Tag: Parliamentary Question

Tom Brake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Brake on 2016-02-25.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an assessment of the potential effect on the number of people employed by police services who are from non-EU countries of the salary threshold increase for Tier 2 visa applications to £35,000.

James Brokenshire

The Government announced in 2012 that from 6 April 2016 Tier 2 visa holders who apply for settlement in the UK will be required to meet a minimum annual salary requirement of £35,000. PhD level roles and those in recognised shortage will be exempt from the £35,000 threshold.

Data of the number of people employed in specific regions of the United Kingdom is not available. The Home Office holds individual records showing the working location of Tier 2 (General) migrants, but centralised records show the registered address of the Tier 2 Sponsor, which is normally that organisation’s Head Office.

The Home Office published a full impact assessment on the changes to Tier 2 settlement rules when they were laid before Parliament on 15 March 2012. This includes the impact on the top ten occupations and is available on the gov.uk website at: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/117957/impact-assessment-tier2.pdf

01/01/2023
Daniel Zeichner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2016-04-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent steps his Department has taken to ensure that people who qualify for attendance allowance have been made aware of that scheme and of their eligibility for it.

Justin Tomlinson

Attendance Allowance (AA) is available to those who have long term care or supervision needs that arise from age 65 onwards. The Department is committed to encouraging older people to take up the benefits they are entitled to and goes to considerable lengths to publicise benefits. Information is available from the Department’s offices; advice agencies, including local authorities. Information about all benefits and how these may be claimed is readily available on the GOV.UK website, or through the DWP Information Line.

Information for welfare rights advisers, available on GOV.UK, includes specific detailed benefits information; this same information is used by Decision Makers in DWP.

Additionally, the Department’s National Partnerships Team works with customer representative organisations, both nationally and locally, to provide a wide range of advice and support for older people. Over 300 of these partner organisations operate as an Alternative Office, taking and verifying Attendance Allowance claims on behalf of the Secretary of State. And for those unable to access services through other channels, a visiting service is available to help with information and claims.

01/01/2023

Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-05-18.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the Answer of 18 April 2016 to Question 33136, on how many occasions has a child’s admission been directed by (a) the Schools Adjudicator after it was sought by a local authority and (b) the Education Funding Agency in each of the last five years.

Nick Gibb

The Education Funding Agency (EFA) was established in April 2012. It does not have direction powers in its own right but instead issues directions on behalf of the Secretary of State. Since being established it has directed academies to admit pupils twelve times.

The Schools Adjudicator (OSA) does not issue directions in relation to maintained schools but will determine the case if a school which a local authority is seeking to direct refers the case on to the adjudicator. Data is not available for 2015-16 but between 2010 and 2015, it has upheld thirteen directions.

The table below sets out the directions issued or upheld in each of the past five years:

Year	LA directions upheld by OSA	Secretary of State directions issued by EFA
10-11	0	EFA did not exist
11-12	5	EFA did not exist.
12-13	0	1
13-14	6	2
14-15	2	7

01/01/2023

Tim Farron – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Farron on 2016-07-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what her policy is on compensation for farmers of the loss of CAP payments after the UK has withdrawn from the EU.

George Eustice

Decisions on the future of agricultural support will be taken once the new Government is in place. The Government will work with industry and the public to develop the new arrangements.

01/01/2023
Richard Graham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Graham on 2016-09-13.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether his Department plans to continue to ring-fence Contracts for Difference funding solely for tidal and marine energy projects.

Jesse Norman

The details of the forthcoming Contract for Difference (CfD) allocation round, including whether funding for wave and tidal stream projects should be ring-fenced, will be announced in due course.

01/01/2023
Heidi Alexander – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Heidi Alexander on 2015-11-03.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the total amount that will be spent on pay for junior doctors in 2015-16; and how many junior doctors will be employed in that year.

Ben Gummer

Data on the junior doctor paybill for 2015/2016 and those that will be employed over this financial year is not yet available.

