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Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Paul Flynn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Paul Flynn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Flynn on 2015-12-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what proposals the Government made aimed at making fully transparent the financial management practices in each member state participant in the Joint Ministerial Council of British Overseas Territories at its fourth meeting in December 2015.

    James Duddridge

    The Government and Overseas Territories committed at the Joint Ministerial Council to work in partnership as appropriate to support capacity building and the development of expertise in public financial management and economic planning. This includes maintaining sound public finances, building economic resilience and ensuring value for money in use of public funds, including through effective use of audit.

  • Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-01-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, when he plans to provide an answer to Question 18568, tabled by the hon. Member for East Ham on 2 December 2015.

    Nick Boles

    The Government has not made an estimate of the National Minimum Wage (NMW) rates for these age groups for each year until 2020.

    The Government asks the Low Pay Commission to make NMW rate recommendations each year based on maximising the wages of the low paid without damaging employment opportunities. The Low Pay Commission will recommend the October 2016 NMW rates and indicative rates for 2017 by the end of February 2016.

  • Baroness Massey of Darwen – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Baroness Massey of Darwen – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Massey of Darwen on 2016-02-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what additional steps, if any, they will take to monitor and enforce compliance with the School Admissions Code in the light of their decision to limit those who can formally object to school admission arrangements; and what estimate they have made of what percentage of the objections submitted to the Office of the Schools Adjudicator by (1) parents, and (2) groups or organisations, were successful between 2012 and 2015 inclusive.

    Lord Nash

    The School Admissions Code exists to ensure that places in all state funded schools are allocated in a fair and transparent manner. The Department for Education will shortly be consulting on a package of changes to the Code, which will include measures to assist parents and promote fairness and transparency. The proposed changes in relation to objections are designed to ensure that the Schools Adjudicator is able to focus on the concerns parents may have about the fairness of the admission arrangements of their local school and is not held up by the need to also consider large numbers of objections referred by interest groups from outside the area. Local authorities will continue to have the right to object so that they are able to act on behalf of the local community.

  • Lord Maginnis of Drumglass – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Lord Maginnis of Drumglass – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Maginnis of Drumglass on 2016-02-29.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they are aware of the recent case of 15 year-old Matthew Garnett who, as a consequence of being on the autistic spectrum, has been confined to a psychiatric intensive care unit for six months without having been moved to a more appropriate care facility, and what action they are taking to prevent such cases arising in future.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    We are aware of this case, and we welcome NHS England’s confirmation that Matthew will be moving to a more appropriate facility in the next month.

    Delivery of appropriate care for the few individuals with very complex needs will always be a challenge. The people who can best assess local care needs and ensure that those needs are met are local commissioners, though some people will require care that is commissioned on a national level for rare conditions, including some mental health conditions with comorbidities such as autistic spectrum disorders or learning disabilities. This includes inpatient treatment for children and young people with mental health conditions.

    NHS England is continuing Care and Treatment Reviews for children and young people with learning disabilities in inpatient settings and 52 week residential schools. These reviews ensure the care and setting are appropriate to the child or young person’s needs, and where needed, allow planned moves to community-based care or more appropriate inpatient accommodation.

  • Jon Trickett – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Jon Trickett – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jon Trickett on 2016-04-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made of the proportion of local government procurements that have been spent on small and medium-sized businesses in each of the last five years.

    Mr Marcus Jones

    The Government is committed to ensuring there is a simple and consistent approach to procurement across the public sector so that small businesses can gain better and more access to public sector contracts – either directly or as sub-contractors.

    The Government produced guidance as part of the reforms included in the Public Contract Regulations 2015 which aim to make public contracts more accessible to businesses and in particular to small and medium enterprises. The reforms included the abolition of pre-qualification questionnaire for low value tenders; simplification of the pre-qualification questionnaire for high value tenders; advertising all local authority contracts of £25,000 or over (or the authority’s standing order limit if higher) on Contracts Finder; and paying down the supplier chain in 30 days.

    The Local Government Transparency Code 2015 requires all local authorities to publish details of contracts exceeding £5,000 including information on whether or not the supplier is a small or medium sized enterprise and/or a voluntary or community sector organisation.

    However, the Department has made no assessment of the amount or proportion of local government procurement spend going to small and medium sized businesses.

  • Clive Lewis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Clive Lewis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Clive Lewis on 2016-05-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, when the Government plans to publish its response to the December 2015 HM Revenue and Customs’ consultation on increasing VAT for domestic solar.

    Andrea Leadsom

    The UK has applied a reduced rate on 11 different types of energy saving materials since 2001. That remains in place and remains unchanged.

    HMRC are currently considering the responses to their consultation on energy saving materials and they will respond in due course.

  • Calum Kerr – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union

    Calum Kerr – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Calum Kerr on 2016-07-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, if he will ensure the UK’s participation in the Digital Single Market during negotiations for UK withdrawal from the EU.

    Mr David Davis

    While the UK remains a member of the EU it will continue to play an active role in the development of the Digital Single Market.

  • Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2016-10-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answers of 12 September 2016 to Questions 45151 and 45154, on Iraq: Genocide, whether the character and scope of the campaign to hold Daesh to account for its crimes have been established; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    ​Over the next few months, we will be working with our international partners, in particular the Government of Iraq, to bring forward a proposal at the UN to put the campaign into action. Our intention is that this campaign will be UN-led with survivors, and groups that work with them, at its heart. This must be about justice for all Daesh’s victims, the Sunni and Shia Muslims in Iraq and Syria, minority groups they have targeted, and the victims of its terrorist attacks around the world. One area we already agree needs urgent attention is gathering and preserving evidence. The campaign will focus exclusively on Daesh. The question of accountability for other actors in Syria, Iraq, Libya and elsewhere should continue to be pursued through other efforts. Success will require patience and resolve. But, together, we must see justice done and ensure that our values of unity, compassion and tolerance triumph over Daesh’s remorseless efforts to stoke division and hate.

  • Philip Davies – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Philip Davies – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Philip Davies on 2015-11-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, which regulations his Department introduced as a result of EU legislation in (a) 2013, (b) 2014 and (c) 2015 to date; which regulations his Department expects to implement as a result of EU legislation in (i) 2016 and (ii) 2017; and what estimate he has made of the cost of each such regulation to the (A) public purse and (B) private sector.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to UIN 15037.

  • Ian Blackford – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Ian Blackford – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Blackford on 2015-12-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what discussions his Department has had with the equity release industry on the potential contribution of equity release to supporting the income of pensioners.

    Justin Tomlinson

    The Government has created the foundation for saving for retirement via automatic enrolment and the State Pension reforms and given individuals the freedom to use their own savings and access other sources of income or capital in the way that best suits their needs. The latest figures from the Office for National Statistics indicate that around 80% of pensioners hold some form of housing equity. However, people who might choose to access potential sources of income, such as equity release or flexible pension products, will need to give careful consideration to whether it best suits their needs and how it could affect their income and entitlement to welfare, both now and in the future.

    That is why the government set up Pension Wise to provide information and guidance on how people can access their pension saving flexibly. Information is widely available in terms of how income and capital are treated in the means-tested benefits. Officials have held discussions with the equity release industry in May 2014 and February 2015 to explain the interactions between equity release and means tested benefits.