Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Virendra Sharma – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Virendra Sharma – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Virendra Sharma on 2016-02-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what his Department’s wellness strategy is.

    Jane Ellison

    The Department has a health and well-being programme developed in partnership with trade union representatives, staff networks and the sports and social club.

    The Department signposts staff to sources of help and support, such as the employee assistance programme, occupational health provider and its own bank of mental health first-aiders.

    The content and impact of the programme is kept under review by a stakeholder group made up of representatives from the department and external partners, such as the Charity for Civil Servants and the Corporate Alliance Against Domestic Violence.

  • Philip Davies – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Philip Davies – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Philip Davies on 2016-03-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many fixed penalty notices police forces have issued related to smoking in vehicles with children in each of the last three years.

    Mr John Hayes

    Information on the number of fixed penalty notices (FPNs) issued by police forces is not centrally collected.

    The police and local authorities are both enforcement authorities for offences related to smoking in private vehicles carrying children. Therefore in addition to police forces doing so, local authorities can also issue fixed penalty notices for these offences, and the police can pass information to local authorities to take enforcement action.

    The legislation came into effect in October 2015, so no FPNs for smoking in vehicles with children would have been issued before this period.

  • Andrew Rosindell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Andrew Rosindell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2016-04-18.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the anti-trust implications of the proposed merger between the London Stock Exchange and Deutsche Börse.

    Harriett Baldwin

    Once formally notified of the proposed merger, the Bank of England and the Financial Conduct Authority (as supervisors of the London Stock Exchange Group’s UK-authorised subsidiaries) must assess the proposal from a regulatory standpoint.

    In addition the proposed merger must be approved by competition authorities and is subject to a range of other assessments including those of overseas regulators and shareholders.

  • Alberto Costa – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Alberto Costa – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alberto Costa on 2016-05-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Government’s response on the e-petition entitled, To introduce a permanent, minimum passing distance when overtaking cyclists, what assessment his Department is planning of cycle passing spaces in South Australia and by when he plans to complete that assessment.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    The introduction of a legally enforceable minimum passing distance between cyclists and other vehicles in South Australia is relatively recent. As a result, there is limited information available regarding the impacts both positive and negative following this change in the law. As with other changes of this type introduced overseas, we remain interested in the change and are keeping it under review.

    The Highway Code already has a requirement for motorists to give cyclists plenty of room when overtaking.

  • Cat Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Cat Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Cat Smith on 2016-07-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, with reference to the last meeting of the National Autism Programme Board, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that waiting times between referral and first assessment for a diagnosis of autism are included in the HSCIC Mental Health Services Data Set, which now includes the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services data set.

    David Mowat

    To support local areas in addressing long waits, NHS England, supported by the Department and the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services, initiated a series of visits to clinical commissioning groups and local authorities. These visits aimed to develop a better idea of the challenges in securing timely autism diagnosis across all ages, looking at the variability in diagnosis times and sharing good practice to help areas to improve their service. NHS England submitted a report on the visits to the 16 June meeting of the Cross Government Autism Programme Board, which includes representatives of autism third sector organisations and people who have autism. NHS England will have further discussions with relevant organisations over the summer about actions in their report, including on the Clinical Commissioning Group Improvement and Assessment Framework, before reporting back to the Autism Programme Board.

    In parallel, as recommended by the independent Mental Health Taskforce, the Department is undertaking a five year plan for the development of mental health data to be published by the end of the year. The plan will set out future requirements and timings for developing data to inform pathways of care, which will include requirements for autism in the Health and Social Care Information Centre Mental Health Services Data Set. Data on referrals or appointments for an autism diagnostic assessment are not currently captured in published mental health data.

  • Jim Fitzpatrick – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Jim Fitzpatrick – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Fitzpatrick on 2016-10-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans her Department has to bring forward legislation to amend the Welfare of Racing Greyhound Regulations 2010 related to the recommendations in the post-implementation review of those regulations.

    George Eustice

    As set out in Defra’s Post Implementation Review of the Welfare of Racing Greyhounds Regulations 2010, we are currently considering a number of areas where the Regulations may need amending. Any such amendments can be introduced via secondary legislation made under the Animal Welfare Act 2006.

  • Lord Falconer of Thoroton – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Lord Falconer of Thoroton – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Falconer of Thoroton on 2015-10-27.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the new Ministerial Code, whether the duty of ministers to comply with the law continues to include international law and treaties.

    Lord Bridges of Headley

    The Ministerial Code is normally updated and reissued after a General Election. The updated Code makes clear that Ministers must abide by the law. The obligations of Ministers under the law including international law remain unchanged.

    Information relating to internal discussions and advice is not disclosed.

  • Rebecca Pow – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Rebecca Pow – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rebecca Pow on 2015-11-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had with his ministerial counterparts on ensuring that road and rail links through Somerset are protected by stronger flood defences and mitigation measures.

    Claire Perry

    The Department for Transport continues to meet regularly with Somerset County Council to discuss a number of issues related to transport, including resilience. The Minister with responsibility for roads, my Hon Friend, the Hon Member for Harrogate and Knaresborough (Andrew Jones), recently sent a letter to all local highway authorities in England with respect to this including reminding councils of their duties in respect to clearing drains and gullies to prevent the risk of surface water flooding on the local road network . In addition the Department for Transport provided over £22 million, as part of the Government response to the flood events of 2013/14 and the Somerset Flood Action Plan. This funding helped in raising the main road into Muchelney and also installing four culverts at Beer Wall to reduce the risks of flooding and local communities being cut-off in the future.

    Following flooding incidents in 2012-14,Network Rail iscurrently implementing a £31million package of schemes to improve the resilience of the Great Western route through the Thames Valley and the West of England. Work has already been completed at Whiteball Tunnel, near Taunton.

  • Laurence Robertson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Laurence Robertson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Laurence Robertson on 2016-01-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what his policy is on the priority that should be given to maintaining Green Belt land in Local Plans in areas where there is unmet housing need.

    Brandon Lewis

    Green Belt is protected by local authorities in line with national policy set out in the National Planning Policy Framework. The Framework states that permanence is an essential characteristic of Green Belt, and that a Green Belt boundary may be altered only in exceptional circumstances, using the Local Plan. Our supporting Guidance reminds local authorities that, in planning to meet their objectively assessed local housing needs, they must have due regard to national policies (including Green Belt policy) which indicate that development should be restricted and which may restrain the ability of an authority to meet all its needs. This applies even where there is no up-to-date Plan. It is for the Planning Inspector examining a revised Local Plan to determine whether it is based on sound evidence and in line with national policy.

  • Victoria Borwick – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Victoria Borwick – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Victoria Borwick on 2016-02-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the effect on health care provision in Central London of trends in the number of GPs retiring from single-handed practices (a) over the last five years and (b) in the next five years.

    Alistair Burt

    This is a matter for NHS England.

    Where a single-handed general practitioner (GP) retires, it is the responsibility of NHS England to ensure the patients of that practice have continued access to National Health Service primary medical services.

    When a single-handed GP retires an assessment is made on a case by case basis taking into account a range of factors including the demographic profile of patients, alternative local GP capacity and quality, and, patient and stakeholder engagement. This assessment informs the decision as to whether to procure a new service provider or to facilitate patients to register with alternative local GPs.

    In terms of future planning NHS England and London Clinical Commissioning Groups are aware of the ages of GPs which may be an indication of future retirements, however, there is no set age for retirement. Capacity planning is constantly under review and considers both potential retirement as well as other factors such as population growth, premises and range of services to be provided which then informs commissioning strategy.