The latest data available relates to the financial year 2014/2015. For that year the substantive junior doctor paybill was £3.1 billion; and there were an average of around 53,000 full-time-equivalent junior doctors employed over the year.

01/01/2023
Mike Kane – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mike Kane on 2015-12-01.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what timetable he has set for tax credit claimants in Wythenshawe and Sale East constituency to migrate to universal credit.

Priti Patel

We are rolling out Universal Credit (UC) in a careful and controlled manner – an approach that was endorsed by the Major Projects Authority. UC is now available to single claimants, couples and families in Wythenshawe and Sale East constituency.

Our plan is that existing benefit and tax credit claimants will be migrated to UC by 2020/21. Further details will be made available in due course.

01/01/2023
Gavin Robinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gavin Robinson on 2016-01-12.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what proportion of the Armed Forces Covenant applies to Northern Ireland.

Mark Lancaster

Since the launch of the Armed Forces Covenant in 2011 the Ministry of Defence has worked closely with Northern Ireland Government Departments, Service charities and other groups to build on existing measures to support the Armed Forces Community. In 2013, the Select Committee on Northern Ireland Affairs reported that, less some specific areas, Covenant measures were being applied in Northern Ireland.

I acknowledge that the Armed Forces Covenant does not enjoy the same level of awareness or appreciation in Northern Ireland as in other parts of the UK. However, I am clear that every effort is being made to implement the Covenant against the particular nuances of the Northern Irish political and legal environment. The Ministry of Defence and other parties work tirelessly to ensure good relationships help develop improved understanding of specific needs and I have been impressed by the way in which solutions to these needs are generated in a focussed and professional manner. Such provision is fully commensurate with the aims and objectives of the Covenant, whether it is branded as such or not.

Service personnel in Northern Ireland are well-catered for under the auspices of the Covenant and are at no particular disadvantage, although more work is needed to identify the needs of those within the veterans community. This work is ongoing, well-resourced, and fully recognised as activity provided within the scope of the Armed Forces Covenant.

01/01/2023
Antoinette Sandbach – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Antoinette Sandbach on 2016-02-01.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps the Secretary of State is taking to ensure supermarkets are not breaching the industry code of practice by delaying payments to suppliers and demanding extra fees.

Anna Soubry

The Groceries Code Adjudicator (GCA) is responsible for enforcing the Groceries Supply Code of Practice (the Code). The GCA is independent from Government. The current Adjudicator is Christine Tacon.

The Government fully supports the GCA. We were very pleased to see the recent report of her investigation into Tesco. The GCA found Tesco had breached the Code by delaying payments to its suppliers and she made recommendations to ensure future compliance with the Code.

The GCA’s investigation and report sent a clear message to all supermarkets subject to the Code that she will accept no less than the principle of fair dealing demanded by the Code. It put the industry on notice that any breach of the Code is unacceptable and will not be tolerated.

01/01/2023

Jonathan Ashworth – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jonathan Ashworth on 2016-02-25.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how much her Department has paid to staff in overtime in each of the last 24 months.

Mr Desmond Swayne

Overtime is only payable to staff below the Senior Civil Service and is used as a last resort to help deal with exceptional or seasonal pressures of work. The values for overtime paid in each of the last 24 months are recorded below.

Month	Overtime Paid
Mar-14	£ 47,739
Apr-14	£ 51,400
May-14	£ 22,598
Jun-14	£ 33,375
Jul-14	£ 29,992
Aug-14	£ 54,954
Sep-14	£ 26,462
Oct-14	£ 52,607
Nov-14	£ 41,797
Dec-14	£ 46,161
Jan-15	£ 34,508
Feb-15	£ 35,047
Mar-15	£ 49,281
Apr-15	£ 25,623
May-15	£ 29,731
Jun-15	£ 38,273
Jul-15	£ 38,207
Aug-15	£ 28,062
Sep-15	£ 19,252
Oct-15	£ 33,338
Nov-15	£ 27,689
Dec-15	£ 37,385
Jan-16	£ 13,732
Feb-16	£ 33,638
Total	£ 850,851

01/01/2023