Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Lord Greaves – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lord Greaves – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Greaves on 2015-10-29.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the case for the introduction of a 50 mile per hour speed limit on single-carriageway rural roads, and whether they plan to consult on such a proposal.

    Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

    There are no plans to decrease the speed limit to 50 mph on single carriageway rural roads.

    The Department for Transport has provided guidance to traffic authorities in the Speed Limit Circular 01/2013 – Setting Local Speed Limits. This encourages traffic authorities to keep speed limits under review, and to consider lower speed limits than the default, especially where there may be a relatively high number of bends, junctions or accesses.

  • Kevan Jones – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Kevan Jones – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevan Jones on 2015-11-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how much his Department plans to spend on specialist kidnap negotiation and hostage rescue capabilities in British consulates in the next 12 months.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    The Government’s response to overseas hostage taking brings together skills and capabilities across a range of Departments. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) is the lead Department where British nationals are kidnapped by a terrorist group. Expenditure can be dependent on factors including the number of incidents. In the current Financial Year the FCO will spend around £253,000 on specialist hostage negotiation capability, and on training for the staff in the FCO and our global network who coordinate the Government’s response to the kidnap of British nationals overseas. This training programme ensures our overseas network is prepared to respond effectively when British nationals are taken hostage by terrorists. The FCO’s exact expenditure on kidnap response in the year ahead will depend in part on the number of live cases, but is likely to be of a similar magnitude.

  • Poulter – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Poulter – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Poulter on 2016-01-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 1 December 2015 to Question 17889, whether all current junior doctors will receive an 11 per cent pay rise after (a) basic pay and (b) all other rates of pay have been taken into consideration under the proposed new contract.

    Ben Gummer

    Under the terms of the November 2015 offer, the current system where junior doctors are paid broad banding supplements to cover extra hours worked, unsocial hours and on call would be replaced by a contract paying doctors for all hours worked with premium rates for unsocial hours and supplements for on call. As part of this, basic pay would increase by 11%. With the addition of transition protection, the offer is an improvement on the pay structure developed whilst the hon. Gentleman was a Minister.

  • Pauline Latham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Pauline Latham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Pauline Latham on 2016-02-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many public relations and communications staff have been hired directly by the NHS in each of the last five years.

    Alistair Burt

    The Department does not hold the requested information.

  • Jim Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Jim Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-02-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many grants of what value were made by his Department for meningitis research programmes in each of the last five years.

    George Freeman

    Since 2011, the Department’s National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) has made the following awards through its research programmes and fellowship schemes for research relating to meningitis:

    – Impact of conjugate vaccination on population immunity to pneumococcal and meningococcal disease in England: immunosero-epidemiological analysis (£605,843; 2013-15); and

    – Improving the diagnosis of meningitis in adults in the United Kingdom (£415,242; 2013-16).

    In addition, the NIHR funds research relating to meningitis through:

    – the NIHR Clinical Research Network;

    – NIHR Biomedical Research Centres;

    – NIHR Clinical Research Facilities for Experimental Medicine; and

    – Health Protection Research Units.

    Since 2011, the Department’s Policy Research Programme has made the following award for research relating to meningitis:

    – Characterisation of meningococcal carriage isolates from UK MenCar4 study (£199,990; 2016-17).

  • David Amess – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    David Amess – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Amess on 2016-03-22.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment his Department has made of whether his target of implementing opt-out testing for blood-borne viruses in every adult prison in England by the end of financial year 2016-17 will be met.

    Ben Gummer

    The blood-borne virus (BBV) opt-out testing programme for people in prisons in England is a shared priority for Public Health England (PHE), NHS England and the National Offender Management Service. Programme implementation is overseen by a ‘tripartite’ Task-and-Finish Group which includes third sector and patient voice representation. The roll-out of the programme is informed by phased implementation and evaluation of ‘pathfinder prisons’ over three phases. Phase 1 began on 1 April 2014 and the formal evaluation was published on May 21 2015. Phase 2 pathfinder prisons began implementation from April 2015, with Phase 3 Pathfinders implementing from September 2015. BBV opt-out testing is not limited to only those prisons formally in the pathfinder programme.

    NHS England estimates that currently 60% of the adult prison estate in England are offering opt-out testing and are confident that the target of implementation in every adult prison in England will be achieved by the end of the financial year 2016-17.

  • Paul Flynn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Paul Flynn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Flynn on 2016-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether the UK Ambassador to Panama has held any meetings with representatives of the firm Mossack Fonseca since May 2010.

    Mr Hugo Swire

    No

  • Lord Myners – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Lord Myners – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Myners on 2016-05-09.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the BHS pension fund has now transferred to the Pension Protection Fund (PPF) or whether the owner, former owner, or secured creditors are still able to make a financial contribution to obviate a need to transfer the fund to the PPF.

    Baroness Altmann

    The BHS pension schemes are in Pension Protection Fund (PPF) assessment periods. During this period the schemes are able to accept contributions from the sponsoring employer to cover its debts to the schemes. They are also able to receive recoveries as a creditor or through the use of the Regulator’s powers. If the scheme assets are shown to be sufficient to buy its members annuities at least as good as the compensation paid by the PPF, the scheme will not transfer into the PPF.

  • Justin Madders – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Justin Madders – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Justin Madders on 2016-06-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what guidance (a) his Department and (b) NHS England have provided to Sustainability and Transformation footprint teams on involving university providers in the development of Sustainability and Transformation Plans.

    George Freeman

    It is appreciated that we cannot achieve the transformation required without the active engagement of the organisations, clinicians and staff who actually deliver it, nor can we develop care integrated around the needs of patients and users without understanding what our communities want and without our partners in local government. Local areas are responsible for ensuring engagement with the most relevant organisations which may include university providers. From a workforce perspective, Health Education England are working across arm’s length bodies with Sustainability and Transformation Plan (STP) leads to ensure workforce and training requirements are considered through the STP process.

  • Angela Eagle – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Angela Eagle – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Angela Eagle on 2016-09-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress has been made on the review of the Mersey tunnel tolls.

    Andrew Jones

    The Review of the Mersey Tunnel Tolls is being undertaken by the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority. I welcome the decision taken at its February meeting to reduce the cost of tolls to Fast Tag users. This was implemented from the 1st April this year, bringing significant benefits to local people. The Combined Authority is continuing its Review of tolls, to ensure that a sustainable long term position can be reached. I understand that an update report is due to be presented to the Authority this Autumn.