corps that they be granted right of abode in the UK is on-going, including discussions at official level with other government departments and a review of archived material on the schemes established between 1990 and 1997. A decision will be made as soon as practicable
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mary Creagh on 2016-03-22.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to encourage LGBTI refugees in Lebanon to apply for resettlement in the UK.
Richard Harrington
We are clear that our scheme will prioritise the most vulnerable refugees, and that is why under the VPR scheme the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) identifies refugees for resettlement using its established vulnerability criteria. These include persons at risk due to their sexual orientation or gender identity.
We are working with UNHCR and other partners to intensify their outreach to groups that might otherwise be reluctant to register for fear of stigma/discrimination and unaware of the safe space and options available to them. This includes all religious minorities, LGBTI, people with disabilities, survivors of torture and sexual violence and others.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sue Hayman on 2016-04-21.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the effect on farmers of late payments under the Basic Payment Scheme by the Rural Payments Agency.
George Eustice
We understand the importance of the Basic Payment Scheme payments to farmers. As of 21 April the Rural Payments Agency had completed the processing of 77,840 claims for 2015. Although the payment window runs from 1 December 2015 to the 30 June 2016, the Agency has announced that those customers who won’t receive a claim payment in April 2016 will be provided a bridging payment. Bridging payments will be made by the end of April.