Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Paul Monaghan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Paul Monaghan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Monaghan on 2016-05-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will suspend the procurement exercise for the recovery of the FV Louisa pending investigation of the tendering process for that recovery.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    The fishing vessel Louisa sank off the Scottish coast on 9 April 2016. The Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) is seeking to raise the vessel as part of its investigation to establish the causes and circumstances of the accident.

    The Department’s procurement experts have independently reviewed the processes undertaken by the MAIB in awarding the contract to recover the Louisa. It is clear from that review that the MAIB’s evaluation team followed the process as set out in the tender document and in a fair and transparent manner. I am therefore satisfied that there are no grounds for the procurement process to be suspended.

    This sinking resulted in the deaths of three fishermen and the vessel should be recovered as soon as possible to give the investigation team the strongest possibility of understanding the reasons why this tragic accident occurred.

  • Lord Berkeley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Lord Berkeley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Berkeley on 2016-06-27.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government why the Office of National Statistics’ statistical bulletin Population Estimates for UK, England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland: mid-2015 published on 23 June was not subject to purdah before the EU referendum.

    Lord Bridges of Headley

    The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.

  • Andrea Jenkyns – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Andrea Jenkyns – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrea Jenkyns on 2016-09-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many amendments to the proposed junior doctors’ contract the (a) British Medical Association and (b) management side accepted during negotiations on the November 2015 contract offer.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    The British Medical Association (BMA) have made five concessions overall. The management side have made 107 concessions overall. These concessions included a number of substantial shifts of position to meet concerns expressed by the BMA including for instance increasing the additional pay received for working at weekends.

    (a) The BMA made one concession in relation to the November 2015 offer during the initial ACAS talks, before the commencement of negotiations which ended in February 2016 with no agreement. This was to accept a move from incremental progression to a nodal pay system.

    They made further concessions (including in relation to the March 2016 contract), in the agreement reached in May 2016. These were:

    (i) Agreement to the extension of plain-time working by two hours per day, with a system of weekend allowances based on the frequency of weekend working for those working more than six weekends a year;

    (ii) Accepting the principle of fidelity to the National Health Service, offering locum work at an agreed hourly rate;

    (iii) Agreeing a change to the March 2016 contract to reduce from 48 to 46 hours rest period after consecutive night shifts, amended to improve work life balance and continuity of care; and

    (iv) Agreeing to remove the rule in the March 2016 contract preventing consecutive weekend working – while retaining a rule that the frequency of weekend working can be no more than 1 in 2 weekends – to allow greater flexibility for doctors and employers.

    (b) The November 2015 offer itself had included two concessions in relation to the recommendations made by the Review Body on Doctors’ and Dentists’ Remuneration. In the ACAS agreement, the BMA accepted this November offer as the basis for negotiations. The management side then made a further 105 concessions: four during ACAS talks, 61 during negotiations that ended in February 2016, six after those negotiations ended, and 34 during negotiations in May 2016.

  • Karl Turner – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Karl Turner – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Karl Turner on 2015-11-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the effect of introducing a fixed recoverable cost regime in clinical negligence cases on the number of claims brought by claims management companies and litigants in person.

    Ben Gummer

    The Department is working closely with stakeholders to develop the proposal to introduce fixed recoverable costs. We have undertaken a pre-consultation exercise with a number of key stakeholders, including representatives of claimant lawyers, and are planning an open public consultation shortly. We welcome views on the proposal from all sectors.

    The consultation documentation, including the Impact Assessment, will be published in early 2016 subject to relevant Committee clearances. We are working upon the assumption that there is nothing about Fixed Recoverable Costs regime which will alter the percentage of unmeritorious claims.

    Any scheme proposed will include consideration of the right incentives to support a fairer and quicker process that provides the improvements to the system whilst maintaining access to justice.

    The NHS Litigation Authority reported in their annual report for 2014/15 that it resolves over 4,000 clinical negligence cases annually for no payment of damages and in 2014/15 it saved over £1.2 billion for the National Health Service in rejecting claims which had no merit.

  • Peter Bone – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Peter Bone – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Peter Bone on 2015-12-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will estimate the UK’s current trade deficit with the EU.

    Anna Soubry

    This data is publicly available and can be found on the ONS website in the ‘Balance of Payments, Quarter 2 (April to June) 2015’.

  • Greg Mulholland – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Greg Mulholland – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2016-01-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, for which countries that the UK has reimbursement arrangements with under the European Health Insurance Card regulations his Department has identified as not having staff with relevant language skills.

    Justin Tomlinson

    There is no requirement for DWP staff to have foreign language skills when dealing with EEA Member States in relation to the reimbursement process under the EHIC regulations.

  • Stuart C. McDonald – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Stuart C. McDonald – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stuart C. McDonald on 2016-02-08.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether there will be compulsory redundancy notices issued to staff based at HM Revenue and Customs Cumbernauld office in the next 12 months.

    Mr David Gauke

    HM Revenue and Customs currently has no plans to issue compulsory redundancy notices to staff based at its Cumbernauld office within the next 12 months.

  • Christopher Chope – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Christopher Chope – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christopher Chope on 2016-03-03.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 10 June 2015 to Question 2064, on social security benefits, from what source the data was obtained; and what the cost was in 2014-15 of (a) the child benefit awards and (b) the child tax credit awards under EC Regulation 883/2004.

    Damian Hinds

    HMRC holds figures on the number of cases of Child Benefit paid in respect of children living in another EEA country or Switzerland. Information on the value of these claims is not held in the format requested.

  • Richard Burden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Richard Burden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 30 March 2016 to Question 31430, on Anti-Semitism, which legal changes form part of the Government’s position on boycott, divestment and sanctions.

    Mr Marcus Jones

    Following the announcement on 3 October, the Department issued a public consultation on 25 November on changes to the regulatory framework for investments made under the local government pension scheme. The consultation proposed that guidance would be issued on how pension fund authorities should take non-financial considerations into account when making investment decisions.

    The Government’s response to the consultation will be published in due course.

  • Tania Mathias – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Tania Mathias – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tania Mathias on 2016-05-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change on the potential effect of airport expansion on the UK’s climate change goals.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    Department for Transport officials are engaging closely with colleagues in the Department for Energy and Climate Change and any decision regarding future airport capacity will take into account the Government’s obligations under the Climate Change Act.

    On 14 December 2015 the Secretary of State for Transport announced that the Government would undertake a package of further work, including on measures to mitigate carbon impacts and address sustainability concerns, particularly during construction. This further work will conclude by the summer.